Raumaan’s lips curled up slightly, but the expression was far from cheerful; instead, it exuded a sense of irritation. He gazed down at Jeong Taeui without looking away, as if searching for something on his face, like a snake observing its prey.

The smile on Jeong Taeui’s face vanished.

He had faced many intimidating stares and had been trained enough to remain calm under such scrutiny.

But the unsettling and discomforting feeling emanating from this man—yes, this uncomfortable feeling was truly troubling—was unlike any threat Jeong Taeui had ever encountered.

“Looking for me……?”

“Of course, I wasn’t in Seringe at the time, and because an uninvited guest came to my house, I had to return immediately. But that poor friend of mine had to leave Seringe and go to a hospital on the mainland with adequate facilities because he was mistakenly apprehended and beaten just for being a Muslim and having a villa nearby.”

“……—”

“Since then, unfortunately, I’ve heard from my friends that they’re afraid to go out recently because they’re scared of that man. Who is he? It’s not hard to find information about him.”

Raumaan spoke slowly and stared at Jeong Taeui with a meaningful gaze.

“It wasn’t too difficult to identify that man because I’ve heard many rumors about him already. The madman that T&R can’t control, Ilay Riegrow. But if you were with that notorious man, you shouldn’t look so ordinary and mediocre as you do now.”

Raumaan changed his tone. Lower and smoother. But the face with the slight smile remained unchanged, intensifying the vague sense of suffocation.

“Don’t get me wrong. No matter how big that company is, it’s just a small business. And no matter how long-standing it is, it’s merely a family-run company that can only make minor waves in the East. Do you think they can affect me no matter what means they use? Impossible. Even if they meddle with me elsewhere, it’s no big deal. Just lock Jeong Jaeui and you in a dungeon where no one knows and pretend I know nothing about it, and everything will be over. As I said, Jeong Jaeui will only be released when I want him to be, and I’ll let him go when he meets the conditions I’ve stated. Do you think they can break into my territory and search for you? Never. They can never do that.” 

Each word he spoke pierced Jeong Taeui’s ears quietly. Jeong Taeui stared at Raumaan expressionlessly, not blinking once. A few steps away, Raumaan looked back at Jeong Taeui just as unwaveringly.

“This is supposed to be Gil-Sang-Cheon……”

Suddenly, cold and contemptuous words struck Jeong Taeui’s ears. Raumaan’s cold and ruthless eyes swept across Jeong Taeui’s face once more. It was a gaze filled with hatred. But what reason did he have to feel such animosity towards Jeong Taeui?

“You don’t resemble Jeong Jaeui at all. Not even a bit. An ugly and mediocre person like you is supposed to bring him luck? Ridiculous. And not funny at all.”

Raumaan sighed. Then, suddenly, he squinted at Jeong Taeui with a strange look and murmured.

“Why does someone like you exist……?”

It seemed like he was talking to himself, not expecting an answer. And although there was no need to respond, Jeong Taeui still answered.

“Even I don’t know why it’s me, and I’ve never thought I brought any luck to him. So hearing such things doesn’t make me happy or amused at all……—I certainly don’t want to hear it from someone who captured and imprisoned an ugly and mediocre guy like me.”

Raumaan closed his mouth and squinted at Jeong Taeui.

Suddenly, he curled his lips as if smiling, and using the same polite tone as before, he said.

“In short, you can’t leave here. When Jeong Jaeui leaves, you can go with him. So, if you really want to get out of here, I hope you’ll help me persuade him to accept my request.”

Raumaan spoke without hesitation. Hearing such straightforward words, Jeong Taeui realized that perhaps this had been his intention all along.

His gaze was always so cold. Jeong Taeui wondered if there could be any warmth in those eyes. He looked at Raumaan without saying a word.

“As you’ve already heard, I’m not asking much from him. Just one type of weapon with his name on it, that’s all. Of course, it’s not that I have no expectations, but if it’s designed by him, it will be vastly different from a regular anti-tank gun.”

“……I didn’t know his name was such a renowned weapon brand. Are the people you’re up against really afraid of Jeong Jaeui’s name?”

Raumaan laughed out loud when Jeong Taeui spoke. But even when he laughed, his face remained calm. And that calmness was what made him uncomfortable.

“You really don’t grasp the situation as quickly as Jeong Jaeui. He understood everything the moment I mentioned making weapons…… The name of Jeong Jaeui can bring significant allies…… Simply put, it makes it easy to take over weapon manufacturing contractors.”

Raumaan smiled happily and leaned slightly towards Jeong Taeui. He brought his face closer and, lowering his voice, spoke cheerfully.

Jeong Taeui looked at him without blinking.

Indeed. What this man wanted was just a weapon with Jeong Jaeui’s name on it. Handing over the design was like silently agreeing to give up his name.

Raumaan scrutinized every corner of Jeong Taeui’s expression. Then, he straightened up and resumed his usual gentle smile. The way he said: “Jeong Jaeui truly is a rare and remarkable talent”, returned to his normal tone.

‘……Hyung. I really don’t like this guy.’

Jeong Taeui firmly thought at that moment.

If Jeong Jaeui were beside him now, he would definitely shout that out to his face. Considering the circumstances of his captivity, he would shout it in Korean.

Raumaan took a step back, appearing as if he was about to leave.

“You know, all Jeong Jaeui needs to do is create a weapon. Just that, and I’ll let both of you leave immediately. So I hope you can convince him.”

“I don’t want to force him to do something he doesn’t want to do.”

Raumaan raised an eyebrow but then shrugged and said, “It’s up to you.”

“In any case, you’ll have to stay here until then. If you have any inconveniences, just let me know…… Ah, right. I’d like you to avoid going to the Baherb night market for a while.”

He smiled calmly, spoke politely, then nodded and walked away.

Jeong Taeui stood there, stunned, watching the man’s back as he walked down the western hallway and disappeared through the last door. Outside that door, there seemed to be small trees like those in a garden. And through the foliage, a roughly plastered wall was faintly visible.

“……Damn it. I don’t even know where this place is.”

Jeong Taeui sighed as the door closed and sat down on a chair.

His hair, which had been soaked, no longer dripped water. His clothes were still damp, and he ran his hands through his still-wet hair. He must have looked a bit disheveled while talking to that man.

“I hate that guy. Raumaan Abid Al Saud. I hate him. Damn it. A person like that will be taken by the devil soon enough.”

Jeong Taeui muttered, pronouncing the name awkwardly, and glanced around to see if anyone was watching him say such things. Even if they understood Korean. If they wanted to rebut, they could tell him.

“Yesterday morning, a friend of mine came here for a vacation. He said he was beaten half to death by a man named Ilay Riegrow. He said he’s looking for you.”

“……..”

Jeong Taeui paused, his nails scraping against the stone floor.

Raumaan said he’s looking for him.

‘Ilay Riegrow……—Him.’

His heart suddenly ached.

He could almost imagine what Ilay’s face would look like now. Jeong Taeui could even be sure what expression he would have when he met him.

Ilay is looking for him.

The truth, a truth he had guessed beforehand, somehow entered his ears warmly.

“Uh……..”

Jeong Taeui raised his hands to cover his burning ears. But his hands, warmed by the sunlit stone floor, didn’t help much.

Jeong Taeui lay down right there, next to the small pond, slowly crawled over, and dipped his head into the water. 

‘I want to get out of here. Come quickly, as fast as you can.’

Jeong Taeui stayed underwater long enough to feel dizzy, but he didn’t intend to lift his head, remaining motionless until the guard came over and lightly tapped him.

‘How can I get out?’

Jeong Taeui sat by the pond, looking at the guard with a blank stare, then watched him return to his post by the door.

He couldn’t think of anything.

What should he do? What should he do to get out?

If only there were a way to sneak out of here.

*************************

“It’s going to be very difficult.”

Without thinking too long, Jeong Taeui muttered to himself.

“Uh…… is that so? Is there something? Something like an underground passage in Islamic architecture for emergencies or something……”

“When building a fortress or a large-scale structure, you might expect something like that, but with this simple villa, I’m not sure if there’s anything like that. And even if there is, it’s probably not connected to this auxiliary building.”

“The owner of this place isn’t stupid enough to imprison someone in a building with an escape route.” – Jeong Jaeui added.

“Yeah.” – Jeong Taeui replied dejectedly, continuing to dry his hair with a towel. Seeing Jeong Taeui’s expression, Jeong Jaeui gently asked.

“Do you want to leave here?”

Jeong Taeui didn’t answer his question.

He wanted to leave, but didn’t respond immediately. Yet it seemed that Jeong Jaeui could still recognize the answer he wanted to give.

Jeong Taeui wanted to get out of here. The urgency and excitement he felt when hearing Raumaan’s small bits of outside news had subsided somewhat. But like ripples, that sense of urgency still lingered within him.

Getting out of here was simple. As Raumaan had said. Jeong Jaeui only needed to give him a suitable design as he wanted. Jeong Jaeui obviously wouldn’t be willing to do that since he had said he wouldn’t make weapons anymore. But if Jeong Taeui asked, maybe he would still nod.

But Jeong Taeui didn’t want to do that. He didn’t want Jeong Jaeui to do anything against his will because of Jeong Taeui’s personal issues.

Jeong Jaeui probably guessed what Jeong Taeui was thinking, so even though he wanted to leave, he didn’t dare to speak up first.

Jeong Taeui groaned in frustration, rubbing his hair with the towel as if he wanted to tear it out. His hair was almost dry now.

Jeong Taeui glanced at Jeong Jaeui.

He was sitting in the chair by the window in the study, listening to music. Raumaan had said he would bring anything Jeong Jaeui wanted so that he wouldn’t feel inconvenienced while staying here. As Raumaan had promised, if Jeong Jaeui wanted to listen to an album or read a particular book, he would get it for him immediately.

Yes, Jeong Taeui was the one who wanted to leave. But perhaps Jeong Jaeui would be much happier staying here.