Kangmi Choi sat with her arms and legs crossed, looking directly at the man across from her.
"So you're telling me that Charles Choi, the deceased chairman of HNH Group, had ties to the Yamazaki syndicate."
"Yes," Seongji said.
She pushed her glasses up. "I've had suspicions for some time, but not on this scale. What's your credibility? You don't expect me to take your word for it."
Seongji reached into his jacket and set the Red Paper on the desk between them. "I have evidence."
Kangmi looked at it. "What is that?"
He turned it to face her. She leaned forward and her eyes moved across the page, and after a moment they widened slightly. "This explains how he built everything so quickly." She looked up. "Where did you get this?"
Seongji said nothing.
She reached for it. He pulled it back. "Not until you agree to help."
Kangmi settled back and pushed her glasses up again. "What do you need?"
"My friend released," Seongji said. "Baki Hanma."
"I saw the news." Her fingers tapped once on the desk. "He was arrested for the murder of Charles Choi." She paused. "Mr. Hanma helped my daughter through a difficult time. But that doesn't change what led to that situation."
Seongji smiled, though it didn't reach his eyes. "You still haven't let it go. Eli made a mistake and he's been living with it. I didn't think you'd still be holding on."
"Personal matters aside," Kangmi said, "I need to understand the full scope before I can commit to anything. The Red Paper is significant, but it won't be enough on its own. Taking the law into your own hands isn't a defense."
"Self-defense is."
"It is," she said. "But what's the proof that's what happened?"
"Officer Kwak and Noh Bakugo are both alive. Their testimonies should establish it. With the Red Paper on top of that, the law should be in our favor."
Kangmi looked at him for a moment. "You're well informed."
---
Jichang wiped blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. His legs were shaking. Every breath came short and uneven and every movement cost him something.
Gongseob Ji stood beside him with his robes torn and dark with blood. His hands were still raised but they shook. His prosthetic leg ground at the knee joint with each shift of weight.
Taesoo Ma was down near the Rolls Royce, his chest moving in shallow rises. Blood had dried across his face and his right arm lay at the wrong angle.
Seokdu Wang was slumped against the black sedan with his eyes closed.
Kitae Kim stood in the middle of the road with his leather jacket hanging open. His red shirt had no tears in it. A small amount of dried blood sat at the corner of his mouth and the bruising on his face had already faded. He looked at the two of them with the same flat expression he'd worn since the start.
"Just you two left," Kitae said. "Let's wrap this up."
Jichang's eyes moved to Gongseob, then back. They had thrown everything at him.
Gongseob spat blood onto the pavement. "Amitabha. This bastard is truly a demon."
Kitae tilted his head. "Did you just get that?"
Gongseob stepped forward with his hands raised. His torn robes hung loose at the shoulders and blood ran from a cut above his eye, but his breathing had steadied somewhat. His good leg planted firm while the prosthetic shifted under him.
"Amitabha," Gongseob said. "I shall try once more."
Kitae walked toward him at the same pace he had kept throughout.
Gongseob waited with his weight settled back and his arms covering the angles.
Kitae closed the distance and threw a straight punch with his full weight behind it. Gongseob pivoted on his good leg and turned with the movement, his counter driving through the gap in Kitae's guard. His fist caught Kitae's jaw.
CRACK!
Kitae's head snapped to the side. Blood appeared at the corner of his mouth. His feet stayed planted.
Gongseob reset his stance, breathing harder from the effort of putting everything into that one rotation.
Kitae turned his head back and touched the blood at his lip. His expression didn't change. "That one actually surprised me."
Jichang came in from his blind side and dropped a hand blade at the base of Kitae's skull. Kitae twisted and caught his wrist, fingers closing around the joint and squeezing until the bones ground together. Gongseob drove his fist into Kitae's ribs from the side. Kitae released Jichang's wrist and took the punch on his forearm.
THUD!
Both fighters slid back from the collision. Gongseob's good leg buckled before he caught himself.
Jichang pressed forward and sent a hand blade at Kitae's throat. Kitae ducked under it and drove his fist into Jichang's stomach. Jichang's feet left the ground and he hit the pavement and rolled twice before stopping.
Gongseob came in again with a combination aimed at Kitae's head and torso. Kitae blocked most of it on his forearms and let one graze off his cheekbone without reaction. He grabbed Gongseob's extended arm with both hands and yanked him forward. Gongseob's good leg couldn't compensate and his prosthetic buckled completely. Kitae drove his fist into his stomach.
BANG!
The impact launched Gongseob off the ground. The prosthetic tore free at the joint and spun off in one direction while Gongseob went in the other. He hit the road and rolled and stopped in a heap. The prosthetic leg hit the asphalt with a metallic clang and bolts and shattered pieces scattered across the ground.
Gongseob pushed himself up on his arms. Blood poured from his mouth and his breathing came in wet, choking pulls. He looked across the road at the shattered prosthetic and tried to move toward it.
Kitae's footsteps crossed the empty street toward him.
Jichang got back to his feet. His face had gone pale and he coughed up blood, but he put himself between Kitae and Gongseob and raised his hands.
"Gongseob Ji." His voice was steady. "You've done your part. Rest."
Kitae stopped and looked at him. "You think you can still go?"
Jichang wiped his mouth. He could barely see straight and his legs threatened to give out, but he stayed upright.
He moved first. His hand blade cut diagonally at Kitae's neck, and when Kitae raised his arm to block, Jichang redirected and drove the edge of his palm into his ribs instead. Kitae's body shifted to the side. Jichang followed with a hand blade at his collarbone. Kitae caught his wrist. Jichang twisted free and hit him across the jaw with his other hand.
CRACK!
Kitae's head snapped sideways.
Kitae stepped back and touched his jaw. Something moved in his expression for the first time. "I guess the wait is where the flavor builds."
Jichang pressed forward despite his breathing. His hand blades came quick and consecutive, forcing Kitae to keep moving. Kitae slipped the first three by tilting his head and blocked the fourth. Jichang stepped in and drove his knee at his stomach. Kitae caught the leg and shoved him back. Jichang used the momentum to spin and throw a hand blade at his temple. Kitae blocked it.
Kitae touched the blood on his face and the blankness gave way to something that looked close to a smile. "Now this is better."
Jichang held his stance. His vision was going at the edges and his hands were numb.
Kitae came forward faster. His fist drove at Jichang's face. Jichang slipped it and felt it graze past his ear, then drove his hand blade forward. Kitae twisted at the last moment and grabbed his wrist with both hands and pulled him in while driving his knee up into his stomach.
CRACK!
Jichang folded and his vision went white.
Kitae rolled his shoulder. "You're tougher than I remembered."
Jichang spat onto the pavement. His whole body was shaking and his face was soaked with sweat and blood. "All plans fail against overwhelming might." He got his hands back up. "But I just can't help it."
Kitae came in with a combination. Jichang deflected the first and took the second on his forearm but the third cracked into his ribs and the fourth caught his jaw and sent him spinning. His legs gave out and he went down to one knee. He put his hand on the pavement and pushed himself back up.
Kitae watched him. "Why do you keep getting up?"
Jichang raised his hands. His fingers were trembling and blood dripped from his mouth onto the road beneath him.
Kitae's hand shot out and closed around his throat. He lifted Jichang off the ground. Jichang brought both hands down across Kitae's forearm in a double hand blade and the grip loosened. He hit the same spot again and Kitae's hand opened enough for him to tear free. He dropped and drove his hand blade up at Kitae's throat.
Kitae caught his wrist and yanked him forward, then grabbed the back of his head.
"I'm done playing around," Kitae said.
CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!
Three headbutts. The first shattered Jichang's nose. The second split his eyebrow. The third took the rest out of him. Kitae let go and Jichang collapsed onto the pavement and didn't move. Blood spread out beneath his head.
Kitae stood alone among the four of them. He reached behind his back and took out a small axe, then walked toward where Jichang and Gongseob lay. He crouched down.
He raised it and brought it down.
Blood hit the pavement and ran between the cracks.
Kitae stood and looked at the blade. He wiped it on his jeans and tucked it back into his belt. "Game's over."
He walked back to the black sedan. Isu Jo was standing by the rear door and opened it without a word. Kitae got in and the car pulled away.