"I* soo..."

Yuna's breath caught in her throat as a wave of horror washed over her. Her chest tightened, and the words "I'm sorry" died on her lips, leaving her with nothing but the aching silence of her guilt.

Zack was taken aback by her reaction, completely puzzled. Yet, despite the strangeness of her behavior, he couldn’t shake the unsettling realization that he found her oddly captivating. It annoyed him to admit it, but his eyes lingered on her honeyed lips, drawn to there on her breastline almost against his will.

'Damn! She continued to drive my resolve away.'

When Yuna felt his heavy breath brush against her neck, she wriggled her hand to break free from his grip.

As she raised her face, her breath caught in her throat, meeting his intense stare with a mix of fear and defiance.

She hadn’t expected his usual cold, antagonistic glare to morph into a searing, almost predatory stare that felt like it could devour her.

"Tell me?"

Zack's throat tightened, and he stumbled back, his breath catching as the intensity of the moment reflected in his wide, startled eyes.

"I'm hungry," he murmured, his voice laced with exhaustion. "I haven't eaten for days."

"Huh? That’s why you’re here." She replied, caught off guard by the simplicity of his need.

Yuna's heart lifted with relief as she realized Zack wasn’t upset because of her. The weight of her anxiety melted away, replaced by a growing sense of reassurance.

Zack nodded again as he sat back on the bed.

“Hehe, get some rest. I’ll give you a shout as soon as the food is ready.”

When Yuna realized Zack wasn’t angry, her entire demeanor softened. The tension drained from her face, and a look of profound relief settled over her as she turned and walked briskly to the kitchen.

"Fu**!"

Zachary cried out and flopped onto the bed, his hands pressing firmly over his eyes in exasperation.

Even with his eyes closed, he could still picture her slender, perfectly curved form. He rolled over and buried himself in the bedclothes.

"Does she always smell like a strawberry scent?"

His brow furrowed slightly, caught between unspoken admiration and a stubborn refusal to admit just how beautiful Yuna was.

...

"Easy, love. You'll choke to death."

His frantic pace and the way he devoured his food with a sense of desperate urgency suggested something far beyond mere hunger. It was as if he was trying to fill a void, his hurried bites and uneven breaths hinting at a deeper unease that went beyond mere appetite.

"Gosh. If you decided to eat like a horse, then eat grass."

Victor’s face fell as he surveyed the table, his eyes settling on the one bowl of salad left behind. His shoulders slumped, and a scowl was visible on his forehead.

"You can either go to your room or wait for me in the office. We'll talk again tomorrow."

"I'm here to eat, moo."

Victor snickered at him, but his gaze turned to Yuna, eyes wide and expectant, begging for food in an almost childlike manner.

"I'm sorry. I thought you were full because you ate everything I intended to eat during the event."

Victor let her have just the water he brought with him. Every time the server presented food or snacks, Victor quickly grabbed them and ate them all, ensuring Yuna got none.

They both resembled a toddler who had gone for days without food.

"I only tasted them if poisoned."

"However, you devoured every last bite."

As she said this, she pushed her dish over to his side of the table.

"To make sure you won't eat any. Some poison or drugs don't strike immediately."

He returned the plate to her and spoke in a solemn tone.

"Pfft."

Her attempt to suppress a laugh was futile as she heard the excuse. "Sorry," her throat letting out a quiet, amused chuckle.

"I mean it."

"Fine. So please accept this food as my gratitude. I also crave instant noodles."

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She stood up from her chair and moved to the counter, methodically preparing the instant noodles.

"What happened?" Victor inquired, surprised by the sudden shift in her mood.

"I don't know. And..."

His ears burned with embarrassment as he recalled what had happened earlier.

"And what?"

"Never, under any circumstances, enter her room."

Victor rolled his eyes dismissively, while Zack’s cheeks turned a deep shade of crimson.

"Weirdo. Isn't it imprudent to go into and out of her room?"

Victor didn't care about other people, so he stated "her" instead of the girl's room.

'Coming from a beast who regarded woman as a pest.'

Zack scowled.

...

After doing her laundry, Yuna went directly to the office restroom, thinking she needed to finish the sink repair there.

The soft rustling of tools and the quiet hum of a person working hard. Her work was calm and focused, demonstrating her determination and attention to detail. However, when Zack and Victor came and started talking about their convoluted plans, she loathed hearing them. She paused to make no noise, not wanting to disrupt their heated conversation.

“It seems every move Avere plotted has backfired. I suppose I should commend you for your decisive and well-calculated actions. So, that was the plan all along, huh?"

Victor's raven eyes glinted with sharp sarcasm. As he congratulated Zack, his words dripped with insincere praise, each syllable laced with a biting edge that betrayed his true feelings.

“Are you surprised by my plan? Honestly, I wasn’t certain you’d let it play out.”

"I'm more surprised that I'm still alive, though."

Despite seeing them act hostile toward each other, Yuna was confident they had the same goal and was perplexed by the conversation.

"Anyways, according to business experts, as the news mentioned, the GoBee would be the most successful global technology for only months, beating the Avere group. Its openness to helping charitable organizations is one of the vast aspects that, right away, hundreds of millions of people use GoBee. Meanwhile, Yuna was highly praised for her tactics of pushing multi-billionaires to give a huge amount and support GoBee's goal."

Victor diverted the conversation.

"I'm curious as to what your grandfather, Owen, plans to do now that his nightmares have come true."

"Even though he was worse than a cold-blooded monster, he was dubbed the most respected businessman because of his extreme caution in every decision. For the time being, I suppose Owen won't do anything that would lead others to assume that I am not, as he wanted them to believe, his favorite grandchild."

"Do you think he'll still let you work as Avere group CEO now that he knows your goal isn't to take over the Avere but to destroy it?"

"The reason he would increasingly bind me to Avere Group." For now, he will not pursue his plot to take down the GoBee, but he will fuel his children's hatred toward me, hoping they will effectively destroy or murder me."

"What actions do you predict from the other Avere members?"

His expression was focused and attentive, each subtle shift in his face showed a deep interest in Zack's answer.

"The plan they crafted crumbled because they let their guard down once with a girl they assumed was completely ignorant." So, I'm guessing they'll start by attempting to persuade her to cooperate with them. And if things don't go their way, they'll put their hands on her or assassinate her to infuriate me."

"She must be in great danger, I suppose?"

Listening to the conversation was excruciatingly awkward for Yuna. The talk about her precarious situation only heightened her sense of vulnerability. Each word seemed to amplify the danger she was in, making her skin crawl with unease. It felt as if the walls of the restroom were closing in on her, and she was trapped in a nightmare where her life was the focal point of their casual discourse. Her heart raced, and she struggled to stay composed, all while wishing desperately for the conversation to end.

A literal cold sweat broke out on Yuna’s body, trickling down and dampening her palms. Distracted by the tension, she didn’t notice the shattered piece of the sink she was clutching slowly slipping from her grip.

"Is it even a question that they see her as the most treacherous pawn? She’s at greater risk than any of us. Therefore, it might be wise to illustrate that our connection with her is stronger than they realize."

"If something were to happen to her, I'd have a reason to kill the enemy?"

Yuna's heart pounded as she muttered, 'What do I expect?'

"We should..."

*Boom*

Zack’s sentence was cut short by a loud crash from the bathroom. The porcelain sink, already cracked, had fallen to the floor.

They quickly ran to the bathroom, where they saw Yuna drenched in sweat.

She wiped her wet face with her sleeve and picked up the broken porcelain.

"I think it's beyond repair. I should buy a new one later as a replacement."

She stated it with an uneasy expression.

"How long you've been here?!"

The moment Zack and Victor realized Yuna had overheard their conversation, the atmosphere thickened with darkness. Their faces mirrored a sudden blend of alarm and guilt as the gravity of the situation sank in. Zack’s eyes widened with frustration and concern, while Victor’s expression shifted from initial surprise to a calculating coldness. The realization brought a charged silence, punctuated only by the distant echo of the dropped sink, as they grappled with the implications of Yuna’s unintended eavesdropping.

"I arrived here before you did."

Yuna's attention switched from Zack to Victor. She'd never seen them in such disarray before.

"Did you hear us?"

"I apologize. I didn't mean to listen in on your chat. Consider that I didn't hear anything."

"It's not that... We don't mean..."

For the first time, Yuna heard Zack stutter, his voice faltering under the weight of his words. He glanced at Victor, his expression a silent plea for assistance as if hoping he would step in to articulate what he struggled to convey.

"You won't die!"

Victor shouted. His voice was loud and out of the edge.

"PFFT."

Yuna laughed as if she had heard a hilarious joke.

Victor always brings hilarity through the awkward situation.

"Of course, I will die. I am not an immortal."

Yuna collected all the tools she had used for the sink repair, carefully packing them as she prepared to leave.

"I will not be your enemy or betray you." I don't know whether you felt awkward but don't worry. Unlike the press headlines about Zack's +99 reasons for marrying me, I know there is only a specific one."

She didn't have a deluded belief that they would change their minds because she was fully aware of her role as a pawn.

Victor and Zack froze as they interpreted what she said.

Yuna walked away without waiting for their response.

She had bigger concerns than what she overheard. As the sink fell to the floor, she noticed a blood smear and wondered whose blood it might be.

'Victor said he was more surprised to be still alive. Was it his blood? Who did it to him?'

The notion that someone could inflict harm on Victor Green was deeply unsettling. It struck her with a chilling clarity: if someone could harm as tough as Victor, then, the enemy they faced was far stronger and more dangerous than she had anticipated. The weight of this grim realization left her anxious and dazzled, her mind racing with the implications of such a formidable threat.