* * *

For all they knew, this so-called ‘Bosalnim’ might covet Jungin’s body just like Kim Chunja.

Until they were certain, keeping Jungin at home was the safest option.

“I’ll stay with Jungin. It’s best if I’m by his side,” Jungseo said.

“And what about meals? If it’s just you two, who’s going to feed him? I’m staying too. Hyung, you go ahead,” Jungwoo added.

With both Jungseo and Jungwoo volunteering to stay, Jungjin nodded and rose from his seat.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

By the time they left, the setting sun was casting a red glow over the buildings.

Amid the rush of people heading home, a line of dark-tinted vehicles weaved through the narrow alleys.

“We’ve arrived, Executive Director.”

“This is the place?”

“A little further in. The car can’t go any closer, so we’ll need to walk from here.”

At Beomhyeon’s words, Jungjin nodded and stepped out of the car.

A group of black-suited bodyguards followed, filling the alley.

Their measured footsteps broke the stillness as Beomhyeon led them to a particular building.

“Are you here to see Bosalnim?”

As if expecting them, a man in a white hanbok greeted them at the entrance.

“She has asked that only the two of you come in.”

“Understood,” Jungjin said, motioning to his concerned secretary to stay behind before following the man.

Inside, the faint scent of incense filled the air.

Unlike a traditional shrine, the interior was modern and clean.

The man stopped in front of a door at the back.

“Bosalnim, your guests have arrived.”

“Let them in,” came a voice.

The door opened, revealing a figure whose voice was neither distinctly male nor female.

It was a young-sounding voice, striking in its incongruity.

As Jungjin and Beomhyeon sat across from the Bosal, the figure scrutinized them and spoke first.

“So, what pressing questions have brought you here?”

“Do you know anything about my brother?” Jungjin asked, his eyes sharp with suspicion.

“Ah, so you’ve come out of concern for your kin.”

The Bosalnim chuckled softly, her gaze piercing as she looked at Jungjin, her expression suggesting she saw right through him.

“What’s this? Has the boy started to regain his memories?”

Jungjin’s brow furrowed at the unexpected question.

Tapping her fingers on the table as if she’d anticipated his reaction, the Bosalnim narrowed her eyes and studied the two men closely.

“He’s still alive, it seems. I thought he wouldn’t last long, but… I suppose it’s thanks to you two.”

“What do you mean? ‘Still alive’? What are you talking about?”

With a hardened, cold expression, Beomhyeon began to speak, as though struggling to hold back his frustration.

The old woman in front of him seemed to know something about Jungin.

“Your words are correct, ma’am. My younger brother is very ill right now. He’s been experiencing alternating fevers and chills, and his weight is dropping steadily for reasons we can’t identify. Is his illness related to the problem you’ve mentioned?”

Jungjin clenched his teeth tightly, releasing them only to meet the old woman’s gaze.

The image of his brother, growing weaker with each passing day, consumed him.

He was willing to do anything if it meant saving him.

“Ma’am.”

“…Haa. I could tell the moment I first saw him. His body bears many traces of spirits that have left and returned.”

For a moment, Jungjin and Beomhyeon’s eyes met.

The old woman’s words echoed a secret Jungin had kept hidden for a long time.

“Spirits always yearn to return to their rightful place. The ones that entered his body must also want to leave, but his young and fragile vessel is forcibly holding them in. How could his body remain intact under such strain?”

Just as they feared, Jungin’s illness was tied to the incident where his body had been taken over.

Jungjin’s hands trembled with an uncontrollable fury as his clenched fists quivered.

From the narrow gap between them, the sharp scent of an Alpha’s pheromones began to seep out.

As a dominant Alpha, Beomhyeon had always controlled his pheromones as naturally as breathing.

But his rage had breached that threshold, shaking his composure.

The only other Alpha in the room, Beomhyeon, could feel it keenly.

Though he, too, was enraged at Jungin’s suffering and the involvement of his grandmother, Kim Chunja, he steadied himself before speaking.

“The child who stole Jungin’s body might be targeting it again. Can you stop them, ma’am?”

“No. I cannot.”

Her firm, resolute words drew two pairs of dark, desperate eyes toward her.

The faint hope reflected in their gazes made the old woman sigh bitterly as she shook her head.

“I’m sorry, but your brother’s body is already far too damaged. In other words, it’s only a matter of time before it completely breaks down. If he stays in that state, his soul will eventually be devoured. Realizing this, the spirit must have fled. A truly cunning creature.”

“Too damaged… Does that mean he can’t recover?”

“You must have felt it too. That child doesn’t have much time left.”

Jungjin’s throat burned.

Even speaking seemed an impossible effort as his jaw trembled.

Beside him, Beomhyeon’s dark eyes flickered with unease.

The turmoil of the two Alphas filled the room, their overwhelming presence causing the old woman, a non-dominant, to wince as if the air stung her skin.

After a brief pause, Beomhyeon raised his head and broke the silence.

“Then… what about my body? If Jungin’s body can no longer endure, could we exchange my body for his soul? Would that save him?”

“Tsk, tsk. Your soul is far too large. That child’s soul would be utterly overwhelmed trying to fill your body. And besides, haven’t I already said his body can’t hold on much longer? The moment the soul tries to escape its vessel, it will all be over. For you, for him—everything. Would you still attempt it?”

There was nothing they could do. Beomhyeon, born a dominant Alpha and heir to a powerful corporation, had never lacked for anything.

Yet now, the crushing weight of helplessness dimmed his gaze.

Jungjin, too, felt his mind go blank at the revelation that his younger brother’s life was nearing its end.

He wasn’t even twenty yet.

They had only just started to see a future where Jungin could do the things he wanted.

If that future didn’t include him, what was the point?

“There is… one way.”

A strained gasp escaped both Jungjin and Beomhyeon as they sucked in air, their eyes snapping back to the old woman.

“Since ancient times, the bond between an Alpha and an Omega has served to anchor their souls to each other.”

“A bond…”

“If Jungin were to form a bond with someone, it could work. But you know what that entails.”

The warning in her voice was clear to all of them.

A bonded pair’s lives were intertwined—if one died, the other would inevitably waste away.

In modern times, bonding was rare and reserved for extraordinary circumstances.

Could he even ask Beomhyeon to do this?

Even Jungjin, who had sworn to throw away his pride and dignity for his brother’s sake, found it impossible to utter the words that would demand Beomhyeon sacrifice his life.

Then, in the freezing silence that seemed to chill them to the bone, Beomhyeon spoke.

“If bonding can save Jungin, I’ll do it.”

He looked at the old woman with unwavering determination.

Her weathered face showed a flicker of surprise, her eyes narrowing in curiosity as if she had discovered something fascinating.

“Are you sure? That fragile child could die at any moment. If that happens, you’ll follow soon after.”

“If Jungin can live, it doesn’t matter. If he’s gone, there’s no point in living. I wouldn’t know how to live without him.”

Meeting Jungin had taught Beomhyeon how to smile, how to love someone sincerely, how to want to protect someone, how to feel the selfish desire to have them all to himself, and how to dream of making them happy.

Jungin had shown him everything—every little thing he had forgotten since losing his mother as a child.

Back then, Beomhyeon had drowned himself in work to numb his grief, growing up as an emotionally desolate man.

Jungin had made him human again.

He couldn’t lose someone that precious, not again.

“To me, Jungin is everything. Without him, I can’t live. So I’m okay with this.”

Beomhyeon’s face, framed by a calm smile as if his heart was already resolved, looked more at peace than ever before.

* * *