Chapter Text
"Well now, how unexpected."
From a roof across Minosoft, a man in a black suit watched as Kim Dokja ran frantically to hide behind Lee Hyunsung.
"I was a little disappointed when he didn't throw him over the railings... But I suppose it would be a waste." He added with a ravenous look in his eyes.
It had been the right decision to follow the Iron Blood's advice and spy on Yoo Joonghyuk, after all.
Another man joined him at the edge of the roof. For a normal human it would be impossible to discern what was happening from this distance. But they didn't need to worry about such limitations.
"It's pathetic, letting a human act so arrogantly." The second man began, "He should just kill and eat them both. It's humiliating to see how low our kin has fallen..." narrowing his eyes, the man added thoughtfully, "But the intel about Yoo Joonghyuk's weakened state was true. He hasn't even noticed us watching... Asmodeus, this might be the best opportunity to get rid of that nuisance. Both of them, in fact."
Asmodeus eyes arched viciously.
"How eager you are, Agares. But even so, it would be too risky to take both him and that hunter at once."
Still Agares was right.
It was natural for the other two not to detect them, but for Yoo Joonghyuk to remain oblivious of their presence even when they were this close...
His eyes shifted from Yoo Joonghyuk to the livid human hiding behind the hunter, the latter now pointing a finger at the glowering vampire.
"Kekeke... That human seems quite brave. To think that that Yoo Joonghyuk could be treated like this..."
"It must be because he has that hunter there to protect him." Agares mused, "And Yoo Joonghyuk's on a tight leash."
"Still, it's hard to come by such an energetic dish. Maybe it would be interesting to include him in the menu for the upcoming banquet. The last ones have been expiring too quickly..."
"I don't enjoy playing with such unruly food." Agares retorted with a stubborn look. "It is too messy."
To that, Asmodeus let out a throaty laugh.
"If that were indeed true, you wouldn't be part of Gourmet, now isn't that so?"
Agares huffed through his nose. But he didn't deny it.
Instead, a terrifying smile spread on his lips, sharp fangs poking out. It matched Asmodeus' own in viciousness.
"Well, I suppose a little struggle gets their blood running."
Asmodeus snickered, his eyes lingering greedily on Yoo Joonghyuk for a moment. He could almost smell the tantalizing scent of first-rate blood.
It could be easy, taking him down now.
If only not for that hunter...
Asmodeus cast one last look at the intriguing human, feeling a sudden urge to bite into that throat.
***
"Dokja-ssi, please calm down! You're-"
Calm down?!
What kind of person could be calm after all of this?
"Hyunsung-ssi, I know I sound crazy, and I know you barely know me, but please hear me out. That bastard is a vampire - I can prove it to you! Here, look at my neck! He bit me yesterday, see? And just now, he almost pushed me-"
"What?!"
Hyunsung, who had seemed a mixture of concern, confusion and remorse, suddenly changed drastically, pulling Kim Dokja closer by the shoulders and inspecting the wound on his neck.
"What have you done, Joonghyuk-ssi?!"
Kim Dokja was surprised.
He never expected it could be this easy to convince someone that his colleague was a vampire.
He looked at Lee Hyunsung a little askew, but continued.
"...It is as you see, Hyunsung-ssi. This maniac attac-"
"Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi." Lee Hyunsung began and Kim Dokja started feeling a little annoyed at constantly being cut-off. "Do you know how serious this is? You violated the agreement!" With clenched jaws, Lee Hyunsung continued, "I hope you understand that I have no choice but to tell our leader about it... You've broken your word."
At that, Yoo Joonghyuk's expression shifted to something murderous and it felt like the oxygen around them disappeared.
"You won't even know when your head goes flying."
What the fuck.
Vampire or no, this man was a complete lunatic.
That was what Kim Dokja would be thinking if it wasn't for the fact that he was too focused on remembering how to breathe.
What was this horrible feeling pressing down on him?
Like an invisible wall was crushing him from all sides.
"Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi..." Lee Hyunsung stood his ground, glaring back at the man, a silver light emanating lightly from his body. "I truly don't wish to fight you!"
Yoo Joonghyuk's mouth twisted into a derisive smile.
"Of course not. Because you will die."
It was as this stare-off had reached its peak when the two men, absorbed in their own little feud, heard a strange sound.
"Gasp!"
Behind Lee Hyunsung, Kim Dokja was hunched over, on his knees, grasping his throat like a fish on the shore.
Immediately, Lee Hyunsung retracted his status with a panicked face.
"D-Dokja-ssi!" He ran over to the gasping man, placing a hand on his back.
"O-oh, no, I'm so sorry! What have I done... Joonghyuk-ssi, quickly! Stop!"
However, Yoo Joonghyuk remained unmoving, calmly observing the struggling mortal with indifference while radiating his aura.
Then their eyes met.
Ah.
Even in this situation, Kim Dokja dared to glare at him. As if he was in a position where he could afford to be this arrogant. When he was just a powerless human.
He truly knows no fear.
Just because of that...
"Joonghyuk-ssi?! What are you-" Lee Hyunsung panicked as the bloodlust emanating from Yoo Joonghyuk grew more intense.
I'll show you.
One, two - Yoo Joonghyuk calmly stepped closer to the kneeling human, coming to a halt right before him.
Your place...
He glared down at the human with glowing golden irises.
...is down there.
Kim Dokja had admirably held on to his consciousness for quite a while, but it seems this was his limit.
"Cough!" He hunched violently forward, as a bloody cough escaped him, filling the ground before them with sprinkles of blood.
"J-Joonghyuk-ssi, please! He will die!"
Yoo joonghyuk looked at him levelly.
"And?"
At that reply, Lee Hyunsung aimed a vicious glare his way. But in contrast to that look, he spoke the word softly.
"Please." Lee Hyunsung bowed. "I'll consider this our secret, so please."
After a moment, Yoo Joonghyuk slowly retracted his aura.
In that very instant, Kim Dokja's stiff body fell limply forward.
"Dokja-ssi!"
Lee Hyunsung grabbed the unconscious man, gently laying him on his back. His breathing seemed concerningly irregular.
"Oh no, he is completely passed out..."
Yoo Joonghyuk scoffed at the scene, starting to make his way to the exit.
"You are pathetic, as always. He's just unconscious. Even a weak mortal like him won't die from only this much."
"But he's sick!"
Yoo Joonghyuk raised a brow, as though not sure why that mattered.
"He's had a high fever since earlier, Joonghyuk-ssi. I noticed when we shook hands... And now that I heard what happened yesterday, it makes sense." He shot Yoo Joonghyuk a admonishing glare, "You should have been able to tell this much. If he's already in such a weakened state, of course it would be dangerous!"
And even if he wasn't- but Lee Hyunsung left that for another time.
"This situation is really serious. I will have to report it."
Yoo Joonghyuk almost growled.
"You lying bastard-!"
"No. I meant what I said. I would keep today a secret - which was bad enough. But not what you did to him yesterday. That, I can't."
Out of the air, a black sword materialized in Yoo Joonghyuk's hand and Lee Hyunsung's eyes widened in shock. He quickly amended in a small panic.
"B-but!"
Getting up from where he had been kneeling beside Kim Dokja, he looked directly at Yoo Joonghyuk.
"I can keep it a secret. All of this. But - only if - and only if - you promise me that you will take responsibility for what you have done to him."
Yoo Joonghyuk looked at him with a blank face.
"You must be joking."
"I'm dead serious."
They stood staring at each other for a while longer.
"Joonghyuk-ssi. Please consider what you have done. You even went as far as leaving a sigil on him! And that's-"
At the mention of that, Yoo joonghyuk's eyes went wide.
"What?"
A sigil?
He left one?
That's impossible. I'm sure I-
Suddenly, he hurried towards Kim Dokja's side like he was possessed.
"W-wait, Joonghyuk-ssi, what are you-!"
Ignoring Lee Hyunsung's protests, he grabbed Kim Dokja's shirt and ripped the collar open wide enough to see the crook of his neck.
And sure enough, there it was. No mistaking it.
The sigil. His blood's sigil.
"..."
Watching this with growing concern, Lee Hyunsung spoke.
"I suspected you two knew each other when we met earlier, since even I could faintly feel your aura from him... But I never imagined it was because you left an actual sigil..." Looking at the unconscious man, Lee Hyunsung added, "You know what bearing a blood sigil means, Joonghyuk-ssi. And he's just a normal civilian. That's why you have to-"
BANG
A loud sound reverberated on the rooftop.
Yoo Joonghyuk's fist had hit the concrete floor just beside Kim Dokja's body, making Lee Hyunsung stiffen with worry.
"Shut up."
Yoo joonghyuk shot the unconscious man a pained glare. He bit his lip in frustration until blood trickled down his chin, dripping onto Kim Dokja's pale cheek.
That damned, pathetic hunter was right.
There was no choice.
He had made a serious mistake this time.
A man's scarred face and mocking smile flashed in his memory and he had to control himself not to let out anymore of his aura again.
Dammit. It was all because of what that bastard had done...! Because of that we-!
For a while, the air filled with nothing but the muffled sound of the city below.
Then, Yoo Joonghyuk let out a world-weary sigh, pinching the space between his brows.
If Lee Hyunsung kept this a secret from her. Only then.
After an agonizing stretch of silence, Yoo Joonghyuk began to speak while smoothly gathering up the human's limp body from the ground. Lee Hyunsung watched this warily but remained unmoving.
"If that woman catches wind of this," with shimmering, golden eyes, Yoo Joonghyuk looked at the other man and declared, "at that time, I will kill you and this human myself."
***
"My father wants me to start taking over the company next year, but I feel like I'm too young, you know? I just turned 29. There is still so much fun stuff that I want to do before I'm tied down to a big role or marriage... But I'm not saying I don't want to... eventually. Hey, you get it don't you? I have a feeling that Sooyoung-ssi and I are similar. People who just want to have fun, yeah?"
He reached out and placed his hand beside hers. Han Sooyoung maintained her strained smile, smoothly pulling away to grasp her cup of iced coffee.
Then, the man suddenly dropped the bomb on her.
"Sooyoung-ssi, you're a writer, right?"
Han Sooyoung's eyes went up to meet the handsome chaebol whose name she had already forgotten.
"Yes."
"You mentioned before that you have published some of your work. That's amazing. What kind of stuff do you write? Fiction? Maybe I've read it."
She snorted internally. That was highly unlikely.
The man smiled, leaning a little over the table.
"I'm an avid reader myself, though I might not look like it. I tend to lean towards non-fiction - management, stocks, economy - but I occasionally enjoy some fiction."
So it had finally come to that. The eternal deal-breaker she could never seem to overcome in every date. Not that she was that regretful about it this time.
Han Sooyoung swirled her drink with a straw, thinking if maybe she shouldn't have come after all.
Then, she parted her lips.
"Webnovels."
The man's smile stuttered and he leaned back on his chair. After a beat, he spoke.
"That's... nice."
Riiiiiiing
As if to save her from the impending cringe, her phone rang loudly.
"Excuse me." She motioned calmly to the man who nodded politely in return, and smoothly accepted the incoming call with an internal sigh.
But her eyes faltered as soon as she read the name on her screen.
Yoo Sangah?
She had a bad feeling.
"What is it?"
A few moments passed as she listened.
Then,
"What?!"
Han Sooyoung had gotten up so abruptly from her chair it was nearly sent flying.
Every movement in the cafe ceased for a moment, all guests throwing disconcerted looks her way, especially the man across from her.
But she didn't give a shit. Not after what Yoo Sangah had said.
"What the fuck do you mean 'he collased?!" She continued yelling into her phone in as much as hysterical tone as before. "What happened?! A fever?? Wait, why was he- don't we have labor laws for this kind of shit? He stayed late yesterday and the day befor- agh, whatever! Just - just stay there. I'll come pick him up asap."
With a sigh she pressed the 'end' button on the call.
Fuck. That damned Kim Dokja.
Sometimes Han Sooyoung felt the paradoxical desire to kill and shelter this man all at once.
"U-uhm, excuse me-"
"What?" She snapped her neck towards her date, all pretenses from earlier gone. "What is it?!"
The man that had been shamelessly buttering her up and bragging about his wealth shrunk in his chair like a neglected plant.
"W-well, it looks like something happened... Maybe we should just call this whole thing off?"
It was an expected reaction. Maybe she was acting a little bit unhinged.
Still, Han Sooyoung shot him a derisive look before picking up her iced coffee and slurping loudly on the straw.
After an agonizing stretch of this, she slammed the drink on the table.
"Since you suggested it. You can have the honor of showing off your wealth by getting the bill."
Before the other could even think of protesting, Han Sooyoung was already out of the building and sprinting towards her sportscar like a marathon runner.
That fucking dork. I'll kill him today, if it's the last thing I-!
That was what she thought while opening the driver's door with trembling hands.
Han Sooyoung was well aware of Kim Dokja's legendary ability to self-neglect.
And it was certainly not the first time he had been on the brink.
But it was the first time he had collapsed in public.
The way she saw it, he was like an animal.
When he was vulnerable, Kim Dokja would hide himself from the world or feign ignorance. It was mostly obvious to her when that happened, but she tried to respect that stupid habit as much as possible. That was the line he had sat between them and she observed it with care. Besides, it's not like she was all that different in that aspect...
Han Sooyoung had been in his life for a long time, and now, he was the closest to a family she ever had had. Ever since High School she had been privy to him and, because of that, she had seen him hit rock bottom. It wasn't a memory she liked to recall. But it granted her the privileged insight into the inner workings of Kim Dokja.
And from that insight she had gathered, already all those years ago, that this man was like glass.
One foul move, and he would shatter.
That's why her heart seemed to be about to rip itself out of her ribcage.
"Goddammit, why won't people move!" She hit the car horn with a vengeance, like all the traffic would suddenly vanish if she did. When she did get some leeway, she sped up way beyond the limit. It was a miracle she didn't get pulled over.
Han Sooyoung left her car parked haphazardly and leapt out towards the odious entrance of this cursed company she had heard so much shit about.
"I need to go up. I'm meeting someone." She dumped on the receptionist without further elaboration
"...Do you have identification, ma'am?"
Han Sooyoung grumpily dug her hand into the pocket of her coat when she realized she had left her wallet in her purse. In the car.
Her eye twitched.
"Why do you need my ID for going into this dingy company, anyway? What's the point of having such tight outside security if you're letting your employees collapse from exhaustion!"
"M-ma'am, please calm yourself!"
"Don't you tell me to calm down, damn you!"
The poor receptionist fumbled helplessly with her hands in the air as it seemed like Han Sooyoung would crawl on top of the desk at any moment.
Fortunately, a dependable person came just in time to avert disaster.
"Sooyoung-ssi!"
Yoo Sangah reached her, pulling her firmly back by the shoulder.
"Calm yourself." She said strictly.
"You damn bimb-"
"I'm sorry for this. She is with me." Yoo Sangah smiled politely at the receptionist. "Could you please grant us passage? We are in a hurry."
The receptionist shot Han Sooyoung a reluctant look. Then, she took out a visitor card.
"R-right. If you say so, Sangah-ssi..."
"Thank you." Yoo Sangah bowed and dragged Han Sooyoung through the gate by the arm.
"Let me go already."
"What were you thinking?" Yoo Sangah reprimanded as they got onto the elevator. "Do you want to create more problems for Dokja-ssi? Causing a scene here won't really help."
Han Sooyoung bit harshly down on the lemon candy she had anxiously thrown into her mouth.
"Shut up. You should have been there already instead of dilly dallying God knows where. How is he?"
At that question, Yoo Sangah's mouth formed a thin line of concern.
"It's not looking too good..." She sighed. "He has a very high fever. Frankly, he should go to the hospital."
Hospital...
Han Sooyoung eyes trembled imperciptibly.
Not there.
"I'll take him somewhere better, so just lead the way and stop talking to me."
Despite her gruff tone, Yoo Sangah didn't protest. Instead, she shot Han Sooyoung a sympathetic look. It annoyed her so much she wanted to take Yoo Sangah by the shoulders and shake that look from her face. But she was too focused on glaring a hole into the doors of the elevator to bother.
Finally, they reached the floor of the nurse's office.
If Han Sooyoung had been alone, she might have torn down the walls until she found the right room. Fortunately for Minosoft's walls and doors, Yoo Sangah was there to guide (and restrain) her.
"It's in there-"
"Outta my way."
Pushing by Yoo Sangah with a rough shove, Han Sooyoung slammed herself through the door.
Kim Dokja, you goddamn rat! You squid bastard! You-! What are you thinking?! Why didn't you call me! Are you an idiot?! I'll kill you!
All of the things she had wanted to spit at him in a fit of rage evaporated the moment she laid eyes on the scene before her.
Instead of insults, what came out of her very displeased mouth was,
"Why are you here?"
"S-Sooyoung-ssi!" Yoo Sangah followed into the sick-bay, closing the door softly after herself. "Please don't be loud..."
Ignoring her, Han Sooyoung approached the gloomy-looking overgrown emo-man that was lurking by Kim Dokja's bed with a serious look on his face. He had his back to them and his face was half-hidden in shadows, since the lighting was dim and there were no open windows.
"I asked," she began again, coming to a halt just before the man (and trying not to be too conscious of how dwarfed she felt by his height) "why. are. you. here?"
The man who had had mostly his back towards them, turned to meet her with an arrogant look but his eyes widened slightly in shock as he took in her appearance.
It was Yoo Sangah who spoke first.
"Sooyoung-ssi, that man is the one who brought Dokja-ssi in after he collapsed, and I asked him to stay while I went down to fetch you. Maybe you have heard of him, he is-"
"I know." Oh, she knew him well enough.
Taking a step closer in an attempt of intimidating him, she continued.
"So, you are saying he was the last one together with Kim Dokja before he collapsed?"
The accusation was plain in her voice.
Yoo Joonghyuk returned a glare as vicious as her own. But again, it was Yoo Sangah who answered in his stead.
"That's not it, Sooyoung-ssi! Dokja-ssi collapsed because of a fever, and Joonghyuk-ssi brought him her-"
"Oh, shup up. As if I'll believe that."
If there was one thing Kim Dokja was good at, it was enduring. Like a damn cockroach, he could endure most anything.
But even for someone like that, this bastard would be too much.
"She's right." Finally, Yoo Joonghyuk decided to speak. "He collapsed from a fever and I brought him here."
Then, stepping aside, Kim Dokja's sleeping form was exposed to Han Sooyoung. She almost instantly forgot everyone else in the room and went to the bedside.
She placed a hand on his pale face and winced.
He was burning up.
"Did you give him something?"
"I was about to give him medicine when I heard that you had arrived. I'll do it right awa-."
"I already fed him."
At that unexpected comment, they both turned towards the man, now standing at the back.
"I fed him... the medicine." Yoo Joonghyuk clarified with a blank face.
The other two exchanged a look before Han Sooyoung spoke in a chilling voice.
"Yoo Sangah. Give me a moment alone with him."