Hae-won Notices the Pattern
Kang Hae-won had been restless for days.
Her grandfather, Kang Hae-jin, normally strict and predictable with his movements, suddenly began disappearing at odd hours.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoEkPwhflKM
No secretary.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy35q1PbEUw
No driver.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrBLtu6y0nB
No bodyguards.
Just slipping out.
Alone.
At first she thought it was business.
Then she thought it was political.
But the third time, curiosity crushed hesitation.
She followed him.
Mask on, cap down, keeping distance.
When she finally traced him to a small, unregistered road leading to the outskirts of Seoul—
A black van stopped beside her.
Before she could react—
A cloth pressed over her mouth.
Everything blurred.
Everything fell.
Darkness swallowed her.
The Kidnapping
When Hae-won woke up, she was in a warehouse.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTIRDl0waVS
Cold concrete.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFofJgtYhEw
A metal chair.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdtOzj1DP8x
Hands tied.
Ryu Su-ah stood in front of her, smiling with a sweetness that made Hae-won’s skin crawl.
“My, my. Kang Hae-jin’s precious granddaughter… following him secretly? That’s dangerous,” Su-ah cooed.
Hae-won’s voice trembled, but she didn’t break.
“What do you want?”
“Not much,” Su-ah shrugged.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDOPGF9yGbU
“Just obedience. You’re connected to someone that’s irritating me.”
She leaned closer.
“Ryu Tae-jun.”
Hae-won’s eyes widened.
Su-ah smiled cruelly.
“Remove yourself from his orbit.”
Before Hae-won could speak, the warehouse doors burst open.
Bang—!
A shadow moved faster than her eyes could track.
Yize.
And behind him—
Tae-jun.
His expression… was terrifying.
Cold.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8PrbmBIrGH
Void.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdhiVhOmajb
Murderous.
Su-ah’s aides collapsed one by one under Yize’s blows.
Tae-jun crossed the distance to Hae-won, ripped the ropes off her wrists, then pulled her into his arms with a force that felt like fear.
Not anger.
Fear.
For her.
“Hae-won.” His voice cracked slightly. “Are you hurt?”
She shook her head against his shoulder, breath shivering.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuFk6Nfx15z
“I—I’m fine…”
He held her tighter.
For a moment.
Just a moment.
Then he looked at Su-ah with silent, lethal promise.
But he said nothing.
Not yet.
Because the real mastermind was someone else.
The Betrayal of Blood
Back in the car, Hae-won still trembling softly, Tae-jun clenched the steering wheel hard enough to whiten his knuckles.
He finally exhaled.
“Kang Hae-jin…” he whispered, fury simmering, “never in my life did I think he would use his own granddaughter in this mess he created…”
The bitterness in his voice cut deeper than anger.
Hae-won looked down.
“He didn’t mean to… maybe he didn’t know Su-ah—”
“No.”25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgrG28dLw5q
Tae-jun’s voice sharpened.
“He knew exactly what he was doing.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuslJqSgFrX
He just didn’t care who got hurt.”
She shivered.
He reached over and took her hand gently, thumb brushing her knuckles.
“I won’t let you be dragged into this again.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDomNVbfT0d
Not because of your grandfather.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4GoToqq94O
Not because of Su-ah.”
Her eyes welled, but she didn’t let tears fall.
“Tae-jun… why do you care this much?”
He looked at her.
Really looked.
“…Because someone has to.”
That Night’s Strategy
Back at the mansion, the trio gathered in Tae-jun’s study.
Yize reported everything.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoS7rVVxGAM
Min-jun added the last bits.
When the silence settled—
Tae-jun spoke.
“Leave Su-ah,” he said quietly.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxFqi9lMxng
“We deal with her last.”
Min-jun frowned.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡene7ctpyWw
“But she’s the most—”
“She’s only powerful because of Kang Hae-jin.”
Tae-jun leaned back.
“We destroy him first.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG1HVodsTWq
But without hurting Hae-won.”
Yize nodded slowly.
“I understand.”
The younger brother too.
Their expressions shifted.
Because Tae-jun’s tone made one thing clear:
This wasn’t revenge anymore.
This was war.
The Hotel — and the Line They Crossed
When the meeting ended, Hae-won was waiting near the doorway, hugging her arms for warmth.
She looked small.
Breakable.
And Tae-jun hated that.
He walked to her.
“You’re not going back to that house,” he said, no room for argument.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYKJ4xcevnB
“Not where he can use you again.”
She opened her mouth to protest—
He took her hand.
“Come with me.”
She followed him.
Not because she had no choice.
But because she trusted him.
He booked a suite—quiet, safe, warm.
When the door closed behind them, the silence felt different.
Not tense.
Not fearful.
Just… fragile.
She turned to him.
“Tae-jun… why are you doing all this for me?”
He stepped closer—slowly—giving her space to stop him.
She didn’t.
He brushed a finger against her cheek, wiping a tear she didn’t realize she shed.
“Because when you were tied up,” he said in a low voice, “I felt something I’ve never felt before.”
Her breath hitched.
“What… did you feel?”
He didn’t answer.
Instead, he cupped her face and kissed her—slow, deep, aching.
She gasped softly against his lips, hands gripping his shirt.
The kiss turned desperate.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAiAbINXhva
Then softer.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYqKljg0cg8
Then desperate again.
When they broke apart, her forehead rested against his.
“Tae-jun…” she whispered, voice trembling.
He lifted her chin gently.
“I won’t let the world touch you,” he murmured.
She leaned into him, unable to hide anymore.
He kissed her again.
Softer.
Deeper.
He picked her up like she weighed nothing, carrying her toward the soft, dim corner of the room.
The world outside disappeared.
Only breath.
Warmth.
Hands finding hands.
Two people holding each other because the night was too heavy to bear alone.
The lights dimmed.
A quiet rustle.
A soft gasp.
Then darkness.
A night that changed everything—without needing any details spoken aloud.
ns216.73.216.33da2
and then Add to home screen.