TIOAWN Chapter 2

“Are you here to take it?”  

 

Could it be that he came for the painting?  

 

Did my father send him?  

 

It felt like someone was stabbing my heart with a sharp pencil. A sense of dread clouded my vision, making everything blurry. My hand finally lost its grip on the pencil.  

 

Ha-yoon turned her head, much like a plant that had failed to take root.  

 

The sudden intrusion of the man, his piercing gaze that seemed intent on tearing her apart, and his mention of taking something—all of it felt unreal.  

 

Like a wave drifting aimlessly in the night sea, Ha-yoon’s focus wandered here and there.  

 

Even as she sat right in front of him, his small head kept staring beyond the window at the outside world, and Cha Moo-geon tilted his head slightly. His black pupils absorbed the silence as his gaze lowered.  

 

“Seo Ha-yoon.”  

 

His voice, thick and heavy like twilight, pressed down on her breath, breaking it into small fragments. Ha-yoon turned her head as though being dragged, unable to resist the overwhelming weight that wrapped around her like chains.  

 

Her eyes locked on a thick wrist—double the size of her own—wrapped tightly in the form of a snake. Following its tail, her gaze shifted to a veiny hand and the snake’s head resting on top of it.  

 

The vivid form of the snake, so lifelike it seemed ready to flick its tongue and coil around her, struck her again with awe and fear.  

 

“Ah!”  

 

A groan escaped her lips. Her head was pulled back to the limit, and with the sharp pain tugging at her scalp, she couldn’t utter another word aside from the scream of agony.  

 

“Answer me.”  

 

The man standing before her could easily overwhelm the shady characters her father used to bring around.  

 

There was no room for frivolous jokes, and any hasty excuses would crumble before they could finish.  

 

The confidence born of habit, the natural authority, and the merciless hands—all of it.  

 

Ha-yoon bit her trembling lips. Her wide eyes quickly filled with tears.  

 

He was so tall she had to tilt her head just to see his face. His broad chest and hands were large enough to cover her face entirely.  

 

Her vision was thoroughly blocked, and the flow of air distorted unnaturally. Panicked, Ha-yoon flailed her gaze around, unable to find a place to look, as he pressed her head firmly in place with one hand.  

 

“Did my dad tell you to do this?”  

 

Did he say to take the painting by force if necessary? She couldn’t bring herself to ask outright.  

 

Terrified, Ha-yoon twisted her head unconsciously and mumbled incoherently.  

 

Listening quietly, Moo-geon’s expression sharpened like a blade cutting through the air.  

 

“No? Then why…”  

 

Ha-yoon chewed on her lips, her voice trailing off into a question.  

 

But Moo-geon kept his mouth tightly shut. Instead, his hand holding her head began to grip tighter.  

 

The crushing force, as if to shatter her skull, made Ha-yoon let out a soft groan.  

 

Their eyes met for just a moment, but it felt like her heart was being crushed. Her chest felt tight, and her breathing grew labored.  

 

Ha-yoon suddenly inhaled sharply.  

 

Why would a man she’d never seen before come to take something from her instead of her father?  

 

Nothing like this had ever happened before. Something must have gone terribly wrong.  

 

“Do you know where my dad is?”  

 

Would she never see her father again?  

 

Had she wished for him not to return?  

 

Was it because she had fleetingly imagined a life where he never came back?  

 

Was something terrible happening?  

 

“…”  

 

“Is he… dead?”  

 

No, surely not.  

 

She had never imagined being left alone in this world.  

 

Ha-yoon, pressing down her swirling emotions, poured out her questions as if vomiting them out.  

 

“Could it be… did my dad…”  

 

If this man—if someone capable of gripping her head so mercilessly…  

 

“Did you kill him?”  

 

Was that why you came looking for me? The air grew thick with dread, like an enveloping fog, slowly eroding her reason. Fighting back tears, she asked her question, and one corner of the man’s lips twisted oddly. It was a sneer.  

 

“There are plenty of people who’d love to stick a knife in your dad’s gut even if it wasn’t me. As for me, I’m the one who got stabbed in this goddamn house.”  

 

Gripping her hair more forcefully, he yanked her head back with a sharp pull, forcing her neck to strain painfully.  

 

“If your dad dies, I’m the one who’ll be the most screwed. Got it?”  

 

The subdued anger in his voice made Ha-yoon draw in a quiet breath.  

 

Drip, drip, drip.  

 

Red blood trickled down, streaking her face.  

 

“And as you can see, I’m already screwed.”  

 

The man’s low, rough voice, delivered with raw venom, struck her ears like a faint ringing sound.  

 

Drip, drip.  

 

The blood dripped onto her trembling eyelids, staining her vision a stark crimson.  

 

Through the torn black shirt, an open wound was exposed. Blood flowed freely from it, enough to cover her entire face in moments.  

 

Despite the injury, the man remained composed.  

 

“It must hurt…”  

 

Even in this dire situation, Ha-yoon felt worry creeping in.  

 

Unconsciously, she reached out her hand and gently covered his abdomen, as if to stop the bleeding.  

 

“That must hurt.”  

 

Blood drops lightly invading between her fingers caught his attention, and the words she muttered unintentionally caused a stir in him. 

 

Moo-geon exhaled a half-suppressed, somewhat unpleasant breath and leaned forward, his upper body pressing in close. 

 

His pitch-black pupils glistened as if they might devour Ha-yoon at any moment. 

 

How dare you worry about me. You, the daughter of Seo Myung-sik, Seo Ha-yoon.

 

Ha-yoon endured Moo-geon’s gaze like a fixed nail. 

 

Ah, it’s the night sky again.  

 

The dense, inky black pupils trapped her.  

 

I want to draw this. Right now, I want to pick up a pencil and pour out every sensation I’m feeling.

 

A strong impulse welled up, strong enough to make her swallow hard, but at the same time, fear struck her.  

 

He was the kind of man who would easily erase any trace of her existence.  

 

As the reflection of herself in his sharp eyes threatened to be smeared in darkness, a dry gulp escaped her throat.  

 

I have to run away. I have to escape this man’s grasp.  

 

The people Ha-yoon had encountered were rarely kind. They would draw lines, subtly ignore her, or exhibit inexplicable hostility.  

 

Even Ha-yoon, who had grown accustomed to such treatment, found his hostility so foreign that her instincts told her to flee.  

 

But how? I’ve never even imagined leaving the house on my own.  

 

As Ha-yoon twisted her head desperately, she pleaded. “Let me go.”  

 

Was there anyone she could ask for help?  

 

Lee Sun-ho. The one person her father had truly trusted. Ha-yoon firmly believed he would come. Even if everyone else left, he would always circle around her, as he always had.  

 

After all, watching over her had been Lee Sun-ho’s most important task. There was no way he would leave.  

 

If he comes, at least I can get away from this man.  

 

Ha-yoon shook her head fiercely in defiance. The moment Moo-geon released his grip on her head, her upper body tipped backward, almost falling.  

 

Moo-geon didn’t bother to catch her. Instead, he made a slight motion with his chin, and the man in the black suit standing by the door lowered his head and moved.  

 

As Ha-yoon barely managed to steady herself, she averted her gaze and inched backward. But Moo-geon leaned in close, gripping her chin roughly to force eye contact.  

 

His dense, all-encompassing pupils seemed to suck in the surrounding air as they shackled her in place.  

 

“He’s here, sir,” the man at the door said.  

 

Just before entering the room, Kang-heon habitually brushed off his suit, clasped his hands, and bowed his head to report to Moo-geon.  

 

As the man’s gaze turned, Ha-yoon froze in shock.  

 

A lifeless figure sagged as if its breath had stopped—Lee Sun-ho.  

 

“Is… is he alive?”  

 

Her breathing turned sporadic, and her voice trembled with spasms. The faint thread of hope she had been clinging to snapped entirely.  

 

“It’s true that Lee Sun-ho betrayed Seo Myung-sik. We also confirmed that he was trying to side with Vice President Song Woo-jin,” Kang-heon reported.  

 

It wasn’t just words; Kang-heon pressed play on a small recorder in his hand.  

 

「You should strike Director Cha before he becomes the head.」  

 

Hearing the familiar voice, Ha-yoon swallowed hard. Underneath her trembling eyelids, confusion settled in.  

 

「We all know it was Vice President Song’s orders for Seo Myung-sik to frame Director Cha. If Director Cha tries to investigate the financial flows, wouldn’t Vice President Song be the one in the most danger?」  

 

Moo-geon’s expression didn’t change. Exhaling slowly, as if he already knew, he walked over to the collapsed Lee Sun-ho.  

 

「The private loans Seo Myung-sik spread around are his responsibility, and I’ll help Vice President Song with the rest. In return, I want the investment company Seo Myung-sik was eyeing. If you can’t give me that, I’ll consider negotiating with Director Cha.」  

 

The subtle blend of persuasion and threat didn’t match the Lee Sun-ho, Ha-yoon knew. However, the peculiar accent in his words was unmistakably his.  

 

Ha. As Ha-yoon quietly sighed, Moo-geon approached Lee Sun-ho and pressed his cheek firmly under his shoe.  

 

“Did you hear that?”  

 

Contrary to the force with which he pressed down on Lee Sun-ho’s face, Moo-geon’s deep voice was light.  

 

Ha-yoon’s eyelids fluttered.  

 

So, that’s Director Cha.  

 

The words from the recorder swirled around in her head.  

 

While Ha-yoon struggled to mask her face riddled with confusion, her gaze locked with Moo-geon’s as he turned his head.  

 

At that moment, Ha-yoon froze like a marionette.  

 

“Your father used me to line his own pockets.”  

 

“……”  

 

Ha-yoon couldn’t respond, her eyes just blinking.  

 

“He’s in a lot of debt now.”  

 

“Debt…?”  

 

Her empty eyes roamed over the red notice pasted in her room.  

 

“How much debt does he owe, Chief Ji?”  

 

“One billion three hundred ninety-four million three hundred thousand won,” Kang-heon replied as if on cue.  

 

Ha-yoon’s face turned as pale as a sheet.