Elina quietly bowed her head.

Her shoulders trembled slightly.

A long silence followed.

I did not apply any pressure to her.

I was merely waiting by her side in silence.

Then, Harold Whitmore, the British Prime Minister, stood up from his seat and spoke.

“It seems a decision has been made now.”

I raised my hand.

Elina raised her head.

She gave an unexpected answer.

***

While Choi Seo-jun and I were moving to meet Elina, Hong Jang-gun drove his car and headed quickly somewhere.

The vehicle door opened, and he moved like the former agent he was.

Inside the old warehouse, several monitors illuminating a certain place were visible.

Videos of Elina's family were playing there.

Hong Jang-gun kept himself hidden and looked around, observing the movements of those hiding inside.

‘One... two... a total of eight in all.’

He counted the numbers in his mind and quickly identified the enemy positions.

While hiding himself in the camera's blind spot, his eyes turned sharp.

‘All are armed. The vigilance seems laxer than I thought, but... .’

His gaze moved slowly. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

The guy hiding behind the pillar, the guy sitting in front of the monitor, the guy leaning against the wall dozing off, and even the ones guarding the entrance.

Each of their positions was accurately engraved in his mind.

As soon as Hong Jang-gun finished identifying the positions, he moved his body as quickly as a shadow.

Approaching as if seeping behind the first target, he threw a punch and struck the cervical vertebrae squarely.

When he blocked the man's mouth with his hand, the man collapsed helplessly.

At the same time, the man on the opposite side sensed a presence and turned his body, but Hong Jang-gun extended his arm faster than that.

His two hands grabbed the man's head.

The neck, which was twisted in an instant, broke without leaving even a single sound.

He collapsed onto the floor just like that.

At that moment, the person sitting in front of the monitor shouted and looked back.

“W-What!”

However, Hong Jang-gun was already in front of his eyes.

The gun the man was holding fell from his hand, and at the same time, his jaw was crushed.

Taking advantage of the gap as he fell, Hong Jang-gun snatched the gun.

The remaining men belatedly pulled out their guns, but the reaction time allowed to them was not even one second.

Hong Jang-gun twisted his body almost reflexively and lowered his waist, then immediately fired three gunshots.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three people hit in the head collapsed simultaneously.

Just as the person who had been leaning against the wall in the back was about to fire a gun in surprise, Hong Jang-gun charged as if cutting through the air and kicked up his chin with the tip of his foot.

The fainted man's body slid down as if slipping.

Before long, a bullet pierced his head.

The moment the last remaining person tried to run toward the door, a sharp blade from Hong Jang-gun's arm pierced through his shin.

The man could not endure the pain and collapsed.

Hong Jang-gun slowly regained his breath and walked over.

Finally, he aimed the muzzle at the head of the man who had fallen while groaning.

Bang!

Without hesitation, he immediately approached the desk side and erased the video storage device.

He tracked the location where Elina's family was confined.

It was a place not very far from here.

After escaping the old building, he ran quickly and headed to the place where Elina's family was.

Before long, people who appeared to be an old couple and a young girl were seen.

He hid and filmed that scene.

He sent it to me immediately.

He threw off the military-like clothes he was wearing and changed into ordinary daily clothes.

And after neatly tidying his disheveled hair, he approached the old couple with a smile.

“Hello, I am Elina's friend, Mr. Hong.”

The old couple welcomed him and shouted to the young girl.

Soon, the child ran toward them.

That appearance was no different from an angel.

Hong Jang-gun briefly explained the situation and connected a video call with his cell phone.

On the screen, Elina continued speaking with a bright face.

-Baby, have you been well? That person is my friend. He is someone you can trust, so do not worry and let's go to Korea with him. Let's meet again there.

The angel jumped around at the spot and was delighted, saying they were going on a trip.

Hong Jang-gun let out a sigh of relief inwardly.

***

Prime Minister Whitmore had a surprised expression at the unbelievable sight.

Was Elina not saying she would go to Korea without hesitation?

“Are you really going to go to Korea?”

The Prime Minister still seemed unable to believe it.

However, Elina nodded her head firmly.

“Yes. My family and I will go to Korea. I do not want to hide anymore.”

At her words, the Prime Minister met the rough chin and let out a sigh.

“Can you trust that person?”

There would be no one who would openly ask in front of the party concerned if they could be trusted.

I did not care much, but instead, Choi Seo-jun felt bad and narrowed his brows.

Elina said quietly.

“I want to go to Korea and set everything right. I will not run away. I will also stand trial.”

Prime Minister Whitmore, who had been silent for a while, looked at me and said.

“You have won. Since I also promised, I will respect her will and send her. However, the British government will attach a formal legal counsel to help Elina. It is because we must prepare for any situation that might occur.”

Elina bowed her head and quietly offered a word of gratitude.

That evening, the British government held an emergency press conference.

“Elina Weston has expressed her will that she will depart for the Republic of Korea of her own accord and undergo a formal trial. The British government respects that decision and has decided to dispatch a legal counsel to protect her rights and interests.”

The announcement from the Prime Minister's Office spokesperson spread throughout the world.

Early the next morning.

Elina and her family boarded the private jet along with my group.

A British Foreign Office official and a lawyer who were dispatched privately were also together at the airport.

Choi Seo-jun quietly whispered to me.

“At this level, it looks like a scene of a diplomatic mission's departure.”

I laughed briefly and nodded my head.

In fact, the current British government was soon facing a general election.

Therefore, the Prime Minister cared about public opinion considerably.

If Elina had not said she would go to Korea, the Prime Minister would never have let her go.

Bringing her from Iraq to the UK this time was also thanks to him caring about the general election.

One way or another, Elina boarded the plane while holding the hands of her daughter and adoptive parents.

As she was boarding, she asked me.

“Will we really be able to live in Korea?”

I smiled brightly.

“I will help so that you can live well.”

The plane door closed, and with a roar, it kicked off the runway and soared.

Elina prepared to clear the past with her family and move toward a new life.

The plane they rode flew as if sliding leisurely above the clouds.

Outside the car window, it was stained with the light of dawn, and the interior of the plane was submerged in silence.

I moved to the seat where Elina was.

She was sitting between her daughter and her adoptive parents, but was unable to sleep while looking into the empty air.

I quietly signaled toward her.

Elina stood up and moved her steps quietly.

The two of us sat in seats.

I took a short breath and continued speaking calmly.

“The moment you arrive in Korea, you will likely be arrested. An arrest warrant has already been issued, and investigative agencies will be waiting at the airport.”

Elina's pupils shook slightly.

It was a word she expected, but as it approached reality, the feeling was different.

I said in a low voice.

“But do not worry too much. Your family will stay at my house until a residence is prepared. I have told my mother in advance, so she will prepare for it.”

Her lips trembled minutely.

Quiet tears formed in her eyes where emotions were wavering.

She moved her lips to say something, but it did not come out easily as if it were stuck in her throat.

I asked in a gentle voice.

“Why did you try to kill me and my companions?”

At that moment, Elina's shoulders flinched minutely.

She hesitated for a long time with her head lowered before opening her mouth.

“I do not know exactly either.”

Her hands were trembling lightly on her knees.

“I was an orphan abandoned when I was young. I was abandoned on the outskirts of some city in Europe, not the UK. I do not even know my name. It was them who gave me the name Elina.”

My eyes trembled thinly.

“I grew up in the hands of those called the mafia. To survive, I monitored people, stole, and relayed information. If I did not do as they said, I was subjected to merciless violence. Around the time I turned twenty, I ran away and met my current adoptive parents. They loved me without even knowing what kind of existence I was.”

She smiled a gentle smile without crying.

That smile looked even sadder instead.

“But they did not let me go. They threatened to kill my husband and kill my daughter and adoptive parents. So I had no choice but to follow their orders. I had to ruin other people's families to protect my family.”

She raised her head and looked at me.

Tears flowed down her cheeks quietly.

“Although trying to kill you was also done following orders... I am truly sorry.”

She stood up from her seat and bowed her waist.

The interior of the plane was silent to the point that not even a single breath could be heard until she raised her head.

I looked at her and said quietly.

“I believe that you truly regret it.”

Elina poured out tears as if she had received salvation from that one word.

I said to her as I stood up from my seat.

“Try to get some sleep, even a little.”

Leaving behind Elina, who was shedding tears while stifling her breath with her face buried in both hands, I quietly left the spot.

The plane was flying through the clouds and across the sky without hesitation, but my head was complicated.

I tried to find out the truth through Elina, but I could not know at all.

I chewed over the words she had said a moment ago.

‘I had to ruin other people's families to protect my family.’

Those words pierced into the middle of my chest like a dagger.

I repeated clenching and unfolding my fist tightly.

Then, I now pressed my temples hard.

‘Just who could it be?’

The ones who threatened Elina and her family.

And the one who instigated them to kill me.

My jaw hardened firmly.

I bit my teeth so hard that my jaw joint hurt.

The heavy anger that had settled in a corner of my heart boiled like lava and rose through my whole body.

A red energy slowly spread over my face that had been cold.

My gaze was as cold as a sheet of ice, yet it glowed like a flame.

I was someone who usually did not reveal emotions well, but I was different right now.

My whole body trembled with anger.

It was not anger just for revenge.

Like that of a beast of prey aiming for its target, the true evil will still be watching him from the darkness and laughing.

I slowly put strength into my hands.

I vowed that I would reveal their true identity piece by piece to track the mastermind and that I would surely make them pay the price.

That vow was as cold as ice and as hot as fire.