Chapter 57: The Struggle at Han River's Edge and the Chaos of a Racing Heart

The production team relocated the second arena to the waters of Han River Park.

The autumn sun baked the water's surface into shimmering fragments of gold, and a giant floating disc buoy had been set up right in the middle of the pool by the production team.

Everyone was rolling up their sleeves and stretching their muscles in preparation for the "Heirs' Intellectual Battle," only to be collectively petrified when PD Myeong announced the rules—

The so-called "intellectual duel" turned out to be a wrestling match of head-on collisions.

For the first round, the representatives stepping up were Kang Jae-hoon and Lee Kwang-soo.

As the saying goes, enemies look especially fierce when they meet.

The shattered light reflected from the water danced across both of their faces.

Kang Jae-hoon and Lee Kwang-soo pressed their foreheads together like two angry antelopes.

Amidst their tangled hair, Lee Kwang-soo suddenly lowered his voice:

"Jae-hoon... Hyung just shot a shampoo commercial yesterday..."

"So?"

Kang Jae-hoon's temples throbbed violently.

"If hair gets pulled out, I'll have to pay a penalty for breach of contract..."

"...Then let's both lose some."

"Fine, I'll count to three."

The two men simultaneously and stealthily sidestepped toward the edge of the disc buoy.

"One, two, three!"

The moment the words fell, Kang Jae-hoon's head jerked violently to the side, looking entirely like a slip as he plunged straight into the water on camera.

When he popped his head back up from the water, Lee Kwang-soo was kneeling on the edge of the buoy, pounding the ground with laughter. As water droplets slid down his eyelashes, he saw that the name tag on the other man's back was still firmly intact—this hyung hadn't fallen in at all!

Kang Jae-hoon wiped his face, realizing belatedly that he had fallen into a trap.

Kim Woo-bin stepped onto the buoy carrying the aura of the Avengers, while Lee Kwang-soo was still immersed in the ecstatic joy of a successful scam.

The moment their foreheads collided, the veins on Kim Woo-bin's neck bulged like a human-shaped pile driver—

Lee Kwang-soo, along with the sponsor's logo on the edge of the buoy, tumbled straight into the water.

After that, Kim Woo-bin was like entering an unpopulated realm.

Ji Suk-jin barely had his stance set before he was knocked flat backward into the water; Haha tried to use funny faces to distract him, but lasted less than three seconds before being bumped into a drowned rat; Song Ji-hyo gritted her teeth and held on for ten seconds, ultimately suffering defeat and falling into the water as well.

Kim Jong-kook made his grand entrance as the anchor, causing the buoy to sink halfway underfoot.

Kang Jae-hoon was draped in a towel, lying prone on the edge of the floating platform to watch the battle.

Witnessing the exact moment Kim Woo-bin was sent flying, he suddenly felt grateful that he had taken a swim in the first round—

The bulging blood vessels on Kim Jong-kook's temples looked like Godzilla was hiding underneath the Han River.

Following that, Kang Gary and Yoo Jae-suk surrendered like gifts, both tumbling into the water in less than five seconds.

The ultimate showdown unfolded between Kim Jong-kook and Krystal.

Kim Jong-kook sighed and scratched his head:

"The production crew is forcing me to play the villain here..."

The instant the whistle blew, Krystal charged forward with all her might.

Kim Jong-kook exerted force out of sheer muscle memory, only to abruptly rein in his strength the absolute second his forehead touched hers.

The buoy swayed violently from the loss of balance, and he capitalized on the momentum to fall backward into the pool.

Lee Kwang-soo clung to the edge of the floating platform and wailed:

"Hyung, you practically poured the Pacific Ocean with how much you threw the match!"

Kim Jong-kook surfaced and wiped his face:

"You go if you think you can do better!"

In the end, all members of the fashion team were gifted savings passbooks.

Kang Jae-hoon pressed a chilled cola against the red mark on Krystal's temple:

"Should we put some ointment on that?"

"I'll keep it as a medal."

She slapped the can open, tilted her head back, and chugged the carbonated drink, the sound of fizzing bubbles drowning out her overly rapid heartbeat.

After the Han River Park game segment concluded.

Everyone changed out of their soaked clothes and took a brief one-hour break before continuing with the afternoon games.

The afternoon session consisted of two full rounds.

Both teams experienced wins and losses.

By the final round, the total number of savings passbooks held by the two teams was completely tied.

This consequently led to a change in the final game rules.

PD Myeong's whistle pierced through the clamor:

"The final round—The Heirs' Battle Royale!"

"A chaotic free-for-all for everyone! The person who survives to the very end can seize all the savings passbooks!"

"Final instructions before the game begins—"

"Alliances are permitted, betrayal is allowed, but in the end, there can only be one Heir."

The setting sun was suddenly swallowed by the clouds, and a restless, predatory murderous intent drifted within the shadows of the venue.

"Soo-jung, stay behind me later."

Kang Jae-hoon scanned everyone, whose faces were practically written with schemes, with heightened vigilance.

"Mmm~"

Krystal suddenly wished this recording could stretch on infinitely—

The Kang Jae-hoon of right now was much more vibrant and vivid than usual; he would sweat, he would do silly things, and most importantly, he would build a human wall for her.

"Beep—"

The whistle sounded, and the melee erupted!

Lee Kwang-soo darted behind Haha in a flash:

"Haha-hyung! Let's form an alliance!"

"The last time we formed an alliance, you turned around and betrayed me!"

Haha backed away warily.

"This time is different! Hyung, you have to trust me!"

Lee Kwang-soo raised three fingers to swear.

Three seconds later, the broadcast sounded:

"Haha—OUT!"

On the other side, Kim Jong-kook crushed the entire field like a steamroller.

Ji Suk-jin and Song Ji-hyo teamed up to launch a pincer attack, only to have their name tags ripped off by his backhand swipe.

"Yah, Jong-kook, at least leave me some broadcast screen time..."

Ji Suk-jin collapsed limply onto the ground.

Song Ji-hyo gritted her teeth for a stealth attack, but was grabbed by the back of her collar with a single hand by Kim Jong-kook:

"Ji-hyo, you're still far too soft."

"Rip—Ji Suk-jin, Song Ji-hyo OUT!"

Meanwhile.

Kang Jae-hoon and Krystal stood back-to-back, forming an integrated offensive and defensive formation.

Kim Woo-bin crouched low as he approached the two of them, launching a surprise attack from the flank.

Kang Jae-hoon sidestepped to evade, reaching out with a counter-grab, and the two instantly became entangled in a fierce struggle.

Just as Krystal wanted to step forward to help, she happened to be blocked head-on by Yoo Jae-suk, who had arrived drawn by the commotion.

"Soo-jung-ah—"

Before Yoo Jae-suk could deliver two lines of tough talk, he saw Krystal pointing behind him.

"Want to ambush me? I..."

"Rip—"

Yoo Jae-suk turned his head in bewilderment:

"Yah, Kwang-soo!"

Lee Kwang-soo clutched the name tag while laughing and retreating backward: "Sorry, hyung."

The broadcast chimed in right on cue:

"Kang Gary, Yoo Jae-suk—OUT!"

On the other side, Kang Jae-hoon finally subdued Kim Woo-bin and tore off his name tag.

At that time, Kim Woo-bin still possessed a model's physique, and both his physical strength and explosive power were nowhere near fifty percent of Kang Jae-hoon's.

It was precisely because he was nervous about Krystal that he had selectively forgotten the instruction to "not care about the desire to win."

The battle entered white-hot intensity.

Now, the remaining people on the field were only—Kim Jong-kook, Kang Jae-hoon, Krystal, and Lee Kwang-soo.

Kim Jong-kook rolled his neck and addressed Lee Kwang-soo, who was hiding behind a water tank:

"Kwang-soo, stop hiding, come on out."

Lee Kwang-soo offered a dry laugh and proposed:

"Jong-kook-hyung, shall we take out the youngsters first?"

Kim Jong-kook turned to look at the two people constantly backing away and nodded:

"Alright."

The two formed a temporary alliance and closed in on Kang Jae-hoon and Krystal.

"I'll stall Senior Jong-kook, you run as far as you can. Once Senior Kwang-soo triggers his betrayal skill, you can try for a stealth attack."

Krystal shook her head:

"No, I'll handle Jong-kook-oppa."

Kang Jae-hoon: "???"

"Jong-kook-oppa finds it hard to strike against girls."

"Then how did Senior Song Ji-hyo get out?"

"I'm a guest, pabo!"

Before Kang Jae-hoon could react, Krystal had already dashed toward Kim Jong-kook in a single bound!

🇰🇷 "You—"

"Oh?"

Kim Jong-kook halted his steps, raising an eyebrow in surprise: "Soo-jung wants to challenge me head-on?"

On the other side.

Kang Jae-hoon no longer had the bandwidth to care about Krystal as he became entangled with the fiercely charging Lee Kwang-soo.

However, Lee Kwang-soo was merely putting on a bluff.

During the stalemate, he faked a slip to trip over nothing, deliberately exposing an opening to Kang Jae-hoon.

Just as Kang Jae-hoon was clutching his spoils of war in a daze.

"Rip—"

Krystal had actually ripped off Kim Jong-kook's name tag!

Silence descended upon the entire area.

Kim Jong-kook wore an expression of utter disbelief:

"I... got ripped by Soo-jung?!"

"Jong-kook-hyung, your acting is truly terrible."

Lee Kwang-soo's sarcastic remark successfully attracted a death glare from Kim Jong-kook:

"Are you not planning to live tomorrow?"

"..."

After the two exited the arena, PD Myeong shouted through the broadcast:

"The ultimate duel—Kang Jae-hoon VS Krystal!"

The two stared at each other across the distance for three seconds, then simultaneously burst into laughter.

"I admit defeat."

Kang Jae-hoon raised both hands.

"So straightforward?"

"Anyway, whatever is mine is yours."

He grinned foolishly, as if entirely oblivious to how ambiguous those words sounded on camera.

The entire venue instantly erupted into roars of teasing: "Waaah—!!!"

"The winner of the Heirs' Battle Royale—Krystal!"

"Wow~"

PD Myeong's voice announcing the result was blown away by the evening wind.

Krystal tilted her head and raised the stack of savings passbooks, peering through the gaps between the paper pages to catch sight of Kang Jae-hoon's smiling eyes.

The neon lights on the opposite bank of the Han River lit up one by one, their reflections on the water churned by a passing cruise ship into shattered stardust.

She suddenly wished time could freeze forever within this single frame—

The sight of Kang Jae-hoon standing at the edge of the halo gazing at her made her heartbeat lose its rhythm far more than millions of won in savings passbooks ever could.