A few days passed after the meeting with the Tijuana Cartel.

“Agent Ramos.”

I called out to Ramos, who was sitting across from me. He glanced at me cautiously before speaking.

“There was nothing I could do with my authority.”

“I already made a deal with the Tijuana Cartel. And you clearly told me back then that it had been approved by DEA headquarters.”

After hearing from DEA headquarters that they would halt the extradition of the eldest of the Arellano family, Francisco Rafael, I relayed that during the negotiations.

They were genuinely grateful and said they would respond positively.

But then, out of nowhere, DEA headquarters notified us that they would proceed with the extradition after all.

“If it wasn’t possible, you should’ve said so from the start. Do you have any idea how ridiculous that makes me look?”

“I don’t understand it either. The only ones who could overturn something already approved by DEA headquarters would be the CIA or the White House.”

At that, I frowned.

“So they send a man all the way to Mexico and pull this kind of nonsense?”

The intention was so obvious it made me let out a hollow sigh. Well, that was something I’d have to deal with myself.

More importantly, it was time to decide what to do with Ramos.

“At this rate, you can’t work with us. Is there any reason for me to keep someone around who’s completely useless?”

“I was assigned to you based on an agreement between the DEA and you, Charlie.”

“I came all the way here myself to honor that agreement. And yet you’ve been absolutely no help.”

When I said it bluntly, Ramos shut his mouth.

“If you had told me it was impossible from the start, I wouldn’t be saying this. What do you think they take me for?”

“I told you, I did everything I could. We had already concluded negotiations with the Tijuana Cartel—if we reversed the plan after that, the situation on the ground would turn into chaos. But headquarters just says there’s nothing they can do. There was nothing I could do either.”

It strongly felt like the DEA was abandoning its field agents.

If I played this right, I could cut into that.

“How many DEA agents are currently operating in Mexico?”

“That’s classified.”

“That damn ‘classified’ again...”

I muttered sarcastically, and Ramos gave a bitter smile.

“It’s about agent safety. I’ve been in Mexico long enough that my face is known, but the others are still unidentified.”

“Hmm. Ramos. Why are you loyal to the DEA?”

“Why is any civil servant loyal? It’s just a job.”

There wasn’t a trace of pride in his voice.

Maybe he had once thrown himself into danger for his country, Mexico—but ten years was more than enough time to wear that pride down.

“Is this job worth risking your life for?”

“I don’t risk my life. Even if cartels learn an agent’s identity, they threaten—they don’t kill.”

“You can’t be so sure. At this rate, breaking that unwritten rule would be easy.”

Ramos closed his mouth again, as if he had thought the same.

I met his eyes and asked,

“Ever thought about working with me?”

“What do you mean?”

No matter how things played out, I couldn’t stay in Mexico indefinitely.

That meant I needed someone who could act on my behalf here.

Ramos, who understood the nature of the drug cartels better than anyone, was the perfect candidate.

If he wasn’t truly loyal to the DEA or the United States, he might be recruitable.

“I mean exactly what I said. Work for me instead of the DEA. Act as my proxy here in Mexico.”

“......”

“You can work for the DEA your whole life—how much money will you make? But if you become my agent, you’ll not only have money, but real influence inside Mexico. Of course, that depends on things going well.”

I was asking someone who had spent his life cracking down on drugs to manage drug cartels.

Ramos understood the implication but couldn’t answer right away.

“You’ve got time. Think about it. But starting today, if you report anything about what I do to the DEA, you do it with my permission. Otherwise, we’re done.”

“What are you—”

“I can’t afford to keep working with a useless DEA that only gets in the way.”

I said I’d give him time, but in reality, I was forcing his hand.

Still, I had no intention of staying in Mexico long.

I had too many other things to do to be tied down here for months.

“So? What’ll it be?”

“Give me a week to think.”

“Three days. Not a day more.”

“...That’s too much. I’ve worked there for over ten years.”

“If the DEA doesn’t treat you well, why cling to it? The most pathetic thing is one-sided loyalty.”

That hit the mark. Ramos looked at me with a wounded expression.

“Make your decision within three days and come find me. Until then, keep your distance.”

I dismissed him from my office.

After he left, I turned to Chief Ma, who had been standing beside me.

“What do you think he’ll do?”

“He’ll come to us. I could already see him wavering in his eyes.”

“Right? The situation on the ground seems worse than I expected. They say they’ll avenge agents if they’re killed—but what’s the point after they’re already dead?”

The U.S. and the DEA retaliated ruthlessly if their agents were harmed.

But once the agent was gone, what did that revenge really mean?

“Can we trust him?”

At Chief Ma’s question, I curled my lips into a faint smile.

“No. I don’t trust him. I trust money. And I’ll attach mercenaries to him, so he won’t even have the chance to get ideas.”

I pulled out my phone.

“We’ll think about that later. First, we stop the extradition.”

I immediately called Jessica.

— Charlie! I heard you’re in Mexico.

“You have a habit of acting like you’re hearing things for the first time.”

— Let’s call it a habit. So what’s going on? Things not going well?

Did she really not know what was happening?

If she didn’t, it meant they were moving while completely excluding her.

“You don’t know what I’m doing in Mexico?”

— I really don’t. I was completely left out of that operation.

“That’s surprising. You’re one of the few people close to me, and they excluded you?”

— I’m focused on terrorism and the Middle East. Mexico and drugs are led by the DEA, not us—

I cut her off.

“And that DEA just broke their promise.”

— What? What do you mean?

I explained everything in detail.

Her lively tone turned serious.

— Damn. Sounds like Washington pressured them. It’s almost impossible for the DEA to overturn something like that on its own.

“That’s what I thought. That’s why I called you. But I guess you won’t be of any help.”

When I said it outright, she let out a strained groan.

— Charlie... I’m sorry. I don’t think I can help with this. It’s too political. If I step in, it might blow up even bigger.

“I understand. And I hope you truly didn’t know about this. If I find out later that you did, I’d be disappointed.”

— I’m serious. I was completely excluded from the Mexico operation.

“I’ll believe you. Or at least, I’ll choose to. We’ll talk later.”

I hung up and, after a brief moment of thought, dialed another number.

— Charlie. What is it? If it’s not urgent, call me later.

The person I called was Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

“It is urgent. It’s about Mexico.”

— Mexico? Shouldn’t you be calling the DEA about that?

“I see. Then I suppose I can leave Mexico without regrets. We’ll talk later.”

I ended the call immediately.

Then I looked at my phone and started counting.

“One. Two...”

As expected, before I even reached ten, the phone rang again.

I didn’t pick up right away. I let it ring as long as possible before answering.

“Yes. This is Kim Muhyuk.”

— Why are you so impatient?

“Weren’t you busy? And if this is something you don’t even know about, why would I waste time talking to you?”

— No, I need to know what’s going on first. If I can fix it, I will.

Playing dumb, as always.

Ignoring her tone, I got straight to the point.

“It’s simple. Make the DEA honor their agreement. If they don’t, I’ll leave Mexico immediately.”

— What exactly is going on? Explain.

I deliberately raised my voice.

“Madam Secretary. We’re not strangers. Let’s not play games. The DEA overturned something that was already approved. The only ones who can do that are the White House.”

— We don’t know anything about that.

“Then there’s no point talking. I’ll return to Korea.”

When I repeated that I would leave, she let out a deep sigh.

— Postponing the extradition of a criminal is a burden for us too. That’s why the decision was made.

“Then you shouldn’t have approved it in the first place. I already gave my word. If you pull back now, do you know how ridiculous I look? Who’s going to trust me after this?”

— That...

She tried to respond, but I cut her off.

“If you’re not trying to screw me over, then by tomorrow, demand that the Mexican government release Francisco Rafael Arellano Félix. If he’s not released by tomorrow evening, I’m leaving Mexico immediately. There’s no reason for me to honor a promise when the DEA won’t.”

— One day is too tight.

“Tomorrow. If I don’t hear anything by tomorrow evening, I’m gone.”

— Wait. I’ll speak with the President and the advisors.

“That’s enough. Show me results. You said you were busy, so I’ll hang up.”

I ended the call and let out a cold scoff.

“What kind of cheap trick is that?”

They were probably trying to keep me tied down in Mexico longer.

Rafael wasn’t some figure like El Chapo—he’d already spent ten years behind bars.

I wasn’t asking for Benjamín. If they couldn’t even handle someone like Rafael, there was no point going further.

I started organizing my thoughts for the next move.

But even that was a luxury.

A ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) knock sounded, and the office door swung open.

“Boss. I’m coming in.”

“Chief Ma. What is it? I said I wanted to be alone.”

“My apologies. It’s urgent.”

For him to come in without permission—it had to be serious.

I nodded.

“Sinaloa Cartel has resumed fighting to seize Nuevo Laredo, the stronghold of Los Zetas. Dozens are already dead or injured.”

“What? What about the other cartels? Sinaloa is at war with several groups.”

After El Chapo’s escape, the Sinaloa Cartel had been aggressively expanding.

“They’ve reached a ceasefire with all the others.”

“...What the hell are they thinking? What about the Tijuana Cartel?”

“No contact yet.”

If cartel wars escalated, the government would have no choice but to intervene.

“...We can’t leave El Chapo alone.”

I had even moved a bureau director to arrange a meeting, and this was how he responded?

“Call Ramos.”

“He hasn’t made a decision yet.”

“He can decide after we handle this. Call him.”

“Yes, Boss.”

“And get all the mercenaries ready.”

“Understood.”

Chief Ma moved to carry out my orders.

“...Right. With thugs, you start by hitting them first.”

I muttered coldly as I stared at the board filled with photos of cartel bosses.