The driver extended his phone toward Seo-in. Then he stepped out of the driver’s seat immediately, turned his back to the car, and stood waiting outside.
Bzz—
Seo-in looked down at the phone he’d been handed. He didn’t deliberate long. He pressed the call connect button.
[What you said earlier.]
A deep, weighty voice came through from the other side of the phone.
[……Can I trust it.]
It was Chairman Kwon Bu-geon.
Rustle.
Seo-in opened the crumpled envelope in his hand and pulled the paper out from inside. He unfolded the document that had been creased in half.
Noah Ren.
Looking at the image of the blond, strikingly handsome man in the photograph, Seo-in murmured into the phone pressed to his ear.
“Everything I said earlier is true. No matter how you look into it, there’s only one way. And there’s something you need to know, Chairman. The more time you spend deliberating, the less time there is to treat Lady Go Eun-ju.”
Right now, this was the only method. He could take more time to earn Chairman Kwon’s trust — but while that was happening, Go Eun-ju’s life force was fading. There was no way she had that kind of time to spare.
[Are you threatening me?]
“With something like this?”
Seo-in’s words were bold — almost startlingly clear.
If anything, speaking only through the phone without having to look at Chairman Kwon’s face made it easier to speak with more conviction. And yet, the weight of Chairman Kwon’s anguish felt that much closer for it.
“You don’t strike me as someone who would be shaken by someone like me.”
The background investigation on Seo-in would already be complete. He didn’t imagine Chairman Kwon had summoned him without confirming anything at all.
[So that’s how you’ve been sizing me up.]
“Of course. You’re the father of the remarkable Kwon Gi-jeong, after all. If you find it difficult to trust me, how about trusting in Gi-jeong’s choice instead?”
[……]
A brief silence followed, as though calculations were being made.
This was probably what had caught Go Eun-ju’s eye. The image of Kwon Gi-jeong — resembling Chairman Kwon Bu-geon, just as she had said — flickered and overlapped in Seo-in’s mind.
Seo-in had been pulled out of the Chairman’s office by Kwon Gi-jeong before he could even give a proper explanation. And yet, the Chairman was already reaching out — as if staking something like hope — on nothing more than the small clue Seo-in had let slip.
He was a man who had spent long, long years at that height and built achievements of this magnitude. He would have had nothing standing in his way, and he would never have bent his will.
And yet — how much trust could such a man place in the words of someone like Seo-in, who had appeared out of nowhere? That was precisely why Seo-in had put forward the name of Kwon Gi-jeong — his one and only heir — rather than his own.
The meaning was: don’t trust Seo-in; try trusting Kwon Gi-jeong.
[Gi-jeong chose you, so I should do the same — is that what you’re saying.]
And the Chairman, who had weathered every storm imaginable to reach where he stood, understood Seo-in’s words immediately.
“Yes. From what I’ve verified, that person is currently staying in California, in the United States.”
What followed was a piece of the record Seo-in knew — something he had seen in the past.
“He’s in GreenBio City. Someone needs to go and bring him here.”
Since Lady Go Eun-ju couldn’t be sent there herself, they would have to persuade Noah Ren and bring him over.
“You’ll need a reliable person capable of handling that kind of task.”
Seo-in fixed his gaze on the photo of Dr. Noah Ren in front of him.
“This person can absolutely save Lady Go Eun-ju.”
It would not be easy — and yet it was worth attempting. If things continued as they were, Go Eun-ju would not be able to hold on to her life regardless.
[So this is how you changed Gi-jeong’s mind.]
“……”
Seo-in’s lips, which had been parting freely without hesitation, seemed to loosen for a moment before slowly pressing back together.
This question had not been within Seo-in’s expectations. In fact, even in the past, Chairman Kwon had never asked Seo-in this. Which meant he had no answer prepared for it either.
[I should have caught on when that damned fool — who showed no intention of ever marrying — said he wanted to introduce someone to me.]
“Chairman Kwon……”
Seo-in opened his mouth, but could find no further words to add.
[He said something, that one.]
“……”
[That if you saw my face and ran off, what would he do.]
Seo-in’s clear eyes trembled — just barely — a faint, almost imperceptible shift.
[Is the one who brought you to me still nearby?]
“Yes, he is.”
Seo-in glanced over at the person still standing outside the car as though on standby.
[Kang will help you, so make use of him. If you want to reach me, you can do it through him. Go and bring the man over. I’ll find a trustworthy person and send them along as well.]
At last, Chairman Kwon’s approval had been secured. Seo-in was swept by the feeling of having barely cleared one enormous mountain. The tension that had been holding his shoulders rigid began to ease.
[And keep just this one thing in mind……]
……Seo-in’s expression, as he listened to the Chairman’s words, stiffened ever so slightly. But it lasted only a brief moment.
Having ended the call, Seo-in knocked lightly on the car window.
Tap.
The driver’s door opened and the driver stepped back inside. Seo-in handed the phone back to him.
“Should I call you Secretary Kang? The call went well.”
Kang Sin-woo, having taken back the phone, answered shortly.
“My name is Kang Sin-woo. Call me whatever is comfortable for you. I’ll drive you home.”
In the past, he had been someone who had briefly crossed paths with Seo-in and nothing more. He had brought Seo-in to Chairman Kwon and then there was no occasion for them to meet again. But going forward, he would become someone who needed to assist Seo-in. A means of reaching Chairman Kwon, as well.
“No. I need to go to the office. My car is there. And I’ll reach out when I need your help.”
“Understood.”
Kang Sin-woo said nothing more and, through the rearview mirror, accepted Seo-in’s instructions.
Seo-in slipped the document he’d taken out back into the envelope. At last, his rigid shoulders came to rest against the seat. His eyes followed the streams of people passing by outside the car window. The focus in them, however, was not quite there.
— So this is how you changed Gi-jeong’s mind.
The unexpected words Chairman Kwon had said just moments ago drifted around in his ears.
It wasn’t Seo-in who had changed things. It was Kwon Gi-jeong.
Every time Seo-in appeared at an official function with Kwon Gi-jeong — married not out of his own will, but out of necessity — a tangle of emotions would wash over him.
Seo-in’s life had been one of obedience, of being pressed down, of being suppressed. By his father. By his mother. By his older brother.
— That’s him. The one who married Kwon Gi-jeong is that omega.
— Not much to look at. How did he reel him in? Did he drag him to bed during his heat?
Omegas had a heat cycle — a period of heightened desire that came at regular intervals. During that time, they released a potent pheromone that could carry far and draw alphas in. It was a method useful enough that some even used it as a deliberate tactic.
The assumption was that someone of lower standing — given the gap between their families — must have resorted to exactly that kind of means. As Seo-in forced himself to smile as though he couldn’t hear any of it, Kwon Gi-jeong suddenly turned around and said:
— Bold words. Is this what they call a loose mouth?
Kwon Gi-jeong was not a person who bothered with decorum. And the one who had tried to smooth things over — defusing the atmosphere as though accustomed to Gi-jeong’s behavior — had been the other party.
Anyone who laid eyes on Kwon Gi-jeong would consider him a flawless man. There was nothing to fault in his appearance. His only flaw — if one could be named — was solely his personality. The face was refined and distinguished, but there was no mercy within it.
