I. The Price of Vanity
Professor Shin sat across from Taehyung, his composure utterly gone. He stared out at the serene lake, the legal and academic wreckage of his life swirling behind his eyes.
"Seok-jin... he always saw me as a means to an end," Shin whispered, his voice cracking with defeated pride. "He promised me perpetual funding and final validation. He lied. He always lies."
Taehyung maintained his silence, letting the Professor drown in his own resentment.
Finally, Shin slammed his hand on the table, making the café glasses rattle. "I want the scandal erased. I want my name cleared. You give me a signed, legal guarantee, and I give you his location."
"The moment Seok-jin is in custody, Professor, the scandal disappears," Taehyung stated. "You get the deal only after I have him."
Cornered, humiliated, and clinging to his last shred of academic dignity, Professor Shin gave in. He reached for a burner phone and showed Taehyung a map application.
"He is in a secure, remote chalet," Shin revealed, the words tasting like ash. "East of here, near Chamonix, in the French Alps. It's run by a private, anonymous trust—The Blue Crest—that Seok-jin set up years ago. It's a hidden sanctuary, completely isolated."
He then revealed the critical vulnerability: "Seok-jin is a creature of habit. Every night, exactly at 10 PM local time, he leaves the chalet to walk the perimeter, without security, to enjoy the solitude of the mountain air. That is your window."
II. The Race Against the Clock
Taehyung didn't waste a second on thanks. The confession was already a risk. He knew Seok-jin had a rigid security protocol around Professor Shin, and the Professor's silence was always assumed.
"Joon, move out!" Taehyung commanded into his comms, already rising. "Immediate extraction protocol. We're going to the French Alps."
Taehyung paid the check and left Professor Shin sitting alone in the ruins of his life.
As Taehyung and Joon raced toward the pre-arranged Alpine transport, Joon's encrypted phone chimed frantically. It was the security team leader back at the residence, his voice strained and panicked.
"Chairman, we have a problem! Professor Shin's confession wasn't silent. The moment he gave you the location, he activated a pre-programmed alert! It went directly to the Blue Crest Trust's main number!"
Joon looked horrified. "He didn't betray Seok-jin for us, Chairman! He betrayed Seok-jin and then warned him! He tried to burn the bridge and escape the coming war!"
Taehyung stopped dead on the curb. "Does Seok-jin know our location?"
"He knows Professor Shin just contacted him from Geneva," Joon confirmed. "He knows the trail is compromised. He is in full flight mode, sir. We have a matter of hours, maybe less. He knows someone is coming."
III. The Burning Bridge
The immediate consequence of Professor Shin's double-betrayal was devastating: Taehyung had lost the element of surprise.
The planned 10 PM ambush was now an open, armed confrontation. Seok-jin, driven by paranoia and rage, would be moving his assets and bolstering his defenses within the Alpine chalet immediately.
"Our mission objective changes," Taehyung declared, his voice hard as ice as they sped toward the French border. "We aren't going for a clean arrest. We're going for a raid. Seok-jin will try to destroy everything—the evidence, the assets, and anyone who comes near."
Joon prepared the extraction gear. "And the Chairman's location, sir? We're heading deep into French territory, right where the international corporate police won't easily reach us."
Taehyung looked at the Alpine peaks looming in the distance—a fitting backdrop for the final confrontation. "The only thing that matters now is getting to that chalet before Seok-jin wipes the slate clean and disappears again. We risk the throne for the Vow."
He pulled out his phone and sent a coded message to Ha-eun back in Korea:
Bridge burned. Going dark. The Architect is cornered. Hold the line for 48 hours.
The final showdown was imminent, but Taehyung was now walking into a trap set by a forewarned, desperate murderer.