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Chapter 5: No Honor Among Thieves
The Hanseong Clan's hideout loomed in the distance.
Jinwoo crouched on a rooftop, eyes locked on the massive warehouse below. It was an old industrial facility, once used for smuggling drugs into Busan. Now, it was crawling with mercenaries, gang enforcers, and assassins—all preparing for war.
Beside him, Kyung-ho checked his watch.
"They're moving in six hours," he murmured. "If we wait until then, they'll have enough manpower to wipe us out."
Jinwoo exhaled, his fingers curling into fists. "Then we hit them first."
Kyung-ho smirked. "Still reckless as ever."
Jinwoo ignored him. Trusting Kyung-ho was a mistake—but for now, it was a necessary one.
He glanced at his brother. "What's inside?"
Kyung-ho pulled out his phone and swiped through security feeds. "Guards at every entrance. Snipers on the upper floors. The main force is in the loading bay, prepping weapons."
Jinwoo studied the blueprints on the screen. "Explosives?"
Kyung-ho nodded. "Enough to blow up half of Gangnam."
Jinwoo's jaw tightened. "We need to take out their leadership."
Kyung-ho smirked. "You take the ground floor. I'll handle the upper levels."
Jinwoo eyed him. "You sure I won't find a bullet in my back?"
Kyung-ho chuckled. "Depends. Are you planning to stab me first?"
Jinwoo didn't answer. Instead, he slid a silencer onto his pistol and rose to his feet.
It was time.
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FLASHBACK: FIVE YEARS AGO
Blood dripped from Jinwoo's hands.
He stood in a back alley, chest rising and falling rapidly. At his feet lay three men—their faces unrecognizable from the beating he had given them.
Kyung-ho leaned against a wall nearby, watching. "You're getting sloppy."
Jinwoo wiped his knuckles on his jacket. "They deserved worse."
Kyung-ho sighed. "Revenge doesn't fix anything, hyung."
Jinwoo turned, eyes burning. "Then what does?"
Kyung-ho didn't answer. Instead, he flicked his cigarette to the ground and walked away.
That was the last time they had spoken before Kyung-ho vanished.
Now, five years later, they were back in the same fight.
Only this time, the stakes were higher.
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PRESENT
Jinwoo slipped through the shadows, weaving between stacked crates and abandoned machinery. His heartbeat was steady, his mind cold and calculated.
Two guards patrolled ahead.
He moved fast. A swift knife to the throat, a muffled gasp—one down. The second guard turned, reaching for his radio, but Jinwoo drove his blade into his ribs, twisting sharply.
The body slumped. No noise. No mistakes.
Above, Kyung-ho was already inside.
A gunshot rang out.
Jinwoo swore under his breath. "Damn it, Kyung-ho."
So much for stealth.
The warehouse erupted into chaos.
Dozens of Hanseong men flooded the main floor, weapons drawn. Jinwoo grabbed an assault rifle from a fallen guard and opened fire.
Bullets shredded through the air. Enemies fell one by one, but there were too many.
Then, an explosion rocked the building.
Jinwoo ducked as a fireball engulfed the north entrance.
Kyung-ho's voice crackled in his earpiece. "That was the warning shot."
Jinwoo scowled. "A little more warning next time?"
Kyung-ho laughed. "Where's the fun in that?"
Jinwoo pushed forward. He needed to find the boss.
Amid the gunfire, a deep voice boomed across the warehouse.
"You Kang brothers have some nerve showing up here."
Jinwoo froze.
A tall man stepped into the light.
Slick black suit. Cold, dead eyes. A scar running down his cheek.
Choi Sang-hoon.
Leader of the Hanseong Clan.
Kyung-ho landed beside Jinwoo, gripping his pistol. "Well, shit."
Choi smirked. "So, what's the plan now, boys?"
Jinwoo narrowed his eyes. "You die."
Choi chuckled. "Oh? And who's going to kill me?"
A dozen snipers took aim from the rafters.
Jinwoo felt Kyung-ho tense beside him.
They had walked into a trap.
And this time, there was no way out.
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End of Chapter 5