Why Min Sanghan?
“……”
A sharp sting pierced my eye, like being jabbed with a needle. I must’ve gotten blood in it from the cut on my forehead.
“Honestly, we just do what we’re told, so I don’t know the reason.”
The guy grinned, watching me struggle for breath.
“That’s why I get curious every time we get orders. Especially on days like today. The higher-ups usually just tell us to torture, not to kill outright.”
Starting from my fingertips, a cold numbness spread through my entire body. My sluggish mind couldn’t fully process what I’d just heard and kept replaying it over and over.
The guy, clearly amused by my reaction, suddenly froze. Then, as if sensing someone nearby, he turned around.
“Oh… they’re here.”
It didn’t seem like the ones who had left earlier were back already. It was more like he’d been expecting someone else entirely. Muttering to himself, he stood up and began walking away. I remained slumped on the floor, dazed, watching his back retreat.
He opened the door and spoke with someone on the other side.
“We need to secure the target first before we can hand things over to you. He’s alive, so you can just check on his condition for now.”
With a gruff tone, he stepped aside.
Then someone stepped into view.
“……!”
I stopped breathing.
My eyes went wide as I stared at the newcomer. He, too, froze when he saw me.
“Mmph, mmph!”
Why the hell would he come here? This was a den of monsters who toyed with human lives—and Min Yugeon had walked right into it.
More than wondering how he got here or what he’d talked about with that guy, it was the reality unfolding in front of me that filled me with dread.
“Suho……”
Min Yugeon couldn’t even say my name properly, like he was in shock. His sunken face, which had grown noticeably gaunt since I last saw him, was framed by eyes trembling violently.
He rushed to me, his hands trembling as he tried to lift me up.
“S-Suho. I’m here. I’m sorry… I’m so sorry I came so late.”
He pressed his teeth together in fear as he gently touched my bruised cheek. Then, realizing the gag in my mouth, he quickly undid it. The guy who had been watching us from nearby just glanced down at his watch, looking bored, then turned his back. It looked like he’d gotten a message from someone.
“Did they hit you? Huh? Did they do this to you?” His voice cracked. “Did they beat you this badly?”
“……”
“It must’ve hurt so much.”
Tears streamed uncontrollably from Min Yugeon’s eyes, like something inside him had broken. As soon as the numbness around my mouth wore off, I spoke.
“You… are you crazy? Why the hell would you come here?”
You should’ve called the Security Force. What the hell were you thinking, barging in here alone like this? The urge to scold him bubbled up, tangled with my fear.
I was about to tell him to contact the Security Force now, but the words caught in my throat.
“Where else? Where else did they hit you?”
He kept shaking his head, refusing to acknowledge my words, fumbling to ask about my injuries.
That’s when I realized how bad it was.
Min Yugeon was in full-blown panic.
“Hey! Don’t untie the hands and feet!”
The guy watching us shouted. I flinched and glanced toward him, but Min Yugeon just blinked, unbothered.
“……!”
“Here…”
He yanked up my shirt and looked at my battered skin, covered in bruises and cuts. His brown eyes darkened as he took in the damage to my abdomen from all the kicks and punches.
“I told them not to touch you…”
He muttered, the trembling in his voice slowly fading.
“That bastard, huh?”
His eyes turned cold, lips drawn into a tight line.
The atmosphere seemed to calm, but it wasn’t a comforting calm. There was something eerie about it, something off. I swallowed hard, uneasy at the strange stillness.
“I’m okay, Min Yugeon. This isn’t the time to be worrying about me… Call for help now, please.”
I lowered my voice, gesturing subtly at his watch. My own wrist was bare—those bastards must’ve taken my watch while I was out.
“…Call for help?”
Min Yugeon tilted his head. Then, instead of doing that, he reached for my wrist and began untying the restraints.
“No, Suho.”
“What?”
“Then I wouldn’t be able to make him feel the same pain.”
“Fuck! What the hell are you doing?!”
The thug swore, storming toward us. He looked furious that Min Yugeon was blatantly doing exactly what he’d warned against.
He closed in fast, and with Min Yugeon’s back turned, utterly defenseless, I felt like I was about to lose my mind with worry. I shook my head urgently.
“Don’t do it. He’s got a knife—get out of the way!”
“……”
“Can’t you hear me?!”
As soon as I shouted in frustration, the rope on my wrist came loose. But it was already too late to act with my freed hand. The thug had drawn a knife and was already right behind Min Yugeon. A wave of despair swept through me.
But in a flash, Min Yugeon spun around and struck the thug’s wrist. Clang! The knife slipped from the man’s grasp with a sharp metallic clatter as he groaned in pain.
“You—! Gah!”
The rope that had bound my wrists was now looped around the thug’s neck. The guy probably had decent reflexes, but Min Yugeon was just too fast—he couldn’t react in time.
“Ghhhk! Grrgh!”
With the rope yanked tight like he meant to snap the man’s neck, veins bulged in Min Yugeon’s hand. The thug gagged and thrashed, his air supply cut off.
Just as the thug’s face turned a dark shade of purple, Min Yugeon loosened his grip slightly. But he didn’t give him a chance to recover. As the man sputtered and wheezed, he was kicked squarely in the gut.
“Urgh! Ghhack…!”
I watched in stunned silence, too dazed to even think about untying my bound ankles.
It didn’t look like he was kicking a person—more like a lifeless object. The sound of the impact echoed through the room, far more brutal than anything I’d endured. He didn’t seem to be avoiding any vital areas, either.
He wasn’t even out of breath. There wasn’t the slightest sign of hesitation as Min Yugeon inflicted pain on the thug, his expression emotionless. It wasn’t just shocking—it was terrifying.
I wasn’t scared because he seemed like a different person. The Min Yugeon I knew could never hurt someone. But now, because of me, he was unleashing that same violence on someone else. It was unbearable to realize that I was the reason his hands were being stained like this.
“…Yugeon.”
My voice didn’t reach him. He kept landing punches on the now-unconscious thug’s face. Panic surged in my chest.
I tried to get up, forgetting my legs were still bound, and ended up collapsing to my knees. I scrambled to untie the rope, but the knot was far too complex. I couldn’t understand how Min Yugeon had undone it so quickly.
I spotted the knife on the floor nearby. Crawling toward it, I picked it up. I cut at the rope, slicing my hand in the process, but I didn’t even feel the pain—my focus was entirely on Min Yugeon.
“Min Yugeon!”
“……!”
I sprang to my feet and tackled him from behind, wrapping my arms around him. Only then did he stop.
Holding him tightly, I buried my face into his shoulder.
“Stop. Please, stop. You’ll kill him at this rate.”
“…Seo Suho.”
“Yeah. I’m right here. I’m with you.”
My voice trembled pathetically as I tried to soothe him.
Min Yugeon slowly turned to look at me. I wiped the blood off his face with my hand, and finally, some light returned to his brown eyes.
“I was so…”
Facing me, he quivered and stepped away from the thug’s body. Then he pulled me into a tight hug, enough to bend my waist backward.
“I was so, so scared.”
His earlier savagery seemed like a lie—the fragile voice that reached my ears shattered me.
“I was scared you’d get hurt. That… that I wouldn’t see you again.”
“……”
“I knew you might never forgive me for this, but I came anyway.”
“Why would I not forgive you?”
No—what did you even do that needs forgiving?
I closed my eyes and wrapped my arms around his back.
I felt Min Yugeon take a deep breath.
“Suho, I—!”
Wait.
His voice, still thick with tears, was abruptly cut off by a sharp whizzing sound slicing through the air.
I opened my eyes just in time to see Min Yugeon spinning around, still holding me tightly.
“Ah…”
For a moment, because he hadn’t let go, I almost believed nothing had happened. But then I saw the look in his eyes, and behind him—
The thug was grinning, blood smeared across his gums.
He must have just woken up—or maybe he’d been faking it. His arm was extended, frozen mid-throw.
I reached up with trembling fingers and felt along Min Yugeon’s back. There it was—the weapon, embedded in his shoulder blade. It was the same type of knife I’d picked up earlier.
I hadn’t even considered that the thug might’ve hidden a backup weapon.
“Sorry.”
But the apology didn’t come from me.
It was Min Yugeon.
He pressed his forehead against mine, his face drenched in cold sweat.
“You can hate me if you want… Just please stay with me.”
What are you saying?
I wanted to snap at him, to demand an explanation, but all that came out was a ragged breath. My head was clear, but my mouth wouldn’t work. It was like I’d forgotten how to speak.
Bang!
A sudden gunshot rang out.
I turned my head just in time to see someone standing at the doorway, gun aimed at the thug.
The thug collapsed.
The person who had fired slowly turned to look at me—and his face, battered and bruised, looked uncannily like Ji Chanwoo.
At that exact moment, Min Yugeon’s body gave out.
