Chapter 197:

“What’s different now from back then?”

His whispered voice grew hurriedly. Surprisingly, as she pushed against his sturdy shoulders, he willingly moved away.

“Do you think I would sell you out, Lee-yeon?”

“No, it’s not like that.”

Their gazes clashed with a stark contrast.

“You’re not on my side. You’re not.”

“….”

“I resented you, so I might as well enjoy watching you suffer and cry like you did back then.” He said.

Her flickering pupils were mysterious. he could sense the growing distrust as her expression stiffened.

“…Fine, I am not on your side.” He said resignedly.

She hadn’t expected anything from the beginning, but in the chilling gaze, her heart still pounded.

“Still, come over here.”

“I’m not interested. Don’t touch me.”

Lee-yeon turned her head with a disgusted expression, scrunching up her face.

“Don’t you understand the situation right now?”

“I know it well. I’m more alert than ever. So you go down there. I don’t trust you and I don’t want to draw attention. I feel safest here, next to the tree. At least the tree won’t betray me.”

Lee-yeon pressed her cheek against the tree’s rough bark as if trying to find comfort.

However, Kwon Chae-woo pulled her towards him without hesitation. Despite her struggling, he managed to make her sit on his thigh and spread her legs, enclosing his hips around her. No matter how much Lee-yeon twisted her body to escape, she couldn’t free herself from his grip.

As Kwon Chae-woo positioned himself, seemingly about to move downward, Lee-yeon hastily bit down his collarbone.

“Ugh…!”

The man let out a brief grunt, and at the same time, the goosebumps that rose like a ridge brushed against Lee-yeon’s sensitive lips. His heartbeat was pounding like a pump. Startled by his immediate reaction, Lee-yeon hastily pulled away her lips.

“Did you hear me well? Don’t get me caught up unnecessarily and go down alone…!”

“Did I make my warning sound like a joke?”

His voice seemed to be scratching at something as he pressed it down and down again.

“I told you not to come here or show yourself to those idiots.”

His last words echoed the scolding of his cousin when he complained after getting slapped by him.

“If you broke the promise, at least you shouldn’t be stubborn about it. Aren’t you afraid of being caught by those brats or being pushed away by them?”

“…”

“Lee-yeon, those people may be reckless, but they are still somewhat human. But I’ve always been a son of a bitch from the start. The things I could to them…”

His face looked much more menacing than when he had mocked Lee-yeon and left in anger. She looked at the enraged man with a slightly dazed expression.

“Why are you getting mad? If I’m angry, it’s my anger; if I’m scared, it’s my fear. What does it matter to you?”

“Well, I’ve been wondering about that all along,” he said. He pulled Lee-yeon’s hips again, aligning their lower bodies tightly. Lee-yeon averted her gaze from his substantial size entering between her legs.

However, as he lifted her up once, her genitals twitched, and a blatant warmth spread through her. She felt an immediate resistance, but at the same time, something inside her was heating up. Kwon Chae-woo seemed to be in a similar state, as his face was contorted with anger or some indescribable desire.

“Why is it that whenever I see you, I feel like killing anyone who comes near you?”

“…!”

It was the most terrifying confession, or rather a threat, in the world.

“I’ve always wanted to be a kind and gentle person, but ironically, it’s you who keeps ruining that for me. Just looking at your ankles fills my head with violent thoughts, and I want to throw all the healthy men into a pit. Why do you make me angry?”

A cold smile flickered on Kwon Chae-woo’s lips. “You keep getting into trouble for reasons other than me,” he said, tongue clicking in disapproval. While Lee-yeon was frozen, only blinking her eyes, he embraced her hips and pulled her close.

– “Blocked,” a small in-ear device reported monotonously. It was a hunting dog that had been providing surveillance. He hesitated and pressed a button on his receiver.

“The cottages.”

– “Not yet.”

“Time.”

– “At least thirty minutes.”

Kwon Chae-woo furrowed his brow in frustration.

Inside the cottage, a trade of approximately 248g of Philophon* took place. Considering that a single dosage is around 0.03g, it was an enormous quantity that could be used by over eight thousand people simultaneously. It was Kwon Ki-seok’s personal property and transaction, and Kwon Chae-woo had deployed the hunting dogs to leave evidence of the scene.

*Philophon is a drug that causes extreme rises in wakefulness

However, this unusual game of cat and mouse was the most optimal means to buy them some time. Unfortunately, it was then that So Lee-yeon appeared.

Kwon Chae-woo stared at her, looking stunned, before speaking. “Twenty minutes. Capture the scene and come out.”

The unique voice of one person disappeared instantly, replaced by unfamiliar background noise. Lee-yeon observed the unfamiliar sight of her seemingly talking to someone on the phone.

At that moment, the man who had firmly held Lee-yeon’s delicate chin in his hand spoke as if informing her, “Understood, just twenty minutes.”

“….”

“Just endure it with me for twenty minutes.”

“What’s all this sudden–”

Unexpectedly, he swiftly undid his necktie and tore through his shirt collar. In his haste, a button popped open as he aggressively pulled at the shirt, but luckily, there was no one around as Lee-yeon anxiously looked down under the tree. The man, now half-naked, helped her put on the shirt.

“Take off your shoes too. Someone might recognize you.”

However, it was Kwon Chae-woo himself who stood out. With broad and well-defined shoulder muscles, a sturdy and well-proportioned waist, and rugged external oblique muscles, she scowled at her own lack of definition in comparison.

“Are you really going to help me? How?”

Still suspicious, Lee-yeon was pulled tightly into Kwon Chae-woo’s embrace as he skillfully grasped a tree branch and effortlessly lowered himself. Reactively, she clung tightly to his bare body as he descended gracefully.

“Is there something more than just hanging out here?”

“What…!”

“After all, trees are meant to be hidden in the forest.”

As Kwon Chae-woo’s feet touched the ground, he continued to suck forcefully on two of Lee-yeon’s fingers, which were still bleeding.