"…In those dramas," Shin said calmly, as if stating a well-researched fact, "the female lead usually licks the male lead's wound."
Yeri "..."
"I thought you would do the same."
For a full three seconds, Yeri's mind went completely blank.
She stared at him, dumbfounded, shocked to the core. Of all the possibilities she had imagined- provocation, perversity, deliberate teasing, this had never once crossed her mind.
Dramas?
Shin Keir… watched dramas?
She opened her mouth, then closed it again. No words came out.
Never in her wildest nightmares had she anticipated that a man like him known to be indifferent, ruthless, terrifying to half the underworld, would seriously model his behavior after some melodramatic romance trope.
Shin, on the other hand, showed not a trace of embarrassment.
As long as his blood had touched her, it was enough.
He would know where she was. And if she was hurt, he would feel it. That was all that mattered.
While Yeri was still stuck in a state of shock, struggling to reboot her brain, Shin's phone rang. He answered it without hesitation.
Secretary Yun's voice came through, low and urgent. Something about the association.
Shin turned slightly, his body instinctively angling away from Yeri. He had no intention of letting anything related to the underworld touch her ears as he stepped out of the ward.
"A hacker?" Shin asked, his tone flat.
"Yes," Secretary Yun confirmed. "The mafia association's firewall was breached. Since the system is managed by KGG's security network, they informed us immediately."
Shin's eyes narrowed slightly. "Any information on who did it?"
"It was abrupt," Secretary Yun replied, clearly uneasy. "And whoever it was, they weren't a rookie. No footprints, no residual traces. Very clean."
"What was taken?"
Secretary Yun hesitated. "Nothing significant. It appears the hacker only accessed transportation license records."
Shin "..."
"Even so," Secretary Yun continued carefully when Shin didn't respond, "the association still requested that Hexion take a look into the matter."
Shin wasn't particularly concerned. Over the years, there had been countless hacking attempts, most of them far more aggressive than this.
"Inform Junho," he said at last.
"Yes, boss."
Shin slipped his phone back into his pocket and turned toward the ward again, fully intending to trouble his dear fiancée a little more.
He could have healed the cut on his finger instantly with his ability, but why should he?
---
Far from the city, in a secluded rural sanctuary, a sleek black car came to a halt.
After passing through layers of formalities and security checks, the visitor was finally allowed inside.
"Sir," the nurse asked cautiously, a hint of wariness in her eyes, "who are you here to see?"
"Eleanor Keir."
The nurse paused, clearly surprised, but still gestured for him to wait.
Beyond the building, within the sanctuary's nature park, Eleanor Keir was taking her usual morning stroll.
Despite her age, there were barely any signs of time upon her. Her figure was upright, her movements steady.
She walked barefoot across the grass, serene and unhurried, as if the world beyond this place had never touched her at all.
Eleanor Keir slowed her steps and turned her head slightly.
"How do I look today?" she asked her attending nurse.
The nurse did not hesitate. His answer came smooth, practiced, almost mechanical.
"As beautiful as ever, Madam."
Eleanor smiled, satisfied. Her lips curved delicately as she murmured to herself, "Good. My beauty will never fail to stun Allister."
"Yes," the nurse chimed in dutifully, nodding along. "You are the esteemed Madam Keir."
He was already used to this exchange. Like clockwork, every morning, same words, same cadence, same reassurance. Always on schedule.
They reached the edge of the pond, and Eleanor stopped.
She stared down at her reflection in the still water. Her smile lingered, but it was unnatural.
Then her gaze shifted.
A cluster of medium-pink flowers bloomed near the water's edge.
Her expression twisted instantly. She pointed at them, her voice rising sharply.
"Why are there pink roses here?!" she shrieked. "How many times have I said it? I hate roses! I hate them! I hate them! I'm not the one who likes roses, that bitch Celestine is!"
Her breathing became erratic, eyes blazing.
"Are you people doing this on purpose?!"
The nurse remained calm. This scene, too, was familiar.
"Madam, please don't worry," he said gently. "Those aren't roses. They're peonies. As per your request, there isn't a single rose in this sanctuary."
Even so, Eleanor lunged toward the flowers. She began thrashing them wildly, tearing at petals and stems until the nurse hurried forward and restrained her.
"Madam," he urged softly but firmly, "please remember your manners. Elder Madam Keir would be very displeased if she saw this."
The effect was immediate.
Eleanor froze, her pupils shrank as her gaze darted frantically around. She looked herself over from head to toe, patting her hair, smoothing her clothes in panic.
"Quick, help me!" she demanded, grabbing at the nurse's sleeve. "Where are my stilettos? Get my stilettos! Mother-in-law will definitely make me divorce Allister if I'm any less elegant!"
"Madam," the nurse soothed, "you are as elegant as ever."
"No, no, no this won't do," she said breathlessly. "My heels! Where are my heels?!"
The nurse produced a pair of comfortable shoes.
She stared at them as if they were an insult.
With a sharp cry, she snatched them and hurled them into the pond.
"Why are you giving me something so ugly, so unworthy of my title?" she accused, pointing at him with trembling fury. "Do you want Allister to dislike me?!"
Her eyes narrowed, suspicion blooming.
"I knew it. You must be a fiend of that bitch Celestine, aren't you?!"
The nurse bowed his head slightly. "Madam, you misunderstand. I don't know anyone named Celestine."
Eleanor sneered, then suddenly stopped, her expression smoothed out as if a switch had been flipped. The tension drained from her body, replaced by her earlier serenity.
She resumed walking, her steps light, almost graceful.
"Allister is my husband," she murmured dreamily. "I'm still his rightful, legal wife. I belong to him. We are bound by fate… forever."
From a distance, a man had been watching the entire scene.
After a moment, he began walking toward her at an unhurried pace.
"It's been a long while, Madam Keir," he greeted softly.
Eleanor, who had been staring blankly at a massive tree for no discernible reason, slowly turned her head.
Her gaze met that of a tall young man dressed in tailored pants and a dark blue long-sleeved shirt.
For a brief moment, something flickered across her face, fear, nostalgia, apprehension, all tangled together.
But as she stared longer, her brows knitted.
She tilted her head slightly, eyes filled with confusion and perplexity, as if looking at a stranger she almost but not quite remembered.
Eleanor scrutinized the man from head to toe again, and again, as if repetition might make him disappear.
"Who are you?" she finally asked.
The man let out a self-deprecating, mocking laugh and gestured for the nurse to allow him to speak with her.
The nurse hesitated, then nodded. He didn't leave, only stepped back to watch from a distance.
"Look at what you've become," he said softly, lips curling. "How utterly ridiculous."
Madam Keir frowned and turned, glancing behind her as if searching for someone else.
"Who are you talking to?" she snapped. "Are you crazy?"
His grin widened, thick with amusement and contempt.
"This," he said lazily, "is what you abandoned me for? A useless title. A pathetic status. Was it worth it... Mother?"
"Mother?" Eleanor whispered.
It was as though long-rusted screws inside her mind began to turn. Her face drained of color, shock freezing her features as she staggered back, and her blood ran cold.
In that instant, clarity pierced through the haze, countless memories surging forward at the speed of light.
"Bryce…" she gasped. "Y-you- "
Bryce smiled, but the expression never reached his eyes.
He chuckled. "So you still remember my name. Should I be happy?"
Suddenly, Eleanor clutched her head, shaking violently, as if trying to reject the truth she had just spoken.
"No- no, no, no! That's not it!" she cried. "You don't look like my husband at all! It's a lie- everything is a lie! My son is Shin! I only have one son. It's Shin! You're not Shin!"
Bryce burst into laughter, harsh and unrestrained, forcing Madam Keir to stumble back a step.
After a moment, he spoke again, his voice eerily calm.
"Of course. If you insist. You're the devoted mother of the bastard you once despised, and who you tried to kill countless times when he was a child."
Eleanor trembled, shaking her head frantically. "T-that's not true!"
"The bastard who couldn't care less whether you live, die, or rot away in this place."
She shook her head harder, as if denial alone could shield her.
"The bastard you dote on now," Bryce continued, his tone dripping with mockery, "whom you so disgustingly tried to seduce just because he resembled Allister."
"Lies… lies…" Eleanor muttered, clutching her hair, her face deathly pale.
Bryce took another lazy step forward. Each word struck like a blade.
"The bastard whose biological mother is Celestine, the woman you loathe with every fiber of your being."
"Shut up!" Eleanor screamed.
She collapsed to the ground, clawing at the grass and hurling handfuls of it at him. "That's not true! Shin is my son not Celestine's! How dare you try to sow discord! You liar! Liar! Liar!"
"Sow discord?" Bryce echoed softly, as if tasting the words. His smile thinned. "Sure. If he truly sees you as his mother, then tell me, are you aware he's getting married?"
Eleanor trembled, her hands fell limp at her sides, her face hollowing into pure disbelief.
"Married…?" she whispered.
Bryce let out a quiet chuckle, low and deliberate. "So you don't know. How unfortunate. Could it be you weren't invited? Or perhaps you weren't even informed."
He leaned closer, lowering his voice.
"Do you at least know who he's marrying?"
Eleanor's brows knit together as she struggled to grasp at something, any memory, any hint but her mind came up empty.
Then panic snapped into place.
She lunged forward, clutching his clothes with trembling hands. "Shin is getting married?" she shrieked. "My dear son is getting married?!"
Her grip tightened, nails digging into fabric.
"I won't allow it! I refuse! I won't allow it!"