CRT Ch 16

💎

“Are you going to spill everything out here?”

Yoon Inoh whispered just loud enough for Yejun to hear, his voice barely audible to others nearby.

“Being invited to a place like this makes you feel like you’re somebody, huh? A pathetic guy who’s only playing human thanks to me.”

Yejun stood there, his face pale, barely holding himself upright. The other actors, unaware of the context, murmured excitedly as if witnessing an entertaining spectacle. Even those who had been harshly treated by Yoon Inoh seemed to anticipate him crushing Yejun. Fortunately, Cha Yilhyun appeared uninterested in the affair.

Seok Ryu stepped forward, gently pushing the frozen Yejun back. At this, Yoon Inoh sneered and furrowed his brow. It seemed he had heard from Manager Jang that Yejun was the one who secured the rights.

Judging by his relatively calm demeanor, he likely didn’t yet know that the role of Biryu had also gone to Yejun. If he had, he would probably have torn his hair out and gone berserk. Seok Ryu approached Yoon Inoh and lowered his voice.

“Let’s not make a scene and talk outside.”

“Could you just get lost? A fake like you has no business meddling in people’s affairs, does he?”

Yoon Inoh grinned brightly while stabbing at Seok Ryu’s core. Cha Yilhyun, who had been indifferent until now, turned his gaze toward Yoon Inoh. Seok Ryu’s mouth went dry, fearing Yoon Inoh might lose control and spew even more nonsense.

“Let’s go outside.”

“What? Scared, are you?”

When Seok Ryu tried to lead him out, Yoon Inoh brusquely shook him off. It was clear that kind words wouldn’t work.

“Yoon Inoh, your face doesn’t look too good right now. Didn’t you check a mirror before coming out?”

Yoon Inoh’s expression turned ashen, and he bolted out of the banquet hall. When Seok Ryu followed, he found Yoon Inoh in a secluded corner of the hallway, staring into a mirror. Upon confirming his face was fine, relief and malice mingled in Yoon Inoh’s eyes. Seok Ryu stared directly at him.

“Don’t cross the line. If you keep acting recklessly, I’ll make sure not only Manager Jang but your staff, family, and friends all become Yejun’s slaves.”

If Yejun didn’t agree, Seok Ryu was confident he could persuade him.

“You bastard…”

Yoon Inoh’s eyelids twitched violently. When Manager Jang finally rushed over, Yoon Inoh irritably waved him away. It was a wise decision.

Though Seok Ryu had succeeded in luring Yoon Inoh outside, the challenge was figuring out how to send him home. Across the hallway, managers glanced their way. Gregariously. To avoid being overheard, Seok Ryu spoke quietly.

“There seems to be a misunderstanding, but Yejun didn’t even know who was invited to tonight’s banquet.”

“Don’t bullshit me. You think I don’t know you guys manipulated Team Leader Seo?”

“Sounds like you’ve done plenty of manipulating yourself. We hadn’t even thought of that.”

The weak and desperate always had an uncanny knack for sensing threats to their survival. Yoon Inoh narrowed his eyes.

“Park Yejun wasn’t this cunning before, but he’s been acting strange since he met you. Or maybe his true nature is finally showing? Do you have some kind of magic that awakens filthy instincts in people? Is that why all your masters ended up ruined?”

“Since Sanho broke the rules, I’ll report it to the workshop.”

When Seok Ryu didn’t flinch, Yoon Inoh gritted his teeth.

“Should I expose how a nobody like you got the rights and what you really are?”

“Let’s not cut each other down. Besides, no one would believe it.”

Yoon Inoh flashed a pearl-like smile.

“The CEO might.”

A chill ran down Seok Ryu’s neck. Yoon Inoh toyed with a glass bottle containing a model sailboat, rolling it back and forth on the console. With a subtle gesture, the delicate ship inside the long, cylindrical bottle swayed charmingly.

“Don’t you think that psycho would believe it? Doesn’t it seem like he’d go digging around, desperate to buy a guardian stone himself?”

Seok Ryu couldn’t find words to counter this unexpected attack. The workshop had maintained its legacy for generations through strict secrecy. If Cha Yilhyun, as Yoon Inoh suggested, started poking around, the workshop’s very existence could be at risk. No, even someone like Cha Yilhyun wouldn’t believe in guardian stones.

“You seem to have forgotten what happens when you break the workshop’s rules.”

This time, the smirk faded from Yoon Inoh’s lips. Clients who recklessly divulged the workshop’s secrets, along with their referrals, were blacklisted. Once blacklisted, their guardian stones were confiscated immediately, and they could never purchase another.

Not only would Yoon Inoh’s acting career end, but he’d vanish without a trace. Where they were sent afterward was known only to the current overseer and his trusted aides.

The same applied to guardian stones. Those that revealed workshop secrets were dissolved in highly acidic liquid, their core stones ground to dust in a crusher, never to be regenerated.

Moreover, the current master had installed safeguards for dangerous situations. In extreme cases, guardian stones and their owners were bound to control each other’s lives. Had Yejun read the entire guidebook?

Yoon Inoh was seething with venom.

“I’m blind with rage right now, so tell your master clearly: don’t choke on greed for what’s not yours and just take the scraps you’re given.”

He thought he held the upper hand, but Yoon Inoh was just a cornered rat. That’s why he’d rushed to a place he wasn’t even invited to, wasn’t it?

“You stole someone else’s face to get where you are, so maybe show a little humility. Of course, that beauty of yours has an expiration date too.”

At that moment, blood vessels bulged in the whites of Yoon Inoh’s eyes.

Crash———!!

Yoon Inoh grabbed the glass bottle from the console and smashed it over Seok Ryu’s head. The glass shattered, and the model sailboat inside broke into pieces, scattering everywhere. Seok Ryu staggered, clutching his head. The burning sensation suggested his scalp had torn. The loud noise drew a crowd into the hallway. Yejun, rushing out, covered his mouth at the sight.

“You, you, I’ll kill you!!”

Yoon Inoh, eyes rolling back, strangled Seok Ryu. Suddenly, someone yanked Yoon Inoh off and threw him to the floor. Cha Yilhyun stood there, his face cold, his eyes darkening with anger as they always did. Yoon Inoh, sprawled on the ground, veins bulging in his neck, shouted.

“The one who got the rights is that bastard Park Yejun!! You’re all being fooled!!”

Cha Yilhyun grabbed Yoon Inoh’s clothes carelessly and dragged him to the elevator. He threw him inside and courteously pressed the button. Yoon Inoh screamed until the doors closed.

To Director Kwak standing nearby, Cha Yilhyun said, “Make sure he doesn’t cross my path again.”

Kwak Gayeom bowed politely. “My apologies. I’ll manage the actors more carefully.”

“Seems like you’re managing them too carefully.”

Cha Yilhyun walked off, leaving a frozen Director Kwak behind. The startled onlookers swarmed Yejun. Two actors who had been puzzling earlier raised their voices.

“Is the rights Inoh mentioned about Lake of the Gods? The name on that frame wasn’t a company, was it?”

“Then this drama is Lake of the Gods? That’s huge!”

Someone gasped. The mere mention of Lake of the Gods sent ripples through the crowd. Eyes that had been wary of Yejun now sparkled with shock and curiosity. Yejun, sweating, could only stammer. Director Kwak stepped in to rescue the cornered Yejun.

“If word of this gets out, be ready to face me.”

Director Kwak locked eyes with each witness.

As the commotion settled, staff cleared the glass shards. Seok Ryu gathered the fragments of the broken sailboat by hand and placed them on the console to avoid being stepped on.

The puzzle in the hallway came to mind, and he waded through the crowd. Suddenly, his neck felt bare. Touching his nape, his mind went blank. The choker was gone, likely lost during the scuffle with Yoon Inoh. He searched the floor and under the console, but the crowd made it impossible to find.

Then someone grabbed Seok Ryu’s wrist. Before he could identify them, a black shirt and a watery blue tie filled his vision. Something pressed firmly against his torn scalp.

Looking up, he saw Cha Yilhyun’s stern face. He flicked glass shards from Seok Ryu’s hair and shirt with his fingers.

“Get the car ready. We’re going to the nearest hospital.”

“Yes, sir!”

Secretary Yang moved swiftly at Cha Yilhyun’s command. Cha Yilhyun cupped Seok Ryu’s chin, checking his eyes first.

“Nausea or headache? Let’s go to the hospital.”

“The choker… it’s gone.”

Seok Ryu mumbled, dazed. Cha Yilhyun’s gaze flicked to Seok Ryu’s neck, then quickly returned. Without the core stone, the bond with the owner weakened, and the garnet’s effect would fade.

If they couldn’t find it, they’d need to tear the skin, remove it from the heart, and perform the binding ritual again. Seok Ryu could endure the ritual repeatedly, but he wasn’t sure Yejun could handle that horrific ordeal again.

Seok Ryu twisted his head, slipping from the hand on his face. His only thought was finding the choker. His arm was grabbed again, and his body turned. Cha Yilhyun pressed a tissue into Seok Ryu’s hand and placed it on his head.

“I’ll look for it. Keep pressing.”

Cha Yilhyun cleared people aside and scanned the floor. Seok Ryu, holding his head, searched the other side. But it was nowhere to be found, likely kicked into a corner by the crowd. He genuinely wanted to strangle Yoon Inoh.

Moments later, Cha Yilhyun returned. He opened his hand, revealing the desperately sought choker, coiled safely, with the core stone intact.

Seok Ryu exhaled, his body melting with relief. His legs trembled from the tension and shock. The clasp was broken, so he couldn’t wear it immediately. Cha Yilhyun wrapped the choker around Seok Ryu’s wrist and tied it securely.

As his senses returned, Cha Yilhyun’s appearance came into focus. His hair was disheveled from pushing through the crowd, and his clothes were wrinkled.

It was truly baffling. Why didn’t touching the choker repulse him? Why did he repeatedly fail at doping…?

Cha Yilhyun stared at Seok Ryu with a gaze as tight as a knot.

“I found it, so let’s go to the hospital.”

“I can’t go to a hospital.”

His head must really be messed up. He was blurting out things he couldn’t take back. Cha Yilhyun’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Why can’t you go to a hospital?”

The current overseer once said a ruby was dissected in a lab after accidentally revealing its nature. A hospital would run tests. A guardian stone’s structure wasn’t as intricate as a human’s, so discovery was inevitable. If he didn’t pull himself together, who knew what else he’d say?

Seok Ryu tucked the bloodied tissue into his pocket for disposal.

“It’s just a small tear. I’ll go to a hospital on my own, so don’t worry.”

Cha Yilhyun let out a faint huff. It felt like a bitter smile. Seok Ryu belatedly realized Yejun might see this. Luckily, his master was too busy fending off questions from the crowd. Now was his only chance to escape. Seok Ryu turned and fled the scene.

💎

Seok Ryu waited with Yejun at a bus stop for a taxi. Thanks to Yoon Inoh’s outburst, the banquet had fizzled out. With Manager Byun still at a wedding, they had to take a taxi home. Taxi drivers balked at the sight of the human-sized puzzle, refusing to load it. Seok Ryu propped the large frame against a tree and took a moment to catch his breath.

Yejun anxiously watched the cars speeding by.

“Inoh’s talk about the rights… the CEO must have heard it too, right? What if he really believes it?”

The rights were meant to stay secret until the teaser dropped, but they’d been exposed in a public setting. Despite the crowd’s excitement, Yejun worried about how Cha Yilhyun would take Yoon Inoh’s revelation. But Seok Ryu couldn’t afford to show unease.

“There’s no evidence, so there’s no ground to nitpick. Besides, given the CEO’s personality, he probably doesn’t care who got the rights as long as they’re secured. Don’t worry…”

Seok Ryu recalled Yejun saying that whenever he said not to worry, something worrisome happened. He swallowed the rest of his words.

A horn blared, and a sleek black car pulled up. The window rolled down, revealing Secretary Yang waving playfully from the driver’s seat. A pair of legs in the back seat likely belonged to Cha Yilhyun. Secretary Yang called out cheerfully, “Heading home? Hop in!”

“Is that okay…?”

As Yejun hesitated, Secretary Yang said, “The CEO said to give you a ride.”

“Th-thank you!”

Yejun bowed with a relieved expression. Seok Ryu opened the car door, and Yejun awkwardly climbed into the back seat, sitting as far from Cha Yilhyun as possible. Seok Ryu leaned in to fasten Yejun’s seatbelt, but Yejun looked embarrassed.

“I’ll do it.”

“Oh, right.”

Seok Ryu handed over the belt buckle. Cha Yilhyun, arm resting on the window, watched silently. Seok Ryu struggled to lift the frame from the tree. He tried fitting it in the back, but no angle worked.

Cha Yilhyun got out, took the frame from Seok Ryu, and placed it in the trunk. Walking along the rear bumper, he opened the back door and looked at Seok Ryu, seemingly gesturing for him to get in first. Yejun stiffened and scooted over to make room. It was awkward. Sitting as Yejun’s equal felt uncomfortable.

“I’ll take the front seat.”

At Seok Ryu’s response, Cha Yilhyun’s eyes curved faintly. Was he angry or just tired? Seok Ryu wasn’t sure if he truly wanted to refuse or if Yejun’s presence influenced him. How many more times could he push him away…?

Seok Ryu sat in the front and buckled up. His attention was entirely on Cha Yilhyun.

“Yejun might be carsick, so please drive carefully.”

“Got it!”

Secretary Yang was the only cheerful one here. Cha Yilhyun lingered a moment before sitting next to Yejun. Yejun hunched his shoulders and stared out the window. The car glided forward smoothly.

Seok Ryu’s gaze drifted to the rearview mirror. Cha Yilhyun leaned back, eyes closed. Soon, his head tilted toward the window. He’d been in meetings for two days without sleep; he must have been exhausted.

Yejun, biting his lip, glanced sidelong at Cha Yilhyun. Seok Ryu shared his thought: a soft cushion for his head would be nice.

Seok Ryu gazed at the city flashing by. Running so frantically, he’d had no time to reflect on what passed or lay ahead. He recalled the moment he and Yejun first stepped into this unfamiliar world, when vibrant lights made him both fearful and excited about what colors would paint Yejun’s future.

As a guardian stone, taking on a mission after so long, he’d vowed to spare no devotion for his master’s happiness. But at some point, all that remained was his desperate struggle not to be abandoned. Perhaps it was the car’s gentle sway or the flickering taillights, but his head grew foggy.

At the underground parking lot, Cha Yilhyun opened his eyes. Yejun unbuckled and bowed to him.

“Thank you for the ride. It was really comfortable thanks to you, sir.”

Cha Yilhyun, still half-asleep, stared blankly at Yejun.

“Mind if I take a look at your place?”

“O-our place?”

Cha Yilhyun rubbed his face and nodded. Yejun’s face flushed at the unexpected request. Cha Yilhyun stepped out, retrieved the puzzle frame from the trunk, and headed to the elevator. Not once did he glance at Seok Ryu.