“Igor.”
After the drinking session with Putin ended and we were on our way back to the mansion, I quietly called out to Igor.
“Yes, boss.”
“Can you take out Ivanov?”
Igor, sitting in the passenger seat, whipped his head around in surprise.
“What do you an by that?”
“I’m asking if you can get past Ivanov’s security team and either kill him or capture him. Can you do it?”
The normally unflappable Igor’s reaction amused , and a faint smile tugged at my lips.
“Boss, taking out Ivanov is dangerous.”
“Do you an it’s difficult to get past his security team, or is there another reason?”
“It’s not the security team that’s the problem. This is Russia. The mont you go after Ivanov, a forr KGB, it will be difficult to get out of the country alive.”
If Putin broke his promise and didn’t hold the siloviki back, things would turn out exactly as Igor said.
“What about in terms of strength? Between his security team and ours?”
“In terms of strength, we have the advantage. The first thing I did when I returned to Russia was gather my old comrades.”
Igor cut in firmly, as if to say there was no need to worry about that part.
“There isn’t a team in Russia that can beat n from our unit.”
His certainty only made trust him more.
“Then prepare and take Ivanov out tomorrow after dark.”
“...Boss.”
“I’ve already spoken with Putin, so no one else will interfere.”
I had no intention of spilling my people’s blood over taking care of Ivanov.
“Plan an operation that will minimize our losses.”
“If we have the governnt’s assurance, it’s entirely possible.”
Eric had said Igor was among the top five of the very best in Black Bear.
This was about killing Ivanov, one of the power brokers of the siloviki in Russia. Even with Putin’s permission, it was no simple task.
Looks like I’ll get to see what Igor is truly capable of this ti.
“Yes, boss. I will end Ivanov’s life without fail.”
At Igor’s confident reply, I gave a small nod and closed my eyes.
The car carrying sped down the quiet road.
* * *
Once we reached the mansion, I collapsed into sleep as if I’d passed out.
Because of that, it was only when the sun was high in the sky that I finally dragged myself out of bed.
I glanced around the dim room darkened by blackout curtains and pressed the call button.
A mont later, the door opened and Chief Ma walked in.
“You’re awake, boss.”
“Nothing happened, right?”
“No.”
Sitting on the bed, I took the glass of water he handed .
The thirst that felt like it had parched my throat—likely from the vodka—finally eased.
“Where’s Igor?”
“He left the mansion this morning.”
He’d probably gone to et with the rcenaries and start preparations for the operation.
“Get in touch with Eric for .”
“Yes, I’ll co back when the line connects.”
After sending Chief Ma out, I drew back the blackout curtains.
Sunlight imdiately poured in, making squint instinctively as I went to open the window.
A cool breeze brushed past my face, and the vodka-induced headache seed to clear away.
If only everything went as smoothly as this feeling.
‘Am I getting too involved in Russian politics? The more the future changes, the more the information I know might beco useless.’
A faint sense of resistance welled up at the thought that my knowledge of the future might lose its value.
But the mont I let myself be underestimated, everyone would co running to tear apart.
I needed to make an example of what happened when soone underestimated .
As I went over yesterday’s conversation in my head, I recalled sothing Putin had said.
‘There’s a coalition of Jews and family dynasties in Europe and Arica. I can’t identify all its mbers, but they move the Western nations from behind the scenes. I’ve been tracking them since my KGB days, and the only ones I could confirm were the Rockefeller family and the Rothschild family. The rest were just shadows I could never catch. I’ve received information that they’ve set their eyes on you, Mr. Kim.’
I’d heard passing ntions of this before, but this ti I’d gotten more detail from Putin.
‘So the UT investnt bank that made that huge options contract with us is theirs? If they’re deliberately holding back the Nasdaq crash...’
If they had more money than I could imagine, they might indeed be intentionally delaying the Nasdaq’s collapse.
Because of it, the monthly losses were significant. Even with my wealth, it had started to beco a burden.
By now, the Nasdaq should have been starting to deflate.
Instead, it was still climbing.
Any other investor would have cashed out by now, but I was still in the ga.
Han Kyungyeong and Eva were worried, unlike , but I knew the future and wasn’t concerned.
There’s a limit to artificially holding back the natural flow. Everyone on Wall Street knew the Nasdaq was in a bubble.
But people can’t let go of their greed, even knowing that.
“Boss.”
While I was sorting my thoughts, looking out at the garden, Chief Ma ca back in holding a phone.
“Eric is on the line.”
“Oh? Give it here.”
A cheerful voice ca through the receiver.
— Hah-hah! Boss, long ti no speak!
“Eric, is the company doing well?”
— Of course. There’s no shortage of countries that need rcenaries. Once word got out the U.S. governnt was hiring us, other nations started calling too.
“That’s good to hear.”
— We should be able to turn a profit soon.
Thanks to years of constant investnt, Black Bear had never once been out of the red.
More than rcenary salaries, the real burden had been equipnt purchases.
Him bringing up profitability now probably ant he’d been concerned about that.
“You don’t need to push yourself to make money.”
— A rcenary who gets complacent is finished. We always have to seek out the battlefield. It’s about making ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) money and keeping sharp. We’ll make your investnt worth it.
Eric’s easygoing tone made chuckle without thinking.
“Alright. I called today because of Igor.”
— Ah! I heard from him today.
“Really?”
So Igor had reported to Eric first. Saved the trouble of explaining.
— Yes. I was planning to put him in charge of Russia and Eastern Europe, so I’d recruited quite a few people. Didn’t think I’d be using them like this, though.
“Will Igor and the team in Russia be enough without extra support? I heard Ivanov’s security team is made up of forr soldiers and KGB agents.”
— I don’t know who Ivanov is, but if it’s Igor and his team, there’s no one they can’t beat.
The pride in his voice when speaking of Igor was unmistakable.
— Igor’s team was the pride of the Soviet Union. They left the service after becoming disillusioned with the state when it collapsed, though.
“You managed to recruit so talent there. So there’s no need for backup from headquarters?”
— None at all. Igor knows Eastern Europe better than anyone. He even bought the weapons locally. After the Soviet collapse, if you have money, you can get any weapon you want.
It was true—after the Soviet collapse, corrupt soldiers in Eastern Europe and Russia were selling weapons freely. There was even a joke that you could buy nuclear weapons if you had the cash.
“Alright. I might be going to the U.S. soon, so let’s et then.”
— Got it, boss!
After hanging up with Eric, I felt I could trust Igor a bit more.
I handed the phone back to Chief Ma.
“I’m going to wash up. Have a light al ready for .”
He bowed his head and left with an acknowledgnt.
I went into the bathroom, sank into warm water, and closed my eyes.
After that, I took care of every matter I could handle over the phone.
Even though I was in Russia, I had things to manage in Korea, the U.S., and China.
Short breaks were only possible in the bath.
“Boss, Igor just called. He says the operation will begin in three hours.”
I checked my watch — it was already 7 p.m.
“So that ans they’ll move in at 10 p.m.?”
“Yes. If possible, they’ll aim to capture him alive, but if that’s not feasible, they’ll execute him on the spot.”
“That ans they’ve already mapped out his movents.”
Saying they’d take him alive ant they’d tracked Ivanov’s movents well enough to be confident.
“It seems Igor’s intelligence network in Russia is quite impressive. Considering he put together the entire operation plan in half a day without any support from headquarters, his skills are clearly exceptional.”
This wasn’t my specialty, so it was hard to judge precisely, even if force might be involved.
When I stayed silent, Chief Ma added an explanation.
“Back when I was a rcenary, I took part in an operation like this. Normally, it takes days to put together a plan. You gather intel and minimize variables — that’s what determines success or failure.”
Tracking a forr KGB man like Ivanov in Russia, mapping his movents in detail, and planning the assault all in one day wasn’t easy. Yet Igor had done it.
Once the operation actually started, unexpected variables could still arise — but even so, this alone spoke volus about Igor’s capabilities.
“Igor says it’s doable, so let’s wait and see.”
“Yes, boss.”
Ti passed, and 10 p.m. arrived.
From that mont, my mansion also went on alert. The remaining personnel were tense, prepared for anything.
Chief Ma stood beside , equally on edge.
“You can go and rest, Chief.”
“No, sir.”
Always the sa answer.
I slowly swirled the whiskey in my glass, waiting for news, boredom starting to creep in.
Then it occurred to that I actually didn’t know much about the man standing next to . I smiled faintly and struck up a conversation.
“While we wait, let’s talk about you. It’s been a while, and I still don’t know much about you, Chief.”
“It’s not an interesting story, boss.”
“Well, it’s not like we have anything else to do. Don’t just stand there — have a seat in front of .”
He hesitated, but he never disobeyed an order. Eventually, Chief Ma brought over a chair.
Even sitting across from , his shoulders were stiff as a board.
“Want a drink?”
I shook the glass so the clinking ice could be heard.
“No, sir.”
“Tell more about your rcenary days. I already heard about your relationship with my grandfather.”
“You an from when I was a rcenary?”
“Yeah. Don’t you have any interesting episodes?”
“Hmm...”
He made a small sound, narrowing his eyes as if searching his mory.
“When I was in South Africa, there was sothing... On my first mission, I got separated from my team. I was wandering alone in unfamiliar territory when I ran into a comrade nad Hunter. The two of us killed thirty enemies together.”
I used that story as the perfect pairing for my whiskey. Even just listening to him, I could feel the urgency of that mont.
“What happened to Hunter?”
“He died.”
There was a fleeting hint of sadness on Chief Ma’s face.
“...How?”
“We both survived that ti, but in the next operation, he was killed in a suicide bombing.”
He told it matter-of-factly, but I could feel the grim reality of a rcenary’s life.
It was a world where the colleague you’d laughed with today could be dead tomorrow.
“Do rcenaries get compensation when they die?”
“It depends on the company. Usually, danger pay is already included in the weekly wages, so the actual death benefit isn’t much.”
At that, he fell silent.
The room was quiet.
I didn’t bother breaking the silence — just listened to the sound of lting ice in my glass.
The call from Igor ca well past midnight.
“He says Ivanov is in custody. They’re on their way back now.”
“Phew...”
With a sigh, the tension drained from .
Not long after, Igor himself entered the mansion alone.
“Boss, we captured Ivanov alive.”
“Our casualties?”
“One dead, three wounded.”
Fewer deaths than I expected — a sign it had gone more smoothly than anticipated.
“And Ivanov’s security team?”
“Twelve dead, four wounded. I sent our wounded to a hospital we know.”
I had expected a fierce battle, but it had been a decisive victory.
“No resistance from Ivanov?”
“There was a thirty-minute firefight, but once his guards were neutralized, he surrendered. He tried making calls during the fight, but it seems he realized no help was coming.”
When I spoke to Putin in the evening, I had given him the operation ti.
He must have warned others the mont the fighting started.
It seed the siloviki had decided it was better not to anger Putin than to save Ivanov.
“Also, since Ivanov’s estate was far out in the countryside, even if reinforcents had been dispatched, we’d already have secured it.”
I nodded at Igor’s detailed report.
“Good work. How does Black Bear handle death benefits?”
“One year’s salary.”
“Chief Ma, pay an additional five hundred thousand dollars.”
“Yes, boss.”
Surprise flickered across Igor’s normally impassive face.
A seasoned rcenary’s annual pay rarely reached even a hundred thousand dollars.
“Thank you, boss.”
The quick bow told he knew well how rcenaries’ deaths were treated as just part of the job.
“He died because of an order I gave. Arrange the funeral entirely on the company’s di and give the family my condolences.”
“Yes, boss.”
I stood and clapped Igor on the shoulder.
“Shall we go see Ivanov now?”
I was curious what kind of expression he’d be wearing.
He must have dismissed as just a rich Oriental — the last thing he would have imagined was being taken down in his own backyard.
I wanted to see that look on his face.
I headed for the annex where they were holding Ivanov.
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