An elderly man with silver hair sat in a wheelchair. I Hun was pushing him, and when Ryu Seonyeon came into view, the old man slightly inclined his head in a polite greeting — the same gentle, almost apologetic gesture as the last time, when he had come to offer his personal apologies.
— You've sacrificed too much because of us, — O Gunsan said quietly.
— Leave it, — Seonyeon brushed him off curtly. — Let's get straight to the point. You've heard what's happening?
The chairman nodded; his voice was calm, yet the undercurrent of worry was unmistakable.
— Yes. The date they set has moved up by roughly a month and a half. We tried to confirm it through our contact inside Nebra Labs, but things are far murkier than expected.
Seonyeon frowned. — What did you find out?
O Gunsan hesitated before answering.
— They claim to know nothing at all about a meeting scheduled two weeks from now.
— Nothing? But the invitations have already been sent. We received ours less than an hour ago.
— Exactly. — The old man sighed heavily. — Normally, such an event requires weeks of preparation — security, staff, transport, accommodations. But this time, there's no sign of any of that. Even logistics are blank.
Kang Jihan, standing beside them, scowled.
— Then the order hasn't been given yet. Or they're hiding it even from their own people.
So Raon exhaled slowly.
— It could be spontaneous. Or a test. Either way, it breaks all of their usual patterns.
O Gunsan rubbed his knee thoughtfully, then said firmly:
— Until we understand their intent, attending that invitation would be reckless.
The words cut through the air like a blade. Jihan's head snapped up; his eyes went cold.
— After everything we've been through, you're suggesting we just back away?
— Not back away, — the chairman countered sharply. — I've no intention of surrendering. But haste kills.
— Caution is a luxury for those who've lost nothing, — Jihan murmured. — We've waited long enough.
Tension coiled between them. Seonyeon stepped in before it snapped.
— Hey. Hold on. Let the chairman dig for intel — we'll prepare in the meantime.
O Gunsan's eyes narrowed; the lines around them deepened.
— "We"? Who exactly is "we"?
— Me and Jihan, — Seonyeon said evenly. — Two of us, both immune to hypnosis. That's already an advantage.
The old man raised an eyebrow.
— Ryu Seonyeon… you truly mean to go with him?
— Yes. I've got a ticket too. And honestly, I want this finished — soon.
Lo Dan, standing behind I Hun, lifted a hand.
— Wait, but no notification came to your phone. Until now, only Hyungnim Raon was getting them.
Seonyeon flipped open his old clamshell phone, studded with rhinestones, and scrolled through the inbox.
— Huh… nothing new.
He glanced up sharply.
— Raon, did you delete something?
— Didn't touch a thing, — Raon shook his head.
Without a word, Jihan took the phone and began checking it. The message folder contained only Mateo's filthy, obsessive letters — twisted declarations of love — but no trace of an invitation.
— So he sent it to everyone but me? — Seonyeon muttered. — After all those disgusting notes?
No one managed to answer before the phone buzzed again on the table.
Seonyeon opened the message — and his face tightened in disgust.
"Hello, dear. I thought it rude of me to keep calling without a gift.
I'm preparing something special. It'll take about a month.
Come, won't you? And bring your bodyguard too.
We're friends already, aren't we? ^^"
Seonyeon froze. The revulsion that poured from those words was almost tangible.
— Why a month? — he murmured, mostly to himself. — Everyone else — two weeks, but me — a month. What's he doing in that time?
Lo Dan ventured cautiously:
— Maybe he plans to test the first five guests, and then you. He's… obsessed with you, hyungnim.
Seonyeon didn't reply. Something deeper stirred in his gut — an intuition darker than fear.
The door opened, and O Leia entered — pale as chalk.
— News just came in, — she said softly. — Nebra Labs has activated the underground sector.
The air in the room froze solid. No one spoke.
Jihan and I Hun turned ashen, as if the blood had drained from their veins. Seonyeon didn't need an explanation — he knew they had been there before, in those lightless laboratories.
He stepped closer and grasped Jihan's hand. It was damp and cold.
— I think we all understand, — he said quietly. — But I'll say it anyway. The "gift" Mateo is preparing… it's probably those five VIPs invited for the meeting.
Silence answered him. Even O Gunsan only closed his eyes, as though afraid that agreement might escape his lips.
— I don't want to keep guessing, — Seonyeon went on. — So I'm going to call him.
Every head turned toward him. Raon frowned.
— Excuse me?
— I'll call him. Ask directly. If he's planning murder, let him hear my voice.
The old man frowned. — You've avoided contact all this time—
— And what of it? — Seonyeon replied calmly. — Better to choose our moment than let him set the rules.
He set the phone on the table and switched to speaker. Raon silently produced a recorder.
Rings echoed once… twice… three times. Then a click — and a soft, almost affectionate voice filled the room.
— Mr. Ryu Seonyeon?
A smile — both genuine and sinister — curved through every word.
— It's you. How nice to hear you. I should've prepared your present sooner. I've been far too slow.
— What kind of present? — Seonyeon's tone was ice.
— Ah, you'll see when you come. It's not ready yet.
That word — ready — made everyone glance at one another.
— Don't disappoint me, Mateo, — Seonyeon said coolly. — If I don't like your gift, I'll eat you instead.
— Ha-ha-ha! — Mateo laughed. — At last, some genuine interest. You sounded so detached last time.
Seonyeon grimaced. He wanted to scrub that voice off his skin.
— Don't tell me you're playing with blood again, — he added.
— Playing? — Mateo chuckled softly. — It's medicine. A useful serum that prevents necrosis in people like us.
At that word — necrosis — Seonyeon's fingers went cold. Necrosis? For artificially created vampires, maybe. But not for him. Which meant only one thing: Mateo wasn't bitten. He was made.
— What's it made of? — he asked quietly.
Mateo laughed again.
— Of what we need to live. Of what flows inside others.
Everyone understood.
Jihan tensed; the muscles in his neck twitched. Seonyeon stayed outwardly calm.
— Then why wait a month? — he asked. — Give it to me now.
— Can't, my love, — Mateo's voice turned velvet. — Two weeks to gather the "ingredients," two more to finish the brew.
Seonyeon closed his eyes. No explanation was needed. Mateo planned to turn the VIP guests into raw material.
— A whole month is too long, — he said coldly. — Do something else instead.
— Does time even matter to us? — Mateo purred.
That was when an idea struck Seonyeon. He leaned closer, softening his voice — almost seductive.
— What if I want to see you sooner?
A pause stretched on the line.
— You… mean that?
— Do I sound like I'm joking? — Seonyeon smiled faintly. — You've been courting me so insistently — maybe it's time I find out who you really are.
A low, hoarse chuckle.
— Amusing. What changed your mind?
— Boredom, — he said. — And curiosity.
The tone on the other end shifted, wary now. Seonyeon struck the final blow.
— Just don't think you can surprise me. You're no noble heir, Mateo. You're a counterfeit.
— …A counterfeit?
— You were made in a lab, — he said evenly. — Im Chinthe merely used you.
Silence. Then a restrained, trembling breath through the receiver.
— How… do you know that?
— I know more than you think, — Seonyeon said, and hung up.
The snap of the phone's lid cracked through the room like thunder.
No one moved. A minute passed before Jihan suddenly grabbed Seonyeon and pulled him close, his voice breaking:
— Don't you dare go there. Got it?
Seonyeon touched his shoulder gently.
— It's fine. I'm not alone.
Raon was the first to speak.
— What now?
— We prepare, — Seonyeon answered. — We'll go there and record everything. Every step. Let the world see what they've done.
His words rang like an order. Even the old chairman didn't object.
Then I Hun spoke, his tone unexpectedly subdued:
— It's strange. Jihan and I were orphans — no one would have fought for us. But those five VIPs… they're rich, powerful. If they vanish, the world will explode. Why risk that?
— Maybe they've run out of material, — Lo Dan said quietly. — Or they're cleaning up witnesses.
Seonyeon nodded, thoughtful.
— Or maybe they're hiding something even worse.
O Gunsan's voice grew heavy.
— Nebra Labs spends billions trying to fix the defects in artificial vampires. If they find a way to eliminate side effects, they won't need donors anymore. But until then — they're still searching.
Leia spoke softly, looking straight at Seonyeon.
— If Mateo truly believes the answer lies in you…
— Then that's all the more reason for me to go, — he cut her off. — This concerns me directly.
Jihan pulled away sharply.
— Who walks willingly into the hands of someone who wants him dead?
— You do, — Seonyeon replied calmly. — And I won't let him touch any of you.
Silence fell. Then Raon said:
— To be ready in two weeks, we'll need to mobilize — mercenaries, gear—
— Even if we're not ready, — Seonyeon interrupted, — we're still going.
No one argued. They all understood: the point of no return had already been crossed.
Outside, rain once again lashed the windows — and in its rhythm, there was something that sounded like a countdown.