Chapter 11: Stalker in the Shadows

“Nothing’s wrong, I’m fine.”

“Is that really true?”

“…Yeah.”

Hyunjin hesitated, then answered briefly.

No matter how you looked at it, his expression seemed to silently ask Hyunwoo to probe further.

Hyunwoo carefully recalled past events.

Before regression, he had ignored Hyunjin at this time.

He thought it wasn’t his place to intervene.

But now, there was no reason to avoid him.

Hyunwoo stiffened his expression and looked at Hyunjin.

“Joo Hyunjin.”

“Uh, yeah?”

“I told you not to lie to me.”

“…….”

Hyunwoo spoke in a deliberately stern tone, making Hyunjin flinch.

His dark, glassy eyes wavered this way and that.

“No, I’m really… it’s nothing.”

“Nothing? What do you mean by nothing?”

“Well….”

Hyunwoo pressed persistently as Hyunjin hesitated.

Before regression, Hyunwoo hadn’t tried to solve this himself.

He thought that as a minor character and supporting role, it wasn’t his place.

Above all, he wanted Hyunjin to end up with another supporting character, not Seunghyuk, so he deliberately ignored it.

Originally, the stalker episode was supposed to be resolved by the main character, Seunghyuk.

That incident would deepen the relationship between the two who had only flirted until then.

Knowing this, Hyunwoo paired Hyunjin with a supporting character.

As expected, the supporting character defeated the stalker, and Hyunjin’s relationship developed positively.

However, this time, he couldn’t let Hyunjin and the supporting character get together again.

This time, Seunghyuk himself should defeat the stalker according to the original story.

Hyunwoo doubted whether the current Seunghyuk could handle it well.

‘Maybe I should handle it myself.’

Dealing with a single stalker without anyone knowing wasn’t too difficult.

Hyunwoo pondered quietly.

At that moment, Hyunjin muttered in a dark tone.

“Um, well… a few of my things have gone missing recently… and I’ve been getting strange messages…”

“…….”

“I-I’m fine. Really… nothing else happened besides that.”

‘Nothing else happened?’ Hyunwoo sighed inwardly and pressed his hand to his forehead.

If the stalker had come with a knife to ask him out, only then would it be “nothing,” you frustrating lead character!

Hyunwoo cursed silently.

“Show me the messages.”

“Hyaa….”

“Hurry.”

“…….”

Hesitant, Hyunjin picked up his phone, tapped the screen a few times, and handed it to Hyunwoo, eyes wide.

Hyunwoo quickly scanned the messages.

The content was far worse than he expected.

His face twisted in anger.

Sir
Hyunjin, the clothes you wore today look pretty.
The pink outfit suits you especially well.
The child we’ll have will be as pretty as you, right?
Did you see the cherry blossoms today?
Hyunjin…

“…….”

This crazy guy… his name is “Sir”? Completely insane.

Hyunwoo frowned and scrolled up.

The first messages had come shortly after the semester began, innocent and mundane.

But at some point, they turned strange.

And recently, even worse.

Sir
Hyunjin’s been smiling too flirtatiously lately.
Sir has to discipline you^^

“Damn it….”

“…….”

Hyunwoo suppressed the urge to curse.

Seeing the disgusting last message, he shut off the phone and threw it onto the table.

The thunk sound made Hyunjin flinch.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I just… I thought someone was just joking…”

“Do you joke like this with your friends?”

“No, no….”

Hyunjin lowered his head deeply.

Even without much awareness, he must have realized that what was happening wasn’t normal.

But he had been suffering quietly on his own, telling no one.

In the original story, Seunghyuk, who was nearby, would have noticed and helped.

Hyunwoo sighed deeply in frustration.

“Don’t go back to your apartment for now. Stay here.”

“But….”

“No buts. Do as I say, alright?”

“Yeah….”

Hyunjin nodded slowly.

His flushed face looked somewhat strange, but Hyunwoo paid it little mind.

His thoughts were consumed with how to deal with this damn stalker.

Hyunwoo first left Hyunjin at his own place and went outside.

He needed to observe the stalker’s movements.

He searched the surrounding area thoroughly, but saw no suspicious person.

The stalker didn’t seem to be following Hyunjin all day.

Hyunwoo didn’t know the stalker’s identity; he hadn’t read the novel.

However, from his sister’s ramblings, he vaguely knew that the stalker was one of Hyunjin’s peers.

Criminals were often closer than expected.

Hyunwoo clicked his tongue in disapproval and carefully checked the area before getting into his car.

The stalker seemed to think of himself as Hyunjin’s “Sir.”

He could be an obsessive Alpha targeting an Omega or a Beta pretending to be an Alpha.

Still, most crimes like this occurred between gifted individuals, so Hyunwoo leaned toward the idea that the culprit was an Alpha like him.

‘Maybe I should tear that bastard apart.’

Hyunwoo drove with grim determination.

The black sedan sped recklessly along the road.

Hyunjin’s apartment was near the university.

Hyunwoo’s house was near his company, so it was quite a distance.

He figured the stalker wouldn’t deliberately follow him this far and felt gradually reassured while driving.

Soon, Hyunwoo arrived near Hyunjin’s apartment.

He parked in a suitable spot and looked around.

The residential area was quiet, probably because it was a holiday.

The sun was setting, casting a reddish hue over the surroundings.

‘I lived in a place like this back in college.’

Hyunwoo recalled memories from when he was his old self, walking slowly despite the aggravating situation.

“Hmm….”

Hyunjin’s apartment was in a five-story building.

Further out, there were bigger, nicer houses, but Hyunjin had chosen this one for proximity to school.

Hyunwoo glanced up at the worn-out building with mild disapproval.

“…Huh?”

Something seemed off.

Hyunwoo squinted and inspected the building again.

Hyunjin lived on the 2nd floor, apartment 203.

Yet, a light was on in what appeared to be apartment 203.

“Could it be…?”

Hyunjin could have simply forgotten to turn off the lights, being careless.

But he had left early today.

Why were all the lights on in broad daylight?

Hyunwoo’s expression hardened as he entered the building.

The old building had no locked main entrance.

Once this was resolved, he’d have to move Hyunjin.

Hyunwoo gritted his teeth.

“…!”

Before heading to the 2nd floor, he noticed the row of mailboxes.

Small boxes lined one wall tightly.

Hyunwoo scanned for 203.

‘201, 202, 203….’

Even in a digital age, letters still arrived.

Hyunwoo opened 203 and lifted the thin metal cover.

“This crazy bastard….”

He muttered a curse quietly.

Hyunjin hadn’t checked the mailbox, it seemed.

If he had, he would have come running, spilling everything.

Hyunwoo frowned and removed a black bag from the mailbox.

Why do these creepy stalkers always send such things?

He glimpsed the remains of a small, unidentified animal inside, tightly tied the bag, and sealed it.

The decayed body swarmed with insects, grotesque and nauseating.

Hyunwoo clenched his teeth.

“Ugh….”

Seeing something so foul made his vision swim.

He put the black bag back inside.

It would serve as evidence when reporting to the police.

Hyunwoo stepped back from the mailbox, clicking his tongue.

He suspected the stalker was inside Hyunjin’s apartment.

Should he report it immediately, or deal with him directly?

Hyunwoo pondered for a moment.

‘First, I need to confirm he’s really inside.’

Without certainty, he couldn’t call the police recklessly.

He decided to check first and call if someone was truly inside.

As he turned from the mailbox,

“…!”

Someone touched Hyunwoo’s shoulder.

Startled, he turned his head.

Seeing who it was behind him, Hyunwoo’s eyes widened.