The Manager Is a Gangster

19 – Who Found Whom (12)

1.

I couldn’t hold onto Haan’s departure, but I couldn’t just let her go either.

How can you leave someone carrying a dagger in their bag? Who knows what trouble they might cause.

So, the choice I made was to tail her.

Canceling the lunch appointment with my brother, I followed Haan.

And this is how it turned out.

“What’s that?”

“Hey! What are you doing?”

“I feel like I’ve seen that somewhere before…”

The gaze of three thugs inside the abandoned factory focused on me.

The three pairs of eyes staring at me were full of hostility, and I didn’t feel like they were going to let me off easily.

Well, maybe it was too much to sneak away with just Haan. It would have been better to observe the situation a bit more.

I didn’t want to attract attention like this, and although I revealed myself faster than expected, I couldn’t just stand by when Haan was about to face a dangerous situation.

Still, I’m relieved that I could prevent Haan from getting blood on her hands. The situation didn’t go as planned, but thinking of it as a little detour should suffice.

Turning my attention away from the thugs, I could see Haan standing in front of a table with a dagger in her hand. Her expression was visibly pale.

It seemed like my sudden appearance startled her quite a bit.

I reached out to reassure her, but a loud voice I had never heard from Haan before burst out.

“Why, why are you here? No, why did Manager come here!”

“Oh.”

Until now, I’ve been speaking calmly, so I didn’t know. Good singing too? Moreover, your skill with the knife earlier wasn’t ordinary. If I hadn’t stopped, that blockhead would have been in trouble. Good stamina and a well-shaped body. The more you look, the more impressive of a talent.

As I approached her with a smile, feeling the reason why Hwan should be an idol for the 15,185th season.

While hoping Hwan would relax a bit, I threw a light joke.

“I came to retrieve that kitchen knife. It’s quite expensive, you know.”

“What?”

“And it’s a tool for cooking, not for attacking people. I have to stop you if you want to use my knife as a weapon.”

“…”

“So give it back. It’s not meant for that.”

I didn’t forget to include a sincere intention in the joke.

But even after hearing me, Hwan, still glaring at the thug with the knife, shouted like an evil spirit.

“But if I don’t do this, who knows what these guys will do to our manager! They use everything they can, and when it becomes useless, they dispose of it. They might even kill the manager after seeing me disappear!”

“Oh…”

Were these guys really that extreme? Hwan had been running away from such ruthless guys for a few years? Hwan is truly amazing.

Even though she seemed capable of surviving anywhere, hearing the specific specs of these thugs made Hwan’s survival skills shine even more.

Surviving against such guys and honing her survival skills. Truly remarkable.

While still admiring in Season 15,186, an unavoidable conclusion popped out of Hwan’s mouth.

“So… there’s nothing I can do. If they were only after me, I could have just run away like I’ve been doing. But now that I know the manager, there’s only one way to end this.”

“Huh? Why would that be?”

“It’s not like you’re going to run away with me. You have a good home, a lot to lose. Can you give all that up for just a woman you met yesterday?”

The answer to Hwan’s question was so obvious that it came out as a reflex without passing through my brain.

“Of course, I can’t give up.”

I’ve spent seven years in prison to become an idol manager, I absolutely can’t give up.

It was a response that could instantly undermine the favorability that Haan had built up so diligently, but surprisingly, Haan didn’t seem disappointed.

“······Look. It’s just as I thought. Even with Manager-nim’s kindness that seemed endless, there are limits. So······ just run away quickly.”

Instead, Haan nodded as if my answer was obvious and stood in front of the gangsters.

From the back, blocking gangsters who were twice as big as himself, his determination to take them on, even if he died, was evident.

Certainly, Haan’s body was surprisingly sturdy, and he had a sharp butcher knife in his hand that could cut anything. But that’s about it.

I could tell from the countless gangsters and heinous criminals I’ve seen.

Although I don’t like making such evaluations, they were a group accustomed to violence, the so-called rice-eaters who live by the sword.

If he had attacked immediately during the ambush, who knows what would have happened, but now that we’ve prepared for this, an amateur like Haan wouldn’t stand a chance.

Of course, I can’t complain because I was the one who stopped Haan’s knife.

Actually, there was nothing to complain about.

From the moment the plan to kidnap Haan and run with her alone was ruined, I had no choice left.

In the end, I sighed and approached Haan.

And I placed my hand on her slender shoulder and spoke.

“Haan, how can I just leave you alone and run away? People have things they can and can’t do.”

“No, go away! Does this look like a joke to you?”

“A joke······. Well, it’s not a joke. Probably.”

There was no way I could take it as a joke when they were planning to sell Haan to a Chinese tycoon.

“Then why aren’t you running away! If you know it’s not a joke, then run away quickly······!”

“That’s a bit tricky. They’re not the kind of guys who would just willingly let you go, even if you tell them to run away from the start.”

“I’ll be the one dealing with them…”

“If only those guys were the problem, do you think I’d be in this situation?”

“What?”

For the first time, Han turned her gaze away from the guys and looked at me. In her expression, not the emotionless one I had seen so far, but a genuine sense of urgency, I could sense a new impression.

Oh, even a slightly distorted expression is art. Some people become less attractive when their expressions show, but Han has overflowing charm even in a twisted expression. Where does this person’s genius end?

Lost in such impressions, I couldn’t answer Han’s question, and right in front of me, the leader among the thugs spoke instead, resolving her doubts.

“Yeah, that kid is right. We’ve been trying to catch Choi Han for years, and it’s natural that we didn’t come alone.”

The leader’s words paused for a moment, and in that gap, the sound of dozens of footsteps filled the air. Behind me, numerous signs of presence were felt, and when I turned my head, dozens of people in black suits, each with a pipe or a knife, were blocking the entrance with a well-fitted black suit.

“Even if you don’t run away, it’s a force that can invade other organizations just by hearing rumors about your beauty and committing theft. How much did you plead with the big brother to bring these guys······ If you hear it, you’ll be surprised, won’t you?”

“······.”

In the face of the words of the leader and the dozens of thugs, a look of despair flashed in Han’s eyes.

The gaze of Han, who had never been broken so far and seemed unlikely to break, broke, and as her eyes broke, the leader began to mock her with a smile.

“Kuk······ Krhuhuhuhu! I’ve been expecting the day when you, who put so much effort into your neck and acted like a big shot, would make such an expression. I wonder how much I f*cking looked forward to that expression!”

“·······.”

Thunk!

Han bit her lower lip, trembling with anger and helplessness.

And even her emotional reaction was nothing more than enjoyable entertainment for the leader and his lackeys.

“hahahaha!”

In the abandoned factory filled with the sound of bitter laughter, the boss mockingly proposed to Haan.

“Let me make a suggestion in this hopeless situation. If you kneel down and bow to me now, I might let one of those bastards go unharmed. How about that? A fair offer, isn’t it?”

Haan knew who the boss was and probably understood that he wouldn’t keep his word.

At the same time, in such a desperate situation, she would naturally entertain the thought that they might spare her life.

And if there was a chance to save herself, Haan wouldn’t hesitate to kneel and beg before them. After all, she had risked her life several times already for someone she had just met yesterday.

“······.”

As expected, Haan remained silent and lowered her posture.

Her entire body, which was excessively tense due to anger just moments ago, relaxed a bit. In her eyes, instead of despair or anger, there was relief and gratitude, stemming from the hope that she could survive.

But I know. It won’t take long for her hope to turn into despair.

Thunk.

So, I quickly grabbed under Haan’s armpits, halting her from bending her knees any further.

“Ugh?! W-What’s happening?”

The sensitive area under her armpits caused an adorable whimper to escape Haan’s lips naturally.

I couldn’t help but smile at the unexpected cuteness, but this was not the time to be amused. Swiftly, I changed my expression.

Facing Haan with a calm and reassuring smile, I spoke while looking into her surprised, widened eyes.

“Since I heard Haan’s story last night, it’s my turn to share mine this time.”

“Ah, no, wait a moment! Is now the time to say such things? Kyaa!?”

I grabbed below hahahahan’s armpits, swiftly lifted her, and moved sideways, making her lean against the wall.

Turning away from her, I faced the gangsters who had surrounded us inside the abandoned factory. It was time to start the story I had decided to share.

“Where should I begin with this…?”

“Hey, you son of a b*tch, do you think this is a joke? How messed up must your life be to act like you’re in control even in a situation like this?”

Summoning the courage to reveal my past, I began, but one of the gangsters, the apparent leader, stepped forward with profanity, interrupting me.

Approaching with a pipe in hand, he exuded a ferocious aura as if he could smash my head with his heavy and solid weapon at any moment.

Considering his demeanor, I realized I couldn’t prolong the conversation. I had to compress the essence of my story for the imminent confrontation.

“Let’s see if you can still act cocky after your head is smashed!”

Whoosh!

As expected, the tightly gripped pipe descended vertically towards my head.

“Manager!”

Simultaneously, a desperate voice echoed from behind hahahahan.

Crash!

Along with a sound resembling an explosion.

Thud!

One of the gangsters who had swung the pipe flew, crashing headfirst from mid-air to the ground.

“…”

Amidst the sudden silence, skepticism about what everyone witnessed crept into their expressions.

I swallowed the condensed version of my embarrassing past.

“I am a gangster.”

“Huh, what?”

“To be precise… I used to be a gangster.”

“W-what does that mean?”

I took a couple of steps forward, concerned that Haan might get hurt, and continued speaking.

“And from now on, I’ll be a gangster again.”

It was quite embarrassing to say.