A sensation like something coiling around her wrist—Soo-hyeok felt it just as the woman clenched her fists tightly and raised her voice.
"W-What do you think you're touching?! You pervert!"
The sharp cry drew the attention of everyone nearby.
The scene that met their eyes was of a woman screaming, holding up her hand as if fending someone off—yet not a single man was visible around her.
A cold silence fell over the crowd as their stares bore down.
Faces watching her gradually turned red, and people began shaking their heads and turning away.
"Pfft—Hanarum, you crazy bitch. Cackle!"
Almost at the same time, laughter exploded from Soo-ah, directed at Hanarum, the woman who had just ended up looking completely deranged on her own.
"You… you fucking bitch!"
A furious shout accompanied the slap of a palm against Soo-ah's cheek.
Smack—!
It was a crisp sound. Her head turned halfway from the blow, her body even swaying exaggeratedly.
'That didn't hurt at all.'
No, it wasn't even that—it didn't feel like anything.
Instead, there was a gentle warmth—Soo-hyeok's hand, resting on her shoulder.
As Soo-ah looked like she might collapse, Soo-hyeok grabbed her other shoulder carefully and shielded her behind his back.
"You—you… When did you get here again?!"
Hanarum's eyes widened.
The two other women who had been backing her up also looked flustered, unable to believe what they were seeing.
"I've been standing here for a while. What nonsense are you on about?"
Soo-hyeok chuckled as he stepped forward protectively.
"I'll hear the details later, but if you don't want this to escalate, maybe it's time to stop."
"Bullshit. Soo-ah's 'oppa'? So what if you're another poor bastard like her? What are you gonna do?"
Soo-hyeok's eyes narrowed.
What had once burned with anger now shimmered with a chilling frost.
"Poverty's not a crime."
"Bullshit. Of course it is. 'If you've got money, you're innocent; if not, you're guilty.' That's how this country works. You probably wouldn't know, raised by broke-ass parents. You know why that bitch couldn't even talk back after I hit her?"
Hanarum raised her chin proudly, her shoulders thrown back.
Strangely, the two women flanking her did the same.
'What is this, some rabbits borrowing a fox's swagger?'
There's an old saying: "a fox borrowing the tiger's authority."
But no matter how generously one tried to view it, Hanarum was no more than the fox.
And the awkward, scrawny women beside her? Less than rabbits.
To Soo-hyeok, this whole scene was oddly fascinating.
"If you don't want to get hit too, get out of the way. Or kneel and beg right now. I'm not joking. If my family gets serious, people like you wouldn't even survive in your dingy little one-room flat."
"Oh, is that so?"
"Enough, oppa," Soo-ah said, grabbing his sleeve.
She sounded calm, but her voice trembled with hidden fear.
A far cry from the laughter she'd shown earlier toward Hanarum.
'So… there's really something there.'
It wasn't empty posturing. From Soo-ah's reaction, this girl likely came from a wealthy and powerful family.
Still, there was no reason for Soo-hyeok to be afraid.
"I don't know. All I see is some woman, uglier than my Soo-ah and looking like a beggar despite the expensive clothes, acting out from pure inferiority."
At his nonchalant words, Hanarum's expression froze.
The women beside her also wore strange expressions—like they'd just heard something entirely beyond imagination.
"Oh, did I hit too close to home?"
He let his gaze run deliberately up and down Hanarum.
"Well… if your coat hanger's trash, then—"
"You fucking bastard! Just because you're a little good-looking, I was going to let you off!"
Maybe because of Soo-hyeok's height, instead of her hand, Hanarum swung the leather bag slung over her shoulder.
A famous luxury logo shone on it—Soo-hyeok grabbed the strap in one motion.
He yanked it away from her as she stumbled, screeching, and stepped back slightly while guarding Soo-ah.
"Hmmm…"
"You crazy bastard! Give that back!"
Still managing not to fall, Hanarum shouted with reddened eyes.
"This thing?"
Soo-hyeok asked, shaking the bag.
"Yes, you crazy asshole! Do you know how much that costs?!"
He didn't.
He didn't care.
He'd lived a life where women's bags and luxury goods never even entered his concern.
"If my baby gets even a scratch—!
I'll kill you!"
"Wow, must be real precious. Funny how you were so quick to swing it around then."
"You son of a bitch! That bag costs more than what you make in a month!"
"Oh? And yet the one who looks more like a beggar keeps calling us that…"
Soo-hyeok scowled, gripping the leather bag with both hands.
Hanarum's expression turned to stone.
"You… what are you trying to do…?"
The words had barely left her mouth.
Riiip—! Clink, clatter.
The leather tore like paper.
Decorations and luxury-brand logos attached to the leather fell to the ground with sharp sounds, as if screaming along with Hanarum.
All the contents inside the bag spilled out in an instant.
Silence followed again.
Hanarum, her face ghostly pale, stared with wide eyes and trembled.
"This… this is a dream, right?"
At her dazed mumble, Soo-hyeok let out a smirk and dropped the torn half of the luxury bag from his hands.
Thud.
"As if. This is all too real."
"KYAAAAH! My baby! My precious baby! You fucking bastard!!"
Hanarum, eyes turned inside out in rage, charged at him.
Of course, there was no way she could catch Soo-hyeok.
Swinging her arms wildly in vain, she shouted with flaring nostrils.
"Get him! Grab that bastard!!"
Her command sent the two women behind her flailing their arms like mad.
What followed was a scene of chaos—almost tragic if it weren't so ridiculous.
Soo-hyeok dodged with ease, while the three women screamed and swung blindly at the air. For a moment, he even seemed to be enjoying the sight.
Then, wrapping an arm around Soo-ah, he quickly widened the distance.
Fast movement.
"An Awakened!"
Hanarum shrieked.
Only now did she realize it—his freakish strength that ripped leather in one motion, his unnatural movements. Soo-hyeok wasn't ordinary.
Meanwhile, Soo-hyeok casually reached for the phone placed on the window ledge—recording everything.
Or at least, he tried to.
Whish—!
A black orb flew in from somewhere, aiming straight for Soo-hyeok's wrist.
His eyes narrowed as he twisted his body, coating the back of his hand with energy, and swatted the orb away.
With a thwack, like two billiard balls colliding, the orb bounced into the air and fell limply to the ground.
Having grabbed the phone and slipped it into his coat, Soo-hyeok smiled at Hanarum and said:
"Too bad, huh? Even with bodyguards hiding nearby, this phone is already with me. You're clearly from a fancy family—what do you think happens when this video comes out?"
"You, you…!"
Hanarum's face was now beyond pale—it looked blackened, like life was draining from it.
Her eyes welled up with tears, as if the worst imaginable scenario was unfolding in her head.
"I'll say this once—don't lay a finger on Soo-ah."
Soo-hyeok's cold voice swept over Hanarum and her cronies like a chilling wind.
Right then, the bags belonging to the other two women—who had been sneering rabbits next to their fox—split in half, the contents spilling out.
"Eek!"
"Are you insane?!"
Screams erupted once more.
But Soo-hyeok ignored them. Returning to Soo-ah's side, he left them one final warning:
"Be grateful it ended with just your bags. If I'd really meant it just now, every one of you would've died."
It was a terrifying threat.
***
It had been a brief commotion.
Ignoring the three women who were now paralyzed with shock, Soo-hyeok and Soo-ah started heading back into the Korean buffet restaurant—only to stop.
Soo-ah, legs trembling, asked if they could sit for a bit on a nearby bench before going back inside.
She clearly didn't want to worry their family.
Soo-hyeok said nothing, but gently placed a hand on her shoulder, letting calming energy seep into her.
Then, he sent a text to Yang Seung-bon, saying:
"We just stopped by a cafe with Soo-ah. I'll bring coffee, don't worry."
A reply soon came:
"Want me to come with?"
But Soo-hyeok didn't respond right away.
Instead, he quietly sat with Soo-ah, warming her with celestial energy from the Songtosun Sky Meridian.
That's when she spoke.
"Ugh… I really didn't want anyone to see me like that."
With a deep sigh, she ran a hand through her hair.
A faint, awkward smile played at her lips.
"Scared you, didn't I?"
Soo-hyeok gave a small smile that mirrored hers, like siblings often do.
"Was that supposed to be you asking me?"
Truthfully, Soo-ah was the one who needed comforting.
It had been such a fulfilling, happy day with their family—until the end, when it all fell apart.
It couldn't have felt good.
"What, trying to act all cool like it doesn't bother you? Total 'oppa' move."
"I am your oppa."
"Oh right, forgot."
Soo-ah gave another crooked smile, her brow furrowing.
"It's just… we were in the same class all three years of high school."
She hesitated.
There was clearly more to the story.
But Soo-hyeok simply nodded.
"We never got along. She had this weird superiority complex. Always did. But it wasn't that bad our first year. Around second year, I think her dad's business took off or something."
"And?"
"I started standing out. Guess I got under her skin. You know, your little sister's smart and kinda cute, right?"
Soo-hyeok frowned wordlessly.
"Look at that face. You used to say I was cute when I first woke up."
"That was an emotional moment."
"Pfft, and now your feelings are dead, huh?"
Soo-ah shook her head, still smiling bitterly.
"It's fine. It's all just jealousy. She probably hated that I looked like I was doing better than her. I mean, there's more to it, but…"
"Can I ask?"
"Our school was co-ed, right? Around the end of sophomore year, this guy she liked confessed to me."
Soo-hyeok's expression stiffened.
And suddenly, everything clicked.
'So this was a love triangle.'
Though honestly, it wasn't even worth calling it that. These sorts of petty rivalries were everywhere.
"Of course I didn't date him. It wasn't the time. You were in the hospital, Mom was sick…"
"For Hanarum, though, that must've been devastating. She confessed first—got rejected a week before that."
After that, she had some plastic surgery… but whatever. Point is, that was it. Just inferiority. And I… I didn't have the guts to hit her back. But she did. She had guts."
A self-deprecating smile curled on Soo-ah's lips.
"So all I could do was endure it—and mock her. That was my only form of resistance. Pretty pathetic, right?"
Her words and expression pierced Soo-hyeok's chest like a knife.
His eyes wavered.