Episode 5
Bang!
No one saw it coming.
A sharp crack tore through the night, and the man who had been holding a knife to Ji-soo’s face dropped where he stood.
A gunshot—real, unmistakable.
In this country, few people could even touch a firearm. The fact that one had been fired here could only mean one thing.
A sniper, hidden in the dark.
And where there was a sniper… there were special forces.
“Wh–What the hell!?”
The con man’s voice broke into panic.
Even a man who had spent his life lying and killing couldn’t stay calm when the world stopped following his script.
“I’ll be taking my sister back now.”
Ji-hyun’s voice was quiet, steady.
He stepped forward, and as he did, armed officers revealed themselves from the shadows—guns raised, voices sharp.
The con man stared, speechless.
This wasn’t supposed to happen.
This wasn’t how it was supposed to end.
In the next instant, his empire crumbled.
Caught in the act, caught with a minor, surrounded by police—there was no escape, no deal, no trick left.
Ji-hyun watched his confusion with cold calm. The fool didn’t know it yet, but everything had already been decided.
He had used his ability to twist the very system the con man trusted most.
He’d masked his own location, infiltrated the police network, and sent an emergency dispatch under their highest alert code.
But that was only the beginning.
Every crime the con man had ever committed—every record, every transaction—had been compiled and sent to the city’s police and prosecutors.
And not just them.
The media.
Online boards.
Everywhere.
Even the people who’d stood behind the con man, the powerful names that kept his hands clean—every one of them was exposed to the light.
He just didn’t know it yet.
“How… how did you find me!?”
The con man’s face twisted with disbelief.
Even now, surrounded by police, he couldn’t stop himself from demanding an explanation.
Ji-hyun pulled out his phone, turned it toward him, and showed him a message.
A text.
One that read like a threat—sent from the con man’s own number.
A promise to break Ji-soo at this very location.
The con man’s eyes widened. He had never sent it. He wouldn’t.
“You sent it to me,” Ji-hyun said smoothly. “Guess the police got it too.”
As if on cue, the sound of car doors slamming filled the air. More officers spilled out of their vehicles, shouting orders.
The con man fumbled for his phone.
And there it was.
The text.
Time-stamped. Sent from his device, just as they were leaving the office.
He stared at it, the color draining from his face.
His perfect logic offered him no escape.
There was no trick this time. No lie that could undo it.
“I–I didn’t send this! How—what did you—”
His voice cracked.
Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
The screen glowed back at him, silent, merciless.
Ji-hyun tilted his head, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
“You think I’d know that?”
“Th–That’s impossible!”
Panic turned to rage. The con man lunged forward.
A gun fired.
Thump.
The rubber bullet hit him square in the ribs.
He dropped to his knees, gasping, pain shooting through his chest like fire.
Non-lethal—but cruel enough to break a man’s will.
He coughed, sobbing, clutching his side as police pinned him to the ground.
Ji-hyun barely spared him a glance.
There was nothing left worth seeing.
He walked past the fallen man, toward Ji-soo, who was still trembling in shock.
“Sorry,” he whispered, wrapping her in his arms. “I’m late.”
And then she broke—sobbing into his shoulder, her body shaking with the release of everything she had been holding in.
“It’s okay,” Ji-hyun murmured, holding her tighter. “It’s over now.”
The officers moved efficiently, cuffing the gang one by one.
Even they looked shaken, unsure what to make of what had just happened—but they did their duty.
Ji-hyun sighed in relief.
It was over.
He guided Ji-soo to the waiting patrol car.
This incident would draw attention, of course. Questions, cameras, reports.
But none of that mattered.
“Ugh…”
A low groan escaped him. The pain was finally catching up.
The adrenaline had burned away, leaving nothing but exhaustion and ache.
“Ah, damn… I overdid it.”
Ji-hyun winced, pressing a hand to his forehead.
Ji-soo looked up, tear-streaked and incredulous.
“What—what do you mean, overdid it!?”
For the first time that night, he gave her a weary grin.
“My whole body hurts… hospital, please…”
Even the officers couldn’t suppress a faint smile as the car turned toward the hospital.
----------
When Ji-hyun arrived at the emergency ward, every doctor and nurse who had ever cared for him came storming down to meet him—each with the same furious expression.
“Have you completely lost your mind?”
It was terrifying in a way that pain could never be.
The kind of fear that came only when calm, reasonable people finally decided to get angry.
He had an excuse, of course—I did it to save my sister.
But even so, there were lines that couldn’t be crossed, reasons that couldn’t undo the risk he had taken.
Ji-hyun didn’t argue.
There was no defense for a patient who ignored his doctor’s orders.
So he simply stood there, listening, while the storm of scolding poured down.
And when it was finally over, when they heard why he had done it, the anger faded into silence.
“…Still,” the doctor muttered, shaking his head. “You really shouldn’t have—”
But what more could they say?
What reprimand could reach a man who had run into danger to save his family—especially when the police themselves had confirmed every word?
In the end, all they could do was sigh. His hospital stay would be longer, yes, but at least he promised not to run off again.
When the medical staff finally left, the room grew quiet.
Ji-hyun smiled to himself.
Satisfaction.
For the first time, he felt it—the deep, unshakable satisfaction of having done something that mattered.
He had protected his family with his own hands, and that truth alone filled him with warmth.
But beneath the relief, another thought stirred.
His power… was far greater than he had imagined.
It wasn’t just knowledge or cleverness.
He could reach into systems, rewrite data, bend the present itself.
He couldn’t see the future—but he could understand the past and alter the now.
That realization left him breathless.
How vast was this strength? How much could it change?
It was intoxicating.
Of course, he knew it wasn’t a gift of this world.
It was something from beyond—a fragment, incomplete and unstable.
A shard of a greater force.
A Tool.
He didn’t know what it truly was, or what it might become.
And that uncertainty was dangerous.
What if, one day, at the moment he needed it most, it simply vanished?
The thought lingered in his mind like a shadow.
But even so… Ji-hyun was content.
He couldn’t help but wonder just how far this power could take him.
Confidence—or perhaps arrogance—settled quietly in his chest.
Later, his family came. Then the police. Another round of chaos, questions, apologies.
But soon enough, the lights dimmed. Visiting hours ended.
Silence returned to the hospital.
The other patients were already asleep, the faint rhythm of their breathing blending with the hum of the machines.
Ji-hyun alone remained awake, staring blankly at the ceiling.
He knew he would never forget this day.
“…Haa.”
The sigh escaped him. He was exhausted.
The pain spread through his body, dull and constant—a medal carved into flesh.
Every muscle throbbed. His head pounded.
The price of pretending to be the strong older brother was steeper than he’d expected.
And forcing his half-trained power had only made things worse.
Still, he felt peace.
He had earned his rest.
I’ll think about everything else later, he told himself.
Then he closed his eyes.
Sleep came swiftly—deep and dreamless,
swallowing him whole.
