"Unveiled"

That evening, Ji Hwan and Ji Yeon parked their motorcycles in front of the house. Ji Hwan stretched his arms lazily as he stepped inside, only to glance toward the garden—and immediately freeze in place.

There, standing with his arms crossed, was his uncle, Kang Ryun, waiting for him.

"You're late," Kang Ryun said, his sharp eyes locking onto Ji Hwan.

Ji Hwan let out a nervous chuckle, glancing at Ji Yeon for help, but she simply smirked and walked past him.

"Good luck, genius," she teased before disappearing into the house.

Ji Hwan sighed and turned back to his uncle. "Uh, Uncle… don't you think we should take a break today? I mean, I barely recovered from the last training session—"

Kang Ryun raised an eyebrow. "Oh? So you have enough energy to cause trouble at school but not enough for training?"

Ji Hwan scratched the back of his head, knowing he had no way out.

"Let's go," Kang Ryun said, tossing a pair of gloves at him. "Sunset training starts now."

Ji Hwan groaned, dragging his feet toward the garden. "I swear, one day I'll escape this torture..."

Kang Ryun smirked. "You can try. But you won't."

On the Other Side, Tae Min sat comfortably on the sofa in his room, scrolling through his phone with a sly grin. "Ji Hwan is just a coward," he muttered before locking his phone.

Back to Ji Hwan The training session had been going on for quite a while. This time, Ji Hwan put in more effort, attempting to fight back against his uncle. His movements were swift, dodging Kang Ryun's attacks, and even landing a few solid strikes.

Kang Ryun observed Ji Hwan's movements with a raised eyebrow. "Hmm… you actually know how to fight."

Ji Hwan smirked and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Ah, this is nothing, Uncle. I just got lucky this time."

But the truth was, Ji Hwan wasn't just "lucky"—he had his own gang. The five guys who showed up at his school earlier weren't just random friends; they were part of his group, a gang that operated outside of school without anyone knowing.

Kang Ryun had no idea.

Seeing his uncle still watching him closely, Ji Hwan suddenly grabbed his leg and winced. "Ah! My leg! I think I twisted it, Uncle!"

Kang Ryun crossed his arms and stared at him suspiciously. "Oh? Just a few hits and you're already injured?"

Ji Hwan put on a pitiful expression. "Well, I'm not as tough as you, Uncle! Have some pity on your poor nephew… besides, I'm exhausted!"

Kang Ryun let out a long sigh. "You lazy brat."

Inside, Ji Hwan was laughing to himself—he had successfully avoided extra training, at least for now.

Kang Ryun sighed and ruffled Ji Hwan's hair a bit roughly. "Alright, you lazy kid. I need to work on my college assignments anyway."

Ji Hwan grinned. "Exactly, Uncle! Studying is way more important than beating up your own nephew."

Kang Ryun shot him a sharp look. "You talk too much."

Ji Hwan chuckled, grabbing a water bottle nearby and leaning against the wall. As Kang Ryun walked back inside the house, Ji Hwan pulled out his phone and quickly typed in the group chat with his gang.

Ji Hwan: "Meeting tonight. We need to talk."

Within seconds, replies started coming in.

Jin Woo: "I knew you'd call us. Where at?"

Hyuk Soo: "I got something interesting to bring."

Dong Il: "Wait, didn't your uncle beat you up today?"

Ji Hwan: "As if! I'm too slick for him."

Ji Hwan smirked. Training with his uncle might have been exhausting, but tonight, he had something much more exciting planned—something far beyond just martial arts practice.

[Class Group Chat – Ancheon Boys' High]

Seung Woo: "Oii, so what about earlier? Are we gonna talk about this more or not?"

Ji Yeon: "Ugh, I'm still annoyed. Why is there always some drama at this school?"

Joo Hyuk: "Exactly! I told you, if we keep quiet, they're just gonna keep pushing their luck!"

Daehyun: "I don't really care, as long as we don't get punished again."

Hyun Jae: "But seriously, don't you guys think something feels off? This is all way too much of a coincidence."

Raon: "Agreed. I feel like someone's pulling strings behind the scenes."

Sion: "But where's Ji Hwan? He was the most fired up about this earlier."

Kyungmin: "Yeah, weird. Usually, he's the loudest one when it comes to this stuff."

Seung Woo: "I've tagged him multiple times. The dude just disappeared."

Ji Yeon: "Ugh, what an irresponsible idiot! Why do I have a twin like this?"

Joo Hyuk: "Maybe he's hiding because he doesn't wanna be interrogated? LOL."

Daehyun: "Or… he's busy making even more trouble?"

The group chat went silent for a moment.

Hyun Jae: "Wouldn't be surprising if that's true."

Raon: "I think we should find out ourselves. Let's not wait for him to spill first."

Meanwhile, Ji Hwan still hadn't replied. His notifications remained empty, leaving everyone wondering what was really going on.

[Class Group Chat – Ancheon Boys' High]

Ji Yeon: "Guys, Ji Hwan and my uncle finished training a while ago."

Seung Woo: "Okay… so where is he now?"

Ji Yeon: "That's the thing. I just checked downstairs, and he's not there."

Joo Hyuk: "Wait, what? Didn't he say he was tired after training?"

Raon: "Typical Ji Hwan. He says one thing, then does another."

Kyungmin: "So… he just disappeared again?"

Ji Yeon: "Yeah. I just checked with my uncle, and he thought Ji Hwan went straight to his room. But he's not here."

Sion: "Did he say anything before leaving?"

Ji Yeon: "Nope. Not a single word."

Daehyun: "You think he went out alone? That's kinda risky with everything going on."

Hyun Jae: "Or maybe… someone called him out?"

Ji Yeon: "If that's the case, then we better find him before something happens."

Seung Woo: "Alright, let's split up and check around. He couldn't have gone far."

Tension grew among them. Ji Hwan's sudden disappearance wasn't normal, and with all the chaos happening lately, they couldn't help but worry.

Elsewhere, Ji Hwan sat in a small diner, sipping a cold drink while tapping his fingers on the table. He was waiting for his friends—Jin Woo, Hyuk Soo, and Dong Il—who were still wearing their Ancheon Technical High School uniforms.

"Why are they taking so long?" Ji Hwan muttered, glancing towards the street.

Moments later, the sound of motorcycles approaching caught his attention. Jin Woo and the others arrived, parking their bikes in front of the diner before stepping inside and sitting next to Ji Hwan.

"So, what's this about?" Hyuk Soo asked, getting straight to the point.

Ji Hwan smirked slightly. "We need to talk about a few things. I don't think we can just sit back and do nothing about this."

Meanwhile, elsewhere, Ji Yeon was riding her Vespa at a moderate speed. She checked her phone, trying to track Ji Hwan's location, but got nothing.

"That idiot," Ji Yeon muttered in frustration. "Running off without saying anything again."

She bit her lip, trying to figure out where Ji Hwan might have gone. With the situation at school becoming more complicated, she couldn't ignore the bad feeling creeping in. Finally, she decided to search for Ji Hwan herself.

One class had split up to search for Ji Hwan. Two of them, Hyun Jae and Dae Hyun, were the first to spot him.

"There he is!" Hyun Jae muttered, narrowing his eyes as he saw Ji Hwan riding a motorcycle with the four guys who had come to their school earlier.

Dae Hyun frowned. "I knew those guys looked familiar. Why is Ji Hwan with them?"

Without hesitation, they got on their bikes and quickly contacted the others.

Hyun Jae (Group Chat): "Found Ji Hwan. He's with those guys from earlier. Heading somewhere on their bikes."

Seung Woo: "What?! Where?!"

Dae Hyun: "Following them now. Will update."

They kept a safe distance, trailing Ji Hwan and the group until they arrived at an unfamiliar location. It was an old, run-down building that looked like a gang hideout. Ji Hwan got off his bike and followed the others inside.

Hyun Jae and Dae Hyun exchanged glances before pulling over a short distance away.

"We wait for the others," Dae Hyun whispered.

Hyun Jae nodded, keeping his eyes on the entrance. "Yeah. But something's not right about this."

The two of them remained hidden, watching closely as the rest of their classmates rushed to their location.

Inside the hideout, Ji Hwan was talking with his 20 gang members when suddenly—

BAM!!

The door burst open, and his entire class stormed in like a group of rebels.

Leading the charge was Ji Yeon, gripping a baseball bat, while the others carried wooden planks and helmets, walking with an air of battle-ready determination.

Ji Hwan, who had been casually standing in the middle, froze. His eyes widened as he processed the absurd scene in front of him.

"YA!!! WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!" he shouted, immediately running to stand between the two groups before things got out of hand.

"How did you even find me here?!?" he added, looking both annoyed and baffled.

Ji Yeon scoffed, "Don't think you can keep hiding your stupid secrets from us!"

His classmates all glared at him, clearly pissed off.

Jin Woo, one of Ji Hwan's gang members, crossed his arms and muttered, "Ugh, idiot."

Suddenly, the entire room went silent.

Ji Hwan's classmates, who had barged in with so much intensity, slowly turned their heads toward Jin Woo, their gazes murderous.

Raon stepped forward, his expression dark. "Listen up. No one gets to call him an idiot except us."

Jin Woo blinked. "Hah?"

Dong Il, who had been quiet until now, finally spoke up, "Heh! We've been his friends since middle school and we're still close. We know him better than anyone!"

Ji Hwan, standing helplessly between the two groups, felt a headache coming.

"YA! ARE YOU SERIOUSLY ARGUING ABOUT THIS?!?" he yelled in frustration.

All heads turned back to him, this time with even more irritation.

Seung Woo casually raised his baseball bat. "How about we just beat him up?"

"AGREED!!" they all shouted in unison.

Ji Hwan's face went pale. He quickly turned on his heel, preparing to run. "YA! WHY AM I THE VICTIM HERE?!?!"

The once-tense hideout was now filled with chaos and the typical madness that only Ji Hwan and his friends could create.

Meanwhile Joo Hyuk was struggling to push his broken-down motorbike along the street, panting and sweating.

His destination? The hideout.

Back at the hideout Just as Ji Hwan was about to be "disciplined" by his classmates, the door slammed open once again.

"YAAAHH!!!"

Joo Hyuk came charging in, wielding a wooden plank like a madman, ready to swing at someone.

Everyone froze, including Ji Hwan's gang.

Joo Hyuk skidded to a stop, his eyes darting around in confusion. "H-Hah?! What the hell is going on here?!?"

His gaze then locked onto Ji Hwan, and his frustration exploded.

He pointed at Ji Hwan aggressively and yelled, "HEY, YOU LITTLE SHIT!! MY MOTORBIKE BROKE DOWN BECAUSE I WAS TRYING TO PROTECT YOU AND FIND YOU!! AND NOW I COME HERE JUST TO SEE… THIS?!"

Ji Hwan barely managed to block Joo Hyuk's attempted swing with the plank. "YA! WHO TOLD YOU GUYS TO COME HERE IN THE FIRST PLACE?!?"

The others immediately jumped in. "IF YOU'RE GOING TO GO OUT, AT LEAST TELL US FIRST!!"

Ji Hwan groaned and massaged his temples. "Ughhh, do I have to explain everything?! You guys totally ruined the situation!!"

His classmates all shouted in unison, "YA!!!"

BAM!!

Without hesitation, they all started smacking Ji Hwan with their weapons—lightly, of course, but enough to make him yell out in pain.

"YA! YA! STOP IT! I SAID STOPPPP!!!"

The chaotic scene continued, proving once again that Ji Hwan was doomed to be bullied by his own friends, no matter what situation he was in.

Everyone fell silent.

They sat in a circle inside the hideout, still trying to process what Ji Hwan had just said.

"So..." Hyun Jae narrowed his eyes. "YOU OWN THIS PLACE?!"

"Yeah," Ji Hwan answered casually, leaning back against an old couch in the corner.

"NO WAY!!" Everyone shouted in unison.

Ji Yeon nearly dropped her drink. "Wait, wait, I don't get it. You're just a regular high schooler, but you own a hideout like this? Where did you even get the money?!"

Ji Hwan let out a deep sigh. "I work, Ji Yeon. I had a part-time job at a fancy restaurant, and before that, I delivered food to support my gang's living expenses."

Their eyes widened even more.

"WHAT?!"

Joo Hyuk threw his cap on the floor. "YOU'RE INSANE! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US?! YOU WORK THIS HARD AND STILL DISAPPEAR WITHOUT A WORD?!"

"Because if I told you, you guys would ask even more questions!" Ji Hwan ran a hand through his hair, looking frustrated.

Everyone let out a long sigh and stared at him.

"So, what do you want now?" Raon asked suspiciously.

Ji Hwan leaned back further, gazing at the ceiling. "I just came to check on the hideout, then I'm heading to the kids' dorm to see if they need anything."

Silence.

Ji Yeon stared at him intensely. "You..."

"What about me?" Ji Hwan raised an eyebrow.

Ji Yeon scoffed. "You're annoying, but... sometimes you're too kind."

Ji Hwan chuckled. "Don't get used to complimenting me."

"NEVER!" Everyone answered at the same time.

Even though they were still annoyed, deep down, they felt relieved. At least now, they knew another side of Ji Hwan that he had kept hidden all this time.