Contract Marriage with a Male Friend - Chapter 72

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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#72

Blink. Blink.
As she slowly lifted her eyelids, darkness surrounded her completely.
“…Their pursuit is faster than I expected.”
At O Sang Chul’s voice, An Soo Yi tried to part her lips, but immediately realized that her mouth was firmly sealed by something.
“They’ve already come this close.”
“When he was with the Gangho Group, he was said to be skilled in tracking and information warfare. So even across that vast land of America, he must have hunted down O Sang Jun, who was hiding so carefully, and turned him into a cripple.”
At the sound of O Sang Chul’s cold voice—a tone she had never heard before—An Soo Yi flinched, and the metal chair binding her made a sharp creak.
“Ah, you’re awake.”
The eyes of O Sang Chul and Pyo Yeon Su were so glacial that An Soo Yi’s breath caught in her throat.
They were simply no longer smiling, yet their presence was unmistakably different from the two men she had known until now.
“It seems Dok Go Beom Jin is furious to the core. He mobilized all of Kangho Group’s personnel.”
O Sang Chul approached with heavy steps and bent forward to meet An Soo Yi’s eyes.
“He never entered the study when he was at home, did he? Being a newlywed couple, there was no reason for him to leave the bedroom.”
The face that had always been cheerful and kind now bore not a trace of emotion.
“How fortunate it is. The wound will be as deep as his love for you.”
An Soo Yi drew a sharp breath.
What in the world was he talking about?
“But while that bastard was away from home, it was fortunate that he developed the habit of talking to the potted plants. Because of that, we were able to gather information easily from our end.”
An Soo Yi’s widened eyes trembled faintly. Could it be—could they have planted something in the potted plants?
But the shocking truth did not end there.
“I should introduce you to someone.”
As O Sang Chul turned his head, a silhouette buried in the darkness gradually emerged.
The face of the man walking slowly toward her was identical to O Sang Chul’s.
“My twin brother, O Sang Jun, whom I mentioned in the car. Though you probably don’t remember.”
“…”
“He appears normal on the surface.”
When O Sang Jun rolled up his trouser leg, An Soo Yi’s eyes opened wide.
“Below the left knee is a prosthetic leg. The handiwork of Chairman Dok Go Hyung Jun.”
The eyes of the two brothers with identical faces turned icy cold.
“So we want to make you feel exactly the same. What it’s like to have your family trampled so brutally. What kind of hell you descend into when you lose the most precious thing.”
Once O Sang Chul finished speaking, he turned and headed somewhere.
But O Sang Jun, trouser leg still rolled up, remained standing in place, looking down at An Soo Yi.
“I want to cut your legs exactly like mine, but my brother won’t let me, so I’m restraining myself.”
At his murderous gaze and voice—as if he might tear her apart at any moment—cold sweat ran down An Soo Yi’s spine.
“What sin could you have committed? But my nephew didn’t die because he had sinned either.”
An Soo Yi swallowed hard.
Her heart pounded so violently it threatened to burst through her skin.
“I didn’t even get to see my nephew’s body. Because your grandfather turned him into a cripple, and after suffering the aftereffects, when I came to, three months had already passed since my nephew died.”
“…”
“But that bastard is lucky indeed. Instead of three months, he’ll be able to see his wife’s corpse within three hours.”
Or perhaps not. If she burned completely, could you even call it seeing?
The man muttered coolly, then turned toward where his brother and sister-in-law were.
An Soo Yi’s trembling eyes scanned the surroundings; the three were pouring something all around.
A reek of acrid smell.
It seemed to be…gasoline.
After O Sang Chul had poured every drop of the viscous liquid, he carelessly hurled the empty can to the floor and approached An Soo Yi.
The harsh scrape of the metal can rolling across the concrete echoed through the high-ceilinged warehouse before fading away.
“We’ve been watching you all along. When we learned you were preparing to become a funeral director, we thought—this is it. So we immediately acquired a funeral service company from an acquaintance and arranged for you to join.”
The terms offered by Seon Ham Sangjo had been perfect for An Soo Yi.
Not only was the salary and treatment generous, but it also had the special purpose of being the only company nationwide that supported funerals for the unclaimed deceased.
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to hold a modest ancestral rite for you and your father every year. Oh, there’s one important thing I forgot to mention. Your father has been dead for quite some time now.”
At the terrible news, An Soo Yi’s large eyes trembled faintly.
Father…was dead?
“About a year ago? He was gambling and complained of a headache, then lay down—and that was it, he died.”
An Soo Yi’s shoulders heaved up and down dramatically.
Her body froze solid against the incomprehensible reality, and from her unfocused eyes, tears spilled out in torrents.
“I hold no grudge against you. You were kind, docile, and you followed us well.”
It was then.
From far outside came the faint rumble of a car engine, growing louder like thunder.
O Sang Chul let out a laugh tinged with admiration and pulled a Zippo Lighter from his pocket.
“Dok Go Beom Jin truly loves you, doesn’t he? And the distance from Seoul to here is how far? It’s much faster than expected.”
He must have ignored every traffic signal and driven like a madman.
Driven by the single resolve to protect An Soo Yi.
“Don’t worry. I’ll have at least a part of your body buried alongside your father.”
Click.
The Zippo’s lid flipped open brightly, and with a metallic snap, flames burst forth.
“This is what my dead son loved. He used to be so happy, saying it felt like holding fire in his hand.”
Pyo Yeon Su and O Sang Jun were already heading toward the open rear exit.
O Sang Chul too stared fixedly at An Soo Yi, bound to the chair, and slowly backed away.
“Take care, Manager An.”
He dropped the lighter he was holding.
In an instant, flames raced across the gasoline pooled on the floor, surging in all directions and swallowing the warehouse.
Whoosh!
As they closed the rear door and fled, An Soo Yi was left alone in the center of the terrifying inferno, still bound.
“Mgh! Mmmgh!”
An Soo Yi thrashed against her bonds, and the chair toppled roughly to the side with her.
Acrid smoke stabbed at her throat.
At the same time, a dull, massive scraping sound echoed throughout the space.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The sound of something heavy battering and smashing the locked metal door without mercy.
—An Soo Yi!
At the sound of Beom Jin’s voice from outside, An Soo Yi’s fading consciousness snapped back into sharp focus.
‘Dok Go…’
Thinking of him, her heart surged violently.
“Mmmgh! Mgh!”
An Soo Yi thrashed with desperate ferocity.
Her head struck the floor hard, her skin scraped raw and bleeding, but she paid no heed.
She could not die like this, meaninglessly.
She could not part from him, never to meet again.
Because she loved him.
Because he too loved her more than his own life.
Because she knew that if anything happened to her, Dok Go Beom Jin would spend his entire life in agony, living in hell.
Because she wanted to stay by his side, always, for the rest of her life.
After scraping her wrists raw dozens of times in succession, the friction drew blood, and through the bleeding wrists, the tight knot began to loosen ever so slightly.
An Soo Yi barely managed to slip her hands free, then frantically began working at the rough cord binding her ankles.
Acrid smoke filled everything around her, choking off her breath, sending her into desperate coughing fits as tears blurred her vision.
After repeated fumbling, she finally summoned her last ounce of strength and unraveled the final knot.
Crash!
A structural beam overhead, unable to withstand the flames, fell with a deafening roar directly beside An Soo Yi.
Barely dodging the sparks that erupted like an explosion, An Soo Yi pulled free the cloth that had gagged her. She quickly covered her mouth and nose with it, then with great effort managed to rise to her feet.
At that same moment, the front entrance of the warehouse, locked tight, burst open.
“An Soo Yi!”
At the longed-for voice, An Soo Yi waved the cloth in her hands and shouted with all her strength.
“I’m here!”
The moment her eyes met his—Beom Jin, calling her name desperately through the roaring flames—
An Soo Yi found herself smiling brightly even as tears streamed down her face.
Relief and overwhelming love crashed over her at once.
She took a desperate step toward him.
Crackle, crash!
A massive, burning beam collapsed with a deafening roar, spewing flames as it plummeted down.
“No…!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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