VDN Ch 180
by STAR“If you’re so sorry, why don’t you try sleeping with me just once?”
“……”
“Who knows? After we sleep together, you might like it so much that you won’t want to let go of me.”
Nam-woon couldn’t find the words and just pursed his lips. Soon, a deep sigh escaped from his chest.
If it were as usual, he would have been angry at his attitude and sworn at him. However, this time, he swallowed his anger. He suddenly thought that maybe this was his way of expressing himself. When he considered that Hae-geon must have lived his whole life with such vulgar habits, he could understand his behavior a little.
But even so, there was only one thing for Nam-woon to say in response.
“I don’t want to.”
“Without even trying?”
Hae-geon stepped closer and grabbed Nam-woon’s waist with his large hand. Warmth was transmitted from the place where they were touching.
“Both of us are just rags anyway. What’s the harm in having a little fun?”
Then he leaned in and whispered lowly in Nam-woon’s ear.
“Keep it a secret from that bastard. Okay?”
Hae-geon’s words were laced with a seductive tone, and a faint scent wafted from him. Nam-woon pushed him away from his chest and tousled his hair with a disgusted expression.
“Ha… Jin Hae-geon, this is why it won’t work. Even when I speak seriously, you just brush it off. And I’m not a rag anymore.”
Hae-geon’s brows furrowed sharply at those added words. He opened his mouth to speak again, but Nam-woon cut him off.
“And what do you think you can do with me when you can’t even handle omega pheromones?”
As he raised his voice, a sweet scent began to emanate from his body, as if it had responded to his emotions. Was the pheromone attack still in effect? Nam-woon wondered and instinctively put pressure in his stomach and tensed his eyes.
Hae-geon’s eyes flinched at the sweet scent spreading around him. Even though he could see that he was displeased, he stubbornly insisted like a child.
“You think I can’t? It’s as easy as eating.”
Nam-woon looked at him carefully and spoke in a serious voice.
“Hae-geon, have you ever eaten taiyaki?”
“……”
Hae-geon furrowed his brows at the nonsensical question. Despite the look in his eyes that made him look like he was looking at a crazy person, Nam-woon did not flinch and encouraged him to answer with silence. Even in the midst of all this, the pheromone concentration was growing stronger. Hae-geon turned his head as if he couldn’t bear it anymore and became irritated.
“Why would I eat something like that?”
“What did you just say? Something like that? Is taiyaki just something like that, huh?”
Nam-woon suddenly exploded and poured out all the words he had been holding in his heart.
“Taiyaki is my whole life, you idiot! How can it be just something like that? This is why you and I can’t work out. Try eating taiyaki properly before you talk! Damn it.”
“What kind of crazy….”
Did I hit a nerve? Hae-geon, who had been looking at me suspiciously, covered his mouth and distanced himself from the taiyaki scent that was spreading out. Nam-woon glared at him with cold eyes and then turned away coldly.
Just then, Mr. Taeksoo arrived to find them.
“What are you two doing, not coming over? And you, young master. Is this the car you were talking about earlier?”
He pointed to a silver luxury van. At that moment, the driver’s door opened, and a man jumped out. Nam-woon recognized him from a few previous encounters.
“Young master!”
A middle-aged man who had gotten out of the driver’s seat rushed toward Hae-geon. His face was pale as he anxiously checked on Hae-geon and quickly reported the situation.
“As you ordered, we cleared this area. But there are a few remnants we missed…”
“Didn’t I tell you to clean it up thoroughly?”
“I’m sorry.”
The man’s shoulders hunched under Hae-geon’s cold gaze. Trembling, he presented a yellow envelope.
“I found this while tracking down the escaped ones.”
Hae-geon, without even looking at it, grabbed Nam-woon’s arm. Then he quickly led Nam-woon into the car. The driver, glancing back at the people standing idly, spoke.
“Get in. I’ll take you to the hospital.”
The people, who had been hesitantly gauging the situation, hurriedly climbed into the vehicle. Thanks to the spacious interior, several adult men could fit inside. Soon, the car started moving, and Hae-geon took out a stack of papers from the envelope. Nam-woon leaned over to peek at the papers, tilting his head at the incomprehensible list of formulas, symbols, and English words.
“What is this?”
“…A recipe, maybe.”
At Hae-geon’s muttered words, Nam-woon jumped in surprise and snatched the paper away.
Flap. Flap.
Even if I look at it, I still can’t understand a single word.
Nam-woon’s hand, which had been flipping through the papers roughly, suddenly stopped. He saw a photo of Mr. Taeksoo. It was similar in format to the experimental log of Kwon Sang-moon that he had seen before. With a serious expression, he scanned through it all and then turned to the driver sitting in the front seat.
“Excuse me, could I borrow your phone?”
The driver, who had been watching Hae-geon through the rearview mirror, handed over his cell phone when there was no word of objection from him. Nam-woon dialed Detective Jang’s number, which he had memorized earlier, and waited anxiously for a response. However, the call did not connect no matter how long he waited.
Nam-woon had no choice but to leave a brief message about his current location and the evidence. This time, he called Seo-oh, but Seo-oh did not answer either. In the end, Nam-woon returned the cell phone to the driver without any success.
Still, somehow, everyone managed to escape. He leaned back against the backrest, a sense of relief washing over him at the thought that he could finally return to Seo-oh’s side. Seo-oh shouldn’t be so anxious… He sighed, worried about leaving Seo-oh alone.
It’ll be okay. He’ll be waiting at home. Nam-woon closed his eyes, suppressing his anxious feelings.
How far had they moved? A deafening noise suddenly erupted, shaking his brain. Ugh! Nam-woon buried his face deep into the back of the seat and clamped his hands over his ears. Hae-geon, startled, grabbed his shoulders.
“What’s wrong?”
“Argh…”
“What’s the matter? Are you hurt?”
Hae-geon, unusually flustered, tried to raise Nam-woon’s upper body to check his condition. But Nam-woon couldn’t show any reaction. His entire field of vision turned a bright red, as if stained with blood, and a warning message appeared before him. The warning sound in his head also continued.
[Warning! Warning! Warning!]
[Role change has been attempted!]
Role change…? As he opened his mouth in shock at the unfamiliar warning message, he was horrified by the sentence that filled his vision.
[Jin Hae-geon held a shovel. Seok Nam-woon, on the brink of being buried alive, trembled in fear.]
The names of Jin Hae-geon and Seok Nam-woon faded away from the sentence, replaced by new ones.
[Kwon Seo-oh held a shovel. Seok Jin-cheol, on the brink of being buried alive, trembled in fear.]
[Role adjustment options are not yet activated. Please change the roles back to the original!]
“……!”
My heart sank to my feet.
***
Thud!
The rusty tip of the shovel dug into the hard soil, uprooting a large amount and leaving the flat ground hollow. Seo-oh turned his gaze to the side. Chairman Seok was struggling, his arms and legs tightly bound with blue tape and his mouth covered. Seo-oh looked at him with blank eyes before moving his arm again.
About 20 minutes ago, Seo-oh had taken Chairman Seok to Incheon Port. Their destination was not the port itself, but an old and gloomy building along the way. The building had an ominous atmosphere, as if several people had died there.
Seo-oh shook off the ominous thoughts and went inside, leaving Chairman Seok in the car for the time being.
Soon, the elevator stopped at the floor Chairman Seok had mentioned. Seo-oh stepped out and hesitated. There were marks scattered on the floor. They were definitely bloodstains. He scanned the hallway, which was already a mess as if a fight had broken out, and moved his feet again.
Step…Step…
The sound of his footsteps echoed loudly in the quiet hallway. Soon, his shoes stopped. Seo-oh, who had been looking at the doors on the right and left, chose the left without hesitation because of the faint scent that tickled his nose. After scanning the living room with his eyes, he opened the closest door.
The first things that caught his eye were some snacks and a board game. These were items that did not fit in with the bleak space at all. Seo-oh stood there dumbfounded and soon searched the room like a madman. However, he found nothing of importance.
He went out to the living room and roughly pushed open another door. Boom! The door hit the wall with a loud noise. Soon, the hidden space was revealed, but Seo-oh could not even cross the threshold and just kept his eyes wide open.
A familiar pheromone was floating in the air. His favorite scent. It was the pheromone of his beloved Hyung, whom he could smell every day without getting tired by burying his nose in the nape of his neck.
At the same time, Seo-oh realized the pheromone permeating this place was not just Nam-woon’s.
“……”
He looked at the bed. There were handcuffs hanging from the metal frame, and a torn black collar dangled from the end. On the white sheets, there was bright red blood that he couldn’t tell whose it was. The moment he saw the clear bloodstain, he felt dizzy.
“Hyung…”
Seo-oh staggered, desperately leaning against the wall. He bent his large body down, his chest heaving. His heart raced violently, as if it were about to burst, and he felt nauseous.
An unknown Alpha had laid hands on Hyung. He tied Nam-woon up so he couldn’t resist, forcing him to exude pheromones and was brutally violated. Scenes that should never happen flashed through his mind. The pain felt like his intestines were twisting and his lungs were being torn apart.
“No. Hyung wouldn’t just let this happen….”
After a while, he managed to get up and splashed his face with cold water before quickly exiting the room.
Nam-woon was not here. Someone had definitely taken Hyung and Se-han to another location. The thought that he was late made him even more anxious.