5.2 A Long Day
“I wish they’d just take Rick away.”
It was something Christoph had suddenly blurted out while lost in deep thought. The only person who heard those random words was Richard, who was sitting right next to him.
When Richard merely shifted his eyes toward Christoph, Christoph—still lost in thought and nodding to himself—finally seemed to have organized his thoughts. He looked around as if he wanted to brag about the wonderful idea he’d come up with to anyone who would listen. Finding no suitable person, he glared discontentedly at Richard and, acting as if he had no other choice, spoke to him seriously.
“If you think about it, it’s not entirely impossible. After all, isn’t Riegrow the Riyadh terrorist? Raman must even have a personal grudge, since the villa in Seringe collapsed by his hand. In that case, it would be only natural for them to take Riegrow. Don’t you think?”
“……I wondered what you were thinking so deeply about while staring at your plate in silence for so long, and it was that?”
Richard muttered as if he found it somewhat absurd, but Christoph didn’t even hear his scoff.
“He wouldn’t use the worst move against Tae-yi. He wouldn’t harm the family of the person he’s trying to bring in, Jeong Jae-ui. If he’s unlucky, he might take him hostage for blackmail, but he wouldn’t seriously hurt him. But Rick is different. If they take Rick away and leave Tae-yi all alone――.”
“Do you think that windfall will roll right into your lap?”
At Richard’s response, which was consistently laced with ridicule, Christoph finally looked at him with a sharp gaze, appearing slightly provoked.
“Who says that can’t happen?”
“Christoph. Have you become a fool in the meantime? Or are you dreaming [stolen content]with your eyes open? [Read on Read BL Novels]You are vividly demonstrating exactly how stupid a human becomes when they are blinded.”
“What do you mean by――.”
“For your theory to work, first, Raman’s purpose for coming here personally must be to punish Riegrow; second, Rick must be an easy enough man to be captured by them; and furthermore, as soon as Rick disappears from sight, Jeong Tae-ui must easily give up on him and change his mind. What do you think? Which of those seems most likely to happen?”
Without needing to think for long, Richard shattered Christoph’s thin hope right where he sat without changing his expression. He glanced sideways at the now gloomily silent Christoph and silently raised his glass to moisten his lips.
“Come to think of it, I sent a messenger to call the two who conveniently stepped out together, and he returned with a bright red face, hesitatingly saying, ‘I believe it will be difficult for the two of them to come right now.’ It seems they are attending to something more urgent and important than dinner.”
“…….”
Christoph put down the fork he had been poking into his plate. He muttered with a frown.
“I’ve lost my appetite. I’ll be going first―….”
“I don’t know if you intend to return to your room or if you plan to go interrupt those two, but sit down for now, Christoph. They will be here soon.”
Without even looking at Christoph, Richard gestured with his eyes toward the empty seat opposite them.
While the current head of Tarten went to greet them, this young candidate for the next head had already arranged the seating. Although only immediate family were gathered, their number was so large that the dining room, which was by no means small, felt full.
It was a late-night banquet.
At the same time, it was the final banquet of a period that had remained stagnant for a long time.
Tomorrow had arrived.
Tomorrow evening, around this time, it would be revealed who would lead Tarten anew.
No one wondered who that person would be. Although there had been minor issues recently, such problems could not damage the position he had firmly established. At most, there were a few comments about whether the date of succession should be postponed, but even that did not happen, and the day was now tomorrow.
“You must be happy, Richard. The day you’ve waited decades for is now just one day away. Can you imagine yourself at this time tomorrow?”
Christoph, who had tried to stand up and leave without listening to Richard, glared fiercely at Richard—who had reached under the table to press down on his thigh to keep him seated—and spoke with heavy sarcasm. Richard, who had been having a short conversation with the person sitting on his other side, glanced at Christoph.
“I didn’t wait decades because I wanted to succeed Tarten. What I was actually waiting for was ruined by you. Over ten years ago.”
Perhaps the memory of that time surfaced, as his tone became considerably colder. Christoph raised his eyes in confusion, then let out a low scoff.
It had already been that long. Since Christoph had given up the succession of Tarten, the time he thought had stopped moving had already receded that far.
Back then, he never imagined he would one day sit side-by-side with this man in the Tarten banquet hall.
Christoph looked at the glass window opposite him; outside, pitch-black darkness [Read on Read BL Novels]had [visit our site]already fallen, reflecting the interior scene like a mirror.
Richard was sitting in the seat of honor, which had been left vacant for the elder and the guest of honor. Christoph sat beside him, followed by the relatives.
In that illusion reflected in the glass, Christoph was floating alone.
While everyone else talked with their neighbors or did their own thing, only Christoph was staring at that illusion. It was as if he were watching the bustling and cozy banquet hall from a distance, beyond that reflection.
This is not a place for me.
This is not a place for you.
Voices that should not have been heard whispered. The murmuring sounds in his ears suddenly increased in volume, filling his eardrums.
But then.
“Christoph?”
A low and clear voice reached his ears, piercing through the ghost-like sounds screaming in his ears.
Christoph, the voice called once more.
And Christoph saw the man in the glass mirror leaning toward him with a puzzled face. He had been giving instructions to a cousin who had come to whisper something [visit our site]in his ear, and he had noticed Christoph sitting there, blankly lost in thought, a bit late.
His gaze followed Christoph’s gaze toward the front. Soon, their eyes met in the glass.
In the illusion where he had been floating alone like a ghost, there was another person looking in the same direction. He pulled the floating Christoph back down to the place of the people.
Only then did Christoph bring the man’s name back to his consciousness.
“……I can hear you, Richard, even if you don’t call me that many times.”
“Hmph……. I wondered what you were staring at so blankly; surely you aren’t planning to become a narcissist.”
Richard spoke mockingly, their eyes still meeting in the glass. Christoph frowned slightly.
“I wasn’t looking at myself. And I don’t like my face.”
As if those words were completely unexpected, Richard stared straight at Christoph without moving for a moment. Glaring back at that gaze, which seemed to accuse him of being a liar, Christoph added.
“Not just my face, there isn’t a single part of this body that I like.”
No, not just the body. His mind, his heart—thinking about it, there was nothing he liked. The human known as Christoph Tarten had never once been to Christoph’s liking.
Clicking his tongue, Christoph looked stolen contentirritably at the door, wondering when the late guest would enter. Richard, who had been watching him silently, suddenly spoke.
“Then give it to me.”
“……?”
To the puzzled Christoph, Richard said something with an expressionless face, whether it was a joke or a serious offer.
“Whether it’s your face or your body, give me everything you don’t like. You probably don’t like a single thing about yourself anyway.”
Christoph gazed blankly at Richard. Not through a reflection in the glass, but in reality, turning his head to look at the man right beside him. Eventually, Richard slowly turned his head as well. Their eyes met across a distance of barely a few inches.
At some point, Richard seemed to knit his brows slightly.
“I’m joking.”
“……. That wasn’t even a funny joke.”
Christoph clicked his tongue and turned away.
It was then. He suddenly locked eyes with someone sitting a short distance away on the opposite side. It was his mother, her face exceptionally pale and solemn today.
How long had she been watching them?
His mother, who had been observing them expressionlessly, quietly averted her gaze when Christoph widened his eyes slightly and gave a barely perceptible nod. It was as if she had never been looking at them in the first place.
“……?”
While Christoph tilted his head suspiciously, the door opened and today’s protagonist finally entered.
Along with the honored guests, the master of Tarten—the man who had led and prospered this historic house for a long time—stepped inside.
Among the people standing up regardless of who moved first, Christoph watched them. He stared at the elder, who wore his usual strict yet calm smile, for a while. Only after sitting back down at the elder’s gesture did he shift his gaze to the guest who had entered with him.
They were people he had already met and greeted earlier. They were the ones Richard had gone to the airport to welcome. They were figures worthy of such a reception.
Al Faisal, a man who stood extremely close to the pinnacle, a rarity even in the lands of Saudi Arabia where royalty was as common as pebbles. And following him, Raman Abid Al Saud, who held the actual power and was not yet too old to be called a businessman.
Richard seemed to have met them several times while traveling to and from Riyadh, but Christoph, facing them for the first time, nearly burst into laughter while exchanging a few words with Raman.
You’ve lost your mind, Ilay Riegrow. To bomb a man like this. Well, I suppose only a lunatic like him could do such a thing.
Despite being in a position of power having secretly been delegated most of the authority, Raman, who remained superficially in a supporting role to Al Faisal, was still playing the part of a loyal ward and stepson. He did not voice his opinions first, quietly attending to his stepfather’s needs.
“No matter how much he acts like a docile [Read on Read BL Novels]unauthorized copysheep, a wolf still stands out even in a flock,” Christoph suddenly muttered to himself.
It wasn’t a loud voice, but it was loud enough to be heard by the person next to him, and Richard’s hand paused for a moment. Then, with that same calm, smiling face, he turned to Christoph and growled in a low voice.
“Keep your mouth shut unless you’re planning to do something crazy again, Christoph.”
“Why, does that man acting like a sheep over there actually look like a sheep to you? To my eyes, he looks like a wolf—no, not even a wolf, but a brown bear barely draped in a sheepskin.”
As Christoph replied nonchalantly, he suddenly frowned and grumbled something incomprehensible: “Damn it, there are three bears in one house. A brown bear, a crazy bear, and a bear that’s different on the inside than the outside. Not a single one of them is sane.”
However, those words did not reach their end.
It was because Richard’s hand, which had been gripping Christoph’s thigh under the table, slid further upward.
“If you don’t shut that mouth, I’ll make sure your other mouth can’t open at all.”
“――.”
Christoph’s face froze instantly, and he shut his mouth. He shot a fierce side-glance at Richard without a word, but Richard remained composed, his hand still resting on Christoph’s groin.
“Riha――.”
“Ah, come to think of it, Christoph Tarten?”
Just as Christoph opened his mouth, a voice flew in from across the table. Christoph turned his gaze while keeping his fierce expression. However, upon identifying the speaker, his expression slowly softened. It was the brown bear father.
Al Faisal. A leading entrepreneur who had stepped back from power struggles early on to build and successfully grow a business, and one head of the double-headed eagle who served as mutual support for Prince Ali.
Christoph looked directly at him—a man in his fifties who looked slightly older than his actual age, resembling an elderly man one could see anywhere.
Beside him, Raman, who had been filling the old man’s glass, set the bottle down only after filling it to an appropriate level, then belatedly turned his gaze toward Christoph. It was a quiet and indifferent gaze, yet it was sharp enough to make one’s cheeks sting.
Christoph clicked his tongue inwardly, recalling a time he had accidentally encountered a brown bear while subjugating enemy forces in a forest; he remembered how that beast had continued to move menacingly even after taking four direct hits from bullets.
“I heard from Malik that your marksmanship is excellent,” Al Faisal said with a generous smile.
Christoph did not answer for a moment.
Glancing sideways, he saw Malik sitting a few seats away, offering a nonchalant smile. It was as if he didn’t even remember the incident in the forest a while ago where Christoph had shot one of his subordinates.
After a short silence, Christoph slowly spoke.
“Enough to temporarily protect what I want.”
“Hoh,” Al Faisal chuckled calmly and nodded. Beside Read on Read BL Novels[stolen content]him, neither Raman [unauthorized copy]nor Malik showed any reaction.
“Malik is a young man I particularly cherish, and he recommended you. He said you possess the suitable abilities to provide instruction to the private soldiers under my command.”
Al Faisal spoke suggestively, as if asking for his intention. While other relatives around them looked at Christoph in surprise, Christoph stared at Malik. As expected, he wore an inscrutable, indifferent face.
As Christoph remained silent, Raman, who had been keeping quiet beside him, spoke up to assist Al Faisal.
“I heard that you currently have no official affiliation, and that you do not intend to stay at Tarten for long.”
Christoph turned a silent gaze toward Raman.
There was no way he hadn’t heard. A person had been injured. Not by mistake, but intentionally, and by the Tarten side at that. There was no way such a report hadn’t reached the top. Especially for someone as trusted as he was.
When Christoph shifted his gaze back to Malik, only then did Malik nod with a smile.
“The person I serve looks at a person’s ability and future. Even if there were minor mistakes in the past, as long as they are not repeated, he does not ask further.”
Only then did Christoph understand. This was an independent offer, unrelated to any other situation. It seemed Christoph’s track record and experience had caught that man’s eye.
Surely, Christoph would be leaving Tarten soon. And he had no other affiliation. There was nowhere he particularly wanted to go, but there was also nowhere he particularly wanted to avoid.
Just as Christoph was about to speak.
“It is such a generous offer that it would be difficult to give an answer right here. He will certainly think it over slowly tonight and provide a favorable response.”
Christoph looked at Richard, who was watching him with a smile as if to say ‘isn’t that right?’, with a hint of bewilderment.
While Christoph glared at him in disbelief at those subtle words—which sounded as if Richard would slowly persuade a reluctant Christoph to comply with their wishes—Al Faisal nodded as if that were reasonable.
After concluding that they should talk again after thinking it over, he began discussing something else with the elder sitting next to him. And the attention of the people gradually dispersed.
“If you’re thinking of sending me under them to use me as a pawn, you’d better give up,” Christoph said in a low, blunt tone, guessing Richard’s intention to send him to Al Faisal.
Richard gave him a fleeting glance. He replied in an indifferent voice that betrayed no thought.
“You probably have nowhere else to go anyway. Do you not want to go to the Middle East?”
“It’s not that I don’t want to go, but if you’re planning to wedge me into the relationship between Tarten and them, stop it. I have absolutely no intention of being involved with Tarten any longer.”
Richard remained silent.
As the low and peaceful conversations of the people continued, they continued their meal, and they continued to talk with those sitting nearby as if nothing had happened.
It was around the time Christoph had almost forgotten about [unauthorized copy]the [unauthorized copy]topic. Suddenly, a low [visit our site]voice came from beside him.
“Stay at Tarten, Christoph.”
At the resolute words that left no room for refusal, Christoph stopped moving and looked at Richard. Richard looked back at him, raising an eyebrow slightly as if he had just said a casual greeting.
“Don’t joke. Do you not remember what I said? The moment the succession is decided, it’s over between me and Tarten. I will never return. Nor will I be involved.”
“You owe a debt to Tarten. A massive debt that, by ordinary means, would take a lifetime to repay. ……They aren’t the only ones who see a person’s ability and future. If you agree to work for Tarten from now on, I can wipe that debt clean. With your abilities, you could easily be placed in a key position.”
Even though it wasn’t a matter he could easily bring up on his own authority, he spoke as such. To Richard, who had at least kept the words that fell from his own mouth, Christoph replied coldly.
“……What’s your angle?”
“If it doesn’t matter where you go, what difference does it make to you whether you work in the Middle East—or somewhere else—or work at Tarten?”
Christoph glared at the calmly speaking Richard with eyes that couldn’t understand him.
Somewhere else, and Tarten.
There was little difference in the work itself. But this man was here. Richard Tarten was here. Also, the people of Tarten were here. People for whom he had never felt a single emotion.
“Christoph Tarten. Stay here.”
“……Why? Is it not enough that you’ve humiliated me all this time?” Christoph muttered suspiciously.
For a moment, the hand holding the knife faltered. Richard’s gaze, as he slowly turned to look at Christoph, was cold.
“……. You know me well.”
Christoph’s gaze also turned cold.
“Let me tell you, Richard, even if I follow Al Faisal’s offer, I will never act as a bridge to Tarten. I’ll even throw away the name Tarten. Anywhere will be better than here.”
Richard looked at Christoph for a moment and then turned away. Then, as if nothing had happened, he wiped his mouth and lifted his glass. As Christoph glared at him nonchalantly wetting his lips with wine, his expression suddenly stiffened.
Without warning, a hand gripped his groin. That hand, which squeezed so ruthlessly that he gasped for breath, unhesitatingly ripped open the front of his trousers.
“You’re crazy, Richard, where do you think we—.”
“Well, I simply became curious.”
However, in contrast to Christoph’s rigid face, Richard did not stop his hand even as he tilted his glass with an extremely serene expression. When Christoph urgently grabbed that hand, Richard twisted it so hard it felt as if he would crush the flesh inside the pants, and Christoph let go, his vision turning white.
“I wonder if they would still entrust you with [stolen content]work if you showed them yourself opening your legs and visit our sitecrying while being pierced from behind [Read on Read BL Novels]right here. Don’t you find that curious?”
Especially since Al Faisal is said to follow the law very strictly, the whispering voice leaked only into Christoph’s ear.
“―…Richard, don’t do this.”
Christoph’s voice was very small.
Yet, though there was no way he hadn’t heard, Richard’s hand continued to delve beneath the clothing. Every time those knuckles moved, Christoph struggled with all his might to keep his twitching body still.
“Christoph, stay here.”
“This is different from what you said before.”
Christoph’s expression grew increasingly pale as he whispered. Their reflections were visible in the glass window. Richard continued to exchange a few words with other people so naturally that it was unbelievable how he could maintain such a composed face.
The hand that had been rubbing his groin directly against the skin pushed further inside. An index finger, or perhaps a middle finger—some finger pushed into the inner thigh. The tip poked just slightly into his tightly closed body.
“―…!!”
Christoph crumpled the tablecloth. His thighs trembled faintly.
The finger that seemed to delve slightly into his body soon withdrew. A surprisingly gentle touch [visit our site]came out from under the clothes and patted near his thigh as if to say it was okay. Then, it stroked the flesh that had been pulled out of the underwear.
“Christoph, you don’t look very well. Wouldn’t it be better to go in and rest?”
Then, a calm and cool voice came from across the table.
Bianca was speaking to Christoph while quietly wiping her mouth with a napkin. Christoph stared blankly for a moment at her, who averted her gaze the moment their eyes met.
His body froze stiff at the sudden sound of his name in this situation. As Christoph, pale with shock, gave a short answer—”Ah, yes”—the attention of the people gathered on him.
“I see, Christoph. You do look unwell.”
“Oh dear, there’s cold sweat on his forehead…….”
At the words of the people nearby chiming in, Christoph could not answer, keeping his blue eyes fixed on the table.
“He looked unwell since this morning, and it seems he’s a bit exhausted because there was so much to do today. My room is closer, so I’ll take him there for a moment.”
The words Richard spoke right beside him sounded as if they were coming from far away. Christoph looked vacantly at him, who had stood up with a worried expression and reached out his hand.
“Come here, Christoph. ……It’s okay, stand up.”
The moment Richard grabbed Christoph’s elbow and pulled gently, Christoph flinched almost imperceptibly. And only then did he realize. That his private parts [visit our site]were still exposed through the gap in his underwear, and only the zipper of his pants had been pulled up.
The disheveled collar would not be very noticeable, covered by the jacket. Knowing that, Christoph still could not readily stand up. More than worry, his body, which had frozen instantly, would not move properly.
“You must be struggling a lot. Come here, I’ll support you.”
Richard spoke with genuine concern and leaned over. He wrapped an arm around Christoph’s waist and practically lifted him up. Supporting him as he trembled faintly, Richard said briefly to the people around them, ‘Then we’ll be back in a moment,’ and began to walk.
Following him with a nearly blank mind, Christoph heard voices behind him sounding very surprised: ‘Their relationship seems to have improved quite a bit,’ ‘Then again, Richard has a strong sense of responsibility and is naturally kind…….’
Eventually, they stepped out of the banquet hall and closed the door behind them, cutting off those voices. Even then, Christoph could hardly move and walked while being supported by Richard for a while, until he snapped back to his senses when Richard asked in a voice mixed with a cool laugh, “Are you alright?”
“You――.”
Christoph pushed him away convulsively and shouted.
“You, …―you’re crazy, you’ve lost your mind, Richard Tarten! You pervert who doesn’t think things through. Where was that, who was there, what kind of day is today, ―…you could have ended yourself too! Do you think I’m the only one who would end up humiliated?!”
“Not at all. There is no way that would happen to me, and as long as I don’t want it, there is no way you will suffer humiliation.”
Richard spoke nonchalantly, straightening the sleeve of the arm that had been around Christoph’s waist. At those quiet yet firm words, Christoph was momentarily speechless.
“That’s not for you to decide――.”
“It is. Whatever I do. Everything goes as I wish.”
This time, Christoph truly shut his mouth.
Not with lies or exaggeration, but with a calm confidence, the man spoke.
“There has been only one thing in my life that didn’t go exactly as I wished.”
“——I find it immensely satisfying to hear that.”
Christoph turned away, grinding his teeth. Behind him, Richard remained silent, watching his retreating figure. However, soon, a voice laced with that characteristic, slow mockery flew after Christoph.
“Can you walk on your own?”
Christoph glared fiercely at Richard and quickened his pace. He nearly tripped over his own feet and stumbled slightly, but it was enough of an answer for Richard.
“Don’t follow me. I absolutely do not want to see your face right now. Go show that smiling face of yours to the guests until they’re sick of it.”
As Christoph strode away, shouting sharply, Richard slowly came to a halt.
“I’ll come by tonight, so get some rest.”
“Don’t come! You lunatic!”
Now seemingly indifferent to who might hear, Christoph bellowed and walked off toward the west wing.
Richard watched him coldly until Christoph turned the corner at the end of the main building’s central corridor and vanished from sight. Then, slowly, a frown creased his brow.
“Damn it. …Is he actually insane?”
Richard clicked his tongue lowly.
It was madness.
He didn’t worry about being caught by others or that something troublesome might happen because of it. He wasn’t that much of an idiot, and even if such a situation arose, he had the confidence to wrap things up smoothly in the end.
And yet, it was undoubtedly madness. No, perhaps it was his own mind that was mad.
When Bianca called for Christoph and the crowd’s attention shifted toward him, the emotion that surged in his chest wasn’t bewilderment, but rage.
Only after feeling a childish anger—as if something precious that should never have been shown to others had been foolishly laid bare—did the bewilderment regarding that anger rush in.
“…Ha. It seems I’m the one who needs rest.”
Snorting to himself, Richard began to head back toward the banquet hall, but he suddenly stopped.
Letting out an unpleasant sigh, he rubbed the space between his brows a couple of times. He glanced down at his wristwatch, then went to the window and took a cigarette from the pack on the lounge table at the end of the hallway. He couldn’t remember the last time he had smoked. But right now, he desperately needed it.
Now, with the succession only a day away.
* * *
The person who refused entry, and the person who ignored that refusal and pushed their way in.
If a fight breaks out between the two, whose side should one take?
To this question, the answer Jeong Tae-ui would choose right now was very simple.
It was obvious that one should side with the homeowner who was refused entry by a guest in his own house.
The sound of knocking was heard—fortunately, or from another [visit our site]perspective, very [visit our site]unfortunately—after they had finished one round.
After a leisurely round, while Jeong Tae-ui was waiting with a languid mind for the object, which had decreased in volume but was still too cumbersome to allow for a breather, to be removed.
However, instead of thinking about removing it, Ilay, who was clung to his back, was brushing his lips across Tae-ui’s cheeks and neck, occasionally biting hard enough to make him jump. It was then that the knocking sounded.
“Open the door.”
In truth, it seemed he had no intention of waiting for the door to be opened, as there was a sign of him trying to force it open the moment he spoke, but the locked door only rattled a few times and remained shut.
As soon as he heard that blunt, cold voice and the irritable sound of the door, Ilay clicked his tongue in annoyance and shouted.
“We’re attached right now, so I can’t move. Come back later.”
The moment he heard that shout, Jeong Tae-ui buried his head in the pillow.
“I mean, there are plenty of excuses that sound better…”
But cutting through Tae-ui’s weak voice, the noise at the door grew more violent. The sound of someone pounding on the door as if intending to break it followed, along with another fierce shout: “Open the door.”
Ilay ignored the noise entirely, taking a handful of Tae-ui’s cheek into his mouth and reaching for his genitals. However, as Tae-ui’s mind became scattered by the constant noise at the door and his lower body showed no sign of reacting, Ilay eventually clicked his tongue and pulled away.
Shuddering at the sensation of the object—which had been gradually increasing in [stolen content]volume—sliding out, a feeling he could never get used to, Jeong Tae-ui quickly reached out and [unauthorized copy]pulled his robe closer. Muttering that the difference between a human and a beast is whether one knows shame, he had just draped the robe over his shoulders when Ilay strode to the door and flung it open violently.
As the door opened with a thunderous crash, the person who walked in without flinching, as if he had been waiting, was the ever-cold Christoph.
Slipping past Ilay’s arm which was braced against the door, Christoph didn’t even glance at Ilay, who was glaring at him more menacingly than any weapon. He walked straight to Jeong Tae-ui and sat beside him without a word. Tae-ui looked at Christoph, who sat quietly with his back turned, barely touching him, with a face that was both awkward and puzzled.
“If you don’t have any urgent business, go back. Or just say what you have to say and leave. We’re in the middle of something, so it’ll be a while before we’re finished.”
When Ilay spoke bleakly, Christoph cast a chilly glance his way. Then, as if he had seen something foul, he glared with sharp, hawk-like eyes.
“Put that hideous thing away. You’re worse than a beast.”
Quickly averting his eyes from Ilay’s naked body, which had been brazenly pressed against Tae-ui’s, Christoph glared at Tae-ui instead.
“Why are you doing that kind of thing with a guy like that and making me see such a hideous sight?!”
“No, I mean… you could have come a bit later.”
“And you, too, huh? Do you really have to do it with something like that?! You’re not some animal; what is that? You should at least do it with a human, a human! How can you just roll around like that without thinking about your own body?!”
Jeong Tae-ui opened his mouth to make some kind of excuse, but the moment he saw Ilay standing there with an incredulous expression over the shoulder of the fiercely shouting Christoph, he became speechless. He had no counterargument.
As Tae-ui just smacked his lips, Ilay glanced at him and let out an [Read on Read BL Novels]annoyed sigh. Fumbling through the pocket of his upper garment draped over the [unauthorized copy]chair, Ilay pulled something out. And before Tae-ui could stop him, he hurled it straight at Christoph.
“Uh, dangerous…!”
At the same moment Tae-ui shouted reflexively, Christoph leaned his body to the side. The object grazed his hair by a hair’s breadth and slammed into the frame of a painting hanging on the wall. It was a steel ball slightly larger than a thumbnail. If it hit the head, it would be instant death; even if it hit the body, it could easily break a bone.
As Tae-ui stared in shock at the steel ball, which had embedded itself deep into the frame before dropping to the floor and rolling heavily to a stop, Ilay spoke slowly.
“Whatever happened to you elsewhere, don’t come here to vent your anger. Christoph Tarten. Get a grip.”
“….”
“Christoph.”
Without answering, Christoph had simply lied down on the bed without even getting up, using Tae-ui’s thigh as a pillow. Ilay approached him, grabbed him by the collar, and hauled him up. Then, he delivered a merciless slap to the cheek. The blow was so violent it was a wonder skin didn’t fly off; almost simultaneously, Christoph punched Ilay in the jaw.
“Don’t touch me!”
Crack. Ilay’s head turned slightly, and as he turned back toward Christoph with a dangerous smile, he took a step forward. Just as he did, something flew between them with a sharp whistling sound.
The two men, who had been drawn to each other like magnets, reflexively jerked back. The object flew swiftly between them and slammed loudly against the bedroom door.
It was the steel ball Ilay had thrown earlier.
“It’s heavier than I thought. …Wow, it would be a piece of cake to kill someone with this.”
Looking down at his right hand, Jeong Tae-ui murmured in admiration. The two men, who had stopped in a state of imminent explosion, stared intently at his face of pure admiration. Complex emotions briefly crossed their faces.
“Jeong Tae-ui.”
“Hmm?”
“I can’t tell if you’re getting smarter or stupider.”
Ilay murmured expressionlessly, staring fixedly at Tae-ui. Tae-ui scratched his head and spoke gloomily, like a sigh.
“If you hit me with that fist now, I’ll be branded a fool even in my own eyes.”
Maybe I just have no capacity to learn. Looking back, I think the reason I got on his bad side in the first place was something similar, Tae-ui thought, clutching his head. Ilay watched him for a moment before sighing and turning away. He picked up the large robe sprawled on the floor and put it on.
“I should say you’ve gotten smarter. To a sigh-inducing degree.”
Christoph, who had been staring at Ilay with a bizarre expression, hesitated for a moment, looking back and forth between his own fist and Ilay’s face, but soon sat on the edge of the bed as if it didn’t matter.
Ilay took a beer from the minibar and handed it [stolen content]only to Tae-ui, then looked at Christoph with a cold face.
“Pajamas. …It’s strange that you’d leave your bedroom dressed like that, but why did you suddenly come here instead of just sleeping quietly?”
Under the wall clock indicating a time slightly earlier than usual for sleep, Christoph brushed back his fallen hair and muttered irritably.
“I can’t sleep.”
“Take some medicine and sleep. What happened to all those pills in your drawer that could make you sleep forever?”
“They’re gone. I forgot to refill them.”
Only after hearing Christoph’s complaining tone did Jeong Tae-ui, who was opening the beer tab, realize that Christoph had hardly been taking his medication lately.
Christoph, who almost always swallowed his medicine as soon as he woke up in the morning, complaining that his head was too noisy, had recently been helping Richard. He had been falling asleep late every night, buried under piles of work, and had been struggling with drowsiness and fatigue every morning. While constantly pouring out complaints like I’m sleepy, I’m tired, my back hurts with a pale face, he had barely touched his medicine.
“…I can’t sleep because it’s cold.”
When Christoph added that, Ilay, who had been swallowing his beer while glaring at Christoph with a dissatisfied face, had his eyes grow even more desolate. Now that summer was ending, although it was cool in the mornings and evenings, the weather had been such that one could fall asleep while watching the stars outside.
“Christoph Tarten. I think it would be better for you to go to a doctor rather than telling me here that there’s something wrong with your nerves.”
“No, well… it does [unauthorized copy]get a bit [unauthorized copy]chilly in the mornings and evenings if you leave the window open. …Is it really cold?”
Though he was trying to help Christoph, Jeong Tae-ui, who still slept with the windows open, asked with a slightly serious face. As Ilay said, there might actually be a problem with his nerves or senses.
Christoph looked at Tae-ui. After staring at him for a while as if lost in thought, Christoph suddenly asked.
“Isn’t it hot if you sleep while hugging someone?”
“Hmm?”
Gulp. Jeong Tae-ui stopped mid-drink.
“Well… once the weather gets colder, I guess it might be warm in its own way. If it’s not sticky with sweat, it might not feel that bad. And it does feel a bit cold lately.”
Christoph frowned as if conflicted. Tae-ui stared at that frown. With the beer can still in his mouth, he tried to grasp the context of the conversation.
“I can do that too.”
Christoph suddenly murmured. His voice was so small it was hard to understand. It might have been a monologue muttered unconsciously.
“I can sleep while hugging someone too. I can do that. …Since it’s cold, I’d be okay with that too.”
“…Christoph?”
Tae-ui frowned slightly.
The way he murmured dreamily, as if dreaming with his eyes open, felt somehow empty and vague, as if he might vanish just like that.
“Then go hug anyone and sleep. Except for this guy.”
However, Ilay’s cold voice sharply cut through that momentary feeling of emptiness.
Christoph, who had been staring down at his feet, narrowed his eyes slightly.
“Anyone? Who?”
“Not my concern. As long as it’s not this guy, I don’t care who you hug or cuddle with. Unfortunately, I also like sleeping while hugging someone, so I can’t give this guy up.”
Watching the two of them glare at each other in the suddenly desolate atmosphere, Jeong Tae-ui swallowed his beer and unconsciously murmured.
“Then if you two sleep together… …no, that was a slip of the tongue.”
As the desolate air instantly focused on him like a blade, Tae-ui hiccuped and quickly waved his hands.
Christoph sighed and rubbed his brow. He looked visibly exhausted.
“I can’t sleep. Because I can’t sleep, all sorts of thoughts come to me, and then I can’t sleep even more.”
To Christoph, who was murmuring as if to himself, Tae-ui took out another beer and handed it to him. Even after taking the can, Christoph didn’t open the tab; he just stared blankly down at the can.
“What kind of thoughts are you having?”
Tae-ui flopped down onto the sofa a few steps away. It didn’t seem like the conversation would end quickly. When he glanced at Ilay, the latter was looking at Christoph with a seriously conflicted expression—likely wondering whether to drag him out or not—and clicked his tongue when his eyes met Tae-ui’s.
“I don’t know… like, what is important, or what… what, why, how…”
Watching Christoph list words that were disjointed and provided no clues, Tae-ui tilted his head. Just as he frowned and opened his mouth, Ilay’s answer came first.
“If no one can give you an answer, and it’s not a problem that reaches a conclusion just by thinking about it, then thinking about it for a long time is a waste of time.”
So that’s how it sounds if you say what I was going to say more ruthlessly, Tae-ui thought. But Ilay didn’t stop there; he stood up. In a few steps, he approached Christoph and delivered a brazen slap to the cheek.
This time, the lip split. Christoph, rubbing the blood from his lip with his thumb, glared at Ilay with piercing blue eyes, the vague atmosphere now completely gone. Tae-ui watched with a sense of dread as Christoph’s hand habitually fumbled across the bed. He thought it was a relief that the only things his hand could reach were the blanket and the pillow.
“Get a grip, Christoph. You’re losing your center right now. I don’t care why, but if you want to talk nonsense, go somewhere else. Or get your act together.”
“…Right, thanks to you, I’m feeling a bit more awake.”
Perhaps not finding what he was looking for, the hand fumbling on the bed stopped regretfully.
Tae-ui thought Christoph might lung at Ilay, but surprisingly, he backed off obediently and sat up on the bed. Then, he simply lay down and covered himself with the blanket. He intended to sleep there.
In front of Ilay, who was glaring at him with a suspicious face, Christoph wiggled his body to the side, leaving enough space for one person to lie down, and then looked at Tae-ui with an indifferent face and patted the spot beside him.
“If you get sleepy, you can sleep here.”
“…No, that’s my bed…”
“My sleeping habits are quite quiet, so you don’t have to worry.”
I know well enough that you sleep soundly without moving an inch like a doll, but that’s not the problem, Tae-ui murmured, but Ilay stepped in between them.
Looking down at Christoph from the side of the bed, Ilay slowly rubbed his wrist, radiating an aura that suggested he was definitely about to cause a scene this time.
“Christo…”
“That’s right. Come to think of it, there’s something I wanted to ask you.”
The moment Ilay opened his mouth, Christoph spoke first.
As usual, an expressionless gaze remained fixed on Ilay. Then, as if asking about the weather outside, he asked calmly.
“At that time, what did Malik say to you?”
The reason he woke up was because he was cold.
From the moment he blinked his heavy eyes a few times until he sat up, Christoph did not know where he was. He hadn’t even realized he had fallen asleep.
Only after some time had passed did memories vaguely return to him. Unbelievable as it was, it seemed he had been lying flat on Jeong Tae-ui’s bed, remaining motionless regardless of what Riegrow said, until he drifted off.
He had always struggled to wake up once he fell asleep, but he had never fallen asleep in someone else’s bed before. Thus, Christoph stepped out of the bed with a somewhat peculiar feeling.
The clock was past three in the morning, but there was no one in the room. He could clearly imagine Riegrow dragging Jeong Tae-ui away to his own room after Christoph had fallen asleep in that bed.
“……It’s cold.”
Christoph muttered unconsciously. [Read on Read BL Novels]He huddled his body [visit our site]and brushed down his shoulders, then tilted his head.
There was no reason for it to be cold.
Just as Riegrow had said, there was no reason to be cold; the air touching his skin was clearly a pleasant, cool temperature.
And yet, he was cold.
After standing there blankly for a while, hugging himself, Christoph suddenly came to his senses and walked toward his room.
The hallway was silent. Not a single lamp was lit, but the moonlight, exceptionally brilliant tonight, streamed in through the large windows. Perhaps that was why it felt even more silent—as if everything were submerged in that moonlight.
Upon reaching his room, Christoph gazed at the silent space, where the moonlight cast hazy diagonal lines, staining everything in silver and shades of deep and light ultramarine, before slowly opening his door.
And as he took a step inside, he realized there was a person sitting in the dark room.
On the sofa beneath the window, a man was sitting.
“……Richard.”
Even before turning on the light, he could tell just by the dim silhouette.
Christoph flipped the switch.
White light filled the room, driving away the darkness.
At the end of Christoph’s gaze, Richard was staring at him in silence.
He was dressed exactly as he had been when Christoph saw him at the banquet—which was now last night. Perhaps because his usually neatly groomed hair was disheveled, or because of the rough stubble on his chin, he looked a bit exhausted.
“……. Have you been in this room the whole time?”
Christoph asked, his lips curling slightly. However, instead of an answer, he received a short counter-question.
“And you?”
Christoph did not answer. Richard didn’t seem to expect an answer, or perhaps he already knew; he looked at Christoph coldly, then let out a long, low sigh and finally loosened the tie that had been choking his neck.
“Well, fine. At least I gained enough time to reach a conclusion.”
“A conclusion? What conclusion?”
“A few things were tangled, so I wondered what would be best……. But I’ve concluded that the best policy is to remove things that irritate the eye from one’s sight. It bothers me a bit since it means breaking a promise, but it can’t be helped.”
Christoph pondered Richard’s words, visit our sitewhich he murmured [stolen content]calmly while removing [Read on Read BL Novels]his clothes one by one.
Something that irritated Richard’s eye.
The first thing that came to mind was Christoph himself. The one thing that he—who smiled kindly to everyone and heard only praise for being sweet and gentle—actually hated.
—Stay in Tarten, Christoph. ……Stay here.
Suddenly, the words he had whispered earlier flashed through his mind. He hadn’t known if it was a whim or what he was thinking. In the end, it had been nothing more than a whim.
Christoph tried to let out a small laugh. However, that laugh only slightly distorted the corners of his mouth before vanishing.
“……Even if you don’t go out of your way to remove me, and without breaking any promises, I’ll be gone soon anyway.”
“No, it’s useless for you to just be out of sight for a while.”
“I told you, without you needing to say it, that I would never return. Once I leave this place tomorrow, I will never return to Dresden.”
Richard’s hand paused while undoing his cufflink. Then, he stared silently at Christoph.
A low chuckle escaped him, but no smile reached his lips. Instead, as if annoyed or fatigued, he rubbed his forehead with one hand. The few strands of hair that had fallen down became even more disheveled.
“Christoph.”
A tired voice called him lowly. After a moment of silence, the voice continued, tinged with a certain coldness.
“What if I had been looking only at you for a very long time?”
“……?”
Christoph frowned slightly.
“While waiting for you to return here, I kept thinking. Perhaps, no, what if I—.”
Pausing for a moment, Richard suddenly looked straight at Christoph. He had no expression at all—not even his usual facade of a kind smile—and consequently, the expression vanished from Christoph’s face as well.
“What if I liked you.”
“You’ve gone mad.”
The answer flew out reflexively. At the same time, Christoph wiped his cheek with the back of his hand. He felt the blood draining from his face. No, was it the opposite? He couldn’t tell. He had heard something so utterly bizarre that his mind became a tangled mess in an instant.
Richard stared intently at the expressionless yet flustered Christoph. His gaze dropped. As if thinking about something, he suddenly let out a scoff.
“Yes, I’m mad. I thought I was mad [unauthorized copy]too. No, I [Read on Read BL Novels]still think so. That I’m insane. But—.”
It was strange. Today—no, right now—this man was strange. Along with those fists clenched so tight his nails dug in, his lips were trembling faintly. His gaze wavered anxiously, and his words came out fragmented.
“Richard. Stop joking.”
That was the most he could manage to say.
It felt like a nightmare. Rather than being scary, it was the kind of nightmare where something that could not happen—something that must not happen—was occurring.
Muttering “a joke,” Richard slowly raised his gaze. Even though their eyes simply met, Christoph flinched and huddled his body.
Christoph didn’t know what his own expression looked like. He didn’t know that his face, a mixture of anxiety, bewilderment, and nervousness, was utterly defenseless.
Before him, Richard slowly opened his mouth. For some reason, there seemed to be a faint smile in the curve of his lips, but he must have misseen it.
“What will you do if it’s not a joke?”
“If it’s not a joke, —… it’s a joke.”
Christoph repeated his words in confusion, then suddenly frowned and spoke decisively.
He didn’t want to entertain such a hypothesis.
“I’ve been thinking about it for a while now, and this is the conclusion. You must not leave. No, you shouldn’t have left in the first place. You should have been by my side in some form.”
“Richard, get a gri—”
“Christoph. Don’t go. Stay by my side. Stay here.”
“Ri—”
Christoph could feel his own face turning pale.
It was a terrible joke. No, it was the kind of joke Christoph hated most. He didn’t want to hear such words even as a joke. Because—….
“I like you. I like you.”
The next moment, those words were heard right by his ear. A hot, dry breath penetrated straight into his ear canal. Along with a body heat that embraced him so fiercely it felt suffocating.
Christoph gasped. His eyes, wide as if they might roll out, showed no sign of closing.
“Have you heard words like this so often that you feel nothing?”
A self-deprecating and bitter voice touched Read on Read BL Novelshis cheek [Read on Read BL Novels]Read on Read BL Novelssoftly. Christoph flinched his shoulders and shook his head unconsciously.
“No, it’s not, first, never, —… no, that’s not it—.”
The words wouldn’t come out properly. His mind grew blanker and blanker.
“Christoph. ……Chris.”
A voice whispering affectionately, like a sigh.
When the lips finally overlapped over his own, brushing against his cheek, Christoph thought he had to push away this man who was saying insane things.
And yet, the reason his huddled body couldn’t shake him off was that the arms tightening around his waist were warm.
His body, which had been cold despite there being no reason to be, felt warm, even though it was impossible to be warmed by a mere pair of arms.
“Chris. I like you.”
Almost inaudibly, a low breath whispered “I like you” once more.
He opened his mouth to tell him to stop such jokes, but the same words poured into him over and over again from the lips overlapped upon his own. As if Richard didn’t even know that Christoph’s lips were trembling.
What if it’s not a joke? Surely that couldn’t [stolen content]be, but what if it’s not a joke? No, it must be a joke. It’s a prank that visit our siteisn’t even funny. But what if, by some chance, it’s not a joke?
He needed to think clearly, but no thoughts came. Strangely, his chest throbbed, and a sudden surge of anxiety rose. However, as if knowing it, every time that happened, the arms around his waist tightened as if to forcibly suppress that anxiety.
I like you. I like you. ……I like you.
Suddenly, the image of two people entangled on a bed surfaced in his mind. A man who always sparkled, shining enough to be recognized anywhere, and a man who exuded an overwhelming bloodthirstiness enough to be recognized anywhere. And from that mouth, honey-like words that he thought could never come out even after thousands or tens of thousands of years—words unbelievable even in imagination.
Those words mixed somewhere in his head with the unbelievable jokes currently pouring between his lips.
“I li, …….”
Perhaps as a conditioned reflex, Christoph unconsciously let out a word before flinching and shutting his mouth.
It was a phrase he had been saying every night for some time. Following him—following Jeong Tae-ui—he had repeated those words incessantly, thinking that by doing so, he might taste, if only fragmentarily, how the other felt.
Come to think of it, it was a phrase he had never once uttered in his life—at least not to another person—yet it had already become so familiar to his tongue.
The arms around his waist, the seamless contact of body heat, the lips stroking his entire face—all of it had become so familiar.
Then, suddenly, the hem of Richard’s shirt touched his fingertips. Feeling the skin, now already familiar, through the thin shirt, he unconsciously curled his fingers.
How many more times had he heard the voice calling him “Chris”?
Christoph looked up at the ceiling with a bewildered and troubled expression over the shoulder of Richard, who had his lips buried beneath Christoph’s ear. Then, hesitatingly, very slowly, he reached out. And with that hand, he tentatively gripped the edge of the shirt. He didn’t even realize it was the first time he had held onto the other first.
In that moment, his chest suddenly surged with heat. For no reason, his chest grew as hot as his flushing face, causing him to tilt his head in bewilderment.
Then.
The movement suddenly stopped.
While still holding Christoph tightly, Richard stopped moving. The lips stroking his neck, the whispers pouring out like an overflow—everything stopped abruptly.
“—…. Richard…….”
It was when Christoph whispered his name in wonder.
The shoulder where Christoph had buried his lips suddenly twitched.
No, it wasn’t a twitch. It took a moment to realize that he was laughing. Richard was laughing lowly while embracing Christoph. And it took a bit longer to understand the monologue mixed into that laughter.
“What a shame……, what a shame.”
The laughter-laced voice whispered.
Suddenly, it felt as if cold water had been poured over his heart.
Though it had only been a few seconds, the tone had changed completely. It was cold, almost to the point of being cruel.
Yet, contrary to that voice, Richard continued to caress Christoph with a touch that remained soft and tender. Loosening the arms that had been embracing him, he slowly pulled away and looked at him. Gently brushing up Christoph’s cheek and stroking his hair, he looked down at Christoph with eyes full of laughter. Richard looked down with great satisfaction at Christoph, who was staring back at him as defenselessly as a naive child.
“What a shame. If I had known a bit sooner, I could have enjoyed this more. To think…… you’re not some naive virgin who doesn’t know the ways of the world, yet you’re this easy to seduce.”
“—….”
“Well, there’s not much difference between a virgin boy or girl. It was funny when you advertised yourself as a virgin with zero experience, but this is just…… you’ve been lucky to live your life without being stabbed in the back once, Christoph. Yes, in that regard, I suppose your prickly personality helped you.”
“……. Let go.”
Christoph slowly let go. The expression of staring blankly with wide eyes was already gone.
With a face as indifferent and expressionless as usual, Christoph pushed Richard away. Richard, however, did not let go of Christoph, who was even frowning slightly as if he had never fallen for such a prank. Instead, he pulled him even closer and spoke in a voice mixed with laughter.
“Are you angry? Surely you didn’t actually take it seriously. Ah…… yes. It is true that I’ve been looking only at you for a long time. While sitting in this room waiting for you, I had that thought. That perhaps no one has occupied my mind more than you have in my life. Then, I wondered what it would be like if this were actually a feeling of liking you. Ha, it was a thought not even worth considering, so I erased it from my mind immediately.”
Richard let out a scoff as if it were absurd. Then, he tilted Read on Read BL Novelshis head diagonally to look at Christoph. Leaning in slightly, he kissed Christoph’s forehead. Pop, making a sound that clearly signaled it was a joke.
“……Because of that, I suddenly became curious. How would you react if I said that? Yes, if I were to give you a confession of love, what would you say? How would you respond? You…….”
The voice, which had been gradually lowering, eventually cut off.
Richard stared silently for a moment with inscrutable eyes at Christoph’s cold face, which was looking back at him without expression, then let out a short laugh like a sigh.
“I didn’t expect you to be this easy. You’re surprisingly soft in strange places. ……Well, your heart was riddled with holes like it had been eaten by bugs, wasn’t it? It makes sense that you’d be vulnerable.”
—A deficient heart.
The scratching, rustling sound in his ears grew slightly louder.
Christoph frowned.
It no longer mattered what Richard was saying.
Instead of the strangely quiet thumping of his heart, the murmuring sound in his ears grew loud.
“Stay here, Christoph. Do not leave Tarten.”
Suddenly, Richard’s firm words pierced through.
When Christoph looked up blankly, this time Richard frowned, looking somewhat displeased.
“Why? Do you think it’s because I like you? It’s for the sake of Tarten. For Tarten. We can steal talent from elsewhere, but we cannot afford to lose it from our own. Although you have many problems in various ways, you certainly have parts that are exceptionally brilliant.”
“……. I will not stay here.”
Christoph shook his head. His voice was quiet and calm. Then, eventually, Christoph also let out a short breath.
What was this? Why had he been so flustered? It was nonsense from the start, so why had he been so lost? There was absolutely no reason for it.
Feeling strangely ridiculous, Christoph laughed several times like a sigh. Then, he suddenly locked eyes with Richard, who was looking down at him with a strange gaze and a blank expression. Richard’s eyes were fixed on the corners of Christoph’s mouth. A hollow curve of the lips, barely visible.
“……Fine, if you insist, you may go to Al Faisal. However, you cannot leave Tarten completely. You must visit Tarten regularly and maintain contact. If you do that, I’m willing to consider your debt to Tarten settled. I’ll do that for you.”
“Hmph……. Acting like the master of Tarten already.”
Christoph spoke slowly. He worried that his voice might tremble strangely, but it didn’t.
The strange, dreamlike—nightmarish—atmosphere from a moment ago had vanished without a trace. In its place were simply Richard and Christoph, as they always were.
“I’m sleepy. Go. I’m going to sleep.”
Christoph pushed Richard away and walked toward the bed.
“Christoph.”
“I don’t want to talk right now. I’m exhausted. Thanks to a certain someone’s useless nonsense.”
Ignoring the man standing behind him, Christoph burrowed into the bed. The chilled duvet covered his body. It was cold.
“Christoph,” Richard called out again, sounding displeased, but he didn’t answer. It wasn’t so much a deliberate attempt to ignore him as it was that Christoph was truly exhausted. A wave of unbearable fatigue had suddenly crashed over him.
After some time, he heard the sound of a click of the tongue and Richard’s murmur.
“Fine. I’m exhausted right now too.”
Along with those words, he heard the sound of Richard stripping off the rest of his clothes. While Christoph was wondering about it with his hazy mind, he felt the mattress dip slightly behind him. Soon, a body’s warmth clung to his back.
“What are you doing?”
Christoph muttered fiercely, turning halfway around. Richard pulled the half-turned Christoph into a tight embrace and murmured languidly.
“Stop being noisy and sleep.”
“Why are you—”
“I guess you’re not that tired. Do you want to be exhausted into sleep today as well?”
Christoph shut his mouth. He stared silently at Richard, who had his eyes closed as if languid and tired but could open them at any moment, and finally let out a bitter sigh.
As he flinched and turned back around to lie down, a breath brushed against the nape of his neck. He snapped his eyes open in irritation, but he couldn’t see anything anyway.
It was hot. Hot and suffocating.
“It’s stifling. It’s hot,” Christoph muttered discontentedly, but there was no response from behind. Wondering if he had already fallen asleep, he turned his head skeptically, but he couldn’t get enough vision to see Richard’s face.
But perhaps he was asleep. The breath tickling the nape of his neck was regular.
After staying still for a moment, Christoph twisted his body slightly. As if mocking the idea that he was asleep, the arm wrapped around his waist tightened, pulling him in even closer. Now, it wasn’t just hot and stifling; he felt smothered.
“I can’t breathe… I can’t breathe. It’s hard to breathe.”
Christoph exhaled in short bursts and poked the arm with the tips of his fingernails. The arm loosened very slightly. It was still stifling and hot, but it became a bit easier to breathe.
He wasn’t cold. The familiar, cool chill that usually wrapped around his body had no room to seep in because the man behind [unauthorized copy]him was holding him so tightly. He wasn’t cold.
“…”
Sway, sway, sway.
A distant clamor was echoing in his ears. He had forgotten about it for a while during these tiring days, but it was back. Even now, when he was more exhausted and worn out than ever.
A deficient human. A heart so empty it was prone to crumbling. A space where nothing would remain once the shell shattered and scattered.
Christoph closed his eyes.
He was exceptionally tired today. So tired that the thought flickered through his mind that he might never be able to open his eyes again.
* * *
—At that time, what did Malik tell you?
Ilay did not answer.
Jeong Tae-ui did not miss the moment a slight expression vanished from Ilay’s face.
However, Ilay soon laughed as if impressed and simply shrugged, saying, ‘Does Tarten’s intelligence agency gather information so bluntly? Surprising.’
From that answer, Jeong Tae-ui knew that no further words resembling a response would come from Ilay’s mouth. Christoph seemed to feel the same, as he only frowned slightly and didn’t press further.
“Malik, huh…”
Recalling the man who, unlike the blunt Aziz, always had a smiling face that was somehow more uncomfortable to deal with, Jeong Tae-ui scratched his cheek.
Seeing as Ilay didn’t say much, it was clear that a conversation had taken place that Jeong Tae-ui wouldn’t particularly enjoy. Moreover, if we’re talking about suspicious things, this morning was a prime example.
Last night, he had been practically dragged to the room where Ilay was staying and fell asleep, only to wake up this morning to find no one beside him. He couldn’t tell when Ilay had left without a trace. Nor did he know what business Ilay had at such an early hour.
Jeong Tae-ui sighed, thinking, Good grief.
The things they would talk about were predictable. Either it concerned Jeong Tae-ui, or it didn’t.
If it was something related to him, it was even more obvious. It was Jeong Jae-ui.
Regarding that subject, Jeong Tae-ui didn’t need to worry. [stolen content]In any case, as far as he knew, there was unauthorized copyvisit our siteno one who could harm Jeong Jae-ui in any way.
“Let them do whatever they want. As long as they don’t ask me to persuade my brother, they can do as they please.”
Jeong Tae-ui, who felt he wouldn’t even worry if artillery shells rained down on Jeong Jae-ui’s head, shrugged and looked around his room.
The end room of the west wing, where Jeong Tae-ui had stayed for a little over a month, had returned to a state almost identical to when he first entered.
Since he couldn’t match the touch of a professional, he couldn’t completely erase every trace, such as the tiny wrinkles in the bedsheets or the faint fingerprints on the glass table, but it was nearly the same. At this rate, it seemed fine for another guest to move into the room immediately after Jeong Tae-ui left.
It was this evening.
This evening, the successor would finally be decided. For the first time in decades, a new master would finally stand at the peak of Tarten.
…However, since it was someone else’s business, Jeong Tae-ui didn’t find this once-in-decades succession particularly moving; he felt far more emotion about the fact that he would finally be leaving this house once the decision was made.
But among the things weighing on his mind as the time of departure approached.
“I need to find that book…”
Staring blankly at his already neatly packed suitcase, Jeong Tae-ui suddenly muttered.
His luggage consisted of just a few [stolen content]clothes in a light bag, the [unauthorized copy]same as visit our sitewhen he arrived. The only addition was the suit he was currently wearing.
“I ended up not finding it… What should I do?”
It was while he was lightly pulling at his hair, worrying about what to say to Kyle.
Through the cleanly wiped window, he saw Christoph riding a horse and galloping lightly from the direction of the forest. It seemed that guy wasn’t going to be a saint either.
Jeong Tae-ui opened the window and leaned out, resting his elbows on the sill. Just as he was about to call him, a Middle Eastern soldier, who had been guarding the inside and outside of the mansion strictly since dawn—or more accurately, since yesterday evening—blocked Christoph’s horse.
Despite the fact that they must have become familiar with each other’s faces while coming and going, the soldier spoke to Christoph as if interrogating him, either stubbornly or foolishly. In the end, Christoph, who had been listening silently atop his horse, gave the soldier a kick.
Geez, the soldier is one thing, but that guy just made another unnecessary enemy like that.
Even though he was familiar enough with that pattern, Jeong Tae-ui smacked his lips bitterly. Such actions usually came with side effects.
Those side effects appeared very quickly and in a visible form.
He saw one or two of the soldier’s colleagues, who had been lingering a short distance away, quickly rushing over.
It was truly familiar. Only the targets had changed from Tarten’s cousins to Arab soldiers; this situation where a fight that could have been easily avoided snowballed was now far too familiar to Jeong Tae-ui after spending just a few weeks with Christoph.
“Damn, it doesn’t end peacefully even on the last day…”
It was the moment he was about to turn away, tossing off the suit jacket he had put on neatly since morning, like a child on a field trip.
With
Christoph was still standing there, rooted to the spot. He wasn’t as frozen white as he had been when he stood facing her, but his bloodless face was still staring at nothing.
“Christoph. ……Let’s go inside.”
Jeong Tae-ui let out a quiet sigh and spoke.
The book didn’t matter anymore.
Sorry, Kyle, he muttered inwardly as he reached out a hand to Christoph. Let’s go, he said once more, only to realize the foolishness of offering his hand to a man who hated being touched, and he began to withdraw it.
However, before he could lower his hand, Christoph unexpectedly reached out. Surprised, Jeong Tae-ui stopped his retreating hand in an awkward mid-air position.
Christoph didn’t actually grasp Jeong Tae-ui’s hand. Instead, he brought his hand close, hesitating for a moment as if he might take it but wouldn’t, before lightly pulling back. Their fingertips brushed. That was all.
“……Chris. Let’s go. Together.”
Jeong Tae-ui took a step closer and this time, he actually took Christoph’s hand. He gripped it firmly, as if shaking hands, and looked at Christoph. Christoph stared back at him with an visit our siteexpressionless face, as if he were looking at something strange.
That gaze shifted down to their hands. He looked quietly at the two joined hands, and at some point, his lips twisted. In a blunt voice that sounded almost angry, he asked abruptly in a small voice.
“Is this a hand I’m allowed to hold?”
Jeong Tae-ui looked at Christoph, who was glaring at his hand, then scratched his head with a clueless expression and looked down at his own hand.
“……Just for now.”
That was the best answer Jeong Tae-ui could give.
If Christoph didn’t want it, he could let go, and there was nothing Tae-ui could do. In that case, Jeong Tae-ui would simply watch from a step away. This was a hand lent to him for the moment. It had to be lent.
Jeong Tae-ui waited for a moment, wondering if Christoph might shake him off. However, even after a long while, he did not let go. He simply looked down in silence while being held.
“Let’s go.”
Jeong Tae-ui turned around. And he began to walk.
He felt the presence of Christoph following a step behind.
As they walked side by side, hands joined, Christoph didn’t say a word. [stolen content]Jeong Tae-ui Read on Read BL Novelsdidn’t look back either.
If he looked back, Christoph would surely have that same expressionless face as always. He would undoubtedly have a look that was simply calm, perhaps even a bit bored, without a trace of sadness, anger, or agony.
With that pale face.
With lips as blue as his eyes, pressed tight.
That was why Jeong Tae-ui didn’t look back.
* * *
The protagonist was obvious to anyone.
The “succession competition” was merely a formality; in reality, it was safe to say that who would succeed had been decided years ago. Everyone knew this. The only person who claimed that the outcome was uncertain until the end was the humble candidate himself.
That person, Richard, was standing among the crowd at the front of the grand ballroom.
With a smile as sweet as honey, Richard held the [stolen content]waist of a lover as lovely as a piece of candy. [Read on Read BL Novels]Even amidst the cloud-like crowd, he stood out unmistakably.
“She looks familiar…….”
Jeong Tae-ui muttered, taking a sip of beer. He smacked his lips a few times, as if the taste were bitter.
“Hmm? You know that woman? ――Ah, right, you must have seen her when we went to the bar the other day. Though you probably couldn’t see her properly from inside the cabinet.”
Ilay raised an eyebrow, then smiled thinly as if recalling the memory. Jeong Tae-ui muttered a dark, “Oh, right……” and crinkled his beer can.
Even if he hadn’t been in the cabinet, he wouldn’t have been able to see her properly. What Richard was doing with that woman at the time was not something one could watch with their head held high. Regardless, that was when Jeong Tae-ui learned why Richard was secretly cursed as a total pervert.
“Come to think of it, did that man touch Chris even though he has a lover?”
Jeong Tae-ui muttered, crushing the beer can with a crunch. Ilay, who had picked up a champagne glass from a passing waiter’s tray, looked at Jeong Tae-ui with a puzzled expression.
“What does having a lover have to do with touching Christoph?”
At that question, which sounded as if he truly didn’t understand, Jeong Tae-ui looked at Ilay in disbelief. He then frowned slightly and scratched his head.
“……. Do you, by any chance, have another… how should I put it… sleeping partner besides me?”
Ilay looked at Jeong Tae-ui in silence. His unauthorized copyindifferent gaze made it impossible to tell if the answer [visit our site]was yes or no. Or perhaps he simply had no concept of such things.
After a moment of silence, Ilay slowly nodded and murmured.
“I see, that’s what you meant. To answer the latter first, I haven’t had anyone since I left UNHRDO. And Tae-yi, your first question was headed in the wrong direction to begin with. Richard laying hands on Christoph has nothing to do with whether he has a lover. It wasn’t because he liked Christoph, nor was it simply to satisfy his own desires. He simply wanted to crush Christoph.”
“No, but isn’t that method extremely unhealthy for someone with a lover?”
“It’ll be easier to accept if you view it as having knocked him down using a very effective method.”
Jeong Tae-ui stared at Ilay, who spoke with a composed face, and eventually just shook his head.
It was no use. As expected, there were still areas where he and this man simply didn’t speak the same language. When their very concepts of thought were wired differently, communication was impossible even in a serious conversation.
But he knew one thing.
It was nothing more than a means for Richard to torment Christoph’s mind along with his body.
Sigh, Jeong Tae-ui scratched his head, letting out a dissatisfied sigh.
Regardless, in a few hours, he wouldn’t have to see things he didn’t want to see anymore. Both he and Christoph would be leaving Dresden, a place where few good memories remained.
“I hope the succession decision [stolen content]or [visit our site]whatever comes out quickly, and the ceremony or whatever ends quickly too. I want to go back to Berlin.”
As Jeong Tae-ui grumbled, a faint smile brushed Ilay’s eyes.
“I take it you didn’t like Tarten very much.”
“It’s not that I didn’t like it, but I saw a lot of bittersweet things.”
Ilay raised an eyebrow slightly but didn’t ask further. He could easily guess what those things were.
“We’re going straight to Berlin once it’s over, right? Or do you have more things to handle here?”
Jeong Tae-ui asked to confirm, naturally assuming they would return together, but unexpectedly, Ilay rubbed his chin lightly and shook his head.
“I think I’ll have to stop by another place for a bit before I go.”
Jeong Tae-ui tilted his head and looked at Ilay.
“What? You’ve been out for three months and you’re going straight to another job? How long will it take this time?”
“I don’t know. It won’t take long. Three or four days should be enough.”
“Hmm……. What is it this time?”
Since Ilay usually rested at home for a few weeks after returning from a medium-to-long-term assignment, it was surprising that he was heading to another job immediately after a three-month stint.
He asked without much thought, wondering if there was some good payout involved, but no answer came. When Jeong Tae-ui looked at him curiously, Ilay only smiled subtly, saying, “Just the usual sort of thing.”
“I see……. ……I wonder where Christoph will go…….”
“You don’t need to worry about that guy. No matter where he goes, he’s the type who can work while commanding a high price.”
Well, he was your colleague, so I guess that’s a given, Jeong Tae-ui sighed. What weighed on his mind wasn’t the matter of making a living, but rather…….
It was then. Ilay took out a vibrating phone from his inner pocket, checked the screen, gestured lightly to Jeong Tae-ui, and stepped out of the grand ballroom.
Seeing him off with only a glance, Jeong Tae-ui remained leaning against the wall near the entrance and slowly scanned the room.
The banquet wasn’t as lavish as he had imagined.
Seeing people bustling about in preparation for days and guests arriving from outside since early morning, Jeong Tae-ui had imagined something grand. However, the scale wasn’t as large as he thought.
But while the scale wasn’t massive, in terms of substance, he could say he had never seen a banquet this opulent. Just looking at the people chatting inside, they were the kind of people who would be seated in the highest positions and treated as honored guests wherever they went.
“Even if I’m by [stolen content]the doorway where no one notices, I wonder if I [Read on Read BL Novels]should Read on Read BL Novelseven be at a place like this…….”
Jeong Tae-ui turned his gaze, wondering if he should step out for some fresh air.
Then, their eyes met. With the candy-like woman standing right next to Richard, who was quite far away.
……Ugh.
Reflexively swallowing his beer, Jeong Tae-ui shifted his gaze.
But their eyes had already met, and it was clear that she had recognized him as well.
He had hoped to remain unnoticed and avoid eye contact until the very end. Even if they did meet, he wished she wouldn’t remember him.
He wasn’t the only one who had seen a raw and embarrassing sight that couldn’t be told to others. She had also seen Jeong Tae-ui at his worst.
They could have felt a sense of camaraderie, but unfortunately, Jeong Tae-ui didn’t have a personality cheerful enough to feel camaraderie over such a thing and strike up a conversation.
I have to leave. I’ll just pretend I didn’t see her and slip away.
Jeong Tae-ui placed his empty beer can on the side table and tried to discreetly leave.
However, whether it was a matter of perfect timing or terrible timing, Richard, who had been escorting her, saw something, whispered something in her ear, and left. And she, left alone among the people, instead of continuing to talk to them, began walking toward him. Clearly, toward Jeong Tae-ui.
“Wait, why is she coming over……. In cases like this, isn’t the virtue to pretend you didn’t see each other? Hey, don’t come over, don’t come over.”
Jeong Tae-ui muttered to himself and tried to turn around and leave quickly.
But just then, Yohan, who had just entered the ballroom, grabbed Jeong Tae-ui and began complaining about the hardness of meat that had been overcooked to well-done, trapping him in place. By the time he finally pushed Yohan away and escaped the ballroom, she was already within reach.
“Mr. Kim Young-soo?”
Caught. Damn. Caught. He was caught. No, there should still be a chance to escape.
Remaining silent and motionless for a moment at the voice behind him, Jeong Tae-ui eventually turned around with the smile of a kind gentleman who respects women.
“Ah―― it’s been a long time, Miss……?”
“Miriam.”
He waited a moment, but she didn’t add a surname. After an awkward pause, Jeong Tae-ui smiled broadly again and said, “I see, Miriam.”
Not that he was bragging, but in the last few years, the number of women he had approached and spoken with one-on-one like this could be counted on one hand. He suddenly missed Rita terribly.
“Back then…… I showed you an unpleasant side of myself.”
Miriam began the conversation, her face flushing slightly. Consequently, his own face couldn’t help but redden as well.
“Well…… it couldn’t be helped for either of us.”
Jeong Tae-ui slowly moved his steps toward the end of the hallway. The restroom was there. He knew it wasn’t polite, but he decided he would go to the restroom and shake her off appropriately.
He had no hobby of sharing memories of shame intimately with a strange woman—even if it were a man he was close with, he wouldn’t like it.
“Richard, uh…… he treats you well normally, right?”
“Yes. He is a good person originally.”
He suddenly ran out of things to say.
Jeong Tae-ui scratched his head.
He knew that having a somewhat bizarre sexual preference didn’t necessarily link to one’s personality. Just because Richard had sadistic tendencies in sex didn’t mean he enjoyed tormenting people in his daily life.
However, regardless of that correlation, he couldn’t empathize with the statement that Richard was a “good person.” He didn’t feel the need to tell her, since she was his lover, so he kept his mouth shut.
“You must not have been able to meet much lately visit our site[Read on Read BL Novels]since he’s been so visit our sitebusy. Even if you’re lovers in name, isn’t it lonely when you can’t meet often?”
When Jeong Tae-ui spoke, exerting his maximum sociability, her eyes widened as if she were slightly surprised. Soon, she smiled and shook her head.
“Lovers? It’s not like that. For a while now, even when we met, the most we did was talk. Now that he’s succeeding the family, he’ll be even busier, so we probably won’t be able to meet at all. Who knows, today might be the end.”
“Huh? No, well…….”
Only then did Jeong Tae-ui belatedly recall hearing a rumor that Richard had bad habits with women. Or perhaps “fickle” would be a better word than “bad.”
……Then again, with a personality like that, it didn’t seem like he was the type to look at only one person for the rest of his life.
Just as Jeong Tae-ui was looking for a gap to part ways with her, her pace slowed down.
“After you left then, I thought about it a lot.”
“Pardon?”
“I was worried. I wondered if you had been seriously injured. I heard that when men have relations, the body is often damaged, even normally……. So it kept weighing on my mind…….”
Not knowing what expression to make, Jeong Tae-ui smiled awkwardly and looked at her with a troubled face. She lowered her head as if lost in thought for a moment, then looked at Jeong Tae-ui and smiled lovably.
“I was happy to see you safe like this. One of my close friends had a partner for one night who was rough and…… a bit [visit our site]bulky, and she suffered long [Read on Read BL Novels]after-effects. But you look fine, Mr. Kim Young-soo, so I’m relieved, even if it’s late.”
Jeong Tae-ui looked at her with an ambiguous expression.
Smiling as if she had lifted a small burden from her heart, she looked truly happy. Perhaps she really had been worrying about Jeong Tae-ui all this time.
“……Thank you. For worrying about me.”
Jeong Tae-ui whispered and smiled. This time, he truly smiled. The heart of someone who had worried for so long about a person they barely knew felt like an unexpected gift. He probably wouldn’t see her again, but his heart softened at the kindness that purely embraced another.
It seemed she had come just to tell him that. Because she was glad and happy to see the safe state of a person who had been like a small thorn of worry in her heart.
“Then I’ll be going back now. Richard might have returned.”
To the woman who smiled sweetly and took a small step back, Jeong Tae-ui waved with a smile. He even felt sorry that he had hurried her along to a secluded spot near the restroom just to get away from her quickly.
After she disappeared back into the ballroom, Jeong Tae-ui let out a light sigh. Since he was already here, he figured he should wash his hands and head back.
Anyway, once the succession was over, he would be leaving this place. If so, he felt he should exchange a few words of farewell with Yohan and others he had become acquainted with.
“Yeah…… come to think of it, this place wasn’t that bad.”
As it is everywhere.
There is no place with only bad memories. Just as there is no place with only good memories. Not only for places, but for time as well.
Thinking that he should bring Yohan a plate of meat that was exceptionally and perfectly grilled, Jeong Tae-ui walked toward the restroom.
“When I told the Elder that you would return to Tarten, he was greatly pleased. Indeed, he has always cherished you. No, perhaps he was the only one who did.”
There was a proverb suitable for a time like this, what was it? Out of the frying pan and into the fire?
Jeong Tae-ui rubbed his brow, which furrowed instinctively.
He had intentionally sought out a restroom in a secluded corner where outside guests rarely visited, but someone was already there. The only saving grace was that it wasn’t someone he felt the need to desperately avoid.
“I’ve prepared a place for you. I’ve already obtained the elders’ understanding, so you don’t have to worry. You just need to sit in the place I’ve provided and do the work given to you with a heart for the sake of Tarten.”
It was Richard’s voice.
From Jeong Tae-ui’s position, he couldn’t see who he was talking to, but it wasn’t hard to guess. His voice, always soft and gentle, held a chill that would be difficult to notice unless one was listening with keen attention.
If there was anyone Richard spoke to in that tone, Jeong Tae-ui knew of no one other than Christoph.
“Is that all you have to say?”
As expected, Christoph’s voice followed. It was lower and colder than usual.
Jeong Tae-ui raised an eyebrow slightly and lightly bumped his head against the wall.
It sounds similar to usual at a glance, but is he in a bad mood?
It seemed Jeong Tae-ui wasn’t the only one thinking that. After a brief pause, Richard’s voice continued, tinged with amusement.
“You seem to be in a bad mood. …Surely, you aren’t upset over a little prank I played in the early hours of the morning.”
A short laugh was mixed between his words.
“Though it’s unlikely, Christoph, I would prefer it if you didn’t say you sincerely wanted to hear such things from me, even as a joke.”
“No, I don’t want to hear it. I didn’t want to, and I won’t want to in the future. Not those kinds of words. Especially not from you.”
As soon as Richard finished speaking, Christoph answered decisively. It was an icy resolve that cut off any room for further conversation.
Jeong Tae-ui paused, leaning his back against the wall.
It’s closed. The thought suddenly flashed through his mind.
He didn’t know why he felt that way. However, for a moment, it felt as if he had encountered a door that had slammed shut without a single gap. Even though the voice had been quiet and calm, it felt as if he were facing a door that would never open again.
A short silence followed. This, too, seemed to be a feeling not shared by Jeong Tae-ui alone.
“Christoph.”
The amusement vanished from Richard’s voice as he called his name. But there was no answer.
“Christoph!”
Richard’s voice dropped a bit lower.
“…I can hear you without you shouting.”
“…. Fine. I’ll tell you slowly later about what you’ll be doing while staying at Tarten. The time and situation aren’t suitable for a leisurely chat right now.”
My, it’s already this late, Richard muttered, and the sound of him turning to walk away echoed. The heavy thud of dress shoes sounded twice, echoing with a subtle difference in speed.
“…Richard. I told you. As for Tarten, I….”
“Ah, that’s right. Your little aunt was delighted. Your mother, Christoph.”
Interrupting Christoph’s words, Richard spoke as if he had just remembered.
“She was very pleased when I told her that you would continue to stay at Tarten and help me with my work. How wonderful, Christoph. To be able to make your beloved mother happy.”
The moment he finished speaking, the following footsteps stopped. Just as Jeong Tae-ui’s shoulders faintly tensed.
Why is that? Richard’s voice held a faint smile as he questioned. But he likely didn’t know. Why Christoph had stopped.
Jeong Tae-ui thought of her.
Bianca. Christoph’s mother. The woman who loved Tarten—and only Tarten.
He felt as if he could hear her voice again, calmly telling her son never to return. Christoph’s blue eyes, as he looked at her, also came to mind.
“…When?”
“What?”
“When did you… tell my mother that?”
“Early this morning. I went straight to her after leaving your room. Since it was news about you, it was only right that she be the first to know.”
Richard knew the easiest and most certain means to bind Christoph. That was why, as soon as he woke up, he first prepared the rope to tie Christoph down.
But there was something he didn’t know. No, he would likely never know. He could not have seen Christoph’s pale face when he faced her late in the morning.
Jeong Tae-ui let out a silent sigh. Along with the sigh that sounded like a groan, he covered his eyes with his palm for a moment. Even with his eyes closed, he could still see that bluish complexion.
“Early this morning… …I see… …I see….”
Muttering slowly as if his thoughts were wandering elsewhere, Christoph eventually whispered as if concluding those thoughts.
“I suppose I should do as my mother wishes.”
Since this might be the last time, such a whisper followed.
Christoph? As if he didn’t hear Richard calling him in bewilderment, the sound of footsteps returned. The footsteps, continuing without stopping toward the exit, eventually paused beside Jeong Tae-ui, who was leaning against the outer wall.
Jeong Tae-ui, who had been leaning his head against the wall and looking up at the ceiling diagonally, finally tilted his head to look beside him.
“The banquet hall is lonely since I don’t know anyone, so I was waiting to go with you. Christoph.”
Jeong Tae-ui muttered like a child isolated in an awkward place.
Christoph, who blinked once, then twice, seemingly surprised to see Jeong Tae-ui standing there blankly, momentarily made a strange face. Yes, it was a face like someone who had been awkwardly isolated and finally met someone they knew.
Ah. The door opened. He thought it had been firmly closed forever, but it creaked open just a tiny bit.
“Tae-yi, you—”
Just as Christoph opened his mouth, Richard emerged. He was about to say something to Christoph, but he shut his mouth upon seeing Jeong Tae-ui.
“Mr. Jeong Tae-ui? …I suppose the banquet hall was boring. To think you’d be in a place like this.”
Jeong Tae-ui gave a light shrug to the man who spoke to him nonchalantly.
“It’s bound to get boring when the protagonist leaves their seat.”
“Haha… I’m sure there are many people who can brighten the place. I was just about to head back myself. …That suit suits you very well.”
Richard said, scanning Jeong Tae-ui’s attire. Beside him, the person who had actually gifted the clothes remained bluntly silent. Jeong Tae-ui laughed lightly.
“Thank you for the compliment. It’s a suit I like very much.”
“I see,” Richard nodded. He didn’t say anything more.
Instead, he glanced down at his wristwatch and muttered, My.
“I’ve delayed too long. I should be going. And you two…?”
“Ah, we have to go. I’m planning to clap louder than anyone the moment the succession decision is made. I’ll be leaving this place after tonight, and since I’ve lived here for several weeks relying on your kindness, I should at least clap harder than anyone else.”
Jeong Tae-ui smiled brightly.
Richard gazed at Jeong Tae-ui for a moment before wearing a benevolent smile. He said, Thank you for celebrating Tarten’s good fortune.
“What an unlucky spot. Don’t stand there.”
He felt like he’d heard those words somewhere before…. Right, not exactly like that, but he’d heard something with a similar vibe recently. Back then, it was an unlucky name, probably….
Jeong Tae-ui smacked his lips as he looked at Christoph, who spoke curtly with a cold face.
The ‘unlucky spot’ Christoph told visit our sitehim not to stand in was the space next to Ilay, who was standing near the entrance.
Feeling Ilay’s gaze—narrowed eyes—on the back of his head, Jeong Tae-ui pointed to the spot beside him with his thumb and asked bitterly.
“If my name is unlucky because it doesn’t fit this region and might bring misfortune, why is this spot unlucky?”
“It’s written in Chinese feng shui books that places where the wind blows through are unlucky spots. Have you never heard of that?”
Christoph asked back, frowning as if it were obvious and wondering how he didn’t know.
“Huh…?”
“Places near the door get a lot of wind. Therefore, it’s an unlucky spot. So don’t stand there.”
Christoph spoke so decisively and shook his head so firmly that Jeong Tae-ui was left speechless. Unable to find a logic to refute, Jeong Tae-ui just gaped for a moment and then smacked his lips bitterly again.
“But Ilay is standing here.”
“Is there any reason you must stand side-by-side with that guy? You stand somewhere else. Stand that far away.”
The gaze of Ilay, who was standing in the ‘unlucky spot’ according to Christoph’s claim, grew colder. Jeong Tae-ui felt a chill on the back of his neck and quickly shook his head.
“No, I think I’d rather just stand with Ilay.”
Before Christoph could open his mouth, Jeong Tae-ui quickly moved a few steps aside and took his place next to Ilay.
Christoph, who glared at Jeong Tae-ui with dissatisfied eyes, let out an annoyed sigh as if he had no choice, then dragged Jeong Tae-ui and placed him on the opposite side of Ilay. It was a position slightly further away, with a small table between them.
“If you must, tell that guy to stand in the unlucky spot right by the door, and you stand further inside.”
“…Um… thanks.”
As Jeong Tae-ui, who had become suspicious of even Chinese feng shui, offered his thanks for now, Ilay—who had suddenly been put at risk of being unlucky—gave a cold snort and gestured with his head.
“There’s nothing left to interfere with. Now go back to your spot. All the direct descendants of Tarten are gathered in the front seats; what are you doing here alone? Stop acting like a foundling and go.”
Christoph looked in the direction Ilay pointed.
Ahead of the succession decision, the direct descendants of Tarten were chatting at the front of the banquet hall. They were a perfect picture of a harmonious family.
There was no room there. A group had already been completed in itself. Without any empty space or any extra room.
“Right… that’s right.”
Christoph muttered softly.
Watching the elder step forward supported by his uncle, Christoph moved toward that completed picture. Then, he suddenly stopped and looked back. His eyes met Jeong Tae-ui’s.
“Hey.”
Instead of answering, Jeong Tae-ui tilted his head in curiosity.
“Your hand—you’ve lent it to me for today.”
He suddenly brought up a topic without any context.
Jeong Tae-ui stared intently at that indifferent face, which was no different from usual, and then looked down at his own hand. Then he looked at Ilay, who was standing beside him with a raised eyebrow, and finally looked back at Christoph. Eventually, he let out a slow chuckle.
“Sure, for today.”
Upon hearing Jeong Tae-ui’s answer, Christoph nodded as if satisfied—though his face showed no real change whether he was actually satisfied or not—and turned his back.
Watching Christoph take a spot alone in a corner, adding an unnatural imbalance to the image of the harmonious family, Jeong Tae-ui let out a quiet sigh.
Almost at the same time Christoph took his place, the elder began a short speech at the front before the succession decision.
By the door, he watched them with the feeling of a complete outsider.
“It seems it’s finally being decided. …There won’t be any unexpected results, right?”
As Jeong Tae-ui muttered, Ilay, who was standing beside him with his arms crossed in a corner of the hall despite having a seat of honor as a VIP, gave a light nod.
“For the succession decision, probably.”
“Then is there something else?”
“Well… for example, the conditions for the loan repayment, which haven’t been officially confirmed yet.”
Listening to the voice muttering nonchalantly, Jeong Tae-ui looked at Raman, who was sitting in the seat of honor far away. Since the time he had burst into Jeong Tae-ui’s room without warning, they hadn’t met or crossed paths once. As he had worried, neither Malik nor Aziz had visited.
It was quiet. So quiet that he couldn’t tell what was breathing beneath that still surface.
“Are you afraid?”
The sudden question was proof that Ilay sometimes looked into Jeong Tae-ui’s head. Though it was slightly off.
“Rather than afraid, it’s just that it’s a hassle if things get tangled in an unexpected direction… well, I’ll deal with it as it comes. Let it flow as it flows.”
Jeong Tae-ui shrugged. The hard and painful times, after struggling through them, were always far behind once he regained [stolen content]his senses. It had been like that so far, and it was certain to be like that in the future. Besides….
“I’m counting on you for the aftercare.”
“Hmm?”
“Since you’ve dragged my life this far, you should keep dragging me along well through the mud in the future, too.”
Jeong Tae-ui said naturally, staring straight at Ilay. After locking eyes for a moment, Ilay laughed in disbelief.
“A guy who would just swim and play if he fell into the mud and then get himself out just fine.”
Jeong Tae-ui laughed along.
In the meantime, the name finally came from the mouth of the elder, who had been giving his short speech.
“…Therefore, I have concluded that Richard is indeed the most suitable person to lead Tarten to an even better state, following its current form.”
The moment that name dropped, applause and congratulations poured toward the seat where Richard was sitting.
As promised earlier, Jeong Tae-ui clapped grandly—though it likely wouldn’t reach Richard’s seat—so as not to be outdone by anyone, and muttered with a hint of boredom, ‘The result didn’t deviate from expectations.’
Then, Jeong Tae-ui suddenly tilted his head and looked up [visit our site]out the window. Ilay, who was clapping half-heartedly beside him, gave him a curious look.
“Hmm… I think I hear the sound of clapping from outside, too.”
In the garden visible through the window, lighting lamps were turned on here and there, illuminating the area. And in the center, men in black suits were standing at intervals with stern expressions. Well, for a gathering of such VIPs, it makes sense to deploy that many people, he thought, but he still tilted his head.
There was no way those men guarding the outside with fierce eyes knew to clap in perfect timing, so maybe it was just his imagination.
“Ah, it’s probably the sound of propellers. A temporary helipad was installed on top of the main building.”
“Helipad? Ah, I saw people looking busy on top of the main building earlier; so that was it…. But what model is it for the propeller sound to be this loud?”
Jeong Tae-ui muttered casually, then tilted his head the other way.
“Wasn’t there anyone who came by helicopter? Besides, to be on standby already, who needs to leave in a hurry?”
“No, I just told them to have it ready just in case.”
“Have it ready? You did?”
Jeong Tae-ui looked at Ilay with increasing suspicion.
“Yes. I asked Richard to lend me a Tarten helicopter for a [visit our site]while. Well, unauthorized copythere unauthorized copyprobably won’t be a need to actually fly it.”
“Why a helicopter?”
Unlike Jeong Tae-ui, whose tone was becoming strange, Ilay muttered very nonchalantly while looking at Richard, who was giving some kind of thank-you speech in front.
“Regardless, you are an unpredictable variable to Jeong Jae-yi.”
“I don’t quite understand what you mean by that.”
Jeong Tae-ui said, grimacing. Ilay didn’t even look at him, staring straight ahead with a bored expression. He looked like he was pondering something light.
“Ilay.”
When Jeong Tae-ui clicked his tongue and called his name, only then did he glance back. Stroking his chin with his fingertips while looking at Jeong Tae-ui, he muttered as if genuinely conflicted.
“Since it’s a story that will reach his ears eventually, is it better to tell him in advance, or is it better to leave it to the situation and wait?”
“If I were the one telling the story, I’d choose the latter depending on the situation, but as the listener, it’s obviously the former.”
Jeong Tae-ui, who was clearly the listener in this situation, cut him off with a frown.
“Fine, then Tae-yi, let me tell you first. No harm will come to Jeong Jae-yi—even if someone [visit our site]tried to harm him, they couldn’t, not that man—. Moreover, Jeong Jae-yi has just finished the [unauthorized copy]research he’s been immersed in at UNHRDO for several years. He won’t have much to regret even if he leaves that place now.”
Jeong Tae-ui, who had been staring blankly at Ilay as he spoke so readily, raised a hand.
“Wait, hold on. I feel like something very ominous is going to follow that.”
“From your perspective, wasn’t it fine as long as nothing happened to Jeong Jae-yi himself?”
“No, it’s not. Just because one thing is good doesn’t mean everything else flows smoothly. …What on earth is it, that you’d go as far as using a helicopter to transport me to drag my brother into it?”
“Ah—there was a misunderstanding there. No, I’m not taking you along to lure Jeong Jae-yi; I simply prepared for the possibility that you might be taken to lure Jeong Jae-yi. That man, Raman… there’s something about him that makes me uneasy about trusting him wholeheartedly.”
Jeong Tae-ui stared blankly at Ilay once again. Trusting Raman? What is he even talking about? As Tae-ui mumbled incoherently, Ilay looked away and gestured with his chin toward the front.
“The new owner of Tarten has appeared. You should applaud, Tae-yi. Very grandly.”
As Ilay began to clap, Jeong Tae-ui followed suit, glancing back and forth between the front and his side.
“Hey, Ilay—”
“Your brother will be living quite well, enjoying whatever he desires, as long as he pretends to create the things they want from time to time in the deep inner chambers where no one can touch him, so you don’t have to worry.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Even if he doesn’t touch weapon or related technology development at all, he could live very comfortably just because of the name Jeong Jae-yi. They promised a life of luxury incomparable to any invited developer in history; we can at least believe that much. They are people for whom money doesn’t just spring from the ground, but overflows to the point of rotting.”
Jeong Tae-ui gripped Ilay’s elbow. Ilay gave him a sidelong glance. His eyes were smiling.
Tae-ui had a bad feeling. A very bad one. It was less of an ominous feeling and more of an unpleasant one. This way of speaking in riddles was not a method Jeong Tae-ui enjoyed.
“Don’t feel too bad. Nothing changes. If there is one thing, it’s that while you could see him whenever you wanted, from now on, you’ll only be able to see him when he wants.”
“What the hell is that? Are you saying they’re going to kidnap my brother and lock him up?”
“If you want to put it that way.”
Jeong Tae-ui looked at Ilay with a dazed expression. After staring at him for a long while with a face that was both appalled and bewildered, Tae-ui slowly let out a sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
“Stop joking. You must know. How UNHRDO will guard my brother. No matter how the Middle Eastern royalty pulls strings, it’s impossible to extract him from among them without a hitch. Is he a person worth obtaining to the point of causing such a huge commotion and tarnishing their honor? No matter how much of a genius he is, that can’t be it.”
“Their honor will not be tarnished,” Ilay said shortly.
It was then.
Richard, who had been appointed as the new owner of Tarten, seemed to [visit our site]be looking their way. Simultaneously, three or four men who had been standing as if guarding the doors of the banquet hall entered and took positions [unauthorized copy]inside. They were on the opposite side of Jeong Tae-ui, with Ilay in the middle.
Quickly scanning the men who were staring straight at him, Jeong Tae-ui looked at Ilay, who was still looking forward leisurely as if he were completely unaware of the situation.
“What is this?”
They were familiar faces. People from Tarten. They were cousins or distant relatives of Richard or Christoph whom he had encountered occasionally; they stood nearby with expressionless faces. Aziz was among them. A flicker of silent pity crossed his face, as if saying, Wouldn’t it have been better if you had just followed my advice?
“Rest here for a few more days, Tae-yi. I’ll go to Frankfurt for a bit and then come back for you.”
“Ilay.”
“Given your personality, if I told you after everything was finished, you’d likely change your expression in earnest. And if I had told you in advance, you would have definitely tried to shove your way in and made things a headache.”
Ilay pulled his hand out of his trouser pocket. He took out a thin, durable glove and slowly put it on, smiling with his eyes at Jeong Tae-ui.
“I’ve reached an agreement with Tarten. They promised to take care of you within this house to ensure that those royals cannot lay a finger on you, even by some slim chance. So, play here a bit longer until I return. It won’t take more than a few days.”
“Ilay!” Jeong Tae-ui shouted.
He didn’t scream at the top of his lungs, but the rarity of the serious tone in his voice caused the people nearby to look back in surprise. However, none of them attempted to stop the strange situation where several men were forming a perimeter near the door.
That was when Jeong Tae-ui saw it. Raman, who had been standing politely behind Al Faisal [stolen content]at [stolen content]the front of the banquet hall, was looking this way.
His eyes narrowed slightly. It was an expression Tae-ui had seen before in Seringe. Damn it, a curse escaped his mind. Nothing good had ever happened to Jeong Tae-ui after seeing that expression.
“This is a contract between me and Al Faisal—the Al Saud. It is also a pledge of long-standing friendship between Riegrow and Tarten. Tarten has promised full support to both me and them. …Ah. The last part is off the record, so please don’t mention it elsewhere.”
Ending his words with a joke delivered in a serious tone, Ilay smiled, his eyes curving like thin sheets of ice.
“Ilay, I’m still not convinced. I have no intention of staying here quietly like this.”
Jeong Tae-ui shook his head. After clenching and unclenching his fists a couple of times to check the feel of the gloves, Ilay nodded.
“I didn’t tell you in advance because I thought that would happen. I didn’t have the confidence to persuade you on this matter. You are blind when it comes to your brother in certain aspects. …Actually, you know that that point contributed to this situation to some extent.”
Jeong Tae-ui glared toward the front of the banquet hall.
His eyes met Richard’s, who was casually surveying the room. However, Richard turned his gaze away as if nothing were happening. Standing a short distance from him, Christoph glanced at Jeong Tae-ui but likewise said nothing and did not move.
His contract with Al Saud.
The pledge between Riegrow and Tarten.
Jeong Tae-ui stood frozen, his stolen contenteyes shifting to watch the unauthorized copyTarten youths approaching him step by step. When they [visit our site]entered within five paces, he sighed.
He counted them in his head. Five. Excluding the one outside the basic range, there were four. The number alone was overwhelming, and Aziz was among them. He certainly didn’t look like an easy opponent.
Jeong Tae-ui counted them one by one, openly using his fingers, then clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction and let out another deep sigh.
“Good grief… That guy who’s willing to resort to kidnapping if persuasion doesn’t work despite his decent and dignified face, you, who are deceiving your only lover by saying you’ll help that guy after once shelling your own house with cannons, and this household that’s stepping up to help people doing nonsense in tandem… It’s because people like this are born with diamond spoons that innocent commoners like me have to suffer.”
“Are you done with the calculations? Do you think you have a chance of winning?”
Ilay asked with a circling smile, as if he already knew what Jeong Tae-ui was thinking. He was an ally more vicious than an enemy.
Jeong Tae-ui soon lifted his head with a clean expression and looked Ilay straight in the eye.
“Let’s go together, to Frankfurt.”
Despite the gentle smile, the moment those words came out, Ilay rejected him flatly, as if he had already anticipated it.
“I’m telling you this now because it was obvious you’d say that. If you had known in advance, you would have tried to persuade me by any means necessary for the remaining time.”
“As if you’re the kind of person who’d be persuaded even if I tried!”
“Setting aside the power of [unauthorized copy]the tongue, I felt I’d have no way stolen contentto withstand pillow talk. As you said, you are my only lover.”
Jeong Tae-ui felt a surge of anger but had nothing to say. He felt a bit frustrated with himself for secretly thinking that if he had known in advance, he might have used his body to… Have I really fallen this far?
But no way to withstand it—he wondered for a moment if that meant he could use it effectively next time. As he was lost in this random thought, a Tarten youth approached him. The moment the youth grabbed the wrist of the dazed Jeong Tae-ui, Tae-ui reflexively smacked the bridge of the youth’s nose.
“Ah, sorry… I did it without thinking.”
Jeong Tae-ui apologized to the youth, who was clutching his nose and bending over, and looked at Ilay again.
“I’ve thought about it, and I really don’t want to be caught here quietly.”
“No, you have to stay here. Otherwise, I can’t guarantee your safety while I’m gone. …Tsk. That’s why I told you. Stay quietly in Berlin and don’t move until I return.”
“No, I didn’t know you’d… Ah, I told you to stop grabbing me, I’m not staying here!”
Jeong Tae-ui smacked the next youth who rushed in. However, this time, the youth had come prepared with a defense, and the punch missed. Tsk, he clicked his tongue lowly.
At any other time, it might have been different, but Ilay, who seemed to have absolutely no intention of helping Jeong Tae-ui right now, didn’t just watch with his arms crossed.
Approaching from behind Jeong Tae-ui, who was facing off against one youth, Ilay ruthlessly struck the side of the head of the youth who was gripping Tae-ui’s shoulder and trying to twist it without mercy.
“Be gentle. He’ll be hurt if you do that. What if he gets injured?”
“Give the disease and the cure all at once. Damn it!”
If he could, he wanted to grab and beat his only lover first, but he was simply outmatched.
The gaze of the people naturally gathered toward the back of the banquet hall, which had instantly become a mess. While the adults frowned and signaled the men standing around them, Richard, standing in front, continued speaking in a calm voice as if he didn’t care at all.
“…Furthermore, the final repayment of the loan to Tarten has also been agreed upon.”
Hearing that irritatingly calm voice, Jeong Tae-ui clicked his tongue in frustration. Dealing with four people was indeed too much. Aziz, who he thought would be the hardest, was barely helping, but with three men attacking at once, the tide was turning against him.
“This is troublesome… really troublesome,” Jeong Tae-ui muttered.
He had no intention of being caught quietly. But he also lacked the confidence to escape them—unless he hurt them.
“Still, I’ve been living here as a guest for several weeks; it wouldn’t be the human thing to do to leave after hurting the family of the greedy old man without even leaving a thank-you gift…”
Jeong Tae-ui sighed. But he couldn’t let his guard down. Not as long as that untrustworthy ally was standing behind them, watching with his arms crossed.
Looking troubled and merely dodging the youths’ attacks, Jeong Tae-ui eventually clicked his tongue. Simultaneously, muttering “Sorry,” he grabbed the forearm of the youth who was closest. As the youth reflexively tried to shake off his hand, Tae-ui twisted the arm in the direction of the force. At the same time, he pulled the youth toward him, using him as a shield to take the hit from another incoming fist. He didn’t forget to slightly push the opposite side of the torso where the fist landed to increase the impact.
Using the youth, who collapsed instantly and was unable to recover, as a springboard, Jeong Tae-ui leaped up and used the downward momentum to drive his elbow into the crown [stolen content]of the head of the youth behind him. That one was finished in a single blow.
“Uh… sorry, sorry. I’ve been idling around for so long that I thought it wouldn’t work, so I just tried it, but I guess I haven’t rusted yet. Sorry, if I’d known, I would have been a bit gentler.”
He offered a useless apology, knowing that such an attack would never have worked on the guy just watching over there, and just as Jeong Tae-ui easily knocked down the last one—
Aziz, who had been observing the situation from a couple of paces away, nodded in admiration and stepped forward.
“No, I don’t want to fight you—”
“In an unavoidable fight, I do not resent any blow I receive. You may set aside your courtesy and come.”
Thinking that Jeong Tae-ui had said that out of a shred of affection, Aziz humbly shook his head, but Jeong Tae-ui clicked his tongue.
It’s not that, it’s just that I’m not confident I can take you down easily.
Unaware of what Jeong Tae-ui was thinking, Aziz approached with a cautious face and then turned his gaze to Ilay.
“I’m not certain I can do it alone. Will you help me?”
“Tsk tsk… I told these guys in advance, but they really don’t listen. I clearly told them that while this fellow is somewhat clumsy, he’s not a complete pushover.”
Muttering, “If you let your guard down for even a second, I’ll get hit [visit our site]too,” Ilay reached out his hand.
It was one mountain after another.
“I told you, let’s go to Frankfurt together! I won’t get in your way!”
By a hair’s breadth, barely dodging that hand, Jeong Tae-ui yelled. Ilay remained silent for a very brief moment, looking down at his empty hand, and then took off the glove from that hand.
“It’s not a matter of getting in the way, Tae-yi. It’s a matter of your safety.”
“Why are you taking off your glove if you’re thinking about my safety!”
“Ah, well, it’s better to use bare hands when touching you.”
With a smirk, Ilay stepped forward.
The voice of Richard flickered in his ear: “Tarten will thereafter spare no support for the maintenance and survival of Prince Al Faisal’s private academic institution—” Why is it that people in high positions always use such flowery words?
With a mouth that could currently produce nothing but harsh words, Jeong Tae-ui finally shouted, “Ilay, you damn bastard!” but it didn’t take long for him to be pressed against the wall with both arms held behind his back.
“It’s been a while since I’ve heard that. Why, is it still not enough?”
Holding Jeong Tae-ui’s arms securely with one hand, [Read on Read BL Novels]Ilay, pressed tightly against his back, laughed [Read on Read BL Novels]lowly. Only then visit our sitedid Aziz approach with restraint tape.
“Wait just a few days, Tae-yi. I’ll guarantee your brother’s safety. …Though I suppose I don’t even need to guarantee that.”
“My brother’s safety isn’t the problem, what you’re trying to do is the problem. What on earth are you thinking! UNHRDO this time? Why must it always be such a headache—”
Pressed against the wall, listening to the sound of Aziz tearing a long strip of restraint tape, Jeong Tae-ui vented his frustration. Behind him, Ilay brought his face close as if to whisper a secret in his ear, and then suddenly licked Jeong Tae-ui’s cheek.
“I told you I didn’t want to keep living as a fugitive without freedom. It’ll be cleared up in a few days, so wait. …If there’s anything else you want, just say it. I’ll grant you as much as you wish.”
Jeong Tae-ui fell silent. He turned his head and looked at the familiar face right in front of him with a very strange expression.
“I’ll grant you whatever you want. As long as you stay by my side.”
Ilay spoke calmly. Following those words, which sounded so natural, Jeong Tae-ui just blinked and stared at him intently.
Suddenly, just as Jeong Tae-ui frowned awkwardly and opened his mouth to say, “You—”
“—Furthermore, that support will take precedence over any friendship Tarten has formed in the past and will serve as the foundation for the close relationship to be built between us moving forward.”
Richard’s voice echoed through the hall.
At that moment, Jeong Tae-ui felt he clearly saw the short yet heavy silence that followed.
The faint trace of a smile vanished from Ilay’s expression as if washed away.
In its place settled an icy stillness. An expressionless face that froze the heart of the beholder.
Before Richard’s words were fully processed and understood in Jeong Tae-ui’s mind, it happened.
“Excuse me, Mr. Riegrow.”
A low, blunt voice was heard right behind Ilay.
Restraint tape rolling on the floor.
The secure grip that had been holding Jeong Tae-ui’s arms suddenly lost its strength.
Jeong Tae-ui, now free, hurriedly turned around. He stood face-to-face with Ilay, who had been pressed right against him. And then, Jeong Tae-ui saw it.
Aziz’s fist was pressed against the side of Ilay’s neck. A needle protruding from the clenched fist had pierced into Ilay’s neck.
“Il—”
It was the same moment Jeong Tae-ui opened his mouth.
Ilay, who had been standing motionless like a statue, swung his elbow backward in the very next instant.
With a speed that could never be avoided even if one knew it was coming, a blow carrying immense velocity and weight sent Aziz’s head flying.
Along with a short scream, a loud crashing sound echoed through the hall as Aziz was sent flying several paces back into the door. Once the few screams of the startled people nearby subsided, the banquet hall became as silent as if cold water had been poured over it.
Without even glancing back at Aziz, whose face was crushed and bloodied, lying motionless, Ilay stood rooted to the spot in the exact same posture he had held while gripping Jeong Tae-ui. After a moment, he slowly raised his hand and stroked his neck. The syringe had already been flung far away, leaving no trace on the skin, but the liquid it contained had already mixed into his veins.
“……Ilay.”
A voice as faint as a breath leaked from Jeong Tae-ui’s stiffened lips.
Ilay, who had been silently stroking his neck, eventually turned around slowly.
The banquet hall was deathly silent. While most of the people stood frozen with pale faces, their eyes darting occasionally, there were few who stood there with composed expressions.
One of them, Richard, soon spoke quietly.
“His life isn’t in danger, so you don’t have to worry, Rick. It was merely a fast-acting sedative. ……Though it seems the term ‘fast-acting’ doesn’t apply to you.”
Ilay looked at Richard expressionlessly. His gaze slowly shifted toward [Read on Read BL Novels]Raman, brushed past Malik [stolen content]standing behind him, and returned to Richard.
“So, I should take this to mean you’ve decided to break ties with the Riegrows and join hands with Al Faisal, Richard Tarten.”
Ilay murmured calmly, his tone neither agitated nor angry. His voice had only dropped slightly, sounding no different than usual; had one not seen it personally, it would have been impossible to imagine he was someone who had just been injected with a drug in the neck.
“With the Riegrows? Surely not. My priorities shifted slightly, and as a result, I’ve ended up breaking the personal promise I made to you, which I find deeply regrettable. However, I have no intention of breaking the ties between the Tartens and the Riegrows. Strictly speaking, the man behind you isn’t even a Riegrow by name—he’s an outsider, is he not?”
Richard shook his head slowly. After staring at him intently, Ilay laughed.
“I see. You mean the promise was meaningless from the start.”
“It may sound like an excuse, Rick, but the Tartens certainly intended to join hands with the Riegrow family. Opinions were split nearly down the middle, but in the end, the consensus leaned toward the idea that it would be better to maintain a long-standing friendship than to seek short-term gain.”
“And?”
At Ilay’s question, Richard gave a troubled smile.
“My apologies. I personally leaned toward putting more effort into building a new relationship than upholding that promise.”
Ilay asked nothing more.
Blink. He blinked once. His pitch-black pupils shone with an unusual intensity.
The dark eyes, which should have already lost consciousness and closed, were glowing more and more. Jeong Tae-ui could not tear his gaze away from those eyes, which did not waver or move in the slightest.
“Ilay.”
Jeong Tae-ui called out softly. Ilay did not look back. However, he was undoubtedly listening to Jeong Tae-ui’s words—with every nerve sharpened more than ever before.
“……Make better friends in the future.”
The moment Jeong Tae-ui spoke sulkily, Ilay’s pupils wavered slightly for the first time. His frozen eyes narrowed just a bit. A smirk flickered across his lips, which had been devoid of expression.
“Right. You’re correct.”
“And next time, make smarter friends.”
“That’s also correct.”
“If you were determined to stick a needle in someone’s neck, you should have used potassium cyanide instead of some sedative. How do you plan to handle the aftermath?”
Listening to Jeong Tae-ui’s grumbling, Ilay laughed lowly. He let out a soft “hahaha” and leaned lightly against the wall.
“Look, this is exactly why I said I wasn’t visit our sitegoing to Frankfurt with you. You distracted me so much [unauthorized copy]that it ended up like this.”
“……If you’re sleepy, just sleep. Stop blaming others while your mind is hazy.”
“Hmm—I am certainly a bit sleepy. But before that…….”
Ilay laughed weakly and rubbed his temples. He blinked once, twice, and looked down at his hand. Jeong Tae-ui couldn’t even guess how many overlapping images of that hand were appearing before Ilay’s eyes right now.
No, in truth, he didn’t even know how the man was still standing upright.
Regardless of what drug they had used, any normal human would have fainted and been rolling on the floor long ago.
However.
In the very next instant, Ilay vanished from before Jeong Tae-ui’s eyes.
Having suddenly lunged forward, he tore through the crowd gathered in the banquet hall, charging straight ahead.
Had there not been enough distance between them, he likely would have snapped the neck of the person he was targeting with ease.
Despite the considerable distance from the inner part of the grand banquet hall to the doors, the guards on duty only snapped to their senses after Ilay had reached within a few steps of Richard.
Three of them, who rushed toward Ilay as if to block Richard’s path, had their necks snapped in the opposite direction in a single instant. By the time a fourth man stepped in just inches from Richard and pulled out a handgun, he was a fraction too late. The hand holding the gun [Read on Read BL Novels]was twisted toward the sky, and the ear-splitting gunshot blended with the sound of the chandelier shattering.
But then.
Right below Ilay’s ear, where the pulse beats, a needle was plunged in once again.
After pushing the drug in all at once—so quickly it would have been strange not to cause a shock—the needle pulled out, scratching the skin and leaving a bead of blood at the tip.
Ilay’s movements slowly came to a halt.
Still gripping the guard’s wrist, he wore a serene and cool expression, looking nothing like the man who had just rampaged like a demon. Depending on how one looked at it, he almost seemed amused. The guard, frozen pale while staring at him from inches away, felt his crotch grow damp.
Whether it was because his black pupils had dilated like a corpse’s, or because of his calm, white face after killing three people in an instant, he no longer looked human.
The person who had plunged the needle in and stepped back was Malik.
Malik looked at Ilay, who was slowly turning to face him, with a stiff expression.
“……Had I known it would be like this, I would never have made an enemy of you.”
Even with a stiff face, Malik gave a bitter smile, saying something that could have been either a joke or a serious remark. Ilay shifted his gaze to Raman, who was standing behind him.
Raman, who had watched the scene unauthorized copyunfold before his eyes visit our sitewithout so much as a blink, watched Ilay for a moment before speaking.
“Since this is the only card that can ultimately move Jeong Jae-ui, it cannot be helped. ……I am sorry, Mr. Ilay Riegrow. However, let us consider this as the settling of the Seringe star’s debt.”
“Debt, huh……. Even including interest, you’re trying to take far too much. You’ll need to give back a lot of change.”
Ilay murmured lowly.
The hand gripping the guard’s wrist tightened. The sound of bones crushing—crack, snap—was barely audible over the screams.
And simultaneously, as Ilay threw the guard aside and straightened his body, Malik—who had been watching with a wary, disbelieving gaze from a short distance—received another syringe from the man beside him and approached.
It was then.
As Malik gritted his teeth and stepped forward to plunge the syringe into Ilay, who was looking at him with demonic black eyes and a sudden, faint smile, someone stepped in and blocked his path.
“Tae—!”
But the words Ilay shouted in dismay were cut short.
The moment the needle pierced his forearm, Jeong Tae-ui tried to shake it off, but more than half of the drug had already entered.
For a moment, Jeong Tae-ui flinched. His vision spun.
“You idiot…….”
Those words, shouted lowly in anger, were the last things Ilay uttered in that spot.
No more words leaked from those lips, which seemed to stop moving slowly. The strength left the legs supporting him, and his body slowly collapsed.
“Ilay!”
Jeong Tae-ui barely managed to catch him. He let out a low groan under the merciless weight pressing down, but he managed to hold him up, supporting him on his shoulder.
A few guards, who had lost several teeth while trying to block Jeong Tae-ui’s way, finally caught up to him, but the situation had already reached a conclusion.
“That thing isn’t even human.”
Someone suddenly muttered toward Ilay. It seemed more than one or two people agreed, as several were seen nodding their heads unconsciously.
Jeong Tae-ui deeply empathized with that statement.
Even though he had received less than the full dose, and even though it was in his forearm, his vision was already shaking. Thinking about it again, this guy really isn’t human.
With Ilay slung over one shoulder, Jeong Tae-ui turned visit our sitehis gaze. He saw several sturdy men [Read on Read BL Novels]surrounding him at a slight distance.
Carrying a man far heavier than himself, facing an absolute numerical disadvantage, and with his vision blurring.
Jeong Tae-ui sighed. While doing so, his gaze scanned them one by one, eventually landing on Raman.
“Even if you don’t wish it, I will have to accept your help.”
He didn’t like that cool, composed voice. Come to think of it, Jeong Tae-ui had never once seen this man raise his voice or move with urgency.
Jeong Tae-ui glanced at Ilay, who hung heavily over his shoulder. His knees felt like they were about to buckle, and he barely managed to stay standing.
“I don’t really want to.”
“It does not matter what your will is. You just need to not die. No, you mustn’t be in pain either……. You simply need to stay breathing without suffering.”
“…….Like being bound hand and foot for 24 hours a day and given only food and water, or just keeping me breathing while keeping me asleep with drugs like this guy?”
I wouldn’t like that, Jeong Tae-ui thought, feigning a frown. But even as he spoke jokingly, he knew the man before him was perfectly capable of doing so if the need arose.
Good grief, I wonder if I’ll wake up from passing out only to find myself tied to a bed, unable to move, being fed like a vegetable.
“If you follow my will without resistance, there will be no need to go that far.”
What, so he’s saying he’ll do it if things go south, Jeong Tae-ui muttered to himself with a smirk.
His vision was oscillating more and more. His head and eyes were spinning, and he couldn’t even tell if he was standing straight without swaying.
I guess I just have to pray for luck after I wake up, he thought, just as he adjusted Ilay’s body.
“That’s why I told you. The area by the door is bad according to feng shui.”
The person who suddenly muttered was Christoph, who had been watching as if observing a fire across a river.
A sulky, cold voice, completely detached from the atmosphere.
Jeong Tae-ui glanced at Christoph, who appeared as multiple overlapping images. Cold sweat beaded on his forehead as he struggled to hold onto his fading consciousness.
Christoph was standing with his back to the window, near where he had pushed Jeong Tae-ui to stand.
“……Christoph.”
However, it was not Jeong Tae-ui, but Richard who called his name.
Richard, who had not let his composed face falter even visit our sitewhen Ilay charged right in front of him, [unauthorized copy]now glared at Christoph with a faintly stiffened expression. But Christoph [stolen content]did not look at Richard. He looked only at Jeong Tae-ui. With stubborn persistence.
“Give him to me.”
When Christoph spoke abruptly, Jeong Tae-ui didn’t understand at first what he was referring to. Christoph clicked his tongue in disapproval and gestured with his chin toward Ilay, who was slumped over Jeong Tae-ui’s shoulder.
“That crazy bastard. The one who’s not sure if he’s human or what.”
“…….”
In truth, he didn’t want to hand him over. He didn’t want to let go of this weight he was holding onto, however precariously, with one arm. To whom could he hand over the defenseless man who had lost consciousness?
But Jeong Tae-ui’s vision was increasingly flickering, and in the midst of that, Christoph clicked his tongue, strode forward, and practically snatched Ilay away from him.
But that was only for a moment.
As soon as he pulled the heavily slumped Ilay into one arm, he heartlessly flung him onto the floor. Thud—the floor vibrated with a heavy sound.
“Come to think of it, I had a debt to pay back to this guy too. I’ll consider this as my payment.”
Jeong Tae-ui stared blankly with a hazy mind at Christoph, who was muttering coldly. Hey, Ilay, are you okay? While muttering words that wouldn’t be heard, he felt he could no longer hold on. His eyes closed.
“Tae-yi!”
Then, Christoph shouted. Jeong Tae-ui forced his eyes open. Christoph was reaching out his hand before him.
“Give it to me. Your hand. You said you’d lend it to me today. So, give it to me.”
Staring vacantly at the shouting Christoph, Jeong Tae-ui reached out his hand almost unconsciously amidst his blurring consciousness. Christoph’s hand touched his fingertips. In that instant, Christoph gripped Jeong Tae-ui’s hand and pulled him sharply toward himself.
“Christoph!!”
The first person to react was Richard.
He must have guessed. What Christoph was going to do. But that guess came a moment too late.
Sorry, please take care of him, Jeong Tae-ui muttered before finally losing consciousness. In the other hand that held the firmly embraced Tae-yi, Christoph already held a gun. Simultaneously, he struck the head of a hesitating guard standing behind him with the grip of the gun. Kicking the unconscious guard aside, Christoph stepped backward. After a few steps, the glass window blocked his back.
“Christoph. ……Don’t do something stupid. Who do you think you are?”
Richard glared at Christoph without blinking. Christoph looked at Richard with an expressionless face. Then, he spoke quietly.
“I don’t know my name. Not once have I ever known my name.”
No one could say a word.
The moment he finished speaking, Christoph shattered the glass window behind him and leaped out.
* * *
By the time Christoph reached the roof of the main building, the helicopter was just about to take off. As if it had just received instructions via radio, the aircraft that had been resting on the ground shuddered, attempting to lift itself.
Christoph’s entire body was drenched in sweat. Blood splattered here and there mixed with the sweat, making it look as if blood were seeping out instead of perspiration.
The slumped body slung over one shoulder like a sack of grain kept trying to slide off. He lightly hoisted the body back onto his shoulder and clicked his tongue upon making eye contact with the helicopter pilot.
There were almost no people stationed on the roof. At most, one or two. Even those few looked at Christoph with bewildered faces, seemingly unaware of what had happened, until a shout erupted from inside the door Christoph had burst through, telling them not to let him escape. Only then did their expressions change as they fumbled for their waistbands.
Christoph cast a brief glance at the foreigners who had clearly come with Al Faisal’s group and pulled the trigger without hesitation. The gun, fired without proper aim, pierced chests and stomachs alike.
Seeing Christoph, stained with reddish sweat, begin to run toward the helicopter, the pilot pulled the lever in terror.
The aircraft floated, lifting off the ground.
At that moment, Christoph fired toward the cockpit. Specifically, the co-pilot’s seat. Unfortunately, the man in the co-pilot’s seat, who was hurriedly pulling out a gun while the aircraft rose without the door even being closed, was unlucky enough to be shot straight through the glabella.
Blood sprayed out, and droplets splattered around the co-pilot’s seat.
The helicopter, carrying the pale, wide-eyed pilot, shook slightly before it had fully cleared the ground.
In the meantime, Christoph reached the helicopter and threw Jeong Tae-ui, whom he had been carrying on his shoulder, through the open door. He shoved him in haphazardly, despite the man hitting the seats and inner walls without waking, and then grabbed the safety bar of the aircraft, which had risen to head height, and climbed in.
The pilot, seeing Christoph enter the helicopter, recoiled in horror and pushed the lever. With pale, wide eyes fixed on Christoph, he fumbled with the instrument panel with trembling hands.
The helicopter that had been hovering in the air descended and touched down. Violent winds surged outward from the aircraft like a storm.
“Lift off! Get us back up!”
Christoph shouted, pointing his gun upward. However, the pilot, gripped by panic, shook his head tremulously, unable to move a muscle.
Meanwhile, a crowd of people burst through the rooftop door as if breaking it down. They rushed toward the helicopter, screaming something.
“Lift off!”
Christoph shouted again. But the pilot, perhaps hoping that if he held out just a bit longer, stolen contentthose people [visit our site]would pull Christoph out, hesitated and refused to move his hands.
Christoph clicked his tongue.
He grabbed a corpse sprawled on the ground and propped it up right next to the pilot. As the pilot gasped at the sight of the limp body with its eyes rolled back, Christoph fired another shot into the corpse’s head. Blood splattered violently across the pilot’s face.
Christoph tossed the body aside and this time pressed the muzzle of the gun against the pilot’s nape.
“Your turn now. Lift off if you don’t want to die.”
Christoph’s low voice was drowned out by the deafening roar of the helicopter. However, between the still-warm corpse of his colleague rolling at his feet and the muzzle pressed tight against his neck, it was clear the pilot understood exactly what Christoph was saying.
As Christoph jabbed the muzzle roughly into his neck, the pilot, his face stained with sweat and blood, barely managed to move his trembling hands.
The ear-splitting sound of the propellers grew even louder. Along with a vibration that shook his entire body, the ground beneath his feet seemed to waver, and the aircraft began to lift.
Outside, people could be seen scrambling and shouting in chaos. One of them instinctively grabbed the landing skid to try and climb aboard, but Christoph crushed the hand under the heel of his shoe. With a light crunch, the hand was quickly severed. Even the scream was swallowed by the noise of the aircraft.
It was then.
The iron door swung open violently. Someone came charging out, kicking the door aside.
It was Richard.
Having run with desperate urgency, forgetting even to breathe and without looking back, he saw the helicopter just as it was ascending. Something collapsed in his expression. He knew that he could not pull down an aircraft that had already floated higher than a person’s height. Christoph, whose eyes met his, knew it too.
“Christoph!!”
Richard screamed. Though it should have been impossible to hear over the propeller noise filling his eardrums, the sound pierced clearly into his ears.
Even though he could no longer reach him, Christoph looked down at the man who had come to the takeoff spot and was staring up at him, his own face turning slightly pale.
It was a face he had never seen before.
When had he ever seen the man—who was always composed and never so much as blinked regardless of the situation—show such blatant anxiety? A face so desperate and devoid of composure.
He was too late. He, who had chased after him so frantically to snatch Jeong Tae-ui away from Christoph, was one step too late.
And yet, Richard, who wasn’t even looking at Jeong Tae-ui but was glaring fiercely only at Christoph, suddenly screamed.
“Don’t go! …Christoph, come here!! I told you to come back!!”
But he could only scream; there was nothing he could do. Richard stood with his feet on the ground, and Christoph was above his head, out of reach.
Christoph looked down at him blankly. Watching Richard, who continued to Read on Read BL Novelsglare at him with eyes flashing fiercely yet remained helpless, Christoph wanted to laugh. He twisted [unauthorized copy]the corners of his mouth up slightly, but despite his efforts, a laugh did not come.
“…Congratulations on the succession, Richard Tarten.”
The words that escaped Christoph’s lips were quiet. They were buried by the sound of the helicopter, inaudible even to his own ears, but he was certain the man had understood. And as if confirming that certainty, Richard’s eyes widened slightly the moment Christoph spoke. His tightly closed lips trembled.
“With this, the pact between you and me is over.”
Richard had succeeded to the Tarten. And now, Christoph was leaving the Tarten. That had been the original pact.
With those final words, Christoph slammed the helicopter door shut. As he flicked the muzzle of the gun he held against the pilot a couple of times, the helicopter gained altitude and began to move away from the mansion.
Without looking back, without looking down, Christoph stared silently ahead. As if he had never known from the start about that burning gaze that would be relentlessly following him from below.
“Where to…?”
The pilot spoke hesitantly. Inside the helicopter flying aimlessly over the skies of Dresden, Christoph looked down at Jeong Tae-ui. Leaning against the seat and unconscious, he looked as if he were merely asleep. Peacefully, while people screamed in fury below and the propellers tore through the eardrums above.
It felt as if that spot alone was a different world.
As if it had always been so.
Christoph had never once been in the same world as him.
“…Berlin. To Berlin.”
Finally, Christoph spoke quietly. His voice was so faint that the pilot had to ask again before he could understand the destination.
The helicopter made a wide turn toward the north of Dresden.
A contact came in from the outside, and a red light blinked longly on the bottom left of the instrument panel. The pilot ignored the light, covering it with his elbow.
Christoph ignored the signal that had flickered into view before being hidden and sat back in his seat. His limbs slumped like a marionette with its strings cut.
He looked to his side once more. Watching Jeong Tae-ui, who breathed evenly with his eyes closed as if dreaming some peaceful dream, Christoph leaned his head against the seat and closed his eyes.
“It’s cold…”
The sigh, like a lament, that escaped his lips vanished into the noise.
It didn’t take long for the news to spread within the Tarten that Christoph had kidnapped Jeong unauthorized copy[visit our site]Tae-ui and fled after hijacking the helicopter of a VIP from the Middle East.
Regarding the claim that ‘he kidnapped Jeong Tae-ui,’ anyone who had stayed with them at the Tarten viewed it with suspicion, but the truth of that minor detail was not important. What mattered was the fact that Christoph had taken and disappeared with someone important from the Tarten’s perspective.
“Crazy bastard.”
Benson said bluntly. In front of him, Jansen, who had delivered the news, shrugged in silent agreement.
Benson didn’t particularly like Christoph, but he didn’t hate him either. Regarding the atrocities Christoph had committed thus far, he felt they were understandable if one heard the circumstances.
But this time, he stood on the Tarten’s side. No, even if he didn’t, Christoph’s actions were, in his opinion, irrational.
“Of all days, he chooses today to do this? This isn’t just screwing over Richard; he’s screwed over the entire Tarten. Out of his mind.”
As Benson clicked his tongue and muttered, Jansen, who had always disliked Christoph, frowned even deeper.
“I knew something was off from the moment that guy started coddling that Oriental. In the end, he caused a scene and bolted. Dammit, it would have ended smoothly just by handing that Oriental over to the Saudis, but that lunatic ruined everything!”
“It seems they were close in their own way, but he chose the worst possible method. It’s not that I can’t understand it, but the method was poor.”
“Understand what? The other side wasn’t making any absurd demands. Look at that Oriental; I heard he’s the one who collaborated when that madman committed the terror attack. How malicious must they be to specifically demand that Oriental’s custody while leaving the madman alone?!”
I wonder if there’s actually anyone more malicious than this guy, Benson muttered suspiciously, glancing Read on Read BL Novelsbehind [unauthorized copy]him at the ‘madman’ lying unconscious on a cot, one wrist bound in steel handcuffs.
The man more frequently called Mad Rick than by his real name. No, a monster-like man whose real name should not even be uttered lay there with his eyes closed.
In the midst of this unprecedented crisis, while everyone else had gone out to handle the situation, there were three other young men, slightly younger than them, in the room besides Benson and Jansen. The other three were sitting a short distance away, chatting about speculations regarding Christoph and Jeong Tae-ui and predictions for the future.
The young men grumbled about why five valuable personnel were needed to monitor a man who had been knocked out by more than the prescribed dose of propofol, but Richard, even as he left in a hurry, had shaken his head and given them instructions. To keep administering the drug at regular intervals.
“…Should we use more medicine?”
Benson muttered, tapping the steel case he had tossed on the table. A few spare ampoules of sedative and a syringe were inside.
Jansen looked between the bag and Riegrow with a conflicted expression, then shrugged.
“No matter how much of a monster he is, if we administer more drugs now, he might actually stay out forever. He may be a lunatic, but he’s a member of the Riegrow family. If something happens to him, we’ll be the ones taking the fall if we’re unlucky.”
“But Richard…”
“Look, he took 800mg of propofol. 800mg! Even if he wakes up tonight, he’ll be crawling on the floor for a while. No, if he’s unlucky, his brain might have gone a bit fried.”
True, Benson muttered, though he looked at Riegrow with some apprehension.
Even while unconscious with his eyes heavily closed, he was an [unauthorized copy]imposing man. He was a man one would never want [Read on Read BL Novels]to be near [Read on Read BL Novels]if he weren’t in this unconscious state.
“Ah, damn it, I’m bored to death staying cooped up in here. What are we even doing, guarding a guy who won’t be able to move properly even if he wakes up for a while?”
One of the young men clicked his tongue and approached. Muttering fierce curses, he perched on the backrest of the sofa where Jansen was sitting.
“I wonder which sky those two are flying through right now. Christoph, that crazy bastard. What the hell is going on in his head for him to pull a stunt like this?”
“Who knows. Maybe they’re sightseeing the skies of Hong Kong right now.”
The young man sitting further away spoke with a smirk and a subtle tone. At that, Jansen burst into laughter.
“Yeah, well, unless they were the kind of partners who did that sort of thing in secret, he wouldn’t have gone this far no matter how close they were. What is this, the famous ‘love flight’?”
While they giggled and tossed around crude remarks, Benson shook his head with a bitter smile.
He didn’t believe the joke, but regardless, their escape wouldn’t last long. No, they would surely be caught the moment they stepped off the helicopter. Their destination would already be known, and people would have been stationed at every likely spot.
At most, they were just struggling for an hour, maybe a few hours.
“No matter how I think about it, it was a foolish move.”
It was just as Benson muttered to himself with a dissatisfied sigh.
Something happened that they had not thought of—no, had not even imagined.
It was like a nightmare.
As if responding to Benson’s monologue, a strange—or rather, a voice he wanted to think of as strange—followed up with, I see…
“I see… So Christoph took Tae-yi.”
It was a languid voice.
Benson didn’t realize for a moment whose voice that slow, husky tone—half-drunk with sleep, perhaps like sleep-talking—belonged to.
No, in truth, it was a voice he knew. But it was a voice that should not be heard now, and could not possibly be heard.
“Ri—”
However, Benson, who turned reflexively, could not close his mouth.
As if he had just taken a light nap, Riegrow was rising from the bed. Sitting up on the bed, he shook his head slowly a couple of times like someone not yet fully awake, as if his head were heavy. Strength entered the long, white fingers that lightly pressed against his temple with a slight frown. It seemed he had a headache.
No… it couldn’t just be a headache… no, that’s not it. [visit our site]Not just a headache, there’s no [stolen content]way he could open his eyes already. There’s no way he could lift his body…
Just like Benson, who stared at him in a daze, Jansen also looked at Riegrow blankly. The young men also lost their words for a moment.
In that eerie silence, Riegrow tried to lift himself from the bed nonchalantly, only to realize belatedly that handcuffs were fastened to his wrists. Looking down at his wrists as if seeing such an object for the first time in his life, Riegrow suddenly chuckled.
“That fellow Richard must have been quite out of it. To waste something so useless.”
The moment those words ended, a small, distinct snap echoed. And in the next instant, the handcuffs, having nothing left to hold, clattered against the wall and hung limp.
Without blinking, Riegrow popped his dislocated thumb joint back into place and shook his freed—or rather, never truly bound—hand a few times.
“Ri, …Rieg—”
Ignoring Jansen, who was muttering while turning pale, Riegrow looked around and shifted his gaze to the table where the young men were sitting.
“Ah. You left them there. Bring them here, my gloves.”
Speaking in a tone slightly slower than usual, Riegrow flicked his finger, pointing to the navy blue gloves on the table. The young man instinctively picked up the gloves and took a step toward Riegrow, but he froze when Benson screamed like a banshee, having regained his senses.
“Don’t give them to him!”
The air froze.
Riegrow, who had reached out his hand, slowly turned to look at Benson. Benson stared wide-eyed at Riegrow.
It made no sense. There was no way he could have regained consciousness and stood up already. No, even if he had somehow woken up, there was no way he could move properly. Sitting up like that should have been his limit…
At that moment, Jansen seemed to have reached the same conclusion as Benson.
“It’s a bluff… it’s a bluff. There’s no way he can move. Sitting up like that is the most he can do. Besides, look, he has no weapon. He’s empty-handed. We have weapons. And there are five of us.”
Though Jansen spoke in a low voice, his gaze did not leave Riegrow.
Pitch-black eyes, whose thoughts were unknowable, were watching them. Then, eventually, those black eyes curved faintly. He was smiling.
“Why don’t you just give me my gloves?”
“No, I can’t.”
Jansen answered before Riegrow could even finish. He fumbled at his waist, pulled out a gun, and aimed it. Just as Benson was about to click his tongue and scold him for such a hasty response—
Riegrow burst into laughter. He laughed for a while, low but heartily. In the face of that laughter, which sounded almost leisurely, Benson became increasingly anxious. Objectively, there was no reason for his side to be anxious, yet a thick sense of dread pooled in his chest.
The laughter seemed to subside. Riegrow looked at them quietly with eyes that still held a trace of a smile. One by one. One by one. Slowly, as if piercing through to their very souls. And after looking at the last person, a smile [visit our site]finally formed on his lips. That smile sealed Benson’s anxiety.
“Jansen. Are you mistaken about something? The gloves are simply a preference of mine, not a weapon. But well… fine. One is far from enough anyway, so I’ll just wash my hands later.”
It was the moment he finished speaking in that nonchalant tone.
The hand that had been lightly pressing his temple as if he had a severe headache gripped the mattress. And in the next instant, Riegrow, leaping from the bed, was descending upon Jansen.
He grabbed the wrist of Jansen, who instinctively pulled the trigger, a step ahead and twisted it. Precisely, aiming for the neck of the young man who had just been pulling out a gun.
At the same time the young man collapsed without even a single scream, a hole having been punched through his neck, Riegrow twisted Jansen’s wrist completely around, took the gun from his hand, and looked down at Jansen—who was staring up at him with eyes wide with terror—and smiled brightly.
“What a shame, Jansen. It seems your luck ran out and your head has gone soft, just as you said. Right now, I’m in such a foul mood that I can’t seem to control myself. And I don’t feel like trying to.”
“Bye-bye.” With those short words, Riegrow pressed the muzzle of the gun against the space between Jansen’s eyebrows and pulled the trigger without hesitation.
Thwack. Dark blood splattered across Riegrow’s pale face.
But that wasn’t the end.
After piercing the heads of the two young men who had drawn their guns and were firing frantically at him, Riegrow lightly pushed aside the heavy leather sofa that had become a honeycomb in his stead and stood up.
The room, which had become as [Read on Read BL Novels]noisy as a disturbed [Read on Read BL Novels]hornet’s nest, suddenly [Read on Read BL Novels]returned to silence, just as abruptly as the chaos had begun.
In the room where four corpses now lay scattered, Riegrow frowned slightly, clicked his tongue, and pressed firmly on his forehead and temples. He shook his head two or three more times, appearing as if his head felt heavy—though his movements didn’t suggest that at all.
Frozen in the silence, Benson stared at Riegrow, entranced. He no longer had the rationality left to think that this was impossible or that it couldn’t be happening.
Riegrow slowly turned to look at Benson one last time. Benson swallowed hard.
“I wanted to maintain a friendly appearance until the moment I left Tarten, if possible, Benson.”
“…….”
“I’ve rarely seen a good outcome when I do things that don’t suit my nature. See, it’s the same this time.”
“Ri… Riegrow…”
Riegrow suddenly grimaced. He lightly tapped his head with his palm and muttered a low curse.
“Damn it, I’m still dizzy… Hey, Benson. How long have I been asleep?”
Benson stared blankly at Riegrow, his lips merely twitching. He was half out of his mind, unable to speak. It was certain that enough time had passed that no normal person could have woken up already.
Seeing that Benson couldn’t answer properly, Riegrow clicked his tongue and asked again.
“Hey. Tell me what I don’t know. What happened while I was unconscious? What’s the current situation? Hmm?”
“…I, I don’t…”
Benson’s tongue managed to squeeze out a few short syllables. Having stayed only within this room, there was no way he knew the situation outside, and even if he did, his mind wasn’t functioning well enough to explain it.
“Hmm,” Riegrow murmured, rubbing the back of his neck and shaking his head lightly a couple of times before spinning his pistol in a circle.
“Right, then you’re useless too.”
Those were the last words Benson ever heard.
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