The Smell of Something Fishy Chapter 11.1

Was this a dream?

Like the nightmare Tae Shinju said he had… a dream that left him feeling anxious and worried even after waking up.

Indeed, if things were like this, it was natural to be concerned.

Yeonseo, without realizing it, was avoiding reality until the sound of footsteps jolted him back to his senses.

“Look at this bitch, acting all high and mighty and not even answering after selling his body.”

Tae Hyunwoong approached, clicking his tongue. Yeonseo hurriedly backed away, but he was a step faster.

“Ugh!”

The person who had grabbed Yeonseo’s hair then struck his head. As he was beaten wherever hands could reach, whether it was his cheek or his temple, Yeonseo had no choice but to admit it.

Ah… it’s not a dream.

To think he would run into Tae Hyunwoong here. In Tae Shinju’s mansion, not even his own home. Moreover, he had been told that person had dealt with Tae Hyunwoong, so he had forgotten about him since then.

“Hnngh… you son of a bitch. You must have been eating and living well selling your ass, huh? Your skin is so tender, it feels good to hit.”

Tae Hyunwoong cackled as he pressed down on Yeonseo, who was groaning faintly. The skin that had only known soft kisses for a while swelled up in an instant.

Yeonseo curled his body into a ball. Now that he knew about the baby, he had to protect his stomach, even if it meant getting hit.

“Is money really that great? Dressing up and feeding a slut like you makes you look like some rich family’s girl. I guess I worked my ass off for nothing, that piece of shit. Coddling and sucking up to a bitch who uses other people’s money and doesn’t even pay it back properly.”

Lies. When did you ever do that?

A feeling of defiance surged from within at the nonsense filled with self-pity. His former self would have resigned himself to it, thinking this too shall pass, but his true feelings slipped out without him realizing.

It was when Tae Hyunwoong raised his arm again.

Sreuk, the bedroom door opened without a sound. Was it a bodyguard? The light that had colored Yeonseo’s eyes with hope soon vanished.

The intruder was a bald man he had never seen before. He shouted irritably.

“If you found him, stop dawdling and come out!”

He had held out a sliver of hope because the door had opened quietly. Even though he knew the specially processed door would not make a loud noise under normal circumstances.

Tae Hyunwoong grumbled.

“Ugh, damn it. You’re no help at all.”

The bald man was waiting at the doorway, as if planning to leave with him.

A reddish light from before sunset streamed through the open door. The intruder, standing with his back to the light, was dressed in a black suit just like the bodyguard he had met in the morning, but his impression was the complete opposite. From every angle, he looked like a lowlife thug.

Jiiing—.

As if timed, the mobile phone left on the bedside table rang. It was Yeonseo’s phone. The expensive phone Tae Shinju had replaced for him. There was nothing on Yeonseo, from head to toe, that he had not touched.

The caller, naturally, was Tae Shinju.

‘I can’t answer it.’

It was a judgment that was close to instinct. His body moved before he could think rationally.

Yeonseo quickly snatched the phone and rejected the call. Then he tried to turn off the power completely. It was because he knew that if he answered, Tae Hyunwoong would obviously use him as a hostage to disgrace that person.

Presumably, Tae Hyunwoong had business with him. That must be why he came to the house, not to where Tae Shinju was.

To find him.

It was understandable that person looked down on Tae Hyunwoong. He was a lowlife who lacked the guts to attack from a losing position in the first place.

And although he himself had no ability to deal with Tae Hyunwoong in a cool way, Yeonseo moved according to his instincts. He would probably get beaten to death afterwards, but it was better than ruining Tae Shinju’s affairs.

The only thing he was worried about was… the baby.

‘I’m sorry, baby. Please hang in there for a little while.’

He had only learned of the baby’s existence this morning, and he felt sorry for putting it through such a difficult experience.

“You little!”

Jjaak, his cheek was slapped so hard his head turned to the other side. His ear was ringing as if he had been hit too hard.

“Ugh…”

His vision was spinning. It seemed he was hit in the wrong place. He paid it no mind and fumbled, reaching out to find his phone. He had dropped it in a moment of distraction while being beaten.

“Ah, I said we have to go now, you bastard!”

“Aww, for fuck’s sake! Shut the hell up! I’m coming!”

“You fucking asshole, I’ll kill you if you mess this up.”

“Don’t make me laugh, you son of a bitch.”

Ugh, you bastard. Tae Hyunwoong, spitting out a thick stream of curses, grabbed Yeonseo’s hair and then hoisted him over his shoulder.

“Ugh!”

“Oppa wants to treat you with manners, but we don’t have time for that, do we? Let’s do the rest outside, okay?”

Was it a relief that he had dropped the phone? Tae Hyunwoong seemed to decide he had no time to fumble around in the dark and tried to leave just like that.

The problem was the bald man. He strode into the bedroom and soon came out holding something familiar. It was Yeonseo’s mobile phone.

“Do you need this?”

“Wow, our Hyung-nim. You haven’t been eating for nothing.”

“Watch your mouth, you son of a bitch. Aren’t you going to get a move on?”

As if he had never cursed, Tae Hyunwoong laughed gleefully and exited the mansion. Yeonseo, even in his despair, tried to take in the sight of his ruined home with his eyes.

The intruders were gangsters, as expected. What seemed to be about a dozen men and women were roaming the spacious house, deliberately smashing and destroying things, leaving no place unscathed. There were even bloodstains scattered about, suggesting they had harmed people.

“M-Mr. Shin Team Leader…!”

The moment they stepped out of the mansion entrance, Yeonseo screamed. He had witnessed the exact scene of several gangsters holding a man down and stabbing him.

Yeonseo didn’t know the individual bodyguards, but he had become familiar with the head of the security team in passing. It was because Tae Shinju had introduced him, saying they would be seeing a lot of each other in the future.

“Young… Master, re…port….”

“Well now, this fella is really persistent.”

Thud.

Mr. Shin Team Leader, who had been mumbling something, finally lost consciousness. Yeonseo’s face turned deathly pale.

Is he dead? No way. No way….

This can’t be. This couldn’t be happening. Why did an innocent person have to be harmed?

“Let’s go, boys!”

The bald man got into a Mercedes parked in the center. Tae Hyunwoong split from him and settled into the next sedan. Yeonseo, in a state of panic, struggled blindly.

“Ssshh. Won’t you stay still?”

“M-Mr. Shin Team Leader, a-a person…!”

“Ahem, our Yeonseo. Not listening, are we.”

Pow, a heavy fist struck his forehead. He then playfully slapped the other cheek.

Yeonseo’s body went limp. His entire face was numb, his senses dull. He had been hit mainly in the face, but his body had no strength either, making it difficult to move.

It hurts….

It felt like tears would burst out at any moment. Apart from his pained heart, his eyes felt dry and gritty.

Regardless, the group of black cars left the scene all at once. It was about ten minutes before the police cars arrived.

“Hoo… he’s a bit quieter after a beating. A kid who doesn’t listen needs to be disciplined with a loving rod. Isn’t that right?”

Tae Hyunwoong sat with his legs spread wide and undid a couple of buttons on his shirt. He looked at Yeonseo, who was huddled up with his knees drawn together, and then smirked.

“Hey.”

Poke.

“Heyy.”

Poke, poke.

He jabbed Yeonseo’s shoulder and side with his finger.

Yeonseo just found this moment horrifying. He prayed and prayed for it to be a dream.

It was unfair.

“Why… why are you doing this to me….”

What did I do so wrong?

He knew he would not get a proper answer. He had become certain of it over a long period of time, but Yeonseo asked with the feeling of vomiting up his feelings. If he did not, he felt like he would go crazy from the frustration.

“Why am I doing this to you?”

Tae Hyunwoong, as if he had eaten something wrong, had been snickering for a while. The atmosphere around him was different from what he remembered.

‘Don’t tell me he’s on drugs….’

He gasped, startled at his own guess. Yeonseo pressed himself as close to the car door as possible.

“Someone told me. That I actually liked you.”

What?

The answer was completely unexpected. Yeonseo suspected Tae Hyunwoong was having a mental breakdown. Otherwise, there was no way such an answer could come out.

“Wh-what does that mean….”

“Sounds like bullshit, right? Yeah. I also asked what kind of fucking bullshit that was. But what can I do. The person who said it was the Tae Shinju you’re so busy fawning over.”

What a fucking annoying bastard anyway. Tae Hyunwoong, cackling again, moved closer to the frozen Yeonseo.

“Everything that bastard says is total bullshit, you know? But you know what’s more annoying? The fact that I can’t deny it.”

“……”

“Ha, fuck…. I really went easy on you, didn’t I? For a bastard who has zero fucking interest in me to notice, just how much of a pushover was I? I thought about this day and night, and I just… couldn’t… sleep at all.”

“……”

“Hnngh…. Such a pretty thing even when getting hit. Is your pussy as pretty as you are? Plenty of bitches have pretty faces but black holes down there, but what about our Yeonseo’s pussy— Oppa was so, so curious that I couldn’t sleep again.”

The man, who was pressed against Yeonseo, practically trapping him in his arms, buried his nose in the delicate skin and took a deep breath. Yeonseo urgently covered his mouth. Nausea rose in his throat.

“Haaaah…. This bitch even smells fucking arousing, what the hell…. Tell me. You’re not a man, are you. You’re just a bitch with a pussy. You lied that you were a guy because you were afraid I’d fuck you right away, didn’t you.”

“N-no, that’s not it…. Please… please let me go. Mr. Tae Shinju must have been mistaken. He was just… trying to provoke you….”

Up close, the corners of Tae Hyunwoong’s eyes were reddish. His gaze was hazy, like someone drunk on drugs or alcohol.

“Hey.”

“……”

“What are you going to do if it’s true.”

Tae Hyunwoong pressed him, spewing his nonsense seriously.

“Huh? What are you going to do if it’s true. Are you going to take responsibility for me?”

Was he even asking a question?

Yeonseo was dumbfounded. He had to say something that made sense for him to answer. Tae Hyunwoong, who readily believed Tae Shinju’s provocation, was truly an idiot.

“Well, whatever. I’ll know if I have a taste. When I’m not sure, taking a bite gives me the answer. If I want more, it means I’m drawn to it, and if not… then I’ve been played by that bastard again.”

He strung together a series of vulgar curses, as if the mere thought of it was unpleasant.

Tae Hyunwoong slung an arm around Yeonseo’s shoulder and leaned back heavily against the seat.

“Haa, fuckkk— it’s so hard to get a piece of our Yeonseo’s pussy. Isn’t that right, Wooseob.”

“Yes, Hyung-nim.”

The person driving in front answered stalwartly. Yeonseo felt like he was going to lose his mind from the hand kneading his shoulder.

Disgusting….

Tae Hyunwoong, who was degrading him with nonsensical words, was disgusting, and his own shoulder, touched by him, was disgusting.

Jiiing, jiiing—.

He recognized the vibration that rang out again after they had gotten on the highway.

Tae Hyunwoong hummed a tune as he took out the phone.

“Oh. It’s Hyung-nim.”

“N-no.”

“I’m bored, shall we say hello? In a way, he’s the one who gave me love advice.”

It was unclear when the teasing had transformed into advice, but Tae Hyunwoong seemed quite pleased as he pulled Yeonseo’s shoulder into an embrace. Then, with his other hand, he accepted the call. It was a video call.

“Hyung-nim, peek-a-boo.”

[…You.]

Yeonseo had never seen Tae Shinju so angry before. And he was the most dazzling he had been in all the days Yeonseo had known him.

He must have had his hair styled for an important event, because his naturally revealed forehead and the sharp features that followed below it were especially prominent today.

He was a beautiful man. Just like on the day of the funeral when all his senses had been captured, he was still breathtaking, arrogant, and sensual.

“You’re later than I thought?”

An intruding voice added a sense of reality.

“If the bodyguards you kept are at that level, you should have just dragged out the guys you’ve got locked up in a corner somewhere, why didn’t you? Those bastards are dying to lick Hyung-nim’s feet, so they would have at least clung to my trouser legs whether they got stabbed or not.”

Yeonseo unconsciously let out a thin breath he had been holding. He bit the inside of his cheek hard enough to jolt him awake. It was a punishment he was giving himself.

‘Get a grip, Park Yeonseo.’

How could he be so foolishly lost in a daze in a situation like this?

As a sharp pain filled his mouth, his mind cleared a little. Even with Tae Shinju’s face right in front of him, he did not lose consciousness.

Looking at the situation purely objectively, it was slightly shocking. Because, assuming Tae Hyunwoong’s bullshit was true, it meant the current situation occurred because he had provoked Tae Hyunwoong.

While it was questionable why he had used such words to provoke him, a wretched thought that perhaps he did not care what happened to him at the time flashed through his mind. Of course, it was a useless assumption.

The answer was in his eyes.

‘He’s anxious.’

His expression itself showed nothing. A cold, blank face. However, it was less about suppressing anger and more a phenomenon where his anger had reached a boiling point, with the fire in his heart erasing even his expression.

The moment he glanced in his direction, his brows and the corners of his eyes twitched faintly. It was a movement that passed in an instant. If he had missed that subtle movement, Yeonseo would have been unsure himself. But as a result of spotting it, the anxiety in his eyes was very easy to read.

Whatever he said in the past, he now wished for my safety.

Looking back, even in those distant old days, his emotions and his expressions did not exactly match. When he was angry, he smiled, and when he actually expressed his anger, he looked sad.

The only commonality was that then and now, he revealed his true feelings through his eyes. The difference was that his control over his expressions was more skilled now compared to back then, making it easy to miss the fleeting emotions.

It was a relief that he had frequently licked his face all this time. It seemed he hadn’t missed it thanks to his habit of reading what he was thinking, what kind of look he had, and why he had such an expression.

[You do know what you have done, I assume.]

“Well— I’m not so sure? I just came to collect what’s mine.”

[…What’s yours?]

Tae Shinju paused. The slight gap was unnatural.

Pffft! Tae Hyunwoong burst out laughing, slapping Yeonseo’s back. It was a laugh that even felt insane.

“Yes! What’s mine! Park Yeonseo. This was mine from the beginning!”

He even pulled his arm back and poured out in an excited tone.

“You son of a bitch. You have no idea how much I wracked my stupid brain trying to kill you after that day. Like you said, I’m a fucking idiot, so I only know how to focus on one thing, you see? But what can I do. I was so impressed by the bullshit Hyung-nim said for his slow-witted little brother.”

After pouring it all out in one breath, he let out a few snickers.

“Haha… fuck. I really agonized over it all this time. You’re really something, Hyung-nim. The way your mind works is on another level. Is it because your blood is so pure? Well, anyway. I don’t know whether I like this bitch or not! But I figured I’d know if I want to keep eating it or if it’s just a one-time curiosity once I fuck him. I’m stupid, aren’t I. So I should just roll with my body.”

[You’re insane.]

“That’s right, even an idiot will squirm if you step on him, that’s what I’m saying. Huh? Today’s the day our Hyung-nim becomes president, so for fuck’s sake, you should be grateful that I’m just taking this bitch away and not revealing his identity. I wonder if people know. That the president of Geumwoong Group keeps a man by his side, kissing and sucking him. No, thinking about our Yeonseo, am I being a total bastard? Not even making him my legal wife and just fucking his pussy like crazy? Hey, Park Yeonseo. Should I just storm the company? Just say the word. Oppa is a man of his word. Let’s become hole-brothers while we’re at it, you bastard.”

“Ah!”

Tae Hyunwoong, excited by his own words, grabbed Yeonseo. He groped his chest over his clothes. Yeonseo, terrified, pushed the ruffian away.

“M-Mr. Shinju! D-don’t look!”

“What? Pussy? Did you just say pussy?”

Yeonseo barely managed to defend himself as Tae Hyunwoong threw the phone and tried to reach between his legs. The fact that Tae Hyunwoong was acting partly for show played a role in him being able to block his hand. If he had been serious, Yeonseo would have had no choice but to endure it against his will.

In any case, the one Tae Hyunwoong was more interested in was Tae Shinju. He could not hide his excitement when it seemed the provocation was working, and he ran wild like a mad colt.

Tae Shinju, on the other hand, was calm.

[…I just can’t seem to understand. You should be able to predict the future that awaits you when you do something I dislike.]

“Hmph, our great Hyung-nim wouldn’t know. A guy with nothing to lose is a scary thing when he’s lost his mind. Huh? Do you get it now? I’m going to take this bitch and feed him well and eat him well, so don’t you worry. It’s a good thing for Hyung-nim too, right? Once you become president and then chairman, you’ll have to marry the woman your father picks for you. It’ll be a headache to deal with him then, wouldn’t it. As for me, I don’t mind using a well-washed rag someone else has used. I took a whiff of Park Yeonseo’s scent, and it was killer. With this much… it’s more than enough to eat and have leftovers.”

[Haa… you stupid bastard.]

“When I get tired of him, I’m thinking of sharing him with the kids. Unlike someone, I’m a generous person.”

[The kids? What kids. Did you find new ‘kids,’ leaving behind all the gangsters at Geumwoong Capital…? Who would hang out with a guy like you?]

A look of genuine curiosity.

He merely sighed at his half-brother’s foolishness, not raising his voice. By expressing pure inquiry instead of fiery anger, he was hammering home that Tae Hyunwoong was a being not even worth spending emotions on.

“…Anyway, that bastard has a knack for saying things in a way that fucking ruins your mood.”

It was a direct hit.

The cackling laughter came to a halt. Tae Hyunwoong’s mood was extremely volatile. Five seconds ago he was grinning from ear to ear, and now his entire brow was furrowed.

With a nervous heart, Yeonseo watched their exchange. To be precise, he was trying to figure out what Tae Shinju’s plan was. Because the Tae Shinju he knew was not someone who would confront Tae Hyunwoong without a reason.

“Ha, fuck. Right, what kind of answer was I expecting from this son of a bitch. Let’s drop it, drop it. Hey. It’s the last time, you say something too.”

Tae Hyunwoong forcefully shoved the mobile phone close to Yeonseo’s face. The screen zoomed in, capturing just the two of them by chance.

Even though it was not the time for it, Yeonseo felt as if he had entered a separate, isolated space with just him.

What should he say?

Then, suddenly, he became conscious of the state of his face. It seemed like the dark eyes were minutely tracing the areas where he had wounds.

“Ah… uh, my face.”

[How much did it hurt.]

He spat out the words as if chewing on them, his eyes contorting. It was a noticeable expression of emotion.

As expected, Tae Hyunwoong started slapping the car seat. Wow, you son of a bitch. He asked how much it hurt!

It was a strange thing. As Yeonseo met the gaze directed at him, his heart gradually calmed down. He took a deep breath.

—You have to breathe through your nose.

The breathing method he had taught him while giving him a kiss. To think he would end up using it here….

“Mr. Shinju.”

The title that came out in his haste had a more familiar light to it. This too was ironic. He had never called him ‘Mr. Shinju’ even in his thoughts. Maybe ‘Hyung’ would have been more likely.

But he liked this better. It felt like it meant they had developed a closer relationship.

He could not say many words. However, Yeonseo wanted to convey it. Perhaps his true feelings, deeper than the words ‘I love you.’

It was a feeling that Yeonseo himself had only just now completed into a sentence.

“I’m… not poor anymore. I have someone to think of when times are tough, and I have happy memories with that person… and I have someone I love enough to make everything okay.”

Yes. It felt like he had wanted to say this all along. Now that he had confessed it, he knew.

He felt relieved.

Therefore, Yeonseo could make a decision without any lingering attachment.

“…Goodbye.”

Courage for the one he loved. A step forward for happiness.

Pasak!

It was when everyone was off their guard that Yeonseo ended the call, quickly unlocked the door, opened it, and threw the mobile phone out. The phone was crushed again and again by the cars following in a line. Unless someone stopped, the phone would be even more completely destroyed, to the point where no one could recover it.

“Th-this crazy bitch!”

The man, who had come to his senses a moment too late, grabbed Yeonseo’s clothes from behind. Yeonseo was almost thrown out of the car door himself.

“You crazy bastard, are you trying to get yourself killed?!”

Tae Hyunwoong screamed and raged wildly.

Yeonseo lay sprawled on the back seat and raised the corners of his mouth. An untimely laugh burst out in snickers. Surprisingly, he felt a sense of liberation. A liberation of free will, something he had always possessed as a child but had not recognized.

The child who once roamed the neighborhood freely and easily greeted strangers had at some point become an adult who walked with hunched shoulders, looking only at the ground. He had become extremely timid, desperate to survive.

There was only one thing he had resolved after being kidnapped.

He would absolutely not drag that person into this.

He would never let himself be played by Tae Hyunwoong’s hands. The firmly made-up mind brought forth the courage he thought he had lost a long time ago.

Even if Tae Shinju did not want this situation, and even if he was more than capable of saving him, Yeonseo was certain he would make the same choice over and over again.

Because he did not want to lose that person anymore.

Because even if one has nothing, the desire to protect the one they love is equal.

🕷️

Meanwhile, Tae Shinju was dumbfounded. He looked down at the disconnected call with a bewildered expression.

What just happened?

Yeonseo had just hung up the phone.

The kidnapped person, instead of begging to be saved, had hung up the phone himself.

「Emergency, Code Red.」

When the signal had suddenly come through his personal contact number, he had at first wondered what was going on. Tae Shinju’s mansion was not only monitored by professional personnel, but it also had a system established to send emergency signals according to specific situations. This was a method he had decided on when he built the house and hired bodyguards.

However, the bodyguards usually just managed the employees’ comings and goings and monitored for any suspicious loiterers. Then, if Tae Shinju requested, they would rush over from other tasks to follow him. He felt the need for bodyguards, but he did not feel the need to always have them tied down inside the house, so he had compromised at that point.

That did not mean they only acted when Tae Shinju requested. If they spotted a suspicious person while monitoring, they could act on their own judgment. For this purpose, a minimum number of key personnel, including the head of the security team, resided in the mansion’s annex. There was a separate residence for live-in staff in the backyard that Yeonseo had not had a chance to see.

Anyway, Code Red meant that someone had intruded and the security team had failed to subdue them. A Code Red would have also sent a notification to the police.

The moment he received the Code Red alarm was about forty minutes before his inauguration speech as president. He opened the mansion’s CCTV feed from his office.

And he witnessed a scene of some dark-clothed group storming the mansion.

Among them, the face at the forefront.

Tae Hyunwoong.

As soon as he spotted his foolish half-brother’s face, Tae Shinju felt as if he were fainting with his eyes open. It was the first time he had experienced his vision going white instead of turning red.

‘Where did it go wrong?’

A little while ago, while getting his appearance ready and rehearsing the speech, he had tried to contact Yeonseo intermittently. All the calls went unanswered, as if he were sleeping. He had also sent messages.

「Are you sleeping?」

「Have a good dream.」

「I miss you.」

All of them were unread.

Unable to bear it any longer, he had asked an employee to check. As expected, Yeonseo was in dreamland. While it was a shame, one side of his chest ached at the thought of him resting peacefully in his home.

The inside of his mouth felt gritty. It was probably because the face that had been crying and smiling at the same time remained pooled in his retina, refusing to leave.

Dawn. No, morning.

On the morning when the day was breaking, Yeonseo had finally realized the existence of the baby. In the end, he had made him reveal it first. It had flowed in an unintended direction, but it did not feel particularly bad.

—I’ll wait… quietly. With the baby.

To be precise, one should say that even a trace of ill temper had melted away at his brightly smiling face.

He was beautiful.

He had a gut feeling that the sight of that bright face, crying and laughing with sparkling eyes, would be imprinted on him and not be forgotten for a long time.

He missed him.

He chuckled at his own state. To think it was such a simple and clear emotion.

He is pretty. I miss him.

The one-dimensional emotion was as powerful as it was simple. An emotion that struck the heart and head directly, without the need to think in a way like ‘I feel a certain way because of this and that.’ He had even fallen into an untimely reverie, wondering if this was what it felt like.

And yet….

—…Goodbye.

That person, who had been so cruelly calm.

Who had been smiling with an unfamiliar wound on his small face….

Yeonseo was in his usual attire. The same pajamas he had seen in the morning. The sensation of rubbing his lips against that warm skin was still vivid.

It was not a dream.

“Ugh…”

At that moment, his head throbbed violently. He was sitting, but his upper body staggered forward.

—Young Master!

—Hyung-nim, I’m going after them first!

A familiar and uncomfortable voice. The image of the adults who had blocked his path collapsing to the floor with knives stuck in their bellies, and a strange ruffian taking advantage of the gap to grab him and run, flashed vividly in his mind.

It was himself as a child.

It was a part of a memory his subconscious had hidden away.

It had been hesitant when he had spent money trying to find it, so why of all times, now.

The timing was bad. It would have been better if this fragment had not resurfaced. Tae Shinju clutched his chest. He did not care about wrinkling his shirt.

He felt like he was going crazy with anxiety.

Yeonseo was being held captive, looking more fragile than the child from a long time ago.

That fact hit him even more strongly.

There had never been a day as irritating as today, when he realized that the person who was a trivial punk to him was a dangerous bastard to that person.

In reality, after checking the CCTV and getting up, Tae Shinju had only one thought in his mind: he had to go back home.

Sir? Tae Shinju ignored his secretary who stood up hesitantly with a questioning look and headed straight for the parking lot. On his way, he called Yeonseo, but he did not answer. It was not that he did not answer, but the call was cut off in the middle of ringing.

The problematic call had come through just as he was getting into the car and about to start the engine.

—Mr. Shinju… Goodbye.

He had lost Park Yeonseo.

That person… is leaving.

It was as clear as day what Tae Hyunwoong was planning to do to Park Yeonseo. Yeonseo would have been able to guess that as well.

Until now, he had been confident that he knew Park Yeonseo’s behavioral patterns well. That was how transparent and simple his emotions were.

The whole time he was dealing with Tae Hyunwoong, the strangely calm expression next to him had bothered him. Why is he so calm? He knew better than anyone how timid a person Park Yeonseo was.

He could not read him. What Park Yeonseo was thinking, at that moment, was out of his grasp. That was why he was anxious. Because he was a person who sometimes did unexpected things. Tae Shinju found himself praying without realizing.

Just a little longer… just hold on a little longer.

The police would have already been dispatched and would be tracking the culprit’s trail. Besides, although Yeonseo did not know it, his mobile phone had a location tracker embedded in it. To buy as much time as possible, Tae Shinju pretended to have fallen for Tae Hyunwoong’s ploy.

At the same time, he moved only his hands to operate a spare mobile phone. He clenched his fist once, but after opening it, he never hesitated again.

An eleven-digit contact number.

It was a number he had believed he would never have to press again since he had dealt with Tae Hyunwoong. Tae Shinju admitted he was cornered enough to break that promise.

The call connected immediately.

The greeting ‘Hello’ does not ring out. Tae Shinju also did not say a word into that phone. There was no need to.

“…I just can’t seem to understand. You should be able to predict the future that awaits you when you do something I dislike.”

[Hmph, our great Hyung-nim wouldn’t know. A guy with nothing to lose is a scary thing when he’s lost his mind. Huh? Do you get it now? I’m going to take this bitch and feed him well and eat him well, so don’t you worry. It’s a good thing for Hyung-nim too, right? Once you become president and then chairman, you’ll have to marry the woman your father picks for you. It’ll be a headache to deal with him then, wouldn’t it. As for me, I don’t mind using a well-washed rag someone else has used. I took a whiff of Park Yeonseo’s scent, and it was killer. With this much… it’s more than enough to eat and have leftovers.]

Nine, one.

After making him listen to the booming voice, it ended with him pressing the license plate numbers.

Guwon.

With that, Baek Heonjae would have understood. The license plate signal was a method of communication they had once used as often as they ate.

Tae Shinju only rolled his eyes to glance at the phone. The call had already been disconnected. Call duration, ten seconds. A unit ending in ‘0’ meant ‘perfectly’ understood. It was Baek Heonjae’s answer.

Perhaps he had done something he would regret. He might have kicked away the chance to naturally settle his ties with them with his own hands.

But he does not regret it. He decided to think that he had not done anything to regret.

As long as Park Yeonseo was safe, it did not matter.

The foolish fellow was so intoxicated with his own success that he did not notice what was happening outside his field of vision at all. His action of turning the screen to Yeonseo proved it. If it had been him, he would have thrown away the hostage’s mobile phone early on and hidden Park Yeonseo so that he could never be found.

If he had had more time, he would have examined the CCTV more thoroughly.

Tae Hyunwoong was not alone. Surprisingly, he had found an accomplice somewhere. It was a shame that he had not been able to properly identify that person.

‘It’s about time for him to show up.’

He must not let his emotions crumble yet. It was a time for rational judgment. Even though he knew this, anger surged when Yeonseo’s face filled the screen.

An injured and swollen face. A fire raged inside him.

The person who had been hesitating, not knowing what to say, seemed to have noticed his gaze.

[Ah… uh, my face.]

“How much did it hurt.”

—I’m happy….

The image of him nestling in his arms, as if he did not know what to do with his happiness, overlaps. The one who expressed happiness even while crying,

My thing. My person.

My lover.

‘Ah….’

In front of my lover, I absolutely cannot control my emotions.

There are times when one is subjected to things even while knowing them. Tae Shinju knew that the moment he showed his emotions, he would be handing bait to Tae Hyunwoong. He also had a premonition that the emotions he had controlled and blocked so well until now would come crashing down. The latter was a premonition close to instinct. It was similar to a danger signal.

Emergency, Code Red.

But just as one cannot block a rainy sky, life sometimes presents moments that one must simply endure with open eyes.

A moment like a natural disaster.

It could be a literal natural disaster, or it could be a person or a situation comparable to one.

The current natural disaster was Park Yeonseo.

Not Tae Hyunwoong, not the kidnapping. Tae Shinju stared at Yeonseo with his eyes wide open.

The pretty thing.

The pretty thing smiles. The pretty thing, which has turned into a disaster, with the power of a pretty thing,

[…Goodbye.]

conquers the world.

The damage from the disaster appeared immediately.

“Keuk…”

Tae Shinju slammed his forehead on the steering wheel as a headache surged. Suppressing the pain, he barely managed to press the call button, but that was all.

[The phone is turned off….]

“Fuck.”

Park YeonseoPark YeonseoPark Yeonseo!

How could you.

—Son, you must never give your heart to anything.

—That wicked woman. Leaving her husband, abandoning even her own child, look at her just seeking her own comfort! Shinju, that is your mother. What kind of noble family’s woman is that!

—Young Master, I am sorry.

—Why did you torment our son so much. This is all karma.

Don’t give your heart away. It will become your weakness. The warning voice and the voices of those who had actually harmed him intertwine and echo.

His mother was right. The ones who had hurt him were people he had trusted.

As the days he felt betrayed by them increased, he could not sleep properly. Then he gradually changed to deliberately not sleeping deeply. Later on, he even forgot the reason why he slept so little….

By Yeonseo’s side, he could rest soundly. With a mind that was strangely at ease.

“Keuk…”

His head hurts. It was now beyond a throbbing pain, as if someone was hammering his temples. He felt nauseous. Tae Shinju forcefully swallowed back the urge to retch.

—Don’t die. Please don’t die.

Then, a single thread of voice cut through the terrible pain.

A young but firm, somehow familiar voice.

“……?”

Confusion spread in Tae Shinju’s eyes. He found the answer without difficulty.

“…Park, Yeonseo?”

Starting with the name that popped out for some reason, the fog bank receded briskly. The subject lying there was the child he had firmly believed to be his own.

No. It was not. It was the childhood Park Yeonseo, who was short for his age.

He had met Yeonseo before.

It was shocking. The shock soon cracked a solid dam. It took only an instant for the cracked dam to collapse.

Memories, memories, memories, rushing in like a flood.

It was an inundation of memories that felt almost violent. The natural disaster named Park Yeonseo had finally swept away even Tae Shinju’s subconscious.

Moon village, gangsters, Baek Heonjae, President Yoon, finger, ……father.

The cover that his subconscious had laid down is blown away by the storm. Tae Shinju drove the car as if possessed by something.

—Hyung, Hyung. You can’t die.

—I’ll go call a police officer. So just a little… please wait just a little longer.

How could I have forgotten that?

—Hyung-ah, Hyung-ah….

You were wandering, searching for me even in your dreams.

—Hello.

It was the greeting he had made. To the little kid he saw for the first time in the moon village, a greeting he had given without much thought.

—…Goodbye.