[CONTENTID1]re:lentless[/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]Chapter 15[/CONTENTID2]

[CONTENTID3]

Six cars waited at the starting line, three in each row. The night was dark and the moon hidden by rain clouds. The cars’ bright headlights illuminated the black pavement, the sounds of their engines mixing with the cheers of the crowd. Soojin’s eyes were fixed on the person who would signal the start of the race. She was ready. Her hands gripped the steering wheel of her Dodge Challenger. The car had caused quite the commotion earlier, prompting many curious spectators to point and stare at it. Some had even snapped photos of it that would likely end up somewhere on social media later. Needless to say, Soojin stole the spotlight without ever leaving her car—and thanks to its tinted windows, nobody was able to see her. However, this only seemed to increase the crowd’s fascination with the new driver.

Soojin didn’t know where exactly her team members had disappeared to, but she heard their voices over her earpiece. It was as if they were in the car with her—a reassuring thought. “We established a stable connection to the cameras on your car,” Taeyong announced. He and Mark had stayed back in their hotel room where they had set up their laptops and other equipment. The remaining agents attended the street race in person.

“Alright. Thanks, guys,” she replied to him and Mark. “It’s about to start.”

Soojin took a deep breath, still gazing at the man who was in charge of starting the race. He stood at the side of the road, and the moment he waved a large, neon-colored flag, a rush of adrenaline flooded her. The screams of the crowd surged. Soojin pushed the gas pedal down, and her Dodge shot off. Since it had serious horsepower under its hood, it accelerated rapidly. Her back was pressed into her seat as it gained speed. The undercover agent left one of her five rivals behind without much effort. The remaining four cars, however, were equally fast and their drivers skilled. She narrowed her eyes, glaring at the rear spoiler of the car in front of her.

“The first sharp turn is coming up,” Mark reminded her. Gritting her teeth, she put the car into second gear and revved the engine. Spinning the steering wheel, she kept the car close to the inside of the turn and managed to initiate a drift, just the way she had intended. Once she had left the turn behind, she straightened the car out and continued to accelerate. Unfortunately, she wasn’t the only one with tricks up her sleeve, so the little stunt didn’t give her a significant advantage, but at least she was catching up to the fourth car.

The Dodge’s engine roared as she accelerated further. A fiery rush of excitement overcame her when she smelled burned rubber from her drift. Soojin passed the fourth car and stole its spot—three more vehicles were in front of her. She saw their red taillights gleaming in the darkness; a constant reminder to step up her game. Winning would be a challenge, but she no longer felt nervous. On the contrary, driving this fast was strangely addicting—she could see why her rivals regularly participated in these races. It was a different kind of drug.

The Dodge’s speedometer needle moved past 140 km/h, too fast for the narrow streets of the industrial area the drivers passed, but none of them cared. It was fortunate that it was deserted at this time of night. They were now heading to the edge of the city where the road was curvier and Soojin hoped to gain ground on the three cars in front of her soon. From what she could see, G-Dragon was first, closely followed by the other two. She would have to take risks if she wanted to catch up. Her pursuers weren’t far behind her.

“One is closing in on you,” Taeyong told her. “You need to accelerate. It looks like he plans on tailgating you.”

“Understood.”

She accelerated and reached 160 km/h. The moment she left Gwangju behind, she heaved a sigh of relief, finally not having to worry about accidents with innocent bystanders anymore. It was very late at night and the road leading into the forest was deserted as well—even during the day, there wasn’t much traffic on this route. She used this to her advantage and bridged the gap between her and the third car in the next curve by using a dangerous amount of speed as she drifted. The car was dragged towards the edge of the road, losing its grip on the asphalt, but before it could land somewhere in the undergrowth, she regained control and drifted around the curve. It was a dangerous maneuver, but it allowed her to take third place.

However, the driver she had just left behind wasn’t ready to give up yet—he had an ace up his sleeve. Mark’s frantic voice was the only warning she got. “Soojin! He has a gun! Duck!”

Her heartbeat spiked in panic and she ducked behind the steering wheel, low enough that she hardly could see the road in front of her. Not a second later, gunshots penetrated the night, reverberating in her ears. The impact of bullets on metal created a noise that made her blood run cold.

“,” she cursed. Luckily for her, she hadn’t been hit, and the tires hadn’t sustained any damage. She still had a chance to win.

“Are you okay?” Baekhyun cut in, his voice mixing with the chatter of the crowd in the background. “Remember what I told you! If it gets too dangerous, you have to abandon the mission.”

“I’m okay… and I got it under control,” she said through clenched teeth, momentarily disappearing from her rival’s sight when her car entered a tunnel. She straightened her back and used the opportunity to bring more distance between her and her murderous pursuer. That guy had to be insane. With her eyes fixed on the two cars in front of her, she clutched the steering wheel.

“Half of the route is done,” Taeyong reminded her. “You lost the other guy for now.”

She could win. She had a good chance to win. All it would take was a little more… just a little more effort. Her car shot out of the tunnel and since the road straightened, she got the chance to make use of her car’s horsepower. Pushing down the gas pedal, she reached the highest speed she could manage without losing control of the vehicle. 180, 190, 200 km/h. The scenery rushed by in a blur and the red lights of the two cars in front of her came closer. One of them was G-Dragon, the other she didn’t know.

“Soojin, the dude who shot at you is catching up again,” Taeyong yelled. “He’s too far away to hit you, but I’m keeping an eye on him.”

“You’re a big help,” she said, concentrating on catching up to the people in front of her. The city lights were within sight, which meant she didn’t have much time until they would reach the finish line. She needed to score first place. The third or second wasn’t enough. This mission depended on her and she wanted to give her best.

Finally, she managed to go head-to-head with the second car. The driver glared at her and tried to hit her, swerving to bump into her car. She narrowly evaded him but fought for control over the vehicle for a few excruciatingly long seconds. The guy next to her struggled as well. He was forced to reduce his speed and countersteer to avoid going off the road.

Smirking victoriously, Soojin left him behind. Now she returned to the industrial area along with G-Dragon who was only meters in front of her. His neon green Porsche was a worthy rival to her own car. The finish line appeared before them just when they were head-to-head, and Soojin decided to push her car to the absolute limit. The engine thundered in her ears and the colorful city lights passed by at an alarming speed. Her foot pushed the gas pedal further down. Faster, faster, faster! The car reached a speed of over 220 km/h and then she passed the finish line, coming in first.

The relief she felt was immeasurable. There was nothing she had wanted more than this. She’d risked her neck, driving like a madwoman at such an insane speed, and it had paid off. Gradually slowing down her car, it came to a stop meters from G-Dragon’s green Porsche. She took a deep breath, resting her forehead on the steering wheel for a moment.

The loud cheering of her team at first didn’t even register in her brain. “You did it!” Jeno screamed excitedly. “You won! That was so cool!”

“Great work, Soo. You gave them a run for their money,” Baekhyun added, tone dripping with pride and smugness.

“Damn, that was fast!” Mark laughed. “It was unreal watching you drive on the screen. Almost like playing a video game.”

Relieved laughter spilled from her lips. She couldn’t believe it. The first step towards a successful mission had been taken, and it was all thanks to her.

Turning her car around, she drove back to the finish line where the cheering crowd was already waiting for her. The crowd was intrigued by this unknown driver who had just beaten G-Dragon himself, and everyone waited impatiently for her to show herself. The man who had started the race earlier walked up to her car, motioning for her to get out and she did. He seemed surprised when he saw her, as were the other spectators when they realized that the mysterious newcomer was a woman, the first one to take part in one of their street races.

“Congrats, girl. You did it,” the guy said, patting her on the shoulder. “Did you see that, guys? We have a new champion!” he screamed towards the crowd who went absolutely berserk.

The following minutes were a blur to Soojin since she was suddenly swarmed by throngs of people who were either congratulating her or asking intrusive questions about her identity. She was overwhelmed by the chaos around her and barely managed to say a few words. Eventually, the man from before rudely pushed the crowd out of the way to reach her.

“Follow me. We have something to discuss,” he said, making her ears perk up. Could this be what she was hoping for? Mostly ignoring the people around her, she shoved them out of the way whenever someone would try to stop her, following the man with some difficulty. He led her to a dark alleyway that was guarded by several burly men who prevented any of her new fans from following. Still dizzy from the adrenaline rush and the joy about her victory, she struggled to get herself together. She assumed that she would now meet one of the masterminds behind the illegal races, and it was vital for her to play her role well.

“What’s your name, girl?”

“It’s Park Eunji.”

“First time participating in a race?”

“No, I’m quite experienced as you could see,” Soojin said smugly.

He laughed, throwing her an amused but slightly condescending look. “Well, you did win against G-Dragon, but we’ll see how useful you’ll be in the long run,” he sneered.

She scowled as she entered the backdoor of a rundown building with cracked paint and stains on the walls. The moldy stench hanging in the air prompted her to breathe through . This clearly wasn’t the real hideout of the organization. In fact, it didn’t even seem to be a temporary thing. This meant her plan would become a bit more difficult now. She shoved her hand into the pocket of her jacket and fidg