Lee Jongseong stared at me with his mouth hanging open, as if he genuinely couldn’t understand the situation.

“If you had a card like this, you should’ve brought it out from the start.”

I quietly looked at Lee Jongseong, tied to the chair.

I hadn’t originally planned to deal with him this way.

I wasn’t someone who enjoyed cruelly throwing out people who came to negotiate.

And hadn’t Lee Jongseong initially approached this like a negotiation too?

Someone had definitely advised him.

Kim Muhyuk is someone you can reason with. Go meet him and negotiate.

Accepting that advice had been fine.

But Lee Jongseong’s fatal mistake was not knowing my darker side.

“Doesn’t this feel familiar? This is what you’ve always done.”

At Byun Heebong’s orders, Lee Jongseong had probably done things like this countless times.

I didn’t know exactly how many people he’d killed, but several people who fought Byun Heebong over business rights had mysteriously vanished.

And Lee Jongseong had personally carried out every one of those jobs.

“What are you planning to do with me?”

Lee Jongseong tried to act calm and deceive himself.

But the occasional trembling of his shoulders revealed how tense he really was.

“Well. What should I do? If you start running your mouth, everything I planned could fall apart.”

When I set this whole thing up, I built the plan around Byun Heebong’s personality.

I trusted Byun Heebong’s heavy mouth.

Even if he gave up all the business rights, I was certain he wouldn’t expose anyone beyond the few people already caught by the prosecution.

That was why I’d planned everything so methodically.

But the moment Lee Jongseong killed Byun Heebong, everything twisted out of alignment.

Byun Heebong’s option of sacrificing Lee Jongseong while protecting the remaining assets disappeared.

No one knew what Lee Jongseong would do with that ledger.

No, even without the ledger, he wasn’t the type to quietly die alone.

A man who murdered the master he’d served his entire life just to survive would never stay silent simply because there was no evidence.

“So you’re going to kill me?”

The end of Lee Jongseong’s sentence trembled slightly.

I nodded.

“Probably.”

“You think I came to see you without any backup plan?”

Unlike his voice, his eyes were still vicious.

People who had something to rely on usually wore expressions like that.

I smirked and held out my hand.

Manager Ma passed me a document envelope from behind.

“Were you perhaps relying on this?”

The moment he realized what kind of documents they were, Lee Jongseong’s eyes shook violently.

“You planned to leak all of this to every media outlet if something happened to you, didn’t you? But what a shame. It’s in my hands now.”

Lee Jongseong’s final hope vanished.

The card he’d prepared was exposure.

He had arranged everything in advance and asked someone to release all the information if anything happened to him.

In the end, we found that person and took it all back.

“Do you happen to have any cards left?”

Biting his lips, Lee Jongseong asked in a hoarse voice,

“What do you want?”

“Nothing. Even if I told you to quietly stay put, you don’t seem like the type who would. So just die.”

“......Please spare me.”

Lee Jongseong finally begged for his life.

If he could kneel, he looked ready to throw himself onto the floor.

“If you spare me, I’ll do everything you say.”

“I’m telling you, I can’t trust you. So why did you come looking for me in the first place? Then none of this would’ve happened.”

No matter what tricks Lee Jongseong tried to pull, I was confident I could stop him.

It would’ve been annoying, but I could’ve covered it all up.

But the moment he came to me personally, there was no reason for me to bother taking that route.

There was no reason to choose the difficult road when an easy one existed.

I stared at Lee Jongseong with cold eyes before standing up.

“Chief. Let’s proceed as planned.”

“Yes, Boss.”

I turned around immediately.

Until the moment I left, Lee Jongseong’s desperate screams echoed behind me.

The instant the thick steel door closed, the noise disappeared as well.

* * *

Lee Jongseong disappeared.

On the day of his scheduled appearance, he never showed up.

The prosecution immediately issued a wanted notice and travel ban for him.

[Lee Jongseong, Key Figure in Joongwon Development, Goes Missing. Prosecution Immediately Issues Wanted Notice and Travel Ban.]

Lee Jongseong, known as a central figure in the Joongwon Development project, has suddenly vanished, prompting an emergency response from related authorities.

The prosecution announced that Lee had been immediately placed on the wanted list and banned from leaving the country.

Lee was known as a key figure in the Joongwon Development project and is believed to be deeply involved in several serious suspicions surrounding the project.

His sudden disappearance occurred as the investigation into the project intensified, and authorities expect it to significantly disrupt the prosecution’s investigation.

Regarding Lee’s disappearance, prosecutors stated, “There is a possibility that Lee may destroy critical evidence or flee, so we have decided to immediately issue a wanted notice and prohibit his departure from the country.”

The prosecution also added that they were waiting for any information or tips related to Lee.

Lee’s disappearance is part of the broader investigation into the Guryong Village redevelopment project tied to Joongwon Development, and prosecutors have already questioned multiple related figures.

Because Lee was believed to possess critical information, authorities expected that locating him quickly would greatly impact the investigation.

The incident occurred amid growing suspicions and controversy surrounding the Joongwon Development project, and Lee’s disappearance was expected to further increase public concern and interest in the case.

Authorities declared that they would devote all efforts toward swiftly locating Lee and clearly resolving the matter.

[Where Did the Missing Lee Jongseong Go?]

[Lee Jongseong — Who Is He?]

Articles related to Lee Jongseong’s disappearance poured out endlessly.

But no tips came in.

Even with Lee Jongseong missing, the prosecution continued summoning the remaining related figures.

Several weeks passed like that.

More people were summoned and arrested.

Then, Lee Jongseong was finally found.

[Lee Jongseong, Key Figure in Joongwon Development Project, Found Dead at Gunsan Inn.]

Lee Jongseong, who had stood at the center of major suspicions surrounding the Joongwon Development project, has been found dead at an inn in Gunsan, shocking the public.

Lee, who had previously been designated a fugitive by the prosecution and banned from leaving the country, was suddenly discovered dead, and the news is expected to significantly affect the ongoing investigation.

According to police, Lee was found dead at an inn in Gunsan last week, though the exact cause of death has not yet been determined.

Authorities are investigating both murder and suicide possibilities while analyzing evidence discovered at the scene.

The prosecution and investigative agencies announced they would conduct a thorough investigation into every possibility related to Lee’s death.

Investigators also stated they were committed to uncovering the truth through a transparent and fair investigation.

Lee’s sudden death, deeply connected to the Joongwon Development Gate scandal, is expected to push the controversy and suspicions surrounding the case into an entirely new phase.

The public is demanding a fair and transparent investigation, and interest in future developments surrounding the case continues to intensify.

All kinds of conspiracy theories about Lee Jongseong’s death spread across the internet.

— What the hell? Didn’t someone kill Lee Jongseong?

— It’s obvious if you look at the situation. They threw him away before the scandal got bigger. The prosecution’s probably gonna rush to bury the case now too.

Sitting in my chair while browsing the largest online community, I let out a quiet laugh.

Even amid all the ridiculous conspiracy theories, there were quite a few posts surprisingly close to the truth.

“This guy should start telling fortunes.”

The reactions underneath the post made my smile deepen further.

The posts closest to the truth were instantly buried under floods of insults and mocking comments.

“Boss. Hong Jinpyo has arrived.”

“Tell him to come in.”

I stood up and moved toward the sofa.

A moment later, Manager Ma entered together with Hong Jinpyo.

“Muhyuk. Long time no see.”

“Yeah, welcome, Jinpyo. Sit down first.”

I gestured as I sat on the sofa, and Hong Jinpyo took the seat opposite me. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

The moment he sat down, I immediately got to the point.

“The reason I called you here today is because of the Guryong Village project. Nothing complicated. I’m planning to make you the CEO of the redevelopment development company.”

“What?”

“Try controlling this project yourself. You can do it, right?”

What I was giving Hong Jinpyo right now was a massive opportunity.

The core of redevelopment projects was usually the redevelopment association.

But for the Guryong Village project, I intended to buy up most of the land myself and proceed directly.

Discussions had already concluded regarding acquiring the land owned by the government and Seoul City as well.

Not just anyone could become the head of a development company overseeing a project of this scale.

Hong Jinpyo clearly knew that too, judging from how rapidly his expression changed.

“Joongwoo Construction will handle the actual construction. Think you can do it?”

The instant I finished speaking, Hong Jinpyo shot to his feet.

“Thank you, Muhyuk. Really, really thank you!”

Hong Jinpyo bowed deeply.

He even bent at the waist repeatedly while expressing his gratitude.

I looked at the top of his head for a moment before waving my hand dismissively.

“That’s enough. Let’s not get overly formal with each other.”

“But still......”

“What’s the big deal? I’m [N O V E L I G H T] giving you this opportunity because you’ve been working hard. Sit down. Let’s finish talking.”

Hong Jinpyo really had been a huge help in moving this project forward.

Besides, he’d already built connections with the Guryong Village Residents’ Association.

There wasn’t a better choice than him.

“I’ll do well. I swear I’ll do really well.”

“There can’t be any unnecessary noise. I understand skimming a reasonable amount off the top, but don’t get too greedy.”

“N-no. What are you saying......?”

Hong Jinpyo frantically waved his hands in denial.

It was obvious he couldn’t afford to lose the opportunity he’d barely managed to seize.

I smirked and shook my head.

“No, I know exactly how the construction industry works. I also know projects don’t run properly if things are too clean. Just take care of yourself within reason.”

At those words, Hong Jinpyo awkwardly nodded.

From the start, I intended to let him handle things however he wanted, whether he took kickbacks or not.

“Eighty percent of Guryong Village is already in our hands. We’ve already reached agreements to receive roughly nine percent of the land owned by the government, Seoul City, and Gangnam District. You personally negotiate with the remaining landowners and buy up the rest.”

“I’ll definitely make it happen.”

“If you ever need muscle, I’ll let Chunha Services know, so use them however you need.”

“Yeah. I’ve already worked together with Chunha Services several times, so that won’t be difficult.”

Hong Jinpyo answered confidently and without hesitation.

I watched him with faint satisfaction.

The relationship between me and Hong Jinpyo had begun as a terrible one.

Both in my previous life and this current life, we started off as enemies.

But as time passed, those emotions faded.

In this life, Lee Myungsoo never became crippled, and he eventually reconciled with Hong Jinpyo.

At his core, Hong Jinpyo wasn’t actually a bad person.

And because of that, I had given him multiple chances.

Each time, Hong Jinpyo used those opportunities as stepping stones to rise back up again and again.

This time too, I intended to place him in the perfect position to fully demonstrate his abilities.

“We’re pretty funny, aren’t we? Did you ever imagine we’d sit here smiling and talking like this?”

“Haha......”

Hong Jinpyo laughed awkwardly.

But soon, he put on a serious expression and apologized.

“I was immature back then too. Let me apologize again.”

“It’s fine. Besides, you didn’t know what kind of family mine was either.”

Hong Jinpyo and his entire family, who should’ve continued thriving, were completely destroyed by a single word from my grandfather.

“If you ever feel like taking revenge, go ahead. I’ll be waiting.”

The moment I jokingly said that, all the blood drained from Hong Jinpyo’s face.

“Jesus, how can you say something like that so casually? I’ve never thought that way, and I don’t have the power for it either. Don’t say scary things like that again. Seriously, you’re terrifying.”

Seeing Hong Jinpyo actually shiver, I burst out laughing.

“Go on. You’ll be contacted soon.”

“Thank you, Muhyuk. I’ll really do well.”

I simply nodded instead of replying.

After Hong Jinpyo left, I called Manager Ma over and gave him separate instructions.

“Chief. Set up a private meeting with the Mayor of Seoul.”

“Yes, understood.”

Now it was time to clean everything up.

A few days later.

I secretly met with the Mayor of Seoul at my private bar.