Chapter 130
A strange laugh slipped from Doshiyu’s lips, which curled into a fake, forced smile, like a hollow statue.
He suppressed a chuckle, lowering his head as if struggling to hold back a burst of laughter. I waited for the laughter to subside and for him to speak.
“Do you think I hate you?”
Doshiyu’s voice was light, as if he were sharing a funny story.
His red eyes moved slowly, scanning my face.
I could feel his gaze clinging to my skin, but I didn’t flinch.
“Why do you think that?”
It was hard to pinpoint exactly when or how I came to that conclusion.
There was just a moment when I instinctively felt it—Doshiyu didn’t like me; it felt more like he despised me.
The feeling had grown sharper over time, becoming undeniable. Even as I tried to dismiss it as a baseless thought, it only became more vivid.
Now, with Ivy’s situation adding weight to my suspicions, I couldn’t endure it any longer.
“Yeonbyeol.”
Doshiyu spoke my name like a sigh.
“I…”
His words trailed off into a whisper, becoming so faint I couldn’t quite make them out.
When I stared at him, unsure of what he had said, Doshiyu spoke clearly once more.
“I need you.”
Our distance shrank by a step.
“So how could I hate you?”
Doshiyu raised his hand toward me. I watched in silence as his hand moved slowly upward.
“Could you hate someone you need this much—so much that you’d want to kill them right now?”
His large, smooth hand closed in on me, wrapping around my neck gently, almost casually.
It felt less like a grip and more like a weight resting on my throat.
Yet, I couldn’t breathe.
The memory of his blood-soaked bandages against my skin flashed in my mind, causing my body to tense.
“Could you twist my neck like breaking a chicken’s?”
Doshiyu’s calm voice, almost unnerving in its insistence, stared into my features with sharp, unwavering intensity.
His gaze felt persistent, unrelenting. I endured it for several seconds before exhaling sharply and squinting my eyes.
“…What?”
The words didn’t immediately make sense, as if I had heard them in the wrong order.
I blinked slowly, taking a step back. Doshiyu’s hand stayed rooted in place, not following me.
It felt like his response was meant for my question, yet something was off—just one step deeper, and the focus seemed blurred.
“Why are you suddenly talking about twisting my neck and killing me when I asked if you hated me?”
When I lifted my head to reexamine what Doshiyu had said, a chilling wave of unease seeped deeply into my chest.
His expressionless face didn’t quite capture the coldness—it felt emptier, more… unnatural.
I searched for a fitting word, but my overloaded mind couldn’t find it.
“So, what you’re saying is, you don’t hate me, right? That’s what you mean?”
I broke the long silence first, speaking with a light, amused tone. I tightened my fist and hit Doshiyu’s arm.
“It’s fine.”
The sound of impact made Doshiyu blink in surprise as he cradled his arm.
“Just because you barely come around after the casino and only go to clubs, I got a little jealous.”
Doshiyu tilted his head as he rubbed the spot where my fist had landed.
Feigning indifference, I pretended to stretch, avoiding his gaze.
“I know you don’t have anyone else to hang out with, so come by more often, okay?”
The lie made my heart pound uncomfortably. I felt a creeping unease, a strange sensation of discomfort. I just wanted to escape this situation without a hitch.
“Oh, really?”
Doshiyu’s smirk widened into a grin.
“Are you upset because I don’t play with you enough, huh?”
“Want to die? Seriously.”
Stepping back, I distanced myself from Doshiyu, who stood smiling calmly at my eye level.
In the distance, the door stood open, and through the window, the pale blue light was growing brighter.
“It’s almost sunrise,” I muttered, turning my gaze from the window to the dark corridor beyond.
“I think I’ll go to bed now. You should call a doctor too. If you die here, I’ll be unfairly blamed, you know.”
I giggled lightly, but Doshiyu let out a hollow laugh in response.
“Don’t worry. I won’t die in front of you.”
I gave a slight shrug and gestured for him to leave.
“Enjoy the amusement park.”
Doshiyu continued to walk slowly backward, keeping his gaze on me.
“I doubt I’ll be able to have much fun, though.”
I murmured sleepily, pressing my fingertips into my dry, tired eyes.
Truthfully, it was becoming difficult to face Doshiyu any longer.
“It’ll be fun. Really fun.”
When I woke again, the voice was faint, and Doshiyu had already disappeared.
I stared at the empty corridor before stepping into my room and locking the door.
‘…What is this, Doshiyu?’
My heart pounded wildly, not calming down. I looked down at the hairpin clenched tightly in my hand.
‘I need you.’
What could it be? What’s the problem?
I wondered if the lingering chill was due to the cold touch of the hairpin.
I moved quickly, opening the window wide.
A cold breeze rushed in. The sky outside was bright with the rising sun.
Even as warm light poured in, the unsettling chill didn’t leave me.
I hurled the hairpin out of the window with all my strength.
‘Would you twist my neck like a chicken’s?’
But nothing changed.
In my mind, Doshiyu’s face refused to fade away. His expressionless face, void of any emotion.
A fitting word finally came to mind.
Like a hollow doll.
I stepped back out into the hall, passing the corridor with Doshiyu’s lingering presence without stopping, heading straight for Angel’s room.
“Angel. It’s me. I need to talk to you, so please open the door.”
Without hesitation, I knocked on the door, but no answer came.
“Angel?”
I knocked again and called his name, but still no reply.
I tried the doorknob. It turned smoothly.
The door opened to reveal an empty room.
“…he’s not here.”
I entered the room with a hollow feeling in my chest.
“Where could he be now?”
I wanted to say it—about how Doshiyu might have killed Ivy’s father. Almost certain of it. Things seemed to be spiraling in a strange direction, but I couldn’t quite figure it out.
“He’ll come back soon.”
Looking at the rising sun, I knew I had to say it before everything became irreversible.
I didn’t return to my room. I decided to wait for Angel.
***
By midday, the sun hung high in the sky, casting a bright glow.
In front of the waiting car, a colorful silhouette appeared. I quickened my steps.
“Ivy!”
Ivy looked up, her blue eyes glinting in the sunlight like the sea.
“Is big brother still not ready?”
Wearing a matching yellow outfit, Ivy extended her hand towards me.
“We said we’d meet at the amusement park! Holding hands with big sister!”
“Really?”
I grasped Ivy’s hand tightly and asked the man waiting by the car.
“Are we leaving first?”
The man in black tailored clothes nodded briefly.
“The doctor will meet us at the amusement park directly as he has business elsewhere.”
No wonder he wasn’t showing up earlier.
I tried to keep my expression neutral for Ivy’s sake. Once we meet at the amusement park, I’ll bring it up then.
The man opened the door to the back seat.
“To the amusement park, Boss provided…”
“People the boss assigned?”
I asked as I helped Ivy into the back seat. The man’s expression seemed somewhat flustered as he waved his hand dismissively.
“No, it’s not like that. Boss…”
The man trailed off, glancing somewhere else. His confused reaction made me tilt my head slightly.
“Not going?”
A low voice dropped from behind me, carrying a chill with it. I jumped, twisting my body away.
Just as the sun’s bright rays were blinding me, a shadow crossed my vision.
I looked up, meeting the gaze of a large hand creating shade over me.
Our eyes locked, and Baek Hawoon’s lips tilted into a sly smile.
