Raiden Myung, unlike the chaos he has created he was unbothered. In fact, he was elated.
His hotel floor bustled with unusually light energy, employees exchanging surprised glances at his relaxed demeanor. The man known for his icy silence and erratic tempers was—smiling. Leisurely. It unsettled most of them.
Only one person wasn't caught off guard: his secretary. The woman with sharp eyes behind her sleek glasses had served under him long enough to know that Raiden's happiness came not from success—but from someone else's misfortune.
This morning, his joy was rooted in disruption. A fall. A rift he had set in motion with carefully measured glances, words, and presence.
He walked slowly through the long marble corridor of the Orion Hotel, hands in his white linen pants, exuding wealth and quiet arrogance. Dressed in a cream shirt half-buttoned and layered with a beige knit over the shoulders, Raiden looked every bit the heir of a chaebol dynasty, his grooming meticulous and casual all at once.
He was headed to the breakfast floor.
His secretary had told him earlier that Dominic Vale was dining with his secretary—the elegant Miss Ava Ellis. That piece of information had sparked the current glint in his eyes.
He stepped onto the floor where the breakfast buffet was arranged, the scent of roasted coffee and fresh bread hanging warmly in the air.
His sharp gaze scanned the room.
And then he saw them.
Near the wide windows, basked in golden morning light, sat Dominic and Ava. The sun had draped itself across them like a quiet blessing. Dominic, surprisingly, was in the middle of placing a few fruits on Ava's plate. She looked up, her face lit in soft hues, lips curved in a genuine smile. The contrast between her serene exhaustion and his quiet concentration made them look—unreachable.
They look like a newlywed couple on their honeymoon, Raiden thought with a smirk. Adorable.
But not something he would let last.
He strode forward.
Ava felt it first—the shift in the air. A unfamiliar presence brushing against her nerves.
Her gaze lifted—and landed on Raiden's confident form, walking toward them.
The smile he wore sent a wave of discomfort down her spine. She reflexively looked at Dominic.
Dominic had already sensed the change. His eyes darkened, his hand freezing mid-air over the plate.
Raiden reached the table, stopping at its edge. His presence doused the warmth around them like a storm rolling in.
"Good morning, Mr. Vale," Raiden greeted, his tone dipped in honey but lacking warmth.
He then turned to Ava, holding her gaze a fraction longer than necessary.
"And good morning, Miss Ava. May I call you that?"
His smile widened as he added, "I know most refer to you as Miss Ellis, but I find 'Ava'... more better. If you don't mind."
The moment twisted.
Ava's throat tightened. She didn't know how to respond. Something about Raiden's tone made her skin crawl.
The temperature around their table seemed to drop. The golden light felt duller. Dominic set the plate down gently, but the tension in his shoulders was unmistakable.
Before Ava could utter a word, Dominic's voice came out dark and level.
"I'm amazed, Mr. Myung. I'd always heard you preferred business dealings to remain neutral. Unemotional. But here you are… showing a rather different side."
Raiden chuckled, entirely unfazed. "Well," he began, turning to Ava again, "Miss Ava just happens to be my…"
He paused.
Then added with a deliberate calm and weighted gaze, "…someone I hold quite dear to my heart."
The statement hung in the air like a dagger waiting to fall.
Ava's fingers clenched around her juice glass.
Dominic's jaw twitched.
Raiden smiled, unfazed by the storm he had created.
He wasn't here for breakfast.
He was here for war.
---
A brief silence followed Raiden Myung's final words. The air between the three of them was thick, cold, and brittle—like glass about to crack.
Ava's fingers froze around her fork.
"Someone I hold… too dear to my heart."
The weight of the words sank in. She wasn't naive. The layered meaning, the arrogant insinuation—he was provoking Dominic, not flirting. He was declaring a game.
Dominic set down the serving spoon he'd just used.
The soft clink of metal on porcelain felt louder than it should.
He looked up—slowly, eyes unreadable. "That's a bold thing to say about someone else's secretary, Mr. Myung."
Raiden chuckled, feigning innocence. "Oh, forgive me. I sometimes let my personal preferences slip. I just meant I find Miss Ava quite... exceptional."
Ava gave him a blank stare. "That's very kind of you, Mr. Myung," she said coolly, trying to end the subject.
But her voice was quieter than usual. The tension, his gaze, the way her name fell off his tongue—it unsettled her to her core. Her entire being tensed, like a deer sensing a predator.
Dominic's fingers were clenched around his cup now.
He had no reason to interfere. Ava wasn't officially his. She wasn't even a friend.
So why did the sight of Raiden looking at her like that—the way men stare at something they think they can own—make his blood run hot?
Raiden finally pulled out a chair.
"Mind if I join you?"
Dominic's jaw ticked.
"We were just finishing," Ava replied quickly, rising to her feet.
"Ah, I see. A pity. I was hoping to share a few laughs this morning." Raiden leaned back in his chair with a smile too smooth to be real. "But perhaps I'll get my chance later."
As Ava turned, Dominic rose as well. Without another word, he took her glass and plate and moved toward the servers, leaving her a step behind.
Raiden didn't miss it.
He watched the two walk away in tandem—Dom's steps protective, Ava's frame tense—and his smile faltered just a little.
Then his fingers curled around the edge of the table.
He would be damned if Dominic Vale thought he could outplay him.
Not this time.
---
Back in the hotel corridor, Ava walked a few steps ahead before pausing at the elevator.
She kept her eyes on the floor, unsure of what to say.
Dominic stood beside her, not speaking either.
The elevator doors opened.
They stepped in.
Just the two of them.
A soft chime echoed as the doors closed, and silence pressed against them again.
Dominic finally turned to her.
"You okay?"
His voice was low, but not gentle. It was laced with something else—anger… restraint.
Ava nodded. "Yes. He's just… difficult to deal with."
Dominic's eyes flicked to her.
"You don't have to talk to him if you don't want to."
She blinked. "That would be rude."
"Ruder than what he just said?"
She glanced down. "I've handled worse."
That answer made something twist inside him.
He exhaled slowly and looked forward.
Then, without thinking, he said it.
"I don't like how he looks at you."
Ava turned sharply, surprised.
Dominic didn't meet her gaze, but his words hung heavy in the air.
"I've seen that look before," he added. "It never ends with just staring."
Ava didn't know what to say.
There was something in his tone that wasn't cold. It wasn't possessive either.
It was… concerned.
Genuine.
"Thank you," she said finally.
Their eyes met through the elevator's mirrored panel.
No more words passed. But the silence between them no longer felt heavy. It felt… safe.
When the doors opened, they walked side by side again—closer this time, as if the space between them had naturally closed.
And for now, that was enough.
---