Chapter 88
“Oh dear, our mercenary Min Ahyeon. You shouldn’t be doing this.”
The voice coming from behind Ahyeon belonged to none other than Choi Yong-tae. Ah, I knew this son of a bitch would pull something like this. I had a hunch something was off. Ahyeon let out a sigh, squeezing her eyes shut, while Yong-tae cocked his gun with a click, exuding a ferocious aura as if he could blow through Ahyeon’s small head at any moment.
Ahyeon’s tiny head was an easy target. No matter how formidable someone was, getting shot in the back of the head would kill them, infected or not. Yong-tae grinned crookedly.
“Didn’t I say I came to find our puppy? You should have just walked away then.”
Instead of answering, Ahyeon glanced at the various vicious weapons packed into the warehouse and said,
“Their name was Puppy? Fits them perfectly. Your naming sense kills me.”
Ahyeon showed no signs of fear, even appearing boldly confident. Typical Min Ahyeon, he thought.
“Yes. I suppose I do have that knack. Should I come up with an epitaph for you too? How about ‘Ignorance is bliss’, not bad, eh?”
“Bluffing.”
Ahyeon moved at that very moment. Bang! Reacting instinctively to her sudden movement, Yong-tae pulled the trigger but the bullet merely cut through the air. The moment she spun around, Ahyeon bent Yong-tae’s arm to point the gun upwards and then landed a snap kick to his abdomen.
“Ugh!”
Thud! Despite his massive size, he flew lightly and hit the wall, rolling on the floor. But he was still a mercenary after all, keeping a firm grip on his gun. Unfortunately for him though, Ahyeon’s mercenary-honed moves were a bit faster than he could recover, and she dashed over before he could raise his gun, pinning his wrist under her foot and aiming her own gun at him.
“Let me come up with an epitaph for you. ‘Tripped over his own feet and fell.'”
Click. Ahyeon cocked her gun too, her finger on the trigger. Yong-tae’s bulging eyes turned towards her.
“So let me get this straight.”
Ahyeon continued speaking, her gun trained at Yong-tae’s brow while pinning his wrist under her foot.
“The little puppy you came to find turned out to be these adorable US military weapons, and what were you planning to do with them, huh?”
Yong-tae did not answer, but his silence was an affirmation in itself. Ahyeon let out a mocking laugh.
“So, what’s the plan? Going to make some friends for Puppy?”
“Perhaps I can create a better world for Puppy.”
“You’d do great at that. You have such a naive view of the world. How old are you? Already up to shady business at such a young age. Tsk tsk.”
Even though the word “old-fashioned” was almost on the tip of Choi Yong-tae’s tongue, he realized that saying such things here would only result in a loss, so he kept quiet. Ahyeon tilted the gun slightly with a squint in one eye.
“Let’s talk about the size of your organization. Tell me.”
“Like I would tell you.”
“I can make you talk.”
Ahyeon applied gradual pressure with her foot on his pinned wrist. Watching Yong-tae’s face contort in pain, she reached for her machete tucked in her waistband.
But.
“Ah, damn.”
Click.
A gun barrel pressed against Ahyeon’s waist. The chill seeping through the layer of clothing was far from welcoming.
“There were two of you.”
Ahyeon removed her foot from Yong-tae, dropped her gun, and raised both hands. One might think she could disarm this new opponent like she did Yong-tae, but Ahyeon had her doubts. Because she hadn’t sensed this person’s approach at all until the barrel was against her.
Against such a skilled opponent, Ahyeon wasn’t confident she could overpower them even if she tried recklessly. At best, she’d get injured. At worst, an accidental discharge could kill her.
So Ahyeon cleanly gave up resisting and slowly turned around bit by bit. A woman with a pixie cut greeted her. Quite striking with her stylishly swept fringe, and piercings all over her ears, eyebrows, nose and lips. Ahyeon stared at her for a moment before letting out a snort.
“You must be the leader over there.”
Right then, Yong-tae, groaning as he got up behind her, shouted out.
“How, how did you know?”
“How did I know what? It’s obvious just by looking.”
They wouldn’t have sent just one person to transport weapons from the U.S. military base, and sending too many would be too conspicuous, so they probably came with two or three people. And earlier, Yong-tae referred to her as ‘the boss’, implying she came with him. On top of that, the clear look of relief on Yong-tae’s face the moment she aimed her gun at Aheon was obvious.
With all these circumstances, how could Ahyeon not deduce it? Even looking from a passing plane, she’s clearly the leader.
“Hello?”
Ahyeon greeted the woman with a bright smile and a wave.
“Since you already know me, no need for introductions. What about you?”
But the woman didn’t respond, simply keeping her cocked revolver trained on Ahyeon.
“Hmm.”
Ahyeon deliberately maintained a nonchalant expression, pursing her lips.
“You really gonna kill me?”
The woman’s bleached eyebrows furrowed slightly. Ahyeon let out a hearty laugh, as if she expected that reaction.
“It’d be a waste to kill me here.”
Ahyeon winked playfully.
“You want to recruit me right now, don’t you?”
This too was the correct deduction. Which led Yong-tae to even wonder if Ahyeon had some psychic abilities—or perhaps she was just a skilled shaman, hence her sharpshooting skills—since the infected were no longer living, after all. But Ahyeon, oblivious to such thoughts, focused on the woman before her.
“So, what’ll it be? Kill me or let me live? Hm?”
“Still deciding.”
The woman’s lips parted for the first time.
“Kill or not kill. Deciding.”
Her voice was husky and raspy. A stranger might think it was just her natural voice, but Ahyeon didn’t see it that way. Her vocal cords were damaged. That’s why her speech was clipped.
“Even if you ponder, there’s only one answer.”
“What answer?”
“Letting me live.”
The woman’s face contorted. She was impressed by Ahyeon’s boldness, but simultaneously put off by her cheekiness. Ahyeon’s nonchalance felt like she had something backing her up, and it wasn’t just a feeling.
“Kill me and you’re screwed. You know who I’m currently taking orders from, right?”
“I know.”
The woman answered curtly.
“Mad Dog.”
The one called Mad Dog, Military Dog, son of a bitch—these were all terms used to refer to the esteemed General Shin Hae-jun. Ahyeon had always called him a son of a bitch, but now she saw him as a savior.
“Ah, so you’re on that bastard’s side, eh? Mercenary Min, didn’t take you for such a scoundrel.”
“You were just trying to kill me moments ago and you’re calling me the scoundrel.”
Ignoring Yong-tae’s irritated remark, Ahyeon turned her attention back to the woman.
“Yeah. Anyway, I’m with that Mad Dog now. Touch me and you’ll get bitten hard by the Mad Dog. Get me?”
The woman didn’t respond, and Ahyeon judged she had said enough.
They won’t kill me. No, they can’t kill me. How could they kill one of ‘his’, Shin Hae-jun’s people?
“So just let me go. Or explain things and bring me to your side instead.”
Ahyeon probed, aiming to extract information, and the woman’s reaction was quite intriguing. She stared at Ahyeon with slightly dilated pupils.
After observing Ahyeon for a few seconds, the woman slowly lowered her gun. Was she really going to talk? Just as Ahyueo’s eyes lit up with anticipation…
Clack clack—
The revolver’s cylinder released all but one bullet as they clattered to the floor.
“Win and I’ll let you go. Lose and you die.”
Click. The revolver’s cylinder spun noisily, loaded with only a single bullet. The woman twirled the revolver with a sly grin. She was suggesting they play Russian roulette, putting one bullet in the chamber and spinning before pulling the trigger to her head.
“Ugh…”
Yong-tae frowned. Our boss is pulling that stupid stunt again.
The gambling-addicted boss had a habit of deciding binary choices by flipping a coin. In this case, it was a revolver instead of a coin, with life being the stakes.
However, Yong-tae wasn’t too worried, not because he blindly believed she would survive, but because he judged that Min Ahyeon would obviously refuse.
Who in their right mind would agree to Russian roulette? Only a madwoman would.
“Pffahaha!”
So Yong-tae was taken aback by Min Ahyeon’s sudden laughter.
“Ah, it’s been a while since I met a real crazy bitch.”
Chuckling, Ahyeon closed the distance in long strides until she was right in front of the woman. In a flash, she snatched the revolver from the woman’s hands.
“Hey, Boss!”
He probably thought Ahyeon would attack her. But Ahyeon had no such intention.
“Let’s do it, shall we?”
Ahyeon raised the revolver, confirmed it only had one bullet chambered, closed the cylinder and gave it a spin from her shoulder down her arm. Clackclackclack! The round cylinder spun noisily before rolling away. Click! Ahyeon placed her finger on the trigger.
“I’ve got crazy luck, you know.”
Bang!
She pulled the trigger.
🕂
Thank you for reading! ♡
