Chapter 33: The Monster in the Shadows

Tap, tap-tap. Tap. Tap-tap-tap. The cheerful clatter of keyboard keys echoed through the office.

And my face was turning ashen gray in the process.

"Haa... what the hell is all this even..." I clawed at my hair in frustration.

The screen was crammed full of Excel files and tangled ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠charts. Seongil Pharma Accounting Ledger, Shareholder List, Affiliate Transaction Records...

A few days ago, I'd boasted in front of Abhos, "I'm an admin specialist from the military! Excel's no big deal!" That bravado had shipped out and gone AWOL long before now.

In its place? Just rookie employee Kang Min-woo, stammering, "Wait, me? You want me to do this?"

Yeah. Let's be real. This was way beyond my pay grade.

Well, okay, maybe that's not entirely fair. High school grad here—technically a college dropout, but... yeah, any major knowledge I had went poof ages ago. The military only taught me how to align reports in Word and punch numbers into Excel. How the hell was I supposed to wrangle a corporate accounting ledger?!

"Um... Assistant Manager Kim."

I slyly turned to the guy next to me.

"Yes, Director!" The tough-looking, square-jawed thug type shot to his feet.

"This... the operating profit margin calculation seems off. Could you take a look?"

"Ah, yes! I'll handle it!"

Kim grabbed my notebook without a word ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and fixed the formulas with godlike speed.

...Honestly, all I was doing was giving orders—or, y'know, riding coattails.

"Thanks..." I sighed, stroking Kkkomul, who was snoozing peacefully on my lap.

What a sight, Kang Min-woo. Thought you were escaping the househusband life, but now you're just proving you're a useless parachute boss...

Knock knock.

Director Jang stepped in. He'd thinned out a lot in just a few days, but unlike that moment of utter despair before, his eyes burned with life.

"Director, working overtime again? You don't have to push yourself."

I gave an awkward smile. "Push? I'm doing this because I want to. Way more fun than rolling around at home with Kkkomul."

I flashed a bright grin and handed over the neatly organized documents Kim had prepped.

"Here. Seongil Pharma's suspicious slush fund activity over the last five years. Should help the legal team."

"You... put all this together yourself?"

Director Jang took the papers, eyes wide with shock.

My conscience stabbed me; I averted my gaze and cleared my throat. "Ahem, well... the team helped a ton."

He clutched the documents to his chest and bowed at a perfect ninety degrees.

"Truly... thank you. You give me strength, Director."

His voice trembled faintly. It wasn't just gratitude for the slush fund docs.

It was for that 'miracle' at the hospital a few days back.

—Right after a single drop of my blood fell into Yu-na's eye.

The flatlining ECG graph, which had been dragging toward zero, suddenly spiked hard.

"Wha—wha—!?"

"N-Nurse! Nurse!!"

Director Jang's near-scream drew a passing nurse rushing into the room.

"What happened!? Uh...?"

She stared at the monitor, speechless. The vitals, declared terminal moments ago, were stirring to life.

Soon, medical staff swarmed in like bees.

"Doctor! Patient's vitals are back!"

"What!? Brainwave activity detected too? Get her to the ICU now!"

A miracle. The girl on the brink of brain death had restarted brain activity like it was nothing.

She wasn't awake or talking yet, still more vegetable than human. But she'd definitely stepped back from death's door toward life.

"Director... you saved her..."

Director Jang grabbed my hand and sobbed.

I was stunned. My blood really had that power? Even Abhos had called it "outside my domain," but I'd pulled it off.

—Back to the present.

"Um... Director Jang. How's Yu-na doing?"

I asked carefully, and his face softened.

"Yes. Still unconscious, but she's improved to spontaneous breathing. The doctors say they've never seen anything like it..."

"Thank goodness. Really."

I let out a deep sigh of relief. My blood had been a blessing, not a curse—giving Yu-na a chance. What a relief.

Muscles relaxing, I suddenly noticed Director Jang's state.

"..."

His dress shirt, yellowed from days without changing. Dark circles deeper than ever.

Tending his daughter, prepping for trial—he was grinding himself down.

My heart ached.

"Director... aren't you pushing too hard?"

I ventured gently. "Legal action and investigations—me and the legal team are on it. Yu-na's improving, so ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠maybe get some rest..."

"Director... it's just..."

He cut me off, voice quivering at the edges.

"I can't stop now. If I do... it's over."

"Huh? What do you mean...?"

His face darkened as he spread out a thick stack of documents.

"All our cards... they've been blocked."

"Blocked? We formed the joint lawsuit group, gathered all the evidence."

"It's all been dismantled."

"Dismantled...?"

He nodded with a bitter smile.

"Yu-na's friends' parents—the victims' families—all withdrew their complaints this morning."

"What!?"

"Seongil Pharma started settlements. Threatened to expose the kids' drug use to their schools if they talked..."

"Ah..."

Unbelievable. Buying silence with cash, strangling them with leverage. Ordinary parents couldn't hold out against settlements and their kids' futures.

"Cops too. The drug evidence from the scene? Lost en route to forensics. Lead detective got shipped off to the boonies."

The combo hits clogged my nose too. Movie or reality? Evidence tampering like this... even scripts would get roasted.

"Sorry. My incompetence..."

He bowed like it was his fault.

"No, no! Don't apologize—you did nothing wrong! They're the filthy ones!"

I pointed to the hefty binder on the desk.

"Don't give up yet! You got this, right? Jo Min-hyuk's personal corporate card logs, call records. Stuff even warrants struggle for—you pulled it off!"

Director Jang's skills as detective and fixer were legit. This was proof.

That doggedness wasn't just grit and spite.

"Too early to quit! They must have weak spots we haven't found!"

"Yes... I dug into their fund flows and logistics too. But..."

His face darkened further.

"Stuck here."

"What's this...?"

He opened a file from the USB.

"Seongil Pharma warehouse inbound/outbound logs. See... ghost shipments not on the books, coming in regularly."

I shoved my face to the monitor.

"K-Bio...? Rings a bell..."

I tilted my head, and Director Jang spoke heavily.

"Keter Bio Tech's subsidiary."

"Keter? You mean that Keter?"

"Yes. The Japanese giant, Asia's biggest hunter-related pharma/bio firm."

Despair laced his voice.

"Explains how a mid-tier pharma could puppeteer the cops and buy off victims overnight."

He rubbed his dry face.

"A monster like that backing them. Seongil wasn't just any pharma—they're Keter's dirty cleanup crew."

......

"Never imagined Seongil had that behind it..."

I murmured weakly, scanning the docs. Director Jang slumped deep into his chairback, rubbing his face.

"Still... any way forward?"

"Sorry, Director. Seongil's mid-tier—we could take a swing. But Keter? They're wired into every country's oversight agencies. Monsters."

He shook his head, words failing.

Egg versus rock. Ant versus dinosaur. Not just revenge toast—our company could vaporize. Terror crushed the office.

"Shouldn't burden you anyway, Director. This is personal. You've done enough... saving Yu-na alone is more than plenty."

"..."

Hardly "plenty," but as I bit my lip—

BAM!

The closed president's door flew open.

"Eek!?"

Director Jang bolted up reflexively.

Seeing who stood there froze him in raw, primal fear—different from Keter's.

"A-Abhos...?"

I blinked wide-eyed too.

She stared me down, brows furrowed, mood visibly sour.

"Min-woo."

Her low voice called me.

"Know what time it is?"

"Huh? Oh... it's... 8 PM?"

"Yes. A full 8 PM. I let you out to play house, not keep me waiting."

Click-clack, click-clack. She approached my desk.

I flinched back instinctively. The chill radiating off her was no joke.

"S-Sorry! Work got tangled, had to wrap up..."

"Work?"

She scoffed.

Her disgusted gaze swept the paper mountains on my desk, the notebook screen.

"These pathetic scraps more important than me?"

"No, that's not—"

"You've been avoiding me lately. Crash ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from exhaustion at home, barely spend daytime hours together before holing up in this drab office staring at screens."

"But six hours isn't 'barely'..."

She ignored me, spun my chair to face her. Hands on the armrests, trapping me. Classic chair slam.

Her face inches from mine. Golden eyes blazing.

"Or are you doing it on purpose? Enjoying my frustration? Hmm? Min-woo?"

"Eek... my bad... heading home now..."

I curled up, tail tucked (literally). Kkkomul still snoozing.

This wasn't boss scolding. Empress with attachment issues throwing a tantrum.

Though cross the line, and it's life-threatening.

"Um... sorry, President."

Director Jang, who'd been holding his breath, piped up timidly. Sweat pouring, he pleaded.

"Director's late because of me. The lawsuit's backers are too huge..."

"Huge?"

Abhos didn't look away from me, half-listening.

Her fingers undid my blouse buttons. Ready to 'punish' me right here.

"Yes... Seongil has 'Keter' involved..."

"..."

Her fingers froze on the button.

Office air plunged heavy.

The sticky jealousy, sultry vibe—gone in a flash.

Replaced by—

"Just now..."

Abhos slowly turned to Director Jang.

Her pupils contracted unnaturally.

"What did you say?"

Dreadful chill filled the room.

"Pardon? Oh, uh... Keter... Bio Tech..."

Director Jang panted in tension. Even my legs went weak; I sank into the chair.

Why? Why so terrifying all of a sudden...?

"Hmmm..."

Abhos's lips twisted up oddly. A smile.

But not her usual. Not predator's glee. Something... else.

"Haha... hahahaha!"

Low laughter erupted.

"Keter. Keter..."

She glared at the notebook. The K-Bio logo on screen.

She scratched it with a nail. Eeeeeek—chilling screech; poor notebook suffered.

"Good. Very good."

"A-Abhos...?"

I called softly; she turned back.

Jealousy vanished. Eyes gleamed with excitement—and something scarier.

"Min-woo. Well done."

"Huh?"

"Fitting my bride. Good girl."

She stroked my head gently.

Then commanded Director Jang:

"Report in detail. What they're doing where, what they're hiding."

Black haze rose behind her.

"I'll handle this myself."

Director Jang and I exchanged looks.

No clue what flipped, but one thing clear.

We'd gained the ultimate ally.