A few days after Haejoo fled and the situation was somewhat sorted out, Minhyuk visited Haejoo’s pavilion.
He remained there for a long time.
The pavilion, which had been sealed off to prevent any investigation or human touch, was a total mess. The near-ruined state of the pavilion showed just how urgent the situation had been at the time.
Looking around, a deep lament escaped Minhyuk’s lips.
How did things turn out this way?
He was simply devastated by the events that had unfolded regardless of his true intentions.
Wanting to deny this reality, Minhyuk squeezed his eyes shut and stood perfectly still.
Haejoo had been here until just a short while ago, yet she vanished so instantly that it didn’t even feel real.
As Minhyuk looked around the pavilion as if searching for traces of Haejoo, he discovered a familiar doll. It was a doll he couldn’t possibly fail to recognize.
Minhyuk had personally custom-ordered it and placed it in him hands.
The cat doll that Haejoo had been holding onto until the very end.
It was a doll Haejoo had showered with affection from the moment it was gifted until him final moments.
She would hold onto it dearly whether she was sleeping or idly passing the time.
All without knowing that a camera he had planted was hidden inside those beautiful two eyes.
As he locked eyes with the chillingly blue eyes of the doll, regret washed over Minhyuk’s pupils.
Through the eyes of this doll, Minhyuk had watched Haejoo and gotten to know her.
Initially, he had planted it for surveillance to learn anything he could about the Prime Minister, but as time passed, his interest in Cha Haejoo herself grew, leading him to hide behind the doll’s eyes and observe her.
There were many unfamiliar, novel sides to her.
He liked watching Haejoo be happy while hugging the doll he gave him.
Because that sight was so pleasing, he wanted to see other sides of him too.
So, Minhyuk watched Haejoo’s daily life.
Before he knew it, the guilt he felt when he first turned on the camera vanished from Minhyuk’s heart, replaced by an anticipation of discovering new sides to Haejoo.
And finally, he managed to grasp the identity of that strange sense of distance he always felt from Haejoo.
That bizarre unfamiliarity, difficult to express in words, which he felt from the Haejoo he had known for a long time.
The moment he discovered the reason behind the unpleasant exchange of emotions flowing between Haejoo and Hyunwook, Minhyuk was shocked to the point that his daily life became uncomfortable.
A past life? From a friend to a younger sibling…
He couldn’t believe that a connection from a past life had carried over into the current life to continue their bond.
He wanted to deny it.
Their trust was immense, matching just how agonizing the narrative between the two was.
Minhyuk felt anxious that the partner of that tight-knit emotion was Kang Hyunwook, not himself.
With the single phrase ‘past life,’ everything about Haejoo that had been shrouded in question marks fell into place like a completed puzzle, leading to the conclusion that there was no falsehood in their story.
It also made sense why Haejoo’s personality had flipped like the back of a hand.
He remembered the conversation they shared on the day Minhyuk was destroying Haejoo’s pavilion a while back.
When he asked if she was hiding anything from him, what appeared on Haejoo’s face was embarrassment.
Only then did he understand what that embarrassed expression meant.
And soon after, Haejoo looked determined and promised that she would definitely tell him the story one day.
He didn’t know for certain whether the story she promised to tell was the tale of the past life he suspected or something else, but Minhyuk decided to wait for Haejoo’s promise.
He resolved to trust and wait for the right moment, no matter how long it took. Minhyuk trusted Haejoo.
Yet, he himself had failed to give trust to Haejoo. He wanted nothing more than to turn back time.
It was right when he was about to leave Haejoo’s room in such a bleak state with no answers in sight.
As Minhyuk scanned Haejoo’s room one last time out of lingering attachment, something caught his eye.
A small nightstand placed by the bedroom window that Haejoo cherished.
Atop it, he discovered a document. It was a document Minhyuk himself had seen before.
It was the divorce papers Minhyuk had reluctantly handed over to Haejoo.
Upon spotting the divorce papers, Minhyuk quickly picked them up to check.
It was undoubtedly the divorce papers stamped with Haejoo’s seal.
She had stamped the seal very precisely and neatly. If he had received this as scheduled, Minhyuk would have submitted it to the imperial lawyers to proceed with the divorce process.
Since their status differed from ordinary citizens, the divorce would have proceeded smoothly through the legal representatives handling the agency without them having to move personally.
Because it would be the first divorce in the imperial family, he expected it would take some time due to the many parts to agree on and matters to adjust.
Minhyuk planned to drag out the time as much as possible, taking the various situations and the divorce mediation period into account, to turn Haejoo’s heart around.
However, the situation got tangled and Haejoo ended up fleeing.
The party who filled out this document had vanished without handing it over.
He had found this completely by chance; he had never actually received the divorce papers directly from Haejoo.
“I never received the divorce papers from Haejoo, nor have I even laid eyes on them. If I haven’t seen this, then I wouldn’t even know if Haejoo agreed to the document. And if divorce papers without an agreement signature don’t exist, the divorce can’t even proceed.”
Even if they had an agreement, how could they proceed with a divorce without the divorce papers written by the party involved?
Of course, there was the option of a trial, but Minhyuk had no intention of proceeding with a trial.
Whether it was a mediated divorce or a lawsuit trial, Minhyuk had no intention of taking any action regarding a divorce.
This was something initiated only because Haejoo wanted it; Minhyuk never wanted a divorce in the first place.
The corners of Minhyuk’s mouth pulled up as a smile spread across his face.
Although Haejoo wasn’t by his side, the two could continue to remain a married couple, at least legally.
Furthermore, once she realized the divorce hadn’t gone through, Haejoo would be the one to make a move first.
Whether she came to visit or filed a lawsuit, she would take measures either way.
Then, even if Minhyuk didn’t explicitly search for her, he would at least be able to know Haejoo’s whereabouts.
To meet Haejoo, to make him come to him, he must not get divorced no matter what.
Until just a moment ago, he felt as if he were trapped in a darkness with no visible exit.
But now, a faint light began to appear ahead.
In that manner, he discovered a thread, however precarious, connecting him to Haejoo.
So he held onto it for dear life.
Since she had gone through the trouble of running away, he decided to let him enjoy that time for a bit.
Minhyuk also felt hurt, and she was bound to return eventually anyway.
Therefore, until then, he should just let him enjoy him life on the run comfortably.
Yes, he firmly believed that the day they met again wouldn’t take long.
“…But who on earth knew she wouldn’t contact me for over five damn years? I thought it would be a few months at most. I don’t know if she’s just dense or what. With him personality, there’s no way she would ignore it if she knew.”
Lost in past thoughts, Minhyuk muttered irritably to himself.
While Minhyuk walked deep in thought, they exited the prison and headed toward the waiting car.
“Your Majesty. Since you already know where the Grand Imperial Concubine is, why do you only observe her? You’ve identified him residence long ago.”
“Then what, should I storm in and drag him back?”
“It’s not quite that, but I wonder why you are only watching. And why him Highness still doesn’t know that the divorce was never finalized…”
Hearing Hyunwook’s words, which were close to a monologue, Minhyuk let out a short, hollow laugh.
“With him personality, she doesn’t come looking for me precisely because she doesn’t know. Haejoo has no reason to pull up any official documents due to financial issues. Did you forget who Cha Haejoo’s dad is? Right now, all of Haejoo’s capital comes from Cha Taejin.”
Everything Haejoo and Hanbin currently enjoy comes from Cha Taejin’s formidable wealth.
Fearing that they would be exposed to Minhyuk the moment they accessed their own accounts, the two wouldn’t have refused Cha Taejin’s help.
Minhyuk didn’t bother to block that either.
He didn’t want to see Haejoo, who left the palace empty-handed, living a miserable life plagued by financial hardships, nor did he want him to live that way.
That is the reason he leaves Cha Taejin alone without pressuring him.
So that he can spend money generously on Haejoo.
As a result, it turned into a situation where she doesn’t even know whether she got a divorce or not.
“But how can she be this completely oblivious? Should I have a house bought under Haejoo’s name just so she has to pull up a certified copy of him residency registration? Then she’d contact me immediately.”
In any case, except for a few municipal workers, the public servants inside the island are imperial officials personally dispatched by Minhyuk.
Of course, nobody knows that.
The moment he figured out that Haejoo had settled him residence on that island after him long travels, Minhyuk placed them on the island.
And up until now, they have continuously served as Minhyuk’s eyes, monitoring the movements of Haejoo and Hanbin.
It was also Minhyuk, of course, who dried up the presence of any young Alphas on the island.
The next thing Minhyuk did after dispatching the officials was to send all the Alphas who were on the island out of it.
He relocated them out of the island under exceptionally good conditions, and thanks to that, the inside of the island became a clean zone where not even an Omega, but only middle-aged Betas and elderly folks remained.
Of course, a few of Minhyuk’s people are here too, but there would be no way for him to know that either.
Consequently, this island became an excellent environment for Haejoo, an Omega, to stay.
An island where one can’t even catch a glimpse of an Alpha.
Rather than constantly running around, it is much more reassuring for him to stay quietly on an Alpha-free island.
He had heard what Haejoo said in the past.
That she wanted to buy a pretty country house and live with someone who tells him she is pretty.
Unfortunately for her, that dream won’t come true.
Setting aside the fact that Haejoo hasn’t divorced him, him surroundings are entirely populated by the elderly.
Even if there were an Alpha, he wouldn’t just leave them be anyway.
Only an innocent Alpha would end up facing execution.
“I should start moving soon. By the way, is Han Heesung still refusing treatment for the scar on his cheek? He really makes sure to keep me concerned about this.”
With a face indicating that it was a headache just to think about it, Minhyuk asked about Heesung’s recent status.
The Chief Chamberlain nodded as he opened the car door for him.
“Yes, because the initial treatment was handled well, the scar is not severe. When I visited a while ago and advised treatment again, he asked me not to touch it, calling it some kind of token made for him by the Brigadier General? Did he call it a mark? At any rate, he said it was an important mark so hands off.”
Minhyuk’s face turned dead serious for a moment as if he had just heard something horrific, and Hyunwook shook his head and closed his eyes.
“…What kind of crazy nonsense is that? Did Cha Hanbin get held by some kind of weakness by that psycho? Why is he dragging down a perfectly fine person by the ankles? He’s already a pitiful person whose life is exhausting as it is.”
As expected, the things Han Heesung does are always beyond expectations and completely insane.
At any rate, it seems it is now time for Haejoo to find out too.
That the two of them are still a married couple.
Now that it has been brought up, he decided to start moving in earnest.
