บท 36: Accused.

Eun-kyung's eyes widened in shock. She couldn't believe the twisted nature of Seo-jun's actions. How could he even hurt his own twin sister? The situation was escalating quickly, with Seo-ah lying unconscious on the floor, blood trickling from her head.

Young-chul's face contorted with rage as he glared at Seo-jun. "What have you done?" he seethed, his voice filled with fury.

Seo-jun's laughter echoed in the room, his eyes gleaming with malicious intent. "She had it coming. Now you're next," he declared, his words dripping with malevolence.

A surge of anger coursed through Eun-kyung as she watched the scene unfold.

Young-chul stood up and ran towards Seo-jun, landing a powerful punch that caused him to waver but not fall. Young-chul wasn't done yet, though. He delivered a forceful kick, causing Seo-jun to crash into a pile of music equipment. His laughter was replaced by a painful groan as he struggled to stand up, his face contorted with anger and disbelief.

"I won't let you continue hurting others. It ends here," Young-chul gritted his teeth.

Seo-jun's eyes burned with fury as he stared back at Young-chul. Meanwhile, Young-chul quickly picked up Seo-ah and made his way to the door, only for it to be pushed open by Il-seong, who looked at them in shock.

"Il-seong, you came just in time! Young-chul tried to kill my sister. Don't let him get away!" Seo-jun proclaimed, standing up with a groan as he approached them.

"It was him, not me!" Young-chul defended himself.

Eun-kyung knew she had to act quickly. She didn't have to twice before she teleported to Ji-woo's classroom, but she wasn't there. So, she teleported to the student council room, where she found Ji-woo, Ga-ram, U-jin, and Eun-woo in deep discussion.

"Ji-woo, Ji-woo!"

"Ahhh, I told you to stop doing that!" Ji-woo glanced at her in anger, while the rest looked at her curiously.

"Seo-jun hurt his sister, and Young-chul is in trouble," she informed them urgently.

Ji-woo was taken aback by the news, but quickly relayed the information to the rest of the group before leading them to the music club room where Eun-kyung had indicated they should go.

As they arrived at the room, they found it packed with students. Seo-jun, Young-chul, Il-seong, and a teacher stood amidst the crowd of students.

"I'm telling the truth, it was Seo-jun, not me!" Young-chul exclaimed.

"How dare you! Seo-jun is not that type of person," defended a student from the crowd.

"He doesn't have any shame. He probably did that because Seo-ah was always following him. He got sick of her and took matters into his own hands," another student piped up.

"Seo-jun is Seo-ah's twin brother, and he is a good and kind person. The only person capable of hurting someone is Young-chul," added another student with conviction.

Young-chul heard all the accusations and fell to the ground, looking around in disbelief. "Seo-ah's the only one who knows the truth, and she will tell you that it wasn't me."

"This guy is too full of himself! Just because Seo-ah likes you doesn't mean she would choose you over her twin brother!" shouted a student, causing the rest of the crowd to murmur in agreement.

"Quiet, all of you!" the teacher yelled, trying to restore order.

U-jin and his entourage pushed their way through the crowd to approach the teacher. "What's going on here, sir?"

"Thank goodness you came. Il-seong found Young-chul carrying an injured Seo-ah, while Seo-jun was found in beaten up state in this room," the teacher explained.

"Where is she now?"

"Mr. Kim took her to the hospital."

"Good, so you concluded that it was Young-chul who caused her harm?" U-jin asked.

"Well, it couldn't have been her brother."

"Wait a minute, U-jin. Are you insinuating that I hurt my own sister?" Seo-jun finally spoke out, defending himself.

"Isn't it right for me to suspect you, given what Ha-rin did too?" U-jin raised an eyebrow.

"But Seo-jun is her twin brother, not an ordinary classmate!" Il-seong interjected.

U-jin glared at him, silencing his doubts. "Seo-ah is the only one who knows the truth."

Seo-jun on hearing this quickly hid behind Il-seong and pulled out his phone.

"Hand it over," Eun-woo demanded from Seo-jun's side.

"Why should I?" Seo-jun retorted defiantly.

"You're also a suspect," Eun-woo replied as he forcefully grabbed the phone from Seo-jun's grip.

Suddenly, two police officers entered the room, surprising everyone. The crowd wondered who had called the authorities.

"Are you kidding me?" U-jin exclaimed, glaring at the teacher, who looked away and pointed at Young-chul as the culprit.

"He is innocent," Ji-woo defended Young-chul, stepping in front of him to shield him from the officers. Young-chul stood up, shocked by Ji-woo's bold move, and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "It's okay, just promise me that Seo-ah will be safe."

"No, police officers, can you please wait? I have something to show you," U-jin intervened, standing in front of them. Seo-jun visibly flinched.

"We don't have much time, kid," one of the officers said, walking around U-jin and handcuffing Young-chul.

As they made their way to leave, Si-woo and Mun-hee rushed in, exclaiming, "Police officers, we have evidence!"

Mun-hee approached the TV in the club room and plugged in a flash drive. The screen illuminated, displaying footage of what transpired in the music room, from the moment Young-chul and Seo-ah entered to when Il-seong arrived.

"So it's true, Young-chul is innocent." a student said.

"So Seo-jun and Ha-rin were working together all along," another said in disbelief.

The police officers turned to Seo-jun, but he was no longer standing there. "Where is he?"

"Look, the window is open," Ga-ram pointed out.

The police officers hurried towards the window and saw Seo-jun running across the field, leading them in pursuit.

Ga-ram approached Young-chul and skillfully used her hairpin to unlock his handcuffs. Young-chul looked at her with gratitude, and tears streamed down his face as he was overcome with emotion. In an instinctive act of comfort, Ga-ram embraced him tightly and began patting his back, offering solace.

Ji-woo glanced at Eun-kyung, who was heaving a sigh of relief, understanding that everything was now settled.

Later, the news, internet, and social media were ablaze with reports of Seo-jun's involvement in Ji-woo's incident with Ha-rin, who was feigning a maniac episode. The video evidence of Seo-jun talking on the phone with an unknown individual and harming Seo-ah was shared widely, leading to his placement on the criminal wanted list.

"So, did you find out who Seo-jun was talking to on this phone?" Eun-woo inquired, taking the phone from Mun-hee. They were gathered in the school parking lot.

"No, the phone number doesn't exist anymore. It seems like the person got wind of what was happening. Maybe they're also in this school or have someone else stationed here as an informant," Mun-hee replied.

"When Seo-jun is caught, we will find out. Ji-woo, I'll send some people to watch your house, if that's okay with you," U-jin offered.

"No problem, I don't want to die yet," Ji-woo chuckled.

"You won't. I will protect you," Diego spoke up.

"I'm so glad to have such a cute boyfriend," Ji-woo exclaimed, playfully squishing Diego's cheeks. Eun-woo and Ga-ram rolled their eyes in response.

"So, when did you install the cameras in the music club room?" Ga-ram asked U-jin and Mun-hee, curious about their preparation.

"We did it last night. We didn't stop at the music club room either; we installed them all over the school throughout the night," U-jin revealed, causing everyone to look at him in awe.

"Is that why you both looked tired in class today?" Si-woo questioned Mun-hee, who nodded, resting her head on his shoulder in exhaustion.

"This won't do. I'll drive you back home on your bike," Si-woo graciously offered, his actions reflecting his caring nature, as he took Mun-hee's hand and led her away from the group.

"Wait, then who's going to drive us home?" Ga-ram inquired, looking at Ji-woo, who was engrossed in playfully squishing Diego's cheek.

"My boyfriend will, won't you?" Ji-woo turned to Diego, who nodded in agreement. With a smile, they left the others behind, hand in hand.

Eun-woo noticed a tinge of disappointment in U-jin's demeanor and approached him. Sensing that something was amiss, he asked if everything was alright. U-jin nodded in response and Eun-woo to bid him farewell and made his way to his own car.

As U-jin walked towards his car, a sudden cold sensation enveloped his right hand. Confused, he glanced to his right side, but there was no one in sight. Squinting his eyes, he managed to discern a small, purple, cloudy shape that gradually formed the figure of a young girl. U-jin couldn't believe his eyes. "Eun-kyung?!" he exclaimed, his voice filled with astonishment.

–––—–––—–––—–––—

Five Hours Later.

Seo-jun cautiously maneuvered his way through the labyrinth of an underground parking lot, his heart raced with the fear of being apprehended by the authorities. It was absolutely imperative that he meets up with his boss, before his precarious situation took a turn for the worse. If not for his stupid sister he won't be in this chaotic mess. Ha-rin might be able to fend for herself, but Seo-jun couldn't risk facing the consequences alongside her. Luckily, his boss was the only one capable of facilitating an untraceable escape from the country's clutches.

With a stroke of fortune, Seo-jun managed to elude the ever-watchful gaze of the security cameras, perfectly timing his movements to avoid detection. Sensing a release of tension, he subtly tugged his cap further down, obscuring his face as he awaited the arrival of the elevator. The ambience of the underground parking lot lent an eerie darkness to the scene, heightening his awareness. As the elevator doors slid open, Seo-jun's eyes widened as a mysterious figure, cloaked in an inky black hood, stepped out and stood menacingly in front of him.

Startled, Seo-jun stumbled backward and lost his balance, eventually finding himself on the ground. His voice quivered with a mix of anxiety and curiosity as he nervously questioned, "What brings you here? How did you manage to find me?"

In a calm and collected manner, the figure responded, revealing a surprising revelation, "Boss has instructed me to ensure your safe delivery to her."

Seo-jun's astonishment was palpable. "Wait, so you serve my boss as well?" he exclaimed in disbelief.

A sly smirk danced across the figure's face as they knelt before Seo-jun, their voice dripping with confidence. "Is it truly that difficult to understand?" they asked, almost playfully.

"No, just take me to our boss" Seo-jun said in impatience.

"Gladly. However, this endeavour comes with a single condition," the figure interjected with an alluring proposition.

But before Seo-jun could respond, his consciousness abruptly faded, succumbing to a forceful blow that rendered him unconscious. The figure, satisfied with their actions, declared, "Much better," and proceeded to drag Seo-jun's motionless body away, presumably to meet their boss.