Episode 21
Suite 2701 at the El Line Hotel.
It had been the secret meeting place for Ha Joong and Hwaran for the past four years.
They met there regularly, once or twice a week.
Since they always arrived and left separately, no one would have suspected they were together in the same room.
And yet… the fact that Seo I-hyun of all people had discovered their affair—was infuriating.
Although her acquaintance with Jihoon’s friend Ha Joong dated back quite a while, their relationship hadn’t turned intimate until about two years ago—around the time I-hyun returned from the U.S. and became the managing director of S Group.
—
“Ugh! I said I don’t want to get married!”
“You have to! That’s the only way I’ll hand over my position to you!”
The long-awaited reunion between grandfather and grandson immediately erupted into shouting.
As soon as I-hyun returned to Korea, Chairman Seo began urging him to marry. But I-hyun refused fiercely.
Even knowing full well that I-hyun was stubborn and would never do something he didn’t want to, the Chairman pushed relentlessly.
It was as if the company’s survival hinged on I-hyun getting married. But I-hyun wasn’t someone who bent easily.
“I don’t want to. Grandpa, what kind of conglomerate hands over the chairman’s seat just because someone gets married? And you know I’m not even interested in the position. Do you seriously think I’d get married just to inherit it?”
“Then who should I give the company to, huh? You don’t want it, but everyone else is desperate to grab it just because you’re my bloodline!”
The chairman clutched his chest in frustration, while I-hyun retorted coolly.
“Why should I automatically inherit the company just because I’m your grandson? President Park is doing an excellent job right now. Wouldn’t it be absurd for someone like me, who just came back from the U.S. and knows nothing, to suddenly take over?”
“People will mock me. They’ll say I’m just a bastard born out of wedlock who happened to be lucky enough to be handed a company.”
“…What did you just say?”
That one phrase revealed all of I-hyun’s deepest insecurities.
A child born out of wedlock.
It also struck the chairman’s weakest spot.
The fact that Jihoon and Hwaran never had a child was well-known among the wealthy elite. Then one day, not an infant, but an already-grown child appeared by their side.
Growing up as the illegitimate child of a chaebol (wealthy family) was far from easy. People would smile to his face while whispering behind his back.
From a young age, I-hyun stopped opening up to others, avoided unnecessary kindness, and never shared his story with anyone—because he knew that everything could be used against him.
He had achieved nothing purely on merit. Even if he were to take over the company after proving himself, people would still look at him with disdain. And he hated feeling unsettled like that.
He knew that even if he refused, his grandfather would still try to pass him the reins. But if marriage was the condition, then absolutely not.
He had no interest in meeting women, let alone in a loveless marriage.
He had already seen what kind of tragedies could result from such relationships—his own birth being one of them.
He didn’t want to bring that same pain upon someone else.
—
The more serious I-hyun’s marriage talks became, the more anxious Hwaran grew.
If he, who was on poor terms with her, became the chairman of S Group, she would surely be pushed aside.
The only reason she had managed to remain in the household was under the pretense of being needed to raise I-hyun in his biological mother’s absence.
Chairman Seo had even promised her one-third of the inheritance that was originally meant for Jihoon, in exchange for raising I-hyun.
So, she clenched her teeth and raised him.
Even though thinking of his late mother infuriated her, she swallowed it and raised I-hyun with what she believed was love. At least, she convinced herself of that.
But if I-hyun married and someone else replaced her, her position would undoubtedly become unstable.
To make matters worse, the chairman planned to pass on the foundation of the company—the hotel—to I-hyun.
She had always thought at least the hotel would be hers. But in the chairman’s eyes, she wasn’t even a consideration. The betrayal stung.
Hwaran’s father had run a hotel before. Though it went bankrupt not long after her marriage, she had studied management in his company after graduating from university.
She had always believed she was the rightful successor.
But blood was thicker than water.
Even after decades of loyalty, she was nothing compared to a blood relative.
At this rate, she would be forced to leave with nothing but her promised inheritance.
But greed knows no bounds. Her heart now longed for something more.
If I-hyun inherited everything, especially the hotel, she would be cut off completely.
Just being given a board director’s seat as if it were a grand favor made her furious.
That’s when the desire to bring down the entire family began to bloom inside her.
—
Around that time, Ha Joong approached her.
He was kind, considerate, and most of all—he understood her pain.
His warmth seeped into the cracks of her hardened heart like spring rain.
They shared meals, coffee, and time—and soon grew close.
Unlike Jihoon, Ha Joong had ambition. They had similar goals and dreams.
Had she met Ha Joong earlier instead of Jihoon, her life would have been very different.
She wouldn’t have had to beg for the love of a man who had no heart to give her.
Though she hated affairs, what she and Ha Joong shared wasn’t some cheap fling.
It was a pure and sacred love.
Not a momentary passion, but a genuine bond.
A love that bloomed too late due to fate’s cruel timing.
So she made a decision—she would hand over the group to Ha Joong. And she would stand by his side.
He was a self-made man and had a gentle heart. To her, he was perfect.
Yes, he had a family. But she was the one he loved the most.
If only she had met Ha Joong before Jihoon… life wouldn’t have been so painful.
Even if fate had been cruel, their late meeting made it all the more desperate and beautiful.
She wanted to seize S Group and hand it to Ha Joong herself.
Her plan was to marry Yeoun to I-hyun, have them divorce, and then transfer the shares Yeoun received to Ha Joong.
If that didn’t work, she would wait until Chairman Seo passed away, and then naturally hand over control to Ha Joong—especially since I-hyun had no interest in management anyway.
But Seo I-hyun was standing in her way.
He kept cornering her—pushing her into a darker and darker corner.
Would she eventually have to stain her hands with blood?
She couldn’t believe he had weaponized her relationship with Ha Joong.
“This is all your fault, Seo I-hyun. Don’t blame me.
You dare betray the woman who raised you?”
Her rage boiled.
Her anger toward I-hyun now extended to Harin as well.
That fox of a girl must have bewitched the stone-hearted I-hyun.
The man who used to reject everything suddenly wanted marriage, the company, the hotel—it was all Harin’s doing.
She had never liked that girl. She reminded her too much of I-hyun’s mother.
And the more she thought about it, the more uncontrollable her rage became.
That’s when it happened…
