Her Tempestuous Villain

Jonghyun was scrolling through the news clips on his laptop. The trial was going to start within a few days and the media frenzy around it had been crazy. The public had been somewhat placated by Lee's speech and the media had been given well designed stories to throw the Finance Minister under the bus.

"Shin Hyun, once a war hero and ex-Finance Minister, has disgraced the government," one news channel reported. "The Prime Minister is reportedly very upset over the loss of one of his most trusted ministers and friends. They had been friends for a long time, even fighting in the war to keep the monarchy intact until an heir is found…"

"The ex-Minister not only used his lover, Lim Byungsoo, to extract money from patients but also murdered the doctor in cold blood within the prison walls," another reporter stated.

Jonghyun paused at this point. Hyun had claimed that even though he tried to have Byungsoo killed, by the time the hitman reached the cell, the doctor had died. The police and warden are not believing this while the Prosecution is pressing charges based on the transactions made to the hitman. All criminals proclaim their innocence but Jonghyun could not help but think that there was something amiss.

He picked up his phone to call Haein but hesitated and changed his mind. I'll investigate this myself, he decided.

Just then, his phone rang up. He glanced at the number and froze.

It's her!

Suddenly, he found himself to be shaking. He had not heard from her in many years even though he dreaded that she would one day contact him. He had the number saved in his address book but hoped that he would never need it. The very thought of working with her disgusted him and he simply wanted her to stay as far away as possible.

Then why was she calling now?

Every fiber of his soul urged him not to answer it. Don't let her back into your life! His mind ordered him. But his body was not listening because it was too scared of her, afraid of what she was going to do if he ignored her.

Taking a deep breath, he answered the phone.

"Hello," he greeted in a cool tone. "What do you want?"

"Have you forgotten your manners, my dear son?"

A calm voice came from the other end. Jonghyun did not reply but let out a sharp breath. Just hearing her voice sent a cold chill down his spine.

"Aren't you going to say hello to your mother?" she asked. "We haven't met for many years but you do remember the sacrifice I made for you. Then why are you silent, my son?"

"What do you want?" he asked briskly. "I don't have time to deal with your lies."

There was a long pause on the other end. "I've heard that your firm is going to send Shin Hyun to prison," she said.

"He committed a crime so we have to send him to-"

"Don't do it."

Jonghyun was surprised by her orders. Not send Shin Hyun to prison? After everything he did?

"He was one of those who had destroyed the monarchy!" Jonghyun hissed. "And betrayed this country. The PM has also cut all ties with him."

"Basically, he's our enemy now," the woman said. "And you're about to send him packing to our real enemies."

Jonghyun frowned. Upon feeling his confusion, his mother replied, "The prisons are full of men who fought against our government. People we had branded as traitors but were actually the royal loyalists who were fighting for the monarchy. The people who wanted to put that child on the throne. The other Kim San…"

Jonghyun gripped his phone tightly. His mother knew his Achilles heel and she was attempting to use it against him.

"Surely, you wouldn't want to send your enemy to a prison full of your actual enemies," she went on. "If he chums up with them, they'll bring you down. Do you want that?"

"I fight for justice," Jonghyun claimed. "If I am to become a good ruler one day, then I'll have to make sure the justice is being dealt. And Shin Hyun will go to prison. Doesn't matter whether he's sent to a prison full of my enemies or not. They'll rot in there just like he will."

He hung up the phone, his hand shaking violently. Just hearing the other Kim San's name was making his blood boil. Even after so many years, his so-called brother was being a thorn in his way. Was he tormenting him from the grave?

"He's dead and I'm the last living heir of this country," he whispered. "I'll be the next Emperor. No one else!"

All he had to do was find that will. If he found the will, then everything would be resolved. The Emperor had chosen an heir and since the other Kim San was dead in the coup, Jonghyun was the last member left. But the will stated that if the Emperor's heir apparent died, then the monarchy would be abolished and the people could choose a new government. All Jonghyun needed to know was whom did the Emperor choose?

Him or his shadow?

I'll never give up my search for the will, he vowed. But where the hell is it?

….

Orea was waiting outside the convention gates for Myung. He had texted her that he was on his way but she could not see him anywhere. She had her headphones over her ears, listening to a BTS song.

"I'm so sick of this fake love fake love fake love!" she chanted happily, swaying to the music. The convention was quite crowded with all tech lovers like her. The top computer firms from all over the world had gathered there to showcase their latest equipment. From microchips to solar power devices, it was a heaven for her.

A few expensive robots were being used as mascots, gliding all around the grounds to interact with the guests. Wireless tech was displayed on almost every stall, showing holograms of idols, anime and even 3D scenes from various movies. An arcade corner for gamers was installed where many people had gathered. The VR games were among the most popular ones with gamers lining up to play limited editions of their favorite games.

The equipment used was unlike anything the guests had seen. Some gamers were controlling their avatars on screen using motion capture suits. Those did not need handles or joysticks but simply connected their minds to the games and controlled the movements of the characters. The audience gathered around to see the marvel of advanced technology which was beyond their comprehension.

However, Orea was not interested in all those. She knew how to dismantle them and redesign them to suit her needs. But there was one particular product she was really proud of.

A hand touched her shoulder. On reflex, she yelped and grabbed the hand, twisting it behind the assailant's back and pinned him to the ground.

"Who are you and why are you touching me?" she shouted at a hooded figure who squirmed under her.

"Let me go you crazy girl!"

"Myung?" she frowned and let him go. She immediately noticed his blonde hair. His handsome face was scowling as he stood up and dusted the dirt from his clothes.

"Who else would it be, you freak?" he scorned her. "What the hell was that?"

"You got what you deserve," she shrugged. "I've got very sharp reflexes. So if you sneak up on me like that, prepared to get beaten up."

Was this girl normal at all? He wondered.

"Why are you wearing a hoodie in this heat?" Orea asked.

"I...I ran away from my bodyguards," he admitted. "They were getting on my nerves, insisting on accompanying me everywhere. So I exchanged clothes with a servant and ended up wearing this to avoid the guards."

Orea did not reply. In fact, she did not even listen to what he said. Her eyes fell on the equipment she had been looking for in the convention. The main highlight of the fair was…

"This prototype chip has been designed to parts of human memories!" the seller was proudly declaring. He was showing off a microchip along with a computerized helmet next to it. The audience were gathered around it, gaping at the invention.

"All you have to do is insert the chip into the helmet and wear it over your head," he instructed, putting it on a volunteer. "And think of a memory you want to save. Could be anything. A password or your dog's first birthday. Your family's first trip. You think about it and press the green button."

The volunteer was thinking of a trip she took to another country and it was displaying on the screen next to them. She pressed the button and it saved her progress.

"This chip can hold up to 200 MB data for now," the seller said. "But more are being processed and within the next decade, we'll see these being produced in mass scale for use everywhere. Offices, homes, schools. It'll become an integral part of our lives!"

"But isn't it dangerous?" one audience member asked. "Our memories being stored away like that…"

"Every technology has good and bad sides," the seller stated. "It depends on who will use it and how. A computer is being used for our everyday work but also to hack complex machines. You can't really decide how one uses it but we can't deny that we'll have to use them someday."

"Who's the inventor?" someone asked.

"The inventor prefers to keep their name and identity a secret," the seller said. "They simply want to remain anonymous while creating devices to advance the technological revolution."

The audience murmured amongst themselves at the tiny chip. Soon, one by one, they were testing the chip and were amazed by the accuracy.

"This is so dangerous," Myung muttered. "Whoever made it took a big risk. Such a controversial thing to make...I wouldn't want my memories to be stored in a machine!"

"Aren't you doing that already?" Orea asked. "When putting up your information online, you're feeding it to a machine. What's the difference in this case?"

Myung raised an eyebrow. She was strangely obsessed with machines and technology, far more than people their age. It made sense why she spoke up at the computer class and even though it seemed to him at that time that she was showing off without any context, it seemed that Orea knew more about computers than any of their teachers.

"You're weird," he muttered.

But Orea was staring at the chip, hiding her smile. She had secretly designed this and sold it for millions of dollars to another company on the condition that they could never misuse it. If they did, she had the power to disable the chip within seconds. Obviously, she never mentioned that part to them to keep her bargaining chip.

As long as people were being benefited from her invention, she was happy.

"Let's go and check out the other stalls!" she exclaimed. "I wanna see everything!"

She grabbed his arm and excitedly pulled it. Myung noted that she looked like a little girl who had come to Disneyland for the first time. The odd excitement on her face was quite...soothing.

He shook his head and smiled at the dork who was mesmerized by the heaven in front of her.

For some strange reason, his heartbeats increased whenever she was near. Even her eccentricities seemed cute to him.

Weirdo, he smiled.