The sun was beginning to set, casting a warm golden glow across the campus. Students were trickling out of buildings, heading home or to evening activities. The day had passed quickly — far too quickly for Lee Hye-jin's liking.
She and Han Joon-seong walked side by side toward the main entrance. Their footsteps echoed softly on the paved path, the sounds of the campus fading behind them.
Lee Hye-jin's heart was full. The day had been perfect — the walk, the conversation, the laughs. Even the awkward encounter with Jung-ho and the embarrassing moment with Seo-yeon couldn't ruin it.
They reached the entrance and stopped. A moment of silence stretched between them.
"Thank you," Lee Hye-jin said softly. "For today. I had a really good time."
Han Joon-seong smiled, his expression warm. "I did too. You have a beautiful campus. And you're... very good company."
Her face flushed. "I'm glad. We should do this again sometime."
He nodded. "I'd like that."
She hesitated, then took a small step forward. "Well... I guess I should go. It's getting late."
"Be safe getting home."
"I will." She smiled, a little shyly. "Goodnight, Han Joon-seong."
"Goodnight, Miss Lee Hye-jin."
She turned and began walking away, her steps light. She glanced back once, waving. He waved back. Then she disappeared around a corner.
Han Joon-seong stood at the entrance for a few moments longer, watching her go. Then he turned and began walking in the opposite direction, away from the university.
---
Up above, Ervin didn't follow.
He remained floating above the campus entrance, his eyes fixed on the building. He had been patient all day, waiting for the right moment. But it seemed like the targets for today's mission wouldn't willingly walk into his jaws.
Recalling the events earlier that day — the encounter of Han Joon-seong and that so-called Jung-ho's little crew — something about them had caught his attention. His Intuition whispered at him that those were most likely the criminals he was looking for. They checked all the criteria he already expected: not professional gangsters or even full-on thugs, at most they seemed like petty criminals, and they were also the most aggressive-looking individuals in the entire university. So he was sure they were the guys.
It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that they tried to intimidate him earlier, and he just didn't smash their faces in because he was in front of Lee Hye-jin. No, absolutely not.
Ervin floated back toward the sports complex. The building was quiet now, most of the students having left for the day. But through the windows, he could see Jung-ho and his two friends still inside, standing near the bleachers.
He drifted closer, entering through a window, and positioned himself directly above them.
They were alone, their voices low and conspiratorial. None of the girls who had been fawning over Jung-ho earlier were still around. It was just the four of them now.
Jung-ho was leaning against a wall, his arms crossed, a scowl on his face. One of his friends — a wiry guy with a nervous energy — was pacing back and forth.
"I'm serious, hyung. We're running low on cash," the nervous one said. "I mean, we haven't done anything in weeks. My savings are basically gone."
A broader and more muscular guy nodded in agreement. "He's right. We need to do something soon. My rent is due next week."
Jung-ho scoffed arrogantly at them, clearly already expecting that question. "Yeah, I know. I've been thinking about it too. We got a gig for tonight!"
The nervous guy stopped pacing. "You do? What is it? Another house? Maybe a convenience store this time?"
Jung-ho shook his head. "No. That's small-time. I've prepared something bigger. Something that'll actually pay off."
The muscular guy frowned. "Like what? A bank? That's way too risky."
"No, not a bank. A jewelry store! There's one near the center of town — small place, run by an old guy. No security, no cameras worth anything. Easy score."
The nervous guy's eyes widened. "That's... that's actually not a bad idea. How much do you think we'd get?"
Jung-ho shrugged. "Enough to keep us going for a while. I've been watching the place. The old man leaves at the same time every night. There's a window in the back that's easy to get through."
The muscular guy grinned. "I like it! You're a genius, hyung!"
"Haha! Don't tell me what I already know... Who am I kidding? Come on! Fawn over me!" he laughed like an evil villain with his arms open.
The nervous guy nodded, his earlier anxiety replaced by excitement. "Alright! Hyung is the best!"
Ervin listened from above, his expression calm and analytical. A jewelry store robbery. Not exactly hardened criminal activity, but criminal nonetheless. His Intuition had been right.
He pulled his consciousness back, letting his perspective shift and merge back with Han Joon-seong's. Han Joon-seong was walking along a quiet street, heading toward the bus stop. Ervin slipped back into full control, and Han Joon-seong's steps slowed slightly as he processed the new information.
'So they're planning a robbery. Tonight. I need to stop them.'
He ducked into an alley and sent Ervin's consciousness forward to observe the men from a distance.
---
Jung-ho went to his car, where he had equipment stored — crowbars and masks. Everyone put on their gear, then they started driving toward the location, the jewelry store.
It took a few minutes for them to arrive. As soon as they reached the area, they passed by the front of the store.
"Here," Jung-ho said. "This is the place, guys."
He drove around to the back street. As he passed the back street, he pointed to an alley.
"Alright," he said. "It's in that alley."
The others responded with approval.
Jung-ho parked the car a bit far from the location and told everyone to get out.
"Alright," he said. "Okay, boys, let's do it."
He got out of the car and put on his ski mask. Everyone else put on their masks too.
They left the car and started walking toward the location. They entered the alley, walking to the area with the back window. When they found it, they entered it one by one.
The first guy went through with some difficulty. The nervous guy went through easily because he was skinny. The big guy started to go through, but he got stuck because he was too large.
"Ah, hyung, I'm stuck," he whispered.
"What do you mean you're stuck?" Jung-ho whispered back harshly. "Go! Move!"
"I can't!"
Jung-ho went over and shoved him forward with his shoulder, forcing him through. The big guy grunted in pain but finally got through. Jung-ho climbed in after him.
Once inside, Jung-ho pulled out a small flashlight and clicked it on, pointing it around the dark store.
"Wow," one of them said. "This is going to sell for a lot. This is going to be great."
They all looked at the expensive items on display. Jung-ho put his hands on his hips, staring at it all.
"Yeah," he said. "This is it."
He approached one of the display cases.
"Now, boys," he said. "Watch the art being made."
He positioned his crowbar at the edge of the glass, at just the right angle. He applied pressure, and with a pop, he pried the glass out — he couldn't break it, so instead he removed it entirely. He caught it quickly, before it could fall and make noise, and set it down on the floor.
He began grabbing bracelets, watches, and other items, stuffing them into a large trash bag they had brought. The others followed his lead, moving to other displays and doing the same.
But just as they were filling their bags, one of the guys suddenly stopped.
"Hey," he said. "Do you guys hear that?"
They all paused. "Hear what?"
Suddenly, the lights flickered on.
In the corner of the room stood an old man, staring at them in his bathrobe.
"What are you doing in my store?!" the old man demanded.
Panic erupted.
"What?! Hyung, you said the store was closed!"
"It is closed!"
"Then why is there an old man here?!"
"I don't know!"
They all looked at the old man. He was wearing pajamas, so he probably lived in a back room or upstairs. Jung-ho clearly hadn't checked properly. He had just seen the store closing and hadn't investigated further. He had been sloppy.
The old man started to shout, "Thieves! Thieves!"
Before he could scream, one of the guys lunged forward, clamping a hand over the old man's mouth, holding him tight.
"Hyung, what do we do?! What do we do?!"
Jung-ho started to panic. His mind was racing, losing its grip on logic. He was so desperate that he was becoming irrational. His reasoning was slipping away.
His thought process was simple: their plan was to steal the jewelry and flee. If the old man called the police now, they would start investigating much earlier, and the thieves wouldn't have time to escape. The police would find them easily.
'Oh god,' he thought. 'I'm going to ruin my life. The police will come. They'll arrest me.'
He was becoming unstable. The others could see it. One of them looked at him nervously.
"Hyung?"
Jung-ho gripped his crowbar tightly and started walking toward the old man, who was still being held with his mouth covered.
"We can't leave any witnesses," Jung-ho said, his voice hollow.
He raised the crowbar, ready to bring it down on the old man's head. He was clearly blinded by panic — panicked out of his mind because everything had gone wrong. He hadn't thought this through at all.
He swung the crowbar down.
But from the window they had entered through, something came flying — an object — and struck Jung-ho's hand with brutal speed. The object shattered on impact, but it also destroyed Jung-ho's hand, breaking every finger.
"AHHH! MY HAND!"
Everyone turned toward the window immediately, and they saw a new person climb through it — Han Joon-seong.
He landed on the floor and began to rise, his head lowered. Then he lifted his face. A flash of white light consumed the room for an instant, his eyes glowing with a murderous white light.
The truth was, it hadn't occurred to Han Joon-seong that they would use a car to get here. He had been half expecting them to take a bus. So when they left by car, he had to wait for a bus to take him there, since he couldn't run after a car. The delay had almost caused something very bad to happen.
Han Joon-seong looked at his broken phone on the floor and grimaced. He was sad because his phone was broken, so he would have to buy another one. He sighed.
Han Joon-seong rose to his full height and looked at the four thieves.
"Disgusting," he said, his voice cold. "You're pathetic vermin, aren't you? I think it's time someone taught you a lesson."
Jung-ho, still clutching his broken hand, stared at Han Joon-seong in recognition.
"You bastard! You're the guy from earlier! Get him! Get him, boys!"
The two thugs hesitated. Honestly, they didn't want to charge at Han Joon-seong, but after years of camaraderie, they respected Jung-ho too much to disobey. They grabbed their crowbars and charged.
But at that moment, Han Joon-seong had no patience for mercy. He saw the first guy coming, raised his Muay Thai stance, and threw a punch — a right hook aimed at the guy's mouth.
The punch connected with devastating force. Every tooth in the guy's mouth shattered or was torn out. His jaw dislocated. The guy dropped his crowbar and crumpled, clutching his face.
Han Joon-seong grabbed him by the hair, lifted him up, his eyes still glowing with that murderous white light. He swung the guy like a club — *whoosh, CRACK* — smashing him into the second thug. Both of them went flying into the wall.
Han Joon-seong released the first guy, and both collapsed in a heap.
He started walking toward the remaining thug. The man looked horrified.
The thug swung the crowbar at Han Joon-seong. But Han Joon-seong was tired of being attacked with crowbars — it happened in every mission. He simply caught the crowbar mid-swing, yanked it from the man's hands, and swung it back.
*CRACK.*
He struck the man's knee, shattering his kneecap. The thug collapsed, screaming in agony.
Han Joon-seong turned his attention to Jung-ho.
He began walking toward him slowly. Jung-ho crawled backward, terrified, until his back hit the wall.
Han Joon-seong placed his foot on Jung-ho's chest and began to press down, putting immense pressure on his ribs.
"What do you think you were doing?" Han Joon-seong asked. "What were you going to do?"
Jung-ho gasped, trying to push him off. "Stop! It hurts! Stop!"
"What were you going to do?" Han Joon-seong repeated, his voice cold. "Were you going to kill an old man? Is that what you wanted?"
Jung-ho didn't answer. He just begged for him to stop.
Up above, Erwin watched. 'Disgusting. People like this. Disgusting.'
Han Joon-seong's hand moved to Jung-ho's throat slowly, and he began to squeeze.
'This world really doesn't need people like this.'
Jung-ho began to choke, his face turning red.
'Really doesn't need people like this.'
If this continued, Jung-ho would actually choke to death. But then, the old man's voice cut through the room.
"Please... stop!"
Han Joon-seong froze. He turned to look at the old man.
"Please," the old man said, his voice trembling. "Let him go. Please don't kill him."
Han Joon-seong stared at him. "You know they almost killed you, right?"
The old man nodded. "Yes. I know. But they didn't do anything yet. Please, you don't need to do this." His voice shook as he continued. "Death is a very harsh punishment, too severe. You stop him from doing harm, but you also stop all the good he could do in his life."
Han Joon-seong stared at the old man for a long moment. Then he looked at Jung-ho. He released his grip on his throat.
Jung-ho collapsed, gasping for air.
But Han Joon-seong wasn't done. He walked back, then lifted his foot and stomped down on Jung-ho's foot, shattering the bones. Jung-ho screamed in agony.
Han Joon-seong looked down at him with cold eyes.
"Call the police," he said. "Tell them they got into an internal fight and attacked each other. Understood?"
The old man nodded quickly.
Han Joon-seong turned and climbed out the window, disappearing into the night.
---
He walked through the dark streets, heading home. Erwin raised his imaginary hand, and Han Joon-seong raised his physical hand too.
As both of them looked at their respective hands, their mind began to wander. He started to recall what he had almost done. He didn't remember being that... aggressive, or cold, before.
"This... why is this..."
But before he could question it further, it was like his mind loosened on the question. He simply stopped caring. It was as if his brain voluntarily chose to drop the concern.
'Ah, well. I don't remember much from before anyway. Whatever.'
He stopped worrying and kept walking home.