There’s no time to waste.

The day after making my decision, I went straight to my friend Sun An’s house.

If my younger sister Lin Hwa knew about this, she would probably throw a fit and exclaim, “Why are you visiting Young Master Sun An? Do you have ulterior motives towards him, unni?” But I had no choice.

I had heard that Sun An’s maternal family was involved in some secretive and shady business.

No, putting that aside. To begin with, it’s absurd for Lin Hwa to be suspicious of the relationship between Sun An and me.

Sun An thinks of me as a lecherous man. Wouldn’t it seem even stranger if Lin Hwa were to make a fuss about it?

“Isn’t it Young Master Yo?”

As I approached the front gate, the gatekeeper immediately recognized my face and greeted me cheerfully.

“Have you been well?”

“I’m always the same. Young Master Yo, you look dashing as ever.”

As usual, I handed the gatekeeper a handful of coins and asked,

“Is An in? Is he inside?”

“Don’t even mention it. He was dragged back after going to the gambling house again.”

“Oh dear.”

As I shook my head and clicked my tongue, the gatekeeper stared at me intently and let out a deep sigh.

“If only our Young Master Sun were as well-behaved as Young Master Yo—”

“Your flattery is excessive for a few coins of bribe, Sik-ah.”

Hearing the voice from beyond the gate, the gatekeeper quickly stopped talking.

Soon, the large gate opened from the inside, and Sun An appeared with a smile.

“Oh my, I was just saying.”

The gatekeeper quickly made an excuse, apparently not realizing that Sun An had heard everything he said.

Sun An snorted, but he didn’t seem to be in a bad mood.

“Besides, how is this fellow well-behaved? He’s a playboy who wags his tail at every woman he sees.”

No, is he actually upset?

The gatekeeper laughed nervously at Sun An’s serious reprimand.

“Oh my, young master.”

Feeling that the light banter had gone on long enough, I patted the gatekeeper’s back a couple of times and then pulled Sun An’s arm.

“An, I need to talk to you. It’s important.”

“You playboy. Are you trying to charm even our house’s Sik?”

“What are you talking about?”

Grabbing the arm of the grumbling Sun An, I walked towards his room.

“I don’t understand why you’re leading the way to my room.”

Sun An grumbled but obediently followed.

“Would you like some tea? We’ve received some tea with a wonderful aroma. I think you’ll like it.”

“No, thanks.”

As soon as we entered the room, I closed the door first.

“You don’t want tea?”

As I sat down in a chair, Sun An asked in a puzzled voice.

“Why? Don’t you like our house’s tea?”

“What I like isn’t your house’s tea, An. It’s your house’s maid Wol-hyang.”

Sun An snorted.

“Are you trying to brag? Couldn’t you at least try to hide such intentions?”

“Alright. What I like is you.”

As I said this with my eyebrows lowered at both ends, Sun An clicked his tongue and waved his hand.

“I suppose I should bow down in gratitude. Enough of that. What’s the matter? If it’s serious enough for you to refuse even Wol-hyang, whom you like so much, is something grave happening?”

Yes. An unimaginably enormous event has occurred.

I let out a small sigh.

If I were to tell Sun An right now, “I’ve experienced the future and returned to the past. My disciple becomes the emperor in the future,” that bastard would be so shocked he’d cover my mouth first.

Talking about who will become the emperor in the future could be seen as a treasonous statement.

“Listen, An. You said your maternal family does some secretive and shady business, right?”

I carefully broached the subject, omitting any explanation of the circumstances.

At the mention of his maternal family, Sun An raised his eyebrows and stared at me intently.

Sun An’s maternal family, the Yu clan, was well-established in the shadowy world, but Sun An, who had grown up associating only with noble young masters since childhood, didn’t particularly like his maternal family.

The reason for Sun An’s unfavorable expression now is probably because I brought up the topic of his maternal family. He always said he was ashamed of them.

“By any chance, could you find a hideout that no one knows about?”

But this was a matter of life and death for me. I clasped my hands together tightly and looked at him earnestly.

“You know, with things like fake identity tags included.”

However… why was it? Sun An just stared at me with a hardened face without giving any answer.

“An?”

His expression looked as worn as an eroded stone, so I called out to Sun An worriedly.

“Are you angry because I mentioned your maternal family? I’m sorry. It’s really an urgent matter.”

But Sun An seemed like someone who had lost the ability to speak. There was no reaction.

How long had it been like this? As it became uncomfortable to just wait endlessly, I carefully called out to him again.

“An?”

At that moment, Sun An’s expression changed eerily. In an instant, his hand reached for my nape. He had grabbed my neck.

“Who are you?”

Moreover, the madman said something strange.

And as if he had no intention of listening to an answer after asking the question, he didn’t even loosen his grip on my neck.

As my neck bones were being pressed inward, making it difficult to breathe, I in turn grabbed his neck tightly. That seemed like the quickest solution rather than struggling to break free.

After a while of enduring, choking each other’s necks, Sun An finally released my neck.

I wanted to hold on a bit longer, but a cough burst out uncontrollably, preventing me from doing so. My waist bent over involuntarily.

Inevitably letting go as well, I pounded my chest vigorously.

The cough subsided only after erupting enough to make my throat ache, leaving a foreign sensation behind.

I kept pounding my chest and glared at Sun An.

Despite having his neck strangled together, he looked fine. He was looking down at me with cold eyes and an unaffected appearance.

Seeing that look, anger surged belatedly.

“You bastard. Are you crazy?”

Unable to contain myself, I grabbed his collar.

However, this time Sun An firmly grasped both my wrists and asked,

“Answer my question first. Who are you?”

“You bad guy, that’s my line. Who are you? My friend An isn’t such a violent person.”

“!”

“No, you’re not even my friend starting tomorrow. Suddenly choking someone like that.”

I’ve only been back for three days after dying from poison and returning. Dying from being choked after just three days would be too unfair, wouldn’t it?

Ah, my neck hurts so much. If I look in a mirror, there will probably be red hand marks on my neck.

Hand marks would be better. It might even turn into a dark bruise in the shape of a hand.

How long had I been fuming like that?

Just as my eyes were starting to burn and tears were about to well up, Sun An released my wrists as if throwing them off and asked,

“Where did you hear about my maternal family?”

I shouted angrily.

“From your own mouth!”

But after shouting, my heart sank belatedly.

Come to think of it, the timing of when Sun An told me about his maternal family was… unclear.

He did tell me about his maternal family in my previous life. But I’m not sure at what point it was.

I think it was after he made a mistake while drunk.

Sun An’s eyes narrowed. Damn it. It seems he hadn’t told me yet in this life. That’s why he was suspicious.

‘What should I do now?’

My heart was pounding rapidly like a drum, urging me to resolve this situation quickly.

Using my wit, I confessed half-truthfully.

“You told me when you were drunk.”

“When did I? I don’t remember.”

“Of course you don’t remember because you were drunk! When I told you my sister likes you, you talked about your maternal family! Saying you and my sister don’t match!”

It was true, except for the fact that it happened before my return.

In my previous life, when drunk me first brought up the topic of Lin Hwa, he painfully refused using his maternal family as an excuse.

Since Sun An doesn’t know about Lin Hwa’s feelings at this point, he looked at me with a puzzled expression and then asked in disbelief,

“Lady Lin Hwa likes me?”

As intended, it seemed the topic had shifted from his maternal family to my sister.

Although I was relieved inside, I deliberately gritted my teeth audibly in an exaggerated manner.

“She does like you. But you’ll never be able to be with my sister. I have no intention of becoming family with a bastard who chokes people when he’s angry.”

“!”

Sun An looked surprised for a moment but soon smiled bitterly.

“You’re right. I’m not good enough for your sister.”

That appearance suddenly looked pitiful.

But I didn’t get swept up in that, instead snorting and turning my head away with my arms crossed.

After I firmly showed my anger, Sun An apologized belatedly.

“I’m sorry. I was a bit suspicious because you knew about my mother’s secret that I haven’t told anyone…”

“What’s there to be suspicious about? Who else would I hear this from if not you?”

“There have been some complicated issues. An assassin actually came.”

“An assassin? An assassin came? To whom? To you?”

“Well. Just… you know.”

After mentioning such an enormous word that couldn’t be easily glossed over, Sun An brushed it off and then stood up, awkwardly suggesting,

“Anyway, I’m sorry, so I’ll help you find a hideout. But why do you suddenly need a hideout?”

“I have some business too.”

When I brushed it off just like he did earlier, Sun An raised his eyebrows.

But perhaps realizing he couldn’t ask about my circumstances when he hadn’t fully explained his own, instead of probing further, he shrugged and opened the door.

“Follow me. It’s easy to find one if you have money.”

* * *

The place Sun An confidently took me after leaving his house was his regular gambling den, Cheon-geum-su-hwa.

Not expecting him to bring me to a gambling den, I stood firm at the entrance in confusion and asked,

“Do we have to gamble for a hideout? Do we really have to go in here?”

Sun An shook his head and lowered his voice.

“We’re not here to gamble. This gambling den belongs to my maternal family.”

“R-Really?”

I didn’t know that even before my return? I knew he frequented the gambling den, but I thought it was just a hobby.

“What did you think I came here for?”

“Because you’re a gambler.”

Sun An frowned, pinched my arm once, and then grabbed my arm, telling me to follow.

‘Ah… if I get caught, my parents will try to kill me.’

After staring blankly at the door with red curtains hanging down to the floor, I closed my eyes tightly and went inside.

True to its reputation as the most splendid gambling den in Hwa-eum, the capital, Cheon-geum-su-hwa’s interior was dazzling.

The floor, pillars, and ceiling were all golden, and enormous flowers made of translucent fabric were scattered everywhere.

In private rooms surrounded by these huge flowers, people were gambling or drinking, and on the stage in the center, musicians were performing.

But just as I was frozen for a moment in this unfamiliar space.

“Huh?”

Sun An’s expression hardened as he saw someone passing by, and he quickly tapped my arm and said,

“You, wait here for a moment. If the staff comes, tell them you’re waiting for me.”

“What about you?”

“Just a moment.”

With those words, Sun An suddenly ran off somewhere.

I had followed him to this unfamiliar gambling den based on his word alone. And in an instant, I was left alone in this strange space.

Dumbfounded and standing still in confusion, passing people glanced at me and giggled among themselves.

They seemed to find it amusing to see me, dressed neatly like a scholar, fumbling alone in this lavish gambling den.

Damn it. I came to find a hideout, and now this?

I cursed inwardly but obediently stood still and waited for him as Sun An had instructed.

Even when a staff member approached, offering to guide me to a room, I refused, mentioning Sun An’s name.

This went on for about an hour. Just as my legs were starting to ache, anger was building up, and I was feeling the urge to leave.

Not far away, I heard the voice I feared the most.

“Could it be… Master?”

“!”