Chapter 85
The master key clicked, and the door opened. Yugyeom stepped into the suite without delay.
This is the last time.
He tightened his grip on his fist.
The darkened suite was filled with silence. With every step he took, it felt like the silence might choke him.
No sound was heard anywhere in the spacious area. Yugyeom opened each visible door one by one.
An empty dressing room, an empty bedroom, an empty bathroom.
When he finally opened the door to the deepest bedroom, he stopped, holding the doorknob.
A familiar dress was draped over the back of a chair.
Yugyeom walked slowly and grasped the dress. The silk with floral patterns slid smoothly through his fingers. The familiar scent that filled the room seeped into his chest with every breath he took.
Once again, there was no sign of her anywhere.
The dress that slipped from his hands fell to the floor with a soft thud.
In the room with no lights on, only the morning light coming through the window illuminated him. The bluish light flickered like ripples over his expressionless face.
Yugyeom turned around and walked out of the room.
“Yugyeom ?”
At that moment, Lee-Chan, who had just woken up, yawned and walked toward him from the other side of the hallway. His eyes widened in surprise as he recognized Yugyeom from afar.
Lee-Chan ran up to him and asked with confusion, “Why are you down here? Is something wrong?”
Sweat beads glistened on Lee-Chan’s forehead through his light-colored hair. His pale face looked even whiter under the dim lighting.
But his attire was impeccable, without a single wrinkle, so it seemed like he might have misunderstood.
Yugyeom ’s pale lips twitched.
“Yugyeom . Hey.”
Seeing his face again, Lee-Chan was certain something was wrong.
Lee-Chan grabbed Yugyeom ’s shoulder.
“What happened?”
Only then did Yugyeom ’s pale eyes turn toward Lee-Chan. Yugyeom blinked slowly and said, “The young lady…”
His voice was almost a mumble, making Lee-Chan tilt his head in confusion.
“What?”
Yugyeom turned his head and furrowed his brow, roughly brushing his hair aside.
Suddenly, something seemed to dawn on him, and his previously blurry eyes sparkled.
Turning back to Lee-Chan, Yugyeom asked, “Kang Taejun, is he here?”
“Kang Taejun?”
Lee-Chan’s face scrunched up. He removed his hand from Yugyeom ’s shoulder and shrugged, speaking with a dismissive tone.
“How would I know if that guy is here, suddenly dead in his sleep, or, very unfortunately, still alive?”
His tone was laced with deep disgust, as if he didn’t even want to mention it.
“Check it out. Right now.”
Yugyeom loosened his tie as he spoke.
On the way across the hallway to the office on the top floor, any sense of discomfort about his appearance had vanished, replaced by an artificial composure.
“Well, it’s not a difficult task, but what’s the matter?”
When they reached Yugyeom ’s office, Yugyeom turned to Lee-Chan.
A faint smile lingered on his face.
“The young lady is missing.”
Under the flood of lights, he spoke in a low voice.
“What?”
Lee-Chan’s eyebrows furrowed.
“Miss Cha Yeonbyeol? Did she just go out somewhere without saying anything?”
As Lee-Chan followed Yugyeom into the office, he asked.
“I’ve looked everywhere, but she’s not here.”
Yugyeom brushed his fingers meaninglessly over the desk with scattered papers. He glanced at the documents on the desk with lowered eyes.
Then he picked up one of them. Nothing reflected in his eyes as he read the text on the paper.
He didn’t even know what thoughts were rolling around in his head.
Was it the emptiness he felt when he saw the empty room?
“I got a call from Doshiyu. The person who got shot at the pool is Baek Ha-won’s secretary, and the young lady was also there…”
“Hey.”
Yugyeom looked up.
Beyond the glass wall overlooking the city, the rising sun illuminated him from behind.
In the backlight, his white face was hard to read. Only the twisted corners of his mouth were clearly visible.
“What are you thinking right now?”
Lee-Chan stared at him as if to see through him.
“Don’t entertain any foolish thoughts. Your father will be here in a few hours.”
The sunlight made Lee-Chan squint, causing him to turn his head away.
“If she’s really been kidnapped, it’s obvious.”
“…”
“It must be because of Baek Ha-won.”
Lee-Chan moved and sat heavily on the shadowed sofa. His dark eyes fixed on Yugyeom once more.
“It’s probably because of you.”
Yugyeom placed the paper back on the desk.
By now, the sun was obscured by clouds, and the light had vanished, revealing his pale face.
“It seems more likely given the location.”
Lee-Chan clicked his tongue and pulled out a lemon candy from his pocket. Skillfully unwrapping it, he placed the candy in his mouth.
“So, what, are you going to go look for her?”
His casually thrown voice was edged with sharpness.
“No, right?”
It was more of an accusation than a question.
Crunch.
The candy crunched in his mouth.
Before hearing Yugyeom ’s response, Lee-Chan concluded his own assumption as the truth and said.
“It’s better to just lose interest quickly.”
Yugyeom smirked and removed his jacket. His loose ivory-colored shirt swayed lightly with his movements.
Sitting across from Lee-Chan on the sofa, Yugyeom leaned deeply against the backrest. The view towards the ceiling was unclear.
“That’s right…”
He spoke as if whispering to himself.
“That’s the way it should be.”
The corners of his mouth formed a deep curve. Despite the prominent smile, his eyes remained as calm as a deep abyss.
“I’ll look for Cha Yeonbyeol as well. You just get ready.”
“No. There’s no need to search. We don’t have time for that.”
At Yugyeom ’s words, Lee-Chan paused his arm, which had been reaching for the laptop.
“Hey.”
He said hesitantly, narrowing his brow.
“No matter how much you can’t let go of Cha Yeonbyeol, I don’t think you’d throw everything away just because of her.”
“…”
“You wouldn’t be able to give up.”
Yugyeom continued to gaze at the empty space.
“But if there’s even the slightest chance of doubt…”
“Chan.”
Yugyeom closed his eyes. His voice was calm, without a hint of wavering.
“You know how I’ve lived.”
Morning light settled on his densely fringed eyelashes. It seemed like it wouldn’t be strange if he disappeared into that blinding whiteness.
“Y-Yugyeom !”
At that moment, the door to the office burst open, and one of Yugyeom ‘s subordinates, looking as though he was being chased by something, rushed in.
“What’s going on?”
Lee-Chan jumped up. The subordinate’s clothes were splattered with someone else’s blood.
It was the exact moment Yugyeom slowly opened his eyes.
The partially open door swung wide open.
“What is this…?”
The scene outside the door wasn’t drenched in blood, but it was unbelievable.
Every single bodyguard was sprawled across the floor.
In the middle of the hallway, with no one standing to block him, a tall man stood casually.
* * *
The room, now left alone, was eerily silent. In the confined space, I occasionally felt like I was suffocating.
I lay curled up on the bed. Though my eyes were closed, I couldn’t sleep.
‘This is no time to be like this…’
But I didn’t know what the best course of action was in this situation.
With only a few bullets left in the gun, I couldn’t use my only weapon recklessly. It had to be the right moment, perfectly timed.
I didn’t understand why Angel was ignoring me, but I fervently hoped it was because he had simply forgotten.
What was he planning to do? I tried to recall the original story, but it had diverged so much that I couldn’t make any connections.
Could it be that Yugyeom …
Knock knock.
Then I heard a knock. Was it a mistake?
I sat up from my lying position. It wasn’t just an illusion; after a slight delay, the door opened.
“What are you doing?”
My body tensed with anxiety. Clenching my fists had crumpled the white blanket in my hands.
“Aren’t you bored?”
Kang Taejun asked in an unusually kind tone, which made it even more unsettling.
“Aren’t you frustrated?”
His snake-like eyes narrowed.
Is he messing with me? Frustration surged up to my throat. I barely managed to control my contorted expression.
“Come out and have some food. It’s already lunchtime.”
But at that moment, I completely forgot about managing my expression.
I couldn’t understand what nonsense he was talking about and blinked rapidly.
Kang Taejun gestured for me to come out of the room.
The decision was quick. I promptly got out of bed. It would be better to familiarize myself with the layout outside, thinking ahead.
I walked with caution. The hallway outside appeared to be an ordinary hotel corridor.
Walking slowly, I thoroughly examined the layout. I couldn’t see Yuhwa or Angel; they seemed to be out.
And when I stopped in front of the dining table, I couldn’t help but let out a hollow laugh.
“Here. I didn’t know what you’d like, so I brought a bit of everything.”
The large dining table was filled with appetizing dishes.
Steaming white rice, a variety of cuisines from Western to Chinese, Japanese to Korean. It seemed like they had swept up everything edible in the vicinity.
