The warden of Evin Prison glanced over the official documents that Zhenya had placed in front of him, narrowing his eyes.
There were two in total: one was a search-and-rescue list for Russian officials, and the other was an official order from the Russian government to immediately hand over any Asian prisoner under their custody.
The warden had already confirmed that Zhenya was a Russian diplomat and that the Asian prisoner currently held in the detention center matched the description of the man on the list.
The problem was, he wasn't entirely sure of the condition the prisoner was in.
Given the urgency of the Russian
government, this man must be very important.
What if they had accidentally harmed him?
For now, he decided to stall, if only to calm his anxiety.
"We confirm we have an Asian prisoner in custody, yes, but we'll need to conduct a
more thorough check to verify if he's the one you're looking for, sir. Also, our
interrogation is not yet finished. The lights have already been turned off, and all the
inmates should be sleeping, so it would be best if you came back tomorrow. We'll have
him ready for you then—"
"Did you torture him?"
Zhenya interrupted brusquely.
"What? No, torture? In this day and age? We wouldn't—"
"If you didn't, you'd better bring him to me right now, while I'm still asking. I won't
keep talking after this."
"Sir, we have our own procedures for prisoner transfers. You can't just barge in here and demand—"
Before the warden could finish his sentence, a pale hand lunged toward him, heading directly for his eyes.
The warden didn't even have time to blink and stood frozen, unable to make a single sound.
Zhenya's index and middle fingers made contact with the surface of his eyeballs.
"You're being terribly talkative. I told you this would be the last time I ask you."
The smallest movement would impale Zhenya's fingers into the warden's eyes.
The tiny hairs on the warden's skin stood on end from the strange sensation of Zhenya's fingertips against his eyes.
They were so close that he could even make out Zhenya's fingerprints.
He swallowed nervously, barely managing to open his mouth.
"Wait, just a little more time…!"
Despite the warden's pleading, Zhenya didn't move his hand.
He simply stated,
"Bring him now."
Forgetting even to breathe, the warden extended a hand to fumble around the table, seemingly looking for his phone.
Zhenya calmly handed him his phone, his fingers still lightly grazing the warden's eyes.
Tears streamed down the warden's face.
The warden barely managed to dial the night guard's room.
The phone rang for a few moments before being interrupted, replaced by the voice of the guard on duty.
"It's me, the warden. Do you know that Asian prisoner we captured a few days ago? Bring him to me right now. Listen to me! Do what I say! What are all these excuses? Hurry up!"
As soon as the call ended, Zhenya finally withdrew his hand.
Although his fingers had only brushed lightly against the warden's eyes, he felt as though a disturbing pressure had been
pressing on his eyeballs.
"Just give us a moment, please. The prison is not far from here, so he'll be here in ten
minutes."
The warden addressed Zhenya, wiping his tears away.
Zhenya remained silent, frowning as he looked toward the entrance.
Any moment now, Kwon Taekjoo would cross those doors.
He had arrogantly insisted on handling everything on his own, only to end up locked in this hellhole.
Zhenya wondered what expression Kwon Taekjoo would have when he saw him
again.
Every minute, every second, dragged on like an eternity.
Meanwhile, the warden was as tense as Zhenya.
His eyes anxiously flicked toward the clock.
If the night guard didn't arrive with the prisoner in ten minutes, as promised to Zhenya, he knew his life would be over.
He needed to buy some more time.
"Oh, yes! Sometimes we store the personal belongings of our inmates here. Would you
like to see them?"
"…Personal belongings?"
Zhenya's eyes, which had been fixed on the door, turned toward the warden.
Having bought himself a little more time, the warden told Zhenya to wait a moment and quickly stood up.
Only after distancing himself from Zhenya did he finally allow himself to breathe.
He opened a cabinet in the corner of the room and pulled out a plastic bag.
The prisoners' belongings were stored there before being processed.
Sometimes valuable items were found, and at other times, evidence was discreetly disposed of when a prisoner was meant to
"disappear" forever.
"This is it."
The warden placed the bag in front of Zhenya before stepping back and sitting as far away from him as possible.
Zhenya immediately ripped open the bag.
Inside, there were pieces of clothing piled
carelessly.
Some were torn and burned, but they were more or less the same size as the ones
Kwon Taekjoo usually wore.
Amidst the clothes was an unloaded pistol and a knife that Zhenya had once gifted to Kwon Taekjoo.
Zhenya buried his face in the bag and inhaled deeply.
The sharp, acrid smell of gunpowder
was the first thing he noticed, followed by the faint but familiar scent of Kwon Taekjoo.
Kwon Taekjoo was here, so close to him.
Zhenya just had to wait a little longer.
When they reunited, he would hold him tight and never let go.
He would make Kwon Taekjoo pay for
making him feel so disoriented and anxious.
The mere thought sent a tingling sensation to the tips of Zhenya's fingers, and a wave of emotions flooded his heart.
Suddenly, a deafening explosion shook the building.
Both Zhenya and the warden looked up,
startled by the unexpected blast.
It almost seemed like an illusion, but more explosions followed in rapid succession, sending a shower of loose dust falling from the ceiling.
The alarm lights throughout the building flickered on, and a loud siren began blaring.
The director's phone, previously silent, started ringing desperately.
A deep sense of foreboding seized Zhenya.
"Taekjoo,"
he murmured under his breath before immediately rushing out of the room.
"Aah, this is going to drive me crazy."
Kwon Taekjoo pressed himself against the wall as he surveyed the silent corridor.
It was well into the night, so there was no sound of anyone nearby.
The only issue was the security camera installed in the ceiling.
Although most of the prison's equipment was outdated, the cameras appeared to be the only thing that was state-of-the-art.
They tracked every movement and eliminated almost all blind spots.
Perhaps many others before him had tried to escape the same way.
Kwon Taekjoo couldn't find any sewage systems or ventilation ducts, which were usually installed in most buildings.
There was absolutely nowhere to hide.
At this rate, escaping without being detected seemed impossible.
His only option now was to move straight ahead and hope the guards didn't find him
suspicious.
Keeping his movements stealthy, Kwon Taekjoo crept slowly down the corridor.
As expected, the ceiling camera immediately focused on his movements.
The security room's feed would only show a guard in uniform, so all he had to do was avoid doing anything that would draw
attention.
It wasn't too hard to figure out where the exit was.
The farther he went, the thinner the walls
became, and the larger the windows.
Even the lights that illuminated the hallway grew brighter.
It was a clear sign that he was getting closer to the outside world.
As Kwon Taekjoo moved through the hallways, guided only by his instinct, he couldn't help but feel confused as to why everything seemed so familiar.
In fact, he had been wondering this ever since he woke up.
Who was he really, and what kind of life had he lived?
Why did attacking an adversary or finding an escape route feel so natural to him?
Why was he in Iran, and why was he running?
In addition to his recent injuries, his body was covered in both large and small scars.
They were undeniable proof of his exposure to violence, just like the recent terrorist attack.
Was he a soldier in the armed forces?
No, the guards had hinted that he had ties to Russia, which meant he might have been an international mercenary or a conflict resolver.
Did he have family?
A home to return to?
The questions piled up relentlessly, but the answers remained elusive.
Maybe he had been trying too hard to remember something, because soon
an intense headache overcame him.
The pain didn't come from the wound on the back of his head... it felt more like an overwhelming pressure squeezing his brain from the inside.
"Agh..."
His vision instantly blurred, making him lean against the wall for a moment.
He tilted his head back and began to breathe deeply.
Soon, his whole body broke out in a cold sweat.
Now he was relying on his instinct to escape the prison, but where would he go after that?
Was there even anywhere he could return to?
Kwon Taekjoo felt hopeless.
He wasn't sure if the world beyond the prison walls was a safe place, and there were no guarantees that enemies weren't waiting for him out there.
He lowered his head.
Even if a greater danger awaited him outside, it was better than staying
here waiting for his death.
He knew he wasn't the type of person who would sit around hoping some grand figure would rescue him.
Life continued to flow and move forward.
If someone stumbled and fell behind, they just had to run and make up for lost time.
So, instead of staying here waiting, he needed to take at least one more step forward.
If he failed in his escape now, he might never get another chance.
Kwon Taekjoo pressed his hat firmly against his head and walked quickly, his strides echoing on the floor.
He easily passed through various security doors, using Ahmad's identification
card and keys to get through.
But, of course, it wasn't all smooth sailing.
Kwon Taekjoo turned a corner when, suddenly, he froze and stepped back.
He peered around cautiously to assess the situation on the other side.
The first thing that caught his attention was the double-layer security door ahead.
Two guards stood on either side.
Beyond the door was a long hallway leading to another building.
Although the night's darkness made it difficult to see clearly, the cool air circulating in the corridor made it obvious it led outside.
The guard on the inner side of the door was smiling, absorbed in something on his phone, while the other guard seemed to be dozing in a chair.
Security had clearly relaxed, as it was almost impossible for a prisoner to escape, and even if one did, few would dare to take this route.
After weighing his options, Kwon Taekjoo rummaged through his pockets and pulled out a gold tooth, probably something Ahmad had taken from another prisoner.
He rolled it between his fingers before tossing it lightly onto the floor.
The tooth made a soft clink as it hit the ground.
The guard looking at his phone tilted his head at the sound.
He spotted the tooth and walked over toward where Kwon Taekjoo was hiding against the wall.
"Who dropped this?"
he murmured to himself, looking around before reaching down to pick it up.
In that instant, Kwon Taekjoo grabbed the guard's arm, slamming his face against the wall and driving his knee into the guard's ribs.
The attack was quick and sudden, leaving the guard paralyzed, unable to even gasp.
Kwon Taekjoo finished him off with a swift blow to the back of the neck.
He dragged the unconscious man behind the wall and took his access card for the
double-layer security door.
The only remaining obstacle was the dozing guard on the other side of the door.
Kwon Taekjoo took a deep breath and moved directly toward him.
From now on, it was a race against time.
His pace quickened with every step.
"Hm? Where'd you go without saying anything?"
Just as Kwon Taekjoo approached the door, the drowsy guard woke up and turned toward him.
"…Ah."
"I asked you. Where did you go?"
Kwon Taekjoo couldn't give him an answer.
His voice would instantly give him away as not being his fellow guard.
As the silence stretched between them, the guard slowly stood up.
Tension filled the air.
"Huh? Wait, you're not Mohammed."
The guard approached the door and looked at the name tag on Kwon Taekjoo's uniform.
"Ahmad? What are you doing here? And where's Mohammed?"
"..."
"You little bastard, something's off about you. Take off your hat."
When Kwon Taekjoo stood still, the guard pushed his baton through the bars of the door, the tip lifting Kwon Taekjoo's hat.
"Huh? You're...?"
As a look of confusion crossed the guard's face, Kwon Taekjoo yanked forcefully on the baton.
The guard stumbled forward with it, slamming his nose into the bars and losing his balance.
Without hesitation, Kwon Taekjoo struck him in the face with the baton.
The guard grabbed his left eye with both hands.
"AAARGH! My eye!"
His scream quickly turned into rage as he drew his weapon.
"I'm gonna kill you!"
Just as he was about to recklessly pull the trigger in his fury, a deafening explosion shook the ground, blinding him with a flash of white light.
Instinctively, Kwon Taekjoo ducked, covering his head with his arms.
Even while lying on the ground, several more explosions followed, rattling the entire building. Soon, the shrill wail of sirens echoed throughout the prison.
"Cough, cough… shit, what the hell?"
Kwon Taekjoo pushed himself up through the thick dust cloud and lifted his head.
The ceiling lights had been damaged, plunging the area into darkness. He could only see a short distance ahead.
The security door was now bent, likely from the earlier explosions, leaving a narrow gap
through which Kwon Taekjoo could slip.
The spot where the guard had been standing moments before was buried under a pile of rubble.
Kwon Taekjoo grabbed the weapon from
the hand that stuck out from among the debris.
Suddenly, a voice shouted from a distance:
"Fire! There's a fire!"
Kwon Taekjoo had no idea what was happening, but it worked in his favor.
Without hesitation, he sprinted down the hallway.
The guards, too stunned by the chaos, didn't even notice him.
A fire must have truly started because the air grew thick with heat and smoke.
The prisoners who had been asleep were now awake, screaming for help as they scrambled in panic.
Amid all the commotion, the explosions continued to reverberate in the background, turning the prison into a hellish nightmare.
Kwon Taekjoo ignored the chaos and pushed forward, but suddenly, part of the ceiling collapsed right in front of him.
He barely managed to roll out of the way in time.
"TAEKJOOOO!"
Just as he was about to get up and run again, a ferocious roar echoed in the distance.
He couldn't help but flinch and turn around, but all he saw behind him was darkness and dust.
The sound didn't repeat.
He stood there for a moment, stunned, before snapping back to reality.
There was no time to waste.
He turned around and rushed into the darkness.
By the time Zhenya left the warden's office, the corridor had descended into chaos.
The lights were out, and the building trembled from the continuous explosions.
Cracks spread across the ceiling and walls, causing debris to rain down.
Every alarm in the facility blared, and the
emergency light beams flickered erratically, casting a strobe of light across his vision.
Where had the explosions started?
Had Kwon Taekjoo tried to escape amidst all this chaos?
As Zhenya assessed the situation, he plunged into the prison pavilion, tearing through security doors with brute force or neutralizing them with his weapon.
The guards he crossed paths with were too busy fleeing or desperately trying to put out flames with fire extinguishers.
The prisoners, still locked in their cells, pressed their faces against the bars of
the narrow windows, shouting for help.
"There's a fire!"
A heart-wrenching scream pushed Zhenya to quicken his pace.
But the smoke was thickening.
Zhenya moved through the chaotic corridor, inspecting each cell, but Kwon
Taekjoo was nowhere to be found.
With too many cells to check and the view growing dimmer by the second, he began to worry that he might never find Kwon Taekjoo.
His teeth clenched, and a fresh wave of anxiety gripped him.
It felt like he was sinking deeper into a
hopeless abyss, but if Kwon Taekjoo was waiting for him at the end, it didn't seem so bad.
Another deafening explosion shook the building, causing the ceiling to collapse.
Desperate screams and cries erupted from all directions, coming from those still trapped inside.
If Kwon Taekjoo was tied up and locked away somewhere, even he would struggle to survive this.
Zhenya had been so close, he thought he had finally caught up to him...
Was he really going to lose Kwon Taekjoo once again?
His hopelessness exploded in a furious roar.
"TAEKJOOOOO!"
Zhenya shouted his name again and again as he ventured deeper into the prison.
The smoke- filled air clung to his throat, slowly suffocating his breath, but it couldn't stop his feet from driving him forward, deeper into the facility.
Like a bulldozer, he pushed on until something made him stop.
A familiar scent lingered, mingling with the acrid air.
Was it a hallucination?
Was his desperation to find Kwon Taekjoo
playing tricks on him?
Zhenya scanned his surroundings urgently, but he couldn't sense anyone nearby.
"Taekjoo...,"
he whispered, turning around.
Zhenya began to follow the faint scent, blindly trusting the trail.
He was taking a risky gamble.
Every hallway he passed was filled with unconscious guards.
They were all alive, still breathing.
Whoever had attacked them had been careful not to kill them, targeting only
pressure points with precision.
It was exactly the kind of thing Kwon Taekjoo would do.
Zhenya was becoming more and more certain that Kwon Taekjoo was truly here.
He frantically chased Kwon Taekjoo's scent, pushing his way through the now-chaotic prison facilities, completely thrown into disarray by fire and explosions.
He barreled through anything or anyone that got in his path, tossing them aside.
Soon, he reached the main exit and forced the door open with a single shove.
As he shot out into the open, a police vehicle, responding to emergency calls, screeched to a halt.
Zhenya had been running with his gaze fixed ahead when the vehicle's bumper struck him, sending him stumbling backward.
He sharply turned his head, his eyes flashing with a chilling and intense coldness.
His gaze seemed almost inhuman.
"E-Excuse me, sir. Are you okay?"
the officer at the wheel asked, poking his head out of the window.
Zhenya stared at him in silence for a moment before he turned and ran off again
without saying a word.
The officer shouted after him, trying to get him to stop, but Zhenya didn't hear him.
The scene outside the prison was a total disaster.
Police officers, firefighters, running guards,
and escaping prisoners formed an uncontrollable crowd.
With everyone running in a frenzy, the fire truck couldn't even get close to the building.
"Move out of the way! Everyone over there, get moving!"
Zhenya shoved past officers trying to block his way and sprinted in search of Kwon Taekjoo, only to stop dead in his tracks.
The scent of Kwon Taekjoo had faded into the air.
In its place, there was an emergency worker, looking around in confusion.
It seemed like they were looking for something... like an ambulance.
Zhenya recalled when Kwon Taekjoo had stolen a fire truck to escape after blowing up the "Anastasia" plan.
Could he have pulled the same trick again?
"Mr. Yevgeny! Are you alright?"
Yoon Jongwoo, who had been waiting outside, pulled up beside him in a car.
Zhenya looked at him silently for a moment before suddenly grabbing him by the collar and pulling him forward.
"Ah! Why are you doing this?!"
"Where is Taekjoo?"
"What? Sunbae? Did you see him?"
"I'm asking if you saw him."
"... I mean, all I heard was a huge explosion before everyone started evacuating..."
"Out."
Zhenya yanked Yoon Jongwoo out of the car and checked his phone, still mounted on the dashboard.
But there was still no signal on the tracking app.
He threw the phone aside in frustration and climbed into the driver's seat.
Yoon Jongwoo quickly slid into the passenger seat, knowing it was best not to ask any questions.
Before he could even close the door, the vehicle shot forward, heading straight for the prison gates.
But before they could get much further, they were met with police cars blocking the exit.
"Stop!"
An officer waved his flashlight and ordered them to shut off the engine and step out.
Every second they wasted meant Kwon Taekjoo was getting further away.
Zhenya slammed his foot on the accelerator, even as the police signaled for them to stop.
The vehicle surged forward, crashing through the makeshift blockade of police cars.
Yoon Jongwoo let out a scream and covered his head with his hands.
At their clearly suspicious behavior, one of the police cars blared its sirens and gave chase.
After repeatedly ordering them to stop, the officer fired a few warning shots.
But Zhenya remained unfazed, pressing even harder on the accelerator and driving recklessly forward.
Meanwhile, his mind raced, wondering where Kwon Taekjoo could be hiding.
His eyes darted back and forth, scanning the road for any sign of an abandoned ambulance or a familiar figure.
Soon, a towering bronze statue appeared ahead, surrounded by a roundabout that split into five different roads.
"Aahh, aah"
The heavy breath Zhenya had been holding back escaped in a rush.
His eyes blinked anxiously between the five different paths before he slammed his fist into the steering wheel, unable to bear his overwhelming frustration.
The steering wheel bent to one side from the force of the impact.
Yoon Jongwoo, who had been covering his head the entire time, slowly lifted his gaze.
His eyes widened in shock at seeing a side of Zhenya he had never seen before.
Zhenya's desperate, nervous gaze flickered frantically between the five diverging roads.
His hopeless expression reminded Yoon Jongwoo of a lost child, abandoned in an immense and unknown land.