* * *

When Cheongoh gave his report, Soohyuk and Wonbeom happened to be together.

They were in the middle of reviewing the records of corruption and determining their next target.

They watched the CCTV together and both of their expressions hardened when they saw Jingyeom stumble and collapse.

As the video ended, Soohyuk threw his phone onto the table with a rough motion, running his hand through his hair in frustration.

If it weren’t for the message Cheongoh added, they might have rushed to the villa right away.

“…Damn it.”

“…”

Wonbeom tapped his fingers on the table before asking, “Wasn’t he supposed to be fine?”

“He said he was fine. Hyung Hoonil knows better than us. If something was wrong, he wouldn’t have discharged him.”

“Then why’s he like that? Does he act like that normally?”

“I wouldn’t know that much… but from what I know, no.”

Soohyuk resisted the urge to go to Jingyeom right then, pressing his leg firmly with his hand to hold himself back.

It would be like giving away Jingyeom’s location if he went to see him as soon as he was discharged, even after sending him to a safe place.

“Geum Doctor. He’s a specialist, isn’t he?”

“Yeah. …Can you stop calling him ‘Geum Doctor’? It’s weird. Just call him hyung, or by his name Geum Hoonil. This is serious, and you’re giving me goosebumps.”

Soohyuk rolled up his shirt sleeve to show the goosebumps on his arm. Wonbeom, of course, didn’t even glance at it.

“I’ll contact hyung later and let you know. …Hoo. Let’s focus on this for now.”

Still, since they said Jingyeom was recovering quickly, they needed to worry, but also handle the task at hand.

Finishing up their work at the company quickly was the fastest way to get to Jingyeom.

---

Jingyeom lay on the bed in his room, staring at his phone.

Neither the internet, phone calls, nor messages were working.

“It really doesn’t work.”

He’d already finished exploring the mansion, and his headache had subsided, so he tried his phone again.

He couldn’t believe there were places in the country where there was no signal, but it was really dead here.

If there had been nothing to do here, he might have been bored during his stay, but with a gaming console and plenty of movies and dramas to watch, it didn’t seem too bad.

What bothered him was that Jinwoo had to leave first.

Even though Hoonil said he’d stay with him for a while, it was obvious he wouldn’t be able to stay long because of the many patients waiting for him.

The only relief was that there were quite a few people managing the mansion, so Jingyeom wouldn’t be left alone.

There was no point holding onto a phone that didn’t work, so he put it aside and turned his attention to Jinwoo, who was unpacking.

Jingyeom had offered to help, but Jinwoo had forced him to rest, practically shoving him onto the bed.

Looking into the wardrobe, Jinwoo muttered something about wasting money.

The things Soohyuk had prepared ahead of time far outweighed what they’d brought with them.

From underwear to winter clothes, there was more than enough.

They weren’t even planning to stay for months, yet the quantity was significant.

“Jinwoo.”

“Yeah?”

“You said you’re leaving at dawn, right? What time are you heading out?”

“I’m planning to leave around five.”

“That early?”

Jingyeom sat up abruptly. He understood it took quite some time to get there, and the trip back would take just as long, but 5 AM? It seemed too early.

“I’m leaving early to avoid the traffic around Seoul during rush hour. If I don’t, I might be late.”

“…Yeah, can’t be late.”

Jingyeom nodded, pouting.

He wanted to see Jinwoo off, but wasn’t sure if he could wake up that early.

“When will we see each other again? Oh, right! I need to check if the phone works!”

“I already checked. The one in the living room is broken. They said they’ll fix it soon, so we’ll just have to hold on until then.”

Not being able to contact Jingyeom was frustrating for Jinwoo as well, but there wasn’t much they could do about it.

Though leaving him behind made Jinwoo uneasy, he reassured himself by thinking he could get updates about Jingyeom through Cheongoh.

CCTV cameras were set up all over the estate, starting from the entrance and throughout the garden.

There were even cameras inside the house and the glass greenhouse.

The sheer number of cameras, designed to cover every corner, felt suffocating, but at the same time, it was reassuring to know that Jingyeom’s safety was guaranteed.

The only issue was the complete lack of privacy.

At least they’d respected some boundaries—there were no cameras in Jingyeom’s room.

“…Doesn’t this bother you?”

“What?”

When Jinwoo sat on the edge of the bed, Jingyeom wriggled over and rested his chin on Jinwoo’s solid thigh.

“I’m already missing you, knowing I won’t see you for a while after you leave tomorrow…”

“…”

“I hate that we can’t even contact each other.”

“I hate it too. But it’s not something we can control.”

Jingyeom knew that, but he still felt a little sulky. He turned onto his side, and his eyes met Jinwoo’s gaze, who was looking down at him.

Seeing Jinwoo’s warm, deep eyes, Jingyeom realized that he wasn’t the only one feeling the sadness of separation.

Without a word, the bond between them as brothers became even more apparent.

Jinwoo slowly brushed Jingyeom’s hair aside.

Seeing Jingyeom’s now healthy complexion—so different from the pale face earlier—made Jinwoo feel a little more at ease.

If Jingyeom were still unwell, Jinwoo would have asked Secretary Yang for permission to stay another day.

There was no way he could leave Jingyeom behind if he was still sick.

“If I miss you too much, I might just come down to visit.”

At Jinwoo’s gentle voice, Jingyeom’s pout slowly disappeared.

“Will you come down on the weekend? Or should I go up? Oh… right, I don’t have a car.”

“This weekend’s not likely, but once I finish up my work, I’ll come down. Just rest for now.”

“I’ve been resting all this time.”

He had rested so much in the hospital that it became boring.

He had been thrilled to finally be discharged, only to be told to rest again in a different place.

Just how long was he going to be stuck resting?

As his lips jutted out again, Jinwoo chuckled and pressed them back with his finger.

“While you’re here, watch all the movies you wanted to. Take walks regularly, and don’t forget to take your medicine.”

“…”

“I put all the clothes away. There are plenty of new clothes, so wear whatever you like. Don’t dress too lightly, and make sure to wear long sleeves and pants to bed. And don’t forget to brush your teeth.”

“Are you trying to get all your nagging out of the way before you leave?”

“I’m not done yet.”

Jinwoo continued to emphasize that the medicine was on the bedside table, and under no circumstances should he forget to take it.

He also said to toss his clothes in the basket outside the bathroom for the staff to wash, and not to eat anything too spicy just because he wasn’t around.

“Don’t go too far outside either. There are wild animals since it’s all mountains around here.”

“Wild animals? Like deer?”

“There could be deer, and there could be wild boars too.”

“…A wild boar would be really scary.”

Imagining that scenario made Jingyeom shudder.

At least a deer would run away when it saw a human, but a wild boar would charge right at them.

“I’d be knocked out in one hit.”

“Anyone would be. So don’t go out alone. Always take someone with you. And don’t go out at night. It gets colder here.”

“What if I really want to go out?”

“…Then go to the greenhouse. It’s warm there.”

Unable to tell him not to leave, Jinwoo offered an alternative, and Jingyeom smiled softly, his eyes curving.

“Make sure to wake me up when you go tomorrow.”

“I’m leaving at 5 a.m.”

“Still, I want to see you off. It’ll be a while before I see you again.”

Jingyeom made Jinwoo promise to wake him up, even if he couldn’t get up on his own.

---

After Jinwoo left, Hoonil stayed for about three more days before departing.

During his stay, a house doctor was hired to ensure that Jingyeom wouldn’t fall ill.

While not as specialized as Hoonil, the doctor could handle emergencies.

Before Hoonil left, he repeated countless instructions, especially about medication.

He rattled them off as though he was tutoring Jingyeom in pharmacology, so much that Jingyeom had to take pictures with his phone and make separate notes.

Even though everything was already labeled on the containers, the table in Jingyeom’s room was piled high with cold medicine, headache tablets, and other drugs.

Of course, there was another doctor available for questions, but Hoonil insisted Jingyeom memorize it all, quizzing him constantly.

Once Hoonil finally left, Jingyeom, now alone, reflected on the three memories that had surfaced.

The first memory had returned when he collapsed, the second after his surgery.

He thought these memories came as dreams when he was sick or unconscious, but this time it was different.

“They just came back to me. Will more of my memories come back like this?”

He didn’t care how it happened, as long as all of his memories returned.

Jingyeom headed to the study to read books related to memory.

Now that he knew it wasn’t just a dream, he wanted to find out how to recover his lost memories.

Most of the books described memories returning due to reliving similar past experiences, accidents, or other specific circumstances.

“There aren’t many.”

He quickly finished reading what few books there were on the subject.

Afterward, he spent time watching movies and playing games.

Although he was unfamiliar with console games, having only played mobile ones, he soon got the hang of it with some help.

Jingyeom started chatting with people whenever he saw them, gradually opening up to the staff at the estate.

Despite his initial worries about what to do by himself, Jingyeom was getting along just fine.

These days, the one thing Jingyeom eagerly awaited was the repair of the phone in the living room.

It wasn’t broken, just unplugged, though he didn’t know that and was waiting patiently.

One peaceful day, an unexpected guest arrived at the estate.

* * *