Speak of The Devil

She took a few more steps towards the bed. Ignoring me as if I wasn’t even here, she addressed Jung Yiyeon.“Lawyers are talking about you doing something stupid.”“Something stupid?”“Deciding to release the perpetrator after what happened. If that’s not stupid, then what is?”“Huh… Why does Vice President Jung even care about it?”“This is a matter of our family’s reputation. You should be ashamed.”What is this woman even saying? Even as she looked at his injured cousin, her expression remained cold. And arrogant.“It was just a little fight between two guys. I said I don’t have a problem with it.”Initially addressed formally as Vice President Jung, Jung Yiyeon responded firmly in informal language. But she smirked as if finding the conversation amusing.“Do you think your family’s issues are solely yours? I said it’s about the family’s reputation. Do you think the conclusion will be different when Grandfather finds out?”This woman didn’t come to visit Jung Yiyeon at the hospital. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been so indifferent, not even asking about the injured person’s condition.“If you want to detach yourself from Eunha Group in front of your name, you should start by giving up your shares.”The woman, who had erased any trace of laughter, spoke with a tone that didn’t allow for any argument.“I consider it fortunate to handle it myself. If Grandfather had found out…”Only then did the woman’s gaze turn towards me. The area beneath her eyebrows was deep, and her thickly lined eyes resembled Jung Yiyeon’s. But the warmth in her gaze towards me was distinctly different.“How could that kid even stand a chance here?”The cold gaze implied that she and, no, they were of a different class.“Enough, and pull yourself together. I’ll handle this matter, so don’t do anything unnecessary.”“Shall we try it now?”“What can you do to talk like that? Why. Do you want to get married now?”“…!”“Granting Grandfather’s wish isn’t such a bad idea either. Why not give it a try?” At the mention of marriage, Jung Yiyeon remained silent. He just glared fiercely at his cousin, who seemed as if not a drop of blood would come out even if you pricked him.“If you’re going to do it, it’s better to do it quickly. What’s the point once the old man is gone?”With that, Jung Sangyeon turned away.I didn’t understand the dynamics between these cousins, or why Jung Yiyeon’s marriage was being brought up here. But I understood clearly that my brother’s fate now rested in his hands.“Just a moment…!”At my call, her steps halted. She turned her head slightly to look at me.An agreement needed to be reached. Mercy needed to be sought. I knew that much, but I didn’t know what to say. All I felt was the need to submit, even if just on my knees.But suddenly, Jung Yiyeon grabbed my wrist. I tried to move towards the woman, but my body wouldn’t budge. I turned to look at Jung Yiyeon. As our gazes met, he nodded slightly.“Take care of yourself.”With those final words, Jung Sangyeon walked away briskly. The sound of his high heels echoed in my ears, piercing through me like needles. It felt like my insides were being shredded. Suddenly, my mind went blank, as if I had just been in an accident. The feeling of despair shook me, as I could sense that things had taken a firm turn.“I-I…”Pulling me out of my panic was Jung Yiyeon. His grip on my wrist tightened, and I stared at him blankly.“Don’t worry.”Jung Yiyeon forced a smile. As he smiled like that, it almost seemed like this situation could be laughed off.“There’s nothing to worry about. Your brother will be fine. I’ll make sure he gets home within a few days.”…Lies. The word I couldn’t bring myself to say lingered on the tip of my tongue.“I’m just saying that, but covering up a violent incident is no easy task. But it’s okay. I can handle it all.”But even if I knew it was a lie, aside from believing, what other choice did I have?I freed my wrist from his grip. Jung Yiyeon tried to hold on a little longer, but eventually let go. With trembling eyes, I bit my lip.“…I’ll keep my promise.”“Yeah. So don’t worry and go in.”I truly couldn’t breathe under Jung Yiyeon’s smiling face, as if it were only natural. Despite feeling terrified and anxious, Jung Yiyeon’s attempt to reassure me brought a lump to my throat.“…I’ll go.”Unable to bear the frustration, I finally left. Leaving him there alone. I stepped out of the hospital room.I nodded to Manager Yoo Seokjun, who was guarding the reception, and then went straight out into the hallway.I felt lost about where to go. It felt like there was a deep, black crevice opening up under my feet, ready to swallow me whole. Was it because I had seen the figure in the newspapers in person? Everything felt surreal. Or perhaps I just wished this situation, where I felt powerless, wasn’t real.Still, even if it was just a simple assault case, I believed there must be limits to how far even a conglomerate could push things. I wanted to believe. Didn’t my brother also say so? That Eunha Group also wanted to quietly cover and move on from this incident.Struggling to compose myself, I shuffled along. Yet, I knew my destination was home. Since today’s visit was already over, I resolved to come back tomorrow to discuss the current situation. But was I unnecessarily worrying? I couldn’t possibly know. I was just confused. And scared.It was when I stepped out of the building. A chauffeur was waiting for me.“Lee Nan.”He wasn’t someone who usually spoke to me. He only spoke when he was asking for the destination when I got into the car.Unexpectedly, he uttered a surprising sentence.“Vice President Jung Sangyeon would like to see you.”The chauffeur took me to a secluded café located on the second floor of a building among the many cafes in front of the hospital. The deserted café, void of any people, was something out of a drama. As I walked towards the woman sitting inside, I couldn’t shake off the tension.“Please, have a seat.”She glanced at me briefly and I sat across from her.“Coffee?”“…I’m fine, thank you.”“Well, it’s not like we’re here for a cozy tea party.”Despite saying that, the waiter placed a cup of coffee in front of each of us. The aroma of freshly brewed Americano wafted up, but I hesitated to reach for it.Seated anxiously in front of me, she calmly enjoyed her coffee with an elegant demeanor. I wanted to snap at her for what seemed like a pointless gesture of summoning me here. But I couldn’t. I maintained my silence until she spoke.But then she turned the tables on me.“You look handsome, even the taste of coffee seems better.”Surely she hadn’t summoned me here just to chat over coffee about my appearance. Yet, her relaxed posture and critical gaze at my face quickly wore down my patience.“Why did you summon me?”“I didn’t summon you. Lee Nan called for me. I’m just giving you an opportunity.”It was a response to my desperate plea just before she left the hospital room. She left quietly then, but now, seeing me, it seemed she had something separate she wanted from me. That was what she referred to as the “opportunity.”“It was when Yiyeon was twenty-eight, right? Grandfather… I mean, Chairman Jung Pilwon, he got him a job at the hotel. It was part of the plan for the heirs to work in major subsidiaries to gain practical experience before eventually taking over as CEOs. But Yiyeon performed quite well. He’s smart, has a good sense of business, and he’s ambitious… Grandfather really took a liking to him among all his grandsons.”Jung Sangyeon reminisced about the past in a casual tone. But her words now were just setting the stage for what was to come.“If he was such a good grandson, he would have been placed in the position of hotel CEO and given a generous amount of group shares. You know how most large corporations control the company through inter-corporate investments, right? But now the hotel holds too much stake. I find it frustrating. No, it’s not just me. It’s all of us.”Only now did the thick fog seem to lift slightly. It was indeed an issue within the Jung family of the Eunha Group. Her earlier words to Jung Yiyeon about severing ties with the family through shares were her true intentions.“I believe that should rightfully come back to me. Even within the family, it’s uncomfortable to share what’s mine.”“…But I don’t think the Chairman will just hand it over. Don’t you need to hold onto shares to stand up against Vice President and other cousins?”“Indeed, you’re smart. Being beautiful and smart, how could I not take notice?”“I’m not sure what you mean.”“I’m talking about when you were assigned to the secretary’s office when you joined the conglomerate. It was because of my influence. Of course, you were one of several candidates at first, but your performance was quite decent, so you were shifted around and tested here and there. And seeing you perform well even under the critical eye of Jung Yiyeon, who can be quite difficult.”Could it be… I was nothing more than a chess piece on her carefully laid out board from the beginning? A shiver ran down my spine at her cold gaze directed at me. She faintly smiled at my piercing gaze.“Planting spies among rivals is something everyone does. In our household, it’s just that Yiyeon doesn’t. He’s a bit odd in that regard.”“…So, do you… want to turn me into a spy? Do you want me to monitor Chairman Jung Yiyeon’s every move and report back to you?”“It seems your relationship has become more entangled than I thought. While it’s common for a female secretary to get involved romantically, who would have expected a male secretary to get entangled in a romantic relationship?”“…Then what do you want?”“Affection is a very powerful weakness.”Her smile at the corner of her mouth deepened slightly.“Transfer all the shares Yiyeon has, all the stocks held by Eunha Hotel, to me.”A beautiful face. She was facing a bundle of hidden desires within it.It was something I hadn’t even imagined. If the person closest to becoming the heir of the group felt this sense of crisis, I couldn’t even begin to guess the amount involved or the scale of it.“…I can’t just hand them over.”Anxious and uneasy, I was undoubtedly on the brink of an emotional precipice. But even so, I hadn’t given up on rational judgment.If it meant holding shares significant enough to potentially control the Eunha Group, wouldn’t it be unreasonable to give up just because of me? While I may not have understood Jung Yiyeon’s ambitions, I knew what human greed was.“It seems like the shares Chairman Jung Yiyeon desires are the only effective weapon in this situation. If he holds such a weapon, Jung Yiyeon himself is the one to fight with it. He’ll resolve my issue by threatening and taking over the Chairman’s position.”Though I had only worked with him for about 8 months, I knew how Jung Yiyeon operated. If he holds a dangerous weapon, he’ll try to climb even higher. Even though he complains about the constraints from the cousins, the fact that he still holds onto those shares indicates he’s not without ambition.However, Jung Sangyeon, as if mocking me and Jung Yiyeon, smiled. Soon, her smile vanished, replaced by a haughty expression.“Lee Nan, I’m just considering using this chance to eliminate a small source of anxiety. The shares aren’t absolutely necessary.”Her casual tone wasn’t just empty talk.“It’s a fact that I’ll become the Group Chairman after my father. I just want a flyswatter to deal with the annoying flies buzzing around me. If what Yiyeon holds were such a great weapon, the war would have started the day a thirty-year-old took office as the hotel’s CEO.”She chuckled before continuing.“Let me tell you about how Eunha Hotel, just one of our subsidiaries, ended up with so many shares. There was only one thing our grandfather was dissatisfied with regarding our clever and talented grandson. That was the issue with men.”“…Issue with men?”“After seeing how reluctant his grandson was to see his potential suitors, we did some digging. It turns out Yiyeon is gay. That’s an issue our grandfather’s generation can’t tolerate, isn’t it?”Suddenly, memories from a few nights ago surfaced. Jung Yiyeon’s confessions echoed in my ears.“He made him get rid of the men he was seeing and promised him not to see any men in the future. That was the price for the shares. Though he had already ensured he wouldn’t meet any men before that.”He had talked about the powerlessness of not being able to keep the promise. Jung Yiyeon’s voice, hinting at a miserable and pride-damaging past, vividly echoed in my ears. Now, the scattered puzzle pieces fell into place.“As long as the honorary chairman still has expectations for Yiyeon, maybe Yiyeon could threaten me. If Yiyeon manages to get his hands on the shares the hotel holds, in addition to what our honorary chairman has kept away from his eldest son, my father may have to give up his chairman position.”She openly revealed her weakness. Of course, there was a reason behind her confidence.“By marrying a woman and having a child…”…Marriage to a woman. And having a child.From the moment Jung Yiyeon, who identified as homosexual, was involved, it became impossible. “If it comes to that, even if the honorary chairman has to resort to some tricks, he’ll give everything to Yiyeon. Of course, that means Lee Nan might have to resort to assassination, but being the mistress of a conglomerate chairman isn’t a bad deal, right?” My hand, clenched under the table, trembled violently.It was an insult of nauseating proportions. I didn’t know how many men hung around Jung Sangyeon, eager to become her lover, but I had never desired such a role.Yet, I was in no position to express my anger. She probably wanted to see how I’d react, deliberately trying to make me feel humiliated. Seeing my lack of response, a smooth smile returned to her lips. She truly was a despicable woman.“Since you’re smart, you understand the difference in status between Yiyeon and me, right?”In the end… If Jung Sangyeon intervened, it meant that no matter how hard Jung Yiyeon tried, my brother couldn’t be saved. He would stand trial and receive an unfavorable verdict.“Perhaps a few years in prison wouldn’t be too bad, considering that the sentence for assault isn’t that severe, don’t you think?”Even though my face turned pale and my venomous energy waned, Jung Sangyeon didn’t relent.“The assailant has a record of involvement with a violent organization. Moreover, the loan shark business he’s currently engaged in has too many illegal elements… He’s even associated with a suspicious contractor. Despite vehement denials that the contractor is connected to any violent organization, why did they all go to the villa together?”Continuing to speak despite my silence, she pressed on.“Attacking security guards gathered to protect the property, unauthorized entry onto the premises, and on top of that, Jung Yiyeon, a member of a conglomerate, was caught in such a situation. Do you think this can still be treated as a simple assault case?”“I… won’t just sit still. I’ll testify that I was held against my will, and my brother came to rescue me.”“Haha, Lee Nan, you’re so naive. My cousin’s gay, so I kidnapped you. Do you think anyone will believe that? You might as well start preparing for a psychiatric evaluation, Lee Nan.”“…”“More importantly, the prosecution is crafting a very compelling scenario. Why was the assailant’s brother present at the former employer’s villa? Perhaps… the collaboration between brothers wasn’t just for show in turning Jung Yiyeon, the third generation of the Eunha Group and the manager of Eunha Hotel, into that state?”What…? I doubted my ears. With a look of astonishment on my face, she laughed lightly.“The assailant’s brother, who was severed for inappropriate reasons, harbored ill intentions towards the victim. That’s why he resorted to blackmailing the victim with business secrets he learned during his tenure as a secretary.”“What…!”“But when the conversation didn’t unfold as desired, he contacted the brother who leads the organized crime syndicate.”“That’s absurd! Do you think it’s possible to cover the sky with the palm of your hand?”“If you’re curious, you could give it a try. Being summoned by the prosecution might even be quite an enlightening experience.”I was flabbergasted. How nice it would have been if that relaxed demeanor looking at me was just a facade.But on the other hand, if you were a conglomerate, it seemed possible to manipulate prosecutors as you pleased. There was no doubt that there was enough money and power to manipulate the prosecution.“Lastly, let me tell you one more thing… The sponsor who was watching over Lee Nan’s brother has already withdrawn.”“…What?”“It seems like he’s either resentful of the sponsor or trying to provoke a medium-sized punishment. I might not even need to intervene.”Jung Sangyeon drove the nail in.“So don’t miss the opportunity I’m giving you. Then I’ll actively help you save Lee Nan’s brother.”With a cold but beautiful face, she cruelly whispered to me.“Whether it’s through blackmail or whatever means, make sure Jung Yiyeon hands over the shares to me.”***Even after Jung Sangyeon got up first, I couldn’t get up from my seat. I just sat there blankly, pondering over and over the conversation we had.In the meantime, the café seemed to have resumed business as customers came in. While the scent of strong coffee lingered and dissipated, I just sat there blankly.What should I do? Could I ask someone for help? My head felt like it was splitting open, but I made an effort to think of someone, anyone, I could turn to. I even scrolled through the names in my contacts on my phone.But there was no one to contact. There was no one to confide in or seek solace from about my situation. I wasn’t friendless, but they were just superficial relationships.There, in that moment, I regretted the path I had taken in life. It was the result of living without realizing the value of human connections. I had only wanted shallow relationships, turning away from those who desired deeper emotional exchanges, and sometimes causing hurt and discarding them like trash.I didn’t live with a desire to share the deep-seated stories in my heart, so when I actually wanted to confide, there was no one to listen. As much as I gained energy from laughing and chatting in social gatherings, maintaining light and enjoyable relationships with people, I also liked my loneliness. But I never knew loneliness could be this agonizing. Inside my once secure fortress of comfort, I felt like I was drowning in loneliness.I didn’t want to go home. I didn’t have the courage to go where traces of my brother were visible. Even though my brother’s absence was something I was accustomed to, enduring his absence due to confinement was particularly difficult.If my brother were to serve a long prison sentence, wouldn’t I eventually get used to it? Since I’m alive, I’ll continue to live my life as I always have. After all, human life tends to move forward.But I didn’t know what to do with the overwhelming and painful emotions I was feeling right now. There was a heavy stone in my chest. It was a mixture of guilt towards my brother and anxiety and fear.It wasn’t much different from the emotions I felt when my parents passed away. It felt like being truly alone in the world. Even though my brother wasn’t dead, I felt a profound sense of despair that I now had no one to rely on.It was long after the sun had set when I finally got up from my seat. My body wobbled a bit as I stood up. I hadn’t eaten anything all day.I should have had something for dinner, but after the conversation with Jung Sangyeon, I felt so drained that I didn’t feel like eating.Suddenly, I chuckled. When I was held captive by Jung Yiyeon, I was so hungry, but now, after several days without a proper meal, I didn’t even realize I was hungry. If I tried to eat something now, I felt like I would vomit instead.I descended to the first floor and stood still for a moment on the darkened street. I couldn’t figure out where to go, so I couldn’t even take a step in any direction. As I stood there blankly, a man approached me.“Lee Nan.”Despite only having ridden in his car a few times, the chauffeur’s face was familiar.“Where should I take you? Let’s get in the car for now.”He had brought me to a café near the hospital before, and it seemed like he had parked nearby and had been waiting for me.But even if I got in that car, where would I go? I didn’t want to go home, and there was no one to meet.“…If you’re uncomfortable, should I take you to the hospital?”Without waiting for a response, the man asked me with a cautious voice as I stood there silently.The hospital. Yes, the hospital.The person I needed to meet, the person I had to meet, was at the hospital.“…Let’s go.”My voice, weak and fragmented, flowed out lifelessly.“To Jung Yiyeon… Let’s go.”There was only one place I needed to go.When I entered Jung Yiyeon’s hospital room located in the VIP ward, he was asleep. Several tablets and documents were piled on the table next to his bed. Despite this, he seemed unable to let go of his work.Maybe he was diligently looking into it as if it were his own job, since he had promised to help with my brother’s matter. If Jung Yiyeon puts in such effort, could it be a problem that can be solved?Until Jung Sangyeon’s arrival, there were moments when I believed that. But after the conversation with her, I couldn’t hold onto hope.Furthermore, I realized what coercion truly meant. My words about what I would do with my brother were nothing more than amateurish remarks.Now that I think about it, perhaps it wasn’t coercion but hostage-taking. Even if I had refused ten times over in that situation, Jung Yiyeon wouldn’t have dared to harm me or those around me. That was the Jung Yiyeon I had experienced.But does that mean I could trust him with everything?What if it were me? I asked myself, but the answer was already predetermined. The gloominess clouded my vision. I felt lost in how to persuade Jung Yiyeon, and if persuasion failed, what would happen next.“Hmm…”Jung Yiyeon, who seemed to be uncomfortable lying down, let out a low groan. Even while asleep, he seemed to be in pain enough to groan. Soon, he furrowed his brows and opened his eyes.“Ah…”He noticed me and tried to sit up. Someone who woke up from pain just by tossing and turning. I restrained him and operated the remote control attached to the bed to raise the mattress and help him sit up.“When did you arrive? You should have woken me up.”“…I just got here. You seem to be in pain. Should I call the doctor?”