The Duke’s Obsession Leads to a Death Flag

“Seo-yul hyung.”

I still wanted to sleep, but the voice calling me pulled me out of my deep slumber. Slowly lifting my heavy eyelids, I saw Vin staring at me, silhouetted against the pouring sunlight.

‘Is this a dream?’

The one with that fair, delicate face, those eyes resembling radiant rubies, and lips tinted as if soaked in flower petals was undoubtedly Vin. But Vin was supposed to be in the storage room right now. My half-awake mind tried to process the situation, but I couldn’t help but smile.

Even if this was a dream, I didn’t mind. Because the first thing I saw upon opening my eyes was Vin.

“Vin-ah.”

“Yes, Seo-yul hyung.”

Even in my dream, Vin responded so well. Feeling pleased, I reached out and pulled Vin’s neck toward me. With a soft thud, Vin toppled forward into my arms, and I let out a laugh. This dream felt incredibly vivid. Almost as if I were holding the real Vin.

His cool body temperature and soft hair were so realistic that my drowsily closed eyes slowly opened.

“Did you sleep well, Seo-yul hyung?”

Vin, who had his cheek pressed against my chest, smiled brightly as he asked. The sudden, sweet floral scent that hit me instantly cleared my hazy mind.

‘Ah… this isn’t a dream.’

Feeling embarrassed, I let out an awkward chuckle and lifted the arm that had been pinning Vin down.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, I slept really well.”

I thought Vin would get up, but instead, he twisted his body and climbed entirely on top of me. The weight pressing down on me was too much, and I let out a groan. Grinning mischievously, Vin tapped my chin with his nose.

“Vin-ah, I’m not a bed.”

“I know.”

“If you know, then get off. You’re too heavy.”

Even as I tapped his shoulder, signaling him to move, Vin showed no intention of budging. Breathing wasn’t an issue, but having someone with a physique similar to mine lying on top of me was undeniably tiring.

“Seo-yul hyung.”

“What?”

“Are you really not going to send me away?”

The face that had been smiling happily quickly darkened. I hadn’t noticed earlier, but now I could see the traces of a sleepless night, the evidence of his endless worries lingering beneath his eyes.

“I told you I wouldn’t send you away.”

“…Really?”

“We even locked pinkies. A promise is a promise.”

Only after hearing my reassurance multiple times did Vin’s expression gradually soften. Without warning, he leaned in and pressed a light kiss on my chin. Chup. Startled by the sound, my eyes widened, and Vin grinned, showing his neatly aligned teeth.

“I’m hungry.”

As soon as he spoke, growl, his stomach let out a loud complaint. The timing was perfect.

I barely held back my laughter and glanced at the clock beside the bed. No wonder I felt like I had slept unusually long—morning had already passed, and it was almost time for lunch.

“Shall we eat?”

“Yes! Sounds good.”

Responding cheerfully, Vin rolled off me and tumbled across the bed. Then, with a thud, he fell straight to the floor. But instead of groaning in pain, he laughed out loud, as if even that was amusing.

A good start to the morning—or rather, lunchtime.

***

The journey back from Sector 1 to Sector 5 was exhausting and unbearably dull. Most of the time was spent stuck inside the car, which made it convenient to go through the backlog of documents, but once motion sickness kicked in, even that became impossible.

“This is tedious.”

The last two weeks had been a complete waste of time. I had only stayed in Sector 1 for about three days, but if it had lasted any longer, I probably would have snapped and fled back to Sector 5. That’s how pointless it had all been.

On the first day, the early morning meetings had begun, yet the leader of Sector 1 didn’t even bother to show up. The other leaders, exchanging the same meaningless conversations, spent the entire first day without so much as a glimpse of him.

For the next two days, the meetings continued in his absence, with no real discussions or significant agenda. I started growing anxious, wondering if this would go on until the very last day. And just when my patience was running thin, the Sector 1 leader finally made an appearance.

—”Welcome, everyone.”

Luis Shining, the leader of Sector 1, greeted us shamelessly. The other sector leaders, having buried the frustration of the past two days, greeted him just as warmly as they always did. Acting as if nothing had happened, Luis took his seat at the head of the table.

The main topic of discussion, now that he had finally arrived, was electricity.

Electricity was essential for rebuilding the civilization that had once collapsed, and Sector 1, holding a monopoly over it, needed to be convinced.

They called it a “sector leaders’ meeting,” but in reality, it was nothing more than a battle of pride, where everyone had to swallow their dignity and beg for more electricity for their respective sectors.

Once each sector had taken turns making their case, Luis Shining, in his usual unpredictable manner, decided how much power to allocate. Sector 2 always received the most benefits, while Sector 5 was consistently left in the dust.

There were always plenty of excuses. The distance was too far, the transmission lines were too old and replacing them would cost too much, and so on. Using every excuse imaginable, they cut down an already insufficient power supply even further.

—”Our sector isn’t in great shape either, Jae-hoon.”

Whenever I protested the absurdly low power allocation, I would always get the same scripted response.

As a result, this sector leaders’ meeting ended the same way as always—I left with nothing but losses.

“Haa…”

A sigh escaped from sheer frustration. The people of the sector had been without electricity for far too long, and even the mansion had started cutting back on power usage.

And yet, the power shortage had become so severe that even their one and only factory couldn’t operate. At this rate, the entire sector’s economy would collapse.

Something had to be done. Whether it meant threatening or persuading Luis Shining, there had to be a way.

“Sector Leader, we’ll be arriving soon.”

At the chauffeur’s words, I glanced out the window. The barren desert was fading into lush greenery. That meant we were almost back in Sector 5.

Beyond the front gates, a dense green forest stretched out, welcoming me home. It was nothing compared to Sector 1—smaller, humbler—but peaceful. Soon, the mansion of Sector 5 came into view.

As the car came to a stop, I didn’t bother waiting for the chauffeur and opened the door myself. The butler, along with a few attendants, was already outside to greet me.

“Luel.”

Spreading my arms wide, I pulled the butler into a tight embrace. It had only been two weeks apart, but I had missed him as much as I missed my own son. No, in truth, I had missed everything about Sector 5 while I was in Sector 1.

“Welcome back.”

“Yeah, I’m back.”

The arms squeezing him felt tight enough to crush bones, and Luel gave a few taps on my back, signaling me to let go. Startled, I quickly released him. I must have underestimated my own strength in my excitement.

“Luel, are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine—cough.“

The butler suddenly started coughing. I didn’t think I had hugged him that hard, but clearly, I had. Feeling guilty, I let out a sheepish laugh and patted his back as he struggled to clear his throat.

“Should I get you some water?”

“No, I’ll be fine in a moment. More importantly, Sector Leader, I have something to tell you.”

“Right now?”

If the butler had something to say, it was probably a report covering the two weeks I’d been gone. And once we started talking about that, half a day would disappear just like that.

Glancing up at the stairs, I hesitated before drawing out my words.

“Can’t we do it later…?”

“It won’t take long.”

Since it wasn’t a full report, there was no reason to put it off. Lowering my hand from his back, I gestured for him to continue.

“The Young Master has decided to take on a personal attendant of his own age.”

“Seo-yul?”

He had been adamant about never taking on a peer as a personal attendant. What kind of wind had suddenly blown to make him change his mind?

One of my long-standing concerns had just been resolved, and I could feel the corners of my lips twitching.

“So, which child did he choose? Was it one of the ones I selected?”

A personal attendant of the same age was different from an ordinary servant. They had to stay by Seo-yul’s side all day, which meant there were a lot more factors to consider. The children on the selection list had been carefully chosen—only those whose status and background matched my son’s level. They were well-educated, had learned proper etiquette, and were deemed suitable companions.

If it were one of those children, I had expected Seo-yul would at least be able to spend his time without feeling lonely. I had narrowed it down to ten candidates—so which one had he chosen? I was curious about his decision.

“Well…”

Unexpectedly, Luel hesitated, trailing off at the end of his sentence. Judging by his reaction, Seo-yul must have chosen someone not on the list.

I didn’t like the idea of assigning an unvetted child as a personal attendant. But if it was Seo-yul’s choice, I had to respect it.

Because of his frail health, Seo-yul spent most of his time indoors and rarely got along with the other children in the mansion. Lately, however, he had been running around the estate more than usual. It seemed that during that time, he had found someone he wanted to keep close.

“Stop dragging it out and just tell me.”

Growing impatient, I urged him to speak. Finally, after some hesitation, Luel slowly opened his mouth.

“The ‘gift’ you received… He wants to take him as his personal attendant.”

“The ‘gift’?”

I frowned, not understanding. I had asked which child Seo-yul had chosen, so why was Luel suddenly talking about some ‘gift’?

Still confused, Luel leaned in closer and whispered in a low voice.

“From Sector 1.”

At that moment, the realization hit me. My entire body tensed as I recalled something I had completely forgotten—the gift from Sector 1.

My expression hardened instantly.

“Go to Seo-yul and tell him. He is to come to my room immediately.”