The Schemer #3
Over the course of a week, Lee Sehwa’s expression brightened day by day. The girl who once trudged to school with a sullen face now entered the lecture hall with a radiant smile. Of course she did—Song Jihyeok and Marcela had been steadily improving her situation. Yet that very improvement seemed to have caught the attention of the male students. Today a second-year senior confessed to her, even going so far as to barge into the first-year classroom to do it.
“I already have a boyfriend…”
“I know. But just because there’s a goalkeeper doesn’t mean the ball can’t go in.”
That bleached, tanned delinquent bastard—where the hell did he dig up such a dusty old line? Still, he was annoyingly handsome in a golden-retriever sort of way. Enough to swallow his pride and confess, apparently. Sehwa’s face hardened.
“I’m sorry.”
Her stiff refusal made the senior’s face flush red. Glancing around the classroom and catching the mocking stares of the first-years, he fled in embarrassment.
“You must be exhausted,” a female classmate remarked. This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened, so it was understandable. Sehwa gave a faint smile and didn’t deny it.
She knows she’s pretty, so why is she dating a pushover like Yu Seunghyeon? What’s so good about a guy like that…? Of course, when Jihyeok had played the game, he’d liked the righteous, justice-filled Yu Seunghyeon. Lost in thought, he didn’t notice Sehwa approaching until she was right beside him.
“What are you spacing out about? Thinking about today’s class?”
“Huh…? No, just the assignment I submitted yesterday. I wanted to revise it a bit, but I already turned it in…”
Sehwa made a disgusted face. “That’s so like you. You’ll definitely get an A anyway.”
She was holding a coffee in her hand—the same kind of latte he had given her a week earlier. Don’t tell me…
“Here, drink this.”
Sehwa placed the coffee on his desk. That’s it! You really are grateful to me, aren’t you? The temperature of her voice was completely different from how she had spoken to the second-year senior. Their classmates erupted with exaggerated “Ooooh!” sounds.
Shut up, you noisy brats. You all know her boyfriend isn’t me.
“Thanks. I’ll enjoy it.”
Sehwa nodded at his thanks and took the seat beside him. Good progress. Still, he pretended to be uninterested, opening a notebook crammed with writing and acting like he was studying. Sehwa glanced at him, then pulled out her own book. After a moment’s hesitation, she whispered,
“Has Lawyer Im Mi-jin contacted you at all?”
Im Mi-jin was Marcela’s alias.
“Contacted me? About what?”
“Because of the boyfriend situation…”
Of course he received daily reports—very detailed ones. He knew every single event happening around her. But he would pretend ignorance. He couldn’t let her realize he was watching.
“That’s your request, not mine. She hasn’t really contacted me. Why? Is something going wrong?”
“The work is going well. It’s just… I feel bad. The lawyer seems really busy. She has a ton of other clients too…”
She only looks busy. In reality, your case is the only one she has.
“She’s the type who lives a busy life. If you’re really worried, bring her some tonic or something.”
“Yeah, I should. Thank you so much.”
“You said you’d help me too, so there’s no need to thank me.”
“Even so, gratitude is gratitude.”
Sehwa’s expression was firm. Jihyeok smiled faintly.
“Got it. So stop making that scary face. It feels like I committed a crime.”
“Did I? Sorry… hehe…”
Sehwa’s silly laugh was genuinely pretty. Show me that smile again when we’re alone. It’ll only make it easier for me to steal you away.
A few days later, evening, at a playground.
“Thank you so much. Really… thank you so much!”
Yu Seunghyeon repeated his gratitude into the phone several times. It was directed at Marcela. After a short conversation with her, he pressed the end-call button—after first making sure Marcela had hung up. Seeing his bright expression, Lee Sehwa asked,
“Did it work out?”
He paused for a moment before flashing his white teeth.
“Yeah. She said it’s resolved.”
“Wow… that’s such a relief!”
The two of them hugged and jumped around, sharing their joy. After holding Sehwa tightly for a long while, Yu Seunghyeon gently pulled her away.
“We still can’t let our guard down. We just avoided becoming credit delinquents or criminals. There’s still a lot of money to pay back.”
“But they reduced it a ton! Going from owing hundreds of millions to just twenty million…”
“That’s true. I should treat Lawyer Im and Song Jihyeok to a really nice meal.”
“Of course. Let’s set a date.”
“But…” Yu Seunghyeon tilted his head, looking puzzled. Sehwa asked,
“What’s wrong?”
“Song Jihyeok… why is he helping us so much?”
“Why else? Because he’s really kind. Maybe a little too kind, just like you…”
“Even so, getting free consultations from a lawyer whose fees are obviously expensive?”
“What are you trying to say?”
“Could it be… that he likes you?”
“Hmm…? I don’t really know… We both don’t have parents. I told you about the car accident…”
Yu Seunghyeon’s face turned sympathetic.
“Yeah, I saw the article you mentioned. I just can’t understand that feeling. It’s not like our parents died when we were kids. But why bring up his parents?”
“We’ve had some serious talks these past few days. We just have a lot in common. Maybe he helped because we formed a sense of empathy.”
“Is that so?”
“Let’s go with that. One thing’s for sure—he’s definitely not a bad person. I can guarantee it. And shouldn’t we just accept kindness as kindness? We just escaped from an enormous ordeal.”
Yu Seunghyeon eventually nodded. He trusted Sehwa’s judgment when it came to the many men who showed interest in her, and besides, without Song Jihyeok, their lives would have completely fallen apart.
“Alright. Let’s set up a meeting soon. First, I need to start looking for a job again.”
“Yeah. Let’s work hard together.”
They shared their joy at the resolution. Yu Seunghyeon failed to notice the tiny edge that had appeared in Sehwa’s tone when he had doubted Song Jihyeok—and Sehwa herself didn’t realize it either.
Jihyeok chuckled as he read Sehwa’s message filled with multiple emoticons.
Of course she’s happy—she barely crawled out of the pit of despair.
He decided not to reply. There was something more important to do right now.
“The hotel acquisition is complete.”
Marcela smiled brightly. Jihyeok smiled back.
“Good. What about the underground entertainment club?”
“That’s been acquired too. When we raised the base pay and increased their cut, all the girls said they’d stay.”
“The managers too?”
“Of course.”
They had just acquired a hotel near Yu Seunghyeon’s house. Calling it a hotel was generous—it was more of a motel with an attached entertainment club. In places like this, the girls could easily move on to “second rounds” with customers. After drinking and singing with guests, if someone wanted a second round, they simply sent someone to get a room key, took the elevator upstairs, and that was it. Since the entire hotel operated as an entertainment business, the risk of getting caught was low, making it relatively safe. And even if they did get caught, money could smooth over anything.
Why had they bought this place? To give Yu Seunghyeon a job. Customers who were busy having fun with the girls didn’t want to bother going out for hangover remedies or cigarettes. So they needed a runner. Jihyeok planned to have Yu Seunghyeon work as a waiter and errand boy—while paying him far more than the work was worth.
“Ah! My Lord! Yu Seunghyeon is using his computer!”
Marcela, who had been watching the monitor, jumped up and down excitedly. They were currently spying on Yu Seunghyeon’s home computer. Jihyeok had predicted that the diligent guy would start job hunting the moment his problem was solved—and he had been right.
Jihyeok smiled meaningfully.
“Is the manipulation finished?”
“It was done a long time ago. The job posting can only be seen from Yu Seunghyeon’s computer.”
“Kekeke… Good. Let’s keep watching.”
The posting they had uploaded was for simple serving work—full-time night shifts. The pay was only slightly higher than other places. Once he showed interest, they could grill him during the interview. So please, take the bait.
Click!
While he was thinking, the monitor screen changed. Yu Seunghyeon had clicked on the posting, apparently interested. Jihyeok watched the screen with expectant eyes. A moment later, the mouse cursor moved toward the [Submit Resume] button and clicked. He grinned.
“Got him.”
Marcela was also delighted.
“That guy really is an idiot, isn’t he?”
“He couldn’t suspect anything because you did such a good job.”
“Hehe…”
“Don’t celebrate yet. Disguise yourself and tell him to come for an interview right away.”
Marcela looked puzzled.
“Today?”
“Of course. The hotel is still open for business. Grill him properly. Even if you have to throw money at him, make sure he agrees no matter what.”
“Understooood…”
She dragged out her answer and slouched her shoulders before disappearing somewhere. Under a vicious employer, one must work like hell. Just endure a little more—light comes after hardship, right?
Once Yu Seunghyeon started working, he would sleep in the mornings and work at night, drastically reducing the time he overlapped with Sehwa. Jihyeok would use that gap to infiltrate her daily life and grow much closer to her. Given Yu Seunghyeon’s personality, he would probably tell Sehwa he was doing simple serving work at a bar or karaoke. Then Jihyeok would naturally guide Sehwa to see Yu Seunghyeon at work. Honestly, even if Yu Seunghyeon worked at an entertainment establishment, Sehwa’s love for him wouldn’t change—as long as he didn’t touch other women. The key was the lie. If Yu Seunghyeon lied about working elsewhere because he felt guilty, and Sehwa found out the truth, distrust would take root in her heart.
Of course, this alone wouldn’t break their love. Jihyeok didn’t want them to split up either. He just needed Sehwa to harbor a small seed of distrust toward Yu Seunghyeon—enough for Jihyeok to slip in and settle in her heart. Even just making her feel a slight liking toward him would be enough. Once he could fill the transformation device’s gauge through sex with her, it would be over. When that time came, he would mix his own factor into the device and slowly break her down.
Of course, the plan to enter Dr. Cash’s laboratory has to succeed first.
Finished with his thoughts, Jihyeok looked at another monitor—the one used to track Dr. Cash. Even with the technology from episodes one through five, they still couldn’t locate her. She was definitely in Korea, and definitely in Sehwa’s neighborhood. The moment Yu Seunghyeon and Sehwa fell into a life-or-death crisis, Dr. Cash would appear and let Sehwa transform. Jihyeok could take Yu Seunghyeon’s place in that crisis. But he couldn’t stray too far from the guidelines. He was already walking a tightrope, so he would stick to the standard route as much as possible. He would send Yu Seunghyeon far away after Sehwa’s transformation, then slip in himself. That plan was already in his head.
As long as she can transform, that’s enough.
Deciding to think comfortably, Jihyeok lowered his head when his phone chimed.
[What are you doing? Are you sleeping?]
Sehwa had texted again. She must be itching to share the good news. With one corner of his mouth raised, Jihyeok replied.
[No, I was doing homework and didn’t see my phone. Congratulations!]
A reply came almost instantly.
[Thanks! If there’s anything you want to eat, just tell me. I’ll treat you tomorrow—let’s eat until we burst!]
[That’s nice, but tomorrow’s Sunday…]
[Don’t people eat on weekends? Besides, our houses are close anyway. Are you free for lunch? If you have plans, then never mind…]
Oh? Already trying to speed things up? Jihyeok was pleased. He would call her over to his side.