Byeon Heebong, hospitalized in a VIP room at Korea National University Hospital, exploded in rage as he watched the news.
“W-What is this?!”
“I’m sorry. We couldn’t stop it.”
Standing beside the bed with his head lowered was Lee Jongseong.
“How far has the investigation gone?”
“That’s... we couldn’t obtain any internal information. Every line has been blocked.”
“Even our people inside the prosecution won’t answer?”
“Yes. And I also received a summons.”
“What?”
Startled, Byeon Heebong whipped his head toward Lee Jongseong.
“You received a summons too?”
“Yes. They contacted me and told me to appear next week.”
“They already traced it all the way up to you? How the hell?”
“I think Ha Eunbin confessed everything.”
Byeon Heebong furiously frowned.
“How the hell did you handle this?! You should’ve just killed that bitch! Then things wouldn’t have gotten this big! You told me to trust you! You said you could handle everything!”
At Byeon Heebong’s furious roar, Lee Jongseong bit down hard on his lip while keeping his head lowered.
After glaring at the back of his head for a while, Byeon Heebong let out a deep sigh.
“Ha......”
For Byeon Heebong, giving up Guryong Village, which promised enormous development profits, was a devastating loss.
How much money had he poured into securing it? How much time?
And now he had to let it all go.
If he still had the land, that would be one thing, but even the land they once held had already changed hands. Worse, Choi Hyuk had run off with all the sale money.
If he tried to protect this project now, it could affect his other businesses as well.
Jungwon Development had been created solely for the Guryong Village redevelopment project.
If he abandoned only that, maybe everything else could still be cleaned up neatly.
After organizing his thoughts, Byeon Heebong spoke.
“Let’s abandon Jungwon Development.”
“Yes. I think that’s for the best.”
“You probably won’t get out of this clean either, will you?”
Without even looking at Lee Jongseong, Byeon Heebong continued speaking.
“You’ll take responsibility for everything, Jongseong.”
“Chairman.”
“I’ll make sure you get out within three years. Special pardon or whatever it takes. So you go in.”
Byeon Heebong intended to cut off the tail by sacrificing Lee Jongseong.
He had a feeling that if he ended up on the investigation line again this time, he wouldn’t escape so easily.
After silently staring at Byeon Heebong for a long while, Lee Jongseong finally spoke.
“...Understood.”
“Good. Once this blows over, next time everything will become yours. So trust me, Jongseong.”
“Yes. It’s thanks to your grace that I’ve come this far, Chairman. I’ll take full responsibility.”
“I’ll handle the cleanup outside. But organize things around you as much as possible beforehand.”
“Understood.”
After bowing his head in greeting, Lee Jongseong left the room.
Once he was gone, Byeon Heebong, now alone, spat out a curse.
“Tch. Damn it. I kept him around because he was clever, but maybe it’s time to replace him.”
Lee Jongseong quietly stared at the closed hospital room door before slowly walking down the hallway.
Late at night, when darkness had fully settled, he returned to the hospital.
“You’re here?”
Only one bodyguard remained guarding the VIP ward.
“Team Leader Kim. You sent everyone else away, right?”
“Yes. I told them all to go eat.”
“Thank you. I won’t forget this favor.”
“Haha. I turned off all the CCTV cameras too. Hurry and finish.”
Nodding slowly, Lee Jongseong walked toward Byeon Heebong’s room.
Standing before the door, he pulled a pair of leather gloves from his pocket and put them on.
Then he carefully opened the door.
No sound came from inside the room.
Walking to the bedside, Lee Jongseong stared down at Byeon Heebong for a long time.
Countless emotions swirled in his eyes.
How much time passed?
As though finally firming his resolve, Lee Jongseong took one deep breath and pulled out a small box from his coat.
Inside the box was a syringe.
Lee Jongseong inserted the syringe into the IV line and slowly pressed the plunger down with his thumb.
Soon, the rubber stopper reached the tip.
After injecting everything, he placed the empty syringe back into the box and once more looked down at Byeon Heebong.
He stared silently for a long time before finally turning away.
* * *
For the first time in a while, I had come out to the Myeongdong office and was reviewing documents.
That only lasted briefly.
The report that soon arrived shocked me enough that I immediately put the documents down.
“Byeon Heebong died? Is that true?”
Manager Ma calmly nodded.
“That old man was healthy as hell. Why did he suddenly die? What was the cause?”
“They say they still don’t know.”
If Byeon Heebong died, who benefited?
Dozens of names immediately came to mind.
Everyone connected to this gate became a suspect.
If Byeon Heebong opened his mouth, every last one of them would fall into hell.
The people already chosen as sacrifices had no reason to kill him.
His death wouldn’t overturn the board that had already been arranged.
“And Lee Jongseong? What’s Lee Jongseong doing?”
“They say he just arrived at Korea National University Hospital.”
“It was definitely Lee Jongseong.”
Above all else, the person who benefited most from Byeon Heebong’s death was Lee Jongseong.
Dead men told no tales.
Lee Jongseong only had to dump all the blame onto the dead Byeon Heebong.
“Investigate the movements of the VIP ward staff around the estimated time of death.”
“Yes. I’ll look into it immediately.”
“Ah, and secure the CCTV footage no matter what. Everything will be on there.”
“I’ll bring that too.”
After Manager Ma left, I sank into thought.
Human life really was impossible to predict.
Who could’ve imagined Byeon Heebong would die such a meaningless death?
I hadn’t even intended to drive him to death.
A short while later, Manager Ma returned with another report.
“Boss, all the CCTV cameras were turned off.”
“What? What about the staff?”
“They all supposedly went to eat during that time.”
“How does that make any sense? This isn’t just anywhere. The entire VIP ward was left empty so everyone could go eat?”
“They say the head of security remained behind. According to his testimony, nobody visited the room during that time.”
The picture fit together perfectly.
A dry laugh escaped me without realizing it.
“Byeon Heebong really had terrible luck with people. Isn’t it obvious? The security chief turned off the CCTV and let the killer in.”
“Should I investigate further?”
“What are they saying the cause of death was?”
“They suspect cardiac arrest.”
At the words cardiac arrest, my expression stiffened.
A strange sense of déjà vu hit me.
Someone dying of cardiac arrest without any symptoms whatsoever...
I tried not to think any further and gave Manager Ma another order.
“Dig into that team leader.”
“Yes. Understood.”
“And investigate Lee Jongseong’s movements during that time too.”
But before we could uncover everything, Lee Jongseong came looking for me himself.
The very next day, he appeared at Dreamhigh Korea without even making an appointment.
“Lee Jongseong says he wants to see you, Boss.”
“Ha... look at this guy?”
“What should we do?”
“Send him up. Let me at least see his face.”
A short while later, Manager Ma brought Lee Jongseong in.
Aside from looking slightly more exhausted and slightly more sensitive than in the photos, his impression was mostly the same.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Kim Muhyuk.”
“Lee Jongseong.”
We exchanged a brief handshake before I gestured him toward a seat.
Looking at Manager Ma standing behind me, Lee Jongseong spoke.
“Can we speak alone?”
“Just pretend Manager Ma isn’t here. Everything I hear, he hears anyway.”
As if he had only asked out of formality, Lee Jongseong simply nodded.
“I’ll hand over all the businesses Chairman Byeon Heebong was handling. Please stop here.”
Apparently having no intention of dancing around the issue, Lee Jongseong immediately threw a straight fastball.
Looks like he’s desperate.
I smirked and shrugged.
“What exactly do you want me to stop? You cut out all the context, so I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“I know enough. I know you’re the one who orchestrated all of this.”
“I don’t know who filled your ears with nonsense, but you’ve got the wrong person.”
“Everyone said the same thing. That someone named Kim Muhyuk is behind this entire affair.”
Where exactly had Lee Jongseong heard about me?
Someone connected to this gate must’ve told him.
Did they tell him to come beg me? That maybe I’d spare him if he did?
I simply smiled calmly without answering, and Lee Jongseong spoke again.
“I’ll hand over every business.”
“Do you even have the authority to do that?”
“Yes. Chairman Byeon’s will names me as his heir.”
That was news to me.
Was it a real will?
Or a forged one?
Unable to suppress my curiosity, I asked immediately.
“Is that real? Or did you make the will yourself?”
“Does that matter? What matters is that I have the authority.”
Even if he surrendered the business rights, Byeon Heebong’s wealth itself wouldn’t disappear.
I nodded slowly, then leaned forward toward him.
At the same time, the smile vanished from my face.
“But why should I?”
“Because otherwise I’ll drag you down with me to the very end.”
Instead of panicking, Lee Jongseong threatened me in return.
The sight made me burst out laughing.
If you came to bow your head, you should bow properly.
But instead, this idiot was baring pathetic little fangs and trying to threaten me.
What could be more ridiculous than this farce?
“Ah, sorry. That was just too funny.”
Pretending to wipe tears from my eyes, I watched Lee Jongseong’s face harden.
“What’s so funny? You think I can’t do it?”
“No. Even a rat cornered to death can bite. But whether that works on me is another story.”
“What do you mean by—”
“I don’t know where you heard what about me, but fine. Sure. I designed this whole thing. I admit it. So what? Why should I spare you? There’s absolutely no benefit for me.”
“The business rights—”
I cut him off.
“No. That gives me absolutely nothing. If I simply leave things alone, everything will naturally flow the way it should. So why would I go out of my way to save you? Give me a reason.”
“......”
“I heard you were good at negotiations. Doesn’t seem that way at all. In negotiations, you offer what belongs to you and ask the other side for something in return. Who negotiates by offering what’s already going to belong to the other person anyway?”
Lee Jongseong bit down hard on his lip.
He looked furious that he couldn’t refute me.
If time simply continued like this, all the various business rights Byeon Heebong held would be reassigned anyway.
Not just Guryong Village, but all the development projects scattered around Busan too.
None were as massive as Guryong Village, but they were still profitable projects once developed.
And every last one of them would end up in my hands.
“...What do I have to do?”
“The question itself is wrong. Don’t ask what you should do. Tell me what you’re willing to do. Then I’ll decide. Ah, before that, let me ask one thing.”
Lee Jongseong flinched under my cold gaze.
“You killed Chairman Byeon, didn’t you?”
“What are you—”
“Don’t lie to me.”
Lee Jongseong tried to respond, but I waved my hand dismissively.
“I hate lies. The moment someone lies to me, that’s the end. Even if it takes time, I always find out eventually. You bribed the security team leader, right? Had him shut off the CCTV. Then you personally went in and injected the drugs.”
“......”
“Who benefits the most from Byeon Heebong’s death? Anyone looking at it would say Lee Jongseong, the heir named in the will.”
“Does that matter?”
“Yes. I’m curious. Why did you kill him? You said you served him for decades.”
Lee Jongseong avoided my eyes.
“You killed the man you served over something like this? Why? Because Chairman Byeon told you to take all the blame and die for him?”
“...He told me to take responsibility for everything. So I killed him. To survive. If I know the Chairman, he would’ve killed me himself if that’s what it took to clean up this scandal.”
Even while confessing, he wrapped himself up like some kind of victim.
The moment I heard that, I lost interest.
“So that’s all your relationship was worth. Manager Ma. What about you?”
I asked the man standing behind me.
“If Boss told me to die, I could.”
“I would never say something like—”
“You should watch your mouth. Manager Ma isn’t someone who only runs his mouth. He proves things with actions. Don’t compare him to someone like you. It pisses me off.”
The icy rebuke shut Lee Jongseong up completely.
I quietly watched him in silence before leaning back into the sofa.
“Well, that answers my curiosity. Now let’s talk. What exactly are you going to do for me? If I spare your life, what can you offer me?”
Lee Jongseong only moved his lips without answering immediately.
I didn’t rush him.
I simply waited in silence.
After a long pause, Lee Jongseong finally opened his mouth.
