Chapter 10

A few days ago.

“These are the documents you requested, sir.”

As Taeseok skimmed through the documents handed over by his secretary, a faint twitch appeared between his brows.

“As you anticipated, a significant number of shareholders holding stakes in the company have been in contact with Director Han Jitae. With over 10% of shares already secured on his side, if we don’t act now, you could find yourself in a very difficult situation.”

‘So this is what she was after…’

The day his father passed away in an accident—

Taeseok could still vividly remember Min Hyejeong’s face as she rushed to the hospital after hearing the news.

Her tone and demeanor hadn’t changed at all, despite just losing her husband in a sudden accident—so calm it was almost unsettling.

Throughout the entire funeral, neither Min Hyejeong nor her son shed a single tear. Watching them, Taeseok was overwhelmed by an uncontrollable rage.

Every time he looked at Min Hyejeong and Han Jitae—whom Chairman Han had brought into the family—only a searing hatred, sharp as knives, surged from the depths of his bones.

And it was only after Chairman Han’s death that Min Hyejeong revealed her hidden fangs.

She started by buying out shares from allied and neutral shareholders to increase her control over the Kanghwa Group. She quietly took over struggling businesses to expand her territory piece by piece.

At the center of it all—the beginning and the end—was Han Jitae.

Her ultimate goal: to make her son the new owner of Kanghwa Group.

For that goal alone, she lived in disguise—as the new matriarch of Kanghwa, as Pilsoon’s daughter-in-law—hiding her dark ambitions behind a calm façade.

“What should we do, sir?”

“At this point, there’s only one way.”

“Sorry?”

“Secure management rights through marriage.”

“W-Wait, are you saying you’re the one getting married…?”

“I never cared about marriage before. But they say you’ll even grant a dead man’s wish under desperate circumstances. Guess it’s time to fulfill the chairman’s wish properly.”

A mysterious smile crossed Taeseok’s face as he rose from his seat.

* * *

“I thought you worked at a substitute center, Ms. Choi Iseo?”

“Yes, but I’ll be quitting soon.”

“Well, this has nothing to do with that. This is more of a personal matter. Let’s just say it’s not exactly a request—more like a proposal.”

“A proposal?”

“That’s why I’m here.”

Iseo’s eyes fixed on Taeseok’s face, unaware of the storm the word “proposal” could bring.

Under the dim light, his clean-cut features and immaculate appearance stood out.

As she looked at him, Iseo’s heart began to flutter ever so slightly.

She tried to avoid his gaze, her heartbeat quickening for reasons she didn’t understand.

“So, what exactly is this proposal?”

“Are you curious?”

“Don’t get the wrong idea. I just want to hear what brought a big shot from Kanghwa Group all the way out here.”

Narrowing her eyes, Iseo studied him, trying to uncover his hidden motives.

“What kind of proposal are you making?”

“Marriage.”

“M-Marriage? You mean like… you want me to attend your wedding as a guest?”

“Would I really be here at this hour just to ask that?”

“Then what…”

“Let’s get married. You and me.”

Words too unbelievable to accept.

As the word “marriage” came out of his mouth, Iseo’s gaze began to tremble.

“I must’ve misheard you, right?”

“Want to hear it again?”

“Marriage? Did you really say marriage? Mr. Han Taeseok, are you sure you didn’t injure your head, not just your arm?”

A soft laugh escaped Taeseok’s lips.

“I’m perfectly fine. No need to worry.”

His gaze didn’t waver for a moment.

Seeing his expression, something warm and unexplainable began to rise inside Iseo’s chest.

“Are you mocking me?”

“Not at all.”

“Then why make such an absurd proposal?”

Her eyes, staring directly at him, were filled with confusion and agitation.

“If this isn’t some kind of joke, then what’s your reason?”

“Why do you think that?”

Taeseok tilted his head slightly, a faint twitch at his brow.

“Do you even know what marriage means? Do you understand what you’re proposing?”

Iseo, now visibly upset, kept talking.

“How much do you even know about me? My name and where I live, that’s about it. And you want to get married? This isn’t just ridiculous—it’s outright insulting.”

Her eyes glared at him, sharp and unkind.

“Top of your class in design at J University. Got hired right after graduation. But kept quitting jobs because debt collectors kept showing up at your workplace. No siblings. Your mother lives in Busan. You’re still being harassed by debts left behind by the man your single mother married. And—oh yeah, almost forgot—no serious dating experience. Also…”

His words came at her like a machine gun. Iseo stared, dumbfounded, her mouth slightly open.

“W-What are you doing right now? Did you… investigate me?”

“Should I keep going?”

Her eyes narrowed dangerously.

He had exposed parts of her life she had never told anyone—wounds she had desperately tried to hide.

It felt like she’d been stripped bare, completely naked.

With a flushed face, she bit down hard on her lip.

“Did you forget that you’re the CEO of Kanghwa Group?”

“Of course not.”

“And you think us dating is absurd enough. But marriage? Are you insane?”

“If it’ll help you believe me, I could even get a psychological evaluation. I’m completely sane—healthier than most.”

Kanghwa Group.

From electronics and heavy industries to construction, finance, and services—it was a conglomerate that had its hand in everything across Korea.

Their revenue from affiliated companies alone was beyond comprehension.

And now this man, the group’s CEO, was making a proposal so outrageous, it left Iseo fuming.

She tried to read his expression for clues to his true intentions. But his face remained unreadable—completely calm and impassive.

“Are you desperate to get married? Is there something you can’t tell me? Or wait, is it that you have a… problem… down there…?”

“Worried I might be impotent? I can prove otherwise right now if that’ll help.”

Iseo stared at him silently.

He seemed to be enjoying her flustered state, which only made her angrier.

“It’s late. You should go.”

As he stood to leave, Taeseok placed his business card on the small desk in Iseo’s room.

“How long do you plan to live like this?”

“What did you say?”

“Hiding in a place where no light even reaches, running away like a fugitive your whole life—are you really going to keep living like this?”

“Excuse me?”

“How long do you think you can keep running?”

“Whether I run or not is none of your business.”

“Did you know? Your father, Choi Byeongtae—his debt wasn’t just 100 million won.”

“What are you talking about?”

“There’s another 300 million won under your name and your mother’s. You’ll probably find out soon.”

With a single sentence tossed casually, Taeseok crushed her with despair.

Her body trembled, a wave of heat rising from her feet, too heavy to bear.

“Think carefully. This insane proposal of mine might just be your first and last chance to escape this hell.”

After Taeseok left, Iseo collapsed onto the floor as if all the strength had drained from her body.

It felt like she was running through an endless tunnel, suffocating in the darkness.

Her heart was filled with hatred and fury from all the years spent with Choi Byeongtae.

Her bitten lip was stained red from the blood pooling in her mouth.

The next day.

Having barely slept a wink, Iseo sat up and saw the business card Taeseok had left beside her.

It was the undeniable proof that last night’s outrageous proposal hadn’t just been a dream.

“Think carefully. This insane proposal of mine might just be your first and last chance to escape this hell.”

Last chance.

That phrase echoed endlessly in Iseo’s mind.