> **"Predators don't roar. They watch. They wait. And then they kill."**
> — Anonymous post, deleted after 13 minutes
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### **\[1] — Strategic Stillness**
For the next two days, Jungho did nothing.
No retaliation. No message. No visit to the burned trash site. He went to class, stared out windows, took naps during lunch breaks.
To anyone watching, it looked like Baekho's provocations had dulled him.
But those who had seen his true face—the cold eyes, the casual brutality—knew better.
Suhyeon sat beside Jay, whispering, "He's not suppressing anything. He's waiting."
Jay swallowed hard. "Waiting for what?"
Suhyeon didn't answer. He wasn't sure he wanted to know.
---
### **\[2] — The Quiet Gathering**
Jungho wasn't alone.
Over the past week, those who had seen his outbursts—students, delinquents, bystanders—began to drift toward him.
They didn't speak. They didn't beg for friendship. They just started *avoiding* Baekho's crew.
Unorganized. Unplanned. But noticeable.
The smart ones called it "proximity fear." Stay near Jungho, and you won't be targeted. Stay near Jungho, and maybe you'll survive.
He didn't notice.
Or he did—and simply didn't care.
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### **\[3] — Thread Update**
> **Subject: The Maniac in the Shadows \[Update #46]**
> **User: ?!BleedByte**
>
> Something weird is happening at Gangbuk.
>
> No new fights. No police reports. But Baekho's guys are *quiet.* Like something is about to happen and they're bracing for it.
>
> Jungho? Still no moves. But yesterday, someone saw him buy a notebook. That's it. A f\*\*\*ing notebook.
>
> For some reason… that scares me more than if he bought a weapon.
---
### **\[4] — Bait**
Baekho received a package at school. No return address.
Inside:
A pair of wired earphones. A cracked CD. A note:
> "Try listening for once."
He scoffed. Plugged it in.
What played wasn't music. It was him.
His own voice. Conversations with underlings. Orders. Cruel laughs. Private admissions.
Every one of them incriminating.
He yanked the cable out, heart pounding.
"...He bugged me?"
Behind him, one of his men looked pale. "Sir, this means he's… *been planning.*"
---
### **\[5] — The First Collapse**
That night, one of Baekho's key lieutenants, Minho, was cornered outside a billiards bar.
There were no punches thrown.
Just a flash drive handed to a group of rival gang members.
Inside: Video of Minho beating a freshman nearly to death two months ago.
Minho was hospitalized that same night—by *his own gang*, who didn't want heat.
Jungho didn't lift a finger.
He just *pulled a string.*
---
### **\[6] — Daniel Notices**
"Something's changing," Daniel muttered.
He, Suhyeon, and Jay stood on the school roof, watching students move like nervous cattle.
"It's Jungho," Suhyeon confirmed. "He's weaponizing silence."
Daniel frowned. "You mean… he's starting a war without swinging?"
"Exactly."
Jay added, "And it's working."
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### **\[7] — The Message**
Baekho returned home that night to find his front door cracked open.
He rushed in. No one there.
But in the center of the living room: a photo of him, sleeping.
From last night.
On the back, scribbled in black ink:
> "You woke me up. Now I'll never sleep."
Baekho's hands shook.
"Get the crew. *All* of them."
---
### **\[8] — The Burnout Begins**
Two more lieutenants went silent the next day. Phones off. Socials deleted. One was spotted getting on a bus to Busan.
Whispers flooded the streets:
> "Jungho's not fighting. He's *erasing.*"
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### **\[9] — The New Rule**
By week's end, an unspoken law echoed in Gangbuk:
> Don't provoke the maniac.
> Don't speak his name.
> Don't. Be. Seen.
And Jungho?
He just went to school, stared out windows, and watched the empire fall in silence.
---