(Arc 2 : Blood and love ) In downtown Seoul, there was a well-known bakery and café called Beom* (Spring) Café. Several franchises of this establishment had opened throughout the country, and it had begun to export.

Of course, Il Young had heard about it. As a long line of people lined up in front of the store, he wondered if he had the wrong address.

Looking at his phone for the umpteenth time to check he was in the right place, he felt a tap on his shoulder. It was Gwenval.

"Hello, Il Young. Follow me."

After greeting the musician, the young man followed him, unable to predict what was going to happen next.

Gwenval went through the back door to enter the bakery.

A few meters of corridors later, they found themselves in front of a small upstairs office.

"Oh! There he is ! One of my wonderful nephews?!'

A woman dressed in an apron, adorned with the establishment's logo, warmly embraced the musician. Il Young found what was happening in front of him, surreal.

"How are you? Wow! You’re even more beautiful than before." She continued happily.

"Thank you, Aunt Sun Hi. I’m fine. You’re still as radiant as ever."

"Someone in this family has to be! What about Lioren? Is he too busy chasing criminals to come and see me?"

"I’ll remind him to come and see you when he has some free time."

“He better be.” She said, laughing.

Not wanting to disturb them, Il Young made himself as small as possible. After a while, Gwenval’s aunt finally noticed him and leaned towards him.

"This is the boy you wanted to introduce me to?"

"Yes."

Gwenval gently pushed Il Young forward.

"Aunt Sun, meet Cha Il Young, a future doctor. He needs money to fund his studies. He's a dynamic and resourceful person, so I thought you might be able to find him a job here. Il Young, this is my aunt, Ms Lim Sun Hi, the owner of Beom Café."

Still feeling unsettled, Il Young respectfully salutes the manager.

"Medicine, huh? It reminds me of Hae-Won. Have you heard from her?"

"I called her briefly last month. She’s in high demand."

"That's not surprising...OK. Let's focus back to you. Cha Il Young, right?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Gwenval gave her aunt space to observe the young man more closely.

"You are rather muscular. Have you worked in a bakery before, or do you have catering experience?"

"My parents have run a dakgalbi restaurant for several years. I often helped my father with the service and made deliveries."

"Interesting."

Sun Hi looked the young man up and down, then thought for a few moments.

"As Gwen recommended you, I’m willing to give you a two-month trial. Of course, you’ll receive training and be paid. Depending on your performance, we can renegotiate the employment contract and increase your salary."

Eager to expand his skills, Il Young accepted the manager’s proposal. The latter then went to get him a contract.

"If you have any questions, or if anything is bothering you, you can tell me or show it to your parents. Don’t hesitate to bring them here if they want to discuss it." Explained Sun Hi.

"It’s not necessary. I can sign it and start today if that’s possible. I brought all the documents that might be needed."

"You’re a young man who doesn’t seem to want to waste any time."

Il Young went in the office and took several documents out of his bag, such as a CV and ID.

"Everything seems to be in order, so I’m going to take some time off. I have work to do." Gwenval informed them.

Il Young stood up.

“You’re leaving already, hyung?”

"Wait! I’ll get you some pastries." The aunt said, stopping him.

Il Young thanked Gwenval once again from the bottom of his heart.

Madam Lim gave the musician a large box filled with various pieces of cake to share with his brother.

Gwenval spotted a piece of red velvet, which he naturally decided to keep aside for Ashlay. He then left, leaving his young friend in the good care of his aunt.

_____

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Today, we welcome a new fighter: MAAAAANNNGGKOOORN ! Make some noise to encourage him. He's going to need it! Our wonderful system has been very cruel. For his very first match, he has to face our Angel of Death. Poor child. Do you think he will dethrone our champion, or will he be just another soul sent to the afterlife? Bets are open!"

Several screens displayed photos of Mangkorn and Dark Angel, alongside the amounts wagered on them.

"So that's what he wanted?" Thought the Nemesis manager.

"What do you mean?"

The person currently in charge of the men in black group sat next to the owner and watched the fights.

"I’ve seen this name appear before. But every time a match was assigned to him, he cancelled. This time he didn’t, so I guess he wants to fight your champion."

"He must be very confident in his abilities to only want to compete with your Reaper."

"Or very arrogant. He’s not the first to do that. As long as I make a lot of money from this fight, I won't complain."

"Something tells me this fight is going to be very exciting."

There was a lot of discussion in the crowd about who Mangkorn could be. People were also wondering whether he would really be up to it tonight.

"You think it’s the same person?"

"No, but... What would he be doing there? It’s not possible."

Two fighters were debating the identity of the newcomer. Flash overheard them and joined in.

"Is there another fighter named Mangkorn?"

"The leader of the Shadows calls himself that." One of them replied.

"The Shadows? Who are they? Mobsters?"

One of the men shook his head and continued :

"No, actually it’s quite the opposite. I would say they started four or five years ago. They "cleaned up" a lot of Seoul neighborhoods by eliminating violent groups, drug dealers, and other types of illegal trafficking."

"They are very well organized. They always make sure to settle their accounts in one go and then disappear. No one seeks revenge or deliberately provokes them."

"They have also been a great help to the police, so they leave them alone."

"In any case, the police have no leads to catch them."

"That's right." The man laughed.

Flash was intrigued by this mysterious group.

"Their leader, Mangkorn, is very tall and scary. They say he's unbeatable. I have a friend who saw him fight. It was carnage."

"I heard that his right arm is equally formidable. One day, he and him wiped out a group of more than thirty armed men."

"That's a rumor!"

"I tell you it’s true!"

While the men argued about the "exploits" of the Shadows, Flash wondered how true these words were. Was their leader really going to face Dark Angel in the Nemesis ring tonight? Was this group really that effective? Would such a supposedly powerful character really do that?

Half an hour later, the bell signalled the end of the betting period. Shortly afterward, Dark Angel made his entrance to the cheers of the spectators. Mangkorn soon followed. The crowd was divided over him. While some were excited, others could hardly look at him. And some pretended to pray for him ironically.

As he wore a mask to preserve his identity, he opted for a slightly tight outfit with a long-sleeved top that showed off his muscular physique.

"Good evening, Dark Angel. I look forward to meeting you."

The person in question remained motionless for a moment, only looking at his opponent.

"Dark Angel?" Asked Mangkorn a second time.

The fighter emerged from his "trance" and respectfully bowed his head to his opponent.

"Maybe he's shy?" Thought the young participant.

After these brief greetings, the bell rang and the fighters took their positions.

Mangkorn was the first to go. He threw a quick kick, which Dark Angel easily avoided.

A series of kicks and punches followed.

Dark Angel grabbed his opponent’s arm, kicked him to the other end of the ring and attempted a circular blow to the head.

Mangkorn avoided it and attempted a similar attack.

They exchanged several blows. Neither hit the other.

Dark Angel managed to punch Mangkorn in the stomach, and he couldn’t help but cry out in pain. However, he was smiling under his mask.

The attacks accelerated. Faster. Even faster.

The tension was high. The audience had almost fallen silent. Such a confrontation seemed unreal.

Dark Angel hit Mangkorn on the head, and he immediately retreated. This was not enough to disorientate him.

He returned to attack, hitting the reaper in the flanks. He was pushed back very quickly. He charged again with a violent circular kick.

Dark Angel blocked it with his arms and found himself propelled onto the ring grid. A sharp pain shot through his right arm.

The two panting fighters looked at each other. They studied each other. They looked for the slightest flaw in each other.

The blows continued. Same take. At the same time. Same place.

Mangkorn continued to punch the ribs.

Dark Angel targeted the legs. He managed to throw his opponent to the ground. He quickly wrapped his legs around Mangkorn's torso and applied a chokehold.

Mangkorn freed himself, but was quickly subdued again.

The embrace tightened more and more.

Mangkorn didn’t want to let go. He fought as hard as he could.

Stars began to glimmer before his eyes. All attempts to escape were in vain. His breath faded.

Almost out of breath, he hit the ground several times to signal his surrender.

The bell sounded, marking the end of this intense fight. The crowd came out of its torpor and erupted into cheers.

The two fighters sat on the ground and took a breath. Suddenly, Mangkorn started laughing, much to Dark Angel's amazement.

"Did I hit him too hard on the head?" He thought.

The winner got up, albeit with some difficulty, and reached out to help his opponent do the same.

Mangkorn accepted willingly, but as soon as he stood up, he almost fell and nearly took the black angel with him. Fortunately, he managed to stabilize himself, passing a hand around the latter's waist to prevent him from falling.

For several seconds, they stared into each other's eyes.

Mangkorn felt a sense of familiarity.

"Th... Thank you." Stammered Dark Angel.

"You’re welcome."

The two of them separated.

"I had a good time. I hope to get the chance to get my revenge." Declared Mangkorn, reaching out to his idol.

"Maybe one day." Replied Dark Angel, shaking his hand in a friendly way.

The two athletes then headed for the locker room. Dark Angel wanted to get back out there as soon as possible. His right forearm was hurting, but he had to appear strong.

"Dark Angel hyung!"

Flash came running over to them. He immediately focused his attention on the Black Angel.

"You are..."

Who would have thought that he would find him here? Mangkorn, also known as Ashlay, recognized the voice of the young Il Young. Who would have thought that he would find him here?

"You were fantastic too!"

Flash turned to Mangkorn with sparkling eyes.

"Thank you."

Applause could be heard in the distance. The trio turned towards its source : it was the leader of the men in black and a few of his henchmen. Dark Angel instinctively stood in front of Flash.

"Congratulations on this fight, gentlemen. Especially you, Angel. I’m sure it will go down in the Nemesis archives. If you’re not too eager to reclaim your winnings, I’d like to discuss a few things with you three."