Cha Han-gyeom had been staring down at the black apple as if looking into someone’s face, when he suddenly snapped out of it.
The prelude to the seizure that had been tormenting him had completely subsided without him even noticing. Only then did the black energy that had been saturating the apple begin to fade.
His pupils trembled slightly as he watched the ghostly apple gradually turn transparent.
‘Seo Won…’
Without realizing it, he called Seo Won’s name from behind tightly shut lips.
Like a forbidden name that might unravel something if spoken aloud, it was whispered with the utmost caution.
Han-gyeom had never thought of Seo Won’s black energy as his own innate power.
Of course he hadn’t.
Because the energy within Seo Won unmistakably carried remnants of Song Yeon-woo.
The one who had once asked him to kill him, while still making contradictory promises that they’d live on together. It felt as if that man had returned, like smoke, finding his way back to him.
Even though Han-gyeom knew that the overwhelming energy of Song Yeon-woo was, in truth, as faint and fragile as his strained breaths, he had stubbornly refused to accept it. Because no matter how long it had been since he died, his Imprinter was—and had always been—Song Yeon-woo.
But right now, he had no choice but to acknowledge it.
The energy he’d just embraced—whose it was, who it reminded him of.
Whether there was even a trace of Song Yeon-woo left in it at all.
Who his current Imprinter truly was.
‘…So what?’
His heart was making strange noises.
Previously pounding fast from the seizure, it now thudded in a chaotic rhythm, like a squeaky wheel echoing in his skull.
In sync with that unsettling beat, Han-gyeom’s fingers clenched the now-transparent ghost apple as if they were about to crush a block of ice.
‘I only did it to calm the seizure. That’s all it was.’
Recalling Seo Won’s face, following his instructions—it was only to suppress the seizure.
Because in this place where Yeon-woo no longer existed, it was the only way for him to survive.
‘It’s not that I’ve forgotten him…’
Swallowing down the words like hammering a nail into his chest, he lifted his head.
And there, still holding the phone up to his ear, was Jung Ah-young, locking eyes with him.
“Are you okay? You’re really okay, right?”
Ah-young asked in a rush—twice.
She didn’t know what on earth was happening, nor what Seo Won had said to Han-gyeom over the phone.
All she could do was hold her breath and focus entirely on Han-gyeom’s breathing and expression.
Compared to earlier, his face looked far more stable, and his breathing had eased too.
But still, she needed to hear it from his own mouth to truly feel at ease.
As if sensing her worry, Han-gyeom offered her a faint smile.
“I’m okay now.”
“Ah—thank goodness!”
Ah-young exhaled deeply in relief and pressed a hand to her chest.
“My heart seriously almost dropped! And with that damn executive nowhere to be found, I was just—ugh…”
– Tell Jung Ah-young to shut up. Everything can be heard from here.
“Ah-young, Seo Won says he can hear everything……..”
“Huh….”
Ah-young, who had forgotten her own volume, quickly covered her mouth with one hand.
Meanwhile, Cha Han-gyeom’s phone, which was almost touching his ear, conveyed Seo Won’s voice.
– How are you feeling?
“You must have just heard. I’m fine now.”
– That’s a relief.
The voice coming from the other end became much softer. It was not a voice deliberately made to soothe Han-gyeom, but a genuinely relieved, soft tone.
As soon as he noticed this, he felt his heart making a strange, creaking sound again.
He could tell from even a small, soft reaction how Seo Won’s emotions were moving. He had realized long ago that the kind words Seo Won had said to suppress his seizure were not just for the sake of ‘a slave for guiding.’
Seo Won’s feelings were slowly flowing in the direction he wanted, whether in desired situations or undesired ones.
So, he should naturally feel satisfied, but for some reason, his heart kept making inexplicable noises.
Like a wheel constantly rattling because it was caught on something small.
***
“Phew….”
Seo Won let out a long sigh as he lowered his phone. His complicated breath spread through the quiet taxi he had taken with Yoon Jeong-ho.
After confirming that Han-gyeom’s condition had stabilized, Seo Won was able to hear about what had happened at the mansion through Jung Ah-young. The terrorists had not simply taken Song Jae-woo hostage but had also tried to use him to take Han-gyeom out of the mansion.
‘Should I change the mansion?’
Seo Won was already thinking about changing the mansion where he had stayed for so long. He wanted to do whatever it took to keep the terrorists’ hands off Han-gyeom.
‘He’s mine.’
The mere thought of others coveting what was his made his stomach churn.
He had taken many things and had many things taken from him in his life.
He had been taught that this was natural, and he had heard countless times that the one who takes the most is the winner.
He had also heard that the one who ‘monopolizes’ is the sole winner.
That’s why he was even angrier.
At all those who tried to take Cha Han-gyeom, whom he was monopolizing.
As Seo Won was thinking about the terrorists with a fierce look in his eyes, he suddenly felt a gaze and turned his head. Yoon Jeong-ho, who was sitting next to him, was looking at him from a distance, almost sticking to the window.
A stiff voice came out of Jeong-ho’s mouth, who had been quiet as a mouse until then.
“Who are you?”
“What are you talking about?”
“Have you lost your mind?”
“Do you want to die, Yoon Jeong-ho?”
“No, I don’t want to die, but I’m genuinely curious.”
Yoon Jeong-ho, with a completely serious expression, widened his eyes as he looked at Seo Won.
“I’ve never heard you use such a sweet voice before. It’s already making my ears buzz.”
Seo Won turned his gaze out the car window, as if it wasn’t worth responding. The dazzling nightscape quickly filled his vision.
“I can guess who you were talking to… But why? Is he sick or something?”
“Mind your own business.”
“You’re so cold. Why not just tell me?”
Jeong-ho grumbled, pouting, and turned his head sharply to look out the opposite window, as if genuinely sulking. Behind him, Seo Won’s sharp voice rang out.
“But you’re not asking.”
“I did ask. You told me to mind my own business, remember?”
“Not that.”
Turning back to Seo Won, Jeong-ho could see the cold eyes staring at him. If it weren’t night, those blue eyes would be shining brightly, but now they were dark and piercing.
“Aren’t you going to ask what happened at the mansion?”
Unlike before, this time the answer didn’t come immediately.
Seo Won was the only one who had heard the situation explained by Ah-young over the phone. Since meeting Seo Won, Yoon Jeong-ho hadn’t teleported anywhere, so he had no way of knowing what had happened elsewhere from that point until now. He didn’t know how Lim Du-hyuk was handling the situation at the hotel, or what had happened at the mansion with Jung Ah-young and Cha Han-gyeom.
Even though Yoon Jeong-ho was sitting right next to him, it wouldn’t have been difficult to understand the conversation with Ah-young.
Ah-young had left the room after leaving Han-gyeom and other bodyguards with the unconscious Song Jae-woo, and she had even lowered her voice to report the situation. All Jeong-ho had heard was Seo Won’s occasional responses like ‘I see’ or ‘Keep him safe until I return.’
Naturally, he should be curious about the situation at the mansion, but for some reason, Jeong-ho didn’t ask about how things were going. He had asked if Cha Han-gyeom was sick, but nothing else.
Seo Won stared intently at Jeong-ho’s eyes, obscured by the darkness, as if trying to catch even the slightest tremor.
Jeong-ho, who had been quiet, suddenly grinned playfully.
“Would you even tell me if I asked? Never mind, I’ll find out when we get there.”
Jeong-ho laughed cheerfully and leaned back into his seat. There was not a hint of tension in his demeanor.
“Besides, we’re going to the hotel, and Lim Du-hyuk will brief us with a few others. I’ll hear it then, so why waste a reaction by asking now?”
Yoon Jeong-ho shrugged and then, with a serious look, warned, “‘I’ll make sure to react spectacularly later, so don’t spoil it by telling me now.'” Seo Won silently watched Jeong-ho for a moment before casually turning his gaze away.
Jeong-ho, pretending to close his eyes as if to sleep, secretly observed Seo Won through narrowed lids. The cheerful smile on his face twisted in an odd way.
As the taxi sped through the deep darkness, neither of them spoke a word, keeping their silence.
