Jiyoo cradled Valerie tightly against his chest, his heart hammering with fear.
“Valerie… hey—wake up,” he whispered, shaking her gently. “Please… don’t do this.”
But her body remained limp, her breathing shallow and uneven. Her head fell against his shoulder, her hair covering part of her face. Jiyoo brushed it aside with trembling hands.
He had never felt fear like this—not even during the gunfire.
“Please… open your eyes…” he begged, voice breaking.
Suddenly, the footsteps thundered toward him.
Kain, Bryan, Yuki, and the rest of the Narrow Squad sprinted down the alley, weapons drawn and alert. Their eyes widened at the scene before them.
“Jiyoo!” Bryan shouted. “What happened?!”
He kept holding her, unable to look away from her unconscious face.
“She—she fainted,” he managed to choke out. “She fought too hard… she’s exhausted—she just collapsed—”
Yuki rushed forward, kneeling beside them. She placed two fingers on Valerie’s neck to check her pulse. Relief washed over her features.
“She’s alive,” Yuki confirmed. “Weak, but alive.”
Jiyoo exhaled shakily, his shoulders dropping.
Kain looked around at the bodies of defeated henchmen. “Where’s Tyler?”
“Escaped,” Jiyoo said through clenched teeth. “But he won’t get far.”
Bryan stepped closer, frowning deeply. “You should’ve called us sooner.”
Jiyoo didn’t argue. He simply tightened his hold on Valerie. “I couldn’t leave her.”
Kain took a breath, steadying himself. “We need to get her out of here fast. Si-woo’s people or Tyler’s reinforcements could be back any minute.”
Jiyoo nodded, but didn’t move. “I’ll carry her,” he insisted.
Kain met his eyes for a moment, then nodded. “Alright. Lead the way.”
Jiyoo gently lifted Valerie into his arms bridal-style. Her head rested against his chest, her breathing faint but steady enough to give him hope.
He looked down at her vulnerable expression—one he had rarely seen. She looked small, fragile, like she was finally free of all the weight she had been carrying.
Jiyoo whispered softly. “I’m here now… I won’t let anything happen to you again.”
The squad formed a protective circle around them as they moved through the alley and back toward the vehicles. Their eyes stayed sharp, alert for any movement.
Bryan muttered quietly, “If Tyler touched her again… I swear—”
Kain cut him off. “Focus. We will get her safe first.”
Yuki glanced over her shoulder at Valerie with genuine worry. “She needs rest. Food. Medical attention. She’s running on fumes.”
Jiyoo gritted his teeth, guilt crawling up his spine. “I should’ve protected her better…”
Bryan shook his head. “You did what you could. She survived because of you.”
Though, Jiyoo didn’t look convinced. He looked down at Valerie again—her soft breathing, her pale skin, the faint bruises forming on her wrists and neck from Tyler’s assault.
And he whispered so quietly no one else could hear: “I won’t lose you again… not this time.”
The nightbar was loud, crowded, alive—but none of it reached Ryung. He sat alone at the counter, fingers wrapped loosely around a glass already half-empty. Neon lights washed over his face, briefly illuminating a version of himself the world recognized: famous, admired, untouchable. However, that wasn’t who he felt like.
He took another drink, the burn sliding down his throat, and the present began to blur. The music faded into noise as memories crept in—uninvited, relentless.
Before K-East and the stages, the lights, the screaming fans.
He had been just a regular guy. He remembered cramped rooms with peeling walls, the smell of alcohol mixed with anger. His father’s voice—sharp, cruel, unpredictable. The sound of fists hitting tables. Doors slamming. Silence that followed, heavier than the violence itself.
Ryung’s jaw tightened as he stared into his glass.
Pain had been normal back then. Fear had been routine. Love had been conditional—if it existed at all. His family was never whole, only surviving day by day, pretending dysfunction was stability.
“I’ll get out,” he remembered telling himself. “I’ll be someone.”
And he did.
Sitting there now, surrounded by strangers and noise, Ryung realized something bitter; fame hadn’t erased the past. It hadn’t healed the abuse or filled the emptiness. It only buried it deeper, disguising it beneath success.
He let out a quiet, humorless laugh and finished his drink.
A regular guy had dreamed of escaping pain. A famous man had learned pain never really leaves.
And as the bar buzzed on around him, Ryung remained seated—caught somewhere between who he was, who he became, and the wounds that followed him into the spotlight.
…
FIRST FLASHBACK:
Shouting.
That was always the beginning.
“Stop crying!” Mr. Kim yelled, slamming his fist against the table. The sound echoed through the cramped apartment, rattling the cheap dishes.
Young Ryung stood frozen in the hallway, heart pounding so loud he was sure they could hear it. He watched his father tower over his mother, who kept her eyes lowered, fingers twisting into her skirt.
“I said I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“Sorry doesn’t fix anything,” Mr. Kim snapped.
Something shattered. Ryung flinched.
That night, he learned that home wasn’t a place of rest—it was a place to brace himself.
…
…
SECOND FLASHBACK:
The worst nights were the quiet ones.
No shouting. No breaking glass.
Just tension.
Ryung sat in his room, knees pulled to his chest, listening to footsteps outside his door. Each step made his breath hitch. He didn’t know if his father would walk past—or come in.
Mrs. Kim had slipped him dinner earlier, her eyes hollow.
“Be good,” she whispered. “Don’t upset him.”
That was all the protection she could offer.
Ryung stared at the wall, counting cracks, praying for sleep. He learned that silence didn’t mean safety—it meant waiting.
…
…
THIRD FLASHBACK:
He was older this time. Taller. Stronger—or so he thought.
Mr. Kim looked him up and down with contempt.
“You think you’re better than us?” he sneered. “You’ll never escape this. You’re nothing.”
Ryung clenched his fists, shaking.
“I’ll leave,” he said quietly. “I won’t stay here forever.”
Mr. Kim laughed—short, cruel, final.
“People like us don’t get out.”
That sentence carved itself deep inside Ryung’s chest.
Even years later—famous, admired, powerful—those words still echoed whenever he was alone.
…
…
END OF ALL FLASHBACKS
He closed his eyes and let the memories wash over him, uninvited but relentless.
He saw himself as that scared, small boy in the cramped apartment, flinching at every shout, every slammed door. His mother’s hollow eyes. His father’s cruel words. Nights of silence, waiting for the next outburst. Each moment had carved a piece of him that no fame could ever erase.
“You’ll never be anything… just like me.”
The words repeated in his mind like a broken record, bitter and unyielding.
He remembered hiding in his room, headphones pressed to his ears, dreaming of escaping—dreaming of a life where he could be someone, anyone, other than the frightened boy trembling in the dark.
And then he remembered the deal. The choice.
Si-woo had offered him a ladder, a way out, fame, fortune, power. But it had come with strings, invisible chains he had signed onto without thinking—maybe thinking he deserved nothing better. Maybe thinking he could finally rewrite his story.
Yet, sitting there now, glass half-empty, the weight of those chains pressed down on him again.
He had escaped his past, yes—but at what cost? How many people had been hurt so he could stand in the spotlight?
Ryung’s fingers tightened around the glass. The past and present collided: the boy who had survived abuse, the man who had traded his soul for success, and the man now questioning if survival was enough when others were paying the price.
The neon lights reflected off the liquor in his glass. He took a slow breath.
“I thought I could leave it behind,” he murmured to no one. “But the past… it never leaves you. It just waits… and it reminds you of what you’ve become.”
And in that quiet, isolated corner of the nightbar, Ryung realized: fame didn’t heal him. It had only made him a stranger to himself—and to the world he used to dream of protecting.
In the meantime, Bryan paced back and forth in the hideout with his jaw tightening, as Ava and Kain gathered around the scattered files and evidence they had collected. The air smelled of burnt coffee and adrenaline from the recent fight.
“I can’t believe this…” Bryan muttered, flipping through photos and videos on his tablet. “Ryung… he was an underground rapper before K-East?”
Ava’s eyes widened. “Not just that. Look at this.” She pointed at a series of contracts, emails, and recordings. “He made a deal with Si-woo in 2013. Full-on collaboration, but it wasn’t just music. It’s like he… sold himself. His soul to them—for fame, fortune, influence.”
Bryan scowled. “You mean he literally agreed to everything Si-woo wanted? The manipulations, the dirty work, everything?”
Kain shook his head, incredulous. “It’s worse than that. The guy we thought was just some overworked producer… he’s been playing a double game. Underground rap, connections in shady circles, then the moment Si-woo offered him a ladder to the top, he took it—and he didn’t look back.”
Yuki’s hands shook slightly as she tapped a photo of Ryung in his earlier underground days. “And all this time… we were blaming Si-woo for everything, thinking Ryung was just a pawn. But he’s not innocent. He’s complicit. He knew exactly what he was signing up for.”
Bryan ran a hand through his hair, frustration clear. “So all that fame, all the power he has now… it came at the cost of his morals—and probably the people around him. Like Valerie.”
Kain nodded grimly. “This explains so much. The tracking, the attempts on her life… Ryung’s not just following orders. He’s been enforcing Si-woo’s plans while benefiting himself.”
Yuki clenched her fists. “He sold out… and now he’s wrapped up in everything Si-woo’s been doing. Fame, fortune… and the suffering he caused others.”
Bryan’s eyes darkened. “We can’t underestimate him. He’s dangerous—part genius, part traitor. And if Valerie comes into contact with him again… she’s in real danger.”
The room fell silent, the weight of the revelation sinking in. Ryung wasn’t just a celebrity or a producer—they now realized he was a man who had chosen the darkness, knowingly stepping into a world that corrupted everyone who crossed it.
The Narrow Squad gathered in their safehouse, tension thick in the air. Files, photos, and video evidence lay scattered across the table. Each of them processed the same shocking truth in their own way.
Beom shook his head, voice tight. “Yeah… and it wasn’t just music. He sold himself—for fame, influence… power. He chose it.”
Byung-seok frowned, tapping the table. “I can’t wrap my head around it. The guy we trusted, who trained alongside us, turned out to be part of all this. How can someone do that to people… to Valerie?”
Julong’s jaw tightened. “He’s not just a pawn. He made these choices knowingly. People got hurt because of him.”
Woonjae leaned forward, voice low. “Exactly. He’s smart, manipulative, and knows how to cover his tracks. That’s why none of us saw it coming until now.”
Sunghoon ran a hand over his face. “I always knew he had that intensity, that edge. But seeing this… it’s worse than I imagined. He’s dangerous—more dangerous than anyone realizes.”
Jason’s tone was steady, but hard. “We can’t underestimate him. He might be brilliant, but he’s willing to betray anyone who gets in his way. Fame, fortune… It's all part of his game. And now it’s on us to make sure he doesn’t hurt anyone else.”
Moonki paused, glancing around the table. “Yeah… but what about Henry? Where does he fit into all this? Is he in on it too?”
Julong shook his head slowly. “I don’t know. Henry’s always been… unpredictable. But if Ryung’s making these deals, I wouldn’t put it past him to drag Henry into it somehow.”
Luke slammed his fist lightly on the table. “If that’s the case, then we have to stay sharp. Ryung might be one of us in name, but in reality… he’s running his own agenda. And we need to figure out how to deal with that—fast.”
Beom leaned back, grim. “And we have to protect Valerie. If he’s involved with Si-woo like this, she’s at real risk.”
A heavy silence settled over the group, each member lost in their thoughts. They trusted Ryung and Henry once. Now, they had to reckon with the fact that they were both a friend and a threat, and that every move he made could endanger the people they cared about most.150Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCERViY6mjM
and then Add to home screen.