Desires Chapter 1.7 - Between Hell and Longing

Song Yeongin was transferred from the private chambers to work in the lounge.

The Astart Lounge was a space located on the very top floor of this gallery, a fusion of a gallery displaying art pieces and a lounge bar.

Because there was no need for it to be as private and secretive as the private chambers, the focus was placed on a more open and sensory atmosphere.

The lounge could be seen as a social space where cultural and artistic events, or parties and gatherings, targeting the young upper class took place. Contrary to the expectation that it would be relatively quiet due to Astart’s location, there were many days when it was crowded with people.

The sensory and sophisticated interior facilities were sensitive to trends. Befitting the essence of a gallery, the unique sense of space, which exquisitely combined the identity of an art museum with the commercial facility of a lounge BAR, stood out. The trendy and unique interior decoration, which made the displayed artworks stand out, was enough to capture the discerning eyes of the young privileged class.

Unlike the private chambers, where many wished to hide their existence, the lounge was younger, more flexible, and freer. The fact that people who wished to show off and display their vanity set foot in this place was a stark contrast to the shadows of the VVIPs who frequented the private chambers to completely conceal their existence.

From the perspective of Song Yeongin, who had experienced both the private chambers and the lounge, this place felt more like a different world than the private chambers did. The free and individualistic appearances of people his age came as an unfamiliar and fresh shock to Song Yeongin, who had spent a long time holed up in a corner of his room just painting.

He did not know if this was Cha Woojin’s consideration, but Song Yeongin felt it was better for his peace of mind to be assigned to the Astart Lounge rather than the private chambers.

In this space, busy adorning themselves with fine things and indulging in each other, Song Yeongin could exist as a thorough third party, handling the assistant duties for the bartenders or other miscellaneous tasks. He sincerely wished to avoid drawing attention and becoming a nuisance any longer.

🌫️

“Yeongin, would you like to have some of this with me? I made it….”

His lounge colleague, Seo-hyun, offered him a sandwich she had made herself. Seo-hyun was a supervisor with accumulated years of experience, in charge of managing assistants like Song Yeongin and other junior staff.

Song Yeongin gave an awkward smile at Seo-hyun’s kindness. The fact that her name was similar to his younger sister, Seo-yeong, was also a reason he felt an unknown sense of intimacy and connection with her.

“Thank you….”

Unaccustomed to the consideration of others, he wondered if he was even worthy of receiving such a favor. However, unable to refuse her continued encouragement, he carefully picked up a sandwich. It looked so pretty and appetizing that it would not have looked out of place if displayed in a showcase right away.

Seo-hyun casually struck up a conversation with Song Yeongin.

“Actually, at first, I found you difficult, Yeongin. You seemed like you were different from us….”

“…Pardon?”

Song Yeongin asked back with a surprised face.

“It was a bit hard to approach you because of your looks, I guess. Everyone said so. That you didn’t seem like someone who would work in a place like this… your aura, you know. You know what I mean, don’t you, Yeongin?”

Song Yeongin could not understand what Seo-hyun was talking about. What kind of aura was she referring to? Was she saying that his poor appearance was a nuisance to others?

Unsure of what expression to make, Song Yeongin just nodded again with an awkwardly slow blink. It seemed that Song Yeongin had understood her words in the complete opposite way of her intention.

“But then, seeing you work so diligently without ever slacking off, even taking on the tough jobs… everyone is full of praise, saying it feels like a great colleague has joined us. Now, everyone likes you, Yeongin.”

Seo-hyun smiled and affectionately encouraged Song Yeongin.

“I… like you too.”

Mature people who, in a non-hierarchical atmosphere, did not spare abundant consideration and advice for an inexperienced newcomer, rather than hazing or reprimanding him. It was the image of an ideal team that he had never once experienced in his past. Song Yeongin also thought they were all good people.

It was unfamiliar and embarrassing to hear compliments from the mouths of others. Song Yeongin felt a wave of emotion for no reason. He thought that he had lived days so far removed from such small and ordinary daily life.

Song Yeongin showed Seo-hyun a flawlessly clear and pure smile. Seo-hyun’s cheeks, who had been watching him, turned red.

“This is the first time I’ve seen you smile, Yeongin. Oh my, so you know how to smile so prettily.”

“……”

“Do you know how pretty your smile is? You should smile often. Let my eyes feast a little.”

At the continuing compliments, Song Yeongin grew embarrassed and lowered his head.

He could not remember the last time he had smiled at another person. There had not even been an occasion for it. As Song Yeongin was feeling shy, Seo-hyun came closer again and spoke to him in a whisper.

“I heard you came from the private chambers. They say that’s a place only frequented by incredible people….”

So Seo-hyun knows about the private chambers.

After being assigned here, no one had directly asked him about the private chambers, nor had he ever brought up the private chambers himself. Seo-hyun discreetly asked, observing Song Yeongin’s expression.

“Then, perhaps… do you also know about Cha Woojin?”

Why is it that at Astart, that man’s name is never missing from any conversation, no matter where you go?

However, Song Yeongin soon had to concede. He knew the man’s presence was special. Anyone who had seen him in person even once would surely understand.

Had not even Song Yeongin himself been so indifferent to the reality of that man, who was the subject of rampant praise among the staff, until he first faced him?

He felt he could understand why Cha Woojin was always a topic of conversation. He was a man born with such things as if they were his own limbs. Presence, envy, admiration, longing, attention, awe… however,

“No, I don’t know him well. I was just a junior staff member, after all.”

Song Yeongin wore a faint, helpless smile. Seo-hyun nodded her head in understanding.

“Woosung Group’s heir, Cha Woojin… since he’s the center of attention here too, customers ask the employees a lot. It seems that among the upper-class women, that man is like a celebrity.”

“……Yes.”

“He used to come to the lounge occasionally in the past… but they’re all in a fuss because he hasn’t been seen at all lately. I was wondering if he still frequents the private chambers….”

“I don’t know. He’s a person from a different world than someone like me, isn’t he….”

“I suppose so. Do you think he would even bother with people like us?”

That was right. While giving a small, bitter smile, Song Yeongin thought that this was precisely his reality. To Cha Woojin, he was a mere junior staff member, one of many replaceable servants.

Yes, there was nothing different. It would only amount to that.

🌫️

Once it was past late night, the atmosphere of the lounge changed slightly. In the dimmer lighting and the myriad of dreamy, colorful lights, couples of the opposite or same sex, indulging in each other, became deeply intoxicated, as if soaked in the humid air.

A moderate volume of sound, just enough to mask the noise. Amidst the house beats with a static groove, some people roamed the lounge for solitary contemplation, while others sought a one-night partner to soothe their loneliness.

Song Yeongin was in charge of cleaning and tidying the hall during the opening preparations at the lounge, and when business began, he took on the assistant duties for the bartenders.

He would carve the 6.5cm spherical ice used for single malts, or organize and prepare the liquors needed by the main bartenders. When the bartenders were busy, it was Song Yeongin’s job to make simple drinks that did not require special mixing techniques.

During a large charity party last time, he had learned several simple cocktail recipes from the bartenders.

Song Yeongin was quick with his hands even when doing delicate work, and his ability to learn and understand was outstanding. Since recognizing that he was good material to teach and use, the bartenders had come to trust Song Yeongin as an assistant in their own way. So, they often borrowed Song Yeongin’s hands during busy times to make a few low-difficulty cocktails or straights that did not require a recipe.

🌫️

Friday nights were a peak time when the Astart Lounge was particularly crowded with people. With the party guests joining the regular customers, an exceptional number of people flocked in tonight.

The bar was nonstop with the flood of orders. Thanks to this, it reached a point where Song Yeongin had to make and serve cocktails himself with recipes he had learned on the fly from the main bartenders and had not yet gotten used to.

“Just follow the recipe I taught you. We’re short-handed right now….”

Although they were simple drinks that only required measuring, as the orders poured in endlessly, even that simple, repetitive work became overwhelming for an amateur like Song Yeongin.

An exceptionally busy period passed in a flash. Only then was Song Yeongin given a moment to catch his breath.

It was not long after he had caught his breath. It was at that very moment that Song Yeongin felt a sign of something unusual.

The crowd in the lounge was instantly engulfed in silence. It was an extremely strange and awkward scene that made the noise of the lounge, which had been chattering until a moment ago, seem meaningless. At the same time, everyone’s gaze was fixed on the entrance.

When Cha Woojin entered the lounge, all eyes within the lounge moved to follow him.

People began to murmur. The silhouette of the man seen from a distance was different from the start, from his physique to his air of dignity.

A man in a suit, wearing a long coat the color of deep darkness, began to walk into the hall as if gliding. It was as if a scene from a classic suit pictorial had been cut out and pasted here.

The faint moisture that had settled on his hair, as if he had been caught in a drizzle, was disheveling his perfection. However, the slightly tousled, wet hair exquisitely harmonized with his sharp and straight features, creating a particularly sensual atmosphere.

The women let out low gasps, and the men looked at Cha Woojin with an awe-filled gaze that forgot jealousy. The emperor, receiving the undivided attention of all, seemed to have decided on his final destination after a long walk. Cha Woojin—he—was approaching Song Yeongin.

Song Yeongin, in his bewilderment, looked around. Seo-hyun, who had asked him if he knew Cha Woojin, had come closer and was glancing at him.

Song Yeongin simply could not understand why this man had taken a seat in front of him, and not a main bartender. Everyone in the lounge was now watching not Cha Woojin, but Song Yeongin.

“It started raining all of a sudden.”

A low voice with a good resonance was heard through the murmuring crowd. The man’s voice had the power to imprint his intimidating presence on others. Song Yeongin silently stared at the face of the man sitting before him.

The man’s hair and overcoat were faintly damp with rain. The pin light falling from above accurately illuminated his deep shadows and the moisture that had settled there. It made the man’s sculptural face even more dramatic.

When he thought about it, this was a reunion after quite a long time. This was the first time Song Yeongin had faced Cha Woojin since their conversation in that secret hideout.

“I feel like a martini, it has been a while….”

Before the man could finish his words, Astart’s head bartender in charge, who usually never had a proper chance to speak with him, approached the man’s side and bowed his head. It was a respectful greeting he had never seen before.

The head bartender, after greeting Cha Woojin, began to move with perfect coordination to prepare the cocktail as instructed. However, at the same time, Cha Woojin raised his hand to stop the bartender’s movement.

“No, I would like to ask this person here.”

Cha Woojin pointed to Song Yeongin and instructed the head bartender.

The bartender, who had faltered with a bewildered expression, gave an affirmative reply. Song Yeongin showed a troubled look. The head bartender familiarly instructed Song Yeongin on the man’s preferences.

“A dry martini, please. Very dry, with a gin to vermouth ratio of about 15 to 1. He enjoys it hard, so absolutely do not stir or shake it.”

With busy hands, Song Yeongin measured the vermouth into the dry gin.

Cha Woojin, paying no mind to the countless gazes around him, sat leisurely and watched Song Yeongin’s neat cheek as he prepared the cocktail. Feeling the man’s intense gaze, Song Yeongin’s hand trembled endlessly with tension.

Even within their own groups and movements, everyone was glancing and watching the man. The women who whispered and sighed, or the men who harbored jealousy or envy beyond admiration, deliberately loitered around, pretending to be nonchalant while sneaking glances at Cha Woojin’s back. The gazes of interest, feigning indifference to avoid being caught, were nothing short of ridiculous.

Finally, Song Yeongin handed the martini glass to Cha Woojin, who was sitting at the bar. The man who received the glass sat deeply in the bar stool and asked, looking at Song Yeongin.

“How is the work?”

Song Yeongin, not realizing the question was directed at him, just stared blankly at the man. Realizing belatedly that it was he who was being asked, he answered, his red, plump lips parting slightly.

“Thanks to you, I am adjusting well.”

“I see. That is a relief.”

The man raised the glass and took a sip of the extremely hard-style dry martini. The man’s perfectly sculpted face cast deep shadows under the pin light pouring down from above the bar.

His straight, strong nose created a stark contrast under the light. Every time he moved, the audience appraised him with wondrous eyes, as if the man himself were a work of art.

The martini glass holding an olive shone as transparently as rainwater through the man’s shadow.

That presence which captured everyone’s attention at once. No, it was a suffocating pressure. He could not have been unaware that everyone’s eyes were on him, yet the man was, as if accustomed to it, completely unshaken.

The very fact that this man was in front of him, exchanging words with him, made everyone in the lounge question Song Yeongin’s identity. Supervisor Seo-hyun, who had asked him if he knew Cha Woojin, also shot a bewildered look at Song Yeongin from the side.

“It’s good.”

Cha Woojin indicated the martini.

“It must have been a short time, but this is excellent.”

“Thank you.”

Song Yeongin still had no immunity to the intermittent eye contact with Cha Woojin. In the gazes that met unexpectedly as they went about their business, Cha Woojin stared intently at Song Yeongin with an unhesitating look.

The fearlessly entangled gaze suddenly deepened. Having missed the timing to avoid that composed and daring stare, Song Yeongin awkwardly turned his head and checked on his tasks.

It was in the moment when Song Yeongin was looking for a place to rest his eyes.

A beautiful woman in a stunning silk dress approached Cha Woojin’s side. The woman, with a model-like proportion and a sensual silhouette, spoke to Cha Woojin in her characteristically soft and gentle voice.

“Did you come alone? May I sit next to you?”

Cha Woojin cocked his head in the direction from which she was asking for his intention.

“My apologies. I would like to be alone right now.”

The man with indifferent eyes stated his refusal in a cold and firm voice, devoid of emotion. The beautiful woman, revealing a seductive silhouette, looked extremely flustered by the man’s indifference.

“You seemed to be enjoying a conversation with the employee… I asked because I thought you might need a companion to talk to.”

Despite the woman’s continued words, Cha Woojin showed no reaction at all. He treated her like she was invisible, to the point where it was embarrassing for the onlooker.

Cha Woojin leisurely sipped his martini, leaving the unfamiliar woman standing there. Undeterred by his indifference, she spoke again.

“If it’s not an inconvenience, may I buy you a drink….”

The man’s long eyes narrowed coolly. With a cold and arrogant face, Cha Woojin ignored her in an instant. He uttered a frigid voice.

“You are already being quite an inconvenience.”

The eyes of a ruthless and unflappable predator.

He showed not even a shred of hesitation towards the woman who had been gazing at Cha Woojin’s profile with a fluttering heart. His voice, cutting her off without leaving any room, was calm and low, without any rise in pitch.

It seemed the woman was quite a famous figure, enough to be talked about by people. Words about the woman’s background emerged from the crowd.

Amidst the whispering people, the beautiful woman in the silk dress, her face flushed, quickly disappeared. That scene provided enough gossip to be retold by busybodies.

Song Yeongin truly felt that this man sitting in front of him was just fascinating. People were right. Cha Woojin was receiving attention among them as if he were a celebrity. However, this man was not losing an inch to the gazes of everyone who watched him so intently. He was boldly ignoring them as if they did not exist in the first place. That indifferent audacity was astonishing.

Cha Woojin blatantly poured the attention he had not spared a shred of for the woman onto Song Yeongin. The man’s appearance, with his wet hair and a hint of moisture, was languid like the fog after a rain, but in contrast, his gaze towards Song Yeongin was piercingly bold.

Cha Woojin stared intently at Song Yeongin. Song Yeongin’s flushed cheeks. Things like his neat, tailored appearance. A noble and clear aura that seemed as if it could not be tainted by any corruption. Clean lines, without any excess. He pondered for a moment why these things captured his, Cha Woojin’s, own gaze.

The fact that Cha Woojin’s gaze, so indifferent and cold to others, was directed at none other than Song Yeongin might become good fodder for the gallery-goers who watched him with admiration and awe.

The man drained the last sip of martini left in the glass and stood up from his seat.

“It was enjoyable.”

There was no way of knowing if that short greeting was directed at him. Song Yeongin, without even making eye contact with that man, bowed his head in a polite nod as his answer. It was a customary gesture of a subordinate, nothing special.

The tall man in the dark long coat walked back the way he came, receiving the pouring gazes with his whole body. It was a truly bizarre sight how people simultaneously parted to make way for him, as if to avoid even the hem of the man’s coat brushing against them in his leisurely stride.

As he disappeared outside the lounge, the once-quiet audience began to shout and murmur again.

Song Yeongin knew. The value of himself, a mere servant; nothing would change just because that man showed a little curiosity in him.

However, even knowing it was a baseless gaze and kindness, he could not help the way his heart reacted to the man’s every action. Why was he pushing himself off a cliff, knowing the vertiginous fall that would come?

🌫️

“Why did you lie?”

Seo-hyun suddenly blocked Song Yeongin, who was organizing liquor in the storage room.

“…Pardon?!”

“Yesterday, you looked like you were really close.”

She was talking about Cha Woojin.

“A lie….”

“……”

“I’ve never told one. And we are not close.”

“You’re not even close, but he comes to see you in person and you have a friendly chat?”

Song Yeongin had no idea why he had to endure such an interrogation. Seo-hyun narrowed her eyes and spoke as if she had been betrayed by him.

“They said it was the first time….”

“……”

“Section Chief Min-woo, the head bartender, also said it was the first time Cha Woojin sat at the bar like that and had a friendly conversation with someone.”

A strange, unreadable expression crossed the pale face composed of neat and delicate lines. Today, Song Yeongin looked exceptionally tired. That fatigue appeared like an uncontrollable precariousness.

“Everyone was making a fuss, saying they should try to get on your good side, you know?”

“No way….”

“……”

“What reason would a junior employee like me have to be on good terms with a person like that?”

He had never thought of it as a lie. He could not define in what category he should be associated with that person.

He had committed the rudeness of spilling wine on that man’s shirt. No, in truth, it might have been that man’s intentional trickery. He had escaped being raped by Matteo thanks to that man. One could say he was unilaterally indebted to him. But what did that mean?

It was nothing. Just because the man sat in front of him and exchanged a few words, he was not in a close enough relationship with him to go around saying he knew him.

“Then why did he talk to you, Yeongin? Oh Yu-jin, the only daughter of LV, who’s famous for being so haughty, tried to talk to him, but he didn’t even glance her way….”

“……”

“You saw it yesterday too, right, Yeongin? That model-like woman. She’s famous for not even batting an eye when all the big shots here try to hit on her….”

“……”

“Didn’t you see everyone whispering, shocked to see that proud and aloof woman trying to come on to Cha Woojin like that? …But he didn’t even pay her any mind, Cha Woojin….”

“……”

“It’s strange because he doesn’t even look at a high-and-mighty woman like that when she approaches him, but he talks with you as if you’re close friends….”

“……”

“How do you know each other? It would have been nice if you had given me a hint when I asked you before.”

Song Yeongin wanted to end this draining conversation. There were no answers to be found by interrogating him.

“I am sorry….”

“……”

“I do not know why he did that either.”

His face was as precarious as trembling water. Song Yeongin uttered an apology in a sunken, calm voice.

Only then did Seo-hyun stop her agitated interrogation. She seemed to feel belatedly embarrassed, as if she had pushed Song Yeongin too hard. Why on earth was Song Yeongin himself apologizing as if he were the one at fault?

Cha Woojin, the object of envy for the upper-class people here, had spoken to Song Yeongin, and no one would have blamed Song Yeongin even if he had boasted about their acquaintance.

However, far from showing any sign of excitement, he was hiding and cowering as if he had committed a crime. Seo-hyun suddenly thought that Song Yeongin’s resigned appearance was pitiful.

🌫️

“Yes…. Is Yoon-ie doing well?”

It was a call from his sister-in-law, Soo-kyung. Song Yeongin’s voice, asking after the newborn baby, was unusually affectionate. Soo-kyung’s voice, saying the baby had started to roll over, had a subtle vitality to it, unlike before.

“Yes…. I will stop by sometime.”

“No, it is all right. Do not worry about the money, and take good care of your body.”

Song Yeongin had been sending most of his monthly salary to the two of them for their living expenses. No one had forced him. There was no obligation to do so either. He just wanted to.

Even if they were to become strangers later, even if he were to be notified that there was no longer a need to contact them, for now, he wanted to ensure that his sister-in-law and the child lacked for nothing. If the two of them wished it, Song Yeongin was thinking of doing so for quite an indefinitely long time.

It was a relief. That she had not given up.

He knew well that even giving up is not easy. Song Yeongin was not unaware of how many moments of frustration and numerous twists and turns one must endure before deciding to give up. Giving up is difficult. But not giving up is much more difficult than that. Song Yeongin was proud of his sister-in-law, Soo-kyung, for enduring that difficult thing, and he was deeply grateful.

After finishing the call, Song Yeongin picked up his phone and quietly looked at his younger sister’s contact information.

His younger sister, Seo-yeong, who was hearing-impaired, was living in a dormitory at a school for the deaf. He communicated with his sister, with whom voice calls were impossible, through text messages whenever possible. The replies he received each time were always consistently short.

「I’m fine」

No matter what he asked, the reply was just that, curtly, and that was all.

His sister’s school was located in a small provincial city far from here. Using the excuse that it was difficult to visit, they had video calls when necessary, but an incalculable amount of time had passed since he had last had a video call with Seo-yeong. He simply could not bring himself to see her face. He did not have the confidence to endure her reproachful eyes.

Even if it was cowardly, there was no other way. Song Yeongin felt that if he faced his younger sister, he would be dragged back into the nightmare of that day when he had stood by and let their mother go. It was like that even though it was about time he forgot. He was still afraid that his younger sister, Seo-yeong, would rebuke him with resentful eyes, saying he had been a bystander to their mother’s death.

In the end, he was afraid that he would not be able to bear it and would confess that their mother had committed suicide. What he feared most, more than reproach and resentment, was precisely that.

Their meeting would only stir up unhealed pain. No news is good news, he would just console himself like that. Song Yeongin’s neglect sometimes plunged him into a deep mire of self-reproach. He was truly a pathetic blood relative.

🌫️

Unlike at the private chambers, Song Yeongin was feeling a great sense of reward in his work at the lounge, in his own way. It was fun to learn and practice cocktail recipes from the bartenders, and it was also interesting to get to know the diverse and countless combinations of liquors.

It was an irony that he handled alcohol yet did not touch a drop himself. It was because of a trauma stemming from his alcoholic father.

Song Yeongin, who had grown up watching alcohol consume a person, chose not to let a single sip touch his lips, afraid that the same dreadful tendency as his father’s might be dormant within him.

However, watching the colorful cocktails being mixed and blended, he felt as if he had returned to his childhood when he first painted with watercolors, and it was enjoyable. Distracting thoughts easily disappeared. It was as if the moments of his childhood, when he found the mixing of colors so fascinating that he would spend all night mentally layering this color and that color, naturally came along with it.

It felt like anything was possible. There had been days when he thought so. In the end, it was not because Song Yeongin liked alcohol, but because he liked colors… because he liked the pretty picture in the glass, that was why he liked this job.

Lately, he had been spending more time studying liquor than painting.

The head bartender in charge, who had been difficult to even exchange a word with, had been giving Song Yeongin various pieces of advice and teachings from time to time since Cha Woojin’s visit.

Perhaps seeing Song Yeongin, who learned quickly and honestly followed instructions without any tricks or shortcuts, in a favorable light, the senior bartender asked if he had any intention of learning more complex recipes and bartending techniques. He encouraged Song Yeongin, saying that if he wanted, he could pursue this path.

It might not be bad. He had never thought that he could become something. Nothing ever went as he wanted. So, he was always accustomed to not wanting and not yearning. Would it have been a little different if someone had told him he could become something?

Because there was more and more to learn and memorize, there was almost no time to paint at home. Suddenly, Song Yeongin thought it was a relief to be growing distant from painting and forgetting it like this.

So a moment comes in life when you let go of painting. No, perhaps it was because he was living properly that he was letting go of painting. He no longer had to paint misfortune.

Since that day, Cha Woojin no longer visited the lounge. The rampant gossip of those who had whispered about what kind of relationship Cha Woojin and Song Yeongin had also lost its power and ended, as if it had never happened, once Cha Woojin’s footsteps ceased in the lounge.

He thought it was a relief. Song Yeongin hoped that Cha Woojin would no longer appear before him. That was beneficial for everyone. There was no need to even think such thoughts. It was possible that someone like him had long been forgotten from his memory.

They were nothing to each other. They had no relationship whatsoever. He was a person from a different world. It was right for futile expectations and delusions to turn to dust and vanish. Therefore, it was right to think this way.

He did not want unattainable desires to grow in volume within him. Just living was overwhelming enough. He did not want to get entangled with that man in any way anymore.

🌫️

It was an early hour, not long after the lounge had opened.

“Hey.”

At first, Song Yeongin did not realize that he was the one being called.

“Hello?”

Upon seeing the man before him, Song Yeongin’s face went beyond pale to ashen. A large, dark frame thrust its head towards him. It was those nauseating snake eyes again.

It was Matteo.

“They say it is darkest under the lampstand….”

“……”

“You completely vanished as if someone had laundered you, I was about to bust my balls trying to find you, you know.”

Matteo, standing across the bar, thrust his dark, fishy face forward and cackled.

“You look even prettier in the light.”

He could not even hear what kind of bullshit he was spouting. Song Yeongin was frozen on the spot, unable to utter a single sound.

Matteo, like a hyena, slouched around slyly and took a seat at the BAR in front of Song Yeongin.

“Strangely, since that day….”

“……”

“I kept thinking about you….”

At Matteo’s gluttonous voice, shouting in a large tone as if for all to see, the attention of the lounge was instantly drawn to the two of them.

It was still an early hour. In the quiet lounge with no customers, the eyes of the bartenders, Supervisor Seo-hyun, and the surrounding colleagues were focused on the two in the unfamiliar scene.

He could not breathe. The thread-like bundles holding his reason together snapped. Song Yeongin’s shoulders were trembling uncontrollably.

He knew well that words would not get through to that beast. So, he tried to escape this place by any means possible. The fact that he was on duty was not important. Song Yeongin did not even reply a single word to Matteo. He just tried to leave this spot. No, he had to leave.

However, as Song Yeongin turned away, Matteo, as if to provoke him, began to shout loudly.

“Forget about that day.”

“……”

“It’s entirely your fault for looking so horny, who are you to blame?”

The precarious small face was instantly contorted with deep shame.

“At first it was an impulse… but on second thought, I quite like you. So this time, I’m thinking of really taking you for myself.”

Hearing the crazy things he was spouting, he might have been on drugs. His tiny pupils, lacking a clear focus, gave no clue as to where they were looking. His glistening face and dark lips were utterly disgusting. Every word he spat out was an excretion. Only the obsession that he had to get out of this place flooded his mind.

‘I have to run away.’

Song Yeongin turned around and headed towards the staff-only exit. It was when Song Yeongin, showing his back, was approaching the door.

Matteo shouted loudly enough to make the lounge ring, as if for all to see. It was entirely intentional.

“WHY?!! ARE YOU AFRAID I’LL RAPE YOU LIKE THAT DAY?!!!”

As the loud cry of “rape” echoed, the lounge was momentarily enveloped in silence as if it had stopped.

“ARE YOU DOING THIS BECAUSE YOU THINK I’LL PIN YOU DOWN AND MAKE YOU SUCK MY FUCKING COCK LIKE THAT DAY?!!!”

Matteo’s voice resounded thunderously to the end of the lounge. It was a vulgar and boisterous yell.

Matteo wanted to grab hold of his ankle, which was consistently ignoring him, and humiliate him. For that beast, shame was a game and degradation was a pleasure.

“Where do you think you’re trying to sneak off to?!”

“……”

“No matter how much of a cast-off son I am, with so many eyes watching, I can’t just drag you away, so don’t be too scared.”

What he felt now were gazes of astonishment.

Song Yeongin could not help but admit that he had encountered a situation that was completely impossible to resolve. It was shameful and humiliating, but he had to keep his wits about him. He had to be more detached. If he crumbled, it was the end.

“I will report you.”

It was Song Yeongin’s first word after maintaining a long silence.

“What you did to me… I will report it all.”

Song Yeongin bit his red lips with all his might. His calm voice was firm, but it was as pitiful and empty as an echo in the void.

Matteo giggled on the spot and stomped his feet. The wrinkles around his sly eyes crinkled. As if he had heard the funniest story in the world, the beast clutched his stomach and burst into laughter.

“You, do you know who my old man is?! He’s a four-term congressman who was a former Prosecutor General. What, report me?! Ke-ke-keuk… that’s the funniest thing I’ve heard in the last few years….”

“……”

“This thing, I thought he only had a talent for getting men’s dicks hard, but he’s got a knack for making people laugh too.”

“……”

“Fuck…, go on and report me! Send it to the press, report it to society for justice’s sake. I’m fucking curious to see what happens when a pipsqueak like you struggles, so go ahead.”

Matteo screamed at the top of his lungs, as if he would leave.

He could not think of anything. It was just loud. Song Yeongin wanted to disappear. If there was a mouse hole, he wanted to hide in it. In front of the brazen-faced man who was shamelessly shouting at the top of his lungs, there was a pale and pitiful face stained with shame and humiliation.

People rushed in to control the noisy scene. But Matteo’s minions, large in stature, blocked their way.

Because of him, he was causing a huge disruption to this lounge. Song Yeongin now had to beg. To the one who had assaulted and tried to rape him….

“Please stop… and go back.”

“……”

“I am begging you, please….”

Song Yeongin meekly bowed his head. The last way to quiet this hooligan was not threats or resistance, but pleading. Only then did Matteo laugh, slyly and bizarrely, as if satisfied.

“Beg some more. Plead with me…! With your hands clasped together, earnestly…. That’s how I’ll decide whether to let you off or not.”

All his colleagues in the lounge were looking at Song Yeongin. With expressions hoping for this commotion to pass, some with disillusionment… some with pity. What Song Yeongin could not bear was not Matteo in front of him, but precisely those things.

Song Yeongin did not have the strength to drag that beast out. He could not just stay here and continue to cater to the beast’s whims, so to avoid causing further damage to the lounge, he had no choice but to do as he was told.

A distant resignation filled Song Yeongin’s eyes.

Now, in those neat and high-spirited eyes, there was neither despair nor shame. Song Yeongin clasped his two white, slender hands together towards Matteo and begged and pleaded.

“Please… go back now.”

Even though soft music was playing, everyone held their breath and stopped their actions to watch Song Yeongin and Matteo.

It was an irony. Song Yeongin’s appearance with his hands clasped together was like that of a wise angel praying on an altar. The way he clasped his hands even looked bizarrely sacred. The gluttonously open mouth, upon seeing it, shut blankly.

“I almost pissed myself. What kind of kid are you…, you’re doing that with your hands, making me feel all restless…! Huh?! Fucking… shit, I almost came right here.”

Whatever Matteo was spouting, Song Yeongin bowed his head and continued to beg.

For the beast to disappear quickly…. There was nothing he could do in this place but clasp his hands and beg.

“Do not blame me! You stand out. In a bad way….”

“……”

“Do you think it would have been any different if it were another bastard and not me?”

Song Yeongin, who had been begging with his hands clasped, wore an expression as if he had been struck a blow. Those words were not unfamiliar. It was as if a painful nerve had been struck….

He felt like he had heard something like this from someone else in a similar situation before. With that one sentence uttered by Matteo, a stream of evil karma and retribution followed at once. Cruel moments flashing by like a revolving lantern engulfed Song Yeongin.

‘My fault, you say? What on earth….’

I have never done anything to you people.

Song Yeongin stopped his clasped, begging hands and stared at Matteo painfully. A quiet wetness formed at the corners of his sorrowful eyes.

Even without Matteo, the world was always overwhelming for him. Greed, which always gnawed at his fear, smelled it out like a ghost. If he let his guard down, it would touch him, and sometimes it watched for an opportunity to violate him.

There was no choice but to turn his back on the world and hide. That was why he had holed himself up in that cramped rooftop corner. He had hidden his tracks so that he could not be found and erased the scent that sought a sacrifice. All to hide his one self, tightly.

Matteo spoke to Song Yeongin as if he were doing him a favor belatedly.

“Fine, I’ll go back obediently today. Since I know where you are…. Instead, when I come next time, greet me a bit more warmly. I can look forward to it, right?”

“……”

Next time, next time, next time, next time….

Those words stabbed into Song Yeongin’s heart like a dagger. Is there another next time?

“I meant what I said earlier. I’m the type who doesn’t care about fire or water once I get fixated on something… even my old geezer can’t stop me. Who can stop me?! So act obediently like you are now. Grovel at my feet and just suck my toes.”

It was Matteo, unable to take his eyes off Song Yeongin, who was trembling like a frightened young animal. As if he had caught the scent, as if he had found his sacrifice, Matteo confirmed the kill and smiled loathsomely.

And then, the beast, with a face as if he had done his part, leisurely exited the lounge.

The music that had stopped started playing again, and business resumed. However, among all the whispering people, no one could readily approach Song Yeongin.

Song Yeongin was exhausted. His unfocused eyes blinked slowly, to the point where even the thought of running away had vanished. He could not control his body and was in a daze. It was as if he had had a very long nightmare. Even when he felt he had woken up, it was still like an endless nightmare that had not ended.

In that harsh and wicked ringing in his ears, what Song Yeongin recalled was Cha Woojin’s voice.

‘Do you think it will end with this?’

‘I cannot rescue you every single time, Song Yeongin.’

🌫️

The voice of Cha Woojin, who had warned him that day, echoed in his ears like a memory. The moment he faced Matteo, the person Song Yeongin first thought of, absurdly, was Cha Woojin.

Even as Matteo blabbered on, only Cha Woojin’s voice squeezed through the gaps of his breath and echoed vividly. There was no way to control his trembling body. The things he had been barely holding onto were all crumbling into white dust.

He did not know where he could go to meet that man who had not shown a trace of himself for a long time. He also did not know how to contact that man.

It was only natural. Cha Woojin and he had nothing more than that kind of relationship. A one-sided, hierarchical relationship where he could only see his face when he was sought out. It was not even a relationship. Even such a modifier was too grand for this connection.

Song Yeongin’s footsteps were heading towards the passage to the private chambers. To be precise, not the private chambers, but Cha Woojin’s hideout, the secret core within the private chambers.

He could memorize it. The entire map of the private chambers was etched as clearly as a picture in Song Yeongin’s mind.

The day he was first led there by Cha Woojin’s hand, when he was about to be violated by Matteo. And, on his way back alone after exiting that gate… Song Yeongin, who had returned from there, had to draw countless maps.

He took in everything with his eyes without missing a detail, and he pulled out everything in his mind and transferred the picture onto paper. Throughout the night, Song Yeongin had reviewed the map he had drawn several times.

With this secret hideout as the final piece, the entire map of the private chambers and Astart was organically completed in Song Yeongin’s mind.

As if he had a premonition that a moment of such desperate need would come someday. It was a very desperate thing that this was the only way he could think of to meet Cha Woojin right now.

It was a very long time that he had groped and wandered through the maze. There were a few mistakes, but in the end, controlling his trembling body, he barely reached the secret gate. Song Yeongin stood still, having stopped his feet in front of the spire gate disguised as an old brick wall. A face, precarious as if it would shatter, let out a tired breath.

He was not in his right mind. After facing Matteo, Song Yeongin had vaguely thought that he had to meet Cha Woojin. That was all that came to mind. And when he came to his senses, he had recklessly reached this gate.

However, upon seeing the heavily locked gate before him, it began to feel as high as a wall of reality. There was no device anywhere to announce a visitor’s arrival. He tried to recall what he had done, but his memory did not extend that far. The hand that was about to knock on the door lost its way and stopped in mid-air.

‘Why on earth did I come here?’

Why he had come to this place, Song Yeongin only then belatedly recalled that natural and common-sense question.

He had been painfully humiliated by Matteo in front of the people at the lounge. Song Yeongin was deathly pale from the fear of the violence and coercion that poured out the memory of that day. He had been trembling with a shame and contempt that went beyond fear, leaving him helpless. At that moment, the person Song Yeongin had desperately sought was none other than Cha Woojin. However….

‘I cannot rescue you every single time, Song Yeongin.’

‘Did I come here to ask a man who has nothing to do with me to save me once again? To hold onto that man… and beg him?’

The dazed eyes that had lost their focus suddenly returned to their original upright and clear state. Song Yeongin came to his senses at once, as if doused with cold water.

Coming all this way to meet Cha Woojin was a stupid act. This was crazy. It was no different from Matteo, who had come to the lounge to find him without any consideration. It was selfish and impulsive. He could not go to a man who said he did not want troublesome things and burden him with a troublesome matter with his own two feet again.

Cha Woojin could see everything within the private chambers, no, all of Astart, so it was possible he could even be checking on his appearance, standing in front of this gate right now, through a monitor.

‘Was I really planning to beg that man? You foolish idiot…. How can I be so dull and stupid.’

Song Yeongin could not believe his own recklessness, wondering with what courage he had thought to knock on the door of this hideout and call out Cha Woojin, and he scoffed at himself.

The slender hand that had hesitated in the air was coldly withdrawn, and the soulless, pitiful face derided itself in futility. And Song Yeongin turned his footsteps back again.

The place where he should be was not here.

🌫️

Yoon Jioh was silently watching Song Yeongin, who was sitting before him. It was only right to ask the reason from the one who had walked into the gallery director’s office on his own two feet.

“What is the matter?”

The resolute will dwelling in his delicate features suggested that Song Yeongin had made a firm decision before entering this room.

“I would like to quit my job.”

Song Yeongin’s eyes, devoid of even a shred of messy attachment or personal feelings, were simply detached, as if he had attained enlightenment about all things.

“……It is because of Matteo, I presume.”

Song Yeongin did not give Yoon Jioh any answer.

“As you know, Song Yeongin, if we were to enforce an entry ban on a high-profile scion like that, we would have no choice but to face other disadvantages.”

“……”

“The reason we knowingly keep trash like Matteo around like a chicken rib is because of the public authority he possesses… no, to be precise, that his father possesses. Matteo and his father are individuals who have no hesitation in retaliating.”

The precarious and sorrowful face, like a person walking on water, was clearly exhausted.

“If we become his enemy, the private chambers might have to take on enormous risks.”

As if he had resigned himself to everything.

“Yes…. I am aware. Therefore, I believe it would be best for me to quit.”

Yoon Jioh could no longer deny the value that Song Yeongin possessed.

Even when Cha Woojin, who had never shown any interest or even involvement in the personnel matters of mere employees, had pulled Song Yeongin out of the private chambers without a word and stuck him in the lounge, Yoon Jioh had only vaguely connected it to Matteo’s disgraceful behavior.

As per Cha Woojin’s instructions, he had thoroughly hidden Song Yeongin’s personal information. However, Matteo had approached Yoon Jioh and pried about Song Yeongin’s background. In Matteo, who was going around asking about the boy’s whereabouts, he could glimpse a hideous desire for Song Yeongin.

Although Matteo was a known hooligan, it was not as if he went around stirring up trouble and showing such filthy madness and villainy to just anyone. He was just a persistent bastard with finicky tastes and nefarious desires. Now that such a particular bastard had found a sacrifice that suited his taste, it was only natural for him to cling on persistently.

Song Yeongin was unlucky.

Not only had he provoked the desire of Matteo, who was notorious for his picky tastes, but Song Yeongin, who had also won the favor of Woosung’s crown prince, Cha Woojin, stood at the center of all this turmoil, regardless of his own will.

That too, if it were to be called a talent of the boy, would be a talent. It had even reached a fatalistic conclusion that his fate was uncommonly tumultuous.

Furthermore, Yoon Jioh also highly valued the innate artistic talent that this priest’s boy possessed. He had laid out the stage he designed, and it was just the moment when he was eagerly anticipating finally raising Song Yeongin’s value. He was too precious a commodity to let go of just like this.

“I can look for a job for you, even if it is not here. This time, I will look for a position where you can fully demonstrate that talent you possess, Song Yeongin.”

“No. I do not intend to rely on others any longer.”

Song Yeongin’s will was quite firm.

“I realized things while being here. I have learned a lot. The way to stand before the world, that vague fear has also disappeared. I think I can do it on my own.”

Yoon Jioh recalled the look in Song Yeongin’s eyes on the day they first met, when he had shown the large canvas and begged for his situation in front of him. He could feel that the person sitting before him now was very different from that day.

He had been like a fledgling who had just shed his skin, but now he knew how to hide his desperation and wear such composed eyes. It was a short period, but Song Yeongin had clearly grown.

Yoon Jioh, being of a different grain from the likes of Matteo, does not find much interest in forcibly holding onto someone who says they want to leave. It does not matter. Even if Song Yeongin leaves this place.

That did not mean he would not sell the paintings. Yoon Jioh showed a respectful gaze towards Song Yeongin with an attitude of listening as much as possible.

“Song Yeongin’s paintings….”

“……”

“If any news comes up, I will contact you.”

“Yes….”

Song Yeongin obediently nodded his head. Even if Song Yeongin leaves this place, the paintings are in Yoon Jioh’s hands. The one who would pay the highest price for that boy’s paintings. The one who could raise Song Yeongin’s value to the sky in the future was, in the end, not Matteo, not Woo Taekyung, not Cha Woojin, but Yoon Jioh himself—that was what mattered most.

Rather, if he leaves this place, and those who want that boy burn with impatience and wear themselves out, this boy’s value will soar even higher than expected. It would be enough for him to step forward at the climax of the story. The fact that the one who could control everything was Yoon Jioh himself was, more than anything, the most important thing to Yoon Jioh.

That was Yoon Jioh’s politics, and Yoon Jioh’s way of survival. It does not seem bad to put this boy to that test.

“And, this.”

Yoon Jioh handed over a white envelope that was between some documents.

“The timing was missed, but this is consolation money. The recent unpleasant incident…. It is very unfortunate for us, but we could not hold the scion of Joongsan Mulsan and the bloodline of Assemblyman Ma Jae-pil responsible. The private chambers will compensate for the assault and unfortunate incident you suffered, Song Yeongin, with this consolation money instead.”

Through Yoon Jioh’s familiar handling of the situation, which particularly emphasized the private chambers’ position, not Matteo’s, Song Yeongin felt he understood. How the private chambers had dealt with such incidents.

Song Yeongin pushed the envelope extended before him back towards Yoon Jioh.

“I am sorry. I do not want to receive it.”

“I thought I heard you were in urgent need of money….”

The neat and noble face was ignoring the money envelope pushed before it with a gaze full of disillusionment.

‘You’re just a pathetic pauper whose only assets are a pretty, artless face and a talent that hasn’t seen the light of day….’

However, from that, Yoon Jioh had another interesting intuition.

“If I accept this money, it becomes a kind of settlement with that person, Matteo, does it not…. Take this money and let it be as if it never happened. That is what it means, is it not?”

At Song Yeongin’s words, Yoon Jioh showed a twisted smile.

“In a way… that is what it amounts to.”

Song Yeongin argued as if to say he was not a fool.

“I have no intention of publicizing this incident or causing harm to the private chambers. It is just that, if I let what Matteo did slide for money, I do not think I could forgive myself.”

“……”

“Even if a person like me can do nothing, I will not accept money or make a settlement.”

“……”

“I am not a male prostitute. I do not want to be comforted with money.”

Yoon Jioh gazed at Song Yeongin.

He had not known that boy would make such a face in front of him. It was a gaze that had a rather sublime corner to it, just like his noble face.

“This will be the best option. It is better to receive what compensation can be given with money…. It is an amount that could solve all of Song Yeongin’s financial problems. That kind of foolish pride will not take responsibility for your livelihood, Song Yeongin.”

“Even if you say I am being foolish, I cannot help it.”

“……”

“I have nothing. Just because I am poor, I do not want to live having thrown away even my pride. I do not want to become the same kind of person as them, who think they can buy everything with money.”

In some people’s eyes, it might be seen as inflexible and an ignorant frustration with reality. However, at least in Yoon Jioh’s eyes, it was not.

Yoon Jioh, who had experienced his fair share of human characters, discovered a slightly different aspect in this boy. If there was something Yoon Jioh had not noticed until now, it was that this boy had a more intelligent side than he thought.

“I do not want to give Matteo a pardon. I have no intention of taking that dirty money that Matteo offers. If I took that kind of money, I would not be able to stand up to him proudly… no matter what kind of ordeal I suffer from Matteo again.”

“……”

“If, once again, Matteo mocks me and tries to silence me with money as if it were nothing… then, should I just accept the money then and settle just like now?”

Yoon Jioh was unable to answer and shuddered. He just propped his chin on his hand and stared intently at those seditious lips, which were thinly debating justice.

So sharp, in a cute way.

“The salary I have received so far is enough money. The money I earned with my own sweat will do.”

Yoon Jioh, who had been listening quietly, belatedly laughed out loud.

Yoon Jioh had always prided himself on his intuition. He had been confident that he knew how to read people. He had that much experience and seniority. However, he had not known until now that this boy had a more extraordinary side than he had expected. Why had he missed that?

“It is a pity…. It seems I am starting to like you more, Song Yeongin…. If the paintings sell, I will deliver the good news. No, I am finding that I really want to deliver it.”

Yoon Jioh had intended to moderately persuade and compromise with him. However, he was instead persuaded by Song Yeongin. Yoon Jioh found himself wanting to win Song Yeongin’s favor. He is a more useful boy than expected. Therefore, winning his favor moderately would ultimately lead to a greater profit.

Crucially, Yoon Jioh liked this boy’s paintings.

No, in fact, that was the biggest reason. The aggregate and soul-vein that contained all of that boy. If he had not liked that boy’s paintings, he would not be facing him like this… nor would he be sitting here, kindly dealing with him. Therefore, Yoon Jioh really wanted to say this to Song Yeongin.

“Song Yeongin, you must never give up on painting.”

It was a pure face that had been filled with a grim determination from the moment he opened the door and entered. At times, futility and disillusionment had also settled on his sorrowful and neat face. To his final request, Song Yeongin did not give any answer.

Instead, at those last words, the priest’s boy, letting down the thorns he had raised towards Yoon Jioh, showed a warm and bright smile like the sunshine. Where had he hidden such leisure amidst the emptiness and wretchedness?

The smile Song Yeongin gave felt like a product of a gentle and warm spring. It was like a brilliant stir of new life, where frozen things break and melt, and something new pierces the ground and revives.

Where on earth had the priest found such an audacious item and brought it to him?

Father Kang Hajong, no, his uncle, had earnestly requested of Yoon Jioh. Along with the plea to please, not tempt the angel.

For the first time, Yoon Jioh felt he could understand why Father Kang Hajong cherished this boy so much. Certainly, for Song Yeongin, who was poor and had nothing, it was better to have pride. It was perhaps a sublime value that even the people in this circle, who prided themselves on being able to have anything with money, could not possess.

It contained a not insignificant amount of money. It is an amount sufficient to save the life of one poor person. Even if he had accepted this consolation money, no one could have blamed that boy.

However, Song Yeongin pushed the money away. He was acting as if he had been greatly comforted by Yoon Jioh’s one phrase telling him not to give up on painting, rather than by compensation in the form of money. As if a mere wad of cash could not hold and shake him…. He was asserting his sublimity in this way.

He had almost overlooked that small, sublime light.

Yoon Jioh believed without a doubt that it was precisely that small difference that determined a person’s value. This boy clearly knew that small yet large difference instinctively.

He is a boy whose vessel is not small. An unexpected fate will take that boy and use him. He is clearly a boy of many uses. Therefore, he must never let go of this commodity.

Yoon Jioh was a staunch intuitionist. And in his life, his predictions had never once been wrong.

🌫️

Cha Woojin, who had officially concluded the agreement between Woosung Construction and CSCES, displayed the feat of being widely recognized both internally and externally for his practical capabilities and skill.

His nerve, unbecoming of his age, and his outstanding insight provided a great justification for those who were betting on Cha Woojin as the number one in the line of succession. Cha Woojin was now just waiting for the day when the flames, which had met their expectations, would blaze fiercely.

With his prolonged stay in China, Cha Woojin returned the position of head of the New Business Promotion Headquarters, which had diminishing utility. Immediately upon his return, he had to leave for New York.

Cha Woojin had high hopes for the AI Tech Forum to be held in Silicon Valley and New York. Woosung Electronics was pouring massive investments into the AI field, along with future growth businesses such as mobile communications, automotive semiconductors, and bio. Among them, AI was the field Cha Woojin was pouring the most effort into.

Woosung Electronics held a tech forum and conducted crucial discussions on innovative measures for AI in the communications IT field and future growth businesses. After finishing his schedule in New York, Cha Woojin was handling his schedule in Silicon Valley.

A video was being automatically received on the tablet of Cha Woojin, who was reviewing documents. Just then, Park Sung-jae, who had finished a call outside the door, knocked on the office door. Park Sung-jae began to report to Cha Woojin.

“I have a matter to report.”

“If it is not an urgent matter, I will hear it later.”

“It is about Song Yeongin.”

Cha Woojin, who had not even given Park Sung-jae a glance, finally paused the long fingers that were touching the tablet and lifted his head.

Countless years had passed since he began serving Director Cha Woojin like a shadow by his side. Park Sung-jae had been raised to be his shadow thoroughly since childhood. Cha Woojin’s growth was, in effect, no different from Park Sung-jae’s growth.

Park Sung-jae was worn out from discerning his picky superior’s intentions with just a simple hand gesture or a subtle expression. With just Cha Woojin’s small reaction, Park Sung-jae noticed that he was paying attention to his report.

“I am told that Song Yeongin has quit his job.”

Cha Woojin’s gaze, which had been cool and emotionless, showed a reaction to Park Sung-jae’s words.

“I just received a report from Yoon Jioh.”

“The reason?”

“They say Matteo came to the lounge.”

“……”

“It seems he severely insulted him in front of his colleagues.”

Cha Woojin was silent for a moment.

“…The consolation money?”

“He reportedly refused it, saying he would not accept it.”

Cha Woojin’s indifferent gaze was once again fixed on the tablet.

“Shall I instruct them to send the video from the lounge separately?”

“Never mind.”

Cha Woojin had been looking at the video transmitted to him through the tablet since a while ago.

It was in front of the gate of the secret hideout within the private chambers. A tomb where the secret talks, corruption, and shameful secrets of political and business figures were sealed. It was a place with stricter security than any other. In that hidden cradle, the infrared sensors that detected an intruder had been frantically activating from the entrance, automatically transmitting the CCTV footage to Cha Woojin.

‘He is smarter than I thought. To think he found the access route himself.’

In the end, it meant that Song Yeongin had found the complex and intricate route, like a maze, and walked there on his own two feet. He had even used a method to bypass the security personnel stationed at the base points.

It was an intrusion that was absolutely impossible without having perfectly memorized the structure and blueprints. It was designed that way from the beginning. It was no different from a closed prison, made so that no one could find it.

“This is beyond expectations….”

On the screen, the image of Song Yeongin hesitating for a long time in front of the door was nothing short of precarious and sorrowful. His neat and clear face was riddled with endless fear. His trembling, thin hand wandered in front of the door several times. That subtle expression transformed from fear to resignation from moment to moment.

With a trembling gesture, Song Yeongin even showed a hollow laugh. But in the end, that boy did not take any action. He did not knock on the door, nor did he call for Cha Woojin.

Finally, the screen captured the back of Song Yeongin, turning away as if in resignation. The thought that it was a very Song Yeongin-like choice made a languid, faint smile flash across his straight-featured face.

Cha Woojin’s firmly closed mouth did not give any instructions to Park Sung-jae. Cha Woojin said nothing more. He was just silently staring at the repeating screen for a long while.

The wretched gestures wandering in the void and that detached, sacred light that had harshly learned resignation continued to hold Cha Woojin’s gaze.