Chapter 26: Two Can play
Min-Jun
The ballroom was cold, despite the gold-trimmed chandeliers and flowing champagne. It smelled of wealth—cologne, expensive leather, rare flowers—and yet he felt nothing but rot under his skin.
Cameras flashed. Laughter echoed. All around him, people celebrated what they believed to be a union of power and legacy.
He stood beside Yeon-Hwa, her arm looped through his like they were a perfect match. She wore a blood-red gown that clung to her like vengeance, and her lips curled into a victorious smile.
He wore the same mask he'd perfected since boyhood—still, unreadable, untouchable.
But inside, he was burning.
When the emcee raised a toast, announcing the engagement of Lee Min-Jun, heir of the Lee empire, to Yeon-Hwa, the queen of eastern trade, Min-Jun felt the weight of his promise slam against his chest like a gavel.
He looked at the crowd… and remembered her.
Seo-Ah.
She stood at the back of the hall, hidden behind the crowd. Her skin was pale, her lips parted in disbelief. She wore a simple white dress that made her look fragile, ghostlike, too soft for this cruel place.
Jae-Hyun stood beside her, his hand gently at her elbow as if holding her up.
Min-Jun's heart twisted.
He had begged her not to come. But of course, she came.
Because Seo-Ah was not the kind of woman who turned away from truth, even when it shattered her.
Their eyes met.
One second.
Then two.
And he saw it—the betrayal. The heartbreak. The question that screamed louder than the applause.
Why?
Yeon-Hwa noticed the shift in his gaze. She leaned in, lips brushing his cheek like a venomous whisper. "If you keep looking at her like that, Min-Jun, I might think you're still in love."
He didn't flinch. "You already know I am."
Her smile vanished for a moment.
But she recovered, taking his hand and raising it for the cameras.
Click.
That photo would be on the front page tomorrow. Lee Min-Jun: Engaged.
And somewhere in the back of that golden room, the woman he loved was being broken, quietly.
---
Seo-Ah
She had never imagined her own heart could physically ache. But it did.
It throbbed against her ribcage, each beat a cruel reminder that she was still alive—thanks to a deal she never asked for.
She could still taste the poison in her blood. Not the one from the wine she drank that night.
No. This one was worse.
Min-Jun's betrayal.
Even though she understood the reason—because of her—somehow, it didn't lessen the pain.
"I didn't think he'd really do it," she whispered to Jae-Hyun as her legs gave in and she sat slowly on one of the empty benches in the hallway outside the ballroom.
Jae-Hyun crouched beside her, concern etched deeply into his brow. "He did it to save you.
"But at what cost?" Her voice cracked. "He gave himself to that… woman."
"She's dangerous," Jae-Hyun said grimly. "Yeon-Hwa isn't just some obsessed heiress. She's built her empire on blood and secrets. And now she's got her claws in him."
Seo-Ah trembled. Her fingers clutched the fabric of her dress. "I should have died, Jae-Hyun."
"Don't say that—"
"I would rather die than watch him live like this."
Jae-Hyun couldn't find the words. Because he knew, deep down, she meant it.
---
Later that night
Min-Jun sat alone in the presidential suite Yeon-Hwa had arranged for them. She was out celebrating with her circle of power players, giving him time to process what he'd sacrificed.
The antidote had been delivered immediately after the press release.
Min-Jun had held it in his hands—small, unassuming, stored in a vial no bigger than a shot glass. He'd handed it over to Jae-Hyun without a word.
He had saved Seo-Ah.
And now, he belonged to a monster.
His phone buzzed. A message.
Seo-Ah: Did it feel worth it?
His heart clenched.
He typed a reply. Then erased it.
Then typed again: yes, and I'd do it again.
Three dots blinked. Then disappeared.
No reply.
Min-Jun closed his eyes and leaned back, his fists clenched.
There was no glory in this win. Only survival.
But even in chains, his heart still beat for her.
---
Seo-Ah
Rain pelted the windows like a cruel reminder of everything she'd lost.
She sat by the hospital window, staring out at the gray Seoul skyline. Her fingers trembled as she stirred the tea Jae-Hyun had made for her hours ago. She hadn't touched it.
She hadn't eaten.
Not since she saw the ring on Min-Jun's finger.
The news still played across her phone screen: Power couple of the year—Lee Min-Jun and Kang Yeon-Hwa. Every article praised the union as the merger of empires.
But none of them knew what it truly cost.
Jae-Hyun stood by the doorway, his jaw tense as he watched her. "You need to rest."
"I can't," she whispered. "He's out there. With her."
"You think he's enjoying this?"
"I think…" Her voice cracked. "I think he's suffering alone because of me. And I can't even help him."
---
Yeon-Hwa
She leaned against the velvet armchair in her private study, sipping dark wine and watching the surveillance footage on her tablet.
Min-Jun had come home late again. Straight from the office. No questions, no arguments. He even allowed her to hold his hand in front of the cameras.
But she wasn't fooled.
His silence wasn't surrender—it was strategy.
Still, she was patient. A serpent didn't strike immediately.
"I won't hurt Seo-Ah," she murmured to herself, remembering her deal with him.
"But you, Min-Jun… I will break you in places even she can't reach."
She walked to the mirror, running her fingers along the edges of the red lipstick she'd marked as his favorite. Every move she made was calculated. Every look designed to trap him.
But he didn't bite.
Not yet.
She set her wine glass down and picked up the manila folder on her desk. Min-Jun's weaknesses—his habits, routines, and scars. Her father's death had been a message. Now, she was crafting her reply.
---
Min-Jun
The office was quiet long after midnight.
He stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows of Lee Financial Tower, staring at the city's night lights like they held answers. His shirt sleeves were rolled up, tie loosened, hair a mess—he looked nothing like the groom the media worshiped.
But work kept him sane.
Or so he told himself.
Focus, Min-Jun.
The only way to win was to learn Yeon-Hwa's game… and beat her at it.
She liked control. She thrived on secrets. So he began digging—using private investigators, watching her reactions, tracing every call she made.
And he started to see the cracks.
She talked in her sleep. She flinched when she saw fire. She locked one room in the mansion and never let the staff near it.
Everyone had a weak spot.
Even the devil in red.
But he had to be careful. One wrong move and she'd hurt Seo-Ah in ways he couldn't protect her from.
Still, every time Yeon-Hwa smiled at him… he smiled back now.
Because two could play.
---
Seo-Ah
Her ability was able to get her back to work.
She applied and with reasons like her therapy and health issue, the granted her a spot since she's brilliant in her job
The world had tried to kill her—twice—but she refused to disappear. If Min-Jun was fighting silently, she would do the same. Not for revenge.
But to become strong enough to be by his side again.
She avoided the tabloids, the gossip, the fake sympathy from co-workers. She poured her energy into her projects, ignoring the ache in her chest.
One afternoon, she received a bouquet—red camellias and white lilies—with no card.
She stared at them, heart hammering.
Camellias: I will never stop loving you.
Lilies: I am sorry.
She didn't cry.
She just whispered, "I miss you too."