Desires Chapter 7.3 - Forgetful Game

James Han’s luxurious mansion was revealed. Its grounds and scale were of a level that overwhelmed and surpassed Cha Woojin’s private residence.

Security was extremely tight right from the entrance of the mansion. Russian mercenaries, holding machine guns and standing guard at the post, received a radio call, then searched both men’s bodies and confirmed their identities.

Song Yeongin hunched his shoulders, overwhelmed by the mansion’s splendid yet gloomy atmosphere. He just stuck closely behind Kim Il-joong, Cha Woosun’s executive secretary. Secretary Kim Il-joong, with his steadfast impression and a composed expression that showed no surprise or fluctuation in matters big or small, provided a slight sense of relief to Song Yeongin, who had been thrown into this unfamiliar place, and became a source of inexplicable reliance.

After taking a private elevator inside, they had to pass through a special radiation scanner for theft prevention, following the guide’s instructions. Under the guide’s mechanical operation, the two men stepped inside.

As soon as he stepped inside, Song Yeongin could guess why James Han’s mansion was hidden in such a remote place, and why he had poured his heart and soul into such unsettlingly intense and strict security and safety procedures.

The space, which used an entire grand floor to display all sorts of artworks and art pieces, was reminiscent of a large art museum or exhibition hall.

Masterpieces that anyone would know just by name, which Song Yeongin had only seen through books or videos, were lined up in a row. To prevent the theft of these priceless masterpieces that could not be converted into money, one had to endure this level of effort.

On one side, taxidermied predatory beasts and birds of prey, which looked just like the real thing, were on display. Through the roars of the beasts that seemed vividly alive and moving, he could understand why James Han had been going on about taxidermy to him. He seemed interested in collecting the final moments of living things.

The guide led Song Yeongin and Secretary Kim Il-joong to a reception room beyond a glass window attached to the art exhibition hall. James Han was already seated, waiting for Song Yeongin.

A middle-aged man with a neat appearance and a sly smile hanging from his droopy eyes stood up from his seat to greet Song Yeongin.

“Mr. Song Yeongin, you’ve worked hard coming this long way. Please sit.”

Song Yeongin, dressed in a white shirt neatly buttoned up to his neck, politely bowed his head to the man.

James Han gave Secretary Kim Il-joong, who was standing beside him, a cold glance, as if to say he had no business with him. At that, Secretary Kim stated his purpose with an impassive face.

“I am attending in my capacity as a representative, as instructed by CEO Cha Woosun. As compensation for arranging the meeting between CEO Han and Mr. Song Yeongin, she requested my observation here as her eyes and ears, as her representative in this place.”

James Han let out a hearty, cunning laugh.

“I’m telling you, she’s impossible to beat. I can hear Cha Woosun’s mind working from all the way over here.”

Secretary Kim bowed his head and replied calmly with his expressionless, steadfast face.

“And when the meeting with Mr. Song Yeongin is over, I will be taking <Pizarro’s Dahlia> that CEO Han promised to our CEO Cha Woosun.”

“Anyway, is it a family trait? You wouldn’t think they’re siblings, but they’re no different from daylight robbers. She’s a scary woman.”

Leaving Executive Secretary Kim Il-joong standing by the table, only Song Yeongin sat down, as instructed, at the same table as James Han, facing him.

The mature, middle-aged man in a suit, with an intellectual impression, openly scanned Song Yeongin, who was dressed in a shirt neatly fastened to the end of his long, slender neck.

His small face, thinner than before, had lost its vitality with dryness and pallor, but his unique elegant and divine atmosphere could not be hidden. Every time he breathed over his thick, red, and burst lips, a dizzyingly sensual and unsettling aura was emitted.

In the time they hadn’t seen each other, his aura had faintly changed.

It seemed as if Cha Woojin had tamed the lines of this kid’s face and body to give off the air of someone who knows the taste of a man. This made James Han feel so foul that his insides twisted, yet at the same time, the area below his waist grew taut and heavy.

With a dual face that seemed neither angel nor siren, the one thing that was so pure and noble was the way his eyes looked at others; that was the kid’s greatest charm.

“You want to make a deal with me?”

“Yes…”

He smiled slyly.

“Running away from Cha Woojin and coming to me on your own two feet, and even proposing a deal… It seems I have underestimated Mr. Song Yeongin too much until now.”

Song Yeongin did not avoid James Han’s murky gaze, which was scrutinizing him from across the table, until the very end.

“I’m sorry for not recognizing it. If I had known it would be like this, I should have gone through Mr. Song Yeongin from the start.”

Song Yeongin, sitting opposite him, slowly blinked his composed eyes with a calm, settled face. He could feel the cunning eyes digging into his skin and scrutinizing him.

Song Yeongin did not waver and responded with a clear and detached gaze. At the strange exchange of glances and the precarious atmosphere, James Han let out a ‘psh’ sound, like air escaping, and chuckled.

In those pure and mystical eyes, there was a power that thoroughly stirred and bewildered men.

“I would like to hear the details of that deal.”

“Please hide me so I can escape from Mr. Cha Woojin.”

“……”

“I want to hide in a place where that person can never find me.”

The sly smile hanging from his droopy eyes showed no sign of leaving.

It was no different from a pure and pitiful deer, on the run, coming to a hunter on its own accord, pleading for him to hide its body.

However, James Han quickly erased the smile from his face. James Han’s eyes revealed a ghastly glint as they narrowed cunningly.

“Mr. Song Yeongin… Cha Woojin is by no means an easy opponent for me either. Who would dare want to be on bad terms with the next successor of Woosung Group, the best in South Korea?”

“……”

“Then, what exactly can I get in return?”

Song Yeongin let out a small, beautiful sigh into the air.

“The only thing I have is my art.”

“You want to make a deal with me with a painting?”

“Wasn’t it to get your hands on my painting that you drove Director Cha Woojin into a corner?”

James Han scoffed at the untainted, bold, and upright eyes, as if to make a point.

“It wasn’t just because of the painting.”

When Song Yeongin requested the painting from Secretary Kim, Secretary Kim walked over holding the canvas he had placed near the entrance of the reception room. Song Yeongin unwrapped the kraft paper packaging of the painting in front of James Han.

The brilliant and sensual back of a man, swallowing the dark shadows with flames of a fiery color, revealed itself before James Han.

James Han could not take his eyes off it and scanned the painting with extremely interested eyes. There was no doubt that it was a wonderful and charming masterpiece.

“Excellent. I am impressed by Mr. Song Yeongin’s sincerity.”

“……”

“But, more than anything, I want to have your first work, <Dead Mother’s Ear>.”

“……”

“From the moment I first saw it, that was the painting I went crazy for, blindly wanting to possess it…. No other painting can replace it.”

“……”

“But, how can I get back that painting, which has already passed into Director Cha’s hands?”

“……”

“Mr. Song Yeongin… I’m sorry, but if you want to make a deal with me, you will have to bring that painting.”

Song Yeongin slowly rolled his eyes, then asked James Han back with a suspicious face, as if something was strange.

“You mean it went into Mr. Cha Woojin’s hands even though I never signed that I would hand over the painting? I have not signed or put my seal on any contract or document.”

“Are you certain?”

“Yes, I have not signed… I haven’t even given my consent verbally.”

A murderous glint flashed in James Han’s eyes.

“Good. Then, I’ll have to call Yoon Jioh right away.”

James Han’s eyes curved slyly.

He meticulously scanned each and every button of the shirt that was fastened up to the neck. His gaze lingered on the thick lips that were breathing with difficulty.

“Just the painting alone is not enough.”

“……”

“Sell me what you sold to Cha Woojin.”

He was not unaware of the true intentions of the man who was raping him with his gaze, as if stripping him naked.

Song Yeongin replied with a serious face.

“I will not sell my body.”

“Hey, Mr. Song Yeongin. Why won’t you sell to me what you were selling to that bastard Cha Woojin.”

Song Yeongin let out a pathetic, empty laugh into the air.

“Mr. Cha Woojin also said he would give me as much money as I wanted.”

“……”

“If I had intended to sell my body… why would I have run away from a man who urged me to become his mistress, saying he would give me anything I wanted, whatever I desired?”

“……”

“I ran away from that person because I hated it. If I have to come to you and sell my body again… I will go back to Cha Woojin.”

“……”

“Of course, if that happens, I have no intention whatsoever of handing my paintings over to CEO Han.”

He had a surprisingly clever and bold side to him. He was starting to find the negotiation with this kid quite appealing.

“You ran away from Cha Woojin because you didn’t want to sell your body?”

“That is correct.”

“The more I get to know you, the more interesting you become.”

“……”

“Besides the condition of not selling your body, what else is there? Is asking me to hide you from Cha Woojin all that Mr. Song Yeongin wants from me?”

“Please protect my nephew, my sister-in-law, and my younger sister from Cha Woojin. If my family falls into that person’s hands… I will have no choice but to go back to Cha Woojin again. So, I would like you to take responsibility for their safety.”

James Han looked at Song Yeongin with an inscrutable, cunning expression and snickered.

“Alright. I will make a proposal too.”

“……”

“You don’t have to sell your body to me. However, you’re asking me to turn the great Cha Woojin into an enemy. A mere painting is not enough.”

“……”

“I will buy the artist, Song Yeongin. How about that? Let me become Mr. Song Yeongin’s contractual guardian.”

“…What?!”

“From now on, under my authority, Mr. Song Yeongin will belong to me and continue to paint.”

“……”

“Of course, the rights to collect all future works will also be subordinated to me first. I have a gallery I own in New York. There, I mean to be the first to collect and hang all of Mr. Song Yeongin’s new works.”

“……”

“I want to have the right to possess all of the artist Song Yeongin. I can pay whatever price you want. In exchange for mortgaging an artist’s entire career, I will provide the best treatment so you won’t feel shortchanged. Of course, that is on the condition that I take responsibility for everyone around you as well.”

“……”

“I will buy the artist Song Yeongin, not your shell or your body.”

At his proposal, the artless face quickly showed difficulty.

“…I, I… have no guarantee that I can paint better pictures than I do now…. I don’t even know if I can paint pictures that will satisfy people.”

“……”

“Am I worth that much?”

James Han scoffed with his droopy eyes, as if finding it absurd.

“In this situation, is the mouse worrying about the cat?”

“……”

“I can prove the value. Mr. Song Yeongin, you just receive the treatment and paint under my protection. Because that is what I want.”

Just then, his cell phone vibrated, and James Han, who had been speaking sternly, checked his phone.

“Oh my… It seems a call has come from Director Cha Woojin….”

At the words that a call had come from Cha Woojin, Song Yeongin’s pupils began to tremble violently.

“There is no time, so please decide quickly. Cha Woojin is a very overwhelming opponent for me as well. I don’t want to move rashly without certainty.”

“……”

“…Will you sell the artist Song Yeongin to me.”

At the single phone call from Cha Woojin, Song Yeongin felt as if his heart would drop right then. He could no longer delay foolishly. His urgent voice trembled.

“Yes…. I will do that.”

“Good. I will call my legal team, so let’s write up the contract immediately with the agreed-upon clauses.”

James Han gave an order through his secretary who had entered the reception room.

“I’m writing the contract right now, so call the legal team.”

James Han’s subordinate bowed his head.

“Give Cha Woosun’s representative the promised <Pizarro’s Dahlia> and send him on his way.”

James Han said to Secretary Kim Il-joong, who was standing by the table, with a sly smile.

“You can go back now. Go and tell Cha Woosun, without missing a single word.”

“……”

“If what you heard here now enters your younger brother Cha Woojin’s ears, next time I will cut off your representative’s tongue and send it here.”

After Secretary Kim Il-joong left, only James Han and Song Yeongin were left in the reception room.

Song Yeongin, in his tension, pushed back his hair, which was beaded with cold sweat. The profile of Song Yeongin, revealing his finely lined forehead, was as pure and beautiful as a holy painting by Johannes or Chassériau.

His eyes met dizzyingly with the man who was scanning him in a teasing manner. James Han chattered with a lewd face.

“Still, we have an affection to build together in the future. Shouldn’t you give it to me at least once?”

Song Yeongin couldn’t even guess what was inside that man. It was as if a thousand-year-old cunning serpent was sitting there. He couldn’t figure out his intentions at all. Since he was such a sly fellow, he couldn’t tell at all whether it was a simple joke, harassment, or sincerity. Still, Song Yeongin had no other choice but James Han.

“Please also add a clause that the contract will be terminated on the day you lay a hand on my body.”

“Well, I’ll admit it. That Mr. Song Yeongin has quite a talent for deals.”

James Han requested in a soft and deep voice.

“Ah, one more thing…! I think you’ll have to give me at least one form of entertainment.”

“……”

“I’ll have to use Mr. Song Yeongin a bit. I don’t need sex. What I need is a weapon that can humble that ill-mannered, rampaging brat.”

In the first place, it was a fight of stubborn pride that started because he wanted to put Cha Woojin in his place. It is not wrong to say that men risk their lives for mere competitiveness.

“I plan to tell Cha Woojin that Mr. Song Yeongin walked in on his own two feet and offered his body to me.”

Song Yeongin’s face, with his eyes wide in surprise, instantly turned pale. Song Yeongin hesitated.

“Do you… really have to go that far?”

“My, it seems Mr. Song Yeongin is not desperate. It is a miscalculation to think that Cha Woojin will give up on Mr. Song Yeongin easily. He could frame me as a kidnapper or a rapist…”

“……”

“Mr. Song Yeongin, that is the mindset of a thief who wants to get something for nothing.”

“……”

“You say you want to use me… If so, shouldn’t you at least be prepared to be used by me? It’s not like I’m actually asking for your body.”

“……”

“Mr. Song Yeongin, let’s give hatred and loss to that dull and rash fool who has fallen in love, together with me. Let’s teach the bitter taste of defeat to a guy who has never once tasted defeat since birth.”

As if tears would well up at any moment, the corners of Song Yeongin’s eyes reddened for no reason. His clear pupils blinked slowly. His transparent face, which turned red with every jab, tickled James Han’s lower abdomen.

“Steel your heart. If you truly want to run away and escape from Cha Woojin, you have to make Cha Woojin a tattered mess with wounds so that he can forget Mr. Song Yeongin quickly.”

Looking at the extremely pleased James Han, Song Yeongin asked detachedly.

“Do you want to get revenge on that person?”

“Not something so grand. Let’s just call it something like a game. I need amusement, and I just want to become the winner of the game. That punk provoked my pride and competitiveness first, and to that, I… want to give the young punk an answer to life, as an elder.”

Song Yeongin knew their game well. Through Jimil, through Matteo and Cha Woojin, he had learned that they obtained a crude pleasure in a slightly different way from ordinary people.

The pleasure and amusement of the haves, who wanted to be the controllers by placing pieces on a game board they designed, was no longer a foreign story to Song Yeongin. Those who held everything in their grasp were close to being terrible control freaks.

Understanding their ecosystem made it easier to comprehend. This fellow also needed a piece he could control on his game board.

Perhaps it was for the better. If Cha Woojin heard that he had walked in on his own and sold his body to him, whatever last affection he had for him would completely vanish. If he could cut ties that way, he had to. It would be easier for him to hate and despise him instead.

From the very beginning, he had come to James Han on his own accord to sever this chain of ill-fated connection. Song Yeongin needed another powerful master of the board who would return everything to how it was and hide him from Cha Woojin.

If not, he would have to live his entire life as a game piece called a mistress on the powerful Cha Woojin’s board, never knowing when he would be discarded. The end of that game was catastrophe. It was clear that it was a game where both Cha Woojin and himself… would eventually lose everything.

Song Yeongin’s purpose was to turn everything back so that he could return to his original place. He wanted him to build a proper family, have children, become the successor of Woosung, and live enjoying what he wanted. He simply did not have the courage to live by his side as a mistress, trapped in his shadow, and watch that happen.

A faint, beautiful voice flowed from his thick, red lips.

“Do as you wish.”

James Han smiled in delight.

“You are wise.”

“……”

“Even if you stay by Cha Woojin’s side, how long do you think the pleasure that Mr. Song Yeongin’s fresh body gives will last.”

“……”

“No flower blooms for ten days. Flowers are bound to wither, and there is always an end to that shallow pleasure and love play. I am a person who knows that end very well. And that is why I have no interest in something like Mr. Song Yeongin’s body.”

“……”

“I want to possess your talent. The wise decision Mr. Song Yeongin has made… will absolutely be a choice you will not regret.”

“…I hope so.”

So that everything can find its place.

He truly hoped so.

“Cha Woojin is by no means an easy opponent for me either. In fact, in Korea, he can be said to be overwhelming. Here, I can’t quite gauge what kind of tricks Cha Woojin will pull on me to get you back.”

“……”

“Therefore, if you want to escape from him, you will have to leave Korea, where Cha Woojin can exert his power, and go to America with me.”

“……”

”Mr. Song Yeongin, are you prepared to leave?”

Song Yeongin did not hesitate for even a single moment.

“Yes, I am prepared. So, please completely erase my existence from that person.”

“I like Mr. Song Yeongin. From the first time I saw you, it wasn’t lust or desire, but my heart just ached.”

“……”

“You resemble my dead daughter a lot. That child was also very good at painting, just like Mr. Song Yeongin.”

“……”

“When I first saw the painting Mr. Song Yeongin drew, <Dead Mother’s Ear>, I met my dead daughter in that painting…. That is the real reason I want to be Mr. Song Yeongin’s guardian.”

The game had begun.

A foolish game where everyone would lose.

Gazes of awe poured down on the man’s elegance that overwhelmed the crowd. The man in a black tailcoat was so perfect it was chilling, as if he had just jumped out of a movie. Even among the upper class who prided themselves on their refinement, he exuded a particularly aristocratic and gentlemanly atmosphere.

The dignified appearance created by straight and sharp lines and the impeccably sculpted, handsome, and robust physique that exuded sexiness were no different from Cha Woojin’s trademark. That irresistible sexual charm, transcending envy and jealousy, was the most primitive and essential reason that made him stand tall as an object of admiration and aspiration.

The audience at the engagement ceremony let out gasps at the sight of the perfect pair, which looked like a scene from a pictorial deliberately reenacted. The guests on the bride’s side began to murmur.

“Hwayeon is an actress, so that’s understandable, but I would believe it if they said the groom’s side was an actor too.”

“Indeed, Director Cha Woojin, he looks much better in person than on screen.”

Relatives and influential figures from the political and business worlds were all gathered in one place. After finishing the engagement ceremony amidst blessings, Park Sung-jae followed Cha Woojin, who was walking down from the stage, with an urgent look on his face.

“Director. There is an urgent report.”

The pure white bride in an elegant mermaid dress caught hold of the sleeve of Cha Woojin’s black tailcoat. Cha Woojin shook off Shin Hwayeon’s hand, who had been linking arms with him, as if it were a lie.

As his cold and sharp face gave a frigid glance, Shin Hwayeon glanced at him and reluctantly opened her mouth.

“I’ll go show my face to the relatives first.”

She headed to the dressing room, relying on the ceremony assistant who was holding her dress. Park Sung-jae, breaking out in a cold sweat, began his urgent report to Cha Woojin.

“Mr. Song Yeongin has disappeared.”

The news of Song Yeongin’s disappearance was not an unfamiliar report to Cha Woojin, as it had happened several times before. There had been a few escape attempts, big and small, but they had failed every time. Song Yeongin was in the palm of his hand. It was about time he learned resignation.

“Haa… What is this again.”

A cold and intimidating voice, devoid of highs and lows, questioned Park Sung-jae icily.

“He disappeared without a trace.”

At Park Sung-jae’s unusual demeanor, his long, cool eyes took on a murderous glint.

“Neither the security guard at the entrance nor the CCTV caught him, and not even a record was left. Not a single one of the alarm systems installed on all the entrances and windows of the mansion was activated. He vanished as if by magic, without even the guards noticing.”

Cha Woojin, who had been just listening, roughly tore off his black bow tie. The man, tilting his head back, spat out a low curse.

“Shit, damn it…! I put two guards on that kid and stationed professional security personnel at the entrance. Do you think it’s an excuse now that not a single person saw even his retreating back?!”

“I have no excuse.”

“The tracking…”

“He left his cell phone behind, so tracking is impossible.”

His straight brow furrowed with irritation.

“It seems to be the work of insiders who are well-versed in the mansion’s internal affairs.”

Park Sung-jae, watching his superior’s expression, reported.

“Lock down the mansion immediately! Investigate people one by one to root out the suspicious ones, and beat them if you have to, to find out who is behind this and his whereabouts.”

“I will do my best.”

“Park Sung-jae… if you can’t find Song Yeongin, it will be difficult for you to escape responsibility as well, as you have been managing the guards and the security of the private residence. Put your neck on the line and find that kid by any means necessary.”

Park Sung-jae bowed his head low.

“Don’t hold back on any means or methods you can mobilize, and be sure to find him and bring him before me.”

The torn-off black bow tie dangled from one collar of his taut dress shirt. Cha Woojin, who arrived at the private residence in his tailcoat without even time to change, went up to Song Yeongin’s bedroom.

Seeing the watch case and cell phone placed conspicuously in the middle of the neatly arranged, clean white bedsheets, he let out a hollow, self-deprecating laugh into the air.

Wondering if he could find any trace, he went through the wiretap records and call logs and searched the cell phone thoroughly, but nothing was found.

The last thing Song Yeongin had been looking at on his cell phone was the press release about the engagement ceremony, which chattered on as if Cha Woojin and Shin Hwayeon’s engagement was the love story of the century.

When he opened the heavy velvet watch case, the platinum Patek Philippe watch he had gifted to Song Yeongin was there, perfectly intact.

‘It’s not a kidnapping.’

If it had been a kidnapping by an external intruder, there would have been no time to calmly place the watch, a token of just the two of them, on the bed like this. It couldn’t be a disguise either. Who would know about the token of the two of them, which he had gifted as an engagement present, and stage something like this? Clearly, Song Yeongin had time to pack his things.

This was a message Song Yeongin had left for him.

A short and powerful message that he had abandoned everything Cha Woojin had given him and left this place on his own two feet.

Suddenly, something flashed through his mind. Cha Woojin hurriedly went down the stairs to Song Yeongin’s studio.

It was then that he realized that the large painting that had always been hanging in the center whenever he checked the CCTV was gone. It was definitely a painting of Cha Woojin’s own back.

After coming here, Song Yeongin had clung to that painting for days and nights without eating or sleeping.

“Haa… so the painting disappeared along with him.”

His clenched, straight jawline twitched roughly. A languid and tired sigh escaped through his teeth. The arrow was pointed at the one who had wanted Song Yeongin’s painting more than anyone.

“Song Yeongin…. what on earth have you done.”

Cha Woojin recalled those unsettling, bright red lips that had chattered like a siren when he was completely drunk.

‘When you get married, I’m going to go to James Han. I’m going to sleep with that person. I’m going to beg him to make it so you can never find me.’

‘You think I can’t do it? To escape from you, the power of an ordinary person won’t be enough, and it seems impossible unless it’s someone of that caliber…. I’ll go to that person and spread my legs myself and beg him to hold me.’

Cha Woojin scoffed in disbelief, as if finding it absurd.

“Ha…! Did he really go to James Han and spread his own thighs.”

At that moment, Park Sung-jae, who had entered the studio, gave another report with a difficult look on his face.

“Mr. Song Yeongin’s sister-in-law and nephew have disappeared. By the time we arrived, they had already moved all their belongings out of the apartment.”

Cha Woojin’s coldly chilled face muttered nonchalantly.

“So he planned his escape and ran away.”

“It seems so.”

“A planned escape is impossible without someone behind it, so find the mastermind who orchestrated the escape from behind. My father, my older sister, Shin Hwayeon, Matteo, Cha Seokhyun, Yoon Jioh… and James Han, all of them.”

However, Cha Woojin had a strong intuition about who was behind this incident without needing to investigate. The fact that the painting had disappeared was proof of it.

“Since the painting disappeared with him, look into James Han and Yoon Jioh’s side first.”

From the moment he had asked to meet Yoon Jioh alone, Cha Woojin had vaguely guessed Song Yeongin’s intentions.

Cha Woojin hurriedly looked for a contact number on his cell phone. It was James Han’s direct number, which he could contact without going through a secretary.

A few slow rings continued for a long time. But the other party did not answer Cha Woojin’s call.

With a loud crash, Cha Woojin’s cell phone, thrown violently to the floor, shattered.

“Haa, shit!”

Cha Woojin ordered Park Sung-jae with murderous eyes.

“Recruit a few snipers who are quick on their feet and have a car ready. I have to go meet James Han myself.”

A deep night arrived. He wasted a full half-day just finding James Han’s hidden residence. After breaking through a remote slope, he reached James Han’s magnificent mansion.

Cha Woojin had to suffer humiliation right from the entrance of the gate.

The persistent body searches by the security guards continued. Only after surrendering his own pistol, holstered, to the Russian mercenaries armed with machine guns, was Cha Woojin finally able to receive permission to enter alone.

The conditions James Han had presented for meeting Cha Woojin were only two. Discard his armed weapons, and come only by himself.

In the end, the accompanying Park Sung-jae, the snipers armed with guns, and the subordinates could not even enter the premises.

An intimidating figure in a disheveled black tailcoat suit walked in alone, following the guide of the magnificent and silent mansion.

James Han, who was sitting in front of a dark bar stand, greeted Cha Woojin with an impudent and detestable face. Cha Woojin’s cool and sharp eyes, weary, scanned the surroundings.

There were a total of six guards armed with guns all around. Four Russian guys, two Korean guys.

James Han raised a rock glass filled with whiskey and offered a sly greeting.

“Director Cha, would you like a drink?”

On the bar stand was a familiar skull-shaped whiskey bottle.

The moment he saw the very skull-shaped liquor bottle that James Han had teased Song Yeongin with, instructing him to be sure to bring it, Cha Woojin had to be dragged back to the day the three of them began their ill-fated relationship.

Cha Woojin had wanted, by all means, for Song Yeongin not to catch the eye of his rival in love, James Han. To hide Song Yeongin from James Han, he had not hesitated to resort to underhanded tricks like deliberately breaking the bottle and putting on a show.

Song Yeongin must have thought he was a madman.

Perhaps it was from then. That his gaze, like a man who had lost his mind, had been chasing after that kid.

‘Oscillating between hell and desire.’

Cha Woojin remembered the label written on the skull bottle. Ironically, that phrase was the same as Cha Woojin’s state of mind now.

It was James Han who broke the unpleasant silence.

“Congratulations on your engagement. Did the ceremony go well?”

“……”

“Unfortunately, I was not invited by Director Cha, so I could not attend. I would like to receive an invitation to the wedding for sure.”

Cha Woojin, in his disheveled tailcoat, emitted a murderous glint in the dark bar. A cruel darkness dwelled in his deep, jet-black eyes.

“My, did you rush here right after the engagement ceremony? You’re a mess.”

As Cha Woojin approached James Han, the guards armed with guns simultaneously began to move.

Cha Woojin, without batting an eye, muttered in a low voice.

“Cut the bullshit.”

James Han gestured to the guards who were approaching with their guns aimed, motioning for them to stand down. Cha Woojin moved closer to James Han, pushing the tip of his sharp, as if it could cut, nose towards him.

“Song Yeongin, where is he.”

James Han smiled slyly.

“My, this young punk is speaking quite informally.”

“……”

“Director Cha, were we on such casual terms that we could drop the formalities with each other? I don’t recall giving permission.”

James Han erased his sly smile and ground his teeth venomously. Cha Woojin’s eyes, fiercely glinting with a murderous aura, glared at his opponent and roared.

“If you want the painting, I’ll give you the painting. Instead, I need to get that kid back, so bring him before me, right now.”

“Hey, Director Cha Woojin. It seems you’re not grasping the situation…”

“……”

“The one who walked in on his own two feet and begged me to hide him so he could escape from you, was none other than Song Yeongin.”

Cha Woojin swiftly charged at James Han and grabbed him by the collar. As James Han was swayed by the vicious strength of the robust and fierce body, the guards positioned all around rushed over and restrained Cha Woojin’s body.

“No matter how crazy you are over one mistress, let’s not get excited and talk it out. Talk.”

Four guards held Cha Woojin’s limbs, and Cha Woojin struggled with an unbelievably powerful force. The remaining two Korean snipers still had their guns aimed at Cha Woojin’s legs and feet.

“Director Cha, if you keep causing a disturbance by invading my home, I will have no choice but to open fire. Act like a gentleman if you don’t want to be forced to your knees in front of me with your face shoved into the floor in a humiliating manner.”

As Cha Woojin, bound by four huge Russian men, showed a gesture of negotiation, James Han gestured for the guards to release him.

Cha Woojin, who had regained his composure in an instant, arrogantly brushed off his black tailcoat suit jacket with dignity, as if it had been soiled by dirty trash.

No matter how skilled he was in fighting and sparring, he could not handle six heavily armed men all at once. He had to keep a clear head. He had to cool down the cruel heat that was consuming him.

Taking deep breaths with his taut body, bristling with poison, Cha Woojin struggled to regain his reason and composure. Cha Woojin, who had been catching his breath for a while, spat at James Han.

“CEO Han, do you think you can stretch your legs and preserve your body on Korean soil even after making an enemy of Woosung and me like this?!”

“I know. That’s why it was a very difficult decision for me as well.”

It was a sly face that showed no agitation. Inside that belly, a thousand-year-old cunning serpent was endlessly coiled.

“I need to see Song Yeongin. I need to see his face and confirm it myself! Whether this is a kidnapping. Or, as you say, whether the kid came to you of his own free will.”

“Director Cha, unfortunately, Mr. Song Yeongin has told me that he does not want to see you. He also added that he hopes never to see you again in the future.”

Cha Woojin let out a dry, scornful laugh into the air like a madman.

“Han Joohyuk. You, listen carefully.”

“……”

“If you recklessly spirit my person away and won’t even let me confirm it. I have no choice but to use the method of getting a warrant and searching. Do you want to wage a legal battle in Korea?”

James Han shook his head as if he couldn’t be stopped. He gave an order to his subordinate over the phone.

“Bring Song Yeongin.”

— He says he absolutely will not meet him.

James Han looked at Cha Woojin and smiled.

“He says he doesn’t want to meet Director Cha…”

An enraged Cha Woojin warned with ferocious eyes.

“Bring Song Yeongin before my eyes right now!”

“……”

“If not, I will report the evidence that you are the culprit who stole the masterpiece, <The Last Judgment> by Hans Memling, which was stolen from you, to the American media and agencies.”

“……”

“If you don’t want to get fucked, bring him here right now.”

Under the protection of an armed guard, Song Yeongin appeared. Dressed in a white shirt neatly fastened to the end of his long, slender neck, Song Yeongin had a more tidy and holy face than ever.

However, Cha Woojin knew very well why Song Yeongin had no choice but to wear a shirt tightly buttoned up to his neck. Under that neck, the white, delicate skin was filled with the traces of a debauched affair, which he himself had sucked on and crushed all last night.

Buttoning up to the neck was to hide the dense red bruises and marks that were scattered underneath. His thick, red lips, torn where the scabs had peeled off, were letting out incomplete breaths.

Until the very end, Song Yeongin desperately did not want to come face to face with Cha Woojin. It was because he felt that if he saw his eyes and face, the fortress he had built with all his might would crumble in an instant.

However, James Han’s secretary persuaded Song Yeongin that if he did not reveal with his own mouth that it was not a kidnapping, James Han could be put in a difficult situation.

He explained that to prevent future disputes, the recording and record from Song Yeongin’s mouth, in a three-way meeting, had to be delivered to the legal team.

It was an outfit that suggested he had rushed over after attending the engagement ceremony. The black cummerbund wrapped around the tailcoat, cinching his waist, further emphasized the man’s sensual physique. That fierce and intimidating body came into Song Yeongin’s sight. The black bow tie was untied. Though he was disheveled, he had the appearance of the most perfect groom in the world.

As his eyes met the man in the disheveled tailcoat, his small, frightened face twitched. Song Yeongin looked away from him and avoided his gaze so as not to reveal his own cracks.

Cha Woojin approached Song Yeongin. Several guards who had been sticking close surrounded Song Yeongin. James Han ordered the guards to break the encirclement.

“Now, as Director Cha wanted, you can confirm Mr. Song Yeongin’s intention directly from him.”

“……”

“However, if Mr. Song Yeongin does not want to go back to Director Cha, I intend to fulfill my duty to protect Mr. Song Yeongin. Don’t forget your promise to me.”

The large man in the roughly disheveled tailcoat straightened his broad shoulders and bent his body towards Song Yeongin. A low baritone voice echoed in his ear.

“Look at me straight.”

Cha Woojin grabbed the thin shoulders of Song Yeongin, who was avoiding his gaze. As the man’s hand gripped the thin shirt and touched his skin, Song Yeongin had no way to control his madly trembling body. The tip of a sharp and straight nose approached him.

“Say it was a kidnapping.”

Cha Woojin already knew the answer. However, he was pressing Song Yeongin for only one correct answer.

He didn’t want to know the truth. What he needed were the words that this was not Song Yeongin’s own will, but a kidnapping by James Han. His deep, jet-black eyes crashed into Song Yeongin without hesitation, as if to pierce through him.

“It’s not too late even now. If you want, you can go back with me right away. So… say that you’re not here because you wanted to be.”

Finally, Song Yeongin bravely met the gaze he had been avoiding. His neat eyes, blinking slowly, and his heartbreakingly sorrowful face with the corners of his eyes wet and red, gazed blankly at Cha Woojin’s jet-black eyes. The man’s coolly drawn eyes wavered.

The Cha Woojin he knew was not there.

The cold-blooded face, which always hid its inner thoughts and erased its expressions, was filled with overflowing agitated emotions and anxious thoughts. Jealousy, excitement, and things like an unidentifiable misery and humiliation were tangled up in a mess.