By Zephyria 
Now the strange relationship was explained. So that was why the Executive Director had kept Son Pro around under the pretext of being a golf instructor. It might have been voluntary at first, but gradually, silent pressure must have been mixed in. Since most things flowed that way, it was easy to guess.
“But I really… only did what I was told! There’s nothing more to say, this is all! Y-you’re a p-professional, right?”
The reporter gripped his own chin, glancing around nervously. Gyu-oh, who had been listening with his arms crossed, shifted his gaze. It seemed they had heard everything worth hearing.
“Any evidence that he gave you orders?”
“I have it! It’s all on the phone, the cell phone. The one you took last time, I’ll give you the password…”
When they had thrown him into the basement, the first thing they did was take his phone, but he had held out, refusing to give up the security code. It seemed the bastard was finally in the mood to spill everything.
“Do you have the materials from the background check on the Executive Director too?”
“That’s in my office-tel. That, that was also provided by him.”
He even bought me a car, a shrinking voice added. It seemed Son Pro had filled his pockets quite a bit by slowly blackmailing the Executive Director and using T Corporation’s information for backdoor money. He was even able to buy cars worth tens of thousands of dollars.
“Then his approach to us was also to threaten us with articles and take backdoor money.”
“Yes, yes, but he said it wasn’t working well, so he suggested we just put a body in the construction site. I opposed that until the end! Really! I hate things like that!”
The reporter waved both hands frantically to emphasize his innocence. His eyes were red, looking as if tears were welling up.
“If you’d agreed to do that, you would’ve ended up as the body.”
“Huh?”
The reporter’s eyes widened at Min-ho’s words. Even in this situation, Min-ho had subtly taken his side, thinking, ‘He’s not the type to go that far…’
“Anyway, his liver has come out of his chest and is dragging on the ground right now. It’s a relief we broke his spirit. Otherwise…”
“…….”
Gyu-oh breathed a sigh of relief, calling it a stroke of luck. Though it was reckless, it was true that thanks to Gyu-oh, the matter hadn’t escalated or become seriously entangled. If a body had appeared at the construction site Won was in charge of, that would have certainly become a proper issue, and instead of contract acquisition, the entire company might have wavered.
“See. Even a blockhead catches a big fish while walking backward.”
“…….”
Min-ho felt a momentary pang of guilt for tying him up in the hospital and scolding him, but looking at the gauze on Gyu-oh’s forehead, he couldn’t bring himself to say he had done well.
“But, um… the things I’ve said, will they be kept secret?”
The man, who had spent a long time revealing Son Pro’s secrets, lowered his eyes anxiously. As soon as he said that, his gaze crossed with Gyu-oh’s. Gyu-oh’s lips moved silently, forming words.
‘Put him on a boat?’
In the past, Gyu-oh might have silenced him by sending him far away on a boat or erasing him from the world without a trace. But since he was still useful, there was no need to go that far. Or perhaps, there was no longer a reason to waste energy on such things.
“Stay downstairs for a few more days. Until things are settled.”
“In the, the basement?”
For now, there was no place safer than there. The man seemed to contemplate for a moment, then nodded. Meanwhile, Gyu-oh made a phone call. Then, he stood up and patted the reporter on the shoulder.
“We’ll make sure you’re fed three meals a day, so don’t worry.”
“Yes, th-thank you.”
The reporter bowed his head and thanked him several times. Not long after, the sound of a knock on the office door was heard.
“Come in.”
Gyu-oh answered as if it were his own office, and two Bulky Guys stepped inside. As soon as they saw Min-ho, they bowed deeply.
“They said the reporter needs to be locked back in the basement.”
“Yes.”
Gyu-oh forced the man up and pushed him by the back. The man hesitated but obediently followed the giants. Gyu-oh continued to give instructions to the back of their heads.
“Watch him well. Don’t bully him.”
“Leave it to us.”
One of the Bulky Guys gave a thumbs-up. It was a casual gesture, unlike how they behaved toward Min-ho. Once the two large men took the reporter by both sides and left the office, the interior became silent in an instant. Min-ho, staring quietly at the corner of the table, spoke.
“Why aren’t you leaving?”
Why did these words feel so strange? It felt as if he were speaking a foreign language.
“This is my spot.”
Shrugging with a meaningful smile, Gyu-oh clapped his palms together. As if he had no intention of getting up, he settled himself right where the reporter had been sitting.
“Ah, I guess I won’t have to meet that bastard much anymore!”
Min-ho’s gaze shifted to Gyu-oh’s hand as he swept back his hair. The area where the bones on the back of his hand protruded was entirely red. Just like the reporter’s bloodshot body.
“……Who.”
“Who else? Son Pro.”
The immediate answer was laden with deep emotion. Even though he had conducted a background check for a long time, he had never directly confronted Son Pro, and despite having met him only once in passing, he was incredibly hostile. It was surprising that a guy who was usually cold in human relationships, even if he pretended not to be, was acting this intensely.
“Well. We should let him know that we hold the cards too.”
How could they completely shake off Son Pro without affecting the contract acquisition? Min-ho leaned back into the sofa, lost in thought.
“What about siding with the Executive Director? Even if he’s being pushed around, Son Pro must be a nuisance to that old man.”
As Gyu-oh said, perhaps the Executive Director also found Son Pro’s existence burdensome. He might be catering to him because he didn’t know when the fact that he was an outside party would be leaked.
“That’s likely. Still, the Executive Director probably can’t cut him off first. Son Pro has proof that they share the same blood.”
“Proof? That can just be changed.”
It was something they would have done back when they were a gangster group, but in a situation like this, it was an ideal method.
“You mean make what Son Pro holds into fabricated information?”
“Yeah. If we push the narrative that he wasn’t an outside party to begin with, the Executive Director will turn his back on him too.”
Gyu-oh gave a short nod. Min-ho remained silent, deep in thought. Since the reporter, their accomplice, was in their hands, creating such a situation didn’t seem difficult.
Furthermore, if the Executive Director, the party involved, stood on their side, Son Pro would be cornered. Then he would try to break the situation even by doing something reckless. He would surely act extreme and impulsively, and if they handled it legally then, it would be a clean resolution.
“Sounds good. Then I’ll contact the Executive Director appropriately—”
“No.”
Gyu-oh cut him off abruptly and looked him straight in the eye. Despite it being a gaze they had met countless times, it felt strangely unfamiliar.
“The risk is too high for you, Hyung. And if that affects the contract acquisition, it’ll hurt your pride.”
“Then?”
“I’ll go alone.”
“…….”
Strictly speaking, Gyu-oh was right. If Min-ho stepped forward to bring the Executive Director to their side, it would feel like another form of blackmail to the Director. Even if they could win the contract fairly, it would feel unpleasant. It would be much cleaner if Gyu-oh stepped forward, pretending to have no relation to the company.
“I hated the idea of meeting Son Pro just to make a deal, so this works out well.”
“Stop talking about Son Pro.”
“What can I do if I hate the way he hits on you?”
“…….”
Perhaps that was his true intention. Though he claimed to be concerned about various situations, in the end, he just didn’t want to see Min-ho and Son Pro meeting.
“That bastard didn’t call you to a hotel or phone you while drunk again, did he?”
There were many people who interfered and pestered him as if they were in a relationship just because they had slept together once. Min-ho had cut most of them off before they could even try, and if that didn’t work, he used force to make them lose interest.
But to think Won Gyu-oh would be like this. He couldn’t suddenly ignore a guy he had lived with almost like a biological younger brother, and since there was a difference in strength, he couldn’t beat him up either.
“I did put a tail on you, just in case. It’s a cross-check.”
“……Hah.”
So that big guy monitoring him under the guise of a tail is still attached? The tailing skills must have improved, as he hadn’t noticed for the past few days. A pain, like his eyelids were being pressed, spread. He took off his glasses and pressed his eyes firmly with his palms.
“What. Does it hurt?”
A worried voice immediately followed. As soon as he felt the presence of someone rising from the sofa, Min-ho reached out. He held up his palm as if telling him not to approach and spoke. His eyes were still covered. It was much better to speak without looking.
“Don’t worry about it.”
“Still—”
“There’s no need to worry beyond this.”
He felt a hesitant movement. An unknown guilt seemed to tighten around his throat, but if he acted soft here, something like last time might happen again.
All of this was for the sake of Won Gyu-oh, who had been like blood to him.
“I have the right to worry.”
“Do as you’ve always done. Don’t act as anything more than a close younger brother.”
“……You know why I’m like this, don’t you?”
The problem was that he knew too well. Like most people, he was probably under a firm delusion due to a one-night mistake. The delusion that curiosity led by a moment of pleasure was actually affection.
“I know. But you’re not the type to cling to a mistake.”
“You probably just want to brush it off as one. I’m telling you, it wasn’t a mistake.”
No. That day was a clear mistake. He had been drinking, but he was definitely sober, and he wasn’t confusing dreams with reality due to pain like before. He had come up with various excuses, but crossing the line with Won Gyu-oh, who should have remained a close younger brother, was a definite mistake.
“How could that not be a mistake? You and I slept together.”
And one where Cha Min-ho’s fault was overwhelming.