Chapter 7: Chapter 7: The Gilded Cage (Sone Ka Pinjra) 🏠🛡️
Yeonjun handed Jisong's phone back, the anger in his eyes now replaced by a strange, restless anxiety. 😠➡️😟
Yeonjun: "Kim! Get the car. We're leaving right now."
Jisong: "I'm not going anywhere! I need to go back to my hostel."
Yeonjun shot a cold, piercing look at Jisong. "The person who sent you that message already knows your hostel address. Do you really want to go there and put your life at risk?"
Jisong went silent. He had no answer to that. 🤐
The Blackwood Mansion 🏰🌲
Far from the city, tucked away in the middle of a dense forest, stood a massive and breathtaking mansion. This was Yeonjun's private estate. The house was so vast that Jisong began to feel a sense of dread just standing there.
Yeonjun: "You will stay here until I have the situation under control. Do not try to leave this house." 🔒
Jisong: "This is like a prison!"
Yeonjun (with a faint, subtle smile): "Perhaps. But it is the safest prison in the world." 😌
Silence of the Night 🌙🕯️
That night, sleep eluded Jisong. He crept out of his room and began wandering through the mansion's grand hallways. The walls were lined with ancient paintings.
As he walked, he stopped in front of a door that was slightly ajar. It was Yeonjun's Private Study. 📚
Jisong stepped inside. There, he found an old diary and a small wooden box. As he opened the box, his breath hitched in his throat. 📦😲
Inside was the same old photograph Yeonjun had been looking at in the office—two young boys. But this time, there was something written on the back of the photo:
"Jisong, I will always find you. No matter what happens to the world. — YJ (2005)"
A blurred memory suddenly flashed in Jisong's mind... the sight of a roaring fire, the sound of crying, and the hand of an older boy holding onto him with a desperate grip. 🔥👦
"I told you not to come into this room, didn't I?"
Jisong spun around. Yeonjun was standing at the door, clad only in a black silk robe, his hair still damp. His face was flushed with anger, but his eyes were filled with visible pain. 🥀🌑
Jisong (with tears in his eyes): "Yeonjun... have we known each other since we were children? Is that 'secret' connected to me?"
Yeonjun walked toward Jisong in silence and cupped Jisong's face in both his hands. 👐💖
Yeonjun: "You shouldn't try to remember, Jisong. Some memories only leave wounds."
The Twist 🌪️
Suddenly, the lights throughout the entire mansion went out! 🔌🌑
A massive explosion echoed through the darkness—as if someone had just blown the main gate off its hinges. 💥📢
Yeonjun instantly pulled Jisong behind him and drew his gun. 🔫
Yeonjun (growling): "It seems our guests have arrived a little early."
Yeonjun handed Jisong's phone back, the anger in his eyes now replaced by a strange, restless anxiety. 😠➡️😟
Yeonjun: "Kim! Get the car. We're leaving right now."
Jisong: "I'm not going anywhere! I need to go back to my hostel."
Yeonjun shot a cold, piercing look at Jisong. "The person who sent you that message already knows your hostel address. Do you really want to go there and put your life at risk?"
Jisong went silent. He had no answer to that. 🤐
The Blackwood Mansion 🏰🌲
Far from the city, tucked away in the middle of a dense forest, stood a massive and breathtaking mansion. This was Yeonjun's private estate. The house was so vast that Jisong began to feel a sense of dread just standing there.
Yeonjun: "You will stay here until I have the situation under control. Do not try to leave this house." 🔒
Jisong: "This is like a prison!"
Yeonjun (with a faint, subtle smile): "Perhaps. But it is the safest prison in the world." 😌
Silence of the Night 🌙🕯️
That night, sleep eluded Jisong. He crept out of his room and began wandering through the mansion's grand hallways. The walls were lined with ancient paintings.
As he walked, he stopped in front of a door that was slightly ajar. It was Yeonjun's Private Study. 📚
Jisong stepped inside. There, he found an old diary and a small wooden box. As he opened the box, his breath hitched in his throat. 📦😲
Inside was the same old photograph Yeonjun had been looking at in the office—two young boys. But this time, there was something written on the back of the photo:
"Jisong, I will always find you. No matter what happens to the world. — YJ (2005)"
A blurred memory suddenly flashed in Jisong's mind... the sight of a roaring fire, the sound of crying, and the hand of an older boy holding onto him with a desperate grip. 🔥👦
"I told you not to come into this room, didn't I?"
Jisong spun around. Yeonjun was standing at the door, clad only in a black silk robe, his hair still damp. His face was flushed with anger, but his eyes were filled with visible pain. 🥀🌑
Jisong (with tears in his eyes): "Yeonjun... have we known each other since we were children? Is that 'secret' connected to me?"
Yeonjun walked toward Jisong in silence and cupped Jisong's face in both his hands. 👐💖
Yeonjun: "You shouldn't try to remember, Jisong. Some memories only leave wounds."
The Twist 🌪️
Suddenly, the lights throughout the entire mansion went out! 🔌🌑
A massive explosion echoed through the darkness—as if someone had just blown the main gate off its hinges. 💥📢
Yeonjun instantly pulled Jisong behind him and drew his gun. 🔫
Yeonjun (growling): "It seems our guests have arrived a little early."🌑