Chapter 177: < Protect – Episode 176 – Ahn Da Sol vs. Trash Disposal Group [1] >

The deal with n.o.buhisa was only half honored.

Ahn Soo Ho released him from the brainwas.h.i.+ng and turned off the explosive switch in his head, but there was no more than that. Their relations.h.i.+p was simply based on need. He just had to believe him as much as he wanted and use him as much as he needed.

‘Isn’t that just life?’

Many people asked this to Ahn Soo Ho.

They asked what he lived for.

And his answer was always the same.

“Nothing.”

‘Nothing?’

Some might have perceived this as lack of responsibility, but Ahn Soo Ho really didn’t have a specific goal in life. Some chased after power while others sought peace or unity, but he didn’t wish for a life with a clear objective.

Why? Because he had already experienced it before.

‘I’ve already lived countless lives.’

The memories of this world that flowed in him in his way through Hades.

People imagined h.e.l.l in a vague way. However, in every life was both heaven and h.e.l.l. Some man thought living with his horrible wife and children was h.e.l.l while some woman thought the continued s.e.xual hara.s.sment was h.e.l.l. Among the criminals behind bars, some liked being in jail while others didn’t. There were those who hated being distant from the real world while there were those who felt comforted.

‘People without certainty.’

But people always said to have goals and dreams in life.

Why? Because people believed that that was the best way to achieve a better future. However, it was even worse to press one to have an uncertain dream or objective. Most humans lived in a society. However, there were people who just weren’t cut out for society.

People who didn’t want to talk to other people.

Even 1% of a population of 7 billion people was still 70 million, and among those, 1% of them denied society. They wanted the convenience of civilization but also live the way they wanted. If a normal person was like that, they were a naturalist, but if it was a person with a strong pa.s.sion, they were considered anarchists. And on top of that, if they had power, they were capable of becoming terrorists or revolutionists.

As soon as n.o.buhisa left, Lee So Hye came in.

“Who was that?”

“A business partner.”

“Really?”

Lee So Hye was showing interest in her brother’s business these days, but it was possible that her goal was to meet lots of celebrities. If she showed potential, he could leave her with a business. After all, Ahn Soo Ho didn’t care if she made it go bankrupt or not. However, that didn’t mean he would leave a business to a president with no skill.

“Is there anywhere you want to go?”

“No, not really…”

She was fumbling with her fingers as if she had something to say.

“Tell me. As long as it’s not about you getting married, I’ll listen.”

“Don’t even say that!”

She didn’t even have a boyfriend yet. Lee So Hye sprung up and then realized his true intentions.

“Are you really going to listen?”

“Maybe?”

“Come on! What does that suppose to mean? Yes or no! Give me a straight answer!”

“I don’t care, but mom might.”

For Ahn Soo Ho, he was going to be on Lee So Hye’s side no matter what she did, but it was a different story for Mrs. Park. Their mom was on the strict side. It might have been a universal feeling. There was a philosophy behind justice.

‘The truth is, everyone has their own philosophy.’

Just as the prince had his life, the pauper had his own, and it wasn’t just the most educated that had their own philosophies.

“Mom can’t find out…”

“I’ll keep it a secret as long as it’s nothing serious.”

“Do you promise?”

Lee So Hye stuck out her pinkie and Ahn Soo Ho stamped it on top.

“Do you remember Joo Yeon?”

“Joo Yeon?”

“Yeah. She’s a friend I was close to in Jejudo…”

“Oh. The mudflat sisters?”

It sounded like pearl, but it was actually mudflat.

It had only been a year since he got reunited with his family, but it felt like it had been a long time. When he found Mrs. Park in Jejudo after 20 years, he also met his little sister for the first time. The way Lee So Hye swung a mop around in front of him still left a strong impression. While his little sister held a mop, her friends were holding a broom and a dustpan.

“You must still be keeping in touch.”

“Of course! The ones that stay by your side during the hard times are your truest friends!”

How was it that she thought in such a mature way? Ahn Soo Ho was proud of Lee So Hye while also feeling bad for her.

“So what about her?”

“She ran away from home. I don’t want to meddle in someone else’s personal life, but her dad tends to be abusive.”

There were many runaway youths in Korea. Since there were many places to stay late at night, they feared running away a little less. Many youths ran away due to family troubles or school stress, but some of them ran away due to violence or s.e.xual abuse. And once they ran away, they were exposed to even worse threats such as getting into statutory rape or prost.i.tution.

“If it’s abuse, she should have reported it to the police first.”

“In the countryside, the police and government workers are even more dangerous.”

She wasn’t wrong. Since many of the police officers from the rural regions were natives, they grouped together and stuck with the wrong crowds.

This was also another version of vested rights.

“Where is she now? Seoul?”

“Ye… yeah.”

“How did she get a plane ticket? You don’t get paid yet. Wait a minute.”

He remembered that plane tickets weren’t that expensive from Jejudo to Seoul.

‘It probably wasn’t Oh Joo Kyung.’

It might have been possible before, but she was way too busy now. Kim Woo Jung? No way. There was no way they asked a man for help, and there was no one else with a personal relation to Lee So Hye who had enough time to help. He then thought of one more possibility.

“You didn’t go to Chairman Kim Na Hee, did you?”

“I wasn’t the one that went to her! She contacted me first!”

Lee So Hye immediately made excuses. According to her, Rosette Group was the one who called Lee So Hye and protected Kim Joo Yeon before sending her over to Seoul. He tilted his head. Rosette Group was leading in the fas.h.i.+on and advertising industries, but they weren’t known for obtaining information.

‘Was it Daesan?’

Daesan Group tended to take care of things they didn’t have time for.

‘They should be taking care of their own group first…’

Kim Dae Chan was probably more interested in Ahn Soo Ho because of his new reputation. He didn’t care how the public interpreted his actions, but Kim Dae Chan did. To put it nicely, he was meticulous, and to put it frankly, he was timid. Whether they were rich or not, Korean people were overly sensitive about what other people thought. Many people didn’t understand that honor and face were two different things.

Ahn Soo Ho pressed the interphone b.u.t.ton.

“Call Kosino for me.”

“Yes, Chairman Ahn.”

He smiled in response to being called chairman.

Did the secretary office decide to go with chairman? Come to think of it, once Oh Joo Kyung left the secretary’s office, Han Chae Kyung was in charge. She used Ahn Soo Ho as a bomb shelter. Kim Na Hee’s compet.i.tor could have used Kim Na Hee’s divorce and her heir’s mistake to bring Rosette Group down, but since they were connected to Hosoo Entertainment Group, it was hard to cause any trouble.

“What is it?”

Kosino greeted Lee So Hye and then stood in front of Ahn Soo Ho.

“Do you know about my sister’s friend’s problem?”

“Yup.”

Kosino glanced over at Lee So Hye and then nodded.

“It’s a pretty obvious story.”

It really was a common story. Kim Joo Yeon’s father went bankrupt and as someone who turned into a dog when he drank, he took out his anger on his family. The patriarchal family system was abolished, but society’s mindset still hadn’t changed.

“What a horrible man.”

“Soo Ho, he’s only two years older than you.”

“He’s 40?”

“Yup.”

If he had a teenage child at 40, that meant he married very early.

“Was it a strategic marriage?”

“No… he just married early.”

“I guess you didn’t look into it that far.”

“That would have been a waste of resources.”

They didn’t have that many resources that they could look into Ahn Soo Ho’s sister’s friend’s family.

“Why is Rosette Group looking into Kim Joo Yeon?”

“Do you really have no idea?”

“What?”

“Ms. Jang is the key member of a gathering.”

“I’ll tell him about that.”

Lee So Hye cut Kosino off.

“Ever since you two started dating, the women who knew you used to gather.”

Jang Seol Hyun was more devoted to Ahn Soo Ho than he imagined. She believed that if a problem arose in the Ahn family, it wasn’t going to be because of Ahn Soo Ho but because of someone around them.

“Ha Na Hoe.”

“That doesn’t sound very…”

It wasn’t a name that sounded good.

“Seol Hyun is the chairman, Chairwoman Kim Na Hee is the vice-chairman, Joo Kyung is the general affairs manager, Ah Young is the a.s.sistant administrator, and the rest are members.”

“A vice-chairman, general affairs manager, and an a.s.sistant administrator? How big is this gathering?”

“Um, maybe 100 people?”

“Ha!”

Ahn Soo Ho couldn’t believe that. He didn’t know there were 100 Korean women that knew him. He went deep into thought. He definitely didn’t know that many.

“Has she already taken on the job as my wife?”

“Don’t joke about that, Soo Ho.”

“Sorry.”

Ahn Soo Ho apologized, but he still had a cynical smile on his face.

“if there are so many capable members, why ask me for help?”

Aside from Kim Na Hee, Oh Joo Kyung was powerful enough to control Korea. She was in a position where she could take care of domestic violence with just one phone call. That meant that running away wasn’t the key point of this request. Ahn Soo Ho looked at his little sister and then let out a sigh.

“She wants to become a celebrity, doesn’t she?”

“Sorry.”

This time, Lee So Hye apologized.

“If she has talent, she could just audition. Did she not make it through?”

“It’s not that… Since she’s a minor, she needs the consent of a parent.”

Ahn Soo Ho nodded.

Her father must have been uncooperative, but there was still one question left. This was still something the team leader could handle. He stared at his sister.

‘What is it? Something’s not right.’

If she was a stranger, he would have read her mind.

“Okay, I’ll take care of it.”

“Really?”

“But if there’s no hope, just give up.”

“Okay! Thank you!”

Lee So Hye jumped up and down. She then hugged him; she kissed him all over and then ran out to tell her friend. He laughed bitterly and Kosino had a look of amus.e.m.e.nt in her face.

“I can’t believe there’s a teenager that can control Ahn Soo Ho.”

“I didn’t think I’d be like the other fathers crazy about their daughters, but this isn’t easy.”

There were many married men among the mercenaries Ahn Soo Ho worked with. The fathers were crazy about their sons, but it was at a whole another level when it came to their daughters. They were willing to fight against the American troops if it was for the good of their daughters.

“Look into it.”

“Sure. Oh yeah!”

Kosino exclaimed and paused.

“We got a call from Leeper.”

“Why?”

“He was complaining that he couldn’t reach you.”

“What an annoying jerk.”

There was a need to train the pompous rookie.

“But he does good work.”

“If he didn’t, I would have killed him already.”

In response to Ahn Soo Ho’s cold words, Kosino suddenly had to pee. There were times when his words terrified her. She was afraid that he would one day announce he was going to kill the American president.

“What’s the plan?”

“Since Korea National a.s.sociation lost its executives twice now, they won’t be able to withstand it. The problem is…”

“We have no choice but to trust n.o.buhisa.”

“How much do you trust him?”

“About 30 percent, maybe?”

In response, Kosino smirked; she shook her head and went outside.

Ahn Soo Ho got up and looked out the window.

He saw the busy streets of Gangnam below him. The sight of the buildings rusting away wasn’t a pretty sight. His construction plans of Hosoo Town took off, but it still had a long way to go. Once buildings started to go up, there were bound to be many protesters springing up.

“What kind of fate is this?”

Ahn Da Sol came in with her arms crossed and clicked her tongue at Ahn Soo Ho.

“Where’s Alexa?”

“She’s talking to So Hye. I heard you’re doing your sister a favor.”

“Yeah.”

“Then do me one, too!”

“p.i.s.s off.”

“Hmph!”

Ahn Soo Ho gave her the middle finger.

“What did you two do out there?”

“Look around Seoul. Alexa has a bad sense of direction.”

“You’re pretty famous now. Didn’t you get caught?”

“Camouflage is my specialty.”

“If the fans found out the truth, they would be astonished.”

If the public knew Ahn Da Sol was a granny who was over 100 years old, there would have been a riot.

“You just have to keep your mouth shut, Soo Ho.”

“I don’t know… Have you heard of n.o.buhisa?”

“n.o.buhisa? Altu?”

“Altu?”

“Yeah. He’s a pretty useful one among the garbage disposal group of the Fidelity a.s.sociation. Is he in Korea? Why didn’t I know about it?”

“Maybe your information network has an issue.”

She then expressed her surprise.

“This won’t do…”

“Why?”

“I was the one who planted an explosive in his head, and it’s also a kind of detection equipment.”

“What does that mean?”

“There’s a bit of magic to it.”

“Oh.”

“Should I get rid of it?”

Ahn Soo Ho exclaimed with interest and Ahn Da Sol asked him for permission to attack.

“Not n.o.buhisa.”

She was sad at first, but when she realized what it meant, she smiled again.

“So everyone but n.o.buhisa?”

“Do what you want.”

As soon as he shrugged his shoulders, Ahn Da Sol flashed her sparkling eyes.

“I’ll finally get to see some blood.”

The Accompanist was known to be weak when it came to force, but that wasn’t true. She suddenly turned into a hungry lynx and Ahn Soo Ho handed her the bridal mask.

“When you fight, make sure you wear this mask.”

< Protect – Episode 176 – Ahn Da Sol vs. Trash Disposal Group [1] > The end.