The grand front door of the Lee estate closed with a soft, final click. The sound echoed in the deathly silence of the foyer, louder than any slam could have been. Master Hwang and Rinwoo were gone.
The space they left behind felt cavernous and empty, heavy with the ghosts of Rinwoo's quiet presence and the echoes of Taemin's shattered sobs.
Mr. Lee stood rigid for a moment, the events of the night settling like a bitter poison in his veins. His sharp eyes, cold with fury and humiliation, found Taekyun one last time. The glare was a promise of a reckoning to come, a silent vow that the shame brought upon the Lee name would be addressed with brutal efficiency. Without a word, he turned on his heel and strode out the main door, presumably to offer a few last, hollow words of parting to Master Hwang, a performance of civility to the very end.
The moment the door closed behind his father, the spell in the foyer broke.
