NABC Chapter 19: World of Vampire Detective [8]
Chapter 19: World of Vampire Detective [8]
I entered the world of the game 'Vampire Detective' and sat down in front of the computer, turning on the messenger. Kang Eugene, a genius hacker, deals with clients through a secure, hacking-proof private messenger chat.
'Kang Eugene has been passive so far. Except when trying to attract new clients, he never initiates conversations and only responds when clients contact him first.'
Kang Eugene was cautious. He mainly sold information and avoided risky requests. Even when selling information, he did so at relatively low prices, fearing that higher prices might lead to resentment from clients. The client who made Kang Eugene the most nervous was Moon Ji-hyuk. Looking at the chat logs, Kang Eugene responded curtly to other clients but was polite and even used honorifics when talking to Moon Ji-hyuk.
'Well, he's a detective. Of course, Kang Eugene would be scared.'
He even sold information worth over 1 million won for just 300,000 won. I clicked my tongue in disapproval.
'What an idiot. What's the point of being a genius hacker if you're such a coward?'
I sent a message to one of the clients, Han Sung-woon, a journalist.
[Taker: I've got some good info. Want to buy it?]
About five minutes later, Han Sung-woon replied. By the way, Kang Eugene's "T Messenger" could also be installed as an app. Han Sung-woon was the son of the chairman of Hankook Ilbo, one of South Korea's most famous news channels.
Currently, he is working as an editor, building up his achievements to eventually take over the chairman's position.
[Han Sung-woon: This is the first time you've reached out first.]
[Taker: Not interested?]
[Han Sung-woon: Your tone seems different. Are you someone else?]
[Taker: I'm in a bit of a hurry for money. Not buying?]
The reply didn't come immediately. It seemed he was taken aback by the change in Taker's demeanour. I waited patiently.
'He's a client who's going to pay. A few minutes won't hurt.'
[Han Sung-woon: Your information has always been reliable.]
[Han Sung-woon: Let's hear it. What do you have?]
[Han Sung-woon: But it better be good.]
[Taker: A secret meeting between a member of the National Assembly and a Japanese senator. How about that?]
[Han Sung-woon: ...That's huge. But it's not enough on its own. What were they discussing?]
[Taker: Economy. The National Assembly member took a bribe.]
I sent a simple reply. The current economic relations between South Korea and Japan are at their worst. South Korea is in the midst of a nationwide boycott of Japanese products, and Japan is responding with a defiant attitude. In this climate, this information holds immense value. Han Sung-woon couldn't possibly be unaware of this. And Hankook Ilbo is large enough to handle this information.
[Han Sung-woon: Alright. How much?]
[Taker: 200 million won.]
[Han Sung-woon: ...That's too expensive. It's valuable, but not that much.]
[Taker: I have solid evidence. Han Kook-Ilbo can leverage this to gain more than double. This is about a National Assembly member betraying the country. The damage to him and his party will be enormous. 200 million is a steal.]
[Taker: And three Korean companies are involved too.]
[Taker: I need money urgently, so I'm giving it cheap.]
200 million won is actually a bargain. The moment this information goes public, South Korea will be in an uproar. Using this information to blackmail the National Assembly members or the companies is also an option.
'I don't need to force money out of them like that, so I'm just selling it cheap.'
But to do that, it would take at least a week to several months of effort. I don't have that kind of time. Moon Ji-hyuk has probably already become a vampire. I don't have time to play around with money.
[Han Sung-woon: ...Alright. Should I transfer the money to the same account as before?]
[Taker: No. I'll give you a different account. Transfer 100 million won as a down payment first.]
Some time passed.
[Han Sung-woon: I've transferred the money.]
[Taker: I'll send the documents via email. There are some photos too, so it's solid. Confirm and then complete the payment, okay?]
Ten minutes later, a reply came.
[Han Sung-woon: I've transferred the remaining amount. How do you get this kind of information?]@@@@
[Taker: It's a secret. Take care.]
How else would a hacker get information? Of course, through hacking. By the way, this information is from the National Intelligence Service.
'Well, Kang Eugene is really skilled. He's hacked major American corporations. He just didn't touch the U.S. government because he's scared of them.'
Kang Eugene hacked the NIS for a simple reason: he underestimated them. He was confident he wouldn't get caught. I contacted other clients as well. I didn't demand exorbitant amounts as I did with Han Sung-woon. Han Sung-woon, being the heir to Han Kook-Ilbo, was special. For other clients, I asked for a minimum of 300,000 won, up to tens of millions of won. I didn't just deal with clients here. The information I had could be used in other ways as well.
I opened the computer drawer. There were over ten burner phones. I picked one up and sent a text to someone.
[Taker: Yo! Pro baseball star Kim Choo-young!]
[Taker: I'm Johnson.]
[Taker: Don't ignore this if you want to stay alive.]
I sent him some gruesome photos I scraped together from the dark web. Photos that would make anyone who saw them nauseous. A minute later, a reply came.
[Kim Choo-young: I don't know who you are, but this is too much. I'll report you to the police.]
[Taker: Report? Are you kidding?]
[Taker: How about counter-suing, you drug addict?]
[Kang Wook-sung: This conversation is too fast. I can't follow.]
[Taker: It's simple. We make a deal.]
[Taker: The list of vampire hunters from the Korean Black Cross.]
[Taker: This should be worth 700 million, right?]
The Black Cross Society is the organization of vampire hunters, the greatest enemies of vampires. The reason Kang Wook-sung is working as a broker in Korea is to monitor and gather information on Korean vampire hunters.
[Kang Wook-seong: Are you talking about the entire country, not just Seoul?]
[Taker: Yeah.]
[Kang Wook-seong: If your information is real, I'd be willing to pay even 1 billion won for it.]
[Taker: It's real. You can verify it tomorrow. Oh, and make sure the 1 billion is in cash. Also, money laundering fees are excluded. Can you handle that?]
[Kang Wook-seong: It's difficult to prepare 1 billion immediately.]
[Taker: How much do you have?]
[Kang Wook-seong: 400 million. I'll need about three days to get the remaining 600 million.]
[Taker: Fine, give me the 400 million first.]
[Kang Wook-seong: Understood. But remember, if the information isn't accurate, you're dead.]
[Taker: It's accurate, so I'll be fine.]
I closed the messenger. In truth, Kang Eugene's computer didn't have the list of vampire hunters from the Korean Black Cross Society. I had to go get it tomorrow.
I closed my eyes and reviewed my plan. Well, it wasn't much of a plan. If things went according to my thoughts, it wouldn't even take five minutes.
'...Should I call a call girl?'
I seriously considered it but held back.
***
The next day.
I headed to Apgujeong. The headquarters of the Korean Black Cross Society was located here.
'Found it.'
It wasn't hard to find. I knew the location and shape of the building from watching dramas. It was a building over ten stories tall. There were security guards near the entrance, and you needed a keycard to enter. From the outside, it looked like a regular company with tight security. Across from the building was a large express bus parked. Probably a commuter bus. I openly stared at the building from the front entrance, holding a burner phone. I could feel the security guards watching me.
'The building isn't over 30 meters tall. Well, even if it were, it wouldn't matter.'
[Hacking successful.]
[You can hack Kim Seo-jin's computer for 3 minutes.]
I hacked into a random computer inside the building and infiltrated the Black Cross Society's private network.
'Found it. The personnel list of the Korean Black Cross Society.'
Total of 913 people. Among them, 174 were combatants who risked their lives fighting vampires—vampire hunters.
'Easy.'
I looked at my smartphone and headed to the burger joint next door.
Thud!
While walking, I bumped into someone. I looked up from my phone and saw a man with a scowl and another man who seemed to be his companion. I immediately recognized who they were.
Vampire hunters Park Ki-joo and Jo Joo-hyun.
"Hey, man. It's bad manners to look at your phone on the street. Be careful, okay?"
Park Ki-joo spoke rudely. I smirked at them and said, "You should be the ones being careful."
"What?"
I ignored them and headed to the burger joint.
"Ki-joo, stop. We're busy, you know?"
"I have time to teach some manners to that jerk."
"No, you don't. Do you want to write another incident report? The headquarters is already tense because of those mosquito bastards. Do you want to cause more trouble?"
"Ah, fine. I get it."
Just as I was about to open the door to the burger joint.
[Hacking successful.]
[You can hack the large express bus for 15 seconds.]
Vrooooom! Crash!
Suddenly, the large express bus parked across from the building accelerated and crashed through the glass doors of the building's entrance, smashing inside. I glanced at the building. Park Ki-joo took the brunt of it. His body wasn't visible, but blood was pooling on the floor. Jo Joo-hyun was grazed. Even so, he wasn't unharmed. Even with quick first aid, he would be severely injured.
'I told you to be careful.'
At least I got rid of the persistent Park Ki-joo. He was one of the vampire hunters who would torment Moon Ji-hyuk until the end. And he was highly likely to interfere with me in the future. One of the biggest obstacles has just been removed. This brings me closer to my real goal: the "Orb of Life."