Prey (Lee Seohan) - Chapter 176

“And so, I married you… and came to love you.”

“…….”

Suhyeon’s eyes filled helplessly with tears. She strained her eyes to hold back the burning breaths.

“That’s everything. That’s all.”

Jeonghan spoke in a low voice.

“…….”

Suhyeon, who had been looking at Jeonghan with reddened eyes, had her chin tremble slightly before she finally began to cry.

Biting her trembling lips and grimacing, she stretched out her arms and wrapped them around his neck.

Jeonghan quietly embraced Suhyeon as she leaned into him.

Unable to say anything due to her shaky voice, Suhyeon silently wept in his arms.

“Hheu-uhk….”

While holding the sobbing Suhyeon close, Jeonghan gently stroked her back.

* * * * *

Jeonghan and Suhyeon boarded his private jet and returned to Korea.

Jeonghan took her to a villa on the outskirts of Gyeonggi-do owned by Cheonkyung.

The villa, built in a secluded location overlooking a river, was surrounded by land also owned by Cheonkyung, making it difficult for outsiders to enter.

After introducing the head of security, who had been waiting there, Jeonghan spoke to Suhyeon.

“Stay here until I return. I’ll send some staff over in the afternoon, so let them know if you need anything.”

Since he couldn’t leave Suhyeon alone, he planned to leave her with the security team and a few staff members.

“Reporters might be around, so don’t go home, and even if it feels stifling, you’ll have to stay here for the time being.”

“…….”

While Jeonghan spoke, Suhyeon remained silent.

On the way, Suhyeon had searched for Korean news articles, and her face had turned pale.

“Then I’ll go to America and—”

Suhyeon lifted her head and grabbed Jeonghan’s arm. He looked down at her.

“Release a correction article first. That… that’s just completely ridiculous.”

Suhyeon spoke with a desperate expression.

Do Jeonghan, a pervert with deviant s****l desires?

After seeing Seol Heenam’s interview, Suhyeon felt as if her blood was boiling in reverse.

A well-brought-up daughter?

A marriage forced by their daughter, and then they divorced her to save her and sent her abroad?

From start to finish, it was absurd.

‘Who’s the real devil, turning Do Jeonghan’s parents—and even his mother’s
death—into his fault?’

Even Seol Heenam’s tearful act was utterly revolting.

Suhyeon clearly remembered the situation from the day Seol Heenam had knelt. She had witnessed with her own eyes how, after being caught for killing Jeonghan’s parents, Seol Heenam had begged under the guise of an apology to demand money. Distorting that incident in such a way…

Suhyeon suddenly realized.

‘It was intentional.’

It was all on purpose, to provoke Do Jeonghan into assaulting him and capturing it in a photograph.

If only she hadn’t run away at that time, such a photo wouldn’t have been taken.

It was because Do Jeonghan had chased after her that such a photo was taken.

‘This… something like this actually works?’

It made no sense that such fabrications could be believed, but Do Jeonghan had already been thoroughly demonized.

From blaming Do Cheoljun for breaking the unilateral trust in the space business to distorting his time in the orphanage into a dirty secret about his birth, everything had been twisted. On top of that, they added the provocative label of a pervert with deviant s****l desires, fabricating his demonic nature and launching a massive media campaign.

Everyone was condemning Do Jeonghan.

Calling him an utterly devilish man.

Suhyeon shook her head.

“Why would they go so far to destroy you…? This is, this is unbelievable. I’ll testify, so hurry and release a correction to the press….”

“Suhyeon.”

Jeonghan lifted Suhyeon’s chin, making her meet his gaze. Her transparent eyes, damp with tears, quivered with unease.

Looking directly into her trembling eyes, Jeonghan gave a captivating smile.

“There’s nothing to worry about.”

At Jeonghan’s gentle voice, Suhyeon felt as if her chest might burst from the suffocating frustration.

“How can I not worry…?”

A surge of tears welled up.

She couldn’t bear the fact that, because of her, Do Jeonghan’s position as heir in the company was shaken, and he was being criticized by the public.

She had only now realized that he had suffered astronomical losses, missing the final contract in the space industry, all to search for her after she ran away.

“I… I didn’t know. I truly didn’t know that trip was that important….”

Suhyeon shook her head as she cried.

If she had known, she wouldn’t have gone. If she had known things would turn out like this, she wouldn’t have left so recklessly in such a hurry.

If she had known she would shake Do Jeonghan’s entire foundation to its core like this…

“Suhyeon.”

Jeonghan lifted Suhyeon’s face and wiped away her tears. Then he quietly met her gaze.

“Don’t think about anything else. Just trust me.”

“…….”

Tears streamed down from Suhyeon’s clear eyes. Jeonghan steadfastly held her gaze.

“Even if I lose everything, I won’t regret holding onto you.”