Scale
"Yeah. To think a place like this was sitting right outside Seoul."
"Do you like it?"
"I do. It's exactly like you."
"Me?"
"Mm. Clean and innocent, but modern. Contemporary."
"......Is that how I look to you, oppa?"
"Want to hear it again?"
"Yes. I love it when you praise me. I could listen forever......"
Hyunji flushed as if my words had embarrassed her. I let out a soft laugh and leaned in to whisper.
"You were bold enough saying all that to me earlier."
"......I thought my heart was going to burst......"
"I heard every word."
"R-really......?"
"Yeah. I was about ready to call an ambulance."
She shrank under the teasing. I brushed her cheek with a quiet hand and murmured.
"So. This thing you said you'd prepared. A house?"
"......Yes."
"Where? I'm curious. Mind if I look?"
"Of course. This way."
I let her lead me and walked slowly down the village lane. The landscaping was genuinely well done, and I found myself nodding without meaning to—nothing excessive, calm, and yet not careless. Landscaping is the sort of thing you pass without noticing, and still it left an impression. Before long, though, something felt off. I tilted my head and asked her.
"Why is there no sign of anyone? No cars. Not even tire tracks on the road."
"Because nobody lives here."
Caution was written all over her face as she watched me. I gave a short laugh. Lee Hyesun had already warned me they were preparing a house, but I had never imagined it would sit in a village this pretty. I hadn't even looked inside one yet, and the first impression was already excellent—Hyunji to start with, and then this view. I liked it a great deal. And if no one lived here, maybe the place was newly built.
"I see."
"......It'll belong to the support corporation, but that's only the form of it. For taxes, too, it's much more advantageous for you that way...... and it saves time......"
"I get what you mean. So."
"Yes?"
I gently caught the hand of Hyunji, who had been walking along in silence, and brought her to a stop.
"Which of these houses is it?"
"......That one."
I followed her pointing finger. In the center of the village stood a two-story house. The exterior matched the others, but it was larger than two of them put together. The garden was the widest, and the landscaping showed a little more care. The enormous glass windows filling the first floor glittered in the sunlight, as if the house itself were glowing.
"That one? It's the biggest."
"That's not it."
"Hm?"
For a moment I thought I had misheard what had just slipped from her mouth, and I simply stared. She only blushed under my gaze and grew shy, so I asked.
"......All of this?"
"Yes. The paperwork isn't finished yet. It'll take a little time......"
"The whole place belongs to the corporation?"
"Yes. With part of the capital......"
It hit me like a blow to the back of the head. Right. It fit with everything I had discussed with Lee Hyesun. Now I understood. Even when Hyesun had talked about the house, I had assumed we would all simply live together under one roof. I had only pictured them preparing a somewhat large house. Our perspectives had been different from the start. I had thought of one thing for everyone; this mother and daughter had thought of everything for one person. And the scale of it was anything but ordinary.
"......How many houses in all?"
"Forty...... One or two will be used as management buildings."
"The land too?"
"The land is included."
She answered as if it were obvious, smiling with pride, and I was so dumbfounded the words stuck in my throat. Mountain or not, this was a developed village, and a little farther on was Gangnam itself. Seocho, maybe. Put apartments on land this wide and the profit would be enormous. The legal side, of course, was beyond me.
"......How much did the whole thing cost—no. I won't ask. It'll only give me a headache."
"......Hehe."
"Don't laugh."
"You said you liked it. As long as you like it, that's enough."
"......Of course I like it. It's a beautiful place."
"Then that's perfect."
"So. Is that the house you like best?"
"Ah, no. That's your house...... I haven't picked one yet."
I started to walk again, then stopped.
"......Hold on. That nuance is strange."
"Hehe. You're so cute, oppa."
"Stop laughing and answer. You're planning to use all of these houses?"
"Yes. One person to a house should be plenty, don't you think? It was built for that in the first place, so it ought to be comfortable to live in. If you need to expand, there's a field, walking paths, gardens, and woods out back, so you can pick wherever you want and build more......"
"......"
"Is it not enough? Then I'll commission a construction company right away. It'll take a little while, but......"
I hurriedly caught her hand as she moved to reach for her phone that very instant. There was something more important than how many women I was seeing.
"Then this corporation's revenue model. Is it real estate?"
"Mm, I'm still thinking about it. We'll need a way to turn things into cash anyway. I was planning to look into it in the meantime."
"This place seems far too expensive."
I couldn't help thinking of Rahi and Go Yewon. No—even Ju Hayeong might find a place this costly burdensome. Hyunji seemed to notice my worry. She quietly took my arm and whispered.
"I know what you're worried about. I actually think it might make a good excuse for the others."
"An excuse?"
"Yes. Once they learn there's a support corporation, they'll probably all want to invest. Giving them equity would be fine, but that's yours. It's easier to talk if we parcel out the houses and then convert that into cash."
"......You're saying you'll turn a profit?"
"Ah, absolutely not. Only as much as someone wants, or as much as they can manage."
When I brought up profit she waved it off, but I saw it a little differently. There was no need to hand out favor for no reason. I knew Hyunji's character, and I had no intention of letting her simply take a loss. To do it that way, though, a few people were a problem. As if she understood why I was hesitating, she smiled softly, looked at me, and whispered.
"......It's because of Rahi, isn't it?"
"......Yeah. And there's someone else who doesn't have any room to spare right now. She's in a hurry too."
Go Yewon was struggling for money as well. The gym had only just gotten back on its feet; this was a beginning, and it needed time. Not everything was settled yet. Still, this would be far better than living in that rooftop storeroom.
"Those two can just stay. It's fine."
"Then from the corporation's side, isn't that a loss?"
At my words she smiled gently and drew my arm into an embrace. Only now did her tension seem to ease.
"Don't worry about the corporation. We weren't doing this to make a profit anyway."
"......I'm grateful you say that. But this is no different from your money and Hyesun's."
"That's......"
"You can't treat someone else's money lightly."
"Ah......"
"Does it upset you that I called Hyesun someone else?"
"N-no. It's just something Mom used to say all the time......"
"......Is that so?"
"Yes. I understand what you mean."
My women mattered, but I couldn't inflict a loss because of that. If this were mine, they could move in and stay for free all they wanted—but it wasn't. I had no intention whatsoever of squeezing people who had nothing. If I could make an exception only for Rahi and Go Yewon, the rest could be done by the book.
"The others might feel hurt if they find out. But if they can pay, we should take it."
"I'll look for a way on my end too. So please, don't stress about it at all."
"......It's not quite stress. It just feels like I'm leaning on you for every little thing."
She watched me scratch my cheek, and under that gaze I grew a little embarrassed without meaning to.
"Ah. Your face went red."
"......Today's been rough. I'm not the type who gets knocked around this much."
"Hehe. I'm so happy today."
"Good. I'm glad you're happy. So we really can use these houses?"
"Ownership hasn't transferred to the corporation yet, but nobody's going to say a word if we move in."
"......Then I'll go ahead with the move this week?"
"Yes. Of course. From now on, this place."
She held my arm quietly and whispered, and the words stuck in my throat.
Shopping had been nothing at all. Spending habits really could be that different. But I hurried to get a grip. This village belonged to the corporation, not to me. One slip and I would actually start believing it.
"Then, oppa. Want to look at the house? It hasn't been cleaned yet."
"Let's. I'm still not sure I should really be using a house that big."
"If it feels like too much, I looked at another one farther up. The view there is really beautiful. But you ought to be in the center, for security......"
She stole a glance at me, blushed, and whispered.
"A-and it's so easy to come to you from there......"
"......I get the feeling. Then do you want to live there?"
"I'd like somewhere close to your house......"
"Mm. Then tell me once you've picked. I'll need to know where to find you."
At that her face flushed, and she leaned quietly into me and nodded.
"......Yes......"
"Then I'll take that one. It'll be a bit large for living alone."
"Don't worry. We'll hire a gardener and security too. The houses will need to fill up a little first, though."
"Right......"
Chattering away at my side, Hyunji was so excited I could feel all of it. Listening to her voice, I walked and glanced around, and picked up a few more things. Each house had plenty of room to park a car, and higher up a wide stretch of ground looked like a parking lot.
"The lot's pretty big. And what's that large building up there?"
"Ah, this place was originally developed as a retirement community."
"......Ah. I get it. Still, I didn't know there was a place this upscale."
"Yes. It was built to catch wealthy people back when that was in fashion."
"A little farther and you're in Seoul. Wouldn't the investment value be higher there than here?"
"That's why it ended up like this. They say not a single unit sold. The price was too high."
I barely swallowed the question of how much. Finding out would only weigh on me. It had the air of unsold stock being cleared out, and yet I didn't feel bad about it at all. If anything, it lightened the burden. Finding some kind of value in the place might be one small way to repay the debt on my conscience.
"So that big building was something like a hospital?"
"Yes. It was meant to be a medical facility. Now there's no proper use for it, so I'm thinking of just using it as a management building."
"......I see. Seems a bit of a waste."
"It is. Should we think about it more?"
"Let's. There's no rush."
"......I didn't know I'd get to talk about things like this with you."
"Same here. I'm seeing you differently."
"I-is that bad......?"
"No. Every time I look, there's a new side of you. And."
I looked at her, worry plain on her face, and whispered.
"I was wrong to only ever see you as a kid. I'm reflecting on that."
"......Oppa......"
"From now on, I think I'll have a lot to learn from you."
"......I'm so glad you said that...... I can't tell you how grateful I am that I met you."
"I'm grateful I met you too. Ah—and for these houses."
"I hope you like the interior as well."
When I answered her playfully, Hyunji broke into a bright smile and took my arm again. We walked on like that, and before I knew it we had reached the big house in the center. She smiled and opened the iron gate. I gave one exaggerated bow of my head, then slowly stepped inside.
"What's wrong?"
She hadn't followed. She only stood outside the gate, smiling at me, and when I looked back she spoke, soft as a whisper.
"Could you... tell me to come in?"
"......All right. Come in."
"Yes. Hehe."
At her playful whisper I smiled too, took her hand, and headed into the house. The wide garden was still being looked after—the lawn was cut, the ornamental trees trimmed. A quiet, warm wind was blowing, birdsong drifted in faintly, and from Hyunji standing beside me came a soft, gentle scent.