“…Am I dreaming?”
Watching a junior knock out his senior right in front of his eyes, Park Moondae chose denial first. This had to be a dream. Please, let it be a dream. There was no way this reality made sense. A teammate attacking a senior idol while driving… Worst-case scenarios flashed through his mind like a slideshow. How on earth was he supposed to clean up this mess? No matter how hard he worked his brain, he found no answer. Biting his tongue and passing away right here felt like a cleaner option.
“What are you doing? Grab his legs and help me pull him over.”
“…”
Cars behind them honked as the light changed and their vehicle stayed still. Watching Hajun drag the passed-out Cheongryeo into the back seat, Moondae felt cold sweat drip down his back as he realized this could have happened while cruising down the highway. He knew Hajun was out of his mind, but he never expected the guy to strike the driver.
“Hey. Are you listening?”
“…”
Hajun gave up on calling out to the dazed Moondae. The guy’s mind had logged out of reality. Still, the moment Hajun realized he was about to hit Cheongryeo, he had managed to pull his punch with superhuman reflexes. Meaning Cheongryeo was knocked out, but his life remained intact. He was breathing, wasn’t he?
Tossing Cheongryeo into the back seat, Hajun slid into the driver’s seat with fluid grace. The spacious interior helped; if the car were tight, even someone flexible would struggle to squeeze that large frame across. With heavy tint on the windows, Moondae was the sole witness to that fluid movement.
Holding the steering wheel, Hajun offered an excuse to the stunned Moondae. “I have a Korean license. Got it before Idol Co-op started.”
“…”
“Turns out my foreign license couldn’t swap over right away.”
“…”
Strange. Cheongryeo took the hit, so why was Moondae the one rendered speechless? Hajun waved a hand in front of Moondae’s face to snap his absent spirit back. Lips working without sound, Moondae managed to assemble a sentence.
“…Are you crazy? What did you just…”
“Beats me. If you think so, then sure.”
“What now? How are you going to…”
“Don’t snap at me! You think I liked hitting him? Dammit!”
He had prepared everything to land a clean hit! That bastard pushed his buttons first! Checking the GPS, Hajun huffed as he typed in new coordinates. Either way, they had to deal with this. Glancing at the set location, Moondae took a deep breath to avoid provoking Hajun further, asking in a measured tone.
“Where… are we going?”
The destination sat quite a distance from their current spot. Looked like a mountain area… They weren’t heading out to bury a body, were they? No way.
Reaching for his phone to send a quick text, Hajun stole a glance at the nervous Moondae before locking his gaze ahead.
“My house.”
He had never set foot inside, but it belonged to him. A place bought on a whim in case he needed it came in handy like this.
Telling Moondae to speak up if Cheongryeo showed signs of waking during the drive, Hajun went silent. Since Moondae held his tongue as well, the car remained quiet as a tomb.
The drive ended at a luxury residential complex on the outskirts of Seoul. Far from the houses clustered together, Hajun pulled into a large estate set further apart. Watching the gates open, Moondae felt mixed emotions. How much money did it take to buy a place like this here? Won Hajun had a habit of dropping subtle reminders that he lived in a different world.
Parking inside the garage attached to the house, Hajun stepped out and opened the rear door. Checking Cheongryeo as he pulled him out, Hajun noted his steady breathing. No major harm done; the guy had just dropped into a deep sleep after getting knocked out. A mild concussion at worst. Mixed with the exhaustion from VTIC’s brutal schedule, it made sense he hadn’t stirred the entire ride.
Hajun hoisted him over his shoulder and strode into the house. Moondae followed close behind, his nerves on edge as he scanned for anyone nearby.
Stepping through the front entrance, a presence made Moondae freeze.
[Young Master, you have arrived.]
“…!”
A tall young foreign man greeted them. He offered a light nod toward Won Hajun, acting as if carrying a body over one’s shoulder was normal procedure.
[Randy.]
[You caused trouble again.]
[I know, dammit. That’s why I brought him here to handle it.]
[Meeting after six months, and you bring me a surprise like this…]
Letting out a sigh, the man took Cheongryeo from Hajun’s shoulder and walked off toward another room.
Tea and pastries sat ready on the broad living room table. Hajun gestured for the rigid Moondae to sit. Sipping his tea without a care, Hajun looked up as Moondae at last spoke.
“…Who is that?”
“Randy. He was my primary personal butler back home. You can trust him, so relax.”
Who keeps a personal butler in the twenty-first century? Moondae couldn’t adjust to Hajun’s lifestyle that shattered common sense, but Hajun cared little. His stepmother came from British nobility, so a family serving that line across generations existed. Of course, not everyone followed medieval customs; it had evolved into a stable employer-employee relationship over time.
While Hajun could guess what kind of wild assumptions Moondae’s round head was forming, his bond with Randy was far more modern than a Victorian butler setup.
While Moondae suffered a minor culture shock, the man named Randy returned. Glancing at the cookies and sandwiches left on the plate on the table, he spoke.
[Young Master Damon. The guest you brought is in the second room on the left upstairs. Here are all the items he carried.]
[Thanks. What about the thing I asked you to check?]
[Please wait a bit longer on that.]
Taking Cheongryeo’s smartphone from Randy, Hajun turned it over in his hand. Time to hack it. Pulling a cable from his pocket, Hajun linked Cheongryeo’s phone to his own.
[Your appetite remains small as ever. I made those myself.]
[Yourself? I recall hiring several housekeepers.]
[I sent them home after your call. Ah, I dismissed the gardener too. Why throw money away on a small house like this? Trying to flex your wealth?]
Six months’ worth of nagging poured out all at once. How Hajun wasted money, how he brought a passed-out man home, how he lacked basic social grace… Hajun scowled and picked up a handmade madeline.
[If you came to nag, head back to the States.]
[I cannot do that. This is my job.]
[Nagging me?]
[No, cleaning up after you. House management comes second.]
[Can I throw this teacup at you?]
[Seeing the young master who was this small grow up to threaten an old man… Brings back memories.]
Wearing a piteous look, Randy swept up the crumbs Hajun dropped with a handkerchief while sliding the teacup out of reach. Old man? The guy was just in his thirties.
Hajun took a deep breath, reminding himself how capable Randy was. Hard to find someone who did his job this well, even if he talked back. Randy offered a light smile, watching Hajun’s same old temper. He was one of the few who had known Hajun since he took the name Damon.
THUMP! BANG!
A heavy noise crashed from the floor above. The three men tilted their heads up, exchanging glances.
[You should head up. Looks like your other guest has woken.]
[Yeah, yeah. Talk to you later.]
[Of course.]
Moondae, who had been listening to the English back and forth, felt the air grow awkward the moment Hajun left. Sensing his stiffness, Randy offered a warm smile and spoke in a deliberate, somewhat stiff Korean.
“You may speak Korean. My speech is rusty, but my listening is fine.”
“…Right.”
“You must go through a lot.”
Coming out of nowhere, the statement made total sense once Won Hajun stood at the center of it. Watching the foreigner show genuine pity, Moondae felt a bitter taste in his mouth. How did he end up debuting with that guy…
“I am glad the young master is doing well in Korea. Thanks to TeSTAR.”
“…Not at all.”
“Haha. Please make yourself comfortable. I will pour more tea.”
Seeing Moondae sit stiff as a board under such service, Randy offered a polite smile as he refilled the half-empty cup with elegant movements. Hot tea would help calm his nerves. The guest looked shaken.
Randy knew Hajun since his teenage years, but he recognized that normal people struggled to handle the troublemaker. This incident crossed lines, too. Randy had wondered for a moment if he should call their lawyer, thinking the young master had committed murder. He thought this behavior ended in high school when Hajun beat a gang of bullies to a pulp, yet here they were. At least no visible injuries showed this timeโa sign of growth, perhaps?
As Randy pondered his young master’s antics, Moondae called out to him.
“Excuse me…”
“Ah, my apologies. I forgot my introduction. Randolph Stuart. Please call me Randy. Everyone does. You are Mr. Park Moondae, correct?”
“Yes… Mr. Randy. You didn’t blink an eye back there. Did things like this happen often in America?”
“Oh, do not worry about that. Young Master Damon has no criminal record.”
“…”
Spoken like a true member of Won Hajun’s inner circle. Moondae swallowed hard, probing deeper.
“…None at all?”
“None.”
“Did you erase them through illegal means, or does he really have none?”
Tipping his head, Randy stroked his chin as if searching for Korean words. Meeting Moondae’s eyes, he offered a calm smile.
“First, our legal team is not incompetent. Second, while he engages in dangerous acts, responsibility does not always rest on his shoulders.”
“…”
So they used loopholes. Moondae gave a strange look toward Hajun’s loyal aide. His head throbbed with complex thoughts, though Hajun never gave him time to process anything for long.
Another loud crash echoed from upstairs.
BANG! CRASH!
“You son of aโ!!”
“…!”
“Oh my.”
Randy stood up and headed for the stairs, with Moondae rushing right behind him.
Reaching the second floor, they threw open the door. Inside lay Cheongryeo bound hand and foot on the floor, and Won Hajun standing over him with a clenched fist, breathing hard.
Randy stepped closer to lift Cheongryeo, scolding Hajun.
[Young Master, you came to resolve things, not make them worse.]
[That bastard bit my finger!]
[Your finger?]
[Yeah!!]
Hajun held up his hand, covered in Cheongryeo’s spit and his own blood. Randy clicked his tongue, heading out to fetch a first aid kit.
Left alone between the two transmigrators glaring daggers at each other, Moondae wished he could step back without a sound and close the door.
New Terms
- ๋๋ํ ์คํ์ดํธ – Randolph Stuart / Randy (Hajun’s personal butler)
