The city was quiet when the four men slipped into the underground clinic. A rusted metal sign hung crooked above the door, flickering under a dying neon light. Inside, the "doctor", a bald, broad-shouldered man with tattoos crawling up his arms, waved them in without a word.
Vlad lay shirtless on the steel table, gritting his teeth while the doctor dug bullets out of his shoulder with cold metal hooks. Tae-min sat on another table, blood drying on his ribs, wincing as alcohol burned into open flesh.
Sang-ho and Soo-jin stood by the wall, watching, silent, haunted by the weight of what they had just survived, and by the weight of what was coming next.
But across Nampo, someone else was reaching the end of his line.
Warehouse District, 2:17 AM
Chairman Seo's fleet of matte-black sedans rolled to a stop in front of an abandoned warehouse complex. The air was thick with salt from the nearby docks, mixing with the stench of metal and stale rainwater.
His men stepped out first, disciplined, armed, and dead-eyed. They spread across the yard with swift, trained movements.
Within seconds:
CRASH!
A steel door was kicked open.
BANG ! BANG !
Two guards hit the ground.
"Clear!"
A lieutenant hurried to Seo, bowing his head.
"Chairman. Gwon Tae-sik is barricaded in the office overlooking the warehouse floor."
Chairman Seo smoothed his coat sleeve.
"I'll enter alone."
The men stepped back immediately, out of respect, but mainly out of fear.
Seo climbed the stairway with unhurried steps, polished shoes echoing on metal. The warehouse below was a battlefield, bodies on concrete, guns kicked aside, blood pooling near crates.
He reached the office door.
Opened it.
Walked in.
Inside the Office
Gwon Tae-sik stood with his back to the window, face twisted with rage, fear, exhaustion, it was the look of a man who had run out of schemes. His hand which was holding a gun, trembled, though he tried to hide it behind the desk.
Across the room sat his son, a young man in his twenties, pale, nervous, eyes wide. He avoided his father's gaze.
Tae-sik snapped.
"Get out! Leave now!"
Before the boy could move, Chairman Seo's voice cut in:
"He stays."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop.
Seo stepped further inside, hands calmly in his pockets, a shark strolling through shallow water.
"This is the end of the road, Tae-sik."
The words made Tae-sik flinch like he'd been struck. Desperation made him reach for anything, any leverage, any distraction.
"Wait—listen. I'm not the enemey here. Sang-ho and his boys... they're tied to the Baekho Group from Seongrim! They're here to take Nampo from under you!"
Chairman Seo blinked once.
Slowly.
Almost amused.
"Nampo?"
He took a step closer.
"The Baekho Group can't move on Nampo."
His tone became almost instructive, like a teacher correcting a stubborn student.
"The Chinese Triad rules this entire side, every small town, every port, every city from here to the western border. Seongrim and the eastern territories belong to the Koreans and the Japanese."
He tilted his head.
"If a Seongrim group enters Nampo, it wouldn't be turf war."
His voice dropped to a whisper:
"It would be a declaration of international conflict."
Tae-sik's mouth went dry. His last excuse, crushed.
Seo's eyes narrowed slightly.
"And that's why I know your claim is bullshit."
He paused.
Then delivered the real blow.
"Once you're gone, I'll be eliminating Sang-ho's crew as well."
Tae-sik's breath caught.
"W-what? Why? Aren't they helping you..."
"Precisely. But..."
Seo stepped closer.
"They're the only variables I can't control."
Silence.
Heavy. Suffocating.
Tae-sik stumbled back a step.
Seo finally turned his eyes toward the young man sitting in the corner.
Now Tae-sik understood.
Too late.
Seo spoke softly.
"Did you think I didn't know you put moles in my ranks?"
The color drained from Tae-sik's face.
"Moles are understandable," Seo continued. "Expected, even."
He let the next sentence sink like a knife:
"Which is why I planted my own in yours. What is that saying again? Oh... 'like father like son' I don't know who's the bigger snake between the two of you, and I don't care."
Tae-sik spun toward his son.
A kid he had raised.
Trusted.
Brought into the business.
The young man wouldn't even meet his father's eyes.
Seo's final line was cold enough to freeze marrow:
"And the funny thing is, he was the one who came to me."
Gwon Tae-sik's voice broke.
"Son…? No… you..."
But his son finally stood.
Slowly.
Hesitantly.
Gun trembling in his hand.
Chairman Seo didn't need to give the order out loud.
He simply turned.
And left the room.
As he walked down the stairs, the night held was silent and cold.
Then...
BANG.
A shout.
BANG. BANG.
Seo reached his waiting sedan, exhaled once, and closed the car door calmly.
The engine hummed.
The warehouse behind him was silent.
"Drive."
And they disappeared into the night, leaving behind the corpse of a dynasty.