Born: 1969

Years as underboss: 2007 - 2019

Years as Commission member: 2019 - present

 

Formerly underboss during Ji-Hun's leadership of ATEEZ, Ki-young is highly motivated and extremely ambitious, despite his humble beginnings.

The son of an impoverished potato farmer, Ki-young always wanted to escape the countryside, to live a life outside of the monotonous loop of poverty and need. His dreams came into reality when he met Bong-hwa as a ten year-old.

 

Initially, Bong-hwa's plan was to buy the failing plot from Ki-young’s father, for a mediocre sum. This infuriated Ki-young, who was surprisingly wise beyond his years: he knew that selling the land for a one-off payment that can barely settle his father's debts would only serve to create more problems for them in the future. His father had dismissed his warnings, however, and decided to sell to Bong-hwa.

It was in this way that he met Bong-hwa, who was pacing the modest plot of dirt that was the farm. In a fit of rage, and face threatening to explode, Ki-young had confronted him about the unfairness of his proposal - beseeching Bong-hwa not to go through with the deal, as his father was too naive and desperate to see the danger in his actions.

Bong-hwa did not care for the state of the man - if it was his wish to sell, why should he care? What did intrigue him, however, was Ki-young's attitude, his mannerisms, his words - he spoke better than some adults Bong-hwa knew. Delighted by his ferocity, he asked him why he believed that it was a bad idea to sell, and the then ten-year old Ki-young replied firmly, “He sells the farm and gets some money then gives most of it over to the loan sharks - what’s he left with then? No money and no means to make more. He may as well dig his own grave and lay in it.”

Thoroughly impressed, Bong-hwa offered him an opportunity he will never forget: “How would you like to go to the city, boy?”

Ki-young agreed, on condition that his father’s farm be spared - and Bong-hwa obliged: an exceptional mind is far more valuable than a plot of land.

From then on Ki-young was like an apprentice to Bong-hwa. He grew up under his care and befriended his son Ji-hun. He learnt everything the old man told him to - and other things he didn’t.

When he was old enough to take on bigger tasks, Bong-hwa began giving him missions - sometimes favouring him over Ji-hun. They were, after all, like-minded - Bong-hwa had sculpted him himself, with the most careful dexterity and forged him into an unofficial son of the great leader of ATEEZ.

Ki-young never married and never had any children. But when Hongjoong was born, he loved him like he was his own, taught him, played with him, guided him.

When Bong-hwa passed away, Ki-young was devastated, but as Ji-hun slowly began to change the ways of the gang, he found that grief turning to anger and bitterness. He fought for Bong-hwa’s legacy to be upheld, to be honoured, clashing all the more with Ji-hun.

After Hyun-ki’s retirement from the gang, Ki-young was appointed underboss by Ji-hun himself and stayed on for a short while after his death, by Hongjoong’s side. It was customary for the leader to appoint his own underboss and so he was forced from his position when Seonghwa was chosen in his stead.

As a commemoration of his services to the gang, however, the Commission inducted him into their fold, and from then on he became a member of the esteemed Commission.