Episode 9
One Day Ago
On the way back home, after hearing directly from Yushia that she is the youngest granddaughter of Chairman Yoo Jin-gap.
“Haah…”
A deep sigh kept escaping his lips.
His head was spinning, but instead of taking a taxi, he chose to endure it.
‘Gotta save money.’
With all the money spent on recent dates, this month’s credit card bill was already tight.
[Beep—]
[Adult confirmed.]
He boarded the usual bus, number 241.
The clunky, rattling noise bothered him, but he was too preoccupied to care.
‘What do I do now?’
Just thinking about what might happen made him feel overwhelmed.
‘Marriage is obviously off the table.’
She’s from a chaebol (rich family).
He knew better than to have unrealistic hopes.
Yushia probably wasn’t dating him thinking about marriage either.
‘Dating her is already pushing it.’
Even in normal relationships, breakups are painful but manageable.
But what about work?
Whether they break up or not, continuing to work at the same company would be impossible.
No one wants to see their ex every day—especially not someone from the owner’s family.
‘Which means I’ll be the one to leave…’
Even if they don’t break up, it’s still a problem.
Forget marriage—there will definitely be old executives uncomfortable with someone like him.
He’d probably be “punished” with some ridiculous job assignment.
‘Like being sent to fix water shortages in Africa or planning public service ads in a warzone.’
Damn it.
No matter how he looked at it, there was no good outcome.
‘Should I switch jobs…?’
It’d be a shame to leave HR Group—it’s the top in the industry.
But he had experience now. He could get into another big company.
‘Yeah, better to quit before I get fired.’
At least that way, he could survive.
‘Search: Saramin (job site).’
He searched everywhere—JobKorea, Wanted, JobPlanet.
‘Damn it…!’
But the results weren’t promising.
He had experience, but…
‘My years of experience are awkwardly in-between.’
A couple more years and he could be promoted to manager.
If he switched now, he’d either get worse conditions or be stuck as a deputy for years.
“Sigh…”
No answer in sight.
“I’m screwed…”
He got off the bus without figuring anything out.
‘What do I do now…’
As he slowly walked home from the bus stop—
Vroooom.
A luxury sedan pulled up next to him.
‘Genesis G90?’
Not a car you see often in this neighborhood.
Actually, luxury cars were common in poor areas—thanks to “car poor” people who buy fancy cars to show off.
But domestically made luxury sedans like the Genesis were rare.
People who drive those aren’t here to show off.
Which meant…
‘They don’t live around here.’
Sure enough, the car slowed down and stopped right beside him.
Screech—
The back window rolled down.
A man looked out.
“Mr. Song Jinseong?”
“……?”
The man knew his name.
“Who are you?”
“I’m Yoo Homin.”
Yoo Homin?
He racked his brain.
“Executive Yoo Homin from the Planning Department?”
“That’s me.”
“……!”
“Can we talk for a bit?”
Yoo Homin: Director of Strategic Planning at HR Media.
Son of Chairman Yoo Jin-gap’s second son.
He’s Yushia’s sixth cousin.
They met at a nearby café—he didn’t want to bring a chaebol into his tiny one-room apartment.
“Sorry for coming so late.”
“At least he knows it’s rude,” Jinseong thought.
“I’ll be direct.”
Straightforwardness seems to run in the family.
“You’re dating our Yushia, right?”
“Cough!”
He nearly spat out his coffee.
‘He already knows?!’
His head spun.
But Homin continued calmly.
“You should break up with her. Don’t hurt her.”
This felt like a scene from a soap opera.
“You know Sambyul Motors?”
“Of course…”
The #1 company in Korea—bigger than HR Group.
“I can get you in there.”
“……!”
“You’ll be guaranteed a promotion to executive level and a secure job until retirement.”
Jinseong stared at him in shock.
Homin smiled.
“Wondering how? My brother-in-law is a VP there.”
“If you’re unsure, I’ll even get it notarized.”
It was a golden opportunity.
Jinseong had just been looking at job listings.
‘It’s incredibly tempting…’
Better pay, job security, high status.
But he still had pride as a man.
“I’m not dating Yushia for money.”
“Really?”
Homin tossed a keychain onto the table.
It had a ramping horse logo—Ferrari.
He smiled and pressed a button.
Beep-beep!
Outside, a red Ferrari flashed its lights.
The white plate meant it was brand new.
“It’s yours right now.”
“Even so—”
“See the other key?”
“……?”
“You know Eunma Apartments in Daechi-dong? The biggest unit. Just got approved for redevelopment.”
Currently worth nearly 3 billion won (around $2.5M).
“This should be enough, don’t you think?”
A luxury job. A Ferrari. A luxury apartment in Gangnam.
Any man’s heart would waver.
A few days later – A luxury house in Hannam-dong.
“Where’s Yushia?”
“She’s still in her room.”
Yushia’s father, Yoo Jonghwan, checked in with the housekeeper.
Then quietly walked toward her door.
Knock knock.
“Yushia?”
No reply.
It had been three days.
She hadn’t gone to work or eaten anything.
Inside the house were 11 men—8 cousins and 3 uncles—who came after hearing about her condition.
“Have you seen her?”
“No, the door’s locked.”
“What about food?”
“She doesn’t eat anything.”
“Bathroom?”
“There’s one in the room.”
No one had seen her face in three days.
Complete isolation.
Naturally, all eyes turned to Yoo Homin.
“You met the guy. What happened?”
“I talked to him. He turned down everything.”
“Everything? Even the apartment and car?”
“Yes. When have I ever messed up?”
He offered a house in Gangnam, a supercar, and a job with guaranteed retirement.
“What does he want, then?”
“I don’t know. He just kept saying he was scared. Said he wants to live a quiet, simple life.”
“What kind of nonsense is that?”
Bang—
Suddenly, her door slammed open.
“Yushia?”
“Yushia!”
All the men rushed toward her.
“……Gasp.”
Their faces turned cold.
Her eyes were bloodshot from crying.
She looked terribly weak from not eating.
“Did that bastard make you cry? Bring him here now!”
“If he hurt you, we’ll make him pay—”
“Shut up.”
Her voice was ice-cold.
Silence fell.
“It’s all your fault.”
A chilling aura radiated from her.
“I told you not to touch him.”
Her voice was dripping with frost.
“If you make me go insane, I swear…”
She left the rest unsaid, but it was terrifying.
All the men looked away, afraid to meet her eyes.
They all knew one thing:
The scariest person in the Yoo family when angry—
Wasn’t the chairman.
Wasn’t the vice-chairman.
Wasn’t the executive director.
It was Yushia.
“One more time.”
She glared at them.
“If any of you lay a finger on him again, I swear…”
She muttered something unrepeatable.
The men’s faces turned pale.
Yushia pulled her cap low and walked out.
The 12 men could only stand there in silence…
Watching her leave.
