Chapter 04
Bang.
As Kang Seung-eon crossed the threshold of the Pyungyoon-dong mansion, she stopped in her tracks at the sound of the heavy door slamming shut behind her.
“Right. Come to think of it, didn’t you have some kind of illness? I heard you couldn’t even have physical contact with men. Something about breaking out in rashes just from holding hands. What was it called again? Actually, would a condition like that even have a medical name? You’re just so dramatic, you know.”
There are things you should and shouldn’t say to people. Kang Joo-hee had no hesitation in saying the absolute wrong thing to someone who had just spent over six months fighting for her life in a hospital.
Her unfiltered words kept crossing the line.
“Thanks for changing the will to grant my mom’s dying wish, but a dying person shouldn’t make promises they can’t keep. Think of it as a life lesson. Once you’ve stamped something, don’t think about taking it back.”
“…”
“Also, if you lied about having someone to marry, just admit it. I’ll let it slide. But since you did say it, give HG over to me. You should just run your dad’s company—”
“Auntie. Did you know? I haven’t said a single word this whole time.”
“What?”
“And yet, you’ve somehow always managed to be a few steps ahead of me. Impressive, really.”
Kang Joo-hee’s words trailed off at Seung-eon’s cold yet smiling response. Seung-eon tilted the corners of her lips upward with a graceful smile in her eyes.
“There’s no reason I wouldn’t keep my promise to Grandma. It’s something I ought to do, and yes, I do have someone I’m dating. I plan to have an heir too.”
“Then why—”
“I was concerned.”
“Concerned? About what?”
“Nothing major. I’ve heard from various places that you’ve had a hard time managing HG in my absence.”
“Oh, you heard that—”
“But despite all that effort, the stock price has dropped significantly compared to when I was running it. Right?”
“…”
“Honestly, I have a conscience. I feel bad for you. I can’t ignore Grandma’s final wishes, and I feel sorry for you, Auntie… So I was planning to buy time and proceed in a way that benefits you too. But if you don’t want that—”
“…!”
“Then how about we set the wedding for the end of the year?”
Kang Seung-eon’s biggest weakness was her temper.
She was fiercely competitive, especially when it came to her youngest aunt, Kang Joo-hee.
Seeing the look on Seung-eon’s face as she left the mansion, Secretary Chu got out of the car, heard what had happened, and sighed.
“You should’ve stayed calm, as I advised.”
Had he known it would go like this, he would have gone with her himself. Glancing sideways at Secretary Chu with a frown, Seung-eon felt a headache coming on.
“Secretary Chu. We’re in deep trouble now. We have to find him no matter what.”
With Plan A down the drain, Kang Seung-eon had no choice but to push forward with Plan B.
“Find the guy people think might be my boyfriend—and report back.”
When she agreed to her grandmother’s revised will, she had just come from meeting this mystery man. Which meant: physical contact had been possible.
“No matter what, I’m going to marry that man.”
One week later.
“Ma’am. It’s Chu Young-eun.”
Seung-eon, seated in her study reviewing documents, responded to the knock.
“Come in.”
She had lost all memory of her secret boyfriend, not to mention anything beyond the last two years due to a traffic accident and a coma, but Seung-eon was fiercely catching up on the company’s operations and leadership.
“No one can find out I’ve lost my memory.”
Knowing Kang Joo-hee’s personality, she was certain spies had been planted throughout the company during her absence.
With little time left to fulfill her grandmother’s will, every move she made mattered. She couldn’t afford to slip.
Luckily, she had Secretary Chu—who practically had her life memorized—and the company her father founded, LOOKIN, where she was CEO. Though the company focused on games, a field outside her expertise, managing it posed no great difficulty.
Apparently, the major event during her two-year absence was the delay of a VR game launch—one that had been in development for years—postponed indefinitely due to her accident.
Was my absence that impactful that they halted the entire launch?
Shhhk.
Huh?
As she stared blankly at an incomprehensible document, Seung-eon noticed three folders that Secretary Chu had quietly placed in front of her.
“What’s this?”
“They’re the reports you asked for,” Chu responded.
“Why are there three files?”
“Because it wasn’t just one person.”
“What?”
“During your secret relationship period, I suspected not one, but three men of being your boyfriend.”
It was hard to believe.
Until just before losing her memory, she had never even dated anyone. And yet, her most trusted aide believed she was romantically involved with three different men?
Was I that promiscuous?
Unable to hide her shock, Seung-eon looked down.
“Jeong Hee-do?”
The first file listed Jeong Hee-do—LOOKIN’s No. 2 and her longtime friend—as a suspect, along with Secretary Chu’s reasons:
[LOOKIN Executive Director Jeong Hee-do (34)]
The only male friend you’ve kept close, despite your condition.
Repeatedly turned down HG’s offers to leave LOOKIN and stayed loyal to the company.
Very close with Woo-jin.
Participated in beta testing.
Beta testing?
Some points were strange, but most seemed obvious. Seung-eon chuckled.
“Hee-do and I have been friends for years… You remember that, right?”
“I do.”
“…Haah.”
“Would you like to see the next file?”
Annoyed but curious, Seung-eon flipped open the second folder.
[LOOKIN Marketing Manager Yoo Hyun-joon (32)]
Junior from your university (Daehan University), same as Jeong Hee-do.
Loyal colleague since your CEO appointment.
Gets along well with Woo-jin. Has gone to theme parks with you.
Participated in beta testing.
“Yeong-eun?”
“Yes?”
“You know how long I’ve known Team Leader Yoo, right?”
“Yes.”
“Even though I’m uncomfortable around men, both he and Director Jeong are basically like same-gender friends to me. You know that too, right?”
“I do.”
The idea that her most trusted aides were being suspected as her secret lovers—just because she trusted them—was ridiculous.
This was going too far.
She was about to protest, but stopped when she felt Secretary Chu’s intense gaze urging her to read the final file.
Who the hell is the third one?
Seung-eon, skeptical of every name so far, froze the moment she saw the photo in the last folder.
“…This is real?”
“Yes.”
“You’re joking, right?”
She shook the third file in disbelief.
“With Hee-do and Hyun-joon, sure, I had lots of interaction. But this—”
Fwwp.
A photo slipped out of the file and landed on her desk. Seung-eon picked it up.
“You’re saying… Seo Yi-soo? Not just anyone—but Team Leader Seo Yi-soo from Development Team 3?”
Seo Yi-soo.
A living embodiment of gloom and awkwardness. Tall and broad-shouldered, always wearing dull plaid shirts in different colors. Never styled his long bangs, never made eye contact. And always behind thick-rimmed glasses.
“You’re Seo Yi-soo, right? Nice to meet you. I’m Kang Seung-eon from LOOKIN. I’ll get straight to the point. Come work with us. I’ll make sure your dream game gets made.”
It was exactly a year ago—just before LOOKIN launched a new project—that she recruited him after hearing he was a standout talent in grad school.
He had rejected offers from nearly every famous IT company. Surprisingly, he said yes to Seung-eon.
And yet—
“How’s the company?”
“…”
“I asked Director Jeong and the team to pay special attention to you. If there’s anything—”
“Nothing.”
“You’re not uncomfortable around me, right?”
“No. Then, I’ll take my leave.”
“Oh… sure. Okay.”
She tried being friendly, but all she ever got were one-word answers.
“That guy’s a bit…creepy, isn’t he?”
“Team Leader Seo is skilled, but yeah. Not easy to talk to. Even for a developer, he’s really withdrawn.”
Even after she brought him on board, they had exchanged nothing but work-related conversation.
“Pfft.”
The photo she held showed them together at a LOOKIN workshop.
She was smiling awkwardly, while Seo Yi-soo leaned away, clearly uncomfortable being in the same frame, making every effort not to touch her.
“Ha! Chu, did you see this photo? Hilarious, right? I’m the one with the condition, but it looks like he’s more disgusted by touching me than I am with him.”
She had laughed when she first saw it.
There are plenty of men in this world.
Even if her condition were suddenly cured one day, there was one man who could never be her boyfriend—
“Definitely not Team Leader Seo.”
Kang Seung-eon was certain.
