Chapter 15
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Peculiar grimaces twisted across the trio of men’s features.
With relatives nearby, those reactions unsettled her deeply. Yewon swallowed a surge of letdown.
Yeonho jabbed toward her and posed a query to Doha.
His inspection traveled from her head to her toes.
“Precisely. Nearly collapsed right then upon spotting her!”
He sank into a chair by the table with a thud, fixing Doha in his sights.
Doha intended to assume responsibility for her care. Yewon mulled over the prospect herself and lifted her gaze to him.
Doha’s response glossed over key details. Yeonho held his stare briefly, then rolled his shoulders indifferently, untroubled by the gaps.
A hush descended briefly after Yeonho’s next remark.
“Realize this: without reclaiming that fellow, dissolution looms.”
Doha’s gaze flickered at the nonchalant observation.
“Hyung, zero inquiries about Yewon? Curiosities must swirl.”
Weon sounded genuinely baffled.
Beneath lay the implication for Yewon: no wonder over a bandmate suddenly parenting?
“You’ll navigate it solo without issue.”
Yewon’s gaze expanded in surprise.
“Act freely. Personal kin concerns. Long-lost relatives reunited.”
His curt phrasing marked his peak backing, judging by Doha and Weon’s stunned reactions.
Eon ranked as GLEET’s prickliest challenge, but Yeonho stood as its profoundest puzzle.
Silence defined more than reticence.
He stayed mute across scenarios, projecting utter neutrality.
Cohesion among GLEET’s opinionated firebrands hinged on Yeonho.
Fierce disputes over stances ended when he’d arbitrarily endorse the majority—
Shifting counts to 2:1:1:1 via vote, quashing protests ruthlessly.
Personal views emerged from him scarcely.
Exceptions arose solely for group-endangering threats.
Taeyoung’s exit drew a dark musing—
Preferring an “accidental” end over defection.
Hanwon’s admission echoed: better perish than cross Yeonho.
Doha fretted Yeonho’s verdict above all.
Weon appeared crude in speech yet deeply compassionate; Eon feigned chill but harbored boundless warmth.
Those two offered negotiation leeway.
Defiance rarely marked Yeonho toward Doha. Speechlessness prevailed.
Doha recognized the peril in any uttered resistance.
Such stands signaled catastrophic team damage.
He’d braced inwardly to depart protecting all if Yeonho spurned Yewon.
Floundering surprise gripped Doha and Weon alike.
“Count me out of any caregiving requests.”
His unyielding declaration scattered their musings.
Yewon tweaked her judgment of him slightly.
Formidability lingered unchanged.
“Skip the thanks. Childcare aid sits nowhere in my plans. Manage independently.”
Bewilderment etched the other three’s visages toward him.
Overload weighed especially on Yewon.
Yeonho’s whirlwind departure cleared the air.
“Lee Doha, Yeonho hyung surfaced it—will you reach out to Eon?”
“I grasp the clash. Still, patch things? Duo harmony revives our quartet seamlessly. Drop the delays! Eon’s flares familiar, yet fault lies yours. Leader demands courage: clasp hands, seal peace!”
Weon’s phrasing rattled Yewon; Doha registered zero surprise, habituated.
“Yewon preps evening meal. Care to join?”
“Spinning top? Cease dodging! Straight answer now!”
Rage ballooned Weon’s cheeks abruptly.
She upgraded him from sir to uncle, forehead-butting his shoulder before snuggling in.
Progress had carried her this far somehow.
Ultimate charm deployed left her sweating beneath the surface.
Drama children diffused parental wrath how exactly?
Her mind raced for precedents.
One method surfaced vividly.
A tender puff over the sore site!
She exhaled softly across his shoulder—boldness forbade elsewhere—like soothing his inner turmoil.
“Yewon delivered a gentle ‘whoosh’ to calm Uncle’s feelings… release the anger.”
Weon embodied GLEET’s lone salvageable thread.
Lee Doha’s evasion throne and Yeonho’s brutal candor crown perplexed her utterly—his directness could soften marginally.
Conversation hinted the absent Ian menaced most fiercely.
Gut sense declared GLEET’s merger beyond international intervention.
Losing Hanwon, the chattiest ally here, proved unacceptable—hence her fervent push.
Drama scripts promised such ploys succeeded routinely.
Suspecting scantness in her single puff, she seized Weon’s hand for a repeat exhale.
Response struck instantly.
One arm hoisted Yewon skyward as Weon surged upright!
Her brief disorientation passed.
He gripped her securely, voice resolute to Doha.
“Effective immediately, Yewon bonds as my niece exclusively. Yours no more.”
Blank stares met him from Doha and Yewon.
“My stay here launches today.”
“Motivation? My niece resides within. Logical. None but I nurture my own blood.”
Reuniting splintered kin! Incremental strides rebuild GLEET.
Sub-quest conquered: Mother’s parental lineage unveiled.
[Bravo! Sub-mission victory achieved!
Prizes issuing now…]
[Mother’s patriarch: Yeon Taejung
Mother’s matriarch: Lee Juhyang]
Verification of those lineages sent violent tremors through her expanded eyes.
Identities etched familiar in her knowledge.
