"In the end, I still don't understand. I think I wouldn't handle it that way... but who knows." -
Taeui
"Those who complicate things don't need to make it complicated." - Ilay
"...I don't know... The 'things that don't need to be complicated' you talk about cover too
many aspects..."
Jeong Taeui wondered if there was anything that Ilay Rigrow couldn't handle. But he couldn't
think of any. Life must have been challenging for Ilay at times, but Jeong Taeui believed that
Ilay would use a knife to cut through complicated knots rather than trying to untangle them.
Jeong Taeui turned to lie on his side facing Ilay. His body felt comfortable as if he had just
soaked in warm water.
"But if we're talking about personal preference, I prefer people without schemes. Though it
may be a bit harsh, it's still better than someone unpredictable. That's why I want to support
Christoph over Richard."
"Ah ha, so if necessary, killing Richard is also fine."
"..."
Jeong Taeui remained silent for a long time, then closed his eyes in a sleepy and relaxed state.
When he slowly opened his eyes again, the smile on his lips had disappeared. panicking>
When will he fully understand this man? He wondered as he looked up at Ilay. Now he didn't
even understand the current conversation.
Ilay wiped the oil off his pinky finger, then tossed the towel into the trash and looked straight
into Jeong Taeui's eyes. It wasn't a joke, but it wasn't too serious either.
"If necessary, I will protect you." - Ilay
"If killing Richard is needed to support Christoph, I will declare neutrality." - Taeui
"No, that means―"
Ilay stopped, furrowed his brows as if thinking about something, then looked intently at
Jeong Taeui.
Jeong Taeui knew that look. It was the look of trying to figure out how to convince someone
with a different mindset. He often looked at Ilay with that same gaze.Suddenly, Jeong Taeui found it funny and smiled.
Even though they had been together for many years, a large gap remained between him and
Ilay that couldn't be filled. And no matter how he thought about it, that gap wouldn't be filled
in the future.
But.
Even though he and Ilay were so different.
Even though it will always be like that in the future.
No matter what, Jeong Taeui and Ilay Riegrow would continue to move forward together on
these parallel lines.
This relationship, which perhaps most people would see as such, suddenly made him feel
happy.
"What were you going to say?" – Jeong Taeui continued the conversation.
Ilay considered his words for a moment, then shrugged.
"It means that if necessary, don't hesitate to cause him great harm to protect your small
safety."
"...That's a matter of human morality to consider."
Jeong Taeui pondered deeply. It wasn't about human morality but about the relationship
between small safety and great harm.
He wasn't a fool. Ilay knew that too.
...There was no happy conclusion.
Jeong Taeui scratched his head – "Ah, why do they have to keep fighting when they're
adults...?"
"Then why did you sneak into their fight?"
Jeong Taeui looked up at Ilay, who was sitting beside him, watching him.
"If I had known earlier, I wouldn't have come..." - Taeui mumbled, then rested his head on
Ilay's thigh.
"Ahhh, whatever. You'll protect me. I only trust you."
Even though it felt a bit like sticking his foot into an axe*, Taeui couldn't endure it any
longer. He was so exhausted that he could sleep even with his head resting on a blade.
(*Sticking foot into an axe: causing trouble or harm to oneself due to reckless actions)Despite resting his head on such a dangerous thigh, Taeui closed his eyes without anything
happening. Only a sharp gaze pierced his cheek.
Ah, whatever. Ilay sometimes rested his head on his lap to sleep too, so doing this once
should be fine.
However, to be safer, Taeui gently reached up and held Ilay's arm.
A deep, gentle breath fell on his head.
"Taeil. You did this on purpose, didn't you?"
"Uh...?"
"You. More and more―."
"...?"
".... Forget it."
More and more domineering, more and more fearless, etc... Those thoughts passed through
Taeui's mind but he dismissed them.
Now Taeui was too tired to think of any more words, and sleep weighed heavily on his eyes.
Even while resting his head on Ilay's stiff thigh, he still felt comfortable.
As if this long and eventful night had finally come to an end.
******************
"What are you doing? Why do you look so sad?"
"Um... I was thinking about the eternity of time..."
Jeong Taeui answered gloomily. He was sitting alone in the large dining room, reading the
newspaper and nibbling on a piece of hard black bread.
Johan, with his disheveled hair, looking like he had just woken up, walked in while
scratching his head and sat down across from Jeong Taeui. He poured tea into a cup. The
sound of the water pouring echoed in the quiet space.
The space was truly peaceful and quiet.
However, somewhere the long and arduous night that seemed to have ended was still
ongoing.
He wished that when he opened his eyes, everything would be just a dream, but life wasn't
that easy. Life had never been straightforward.
"Did you sleep until the sun was high? Such a lazy person..."Johan drank his tea in one gulp, then looked at Jeong Taeui quietly chewing his bread and
teased him. Jeong Taeui looked back at Johan, who hadn't even washed his face, with eye
crusts still sticking to his lashes.
It was clear that Jeong Taeui had slept in until early afternoon, so he wasn't diligent either.
But hearing those words from Johan, who hadn't even washed his face, felt paradoxical.
Johan seemed to realize that look and frowned, waving his hand.
"No, no. Anyway, I got up early, went for a jog, then read the paper and drank tea in the
living room. Finally, I greeted the elders in the house. The newspaper you're reading is the
one I read this morning... But I did take a nap afterward."
"Why did you wake up so early today?"
Jeong Taeui didn't want to argue about Johan taking a nap because he was too tired.
When Taeui woke up, it was around 3 PM.
He hadn't slept little, in fact, he had overslept, so when he woke up, his head was still dizzy
and heavy for a while before he could get out of bed. After showering and stepping out of his
room, Jeong Taeui noticed something strange.
More precisely, it wasn't anything too strange.
The looks cast his way had become sharper than yesterday.
Initially, people weren't very friendly towards him. But now their gazes had become
particularly harsh.
It felt like they wanted to punch him right there but had to restrain their anger. They looked at
Jeong Taeui as if he were an enemy who had killed their parents. Taeui didn't have time to be
shocked by the people passing by.
Not just the Tarten family.
Even the servants, who had nothing to do with the struggle, were cold towards him.
The reason was obvious.
Recalling the devastation Christoph caused last night, it was understandable that the
atmosphere was icy.
How many people had nearly died being taken out of the bar? And how much was the bar
destroyed? Even within the house, many people were injured and had to be taken out.
Perhaps from sunset yesterday to before dawn today, the number of injured people was more
than Jeong Taeui had ever seen since arriving here.
The atmosphere, which had already been tense, had reached its worst.He felt the tension in the air like needles pricking his skin.
When he walked into this dining room, two men were already sitting at the table and talking.
When they saw him, they showed disdain and left. If they had been more aggressive, they
might have hit him on the spot.
Sitting down with an uncomfortable feeling, Jeong Taeui flipped through the newspaper and
chewed on bread when Johan walked in looking a mess.
Still, seeing Johan slightly eased the tense atmosphere.
Johan pulled the bread basket in front of Jeong Taeui and took a big bite, scratching his head.
"I didn't want to wake up early, but it was so noisy outside. 7 o'clock? 8 o'clock? Since early
morning, people were coming and going outside the window, making it unbearably noisy."
Johan complained that when he tried to drink tea and read the paper, the elders kept him, not
letting him go. He finished a large piece of bread in just two bites and reached for a second
one.
"Were there that many people here this morning? I was asleep, so I didn't know. But last night
was exhausting... But why? Is there something going on today?"
Jeong Taeui asked. Johan, while chewing bread, squinted at him.
"Why are you asking me? You were there too."
"Huh? Where?"
"Where Christoph went to Richard's bar and caused a scene."
Jeong Taeui paused mid-chew, his mouth hanging open. Then his mind started working
again.
"...Indeed, that was quite serious... but serious enough to gather everyone here?"
"Two dead, four unconscious, seven in critical condition. The elders are in an uproar. No
wonder they're making a fuss."
The bread in Jeong Taeui's hand fell. His face changed instantly.
"Dead? ...Dead?"
"Yes, two. One at home and one at the bar. And among the four unconscious, one is in critical
condition. If he dies, it will be three deaths in one night. It's quiet here compared to the main
house where the elders are in an uproar. I was dragged away by the elders while drinking
tea."
Johan rubbed his eyes as he spoke. Jeong Taeui tried to swallow the piece of bread.He had seen many people lying around last night but didn't think anyone had died. No
wonder the atmosphere was so tense.
"What about... Christoph?"
Jeong Taeui asked while pulling Johan's cup to pour water.
"Huh? Probably still lying there. This morning I saw the elders take him away, but he didn't
seem to be able to open his eyes for a while."
"Ah... yes, that's right."
Even Jeong Taeui had been bedridden for half a day. If Christoph had gotten up and walked
around, Jeong Taeui would have run away from this monstrous house immediately.
He quietly poured the remaining tea and drank silently, watching Johan eat bread at an
astonishing speed.
Even before, Christoph wasn't welcomed in Tarten, but now it was even worse. No one had a
good opinion of him; everyone was afraid and avoided him.
"Christoph had given up the succession struggle and almost cut off contact with the family
for ten years, but now he's back causing trouble, the elders surely won't forgive him. Before
they protected him, but this time it won't be easy."
"Richard must be very happy."
Jeong Taeui mumbled while sipping tea. Johan snorted.
"Happy? Richard also suffered considerable damage yesterday. ...But since I just woke up,
I'm not that hungry."
Johan pushed the nearly empty bread basket to the center of the table, brushing crumbs from
his mouth. He looked at Jeong Taeui with a serious expression.
"Only a month left to decide the successor. Christoph shouldn't be causing trouble at this
time."
"Hmm... though I don't want to justify it, thinking back to the tragedy of last night, just
standing by would have been unbearable. Not to mention, with people dying, standing by
would be worse, right?"
"Then instead of confronting, he should have shot his opponent in the head."
Jeong Taeui stopped mid-sip of his tea, staring at Johan. Johan picked a pecan piece from the
bread crumbs and didn't seem to be joking. Though not too serious, he wasn't kidding either -
"Should have shot" - he even made a shooting gesture with his fingers.
He really has an unexpected side..."A leader shooting a family member doesn't seem right."
Jeong Taeui said displeasedly, but Johan just snorted.
"It depends on the target and situation. In this case, whatever the outcome, Richard would be
the winner. Any reason would be acceptable. But instead, he jumped into the fight and got
injured everywhere. What good does that do?"
"The main house is in an emergency, and my ears are being bothered. It's really not good at
all," Johan complained, making Jeong Taeui frown.
Not needing to act but just shooting the opponent.
Maybe Johan was right. If Richard could overpower the opponent, it would be fine, but
jumping into the fight was a mistake a leader shouldn't make. People died, he got seriously
injured, and couldn't completely defeat the opponent. It was a losing situation in many ways.
"Even so... the succession should be fine."
"No real equal opponent" - Jeong Taeui mumbled. Johan shrugged.