THE HEIST | RIO MONEY HEIST - KOREA (JOINT ECONOMIC AREA)

- XIII -

"Hey. Tokyo wait!" Verona shouted running after Tokyo.

"What are you doing here?" Tokyo asked. "I told you to check Berlin."

"Rio's already there. He went to medical school he'll know what to do."

"Go back there, Verona. You're still not fully healed."

"I never had listened to Berlin, who's a lot scarier than you. What makes you think I would listen to you?"

"Fine but stay close." Tokyo says as the both continued to run towards the exhibition hall.

"Helsinki, come with us. Oslo, you go and evacuate the hostages." Tokyo says as she and Verona had reached the entrance to the hall.

Helsinki, Tokyo and Verona, all run inside to check what is really going on. All three of them went to the emergency stairs and reached the printing station where other hostages are still inside, coughing as they hand inhaled the smoke.

"Take them out of here." Verona says, Helsinki nodded at her and left with the hostages. Now that Helsinki is gone, Tokyo and Verona are the only ones left inside both of them held their guns tightly as they walk separate ways through the thick smoke.

"Tokyo!" Denver shouted making both Tokyo and Verona towards the door he had entered.

"Denver!" they both shouted.

"We have an intruder! We have to contact the Professor right now."

And with that, the Mint had once again heard a gunshot.

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The Mint once again had heard a gunshot. It is the fourth time already. The first one was when Chicago shot Misun, the second and third ones was when the Director got shot causing for him to accidentally shot Verona too, and now.

"Tokyo!" Verona shouted as she came running to where Tokyo was, but it wasn't her who got shot neither did she fire the shot. Then there stood on the other side Berlin. "Berlin that's enough!" Verona says as she pushed Berlin away from the intruder.

"Still don't need me? Huh? Tokyo?" He mocked. Verona immediately crouched down checking the intruder's pulse shaking her head as they all sighed.

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"Ah!" Denver shouted as Verona put first aid to his scratches. "Shit. That's enough." He says.

"What a crybaby." Chicago says rolling his eyes at his brother. Rio held Verona's hand putting more pressure on Denver's wounds making Verona laugh in the process.

"Didn't you say you're good at fighting?" Rio mocked.

"Hey! I was ambushed." Denver answers making both Verona and Rio laugh. "This wouldn't happen if you had kept watched properly." Verona's smile faded and redness crawled her face as she remembers what she and Rio was doing before they heard the alarm. Rio chuckled as he looks at Verona's way.

"Sorry."

"You're all set now." Verona says shooing Denver away. "You come over here. Let's see that forehead."

"Why? What's with his forehead?" Chicago asked. "Is it cracked or something?"

"Hmm." Verona hummed as her hands landed on Rio's forehead. "Let's see." She then did what Rio had done to Denver. She put a lot of the pressure on his forehead making Rio shout in pain. "No. It's not cracked or anything. He's just being a baby."

"That hurts!" Rio said but Verona only chuckled at him.

"I'm going to find Tokyo, you boys behave here."

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"Was that a gun fire?" Seon Woojin as Rio put the Professor through. Berlin, Rio, Tokyo and Verona are all in the office listening to the conversation the Professor and Woojin has.

"Practice shooting." The Professor says.

"Why is he hiding it? It was self-defense." Rio asked only to be shushed by both Berlin and Verona.

"Don't tell me you've killed someone."

"I told you before. We don't intend to hurt the hostages."

"I guess that didn't go as planned. It's chaos outside the Mint." Woojin says.

"Gosh I hate her." Verona whispered.

"From the hostages' families pleading for us to check if they're alive to the public demanding we take a forceful action. Have you seen the news?"

"We got bored and practiced shooting." The Professor insisted. "It's suffocating in here."

"Really? So, you didn't kill anyone?"

"Do you want me to put every hostage on the line like we did with the Director? Or maybe a video message?"

"I'll go in myself."

Verona looked at Tokyo who had a contemplated look on her beautiful face and at Berlin who seems to be thinking and lastly at Rio who held her hand under the table. They are all waiting for the decision of the Professor.

"I'm sure you know I can't allow that."

"If you don't then you won't be able to calm the public outrage. If you keep this up, we'll both end up in a tight position. At this point I can't guarantee food as promised." Woojin says persuading the Professor.

"I guess there's no choice." The Professor says. Rio, Tokyo and Verona all exchange looks as they heard the Professor. "But remember, no playing games like the last time."

"Of course, I'll go in myself, but let me bring a camera to broadcast live, because if you're keeping your promise then the public should know too. If you refuse, we have no choice but to make an announcement to the reporters outside."

"There's something wrong. I can feel it." Verona says whispering at Rio.

"I'm scared of you already. It always turns out something is wrong whenever you say that."

"We'll say the robbers refused to let us check the hostages' safety."

"When the food supplies come in at noon tomorrow, I'll let you enter the Mint."

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"It's just simple. We just line them up in a row, then let her see them then send her out." Denver suggested.

"No. We should let her check the hostages one by one." The Professor says dismissing Denver's idea. "We need to be prepared in case anything happens. Time is on our side anyway."

"Why didn't you just blow her off?" Rio asked.

"You haven't gotten the grip of it did you?" Verona asked. "The reason why the Professor has the rules about no one dying was because of the public opinion. The last puzzle of the plan, is having the public on our side." Verona explains which got everyone looking at her.

"And if the public starts to believe that we're homicidal maniacs or reactionaries---"

"They'll go in with guns." Verona continues, finishing what Berlin is saying.

"What's the worry all the hostages are fine anyway."

"What if they find out we're printing money during the check?"

"Then we must make sure no one talks."

"What we're doing in the Mint or what happened to Park Chulwoo, we can't let any information leak. So, be well prepared for the hostage check."

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