"What did you come here for suddenly?" - Richard asked coldly, but Christoph did not
answer. Instead, he just said briefly,
"Return it."
Chris's curt and blunt words made Richard raise an eyebrow.
"What?"
"Are you trying to joke with me?" Christoph's voice dropped. The gun he had taken from the
man earlier spun in his hand.
Richard stared at Christoph's hand, feeling no threat, and spoke.
"If you're talking about the friend you came with, you're in the wrong place. Besides, given
the current situation, it seems you're the one who needs to explain."
Richard gestured towards the inside of the bar. However, Christoph didn't look in that
direction. He stared intently at Richard, his eyes narrowing and his lips curling coldly, his
voice low and unclear whether in anger or sarcasm.
"Explain? Understood. I'm here to blame you for not managing your subordinates."
Richard tilted his head slightly in confusion, waiting for Christoph to continue.
"Your men intentionally harmed my horse. I dealt with them in my way, but you still bear
responsibility."
"Your horse?"
Richard frowned and asked again. He seemed to be trying to understand what was happening.
A man standing nearby approached Richard and whispered something in his ear. Time
passed, and information about the incident in the stables reached them.
Hearing what the man said, Richard nodded, saying, "Aha," as if understanding. He looked
back at Christoph with a serious expression.
"It seems Moritz's idiots did something stupid. Three of them are in casts all over, two can't
leave their hospital beds for a while, and one is lucky if he survives. The price paid for that
horse was too high."
Richard spoke calmly. Staring at Christoph for a moment, a contemptuous smile appeared on
his lips, deliberately stretching his words.
"But to be clear, Christoph, not everyone lives under your control. They are not my
subordinates but my friends and brothers... Yes, you could say they're your brothers too. Idoubt you understand this concept with your cold heart that can hurt others without a care."
"Friends and brothers...?"
Christoph repeated Richard's words like a parrot. A faint smile crossed his face, but there
was no sign of joy. Only a mocking sigh.
"Do you have that? It sounds ridiculous. You look at everyone as if they are beneath you,
that's your true mindset, isn't it? Anyway, I didn't come here to talk with you. I don't think I
can have a conversation with you."
Christoph's finger spun the gun habitually. Richard squinted and smiled.
"Do you intend to shoot me with that gun?"
"Whether it's this bar or you, I don't care which I deal with first. I want to settle things
between us once and for all to avoid future trouble."
"Do you think threatening with a gun will be effective?" Richard asked.
"Do you think I'm threatening you—?"
As he spoke, Christoph calmly aimed the gun at Richard, even when facing someone who
wasn't intimidated by it. Without hesitation, he cocked the gun and pulled the trigger.
In a split second.
While they exchanged calm—or perhaps cold—words, Christoph fired the gun naturally, as if
in conversation. His action was neither hurried nor slow, as if in jest.
The gunshot echoed loudly. Everyone in the bar fell silent.
Even with the mindset that whether it hit or missed didn't matter, the bullet grazed Richard's
ear narrowly. In reality, Richard had dodged just as Christoph pulled the trigger.
The bullet embedded itself in the trunk of a potted plant just behind Richard with a "phut"
sound. Splinters flew and fell onto Richard's neck.
"..."
Richard quietly wiped his neck with the back of his hand. He turned back to look at
Christoph, expressionless and empty-handed. The air around them grew tense. Eric's voice
calling Christoph's name echoed distantly, but no one turned to look at him.
"Return him."
Christoph spoke briefly. He spun the gun again, realized it was out of bullets, and tossed it
aside indifferently.
Richard thought for a moment before speaking gently."You say you want to settle things between us. So, if I return your friend, will you leave here
peacefully?"
His tone implied that if Christoph left, he would return his friend. Christoph frowned, staring
at Richard without answering, seemingly considering it.
Richard sneered. A low, mocking snort.
"Can't you lie to gain an advantage at this moment? Out of pity, I'll tell you I don't care
about your friend. I've never heard of him. But seeing this scene, I think we do need to settle
things between us."
Richard removed his vest and placed it nearby, shaking his head to refuse the signal from the
man standing beside him. Then he took a step towards Christoph. The sound of glass shards
crunching under his shoes echoed.
The distance between them was only ten steps.
Inside the bar, there were no other guests besides Christoph and his enemies.
In this completely disadvantageous situation, Christoph didn't look around but just sighed.
He looked up at the ceiling, thinking for a moment. As the sound of glass shards scraping the
floor echoed slowly, he turned back to Richard.
"If that guy returns with any injuries, everyone here will pay. You, Hugo, Fabian, Sven..."
Christoph spoke slowly and calmly, glancing at each man standing like statues around him.
His cold voice and terrifying gaze made the men shiver as if facing a snake. Finally, his gaze
settled on Richard.
"...And you too, Richard."
Richard—the only one not avoiding that gaze—squinted as if probing something. Christoph
continued.
"If even a finger is dislocated, I'll break all your finger joints. If a drop of blood leaks from
his skin, I'll drain all the blood from your body until it forms a pool. I guarantee that."
No one here dared to think those metaphorical words were just jokes.
In the silent space, Richard stared at Christoph without changing his expression. After a few
seconds of silence, he spoke. His low voice contained barely noticeable surprise.
"Thinking about it now, it's quite surprising. You have a friend? And you brought someone
here with you? ...You're even worried about someone else's safety? This is the first time I've
seen you like this, at least in my memory. I never imagined it."
Richard's footsteps stopped as he approached Christoph.
"Are you trying to act human? That's not like you, Christoph.""That's my business, not yours." - Christoph's brief reply wiped the sneer off Richard's face.
"Who is the person he brought here?"
Though Richard was still looking at Christoph when asking, the colleagues standing a few
steps behind him didn't immediately realize the question was for them. After a moment of
hesitation, one of the men behind quickly answered, somewhat flustered.
"It's a young man who has been at Seoik Castle for a while, working as a runner for him..."
The man hesitated, not knowing more about the young man. But those few words were
enough for Richard to understand. Richard softly said, "Aha," with clear meaning.
Richard looked at Christoph with a strange gaze. His eyes filled with doubt and disbelief,
gradually showing clear malice.
"So it's him... He seems to be very fond of that guy, even bringing him here. It looks like he
really won his favor. A lunatic who isolates himself is now trying to act human? ...Or maybe
not just a 'friend.'"
Christoph said nothing. He just looked at Richard with icy eyes.
Some of the men near Richard glanced at him. Their trustworthy and friendly leader was
showing a cold side they had never seen. But that wasn't surprising, as Richard always
behaved this way when facing Christoph.
"So where is that friend? If he left earlier, someone must have seen."
Richard asked again. This time, Christoph's expression changed slightly. The man standing
nearby understood the question was for him and quickly answered.
"There was some commotion in the bathroom. He took Wilhelm's coat and fled, but no one
saw him leave, so he might still be in the bar..."
"A coat?"
"Yes, he took a black coat with a hood to avoid detection. We're still looking for him, should
find him soon..."
Before the man could finish, Richard's expression turned strange.
Richard's face changed as if he had been hit unexpectedly. All emotion disappeared from his
face.
"That guy took a black coat..."
Richard mumbled, "Ha," and then slowly laughed softly. He placed his hand on his forehead
and laughed. His laughter grew longer and louder, filled with amusement.
"Hahaha, really... So that's the person... Oh yes, hahaha. Hahahahaha."Richard laughed loudly for a long time. Christoph looked at him with increasingly sharp
eyes. Richard clearly knew where Christoph's friend was. His laughter indicated that.
"You remembered where he is. Bring him out. I've waited too long, Richard."
As Richard gradually stopped laughing, Christoph spoke calmly but with enough killing
intent to drive a knife into Richard's throat without hesitation.
Richard stopped laughing but kept a cheerful smile on his lips, looking straight at Christoph.
He even walked confidently, stepping on the broken glass slowly.
"His name is Kim Young-Soo, right? You seem to like him a lot, Christoph. This is the first
time I've seen you value someone like this. But unfortunately, oh dear cousin of mine, there's
something..."
As those annoying, insincere terms left Richard's mouth, Christoph felt anger. His fingertips
twitched, and his eyes turned cold.
"Your precious friend, Kim Young-Soo, is currently..."
Richard's lips moved slowly, speaking each word as if to create suspense. Inside the bar, it
was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Everyone sensed that something important was
about to be revealed. Richard continued,
"...having a good time with Riegrow in the back room."
After Richard spoke, silence stretched for a moment longer.
No one in the bar misunderstood the meaning of those words.
Although they weren't sure how it happened, no one doubted the truth of Richard's
statement. The "friend" Christoph had been searching for everywhere was currently enduring
the "horrible torment" inflicted by Crazy Rick in the back room.
All eyes turned to Christoph, waiting to see his reaction. It was no surprise that everyone was
astonished by what they saw.
Rather than being horrified, then sorrowful and enraged, Christoph only opened his eyes
wide in apparent surprise and stared at Richard. Richard, in turn, looked back at him, waiting
for his response with a relaxed demeanor.
Finally, Christoph spoke.
"Rick… Is he here?"
"Yes. He spoke to me just before your friend stormed in."
"He's with Rick?""Yes. When I left, they had just begun, so by now they're surely having a great time together.
If I had known he was your friend, I would have tried to help before Rick got to him. Truly
unfortunate."
Richard's voice was filled with regret. If not for the smile on his lips and the coldness in his
eyes, his gentle tone might have seemed sincere.
What Richard conveyed was very clear.
Christoph Tarten, who rarely liked anyone, had his favored person taken by Rick—a madman
even Christoph had difficulty dealing with.
This was an unprecedented event. Even a few minutes earlier, when Christoph was turning
the bar upside down to find his friend, no one could have imagined this situation.
"Truly unfortunate, Christoph. I can't believe your precious 'friend' ended up in such a
terrible situation. Truly unfortunate."
As Richard spoke again, Christoph, who had been deep in thought with his head bowed,
suddenly looked up. His face was as calm as ever.
"Why should it be unfortunate?" – His brief response surprised everyone around.
Richard raised an eyebrow. Then he chuckled softly.
"So, you don't care?"
"I'm not like you, a pervert. I don't care about that."
"Ah… Such a noble heart. It's the soul that matters, not the body? Truly wonderful. I can't
compare with you."
"Yes. You discard emotions and soul for mere physical satisfaction."
These words didn't seem to fit Christoph. Anyone who knew him would think so. Perhaps
even Christoph found it amusing to speak about emotions and soul.
Richard also looked at him for a moment, then snorted softly as if laughing to himself.
"A serial killer talking about the noble values of life."
Christoph said nothing, just stared at Richard with a blank expression.
After a moment of scrutinizing Christoph's face, Richard silently laughed.
"Christoph. Why does your face look like that? You say you don't care, but you look sad and
disappointed. Huh?"
Richard's voice became smooth and slick like a snake. Christoph swore quietly, his irritation
clear as he glared at Richard.Sometimes, very rarely, Richard could read Christoph's expressions. Occasionally, he even
noticed feelings that Christoph himself didn't recognize. Like now.
"I don't care."
Christoph stated firmly again. Richard nodded slightly with a look of someone indulging a
stubborn child.
"A bit of physical contact, so what. It's just a childish prank. Overreacting to that would be
strange."
As he spoke, Christoph's expression seemed to soften, as if he were convincing himself.
Richard laughed again. It seemed Christoph was trying to appear strong. Richard responded
as if to break Christoph's facade.
"Yes, it's just a childish prank. But Christoph, face reality. Rick doesn't stop there. You know
that better than I do because you've worked with him."
This time, Christoph sneered.
"I know. Even if Rick is a lunatic, he can't turn a man into a woman. That, I know for sure."
The smile on Richard's face froze. He seemed to be trying to understand the meaning of those
words but couldn't immediately find an answer.
Turning a man into a woman... Perhaps it meant he couldn't make him pregnant, so he
couldn't keep him forever. Or maybe it meant that the body didn't matter, only emotions did.
Or it could be that since it wasn't a woman, the body wouldn't be easily damaged and wasn't
a concern.
While those around were wondering something similar, Christoph had regained his
confidence from his own words. He continued.
"Anyway, since they're both men, nothing can happen. At most, it's just some licking, no big
deal. I'm not such a clean freak that I have to watch over... my friend day and night."
Someone in the corner muttered – "Don't lie, you are a clean freak" – but no one paid
attention to the weak voice.