* * *
Raon, who had followed behind and stepped out of the car, replied in a relaxed tone.
“Yeah.”
“Y-young Master, what is this…?”
At some point, Yeongho, now trembling with fear, reverted to calling him properly.
Raon threw him a cold, mocking glance.
“What? Earlier, didn’t you call me a lunatic?”
“H-haha. W-what are you saying? Between us…”
Facing an S-rank Esper, Yeongho looked like a dog with its tail tucked between its legs.
Raon looked down at him, squirming pathetically, with little interest in his pitiful display.
Raon knew Yeongho’s secret.
He intended to use it as leverage—to make sure Yeongho never dared mess with him again.
That’s why he had purposely lured him into a gate without any CCTV.
But seeing him already this terrified… Raon began to reconsider.
If Yeongho didn’t carry out his duties, Raon’s brothers would sense that something was off.
Then they’d simply discard Yeongho like a pawn and send someone else to put pressure on him.
It would only be a repeat of the same thing.
So, wouldn’t it be better to use this guy to stall for as much time as possible?
Raon recalled what Yeongho had blabbed in the car earlier.
“Secretary Jeon, you understand what’s happening now, right?”
“P-please, spare me, Young Master…”
Yeongho, now pale, got down on his knees and begged.
As expected, he was quick on the uptake.
Trapped in a pitch-black gate with no one to call for help, his eyes kept flicking nervously toward Siwoo, who was standing like a stone statue in front of the gate entrance.
“I-I’ll do whatever you want. Please…”
“Hmph.”
Yeongho caved even faster than expected.
But unfortunately for him, Raon wasn’t someone who trusted others easily.
People change their minds when they go into the bathroom and again when they come out.
Even if Yeongho was trembling now, once they were outside, he’d soon forget and crawl back to Raon’s brothers.
That wouldn’t do.
“Hyung, that bastard didn’t do anything to you, right?”
“Huh? Oh, no, nothing happened.”
Lost in thought, Raon casually nodded at Siwoo’s question.
But Siwoo’s gaze sharpened, watching him closely.
“That bastard touched you, didn’t he?”
“…What?”
Startled by the sharpness in Siwoo’s voice, Raon widened his eyes.
Yeongho had kind of groped his thigh and butt earlier in the car… but how did Siwoo know?
Raon, flustered, blinked and couldn’t answer right away.
Siwoo, catching on from his reaction, strode furiously toward Yeongho, who was still trembling on the ground.
“You bastard…”
“Eek!”
“W-wait!”
Raon quickly intervened, panicking. Yeongho was technically an Esper too—but only E-rank.
If Siwoo, an S-rank, hit him even once seriously, the guy could die.
Raon grabbed Siwoo’s waist and clung tightly.
“Don’t do it, Siwoo. You can’t kill him.”
“That bastard’s not even S-rank.”
“Yeah, I know, and my Siwoo listens so well… I mean, if he dies, it’ll be troublesome for me.”
Raon tried explaining, but Siwoo still frowned in dissatisfaction.
Still, since Raon had told him not to, he didn’t approach Yeongho again and instead folded his arms sulkily.
Raon patted Siwoo’s shoulder approvingly and then turned toward Yeongho, who was still kneeling and shaking like a leaf.
“Secretary Jeon.”
“Y-yes, Young Master!”
Satisfied with the strength in his response, Raon nodded.
He reached inside his jacket and pulled something out.
“Th-this is…!”
“You’ve been skimming quite a lot off the top, haven’t you?”
“Gasp!”
As the president’s secretary, Yeongho had more power than the average employee.
But even then, he was just the lowest-ranking among the secretaries and was only tasked with managing illegitimate children like Raon.
What made Yeongho walk around with his chest puffed out was entirely thanks to Raon—who awakened as an S-rank Guide and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the legitimate heirs of the main family.
With that, Yeongho had some influence within the company.
He didn’t miss the chance and used Raon’s name to embezzle funds.
The original Raon had been too clueless to realize, and even Myunghoon or the other brothers hadn’t caught on due to how cleverly it was done.
But the Raon who had regressed knew everything.
He’d already caught on before the regression.
Back then, he couldn’t do anything because of the system, but now, nothing was stopping him.
Raon held out a burner account and various transaction records right in front of Yeongho’s eyes.
“Everything you thought might get noticed, you signed under my name. I wonder if you realized I was letting it slide on purpose.”
“Y-young Master, that’s…!”
“What do you think will happen if Father or the others find out? I doubt they’ll go easy on you like I did.”
“P-please…”
Yeongho bowed even lower, begging desperately.
In the original story, Yeongho’s embezzlement had gone completely unnoticed.
The original Raon didn’t catch it—and he ended up dying inside a gate.
No evidence remained.
But because Raon had caught on before his regression, it was now easy to use against him.
Looking down at Yeongho, who was now paralyzed with fear, Raon smiled faintly.
“Remember what you said earlier in the car?”
“W-what do you mean?”
“You said you’d buy me time with my brothers. You’d better make sure you do.”
“Y-yes, I will! I swear I’ll do my best!”
Yeongho nodded frantically.
Raon looked down at him, satisfied.
He couldn’t trust people, but he could trust leverage.
As long as he held Yeongho’s weakness, the man would have no choice but to obey like a puppet.
“Let’s go, Siwoo.”
“We’re done?”
“Yeah.”
Raon nodded and got into the car first.
It was a dormant gate, but you never knew what could happen if you stayed too long.
As soon as Siwoo got in the passenger seat, Raon stepped on the gas.
A glance in the rearview mirror showed Yeongho standing there blankly, looking dumbfounded.
It was oddly satisfying.
Before his regression, he had to put up with that bastard’s condescending attitude.
Now, he didn’t have to—and that was the best part.
Raon hummed a tune and tapped the steering wheel with his fingers.
Still… maybe I should’ve let Siwoo hit him once or twice.
Regret lingered.
He shouldn’t have tried so hard to stop him.
“…Mm.”
Then, as he caught a glimpse of the veins bulging on Siwoo’s forearms and hands through his thin T-shirt, Raon shook his head inwardly.
Taking a hit from that fist?
Certain death.
Yeah… it was the right call to stop him.
“That was because of your brothers, wasn’t it?”
“Oh? You figured it out.”
“Of course.”
Raon smiled, glancing sideways at Siwoo, impressed by how quickly he grasped the situation.
For some reason, Siwoo’s face was serious.
“Is there anything else I can do?”
“…Something else?”
“Yes.”
“Hm…”
Raon fell into brief thought.
Using Yeongho would probably buy him some time—just like the man had promised.
But it would only be a short while.
His brothers weren’t idiots.
They’d notice something was off soon and send another scheme his way.
Once that happened, this threat would be worthless.
He’d need another plan.
However, Raon thought this was enough.
It wouldn’t be too late to think about what comes later when the time comes.
After all, once the system returns or the Black Gate is suppressed and the novel reaches its ending, everything would be over.
Whether it involved one person or more, the complicated things might no longer have anything to do with him.
Maybe, by then, he’d even get rewarded and return to his original world.
Then, a strange discomfort settled in a corner of his heart.
He’d been deliberately avoiding such thoughts until now.
Suppressing a sigh that almost slipped out, Raon spoke again.
“It’s fine. Things will stay quiet for a while anyway.”
“I’m just worried, that’s all.”
“You don’t need to worry.”
Raon kept his tone light on purpose, not wanting to reveal his sinking mood.
But Siwoo stared at him with an unreadable expression.
“I’ll do anything you ask me to do, hyung. Even if it’s something like… killing someone. Whatever it is.”
“W-What?”
Raon was taken aback by Siwoo’s serious tone.
What the hell was this guy saying?
He was far too serious for it to be a joke.
There wasn’t a single car on the dark, deserted road.
Raon pulled over to the side and turned to look at Siwoo.
“Look, threatening that guy earlier was… well, technically blackmail. But there were circumstances. It’s not like I committed a real crime…”
“I know. I know you’re not that kind of person. I’m just saying… this is how I feel.”
Siwoo spoke calmly as he reached out and gently wrapped his hand around Raon’s, which was tightly gripping the steering wheel.
“So, please keep trusting me and tell me everything. I’d do anything for you, hyung.”
Raon couldn’t explain why, but something inside him suddenly welled up at those words.
In this life, and in his previous one, Raon had always been alone.
That went without saying for the villain Han Raon, but even when he lived as Min Raon, though he had people around him, no one ever truly cared about him.
That’s why he had to become strong on his own.
But now, Siwoo was by his side.
Even if this time together was a fleeting illusion, Raon felt a pure, sincere happiness in this moment.
He smiled and placed his other hand over Siwoo’s, which was still covering his own.
* * *
