Chapter 32 – Shadows and Secrets
Joon leaned against the glass railing of his penthouse, gazing at the city he had fought to control. The past was knocking. And it wore the face of Eun-jin, the journalist who had uncovered something dangerous.
She stood across from him, her expression unreadable. "I know what you buried, Joon. I know the truth about the Bridge to Hope project."
Joon exhaled slowly. "Then you know that truth is just a matter of who tells the story first."
Eun-jin's fingers tightened around her recorder. "The world deserves to hear it from you."
Joon chuckled darkly. "Deserve? No one deserves the truth, Eun-jin. They only crave the version that suits them."
For a moment, she hesitated. She had come here expecting resistance, but Joon wasn't denying anything. He was playing a deeper game.
"I want the full story," she said. "Everything."
Joon turned his back to her, looking out at the sea of lights below. "Then you should be ready to drown in it."
---
Elsewhere in the city, Hyun-soo and Soo-ah were moving in the shadows.
A warehouse near the docks—one of Joon's old safe houses—had been breached. Files that were supposed to be long hidden had resurfaced. And the people who had taken them… weren't ordinary criminals.
Hyun-soo scanned the broken lock. "Whoever did this knew exactly where to look."
Soo-ah frowned. "This wasn't just a break-in. This was a message."
Hyun-soo nodded grimly. "Then we send one back."
Within hours, the underworld was buzzing. A storm was coming. And Joon was at its center.
---
As Joon prepared to counter the latest attack, another name surfaced—one he hadn't heard in years.
Kyung-tae.
A man who had once stood beside him… and now stood in his way.
"He's returned," Soo-ah reported. "And he's not alone."
Joon's jaw tightened. The Hidden Council had found the one person who knew how to hurt him the most.
But Joon never played defense.
"If he's back," he said coldly, "then we bury him first."
---
That night, Joon made a call. A deep voice answered.
"Time to clean up old debts," Joon said.
Across the city, doors were locked. Phones went silent.
Because when Joon moved, the whole city braced itself.
The game had changed. And now, there were no rules.
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