A Contracted Gangster Who Has to Die to Survive - Chapter 122

A gunshot roared, deafeningly loud in the confined space.

The acrid scent of gunpowder mixed with the metallic tang of blood and the damp stench of cement, stinging Taejoon’s nose.

His hands were slick with blood. He wiped them against his pants with a sharp motion before calling out—

“Wookyung!”

Then, without hesitation, he stepped forward into the gaping darkness.

This was it. The exact place from the video.

The torn wallpaper, the cracked flooring—everything was the same.

Everything, except for the most important part.

Hyun Wookyung was nowhere to be seen.

Half of the space was faintly illuminated by the weak morning light, but the other half was swallowed in complete darkness.

As he stepped deeper inside, it felt like walking into a wall of living, breathing shadow.

“Wookyung! Answer me.”

Please…

His voice echoed back, swallowed by the eerie silence.

As Taejoon adjusted his grip on the warm gun, preparing to take another step—

A pale shape emerged from the darkness.

It seemed almost unreal, glowing faintly in the surrounding void.

Taejoon didn’t blink.

He wasn’t even sure if he was truly seeing something—if it weren’t for the faint, deliberate sound of footsteps.

“Quite the journey you’ve had, Executive Director Choi.”

Park Ha Hyun smiled as he dipped his head in mock politeness.

“I figured you’d find me eventually, but you sure took your time. I was this close to just sending you the address myself.”

“You—”

The stark contrast of light and shadow made his skin appear deathly pale, his lips blood-red against the ghostly pallor of his face.

“Where is Wookyung?”

Park Ha Hyun tilted his head, smiling faintly.

“You came all this way to find him, didn’t you?”

Taejoon exhaled sharply, running a bloodstained hand down his face.

“Bring him here. Now.”

Every fiber of his being screamed for violence—to tear this bastard apart, to force the answers out of him.

But Wookyung came first.

However, Park Ha Hyun only grinned, showing no intention of moving.

“…Still not getting the situation?”

Taejoon cocked the gun. The click of a bullet loading into the chamber echoed in the still air.

Park Ha Hyun remained unshaken.

Instead, he laughed and waved a dismissive hand.

“Oh? A gun? Well, you’re not the only one with one of those.”

Before Taejoon could react—

Another gunshot exploded through the room.

The sheer force of it rang in his ears, sending vibrations down his spine.

But it wasn’t his shot.

Smoke curled from the muzzle of the gun in Park Ha Hyun’s hand.

“Didn’t have time to get a silencer, so it’s a bit loud,” he said casually. “Anyway, if you don’t want to see a bullet go through Wookyung’s skull, I suggest you put yours down first.”

“Son of a bitch.”

“Look over there, Executive Director.”

Following the barrel of Park Ha Hyun’s gun, Taejoon’s eyes locked onto a single object.

A drum barrel.

Precariously positioned at the edge of a shattered window frame, just a slight push away from toppling over.

If it fell—

It would plummet straight down into the darkness below.

Park Ha Hyun nudged the drum with his foot. It wobbled.

“The person you’re looking for is inside here.”

Wookyung.

The moment Taejoon made to move, Park Ha Hyun swiftly turned the gun toward the drum.

“If you so much as take one step closer, I’ll shoot him right now.”

Taejoon’s fingers tensed against the trigger.

His heartbeat pounded so fiercely it felt like his ribs would crack.

Could he make the shot?

Yes.

But could he kill Park Ha Hyun before he pulled the trigger on Wookyung?

That was the real question.

Park Ha Hyun smirked, as if reading his thoughts.

“If you think you’re faster than me, go ahead and try.”

The probabilities warred in Taejoon’s mind.

If he shot, there was a chance he’d kill Park Ha Hyun.

But if he failed—

Wookyung would die.

Blood dripped from his lips as he clenched his jaw.

Finally, he made his decision.

Slowly, he lowered the gun to the ground.

“Good choice. Now, kick it over.”

Taejoon slid the weapon across the floor.

Park Ha Hyun picked it up, tucking it into his waistband with a satisfied sigh.

“See? Was that so hard?”

His tone was unbearably smug.

“Now, hands up. Haven’t you seen a movie before?”

Taejoon’s teeth ground together, but he obeyed.

Park Ha Hyun nodded approvingly.

He glanced around the room—about eighty pyeong in size.

One exit.

No one else in sight.

Han Youngsoon was already taken care of.

Taejoon just needed to buy time.

Seo and the others were on their way.

He just needed to hold out until then.

“…What do you want?”

“What do you think I want?”

Park Ha Hyun laughed.

“ST Entertainment? That garbage? Please. I couldn’t care less about that.”

Taejoon had dismantled the company as one of his first major moves.

If Park Ha Hyun wasn’t after revenge for that—

Then what was his goal?

“What, then?”

“I don’t want anything from you. If anything, you should be begging me right now.”

Park Ha Hyun’s grin widened.

“Begging for Wookyung’s life. Pleading with me to let him go.”

Taejoon’s voice dropped into a deadly growl.

“If he has so much as a scratch on him—”

“Oh, he’s fine.

For now.”

Park Ha Hyun pressed the gun against Wookyung’s head.

Taejoon could barely breathe.

“Actually… Wookyung wasn’t supposed to live this long.”

Taejoon’s pupils contracted.

“…What?”

“You heard me.”

A few strands of Wookyung’s distinctive light brown hair peeked out from the barrel.

Taejoon’s throat tightened.

He’s alive.

For now.

Park Ha Hyun smirked.

“He’s still breathing. Just in a nice, deep sleep. Took some medicine to help with that.”

“Please. Let Wookyung go.”

Taejoon’s voice was steel.

But Park Ha Hyun only laughed.

“Where should I start?

No point in dragging it out, right?”

The boyish, eager smile was gone.

In its place—

A razor-edged, predatory grin.

Taejoon inhaled sharply.

The air was thick with the weight of something terrible.

“If your only goal was to kill Wookyung, you wouldn’t have brought me here.”

“You are sharp. That’s why I like you.”

Park Ha Hyun chuckled.

“Think of it as a courtesy. I just wanted you two to be together for your grand finale.”

A storm of rage churned in Taejoon’s chest.

“A game? You think this is a game?”

Park Ha Hyun’s gaze held both amusement and pity.

“Listen carefully, Executive Director.

Wookyung’s time should have been up long ago.

The only reason he’s still alive—

Is because you refused to let him die.”

“What do you mean by lifespan?”

Taejoon took a step closer.

“Tsk, I told you not to move.”

Park Ha Hyun tilted his head slightly before swiftly flicking his gun downward.

A gunshot rang out, sending concrete debris scattering in all directions.

Taejoon froze.

“Stay right there.”

If he had taken even one more step, the bullet would have gone straight through his foot.

But that wasn’t the end of it.

A sharp, searing heat flared at the back of his neck.

A strangled grunt escaped his throat as his knees buckled, sending him crashing to the floor.

“Why don’t you ever listen? When I say don’t move, I mean don’t move.”

Blood trickled down his neck, staining the collar of his shirt.

Park Ha Hyun’s shot had barely grazed him, but the warning was clear.

“Choi Taejoon. This is a real gun. Not a toy. You move even a little without my permission, and Wookyung’s head gets blown off. Do I look like I’m bluffing?”

Taejoon clutched his bleeding neck, half-collapsed on the floor.

His breath came fast and shallow, shoulders rising and falling sharply.

His stomach churned violently, bile burning at the back of his throat.

“Fuck.”

“Listen carefully, Taejoon. Consider this my last act of mercy.”

“…Was it you?”

A sudden realization struck.

“The one who’s been trying to kill Wookyung all this time—was it you?”

“Ah, you are quick. That’s right. So stay put and listen till the very end.”

It was hard to pinpoint exactly what Park Ha Hyun wanted.

Was he just another psychotic killer who took pleasure in playing with his victims?

“Don’t go rushing to your death now. I’d like to admire our handsome Executive Director a little longer.”

He smirked as he casually redirected his gun toward Wookyung.

Taejoon’s blood boiled with pure, unfiltered rage.

“Park Ha Hyun. If your only goal was to kill Wookyung, you wouldn’t have waited for me.

The fact that you did—means you wanted me involved in this insanity.

So tell me, what the hell do you want?”

Park Ha Hyun’s crimson lips curled into a satisfied grin.

“Oh, now you’re catching on.”

His gaze flickered with amusement as he let out a mock sigh.

“I should’ve told you from the start. My mistake.

Choi Taejoon—this world you’re living in?

It’s a novel.”

Taejoon’s breath stilled.

“And Hyun Wookyung?

He’s a transmigrator from another world.”

Taejoon’s expression didn’t change.

He simply stared.

“…And?”

Park Ha Hyun blinked.

“Excuse me?”

Taejoon’s voice was low, even.

“So what?”

A flicker of disbelief crossed Park Ha Hyun’s face.

“…You don’t get it, do you? Of course you don’t. With that stiff, logical brain of yours, you’d never be able to grasp—”

“So what?”

Taejoon cut him off.

“Novel? Transmigration? Doesn’t matter.

Hyun Wookyung is just Wookyung.”

A shadow of irritation darkened Park Ha Hyun’s features.

“You’re really not playing along, huh?”

His voice turned cold, sharp.

“You shouldn’t be acting like this.

Because I was supposed to be the main character.”

“…Main character?”

“Yes.”

Park Ha Hyun’s eyes gleamed with something unhinged.

“Alcohol Swab.

That’s the title of this novel.”

Taejoon inhaled sharply.

That name—

A memory surfaced.

Wookyung’s voice, light and teasing—

‘You’ve never heard of Alcohol Swab before?’

“And it’s my book.”

Pride bled into Park Ha Hyun’s expression as he swept a hand through the air.

Taejoon’s eyes darkened.

“…Your book?”

Pure exhilaration radiated from Park Ha Hyun as he grinned.

“Every blade of grass, every ant crawling on the ground, every building, every star in the sky—

I created all of it.

Even Hyun Wookyung.

Even you, Choi Taejoon.

Even Han Youngsoon, bleeding out on the stairs down there.”

A chilling realization settled over Taejoon.

Park Ha Hyun wasn’t just insane.

He genuinely believed he was God.

“Everything you see—I made it.”

His pupils dilated with feverish intensity.

“I wrote this world into existence.”