Jae Min lingered near the door, jaw tight, watching them both like he expected the table to explode.
"Do you mind waiting outside, a father and son need a talk, Jae Min," Ji-Won said without looking.
A long pause.
Then the soft snick of the door shutting behind them.
Silence settled like dust before Ji-Won finally spoke. "You've let emotions cloud your judgment."
Ares didn't flinch. "If doing my job with integrity counts as emotion, then yes."
His father smiled thinly. "You think you're better than this place. Better than me."
"No. Just not afraid of you anymore."
That made Ji-Won chuckle quiet, cruel. "You forget whose blood runs in your veins."
Ares's hands curled slightly on the armrest, but his voice remained calm. "And you forget I built the last five years of this company without you lifting a single finger."
Ji-Won leaned forward now, sharp eyes gleaming. "Built it using what I gave you. My name. My money. My empire."
"No. I rebuilt it after the mess you left. I cleaned up the ashes you lit on fire." Ares's voice dropped. "I saw the deals you buried. The names. The payments. The people."
Ji-Won's gaze narrowed. "Tread carefully."
"Why?" Ares met his eyes. "You planning to kill me like you killed your brother?"
Silence crashed like thunder between them.
For a moment, Ji-Won looked less like a father and more like a man who'd spent too many years walking through shadows.
"I've made sacrifices," Ji-Won said coldly. "For this family. For this company. You think you can wear this name without blood on your hands? You're a child."
"I'd rather lose the name than wear it in blood."
They stared at each other, years of unspoken pain and buried resentment hanging in the air.
Finally, Ji-Won stood, smoothing down his sleeves. "You think love will save you. That girl what's her name? Mira?" He sneered. "You've already made your first mistake."
Ares's jaw tightened, but he said nothing.
"Let me remind you, son." Ji-Won stepped closer, voice quiet but heavy. "This world doesn't reward goodness. It devours it."
Then he left.
The moment the door closed behind him, Ares slumped slightly, like the air had been knocked from his lungs.
He sat in silence.
The walls closed in tighter.
That night, Ares didn't go home. Instead, he drove through the sleeping city, windows down, engine low. His thoughts raced louder than the engine.
He parked by the river.
Let the wind cut across his face.
And finally, finally, allowed himself to feel everything he couldn't show in that room.
He leaned against the steering wheel, eyes closed.
He wasn't a boy anymore.
But in moments like this, he still felt like one trying to make his father see him, trying to find his place in a house full of shadows and locked doors.
He'd wanted to change the system from within.
Now he wasn't sure the system hadn't already changed him.
His phone buzzed.
A text from Mira.
File sent. Let me know if you need anything else.
Her tone was neutral. Cold. Professional.
He typed back:
Got it. Thanks.
But he didn't send it.
Instead, he stared at the blinking cursor, wondering when everything had gotten this far, and whether it was too late to go back.
Or if he even wanted to.