A few minutes later, "Little Fatty" had finally wised up. With his head hanging low, he led the group into his office, quickly dismissing his girlfriend and the few underlings who had curiously gathered around.
Ma Seok-do casually picked up a business card from the desk and glanced at it with a puzzled expression. "'West Eight Club'? So besides selling used cars, you run a nightclub too, huh?"
"It's Cyber Club!" Little Fatty corrected him loudly, only to shrink back onto the couch, clutching his face as Ma Seok-do shot him a glare.
The office itself looked quite legitimate—licenses framed on the wall, a glass display case with various awards and certificates, and even a massive fish tank housing several golden arowanas.
Jack stood with his hands on his hips, surveying the office before finally settling onto the couch across from Little Fatty. He then casually asked, "You were really in the White Shark Gang?"
As Jack sat down, his open jacket revealed the gun holster under his arm. Little Fatty's pupils shrank instantly, and he instinctively sank deeper into the couch, quickly fixing his previously lazy posture.
Hwang Dong-kyun and his colleague, Gong Tae-il, chuckled as they took seats beside him.
"Don't be fooled by how he looks now. Back when the White Shark Gang was still around, this guy was pretty cocky. He even dared to bare his teeth at us," Hwang Dong-kyun joked as he reached out to inspect the five distinct finger marks on Little Fatty's face.
"Sorry, we were napping in the car earlier. Man, that's a hell of a slap you took."
"Aish…" Little Fatty swatted his hand away, then stole a nervous glance at the visibly annoyed Ma Seok-do and the foreigner grinning like a fox. His plump body instinctively shrank further back.
His mix of arrogance and cowardice made the whole room feel oddly cheerful.
Jack checked the time—it was already 4 PM. Deciding to get straight to the point, he asked, "Your nightclub… that used to be where the White Shark Gang entertained the Yakuza, right? Do they still come around?"
"There's this guy named Hikita. Every weekend, he comes by with his crew—popping pills, picking fights… He's a real pain in the ass. Here, see for yourself. The guy on the left."
Little Fatty picked up his phone and pulled up a photo.
It showed two men raising glasses in a toast. The one on the left, with a stern expression and visible tattoos creeping up his neck, was clearly Japanese. The one on the right, smirking like an idiot, had dyed red hair.
"What's Hikita's rank in 'Ichijo-gumi'?" Ma Seok-do asked.
Little Fatty shook his head, causing his chubby face to wobble. "No idea. I don't understand Japanese. But his men call him 'Shatei-kashira-hosa' or something like that."
Jack raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised that they had stumbled onto someone so important this easily.
"Ichijo-gumi" was a subsidiary of the Yamaguchi-gumi, meaning their internal hierarchy was similar.
The Yamaguchi-gumi operated under a "family patriarch" system, dividing its members into "brothers" (shatei) and "sons" (wakashu).
Newer, younger recruits—who handled street-level affairs—were referred to as wakashu, managed by a wakagashira (essentially a lieutenant).
More senior members, usually sworn in as "younger brothers" (shatei), were under the authority of a shatei-gashira.
Both wakagashira and shatei-gashira were second-in-command beneath the boss. Below them were additional ranks like wakagashira-hosa and shatei-gashira-hosa—essentially third- or fourth-tier leaders.
While many Yakuza groups had abandoned these traditional titles over time, the fact that Hikita was being called a shatei-gashira-hosa suggested that he was likely in charge of Ichijo-gumi's Korean operations.
"Where is he now?" Ma Seok-do returned the phone.
"It's Friday… so he's probably heading to my club tonight." Little Fatty responded immediately.
"Take us there," Ma Seok-do said, already standing up.
"Ah, no need to go through all that trouble." Little Fatty exhaled in relief, regaining some of his bravado. "It's still early. I'll just call my guys and let you in. If I show up with cops, I'll get stabbed."
Ma Seok-do tapped him on the forehead with a finger. "If you don't come with us, I will beat the crap out of you."
"Right, right? Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Little Fatty instantly changed his tune, hopping up from the couch with surprising agility for his size. He looked like a gang boss leading his crew out on business.
Jack reached out a hand to stop them. "Hold on. I can't go with you. Zhou Xingzhe just left the police station—I need to find a way to plant spyware on his phone."
Ma Seok-do glanced at his men. "Take someone with you. A foreigner moving around alone will stand out too much."
Jack shook his head. "You're about to raid a club. You'll need all the manpower you can get. I'll head to the hospital and have one of your guys help me navigate."
Turning to Little Fatty, Jack held out his hand. "Lend me your BMW 8-Series."
"Hell no! I just bought that thing! Dropped big money on it to impress the ladies!" Little Fatty protested, but his hand was already reaching into his pocket and pulling out the keys.
"Relax. I wouldn't be caught dead in one of your junkyard cars. If I wreck it, I'll pay for it." Jack snatched the keys without waiting for a response.
—
At the Geumcheon hospital, Jack pushed open the door to find Captain Jang Tae-soo enthusiastically chatting with Kang Jin-tae, loudly reminiscing about their past "glorious exploits."
Despite one having his arm in a sling and the other clutching his waist in pain, the two detectives were very animated, hyping each other up like old war buddies. If they had a few bottles of soju and some peanuts, it would've looked like a full-on drinking party.
Compared to Ma Seok-do, who was running around all over town trying to catch criminals, these guys had it way too easy.
Sitting nearby was a clearly bored Im Yoona—er, Kang Jin-tae's sister-in-law, Park Min-young. Judging by the unopened food container next to her, she was likely here to deliver dinner.
"Hey! If it isn't the FBI!" Kang Jin-tae greeted Jack with exaggerated delight. On the other side of the room, Park Min-young beamed like a flower in full bloom.
Jack had no idea why this middle-aged man was so happy to see him, but he got straight to the point.
"I'll go with you! That bastard—I'll kill him!"
The room's atmosphere instantly changed. Upon hearing that Zhou Xingzhe and his men might be responsible for the attack on them, all four detectives flared up with anger.
Jang Tae-soo even tried to remove his neck brace in his rage.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" His subordinates quickly grabbed his arms, trying to hold him back.
"Aish! That bastard Zhou Xingzhe and his narcotics unit are scum!" Kang Jin-tae cursed.
"You know him?" Jack asked, surprised.
If he wanted to install spyware on Zhou Xingzhe's phone, he needed to be physically close—Bluetooth-range close. That meant he had to be in the same room for a prolonged period.
The issue? Jack was a white guy. He was way too conspicuous.
Although Zhou Xingzhe didn't know his identity yet, all it would take was a little digging to realize that an FBI agent had been shadowing Ma Seok-do.
His original plan had been to enlist Kang Jin-tae's help, but now that seemed risky. He'd have to go in alone.
"Yeah, my cybercrime unit often collaborates with narcotics divisions—these days, a lot of drug deals happen online.
"Out of all the teams I've worked with, Zhou Xingzhe's crew was the absolute worst—arrogant, condescending bastards."
Kang Jin-tae suddenly stiffened. "Shit. If they were the ones who attacked us, they definitely saw me. If I go, I'll blow your cover!"
"Yeah… I didn't think that through. I'd better get going."
Jack was already considering a backup plan—disguise. With some minor facial adjustments and a bit of makeup, he could make himself look less Western.
"Then I'll go with Jack!"
A delicate figure suddenly stepped in front of him—Park Min-young.
"Wait… that could work!" Kang Jin-tae's face lit up suspiciously fast. "Alright! Settled! Be a good girl and do whatever the FBI agent says!"
Jack blinked. Wait, what?
He hadn't even agreed
yet, and somehow this had already been decided?!
______
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