5 AM.

A flight from Los Angeles, USA arrived at Incheon Airport.

Unlike those tired from the long flight, Sung Hyuk exited the arrivals hall with a neat face, stopped in place and took a deep breath in and out.

The cool dawn air rushed deep into his lungs.

Is it just his imagination that Korean air feels different from American air?

He thought patriotism was something that only happened to others, but stepping on Korean soil after a long time made his chest feel a bit tight. Returning home after 3 years was enough time to evoke nostalgia for his homeland.

However, the sentimental feeling did not last long. It was because the face of the woman he had tried not to remember occupied his mind.

His brow furrowed as he swallowed the curses that were welling up.

The target of the curses was not the woman but himself. For being unable to forget just one woman and lingering with regrets.

“Stupid fool.”

Just as the curse he couldn’t fully swallow escaped his lips, a calm, even voice was heard.

“You must be tired from your journey, Director Cha Sung Hyuk.”

Turning his head, he saw a middle-aged man in a black suit approaching.

One of the personal secretaries of SL Group Chairman Cha Hyun Woong.

“Chief Secretary Nam.”

Sung Hyuk learned that he would be taking over the position of Head of Management Planning that his elder brother currently held.

Chairman Cha Hyun Woong was not one to ask for others’ opinions. He only gave notifications. Not even his sons were exceptions.

“The Chairman instructed me to escort you home.”

“I could have gone alone. You didn’t need to trouble yourself, Chief Secretary Nam.”

Chief Secretary Nam changed the subject as he took the cart with his own hands.

“The Chairman and Madam departed yesterday afternoon to attend the Boao Forum.”

“I’m aware.”

The Boao Forum was an annual economic forum for the Asian region held in China.

Sung Hyuk was not unaware that his father personally attending the forum this year, which his elder brother had attended the past two years, was not a good sign for his brother.

He could vividly imagine his brother fretting about possibly losing the successor position.

“Shall we go?”

Nodding, Sung Hyuk leisurely followed Chief Secretary Nam as he pushed the cart ahead.

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The car that departed from Incheon Airport drove along the empty roads and arrived at a luxury villa complex in Cheongdam-dong.

The building reminiscent of a temple was shrouded in the predawn darkness.

As Sung Hyuk lowered the window and savored the gentle breeze caressing his face, the car arrived at the underground parking lot.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

Sung Hyuk sent away Chief Secretary Nam, who offered to bring the suitcase up to his home, and rode the elevator alone.

He got off on the 3rd floor penthouse.

As soon as he opened the front door, a chilly air rushed in. The white marble walls and floor looked especially cold today.

Leaving the suitcase at the entrance, he passed through the hallway to the living room, where the space that no one had entered in the meantime was filled with an empty feeling.

As if time had stopped only in this space.

Sung Hyuk stopped in the middle of the living room and cast his gaze through the floor-to-ceiling windows. The outside was already tinged red as if the sun was about to rise.

Suddenly, the back view of the woman who used to rub her sleepy eyes and go out to the veranda to see the sunrise overlapped.

He vividly recalled the moment he had hugged her frail body from behind, draping a blanket over her delicate frame that seemed like it would break if he applied force.

Why are there so many traces left everywhere when they had only met for about half a year?

“I should look for a new place.”

Is it because of the weight of useless lingering feelings that the mere 1 minute or so is more tiring than the thirteen hours spent in the sky?

He leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes with a suddenly exhausted face.

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The next evening.

Sung Hyuk took out a can of beer from the refrigerator, drank it while sitting in a dining chair, and called the real estate agent he had met when purchasing the villa.

“This is Cha Sung Hyuk.”

He cut off the real estate agent’s chatter asking if everything had been well and immediately stated his business.

“I’m thinking of selling this house and moving to a new place. As soon as possible.”

The real estate agent, who had figured out through their previous transaction that Sung Hyuk was a big spender who wasn’t picky, repeatedly emphasized that it wouldn’t be a problem.

Some called him picky, while others said he wasn’t picky.

The reason was simple. He showed the utmost indifference to things he wasn’t interested in. For him, housing was outside the realm of interest.

He rarely took interest in anything. Instead, once he got into something, he saw it through to the end.

“I’ll wait for your call.”

After the brief call, Sung Hyuk finished the remaining beer.

The moment the last of the beer passed his throat, his phone on the table vibrated.

The caller was his friend Beom Jun.

Sung Hyuk’s expression crumpled as soon as he saw the name ‘Chae Beom Jun’.

It was because the face of the woman he had barely shaken off, no, was desperately trying to shake off, became even clearer.

Sung Hyuk hesitated whether to answer or not, then pressed the call button with a reluctant expression.

−Hey, man! I heard you came to Korea! When did you arrive!

As the thunderous shout poured out, he put the phone he was bringing to his ear back down on the table. The voice was so loud that the speakerphone function was unnecessary.

“Yesterday.”

−Why didn’t you say anything! You should have said you were coming!

“You know like this without me saying anything, so why bother.”

The excited voice and nonchalant voice were quite contrasting.

−Where are you now?

“Home.”

−Come out. Let’s have a drink.

“I’m tired.”

−Should I come to your place?

“No.”

−Why won’t you let me come to your house? Is there something I shouldn’t see?

“There’s nothing like that.”

There’s nothing now, but there was before. That’s why he didn’t let him come.

It would have been troublesome if Beom Jun knew about that woman’s existence.

It was what she wanted, not him.

−Then come out. I’ll call the guys.

Sung Hyuk changed his mind, not wanting to argue with the stubborn Beom Jun and thinking it wouldn’t be bad to get it over with today since he’d have to meet them once anyway.

“Send me the address.”

In fact, the desire to drink strong liquor rather than beer that didn’t give him even a slight buzz was the strongest.

−Okay.

After hanging up, he got up from his seat, crumpled the beer can and threw it in the sink, then headed to the dressing room.

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About 30 minutes later.

A taxi appeared piercing through the darkness and stopped in front of a majestic dark brown 3-story building.

Sung Hyuk, who got out of the taxi, entered the club guided by the general manager waiting at the entrance.

The 1st floor stage was boiling with beats that shook the heart, psychedelic lights, and a crowd so packed there was no room to step.

“They’re on the 3rd floor.”

Sung Hyuk followed the general manager up the stairs and entered the VIP room. Familiar faces were in the midst of drinking heavily.

Beom Jun, who spotted him first, raised his voice.

“Sung Hyuk is here!”

Following Beom Jun, everyone greeted him in unison.

Sung Hyuk didn’t particularly like those gathered here, including Beom Jun, his high school classmate. It might be more accurate to say their personalities didn’t match.

He just maintained appropriate friendships with them as they were sons of families that weren’t bad to know.

The ‘Cha Sung Hyuk’s Homecoming Welcome Party’ that Cha Sung Hyuk himself didn’t want began.

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Young In received an unwelcome call in the car on her way home.

Wrinkles formed on her smooth forehead as soon as she saw the four characters ‘Brother Beom Jun’ on her phone screen.

It was even more unwelcome than usual because it had been an exhausting day dealing with the aftermath of a rookie actor who had disappeared without notice during drama filming.

She guessed the reason why her brother was calling at a time approaching midnight.

−I’ve been drinking. Come pick me up.

The words “What’s the point of having taxis?” rose to the tip of her tongue but couldn’t be said. If she said that, she’d have to listen to accusations of being ungrateful for days on end.

She was sick of hearing the saying “You shouldn’t take in black-haired beasts” drilled into her ears.

“Where are you?”

−The New Palace.

It was a place she knew from having picked him up there a few times before. Of course, she was well aware that her brother was a VIP at that club.

“It’ll take about 20 minutes. I’ll call when I arrive.”

Young In turned the car around resignedly and arrived in front of the club about 20 minutes later as promised.

She parked the car on the shoulder and tried calling, but the person who had asked to be picked up didn’t answer. After ten attempts, she concluded that making further calls would be meaningless.

“Sigh…”

Young In soothed her rising temper with a deep breath and got out of the car to walk towards the club building.

Two guards in black suits were standing at the entrance on the first floor.

They were both tall and looked to easily weigh over a hundred kilograms. Their expressions were also fierce.

It would be strange for anyone not to feel intimidated, but there wasn’t a trace of agitation in Young In’s eyes. She just wanted to get this annoying task over with quickly.

“I came to pick up my brother but he’s not answering his phone. Can I go in for a moment?”

One of the guards grinned and asked back.

“What’s your brother’s name?”

Young In hid her displeasure and calmly replied.

“Chae Beom Jun.”

“Ah, Brother Beom Jun.”

As expected of a club regular.

The man’s immediate reaction made her chuckle inwardly.

The man slightly lowered his chin and asked into the microphone on his jacket lapel.

“Which room is Brother Beom Jun in?”

Having located the regular customer, he smiled at Young In.

“They say he’s in Room 7?”

The corners of her mouth also curved into a pretty smile.

“Thanks. But stop speaking informally to a stranger.”

Young In entered the club, leaving behind the man who could only gape in shock.

It was already tiring enough to ask a passing employee where Room 7 was and climb to the 3rd floor, but on the way to Room 7 at the end of the hallway, she ended up seeing something she shouldn’t have.

At the place she had barely made it through the cauldron of frenzy were a man and woman engaged in passionate kissing while leaning against the hallway wall.

‘You’re not animals, go somewhere private, you two.’

Passing by the couple lost in the moment, she entered Room 7 and quickly scanned the interior.

It had a structure with bench sofas lined up to the left and right of the main seat.

About half of the six or seven young men were familiar faces. And one of them caught her eye.

The man who suited the main seat best.

The being that sons of wealthy families naturally gravitated towards.

Cha Sung Hyuk, the apex predator who reigned above all.

The gazes of the two people meeting again after 3 years intertwined at a single point.