The moment the master of the district granted permission, he kicked the door open and stormed inside. Bathed in the moonlight streaming through the window, the district’s master greeted him with his usual relaxed smile.
“What brings you here?”
Suppressing the nausea threatening to rise, he flung the bullet in his hand toward the master of the district. The bullet rolled across the carpet, splattering thick blood as it tumbled. The master of the district furrowed his brows as he examined it.
“Seo-yul hyung has disappeared.”
“Seo-yul?”
The master of the district tilted his head, belatedly recalling that the name he had just heard belonged to Han Jae-hoon’s son. He couldn’t fathom why this man was questioning him about the sudden disappearance of that omega.
“I have no idea what you’re trying to say.”
Rather than answering, he jerked his chin toward something. Following his gesture, the master of the district lowered his gaze and noticed the bullet at his feet.
Upon closer inspection, the blood had obscured the symbol of the moon. That mark was undeniable—it was a bullet that only the private soldiers under the district leader’s command were permitted to use.
Only then did the master of the district understand why he had suddenly barged in like this. A blood-soaked bullet, engraved with the moon’s emblem.
A situation more than enough to be misunderstood.
“Where is Seo-yul hyung?”
His patience had long since worn thin, but he struggled to maintain his composure. However, with every second of delay, his barely restrained fury threatened to explode.
Watching him futilely suppress his emotions, the master of the district couldn’t help but smirk. Even the one he thought might have some use was this defective.
He never should have allowed that omega to remain by his side in the first place. He never should have made such a promise.
“And if I say it wasn’t me, will you believe me?”
As expected, the district master’s response was shameless. Even in the face of irrefutable evidence, he still had the audacity to deny it. The moment those words left his lips, the barrel of a gun extended toward him.
***
“Urgh….”
A sharp, searing pain in his head jolted him awake. It felt like he had been struck by an assailant—he must have lost consciousness instantly. Everything after that was blank.
The moment his mind cleared, the memory of his near-death resurfaced. The gunshot that rang in his ears, the blood splattering in all directions, and the heavy thud of his attendant’s collapsing body.
The thick stench of blood hit him all at once, and his stomach lurched violently. His body convulsed in dry heaves, but there was nothing left to vomit. Only after a long while did he manage to calm himself and take in his surroundings.
I can’t see clearly.
His vision was tinted red—probably because the blood that had trickled down had dried into a thick crust. Even so, he could tell that this was an unfamiliar place, a space he had never been in before.
The overwhelming presence of his pheromones, usually suffocating in their intensity, was completely absent here.
He reached up to touch his wound but immediately froze at the sound of approaching footsteps. Instinctively, he pretended to still be unconscious. From beneath his lowered eyelids, he caught a glimpse of a shadow moving.
“He’s still out cold.”
A man crouched beside him, lightly tapping his cheek as he spoke. Anxiety twisted in his gut—he had a feeling that if they realized he was awake, things would take a turn for the worse. For now, he forced his body to remain lax.
After watching him for a while, the man eventually stood and stepped away. It seemed he truly believed that Seo-yul was still unconscious, given that he hadn’t reacted even when slapped.
“I told you to bring him in unharmed, Jay.”
“Fuck, that was the quietest way I could bring him in.”
A second voice chimed in from a distance. Judging by the context, the man referred to as Jay must have been the intruder who had broken into his bedroom. The other man, however, was a complete mystery—he didn’t recognize the voice at all.
Seo-yul sharpened his senses, trying to determine if there were more people, but from what he could hear, it seemed to be just the two of them. Whether that was good or bad remained to be seen.
“Shit, people are definitely going to ask questions about this.”
“If you’re that worried, just wipe the blood off him. He’ll look fine.”
“And what about his clothes? The blood’s seeped all the way through.”
As their argument dragged on, Seo-yul carefully cracked his eyes open. He was nervous about being caught, but luckily, the two men were too absorbed in bickering to notice him.
The room was dim, but it wasn’t hard to spot the exit. A faint light seeped through a gap—without a doubt, that was the door leading outside.
Maybe I should just run for it.
But in his current condition, there was no way he could outrun them. His body, weak and unsteady, couldn’t even manage a short sprint without gasping for air.
He’d be caught in mere steps. And if that happened, would they let him off so easily? He wasn’t bound right now, but failing to escape would only make things worse.
I can’t just sit here.
From what he had gathered from their conversation, they didn’t seem intent on hurting him—at least, not yet. But they also hadn’t hesitated to shoot his attendant.
That meant they were used to killing. If things went sideways, he could end up just like his attendant—lifeless on the floor.
These men weren’t safe.
He had to find a way out. Now.
“Fuck! This wouldn’t even be a problem if that bastard had come out on time!”
Jay’s sudden outburst echoed violently through the dark space. Hearing footsteps approaching, Seo-yul quickly shut his eyes again, pretending to remain unconscious.
A presence loomed right in front of him, and he kept up the act with all his might. But Jay, still seething with rage, didn’t care whether he was awake or not—he grabbed a fistful of Seo-yul’s hair and yanked hard.
“Ugh….”
The sharp pain, as if his hair was being torn straight from his scalp, was unbearable. Despite himself, a pained sound escaped his lips.
Jay, now crouched close, caught sight of Seo-yul’s fluttering eyelids and turned to the other man.
“He’s awake.”
“Oh yeah?”
His weak attempt at deception had been pointless. Seo-yul’s arms twitched instinctively from the agony, but before he could react further, Jay’s palm came down hard across his face.
Smack— Smack!
The sharp slaps rang through his ears, threatening to drag him into unconsciousness all over again. The relentless blows reopened his wounds, sending warm blood trickling down his skin.
“Stop leaving marks on him.”
The other man, calmer than Jay, intervened. Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Jay finally let go of Seo-yul’s hair. Still unable to contain his anger, he kicked the wall violently before storming off.
“Damn it, you made his wound worse.”
The other man cursed, flipping Seo-yul over to check the damage. Jay, as if completely indifferent, muttered a weak excuse before disappearing from the room.
Now, only Seo-yul and the unknown man remained in the dimly lit space.
“I never should’ve asked that bastard for help.”
With a long sigh, the man pulled a cloth from his pocket and began dabbing at Seo-yul’s injuries. Seo-yul flinched away from the unfamiliar touch, but his body was too weak to resist properly.
“If you just stay still, I won’t hurt you.”
His voice was much gentler than Jay’s. But that didn’t change the fact that he was one of Seo-yul’s kidnappers. Even if he wasn’t acting hostile now, he was still dangerous.
“You shouldn’t have gotten involved in the Shining family’s fight.”
The man’s muttered words finally made something click in Seo-yul’s mind. There was only one person who had been waiting for him to step out when the bell rang.
“…Jeremy?”
He forced his dry lips to part, barely managing to ask the question. The man didn’t answer.
But his hand, which had been carefully wiping away the blood, hesitated for just a moment.
That pause was all the confirmation Seo-yul needed.
“When this is over, we’ll send you back safely,” the man said at last. “Until then, just stay put.”
He gave Seo-yul’s head a light pat before standing up. Then, without another word, he left the room, locking the door securely behind him.
Of course, they wouldn’t just let him be.
With great effort, Seo-yul pushed himself up, his hands searching the walls in the darkness. He had already figured it out when their voices echoed—the room had no other openings.
The only way out was through that door.
I have to get out of here.
But the moment he leaned against the locked door, his legs gave out beneath him.
Since arriving in District 1, he had never once been trapped in such complete darkness. The overwhelming isolation felt foreign, suffocating.
Seo-yul pulled his trembling arms around his knees, which he had drawn up sharply. He had longed for the darkness, desperate to escape the endless cycle of daylight—but not like this. This wasn’t how he had wanted to face it.
They had said they would let him go once everything was over, but he had no way of knowing when that would be. How long would he be trapped here? A day? A week? Or maybe… forever.
“Please….”
Right now, all he could do was desperately hope that someone would come looking for him.
Faces flickered through his mind one by one—Choi Yeo-min, Se-yul, Han Jae-hoon.
“…Vin.”
Yet, the name that slipped from his lips without thinking was the one he had sworn never to call again.
