Anyone could tell that the man exiting the car was a member of an organized crime syndicate. And such a man was making a scary face while strutting over to Jun Yeong's car.

'W-what should I do?!'

Jun Yeong nervously bit his fingernails. He was not drunk, which was good, but a car accident was still an accident. This matter could end up on the malicious gossip pages! However, that was a problem for a later date. Right now, Jun Yeong had a bigger problem to worry about in the form of a hulking mobster with a scary face fast approaching his car!

When Jun Yeong stayed inside his car, the 'mobster' began knocking on the driver's side window.

Knock, knock!

However, Jun Yeong was too stiff to respond. And the knocking soon turned into banging on the door.

Bang! Bang!

The 'mobster' banging on the door, Ju Yeong-Gi, yelled in irritation, “Look here, man! Get out already!”

Ju Yeong-Gi clutched the back of his neck and massaged himself as the force behind his banging steadily increased to match the volume of his voice.

“What the f*ck?! You rammed into my car when I was minding my own damn business, so why aren't you coming outside to see what you've done?! Hey, you little sh*t! Come out, now! What are you gonna do about my car, ah?! Tell me!”

The passersby might get the impression that a con artist specializing in automobile accidents was doing his schtick right now. However, Ju Yeong-Gi was genuinely aggrieved at the moment. After all, he really was minding his business when a parked car suddenly jumped forward and slammed into his precious vehicle. So, how could he be pleased about this situation!?

“And I only got this car not too long ago, you know?! Hey, come out, now! Come out! What are you going to do about my car?! Imma...!”

Ju Yeong-Gi angrily pounded on the door, but Jun Yeong still had no desire whatsoever to get out of his car. If he did, he feared the 'mobster' and his pot-sized fists would not leave him alone.

'W-what should I do!?'

The panicking Jun Yeong pulled out his phone and urgently called his manager. In situations like this, calling his manager seemed to be the wisest thing to do. Unfortunately, all he got from the phone's speaker was a lengthy ringtone with no human voice. Jun Yeong smacked the steering wheel in frustration. “Argh, why aren't you answering your phone?!”

Hoooonk!

The car's horn went off. Ju Yeong-Gi frowned in anger and stood upright. “What the hell? Did this stinking piece of sh*t really honk his horn at me?!”

BANG!

Ju Yeong-Gi began kicking the driver's side door. He proceeded to kick it several more times before slamming his palm on the driver's window. “Get out, now! You piece of sh*t! Get out of your goddamn car!”

Ju Yeong-Gi's increasing madness outside the door meant Jun Yeong became even more anxious, unable to sit still and calmly figure it out. Eventually, though...

- Hello?

“H-hyung, it's me! Jun Yeong!”

- What the heck, man? Where have you gone off to so early in the day? Don't you remember that you have a scheduled appearance in the afternoon? Don't you know how hard I worked to get that slot booked for you?!

Jun Yeong cried out in exasperation. “Hyung, that's not important right now! I got into an accident!”

- Accident? What kind?

“A car accident!”

- Say what?

An uncomfortable silence came from the phone's speaker before it was replaced by a trembling voice.

- D-did someone die?

“What the f*ck! Of course not! Our cars bumped into each other, that's all! And the other car's driver is going nuts outside my door right now!”

- What? You dumbass! It doesn't even sound that bad, so why haven't you gone outside and apologized already? Hurry up and apologize, then say the insurance will cover the accident. No, hang on. Even if we let the insurance handle this, bad rumors might spread around, so... Yeah, just tell the other driver that we'll deal with everything. And give him my contact number.

Jun Yeong hurriedly cried out into the phone. “But hyung, I think the dude pounding on my door is a mobster!”

- Say what? A mobster?!

“Y-yeah! I'm not joking here, hyung!”

- Haaa, gimme a freaking break! How could you bump into someone like that?!

“I didn't do it because I wanted to, you know!”

- Get out of the car and apologize to him, quick!

“Are you crazy?!”

- The longer you drag it out, the larger this mess will become, Jun Yeong! And when the reporters get a sniff of this… If they find out that an idol got into a car accident, then got tangled up with an organized crime member, you can kiss your dream of making it big goodbye! So, before this sh*t balloons out of proportion and more witnesses show up, get out of the car and apologize to him right now! Tell me where you are, and I'll be there as soon as possible!

“I, I'm outside the cafe of Kang Se-Ah's old man...”

- You insane idiot! No wonder you stupidly got into a damn car accident! Why did you have to go there so early in the day, anyway?! Okay, I'm on my way now, so hurry up and apologize in the meantime!

“G-got it!” Jun Yeong nodded with a pale face. The call ended there. He then shifted his trembling eyes outside the window and stared at Ju Yeong-Gi.

Unsurprisingly, Ju Yeong-Gi was making a menacing scowl while glaring back at Jun Yeong.

“...Argh, what am I supposed to do here?!” Jun Yeong made a tearful face. He knew he had to get out, but he would get beaten to death by doing so! However, the mobster's next words helped Jun Yeong make up his mind.

“Listen here, you punk. If you don't come out in the next three seconds, Imma smash this window in. Got that?!” Ju Yeong-Gi angrily roared while pounding on the window with enough force to shatter the glass.

Jun Yeong's complexion went deathly pale as he urgently unlocked the door. And then... he finally exited his car while making a sheepish face.

“You stinking a*hole...!” The first thing Ju Yeong-Gi did was grab Jun Yeong by his collars and yank him closer. “Hey, you!”

“Y-yes, sir!” Jun Yeong, clearly frozen stiff with fear, hurriedly replied like a well-disciplined soldier.

“You motherf*cker. What are you gonna do about my car? Ah? My car, goddammit!”

Jun Yeong shifted his frightened eyes over to the mobster's car. And then, he instantly fell into a serious dilemma.

'That model's gotta be at least fifteen years old...'

Such an old car wouldn't even get an offer of two million won from a second-hand dealer, so why was this burly man getting so hung up about it? Jun Yeong couldn't understand it.

“Listen here, you little sh*t! Do you have any idea how much I had to sweat and toil to buy that car?! Even if you wanna let the insurance deal with it, you can't even find a replacement for it anywhere! What, you thought compensation for the accident could get me a similar car like that?”

That was when Jun Yeong's eyes began twitching.

'So, that's what he was implying...?'

Even if Jun Yeong paid a hundred percent of that car's worth, that money probably wouldn't be enough to buy another car in decent shape. No wonder the mobster was so thoroughly 'pissed off.'

Jun Yeong hurriedly made an offer. “L-let me compensate you without getting the insurance people involved.”

“Say what?” Ju Yeong-Gi's brows quivered.

“I, I'll pay you enough money to buy a new car. Without the hassle of insurance people, too.”

“Then, what about my medical fees, ah?!”

“I'm sorry?”

“Can't you see that I've got whiplash?!” Ju Yeong-Gi lightly waved the hand gripping the back of his neck.

'But, you don't look hurt at all...?'

Obviously, someone suffering from whiplash, or any other type of injury to their neck, couldn’t just waltz out of their car perfectly fine.

“If you don't get the insurance people involved, who's gonna pay for my medical fees? What, you are gonna pay for that, too?”

'What do you want me to do here, then?!'

Jun Yeong's expression became tearful again. Getting the insurance company involved was troublesome, but not getting it involved was just as problematic. “I, I'll pay for your medical fees as well.”

Ju Yeong-Gi narrowed his eyes. “Really?”

“Yes. Really. Definitely!”

“How much?”

“...I'm sorry?”

“How much are you gonna give me? The medical fees and for the car.”

Jun Yeong became flustered as he stared at Ju Yeong-Gi.

The latter cocked an eyebrow. “What the hell, are you trying to mess with me or something? You said you ain't gonna get the insurance people involved here, right? In that case, should I get the receipts and make a claim to your accountant or something?”

“N-no, of course not.”

“So? How much?”

“Well, uh... How about ten million[1]?”

“What the f*ck?! You think I'm a beggar or something?! Y'know what? Forget about the medical fees and whatnot, you come with me. This hyung wants to take you oooover there just around the corner, so let's go!”

“N-n-no, wait! Twenty! Twenty million won!”

“Oh, is that right?” Finally, Ju Yeong-Gi stared back at Jun Yeong in a less threatening manner. “Hah~, bloody hell. People might think I'm threatening you or something. Smile, man. Smile.”

“...S-sure thing.”

Ju Yeong-Gi wrapped his arm around Jun Yeong's shoulders and smirked deeply. “Let me tell ya something. You ain't gonna find someone as generous as me. It's because I'm such a nice guy that I'm letting you go for so little, you get what I'm saying? If it had been somebody else? Even your house wouldn't be safe, buddy.”

'But... You are still a daylight robber!'

That hunk of rust probably cost less than two million, yet this mobster demanded twenty million just because its doors got dented a bit. Didn't that make him a robber who just happened to be unarmed at the moment?

Suddenly, the cafe's door opened, and Jo Gyu-Min quickly stepped outside. “Mister Ju Yeong-Gi?”

“Mm?” Ju Yeong-Gi turned his head and smiled brightly at Jo Gyu-Min. “Wowsers, Chief Jo! Didn't expect to see you here. Are you also here to find Jin-Ho?”

Instead of greeting back, Jo Gyu-Min simply beckoned at Ju Yeong-Gi. “Mister Yeong-Gi, can you come over here for a sec?”

“Mm?” Ju Yeong-Gi walked up while tilting his head. Jo Gyu-Min began whispering something into Ju Yeong-Gi's ear.

Quiver...!

Ju Yeong-Gi's cheeks twitched ominously while he listened. Once the information sharing was complete, he slowly nodded in understanding. “Aha, is that what happened?”

“Well, yes. Basically.”

“I see, I see. Well, now. Don't you worry about a thing. You can wait for me inside, Chief Jo.”

“I'll leave it to you, then.” Jo Gyu-Min briefly nodded, then stepped back inside the cafe.

Ju Yeong-Gi, now sporting a huge grin on his face, leisurely walked up to Jun Yeong before wrapping his arm around the idol's shoulders. “Soooo, I hear your name is Jun Yeong. Is that right?”

“...Y-yes.”

“Holy cow, so it is you. You are that Jun Yeong, eh? Y'know, I was planning to pay you a visit sooner rather than later. But, hey! You're Jun Yeong. The Jun Yeong! This thing called fate sure is a mysterious thing, isn't it? Don't you agree?"

'What is this mobster even talking about now?'

Ju Yeong-Gi suddenly grabbed the back of Jun Yeong's head, hard. “Sooo, I heard that you said something about coming to see Eun-Yeong often from now on. Really? That's great. Great, I tell ya. Cuz I like you, you see? So, I'm happy to see you often, too. The thing is, though, I'll be working as Eun-Yeong's manager soon. Ah, wait. You guys call her Se-Ah, right?”

Jun Yeong began shuddering at this explosive news. “H-h-her manager, you say?”

“Yup. This is good news, right? We'll get to see each other often now, riiight?” Ju Yeong-Gi cackled insidiously. “See, when I heard that some creep was drooling all over my friend's younger sister, I was thinking of paying that fool a visit and helping him sleep with the fish in the West Sea. Now that I got to meet that creep like this? I'm pretty pleased about it. I figured you'd be a total loser—a jerkoff—you know? But now, I know you're a nice guy who is very willing to pay for my car's repairs. That gives me a bit of a dilemma, you know?”

Ju Yeong-Gi's smile deepened as he stared coldly at Jun Yeong's pale face. “So, I have a proposal for you. Any thoughts of making a... donation?”

“D-donation?” Jun Yeong blinked his eyes in stupefaction.

“Yup, donation. See, if only you were a tiny bit nicer person... If that’s the case, I'll be a bit more understanding of your situation, you see? If you are unwilling, though? I no longer care about the repair fees or whatever, so you can just accompany me to that backstreet around the corner, and we'll have a quiet little chat in private.”

Jun Yeong's lips clamped shut like a clam.

***

Clink~...

The cafe's door opened, and Ju Yeong-Gi making a content face strode inside. Jo Gyu-Min quietly asked, “What happened?”

Ju Yeong-Gi shrugged his shoulders. “Well, let's just say he's not going to show up here any time soon.”

Clapclapclapclap~!

Jo Gyu-Min applauded as if he was greatly moved by this performance. “Keuh~! And you haven't even officially started working! To think that you'd take care of a big job like this so easily! Mister Kang really does have discerning eyes, doesn't he?!”

“Eheheh, thanks for the praise.”

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled while watching Ju Yeong-Gi good-naturedly wave his hand away. Then, he addressed Jo Gyu-Min, “That takes care of that. However, I don't like how that side ignored our warning and tried their luck again. That kid is still immature, so he may not have realized the implication of his actions. However, today’s event implies that his agency has decided to look the other way now, doesn't it?”

Jo Gyu-Min lightly bit his lip at that observation. He was the one responsible for taking care of this nonsense. However, the situation had unfolded in a way that made him look like an incompetent fool.

'Those damn punks...!'

Another thing to note here was that Jo Gyu-Min didn't rely on his name, but Jaegyeong's to deal with this situation. Yet the other agency still went ahead and did this. Wasn't that the same as mocking the Jaegyeong Group?

'So, you want to have a go, is that it?'

Jo Gyu-Min began gritting his teeth, but then...

“Mister Gyu-Min, please don't get involved in this matter anymore,” said Kang Jin-Ho.

“...Mister Jin-Ho?” Jo Gyu-Min, looking somewhat flustered, stared at Kang Jin-Ho.

“It's time I deal with this nonsense.” Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes as he looked into the distance.

“...!” Jo Gyu-Min panicked slightly and urgently piped up. “No, that won't do! Let me talk to them again. I'll make myself clearer this time. It seems that they haven't gotten the message properly, so I…”

Kang Jin-Ho's expression grew cold. “I'm sure you already know that's not how it is.”

“...”

“If words don't get through to them, I'll just make them listen. In any case. I'll handle this case, so you—”

Just as Kang Jin-Ho was about to announce his decision, Ju Yeong-Gi stopped listening and butted in. “Nope, nope. That's not how it works.”

“...Mm?” Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes.

Ju Yeong-Gi frowned while explaining himself, “Hey, dude. A boss man who always steps up to deal with every situation no matter how minor it is can be a total pain in the neck, don't you know that? Especially to the folks working under him. Listen, Jin-Ho. Now that you have so many mouths to feed, you gotta learn how to let people under you handle jobs like this and wait for the result.”

“...M-mouths to feed?” Kang Jin-Ho nearly tripped on his feet.

“Of course.” Ju Yeong-Gi sagely nodded away. “A man should be aware of his station, dude. Some people here chose their paths in life while trusting you, so you acting like a brat won't do anyone any good, know what I mean? Chief Secretary Jo here says he's gonna handle it, so trust him.”

“...Y-yeah.” Kang Jin-Ho involuntarily nodded after being pushed back by Ju Yeong-Gi's charismatic aura.

Jo Gyu-Min also expressed his gratitude by bowing his head a little at Ju Yeong-Gi. However, his grateful expression soon transformed into that of a vengeful spirit as he yanked out his phone.

1. ~7,500 USD ☜