Under the Veil of Night

Holding hands, Mike brought Misae to walk on the streets again. They were doing nothing in particular. Having each other nearby already made them feel content.

"Have you finished your preparation for the end-of-year party?" Mike suddenly asked.

Misae shook her head. "We're going to have another meeting this Monday and start our preparation. Will you come to the party?"

"I should be able to come."

"That's good."

The two of them turned silent as they wondered what else they should talk about. Suddenly, Mike stopped his feet as he felt a threatening presence near them. His brow furrowed. Who dared to show hostility towards him?

A group of men stood not far from the place they stopped at. From their clothes, it was clear that they were part of a gang. Other people purposely avoided walking through that area and took the trouble to circle around them. No one wanted to get involved in a pointless fight.

"Mike, is there anything wrong?" Misae was confused that he suddenly stopped.

Mike smiled back to mask his worry. "Let's use another way. It's quite dangerous over there."

He might not know about those people, but he could guess. They were part of the gangs who didn't want to follow the rules set in this territory. Their number did not amount to much, but they were very troublesome. Even though they were not his match, he didn't want to drag Misae into their fight.

"Okay."

The man noticed that Mike seemed to walk in another direction. Seeing the woman beside him, he smirked. "Mike Johan, I thought you were fearless."

"Mike, he's calling you," Misae tugged Mike's arm.

"Leave him be. I don't know him," Mike answered.

Misae frowned. If Mike didn't know that person, how could the latter know Mike's name? It didn't make sense to her. Was Mike famous in any way? She never recalled seeing him in any other places other than at school.

The man got irritated at Mike. He picked up a nearby stone and threw it at Mike, who effortlessly caught it without even turning his head.

"Oh, so you're not completely ignoring me, Mike," the man laughed. "You're the acclaimed right hand of the Ryukalin Clan Head, what are you doing walking around with a woman?"

Ryukalin Clan?

Misae's eyes grew bigger the moment she heard that name. Although she was quite an ignorant young lady, there was no way she didn't know this name. This was the name of the most famous clan in this city and also the owner of the area where she currently resided.

Her eyes landed on Mike's face. The usual gentle smile was gone. Replacing it was a complicated smile tinged with guilt.

'Why? Why should he be part of a clan?'

She thought she could have normal relationships with normal people. Why did it seem the opposite was happening? The people around her turned out to be part of the clans one by one.

Mike wanted to explain to Misae, but the man didn't seem to be ready to let him off. His gaze hardened as he saw the man along with his friends pouncing on him. He stepped out and blocked their advance. Kicking one of them in the stomach, he sent the man flying and coughing on the street.

He shifted his body's balance and punched another man before taking out his gun. Although he didn't want to use a gun, he didn't want to get into a pointless fight with them right here.

"Scram."

The men froze when they saw the gun. They were not fast enough to evade guns, so they quietly retreated. With eyes filled with resentment, they had no choice but to return.

"Misae?" Mike put away the gun before turning to the distraught woman by his side.

Misae didn't respond. Her eyes were looking to the front with a terrified gaze. She felt that it was stupid of her to not realize it. Mike was stronger than Tommy and Jay and Jay was a young master of a clan. The biggest possibility would be that Mike was also part of a clan, yet she never realized it.

Seeing that Misae still didn't respond, Mike felt even more worried. Because they have been walking for some time, he could see that Misae's house was not far from there. He slowly circled his arm on her shoulders. Her body shook terribly the moment he did it.

"I'm sorry. Your house is near, let's go home."

Misae nodded listlessly as she dragged her feet heavily. Her brain was working at a speed that she could never imagine before. At this point, she started to think about what had happened all this time.

The moment they reached the door to her house, Mike let her go. His eyes were looking at her with complicated feelings. He wanted to soothe her and calm the girl down as seeing her like this felt like his heart was pierced with numerous blades. However, he could do that as he knew that he was the reason she became like this.

"I'm sorry."

The door opened and Clara was alarmed when she saw her daughter looking listless. She quickly approached Misae and took the girl into her embrace.

"Misae, are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?"

"I… I'm fine… Mom," Misae answered with a stutter.

Clara looked towards Mike with an accusing glare. "What happened here?"

Mike took a deep breath. He bowed deeply. "I'm sorry. I never introduced myself properly before. I'm Mike Johan from the Ryukalin Clan."

The moment Clara heard the word 'clan'; she instantly knew what had happened to Misae. She realized that Misae only got hurt mentally, yet it was the biggest blow she could receive. In that moment, she wished for nothing but to kick this man out of here.

"Please leave."

"I…"

"If you're from the Ryukalin Clan, you should have been able to investigate her before you got close to her, right? You live a dangerous life, don't drag innocent people into your life," Clara asserted.

Mike saw Misae looking back at him. Her eyes were filled with fear, yet he knew that there was nothing he could do. From her reaction when she found out that Jay belonged to a clan, he knew that something was wrong. He already knew the reason, yet he couldn't stop himself from getting close to her.

It was all his fault for trying to get close to her while hiding his identity.

He forced a smile out from his face as he smiled warmly, yet his eyes couldn't hide the sadness he felt from her reaction.

"It's already late. Please take care of yourself."

After he said that, he turned his body around and walked out. Misae's hand rose a bit, yet she couldn't raise it up any further. Even though she knew that her heart yearned to be by his side, her body couldn't move at the thought of him being part of a clan.

'Why? Of all the people she knew, why he should be someone from a clan?'

"Misae, let's get in," Clara gently moved the trembling girl inside. Her heart was troubled as she saw the girl looking as afraid as that time long ago.

At this time, Misae wished that she never found out the truth at all. If she didn't know, she would treat him the same as usual, without any fear like this.

Their relationship would never be the same anymore.

Just because of one word, yet it was that word that brought too much pain to her heart.

In truth, Mike didn't walk too far away. He leaned on a nearby tree that shielded his presence from their gaze. This was the first time he realized how much he wanted her to look at him with a loving gaze like before. That look of terror that he saw on her face hurt his heart so much.

The pride of being the right hand of a clan head became his pain when it came to the girl he liked.

"Neo, you joked about choosing between the clan and a woman in the past, right?" he muttered to himself. "You're truly a prophet."

Ordinary people were meant to live an ordinary life while underworld people were meant to live a dangerous life. Trying to intersect their lives would only bring them utter pain and sadness.

Mike clutched his clothes right at his left chest. His heart hurt just like when he almost lost his Boss. He already let himself fall too deeply for her even when he knew that her past wouldn't let her accept him into her life.

All because he was part of a clan.