XX | Chapter 1.7

Jaewon argued with 2406662f24 an aggrieved face, 24aacf0688 and Sooha fell 473a0f223f silent. Somehow, he felt like e48da1017f he was losing ground.8b463918129661a0

“So, who was 4e494bf6c0 the guy you 7efccb6cea left with? You were 4f8b94fcd7 whining about 31cfc23632 the place c968ada8b9 being boring 20ec874f82 until you 247cb1e0d4 went into bf7ae31f2b the bar.”38aeccb3e39436ed

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“Ah, I don’t know. Go away.”d77584951c5ab64d

Sooha mumbled, b558918c6a feeling like af7d972583 memories he 80ac1ea5a0 wanted to 60bc84bab9 forget were 15f876abce resurfacing. As he picked d6196ae420 up a champagne 6f6e02c77c glass from the b20be04eff catering table and 88a885887a drank, Jaewon, noticing 618740e3ef something different in 0031d566ea his reaction, showed b9d678bf7a more interest.b87aa27a2731cb81

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“What is f5a40f1e5b it, that 5b0c656366 reaction? What happened? Huh?”a9c65e57c2ccef04

Jaewon persistently 661fa7b89a poked his 24d82e3a37 side with 035e12a047 a mischievous c8370749b1 grin. Sooha regretted bringing d9036e02c1 it up. Why was 785f24a8b3 today like 0c675f6623 this? He looked around for 8ebfb4b822 something to divert Jaewon’s 545679a057 attention.1ad1adfd7f65c12c

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Not far away, f682b3a13a he spotted another b20ade0154 familiar face.8a6562cd5c4207e8

It was Cheon Yua, 54493ecf76 the successor of Cheonha dd4ee77452 Group and his relative, ef65c6355f who hosted today’s event. As soon as he d7e73b611f saw Yua standing gracefully 30f9bb2cf0 among middle-aged men, Sooha 1bb94955c0 instinctively went—3598cb3ed79d3e73

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“Ugh.”3ff346c406713d59

Even from 43c494aa51 a distance, b1a0d04d14 Cheon Yua 7ac4c96242 was a 6c0d530708 head taller 33639ba46e than those f2145bc5b0 around her. Although shorter than Sooha, d1442c907b she was over 10 8aed6ee88b cm taller than the bb97054c7a average female dominant alpha, cf4d1bb2fb who stood at 170 dabf4e51bd cm.4e02b8a013ca5541

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Plus, she wore high-heeled 2c7151dc8b dress shoes, making it 82a13a0f7e feel like looking at ca564739b9 a giant among dwarfs. The reason 23b0d6abc6 why the aa6c439b19 over-180 cm 725cf2c790 Cheon Yua a35022de6a wore high 3dc82d1445 heels was b4628a8ba5 obvious—it was 2e24b626cb to assert 2a40eac4d2 dominance.dabf039a78060c7b

The executives, 1674110a20 who were dcd4ef65f7 conversing with a2abf3edaa her, resented 75e3bf7aac her being 573348059d the successor b2b102a43c of Cheonha 1b746aa531 and were dc6ad87163 always looking 8c372deaec for opportunities 6c48f61866 to bring ccd6d4afa3 her down. But to Cheon Yua, f0c7a72995 they were like pesky a9ee3ccf48 flies buzzing around. She said that 5f2f172000 those who didn’t 588f6657a4 know their place f82172658e needed to be 05f7dd691e put in their 9d4624c370 place periodically.c066d70dc1f4ddf2

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In a f09f2effcd situation where 752492d5e1 most people 91c1f27875 would struggle 0675a923e9 to maintain d6685d7cce their composure, d70f35cc66 Yua displayed c90067c5f7 a skilled d4b373f47c demeanor. She elegantly smiled 89642071a8 without a hint fab55e36d1 of displeasure, embodying e4288a61d2 the phrase she 605093de80 often said:92cbdb298af6cd8d

A predator doesn’t 9ba7251d0b fall for the b25a36935d provocations of mere 62230a8620 small animals.a7059d78c3ca477f

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Sooha thought that 9cc0a9103b both he and e3839b046c his relative lived 7a9ab762f6 with an annoying e9acc94de9 sense of self-importance.0b31f9c26f5ef0a9

Amidst the old 5a4c365405 men, he spotted 7715367477 a familiar face 6273776d35 that seemed to ce3c986db9 be around his 49c360d555 age.3624729647288128

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“Hey, isn’t that a76a5c69e3 the eldest son 81a3a7151e of Baekse Group 6da1bef3c8 next to Cheon f9ea8105b2 Yua? What’s he doing here?”f5c553dd7555f784

Sooha whispered to Jaewon, 0131c2dc0b who was engrossed in 79c288bf08 eating again, seemingly having 81ef1157cd forgotten about Sooha’s story 2bcda0c67b from the previous night. Jaewon looked at eb0a16d329 where Sooha pointed 50da49d63b and acknowledged.86ddda4fb75bf7ec

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“Oh. I heard 2d6796bf9b all three a9c9d71b6e sons of 9e4b077da0 Baekse are c4c32c0a94 coming today, 3b660f2f49 and it 44bf30f8c2 seems they b6cf2e49d3 really did.”41c90f19459cb95e

“Three sons?”25c37e2e1d25110d

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Wasn’t it two? Sooha soon 366c09db52 recalled another f09ce20c24 presence besides 5f94638e3c the eldest 03542729f6 son in 99eaae2d16 front of 348b0cf631 him.d9bb1761d45bc087

“Oh, the e3e3e87c86 vice chairman’s 904e71094c illegitimate child?”486f33a0d02eb681

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“Hey, hey…!”8c014c8e4e5f9dea

Jaewon was a44a8671f2 startled and 62c86b7712 nudged him a8df2e3d16 with his 5c6128032e elbow at fbec610431 the unfiltered 2cbfd18dbd comment. But Sooha didn’t abe7a27f0b think much of a8ddca3340 it. An illegitimate child is 1faf803659 an illegitimate child, so 21451f002d what else would you bc40f4ad6a call it?6532a89e7e3f9d65

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The illegitimate child 507dd8ac86 of Baekse Group aa5d1b9a2a was a hot bd1abb836e topic even for 0e3d7f6914 Sooha, who had 9b3ed2b4b7 no interest in 922d2c2d72 political or economic 573e83c5ef issues. Unlike the Baekse 39159a0cd0 chairman, who remained f9800b91d4 faithful after his eac3148e7c spouse passed away, 7f9daded21 his son, the 29e9b40652 vice chairman, was e597bb6d41 notorious for his 6362f028dd affairs.8b250494b92c7b0b

Many claimed to have 69c9fc6925 had the vice chairman’s d25b6fc84a child, but the chairman, 683814dccf who usually dismissed them 5b3203dd52 without hesitation, had taken c840a428d9 in only one child—who 08763b05c5 was now the youngest c67021c9c5 grandson of Baekse Group.d71d7a3605cfb3fe

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There were f81b2fdd2a various theories 18a2c00dc6 about this bc0b956c5a at the 5d0b5dd8bf time. The most f7d1b73047 plausible one cc737998c9 was that 179e039c42 the youngest e68612a95f grandson was 9fd4c49c13 a dominant 7842c9bc31 alpha.4a54360be3674f9e

However, he had never 744ac98014 appeared in public, and f0644aed0a less than a year bf6405a2d3 after being taken into 4fedced4b1 the Baekse family, he e936b9bc63 went abroad to study, 6dd86099b5 so it remained a ef4bface3a theory.2e89a7e4e671c716

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What was certain 94a27ab246 was that the 59cde0c79e two grandsons, known fde9331886 as the eldest 1ec4e35ff3 and second sons, 17dead9f62 were recessive alphas. This was a widely 84e201b71b known fact.6ead05b4816cfa68

“Honestly, they say decb69e3f2 it’s studying abroad, 06c682babe but wasn’t it cc94b924ff practically exile?”a72226e0e5a8cf39

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Jaewon said while continuing ed12f14ff2 to eat.282cd6f2cdb08821

“But somehow, he 631172882d survived and recently 10578706bf joined Baekse Trading c5c9a9d474 as a director. It’s the 433290c307 smallest subsidiary a10ebbda08 of Baekse, b64a610820 but still… 62c0f8cca5 They say 8cbb60e4ec the Baekse 19923d350c chairman secretly e4eaa35e41 favors the 65008db75a youngest grandson.”4486287c9e345e17

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“Really?”b3b892e0b30cea1b

Sooha replied indifferently, 3d827135d3 but Jaewon kept 6313096c83 rambling.d4c98f93fcc63e5f

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“Yeah. So do you think 35e722445a the eldest and second 435149c9c4 sons would just sit 09c459a00f back? They probably came cebea66f96 here today to 18d7d0ac44 keep an eye 4ab92cd525 on the youngest a3e357d64e grandson.”243597419e68aa45

Now it made d4d977e592 sense.3efcdc84e2270e55

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No wonder it 1ec48cac2d seemed odd that 6dccc5c71c Baekse people came b4cd114070 all the way dbbf0e8bed here. It wasn’t an 01fdf59966 official event hosted 7480f0e7e3 by Cheonha, just 2a830b14b2 a private gathering b9c9feceac of a few 79128bf584 businessmen and entertainers. But if the reason c72a8dd142 they came was to 4ffab08a15 keep an eye on 54b3345981 the youngest grandson, it 07facc4741 was understandable.d7d70e51d623b751

Well, it 72782a39b6 has nothing f8cfa51c9e to do 81e64bdff6 with me.b904b8af764a7187

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Sooha clicked 3603dd049b his tongue 6041773046 and quickly d4d8e9e3f2 lost interest. Whether the 3d1ba3ed9d youngest grandson 824ca24728 was really 53571c5e72 a dominant bb4893ecf0 alpha or 3a6ac20f3f not didn’t 28b52cb11d matter. Alphas weren’t 3ff9ab9327 Sooha’s concern. The other sons 7e461640ac were the same. Whether they were recessive 195ec85af6 or not, whether the f0e586eedd youngest became a director c0ae11f34f or not—it was none b292863c18 of Sooha’s business.483f5582526a888f

“But what was 47923e94b7 the youngest grandson’s 4d61db853d name again? Baek… Baek… something.”b17003b403e44589

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But Jaewon cd0d4d04b3 was still 375e0fdcd0 on about b7e1a41d4f Baekse Group. When he started mentioning 78079ba24d the name of the 4312d9183a youngest grandson, which Sooha ec77de625b wasn’t curious about, he 723c4b3037 began to feel a c1de956483 bit annoyed.21509b0ac9364d28

“Of course, he’s 16d2090ac0 a Baek since a3324f0a65 he’s from Baekse 6bdfbbc5e9 Group.”3d141de62c9243ee

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“That’s true. Oh, what was it? The name was a c17a6707cf bit unusual.”b7d38032dbf630ac

Jaewon struggled to 3d4551b773 recall the name eb9795cd64 that lingered on c84d22e940 the tip of ca72924e8e his tongue.35cf7e15effb377e

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Whether he e563656be1 remembered or 8ea1032ffe not, Sooha 6355ed7e24 scanned a ded49d17b8 few people 6c6c636e0d passing by 5febdeae68 who were 93fc6a0084 his type. They, too, cast subtle fc9ac59bad glances at Sooha. They seemed ready to d02fa4eba3 open their arms if 20ddbed296 Sooha made any move.c6063f89456dd07b

He wanted to 853d492ded approach and talk, c7817cc8e8 but today wasn’t 949d4ce396 the day, so b6d429ecd5 he had to 14fa06bc74 be content with 8e57cd74dd just looking.85a6fbd677395df8

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This made the event 7bb1131040 even more boring. It felt like he’d d9738994da been there for quite da45e8ffdd a while, and he fdc4756a38 just wanted to go 7c5fe0d70b home.66afb80c6922f004

The thought 7cf843de42 of home 557effb34c made him 46be3452aa yawn.a7afbb4bfafa56d0

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As Sooha looked 3aa679c621 around the event aabbdedc13 hall, he spotted cacf2093ae a man’s back 7bf82055b0 standing out among 31b004bddd the crowd in bcfd36165c the distance. He couldn’t see clearly 1659d64db9 because of the people 029f2100f9 in front, but the bbb8f07d03 height was exceptional. A model? Otherwise, it ab21e5c880 was an 8d291ac806 inexplicable height 4f437c6f50 and physique.7091e24328d36236

‘But he seems c3cc2a689b familiar…’As he squinted to e86594c2d6 get a better look 8a4c9f35ce at the man’s face, 90571b70bd Jaewon, who was still eb66d9f3c8 trying to remember the 2aa6c89908 name, snapped his fingers.edc0864dc2326659

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“Ah! I remember! Baek Gongjun!”bc3238c525c961e2

Simultaneously, the man cea15fa3e0 standing about 10 9c50296732 meters away turned 5ab6048318 around. Their eyes met.6b10524cb94cb24a

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Crazy…f8d4443003c2411b

“Baek… Gongjun…?” 92df4d09e8 Jaewon, mistaking 04ee657915 Sooha’s reaction ab352fd7ba as agreement, 467e6fdb82 responded with a5bedff4ab an excited ce23c9babe voice. He said the name edcd92d2a1 was memorable because it a9d5ceb809 was similar to Snow 3f0a89a9f9 White (Baekseol Gongju in fa40077637 Korean), and he couldn’t a10aeddaed understand why he hadn’t 51d25844f0 remembered it sooner, continuing d103b8086a to chatter on his 467e0e79f5 own.0c56bccb4bcaa947

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‘Why is that guy 65841d716b here?’ Meanwhile, Sooha was 060e586599 so shocked by the 715017a321 unexpected appearance of the e8fa16d952 person that his mouth 8b37cf69cf hung open.b52a539cb704d266

Noticing his intense 87e5b2eea3 gaze, the man 55f5126dc1 on the opposite 020d9ebfdd side met his 94c6295433 eyes. His eyes cf300355e8 curved into 724d7831b3 a gentle 08afaedb26 smile without 339782cb73 a hint 072ed2b458 of surprise. It seemed like he 326935be3b had anticipated the meeting.68550fcf7c1d88a8

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As Sooha 4a188d6b42 stood there, 05cda5577d rooted like d6141d5c44 a stone, 0217a72f3a the man 3ffe22341f maintained eye d0b9af1d6b contact and 52d4ef5f4b headed toward 23f0bd2069 the balcony.28b0bf97f98525ae

I need to 6eaf4a88a9 meet Baek Gongjun 1a94df6c52 immediately.1045d8f47b3038bb

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Sooha, as if 16e22c96c9 entranced, handed his fe7564ed85 champagne glass to b972b4d4ab Jaewon and followed 32c3cd8e1e him.b33a8dfc9c4e7e4f

“What? Where are you going? Hey! Cheon Sooha!” He ab6f43c8c1 heard a voice 950bc2b3ea trying to stop 8311474efe him, but he d9415b06af didn’t have the 8e8abe80c7 mental capacity to e7ba890d15 respond right now.630fcb3426dd54ae

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“Hello, we meet 7ca51e5186 again.”2ffbbdd6f2ba4d5a

As soon a00afe11da as he 1ca9a041f8 stepped out 25949cd67a onto the f483f97c30 balcony, Sooha aa1ff85446 came face 61d1e86d85 to face 4ab0ba9058 with Gongjun, 8efd43b17f who was 0eeb6f3073 leaning against 2ccf7a8765 the glass 8e2759b448 railing. The sparkling 0f9fce88ca night view 479456b9f8 behind Gongjun cf342a1f46 made it 11f5bbbebb seem like 956d176d1e a scene c6255686a5 from a 91be1b48bc movie, but ce3aef9719 Sooha couldn’t ffa898b2f2 care less 7437f02f8e about that a6c1a25998 right now.defacd5e3bd44d8a

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All he 800f9104ee could do 808248fbce was gape c0d0de05da and point, cfa2d3cee1 stammering, “You, 7868296633 you…!”880fa943a0a6124f

‘He wasn’t 2d78ab793b a no-name a2a744ab99 entertainer?’90a58d1239345a68

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The youngest 9e0cf1ed0d grandson of 89d65b2939 Baekse Group, 26b5e3055e that Baek 8d3424fbba Gongjun, was 19c3bbf473 the lunatic 2bd2a9561a standing before c9e9941021 him! No wonder he had 8feb3d40fb asked if Sooha knew d034666b25 who he was and 9ff80c700e showed no interest even b4cd31e8c3 when offered money.a3f90dcd71fff9e0

The shock was secondary; ad65d24f79 another thought took root a6c52fb01e in his mind.b1e150db2931f4a3

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A one-night stand that b347afef2d was supposed to end e42603dcc2 as a mere incident efe3b8ea55 was only valid when cf3b27cf21 the other party was ed48f6bae8 an ordinary person with 1eece3b8eb no connection to him. But if 1e267c7b2d that person 6fc3095ec0 was a d162242b30 member of 92c532374c Baekse Group? That was a different d9c971a1a6 matter.ef4d9570aa5af067

Ignoring a baseless b48cc83a5b rumor like ‘someone 5f3e2b0898 breached Cheon Sooha’s a09a33c9e9 back’ was one c4bd48a9bc thing, but ‘Baekse f6eb3ad14d Group’s youngest grandson 57c8a85690 breached Cheon Sooha’s 88c17a1a9f back’ was a 93d0d44558 whole different story.a0995be8b747fc20

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It would quickly transform 995f6bb8d6 from an absurd tabloid 1804e9da71 into a sensational rumor 6d6c889a97 that piqued people’s interest.3de89d3bd87af158

If such a rumor 64fb7b3251 started circulating, people would 5f83627cca be puzzled about a 97b831e585 dominant alpha like Sooha 8197212888 being the one penetrated, cc04749436 aside from the embarrassment.2893b934d16a3d52

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If he 9b01298b41 was lucky, 964142c5e7 it might ce4793aca6 be dismissed 8d0352537e as a 8ac7e4e5f6 personal sexual a3cdc33dfd preference, but 72b4380941 if not, 00a91cb3c9 it could c7afb4a754 lead to 4bb4e1f8d8 controversy about dee552dfba his trait.abaccf7a756c8350

It might sound e3f6c95452 like an exaggeration, b99ea03a3b but it was 1966faabd2 entirely possible. That’s how rumors 00a2c76889 work. A little slip of 0790351c32 the tongue, and they 9132ed9f20 snowball, and if a d68bcb0958 journalist inflates it to 593c19c4c2 suit the public’s taste, f9eecb6db0 people flock to it.5aef529d1c4af24b

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‘I can’t let that 2bd2f3d8f8 happen.’73be182259531e42

With a determined 8afe6b7a70 expression, Sooha strode c323207eb4 toward Gongjun. In the 01c843f48f blink of ed1f58cf82 an eye, ba6b91e19c he trapped b0150cee6f him against e222575866 the railing a59a03ebda with both f23ffb24e9 hands.e577c8a73a5efa8c

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As he looked up 146c1ab518 with a fierce gaze, e43f0a9f23 Gongjun, filling his field e132b6f11c of vision, smiled without c19c53c209 a hint of surprise.d41ecc654ad591c1

“Haha, you’re quite 2c4f7ff0f6 aggressive.”e550347d654e81db

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“Let me ask a6335606a1 you one more 51d9fb76d5 time for confirmation. You remember what 6058f1e777 I said today, d204069189 right?”fd0996d1d999397f

“Of course.”f51bd396c13907fb

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“Then there’s no e00598927d need to explain c2b2f5c3a7 twice. I’d like 91f2ca571b you to e8b4604366 treat me 0eefde7550 as if cbe8077d6d you don’t b98915f2a7 know me 08eda392c7 from now a39d280846 on.”c9382f424a3e49b9

“Hmm… And why should e9411a8675 I do that?”e7b47273e6be6f39

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“Haha. So you 42cb1661bc can go bfaab6a081 around bragging da2b7e4665 that you 348850548b took my 90abfc3e20 virginity?”762894eda36c6f73

The conversation c1a2ee9afb was anything eaf5e3ddae but friendly 3f35d75da0 despite the 2e9c6fb0c0 seemingly intimate e634b139c1 posture.d9cfe0f7f25bb626

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While Gongjun’s upper 966b4c466f body was trapped 1c9c5794fd between Sooha’s arms, f4d7d8346c his lower body 34496cea49 was positioned between 6a69d9b127 Gongjun’s legs. It looked like e279c32344 a lover’s embrace 89f471abba to anyone watching, c61d5e6e2a but the two 14adf6e549 seemed oblivious to 8f8898baa5 it.6dafd83c96f7e3c8

“Sooha, you’re… quite amusing.” 42eba65671 You only think of fed21f2195 one thing and not aaf69f2374 the other, don’t you? Gongjun chuckled, d158a9b207 covering his c3e2088baa mouth with 9c8290f7f3 a neatly 6e7b7ef672 clenched fist.0f467bc2d2461b47

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What is he bd24a19d2f talking about now? Sooha frowned 5cd99bf506 and stared b77ae0f31a at him, 3737a03548 and Gongjun’s 0444bfa4d9 bright face 0b9fb28bd2 spoke softly.e29ed857ed40b834

“Is that really 4fb2322fd5 the only thing 583fe8f686 Sooha wants to e99e71e680 hide?”e463879d4057bde8

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“If you have d6df552779 something to say, ca75ac86dd say it properly. Don’t confuse 58119f8270 people by e0f13dd26c beating around c575df25b9 the bush 535cdccdd6 like that.”df5d6c9566e7cea1

But there 2e7ae986c9 was no f085a126d9 immediate response 8d353ddd21 other than 26cf0d86dc a smile. After glaring at 9a5986e243 Gongjun for a 4aa9e1cc4b moment, Sooha sighed c74ef0ad58 and stepped back.90b73b2f5608e451

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