“45 seconds….”
“P-please…. Ngh—!”
“44 seconds.”
“Kyaaah!”
“43 seconds.”
“Aaagh!”
“S-save me…! Kyaaak!”
“42 seconds.”
With every number that fell, the pain-filled screams grew fewer and farther between.
All that remained before my eyes was something being beaten into a bloody pulp.
Still, the force of my foot grinding them into the ground never let up.
They’d tried to do something unspeakable to a child. This much was the bare minimum.
If you decide to kill someone, you should be prepared to die yourself.
Looks like they were starting to go numb to the pain now—I was regulating it just enough to keep them conscious, and judging by the occasional groans, it was working.
They should be hurting more than this….
That was when the knife I’d kicked away earlier caught my eye.
‘Ah. Right. There was that.’
It’d been a while since I’d used a blade.
Still, back in the day, I’d been damn good with one.
I stopped stomping, walked over, and picked up the knife. Satisfied with how well it was sharpened, I slowly approached the culprits.
Barely clinging to consciousness, their pain-clouded eyes locked onto the knife in my hand—and filled with terror.
“Jung Hwangyeong!”
That was when it happened.
Just as I was about to bring the knife down, a loud shout rang out and Jung Hwangyu burst through the door. Jung Hwangyeong, still busy counting, didn’t seem to hear his voice.
Then Jung Hwangyu and I locked eyes.
“Y-you…!”
I glanced down at the knife in my hand, then at the criminals reduced to bloody lumps.
Yeah. This really didn’t look good….
“For the record, it wasn’t me. They’re the culprits.”
“Hah. I know. You think I’m an idiot? I just— I just wanted to kill them myself.”
“Want to borrow this, then?”
I held the knife out toward Jung Hwangyu.
“…You already took care of everything on your own, and now what…. Looking at them, my anger’s already cooled off. Ha.”
At Jung Hwangyu’s words, I tilted my head.
Just from this?
For someone with a kid now, he sure got soft….
“It’s not over yet.”
“What?”
“It’s just starting.”
I tightened my grip on the knife.
After what they did, letting it end like this would be far too merciful.
“At the very least, I should cut off a finger and take it—!”
“Jung Hwangyeong!”
“Hwangyeong!”
In that moment, Jung Hwangseo’s voice and Jung Hwanhui’s followed one after another.
Looks like Jung Hwangyu had contacted them right after our call.
I quickly shoved the knife into Jung Hwangyu’s hand and ducked behind him.
“W-what? Why are you doing this?”
Jung Hwangyu stared back and forth between the knife in his hand and me, utterly bewildered.
“…This was you. Got it?”
“What?”
“Just this once. Please.”
Ignoring the flustered Jung Hwangyu, I shut my mouth.
It was time to return to being the timid, introverted housekeeper—an invisible extra.
Moments later, Jung Hwangseo and Jung Hwanhui arrived.
“…Waaah!”
Having apparently finished counting to 100, Jung Hwangyeong turned around—and Jung Hwanhui rushed over at incredible speed, pulling him into his arms. Considering his injuries still hadn’t fully healed, the speed alone was impressive.
“Are you okay, little one? You’re not hurt, are you?”
“H-hyung…. I-I was scared.”
Cradled in Jung Hwanhui’s warm arms, Jung Hwangyeong finally spoke for the first time. Such a young, fragile voice.
Seeing him cling to Jung Hwanhui, sobbing and saying he’d been scared, my eyes stung for no reason. They say you cry more as you get older—guess I was proof of that.
How terrified must he have been. Such a small child….
“…Our baby. Who did this to you? Which bastards did this to our baby?”
Seeing Jung Hwangyeong cry, Jung Hwangseo scanned the area, murderous intent pouring off him. Only then did he seem to notice the collapsed criminals at Jung Hwangyu’s feet—and the knife in Jung Hwangyu’s hand.
Approaching them, Jung Hwangseo crouched and held a hand near their noses. Confirming they were still breathing, he let out a breath of relief.
“…Hwangyu. You’ve really grown up.”
“…This wasn’t me— ah, damn it, I don’t know. Fine, I did it! These bastards are the culprits! They did this to Jung Hwangyeong! Even this isn’t enough!”
“Well. That’s true.”
At that, Jung Hwangseo slowly stood up.
A powerful pheromone flooded out from his body. My brow furrowed instinctively.
Breathing felt a little harder, but I forced myself not to show it. It would be strange for a beta to react to pheromones, after all. Thankfully, Jung Hwangseo didn’t seem to even notice my presence.
He held out his hand toward Jung Hwangyu.
“…Can I borrow that knife, Hwangyu? I’ll take care of the cleanup.”
That was when Jung Hwanhui stepped in.
“That’s enough. The kid’s watching. Let’s go home first.”
“Alright. If you say so, hyung. I’m sure you’ll handle it properly.”
At Jung Hwanhui’s mediation, Jung Hwangseo scratched his head and returned to Jung Hwangyeong’s side. Jung Hwangyu followed as well.
Surrounded by his brothers, Jung Hwangyeong was still sniffling—but was it my imagination, or did he look happier than ever?
Watching all four brothers together for the first time, I smiled softly.
* * *
Once all the brothers had gathered, things wrapped up quickly.
So many people had been mobilized that the nearby crowd included college students, gangsters, pretty-looking omegas, and even people who looked like hotel staff. On top of that, the police and kindergarten teachers had been roaming around searching for Jung Hwangyeong.
“You found him? Thank goodness!”
Relieved by the news of Jung Hwangyeong’s return, everyone headed back home.
Only after Jung Hwanhui went to the police station and settled everything did he finally return home, carrying a somewhat-calmed Jung Hwangyeong in his arms.
A gangster boss at a police station….
I guess when things get dangerous, whether you’re a gangster or not, you end up relying on the police.
Throughout it all, I followed quietly behind them, watching without drawing attention.
“…Our baby fell asleep.”
“He was trapped all day. Of course he’s exhausted. Those fucking bastards.”
“Shh.”
Jung Hwangseo spoke while looking at the sleeping Jung Hwangyeong in Jung Hwanhui’s arms. Jung Hwangyu ground his teeth. Jung Hwanhui told them both to be quiet, then carried Jung Hwangyeong to his room.
‘Alright. What do I do now?’
By the time we got home, it was already night. It was an awkward time to prepare dinner, but it also felt strange to just slip away….
“Hey, housekeeper.”
“…Yes?”
“What’s with the polite spe—”
That was when Jung Hwangyu spoke to me, who had been standing there like a transparent person. Gritting my teeth where no one could see, I mentally told him to shut up. Thankfully, he caught on and closed his mouth—but that, in turn, made both Jung Hwangseo and Jung Hwanhui, who had just come back from the room, notice my presence.
I lowered my gaze demurely, once again imitating the invisible extra, Park Gyumin.
“Now that I think about it, Mr. Park Gyumin. You said you were the first to find my brother. How did you even know he was there?”
At Jung Hwanhui’s question, I calmly delivered the excuse I’d prepared on the way back.
“…I was just lucky. I was wandering around looking for the young master, and I had a strange feeling—so I went to check. That’s when I heard the young master’s moans inside.”
Jung Hwanhui knows my voice.
Aware of that, I spoke as softly as possible—barely audible—so he wouldn’t recognize it.
Thankfully, he didn’t seem to notice. He simply bowed his head at a perfect ninety-degree angle.
“Thanks to you, my brother was saved. Thank you sincerely.”
I waved my hands, insisting it was nothing.
“No, really. I was just lucky.”
“Housekeeper.”
“…Y-yes?”
That was when Jung Hwangseo, who’d been observing quietly, called out to me.
“But how did you know where I was, too? You came looking for me earlier. That was you at the hotel, right?”
“Yes… it was.”
“I didn’t recognize you because you had your face covered while cleaning~ But how did you know I was there? Hmm?”
“…That was also… luck. I heard from the third young master that you often go to hotels. I asked at the hotel lobby…. They told me you were there.”
“Huh? Me?”
Jung Hwangyu looked at me again, dumbfounded.
I shot him another glare, silently telling him to play along. With a hollow laugh, he reluctantly backed me up, saying it sounded about right.
“I see? But housekeeper—earlier, it sounded like you were cursing at me…. You seem pretty different from earlier.”
He remembered that?
Talk about holding a grudge.
“Earlier… I was just too, too agitated…. I’m very sorry, second young master!”
I deliberately acted frightened, bowing my head deeply.
“…No, that’s not it. Earlier was really fun. Want to do it one more time? That cursing.”
“…What?”
What the hell is this lunatic saying now?