Seol Ah hurried to grab her backpack and rush off the school grounds. Without realizing it, she bumped into Jin-ho. He paused and watched her hurry away. The moment she stepped down the stairs, the same boy who'd delivered the message laughed.
"I can't believe I had to talk to the adopted girl… it was so cringe."
"Why did you do it?" his friend asked, laughing.
"Because…" the boy trailed off, fanning money from his pocket. The others gasped. "That person gave me this…"
Jin-ho stared at them and ran to the boy, grabbing his collar.
"What happened?!" he demanded.
"Whoa. Relax—"
"What did you say to her?" Jin-ho pressed.
"I just gave her a note from a random person…" the boy stammered.
"What was on the note?" Jin-ho insisted.
"Jin-ho, calm down—"
"If anything happens to her, I'll make sure you don't get to walk to school for a whole month…" Jin-ho threatened. Everyone backed away, mortified. The boy trembled and nodded.
Jin-ho released him, snatched his backpack, and hurtled down the hallway and out of the school. He panted, looking at both sides of the sidewalk.
"Where is Seol Ah? Which way did you go?" he worried, biting his lower lip.
"Jin-ho, remember… you must stay close to her. If anything happens to her, we lose the chance to find the murderer of your parents," a man's voice echoed in Jin-ho's head. He clenched his hands, trembling in frustration.
While Jin-ho struggled in front of the school gate, Seol Ah marched her way to an abandoned warehouse. In the forest, which was a few miles away from her old home.
Seol Ah entered the warehouse and dropped her backpack at the entrance.
"Where are you?!" she shouted, her voice echoing in the emptiness. She clenched her fists when there was no answer. "Jang Yu! You sick-head, Min Jang Yu!"
She screamed at the top of her lungs, huffing and puffing. Her hands trembled with anger and frustration.
A chuckle rolled through the warehouse.
On the second floor, staring down at her, stood Min Jang Yu. She smiled through a bruised face. As she grinned slyly, three men appeared beside Seol Ah. Seol Ah's muscles tensed, and she dropped into a fighting stance.
"How did you know I sent you that message?" Jang Yu asked. Seol Ah shot her a glare.
"My brother told me he met you… and that he told you everything without realizing you deceived him!" Seol Ah yelled, trembling—not from fear, but from pent-up frustration at having trusted someone.
"Heh… your brother had quite a handsome look. Too bad, you look nothing like him," Jang Yu teased. Seol Ah groaned. "You were, after all, an abandoned child… luckily adopted into a very nice home…"
"Shut up!" Seol Ah snapped.
"I told Si Yeon you would come the moment I mentioned your sister, the one who stays with you here…" Jang Yu added. Seol Ah choked on her anger. "Why did you never let me meet your sister? I wonder…"
Seol Ah gritted her teeth and began to hyperventilate. Of course, I couldn't trust you. No one was supposed to know.
Jang Yu slammed her hands onto the rusty rail and leaned against it, clutching tightly.
"What was your sister's name again?" she smirked. "Oh, yeah… Jang Po-lim."
Jang Yu cackled hysterically as she walked to the stairs.
"What do you want?" Seol Ah demanded.
Jang Yu wiped tears from laughing.
"I just want to know why Kim Jin-ho is so interested in you… we all are," she answered nonchalantly.
"As if I'd know," Seol Ah scoffed, steadying her breath. "If you want answers, go ask him yourself."
"You see… that's the problem," Jang Yu said, pointing at Seol Ah. "He won't give answers. He only fights until someone ends up in the hospital. So be aware… Kim Jin-ho is dangerous to you, too."
Seol Ah swallowed, remembering Ryu Yeol's warning about Jin-ho.
"It's not like he'd beat a girl—"
"But he will," Jang Yu taunted.
Seol Ah stared at her. Jang Yu smiled, waiting for her to crack in fear. Instead, Seol Ah laughed.
"He will? Then he might as well beat you up for me… because he's stronger than I am, if I ask him," Seol Ah shot back. Jang Yu's face soured.
"You think this is funny?"
"I think you should stop fucking with my business… my family has done you nothing wrong," Seol Ah argued.
Jang Yu chuckled, shaking her head.
"But… you have! Because of you, Si Yeon thought I was useless. I had to dig myself out of death—"
"And is that my fault because you wanted information about me?" Seol Ah shot back.
Jang Yu paused, taking a deep breath as she glared at Seol Ah.
"You love speaking with pride… How good will it feel when you start falling into a pit?" Jang Yu stated.
Seol Ah locked eyes with Jang Yu and tilted her head to the side.
"Even the darkest pit won't scare me. I've already hit rock bottom…" Seol Ah replied.
Jang Yu clenched her fists and raised a hand to point at Seol Ah.
"Break her until… she becomes unrecognizable!" Jang Yu demanded.
The three men stepped forward. Seol Ah's feet planted firmly. She inhaled sharply, eyes narrowing as the man to the right lunged. The middle one flicked a pocketknife and stormed toward her. The man to her left waited for someone to falter back.
When the hand came down over Seol Ah's head she stepped back, avoiding the stab and the punch, then kneed the puncher in the chin. He fell with a cry, but the pocketknife-wielder swung sideways and slashed her arm. She slid away. When her shoes stopped sliding, she sprinted forward and leaped, planting a kick to his face. The man who had waited dashed in and punched her abdomen. She grunted and slipped free.
The pocketknife rose over her head. Seol Ah twisted, hooking his leg with her foot. She kicked hard, forcing him backward, then rolled onto her back and sprang up—just as a punch aimed for her face landed.
Seol Ah stumbled but regained her balance. Blood hit her tongue as her body soon ached with bruises. Fuck! My Sabeom-nim must have known I'd need this someday…
Jang Yu watched the action and smiled sinisterly. Once you break, Si Yeon finally belongs with me.
"Come on, Seol Ah… You can do better than that!" she joked. "If you don't win, then your sister will be dragged here to taste it, too!"
Seol Ah spat the blood aside and turned to face the three men again. The moment Jang Yu mentioned her sister, she charged one of them, dropping low and sliding across the ground. Her legs scissored around his ankle, the crack of bone sharp and unmistakable.
"Ah!" he screamed, collapsing in agony—
Still on the ground, Seol Ah twisted her body and kicked his face, knocking him out cold. She hurled herself forward and landed on her feet. The two remaining men exchanged stunned looks.
A sixteen-year-old with taekwondo? She had nothing to lose if her family was being threatened.
The pocketknife wielder slashed toward her face, the blade grazing her cheek. She spun and kicked upward with full force, sending him crashing into the other man. The knife skidded across the ground beside him, but he couldn't rise. The last man lunged for it—and so did Seol Ah.
Instead of grabbing the pocketknife, she kicked his hand away, then drove his head into the ground with a double kick. She moved fast, snatching up the weapon.
Jang Yu gasped at the sight of all three men defeated and turned away—Seol Ah flung the pocketknife toward her in a fury, the blade slicing through the air and stopping just short of her eyes.
Jang Yu froze in horror, hesitantly glancing at Seol Ah as she stepped closer. Seol Ah huffed and panted as she moved one foot at a time.
"Why… are you all in my fucking business?!" she questioned without a breath.