𝐏 𝐎 𝐕
♤ | 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐤𝐨𝐨𝐤

By the time the jet sliced through the Seoul skyline, dawn hadn't yet dared to rise.

I was going home. A place I hadn't set foot in since I turned my back on it fourteen years ago. The city looked calm from above—lights glittering like stars pretending they weren't built on graves. But calm is always the best disguise for chaos. I watched it all in silence, fingers laced, a storm coiled behind my eyes. The wheels kissed the tarmac in Seoul at 5:17 AM.

The jet rolled to a stop in a secure section of the terminal with no reporters, no cameras. Just three silhouettes waiting under the terminal floodlights, dressed in black coats like this was a reunion at a funeral.

The doors opened with a hiss. I stepped out first, only to see my brothers standing there to welcome me. Taehyung, Yoongi and Jimin. My childhood friends whom I called brothers. Of course big brothers even if it's hard to accept you're the youngest in your friends who always keep mocking you.

Taehyung was the first to welcome me. "Well, well. Look who remembered where he's from."

Min Yoongi didn't even greet me. He just clicked his tongue and muttered, "Took you long enough. I thought we'd have to ship your ashes in a wine box."

Jimin gave a soft laugh. "Finally you came back, we missed you."

I reached hugging them one by one. "I see Seoul hasn't gotten rid of you three yet."

Taehyung clapped me on the back as we started walking to the car. "Fourteen years, Jungkook. You sure you're ready for this place?"

"I didn't come to be ready," I said, eyes cutting through the airport's glass. "I came to remind them why they should've never touched what's mine."

Jimin whistled low. "Yikes. Should we warn them?"

Yoongi snorted. "No need. The second he breathes, they'll know the devil's home."

Jimin reached for the car door, "You'll take the right side, boss," he smirked, pulling it open with a little bow. "Back where the king belongs."

I rolled my eyes but slid in without a word, leather seats cold against my skin. Jimin slipped in next, humming low to a track I didn't recognize, and Yoongi called shotgun like we were teenagers again. Behind our car was a line of cars for security with Seokmin in one. As the black Maybach eased out of the terminal, Seoul unfolded around us like a city holding its breath. 

It had changed.

Not in the skyline or the glass towers, but in the way it felt more like a memory I couldn't quite trust. I stared out the window, watching as the familiar routes returned like ghosts—bridges I once ran across. I hadn't seen this place in fourteen years, not since—

I turned away from the window.

As we reached the mansion, the gates to the Jeon estate opened slowly, creaking like the bones of the past. The mansion stood just beyond the rows of trees, massive and silent under the rising sun. Still majestic. Still intimidating. But emptier now.

My jaw clenched.

The moment the car rolled to a stop, I stepped out. Gravel crunched under my shoes as I stood their eyes locked on the home that built me and broke me.

It wasn't the grandeur that got me. It was the silence. There used to be laughter. My father's voice echoing across the courtyard. My mother's perfume lingering at the main doors. Now, nothing. Just trimmed hedges and a house too big for one man to walk into alone. I didn't cry but something swelled in my throat.

"They would've been proud," Taehyung said quietly from behind me, almost too gentle for him.

Jimin smiled sadly. "And then kissed your forehead and fed you till you threw up."

I swallowed hard. "Let's go inside."

I was too tired to talk about anything so I quietly went into my room. It hadn't changed. Not much, anyway. The walls still carried the scent of cedar and old cologne. The bookshelf, the piano, the black-and-white photo of my parents that someone had placed beside the lamp—none of it moved. It was like the world froze here the moment I left. I shrugged off my coat, letting it fall across the edge of the velvet couch.

Shoes kicked off. I walked toward the bed like it was a warzone and sank down slowly, the mattress greeting me like it remembered. The ceiling looked the same but the man lying under it had changed too much to pretend this was home.

Still... I closed my eyes. Just for a few minutes. Now blood would answer for blood. But today I let the silence cradle me, in the house where I learned how to build empires and burn them. 

The sky had shifted when I stirred. A soft light filtered in through the tall windows, washing the room in hues too gentle for the storm inside me. I sat up slowly, letting my elbows rest on my knees, fingers laced in front of me.

It was already morning.

The past had left fingerprints on every corner of this house. And today, I'd trace each one. I pushed myself to my feet, jaw tightening. My suitcase stood where I'd dropped it near the wardrobe. I opened it, methodically unpacking. Each item folded and placed with military precision. A knife hidden in a book. Spare passports. Cufflinks shaped like bullets. Power, disguised as preparation.

From the bottom, I pulled out a charcoal suit—sleek, tailored, sharp enough to cut through skin. Paired it with a black shirt. The shower steamed around me as I stood under it, eyes closed, letting the water hit the back of my neck. It couldn't wash off the memories. But it dulled the blade edge of rage just enough to function.

I stepped out dressed, clean and composed. 

My footsteps echoed through the Jeon estate, slow and deliberate as I walked through the halls I once called home—the staircase I used to slide down as a boy, the hallway where my mother hung paintings I never cared to name. I paused by the garden doors. Stepped outside for a moment. The grass was damp with dew. It hadn't changed. Even after everything, the earth had the audacity to keep blooming.

The dining hall was still cold marble and glass, immaculate as ever. I stopped by my father's old office. I didn't enter. Just stood at the threshold. My hand brushed the doorframe, then fell away. They were both gone now. My parents. Their ghosts didn't haunt this place and the thing I couldn't believe that I was here now. After fourteen years.

Back to finish what I should've done long ago. A soft voice pulled me from thought.

"Sir." I turned. A maid stood with her hands clasped politely, eyes down. "Breakfast is ready. Everyone is waiting for you at the table."

Everyone. Meaning y hyungs. I gave a nod and followed.

The dining room stretched like a scene out of an old photograph. At the far end sat Taehyung, his head tilted back lazily against the chair, dressed like he walked out of a fashion magazine and didn't give a damn about it. Jimin leaned forward on the table, fingers tapping his glass, eyes already scanning me like he knew I hadn't slept. Yoongi, of course, was mid-sip of black coffee, his phone in one hand, expression unreadable.

Jimin grinned. "Come, have breakfast"

Yoongi didn't even glance up. "Still brooding? Or did you finally realize Korean food doesn't smell like Manhattan?"

I smirked, walking over and pulling out a chair at the head of the table. "You two shut up with your meaningless dialogues. do you?"

"Only when you're about to burn something down," Taehyung replied, reaching for his toast.

I poured myself a cup of coffee. "Then listen closely."

Yoongi set his phone down. "You're not going to like what we found."

"The culprits," Jimin said, voice low, "they've been identified. The ones who attacked last night on our warehouse."

I stared into my coffee. "Go on."

"They weren't just thieves," Yoongi said. "They had inside help. We traced the security breaches. Two former employees probably bribed. We've got names and locations. One's already been... handled."

Taehyung leaned forward, his tone dropping. "But the other? He's hiding behind someone bigger. Someone who's been sniffing around your empire because there is no trace of him."

The silence that followed was thick with shared understanding. I set my cup down, the porcelain echo sharp against the marble.

"Today we will burn them all but for now" I repeated, "I want to stop by the Seoul branch first," I said, rising from my chair. "My company. Before we begin with blood, I want to thank the ones who held the kingdom up in my absence."

Yoongi raised a brow, lips twitching around his coffee cup. "Well damn. Is this gratitude I'm hearing?"

"Looks like our Kookie baby's all grown up," Jimin smirked, nudging Taehyung with his elbow. "Next thing you know, he'll start handing out Christmas cards."

Taehyung nodded solemnly, pressing a hand to his chest. "Our little crime lord is all mature now. I might actually tear up."

I rolled my eyes, brushing past them with a scoff. "You three ran my Korean front like wolves. Don't expect a medal, but I haven't forgotten."

"Oh, we don't want a medal," Taehyung said casually. "We just want you married."

I paused mid-step, glancing over my shoulder. "What?"

"You heard me," he grinned. "You plan on living single forever? You haven't gotten a girl yet. Not even a scandal. We're disappointed."

Yoongi leaned back, smirking faintly. "No headlines, no dating rumors, no flings... Are you even famous anymore?"

Jimin leaned forward, dramatic as always. "You've been gone fourteen years and didn't even bring back a mafia princess? What the hell were you doing abroad, reading books?"

I exhaled slowly, running a hand through my hair. "Neither did any of you."

"We're different," Jimin said smugly. "At least we go to clubs, have girls around us but you? You don't even look at any girl."

I turned fully now, buttoning my coat. "I'm not interested in any type of relationships right now."

Yoongi raised a brow. "Right now or ever?"

"Right now," I repeated flatly.

"There are plenty of beautiful girls in Korea," Taehyung offered helpfully. "I can personally introduce you to at least ten."

"I'm not looking for beauty," I said, voice cool. "And I'm not looking for someone to keep me warm at night. I've got heaters for that."

They laughed.

"God, you really haven't changed," Jimin shook his head. "You get colder every year."

"Maybe," I said, already walking out, "but at least I know what I'm loyal to."

"And what's that?" Yoongi called.

"My empire."

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