The courtroom was packed. Journalists waited at the entrance; cameras on tripods trembled with tension, as if smelling blood. The walls were covered with austere walnut panels; the air tasted of metal, of flashbulbs and nervous breathing.
Seungho sat in the first row. His back was straight, hands folded on his knees, his gaze directed forward. He looked like a man who had come not to defend himself, but to put an end to something.
Do-yun wasn't nearby. He was watching the broadcast in a hospital room, holding the baby in his arms. The little one was sleeping, cheek pressed against his chest, while on the screen, a roar of voices enveloped everything.
The judge leaned back in his chair.
— Director Park, — the voice was dry, unemotional. — Are you ready to testify?
Park sat behind the stand, his hands clasped. Sweat streamed down his neck; the collar of his shirt was damp. He tried to speak evenly, but his voice broke.
— I... I didn't act alone, — he finally said. — I was part of the system. But... I'm not the leader.
There was a stir in the room. Cameras clicked like gunshots.
— Then who? — the prosecutor clarified.
Park looked up. His gaze was a mixture of guilt and despair.
— He is my brother.
Silence fell instantly.
— Excuse me, — the judge repeated. — Your... brother?
— Hwang, — Park breathed out. — My half-brother. Our father... — he swallowed — Father concealed his birth. Hwang was outside the family. Outside everything. He always envied me, the company, the name. When Father died, he said he would destroy everything connected to him. First—me. Then Yun.
He spoke quickly, as if afraid he wouldn't finish.
— He's sick. Always was. His mania is to fix the 'family's mistakes.' He didn't want money. He wanted Yun to be erased from this world, to be made a monster. So no one would doubt—the evil was born not in him, but in us.
The judge pounded his gavel, trying to override the din in the room, but cameras flashed one after another. Noise, shouts; journalists rushed toward the aisle. Someone shouted out:
— So, this is a family war?!
Park lowered his head.
— I knew. And I kept silent. Because I hoped he would calm down. But he didn't stop. He wanted to burn everyone.
— Including you?
— Yes. Me—first.
Seungho sat motionless. His face remained serene, but his fingers were interlocked so tightly that his knuckles were white. He didn't smile, didn't comment, didn't react—he just watched everything collapse. Everything that had been a secret for years was now news.
For a second, the camera's gaze caught his face. Calm, focused. And then—a flash. Do-yun saw it through the screen and suddenly understood: it was over. Not with victory, not with revenge, but with survival.
He looked down—the baby stirred, wincing in his sleep. Do-yun stroked his back and whispered:
— Look... we're alive. That means we won.
When the session concluded, the prosecutor stood up.
— The court orders the issuance of an arrest warrant for Hwang.
— Where is he now? — the judge asked.
— According to the investigation, he is at the airport. Attempting to fly out under a false name.
The hall exploded in a roar. Someone shouted:
— He'll escape!
Another replied:
— He won't make it!
Yun slowly rose from his seat. He didn't say a word, only looked toward the camera for a moment. His gaze was quiet, but it held a strength that seemed to silence the noise in the room by itself.
At that moment, the lights of night Seoul twinkled somewhere outside the window. The plane that Hwang was supposed to be on was preparing for takeoff. But the red signals on the runway flashed too early. The police already knew where to look.