Chapter 201
Chapter 201
"......."
Nam Da-un was regretting coming here.
For starters, he hated the outfit. Sure, Sara had told him to come, and yes, he'd worn exactly what she told him to wear... but it was basically a suit, and the color was deep wine.
What possible reason could she have for sticking him in this color?
No, fine, he could guess the intent. It probably made it easier to pick out your allies. Almost everyone here was meeting for the first time, and you couldn't exactly tell them to show up at a party in school uniforms.
Still, wasn't an outfit like this a bit much?
Had she matched it to her own eye color? If so, the symbolism was excellent, he'd give her that. But dressing all the guys here in red-toned clothes struck him as a little excessive.
"......."
More to the point, Nam Da-un didn't really have anyone here to talk to.
Strictly speaking, there was Sara. But Sara was the star of this party. He might not be now, but Nam Da-un had once lived in a household with money, and he knew how insanely busy the centerpiece of a party got at these things.
Butting in would only cause misunderstandings.
And he wasn't exactly in the mood to make new friends here anyway, so Nam Da-un just stood in the corner, nursing a drink.
Still, it wasn't as if 'nobody' tried to talk to him.
Nam Da-un was basically a popular person.
"Hello, senior."
He'd gotten that opener a fair few times. Of course, none of them ever went deeper than that.
A rote self-introduction, a few words of "let's get along", and then the conversation would run dry and they'd drift off somewhere else.
After a few rounds of that, he figured he really had nobody left to talk t—
"Hello, senior."
—actually, he did.
Right. These two were here.
The ones who'd called out to him were Yu Ha-neul and Lee Su-a. Both were in red-toned dresses. It suited them well, but...
From them, Nam Da-un got a vibe similar to Sara's.
Something fundamentally attractive about them, yet some quality that kept him from seeing them as women, or anyway, that was his hundred-percent gut feeling.
Not that he felt like dating anyone right now to begin with. If he did, he'd have a girlfriend by now. It wasn't as if he'd never gotten confessions.
"Oh, looks like you two finally got a free moment."
Uttering a thought that would have made Ye Sa-ra clutch the back of her neck if she'd heard it, Nam Da-un answered them as if it were nothing.
"Ah, I—um... we're sorry."
Seeing Yu Ha-neul hurry to respond, Nam Da-un just shrugged.
"No, well, it's not something to apologize for."
He'd expected this to a degree. He'd thought maybe they could exchange a few words, but... watching from a distance, Ye Sa-ra had seemed far busier than he'd imagined.
At first, she'd mingled with people who practically screamed money. Then she vanished for a long while, maybe to get some rest, and when she reappeared, face bright red, she'd darted around hiding in a way that almost looked comical.
After that, she apparently took a turn for the worse, and this time she'd disappeared off somewhere with Shin So-hee.
Amid all that, he'd caught glimpses of Yu Ha-neul and Lee Su-a each getting pulled away by her, too. Both times they'd gone off with Sara and come back in noticeably better moods.
"......."
It probably all connected back to Ye Sa-ra anyway.
He decided not to think about it any deeper. Poking further felt like it would genuinely become annoying.
"Ah, well. Coming to a place like this isn't all bad, at least."
He'd been mentally kicking himself for coming just moments ago, but he said it for courtesy's sake.
"Besides... it looks like there's someone here who really doesn't want to be."
Nam Da-un gestured with his chin, and Yu Ha-neul and Lee Su-a followed his gaze, both furrowing their brows the moment they saw. Their faces suggested they'd spotted something foul-smelling.
Yeah, figures you'd make that expression.
The person the three of them were looking at was none other than Yoon Da-ho.
That's right. As terrible as their relationship was, as close to zero as their contact had become—surprisingly, the two of them were still engaged.
They'd gotten engaged and never formally declared a breakup, so that much was obvious. It wasn't like a marriage, where you could just end it cleanly, but neither could you indefinitely let it fade away. It had been a personal promise between them to begin with, not even an established formal institution.
So unless the two of them reached a separate agreement, they were still betrothed.
Although, at this point, to wonder whether any of that still held meaning was...
"Who's that behind him...?"
Yoon Da-ho wasn't alone. Of course not. There was no way Yoon Da-ho had come here willingly in the first place.
Behind him followed a man advanced in years. An old man, but not one whose back seemed bent or looked ready to collapse. The physique wasn't muscular, but it was upright and looked reasonably disciplined by exercise, with a neatly trimmed beard and sleek side-parted hair.
If the hair weren't white, you'd assume he was ten years younger.
"The former chairman of Homyeong Group. That person's grandfather."
Lee Su-a whispered. 'That person' probably meant Yoon Da-ho.
Hearing that, Nam Da-un studied the pair with a mildly intrigued expression.
The two had arrived a fair while after the party started. The former chairman had strong-armed his grandson into coming, so naturally the first person he'd want to meet was Sara... but Sara had gone off midway through the party and left them standing there like sore thumbs. Of course.
Watching the tableau, a few things could be inferred.
First, this engagement had been Choi Na-kyung's unilateral decision. At the very least, people from Yujin Group didn't seem fond of the pair. They'd answer back politely enough if the two spoke to them, but nobody ever approached first.
Second, Homyeong Group was in favor of this marriage. At least, the former chairman was. That's what his coming here while knowing how things would turn out said.
Yoon Da-ho had worn a look of pure discomfort and irritation the entire time, but whether because he feared his grandfather or some other reason, he couldn't openly grumble.
"......They still haven't broken off the engagement, right?"
Nam Da-un and Lee Su-a both nodded.
In truth, you could already call it broken. Choi Na-kyung had been pulled aside with Sara, and everyone else would oppose the marriage. That response was only natural, considering this was a major situation where a significant stake in Yujin Group could end up in Yoon Da-ho's family hands.
"Are they looking for Sara?"
"Probably."
Yu Ha-neul asked the question, and Lee Su-a once again answered.
But apparently, their guess was wrong. The Homyeong Group former chairman, Yoon Da-ho's grandfather, glanced around the room, spotted the three of them, and turned his attention straight their way.
Then he gave his grandson's shoulder a small shove.
"......Huh?"
Watching, Yu Ha-neul let out a quizzical sound.
On the surface, it looked like she was startled by a significant person suddenly turning toward them, but Nam Da-un thought differently.
He'd probably seen the same thing Yu Ha-neul had.
When the former chairman pushed Yoon Da-ho's shoulder, Yoon Da-ho's expression had flashed alarm—followed by a tight grimace, like someone trying to suppress pain.
Nam Da-un knew that reaction.
It was the reaction of someone who'd taken a bad fall or gotten injured during soccer practice and then been pressed hard right on the spot. Or when someone pushed a finger into a muscle still tight from the previous day's workout. They'd usually make a face just like that.
The only thing was, Nam Da-un had never heard even a whisper of Yoon Da-ho working out.
Ah... So that explains it.
He remembered Yu Ha-neul making a similar face at Yoon Da-ho back when he'd shown up during club activities.
Of course, she hadn't shown an outward 'reaction' like that at the time. She'd probably caught it with a sharp eye.
While those thoughts flickered through his head, Yoon Da-ho and the Homyeong Group former chairman arrived right in front of Yu Ha-neul, Lee Su-a, and Nam Da-un.
"A good time to you all."
The former chairman offered this greeting with a slight joking lilt, his face spreading into a sunny smile.
Managing an expression like that in this atmosphere was a talent in itself, Nam Da-un thought.
"You'd be my grandson's fiancée's closest friends, yes? I've heard a great deal about you."
As if Yoon Da-ho would have said anything.
He'd probably investigated through other channels.
The former chairman's gaze swept past Yu Ha-neul and Lee Su-a, settling squarely on Nam Da-un, where it held for an uncomfortably long moment.
...He had a pretty good idea what the man was thinking, and it left him in a foul mood.
After staring at him for what felt like an eternity, the Homyeong Group former chairman shifted his attention back to Yu Ha-neul and Lee Su-a.
"My grandson arrived terribly late to the party. I think we should offer an apology to the party's guest of honor first—do any of you happen to know where Sara is?"
Without bothering to ask their names, or offering his own for that matter, he put the question to them just like that.
"......."
Yu Ha-neul and Lee Su-a aside, at least Nam Da-un had no idea where Ye Sa-ra was.
Well, even if he did, he wasn't really inclined to share.