Heavy Rain Chapter 44

“Do you have any orders, Chairman?”

“No. Carry on.”

The proportion of Alphas in occupations like security was quite high. Therefore, it shouldn’t have been such a sudden or fresh observation. It was likely because he felt a surge of anger whenever he recalled the former butler, who had been a recessive Alpha. Lyle dismissed this unpleasant sensation with that thought.

Ascending the stairs, Haejin’s bedroom door came into view. The familiar bright pastel-toned engraved patterns stuck out garishly in his field of vision.

Standing briefly before Haejin’s bedroom door, Lyle knocked cautiously. After a moment’s pause, a small voice was heard. It was strange how time seemed to slow down just to open a door.

“…”

“…”

Only a few days had passed, but it felt as though he hadn’t seen Haejin’s face in quite a long time. And the moment their eyes met, Lyle realized he was in no position to exchange warm greetings with the boy.

Haejin, who had stood up awkwardly, stepped down by the bedside. The moment those thin ankles touched the floor, Lyle reflexively swallowed hard.

“Let’s talk for a moment.”

The boy nodded silently. Looking at that swaying hair, Lyle felt as though the expression on the boy’s face when he first opened the door had been somewhat grim.

Lyle strode forward without realizing it. Unlike him, Haejin naturally turned around and headed toward a small table set in one corner of the bedroom. Lyle’s gaze followed the back of that small head tenaciously.

Only after they sat facing each other did Haejin show his face again. Because that felt strangely tense, Lyle brought up the main point hastily.

“I believe the secretary gave you a rough explanation of the situation first.”

“Yes.”

There was no trace of the expression that had briefly flickered on Haejin as he answered obediently. No, to be precise, there was no trace of emotion at all.

Lyle hid his discomfort at that indifferent response. It’s not that he was foolish enough to think he would hear praise for his actions now. It was just that the attitude of acting as if this were all someone else’s business weighed on him.

“I’m going to file a lawsuit against the ones I fired. However, I don’t intend to place you as the primary subject of the legal proceedings.”

“…”

“If you want to be a party to the lawsuit, I will provide a lawyer for you. However, in that case, you might have to appear in court.”

“I just… don’t want to be involved in anything.”

“…”

At that attitude of not even thinking twice, Lyle cautiously brushed his hand against his mouth. Since he had heard from the secretary in advance, he might have organized his thoughts beforehand. Even considering that, something was still strange.

Why did he keep thinking of the boy wandering outside barefoot at this moment?

“…Then they will only be punished for embezzlement or other professional negligence. Will you be okay with that?”

To describe it as “only,” the retaliation Lyle was planning was much larger. Nevertheless, as if trying to provoke him, Lyle watched Haejin’s reaction closely.

Even so, the boy merely nodded again. He must have been humiliated by the former butler to the point where even killing the man wouldn’t be enough, so why?

“I heard you’ve been staying only inside the bedroom lately.”

“…That is correct.”

Lyle spoke out of an unknown sense of thirst. Every time he received a report, Haejin’s motionless attitude was certainly that of a victim.

Of course, his leg hurt, so it would be better to preserve his body for the time being. The problem was that his food intake was also poor, so a vicious cycle was repeating. Could it be that staying cooped up in the room was the problem?

Somehow, it felt as though Haejin’s face had turned even paler in the last few days.

“There is no one left in this house who will mistreat you. So, feel free to walk around as much as you like. Tell me if you need anything.”

After saying those words, he was concerned about the state of the boy’s leg again. He needed to be able to go to the hospital for an accurate diagnosis, but the dispatched doctor had said it was more important not to push him mentally for the time being.

Haejin did not respond to Lyle’s words. Even though he was staring intently at those lips, they remained stubbornly closed.

He was curious about the look in Haejin’s eyes that had vanished after a brief encounter. Those thick, slightly lowered eyelashes were blocking Haejin’s gaze, just like the day the boy had closed the window in front of Lyle.

Haejin’s collarbone, where faint traces of him still remained, was visible through his clothes. Seeing those faded marks, Lyle’s fists inexplicably tightened.

Continuing to observe Haejin, Lyle let out the words he had intended to say as soon as he entered this room, sounding like a sigh.

“First, …I apologize for what happened.”

“…”

Haejin remained silent. Even though he had come expecting this, that silence felt only like a wordless rebuke. Lyle, who had never been nervous in any situation, realized that his current state was abnormal.

Struggling to pull himself together, Lyle calmly brought out the words he had prepared.

“Especially that day, I am sorry about the knotting. …It was not intentional.”

“I’m sure it wasn’t.”

Unlike Haejin, who affirmed calmly, the words “it was not intentional” felt like spitting out an awl to Lyle.

This was why a body swayed by pheromones was inconvenient. At any rate, having awakened his cold reason again thanks to that, Lyle continued speaking as he laid out several documents on the table.

“If any problems arise regarding that, I will ensure they are handled in the direction you want as much as possible.”

This knotting was a mistake on a different dimension than the last time. It had been more persistent and longer than before, and Haejin had happened to be in the middle of a heat cycle. Since he was a recessive, the probability of pregnancy would still be low, but he couldn’t help but prepare for the worst.

He couldn’t bring himself to force Haejin to undergo surgery if an accident occurred. He couldn’t possibly make the person more ragged than this.

A new heir might be created. So clearly, even if it meant incurring greater resentment, it would be right to force Haejin into the hospital. Nevertheless, among the various plans, that was the only one Lyle couldn’t bring himself to bring.

The document he had presented now was the best option he had chosen. It stated that he would provide child support but would prevent involvement in any further inheritance issues. It was an appalling situation that wouldn’t have happened if he hadn’t made a mistake in the first place. Lyle was starting to vaguely realize that his body did not move as he willed when it came to Haejin.

In contrast to Lyle’s worries, Haejin answered without hesitation.

“I will undergo surgery without resisting, so do not worry.”

“…”

Unlike that calm voice, Lyle’s heartbeat was exceptionally loud.

It was clearly a welcome thing. It was also what he had expected in the first place. From Haejin’s perspective, wouldn’t it obviously be an unwanted child?

But why was he so anxious?

This sensation coiling inside him like a whirlpool was now irritating his nerves to an excessive degree. This was not normal. Just as Haejin’s physical condition had been strange for a few days due to Lyle’s pheromones, Lyle himself must have been influenced as well.

He suppressed the unknown unpleasantness with effort. The negotiation with Haejin was proceeding even more smoothly than expected.

“If there is anything you want as compensation…”

“Mr. Vermouth.”

“…”

At the voice that cut him off firmly, this time a chill ran down his spine. Lyle reflexively looked out the window, thinking it was raining. Contrary to his expectation, the sky was perfectly clear.

“I want to leave this place now.”

“…”

At the voice that followed, Lyle swallowed the shock as if he had been struck in the head. Why had he naturally assumed that Haejin would stay?

The clause stating he could quit at any time was the single condition Haejin had requested. Just as he had asked for the right to go see his parents when they first made the contract.

Lyle, who had a history of crushing even that one condition, simply could not refuse this request. He shouldn’t have.

He knew that, but he couldn’t bring himself to readily say yes.

“I would like you to… think about that… again.”

“What is the reason?”

Haejin, who slightly lowered his eyes again, asked dryly. The faint sigh he let out even felt as though it were rushing to crack Lyle’s skin.