Not a single line appeared in the news about the murders that took place at a failed shopping center in Gyeonggi Province.
What happened inside was dealt with internally.
Most of the people there had entered the country illegally and preferred to avoid public attention.
That was why, even when serious crimes occurred among them, they had always handled matters themselves.
Choi Jung-myeong knew their circumstances well, which was why he had shown his ferocity without hesitation.
But there was another side to the story.
“I thought he was doing a good job following orders, but he went and left that many unnecessary witnesses. Tsk!”
After Choi Jung-myeong, who had demonstrated the power of a Ghoul, departed, Veylord appeared at the scene and clicked his tongue in displeasure like an old man.
Meanwhile, Kang Tae-pung let out a low groan at the sight of the ruined shopping center.
[This place… Hmm….]
“Do you know it?”
[Of course I do. I built it on a government commission as part of an urban development plan.]
There was bitterness in his answer, however, as he looked at a place that seemed utterly deserted.
“It seems there were problems.”
[Problems… There were plenty. Even though the shopping center was supposed to revitalize the area, everything was a mess, from its location to its design.]
Veylord could sense Kang Tae-pung shuddering at the memory.
And having once been a lord who ruled a great city, Veylord could easily guess the reason.
“I suppose the project was commissioned so they could embezzle the construction funds.”
[Exactly. Between the money siphoned off by government officials and city councilors, we barely managed to avoid making a loss. It was a project I never wanted to take on again.]
Just then, curses shouted in an unusual accent rang out from the noisy shopping mall.
“Hey, you filthy bastard! By the pecking order, I'm supposed to be the boss now!”
“Cut the bullshit! My faction's bigger! You want to start a war?!”
As if splitting into two factions were not enough, they were now locked in a war of nerves over who would become the boss.
Their angry voices could be heard even from a distance.
At the same time, the curses of the Vengeful Spirits who bore grudges against them could be heard, urging the men to keep fighting.
The Vengeful Spirits seemed to be watching the quarrel with delight.
“Hmm. This place is full of Vengeful Spirits as well. They'll make a fine source of energy.”
At that moment, Magic Power that chilled the surroundings spread outward, and his shadow rose.
The first to emerge from it was the tiger that had previously chased Hong Jang-mi.
With its black-striped hide draped over its body, it resembled a fearsome tiger out of folk legend.
The difference was that its hide had been worn ragged by the passage of time, and fragments of bone showed through the gaps.
“What do you say, Nabi? Would you like to lead the charge?”
Veylord had already gone so far as to give the creature the name Nabi.
Nabi seemed pleased with the name, for it let out a mighty roar and charged forward.
[ROOOAAR!!]
Then, from Nabi's shadow, the Zombies—now a legion numbering more than a hundred—burst forth and charged alongside it.
[SKREEEE!!]
A moment later, the inside of the shopping center descended into pandemonium, filled with screams and the sounds of fighting.
“I wonder how long these people will last. Heh, heh, heh.”
[Master… You look downright evil when you laugh like that.]
Veylord merely chuckled at the reproach from a spirit that still had a rebellious streak.
***
Meanwhile, Choi Jung-myeong immediately began making inquiries about Old Man Hwang in Daegu.
Rumor had it that he was a shameless man who had accumulated enormous wealth during the IMF financial crisis by using the dollars and gold he owned.
Though he now lived in seclusion, he was also known as a shadowy figure who still wielded considerable influence in political and business circles.
Even when Choi Jung-myeong limited his inquiries to contacts within his reach, the information brokers wanted nothing more to do with the matter.
“How in the world does Master know someone like this?”
The more he learned about Old Man Hwang, the louder his instincts sounded the alarm.
As he reviewed the information he had managed to gather, an alert sounded on his phone. A text message had arrived.
‘It's a number I've never seen before. What's this?’
The number was far too unusual to be an ordinary spam message.
‘What? 011? Do numbers like that still exist?’
Curious, he opened the message, and his pupils trembled violently.
[This is Old Man Hwang. I don't know why you're looking for me, but if you wish to remain in good health, I suggest you stop meddling in matters that don't concern you.]
Somehow, Old Man Hwang had learned that Choi Jung-myeong was investigating him and had contacted him first.
‘A warning to stop looking for him.’
But a warning like that wasn't enough to make him stop.
Instead, he picked up his phone and typed a single sentence in reply.
[I wish to sell 100 kg of gold. Please meet with me just once. If you have any doubts, I would appreciate it if you could check the number 010-XXXX-OOOO.]
In his own way, he had made a brief but bold, direct statement about why he was seeking the man.
He had also provided Veylord's contact number immediately, fearing that Old Man Hwang might distrust him and block him.
Then he waited anxiously for a reply.
-DING!
[I understand what you mean. Come to XX, Hwanggeum-dong, Dong-gu, Daegu. Bring the owner of that number with you.]
After reading the reply, Choi Jung-myeong breathed a sigh of relief.
‘At least I've taken the first step.’
Simply establishing contact was an achievement in itself.
‘The problem is that I have to tell Master I gave out his contact information… Now he'll see I couldn't handle it on my own.’
He had taken the assignment as a test from Veylord to prove his abilities.
But if he insisted on going alone, he would lose his connection to Old Man Hwang.
“Haah. I don't have a choice.”
Having made up his mind, he quickly cleared his desk, gathered all the materials he had been reviewing into a single file, and left the office at once.
‘Looks like someone's tracking my movements even inside the office.’
Once again, he sensed someone secretly watching him, but he gave no sign of noticing.
‘In the end, everything will happen according to His will.’
To him, Veylord was already an absolute being, practically a god.
Choi Jung-myeong climbed into his car in the underground parking area and immediately made a call.
Meanwhile, standing in the middle of the blood-soaked shopping center, Veylord quietly spoke.
“Devour it all, Lavirans.”
The command, laden with Magic Power that surged out in great waves, sent Lavirans into a frenzy.
[HIIAAAAA~!!]
In an instant, his shadow spread outward in a circle, and a strange, unearthly shriek faded into the distance.
Writhing tentacles sprang from the surface of the enlarged shadow and began devouring everything nearby.
They ravenously swallowed the human corpses that had been mangled beyond further use, along with the red blood staining the floor.
Of course, they also consumed all the gold, silver, and valuables the dead possessed, especially everything in the jewelry shop.
[SHAAAA…!]
In an instant, every trace of the slaughter vanished. Even the Zombies, whose numbers had doubled, disappeared into the shadow.
[GRRROOOAAR!!]
Just then, Nabi approached with a roar, its tattered hide still hanging over its body.
The way it thrust its head forward, as though asking to be praised before returning, was almost adorable.
“You little rascal. You did quite well, even with that weak body of yours.”
Having appointed itself the leader of the charge, Nabi had struck great fear and confusion into the humans gathered there.
Veylord stroked Nabi's head and gently infused it with Magic Power.
“Now, let us see your true form.”
The creature, which had looked only vaguely like a tiger, with little more than skin stretched over bone, began to change.
Its bones, once covered in hairline fractures and signs of old breaks, regenerated, and flesh began filling out over them.
-BURBLE! BURBLE!!
As powerful muscles swelled into place, the beast grew to a size unlike anything one could see elsewhere.
All the material needed for this regeneration flowed out of the shadow in the form of the human bones and flesh it had swallowed, filling out Nabi's body.
Finally, the hide draped over it clung tightly to its body, restoring its appearance as a tiger.
Strangely, its once-yellow fur turned black, while its black stripes turned white, a complete reversal of its former coloring.
[GRRRROOOAAR!!]
With a deep, prolonged roar of elation, Nabi bent all four legs and lowered its head.
It looked like a knight swearing absolute loyalty.
“A fine sight.”
[GRRRR…]
Seeing how pleased Nabi was, Veylord stroked its enormous head once more.
That was when his phone rang.
“Tsk! And things were going so well.”
He frowned at the sudden interruption, but he could hardly ignore the call.
“It seems that Old Man Hwang contacted that bastard Jung-myeong first.”
[That old man's got a foul temper, so it wouldn't surprise me. He'll probably tell you to come along too, Master.]
Kang Tae-pung had met Old Man Hwang before and could readily predict how he would behave.
As Veylord pressed the answer button, Choi Jung-myeong's voice came through.
[Master. I've found Old Man Hwang. But a small problem has come up.]
“If he wants me to come with you, tell him I will.”
Through the ghost he had attached to Choi Jung-myeong, Veylord had already learned everything.
And after hearing about Kang Tae-pung's experiences, he could tell the old man was certainly an unusual character.
[I'll pass that along. May I ask when you intend to go?]
“We shall go today. Make preparations to meet me at the café we visited before, one hour from now.”
[Yes, Master. I'll make the arrangements immediately.]
After ending the call, Veylord stroked Nabi's head one last time.
“Go back inside and rest now.”
[GRRR.]
At his command, Nabi leaped up and plunged into Lavirans's shadow as though diving into water.
With Nabi the last to return, the shadow, which had swollen to an enormous size, shrank back to normal.
“Phew. I feel as though I've overeaten for the first time in ages. I can make a quick trip while the Resentment is being digested into Magic Power.”
During his brief visit to Daegu, he intended to dissolve that mass of Resentment into Magic Power.
‘Well, shall I be on my way?’
He had no more business in the place, where not a single person remained.
Using the magic circles he had imbued into both his feet and his hands, Veylord swiftly flew away by the same route he had come.
***
-DING!
Another text arrived as they reached Daegu in the car driven by Choi Jung-myeong.
The message contained the address of Old Man Hwang's residence in Hwanggeum-dong.
“Hooh. Is someone watching us from somewhere?”
Veylord marveled at the message. The sender seemed to possess the ability to monitor his location in real time.
From the driver's seat, Choi Jung-myeong spoke cautiously.
“I'm sorry. I suspect they're using our phones to track our location.”
“Is that possible?”
“Yes. I've heard it can be done using the GPS systems employed by the police on 112 and emergency responders on 119.”
It was a government system that could only be used with the person's consent in a genuine emergency.
If someone could use such a system for personal purposes, he was clearly no ordinary man.
Still, Veylord could not place complete trust in Choi Jung-myeong's knowledge, so he checked with Kang Tae-pung.
‘Is that really possible?’
[With that old man, it might be, Master.]
‘Hmm. Just how much money does he have to be able to do something like that?’
[A hundred times more than you imagine. You might as well assume that man controls every source of money in this country.]
Old Man Hwang's power was far beyond what Veylord had imagined, too great to dismiss Kang Tae-pung's words as merely a half-joke.
After a long drive, they arrived in front of a building with an unusual structure.
“Have we arrived?”
“Yes, Master. But I can't see the entrance….”
Suddenly, the wall blocking their way sank into the ground, revealing the entrance concealed behind it.
It was an entrance that would never open without an invitation.
‘Their security is strangely thorough. Has something happened to make such precautions necessary?’
From the outside, it looked like a square building filled with offices, but strangely, there was no one on the second floor or any of the floors above it.
‘What? Why isn't anyone there?’
That was what he had discovered after rapidly scanning the building's interior with Magic Power.
As they approached a place where they could park the car, a young man in a gray, modernized traditional Korean attire was waiting for them.
“Welcome. My name is Park-ga, and I am the chairman's secretary. The chairman is waiting inside, so please follow me.”
Without even checking their identities, he announced that they were expected and offered to guide them in.
“Don't you need to verify who we are?”
At Choi Jung-myeong's bewildered question, the man who had introduced himself as Park-ga smiled gently and replied.
“We already know. You are Choi Jung-myeong, formerly a mid-level officer of the Taesan Gang, and you are Kang Chan-seong, son of Kang Tae-pung, are you not?”
They had already conducted background checks on both men.
Wariness entered Choi Jung-myeong's eyes at the answer, but Veylord stepped forward to stop him.
“Let us go inside. You are not planning to keep us standing here, are you?”
“Ah… My apologies. I'll lead the way.”
Following Park-ga, Choi Jung-myeong took the lead, while Veylord walked behind him with the composed, elegant stride of a model.
***
“Whoa… I don't think even the Blue House has security like th—mmph!”
Choi Jung-myeong was so astonished when they entered that he had unwittingly spoken his thoughts aloud.
And no wonder. As soon as they stepped inside, they saw armed security guards constantly scanning their surroundings.
Whatever training they had received, every one of them radiated a presence as keen and sharp as a blade.
“If you wish to see my master, please come this way.”
Following the man's guidance, they soon reached the center of the building.
Strangely, the center was open to the sky, and beneath that open sky stood a magnificent mansion with a tiled roof.
“Good heavens! What on earth is this place?”
Unable to contain his curiosity about the unusual building, Choi Jung-myeong finally asked, but received no answer.
“Jung-myeong, close that mouth of yours.”
“Mmph!”
Looking around, Veylord saw that the building formed a ring shaped like the character 回, with the house standing at its center.
What made it unusual was that this was not a single building. Four separate structures had been built to intersect, so that even if one section came under terrorist attack, the others would bear its weight.
[It was our construction company's crowning masterpiece. They've maintained it wonderfully.]
‘Hmm? Your company built this?’
[That's right. Designing and constructing this building was how I first got to know that old man.]
After crossing the lawn-covered courtyard, they finally came face-to-face with Old Man Hwang.
He was already seated in an ondol room decorated with an ornate folding screen and a simple flower vase, smoking a long-stemmed pipe.
“Hmph! You've got some nerve, coming all the way here.”
His sharp, rigid eyes and tightly pursed, ill-tempered mouth gave his voice an air of peculiar stubbornness.
He also had a broad, imposing build, and there was strength in his movements, as though he had taken care of himself consistently.
Yet his white hair, white eyebrows, and sagging wrinkles betrayed his age.
“Both of you, sit down. What are you doing standing there?”
At Old Man Hwang's permission, Choi Jung-myeong was the first to sit, kneeling before him.
Veylord, however, looked back and forth between Old Man Hwang and the young man standing beside him, the one who had introduced himself as Park-ga.
‘Hmm. Well, look at this.’
[Master. You've figured it out already?]
‘You were going to keep this information from me? Do you wish to be annihilated?’
[Ahem! I was going to tell you. I just wanted to enjoy it for a moment.]
Realizing that Veylord had noticed something, Kang Tae-pung replied in a slightly playful tone.
But Veylord was not one to enjoy such games, and instead of getting a laugh, Kang Tae-pung received a threat.
‘Do that one more time and I shall annihilate you, even if Chan-seong begs me not to.’
[Ah! All right… Master.]
After that brief threat, Veylord suppressed the urge to sneer and took a seat.
Rather than kneeling, however, he sat comfortably with his legs crossed.
Seeing Kang Chan-seong, a young man, show such disrespect before an elder, Old Man Hwang shouted furiously.
“You brat! How dare you sit like that in my presence!”
“I came here to do business, not to serve you!”
His manner of speaking was that of an old man, but his attitude was so brazen that Choi Jung-myeong, sitting behind him, could only watch nervously with eyes as wide as a startled rabbit's.
“An ill-mannered whelp! I know you grew up without a mother or father, but how can you be this arrogant?!”
Old Man Hwang did not hesitate to insult his guest's family while openly demanding respect.
But when it came to bad manners, the old man was no better himself.
“Hmph! What else should I do when the host has not even come out to greet his guests? Besides, you appear to be about the same age as me. Do not waste your strength on pointless things.”
After all, Kang Chan-seong's parents had been almost nonexistent throughout his life.
And the young body was now inhabited by Veylord's soul, so he had no reason to feel constrained.
That was why he decided to expose the identity of the person before him and deliver a blow while he was at it.
“And there are limits to how far a joke should go. An old man wearing a young man's face and a young woman wearing an old man's face—what a perverse little hobby.”
For a moment, Choi Jung-myeong could not understand what he was hearing and merely blinked.
At the sudden revelation, Old Man Hwang's eyebrows twitched, and he bellowed as though Veylord were spouting nonsense.
“I have no idea what you're talking about. Have you gone mad?”
But his pupils trembled slightly, as though he had never expected the deception to be discovered.
“Mad? You must have investigated me thoroughly already. Stop playing these foolish games.”
Then Veylord uncrossed his legs, stood, and bowed his head toward Park-ga, who was standing to one side, as he introduced himself.
“Allow me to introduce myself once again. I am Kang Chan-seong, son of the late Kang Tae-pung—the gentleman whose name is written with the characters Tae and Pung.”
Veylord concealed his true identity and introduced himself as Kang Chan-seong.
At this, Park-ga's expression, which had remained gently smiling, twisted into something fierce.
“Bah! You've certainly got your father's sharp eyes. No denying whose son you are.”
The gentle voice Park-ga had used earlier was gone.
In its place came the very same voice as Old Man Hwang, who sat before them.
“How did you know? This disguise was made using techniques employed by FBI undercover agents.”
He asked the question as he peeled off his disguise like a mask.
Beneath the thin mask was a face identical to that of Old Man Hwang seated in front of them.
Only then did the impostor who had been sitting down rise and step aside.
“You take off your mask as well. It must have been stifling to play that role. You've worked hard.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
A cold, subdued voice came from him… no, from her, as she answered respectfully.
The impostor soon removed her mask, revealing a beautiful woman with cool, intelligent features.
Old Man Hwang smiled at her with satisfaction for a moment before his stubborn expression returned.
“Ahem. Go change those clothes and come back.”
“Yes, understood.”
Obeying Old Man Hwang's order, the woman headed outside, casting Veylord a sharp glare as she left.
Once she was gone, Old Man Hwang brought up the transaction.
“So. You want to sell 100 kg of gold all at once?”
“Yes. As you know, there's a legal problem with the gold, and we couldn't find a suitable place to dispose of it at a reasonable price. That's why we've come all the way here.”
As Choi Jung-myeong opened the suitcase behind Veylord, he briefly explained their reason for visiting.
“Hmph! What were you planning to do if I refused to buy it? You came here without even knowing whether I'd agree.”
To the grumbling old man, Veylord repeated the reason for their visit.
“Someone told me that Old Man Hwang would buy it, no matter how much there was.”
“Who said that? It couldn't have been your dead father. And it wouldn't have been your mother, who's gone missing, either.”
Apparently unaware that Hong Jang-mi was already dead, Old Man Hwang described her as missing.
Veylord smiled faintly and answered.
“My late father told me just recently. He said that if I met you and passed along these words, you would help me.”
“What words?”
For an instant, Old Man Hwang's face showed a flash of disbelief, as though wondering whether Veylord could possibly be serious. His expression then turned icy.
And what Veylord said next left him utterly aghast.
“No matter how beautiful a flower may be, beware of its thorns. You never know what poison they may carry.”
The instant he heard those words, Old Man Hwang sprang to his feet and roared.
“You! You bastard! Where did you hear those words?! That was what we said to each other when I told him to flee before they drugged him!”
“I told you, did I not? My dead father told me.”
As he answered, Veylord's lips curved into a gentle smile.
But his eyes burned with a pitch-black abyss as he gazed at Old Man Hwang's heart.