The air crackled with disbelief and a hint of amusement as Alina's voice cut through the awkward tension in the room. Her eyes widened in incredulity, her lips curling into a bemused smile.
"Wow, Isn't this a small world!" Alina exclaimed, her tone dripping with sarcasm as she struggled to wrap her head around the sheer absurdity of the situation.
'What are the odds?' she pondered, her mind reeling with disbelief. The two hot guys she had met at the bar turned out to be the accomplices of her kidnappers. It was a twist of fate that even the most skilled storytellers would struggle to concoct.
"This has to be the biggest coincidence in my life," Alina mused, her thoughts racing a mile a minute.
"Mark Lee from Korea and Zander, I presume," Alina drawled out their names, her voice tinged with a mixture of amusement and disbelief. The memory of their encounter at the bar was etched in her mind, their names seared into her memory like a brand.
Mark couldn't hide his astonishment. His gaze flickered with surprise as he exchanged a stunned glance with Zander. He never expected to encounter the singing angel from his bar in such a bizarre circumstance.
"Darling, It's just Mark Lee," he corrected her with a playful smirk. "I didn't expect you to remember me. I thought you'd be somewhere in South Korea ogling at idols."
"I would have if it weren't for you guys," Alina said in a saccharine tone, her voice laced with a hint of sarcasm.
Zander observed the exchange with a mixture of surprise and amusement. His dark eyes sparkled with a hint of mischief.
Carson and Lucy exchanged confused glances, their brows furrowing in confusion. Did these people know each other? The pieces of the puzzle were slowly coming together, but the picture remained incomplete.
"Have you guys met before?" Carson's voice cut through the room, his curiosity piqued by the unexpected familiarity between Alina and the two men.
"Of course, we know each other," Mark replied, his tone laced with amusement as he recounted the story of their encounter at the bar. He spared no detail, much to Alina's chagrin.
"Ah, yes, I remember it like it was yesterday," Mark began, his voice filled with playful nostalgia. "You were at the bar, drowning your sorrows in alcohol and karaoke after you called off the wedding. You were an absolute riot, belting out ballads and shedding tears like it was your last day on Earth."
A blush crept up Alina's cheeks as she listened to Mark's recounting of the embarrassing incident. She squirmed in her seat, desperately wishing she could disappear into the floorboards.
Carson and Lucy listened intently, their eyes widening with each new revelation. They couldn't believe their ears as Mark regaled them with tales of Alina's drunken escapades.
Alina buried her face in her hands, mortified by Mark's candid retelling of the embarrassing incident. She couldn't believe her luck; not only had she been kidnapped, but now she had to endure the humiliation of her drunken antics being recounted for all to hear.
"Mark, stop it! Can't you see you are embarrassing the poor girl?" Zander interjected, his deep voice breaking through the tension in the room.
Alina couldn't help but appreciate the gesture, her gaze lingering on Zander for a moment longer than necessary. He was undeniably handsome, with a rugged charm that sent a flutter of butterflies through her stomach.
"Alina, you poor thing. I didn't know you went through all this," Carson exclaimed, his eyes brimming with pity as he regarded her with sympathy.
Alina rolled her eyes, a sardonic smile playing at the corners of her lips. 'Another tactless fool,' she thought to herself, unable to suppress a chuckle at Carson's well-meaning but misguided attempt at sympathy.
It suddenly dawned on her, a realization that sent a shiver down her spine. She glanced between Carson and Mark, studying them carefully, and finally understanding why she found Mark's behavior so familiar.
"So you guys are brothers," Alina remarked, her tone casual as she connected the dots.
A trace of astonishment passed through all the people present, their eyes widening in surprise at Alina's revelation.
"How did you know that? Don't tell me it's because of the surname; almost half of the Korean population has the same name," Carson questioned her, his curiosity piqued by her astute observation.
"And we don't even look similar," Mark added, a hint of confusion coloring his tone as he regarded Alina with curiosity.
"It's a gut feeling, and who told you guys are not similar? Your actions are almost the same," Alina replied with a mischievous grin, unable to resist the opportunity to tease the two brothers.
"Hey!" both Carson and Mark protested simultaneously, their voices overlapping in protest.
"See, very similar," Alina pointed out, her grin widening as she elicited chuckles from Lucy and Zander.
"So Alina, since we are past acquaintances, I promise you after getting your help we will send you to South Korea safely without a single hair missing from your body," Mark vowed to Alina, indicating he was very serious.
"So..." she drawled out, "you guys want me to complete song lyrics," she said with an amused grin on her face.
"Why do you think I might be able to help you? Maybe this was just a coincidence!"
Out of the four people listening, except Zander, everyone felt what Alina said was possible. This was the first time they received such a unique hint from the Guider, and also the first time they were unable to solve it.
"That's for us to decide," Zander said in his deep commanding tone.
The trio looked at him and understood that Zander had reasons for his actions.
Alina shrugged, leaning back on the couch she was sitting on.
Zander's sharp gaze fell on her for a second before he whipped out his phone and made a call. He had a lingering suspicion that he had to confirm.
"Hello Uncle," Zander said as he walked towards the balcony of the room. He talked for a few minutes before he hung up the phone and returned to the room with a somber expression.
"What happened?" Lucy asked, her eyes filled with concern as the rest watched him intently.
"The Guider is dead!" Zander announced.
A myriad of emotions played on everyone's faces, except for a confused Alina.
"What do you mean he is dead? Then what's with the hint they sent us?" Carson asked his tone a mix of sadness and confusion.
"According to Uncle, six months back, the Guider's family was attacked, which led to him being deeply injured. In order to not delay us, it was his heir who sent the hint to us on his orders. His heir is very reluctant to take on the position of the Guider and wanted us to fail," Zander explained.
Then, he glanced at Alina and added, "But unfortunately, we completed the lines. The previous Guider succumbed to his injuries one week ago. And us solving the hint means that the heir has no choice but to be our Guider despite his reluctance."
The room fell into a stunned silence as Zander's words sank in. Alina's mind raced with questions, trying to make sense of the unexpected turn of events.
"So, you're telling me that we inadvertently forced this heir to become our Guider?" Carson asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.
Zander nodded solemnly. "Yes, it seems that way. The Guider's death has left a void that his heir is now forced to fill, whether he likes it or not."
A sense of unease settled over the group as they grappled with the weight of their actions. They had unwittingly altered the course of someone else's life, and the consequences were only just beginning to unfold.
"What does this mean for us?" Lucy asked, her voice tinged with concern.
Zander sighed, running a hand through his hair. "It means that we're in deeper than we thought. We'll have to tread carefully from now on, especially now that we have a new Guider to contend with."
Alina watched the exchange with a mixture of apprehension and curiosity. She couldn't shake the feeling that they were just scratching the surface of something much bigger than themselves.