Aubrey was only sixteen when she killed her violent ex, who beat her every time he was drunk. The girl did it to protect herself, but the young man''s family held her ountable.


    Luckily, Aubrey was still a minor, and she didn''t do it on purpose because the act was for self-defense. And yet, the young man''s family was still dissatisfied even though Aubrey was finally sentenced to three years in prison.


    "I don''t understand. If she already knew her boyfriend was a jerk, why didn''t Aubrey leave him?"


    "At that time, Aubrey had no one, and she could only rely on that person."


    "Where''s Kris? Aren''t they twins?" demanded Roxy as if she was angry at someone.


    "Why are you mad at me?" teased Den even though he knew Roxy wasn''t mad at him.


    "..." Roxy pursed her lips tightly and shed a gentle smile at Den. "I''m not mad at you. You carry on."


    Den put his arm around Roxy''s shoulder as he continued his story. "Kris was in Folnd at the time, and Aubrey didn''t want to tell her brother because she knew Kris would definitely kill her boyfriend and his family. So Aubrey hid it from him."


    "Ha? Folnd Inds? Could it be…"


    "That''s right. Kris once worked in the Hades organization, but he was never an inner member. He was the outer member and never knew the Hades''s face or his family."


    "Ah, I see. And then?"


    "Then Aubrey was released after three years in prison, and I recruited her as soon as I found out she could do taekwondo. At the start of her work, everything was going smoothly until the rumors spread. Not only Aubrey, but almost everyone I recruit also has a dark past. My cousin was good at using her link to investigate all my people."


    "Why are you recruiting people with a criminal history? Wouldn''t everything be safe if you recruited normal people?"


    "That makes sense. But I like challenges. In addition, people who have never experienced death were not as strong as those who have experienced it. Instead of using their abilities to hurt people, why not use them to protect? I gave them a second chance for those who wish to repent, and the results were satisfactory despite the bad rumors circting."


    "So you guys got through the bad rumors well?" No wonder Den didn''t care about the rumors about him being gay on campus. He was used to ignoring the falsehoods about him.


    "At first, it wasn''t so good. There''s one of my people who doesn''t like hearing those rumors and…."


    Roxy could feel the reluctance within Den for the first time. What happened?


    Even though she was curious to death and couldn''t wait for the continuation, Roxy waited anyway. Her hand gently patted Den''s chest, hoping she could give him some peace.


    "He identally pushed the person he argued with onto the highway and ended up having an ident."


    Roxy didn''tment and circled Den''s neck like a mother who wants to give strength to her son, who has just suffered a loss.


    "I was there and couldn''t do anything. Everyone saw what happened and directly used my services of being fake. I should have offered protection and security, but instead, I trained my people to harm them. Luckily that person didn''t die, but still… we ruined ourselves."


    It was not Den''s or his men''s fault, but still… people would only look at Den and me him. And somehow, his family, who lived in New York, knew this too.


    ''Den,e home. You don''t fit in there.'' that''s what his mother said.


    ''I''ll give you another chance at my ce. Come back home, son.'' that''s what his father said.


    ''You can''t build your own business. Why did you leave your father''s business when your father had secured a spot for you?'' that''s what his friends say.


    Many opposed him and considered him a failure and would not seed without using his father''s name… the ck''s name. For the second time, Den fell, and this time he fell into a deeper, bottomless pit.


    That night, after he read a mail from his father regarding a new project, Den got out of control by reasoning that he was better suited to doing business than a job that puts his life at risk. He came out of his room after taking his rental car keys without carrying his wallet or passport.


    "That night, I didn''t n to kill myself. But, many things were filling my mind, and I was driving in a dazed state. When I realized my steering wheel was starting to get off track and a truck from the opposite direction was honking its horn, I didn''t react."


    "Den,"


    "I could have avoided it, but I didn''t… and the ident happened. I don''t know how long I was unconscious by myself in the hospital, but when I woke up, I couldn''t move my muscles."


    "You''re in aa." Roxy could guess what happened next.


    "Yes. I was in aa for three weeks, and someone apanied me there."


    Roxy gulped nervously when she heard hisst sentence.


    "At that time, I didn''t know who that person was, but I knew she was a tourist because she used themonnguage. She even gave me a random name, but I ended up using that as my stage name."


    Roxy felt a pang inside her chest, but she kept her lips sealed to listen to the whole story.


    "She talked about herself and how she had to work as a flyer in the middle of the summer to earn a penny."


    Ha? Why did her sister distribute flyers?


    Ah, could it be because she had taken her wallet? Roxy was forced to take her sister''s money because her uncle in Spain had limited her cash while living in Spain.


    "She always yed the piano next door just for me. She also said that she aspired to be a great pianist and study at M university."


    M university? It was Kaylee''s dream as well as she wanted to leave the south, but… she didn''t expect her sister to tell a stranger.


    Had Kaylee fallen in love with Den?


    Just thinking about this possibility was painful enough, but Den didn''t know it and exacerbated the pain with his words.


    "Since I woke up, I decided to return to New York and be a lecturer at M university to meet her."


    Roxy found herself unable to breathe right then and there.