By Zephyria 
As Yeon-rok’s eyes turned fierce, recalling the old grudge, Choi Hwan jumped up and ran away. No, he thought he ran away, but surprisingly, he soon came back with something. It was a doll from the same MarbleDino series, but it had a heart cushion. He shyly asked,
“Wanna have a friendship item?”
“What friendship item? Were we friends? Weren’t you calling me a lackey at one point?”
Choi Hwan was sweating profusely again, and unusually flustered, he desperately made excuses.
“I was just joking back then! We’re the same age. It’s, uh, just friendly banter between friends.”
“Trying hard, Choi lackey.”
“……!”
“Why? You said it was friendly banter or something.”
The defeated Choi Hwan sat dejectedly on the edge of the bed, watching Yeon-rok’s reaction. Yeon-rok snorted. Still, he didn’t feel too bad.
‘Maybe being a money-grubber is worth doing once in a while?’
He didn’t expect that resolving the issue with the problematic parents would improve their relationship like this. Suddenly, a question he hadn’t dared to ask before popped into his head. Yeon-rok hesitated before asking Choi Hwan,
“Have you ever heard about the ‘White Door Room’ from CEO Yeom Cheon-ho?”
The so-called Bluebeard’s Room that kept making Yeon-rok feel uneasy and uncomfortable. He had long wondered if Moon Kyeon-woo or Choi Hwan knew about this room as well. However, they weren’t close enough to ask such a thing, and even if he did ask, he didn’t think he would get a proper answer, so he had been holding back. Choi Hwan, who was fiddling with the doll, blankly replied,
“What’s that?”
“There’s only one room with a white door on the second floor. You know, the room that the CEO told us not to enter.”
Choi Hwan just stared blankly as if he didn’t know what it was, and Yeon-rok felt deflated. Was it a kind of trust test, and he was the only one who had been told? Thinking that, he felt a little sad. Tilting his head, Choi Hwan belatedly exclaimed,
“Ah! That thing? I think he said something about not going in because there’s a white door.”
“Y-yeah. That thing!”
“I opened that.”
What! He opened it even though he was told not to?! No, but still…… that’s just like Choi Hwan. A little excited, Yeon-rok moved closer.
“H-how was it? What was inside?”
As he leaned in, his eyes sparkling with curiosity, Choi Hwan suddenly blushed. He cleared his throat a few times before answering,
“It wouldn’t open.”
“……Really?”
Yeon-rok, who had been expecting an answer, was deflated once again. Choi Hwan shrugged.
“Yeah. It was locked, so I just forgot about it after that.”
What. He made it sound like he could open it if he wanted to, but it was actually locked? Yeon-rok was deeply disappointed. Choi Hwan got up and strode forward. Suspecting something, Yeon-rok followed, and sure enough, they were in front of the white door that Yeon-rok never went near. He grabbed the doorknob and turned it as if to show off.
“See. It won’t op—. Oh. It opens?”
Click.
The doorknob, which he thought would be locked, turned without resistance, and Choi Hwan paused. Yeon-rok screamed silently and jumped. Choi Hwan looked at the doorknob with curious eyes and then, before anyone could stop him, burst the door open. He scanned the inside and strode in. Yeon-rok exclaimed in surprise,
“Hey! You weren’t supposed to go in.”
“What, don’t act like a prude. ……There’s nothing special? Come on in.”
Hesitating and glancing around as if no one was there, Yeon-rok finally succumbed to curiosity. He walked hesitantly and peered through the door that Choi Hwan had opened. And then he relaxed.
“There really is nothing special.”
The inside of the room was completely empty. If there was anything unique, it was the red carpet in the middle of the room, the platform whose purpose was hard to guess, and the table across from it. Choi Hwan snorted.
“I think Yeom Cheon-ho is a bit weird. Going to the trouble of playing these kinds of pranks.”
But Yeon-rok couldn’t agree with Choi Hwan’s words. Why did he hear the noise of several people in this room? What did Yeom Cheon-ho do in this unremarkable room late at night? Yeon-rok’s gaze, which had been looking around the room in detail, fixed on the red carpet. There was a part that looked particularly dark, so he subtly pushed the carpet with his foot and lifted it up.
A strangely fishy smell wafted up, revealing dark red, dried bloodstains.
Even though Yeon-rok found the bloodstains, Choi Hwan didn’t think much of it.
‘What bloodstains? He probably spilled some spicy sauce. Or maybe he had a nosebleed there.’
Yeom Cheon-ho was already overworked and lacking contact, so the nosebleed explanation sounded plausible. Choi Hwan glanced around the room once and then completely lost interest. This surprisingly bold…… no, indifferent personality was almost enviable.
Yeon-rok also tried to ignore it, following his example, but it didn’t work. Not long after confirming the Bluebeard’s Room, Yeom Cheon-ho summoned Yeon-rok through Secretary Kim Jeong-seong.
“Yeon-rok-nim? Is there anything bothering you?”
Kim Jeong-seong looked puzzled as Yeon-rok fidgeted all the way to Yeom Cheon-ho’s study. Yeon-rok quickly stammered,
“It’s nothing. My legs are just a little numb from sitting for too long.”
“You should stretch from time to time for your health.”
Giving sincere advice, Kim Jeong-seong knocked on the study door. When permission to enter was given from inside, he kindly opened the door as well. Yeon-rok swallowed hard and entered the study.
Unlike the exterior, the interior of this house was decorated brightly and cheerfully. But this place, Yeom Cheon-ho’s study, was different. First of all, the color of the furniture was dark, and the atmosphere was heavy, perhaps because sunlight was thoroughly blocked to protect the books. Or maybe it was because of the owner’s atmosphere. Yeom Cheon-ho, who was constantly flipping through documents, gave a gentle eye smile.
“Yeon-rok-ssi, thank you for coming. Since we live in the same house, it would be better if I went to you directly, but as you can see, I’m a bit busy…….”
“Well, I’m always free. Someone with leisure should come.”
Yeon-rok clicked his tongue in pity at the sight of the mountain of documents. Yeom Cheon-ho was literally grinding himself to work. Do all company CEOs live like that, overworking themselves? He couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. If he had to work like that every day in exchange for earning a lot of money, Yeon-rok would rather earn less.
“I’m sorry. Just wait a moment, please.”
Even after seating Yeon-rok, he devoted himself to work for a few more minutes before finally taking a break. Kim Jeong-seong quickly brought in fresh tea. Yeom Cheon-ho took a sip of tea to moisten his throat, but his voice was lower than usual.
“I heard you’re working hard at exercising under the guidance of the bodyguards these days. That’s a really good thing.”
Hearing praise from Yeom Cheon-ho felt like having a consultation with a teacher. Yeon-rok couldn’t understand why Moon Kyeon-woo treated him like a child and an idiot. But he could somewhat accept Yeom Cheon-ho doing that to him. He was the oldest, and strangely, this man exuded a seasoned atmosphere that had gone through all sorts of hardships.
“Also, you can go back to the knitting group from next week.”
“Wow. That’s a relief. Then that person is, uh, ‘taken care of’?”
Even though he tried to express it indirectly, considering who the other person was, Yeom Cheon-ho, the son, used a ruthless tone.
“I haven’t been able to handle it perfectly. It’s really troublesome. From a few years ago, he’s been slipping away like a loach and secretly plotting.”
Whatever the circumstances, it was clear that Yeom Cheon-ho had quite negative feelings towards his father. No matter how much he tried to hide it with a gentle voice and actions, there were bound to be emotions that inevitably showed. Yeon-rok could only say this.
“I hope it works out…….”
“Thank you for your concern, Yeon-rok-ssi.”
Yeon-rok felt awkward as he received polite thanks for doing nothing much. Unlike Moon Kyeon-woo or Choi Hwan, this person was difficult to understand the more he knew him. It was hard to guess what he was thinking. Finally, Yeom Cheon-ho brought up the purpose of summoning Yeon-rok.
“Actually, there’s something troubling, so I’m going to ask Yeon-rok-ssi for a difficult favor.”
“Tell me anything! I’ll help you as much as I can!”
Thinking of doing anything he could, just like when he helped with the paperwork at Yeom Cheon-ho’s company last time, Yeon-rok answered vigorously. Apart from the uneasiness in his heart, he had great affection and gratitude for Yeom Cheon-ho. He had received too much to distance himself from the other person based solely on suspicion. Above all, he was a Name partner, so he believed that he wouldn’t do anything that would harm him.
“It’s really reassuring to hear you say that, Yeon-rok-ssi.”
“You’ve always helped me, CEO.”
As Yeon-rok answered that, the other person’s eyes were subtle. They seemed somewhat apologetic, which made him puzzled. Yeom Cheon-ho closed the laptop that had been subtly blocking his view. Yeon-rok’s gaze naturally turned to his arm with the sleeves rolled up. Whether it was natural or he made time to manage it even in the midst of this busy schedule, the muscles in his forearm were thick.