By Zephyria 
It had already been a month since Kwon Young-je and Seon Woo-jin’s contractual relationship ended.
Because the reason for their breakup was somewhat cliché, public interest quickly waned, and the rumors about Kwon Young-je’s impotence also disappeared. All the gossip and scandals were nothing more than a simple happening. Just when everyone thought things were returning to normal, who would have guessed that a bombshell would drop on their smooth daily lives?
The incident occurred on Wednesday morning. Head of department Yeom from the Patent Strategy Department came to see Executive Director Kwon with a face that looked like he was about to faint.
“Executive Director, may I have a moment of your time? I have something urgent to report regarding the new drug patent.”
The man, usually known for his sky-high pride, was trembling, and Hui-won sensed that something urgent had happened.
Executive Director Kwon was currently on a call with an overseas branch. And a meeting was scheduled in thirty minutes. Ignoring the tight schedule, the urgent matter had to be conveyed first.
“Secretary Lee, hold the 3 o’clock meeting for a moment. Tell them it might be canceled.”
“Yes, General manager.”
Hui-won gave the instruction and returned to his desk, quickly scribbling a note. Head of department Yeom, who was standing in the middle of the office waiting, swallowed hard and kept looking at Hui-won.
Then, holding the memo, he entered the office. The knock was light.
Inside the space, which was clean to the point of being obsessive, sat a man whose presence was greater than anyone else’s, in an upright posture. Amid the silence, a low voice mumbled in English.
Executive Director Kwon held a cell phone in one hand and lightly tapped the edge of the desk with the other, continuing the conversation with the person on the other end of the line. Because it was a work-related call, his tone was consistently serious and stiff.
Hui-won quietly approached him. As he placed the memo on the desk, a nonchalant gaze touched Hui-won’s face before dropping down.
Kwon Young-je imprinted the neat handwriting in his eyes before covering the memo with his palm. Veins bulged on the back of his hand.
“I apologize, but something unavoidable has come up, making it difficult to continue the call. Yes, I’ll call you again at the same time tomorrow.”
As soon as he finished the call, a sharp gaze flew and landed on his face. Hui-won read the meaning and immediately turned around. As he opened the office door, Head of department Yeom quickly stepped inside.
The situation was more serious than expected. A security breach had occurred in the R&D team, which was in charge of new drug research and development.
“The Zeus side has already applied for a patent.”
Head of department Yeom confessed the details of the accident, feeling remorseful.
That morning, as usual, the patent team was reviewing updated information from the Patent Office when they discovered a competitor’s new drug patent.
It looked familiar. The compound in question was developed through the apex R&D team’s independent research, and it was soon to be made into a next-generation drug. Not only was a huge investment cost involved, but the long-term project had taken nearly a year to complete in initial research alone.
Competitors could create similar substances, but in this case, it was a perfect, identical compound with the same chemical structure and ingredients. It was something that could not have happened unless someone had passed on the research data.
After hearing the report, Kwon Young-je pressed his temples for a moment. His jaw muscles were clearly protruding as he clenched his teeth tightly. He was currently suppressing his anger with all his might.
It was hard to believe that such a mistake could happen in a large pharmaceutical company where the best experts in the country were gathered, not a small business.
An icy glare was fixed on Head of department Yeom. Unable to meet his gaze, Head of department Yeom lowered his head and bit his lip.
“Who is the leaker?”
“We are currently investigating. There are a few suspected individuals, but we cannot speak rashly because the evidence is not clear…”
“So, are you just waiting with your hands tied? Do you think this makes any sense?”
At the cold rebuke, Head of department Yeom bowed deeply. In response, Kwon Young-je tilted his head back and muttered a curse under his breath. The corners of his eyes trembled slightly. He was barely suppressing his anger, but he looked furious enough to turn his head upside down.
“Immediately convene an emergency meeting… no, I’ll go directly to the research center.”
Kwon Young-je threw himself up from his chair. As he grabbed the jacket hanging on the coat rack, he glared fiercely at Head of department Yeom.
“Tell the legal team and the Patent Strategy Department staff to be on standby. Head of department Yeom, you come down with me.”
“Yes, Executive Director.”
In the meantime, Kim Hui-won contacted the driver to have the car prepared. Going down to Daejeon, where the research center was located, and coming back would mean that all of today’s schedule would have to be postponed. Busily assisting Executive Director Kwon, he began to prioritize the tasks that needed to be resolved immediately in his head.
“……”
Then, he happened to glance at Executive Director Kwon’s face. So, this is the expression he makes when he’s really pissed. Faced with Kwon Young-je’s anger, which he was seeing for the first time, his throat tightened for no reason. He could only swallow silently.
* * *
Apex had become a complete mess, to put it mildly. Kwon Young-je visited the research center in Daejeon to directly grasp the situation and reconfirm the fact that confidential information had been leaked.
From then on, the company went into emergency mode and ran breathlessly. Starting with the search for the leaker, lawyers and patent attorneys who were said to be the best of the best gathered to come up with countermeasures.
It was a series of long meetings. Moreover, if this fact were leaked to the outside world, it could have a significant impact on the stock price, so everyone strictly kept the secret.
Since the day the incident occurred, Kwon Young-je had completely abandoned his personal life and was tied to the company.
The secretarial staff was also suffering along with the Executive Director, who was not even eating or taking breaks. Everyone was on high alert and carrying out their support duties, as even the slightest mistake could lead to severe consequences.
Aside from being busy, Executive Director Kwon’s mood was at its worst. It was clear that his stress was peaking.
Despite it being April, the office was as cold and harsh as if a blizzard was blowing. Everyone was holding their breath, watching carefully. In response, Kim Hui-won was more attentive to Executive Director Kwon than usual, with his senses heightened.
A week after the leak, he was still working late today. Even though it was past three in the morning, the lights in the Executive Director’s office were still on.
Hui-won was alone in the office, tidying up the desk. Every day was like walking on thin ice, so it was only natural that he was exhausted as well. But it was at times like these that he had to tidy up his surroundings and steel his heart.
Hui-won rested his elbows on the neatly cleaned desk and supported his chin with his clasped hands. He blinked his heavy eyelids and stared at the office. Kwon Young-je, who didn’t seem tired, was reviewing documents with the same upright posture for hours, as reflected through the glass window.
He had stayed up all night last night as well. Unlike Hui-won, who had taken breaks in between shifts with another secretary in the morning, Kwon Young-je had been awake for over 40 hours.
I wonder if he’ll get sick at this rate? Even if he’s a Dominant Alpha, he’s not an iron man. But somehow, I’ve never seen him even yawn once.
“Seriously, his stamina is amazing.”
As he muttered to himself and twisted his waist, the chair turned to the side. Hui-won slyly lowered his arm and opened the secret drawer next to the desk.
The bottom drawer was full of survival items. From red ginseng sticks to fatigue recovery drinks, high-dose vitamins, and even stimulants to take when he felt like he was about to die from sleepiness.
Hui-won took out an energy drink containing high caffeine and secretly took a sip. Now that he was in his thirties, working all night was not easy. Kwon Young-je must be the same…
With the soda can to his lips, he glanced at the wall clock. I have to get him home today no matter what. I might get scolded, but it’ll be a bigger problem if he collapses.
As he made a grand plan on his own, his sleepy eyes were filled with energy! With that momentum, he shook out the remaining drink.
He also took a fatigue recovery drink for Kwon Young-je and got up. After roughly tidying up his clothes, he lightly knocked on the office door. There was no response, but Hui-won opened the door and went inside on his own.
Due to the repeated high-intensity work, Kwon Young-je was also in bad shape. Not only was his tie loosely loosened and his shirt wrinkled, but the desk, which usually boasted a knife-like precision, was also extremely messy.
The dark circles under his eyes proved that he was a human, not a robot. Kwon Young-je glanced at his personal secretary, who had entered without permission, and then focused on the call again. Instead, his expression became even more fierce than before.
It was one of Kwon Young-je’s habits. When he was under a lot of stress, he would always frown like this, wrinkling his forehead.
Hui-won quietly approached and placed the fatigue recovery drink where Kwon Young-je’s gaze could reach. And without a word, he began to clean up the messy desk.
“I know what Lawyer Park wants to say. But that doesn’t mean I have to consider his circumstances, does it?”
Fatigue was evident in his hoarse voice. Hui-won listened to the phone call with one ear and sighed. What a dog’s life this is. Both he and Kwon Young-je, and the lawyer who was receiving calls at three in the morning, were all pitiful.
“Forget about trying to persuade me. Do you think I’m staying up until this hour to have such wasteful arguments?”
Kwon Young-je loosened his tie with a touch of annoyance. As the loosely tied tie was thrown, Hui-won quickly rolled up the tie that had fallen on the floor and took it. The messy desk was already neatly cleaned up.
“Okay, let’s discuss it again when I come to work tomorrow. Summon the legal team lawyers and have them come to my office by 9 o’clock.”
When the call ended, the office became frighteningly silent. Kwon Young-je was still frowning, holding his forehead. He was so stressed and exhausted that he didn’t seem to have the energy to do anything right now.
It was understandable. He was a methodical and thorough person in everything, and he extremely hated mistakes in his work.
In particular, this incident seemed to have significant repercussions. Wasn’t the project he had put so much effort into in danger of being overturned because of the person who had fearlessly sold the company’s secrets? It was even more difficult to bear because his perfect career had been tarnished.
Hui-won couldn’t stand it any longer and approached him, carefully straightening the overturned shirt collar.
The broad back flinched at the touch of another person. But Kwon Young-je didn’t point anything out and leaned his head back in the chair. As if he didn’t want to lift a finger, he closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.
“Executive Director, why don’t you go home for today? Get some sleep and come back.”
He subtly hinted at his purpose. The face of Executive Director Kwon, which he checked out of the corner of his eye, looked like he could collapse at any moment.
Young-je, let’s go home. If you stay up all night again today, you’re really not human. Hui-won muttered inwardly and stared intently at his face.
…Huh?
But something was strange. Kwon Young-je’s skin seemed to be redder than usual. Hui-won, who had paused for a moment, reached out and touched the back of Executive Director Kwon’s neck.