The man’s hand hovered over the injured man’s shoulder, he hesitated, then finally parted his lips,”What the hell happened to you?” The man’s voice trembled as he felt conflicted emotions.

“…” Instead of saying anything, the injured man lurched forward and blood spilled from his mouth.

The man had a bewildered face, clenching his trembling hands,‘It’s what you deserve… But…’ He bit his lip, but was then startled by a sound.

-Clack, clack, clack, clack! 

Approaching footsteps became louder as they pursued further, and the person making those footsteps, was a woman. 

•••

Seong held onto the bridge’s railing for stability, he couldn’t hear anything but ringing in his ears. This man in front of him kept glaring at him since earlier,

‘What’s his problem?’ But something grabbed Seong, pushing his head back, revealing his blood splattered face. 

“S-Seong-nim!” Hyun’s red eyes trembled, the man beside her watched with a stiff look.

Hyun then turned her head as her expression darkened, baring her teeth,”Lee Woo-Jin!”

‘Lee Woo-Jin?!’ Seong’s body stiffened, any color he had left in his face drained.

“What did you do!? Just because of your personal feelings, did you have to go this far!?” 

As Hyun stomped forward, Seong yelled,”Kim Hyun!” Seong didn’t look in their direction, keeping his head low. The other two turned their heads, and Hyun backed down, seeing Seong’s petrifying cold eyes through his crusty hair. 

“S-Seong-nim?..” 

“Stop it. He didn’t do anything.”

“A-ah… I see…” Kim Hyun glanced at Lee Woo-Jin, his eyes glued on Han Seong with hostility. 

“Kim Hyun, apologize.” Seong started shifting his body down the rails while Hyun reluctantly bowed her head.

“Han Seong. Do you think this is over?” Lee Woo-Jin didn’t care about his overflowing animosity.

Seong started sweating, he didn’t have the strength to face off against Lee Woo-Jin,“Of course not.” But he didn’t look at Lee Woo-Jin in anyway.

“Then look me in the eyes and tell me!”

Seong lifted his head, but never dared turned, he breathed in fresh air,”Fuck off.”

“You! You’re not afraid of the consequences, are you?!” Lee Woo-Jin’s hood fell off as he tried to grab Seong, but Kim Hyun was there to stop him.

Seong let out an obnoxious sigh, angering Lee Woo-Jin further,”Consequences? How?”

“How?! I’ll make sure to show you myself!”

“Pfft, haha…” Seong thought that line sounded cringey,”You want to kick a dog when it’s down?”

“So what of it!?”

“You sure have a thick face. Don’t you want to fight with your heart out?”

Kim Hyun pushed Lee Woo-Jin down,”So what? Are you gonna run away? It won’t excuse you from hurting Myung-Ok-Ah!”

“Believe what you will.” Seong waved with the back of his hand and left with Hyun supporting him, Lee Woo-Jin clenched his teeth.

***

“S-Seong-nim?!” Myung Dae-Jung had the car parked near the bridge, he got out of the car to support Seong. Kim Hyun put Seong’s arm around Dae-Jung while she got into the driver seat. Dae-Jung carried Seong to the car and opened the door,

“W-What?” What was presented were a pile of bodies sitting in the backseat.

“Ah, sorry Seong-nim. I didn’t have room in the trunk, so I put them here. Let’s go to the other side.”

‘That’s not what I’m worried about…’

***

The car ride was silent, this wasn’t like any other usual days. It’s not everyday you kidnap people in your car,

“S-Seong-nim?.. What happened?”

Seong had his head on his hand, looking out the window,“Nothing much…”

“…” Both of the bodyguards stayed silent, Kim Hyun didn’t expect him to say much, knowing Seong would get irritated from any further probing.

•••

Hyun pulled into the driveway of the private residential area, she was worried about Seong who was sleeping in the backseat, she needed to treat him right away.

“Dae-Jung, take Seong-nim to his bedroom. I’ll take care of this.”

“Yes, noona.” 

As they did their tasks separately, Hyun looked at Seong’s splattered face,’Just what kind of fight did you go through, Seong-nim?’ But Hyun couldn’t keep her eyes on him, feeling a wave of guilt wash over her,’If only I was more capable…’

•••

Dae-Jung carried Seong carefully, making sure as to not wake him up. But Seong could feel a large amount of heat emanating from beside him, when he slowly opened his eyes, he had Dae-Jung’s chest right in front of him. 

“What?” Seong stared confused at his chest, not knowing what was going on.

“Seong-nim, it’s okay. Please, go to sleep.” Dae-Jung tried to soothe Seong by whispering, but Seong wasn’t having it. 

“No, I won’t. Where are we?” Seong tried to escape from his arms, but Dae-Jung only pulled tighter, stopping any movement from Seong. 

“We’re in your house now, we need to clean you up.” Seong crumpled his face, he did indeed feel disgusting, but he was also very tired.

“I’m too tired right now.” 

“Then I will do it for you.”

Seong quickly declined, “Nevermind, just prepare a bath and some clothes for me.”

‘Why would you do it willingly?’

“If that’s what Seong-nim wants.” Dae-Jung smiled sweetly, making his blue eyes curve cutely. Seong only crumpled his bloody face even more.

***

“Haahhhh…” Seong drained the murky red bath and thought over the sequence of events that happened.

‘I’m lucky enough to be alive.’ That unknown white-haired man pissed Seong off,’I almost lost my life to that weird bastard.’ And then Seong remembered Lee Woo-Jin.

Lee Woo-Jin’s character is to survive many hardships and surpass them on the brink of death, a protagonist that is easy for the readers to feel sympathetic towards.Thinking of him as their own child, watching them grow and be happy.

A serious world dynamic with grief and mystery satiated deep within, having the lives of many people extinguished right in your very eyes, having to move on and realize, that’s how it’s supposed to be—this made up world.

But it’s all broken down when you close the book, you’re back in reality, the real world. Nothing was true, nothing was real, it was all apart of the immersion.

‘But I’m in that immersion.’ Seong walked out of the bathroom with the towel around his waist,’I’m pretty skinny.’ Seong rubbed his non-existent abs. 

“Seong-nim, I’ve brought you some sleepwear.” Seong jumped because Dae-Jung just appeared out of nowhere.

“Did you wait for me?”

“Yes. But… Seong-nim, are you self-conscious about your body?”

“Huh?” 

Dae-Jung gently held Seong’s hand, then squeezed it,”If you want, I can help you get stronger,” Seong stared at him blankly,”I can be helpful, I’m a B-Rank, so you don’t have to worry.” Dae-Jung looked longly into Seong’s eyes.

Seong threw his hand away from his,”No.” Seong quickly dusted his hand, then he remembered,” Actually, I kinda want to control my abilities, so you can help with that.” Seong proceeded to put on his clothes, using the towel to cover himself leisurely. 

“Really? Then when should we start?”

Seong put the shirt over his head,”Maybe after two weeks.”

“Eh?” Though it may be more practical to use Dae-Jung right away, he has some work to do. Plus, Seong needed to go somewhere by himself. 

“I’m injured, also what about those people we kidnapped?”

“Ah… I’m sorry…” 

“It’s fine, check up on Kim Hyun and get some rest.”

“Yes.” Dae-Jung bowed before turning around and turning off the lights, then he closed the door.

Seong plopped onto his bed and sighed, then moved under the covers, his lids fell heavily. 

***

-Ring, ring, ring!

“Aghh…” Seong rolled over, tucking his head in his arms. But he soon woke up when he heard knocks on his door,

“Seong-nim?” Kim Hyun asked cautiously,” Have you woken up yet?”

Seong answered in a groan rather than a reply. Kim Hyun opened the door, letting in Dae-Jung with a first aid kit. Seong watched with squinted eyes as they came to his lying figure.

“Seong-nim, I apologize. Due to my incompetence, I forgot to treat your wounds. We need to do it right away.”

Seong answered Kim Hyun with a confirming hum.

“I’m sorry, I need your shirt off to do it.”

Seong twisted his head with fatigue, Dae-Jung reached towards Seong’s back to lift him up, and helped him remove his shirt.

Seong felt too tired to be embarrassed for the gesture, he just had his eyes closed the whole time. He heard gasps and the opening of the first aid kit.

What both of the bodyguards saw, was a large purple bruise covering his left side, and his shoulder had a puncture wound that scabbed over, but it was still swollen to an extent. Surprisingly, he didn’t suffer much casualties prior to his bloody appearance.

Dae-Jung scooted closer to Seong, supporting him since he had his eyes closed, Dae-Jung let him rest his head on his chest. 

“Do you want to know about the people we’ve secured, Seong-nim?” Kim Hyun applied alcohol onto a cotton pad and rubbed it onto his shoulder then his bruising.

The cotton pad was cold to the touch, and as it touched his bruised skin, he flinched and hissed,”Sure.” He peeked down at the pad.

“I made sure they’ve been appropriately separated and I confirmed they were empty handed.” Kim Hyun applied ointment and brought out a bandage, she began wrapping it around Seong’s waist with the help of Dae-Jung,

”As for the victims… They’re resting in another room. Their injuries aren’t fatal enough, but one was smashed in the head, so we might need to go to the hospital.”

Seong sighed, he closed his eyes again and thought about what to do. 

‘I need to track these guys down.” He relaxed his body,’But this would also be a good opportunity to clear up some of the rumors.’ 

Seong parted his mouth,”Go get information from the accomplices, I want to try talking to the victims.” 

“Yes, Seong-nim.” They both said simultaneously,

”But, will you be able to move?” Dae-Jung raised a question.

“Yes… To some extent…” Seong dragged his legs off the bed, planting his feet on the ground and staggering to stand up. Kim Hyun grabbed his shirt and held Seong by his back. Seong gritted his teeth,

         ’Fuck! It hurts so much…’ 

Kim Hyun noticed this,“Seong-nim…You shouldn’t-”

“No, I have plans.” But Seong shut her down.

They both stayed quiet, then Dae-Jung spoke,”Then at least let me escort you to the room.” 

“Yeah, do just that.” Seong didn’t know where to go anyway.

***

Dae-Jung steadily had his hand behind Seong’s faltering figure, escorting him through the mansion to a warm room accompanied with seven people inside. He left him alone. Seong sighed at the pathetic state these people were in.

“How unlucky you stupid bastards…” He clicked his tongue at them. The room was large and had a huge king size bed in the middle, however, there were four on bean bags that were at the sides of the room. Seong sat in the last one left and waited for them to wake up.

‘After all, when they find themselves alive, they’ll see me first.” Seong twitched a smile at the thought.

•••

He watched it all happen in front of him, the splatters on the walls, the stench of presumed death, and the person’s dead-pan stare right into his soul. He was the last one, the last one left to break. The hand approached him, no, it loomed over him.

He couldn’t take his eyes off of it, the way it seemed to consume his trembling body had him paralyzed.

“Ah- I’m really fucked, aren’t I?” The pain surged throughout his body, the screams echoed again, it was a mistake.

He felt hot as he opened his eyes, he closed them tightly again because the room was so bright.

“Ahhh~ You’re awake?” 

‘What?!’ The man jumped up, his blurry vision only caught a glimpse of a man across the room. He tried rubbing his eyes as the man spoke again,

“Eh, eh, eh~ Now that I think about it, you’re that bartender from the bar aren’t you? What was it? Do- Do, Ah!” The bartender slowly focused his eyes on the man in front of him,

        ”Do-Young?”

Do-Young widened his eyes as he realized who this person was, the person he was talking mad shit about, Han Seong.

•••

‘Aighh… Would you look at him?’ Seong looked at Do-Young with a pout, Do-Young’s expression was completely blank, stunned really. 

        Do-Young blinked a couple times and then looked around, he saw two other people beside him, the waitress and host. 

Seong spoke,”You almost died last night, be thankful I got there in time.” 

‘Well… It wasn’t really me.’

“What-What is going on?” Do-Young tried comprehending the current situation, he was saved by this scary bastard in front of him? Not killed?

“You’re in the middle of treatment.” Seong nonchalantly waved his hand,”How do you feel? It seemed like you were having a nightmare.”

Do-Young questioned Seong’s actions, from what he heard, Han Seong was the perpetrator, then why would he help him? Was this really unconditional treatment, no strings attached? He’s not being held hostage?

But he wouldn’t be alive now if it weren’t for…Han Seong. He even gave them a room to rest in, be it one but, he still treated them. Do-Young looked up, meeting Seong’s eyes.

Do-Young flinched, then he laughed under his breath pathetically,”So was it really a rumor?”

Seong fought the urge to smile,”Excuse me?”

“I heard that you were the one causing trouble,” Do-Young ruffled his brown hair,”Now that I think about it, that strange man confirmed it himself.” 

“Really?” Seong felt elated inside, finally someone who can be his puppet! 

Do-Young nodded, then he proceeded to tell the details about the assault of which Seong already knew. 

“Ah, so that’s what happened…” Seong nodded, tilting his head to the side. 

“By the way, can I ask you a question?”

“Of course.” Seong pricked his ears.

“The rumors mentioned that you were seen at another assault case, what were you doing? Then you came here to save us too…” Do-Young had a complicated look on his face.

“Well…” Seong thought about it, he recalled what Kim Hyun said when they first met,

‘Seong-nim. We mustn’t be late today, we have yet to catch the serial assaulters. We should hurry up.’ 

The real Han Seong wasn’t the culprit, it seems he was framed. But why? Why make his public image turn out this way?

“…Is it not obvious? The cases were peculiar and too consistent, the police didn’t do much, I thought I should’ve done something then.” 

       Seong lowered his eyes,”But it seems to have made me a scape-goat.” He chuckled to give in to the act.

Do-Young stayed quiet,’So was it all just a misconception?…’ His light brown eyes stayed glued on Seong, apologizing within. 

         He lowered his head, thinking about all the curses he made behind Seong’s back, he wanted to properly apologize,

“I’m sorry… I really gave into those rumors.” Do-Young laughed,”I… Thank you.” 

Do-Young looked up at Seong, he realized that Seong’s face wasn’t as scary as it seemed. Han Seong was called the male Medusa due to his infamous silver eyes. 

Look him in the eyes, and you’ll tense up, paralyzed from fear. But what Do-Young saw, was his saving grace. Though that may be due to his traumatic experience, depending on Han Seong because of the small act of kindness he gave.

Seong smiled,’See, I knew I wasn’t that scary.’ That was the first time someone normal looked into his eyes and didn’t tremble. 

“Since you’re awake, I think I should go now. You’re in my house, so feel free to feel at home.” 

“Eh, really?” Do-Young sheepishly scratched his head. 

Seong hummed in an assuring tone, then he slowly got up, but it felt like a lightning bolt had struck his side,

        ’Ah, not now!’

        Seong’s smiling face cracked as he had his head down, slowly reaching the door and leaving. 

Do-Young had not seen the crack in Seong’s face, rather, he was thinking about slapping the others in the face for believing rumors.

***

“Hah… Hahh… Urp!” Seong felt like throwing up, the sharp pain was too intense for him to keep moving, but he persisted because of his thirst for revenge. 

He had an inferiority complex, and that mentality of his started fueling his body to move forward. 

-Stomp!

“Hah… Damn it. I forgot that I have no clue where to go. Haha, this damn useless brain of mine…” Seong clenched his eyes tightly, gritting his teeth, his body was hot and sweaty.

“Seong-nim?” Dae-Jung heard the stomps from the hallway, realizing it was Seong struggling to stand. He then rushed over and held Seong carefully,

        ”What’re you doing out here? We would’ve came to you instead.”

“No, I-“ Seong winced,”I… Need to get this over with.” Seong looked Dae-Jung right in the eyes,

        ”Carry me.” That response was quite shameless, even to Seong, but he could not bear the weight anymore.

“Yes.” Dae-Jung reached down and had his hands behind Seong’s back and legs, then he carefully pulled Seong into a bridal-carry. 

‘This much humiliation is considerable.’ Seong snuggled into Dae-Jung’s chest.

***

The sound of footsteps continued as each room passed by, this mansion was two stories; Seong could see the lush green garden through the windows, it was truly spectacular to be rich. 

Dae-Jung walked down the steps and slid open the back door, the light struck them both as the vivid garden blew its leaves. 

Seong’s eyes shook in awe, taking in a breath of…

Seong crinkled his nose,’What is that smell? It smells like-‘ The foul odor stung his nose, he quickly covered it,”Dae-Jung… That smell…”

“Ah, Hyun noona is… Is in the middle of interrogating.”

Seong’s eyes followed the smell, he could see a dark shack in the corner of the shadows, camouflaged by the trees hanging leaves. The shack had a dark presence emanating from it, the smell was coming from over there. 

“Ugh…” Seong winced,”What, what is she doing?” 

“It’s an effective way to get your enemy to talk.”

‘Yeah, I would even kill to get out of that shit-smelling place!’ Seong burrowed his head into Dae-Jung, pointing him to go back into the mansion. 

“Seong-nim? I think you need rest.”

“Yeah, I think I’m done for today.” Seong’s soul left his body, already exhausted from trying to get rid of that shit smell. 

Dae-Jung hurriedly walked Seong back to his room, placing him gently like a baby onto his bed. 

“Wait, don’t go.”

“Seong-nim?” 

“If-if you’re gonna go, then get me some pain pills.” The pain throbbed against Seong’s side, making it impossible for Seong to move.

“I will.” Dae-Jung left the room immediately.

•••

Kim Hyun washed her hands, the water turned a maroon color, she stared at it coldly. She recalled back to what happened,

“Answer when I’m talking nicely.”

“You- You’re even worse than them!”

“I should be crueler to my enemies, shouldn’t I?”

-Slash! Crack!

Kim Hyun slashed the whip through the air, it cackled as it hit the person. 

“Keuk!” The person clenched their teeth, he was tied up in a special rope, and the stench in the air was rotting. 

The smell was due to either the smell of rotting bodies, the strange candle over there, or someone took a shit. Whatever it was, it definitely felt like the last option.

Kim Hyun stopped thinking about it, she couldn’t gather any information from them. She looked at her self from the reflection of the window, was she really capable?

She heard some footsteps behind her, it Dae-Jung, he was looking through drawers. She had a weird feeling about Dae-Jung ever since that time,”Dae-Jung.”

“Noona?” 

“When Seong-nim was being chased, why didn’t you go after him?”

“Ah… I-I couldn’t see.”

“Dae-Jung, you need to go forward, even if your senses are obscured, push through it. Seong-nim is someone we chose to protect.” 

“Ah, yes noona. I’ll do better next time.” Dae-Jung sunk into himself.

“What’re you looking for?”

“Seong-nim wanted some pain pills.”

“I’ll give them to you.” 

•••

It’s been a week since the incident. Seong’s bruise has mostly healed, leaving blotches of yellow on his skin. The other residents in the house have also been treated throughly, and were pleasing their heart out shamelessly. 

Seong was in the living room, watching the tv. Do-Young sat beside him and offered him a drink,”What’s on?”

Seong sipped the glass,”I don’t know. I’ve just been switching through the channels, can you choose something?”

“Haha, no problem!” Do-Young excitedly grabbed the remote.

Beyond them was the other employees, at first, they were afraid because it was Han Seong’s house. But with enough coaxing from Do-Young, they’ve gotten used to the short-term pleasure of luxury.

The waitress looked at the two people talking casually on the couches, her eyes lingered on Seong. Her views of him had changed since living with him, he was actually a pretty normal guy. 

There was no way the rumors were true, yes, he may be a little rough but, he was genuinely good-natured. But wait, why was she thinking about him?

Hers and Seong’s eyes met, she quickly turned away in embarrassment. A feeling started surging, the kind of feeling when you meet your idol, a feeling of admiration and idolization. But overall she thought,

‘He isn’t so bad.’