by Con Template
He wasn’t coming back; he was never coming back.
“Please stop crying,” Yoori brokenly whispered to herself. “Please stop crying,”
The tears refused to stop.
If she thought she went through hell before when he left her the first time, then she didn’t know what hell was because the agonizing throbbing that ripped through her was one that stole every breath from her lungs. Yoori had to struggle to breathe through her heart-wrenching sobs.
Oh God, this can’t be happening, she thought to herself, praying that all of this was merely a nightmare.
Except she was miserably aware that it wasn’t.
The pain . . . the mind-numbing pain was too real and too unbearable to be a dream.
Make it easier for him, a shattered voice whispered in her mind. Stop distracting him. All he has left is his Underworld. Just leave and let him find someone else who would give him the life you could never give him. You never listen to him . . . well, listen to him now and just leave . . .
Though dazed with heartache, Yoori listened to her own rationale.
She had never listened to him, but she would listen to him now. Yoori would leave him alone; she would take Soo Jin far away from him. It was the least she could do for him.
Using all the strength she had, Yoori crawled up. She ignored the potent pain engulfing her insides and ran to the closet. Grabbing all that belonged to her, she threw clothes after clothes into an opened luggage while tear after tear continued to shed from her eyes.
Yoori only stopped crying after she threw the last of her clothes into the luggage and happened across a familiar article of clothing in the closet.
Tae Hyun’s black hoodie stood in her line of vision.
Yoori held her breath as she pulled the hoodie off the hanger. Her aching heart lifted marginally. Yoori cradled the garment close to her chest like she had found a hidden treasure. He would never miss this, she told herself while she hugged the hoodie, remembering the scent of his cologne and how he was always the one who kept her warm. She had to keep a memory of him, a memory of their good times while she tried to live past the misery that awaited her.
With the hoodie held against her chest, she scanned the room one last time. Yoori tried to ignore the anguished realization that she was no longer welcomed in the room that had come to belong to her as well. She placed that pain aside and rummaged through all the drawers to make sure she had everything. Yoori wanted to do what Tae Hyun asked of her. She wanted to get rid of every shred of her existence before he came back.
After finding some things in the drawers, Yoori, who was having a hard time seeing through the tears blurring her vision, was ready to pack up and leave when she mindlessly opened the drawer to the desk and saw two particular items stare up at her.
It was the jade knife and the silver heart necklace that belonged to Soo Jin.
Chills formed on her skin while Yoori stared back at the innocuous, yet mocking items. Items that meant nothing to her, but meant everything to Soo Jin.
Her eyes zeroed in on the necklace.
Yoori closed her fingers around it and held up the silver chain. Anger undulated within her, and she glared at the heart pendant.
The engraving taunted her eyes: “To my daughter, the best are never distracted.”
Disgust heaved inside her while Yoori’s eyes became consumed with hate. She was being put through hell, she couldn’t be with the man she loved, and she couldn’t lead a normal life because of her . . . because of An Soo Jin and the mistakes she made in her past.
And Soo Jin justified her actions with this fucking engraving.
Rage engulfed Yoori.
That fucking monster justified killing Tae Hyun’s mother, she justified killing innocent people, and she justified ruining Yoori’s life with this fucking necklace.
Shaking, she screamed in anger and suddenly flung the necklace across the room.
Crack!
The pendant slammed into the wall with unforgiving force and broke apart, falling down to the tiles like broken wings. Yoori should’ve felt relief to see Soo Jin’s treasured keepsake break so easily, but no such relief befell her as she stared at the two broken pieces of the pendant.
One half was broken with a hollow space in the center while the other half had something sticking out of it.
It had something that looked like . . . a USB stick.
Yoori’s eyes enlarged at the sight. She walked over to it and picked it up, not believing her eyes. All along, the necklace had hidden a USB stick.
She quickly examined it and gasped in her mind when she realized the USB stick contained information that could answer all her questions. Everything she had ever wondered about Soo Jin, it could all be answered in this very USB stick. Her pulse raced frantically. She had no more time to waste.
In a flash, Yoori ran over to Tae Hyun’s desk, pulled out his laptop, and stuck the USB stick into the portal of the laptop. Still holding Tae Hyun’s hoodie to her chest, Yoori’s heart drummed feverishly while she waited for the folder in the USB stick to load.
The world breathed in quiet anticipation when the folder finally popped up, revealing a single icon that marked the file as a video file.
Mindlessly and almost brokenly, Yoori moved the mouse over to the icon and clicked on it. She was too curious and too unprepared for what appeared on the screen.
“Oh God . . .”
A gasp escaped her lips when the media player opened up, revealing a still shot of someone who looked deathly familiar to her.
It was Soo Jin.
The video was a self-recording of An Soo Jin.
Shaking with bewilderment, not even realizing what she was doing, Yoori clicked the play icon and felt her world tilt on its axis when the voice and live image of her alter ego, the infamous Queen of the Underworld, came to life before her.
“The best are never distracted . . .” An Soo Jin whispered, sending fear up Yoori’s spine. The acceleration of her weak heart ran rampant at the sight of herself—her past self.
After so long, she finally got to meet Soo Jin. She finally got to meet the one who was singlehandedly responsible for the current wretchedness that befell her life.
Soo Jin was sitting across the camera with a white wall behind her. She wore a sleeveless brown silk blouse that complimented her porcelain skin. With her long beautiful curls gathered to one side of her shoulder, Soo Jin couldn’t have encompassed more beauty or power to Yoori. There was an air of wonder to Soo Jin.
Even under the restrictions of a video recording, Soo Jin still radiated power, knowledge, and beauty. They were the same person, yet outwardly, Yoori knew that because of all the power and grace Soo Jin emanated, Soo Jin was much more beautiful than her. There was such confidence, such strength, and such ability to control her emotions that even under a video file, Soo Jin overpowered her in many ways.
“A face of an angel and the morals of the Devil.”
These words replayed in her mind while Yoori stared unblinkingly at the laptop screen, still not believing that after so long, she was finally face to face with the one who left such a mark in the Underworld, and left such a mark on her life.
So, this was the girl who held the Underworld in the palm of her hand. This was the girl who yielded as much power as Tae Hyun over a society that only revered the best. This was the girl who killed Tae Hyun’s mother and destroyed Yoori’s relationship with him.
“If you’re watching this right now, then it must mean that you’re broken again—that you’re afraid of doing what has to be done,” Soo Jin continued, her pale face emitting a reserved pain that Yoori couldn’t decipher the cause from. The video was grainy, not very clear as the lighting was limited, but Yoori could make out how tired Soo Jin was when she recorded this video.
Soo Jin went on, staring into the camera as if staring into Yoori’s soul.
“But I’ll remind you,” Soo Jin assured, her cold eyes swarming with resolution.
It
was then that Yoori knew why Soo Jin made this video. Soo Jin didn’t make this video specifically anticipating getting amnesia; she made this video to remind herself why she had to be a God in the face of human weaknesses. She made it to remind herself why she had to be ruthless in the face of morals and fear.
Yoori’s assumptions were confirmed as Soo Jin pressed on, anger teeming in her deadly eyes. “I’ll remind you of everything that led to this moment and I’ll remind you why you can no longer be broken, why we have to finish what we started. I’ll remind you why we can’t be human, why you were always meant to be a God—”
“Oh God . . .”
Unable to listen, Yoori clicked “Pause,” freezing Soo Jin and the knowledge she held.
Yoori covered her mouth in dreadfulness.
Silence prevailed over her.
She stared into Soo Jin’s eyes—her own eyes—like it was an ocean. An ocean of knowledge meant for her to drown in.
This was it.
Fear coursed through Yoori.
She knew, while her stomach coiled like a hungry snake, that listening to the finalities of this video would be her trigger. She could feel it in her tormented soul that listening to Soo Jin’s words would be the thing that would finish her—kill her. Yoori knew with all her instincts that she should turn off the laptop, rip the USB stick out, and flush it down the toilet to keep the demons from consuming her. She was aware that this was the thing to destroy if she wanted to keep Soo Jin’s memory from overpowering her.
Yoori wanted to do that, but as she felt the weight of Tae Hyun’s hoodie in her grasp, she remembered all the pain she was going through.
The heartache came back, the sobs that filled her chest came back, and the dark future ahead of her came back to her mind.
What was the point of fighting to be Yoori . . . if there was no more strength left within her? What was the point of being Yoori if she couldn’t withstand the guilt? What was the point of being Yoori if she no longer wanted to live through all the guilt of Soo Jin’s past and live through the knowledge that she could never be with the man she loved? What was the point of fighting . . . when she was never meant to exist in the first place?
Yoori was no longer strong enough for this world.
This world was never meant for her. It was always meant for Soo Jin and it was only obvious now, with how broken Yoori had become, that there was no more hope for her.
She had finally fallen over the edge and nothing but a vortex of misery awaited her. Nothing but agony awaited her weakened soul. Nothing but pain awaited her, unless she allowed An Soo Jin to quell her pain.
Yoori thought of Tae Hyun, remembered his confliction with wanting to save her, and remembered his confliction with wanting to kill Soo Jin to avenge his mother.
She wanted to help give him that.
Tae Hyun would never be able to kill her because he loved her, but if she were no longer here, if she were no longer Yoori, then he could kill Soo Jin and get the justice he so rightfully deserved for his mother. That way, she would be put out of her misery, Soo Jin would finally get the fate she deserved, and Tae Hyun could move on. He could get rid of Soo Jin and it would be as if she died three years ago—when she was supposed to.
Yoori nodded inwardly, never more afraid to end her life until this very moment, when she realized she was the one pushing herself over the edge.
Biting her quivering lips, she lifted up Tae Hyun’s hoodie and embraced it, pretending to herself that she was embracing Tae Hyun for the last time. Yoori buried her face into the fabric and allowed her tears to drip into it. God, she was going to miss him.
“I’m sorry . . . I’m sorry that you had to meet me,” she sobbed through her tears, hating herself for causing him so much pain. The agony she felt was excruciating. “I’ll make it easier for us . . . I’ll leave.”
The last of her tears dripped onto the black hoodie while she finally lifted her face from the garment and clicked “Play,” thereby unleashing the Pandora’s Box.
Silence came for her.
An Soo Jin spoke . . . The secrets of her past became unveiled, and the changing of tides occurred. The world around Yoori darkened as An Soo Jin’s memories came over her, took over her, and drowned the last of her existence on earth.
Little by little, the tears dried up, the pain became erased, and all that was left were the memories of what happened in her past. All that was left was a world reverted to three years prior.
All that was left was the end for Choi Yoori . . . and the beginning for An Soo Jin.
“If you go against our bylaws. . .”
25: An Soo Jin
Three Years Prior . . .
“Kneel.”
Much like the wind that coursed through the veil of the night, the command was simple and melodic. There was no threatening force behind the soft voice, no malice. Yet, because it was delivered by an entity who struck unparalleled fear into the hearts of men, the simple request moved mountains and within moments, the sound of surrendering knees hitting the damp grass resounded into the air.
Standing atop the highest balcony that oversaw the backyard of the luxurious Scorpions’ estate she grew up in, the young woman smiled in delight at the scene before her.
She was surrounded by her two dozen Scorpions, men and women alike in their twenties, all of whom she grew up with and personally trained to become the outstanding and feared soldiers they are today. All were standing on the surrounding balconies that made up a vast circle, barricading the massive lawn like an arena for gladiators. Some sat comfortably on the edge of the white railings, others pressed their backs against the wall, while the rest simply stood with their arms crossed. Despite their differing vantage points, all eyes were trained on the scene below them.
Their amused expressions mirrored that of their boss’s—the very boss who defied boundaries and managed to become the most revered woman in their elite society.
The Queen of the Underworld.
It was an epithet that was instilled into the blood of An Soo Jin on the night of her birth.
A descendent from the prestigious bloodline of a powerful South Korean crime family from her father’s side, she was also a descendant of the renowned Royal bloodline of the Japanese Underworld from her mother’s side. Soo Jin, much like her older brother, was meant for greatness the moment she inhaled her first breath.
Her mother’s death shortly after her birth marked the beginning of Soo Jin’s stringent, unforgiving, and ultimately historic upbringing.
Though her father loved her deeply, he was also a prideful man who wanted the best for his children. While his son, An Young Jae, trained with the best of the Japanese Underworld to become the heir to the Scorpions’ throne, the former King of Scorpions also made sure his daughter received esteemed training that would catapult her status in a society dominated by men. Most Underworld fathers encouraged their daughters to be trained to be a part of the 1st or 2nd layer of the Underworld pyramid, but Soo Jin’s father was an exception. He believed that his daughter was meant for something more and he did everything in his power to have that come to fruition.
Having been very close to the highly respected Advisor, Seo Ju Won, her father arranged for his young daughter to be trained by the three most powerful Advisors of the 2nd layer. Though she had one of the severest upbringings a child could ever imagine having—especially for a young girl trying to prove herself in a male-dominated world—she couldn’t have been more thankful for her father’s insistence that she trained with the best.
She “sold” her soul to the Devil shortly after she reached the age of ten and everything was history from then on.
An Soo Jin’s name became synonymous with reverence even before she made her official debut in the Underworld. Whispers of a second-born heir being trained by all three Advisors ran rampant in the Underworld and when she finally made her much awaited appearance in this powerful society, her name became legendary. The skilled, cunning, and powerful Queen indis
putably became the pride of the Scorpions, the pride of the elder Advisors, and the pride of the Underworld, who welcomed her with open arms. The growth of her power and reverence had only elevated since and Soo Jin couldn’t have felt more pride with her station in life. She was a Queen amongst Kings, a God amongst Royals.
Closing her eyes to enjoy the fresh air that curled around them, Soo Jin instinctively pressed her small body against the chest of her boyfriend of two years, Lee Ji Hoon. He was also watching the scene before them with an entertained expression.
Soo Jin wore a pubescent, white, sleeveless dress that swam over her perfect body and ended just below her thighs. Behind her, Ji Hoon wore a crisp white shirt with a black tie and black pants. The rest of her Scorpions wore black ensembles that allowed them to blend in with the shadows of the night.
In this dark picture, she was the epitome of an angel; it was the malevolent spark in her cruel eyes that made her look like the Devil.
An amused smirk lined her lips while her brown eyes stared down at the thirty kneeling men whose faces had been beaten to a pulp. Blood stained their facial features, streaked onto their skin, blinded their eyes, tattooed their tattered clothes, and encircled their wrists and necks, which were previously bound together with ropes and chains. There were even some who had their ears personally cut off by her and were now bleeding incessantly because of that.
They were trembling.
They were all trembling with desperation and fear.
It was a glorious and entertaining scene for Soo Jin.
She rejoiced in the sight of their broken bodies, the smell of their streaming blood, and the taste of their unbridled fear. The splendor of the scene was only elevated with the additional enjoyment she received from punishing the one group of people she hated the most—the Serpents.
“Knives,” she then said, her serene voice disrupting the silence.