Chapter 15 - The Ledger Closed
Chairman Song looked up, his face twisted in a mixture of pathetic terror and utter bewilderment. Saltwater and rain poured over his aged face as his grip on the anchor chain began to slip link by link.
"Min-hyuk... please!" Song begged, his voice cracking against the roar of the sinking ship's alarms. "Take the money! The briefcases are pinned against the railing! Hundreds of millions! You can buy an island, you can save that woman, you can give your brother's children an empire! Just pull me up!"
Min-hyuk looked down at the aluminum cases sliding slowly toward the edge of the tilted deck. With a casual flick of his boot, he kicked both cases over the railing. They tumbled through the air, bursting open as they hit the churning ocean, millions of dollars in bonds scattering across the black waves like meaningless white confetti.
"Dae-hyun didn't want an empire," Min-hyuk said, his voice cutting clearly through the sirens. "He wanted peace."
"I am your family!" Song screamed, his fingers slipping down the cold, greasy iron chain. "I raised you!"
"You raised a weapon," Min-hyuk replied softly, pulling the clean ivory handkerchief from his breast pocket and dropping it into the wind. "And a weapon has no family."
He drew his sidearm, aimed it at the master link holding the anchor winch, and pulled the trigger.
The pin snapped. With a deafening, metallic screech, tons of rusted iron chain unspooled at lightning speed, dragging Chairman Song down into the black, suffocating depths of the harbor, his final scream swallowed instantly by the roaring sea.
---
Six months later.
The mountain sun broke over the high peaks of Gangwon Province, burning away the morning mist that clung to the valleys. Beside the small wooden cabin, a newly built orchard of apple trees stretched across the terraced slope, their young branches heavy with white blossoms.
Eun-ji sat on the porch in a rocking chair, healthy and smiling, watching her twin boys crawl across a colorful quilt spread over the grass.
Further down the hill, Su-ah, now wearing clean jeans and sturdy hiking boots, was diligently sweeping the gravel pathway leading to the main road, the broom almost as tall as she was. She stopped, leaning on the handle, as she heard the slow crunch of tires on gravel.
A vintage pickup truck pulled up to the gate. Kang Min-hyuk stepped out.
He was dressed simply—a plain dark sweater, worn canvas pants, no suits, no weapons. The heavy scar across his cheek had faded into a pale silver line. He walked up the pathway, carrying a wooden crate filled with fresh groceries, medicine, and children's books.
He stopped in front of Su-ah, setting the heavy crate down on the grass.
"You missed a spot by the post," he said, his face completely serious, though a faint, warm light danced in his eyes.
Su-ah looked down at the gravel, then up at him, placing her hands on her hips with all the stubbornness she had inherited from her father. "I’ve swept this path five times this week. At this rate, I’ll have paid you back for the milk by the time I’m twelve."
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Min-hyuk reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, crisp silver coin, flipping it through the morning air toward her. Su-ah caught it neatly in her palm.
"That's your wage for the morning," Min-hyuk said, turning to walk toward the porch where his family waited. "Keep sweeping, kid. The ledger is just getting started."
