Chapter 54: Misunderstanding
When Kang Dohyuk emerged with Yeon, Director Choi’s face, who had been guarding the front of the car, contorted with complexity. To think he was really here…
“Check Lee Seojin’s location.”
As soon as they confirmed that Yeon was not at Kang Sunhyuk’s house, Kang Dohyuk had given this order. Even amid the chaos after discovering Kim Yumin’s body, reporting it to the police, and the beginning of the investigation, he had ordered tracking of Lee Seojin rather than Kang Sunhyuk.
Kang Dohyuk had already lost trust in Lee Seojin—ever since he passed Muryeong’s information to Kang Sunhyuk. Though Lee Seojin had promised to protect Yeon, upon hearing this, Dohyuk had immediately ordered a tracking device be attached to Lee Seojin’s car.
“Do you suspect that Lee Seojin murdered Kim Yumin-ssi?”
Director Choi had asked with disbelief. Kang Dohyuk responded with an icy expression.
“I don’t care whether he killed that woman or not. But I need to be certain about who has taken Yeon.”
Director Choi was astounded by such coldness. Even though Lee Seojin had been spying for Kang Dohyuk for a long time, he showed no mercy. Then again, he couldn’t take Lee Seojin’s side either, since he had betrayed them first by leaking Muryeong’s information.
Tracking Lee Seojin’s location confirmed he was moving separately from Kang Sunhyuk. Upon hearing this report, Kang Dohyuk immediately moved to capture Lee Seojin, convinced that he had taken Yeon from both himself and Kang Sunhyuk.
Director Choi, who had been half-skeptical even when they barged into Lee Seojin’s home, postponing the police investigation, couldn’t even sigh when Dohyuk actually emerged with Yeon. He was curious about whether Lee Seojin was safe, but he couldn’t even ask that.
After pushing Yeon into the backseat, Kang Dohyuk sat beside him and ordered them to depart. Director Choi nodded from the passenger seat, and the driver started the car.
A terrifying silence filled the car. Kang Dohyuk stared straight ahead with his lips pressed into a hard line, clearly displeased about something, while Yeon, as before, quietly gazed out the window.
The sound of Dohyuk’s long exhale seemed exceptionally loud.
“What are you doing… Kang Dohyuk-ssi!”
At Yeon’s startled exclamation, Director Choi turned around and barely suppressed a gasp. Dohyuk was untying Yeon’s belt and lifting his traditional clothing. He was horrified, wondering if Dohyuk was about to do something inappropriate in the car, with him and the driver in the front seats.
“Stay still.”
After giving a low warning, Dohyuk pulled back Yeon’s jeogori to reveal his shoulder. The site of the gunshot wound still had a large bandage on it. When Dohyuk touched that area, Yeon winced in pain.
“It still hasn’t healed completely.”
Dohyuk clicked his tongue. Only then did both Yeon and Director Choi realize that Dohyuk had merely been checking the gunshot wound. Seeing Yeon staring at Dohyuk with an expressionless face, Director Choi quickly turned back to face forward.
“You really went along with Kang Sunhyuk in this condition.”
Yeon didn’t know how to respond to Dohyuk’s seemingly sarcastic remark. Is he concerned about my wound? It felt that way, but with Kang Dohyuk as the other party, he couldn’t be certain. Was he reprimanding him for moving around while not fully healed, or criticizing him for following Kang Sunhyuk in the first place?
“I handed you over to Muryeong for treatment, not so you could go wandering around as you please.”
From his next words, Yeon realized it was both.
“I originally belong to Muryeong, though.”
Though many thoughts floated in his mind, he first pointed out that the premise of Dohyuk’s statement was wrong.
“That Muryeong will be under my control from now on, so it doesn’t matter.”
At this shameless, nonchalant answer, Yeon could only blink. Trying to understand what he meant, Yeon’s eyebrows contorted.
“What did you do to Muryeong?”
Dohyuk didn’t answer, but Yeon was certain. After he had left Muryeong, Kang Dohyuk had clearly done something.
“Don’t tell me the people there…”
A chill ran down his spine at the thought that someone might have been harmed.
“Don’t misunderstand. This isn’t a world where you can kill anyone who gets in your way. Though you probably wouldn’t know that, lacking any sense of reality.”
At those final words, Yeon pressed his lips together. He couldn’t deny it. The memories filling his head were from past lives, not the present, and even his current life had been spent isolated from reality in the mountains—his lack of real-world perspective was undeniable.
Still, you would do things others couldn’t. It’s your specialty to corner someone without leaving a trace.
This truth, which he had naturally learned while staying by Dohyuk’s side, lingered on the tip of his tongue, but he didn’t voice it. Even if he said it, Kang Dohyuk wouldn’t bat an eye.
More bothersome were the two black threads surrounding Kang Dohyuk. One of them was emitting a more sinister energy than before. It now undulated prominently, overwhelming the other threads to the point where he didn’t even need to search for it among the numerous strands.
Without realizing it, Yeon reached toward that thread, but Dohyuk caught his wrist midway.
“I told you not to touch.”
Despite the cold warning, Yeon disregarded it and met Dohyuk’s gaze.
“You’re in a more dangerous state than before. If left like this, someone could die.”
“That’s right. Someone already has.”
Dohyuk calmly answered and released Yeon’s hand.
“What do you mean someone died…?”
“Kim Yumin.”
Yeon only blinked at the unfamiliar name.
“Kang Sunhyuk’s mother.”
At this additional explanation, Yeon’s eyes finally wavered. Though it had only been one day, thinking about the woman who had been kind and gentle to Yeon himself, not the shaman, made his heart pound heavily.
“Don’t tell me…”
Yeon opened his mouth with difficulty.
“Did you do it?”
As he asked this while looking directly at him, Kang Dohyuk’s face contorted severely, which was rare.
***
After identifying his mother’s face at the hospital morgue, Kang Sunhyuk staggered while walking down the corridor. Baek Hyeri, who had been waiting outside, rushed to support him, but she was inadequate to hold up Kang Sunhyuk, who was at least 20cm taller than her.
“This can’t be… this can’t be…”
“Kang Sunhyuk-ssi…”
“This is wrong. Why would my mother… no, this can’t be happening.”
Watching Kang Sunhyuk mumble to himself as if half out of his mind, Baek Hyeri was at a loss for what to do. Ever since receiving the call from the police that his mother Kim Yumin had died, Sunhyuk had been beside himself. It was fortunate that Baek Hyeri had taken the wheel; if he had driven himself, there would have been a 100% chance of an accident.
“Kang Sunhyuk-ssi?”
Two detectives who had been waiting for him to identify the body approached. Only then did Kang Sunhyuk painfully raise his head to look at them.
“What time did you arrive at work this morning? The estimated time of the victim’s murder is around 11 AM. Where were you at that time?”
Just as Baek Hyeri was about to flare up at the insensitivity of questioning someone in such a state, Kang Sunhyuk grabbed one of the detectives by the collar.
“What did you just say?”
Gone was the seemingly fragile appearance from moments ago; now he glared fiercely at the detective as if he would devour him.
“What are you doing—”
“What did you just say?!”
Baek Hyeri flinched as Kang Sunhyuk shouted loudly. Though there was no one else in the corridor outside the morgue, his voice echoed so thunderously that she found herself looking around.
“Murder? My mother was murdered?”
The detective forcibly pried Kang Sunhyuk’s hands from his collar. He dusted off his clothes irritably and turned to Kang Sunhyuk.
“It seems you haven’t been properly informed yet, but when we responded to a call at around 11:30 AM, she was already deceased. The cause of death was organ rupture and excessive bleeding due to abdominal stab wounds. There were three stab wounds in the abdomen, and among them—”
“Fuck!”
Kang Sunhyuk cut off the detective’s explanation with a curse.
“Who reported it?”
Kang Sunhyuk’s eyes changed. Seeing the rage so evident in his expression, the detective raised both hands and stepped back. He seemed to judge that Kang Sunhyuk was not in a state for conversation.
“Let’s calm down first and talk later.”
The detective tried to hand his contact information to Baek Hyeri who had come with Kang Sunhyuk, but Sunhyuk blocked his path.
“The reporter. I asked who it was.”
At his dangerously lowered voice, the detective sighed.
“The person who reported it was your half-brother, Kang Dohyuk-ssi.”
At this answer, even Baek Hyeri turned to the detective in surprise.
“Ha, fuck.”
The detective clicked his tongue at the harsh language that contrasted with his neat suit. The reporting party, Kang Dohyuk, had also given off an unusual vibe, making the detectives whisper amongst themselves about whether the first discoverer might be the killer, but it seemed the victim’s son was no less intimidating. They had heard something about an investment company called Dragon Holdings, but now he was even suspicious that it might actually be a loan shark operation.
“…kill him.”
Kang Sunhyuk muttered. Baek Hyeri stared at him, wondering what he was saying, but Sunhyuk was already blind to his surroundings.
“That bastard Kang Dohyuk, I’ll really kill him.”
At these more clearly audible words, Baek Hyeri turned pale. She urgently grabbed Kang Sunhyuk as he was about to turn away.
“Calm down, Kang Sunhyuk-ssi! They said he reported it, not that he’s the murderer!”
The detectives’ faces hardened as they finally seemed to grasp the situation.
“Fuck, like I don’t know that bastard? This is revenge for me taking that shaman, Yeon or whatever. He went to the house looking for that shaman and killed my mother!”
At Kang Sunhyuk’s outburst, the detectives exchanged glances, wondering what this was all about.
“Did Kang Dohyuk-ssi have a grudge against Kang Sunhyuk-ssi? Yeon? Shaman? Who is that?”
The detectives, who had seemed ready to back off, surrounded Kang Sunhyuk again.
“Kang Sunhyuk-ssi, we need your cooperation to catch the culprit.”
One of the detectives was already on the phone with the police station, instructing them to secure Kang Dohyuk. Baek Hyeri couldn’t keep up with what was happening. Yeon? Shaman? Could it be the person who took the bullet meant for Kang Dohyuk? That person was a shaman? Nothing made sense to her.
“Are you talking about the person who was shot instead of Kang Dohyuk-ssi?”
Kang Sunhyuk didn’t answer.
“Was that person with you, Kang Sunhyuk-ssi?”
This time he nodded slightly, almost imperceptibly. His face darkened considerably, perhaps thinking it was because he had brought that person. Baek Hyeri became even more confused.
Could it be… did Kang Dohyuk really kill Kang Sunhyuk’s mother because of that person?
Even as she thought it was absurd, remembering the chilling yet complex gaze and expression Kang Dohyuk had when looking at the person who was shot sent shivers down her spine.
