Chapter 201
When they were talking about rings, he had dismissed it as his own sensitivity—attributing unwarranted meaning to something Eunseong hadn’t intended, out of his own insecurity. But looking back, Eunseong had avoided his lips twice even then.
The last incident, however, was so obvious that Eunseong had urgently avoided him. It had been an atmosphere that should naturally have led to a kiss.
To sit face to face like that, reminiscing about the time he had tried not to like Eunseong, and not to kiss—that was… inconceivable to Yoo Siwoon.
Though he hadn’t had many romantic relationships, Eunseong was the only one who troubled him so deeply. Yoo Siwoon had no memory of ever being rejected physically in his entire life.
Yoo Siwoon ran his hand through his hair and stared at his face briefly reflected in the car window. There was nothing particularly wrong with his appearance. Director Nam was looking strangely at Yoo Siwoon through the rearview mirror as he changed the angle of his profile in the car window, as if looking in a mirror.
“Surely you don’t think it’s because of your face?”
“I’ve never been called ugly in my life, but somehow today I feel unattractive.”
“It’s not about your face… I think there might still be some aversion.”
“Aversion?”
Director Nam was newly surprised by his complete lack of understanding. Whether it was because he had grown up brainwashed by the prophecies of the Yongse Pacheon Church his entire life, or for some other reason, even Yoo Siwoon, who was wary of their wrongdoings, couldn’t think normally about The Great Crevice’s pregnancy.
In Eunseong’s consciousness, physical contact with him wasn’t simply an act done out of affection. It was an issue connected to the anxiety of pregnancy. Moreover, since they had always burned Jeokdan incense during those times, Eunseong was undoubtedly avoiding it out of fear that such a thing might happen again.
Director Nam spared his words, trying not to interfere in their affairs as much as possible. In truth, he didn’t particularly want to help by pointing out Yoo Siwoon’s problem right away. He felt that Yoo Siwoon needed to suffer emotionally about this issue. That seemed to be the only way he would understand Eunseong’s position even a little.
“It must be aversion to the other half. Try doing anything after you’ve been forgiven for the other half too. I think it’s too early to feel disappointed now.”
“So that was the reason after all.”
“…”
He hadn’t anticipated this problem at all since Eunseong had kissed him first. Yoo Siwoon felt that the time until he could be forgiven for the other half seemed incredibly distant.
While Yoo Siwoon was lost in thought, the car stopped in front of the headquarters lobby. An attending secretary waiting there opened the back door. Yoo Siwoon got out of the car, leaning on his crutch. Director Nam was busy with both hands, gathering documents and a laptop. The attending secretary approached and took the documents from Director Nam.
“Good day, CEO, Director. The working team is waiting. We’ll start today’s schedule with your briefing.”
Employees were already seated in the conference room, which had been renovated with new interior design after clearing out the office Chairman Yoo had used. The screen in the conference room displayed strategic maps and market data that Yoo Siwoon was actively leading. There wasn’t even a shadow of the Yongse Pacheon Church remaining in the Seongha Group that he had transformed.
The meeting began as soon as Yoo Siwoon took his seat.
∞ ∞ ∞
“Will you be alright?”
Director Nam asked worriedly if it would be difficult with the crutch.
“This isn’t just useful for gaining sympathy; it has many more uses than you’d think. Especially for pressing elevator buttons.”
Yoo Siwoon lifted his folding crutch, which now looked as natural as if it were attached to his body, and used its tip to press the elevator close button. The doors closed quickly at the press of the button.
“I can handle it with the employees. There’s no need for you to go, CEO.”
“Director, you don’t know how to use the incinerator.”
“…”
“Have you ever used it?”
Director Nam bowed his head as if apologetic.
One of the executives from Seongha Construction who had worked under Yoo Oseon was causing problems. Executive Director Choi was instigating others, saying that Yoo Siwoon was an unbeliever who rejected the blue-yellow article and manipulated their god, and that they needed to find a new successor to replace him.
The two men drove to a cattle shed. The middle-aged man who had believed Yoo Oseon would become the successor and that the Seongha Group would eventually fall into their hands was being held by his hair by a security employee. Kneeling on the floor of the cattle shed that smelled of excrement, his face was flushed red with burst capillaries from how much he had been shouting.
Yoo Siwoon walked toward him, leaning on his crutch.
“How dare you! How dare an unbeliever like you! The god who came through a side path will throw you into a pit of destruction! You piece of trash! You will never see it! You will never see the brotherhood of all things!”
His body, with his hair still gripped, swayed as if staggering as he screamed at the top of his hoarse voice.
Yoo Siwoon gave a nod, and the employee released the man’s hair.
His body collapsed onto the dirt floor, but he immediately raised his head, emitting a glinting light from his eyes. Sharp eyes fearlessly glared at Yoo Siwoon, the traitor.
“There are no private houses within a 10km radius of this place. No one will hear you no matter how loudly you scream. The god who came through a side path certainly won’t hear you either.”
“What?!”
“Of course it won’t hear. Because there’s no such thing in the first place.”
“Don’t spout blasphemy! You’ve ruined everything!”
“I think I’ve done that quite well. Judging by how much of a fuss you’re making, Executive Director.”
“Do you think you’ll survive after this! Do you think you’ll escape divine punishment after this!”
No matter how much Executive Director Choi shouted, Yoo Siwoon didn’t even flinch. His only response to the high-decibel noise was a contemptuous grimace, as if his ears hurt.
Director Nam anxiously looked at the unusually cold Yoo Siwoon.
“It’s because there are still people like you who spout such nonsense that the company isn’t progressing.”
Yoo Siwoon, standing with his weight on one foot, raised his crutch. The tip of the crutch that had pressed the elevator button now pressed against the temple of Executive Director Choi, who was lying on the floor. A tearing scream burst from his mouth.
“Aaargh!”
“What a company needs to grow is numbers, not that nonsensical death article. Is that so difficult to understand?”
“Let go! Let this go! Urgh!”
“Pray sincerely. So that the god who came through a side path can hear you. I’m telling you to pray for your life. Surely your god should do something.”
“Ugh, aah! Take this away! Urgh!”
The lower part of Executive Director Choi’s neck shook violently as his head was pinned down, unable to move. As Yoo Siwoon pressed harder, the movement that had been groaning and squirming stopped at once, then began to tremble intermittently as if having a seizure.
He removed the crutch that had been pressing against the temple. Blood spread under the fallen Executive Director Choi’s head.
Director Nam asked Yoo Siwoon, who was frowning and rubbing the tip of his crutch clean on the dirt.
“He seems to have fainted. What should we do? Should we hand him over to Lee Joon-seung?”
“No. Since he wants to pray so badly, take him to a place where it works very well.”
His eyes pointed to the incinerator. The security employees lifted Executive Director Choi by both arms. They pushed his heavy body into the incinerator, dragging his two legs across the floor. To Director Nam, who was perplexed, wondering if this was really necessary, he said:
“You know better than anyone what kind of situation I faced because of their sloppy work. If we don’t end this decisively, we’ll have to do things we shouldn’t have to do.”
“…”
“Go buy us something refreshing to drink. This seems like it will take some time.”
Director Nam hastily left at the faint stirrings leaking from the incinerator. He fled to the car and quickly left the cattle shed.
“You’ve worked hard until late. Go home.”
“Yes, rest well.”
Yoo Siwoon got out of the car and walked slowly toward the house. The car carrying Director Nam receded behind him.
It was well past midnight. His house seemed even more desolate than the area around the cattle shed, where there wasn’t a single private home within a 10km radius.
It was quiet, suggesting Eunseong might be asleep. He took out salt and began washing his hands. As he was rubbing them until they stung, he heard a presence and turned around. Eunseong was standing at the kitchen entrance.
“What are you doing?”
“…”
He had his hands immersed in a bowl full of salt. It was a foolish superstition no different from waiting for the god who came through a side path or washing hands with salt to ward off impure energy.
“I’m washing my hands.”
“Why are you washing them with salt?”
“I’ve been to a funeral home.”
“Do you believe in such superstitions, ahjussi?”
“Is it strange?”
“Believing in such things is silly.”
“Now that you say it’s silly, I suddenly don’t want to do it anymore.”
He poured the salt into the sink and turned on the water. He washed his hands with soap. As he turned around, he came face to face with Eunseong, who had approached him closely. Yoo Siwoon hesitated.
“Does washing with salt make you feel less uncomfortable?”
“A little.”
“…”
“I can’t touch you with hands that have been to a funeral home.”
Eunseong’s eyes widened at the sudden remark. He wasn’t naive enough not to understand the meaning of those words.
The time they spent staring at each other passed like an instant of eternity. They were not the kind of relationship that needed to newly maintain a certain distance and be conscious of each other. They had a deep relationship. They remembered all the time they had spent looking into and tasting the depths of each other.
Knowing what Yoo Siwoon intended with such words, Eunseong averted his eyes first. With an ambiguously downcast gaze, he only looked at the hand marked with a cross tattoo.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
