Yang-jung and Du-yeong walked out of the storage room. Hyeon-ju and the others had already gone to bed to recover from the long night.
The morning sun filtered through the upper levels of the house but the basement remained as dark as always. President Choi sat in the living room and watched them approach.
Yang-jung stood before the wheelchair.
"President Choi, we have tried all our methods. Kang In-beom will not speak a word. I do not think we can get anything out of him."
President Choi leaned back and contemplated the situation. Du-yeong cleared his throat to get their attention.
"President Choi, I have a way to make him speak."
President Choi looked up at him with interest. "Oh. What is it?"
"There is a new drug on the market called Truth Game. It is used to make people speak the truth under its influence. If we can get it, we can make In-beom talk."
President Choi gave a sharp nod. "Then get it done. Now that Jang-do and In-beom have gone missing, Myeong-gil will start planning changes immediately. We have to act faster than him."
Du-yeong nodded and turned to leave. Yang-jung stayed behind for a moment.
"What do we do about Kim Jun-min?"
"Since Du-yeong will be busy tonight, how about you handle it?"
Yang-jung gave a short bow. "Yes, President Choi."
---
An SUV coursed through the morning highway of Seoul. The roads were especially packed due to the rush hour traffic.
Inside the vehicle, Officer Hong Gang-yong was calling a particular number. He was trying to reach Hong Min-beom, the heir of the Iil Group, as well as his cousin.
Min-beom sat in a private room inside a dimly lit pub. He looked extremely disheveled and unkempt. He hurriedly answered the call as his hands trembled.
"Hello?"
Gang-yong spoke firmly from the other side of the line.
"Yeah, I will be there in ten minutes. Director Hong, do not hang up the phone. Just flip it over and leave it on the table so I can listen in. You get what I am saying, right?"
The door to the private room swung open at that exact moment. Kim Myeong-gil walked in with a cold expression.
Min-beom hurriedly flipped the phone over on the table as he tried to look natural. He felt his heart racing against his ribs.
Myeong-gil sat on the sofa directly across from Min-beom. Between them sat the table with the hidden phone.
"Let me cut to the chase."
Myeong-gil suddenly stood up and grabbed Min-beom by the hair. He yanked the man's head forward across the table.
Min-beom panicked and clawed at Myeong-gil's hand. "What are you doing?"
Myeong-gil picked up the phone and smashed the edge of it into Min-beom's throat. Min-beom let out a strangled groan.
Gang-yong heard the impact through the line and gripped his steering wheel. He felt helpless and furious as he listened to the struggle.
"Stop being a little bitch and sit still," Myeong-gil said.
He looked at the screen and saw the call was still ongoing. He brought the phone to his face.
"You there?"
Gang-yong cursed loudly. "I am right here, asshole. What the hell are you trying to do? Do you have a death wish? You are making a big mistake right now."
Myeong-gil pulled Min-beom's hair harder which earned another painful groan.
"You might want to tell him to shut up."
Min-beom shouted toward the phone in a desperate voice. "Dude! Stop!"
Gang-yong snapped at Myeong-gil again. "You are going to rot in a cell for the rest of your life."
Myeong-gil pinched a few strands of Min-beom's hair and twisted them slowly. Min-beom screamed in pain.
"You motherfucker! Fuck! Shut the hell up, you fucking son of a bitch!"
Myeong-gil chuckled as he looked down at the pathetic man. "Jackass."
He focused back on the call. "Have you calmed down?"
Gang-yong did not answer immediately. Myeong-gil let out a bored sigh.
"I cannot hear you."
Gang-yong released a long breath of frustration into the receiver. "Tell me what you want."
Myeong-gil got straight to business. "There is a report that came into the Yeongdeungpo Police Department."
Min-beom winced as Myeong-gil tightened his grip.
"A car chase happened today before sunrise. A black Mercedes and a silver SUV were chased by several black SUVs. Find out where the owner of the Mercedes and the silver SUV are hiding."
Myeong-gil looked at his watch. "It is 10:00 right now. I will give you five hours. If you cannot find him, your cousin's little striptease will be online."
Min-beom gasped as he realized the stakes.
"Try to pull something on me and it will also find its way online. If you do not want to see Iil Group's stock prices tank, I suggest you do well. Good luck."
Myeong-gil ended the call with a thumb swipe. He turned to Min-beom and twisted the man's wrist until it clicked.
He pointed the phone at Min-beom's face. "What is the password?"
"735629!" Min-beom shouted.
Myeong-gil smiled and tucked the phone into his pocket. He stood up and straightened his suit jacket.
"See you soon."
Myeong-gil walked out of the room and closed the door behind him. Min-beom groaned in pain for a while before he looked up at the empty doorway.
"Fuck you!"