“District 5?”
The crimson eyes, which rarely showed any agitation, wavered violently. He kept repeating to himself that he needed to stay calm, but it was difficult when his emotions were surging uncontrollably.
For the past eight years, he had been forced to suppress even the act of longing. And now, out of nowhere, the district’s ruler was ordering him to visit District 5? It was unthinkable.
Could this be another scheme to test him? Perhaps it was a trap to see if he was still clinging to the past with pathetic nostalgia.
Steadying himself, he maintained a composed expression. His crimson eyes, which had briefly trembled, settled back into a calm, unwavering state.
“I received a report.”
At the district ruler’s gesture, the aide who had been standing at a distance stepped forward. Taking the white envelope, which bore neither sender nor recipient, he carefully opened it.
“This is….”
The anonymous letter contained an allegation: District 5 was misusing electricity for illicit gains and needed to be investigated.
As he set the letter down, the district ruler met his eyes, sighing deeply in an exaggerated display of concern. Yet, he couldn’t quite hide the smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.
“I did receive this letter, but I can’t just cut District 5’s power supply based on a single report, can I? That’s why, Vincent, I think it would be best for you to go there and investigate personally.”
Sending him to investigate a baseless accusation? No, this was just an excuse—a pretext to reduce District 5’s electricity supply.
Knowing the ruler’s nature, there was a high probability that even this letter was fabricated. Lowering his gaze, Vincent stared at the familiar handwriting, keeping his thoughts to himself.
“What if I find no issues?”
“Then it means the informant gave a false report.”
The ruler’s lips curled into a smile, but his eyes did not. Vincent immediately understood what the man truly wanted. As expected, his suspicions were correct.
In that case, he would have to give the answer the ruler wanted to hear.
“I will conduct a thorough investigation.”
Rising from his seat, he bowed deeply. Pleased, the district ruler patted his broad back. Vincent resisted the urge to swat the hand away and simply turned toward the door to leave the office.
“But even if no issues are found—”
Those words made him stop. He returned to his seat and silently waited for the ruler to continue.
Reaching out, the district ruler picked up the letter and tore it apart as he spoke.
“Since eight years have passed, the price has been paid. It’s time to renew the contract.”
At the mention of a “price” from the district ruler’s lips, Vincent’s eyebrow twitched slightly. He knew all too well that, from eight years ago until now, he had been the price paid in exchange for electricity sent to District 5.
“There’s something you’ve wanted from there for a long time, isn’t there?”
He didn’t respond, but the master of the estate already knew his answer. Clenching his trembling hands into fists, Vincent finally gave a slow nod.
“Then go and take what you want, Vincent.”
The district ruler’s voice carried an eerie gentleness.
***
By the time his mind returned after the sudden ambush, his world had already collapsed. There was no trace of Seo-yul anywhere in District 1. He had abandoned him and left.
Vincent was bewildered. Seo-yul, of all people, should have understood better than anyone what it meant to make a pinky promise. Yet, he had broken it.
Still, Vincent tried to understand. Maybe there had been a reason. Maybe something had forced him to do it. He wanted to believe that. And he had tried to go back—because the place he belonged was wherever Seo-yul was, in District 5.
But the district ruler had stopped him.
He had barely made it to the district’s border before he was caught. He had been thrown into an underground prison where not even a sliver of light could reach.
Days passed without a single drop of water. The reason? They knew that the moment he regained his strength, he would try to escape again.
Just when he thought he might actually die like this, the district ruler came to visit—and revealed the truth Vincent had never wanted to hear.
—District 5 traded you for electricity.
At first, he had dismissed it as a cheap lie meant to shake him. But just as the ruler had said, District 1’s electricity supply to District 5 had tripled. Thanks to that, District 5 had entered its greatest golden age.
—I’m sorry.
So that was what his sorrowful apology had meant. That was why he had so cruelly pushed Vincent away, telling him never to return. If he came back, the electricity supply would stop.
In the end, Seo-yul had chosen the district over him.
It was only after acknowledging that bitter truth that Vincent finally gave up on returning to District 5.
Instead, he made a different promise—with the district ruler.
If he could surpass all the other Shining candidates and take the position of the next district ruler, he would be granted the thing he desired most. Anything, no matter what it was.
Stepping out of the office, Vincent slowly unfurled his clenched fist. He had been gripping it so tightly that deep crescent marks from his nails were etched into his palm. A hint of blood surfaced on his skin, and with a deep sigh, he let out the breath he had been holding.
“District 5, huh.”
He hadn’t expected the district ruler to remember that old promise. The vow that, once Vincent took the seat of the next ruler, he would be given whatever he desired most.
For a moment, he wondered if he was dreaming. But this was reality.
In two days, he would leave for District 5.
Officially, his purpose was to investigate the alleged misuse of electricity.
But his real objective was to renew an eight-year-old contract.
With a convenient pretext already in place, it would be easy to demand compensation.
The only question was whether the ruler of District 5 would hand over what Vincent truly wanted without a fight.
Because what Vincent had longed for, for so many years, was none other than the one and only son the District 5 ruler cherished more than anything.
“Seo-yul hyung.”
Just calling that long-lost name made his dead heart start beating again. He barely managed to suppress the pheromones rising within him, keeping his face composed despite the emotions threatening to surface.
For eight years, he had struggled every night to keep the image of Seo-yul frozen in time. Human memory erases the past too easily, so he had to sketch Seo-yul’s face over and over again in his mind.
In his memories, Seo-yul was unbearably young, beautiful, and infuriating. He was still the only one who could make Vincent’s heart race—even after all this time.
Though his departure was still two days away, he felt impatient. He turned toward his room to prepare for the journey to District 5. His steady footsteps gradually quickened until he realized he was running.
As he passed through the long corridor, his eyes met those of another Shining in the distance. He steadied his breathing and swiftly concealed the emotions that had flickered across his face.
“Well, look who it is! Father’s little lapdog!”
There was only one person in the estate who dared to call him a dog so openly. Joshua Shining. The man who had once been the most promising candidate for the next district ruler—until Vincent came along and shoved him aside.
“Coming back from a meeting with Father?”
“……”
“What, did he order you to kill someone again? That’s what you do best, after all—murder.”
“……”
“How does it feel? Getting closer to becoming the next district ruler by carrying out Father’s dirty work? Must be nice, huh? Especially for a filthy little insect born from an Omega.”
Vincent ignored Joshua’s words as he always did. There was no point in responding to something so worthless. He tried to walk past him and into his room, but Joshua moved quickly, extending an arm to block his way.
Vincent raised a brow and told him to move, but Joshua didn’t seem inclined to listen. Instead, he leaned in further, deliberately getting in his way.
“Move.”
“No. Why the fuck should I?”
Dealing with someone who refused to outgrow his childish tendencies even after reaching adulthood felt like it was dragging Vincent down to his level.
With a long sigh, Vincent shoved Joshua’s shoulder hard. Unable to withstand his strength, Joshua staggered back, finally clearing the way.
“You fucking insect!”
Joshua, his face flushing red with rage, suddenly grabbed Vincent by the collar.
Boom!
Vincent was slammed against the wall. Joshua clenched his fist so tightly that the veins on his hand bulged as he prepared to swing.
With a slight tilt of his head, Vincent dodged the incoming punch. Effortlessly brushing off Joshua’s grip on his collar, he reached for the gun holstered at his waist and aimed it precisely between Joshua’s brows.
Click.
The sound of the safety being disengaged made Joshua’s pupils shake violently. He glanced at the cold barrel pressing against his forehead and forced a smirk.
“As expected of Father’s little killer. Aiming a gun at someone comes so naturally to you.”
Vincent had to give him some credit—the sheer arrogance of maintaining his bravado even with a gun to his head was commendable.
He smiled faintly and hooked his finger around the trigger. Then, with a soft tick, he gave it a light flick.
“Hiiick—!”
Joshua, who had been holding out, turned deathly pale and collapsed onto the floor. Lowering the gun with a chuckle, Vincent couldn’t hold back his laughter.
Only then did Joshua realize he had been played. His face flushed red with fury as he shot up from the floor, his hazy, ember-colored eyes glaring daggers at Vincent.
“You son of a bitch.”
“Yeah, I am. You got that right.”
Vincent’s casual admission seemed to leave Joshua speechless. Huffing in frustration, he opened and closed his mouth as if searching for a retort, then ultimately turned away.
Vincent wondered why he even bothered picking fights—whether verbal or physical—when he had never once won against him.
His laughter vanished as he went to holster his gun, but then, a memory surfaced. A promise he had made with Seo-yul.
Never shoot anyone with a gun.
Seo-yul had repeated those words over and over. Had he seen this moment coming?
“I ended up breaking a promise, too.”
Not that he felt particularly sorry about it.
