CH 219

“Sighhhhhh….” It wasn’t until I saw Moon Issak placidly enter his car that I released my repressed sigh. My nerves, which had been stretched taut like a rubber band, suddenly loosened.

“Lee-kyung-ssi. Let’s first fix the front door with the system.”

“…Yeah.”

However, as soon as I became a relaxed mush, Choi Kyung-sik pinpointed what I should do, forcing me into action. I pressed at the front door for a long while, manifesting the ‘Housing’ tab in the system window.

After fixing the front door, my thoughts still lingered on Moon Issak. ‘What the hell does that man think of me…’

Rather than just Moon Issak, I also lingered on Seo Dawon, who currently had his back to me with a neutral face.

Seo Dawon looked despicably composed, but he said nothing until Moon Issak left. There was no sign of the slight discomfort that would show on his face when someone would get too close to the truth for comfort. It was as if the Mage was completely disinterested.

“Then, the first person we’ll have to attack is Geum Miyoung.”

“This is a recent audit report authored by Geum Miyoung. Koo Hui-seo sent it.”

“If we’re attacking her accounting company, wouldn’t the company card be an easy access point?”

“The administrative board apparently hired a large number of former government tax officials as well.”

“I’m sure the Jeon-gwan-ye-u 1 corruption will be severe in this field as well… Should we dig into that?”

“Maybe look into rebates 2 received and given in hard cash…”

“We can first start to search for borrowed-name accounts 3 by looking at the member’s relatives, though I don’t think they would’ve been idiotic enough to move slush funds through their husband’s accounts….”

“There’re records of transformed or remodeled businesses as well.”

“Ah, that’s because Geum Miyoung was first registered as a real-estate agent. It’s been that way even back when she was a government tax official…”

While I was staring at Seo Dawon, the other servants all gathered and continued to debate and discuss future plans.

Seo Dawon listened to the others quietly and helped me out by explaining a few terms here and there; however, he must not have noticed my furtive glances. He never turned his gaze my way. He seemed no different from usual, but somehow I thought he seemed distracted. Maybe I was just a little too sensitive…

‘Ever since Moon Issak mentioned Opera…’

The atmosphere had changed.

However, I gave up trying to infer anything from the Mage’s expressions or attitude. He’d definitely answer me, without even blinking, if I asked him about Ryu Hyerin or Opera…but would that answer truly reveal what’s on his mind?

So, I looked up [Ryu Hyerin] on my cell phone. After all, there was nothing I could do to help place Geum Miyoung’s company in a tight spot…

‘I’ll just conduct some proper investigation into Ryu Hyerin.’

I was strangely bothered by her; anxiety puppeteered my fingers.

[An analysis of Bae Jaemin’s Girl, Ryu Hyerin!]

[Ryu Hyerin has finally opened up on the ‘Marriage Rumors’…Full interview with ‘Feminine Sense.’]

[Chosen by POxSE, the world’s most influential woman…]

This year, Opera Guild’s Asian fan meeting will be held in Thailand…] 4

As soon as I searched for [Ryu Hyerin] on the search engine, her profile, alongside various articles, popped up. One article was even uploaded 48 seconds ago. You could infer public interest in this woman just from the search results alone.

Her popularity was a double-edged sword for me. There was a lot of available information, but the amount available was enormous. It was almost impossible to find substantial data as countless new articles were added in the short time it took to read anything.

I tried not to look at Ryu Hyerin’s personal social media accounts, but I couldn’t help but click on her links after being bored with numerous trivial articles.

Her personal account was quite old, and, because of that, it contained tons of uploaded photos. The most recent picture was taken at a fine-dining restaurant. It seemed like she came alone; the photo was framed around Ryu Hyerin and a few dishes in front of her. However, compared to other similar posts, that photo enjoyed an overwhelmingly high number of [likes].

I read the comments below.

[18,602 comments (see all)]

[tkfkdgkq1slek: I think you ate with Bae Jaemin-nim here…TT_TT]

[miyuu_kk23: Too pretty♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡]

[hyerin_f.a.n.page: ♥Love from Brazil♥]

[song322_x: That gloved hand…Who is it unni…!]

A Gloved hand, which I hadn’t seen before due to the dim lighting, could be seen in the far corner of the photo; I couldn’t help but imagine that hand belonged to Bae Jaemin.

‘I had heard that they were embroiled in romance rumors…’

I realized that it’d been a long while since this seemingly careless and casual photo was taken and posted. In that case, did it mean that she deliberately posted a picture that captured Bae Jaemin’s hand…? If it were uploaded by mistake, she would have deleted the photo immediately after seeing the comments.

‘…Just what is she scheming?’

Was she simply generating entertainment as an attention seeker…? Or perhaps, was she vaguely confirming her romance after avoiding clear answers? I glared at Ryu Hyerin, who wore an elegant dress and held a flute of champagne.

A woman who suits everything perfectly…

‘Somehow…She’s similar to Seo Dawon.’

It’s like her essence was similar.

I didn’t want to needlessly hurt myself, so I didn’t go searching for pictures of Seo Dawon and Ryu Hyerin together…However, just by looking at her face alone, I felt that she harmonized well with Seo Dawon’s beauty. That is to say…I felt a strange sense of defeat despite the fact that I’ve never tried to compete with her.

‘Why did she do this?’

I was incredibly curious. Ryu Hyerin didn’t seem like someone who could betray and kill her fiance.

In addition, according to Kim Olim, Ryu Hyerin shed tears during her betrayal. Considering all that, she may have been mired in complicated circumstances that explained her behavior. Kim Olim felt angrier at the sight of those despicable tears and vowed to give Ryu Hyerin a miserable death, but…

‘Seo Dawon might want to listen to her excuses…’

After all, he once loved her. It’d be hard to cut her off completely.

My fingertips throbbed briefly; I paused before turning off the cell phone screen with a deep sigh. And, when I looked up, I met Seo Dawon’s red eyes–since when had he been staring at me?

* * *

“Hyerin-ssi?”

Ryu Hyerin turned her head to look at the woman who called out her name. Then, after reading the woman’s puzzled face, Ryu Hyerin furrowed her beautiful eyes. “My goodness, I’m sorry. What did you say?”

“It’s nothing! I just wanted to ask what your plans for the weekend were.”

“Are you going somewhere, Joo-hui-sui?”

“Yes! I got an invitation to xxxxx…. If Hyerin-ssi has the time, perhaps you’d like to go with me.”

“I’d love to. I really wanted to find a xxxx anyway.”

Ryu Hyerin had missed the other’s question due to a momentary lapse into deep contemplation.

Her thoughts wandered elsewhere these days; she found herself apologizing for frequent mistakes and frustrated at her distracted self. However, this wasn’t the place to reveal all that, so she made sure to adopt a hurried smile and gave a cheerful reply.

Year after year she attended this elaborate social function, attended by only the most carefully selected celebrities. The attendees were all women and were all top-class, whether through family, personal ability, or wealth.

Though it seemed as if the members were simply sitting around, eating and drinking, Ryu Hyerin enjoyed access to information she could only receive here.

However, a wide knowledge pool did not translate into equal amounts of power. Rather, one may be inundated by stress from being unable to act upon that information.

For example, President Moon Sung-hak’s, the President of the User’s Association’s, wife was in attendance today. At Ryu Hyerin’s prodding, she gave hints about the current investigation into Park Hoseok’s murder. Through that, Ryu Hyerin knew, before the official announcement, that Moon Issak was the primary investigator for this case.

Ryu Hyerin had recommended another investigator–besides Moon Issak–but Chairman Moon Sung-hak had not accepted her opinion. She still didn’t have enough power to exert her influence over him. When she recalled that memory, Ryu Hyerin almost grinded her teeth. She clearly had limits–a line she could not cross–without accruing suspicion.

‘And, because of that…’

Moon Issak was now closing in on her biggest secret.

TL: Ahhh! I’m so excited for you all to meet Ryu Hyerin’s perspective!

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FootnotesJeon-gwan ye-u refers to an informal arrangement in the South Korean legal system whereby retired judges and public prosecutors who go on to become lawyers in private practice receive special treatment from their incumbent former colleagues. It’s a well-known point of corruption in the legal system. Here, the Red Lotus members are saying that this sort of corruption will exist in other governmental departments (like the tax department). a partial refund to someone who has paid too much money for tax, rent, or a utility. Borrowed-name accounts are accounts created in someone else’s name though used by someone unrelated to the owner. It’s often used by conglomerates to create hidden funds. This is another problem in Korea–in the past decade, CJE&M has been the subject of a scandal for having hundreds of borrowed-name accounts. wtf is this, an idol group???