Dopamine Addiction - Chapter 76

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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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76.
“Hee-ju.”
“!”
Liam spoke her name. Or perhaps it was English—he couldn’t be sure which.
I NEED YOU.
Whatever it was, Hee-ju finally moved. When he called her name, she had no choice but to go to him.
As she drew closer, Liam’s eyes narrowed further with each step. When only a pace or two remained between them, Hee-ju instinctively stopped.
Her final hesitation. An invisible line. A boundary no one had ever crossed before. Should she let him cross it?
“!”
But her deliberation was cut short. Liam seized her wrist.
“Caught you.”
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he pulled her toward him. Only when she fell into his embrace did Hee-ju slowly close her eyes.
The stench of blood hung heavy in the air, and corpses lay scattered beneath their feet. Yet the impulse to flee never crossed her mind.
The arms holding her were too solid. The fingers gripping her shoulders trembled faintly. So Hee-ju slowly raised her own arms and held him in return.
Liam pressed his lips to the crown of her head. The warm breath that tickled her hair sounded like a sigh of relief—or perhaps the languid laughter of a predator.
“…….”
Hee-ju slowly lifted her head. Then she looked up at him.
She raised a gentle hand to wipe the blood from his cheek. No matter how much she rubbed, it wouldn’t come clean. Her frustration deepened into a frown.
“How did you get here? I was planning to come out myself.”
“You were?”
Liam lifted one eyebrow sharply, as if he’d heard something he hadn’t expected. Hee-ju pouted defensively.
“I was nearly finished. If you’d been ten minutes slower, I’d have escaped this place.”
At that, Liam burst into laughter.
“Ha ha ha.”
His deep chuckle rippled through her. He leaned down, drawing his face closer to hers.
His slate-gray eyes carried a loose smile, yet Hee-ju wasn’t fooled. She knew there was something far larger and more possessive hidden beneath that gaze.
Just as Liam moved to kiss her—
“……What are you doing?”
Hee-ju pressed her palm against his mouth. Liam frowned, visibly displeased.
“Let’s get out of here first. I don’t want to die with a bullet in my back while we’re kissing.”
The cold gleam in his eyes softened at once. He licked deliberately across her palm, and when a startled Hee-ju pulled her hand back, Liam whispered smoothly.
“I’ll make it worth the wait. When we’re home, I’ll give you something stronger than a bullet.”
Hee-ju’s expression turned scandalized.
“Vulgar.”
She shook her head and pushed him forward by the shoulders. Liam, still chuckling softly, crossed the study first.
Hee-ju followed, her voice cutting sharp from behind him.
“How can you be laughing right now?”
At that, Liam brought a hand to his mouth, as if checking the shape of his own lips. He asked idly.
“Was I laughing?”
“Terribly so.”
Hee-ju gave an exaggerated nod. Only then did Liam realize he’d been grinning broadly.
All because he’d found Hee-ju.
“You probably won’t believe me, but these past few days have been unbearably dull.”
“…….”
Hee-ju said nothing. She could easily imagine how much anxiety he must have endured.
She offered an apology of her own.
“I’m sorry.”
“You? For what?”
Liam looked at her with incomprehension written across his face.
“The one who should apologize is me, not you. I never should have let you go alone. If I could go back to that moment, I’d beat my own head in for making such a decision.”
He laughed as he spoke, bitterly, like swallowing bitter medicine.
Hee-ju laid a hand on his arm. And smiled brightly.
“It wasn’t your fault. We were simply unlucky. And look—I’m fine.”
Liam brushed his fingertips across her cheek.
“You have a wound here.”
“Do I?”
Hee-ju opened her eyes wide, as if unaware.
“It looks scraped.”
“Oh, I must have caught it on a branch. It’s nothing.”
“And there’s bruising on your neck.”
“Well, if I got this much, I wonder what state my attacker is in.”
Liam let out a low chuckle at her bravado.
“Did you kill them?”
“Something like that.”
Hee-ju shrugged casually. After touching her cheek once more, Liam leaned into the hallway.
“Follow close behind me.”
“Understood.”
Liam stepped into the hallway. Hee-ju moved carefully behind him, her eyes darting left and right. She whispered softly against his back.
“I heard an explosion near the Main Gate earlier. I saw a man named Andrei heading that way.”
“That was Noel.”
At Liam’s casual response, Hee-ju’s eyes widened.
“What? Noel is here?”
“I needed someone to draw attention when I entered from the back of the Mansion.”
Hee-ju couldn’t decide whether to be shocked that he’d climbed a sheer cliff or angry that he’d involved a minor.
But one thing was certain: now was not the time to argue about it. Their priority was getting out of this place alive.
Hee-ju clenched her teeth and whispered.
“We’ll talk about this later.”
“The guards stationed at the Main Gate will be returning soon. Before they—”
Liam cut himself short, pivoting with his gun raised. A door swung open, and a figure emerged from the darkness.
Just before Liam could pull the trigger, Hee-ju grabbed his arm.
“Stop, Liam!”
Rozi stood in the doorway, dressed in a nightgown. She looked at Hee-ju and Liam with an expressionless face and spoke.
“It was too noisy outside to pretend I was asleep.”
“Won’t you come with us? This is your last chance, Rozi.”
Rozi’s gaze swept over the bodies scattered on the floor, then returned to Hee-ju. Her next words came as a question Hee-ju had already anticipated the answer to.
“What about Sergei?”
“He’s dead.”
Rozi nodded. She pulled her nightgown closed and smiled brightly.
“Go? And leave my fortune behind?”
Hee-ju nodded in understanding. At last, Sergei’s wealth had become hers.
Hee-ju offered Rozi her parting words.
“Be careful, Rozi.”
The two of them moved toward the stairs. Rozi pointed in the opposite direction.
“Go through the last door down the hall and you’ll find the servants’ staircase.”
Just then, noise erupted from below. Andrei and his men from the Main Gate had come rushing in.
Liam fixed Rozi with a look of absolute distrust. He was asking whether he could possibly believe her.
Hee-ju, still holding his arm, nodded firmly.
“If you won’t trust her, trust me.”
Hee-ju pulled him forward. With a deep exhale, Liam had no choice but to run in the direction she indicated.
As they passed Rozi, Liam whispered a warning so quietly only she could hear.
“If you’re lying, you won’t live long enough to spend that fortune you just gained.”
Rozi met his gaze with calm, steady eyes. Liam gave her one last icy stare before grasping Hee-ju’s shoulders as she opened the door.
“I’ll go in first. You follow right after.”
Rozi leaned her head back against her doorframe, watching them disappear.
‘If you’re lying, you won’t live long enough to spend that fortune you just gained.’
There was an unspoken ending to his threat. Rozi stood alone in the closing darkness, her voice barely audible.
“If I’m lying, then if this woman gets hurt—”
But then her expression twisted in mock fear and she let out a shriek.
“Ahhhhh!”
Andrei and his men came pouring down the staircase.
***
Noel slammed the car door shut. His heart hammered wildly. His hands trembled.
He gasped for breath and turned to look behind him. He couldn’t see the Mansion anymore, but the explosion he’d witnessed moments ago remained vivid in his mind.
Noel wiped his glasses hastily with a dry cloth and swallowed hard.
“Now’s not the time for this. Start the engine.”
It wasn’t difficult. Liam had taught him the mechanism, and he’d run through the steps countless times in his head. There should be no problems at this level. Clunk.
“Oh no.”
The engine had died. Noel took a deep breath and held the button longer. Vrrrm. Finally, the engine turned over.
The rain made it nearly impossible to see ahead. He turned on the wipers.
“Wait! The headlights! Liam said never to turn on the lights!”
Noel frantically switched off the headlights. Huff, huff. His breathing grew more labored.
“Did anyone see me?”
He glanced behind him again, but detected no sign of anyone approaching.
Noel carefully activated the wipers, determined not to repeat his mistake. Squeek-squeek. The wipers fought their difficult battle against the downpour.
“Good. So far so good. Now I shift the gear and turn the wheel—”
He turned the steering wheel slowly. The car lurched forward across the grass.
“Yes, yes, it’s moving. Once you understand the principle, this is nothing—”
Just before reaching the road, Noel hit the brake. He quickly cut the engine.
He’d spotted a wavering light at the edge of the darkness. Were the Mafia coming after him?
Noel gripped the steering wheel with both hands, trembling violently.
“Please don’t see me…… Wait?”
The engine sound grew steadily closer. It was then he realized something was wrong. The light was coming from the opposite direction—not from the Mansion.
“It’s coming!”

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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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