Chapter 34 Ryu Ga-hyeon Throws the Bait (5)
Chapter 34 Ryu Ga-hyeon Throws the Bait (5)
While fleeing from Kang Da-eun, Ryu Ga-hyeon kept stealing glances at the two of them—until the ice cream in her mouth exploded outward.
"Pfft! Cough, cough. Ugh."
Kang Da-eun, who had barely managed to grab the hem of Ryu Ga-hyeon's pants as she tried to escape, had something else explode out of her mouth instead: jealousy.
"...You—you fucking bitch!"
At that moment, the Cult Leader's son shocked Han Ji-su yet again.
The pain of having her arm twisted should have been unbearable—enough to make an ordinary person burst into tears. But instead of giving up, the Cult Leader's son used the strength of just one arm to lift Han Ji-su high into the air.
It was a terrifying display of power, one even Park Cheol-woo wouldn't have been able to match.
"Huh?"
A cute, bewildered sound escaped Han Ji-su's lips.
To anyone watching, what the Cult Leader's son would do next was obvious.
"Oh shit, this is bad—"
Ryu Ga-hyeon flung aside her ice cream tub and rushed toward Han Ji-su and the Cult Leader's son.
But even a heroic investigator like Ryu Ga-hyeon couldn't move fast enough to stop what came next. The Cult Leader's son, having lifted his arm high, now brought it crashing down—intending to slam Han Ji-su into the ground hard enough to break her arm.
He took a deep breath and drove his raised arm downward.
For a brief moment, Han Ji-su felt as if gravity had disappeared, like she was on a rollercoaster plummeting straight down.
Bracing for the inevitable impact, she clenched her teeth. Broken ribs or arms were fine, but she prayed her head wouldn't take any damage.
If that happened, forget about taking down the Cheonmyeong Cult—she'd be spending the rest of her life in a hospital.
Thud—
Crack!
But for some reason, the Cult Leader's son didn't follow through.
Instead of slamming into the ground back-first, Han Ji-su remained suspended in midair. Dazed, she blinked up at him.
The face of the Cult Leader's son—handsome, worry creasing his brow—stared back at her. Despite being part of a pseudo-religion, he seemed genuinely concerned.
He hadn't thrown her down because he was worried about the shards of glass littering the convenience store entrance—worried she'd get seriously hurt if she landed there.
"...You're detectives, right? The ones watching us outside the funeral home earlier."
"Mhm."
Still clinging awkwardly to his arm like a sloth, Han Ji-su gave an equally awkward reply.
Now that his earlier rage had faded, his face had somehow become even more to her liking—a realization that sent a strange warmth pooling low in her stomach.
'What the hell? Since when does the son of a cult leader act so nice?'
She grumbled internally, but the anger she'd felt toward him was already melting away.
Honestly, she couldn't even remember why she'd been so desperate to break his arm earlier.
All she knew was that when she'd rushed in to choke him, pressing her face against his neck and inhaling his scent, something inside her had snapped. For someone usually so composed that people often mistook her for emotionless, the surge of feeling had been impossible to suppress.
"It was dark, so I didn't recognize you. I'm sorry. I thought you were kidnappers. So, uh... now that the misunderstanding's cleared up, could you maybe... get off my arm?"
Han Ji-su complied.
It wasn't like she was going to snap his arm anymore, and dangling from it like this was ridiculous enough that even the convenience store clerk was staring.
No—wait. Maybe the clerk wasn't staring at her awkward position, but at the Cult Leader's son's unfairly handsome face.
After hopping down and steadying herself, Han Ji-su stole another glance at him.
According to the team leader's investigation, he'd grown up in extreme isolation on an uninhabited island—considered sacred by the Cheonmyeong Cult—with only a handful of family members.
That intel seemed accurate.
The way he couldn't even meet her eyes, offering an awkward smile instead, made it clear he was embarrassed.
Despite having the kind of looks that could seduce countless women, his social skills were hopelessly underdeveloped.
In short, he had no idea how to leverage his own attractiveness—
But that only made him more charming.
Handsome, kind-hearted, yet shy around women... though down there, he was huge, and in bed, he was insane.
She'd seen it for herself, so she could confirm.
A unicorn.
A creature that only existed in women's wildest fantasies.
And here he was, standing right in front of Han Ji-su.
His flustered expression and body language under her sharp gaze only made him more irresistible, completely against his own intentions.
She couldn't reconcile the image of the depraved son who had brutally taken even his own mother in the video with the meek young man in front of her now.
She'd assumed he'd be just like his father—a lost cause, high on Holy Medicine, committing every atrocity imaginable.
"Um... did my mom do something again?"
The Cult Leader's son asked politely, his demeanor a far cry from the furious man who had charged at them moments earlier.
He seemed all too familiar with this kind of situation, as if it had happened countless times before.
"Aggravated assault. She nearly killed someone with a liquor bottle."
Park Cheol-woo stepped closer as he spoke.
"Pfft, nah~ She was just defending herself 'cause the guy tried to rape her~ And since they found Holy Medicine on him, she won't even get probation. Try dragging her into it all you want—it won't work. Our cult's lawyer is a former chief judge."
Kang Da-eun, still playing tag with Ryu Ga-hyeon, paused just long enough to taunt Park Cheol-woo.
The Cult Leader's son shot her a glare that clearly said, Shut the hell up.
Shockingly, Kang Da-eun—who Han Ji-su knew to be as wild as a feral animal—immediately backed down, lowering her head in an uncharacteristically submissive gesture.
Han Ji-su stared, dumbfounded.
Even when dozens of police officers—praised as heroes—had once stormed her home, not a single one had managed to make her behave.
After bowing his head slightly to Park Cheol-woo in apology for shoving him earlier, the Cult Leader's son began defending his mother's actions with the ease of someone who'd done this many times before.
Han Ji-su's gaze drifted to his arm.
It hung slightly limp.
The arm he'd strained to stop mid-swing—just to avoid hurting her.
The moment she noticed, Han Ji-su felt something she'd never expected to feel toward a damn cultist: guilt.
After failing to catch Ryu Ga-hyeon despite her best efforts, Kang Da-eun quickly abandoned the chase and rushed to her son instead. Grabbing his arm, she dragged him into a shadowy corner of the convenience store, out of the fluorescent lights.
She'd expected Ryu Ga-hyeon to stop her, but the investigator seemed preoccupied with pissing off the clerk—lounging on a bench with her feet up, smoking a cigarette.
'What the hell is she thinking?'
It was baffling, but now wasn't the time to hesitate.
Before that cop could show her son the recorded confession or—God forbid—try to blackmail her with it, Da-eun needed to strike first.
"What is it, Mom?"
Her son's curt reply stung.
It was more than enough to wound the heart of a mother who'd been nervously preparing to confess her feelings.
"...Hey, what's with the attitude? Don't be rude to your mom."
Da-eun tightened her grip on Eun-woo's arm.
Not intentionally. It was just habit—a light punishment for his defiance.
But his reaction wasn't what she expected. Even though she'd barely grabbed him, his face twisted in pain, as if she'd hurt him terribly.
It shouldn't have been that painful—which meant he was looking at her like she was some disgusting bug.
Stung and flustered, Da-eun hesitated, the confession she'd prepared stuck in her throat. Before she could speak, Eun-woo snapped.
"So this is what it was?"
"...What was?"
"You screamed for help like you were being kidnapped."
"...Did I?"
Now that she thought about it, she had.
She'd wanted Eun-woo to worry, to come running without a second thought—so she'd hammed it up a little.
But what was the problem with that?
Wasn't it normal for a mother to do that with her son?
"But when I get back, you're just picking fights with detectives. What did I tell you earlier, when I was dealing with my horny mom? Don't remember? I said to just stay quiet until the funeral's over. It's a dangerous time right now."
Each word struck Da-eun's heart like an arrow.
And because he wasn't wrong, it hurt even more.
She knew.
But why was he doing this now?
Of all times—just when she was about to tell him, her own son, that she no longer wanted to see him as just her son, when she was ready to sincerely apologize for everything she'd done to him—why was he getting angry at her?
"I was worried abou—Oww!"
Before he could finish, Da-eun—unable to contain her frustration—bit down hard on his arm.
Like a spoiled cat, too used to being loved, lashing out when scolded.
Then, slowly, she raised her head to look at him.
Hoping he'd gaze back at her the way he always had—with the expression of someone craving her affection.
But her son didn't. Instead, he scowled, turning his face away as if the sight of her disgusted him.