Chapter 379: Successor
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 379: Successor
“…….”
The moment I saw the photo, my body froze.
I wouldn't be so gauche as to ask what this meant. However, my grip on the phone tightened, and it was true that my emotions were becoming overwhelming in many ways.
The messages flooding in afterward gave me a sense of elation, yet they also spoke of the responsibilities I had to shoulder as a man.
“Mr. Woo-jin?”
The employee, noticing I had suddenly come to a standstill while walking behind them, called out cautiously.
“Um, are you alright?”
Was I alright?
Was there any reason for me not to be?
“Do I look like I’m in pain?”
Did I look that way? I asked out of concern, but the employee scanned my face for a moment before shaking their head.
“No, it’s just… you look a bit excessively excited.”
“It shows?”
I brushed my hand over my mouth and realized I was grinning without even knowing it. I was about to meet my father and brother; it would be a problem if I kept smiling like this.
‘Ah, boy.’
The smile wouldn't leave my face.
“Don’t worry. Let’s keep going.”
I decided to just embrace it. There was no need to suppress this joy.
“Ah, yes.”
I followed behind the employee. Even so, my attention remained fixed on my phone, making the surrounding sounds fade into a blur. I think they might have given me some sort of warning, but it didn't matter.
As if it had become a habit, I checked my phone again.
Looking at the girls' reactions, a laugh escaped me. I knew this would be a difficult time in many ways, but in the end, I felt like everything had turned out exactly as I wanted.
I scrolled up slightly to check the photo again. Unable to stop myself from beaming, I saved the image.
Three pregnancy test kits.
A photo where every single one of them showed two clear lines.
* * *
Rewinding time a little.
After Kim Woo-jin left for work, Seo Ye-rin, Choi I-seo, and Yoo Ah-rin snuck back into his room. What they held in their hands were none other than pregnancy test kits.
“It’s a dud!”
“Phew… thank god.”
“Fuck, it’s honestly ridiculous that the three of us are checking this together.”
Whether it was good luck or bad, despite their messy and decadent lifestyle, no one had actually gotten pregnant yet.
“Next time, I’m seriously going to stop Kim Woo-jin. I’m making him use protection, no matter what.”
As Choi I-seo sat huddled on the floor in relief, Seo Ye-rin and Yoo Ah-rin let out snickering laughs.
“Classic Choi I-seo. She says that and then she’ll be nervously checking a test again next time.”
“How many times has it been now? Three? Why does she act like that when she always gives in eventually?”
“Be quiet!”
Relieved for the time being, the three decided to have a simple brunch. They ordered kalguksu for delivery. Yoo Ah-rin, who had lost at rock-paper-scissors, hummed a tune as she brought the bag inside.
“This place is our hideout now.”
“You’re back? Let’s set the table.”
“Ohhh, I wonder if our huuuusband is earning lots of moneeeey.”
Choi I-seo chuckled at Yoo Ah-rin’s sing-song chanting. As the two finished setting up, Seo Ye-rin emerged from the bathroom.
“Guys!”
“That girl always goes to the bathroom right when the food is ready.”
“Ye-rin, come eat. The noodles are going to get soggy.”
“Look at this!”
With a grin, Seo Ye-rin pulled out a pregnancy test kit. Unlike the ones from before, this one had two lines.
“Huh?”
“What?”
The moment they saw it, the same exclamation burst from both their mouths. They had heard that pregnancy tests could occasionally be inaccurate. They wondered if that was the case, feeling flustered—but then Seo Ye-rin pulled out two more double-lined tests from her pocket.
“Ta-da! It’s triplets!”
“…….”
“…….”
Three pregnancy tests in her hand. A smug Seo Ye-rin stroked her own stomach.
“What should we name our kids? I-seo, you catch the bouquet, and Ah-rin, you handle the congratulatory money. I should ask Jin-ah to sing the wedding song.”
“Um, Ye-rin. Are you saying it’s triplets just because there are three tests?”
Choi I-seo asked with a faint hope, and Seo Ye-rin nodded.
“Yep!”
“Fuck, is this girl the type to pour water into five cups of ramyeon and wait fifteen minutes?”
“Ye-rin, how did you get into college? You do have a high school diploma, right?”
“Hmph, you’re being so mean. I was just joking. I’m not that much of an idiot.”
Seeing Seo Ye-rin pout, the two felt somewhat relieved. Right, it was a relief she wasn't that lacking in common sense. They didn't particularly care about hurting her feelings.
“So what are those? They’re fake, right?”
“Yeah, the Bald Man gave them to me. He said they’re 'Surprise Event' items for your lover.”
“……Isn't that more of a horror event than a surprise?”
Choi I-seo muttered, thinking anyone would be terrified to receive those.
“Anyway, I wanted to use these to play a prank on Woo-jini. He’s been playing around too loosely with other people lately.”
“…….”
“…….”
“The other morning when I went to his room, I smelled another woman, and there was that weird stuff with Senior Ju-hee and Yun-ji at the pension, too.”
It was a bit humiliating for the two of them to be persuaded by Seo Ye-rin, but they couldn't deny her logic. She was right. Recently, Kim Woo-jin’s contact with other women had been excessive.
“Men don't feed the fish they've already caught!”
Watching Seo Ye-rin shout, the other two were surprisingly tempted. If they showed him this, maybe Kim Woo-jin would snap out of it a bit? Of course, they wouldn't keep the prank going for long. Just until he came home today. Just that much.
“Give them here.”
Yoo Ah-rin was the first to step forward.
“Let’s send this and tell him all three of us are pregnant. I want to see how he reacts.”
“Right? You want to see, don't you? If it’s Woo-jini, he’ll probably come running and give us a huge hug!”
Seo Ye-rin indulged in her happy delusion. However, Choi I-seo’s expression wasn't great.
“……Will he really have a purely positive reaction?”
“Hmm?”
“Huh?”
“No, I know Woo-jin isn't that kind of person. But I’m still a little worried. If he looks burdened or has a different reaction, honestly… I think I’ll be hurt.”
“…….”
“…….”
It was the first time they had seen Choi I-seo look so vulnerable, which was refreshing. But they also empathized. If Kim Woo-jin showed rejection or seemed burdened, none of the three would escape being hurt.
“Hmph! Our Woo-jini isn't like that!”
“Yeah, I don't think that bastard would act like that. If he actually does, we’ll just kill him.”
“I… don't think Woo-jin would react that way either.”
The three looked at each other, feeling a strange sense of camaraderie. They had once thought of each other as mere rivals. Somewhere along the way, they had become comrades who relied on and respected one another.
And so.
They sent the photo they took together.
“Ha, haha…… I’m surprisingly nervous.”
“Tsk, should we have a beer? There were a few in the fridge.”
“Sigh, I don't think I’ll be able to focus even if I go to my lecture.”
Feeling unexpectedly anxious, the three waited for Kim Woo-jin’s response. In the tension that made their mouths go dry even though not even three minutes had passed—
Vibrate!
A reply came to the group chat.
The moment they saw the reply, the stiff, tense air that filled the room melted away.
“Woo-jinaaa! I love youuuu!”
“Phew, I knew it. Ah, I feel great! Let’s drink that beer!”
“……Give me one too.”
“I thought you said you were going to your lecture.”
“I’m skipping today.”
Seeing the faint smile on Choi I-seo’s face, Yoo Ah-rin couldn't help but laugh too. They began to share the beers, and while Seo Ye-rin was grinning foolishly at the texts—
“But you know.”
Suddenly, something occurred to Seo Ye-rin, and she turned to the other two with a chilling expression.
“When we tell him it’s not a pregnancy…… will Woo-jini just let it slide?”
“Hmm?”
“Uh?”
The two stopped mid-sip. Thinking about throwing cold water on him when he was so happy by saying it was a prank made them feel suddenly guilty.
“Uh…… then what do we do?”
“Should we tell him it was a prank right now? He won't be able to focus on work at all.”
As they wondered what to do, Seo Ye-rin offered a solution as if she had made up her mind.
“Let’s fulfill Woo-jini’s bucket list today.”
“Are you crazy?!”
“Are you serious?”
“I’m serious! I mean, today Woo-jini is just so, so lovely! I’m in a state where I want to do absolutely anything for him!”
Watching Seo Ye-rin shout boldly, Yoo Ah-rin and Choi I-seo looked dazed. Funnily enough, both of them were feeling the same way.
They wanted to do it. They just wanted to give him everything.
In that case.
Choi I-seo pulled out her phone and let out a sigh.
“I-I’ll…… book a hotel. We can’t do it at the dormitory.”
Choi I-seo made her preparations with grim determination. Yoo Ah-rin peeked down her shirt to check her underwear for the day.
“Ah, damn. My underwear is a bit meh.”
“Want to borrow mine, Ah-rin?”
“Do you want to die? Are you mocking me?”
“Maybe a little?”
The two rolled around laughing. After booking the best hotel in the area, Choi I-seo suppressed her racing heart and smiled as she re-read Kim Woo-jin’s messages.
“Ah! I-seo is savoring the texts again!”
“S-savoring? What are you……”
“Sigh, when is that husband of mine coming home? I’m so dying to kiss him!”
Anyway.
It was set to be an unforgettable day, but time passed, and soon it was 9 PM.
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
Even though it was long past the time he should have finished work, Kim Woo-jin had not arrived.
* * *
“I won't be handing everything over to Woo-jin immediately.”
Inside the Chairman’s office. Chairman Kim spoke to his eldest son, Kim Jae-un, who stood before him.
“However, it will be decided soon. I am at an age where I must step down.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
In truth, it was a bit early for Chairman Kim to retire, but he needed to step down due to health issues. Preparations for his recuperation after retirement were proceeding steadily. He planned to leave the main house and spend the rest of his life in a quiet place with his wife.
“But it is a fact that Woo-jin has proven his qualifications. Not only that, he is currently a successor who resonates with me more clearly than you do.”
“…….”
“You will need to consider whether letting him win just because he is the precious youngest is truly for the good of the company.”
“……."
“I have seen too many executives who discharge a mountain of filth behind the scenes for the sake of their families.”
In his journey to this position, he had seen too many people commit irregularities in the name of family—solicitations, bribery, corruption, military exemptions, and so on. Family was certainly important, but—
“As the person at the top, I have a duty to be responsible for every head of household in Uju Group.”
He could not allow the families of countless employees to be shaken for the sake of his own family alone.
“I hoped you would be able to discard Woo-jin. That child who will tighten the noose around your neck.”
“Father.”
A faint smile appeared on Kim Jae-un’s lips.
“I knew that you would eventually choose him, Father.”
Yes, he knew. He was ultimately an inadequate successor. Despite a lifetime of effort, he had never truly met his father’s expectations, and it was his own shortcomings that had driven his youngest brother out of the house.
“But it’s alright. If it’s Woo-jin, I can also trust him and leave it in his hands.”
“…….”
“I will step down.”
His expression was one of firm resolve. Chairman Kim couldn't help but feel bittersweet looking at his eldest son. After all, to him, both the eldest and the youngest were equally precious sons. It was simply that this was not a matter to be decided by emotion.
Just then, Chairman Kim received word that Kim Woo-jin had arrived. With nothing left to say to each other, the two waited in silence for Kim Woo-jin.
Clang!
The door swung open, and Kim Woo-jin burst in, shouting boldly.
“Father! I’ve become a father of three!”
“…….”
“I’ve caught up to you in an instant! You have three sons too, Father! Of course, the mothers are all different for mine, but anyway—!”
Looking at Kim Woo-jin, who was beaming with excitement, Chairman Kim closed his eyes for a moment and pressed his fingers against his temples. He let out a short sigh.
The deliberation had been long, but the answer came quickly. Chairman Kim buried all his previous agonizing thoughts and immediately called for his eldest son.
“Jae-un.”
“Yes, Chairman.”
“I’m leaving the company in your hands.”
“…….”