MIM 42

It was around five in the morning when he arrived in the outskirts where the villa was located, just as dawn was breaking. Worried about being noticed, Shin-woo parked the car halfway up the slope and realized it was quite steep. Although he had come prepared in comfortable clothes, the thought of climbing a mountain from dawn made him wonder what he was doing.

With a schedule starting right in the morning, considering the time to go back and forth, he could only stay for about an hour at most. Still, he came. Even if it meant just saying hello and leaving, Shin-woo wanted to see for himself and make sure everything was okay. Despite their relationship consisting of just a few conversations, he couldn’t leave it alone. The young master from a wealthy family living in a luxurious mansion seemed not so different from him, who grew up facing all sorts of hardships on the streets.

As the villa came into view after the unexpected hike ended, Shin-woo carefully surveyed the surroundings. Compared to the mansion, it was a size that could be taken in at a glance, allowing him to slowly observe it from all angles. Having researched the villa’s floor plan in advance, he knew where to enter.

Shin-woo took out a glass cutter at the back door connected to the utility room. It was a tool he was familiar with, usually used for stealing cars. After skillfully making a hole in the window next to the back door, he crept inside without making a sound.

While the mansion was busy with breakfast preparations and cleaning from early dawn, the villa was deathly quiet as if no one was awake. Unlike when viewed from outside, the large windows in the living room clearly revealed the scenery beyond.

It’s a prison, Shin-woo thought.

Visualizing the floor plan in his mind, Shin-woo moved forward. If someone was being held in this villa, it could only be in the basement.

Next to the stairs leading to the second floor was a fireplace, and that cozy space was decorated like a small study with uniquely structured shelves, books, and ornaments. If he moved the large rocking chair there, he could see the door leading to the basement right away. Judging by the lack of effort to conceal the basement prison, it seemed that, as expected, it wasn’t used for any other purpose.

In front of the basement door, a man was nodding off. Just one idiot of a guard? Were they just keeping a kid locked up in an empty villa and only pushing in meals at mealtimes? A snicker escaped at the thought, startling the man who jerked his head up. Shin-woo punched the man’s cheek before their eyes could even meet.

Kicking aside the man who had collapsed with one blow, Shin-woo noticed that the basement door, like the one in the annex, was designed to be locked from the outside. He flung the door open and stepped inside without hesitation. The basement, with not a ray of dawn light entering, was pitch black, making it impossible to see even an inch ahead.

The space, filled with a musty smell and gloomy darkness, resembled the first impression of Mangwol District. It was like the ownerless basement Shin-woo had found when his hope of his parents coming back for him was fading. The very space where he had curled up for days, stealing and eating food waste.

“Shit.”

Ma Jae-seung was curled up lying right in front of the door.

Unable to see anything, Shin-woo had almost stepped on him. Thinking he should first take him to a place with light, Shin-woo immediately picked up Jae-seung. Jae-seung’s body, wearing nothing but loose pants, felt hot to the touch. His skin was warm, suggesting the fever hadn’t subsided yet.

Shin-woo took off his own hoodie and put it on Jae-seung. Though it was a bit tight, it wasn’t completely unwearable and could at least serve as a windbreaker for now. His face, bathed in the blue dawn light, was pale, and his eyes were a mess with dried tears. His pants were also dirty, possibly from vomiting.

He thought about just taking him out, but he didn’t think it would work, so he quickly wet a disposable dishcloth with water and wiped his face. As he rubbed and wiped, a single tear flowed down Jae-seung’s eye.

“Why are you crying?”

Muttering to himself, unsure who he was talking to, Shin-woo picked up Jae-seung and went outside. This was based on the judgment that the servants might appear soon to prepare breakfast, and that Jae-seung might want to get some fresh air. Carrying the large boy while going down the mountain, Shin-woo suddenly remembered the day he first met him. It was hard to believe that the child who was once light enough to carry under his arm had grown so much.

Shin-woo stopped at a spot adequately distanced from the villa after descending for about ten minutes. He sat down with his legs stretched out on the ground and laid Jae-seung beside him. The boy’s face already looked more comfortable. The earthy ground, though bare, would feel much softer and more pleasant than the hard basement floor, so there shouldn’t be any complaints.

Why did I rush all the way here? Shin-woo pondered, looking up at the sky that was gradually brightening. If it had ended with sympathy, he would have laughed it off, thinking, “Who am I to pity others in my situation?” But feeling anger and defiance made him think it was foolish. Projecting himself onto a situation that was different, with different people, with nothing in common, was a waste of time. Shin-woo sighed as he looked down at Ma Jae-seung, who was lying there with his eyes closed.

The wind blew, making the leaves rustle. Jae-seung slowly opened his eyes in the dawn breeze.

“You’re awake?”

Shin-woo asked lightly, brushing Jae-seung’s hair. As if still believing he was dreaming, Jae-seung’s olive-colored eyes hazily scanned the air.

“…Is this a reward?”

Jae-seung asked blankly. He probably said that because he liked the sky he saw as soon as he opened his eyes, but couldn’t he stop with that reward talk? Shin-woo deliberately corrected him.

“What reward? It’s just a walk.”

After lying there for a while, breathing in the fresh air, Jae-seung gradually regained his strength. His eyes focused clearly as he slowly assessed where he was, how he got here, and what condition he was in. As he naturally tried to tidy himself up and get up, Jae-seung noticed his attire and blushed. Shin-woo’s hoodie was tightly wrapped around Jae-seung’s shoulders.

They remained silent for a moment, comfortable in their quietude. As the dawn breeze touched Jae-seung’s face, color gradually returned to his complexion. Inwardly relieved, Shin-woo broke the silence first.

“Are you okay? I heard you almost died.”

“I was this sick last time too… I overcame it.”

Jae-seung mumbled softly, seemingly unable to say he was fine. His voice was hoarse, likely damaged from vomiting. There’s no winning or losing in this kind of nonsense. Shin-woo was about to correct him again but stopped himself, instead saying firmly,

“Tell them you can’t do it. It’s not worth it.”

He added this, knowing it was unsolicited advice. Even if he himself would soon leave the mansion, he hoped Jae-seung would make the right decision. If the boy said he wanted to stop, Ma Jin-seong would likely back off too. At the very least, he probably wouldn’t make him consume more poison.

Ma Jae-seung didn’t answer, just staring intently at Shin-woo. Despite having gone through gut-wrenching pain, intestinal twisting, and violent vomiting, the boy remained calm, as if the suffering was his destiny. It was puzzling how he could get angry over trivial matters, yet show no outrage over this incident.

Anger welled up in Shin-woo again, even though it wasn’t his business. He tried to suppress it, but some of his true feelings slipped out.

“Even if you endure it, all you can gain is the Alpha trait. Nothing else.”

Don’t even hope that your parents’ love will come along with it. Shin-woo barely managed to swallow the words he really wanted to say. Jae-seung seemed to half-listen, idly playing with the dirt using his toes. He zipped up the hoodie all the way to his neck and even pulled the hood over his head. Perhaps enjoying the smell of the freshly washed clothes, he buried his nose in the hood and sniffed.

After a few minutes of this meaningless behavior, pretending not to have heard, Jae-seung abruptly asked:

“Did Mother send you?”

“No.”

“Then Father?”

“I just came on my own. To see you.”

Knowing that Jae-seung was asking in the hope that his parents had sent someone out of concern, Shin-woo answered honestly. Jae-seung glanced sideways and pouted slightly. His protruding lips looked sulky, apparently disappointed that his parents hadn’t sent anyone.

“I’ll give you blocks when we return to the mansion.”

The boy suddenly mentioned blocks, lowering his eyes. He seemed to believe that Shin-woo had come for the blocks, not to see him. His lips curled inward and then out again, fidgeting nervously, and a reddish color quickly spread from his puffy eyelids down to his cheekbones.

He’s not going to cry, is he? Shin-woo kept licking his lips while glancing at Jae-seung. He’d seen plenty of people crying and begging for their lives before, but this situation was a first, and it was perplexing.

“I didn’t come all the way here for those.”

While he had no intention of refusing the gift, he certainly hadn’t hiked up a mountain at dawn just for a few blocks. No sooner had Shin-woo given this curt reply than Jae-seung’s lips crumpled. Simultaneously, teardrops that had been precariously clinging to his long eyelashes fell with a plop.