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"Do you mind if I head to bed first?" Kang Chul-Gyu asked quietly, getting up from his seat. "I’ll take the room at the end of the hall.”

Kang Chul-Gyu headed inside as Kim Mi-Young got up from her seat as well.

This wasn’t what I had in mind. I wanted to create a more relaxed atmosphere. Maybe I should have suggested drinking.

Kang Chan had no idea what to do. Meanwhile, Kim Mi-Young sat opposite him.

"Aren\'t you tired?" she asked.

"Not at all," Kang Chan replied.

Kim Mi-Young gently held Kang Chan\'s hand on the table.

"This place is really nice,” she said.

"Really? That\'s great to hear."

"Does Dad usually go to bed this early?"[1]

"I don\'t know."

Kang Chan took out his phone to check the time. It was only 8 PM, too early to sleep.

"If he\'s doing this to give us some space, we can call him back and do something together."

"I’m not sure what we can do, though," Kang Chan said, then looked around.

"We can ask the owner," Kim Mi-Young suggested.

"Huh?"

He hadn\'t thought of that. Surely, the owner of this place would know something.

"Stay here," he said.

"No, I’ll come with you."

"Alright."

Kang Chan and Kim Mi-Young walked to the owner’s office on the other side of the pension house.

Ding. Ding.

The wind chimes rang as they entered.

The office was quite impressive. It had the atmosphere of a city café, making it pleasant to the eye. Soon, the owner showed up.

"Yes?"

"Excuse me. Is there anything to do at night around here?" Kang Chan asked.

"Right now?"

"Yes."

The owner thought about it for a moment, expressing his willingness to cooperate. "How about fishing by the river? It costs 5,000 won per fishing rod. Worms and dough bait are also 5,000 won."

"Anything else?"

"Well, if it were daytime, you could take a boat ride, but right now..."

Kang Chan looked back at Kim Mi-Young, who was waiting.

It seemed a bit much to just go to bed at 8 PM.

"We’ll rent the fishing gear. We\'ve never fished before, though. Can we still do it?" he asked.

The owner sighed. With a serious expression, he said, "I can go set it up and explain how it works to you, but I can\'t stay long."

"That would be great."

"It can get chilly at night with the moisture, so prepare accordingly."

As Kang Chan and Kim Mi-Young left the office, they heard the owner call out, "Honey!"

Kang Chan and Kim Mi-Young went straight to the pension house\'s living room. Kang Chul-Gyu was there with a towel around his neck.

"Dad! Let’s go fishing," she said.

Kang Chul-Gyu looked at Kang Chan as if asking for an explanation.

"Heading to bed this early would be a shame, so we thought we\'d go fishing. We rented the gear here."

"Come with us,” Kim Mi-Young urged.

Kang Chul-Gyu smiled at her. "Alright. Let\'s see if we can catch some fish, Mi-Young."

His tone and expression made it seem like he should be holding a knife instead of a fishing rod.

"They said it might be cold."

"Let’s bring a coat, then."

Soon, the three headed to the office together.

They took chairs, a parasol, three fishing rods, stands, holders, bait bowls, worms, and a fishnet. The sheer number of things they needed almost convinced them not to do it.

The three followed the owner in a line. Once they reached the riverbank, the owner spent the next thirty minutes setting up the fishing rods and explaining how to cast them.

"Hope you catch a lot,” the owner said. He then left so quickly that he almost seemed to be fleeing.

The three had never seen chemical lights used in operations made so small to serve as fishing bobbers. The three blue lights glowing in the dark river looked quite picturesque.

"You know, Dad," Kim Mi-Young called, then began telling him about the time Kang Chan set up the sports club and helped struggling kids. She seemed bothered by Kang Chul-Gyu going inside earlier.

Every now and then, they would check if the worms on the hooks were still alive and replace the dough bait. Kang Chan felt that this wasn\'t really something people should be doing for spontaneous fun. Despite how vast the river was, they couldn’t even catch a single fish.

Kim Mi-Young and Kang Chul-Gyu chatted intermittently until three in the morning. It was a hundred times better than simply sleeping, yet they didn\'t want to do it again.

Afterward, Kang Chan made omelets for breakfast. Considering Kim Mi-Young and Kang Chul-Gyu were satisfied, Kang Chan thought he did well.

Kang Chul-Gyu unraveled the threads of a towel, twisted them into a string, and turned the wood carving he had made into a neckless.

"Thank you," Kim Mi-Young said.

Having been coated with oil and attached to a string, it now looked quite presentable.

Finally, they were ready to go. They stopped by the office to pay for the fishing rods and got into the car.

"Do you mind if we stop by Namyangju on the way back to Seoul?" Kang Chul-Gyu asked quietly as Kang Chan started the engine.

"There\'s a memorial park in Sudong. It\'s hard to find time to visit, so I was hoping we could stop by on the way..." he trailed off as he looked at Kang Chan.

Knowing that Kang Chul-Gyu would never ask for a favor like this unless it was really important, Kang Chan didn\'t hesitate to search for the memorial park on the GPS. He then picked up his phone and called Choi Jong-Il.

"We’ll stop by the memorial park in Sudong on the way to Seoul," he said.

- Yes, sir.

Afterward, they hit the road.

Spending a night together and having conversations while fishing seemed to have brought them closer. The awkwardly flavored candy that Kim Mi-Young had shared now tasted less awkward.

They reached the memorial park about thirty-five minutes later. Three vans, likely carrying agents, were already parked there. After Kang Chan parked the car, two more vans and a sedan arrived. Although he already had a good idea of who might be there, he only realized it when he saw the memorial building. Chills unexpectedly ran down his spine.

She had never hugged or told Kang Chan "I love you." Her face had always been weary from life, never showing him even a small smile.

Kang Chan bought a bouquet of white chrysanthemums at the entrance. He then walked past the agents in black suits and sunglasses openly guarding the entrance and the area inside.

Kang Chul-Gyu walked down the cool marble hallway and stood facing one wall. In front of him was an old photograph of a woman in her younger years—a time before life wore her down and when she still looked at Kang Chan with hopeful eyes.

Kang Chan swallowed dryly through clenched his teeth.

Kim Mi-Young seemed to sense that the person in the photo was Kang Chul-Gyu\'s wife. As Kang Chan placed the chrysanthemums in front of the photo and stood up, he saw Kang Chul-Gyu’s lips move.

“I’m sorry,” he mouthed.

Why has life been so hard?

Was running away really the best option?

Why couldn’t I have protected them as I protect my family now?

Should I have stayed in Korea as a non-commissioned officer and protected these two instead of joining the Foreign Legion?

Kang Chan spoke to the photo.

"I was just a kid back then. I didn’t know anything,"

Kang Chul-Gyu and Kim Mi-Young looked at him with reddened eyes.

"I was too young to think about protecting you both, so..."

Kang Chan thought he had forgotten. He believed he had sorted out his feelings completely. That was why he never imagined it would hurt this much.

"Please forgive me. May you be reborn in a happy place."

About ten minutes passed.

"Phew!"

Kang Chan gathered his emotions and looked at Kim Mi-Young, whose eyes were brimming with tears.

"They are like parents to me."

Kim Mi-Young nodded.

***

Nusa Dua Beach, Bali, Indonesia.

A grand villa resembling a massive castle sat on top of a hill, looking down arrogantly at the turquoise sea in the distance. It had a private driveway that made it inaccessible to the public and a luxurious swimming pool.

In the wide shade cast by a payung—an Indonesian parasol made of cloth—Ziegfeld set down a glass of iced tea.

"What do you want to do next?" Ziegfeld asked.

"I don\'t know," Parthal replied meekly, sitting in front of him.

Parthal\'s bleached blond hair gave him a striking appearance.

"Things seem to be finally taking shape, don’t they?"

Ziegfeld, who looked to be in his sixties, smiled at Parthal.

"We’ve killed half of the Rothschild idiots and taken five trillion dollars. Now it\'s their turn to be complacent."

"Do you really think they’ll do that?"

Ziegfeld laughed in amusement. "You know it costs quite a bit to build this villa, don’t you?"

He picked up a sugar cube from the table and dropped it on the ground. "Still, I couldn’t stop ants from hiding here. Not even God can stop them from swarming to something sweet."

Parthal glanced at the sugar cube on the ground with minimal interest.

"Look, they\'ve already surrounded it. To us, they\'re just ants, but from their perspective, they’re in a brutal fight, cutting each other\'s throats. That\'s the world you\'ve stepped into now."

Ziegfeld looked away as if he had lost interest.

"The ones who win and get the sugar always become complacent. Eliminate them, and it\'s over."

Crush!

Ziegfeld stomped on the sugar cube.

"It\'s foolish to overthink when dealing with ants. Just crush the ones who win, and they\'ll start fighting among themselves again."

He drank his iced tea and set the glass down.

"Next-generation energy facilities? Eurasian Rail? If you stop them now, they\'ll fight fiercely, but if you destroy them just before they\'re completed, they\'ll be too devastated to get up again."

"He\'s not someone to be underestimated," Parthal said.

Ziegfeld snickered.

"Oh no! Our future is completely ruined,” he sarcastically remarked. “In that case, take down everything around him."

"I\'ve been trying to do that."

"Parthal."

Ziegfeld now sounded cold. Parthal looked up at him, adjusting his attitude accordingly.

"Save your pride for those stupid Rothschilds."

"I\'m sorry, sir."

"Phew."

Ziegfeld sighed, calming his emotions. "Will you feel better if I kill him?"

Parthal\'s head snapped up.

"Does the idea of getting rid of that damn Oriental make you that happy?"

"He made me taste failure for the first time."

"You made several mistakes. You used people bound to fail, united your enemies, and fought them in a way they excelled at. Naturally, you’d lose."

"Yes, sir."

To Ziegfeld, everything about Parthal seemed pleasing.

"Let\'s take out Moon Jae-Hyun first."

"What?"

Ziegfeld laughed heartily.

"That insignificant president of South Korea... Taking him down by removing those around him one by one around him will make you feel better."

"Did you already know everything?"

"I’ve been waiting because Lanok hasn’t revealed all his cards yet. Unfortunately, it seems I need to give you some encouragement now."

Parthal looked hopeful.

"What do you think will happen if we eliminate Lanok?"

"Wouldn\'t he go mad with rage?"

"That would be even better."

"Will you let me handle Kang Chan?" Parthal inquired.

Ziegfeld looked surprised. With a smile, he nodded.

"Since he handed you your first defeat, it’s only fitting for you to snap his neck yourself. For now, just rest until I\'ve completely dismantled everything around him."

"Yes, sir."

Ziegfeld looked at Parthal as if he was the most precious person in the world.

"What did I tell you to do with ants?"

"Crush them."

"That\'s right! Don\'t lose heart over ants. You were just bitten because you let your guard down. No matter how much they act up, they’re still just ants that cut each other\'s throats. Make them realize that."

Parthal smiled sheepishly. "Thank you, sir."

Ziegfeld burst into a hearty laugh. "You\'re such a pure soul to lose heart over mere insects. It\'s worrisome."

***

Kim Mi-Young got out right in front of her apartment.

"Thank you for coming with us. I had fun. Take care," Kang Chul-Gyu said.

"Thank you for the gift. I had a wonderful time too. Please contact me the next time you\'re in Korea," Kim Mi-Young responded.

As Kang Chul-Gyu nodded, Kim Mi-Young hesitantly stepped forward and hugged him.

"Take care, Dad."

Kang Chul-Gyu\'s cheek twitched.

"Take care," Kim Mi-Young told Kang Chan.

"Sure. I\'ll call you later," Kang Chan replied.

Once Kim Mi-Young was inside, Kang Chan and Kang Chul-Gyu got back into the car. They headed toward the hotel.

"I\'ve been having a bad feeling since this morning," Kang Chul-Gyu said, his gaze fixed on the van ahead of them. "I won\'t go into details since you seem to have a similar sense. It would be best to be more vigilant around you and your surroundings for now."

Kang Chan understood why Seok Kang-Ho often asked, “Is it really that bad?”during conversations like this. Since the feeling didn’t specifically tell them what was about to happen or where, he had never been able to give him a concrete answer. Hence, there was no need to ask.

Kang Chan, too, had been feeling uneasy since that morning, attributing it initially to their visit to the memorial park. However, what Kang Chul-Gyu had just told him made him realize that he needed to be even more cautious.

After reaching the hotel and parking the car properly, Kang Chan walked over to Kang Chul-Gyu, who had gotten out of the passenger seat.

"We\'re leaving the day after tomorrow."

Kang Chul-Gyu nodded. "Don\'t worry about the factory in Mongolia and the two people there."

"If things get too dangerous, retreating is also an option."

Kang Chul-Gyu let out a wry smile. He then addressed Kang Chan by his title. "Assistant Director, trust the DMZ team and the NIS anti-terrorism team."

They both seemed to sense an imminent crisis. Unfortunately, its nature and target remained unknown.

In his heart, Kang Chan wished they could just shut down operations in Mongolia and gather everyone in one place for safety.

Why did this ominous feeling have to come right after their short vacation?

"Take care," Kang Chul-Gyu said, then turned to leave.

Kang Chan didn\'t feel right letting Kang Chul-Gyu go like this. Staring at his back as Kang Chul-Gyu walked toward the hotel entrance, Kang Chan felt a strong urge to call out, warn him of the danger, and tell him to retreat if necessary.

As he stood there, unable to look away, Choi Jong-Il and Woo Hee-Seung approached him.

"Good work."

"It felt like a day off."

Kang Chan let out a quiet sigh.

Kang Chul-Gyu had already entered the hotel and walked out of sight.

"Got a cigarette?"

Choi Jong-Il handed him a cigarette and a lighter.

Click.

"Phew."

The smoke quickly dissipated into the air.

1. From the last chapter, Kim Mi-Young started calling Kang Chul-Gyu \'Dad.\' ☜