Episode 7: Blood in the Ledger
Neon rain slicked Seoul's midnight glass, rivers of color pooling around CHIPER HQ's entrance. Inside, the air tasted of burnt coffee and wet clothes — tension wound tight as wire.
Kevin stood over Alex's shoulder, jaw sharp, eyes locked on lines of scrolling code.
> "The shell company transfer moves at 3 a.m.," Alex said, voice dry with fatigue. "Kang's plan is to clear the account and dump Lee."
Guen folded arms, lips pressed thin. "If we freeze it, Kang panics — he runs to wherever Lee is hidden."
> "And we catch him in the act," Kevin finished, low.
> "Assuming we survive," Minjae added, propping muddy boots on a chair, grin teasing.
Dohee snatched a folder from his lap. "Your attitude will get us killed."
> "Not before I look pretty doing it," Minjae shot back, wink curling at Miran, who ducked behind a mug.
---
Kevin's gaze swept the team. "Tonight, no mistakes. Alex — freeze the transfer. Dohee — prepare the warrant draft. Minjae, Guen, you're with me. Miran — ready your kit; Lee could be injured."
Miran looked up, eyes wide, voice soft. "And… if Kang resists?"
> "Then we show him why CHIPER exists," Kevin answered, quiet steel beneath words.
---
Minutes ticked like gun barrels cocking. At 2:58 a.m., Alex exhaled. "Block in place. Kang's money's trapped."
> "And bait set," Kevin murmured, shrugging into a black field jacket.
Guen pulled her hair into a low tie, fingers shaking just once. Minjae caught it, teasing grin softening. "Nervous, ugly witch?"
> "Shut up, foolish beast," she hissed, but her glare faltered under his easy calm.
---
They rolled into the warehouse district just after three. Fog curled around broken windows and rusted gates, painting the night in bone-white coils.
> "Lee's trail ends here," Kevin said, voice hushed over comm.
Minjae slipped from the driver's seat, cracking his knuckles. "Fun time."
> "You mean trouble time," Guen retorted.
> "Same difference," he grinned.
---
They entered silent — steel shadows against ruined walls. Inside, darkness smelled of oil and mildew; Guen's boots slipped on rain-slick concrete.
Then a low groan. Kevin raised a hand; the team froze. Guen's breath caught: tied to a chair, head slumped, blood crusted at temple — Lee Sungchul.
Miran gasped softly, stepping closer. Minjae pulled her back. "Wait."
Footsteps echoed deeper in the dark. Kang Jaewon stepped from shadow, coat hanging heavy with rain, pistol loose in hand.
> "I wondered who'd bite first," he rasped.
> "Let him go," Kevin ordered, voice calm as death.
> "Or what?" Kang sneered. "You'll kill me? The moment I die, Lee dies too."
---
Silence cut razor sharp. Guen shifted, weight balanced, eyes flicking between Kang's hand and Lee.
> "Kevin," she whispered, low.
> "I see it," he breathed back.
---
Kang stepped closer to Lee, barrel kissing his bruised temple. "Block my transfer? You think you've won?"
Kevin's voice dropped, dangerous soft. "No. You lost the moment you showed your face."
---
Suddenly, from behind Kang, Minjae moved — silent flash of motion. But Kang was faster: gun swinging, shot cracking in steel echo.
Guen screamed; Kevin lunged. Miran dropped, hands over ears.
Pain burst across Minjae's arm — grazing hit — but his fist met Kang's jaw, sending him reeling.
Guen kicked the pistol free; Kevin caught it mid-fall, barrel raised to Kang's chest.
> "Enough," Kevin growled.
---
Kang stumbled, blood at lip, breath ragged. "Fools. You think the board won't cover this? You're nothing."
> "We're CHIPER," Guen spat. "And you're done."
Kang lunged — desperate, cornered — but Kevin struck first: elbow to temple, cracking bone against bone. Kang dropped, out cold.
---
Miran scrambled to Lee, hands flying across pulse, breath.
> "Alive," she gasped, relief wet in her voice. "Weak, but alive."
Guen cut the ropes, Kevin steadying Lee's slumping body.
Minjae exhaled, rolling his sore shoulder. "I liked this jacket," he muttered, bullet hole smoking.
> "Buy another," Guen snapped, but her voice shook with relief.
> "Worried?" Minjae teased, eyes glinting.
> "About Lee," she shot back.
---
Dohee arrived minutes later, breathless, documents in hand. "Police are on route. Kang goes to prison, Lee goes to hospital, and the board faces trial."
Kevin's gaze stayed on Lee's bruised face. "And justice breathes — tonight."
---
Hours later, at HQ, the team crowded into the kitchen. Coffee steamed; laughter spilled rough-edged but real.
> "To our first real mess," Minjae toasted, lifting his cup.
> "And first real save," Miran added, shy smile peeking.
> "And first real bullet hole," Minjae grinned, tapping his arm.
Guen rolled her eyes. "Foolish beast."
> "Ugly witch," he shot back, grin wide.
---
Kevin leaned against the counter, gaze falling to Guen. Rain-glossed hair stuck to her cheek; exhaustion shadowed her eyes.
> "You fought well," he said, voice quiet.
> "You too," she murmured, meeting his gaze.
Heat sparked — brief, reckless — before Alex cleared his throat, ruining the moment.
---
Dohee sipped tea, watching them over the rim. "One case down," she mused. "Many more ahead."
Kevin nodded. "Kang was a blade, not the hand. The board still breathes. And Lee has truths to tell."
---
Outside, dawn crept slow — bruised sky cracking to pale light. Inside, six hearts braced for the next step: the next shadow, the next fight, the next scar.
> And though none dared say it, each felt it: in danger shared, walls fell; in trust forged, something deeper waited.
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