Jeong Taeui turned his head towards the voice. The boy who looked exactly like Richard, whom he had seen earlier, was running towards him. Three more children then stepped out from the western entrance of the main building. The last person to come out was Christoph, who looked irritated as he stared at them.

“What are you doing here?”

Christoph didn’t even glance at Richard. Instead, he walked straight towards Jeong Taeui and stared directly at him. Although he did glance at Ilay briefly, his eyes only lingered on him for a moment.

Thinking about it, weren’t these two friends? They were also former colleagues.

“Huh? Oh, I was just resting a bit.”

“You brought me a book and then sat here doing nothing for two hours?”

Jeong Taeui was speechless. If Christoph knew he had actually sat here for two hours just staring at the sky and ground, he didn’t know what he would face. Jeong Taeui didn’t even want to think about it.

“No, I went to the library for a while and then came out.”

“… From the second floor of the main building, I can see everything.”

With Christoph’s cold words and eyes, Jeong Taeui looked towards the room on the west side of the main building’s second floor where Christoph taught the children. From there, one could indeed see directly.

“Uh… … Did you see everything?”

“I was waiting to see when you would leave. But you just sat there staring at something like an idiot. You even took off your shoelaces, didn’t you?”

What was he looking at? Had he been sitting there in a daze like that?

“So, what were you looking at so intently?”

Only after hearing those words did Jeong Taeui look down at his feet. His shoelaces had come undone at some point. Embarrassed, he sat down to fix them.

Then he suddenly felt a strange ache on the top of his head. Jeong Taeui looked up and immediately met Ilay’s gentle gaze. His arms were crossed, and his fingers tapped lightly on his biceps.

He wondered why Ilay was looking at him like that. Meanwhile, Christoph’s icy gaze shifted from Jeong Taeui’s head to Richard.

“What are you trying to deceive him with? Why do you need to ask his name?”

Christoph dryly asked with a rude tone. Behind him, Jeong Taeui tried to interject, “No, we were just introducing ourselves…” but Christoph ignored him.

“Asking a name counts as deception?”

Richard replied nonchalantly. However, his usual smiling face now lacked a smile. His face remained calm and gentle, but his eyes were cold as they faced his opponent.

Indeed, their relationship wasn’t good. Now Jeong Taeui could clearly feel it.

“If it’s not deception, what is it? You have no reason to ask his name.”

Christoph spoke briefly, but Richard seemed to have decided to ignore him. He turned and looked at Jeong Taeui.

“So, what should I call you?”

Jeong Taeui fell silent.

Richard no longer looked at Christoph but faced Jeong Taeui. Ilay also looked at him quietly, seemingly contemplating something. Beside Jeong Taeui, the veins on Christoph’s forehead stood out.

Amid the bleak atmosphere with those cold stares meeting, Jeong Taeui couldn’t leave a polite question unanswered. So, he licked his lips and scratched his head.

“Ah…… I am…”

“Unlucky.”

Christoph coldly interrupted. He spoke in the same tone as when he first met Jeong Taeui at the church – “That name is really unlucky.” – and looked at Jeong Taeui with the same expression. Jeong Taeui gaped at Christoph.

It seemed many people had a passion for judging others’ names.

Jeong Taeui felt a bitter taste in his mouth, started to speak, then stopped. After a moment, he finally spoke.

“Kim… I am Kim Yong Soo.”

When he said the name, Jeong Taeui tried his best not to look at Ilay’s face. He didn’t want to think about or know what Ilay would think or what expression he would have when he heard the name. Bitter memories from the past surfaced in his mind.

Yes, there was a reason Jeong Taeui used this name. But thinking back, the name really was unlucky. In the end, he was caught, wasn’t he?

Even though he didn’t dare look directly at Ilay and only stared at Richard, Jeong Taeui could see Ilay from the corner of his eye. He could clearly see Ilay’s shoulders shaking slightly as if he was trying to hold back laughter. Damn it.

Christoph stood in front of Jeong Taeui without saying a word. Then he turned and faced Richard and Ilay.

In a situation where four people stood facing each other like they were about to duel, it seemed only Jeong Taeui felt uncomfortable with the situation.

As the cold stares passed in silence, Jeong Taeui, wondering where to put his gaze, suddenly saw Ilay step back behind Richard.

Ilay was lost in thought, arms crossed, staring at Christoph with a blank expression. Jeong Taeui couldn’t tell what thoughts lay behind that cold face.

However, if they had to face each other tragically like this…

“It’s like a 2v2 deathmatch.”

Jeong Taeui muttered without realizing it.

Two men facing each other directly. And two more men standing behind them on their side.

In the stifling silence, his voice seemed louder than expected. The expressions of the men staring at each other gradually turned strange.

Christoph stared at Jeong Taeui as if he had taken the wrong medicine. Jeong Taeui wasn’t sure about Richard’s expression, but it seemed similar. Only Ilay turned his head away. But even so, Jeong Taeui could see his shoulders shaking a bit.

Jeong Taeui clicked his tongue and shrugged. After all, words once spoken cannot be taken back.

“If every meeting is this tense, wouldn’t it be better to have a grand fight to settle everything? …”

He looked at Christoph while speaking the first words, then glanced at Richard, adding, “Is that not possible?”

Once again, silence fell.

If someone had replied, it would have been good, but everyone just kept their mouths shut. Jeong Taeui could only clear his throat awkwardly.

“If Richard fought at a time close to choosing the successor, it wouldn’t be beneficial for him. And anyway, Christoph has given up his right to succeed, so he doesn’t need to compete with anyone.”

It was Ilay’s calm tone that broke the silence for Jeong Taeui. He stepped forward, stood beside Richard, and glanced at Christoph, who remained silent.

“Who will be the successor? If you want to fight, it should be over that. But Christoph gave up first. Even until he declared his renunciation, you two had been competing.”

Ilay spoke indifferently. Then he looked up at the sky, pondered for a moment, and then looked down at Christoph.

“Thinking back, I find it interesting. Why did you do it? Anyway, because you went to T&R, I had a bit more peace.”

“That was my decision. None of your business.”

Christoph replied coldly. Ilay didn’t seem offended. He nodded and suddenly asked.

“Since then, you haven’t returned to Dresden, so why come back now… … Ah, I think I know.”

“You’re too noisy, Riegrow.”

“Maybe the noisy thing here ain’t me but your ears. Or maybe it’s what’s in your head. Crazy guy.”

Jeong Taeui just watched Ilay and Christoph silently as they exchanged harsh words in a calm tone.

From what he had heard, these two were friends and colleagues, so he thought they were close. But what was happening before his eyes didn’t seem to be that. Was there false information spreading?

Jeong Taeui first convinced himself that neither was the type to have friends, then immediately looked at Christoph in surprise.

Christoph looked at Ilay with a blank expression. It wasn’t the usual blank look. Even the usual boredom and dullness were gone. That face… as expressionless as a ghost.

But that only lasted a moment.

Christoph, who had been staring at Ilay with no expression, slowly closed his eyes. Then anger appeared on his face. Finally, he responded sharply.

“Aren’t you stuck in Donik? Why are you wandering around Seik snooping around? I told you I don’t like talking to you because every time I do, it feels like I’m still in that damn riot squad.”

Jeong Taeui had been watching them with wide eyes before he realized they really weren’t friends. So, that meant the atmosphere in that damn mobile unit – the private Anti-Riot squad that once belonged to T&R – was always like this, right?

He felt like he understood what they were talking about. People who shouldn’t meet were gathered in one place.

Jeong Taeui was considering whether he should leave this place now.

At that moment, his eyes stopped nearby.

Five children were sitting on a long bench about ten steps away, looking towards them.

Was this how they taught them too?

“Stop it. Don’t let the children witness such things, okay?”

As Jeong Taeui slowly moved from his spot and blocked the children’s view, all eyes turned to him.

“You seem to really like children.”

Ilay spoke. Jeong Taeui immediately closed his mouth.

Thinking back, this was practically a taboo topic. It was a subject that shouldn’t be discussed here and now.

After enjoying the sight of Jeong Taeui sweating and struggling to come up with an answer for a moment – clearly intentional – Ilay slowly smirked. The white canines visible between his lips looked terrifying.

“But first, you have a big misunderstanding about those children. They certainly aren’t ‘children’ as you think.”

“…… You two really do seem close. Even your thoughts and words are the same.” – Jeong Taeui muttered to himself. <Oh~ Someone is jelly>

Christoph clicked his tongue. His always emotionless face wrinkled a bit.

He frowned and turned around as if he didn’t want to stay there any longer.

“Do as you please. Anyway, you came here because of Richard, so don’t interfere in my matters. I will stay quiet as long as he doesn’t touch me. After all, it’s less than a month left.”

Christoph turned and walked towards the west wing. Watching his back leave without looking back even once, Jeong Taeui shrugged and sighed.

“Alright, since I seem to be on Christoph’s side for now, I think I should leave too. See you when there’s a chance.”

Jeong Taeui greeted Ilay and Richard awkwardly, waved, and quickly left. He wanted to escape this heavy atmosphere as quickly as possible. Now he just wanted to get back to his room, drink some beer, and read a book…

“Kim Young Soo?”

Just as Jeong Taeui hadn’t walked far, he heard a voice from behind.

Jeong Taeui paused, thought for a moment, then slowly turned back. He didn’t want to stop but the one calling him was Ilay.

Their eyes met.

Behind his glasses, Ilay’s black eyes stared intently in this direction.

“…….”

Jeong Taeui opened his mouth to say something but swallowed it. Then he turned to face him.

They didn’t look at each other for long, at most a few seconds. However, those few seconds felt endless to him.

Finally, the black eyes behind the glasses narrowed. The corners of his mouth gently curved up.

“See you later.”