Finally, his blood began to circulate quickly. Ujae's grip on his wrist hurt.
He tried to twist his body to escape, but Ujae's touch wouldn't let go.
"Don't delude yourself."
His breathing slowed down again.
Woo-jae stared at Won with a cold expression.
There was no trace of affection or concern in his gaze.
He was simply numb.
No, it was more than numb, it was cold.
"Why do you think Gwon Woo-hyuk is watching you?"
His fingertips trembled.
It felt like his breath was being cut off again.
Woo-jae who realized this as if he were a ghost tightened his grip on Won's chin.
"What can you do? Why are you so cautious?"
The weight of the saliva that passed through his throat at that moment was heavier than a boulder.
What he could do.
What Won, who had long realized the law of the jungle, could do.
Not just a relationship of being preyed upon and eating, but the danger of being completely exterminated if he made a wrong move, what Won could do.
There was none.
However, it was all Representative Kwon's work.
He manipulated it so that Won would hope for a normal life.
"...What do you know!"
A deep voice sank low and murmured.
Woo-jae furrowed his brow.
Sharp eyes were firmly fixed on him.
"Don't talk as if you know everything about the topic of an unacknowledged illegitimate child."
The snake's tongue stood up and venom filled it.
The grip on the jaw loosened.
Won forcefully stepped on the stairs, pushing away Woo-jae's hand.
The wet eyes that were soaked turned green and blinked once.
The fierce gaze stubbornly maintained its shape, as if trying to distort multiple times.
Suddenly, that day came to mind.
The weather that day had a completely opposite flow to my mood.
The sun, which divided the sky, warmed the ground with a moderate temperature.
The wind was gentle, and even the leaves swayed peacefully as they rubbed against each other.
In the midst of it all, Seon Gwon couldn't blend into the harmony of nature.
Although the street stretched endlessly before him, all Won could see was a cliff.
It felt like he would fall off the cliff with just one more step.
After that, I couldn't tell how much time had passed.
Won discovered himself alone in the world at that time.
Won took a hesitant step.
Not in the direction he originally intended, but in the opposite direction.
His steps, heading against the orbit of the sun, were aimless.
Although Suin was born with the blood of a monster, it also possessed human intelligence.
Even if it was a small creature, it could plot rebellion.
Of course, most attempts ended in failure.
The center director, who could be considered absolute, was always a large creature, and there were many creatures who believed in and followed it.
There were few groups that could rival such a center director.
That was generally the reason for the failure of rebellions.
Won, who first learned the meaning of rebellion at the age of seven, also learned about a group called the 'rebels' that year.
He also learned how ruthless their leader was.
The creature that explained the rebels to Won was a nurse who worked at the hospital in the center.
And it was when he turned eight years old that he first learned of his parents' existence.
Until yesterday, they were parents who only existed in my imagination, but it wasn't particularly joyful.
It was rather sad, scary, and fearful.
After finding out that my parents were affiliated with the rebels, the nurse who didn't hesitate to curse at them whenever the rebels were mentioned couldn't be erased from my mind.
Until then, that nurse was the person Won followed best, but in just one year, they became the most awkward person.
If I could, I wanted to go back to an hour before I heard those words, no, just five minutes ago.
In fact, it was unclear whether the group was truly vicious, but the aftermath of the rebellion was still continuing, so it may not have been an entirely unreliable statement.
When was the last time I felt like I needed to hide my father, whom I thought had nothing to be disappointed about, a little more?
Yes, it was that day. When I found out that the rumor was secretly spreading that the entity leading the rebels was a snake beast.
Won's feelings at that time were one of despair itself.
A beastman's child inherits one of the characteristics of its mother and father.
The story of the rebel leader having a child did not even circulate as a rumor, but Won could not be at ease.
The most important thing was that the center director knew about it, and since I moved to the officetel complex, the presence of gazes was blatantly felt.
I wonder what power a sub-adult that is still growing could have, but CEO Kwon always kept a close eye on Won.
He didn't know why.
Even if they were parents who had never met in person, they might have thought that that blood was instilled in Won.
In the end, there was a bruise.
The bruise that appeared around the chin was not deep, but it was noticeable in the eyes.
"Hah.."
The circle, with its chin resting on the mirror, let out a short breath.
I held my breath and focused on every single footstep I could hear from outside.
The slippers dragging on the floor.
The footsteps in the hallway didn't hide any signs.
There was no need to be nervous.
Won, who took the tension off his shoulders, delayed the tension.
The map has been absent for two days on its own.
It would have been enough to give up and let go of everything.
However, the reason why the dilemma became so prolonged was because I didn't want to retreat anymore.
So far, they have moved as they wished.
In front of them, they became infinitely small and restrained themselves.
Until when do I have to keep doing this?
Suddenly, I had such a thought.
How long do I have to live with a heavy heart?
Listening to the same lecture under the same building as Woo-jae was suffocating, but now there were too many things that were too precious to give up.
As I organized my thoughts, the answer I reached was only one.
Hold on.
I survived for twenty years in the center, but couldn't endure just one year?
Yeah, when I think about it, the outcome was the same whether I endured it or not.
The deed has already been done, and now, even if I try to avoid it, nothing will change.
Then what should Kwon Woo-jae do?
Woo-jae acted as if he didn't care about surveillance, but he didn't really trust it.
If he had any weaknesses, he wouldn't be as stubborn as he is now.
Woo-jae couldn't even fit into the axis of being Representative Kwon's illegitimate child.
His impulsive outburst was regrettable.
He shouldn't have shown his emotions and ended up saying things he shouldn't have.
Even if Woo-jae was being watched, there was no guarantee that they knew everything.
He wanted to immediately rip out his hasty tongue.
Who does he think he is?
Talking about the illegitimate child topic.
The belated regret was overwhelming.
He had been watched, intentionally pursued, and eventually entangled with his own sexuality.
"..."
Won's eyes leisurely rose.
He scanned his trapped reflection in the mirror.
His jaw was bruised and his face was wrinkled.
As Won slowly opened his lips, the figure in the mirror also opened its mouth.
"Why..."
Why did he help? Why is he still keeping his mouth shut? Why did he have sex with me?
In truth, he couldn't give a clear answer to these questions.
He could only speculate.
It seemed that Woo-jae was still interested in that incident.
The intrigued gaze, the endlessly casual attitude.
He had slept once, so now it was time to carry out the task he had been given.
He almost messed up the job from the outside, and the one who marked him was a leopard, and he still had a strong guard against the center.
In the mirror, Won was now biting his lower lip.
His relentless habit of biting his dry lips continued endlessly.
For a moment, Won's eye twitched. Blood seeped from his lower lip.
Won stole a droplet of blood with his tongue.
The bloodstained droplet quickly concealed its trace, but it was swelling again.
Rolling up his lower lip, Won emerged from the bathroom with a weary face.
He grabbed only his phone and wallet and left the house.
He missed the first class, but he planned to catch the lectures after that.
He couldn't give up on his grades.
After opening the front door, Won had a numb expression on his face the whole time.
He walked the familiar path.
There were other routes, but he always walked this path.
So he instinctively took steps on this path.
He tried to regain his composure by slowly inhaling and exhaling and striving to regain his calmness.
"Now you finally crawl out."