* * *

“Ah, I was supposed to see you home.”

“It’s fine. Baek Gunho is on his way.”

By the time we handed over the broker and waited for the Bureau, quite a bit of time had passed.

I had heard Baek Gunho had entered Seoul earlier, so it shouldn’t take him long to get here.

“Your boyfriend is really overprotective.”

“He’s not my boyfriend.”

It was dangerous for me to move alone these days, so I was waiting for him.

Of course, Baek Gunho came to Seoul today for other reasons…

“Fine, I’ll wait until he gets here.”

“You don’t have to.”

“Of course, I do. You’re so prone to trouble that leaving you alone feels wrong. Besides, I’m sure the Baekmyeon Sect must hate you even more now.”

“If you stick around, you’ll just end up fighting with Baek Gunho again.”

“Well, that’s unavoidable since your boyfriend is so suspicious.”

While I couldn’t exactly side with Baek Gunho, he wasn’t entirely wrong.

In an unfavorable situation, I chose to stay silent.

Kwon Sahyeok and I waited for Baek Gunho at a spot slightly away from the club.

It felt awkward, especially after my secret had been exposed.

I was in the middle of texting Gunho to hurry up when Kwon Sahyeok suddenly pulled me into a hug.

“I’m heading out. Take care.”

“What the hell?!”

“Don’t fight with your boyfriend too much.”

With those parting words, he disappeared.

I turned my head, feeling the intensity of a familiar gaze.

Of course, it was Baek Gunho.

“What exactly were you doing just now…?”

“…It was nothing. Kwon Sahyeok just acted on his own.”

Why was I even explaining myself?

Baek Gunho looked at me as if I were a cheating lover caught in the act.

“Wait here.”

“Why?”

“So I can kill that bastard.”

“Don’t.”

Baek Gunho’s eyes flared.

“Are you siding with him now?”

“I’m not taking sides. I just don’t want you to get into unnecessary trouble.”

I grabbed his wrist.

“Let’s just go home, okay?”

Baek Gunho glanced between my face and his wrist.

“Is this supposed to be cute?”

“…”

What?! When did I…?

Recently, Baek Gunho had been misinterpreting everything I said or did.

Correcting him was pointless.

“Fine. Let’s go. I have a lot to say to you.”

His low murmur sent a chill down my spine.

I let go of his wrist, feeling like a scolded child.

Considering how much I’d screwed up lately, I didn’t even have the confidence to argue.

“Should I just kill Kwon Sahyeok?”

“Actually, maybe you should start with me.”

Before I knew it, Baek Gunho had grabbed my wrist and was dragging me to his car.

As soon as we got in, I spoke first.

“I have something to say.”

“What is it?”

“Kwon Sahyeok figured it out. About me… being S-rank.”

“And?”

He didn’t even flinch.

“It’s fine. The truth dies with him.”

…Never mind. I panicked and stopped him.

“Don’t kill him.”

“…”

“Sorry.”

He had every right to be furious, so I quickly apologized.

Baek Gunho stared into space for a moment, then finally turned to me, his expression calm.

“It’s fine. Honestly, with how careless you are, it’s a wonder this didn’t happen sooner. Thank God that guy is thorough.”

“…Right.”

It was technically an insult, but since it came with a compliment, I decided to let it slide.

“You also blew a hole in the building, didn’t you?”

“Well, there wasn’t much choice…”

“And you went to the club in the first place.”

“…Because Kwon Sahyeok dragged me along.”

“…”

“Sorry.”

I could have made excuses, but I knew it wouldn’t help.

I was dragged along for a long lecture that night.

---

By lunchtime, I found myself at the cafeteria.

It was a Korean buffet, so I piled on what I wanted.

Not that the options were all that exciting.

The TV in the corner was tuned to the news. Chief Choi clicked his tongue.

“It’s all Black Sea Guild news these days.”

The guild had issued a statement recently, and the public was in an uproar.

The revelation of their human experiments and illegal activities had sparked widespread outrage.

The guild’s notoriety was a frequent topic at work.

“Can you believe they tried to assassinate Baek Gunho?”

“And they’re still on the run, even with all this commotion. Creepy.”

“Seriously. You’d think they’d be caught by now.”

“Not even fleeing abroad, huh.”

Yeah, if only they’d just give up and get caught.

It would make my life easier too—though it was unfortunately far too personal an issue for me to wish that.

---

After work, I headed straight home.

My horoscope had warned against bad luck today, advising me to stay in.

I had no intention of ignoring it—especially after Gunho’s lecture left me drained.

I stopped by a convenience store for cola and some new snacks and headed home.

At the building entrance, a man loitered.

I was about to ignore him and walk by when he reached out to grab me.

I dodged quickly.

“What the—who are you?”

As I turned to face him, my hands slipped, dropping my convenience store haul.

The man’s face was one I knew all too well.

“Heewon.”

“…”

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

It’s been a long time since I last saw him—a man.

Fourteen years, perhaps?

Despite a few streaks of gray hair and some faint wrinkles, he hadn’t changed much, making him instantly recognizable.

I couldn’t not recognize him.

He was one of the researchers who had experimented on me.

Unconsciously, I stepped back.

Almost tripping over my own feet, I stumbled awkwardly.

When the researcher tried to catch me, I shoved him away.

Regaining my balance just barely, I snarled:

“Don’t touch me.”

“Heewon…”

I lunged at him.

Suppressing the urge to punch him, I shoved him against the wall, pinning him.

My forearm pressed firmly against his neck, ready to snap it at a moment’s notice.

“How are you here? You were arrested, weren’t you…?”

Rage boiled within me.

Did the Black Sea Guild pull some strings to get him out?

That would make sense.

They were capable of anything filthy and underhanded.

Who knows what kind of sleazy deal they struck…

The researcher, instead of resisting, simply gave me a weak smile.

“I know what you’re thinking, but… I didn’t escape.”

“Then what?”

“I served my time. Paid for my crimes… and got released. It hasn’t been long.”

“…What?”

The fury that had been building inside me deflated in an instant.

The strength left my hands, and my grip on him slackened.

My arms fell limply to my sides.

Paid for his crimes?

This man had experimented on children.

Innocent kids who knew nothing, suffering unspeakable pain at his hands.

Some still bore scars from those days—scars that bled, figuratively and literally, even now.

He paid for that?

No one had forced him.

The experiments weren’t done under duress.

Even if he hadn’t led them, every action he took was by his own choice.

And he’s telling me he paid for all that?

A mere decade in prison, and that’s enough?

I stared at him.

He looked older, yes, but still in his prime.

He had plenty of time and energy left to start over, to rebuild a life.

“Why… Why are you here?”

My voice trembled pitifully.

I hated myself for sounding so weak, like a child all over again.

The man looked at me with a kind of pity.

“I wanted to apologize.”

“…What?”

The words felt surreal, like the ground and sky had flipped upside down.

I couldn’t make sense of them.

The man dropped to his knees in front of me.

Even though he knelt, I felt as though I were the one crushed under an unbearable weight.

Standing became difficult, as though my whole body were being dragged downward.

“I deeply regret what I did in the past. To children like you… I should never have done something so monstrous.”

“…”

“I’m not asking for forgiveness. I just wanted to say I’m sorry—to you, to all of you…”

“…”

“I’m sorry. Whatever you say to me, I’ll accept it. If you want to hit me, hit me. If you want to curse me, do it. Whatever you do, I’ll understand…”

His words were ridiculous.

But I couldn’t laugh.

I clenched my fists, opening and closing them repeatedly.

I thought about hitting him, just as he said.

But my hands wouldn’t obey.

Would I become the perpetrator if I struck him?

The thought swirled endlessly in my head.

My trembling hands wouldn’t stop shaking.

For the first time in a long while, I was reminded of how powerless I really was.

Back then, and even now.

“Get out.”

“Heewon—”

“Get out!”

I screamed, fleeing back into my home.

Slamming the door behind me, I collapsed, gasping for air.

An apology?

What difference does that make?

If he were truly sorry, he’d just die.

He should’ve died.

Never come before me again.

Never breathed in this world.

“Ugh…”

I felt sick.

His presence, our conversation, all of it made me want to retch.

I stumbled to the bathroom and vomited everything I’d eaten.

* * *