LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 135: Different Perspectives
Chapter 135 < Different Perspectives >
The three of them stepped out of Yeon Seo’s house and paused at the entrance. Baek Seojoon stretched his arms.
“Ah, I don’t feel like going home yet… How about we grab a drink nearby?”
“Aren’t you tired?”
“Tiredness is cured by alcohol.”
What kind of logic was that? Im Seunghyun frowned. But he didn’t say no. Baek Seojoon put his arm around Lee Taegyeom’s shoulder.
“Come on, you too.”
“Me? Why?”
“You found the letter, didn’t you? I heard you earlier, you already got on board.”
“Yes…”
Lee Taegyeom reluctantly joined them at the barbecue restaurant. He stared blankly at the meat sizzling on the grill and listened to their voices.
“We’ve got the tail, but the head is the problem.”
“The lord said there might be more accomplices. It’s impossible for one person to do it, considering the distance and time…”
“That’s possible. You think they only bribed one person?”
Lee Taegyeom raised his hand awkwardly.
“But…”
“What?”
“Is this okay?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, I mean… He’s the victim, right? Should the victim be involved in the investigation like this?”
Of course, he knew that Yeon Seo wouldn’t back off if they said ‘We’ll take care of it from now on, you’re the victim, so stay out of it’. But wouldn’t it be bad to tell him the details of the investigation?
Baek Seojoon sighed when he realized what he meant.
“I know, I thought about that too, but he’s the only witness.”
“Witness? Is that possible? It was when he was young, does he remember everything?”
“He’s the same as Eunho.”
Eunho? What about his brother… Lee Taegyeom reacted a beat late.
“Really?”
The public interest in the Juseong family was huge. Especially Yoo Eunho and Yoo Yeon Seo, the sons of Lee Heeseo, had dozens of articles written about them even before they were born.
That’s why everyone who knew him knew that Yoo Eunho was a certified genius. Someone had leaked it as a scoop.
“But why wasn’t it revealed?”
“It wasn’t a normal way of revealing it when Eunho was exposed.”
“I know that. I think I saw that they sued the person who leaked it for millions…”
“Anyway, they thought it would have a bad influence on the kid, so they kept their mouths shut when it came to Yeon Seo. Maybe their relatives don’t even know?”
“Wait, so he remembers everything? Even… what he saw?”
Lee Taegyeom stammered. Baek Seojoon and Im Seunghyun’s expressions darkened. They had been too focused on finding the culprit and hadn’t thought about that.
“Then we should separate him from the investigation, right?”
“That’s true, but…”
The reason they suspected this culprit in the first place was because of Yeon Seo’s testimony. There was no clue at all, so they had to rely on Yeon Seo’s memory for the investigation. Baek Seojoon emptied the soju glass in his mouth.
“Ugh, right now, we have no choice but to depend on his information.”
“I think it’s not good for the lord either. I want to stop him, but I can’t…”
He was too determined. Even when he was supposed to take a reward vacation, he asked Baek Seojoon to bring Im Seunghyun with him. It was because he wanted to get the results of the investigation in real time through Im Seunghyun.
“Hold on. Then, the head is…”
“It’s probably one of the relatives who were in that mansion. Who else could bribe someone and plant them in a secure mansion?”
“Uh…”
Is this some kind of chaebol feud? Lee Taegyeom swallowed his saliva. Should I be here? It seemed like he was involved in a huge case.
“Anyway, I appreciate your concern. You’re pretty sensitive. Finding the letter and all.”
“That’s what happens when you’re an actor’s manager. Your emotions get soft.”
“What about a singer’s manager?”
“…Can they sing well? There are some idol managers who can dance well.”
Lee Taegyeom made a silly remark and finished his drink. He didn’t care anymore if he would get in trouble for Yeon Seo’s case. He was worried about his friend who was caught up in this incident.
“Anyway, we should let Eunho take care of that part.”
“But Eunho is also a victim, right?”
“AC, then we have to catch them before they make a scene!”
Baek Seo-jun shouted, pouring more alcohol into Lee Tae-gyeom’s empty glass. Im Seung-hyun silently watched them. The content was not very pleasant, but it was fun to see them talking.
“So, what’s the psychology of this lunatic who swapped places with Choi Nam-yoon? Don’t you know anything? You’re a manager.”
“I heard a lot from around.”
The managers were quite active in exchanging information. And he had heard a lot of stories from other managers about this crazy person.
There are always twisted fans. Of course, calling such twisted people fans would be rude to the real fans… Let’s just call them crazy people.
“Um… I don’t know. How would I know the psychology of a madman?”
“You have to get drunk at times like this. Cheers.”
Baek Seo-jun urged Lee Tae-gyeom to drink.
“I’m not good at drinking…”
“It’s okay, it’s okay.”
Lee Tae-gyeom, who was flustered, drank all the alcohol that Baek Seo-jun gave him and got drunk. His neck turned red and he opened his eyes wide.
“This stalker enjoys obsessing over and harassing the other person. And they want to confirm that the other person is suffering because of them, so they leave obvious clues, right?”
“That’s right.”
“But that lunatic killed the person he was harassing and got rid of them. Oh? The target of obsession is gone? Then does the madman suddenly come to his senses? No way. He must have been crazy all along.”
He was rambling because he was drunk. But Baek Seo-jun urged him to go on with a hint of encouragement. He might have a fixed idea. He needed a different perspective.
“I don’t know what he did quietly for 20 years, but seeing that he thinks of Yoo Yeon Seo as his son in the letter, he must have thought of the deceased as his wife…”
“That’s probably true.”
“But Yoo Yeon Seo looks a lot like him, right?”
Baek Seo-jun closed his mouth. Lee Tae-gyeom, who took his expression as a sign not to say such nonsense, waved his hand.
“No, isn’t that possible? He showed up now and sent a letter just to show off to him. The object of obsession changed from him to Yoo Yeon Seo, right?”
“That’s possible.”
“So killing Choi Nam-yoon and trying to show him that he exists… That’s too much, right?”
He wasn’t sure who killed Choi Nam-yoon. It could have been the lunatic, or it could have been the head who ordered everything. But it was a rather interpretation. Baek Seo-jun reassured the shivering Lee Tae-gyeom.
“No, different perspectives are good.”
“Then he might be in danger too?”
Lee Tae-gyeom muttered softly and bowed his head. Oh no, he gave him too much to drink. Baek Seo-jun scratched the back of his head.
“What do you think?”
“It makes sense.”
“Right? I should get him drunk sometimes.”
“I’ll collapse if I drink twice.”
Baek Seo-jun chuckled. It was Im Seung-hyun’s role to pour alcohol into his empty glass. He had a lot of alcohol.
“But I see it differently.”
“How?”
“Did this lunatic really just send a letter to the agency and threaten Choi Nam-yoon?”
Baek Seo-jun tapped his temple with his index finger. Lee Tae-gyeom’s face was still the same even after he fed him so much.
“What if he gave some excuse to the ‘head’ too? Then Choi Nam-yoon might have been killed by the head, not the lunatic.”
“If he provoked him with that day’s incident, the head wouldn’t have been able to sit still and watch.”
“That’s right. It’s still a guess, but… The more ‘ifs’ there are, the better. Of course, it’s a big problem if it falls into a fixed idea.”
Different perspectives, ifs… Im Seung-hyun, who was lost in thought for a moment, spoke softly.
“…Can we see the CCTV of the funeral hall?”
He was suspicious of the identity of the person he saw then. What if the person who asked for what Choi Nam-yoon left behind was also…?
***
Yoo Yeon Seo took a short breath and answered the phone.
“Hey, dad. I was going to call you first.”
(Son, why didn’t you call? How many hours have you been back in the country?)
He sounded annoyed. Yoo Yeon Seo thought of a good excuse.
“I was having dinner with my brother. He kept telling me to eat and talk.”
(That’s good of Eun-ho. He’s just like me…)
The basic greeting in South Korea was “Have you eaten?” So when his sons said they had eaten well, Yu Geonmin’s tone changed. He had a habit of saying “They take after me.” whether his brothers did well or not. He found it amusing and smiled softly.
“You came back from your trip well. Why did you prepare so much?”
(I wanted to have fun as much as possible while I was there. I actually planned to do more, but Park Secretary stopped me…)
“What did you plan to do?”
(You know I have a private island…)
“Oh, that’s a bit…”
It was already enough to attract too much attention, but taking them to his own island? That would be too burdensome for the ‘Guk Sae’ team.
Whenever Yu Geonmin prepared something like fireworks, the people around him felt awkward and didn’t know what to do. Of course, he knew that was his way of expressing himself, but it was a bit annoying.
“Anyway, I had a good time.”
(Anyway?)
“Thank you. Dad.”
Yoo Yeon Seo bowed slightly and Yu Geonmin laughed happily.
“I’ll see you next week. Do you need anything? I bought some souvenirs, by the way.”
(That’s enough. Don’t you need anything, son?)
He already had more than enough, but he was eager to give him more. He unconsciously opened his mouth.
“Dad. I’m fine now.”
There was a lot of meaning in that sentence. Yu Geonmin was silent for a moment. His voice was choked, but soon brightened.
(I know. I’m doing this because I want to.)
He still felt guilty for not paying attention to his sons while trying to uncover his wife’s death. That’s why he cared for his sons too much. But he also liked this kind of meddling, so he kept doing it.
“Hoo…”
Yoo Yeon Seo leaned his head against the wall after hanging up the phone. Family is nice…
Don’t rush. At least he’s not alone.
***
“Just stay quiet when you get there.”
“Hyung, I’m an actor.”
“I know.”
“You’re so obvious.”
“······Was I?”
The two brothers got out of the car and looked at Yu Chairman’s mansion.
‘Will I be able to stay sane?’
Whenever he went to Yu Chairman’s mansion, he felt sick because the annex was right in front of him. Yoo Yeon Seo used to be the same in the past.
And ‘the head’ was within reach. He could even be sitting next to me. Could I get out of this situation without panicking like before?
“Hyung, you’re here?”
“Yeah, I’m here.”
As they entered, Park Seonwoo, who was not a servant, greeted them first. He said he saw the car coming from outside. As they passed him and headed to the living room, the relatives who had already arrived welcomed him.
“Eunho, you’re here?”
“Yeon Seo!”
Yoo Yeon Seo lifted the corners of his mouth.
“Hello.”