Passion Raga Novel (Completed) - Chapter 10

Probably not.

Yuri didn’t ponder long and simply came to a conclusion. Such a day would never come for him. He would become a mermaid sooner.

“Why, is the tail-chasing not going well?”

Only after taking the beer can Jeong Taeui handed him did Riegrow glance back at Yuri. Only then did Yuri turn his attention to the matter of catching Jeong Jaeui’s tail. He had thought it was a done deal, but it wasn’t easy to finish.

“Yes, so I’m thinking of going to Sana’a for a bit tomorrow. After that, I should probably wrap up the tail-chasing.”

There was no need to rush, but he couldn’t drag it out forever. It was about time to finish the work. Yuri, who had been seriously thinking about the work up to that point, then found himself inadvertently thinking of Ling Xinlu again.

If he intended to settle things here in Selingay, then he didn’t have much time left either. Even if the conclusion was postponed, …he would leave Selingay once his work was done, so he would no longer be involved in their love triangle. He would no longer see that beautiful young man.

“……..”

Yuri felt a pang of regret. But he soon shook his head. He was regretful, but not heartbroken.

It was good enough that they could meet like this, even for a short time.

He had often thought about it, on and off, for a long time. That deep regret from long ago. That day, he had rescued the flower-like child from the sea, but had to leave in a hurry the next morning, so he hadn’t even seen him wake up.

Of course, he later heard through Ling Tangwin that he had opened his eyes perfectly fine, but that regret had lingered in his heart for a long time, refusing to be erased.

But now, unexpectedly, he had received a grateful gift named coincidence. Seeing the young man alive and vibrant, his black eyes shining brightly before him, and taking his laughter, his eyes, and his voice into his heart, he was finally able to appease the old regret that had been faintly fading away.

It felt as if he had finally completed a task he had left undone.

“You’ve been clinging to this work since last year, haven’t you? You’re suffering.”

Yuri looked at Riegrow, who, for some reason, was giving him a perfunctory compliment, seemingly in a good mood, but soon shook his head.

“No. It was a worthwhile endeavor. I’m glad I did this work. ……Yes, truly.”

Going to Yemen, in conclusion, was of no help. It wasn’t that there was no gain. On the contrary, there was plenty of gain.

In Sana’a, where Jeong Jaeui’s traces last passed through, Yuri confirmed the presence of an unidentified person in the entourage of Rahman Abid al-Saud the one suspected of kidnapping Jeong Jaeui. He also confirmed that this individual had been following them since Varanasi.

Furthermore, he succeeded in meeting a friend of Al-Faisal and winning his favor. For some unknown reason, Yuri, who was good at winning over older people regardless of gender, even obtained an invitation to Al-Saud’s private villa in Selingay.

Perhaps no one, no matter how resourceful, could have achieved better results than Yuri in such a short period.

However, despite all these achievements, they all came to naught.

This was because Jeong Taeui’s whereabouts became unknown in the mere two or three days Yuri was away.

The timing was uncannily precise. Exactly five seconds after Yuri got off the light plane and turned on his phone, it began to ring.

Yuri tilted his head, looking at the number on the screen. It wasn’t strange for this man to call, but they had already spoken that morning. It was customary for Yuri to contact him at a set time in the evening, so there was no reason for him to call again now, especially after their morning conversation. Unless something urgent had happened.

He had a bad feeling.

The ominous feeling that had been darkly swirling in his mind ever since he received an unexpected call from an unfamiliar person late yesterday afternoon intensified.

“What’s wrong, James?”

“Yuri, where are you right now?!”

Yuri, who had been silent for a moment at the familiar voice of his old colleague bursting out without preamble, replied, “I just arrived in Selingay. I got off the plane just 30 seconds ago and am about to head straight back to my accommodation.”

That morning, just a few hours ago, when he left Yemen, he had contacted Berlin to report. There was no way he would forget Yuri’s whereabouts in just a few hours. No, if he was truly competent, he would have calculated the exact timing of Yuri’s arrival in Selingay. James, a few years older than Yuri, was a man in his forties whose mind worked much faster than most young people. Indeed, if he hadn’t been, he wouldn’t have been able to endure working under a boss like Kyle until now.

This unfortunate man, whose competence paradoxically brought harm to his life, let out a groaning sound. Yuri wondered if Kyle had run off again without James knowing and asked again, “What’s wrong?”

“That damn crazy second son seems to have caused trouble again. A call came from Linga.”

Yuri fell silent. The combination of a few words brought with it a ominous premonition. Thump, it felt like his heart had been struck. What came to mind at that moment was the phone call from yesterday afternoon.

“What did Rick do? To Ling Xinlu?”

“It’s clear he did something, but the situation isn’t certain. It seems all of Ling Xinlu’s bodyguards were injured to the point where proper communication or reporting is impossible.”

‘That crazy second son is trying to ruin the Asian market! Linga is going wild, saying they won’t let it go, and I welcome it! I hope they just throw that psychopath in jail this time!’ The sound of curses poured out from the other end of the phone.

Riegrow. To Ling Xinlu. …Finally.

Yuri mumbled, his head clouded as if by a black fog.

“Ling Xinlu… he’s not dead, is he?”

“We haven’t received news on that yet. In the worst case, he might already be dead by now. In any case, we need to prepare our response according to the situation, so Yuri, I know you just arrived and must be tired, but could you go to where Ling Xinlu is staying?”

He didn’t know what state of mind he was in when he replied, ‘Understood.’ He seemed to have lost some memory after that. But even in that dazed state, he apparently managed to retrieve his luggage properly, get into a taxi, and state his destination. When he came to his senses, the car was heading towards the Suhapha district where Ling Xinlu was staying.

The sun was beating down from above. Even the wind coming through the open car window was hot, making him feel dizzy. No, this dizziness was due to his mind. Snap out of it, Yuri, he thought, taking out a water bottle from his bag and slowly swallowing the few remaining sips, checking that his thoughts were moving properly.

He had always felt that something like this would happen in the not-too-distant future. Wasn’t that the situation? Riegrow and Ling Xinlu, neither of them were the type to yield quietly, nor was it a matter that could be easily compromised. It wouldn’t be strange for any extreme situation to occur.

But he hoped that things would be resolved as amicably as possible though it was impossible in a way that all three could accept. Because it was too obvious who would get hurt. Not just physically, but emotionally too. The future of Ling Xinlu experiencing heartbreak was vaguely visible in Yuri’s eyes, after spending some time with Riegrow and Jeong Taeui.

“Could you please speed up a little?”

Yuri, who had urged the driver humming a leisurely tune, slowly leaned his head back against the seat. He didn’t know how long it had been since he felt such anxiety.

The news of Jeong Taeui’s disappearance was heard from the contact person staying in Dar es Salaam when he arrived there. More precisely, the bad omens began late the previous night when Riegrow suddenly called and abruptly asked, “He hasn’t come back. Do you know anything?” No, even more precisely, it was from a few hours earlier that afternoon, when he received a call from Ling Xinlu.

Upon hearing the bright first words, ‘It’s me,’ from the owner of the unfamiliar caller ID, Yuri, who couldn’t possibly have misheard the voice, was silent for a few seconds, unable to believe that the caller was Ling Xinlu.

‘You don’t know me? It’s Ling Xinlu….’

‘…I know.’

Recalling the last time he had seen him, Yuri replied curtly. It felt a little strange that the man who had struck Yuri’s temple with a cool, humorless face and then turned away, and the man speaking on the phone with a clear voice that vividly brought to mind a smiling face, were the same person.

‘Why does your voice sound like that? Ah, you’re sulking, aren’t you?’

Yuri, flustered by the brightly laughing tone which made his voice sound even more stiff and curt replied, ‘No, I’m not.’

He was more curious as to why Ling Xinlu had called him than how he had gotten his number. Surely he hadn’t called to apologize for hitting him. (Considering Ling Xinlu’s personality as Yuri understood it, it would have been more convincing if he had just called out of boredom.)

While Yuri hesitated, wondering what to say, the cheerful voice continued to flow from the phone.

‘I called to apologize.’

The answer he had dismissed first as impossible suddenly came out. Yuri, more surprised than when he confirmed the caller was Ling Xinlu, was momentarily speechless again, but he still managed to reply somehow.

‘No, well… it didn’t hurt that much, I’m fine.’

‘Huh? What are you talking about?’

‘…You said you called to apologize.’

‘Huh? …Ah, what was I thinking? No, that’s not it, I called to apologize in advance.’

‘Huh? …For what?’

The conversation was subtly off-kilter.

Yuri, who had clearly realized that Ling Xinlu’s reason for calling was at least not about the violence he had inflicted, frowned suspiciously at the words ‘apologize in advance.’

‘I’m in front of the hospital right now.’

‘Where did you get hurt?’

His voice sounded fine, Yuri mumbled slightly, and Ling Xinlu’s tinkling laugh returned.

‘No, no, that’s not it. I’m waiting for Taeui Hyung. He went to the hospital to see if his ankle was fully recovered.’

‘Ah, yes… that’s good news.’

‘Yes. So I was thinking of taking Hyung home now. I’m waiting in front of the hospital to persuade him.’

Yuri was silent for a moment.

‘Persuade… I don’t think Jeong Taeui will follow Mr. Ling Xinlu.’

‘Hmm, I don’t think it’ll be that easy either. But I’m still thinking of taking him. I’m tired of just watching.’

Yuri fell silent again.

It sounded like he intended to take him, whether persuasion worked or not…

‘Is Rick nearby…?’

‘No. Hyung came alone. Seriously, isn’t it terrible to send a sick person to the hospital alone? It’s better for Hyung to cut ties with a guy like that quickly.’

‘…………’

‘Anyway, I’m going to take Hyung, and if that guy throws a tantrum later, the remaining people will obviously suffer. So, Mr. Gable, I called to apologize to you in advance. But, you’re in Yemen right now, aren’t you? It’s fortunate that you’re out of the country. Stay there for a few more days so you don’t have to see anything unpleasant.’

Should he say thank you for the heads-up? Yuri, who suddenly felt a headache coming on, was momentarily at a loss for words and stayed silent. While he was doing so, Ling Xinlu, who had left a refreshing farewell, ‘Well, I’ll see you sometime when we have a chance,’ hung up the phone.

Yuri held the receiver, which was only emitting a dial tone, in one hand for a few seconds, dazed, but it wasn’t a situation where he could continue to do so. Right in front of him, Al-Faisal’s friend, with whom he had been talking, was waiting for him.

Hoping that nothing would go wrong and that Ling Xinlu’s attempt would fail in some way, Yuri returned to his work to finish up in Sana’a. He worked tirelessly throughout the afternoon with a hint of unease, and just as he had barely managed to finish, his uneasy peace was shattered by a call from Riegrow.

When he heard the question about Jeong Taeui not returning and whether he knew anything, Yuri finally got a headache.

‘No, I don’t know,’ he lied inadvertently, and Riegrow hung up the phone as if he didn’t have time to drag the conversation out any longer. And Yuri, once again, had to hold the receiver blankly for a while. Immediately after that, it goes without saying that he booked the first flight to Dar es Salaam the next day.