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# Chapter 4: The Chaebol Family's Parent Is a Senator
“What kind of person is the senator who wants to see me?”
I asked as I left the room and walked alongside Amy.
Amy, who had been walking ahead of me, hesitated for a moment before looking at me and answering.
“…Um. He is Steven's father. The one you beat up earlier.”
“R-really?”
This wasn't good.
As luck would have it… I vaguely remembered hearing that the Stout family also had a firm grip on the political world.
This felt like things were getting serious.
Damn it.
I needed to keep my head straight.
I swallowed hard and continued.
“So, what kind of person is this senator?”
“On the outside, he controls Goldman Becker Investment Bank. Privately, he is the half-brother of your father, CEO Eric Stout.”
“Ah.”
So he was essentially my uncle.
His son had tried to beat up his nephew, and that nephew had beaten his son down…
It couldn't be the absolute worst situation, right?
It had to be okay.
“What is his name?”
“Ian Dennis K Stout IV. People close to him usually call him K.”
Ian was his first name, and Dennis K was his middle name, wasn't it?
Interesting.
Repeating the information Amy had given me about Senator K in my head, I followed her.
Before I knew it, Amy stopped in front of a large room and knocked.
A deep, low voice came from beyond the firmly closed door, telling us to come in.
“Please go in.”
Amy opened the door and said this.
I took a deep breath and composed myself before stepping inside.
The room was much smaller and more modest than I had expected, without any particularly flashy decorations.
There was a desk piled high with documents, and sitting behind it was a man wearing glasses, looking through papers while warming himself by the fireplace.
He looked to be in his early fifties.
His hair was gradually thinning, giving me a glimpse of what his future would look like.
Beside him stood another man in a suit who appeared to be in his forties.
The older man looked at me with an expressionless face.
I cautiously walked toward his desk and stopped in front of it.
He simply continued watching me without changing his expression.
“……”
What was I supposed to say here?
The only sound filling the room was the crackling of the firewood in the fireplace.
He wasn't scolding me, nor was he asking me about what I had done.
Amid the suffocating silence, I waited for quite some time before speaking first.
“I heard you called for me, Senator.”
“To think you're calling me Senator when you used to dutifully call me Uncle. It seems you really haven't recovered any of your memories.”
“Huh? Ah, yes.”
“Then you probably don't even know who you beat up.”
“No. I don't.”
I didn't know in the first place.
Amy had told me who that kid was, but there was no reason for me to pretend that I knew.
For now, it was better to act as though I had no idea.
Just as I was thinking that, K continued.
“You assaulted someone without even knowing who he was?”
K's brow furrowed.
He looked at me as though I had done something wrong.
“I didn't assault him unprovoked.”
“Then?”
“I was defending myself. Just because I don't know who someone is doesn't mean I should sit there and let them beat me.”
“That boy is my son. Your cousin.”
K's low voice echoed through the room.
“Oh. Is that so?”
“Now that you know the situation, I imagine there's something else you might want to say.”
K leaned slightly toward me.
It was as though he was giving me an opportunity to apologize.
The sight irritated me before I could even stop myself.
His son had been bullying another little kid.
As a result, Lloyd Stout, the original owner of this body, had suffered a head injury and lost his memory.
Even after things had gone that far, that boy had barged into the room of the kid he'd injured, slapped him without warning, and even punched him.
And yet K wasn't apologizing for what his son had done.
Instead, he was telling me to apologize.
Like father, like son?
Now my heart was pounding not from irritation, but from anger.
In that state, I looked directly into the eyes of Ian Dennis K Stout, chairman of Goldman Becker, and spoke.
“You gave me something I need to say, Senator.”
“Go ahead.”
“Senator. I think you need to discipline your son properly.”
“…What?”
“I believe you know very well what he did. If so, as his father, shouldn't you properly discipline him so that he never does something like that again?”
“I already punished him for injuring your head.”
“Even after being punished, he came looking for me again. He stubbornly demanded that I apologize to him and even hit me. Doesn't that mean he wasn't punished enough?”
“Heh heh… So you want me to punish Steven more? My son? You're quite bold. You've become very bold.”
K's expression hardened.
I silently stared at him.
This incident might cause the inheritance I would receive from the Stout family to be reduced.
I might even end up receiving not a single penny.
But what could I do about the anger boiling inside me?
It wasn't as though I didn't know how to make money.
In the worst-case scenario, I might have to struggle because I had no starting capital, but I didn't care.
A person should be able to say what needs to be said.
I might not have money.
But did I have no pride?
“If there's nothing else you want to say, I'll take my leave.”
“Is that everything you wanted to say?”
“Yes. That's everything. I'm going.”
I had nothing else to say.
If I swallowed my pride and bowed my head just once, things might become easier.
If I simply endured that little brat's behavior, I might end up with an enormous amount of money falling into my hands for free.
I knew that.
I also knew perfectly well that what I was doing right now was incredibly foolish.
But I simply couldn't tolerate it.
I clenched my teeth to suppress the anger continuing to rise inside me, turned around, and strode toward K's firmly closed door.
Just as I reached out, grabbed the doorknob, and was about to open it—
“Lloyd.”
K's low voice came from behind me.
I stopped while holding the doorknob and waited for him to continue.
“Your personality has changed a little.”
“I only said that something wasn't right when it wasn't right.”
“You've become bold too.”
“I suppose I finally have the courage to say what needs to be said.”
I answered in an irritated voice.
But then I heard K let out a small laugh.
I turned my head and saw him getting up from his seat and walking toward me.
“What is it?”
“I like seeing you this spirited.”
What was he talking about now?
I stared at him in disbelief, and K roughly ruffled my hair.
“A timid person and a spirited person each have their uses. But generally speaking, a spirited person tends to be more useful than a timid one.”
“…What?”
“Steven will be punished again. He ignored his father's words, so this time I'll make sure he learns his lesson properly. I'll punish him until he sheds tears and make sure he never even thinks about doing something like that again. Are you satisfied now?”
I had no idea why this man had suddenly changed his attitude, but if he really punished Steven properly, there was nothing bad about it from my perspective.
I nodded.
K smiled faintly again and gestured for me to open the door and leave.
I walked out of the room with him behind me.
As the door closed, I could faintly hear K talking with the man who had been standing beside him.
I stood motionless in front of the door, listening to those indistinct voices before letting out a long sigh.
K had said that a spirited person was more useful than a timid one.
Had I been acknowledged?
I didn't know.
In the end, it seemed I had gotten exactly what I wanted.
Steven would be punished, and I wouldn't be punished for what I'd done.
But…
“Ha… Why does this feel so unsettling?”
---
The next morning.
Amy, who had prepared my breakfast early in the morning, handed me some medicine and water.
I'd been taking them regularly ever since becoming Lloyd Stout, so I accepted them without thinking, then went over to the sofa and opened today's newspaper.
Today was February 13, 1988.
The newspaper had a huge article announcing that the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics was scheduled to take place in Calgary, Canada.
The 1988 Olympics would be held in Korea soon too, right?
It was an event that had taken place long before I was even born.
And now I was going to witness it in real time.
The absurdity of my twisted life made me shake my head in disbelief when Amy, who was clearing away the dishes I'd finished eating, spoke beside me.
“Young Master. Assistant Herman will be arriving soon. He's currently speaking with the senator.”
“Assistant Herman?”
“Ah.”
As though she'd momentarily forgotten that I'd lost my memory, Amy added,
“He's Mr. Eric's assistant. He went on a business trip to England and returned on an early morning flight today.”
“I see.”
So he was someone who worked alongside this little boy's father?
Perfect.
Someone like that might be able to answer all sorts of questions I'd had since arriving here.
After Amy left, I spent quite some time carefully going through today's newspapers.
Then I heard the sound of dress shoes approaching from beyond the door, followed by a knock.
“Young Master. It's me.”
“Yes. Come in.”
The door opened at my voice, revealing a man in his thirties.
He was extremely thin, with light brown hair neatly combed back and gold-rimmed glasses.
He smiled warmly when he saw me and handed me a large teddy bear he had been carrying.
He seemed to have been quite close to this little boy originally, judging by how familiar he was with me.
“A present?”
“Young Master used to like teddy bears. Do you remember?”
“No.”
“Haha… Your memory will return soon. Don't worry.”
It isn't coming back, Mister.
The person inside has changed.
I said that silently to myself while giving Herman a bitter smile as he tried to comfort me, then placed the teddy bear on the table.
Herman came over and sat beside me.
“I heard you had a disagreement with Young Master Steven. Are you all right?”
“Yes. I'm fine. The senator also promised to punish Steven.”
“Haha. Is that so?”
Herman laughed pleasantly, and I nodded.
I was still quite puzzled by K's attitude the previous night, but no matter how many times I thought about it, the conclusion remained the same.
I'd gotten him to promise that Steven would be punished.
Exactly what that punishment would entail remained to be seen, but at the very least, wouldn't it prevent Steven from coming back and causing trouble for me again?
“Young Master Steven has been an enormous troublemaker for a long time. If you clash with him again, don't fight him. Avoid him instead. That's better.”
“He said he'd make sure Steven was properly punished so he'd never even think about doing something like that again. The senator did.”
“Hmm… Is that so?”
Herman scratched his cheek as he asked.
His tone made it sound as though he didn't quite believe what I was saying.
I didn't think he believed I was lying.
Then did he think K wouldn't actually punish Steven properly?
“You think the senator might not keep his promise?”
“That's not what I mean.”
“Right? We're not complete strangers, after all. Technically, I'm related to the senator by blood too.”
“Pardon? Ah… yes, I suppose that's true.”
What was this?
It was definitely true that K and I were related by blood.
But was that something he needed to talk about so hesitantly?
“I'm his nephew, aren't I?”
“Hahaha. Of course not.”
“Judging by your reaction, it sounds like there is something to it.”
“No. Absolutely not.”
Herman answered almost with a serious expression.
The old sages used to say that an excessively strong denial was basically a strong confirmation.
If it wasn't, just say it wasn't. If it was, just say it was.
The fact that he was emphasizing it so excessively made my instincts immediately go off.
There was definitely something here.
“Assistant Herman. In my current situation, you're the person closest to me. You're also the person I can trust the most.”
“Pardon?”
“You know I've lost my memory. I need to know some things so I can figure out how to deal with my situation. So please answer me.”
“Haa…”
Herman let out a deep sigh and ran a hand through his hair.
As he looked at me, a faint expression of admiration crossed his eyes.
“When someone loses their memory, they generally become duller than before, and their judgment tends to deteriorate as well. But somehow, Young Master, you seem to have become sharper and your judgment seems better.”
“Me?”
“You realized something was going on simply because I gave you one lukewarm response. Then you kept pushing me and putting pressure on me.”
How had he become so sharp at only seven years old?
Herman muttered that to himself before asking,
“So what exactly are you curious about?”
“I'm the senator's nephew, right?”
“You are.”
“My nephew? Then what else is there? What is it?”
“To put it simply…”
Herman began explaining in a low voice.
And the conclusion of his explanation was—
“So my father had me with a woman whose identity was uncertain, without being married to her, and because of that, the Stout family hasn't officially recognized me yet. Is that what you're saying?”
“Yes. That's why I've been searching for your mother's whereabouts for several years. That's also why I went to England.”
Herman spoke while looking at me with an expression that was still filled with admiration and surprise, as though asking whether I was satisfied now.
He continued explaining about this body's mother, a woman named Anna, but honestly, his words barely registered in my ears.
If my father had me without marrying my mother, then that meant I was an illegitimate child.
Suddenly, I remembered K's stiff expression when he had looked at me.
He had been looking at an illegitimate child who had not only beaten up his son but had also boldly said everything he wanted to say right in front of him.
What on earth had been going through his mind?
Had he thought I was being arrogant?
Or had he thought that he should simply get rid of me cleanly…?
Suddenly, goosebumps rose all over my body, accompanied by a chill.
Oh, man…
I had thought I was at least a legitimate member of the Stout family.
Who would've thought I was an illegitimate child…?
Damn it.