An unexpected request made me recall what he had said before. But he had rambled on about so many things while I remained silent that I had no idea what, exactly, he wanted me to forget.
“What is it that you want me to forget?”
I cut my thoughts short and asked him directly since he was the only one who could answer. But instead of opening his tightly shut lips, he walked toward me.
Then, he sank to the floor and rested his face against my lap. He buried himself completely, leaving only the vibrant flames of his hair visible in my line of sight.
“…The things I said when Seo-yul hyung wasn’t around.”
He spoke in a whisper, his voice so faint that I would have missed it if the bedroom hadn’t been so silent. As if he didn’t want me to hear it at all.
It was a conversation we had needed to move forward, something necessary for us to step out of the past. And yet, now he was suddenly telling me to forget it. Why?
“Why do you want me to forget that?”
“Because I regret saying it.”
His response came instantly, firm and unwavering. I wanted to ask why he regretted it, but the hand resting lightly on my thigh sent a silent plea, urging me not to press any further.
When I noticed his trembling fingertips, I closed my mouth. Only then did he let out a deep sigh of relief. He stayed there, leaning against me, unmoving for a long time.
“Seo-yul hyung, do you think I’m pitiful?”
Slowly, he lifted his head and looked at me. Though there were no tears, the rims of his eyes were flushed red. I hesitated, not knowing how to answer, and in that moment of silence, his gaze wavered, and he let out a faint smile.
“You’re weak when it comes to pitiful people, Seo-yul hyung. That’s why you saved me, right? Out of everyone around you, I was the most pitiful.”
To be precise, it wasn’t that I was weak to pitiful people—I had helped him simply because I needed to. I had pulled him out of that warehouse and treated him well, but he believed it was because I was a good person.
I was nothing of the sort.
“So I tried to look that way. Since you’re weak to someone pitiful like me, I thought… if I kept looking that way, you’d never leave my side.”
The conversations we had to break free from the past—he was now confessing that he had used them to tether me to it. His face contorted as he forced himself to keep speaking.
“Honestly, it was embarrassing. It was shameful. The person you used to like… wasn’t like that, right? In your memories, I must have been so… clean.”
“No—”
I was about to tell him that he was wrong. That while I longed for the old him, that wasn’t all there was to it. But in the time I hesitated, our gazes had already drifted apart.
He raised a hand to rub at his eyes before pulling away from me. His expression had returned to normal, perfectly composed, yet his crimson eyes still flickered with unrest.
“I’ll clear the table.”
Gathering up the plates that had been scattered across the room, he left the bedroom. Even after the door closed behind him, I remained seated, unmoving. His wavering eyes wouldn’t leave my mind.
—Come with me. Let’s get out of this wretched hell.
The time left before I had to leave him alone in this place—this so-called hell—was running out. Once he became the District Head, he wouldn’t be able to leave the mansion except under special circumstances. As long as I succeeded in escaping, this would be a permanent farewell.
—Just asking to be sure, but you don’t have any lingering attachments, do you?
When Choi Yeo-min had carefully posed that question, I had told him no. But I knew he had seen through me. The hesitation in my voice was obvious. It was written all over his face as he looked at me.
I had only one lingering attachment to this place.
You.
The fool who clung to me for eight long years, unable to forget. The one who endured endless suffering for my sake. The one I had no choice but to leave behind, despite the pain it would bring us both.
I told you to forget me. Why couldn’t you? What was so great about the bastard who abandoned you that you still couldn’t let go after all this time? Idiot. Stupid, pathetic idiot.
It’s going to be hard for you, isn’t it?
This choice of mine meant abandoning you once again after you had already spent eight years surviving on your own. But this was the best I could do. Time would eventually dull the ache, and I could only hope that, to you, I would become nothing more than a fleeting memory of the past.
The thought of you with someone else sent a dull ache through my chest. But that was the burden of guilt I would have to bear.
When enough time passed, when you finally forgot me—I hoped you would be happy.
…Though, that was a lie.
Every time I reminded myself that I didn’t have much time left, the truth I had buried deep inside clawed its way to the surface. No matter how much I tried to shove it back down, emotions, once released, were never so easily erased.
This time, I have to endure until the end.
Wrapping my arms around myself, I curled into a ball. I bit my lip and swallowed back the words that threatened to spill out—again and again. Until he returned, I kept suppressing the truth that fought to escape.
This time, I swore, I wouldn’t do anything I’d regret.
When he came back, I schooled my expression into indifference, acting as if nothing had changed. Even as I saw the hurt flash across his face, I pretended not to notice. That was how I spent the last of our remaining time.
More than anything, I prayed that Choi Yeo-min would take me out of this wretched place as soon as possible.
***
Yeo-min couldn’t understand it.
The Apostle, who had never tolerated even the slightest deviation from his plans, had not only dragged Vincent Shining into this mess but was now ordering him to reveal an identity he had kept hidden for so long.
The Apostles of Night were as elusive as their cult’s enigmatic leader. Their identities, numbers—everything about them was shrouded in secrecy. But now, thanks to the unfathomable schemes of the Fourth Apostle, it was confirmed that there were two Apostles within the mansion alone.
If Vincent Shining betrayed them and captured Yeo-min, the plan built upon countless sacrifices would likely end in failure. But unlike the anxious Yeo-min, the Apostle seemed completely at ease.
“Do you trust Vincent Shining?”
Unable to hold back any longer, Yeo-min asked. The Apostle, who had been staring at the empty space where Vincent had just stood, nodded without hesitation.
“He came to me because he couldn’t get what he wanted on his own.”
“That’s all it takes…?”
“He’s the type to do anything to get what he wants. No—Shinings are all like that. Their obsession is rather intense, wouldn’t you say?”
Having witnessed that obsession firsthand, Yeo-min knew better than anyone how suffocating it could be. Just thinking about how Seo-yul suffered because of it made rage swell in his chest.
That was precisely why he couldn’t accept the Apostle’s decision to involve Vincent in their plans. Because Yeo-min hated Vincent Shining.
“You have something you need to do, Yeo-min.”
“What is it?”
“Right now, you’re with the Omega that Vincent Shining has, aren’t you?”
The moment those words left the Apostle’s lips, a deep, creeping unease began to rise within Yeo-min. Only then did he realize what Vincent Shining was asking for in return.
There was only one thing he was obsessed with.
“Introduce me to that Omega.”
“Why—”
“Because we have to give Vincent Shining what he wants.”
Just as Yeo-min had feared, the Apostle had promised Vincent Shining Seo-yul.
If Vincent Shining was willing to kill the District Head, the Apostle would ensure Seo-yul remained bound to his side, no matter what.
Should he have spoken up earlier? Told them that he was planning to take Seo-yul and escape the mansion? Asked for just a little help?
But it was too late. The deal had already been made between the Apostle and Vincent Shining.
If I speak up now, I might have to give up on Han Seo-yul.
Forcing himself to remain calm, Yeo-min schooled his expression into indifference. Hiding his true intentions, he promised the Apostle that he would arrange a meeting with Seo-yul soon. The Apostle, oblivious to his deceit, merely smiled and thanked him.
It was only after he left the Apostle’s room—before Ina Shining could return—that Yeo-min finally let out the breath he had been holding.
From this moment on, his plan to take Seo-yul and escape had to remain hidden from the Apostle and every last cultist in the mansion.
Will I be able to pull this off?
Trying to get Seo-yul out of this chaos-ridden mansion without any help would be no easy feat. And with Vincent Shining determined to stay by Seo-yul’s side, separating them would be a challenge in itself.
—I want to leave this place.
He had to admit it. The moment he heard Seo-yul’s true feelings, everything started to fall apart.
Now, his only focus was to get Seo-yul out of the mansion the moment the Moon of Humanity fell.
He couldn’t explain why, even to himself, but somehow, he now valued Seo-yul more than all the comrades he had fought alongside until now. Rather than dwell on it, he chose to bury his emotions deep inside, refusing to examine them too closely.
Tomorrow.
When the long Day of the District began, and the festival reached its end—Seo-yul and he would finally escape this hell.
