In a small, quiet coffee shop. As closing time approached, a woman who appeared to be the owner was busily organizing the trash bin, clearly signaling it was time to leave. But Seoyoung didn’t notice.
“What happened? Did my mother really… work at Bantech?”
Seoyoung’s suppressed voice came out with a slight tremor.
“Yes, she did. Though I don’t know why she quit.”
Moon Jeonghu calmly answered as he took something out of an envelope placed on the chair beside him. Then he silently put it down in front of her.
“What is this?”
“It was found on Park Inhye’s body. Fortunately, it was still in the police evidence storage.”
“…!”
Seoyoung’s heart sank at Moon Jeonghu’s words. She carefully picked up the bag to examine its contents. Inside the transparent ziplock bag, she saw an unfamiliar metal object. Its small weight alone gave her a chilling sensation—it was a bullet.
“…This is.”
“A bullet from the ‘Eunrok.'”
The moment she heard Moon Jeonghu’s words, her mind went blank. Against that whiteness, only the three syllables “Sa Kangjun” appeared clearly. Did he really kill her mother? She had lived with this high possibility, but part of her heart still doubted it. Back then, Kangjun was a high school student, and he had shown her mercy. She couldn’t imagine such a person being so cruel. Even after reuniting with Kangjun, she wasn’t certain. He was dangerous and unpredictable, but he didn’t seem cowardly.
But her mother’s past and the bullet in front of her proved it. Her mother’s death was definitely connected to Sa Kangjun. Either directly or indirectly.
“There’s probably a record about Park Inhye in Bantech’s archives.”
“Then I… need to check it.”
Tears welled up, but she forced them back. After 17 years, the door to truth was about to open—she couldn’t be weak now.
“What do you want from me?”
Seoyoung asked with clenched fists. Since he had given her what she wanted, the deal was automatically made. Moon Jeonghu answered with a serious expression.
“Information that could damage Sa Kangjun and Bantech.”
“You think I have that ability?”
Seoyoung countered with self-deprecating eyes. As a newcomer, the information she could access was limited, and if she was caught by the perceptive Sa Kangjun, she could end up dead like Jung Yongjin—or like her mother.
“That is a problem, but we have no choice. We’ll just have to wait for you to settle in quickly.”
“How long can you wait?”
Seoyoung asked dejectedly. Though his words were appreciated, she knew he didn’t have much time. He had mentioned having about a year left, hadn’t he? Meanwhile, it would take her at least two years to reach B-level clearance.
Moon Jeonghu silently looked at Seoyoung. In his colorless eyes was condensed the truth he couldn’t speak. Seoyoung thought she understood what he wanted to say but couldn’t. She had the same thought herself.
If not now, there would never be another chance.
“Fine. Give me time. I’ll try somehow to gain Sa Kangjun’s trust in a short period.”
“How?”
“Somehow.”
Seoyoung’s heart raced with urgency, making her previous determination seem lazy by comparison. Before So Yujung returned, before Shin Jihoon perfectly adapted to So Yujung’s responsibilities, she needed to catch Kangjun’s eye.
If she had known this would happen, she should have subtly responded to his teasing in the car. She hoped his behavior toward her wasn’t just a nasty habit but sincere. Whether she became Sa Kangjun’s woman or not, she needed a last resort.
“Call me if it gets dangerous. I’ll protect you.”
Moon Jeonghu said with a worried expression. But Seoyoung didn’t miss the expectation in his eyes.
***
When Seoyoung was young, she had to go to her maternal grandmother’s house before her tears had even dried from her mother’s death. Her grandmother’s house was deep in the mountains, requiring a long climb even from the village. It was an old house with a low roof, twisted wooden pillars, and doors covered with rice paper. Because her grandmother burned wood instead of wasting money on oil, Seoyoung had to live in front of the fireplace all winter. To go to school, she had to walk down at dawn, and if she missed the bus once, she was absent that day. Growing up in such a house, under an illiterate grandmother, her mother had been the pride of the village.
“If only she didn’t have that burden, our Inhye would have had a good life.”
Conversely, her grandmother and the village were things her mother wanted to hide.
“If only I hadn’t been born under your grandmother, if only I hadn’t grown up in that miserable mountain village, I would have been much more successful.”
Fortunately, the kind-hearted village headman often visited to check on Seoyoung and her grandmother. On birthdays or Children’s Day, he would give her new clothes, shoes, and school supplies, and when she missed the bus, he would drive her to school.
“That man used to have a crush on your mother back in the day.”
With her grandmother’s words, the headman’s exceptionally kind behavior made sense. Once, he invited Seoyoung and her grandmother to his house, saying he had bought pizza from town.
“Seoyoung, do you know the name of the company your mother worked for?”
“I don’t know.”
Seoyoung shook her head. Her mother had never talked about it, and Seoyoung had never been curious. Now that she was asked, she became curious for the first time.
“Oh, it was a good company! A huge company!”
Her grandmother said, drawing a big circle with both arms. The headman just laughed.
After returning home, before falling asleep, Seoyoung drew pictures. The first page showed her mother standing in front of a huge building. The next page showed that person etched in her memory.
“Does this person have black eyes or blue eyes?”
Her grandmother asked, bringing the picture closer.
“They’re black eyes, but they’re also bluish.”
The moment Seoyoung answered, her grandmother threw the picture away violently.
“Stay away from such people.”
“Why?”
“People possessed by spirits have a blue glow in their eyes.”
“He’s not that kind of person.”
“Then he’s even more frightening. Scarier than ghosts.”
“…”
“Remember grandma’s words. Being near such a person brings trouble, understand?”
I’ll run away before trouble comes. Once I know how my mother died.
Seoyoung slowly opened her eyelids. Looking at the clock, it was 6 AM. She had finally fallen into sleep just two hours ago after suffering from insomnia.
Despite her fatigue, she got up. She figured she couldn’t fall back asleep anyway, and if she did sleep now, she might not wake up, so it would be better to go to work. And there was something she wanted to check.
***
Perhaps because it was early, no one had arrived yet. Seoyoung brewed strong coffee, placed it on one side of her desk, and took a breath. Starting today, So Yujung would no longer be coming in.
Seoyoung turned on her computer, then absent-mindedly looked at Kangjun’s door. His room automatically unlocked from 7:30 AM to 7 PM. But when he was on a business trip, the door wouldn’t open, and when he had external appointments, Kangjun set the lock himself before leaving. Even for the secretary team, entering without Kangjun’s instruction was a clear violation of the rules. The only time a secretary could enter within the established procedures was to supervise the cleaning lady who came at 7:40 AM. In other words, Seoyoung could not arbitrarily enter that space, nor did she have the courage to do so.
As the familiar company intranet appeared on the monitor, Seoyoung habitually scanned her surroundings once more. Even though searching within her authority wasn’t wrong, her heart began to beat rapidly.
Clicking on the archives icon, Seoyoung placed her cursor in the search box. After hesitating, she typed “Park Inhye.” Immediately, the screen darkened, and a security warning appeared.
This document is accessible only to B-level and above. Your current account has C-level security clearance.
In that moment, there was a vivid feeling of her heart pounding heavily. Her mother’s records really existed. As Moon Jeonghu had said, she had worked in the development team here. Was her mother’s death really connected to Sa Kangjun?
This time, she typed something different.
Eunrok recipients
Eunrok – Special pistol made by Bantech
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
