CTL 42

“Because I felt like something should be next to me, but it wasn’t.”

“…”

“I felt that way the whole time. That’s why I felt frustrated and it was hard.”

“The space next to you is already perfect.”

That’s how Yoongeon saw it. Because all the people Seohwi had loved were already filling the space next to him. He belonged to a complete family, and he even received overflowing love. He was, right at this moment, living the life Yoongeon had longed for.

“And you deserve to live that kind of life.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

He wasn’t sure about anything else, but he was certain of this one thing, so Yoongeon’s answer came without hesitation.

“Even if you don’t, I’ll make you live that way. There won’t be a day you live an incomplete life.”

“You’ll make me live that way? How?”

How, he asked. The method wasn’t set, but one thing was certain. When the doors of the arrived elevator opened, Yoongeon squeezed his shoulder tightly with his hand.

“I have to do it, by any means necessary.”

After saying that, he walked past Seohwi. Yoongeon didn’t know it at the time, but Seohwi watched his back with anxious eyes.

---

“Oppa, why are you so late? You’re wasting time.”

Yebin, who had been waiting for him in the office, was holding Yoongeon’s overcoat and handed it to him.

“Where are we going? Mr. Seohwi, is there anything you want to eat?”

Yoongeon answered his question for him.

“Something warm. With broth.”

Yoongeon handed the coat he had received to Seohwi.

“Wear it.”

“…It’s okay… It’s alright, sir.”

He had answered casually without thinking, but then, glancing at Yebin, he spoke formally. As expected, Yebin’s eyes widened as she looked at Yoongeon.

“What, did you two decide to speak casually with each other?”

“No… …I’m sorry.”

Seohwi, uncharacteristically at a loss for words, answered awkwardly, but Yebin laughed, saying it was fine.

“It’s just surprising. You must have gotten really close with oppa. It’s not easy to open his heart.”

“You said you were hungry. Let’s just go.”

Worried Yebin would say something strange, Yoongeon grabbed his arm and pulled him along. Yebin went “Aigoo,” and was dragged away powerlessly like a paper doll.

The place they went to was a gukbap restaurant near the company. As soon as they sat down, four bowls of ox head gukbap, which they hadn’t even ordered, came out. It was Yoongeon’s first time, but Yebin seemed familiar with the place, as if she came often, and deftly served some seokbakji and mul-kimchi.

“This place is delicious. Eat up before it gets cold. Mr. Jaehong, if you’re still hungry after you eat, have another bowl. Okay?”

“Thank you.”

She had been shy at first, but perhaps because she now thought of Jaehong as one of her own people, Yebin took good care of him.

“Oppa paid for all of Mr. Jaehong’s younger sibling’s surgery fees, right?”

He had given the money without even asking how much the surgery would cost, but it seemed to have been enough. Nodding vaguely, Yoongeon placed a cup of water in front of Seohwi.

“Eat. You said you were cold.”

“Yes.”

“Mr. Seohwi, it’s okay, so speak comfortably. You just have to be careful in front of the people at the company.”

“I told you to eat.”

Yoongeon urged Seohwi, who had been listening to Yebin. When he prompted him to hurry up and eat, Seohwi finally, and hesitantly, began to eat. Only when he started eating did Yoongeon feel at ease. Thinking the restaurant was a bit chilly, he looked around and happened to see the news playing on the TV.

[A man in his 50s, who was reported missing in Gangwon Province a while ago, has ultimately been found as a cold corpse.]

“Oh my, it looks like someone died.”

Yebin, who was eating, shook her head with a look of pity.

[When the family of this man, who worked at a casino in Gangwon Province, filed a missing person report, the police began a search, believing something had happened to him on his way home from work. Four days into the search, police discovered the man in a sewer near the casino. In response, the police…]

“…”

Yoongeon’s expression hardened as he watched the news. Seohwi stared at him intently and asked what was wrong, but Yoongeon just shook his head.

“Keep eating.”

“Where are you going?”

Yebin asked, seeing Yoongeon suddenly stand up from his seat, but he didn’t answer and went outside to call Secretary Lim. The call was answered before the first ring finished.

[I am currently assessing the situation, Executive Director. Please give me one hour.]

It seemed he had heard about the situation as well.

“Any suspects?”

[Well. I’ll have to get closer to know. They say the man had a lot of enemies here and there. He was very greedy for money.]

Well, of course. A guy like that would help someone like Ko Yoonchul with money laundering, knowing full well it was dangerous. It was easy enough to guess without having to see it.

[It seems he got a taste for golf starting two years ago, going on golf trips and even buying a 100-million-won membership. The problem is, he didn’t buy that membership with his own money. It seems he bought it by borrowing money from people around him.]

“And of course, he didn’t pay the money back.”

[Yes. The people who lent him money came to collect whenever they had a chance, so his family suffered a lot. He wasn’t on good terms with his family either, so in truth, the highest possibility is that he was killed over a personal grudge.]

“Right. I understand.”

[Still, I’ll look into it just in case. Please finish your meal.]

The fact that Secretary Lim wasn’t picking a fight or making jokes meant he was taking this matter quite seriously. Ending the call without a reply, Yoongeon glanced inside the restaurant. Unlike Yebin and Jaehong who were eating, Seohwi was looking at him.

“Why aren’t you eating?”

If Seohwi hadn’t been looking at him, he had planned to just leave, but since Seohwi was watching him, Yoongeon went back inside.

“Eat.”

“What about you?”

A meal, not even half-eaten, was in front of Seohwi. When Yoongeon told him to hurry up and eat, he said something had come up and he had to go. But hearing that answer, Seohwi stood up from his seat. It was no use trying to persuade him to eat more, so in the end, unable to win against his stubbornness, Yoongeon sat down.

“Wow. Mr. Seohwi, that’s amazing.”

Yebin, who had been watching their argument, was surprised, her eyes wide.

“You managed to break oppa’s stubbornness? That’s something even our mom can’t do well.”

When she asked what his secret was, Seohwi only smiled faintly. Well, he probably didn’t have anything particular to say. As Yoongeon let out a deep sigh and started to eat, Seohwi too resumed his meal.

A short while later, Yoongeon, who ended up not finishing his meal, stood up. Perhaps deciding to be satisfied that he hadn’t skipped the meal, Seohwi didn’t say anything else until they arrived at the office. Thanks to that, Yoongeon was able to organize his thoughts on the way.

When they had just arrived at the executive director’s office, Secretary Lim was not in sight. Only when Yoongeon had finished brushing his teeth and was catching his breath did he arrive, closing the office door as soon as he entered.

“I tried to contact the person in charge of investigating the case, but I can’t reach him. It seems he’s intentionally avoiding me. I think someone has pulled some strings, but it turns out it wasn’t our chairman.”

“Not Chairman Ko?”

Naturally, the first person he suspected was Ko Yoonchul, who had been laundering money with that manager’s help. The manager had betrayed him before, so that was reason enough to hold a grudge. So, it was most natural for him to cause trouble and have Chairman Ko cover it up.

Of course, one would have to determine if he had the guts to kill someone, but for a man of his stature, killing a person without getting his own hands dirty wasn’t a difficult task. That’s why he had been suspicious, but hearing that the person who pulled strings from above was not Chairman Ko, Yoongeon asked, full of doubt.

“…Then, could it be… Eldest Aunt?”

“I’ll have to look into that a bit more, but if it is, it will be difficult to find out. She is a very thorough person…”

—Rrrrr.

It was when Yoongeon and Lim Sunwoong were having a serious conversation. A loud ringtone blared from the phone on the desk.

“…”

He had a strangely ominous feeling. Yoongeon, uncharacteristically hesitant, looked at the overturned phone. The screen read [Eldest Aunt].

“Huh? Why is the CEO…”

If Ko Yoonchul had killed someone, and Park Dongju had therefore bribed a detective, that was the name of a person who would never call him. Secretary Lim, of course, and Yoongeon too, looked at each other with confused eyes. He slowly swiped the screen and answered.

[…Geon-ah, haah… Is this Geon?]

“…Eldest Aunt?”

[Geon-ah, I’m sorry…]

Park Dongju said in a strangely weak voice.

[Could you… huu… come over here for a moment?]

“Eldest Aunt, why…”

[There’s something I need you to… …handle, quietly…]