Before Jeong Taeui could reach Jeong Jaeui, the Chinese man raised his military knife in a slow but familiar gesture, warning him. Jeong Taeui hesitated for a moment, then followed Xinlu towards the outer gate. Facing Xinlu, who was looking over his shoulder with a worried expression and a somewhat sinister smile at the distant figures, Jeong Taeui stood his ground.

“Alright, let’s get in the car together, Taei-hyung. We’ll wait for your brother there” – Xinlu said.

Jeong Taeui silently stared at Xinlu, his face growing stern. Seeing this expression, Xinlu frowned and spoke.

“Don’t be angry, Taei-hyung. I have no other choice.”

“…….Xinlu. To be honest, taking Jaeui as a hostage has no value. Even if you kidnap and imprison him, he would still be able to live a luxurious and comfortable life.”

“Ahaha, is that so? Well, this is Al-Saud’s mansion, after all. He has too much money and indulges in unnecessary things. But I don’t, I don’t have that kind of money. A hostage is just a hostage.”

Ling Xinlu shrugged. The implication that Jeong Jaeui would never be treated kindly made Jeong Taeui sigh heavily.

“Jaeui-hyung isn’t someone who can be harmed or killed by anyone. Even if he were kidnapped, imprisoned, or involved in an accident, he would still be safe.”

Xinlu seemed surprised by these words. He widened his eyes and smiled.

“Well, that’s miraculous. No one wouldn’t want that kind of luck……. But I can’t kill you, Taei-hyung, to break that string of luck. That’s tricky.”

Ling Xinlu muttered as if he were in trouble. His gaze shifted slightly to the side, past Jeong Taeui. Jeong Taeui followed his eyes. Ilay was getting closer.

Behind him, the deafening roar of a motorcycle was approaching.

“If I can’t kill him because of his incredible luck……. If he can’t die……. then what about drugs? From what I saw earlier, even drugs seem to work…….”

“Xinlu…….”

Jeong Taeui’s voice lowered, his expression rigid.

He thought it wouldn’t be of any use. Jeong Taeui knew well that Jeong Jaeui wouldn’t be threatened by such things, as he could turn bad situations into good in an instant, so there was nothing to worry about.

But…….

Jeong Taeui couldn’t ignore Xinlu’s words about using Jeong Jaeui as bait.

Jeong Jaeui always did everything for Jeong Taeui. Just the other day, although he didn’t want to, he agreed to Raumaan’s request to create a weapon because of him. That wasn’t a debt between the brothers, because if it were Jeong Taeui in Jeong Jaeui’s position, he would do the same.

And in this situation as well.

Jeong Taeui had no other choice. He would do what Jeong Jaeui would do.

Breaking Jeong Taeui’s silence, Xinlu continued with a weary smile.

“Taei-hyung. I already told you. I don’t like you just because you’re Gilsangcheon. It’s true that I care about you for that reason, but it’s not the only reason……. So, this time, let me prove it. That genius with miraculous luck holds no value to me. Whether it works or not, I can still cut him to pieces. Because to me, he’s not worth even a strand of your hair, Taei-hyung. I can do anything, like throwing him into an opium den and imprisoning him, for instance.”

Jeong Taeui was speechless. He remained silent and then quietly spoke.

“Ling Xinlu. You don’t understand what I’m saying. I won’t go with you……. At least my mind doesn’t want to go with you.”

He had told Xinlu. Many times.

Even before he left UNHRDO. Even when they met again in Seringe, and even when they encountered each other at the ruins of the castle in Baherb.

Jeong Taeui had thought Xinlu was adorable. The bright appearance when he first met him, and the smile that hid the tangled heart inside him now were both parts of the Xinlu he cherished. However, that affection had long ceased to be the kind of affection that Xinlu desired. The feelings Jeong Taeui could offer Xinlu were not what Xinlu wanted. There was no way Xinlu didn’t know this. But even so, Xinlu still clung to him, by any means necessary.

Xinlu looked at the silent Jeong Taeui. Suddenly, he burst into laughter, but his eyes did not smile.

“Taei-hyung. I know you won’t give me what I want.”

Xinlu’s voice echoed in Jeong Taeui’s ears. Xinlu was trembling, as if unsure of what to say next, and he hesitated for a moment.

“I need something more certain, Taei-hyung. I need something that proves you absolutely don’t belong to me.”

Jeong Taeui listened to Xinlu’s sighs with a blank expression. He thought he could understand what Xinlu was saying, but he couldn’t. Looking at Jeong Taeui’s face, Xinlu suddenly smiled.

“And one more thing.”

He stepped up right in front of Jeong Taeui, who felt rooted to the spot. Xinlu whispered in his ear.

“I absolutely hate that man. He gives me chills just thinking about him.”

He finished his sentence with a gentle smile. Xinlu stepped back, one step, then another.

“At first, he broke his promise and took you away from me. I have hated that man ever since. I loathe Ilay Riegrow to my core. Just thinking about him makes my eyes burn red.”

Xinlu pointed at his own eyes. His large, round eyes were smiling like a kitten.

Slowly stepping back, Xinlu was now quite a distance from Jeong Taeui. Outside the gate, a Black Sedan* was already parked and ready to depart at any moment.

(*This type of sedan is a bulletproof sedan.)

Right beside the door, Xinlu stopped and looked at Jeong Taeui. The distance was only about 10 meters but felt infinitely far.

“Taei-hyung. Come this way. Come here by yourself. Otherwise, I really want to see just how miraculous Jeong Taei’s luck is, even if he entrusts his life to you.”

Jeong Taeui looked at Xinlu without saying a word.

At that moment, Xinlu’s gaze moved slightly past Jeong Taeui’s shoulder. His eyes seemed to be staring into the empty space as if he had seen something. Finally, his eyes hardened.

At that moment.

“TAEI!”

Behind him, a shrill voice calling Jeong Taeui’s name echoed from a distance. Jeong Taeui startled, instinctively flinching.

He slowly turned his head. A motorcycle was racing towards them with a roaring engine and incredible speed. The rider’s face became increasingly clear, approaching like a missile.

Ilay.

Ilay Riegrow.

He was staring directly at Jeong Taeui, getting closer and closer.

The mortar slung over his shoulder looked cumbersome, but he casually discarded it as if it were nothing. The barrel landed in a small pond nearby, and with a *Boom*, water splashed everywhere, shattering the marble edge of the pond.

Jeong Taeui couldn’t take his eyes off the man.

The moment their eyes met, a shiver ran down his spine. It seemed like an instinct beyond mere emotion. Ilay was swiftly approaching him.

Jeong Taeui quietly watched the man, unable to lift a finger. And then his eyes widened.

He was smiling.

Ilay Riegrow looked at Jeong Taeui and smiled.

It wasn’t his usual indifferent, cold smile. That smile, yes, that was the kind of smile, like right before bursting into laughter.

A genuinely happy smile——.

He couldn’t believe it, but it looked like he was truly happy.

Ilay looked at Jeong Taeui with his slender, arched eyes.

“Ilay…….—”

“TAEI-HYUNG!”

The moment Jeong Taeui called his name, Xinlu shouted from behind him.

Jeong Taeui hesitantly looked back. His face was expressionless but determined. Xinlu had given him a choice he couldn’t refuse. He had no other option.

Xinlu glanced at Ilay. His gaze was cold and terrifying.

He stepped out of the large door and into the waiting car. A leisurely gesture, as if he was merely avoiding rather than fleeing from Ilay.

Jeong Taeui turned back to look at Ilay.

It seemed Ilay had noticed Xinlu’s presence. The smile immediately vanished from his face. Instead, a cold, expressionless look fixed on Jeong Taeui in silence. His eyebrows slightly raised as if asking Jeong Taeui: ‘Why?’

Jeong Taeui met his gaze in silence, the distance between them closing. Their eyes locked, neither Ilay nor Jeong Taeui looked away, as if time and space had frozen between them.

“A-ah……..”

Jeong Taeui opened his mouth, but no words came out. It seemed like he needed to say something. But what should he say?

The distance continued to shrink. And Jeong Taeui knew well.

If Ilay caught him now, he wouldn’t be able to reach Jeong Jaeui. Xinlu would leave and take Jeong Jaeui with him. And he would lose the chance to follow him. He wasn’t particularly worried about Jeong Jaeui’s health. But he needed to see him. He didn’t know if there would be another chance, but right now, at this moment, having just stepped out of a place like paradise.

“Damn it……. If only I could talk to him for a bit, that would be great.”

If that were the case, they could say a few words to each other before parting ways.

However, if he fell into Ilay’s arms now, he would never let go, no matter what Jeong Taeui said. Ilay wasn’t someone who would understand and agree if he tried to convince him that he just wanted to meet Jeong Jaeui briefly and say a few words before coming back.

Jeong Taeui took a step back.

Ilay’s gaze immediately changed. In an instant, it grew cold.

“TAEI. COME HERE.”

Jeong Taeui didn’t say he was leaving, but just with that one step, perhaps Ilay understood everything. He spoke in a low voice, his growl mingling with the roar of the motorcycle engine.

“I WILL BE BACK SOON.”

Jeong Taeui shouted. However, the roar of the motorcycle he was riding and the wind rushing past at tremendous speed drowned out his voice.

He shouted once more. That shout seemed to clearly convey a sense of vague worry.

“TAEI. COME HERE…….—DAMN IT, IF YOU DON’T WANT TO COME, THEN JUST STAY THERE!”

Suddenly, he roared. With the motorcycle practically in front of him, Jeong Taeui turned around.

Damn it.

Jeong Taeui muttered a curse under his breath.

But he ran.

Of course, the speed of the motorcycle and his running could not be compared. But the motorcycle was still far from the car. The difference between the distance and speed was close.

“Taei-hyung”

Xinlu shouted, sticking his head out of the open car window.

Jeong Taeui ran over, glaring at Xinlu. But Xinlu only smiled and looked at Jeong Taeui.

“This is really bad…….”

Jeong Taeui muttered through gritted teeth.

The sound of the engine tore through his eardrums right behind him. It felt like even the hairs on the back of his neck were standing up.

If he got caught now, he would die.

Jeong Taeui instinctively thought.

“TAEI!”

A voice full of rage shouted behind him. Like the terrifying growl of a tiger, wanting to tear its prey to pieces the moment it caught it.

Dammit, dammit…….!

Jeong Taeui jumped into the car with the open door.

The car started moving as soon as the door closed and began to accelerate as Jeong Taeui sat in the back seat. Immediately, the motorcycle caught up with him, just a few steps away.

A piercing roar ripped through the air right beside the car. 

*BANG!* A loud sound reverberated. 

*Crash, bang, wallop!* Cracks spread like spiderwebs across the sealed back window. That monstrous man – for the umpteenth time – was outside, hammering at the glass with his elbows and fists. A few more blows and the window would shatter.

Jeong Taeui, practically thrown into and curled up in the back seat, witnessed the scene unfold. A chill ran down his spine. This man was a monster. There was no other way to describe him; he was a genuine monster.

No human could do what he was doing: Riding a motorcycle at breakneck speed while delivering punches strong enough to crack car windows.

“TAEI! GET OUT!!”

The yell momentarily stunned Jeong Taeui.

He needed to rethink everything. He needed to seriously reconsider how he’d gotten entangled with this monster. He briefly wondered if this experience might miraculously cure his recent onset of dissociative episodes.

He knew that if he got out of the car now, he’d die! Everyone in the car – even the strange Chinese men – probably thought the same. If only he had just stayed put in the first place…

“No, it’s not like that…… I……”

But there was no way his stammering attempts at explanation could reach the man outside.

Just then, Jeong Taeui saw Xinlu, who was sitting in the front seat, whip something out from under his jacket.

Jeong Taeui’s expression froze.

Wearing a blank face, Xinlu revealed the object: A sleek, silver handgun. Small enough to fit in one hand, yet certainly large enough to end a life.

“Open the window.”

Xinlu curtly ordered the man in the driver’s seat.

“XINLU! DON’T!”

Jeong Taeui’s face turned pale, and he hurriedly shouted, but Xinlu pretended not to hear him and didn’t even turn around. As the front window rolled down, the sound of a gun being loaded echoed in the air.

“XINLU!!”

Jeong Taeui yelled again, anxiously reaching out his hand. But Xinlu had already aimed at Ilay and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

*Bang!*

—The gun fired, momentarily drowning out the deafening roar of the motorcycle engine. At the same moment, the large figure beside the car disappeared in the gunshot’s aftermath, only to reappear suddenly along with the sharp sound of the motorcycle hitting the ground. Ilay’s tall frame fell along with the bike.

“ILAYYY!”

The motorcycle crashed down with a loud *BANG!*, and Ilay quickly rolled away from it. Their car swiftly drove off on the dirt road right by the entrance.

Jeong Taeui urgently turned to look out the rear window. Ilay’s figure grew smaller and smaller in the distance. As his figure faded away, Jeong Taeui could faintly see him getting up. Soon, the car turned a corner, and Ilay completely disappeared from his sight.

Jeong Taeui couldn’t tell if he was injured, but it seemed he wouldn’t die. He brought his hand to his heart, which felt cold and heavy. As soon as his breathing steadied, a sharp pain struck his heart.

Alright. Come to think of it, wasn’t he the monster who would survive even being bombed? There was no way he could die so easily.

“Why does this belief feel like the belief that Jaeui-hyung won’t be in danger…….”

Jeong Taeui muttered to himself, mingling with a sigh, and patted his aching heart. So, Ilay wouldn’t die.

Suddenly, all the strength in his body seemed to drain away.

If this were like one of those horror or sci-fi movies with monsters or aliens, surely Ilay would suddenly appear and cling to the window in the blink of an eye as soon as he turned around……

Jeong Taeui clicked his tongue, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and let out a long sigh.

Jeong Jaeui was sitting next to him in an unconscious state. He seemed to be in a deep sleep.

“He escaped.”

Jeong Taeui heard Xinlu’s soft voice, which neither sounded too disappointed nor particularly happy. It was just a calm voice stating an obvious fact.

“Xinlu…… were you really trying to kill him?”

“I didn’t necessarily want to kill him, but it wouldn’t matter if he died. Saying this might sound like I’m boasting, but I thought I could hit him because I’m a good shot. He was right there and would have been caught by me. Anyway, I do take some pride in that.”

But there were a few blind spots……” – Xinlu sighed and added. Jeong Taeui looked at Xinlu as he put the gun away. He tilted his head slightly. Somehow, what Xinlu had just said made him uncomfortable. It was like……—.

“Xinlu. You……”

“Oh. That’s right, you didn’t know this, did you, Taei-hyung?”

Xinlu turned to look at him as if remembering something. His almond-shaped eyes gazed at Jeong Taeui, and he smiled. There was a vague sense of something not quite right in his dark eyes.

“My right eye can’t see anymore. I got a minor injury from being hit by Rick the other day.”

Xinlu added: “It’s not comfortable, but daily life is still manageable.” He smiled, as if telling an amusing story.

Jeong Taeui saw something faint, as if a thin, transparent film covered the jet-black pupil of Xinlu’s right eye. And then, finally…, Taeui understood the source of the vague unease he’d been feeling.