Sector 1 🛡 yungi [▶]

1

The rough sounds caused by a pair of boots covered in black mud stains created debris and broken wood, obstructing the threshold.

One person raised the rifle he carried, assuming a vigilant position, with emotions swirling about the prey he and his team were hunting.

"Empty," one of them declared firmly, offering no false hope regarding the success of their target capture.

"Fuck!"

Meanwhile, Mingi refrained from uttering curses. He simply couldn't accept that he and his colleagues had successfully located a warehouse where a kingpin hid an entire stash of drugs for future distribution.

The fact that no one was in the warehouse infuriated him, blaming his own carelessness during the investigation. It seemed he had made suspicious moves that were unfortunately noticed by the traffickers.

He kicked the remaining door leaves still attached to the hinges until they broke. The furrow on his forehead didn't fade even after seeing Jongho emerging with two sacks of illegal drugs.

"They're not clever," Wooyoung approached Mingi, seemingly understanding his still-unstable emotions. "Just lucky to find a loophole."

"That means we're unlucky for allowing them to find a loophole." Mingi responded half-heartedly, fearing that too many words from him might sound overly pessimistic. Though he knew Wooyoung meant to console him, he was reluctant to let go of his frustration towards the drug smugglers who genuinely unsettled him.

His hometown wasn't extensive, just an hour away from the rural areas. The access there was inadequate, leading many to relocate for better transportation. However, it seemed the smugglers exploited this by hiding their goods in places less monitored by others.

On the other hand, the smugglers seemed unaware of one crucial aspect of the town they were receiving the goods in.

An intelligence agency specialized in investigating drug abuse and distribution had its headquarters there, operating undercover and discreetly observing various strange behaviors of the locals until obtaining information about the warehouse where they stored the drug shipments.

Mingi had been a member of this intelligence agency for over three years, dealing with similar cases everywhere, from his hometown to other cities and even abroad. Yet, it inevitably made him bored, especially dealing with human behaviors that often disturbed citizens.

"I admit they're crazy to hide this much contraband and keep it in a forest with limited vehicle access. Passing through the village with that much load and claiming to be heading to the forest, isn't that suspicious enough?" Jongho expressed his opinion after tossing another sack of drugs he found. He was bewildered by their audacity, or rather, recklessness.

"Village people are not as alert to things outside their interests," San, not a police officer but coincidentally the village head's son and the wealthiest person there, remarked. It seemed he understood the mindset of the people in his hometown, presenting such an assumption even though Jongho, as the interrogator, was quite surprised by the recent answer.

"I thought the opposite. Small communities usually tend to be wary of strangers' arrivals. But they might have taken routes rarely used by locals. I heard they still believe in mystical things around here. If they come through paths considered eerie by the villagers, they might slip under their radar." Jongho turned back, re-entering the warehouse, leaving San responding with a shrug.

"Is that so?"

San turned, finding Mingi looking at him with a curious gaze. "Not sure about the mystical part Jongho mentioned. But I know a lot about village life as a villager, Mingi. They are like that. There's no use suspecting their lack of response to something suspicious. They just won't care. Why are you asking?"