(Arc 1 : The raven and the dragon ) 

There was a heavy silence. The Altaha brothers had been in the room for five minutes, and neither had said a word. Lioren turned his back on Gwenval, who stood a few meters away. The musician slowly approached his brother.

"Hyung, I..."

Without giving Gwenval time to finish his sentence, Lioren suddenly turned and embraced him. The embrace was warm and reassuring, but also trembling. Gwenval was not very surprised by his older brother's gesture. He accepted it and closed his eyes.

"Gwen, you're really going to give me a heart attack one day." The young prosecutor murmured.

"I'm sorry..."

Lioren let go of his brother and started touching him all over to make sure he was okay. He was very worried.

"Hyung, stop. I'm fine." Gwenval insisted and stepped back a little.

The musician shivered slightly and showed an expression of discomfort when his brother pressed on the cut he'd been given earlier. Although it did not hurt much, the area of the wound had become a bit sensitive.

Lioren noticed his brother's reaction and tried to lift his shirt, but his hand was blocked.

The Prosecutor's gaze then fell on Gwenval's cardboard bag and spotted a red spot. He quickly grabbed the bag and pulled out his shirt. When he realized it was blood, his face darkened. Gwenval shivered and immediately reassured his brother.

"Lio hyung, I'm fine. I fought, it's true, but I was able to control my opponent very quickly. He's the one who needs care." The musician explained, half joking.

Lioren remained silent for a moment, then calmly put the shirt back into his bag. His face was still dark. He took Gwenval's right arm.

"Let's go to the hospital. Just in case." He announced as he started to walk.

"Lio hyung, don't bother with that." Gwenval replied after breaking his brother's grip.

"But Gwen..."

"There is no but!"

"Don't look at me like that."

Lioren watched his brother with great concern, as if he would collapse at any moment. Gwenval hated it.

Don't look at me like that.

"Gwen, I..."

"No! Stop it now! Hyung, I'm fine! It's just a scratch. You know I can defend myself, right? Then why?! Why are you still looking at me like a porcelain doll on the edge of an abyss?"

"Gwen, it's not that. I..."

"You want to know why I didn't want to tell you and why I delayed calling the police?" Cut, Gwenval. "Because I knew you'd react like this. Someone's been after me for almost a month, and I wanted to deal with it alone. If I had told you straight away, you would have overreacted like you are now and put me under police protection or forced me to come home. When the threats intensified, I was able to get help from Kaelan and others to catch the culprit and to sort something out with the stalker... I didn't want to worry you and distract you while you were on a big case... I knew we'd have to have this discussion sooner or later, but I was hoping you wouldn't react like this. I thought you trusted me."

Gwenval's expression reflected a mixture of anger and sadness.

Lioren moved closer to his brother. He was shocked to learn that his brother had been in danger for so long. He was also saddened to hear that Gwenval had not wanted to rely on him. But deep down, Lioren knew that he could have reacted as his brother had described.

"Gwen, I trust you. But this is more serious than I thought. How am I supposed to react? When I arrived, I was told of a destroyed decoration, an assault and an attempted murder. When your name came up, my heart stopped. Your safety comes first for me, you know."

"I know very well, that's why I didn't tell you anything." Gwenval justified.

"Luckily, everything ended without serious injuries." 

Lioren sighed as he sat down on the table and regained his calm.

While he was speaking, Gwenval had noticed a piece of bandage under his brother's left sleeve, but he made no comment about it.

"You too have a right to be protected, hyung."

The prosecutor did not want to continue this conversation any longer. He did not want to argue with his precious little brother.

"Take it." 

Gwenval said as he handed the bag with the shirt to his brother.

"Your team will be on this case, isn't it ? I will send you the photos of the suspicious packages that have received, and I will also bring you the threatening letters when I come to give my statement. Also, Park Dae Jung also mentioned that there might be more "surprises" in the hotel.'

"Okay" 

Lioren took the bag. 

"I'll have the hotel searched. By the way, what is your relationship with the perpetrator?"

"None." Gwenval shook his head. "I never met him. The only thing we have in common is that we are both musicians."

"Then you can count on me to find out the truth." Lioren said with a slight smile.

"Hmm..." Gwenval nodded... "I'll stay with Kaelan tonight, don't worry about me and do your job."

"I'll let you rest tonight. Tomorrow I want to see you early at the police station."

"Sure." Gwenval replied with a slight smile.

____

Meanwhile, Detective Kang had gathered the information he needed and went to the room where Gwenval and the stalker had fought, led by Secretary Shin.

Ashlay had stayed near the door of the meeting room to wait for the musician.

Kaelan had isolated himself with Hao Ming to talk to him.

"Thank you again for earlier." Kaelan thanked with a smile.

"You're welcome. I was only..."

"...... doing my duty." Kaelan finishes the sentence by imitating Hao Ming. "Yes, it's true, but at least it gives me a good opportunity to talk to you."

Hao Ming looked at the painter. He said nothing. After a gap, Kaelan bowed to ninety degrees in front of Hao Ming.

"... I'm truly sorry that I hurt you. It was not my intention. I don't want you to hate me."

The young man, who had not expected this, was truly surprised and touched by this gesture.

"I don't hate you."

"Is that true?!" Asked Kaelan straightening up.

When Hao Ming nodded to confirm what he had just said, the artist sighed with relief. His eyes began to shine.

"Is there anything I can do for you or that you want? It can be anything you want. I can offer you one of my paintings or even make a custom one for you."

Hao Ming said nothing and watched the painter's sudden burst of energy.

"Oh! You don't have to tell me what you want right now if you're not sure. We can exchange phone numbers. You can contact me whenever you want." 

Kaelan was very excited.

"... What I want?" 

Hao Ming said these words as he drastically reduced the distance between him and the painter.

"Ye… Yes...." Kaelan was embarrassed by the sudden closeness.

"He is so big. What did his parents give him to make him have this height? His eyes are so intimidating."

Kaelan had maintained eye contact with Hao Ming's eyes. He was eager to hear his request. From what he had noticed, the young man was not one to make extravagant requests, but you never know.

"So... what is it?"

Hao Ming walked closer and closer to the painter. Then he slowly tilted his face to his right ear.

Kaelan was redder than a tomato. He was petrified and didn't know what to say. He didn't think Hao Ming was that bold.

The young hacker remained silent for a few seconds, then blew into the artist's ear as he trembled.

".... I will think about it." He whispered into his ear.

With a proud smile, he walked away from Kaelan to "let him breathe".

"It's not like I really need anything, but if you insist, I can think about it..."

Hao Ming took out his phone, unlocked it and handed it to the artist. Kaelan, still in shock. He took a moment to come back down to earth. He nodded, took the phone and entered his contact information before returning it to its owner. Hao Ming called the painter's number to make sure he had his number, then tucked it into his jacket.

"I am going back to the hall to see how things are going." Hao Ming announced.

"Okay." Kaelan replied vaguely.

Hao Ming greeted the painter, gave him a slight smile and then left. Further on, despite a stoic face, the tip of his ears had taken a red shade.

Kaelan was still standing. When Hao Ming was really out of sight, he slipped along the wall and sat down on the floor. He remained silent for a moment. He took out his cell phone to look at Hao Ming's number without any real purpose. Suddenly, his face took on a strong reddish color.

"What just happened?!"

____

As Lioren and Gwenval left the room, Ashlay, who was standing on a wall opposite the door, stood up immadiately. Then he joined the two brothers.

"Gw... Altaha, are you okay? What are you going to do now?"

Ashlay was cautious. He stood in front of the older brother of the person he was courting. He was not allowed to do mistakes. He took out a business card and held it respectfully in front of Lioren.

"Nienrao Ashlay. I am in charge of this hotel. I also helped your brother solve his problem."

"You seem very young to be running a hotel..."

Ashlay was not sure what to say or do in front of Lioren. The prosecutor had the aura of a protective mother whom he had to convince at all costs to marry her child.

Lioren took Ashlay's business card and looked at him for a few seconds.

"Thank you for helping my brother." Lioren thanked Ashlay and gave him one of his business cards. "Gwen has never mentioned you to me before. When did you meet?"

Gwenval cut quickly his brother, a bit nervous.

"I don't have to introduce you to all my acquaintances, hyung." Gwenval cut quickly, a bit nervous.

Lioren looked suspiciously at Ashlay, who was starting to sweat a bit.

The elder's cell phone rang. It was Detective Kang asking him to join him at the crime scene in the bedroom. Lioren nodded and turned back to his brother.

"Gwen, I'm leaving you. Send me a message when you get home."

"All right, hyung. I'll see you at the police station tomorrow."

Lioren gave Ashlay one last look before he left. Gwenval and Ashlay sighed in relief.

"I'm sorry. My brother may seem difficult to approach." Gwenval declared.

"It's okay. I understand."

"Thank you, Ashlay."

Ashlay froze. Had Gwenval just called him by his name? His heart started to beat faster.

"You kept your promise. After we're done with the police, we can go for dinner wherever you want... Hmm? Are you not feeling well?"

The young man had suddenly stopped. Was there a problem?

"Ashlay. You called me by my first name. I wasn't dreaming?"

Gwenval laughed a little.

"No, you didn't, Ashlay. Thank you, you've done a good job."

Ashlay had a sudden burst of energy. He smiled broadly. An imaginary dog's tail was wagging in the young man's back. Gwenval found it cute and laughed.

"Shall I take you home?" Ashlay suggested.

"No, thank you. I'll go home with Kaelan. You probably have more important things to do here."

"You're right." Ashlay replied, a little disappointed.

The duo then went to Gwenval's room to collect his belongings.

A man who looked like a security guard watched them in the distance. He was on the phone with someone.

" The situation was quickly brought under control. [...] The guests are fine. So is the young master..[...] We'll make sure the media doesn't dig too deep until everything is clear on our side."

The man ended his call and returned to speak with other security personnel.

____

Lioren arrived in the room where his brother had fought Park Dae Jung. The forensic team had already searched the suite and collected some evidence.

"I think the culprit had someone else book this room so he could come earlier without being noticed." Supposed Inspector Kang who came to Lioren's side.

"Wait, what is this?"

Lioren saw someone put a syringe into an evidence bag.

"According to the events, the culprit was going to inject the contents of the syringe into the victim. More information about this substance will be available after analysis."

"What?! What was he going to do?! Have they taken him to the station yet?"

"Prosecutor Altaha, calm down!"

Before he could do anything stupid, Inspector Kang caught Lioren and prevented him from joining the criminal.