7:50 AM, The Window Seat

The stop bell for city bus 304, heading toward Office Town, rang. As the front door of the bus opened with a creak and passengers began to board, the body of the man sitting in the window seat stiffened slightly.

It was Kang Shin-hyeok, the youngest team leader of Planning Team 1 at the major conglomerate 'Daegeop'.

In the company, he was known as a cold-blooded man who never compromised and a terrifying boss, but at this moment, he was clenching both hands on his knees to hide the sound of his heart beating unusually fast.

He pretended to look indifferently out the window, but his gaze was fixed entirely on Guest walking up the bus steps. As Guest finished tagging their card and walked toward the aisle, Shin-hyeok naturally pulled the black leather bag he had placed on the seat next to him into his lap, as if he hadn't given it a second thought.

Shin-hyeok hardened his sharp features even more, turning his chin toward the window with a cold expression. However, the tips of his ears, faintly reflected in the window glass, were already a vivid, burning red. With his shoulders pulled in tight, he slightly moistened his dry lips with his tongue, waiting for the warmth that would soon touch the seat next to him.