By Zephyria “And, how is Chuncheon these days?”
Chuncheon meant Chuncheon Prison. It was where Myeong Do-hoon, the former CEO of UB Entertainment, was incarcerated.
For a while, Lee Hae-sung hadn’t even mentioned Myeong Do-hoon. Manager Kang had secretly wished for him to remain buried in Chuncheon like that. Not out of any pity for Myeong Do-hoon, but because he wanted Lee Hae-sung to be freed from that incident, from the vengeance for the dead.
“It’s the same. As I’ve reported, he is continuously being harassed by other inmates. It’s at a level that doesn’t constitute a problem, so Myeong Do-hoon’s reports or complaints are not being processed.”
“Oh dear, he must be suffering. How much he must want to get out.”
As sweat dripped from his chin, instantly reappearing after being wiped away, Lee Hae-sung’s gaze remained fixed on the distant mountains.
“Let’s start working on it soon.”
“……”
“Prepare a special pardon.”
“……Understood.”
A subtle anxiety flickered across Manager Kang’s face, which seemed otherwise unchanged. His wish for Myeong Do-hoon to remain forgotten in Chuncheon was apparently not going to be fulfilled.
Although he had a lot to say, Manager Kang kept silent about it.
“Are there any further instructions?”
“Let’s arrange for a leave of absence.”
“Yes?”
“Give me about a month off. Confidential, quietly.”
“……”
“So that I don’t have to come to work.”
It wasn’t a difficult task. Lee Hae-sung’s work wasn’t the kind that absolutely required him to be at the company. Nevertheless, Lee Hae-sung had always been diligent in his attendance. His policy was that the regular presence of the owner’s family alone could boost employee morale, and it had proven effective.
This was the second time Lee Hae-sung had requested such a long personal leave, as far as Manager Kang could recall. The second time since Choi Hong-seo’s death.
Even though he went to Bangkok, Thailand, Lee Hae-sung couldn’t personally attend Choi Hong-seo’s cremation. Upon returning to Korea, he took leave and confined himself to his villa in Okcheon. Therefore, Manager Kang couldn’t help but be concerned about this order.
“You’ll have to go to the US for the check-up, and as you know, Manager Kang… my health isn’t very good. I plan to rest in a quiet place for recuperation.”
Last night, Lee Hae-sung had carried the VIP from the parking lot all the way to the third-floor bedroom. Manager Kang had personally seen the VIP’s pale lips, his hair wet as if caught in the rain. He had also seen the body trembling as if suffering from severe chills, or as if possessed by a ghost.
“Why aren’t you answering?”
Lee Hae-sung answered Manager Kang’s probing questions cautiously.
“Mister Bird was worried.”
“About me? Ah, that I might not be able to sleep? But… what does that have to do with what I just instructed?”
As if annoyed by the sweat that kept trickling down no matter how much he wiped it away, Lee Hae-sung wiped his chest and lower abdomen once more, then carelessly draped his towel over the treadmill’s handlebars.
“Manager Kang, you don’t like the VIP.”
“I don’t have the authority to make such judgments. However…”
“However?”
“Since the VIP arrived in Bundang, it seems the Vice President hasn’t been taking care of his health, so I’ve been concerned.”
“Health… what a convenient word.”
Lee Hae-sung muttered, stopping the treadmill. As the machine slowly slowed and lowered its incline, Lee Hae-sung wiped away his sweat with a fresh towel handed to him by Manager Kang.
“Why, do I seem like a madman?”
“Vice President.”
“You told me to investigate whether there was an intention to approach me by imitating Choi Hong-seo, and now you’re saying I’ve settled in Bundang and am treating him exactly like Choi Hong-seo. Are you concerned about my mental health?”
“You are a person who distinguishes right from wrong better than anyone. I apologize if my words made you feel that way.”
“Should I just call the VIP Hong-seo outright?”
“I have overstepped.”
Manager Kang bowed respectfully and stepped back.
“Don’t look at that person too unfavorably, Manager Kang.”
Lee Hae-sung’s tone, which had been simmering with anger moments before, suddenly softened. Stepping off the treadmill, Lee Hae-sung placed a hand on Manager Kang’s shoulder. The hand of a man over 190cm tall with a well-trained physique was as heavy as his title and duties.
“You don’t want me to lose my center and run wild, Manager Kang.”
“……”
“If something happens to that person, this time it won’t end with me being confined to a villa.”
Lee Hae-sung squeezed Manager Kang’s shoulder once, then lightly shook it as if to encourage him.
“You have to pray that he stays healthy and by my side for a long, long time.”
Lee Hae-sung walked towards the shower room attached to the gym. To avoid waking Choi Hong-seo, who had been ill all night, he showered on the second floor and then went up to the third. He carefully opened the master bedroom door. It was midday, but the bedroom, with its blackout curtains drawn, was dim. In that darkness, Tiffany’s head shot up, her eyes sharp as she looked towards him.
Lee Hae-sung approached the bed, careful not to make even the sound of his slippers. He was still in his robe, without changing clothes, and his hair was not yet dry.
“……”
Choi Hong-seo was sleeping soundly, his face half-hidden by the white duvet. Lee Hae-sung, feeling a slight sense of relief, managed a faint smile, but his brow furrowed the very next moment. He bent down and placed a finger under Choi Hong-seo’s nose. Only after feeling the tickle of his warm breath on his index finger did he close his eyes for a moment and let out a sigh of relief.
He sat on the edge of the bed, looking down at the sleeping face with only his eyes and nose peeking out. Then, wanting to see more closely, he gently, gently pulled down the duvet covering his lips and lower face.
Tiffany, who had been curled up by Choi Hong-seo’s head watching Lee Hae-sung, suddenly sprang up. Nyaa. The creature adopted a defensive stance.
“What? You don’t want me to?”
Lee Hae-sung stroked its head and said in a low voice.
“You don’t have to protect him from me, you know?”
The creature turned its head as if annoyed, flicked its front paws, and tried to push away Lee Hae-sung’s hand.
“I worry about him and love him far more than you do.”
Lee Hae-sung found himself amused by his own words to Tiffany, and he chuckled, running a hand over his eyebrows. What was he even doing? He had pushed Manager Kang, asking if he seemed crazy, but he couldn’t deny that he had changed.
Tiffany padded softly across the plush duvet and placed her front paw on Lee Hae-sung’s hand, which was gently pulling down the edge of the blanket. It was a sign of disapproval.
“Even with all this, Hong-seo is sad that you don’t obey him.”
Stroking Tiffany’s paw on the back of his hand with his thumb, Lee Hae-sung lowered his voice further.
“You think your butler is cute, don’t you?”
Deciding that struggling with Lee Hae-sung was pointless, the creature opened its mouth a few times, licked its lips, and then returned to Choi Hong-seo’s head, curling up again. However, its gaze remained fixed on Lee Hae-sung. Ready to pounce if he made any rash moves.
In the dim light, he gazed endlessly at the sleeping face, never tiring of it.
Why had he thought this face was Yoon Hye-an?
How could he have failed to recognize it as Hong-seo?
Now, in Lee Hae-sung’s eyes, it was undeniably Choi Hong-seo. It wasn’t because his features were exactly the same as before. The appearance we recognize as someone isn’t about what their eyes or nose look like. It’s the unique expressions and gaze that move the features and give them life that truly define a person’s uniqueness.
The person sleeping before him was simply Choi Hong-seo, whose face had changed somewhat due to an ‘unexpected accident,’ to Lee Hae-sung.
Lee Hae-sung, who had been gazing at his lover with eyes full of affection and tenderness, brought his hand, still holding the edge of the duvet, to his lips and gently stroked the area around them.
“Baby, why do you keep getting sick? Hmm?”
He also stroked the tips of his eyelashes, which trembled occasionally.
“Tiffany isn’t even showing signs of ringworm… and the spots won’t disappear.”
He had received Tiffany’s fungal culture test results yesterday. The hospital said Tiffany was not infected. It wasn’t ringworm.
Lee Hae-sung bent deeply over Choi Hong-seo’s chest. He lay down on the body as if to apologize, but his chest only lightly touched the surface, careful not to press down. Still, he could feel the faint rise and fall of his chest. Choi Hong-seo was alive.
In the darkness, Lee Hae-sung lifted his face from his prone position. Tiffany, by the head of the bed, was still watching him. Resting his chin on the sleeping Choi Hong-seo’s chest, Lee Hae-sung reached out and stroked Tiffany’s face.
“You have to protect Hong-seo well. Don’t let him be taken away. This body belongs to Hong-seo now.”
Nyaa. The creature’s response sounded strangely reliable.
Lee Hae-sung stroked Choi Hong-seo’s cheek again with a faint smile.
“Hong-seo, this is absolutely not a punishment. How could it be a punishment when you and I have met again? This is a reward. A very big reward.”
Choi Hong-seo’s face looked peaceful, unlike someone who had suffered through a night of fever and delirium.
“I am the one who gives punishment. You said it yourself. That I am a demigod.”
The day Lee Seo-kyung was murdered in Bangkok, Thailand. That very day.
An idol group member who had attempted suicide by jumping from Dongho Bridge and remained in a coma for several months miraculously regained consciousness.
At the time, he hadn’t known, and even if he had, he wouldn’t have paid attention, but the current Lee Hae-sung was aware. That idol member was ‘Yoon Hye-an.’
Lee Hae-sung no longer considered it a coincidence that Choi Hong-seo had woken up in Yoon Hye-an’s body on the day Lee Seo-kyung was murdered.
And there was still one more human who deserved to die.
■