“You must have been surprised that I called you so suddenly. Relax and have a seat.”
Sa Kangjun, who had already taken the head seat, smiled and pointed to a chair diagonally across from him. “Yes,” Seoyoung replied softly as she sat in the chair he indicated. Kangjun smelled of gunpowder. Though it was masked by cologne, Seoyoung was certain, having frequently visited the experimental wing at her previous company.
“Our Director So recommended you. Now that I see you in person, I can understand why.”
“Thank you for your favorable impression.”
Her voice came out more respectful because of the strange lump in her throat. She took in every detail of him—the man she had desperately wanted to meet yet found difficult to face directly. The perfect suit fit revealed the firmness and strength of his concealed physique. His dignified attitude and manner of speaking, his moderate smile and disciplined movements. If in his youth he had exuded the uncontrolled power of a male predator, now he naturally emanated a refined intimidation. Had it not been for those dark blue eyes, she might not have recognized him. His profession, his aura, even his gaze—everything was exactly as she had imagined. Involuntarily, her eyes drifted to the display case again. A silver pistol with a smooth body and wooden grip caught her eye. She thought it resembled Sa Kangjun. Beautiful but dangerous—something that shouldn’t be kept close.
“What? Do you like that?”
Though she had only glanced at the gun briefly, Kangjun didn’t miss it and asked.
“Ah, no. I just thought it was pretty, like a decoration.”
“Pretty? Do you know what that is?”
“The Eunrok, isn’t it?”
Seoyoung was confident but answered cautiously. The Eunrok was the first weapon Bantech had created with government approval to commemorate its founding. Only 10 were made, giving them exceptional value as collector’s items.
“You’ve done your research. It is a decorative piece, at least the one in there.”
A chill ran down her spine at his somewhat cryptic answer. Seoyoung quickly pushed away the memories resurfacing. She couldn’t afford to ruin this important opportunity by dwelling on distracting thoughts.
Kangjun picked up a tablet and muttered something.
Leaning back leisurely, Kangjun asked her:
“Yoo Seoyoung-ssi, what is your family situation?”
“I have a mother and a younger sister.”
“Three women together must be close-knit.”
“Ah… We’re on ordinary terms.”
“Ordinary terms?”
Kangjun repeated her words with a tilt of his head. Her hesitation was brief, and she had naturally disguised it as if she were thinking of an answer, but he seemed to have noticed that momentary awkwardness. Wanting to avoid unnecessary suspicion, Seoyoung briefly added:
“I was adopted. But they raised me well.”
“Ah. Must be a picture-perfect family.”
Kangjun nodded as if he understood. There was none of the shallow curiosity or superficial consolation that usually followed when she brought this up. That was comfortable, but strangely, the impression it left didn’t feel particularly good.
“What do you like? Objects, places, anything.”
“I…”
Something seemed to snap in Seoyoung’s mind. His questions weren’t on her list of expected questions. Even if she wanted to answer tactfully, she couldn’t readily respond without knowing his intention. Above all, Seoyoung had never thought about what she liked. Or did she even have anything she liked? Unable to stall any longer, Seoyoung carefully opened her mouth.
“…The library.”
“Why?”
“I liked being alone in a place where nobody paid attention to me.”
“Nobody paid attention to Yoo Seoyoung-ssi?”
Kangjun’s eyes narrowed. Then, as if finding it absurd, he tilted his head back and laughed.
“That school must have been full of idiots?”
“Pardon?”
“Or are you perhaps not very perceptive? It’s problematic if a secretary lacks perception.”
“I, I’ve never thought about it that way.”
What is this? His overall dignified attitude and gentle speech nearly made her miss the sharp mockery contained within. Even his playfully expressed words were delivered with weight, creating ripples in her heart. It was confusing how his apparent lack of concern for the rudeness of his words seemed so natural. The subtle vibration in her heart eventually began to shake her entire confidence.
“So how did you manage to date any boyfriends?”
“I didn’t.”
“And now?”
“…”
“I’ll take that as a no.”
“I haven’t answered yet.”
“If you had one, you would have smiled as soon as you heard the question.”
Kangjun’s words flew straight into her heart. It might have been a casual remark for him, but for Seoyoung, it was like discovering the answer to a difficult problem. What on earth is this? The direction of the interview was so unpredictable that she couldn’t maintain her balance. Seoyoung tried to change the course of the questions by looking directly at him and asking:
“Is that question necessary for the interview?”
“Did I offend you?”
“Not exactly… I just expected questions about my experience or practical aspects.”
“I already saw that in your resume and heard it there.”
Kangjun opened his tablet and pressed a button. With a whirr, one side of the conference room wall slowly opened to reveal a large screen. Captured in the frozen frame like a portrait was none other than herself. Kangjun must have pressed another button because the video began to play.
“I… I hope such a situation doesn’t arise. But if it does…”
The screen zoomed in. Her awkwardly shifting eyes, slightly trembling lips, and clenched hands were visible.
Looking at her ridiculous expression, Seoyoung wanted to snatch the remote from Sa Kangjun and turn off the screen. It wasn’t that she couldn’t answer, but it bothered her more that Sa Kangjun had been watching her.
Pull yourself together, Yoo Seoyoung. You’ve been doing well, so there’s no need to lose confidence. Surely Sa Kangjun hadn’t turned this on to trap her. After turning off the screen, Kangjun looked at Seoyoung again and said:
“Do you know something? The excuses of people who betray the company are always either love or family.”
“…”
“Our company particularly requires security. As the person leading this company, I have many things to protect and hide. My secretary may accompany me to external schedules and, if necessary, come to my home. But if I don’t know anything about you, I can’t judge how much I should show you, can I?”
Sa Kangjun’s smile faded coldly. There seemed to be a hint of mockery that wasn’t there before. It was his answer to her question about why he was asking personal questions. As if to say, with such profound reasoning, did she really think he’d ask out of personal interest in her?
Her face instantly burned. In reality, his questions weren’t complex or difficult, but she felt like she had ruined the interview by failing to answer and showing defiance instead. This man, both then and now, was comfortably observing Seoyoung from outside the grandfather clock, while she felt curled up inside it. Even more frightening was the sense that something ominous was approaching.
“CEO-nim, I, I just…”
Seoyoung urgently opened her mouth, but the source of her anxiety had already been revealed.
“Don’t stutter, Seo-young-ah. Just read straight through. Why can’t you do that?”
“Foot! N-no, foot, not foot, foot!”
The stuttering symptom that had developed when living with her mother. She thought it had disappeared, but it had been hiding somewhere deep inside, reappearing when the opportunity arose. Seoyoung finally closed her mouth without continuing. She felt like crying from the embarrassment. She would fail the interview.
“I’m, I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“For s-stuttering…”
“Why is that a problem?”
Kangjun asked with a puzzled expression. Seoyoung looked up with reddened eyes. His tilted head as he looked at her showed an expression that couldn’t understand her reaction.
“You stutter because you’re paying attention to me, not to yourself. Everyone does that, so I thought it was normal?”
“…”
“So you don’t need to worry about such things.”
Kangjun stood up. Is it over already? Seoyoung stood up after him, looking dazed. What’s with this man? How can he give such an arrogant answer with such a calm face? And why am I finding comfort in that brazen response? As her mind calmed a little, she thought that perhaps she hadn’t made a mistake. Maybe there was never an appropriate answer from the beginning because of how unusual this man was.
“Even if I do get a boyfriend, I don’t intend to date anyone who would interfere with my work.”
Regardless of the outcome, she had to end the interview properly. Embarrassing as it was, she wanted to recover points somehow.
“Yoo Seoyoung-ssi.”
Kangjun chuckled again.
“You’ve never been in love, have you?”
Or perhaps you are in love but don’t realize it, he added.
“It was nice to meet you.”
Having summoned Seoyoung, he dismissed her without hesitation.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
