RB 29

Yeorok returned to his room, he showered briefly and changed clothes. Fatigue had built up from his overseas schedule and long flight, but he had no time to rest. He moved straight to the study and took up the backlog of work.

People might think the chairman of the Haegang Foundation was a man who only showed his face at public events, but in truth he was the one who oversaw the most important matters of Haegang Group.

Capable professional executives brought him issues day and night. If only they were things he could simply approve and set aside. But with his thorough nature, he could not pass over even a single document carelessly. Yeorok had to understand the full chain of causes and effects before he felt satisfied.

“Chairman, I have something to report.”

SecretHong knocked and came in.

Hong Namyeong, who moved like one body with Yeorok, must also have been weighed down with fatigue from the trip. Yeorok had told him to take at least three hours of rest, but clearly he had not listened.

Yeorok kept his eyes on the papers and only nodded. The man standing straight in front of the desk caught his breath briefly before speaking.

“Son Jinhyung has been digging into Choi Yoonho’s whereabouts recently.”

Yeorok slowly lifted his head. His tired face showed clearly as he looked at Hong.

“Didn’t you say he was amusing himself?”

“The gatherings are still held once a week. An actor seemed to be taking Choi Yoonho’s place… but since last month even he has stopped attending. I confirmed he is hospitalized with serious lacerations.”

“He must have been playing rough.”

Yeorok tossed the papers aside and leaned into the chair. His hand ruffled his not-yet-dry hair, his irritation plain. He always kept his attire immaculate, but now his shirt sleeves were rolled up carelessly and his collar buttons left undone.

“How much do you think he has found out?”

“It seems they searched every specialized care hospital across the country like a rat hunt. The private firm Son Jinhyung hired is quite skilled… it may become troublesome.”

“They couldn’t have found someone who doesn’t exist. So it means there’s a chance the trick will be exposed.”

“How about we buy out that firm on our side?”

Yeorok rubbed his smooth chin with his middle finger. Secretary Hong’s suggestion wasn’t bad, but sharing secrets with people he couldn’t trust was not easy.

He thought hard about how to shake off Son Jinhyung. Though sloppy in most things, when it came to his interests he was persistent. He was not obsessed with Choi Yoonho, finding the vanished man was entertainment for him. This childish detective play that did not suit him was becoming increasingly irritating.

Yeorok weighed the risks in silence. Whenever he made important decisions, deep wrinkles formed on his brow.

“Say he is confined at home.”

Even Son Jinhyung wouldn’t push into the house. To trespass into the estate would be no different from declaring war with Haegang.

“Six months left?”

“Yes.”

“Namyeong, what do you think? Sim Eunho.”

Leaning back in the chair, Yeorok turned slowly. The chair rotated lightly on its axis. Secretary Hong, with his hands behind his back, bit his lip.

What he had seen earlier had been quite a shock. He had known Sim Eunho resembled Choi Yoonho, but seeing him copy his expressions and speech so exactly went beyond a doppelgänger. He looked like Choi Yoonho himself.

“To be honest… I was surprised. I didn’t think he would change that much in just a month.”

“It’s the product of effort. Turns out he has quite a hard edge.”

Yeorok spoke in a flat tone. His eyes, darkened, recalled the moment he had faced Sim Eunho again. But that didn’t last long. He pressed his eyelid with his fingertip and let out a sigh tinged with exhaustion.

“I’m tired, Namyeong.”

“You should rest. You need at least a little sleep to handle the dinner schedule.”

“I doubt I can sleep.”

Yeorok laughed and pulled the papers back toward him.

Not everything in the world went his way. Not Haegang, not Son Jinhyung, not Sim Eunho. He could not deal with any of them carelessly, and it was choking him. His perfectionism, little different from compulsion, wearied even himself.

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‎

Beep– the thermometer measured the temperature again. 37.8 degrees. Not dangerously high, but enough to leave a body limp.

Eunho felt a little sick. He had pushed himself, sacrificed sleep, his body couldn’t hold out. Excessive stress likely played a part as well.

“I’ve canceled the rest of your schedule, so don’t worry and sleep well.”

Seo Taehwa checked Eunho’s forehead and studied his complexion closely. He looked guilty for not realizing Eunho was unwell though he had been near him all along.

“I’m fine. There was no need to cancel…”

“Rest until tomorrow.”

Whose order was it? There was no need to ask. Only one person controlled his every move. The fact that Choi Yeorok had returned felt now real.

Eunho slowly rubbed his chest with his palm. The pill’s effect had worn off, but again his heart was unsettled.

“You did well today.”

Seo Taehwa patted Eunho’s shoulder.

“That’s a relief.”

Eunho smiled faintly at the praise. When he said he wanted to lie down, Seo Taehwa turned off the lights and quietly left without another word.

Eunho put the cold medicine and sleeping aid from the bedside table into his mouth and tried to sleep. He pulled the blanket up to his chest and lay on his side, his body sinking with heaviness.

Only Eunho’s breathing echoed inside the wide room. The medicine had not even taken effect, but he fell asleep in an instant.

‎

‎

Eunho wandered the annex like someone with sleepwalking.

As he crossed the hall, he encountered some unfamiliar faces. Middle-aged women in servants’ uniforms all avoided his eyes and hurriedly left when they saw him.

‘Choi Yoonho, why are you wandering around? Isn’t it your time for counseling now?’

Even Seo Taehwa showed a contemptuous expression.

Eunho turned his head toward the figure reflected in the window. He did not know if the pale-faced man was himself or Choi Yoonho.

Was he imagining on his own, or was it Yoonho’s memory seeping into his head? He thought he had once seen a similar scene in a video.

‘What’s it to you?’

His mouth moved on its own. The curse at Seo Taehwa carried none of Eunho’s intent. His body simply moved by itself.

Ah… I am Yoonho now.

Eunho realized he was walking through the annex in a dream, synchronized with Yoonho’s past.

‘Hey! Choi Yoonho!’

A voice called out from afar, grabbing him. He ran to avoid a session with Ahn Jaehwan. Yoonho ran out of the annex, dashed through the garden, and slipped into the main house through the back door.

The main house had a completely different atmosphere from the annex. Yoonho never liked it. Eunho could clearly feel the pressure Yoonho felt there.

He wouldn’t chase me here. Yoonho ran up the stairs and hurried down the second-floor hallway. He opened doors one after another, going deeper inside, then opened another and another. Following the tightly linked maze, he finally reached his destination.

Yoonho’s heart dropped. He thought the study would be empty, but an unwanted guest was there. The one he least wanted to see.

‘I didn’t call you.’

Leaning against the bookshelf, Yeorok tilted his head. His disgust showed plainly on his handsome face.

‘Isn’t it time for your counseling? Why are you snooping here?’

‘What’s it to you, uncle? And even if it’s a place I shouldn’t come, so what if I did?’

His teeth ground audibly. Yoonho’s hands and feet trembled. Hostility went too far, and he felt fear too.

Yoonho avoided his uncle. It was a rejection that came from instinct. No matter how sculpted that face looked, to Yoonho it was no different from a lifeless plaster statue.

‘You must have forgotten, but even if others spoil you, that doesn’t work with me.’

Yeorok raised his head. His direct gaze was cold enough to chill the bones.

‘Take your medicine properly and go to counseling. That was the condition for your outings.’

‘Why only me… why am I the only one treated like a lunatic! You’re the same, uncle!’

Yoonho shouted violently. His rage toward Yeorok burned through his head.

‘How long do you think you can hide it? What changes when you cover that filth inside? You think you’ll look normal?’

Yeorok unfolded his arms and slid both hands into his pockets. He took one step closer to Yoonho.

‘What’s so hard about hiding?’

‘…….’

‘It’s because you can’t do that, that you’re in this state now.’

Yoonho’s eyes were bloodshot. Even as he looked ready to go mad from resentment, Yeorok kept his icy expression.

Did familial affection even exist? His indifferent eyes looked at him like a passing insect.

‘Is it fun to be unable to control yourself, only causing trouble for others? If it were me, I would have killed myself out of shame long ago.’

‘Fuck! Are you even human!? And you call yourself my guardian?!’

‘Remember I’m the one overlooking you. Like you said, I’m not normal either. If I lose control, who knows what I might do.’

Yeorok looked at him with a fake smile on his face. At that moment the door opened and Secretary Hong came in. He grabbed Yoonho by the scruff of his neck and dragged him out.

‘Let go! I said let go of me!’

‘Everyone’s blind! There’s someone worse than me right there!’

Yoonho screamed. His voice was so loud that Eunho’s own head spun.

He was confused. Eunho had never seen such a video. Was this something he had invented in imagination, or was he truly possessed by Yoonho’s ghost?

Eunho was drawn into the raging Yoonho, screaming together and writhing in bitterness. At last Yoonho lost control and fainted.

At the same time as darkness closed in, Eunho opened his eyes.