Evening, 5 P.M,
The sun had slipped past the horizon, forming a light orange hue across the sky. On the the veranda of Seokdu Wang estate, light flickered across the room, reflecting its shadow.
Ha-Joon leaned back in his seat, a glass of crimson wine in his hand. He gave a gentle twirl, before taking a small sip.
Across from him, Seokdu Wang sat with his legs crossed. He wore a loose robe, that barely covered his upper body. A vintage wine bottle were placed between them, from the waiter.
Ha-Joon lit a cigarette and reclined in his chair, the smoke curling slowly into air as he spoke. "Looks like you've been pretty chill these days."
Seokdu Wang grinned as he swirled the wine in his glass. "Not long ago, I had a really tough time with Taesoo Ma. I had hoped to thrash him but instead I got pummeled by him... So, I thought why not relax for a few days."
"And that boy, how's it going."
Ha-Joon paused slightly for a moment, before reaching out to salted nuts from the tray beside him. He took a moment, before giving a slight nod. "Smart kid with potential. And more importantly, he's clean - got no allegiance and parents."
Seokdu scoffed, swirling his wine before downing half of it in one gulp. "Talent's one thing. But leaving a digital trail while hacking into government servers? That's either bravery or stupidity."
Ha-Joon chuckled slightly. "Kid's got talent. He isn't trained yet to completely cover his track."
"Still," Seokdu said with a smile, "Nullbyte, huh? Sounds like a thirteen-year-old trying too hard to be scary. Left his fingerprints all over a military procurement server. If someone like you hadn't stepped in, the NIS would've snatched him up by now."
Ha-Joon didn't comment on his reply, continuing to sip his wine, eyes fixed on the horizon. Seokdu, having not got the answer he wanted, steered the conversation. "So, What now, are you grooming him to be your successor."
"Well, I'll need to see if the kid's got any real fight in him first," Ha-Joon said, leaning forward slightly. "Then I'll decide."
He glanced sideways at Seokdu, his voice dropping into something a little more serious. "Let me give you a piece of advice, Seokdu Wang… Find yourself a kid with potential and start training him. Before it's too late."
Seokdu nodded slightly, before gulping down his wine. He set aside the glass and glanced at Ha-Joon.
"Well." He said dryly. "let's just hope your prodigy learns to cover his tracks next time. Otherwise, we'll both be drinking wine through steel bars."
Ha-Joon let out a chuckle. "Don't worry."
After a moment, Ha-Joon stood up and stretched his shoulders, the veranda light casting a long shadow across his face.
"I'm heading out, Seokdu," he said, snatching the keys to one of Seokdu's blacked-out sedans from the table without asking. "I'll be borrowing this."
Seokdu cursed lightly under his breath, before nodding. "Back to your country."
Ha-Joon nodded. "Just to observe the plan. I need to make sure things are moving smoothly over the past few months. I can't leave such a big task to a woman yet."
Ha-Joon lit a new cigarette on his way down the stairs. "And contact Doksu to observe the boy while I'm away. With that I won't bother with him."
Though Ha-Joon didn't originally intend to involve Doksu Heo, he needed someone to watch over Junho while he was away, and Seokdu Wang wasn't the right choice.
Leaving the boy in Suwon meant risking too much. Sooner or later, high authorities will send someone to arrest the boy and may rob him off. Which he didn't want this scenario to happen.
So, he had to send the boy at different location for the safety. Ha-Joon hoped Doksu would teach the boy a thing or two about martial arts for self defense.
But what he didn't know was, that this particular move of his will cost dearly for him to lose out a potential successor in the future.
The sleek black car's engine rumbled as Ha-Joon drove off into his next destination.
.....
South Korea, Busan.
The night sky was filled with dazzling star as the boat began to weave towards the sea. Ha-Joon stood at the edge of the deck, coat swaying in the breeze, staring forward.
His cigarette burned slowly between his fingers.
He had boarded the ship without fanfare, before heading in the boat, he had left the borrowed car at the private garage located near the coastal area for the safe keeping.
His mind lingered on everything he was leaving behind in Korea, Junho especially. A smart kid with raw potential. Ha-Joon had sent him off to Doksu Heo in the west, hoping the Pyeongtaek King would at least hammer a little steel into the boy's spine.
He wasn't willing to trust the king and had taken the risk stacked with risk.
"Don't screw this up, Junho…" he muttered under his breath.
he pulled his phone from his pocket and opened the group message thread with Hyun-Woo and Minjae.
"Maintain contact with Doksu. Don't let the kid out of your sight."
...
This chapter's a bit shorter than usual, since I'm planning to skip ahead to the end of Generation 1 after another one or two chapters. Hope ya'll understand.