The Red-Haired Applicant
Kang In-hyuk sat in his office, scanning the articles that had been dominating the news cycle for the past several days. Everything was unfolding exactly as it had in the original future.
Of course, it didn’t end there. Various scandals began erupting among the smaller entertainment agencies that Lifestar Entertainment had acquired—past school violence, member bullying, power abuse, and more.
However, in this timeline, the celebrities who had once acted as buffers for Lifestar Entertainment no longer existed. Thanks to Kang In-hyuk’s handling, they had remained with their original agencies, received investments from Tae Shin Asset Management, and were now simply waiting for the scandals to break.
“Considering the scale of the parent company, KQ Group, it won’t be a fatal blow. But Kang Do-young, the one responsible for this mess, won’t come out unscathed.”
Kang Do-young, the heir to KQ Group, had been the one leading the Lifestar Entertainment project.
“W&W Group will take some collateral damage as well.”
He hadn’t calculated that far ahead. The damage wouldn’t reach Baek Ji-woong directly, after all. His wife, Kwon So-jung—the only daughter of the former W&W Group chairman—was the one overseeing W&W Entertainment.
“…I’ll be right out.”
Kang In-hyuk rose with a faintly uneasy expression as he grabbed his jacket. Baek Si-hwan still hadn’t made any suspicious moves.
That didn’t mean he allowed even the slightest lapse in vigilance. Although Baek Si-hwan was his executive secretary, Kang In-hyuk kept feeding him documents to organize, ensuring he couldn’t leave the office.
When Kang In-hyuk stepped out of his office, Baek Si-hwan, seated at the desk right outside, naturally began to stand.
“No need. You don’t have to follow me.”
Baek Si-hwan, caught awkwardly halfway up, had no choice but to sit back down.
Kang In-hyuk took the elevator down to the fourth floor, where the interviews would be held.
Today’s interviews were for the newly established security processor position and additional experienced hires for the M&A/PEF Division. The second round would be conducted by Oh Min-jeong, Head of the Management Support Division; Jang Seo-won, Team Leader of the System Management Team; and Kang In-hyuk himself, Head of the M&A/PEF Division.
They offered slight bows as Kang In-hyuk entered the interview room. Few people had reason to speak directly with the man who had brought such upheaval to Tae Shin Asset Management since the start of the year, so the atmosphere was inevitably awkward.
“Let’s begin.”
Kang In-hyuk spoke calmly as he took his seat.
“Understood. Please call in the candidates in order.”
A male staff member who had been waiting outside left at Oh Min-jeong’s instruction.
The hiring process consisted of document screening, interviews with department heads responsible for the actual work, and final interviews with executives and the CEO. Candidates entered in groups of two or three, and the interviews proceeded.
Kang In-hyuk asked various questions, filling out evaluation forms based on their answers.
Then his hand paused as he turned to the documents of the fourth scheduled candidate.
“This one…”
The surprise was enough to make the words slip out.
At that moment, the door opened and three candidates entered.
Kang In-hyuk spotted Go Mi-ah among them, dressed in a neat black two-piece suit with a white blouse, her strikingly red hair creating an odd sense of dissonance.
“Is something wrong? Do you know one of the candidates?”
Oh Min-jeong, seated beside him, had caught his muttered words.
“Ah, no. Her hair color is just unusual.”
“It certainly is. According to her self-introduction, it’s congenital.”
“I see…”
As he answered, Kang In-hyuk shot Go Mi-ah a look. At the same time, she met his eyes with an expression that seemed to say, What do you want me to do about it?
Has she actually lost her mind? I told her to find somewhere else, so why is she here?
The interviews began. Surprisingly, both Oh Min-jeong and Jang Seo-won conducted them without prejudice. Go Mi-ah, for her part, gave answers and behaved much like the other candidates, without standing out.
Eventually, it was Kang In-hyuk’s turn to question her.
“Your resume says you took a leave of absence after completing your third year at KAIST. Why apply for an experienced position instead of graduating?”
Since this was an experienced-hire position, applicants for the security processor role had to submit portfolios of programs and code demonstrating their skills along with their documents. Go Mi-ah had passed the first round precisely because she had shown sufficient ability.
However, Kang In-hyuk deliberately made things difficult. If Go Mi-ah became directly involved in the plans he had set in motion, it could become dangerous.
“A diploma would have been better, but due to personal circumstances, finding employment became more important than continuing my studies. I was glad to hear that proven skills would be recognized for an experienced position.”
Oh Min-jeong interjected.
“What personal circumstances?”
“As noted on my resume, both my parents passed away in a car accident. Scholarships covered tuition, but living expenses—and the additional costs for equipment in my field of study—meant I needed to earn money. That’s why I took a leave of absence.”
“Ah…”
Oh Min-jeong and Jang Seo-won seemed sympathetic to her heartfelt explanation.
Kang In-hyuk also felt a twinge of pity regarding her parents.
But when it came to money, he felt a flash of irritation.
She’s already stashed away tens of billions in overseas accounts, and she’s talking about needing money? Was her acting really that good? Then again, the first time we met in the Philippines, she tried to scam me under the pretext of selling information.
The memory surfaced faintly. At the same time, he wondered what she was thinking, sitting here for an interview.
“Director Kang, do you have any further questions?”
“…No.”
“Then let’s move on to the next candidate. Thank you for your time.”
Go Mi-ah and the other candidates stood and headed toward the door.
While Oh Min-jeong and Jang Seo-won turned their attention to the next candidate’s documents, Go Mi-ah glanced back and scrunched her face at Kang In-hyuk in a teasing manner.
That little…
Just as he was thinking he would deal with her later, his phone vibrated in his pocket. A message had arrived from Go Mi-ah via Ghost Link.
Kang In-hyuk sighed, slipped his phone back into his pocket, and refocused on the interviews.
─┼
It was past nine in the evening.
Tae Ju-ha, the CEO of Tae Shin Asset Management, was still seated at her desk, unable to finish her work.
A knock sounded, and Heo Yu-rim entered, placing a stack of documents on the desk.
“Director, the list of candidates who passed the third round for the experienced positions has come in.”
“So only the final interview remains? When is it scheduled?”
“The day after tomorrow, at ten in the morning.”
“Understood. I’ll review the list before then.”
Tae Ju-ha answered calmly and returned her gaze to the documents she had been reviewing.
Heo Yu-rim watched her with a troubled expression before speaking again.
“Would you like to check it now?”
“The list? Is something wrong?”
“Well…”
The atmosphere felt off. Sensing something amiss, Tae Ju-ha began flipping through the interview documents Heo Yu-rim had brought.
Before long, her hand stopped on a resume placed near the middle.
“Heo, this woman… is she the one from back then?”
It was the face of the woman they had encountered twice already—at the hospital where Kang In-hyuk had been admitted after the car accident—now attached to the resume.
“I believe it’s the same person.”
Tae Ju-ha examined the details on the resume—name, address, and other information.
“Last time, Director Kang said she was a stock information source, didn’t he?”
“That’s what I remember as well.”
Heo Yu-rim had been present when they encountered Go Mi-ah at the house, so she remembered.
“She’s a KAIST student on leave. Her portfolio score is 27 out of 30—quite high. And her hair isn’t dyed?”
“It’s due to a congenital melanin deficiency.”
“The second-round scores… Head Oh Min-jeong and Team Leader Jang Seo-won gave her generous marks, but Director Kang scored her lower.”
“Apparently he asked quite difficult questions.”
As they exchanged words, Tae Ju-ha sensed something strange.
“How do you know all this, Heo? Were you in the interview room?”
Of course, Heo Yu-rim couldn’t have attended the interview.
“As soon as I saw Go Mi-ah’s resume among the passing candidates, I thought you would be curious, so I looked into it.”
“Why would I be curious about that?”
“You’ve been asking about it nonstop until just now.”
“…”
Tae Ju-ha fell silent for a moment before closing Go Mi-ah’s resume, which she had spread open in front of her.
At the sight, Heo Yu-rim quickly turned her head and cleared her throat. From the look on her face, it seemed she had barely held back something other than a cough.
“Ahem! Shall I look into Go Mi-ah further?”
“No need. That won’t be necessary.”
“…Really?”
“Really. I still have work left to do, so if you’re finished, you may head home first.”
“You’re not going home together?”
Ever since the near-incident at Chairman Kang Chun-gyu’s residence, bodyguards had been assigned. It was also a sign that Chairman Tae Geon-seung was looking after his granddaughter’s safety, so Heo Yu-rim always left work with her.
“It’s fine. There haven’t been any real threats lately, and the bodyguards are with me.”
“Even so, you should still be careful. I don’t have anything urgent either, so I’ll stay.”
Tae Ju-ha let out a sigh and smiled at her actions.
“I’ll just go home today.”
“The workaholic is actually… Are you sure you’re all right?”
Her tone was half teasing, half sincere.
“You already worked so hard in New York. There’s no need to keep pushing yourself now that you’re back in Korea. You should rest when you can.”
“I’m glad you’re thinking that way.”
The two of them headed down to the underground parking garage and got into the car. A TSS bodyguard took the wheel and drove toward Tae Ju-ha’s officetel.
Meanwhile, Heo Yu-rim turned to her with a slightly mischievous expression.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to look into Go Mi-ah any further?”
Tae Ju-ha was startled once again.
“I told you it’s fine.”
“What if she joined because of Director Kang?”
“What do you mean…? Director Kang said they only met for work.”
Heo Yu-rim spoke as if she were trying to fan a flame.
“Even if Director Kang says it’s work, it might not be the case for her. People’s affairs aren’t always that simple.”
“Are you saying Go Mi-ah might have other feelings toward Director Kang?”
“I’m just saying it’s not entirely impossible.”
“You’re teasing me again, aren’t you?”
“You finally noticed?”
At her playful retort, Tae Ju-ha didn’t get angry—instead, laughter burst out from both of them. It was thanks to the hardships they had endured together in New York over the past year as they worked to return to headquarters.
“…Huh?”
Suddenly, a black van shot out from behind and cut in front of their car.
The bodyguard behind the wheel had no choice but to swerve sharply toward the shoulder and stop.
Screeeech—!