The Chaebol Family's Youngest Grandson (1)
"Ha… Cheolgon? The chairman's youngest grandson?"
"Ah…!"
"Hmm."
Principal An Jongwook of Cheonghwa High was the most stunned of all. He stared at Ha Taewoong with eyes that refused to believe it and asked again. The two parents and the two teachers looked just as wide-eyed.
Haeryun Group ranked among South Korea's top ten conglomerates—a rock-solid enterprise. Before the group had split, it had stood among the top five. Its history ran deep enough to span five generations of chaebol leadership. The marriage ties and personal connections it maintained across political and business circles defied ordinary imagination. A company on the scale of Cheonghwa Group was nowhere near its equal.
And yet the grandson of that great conglomerate had enrolled as a Sabaeja?
It did not sound like a lie. The commanding presence and arrogance in Ha Taewoong's bearing were no different from the aura that hung around scions of extraordinary families. Moreover, only a madman would try to talk his way out of a crisis in front of a school principal with such an outrageous falsehood.
"I-it's a lie! You entered through the Sabaeja admissions track…"
Jo Huijeong looked half out of her mind. She did not want to believe Ha Taewoong's words, no matter how plausible they now seemed. If he truly was the grandson of Haeryun Group…
Her vision darkened. Her thoughts spun. Our family, our daughter… Her husband's business could collapse. Everything she had poured into her precious daughter's future could be ruined.
"You've heard the rumors that my grandfather is an extremely cold man, right? Even my cousins all washed dishes when they went abroad to study."
At Taewoong's words, everyone nodded unconsciously. Chairman Ha Cheolgon's corporate philosophy was famous enough that no one was unaware of it. People even called him a cold-blooded man with no pity. He was notorious for putting his own children through production-line work before ever promoting them to executive posts.
"You don't believe me? If you want, I can bring a family relation certificate and my family registry extract."
Ha Taewoong remained composed from start to finish. Further proof was unnecessary. A simple glance at the guardian's name on the enrollment papers kept at the school would settle it.
"…Tae-Taewoong. We will treat everything that happened today as if it never occurred. Return to your classroom at once."
The panicked principal hurried to usher him out. If everything was confirmed as fact, a single misstep could cost him his neck. An ominous premonition that disaster was already brewing filled his mind. He was nothing more than a salaried man, after all. He still had a year left until retirement. He had no desire to be fired before then. If he simply hung on a little longer, a foundation director's seat awaited him after retirement—the natural path after passing through Cheonghwa. That was why he had always kept his head down.
"As if it never happened?"
Ha Taewoong shot back. Then—
Click. Click.
He raised his smartphone, switched to selfie mode, and photographed the left cheek Jo Huijeong had struck.
"Auntie, your hands are pretty hard. I wonder what Grandfather will say when he finds out. A parent called me out of class to the principal's office and slapped me… Hahahaha."
A mad edge threaded through the laughter that was hard to read. Everyone else in the principal's office clamped their mouths shut against a sudden chill. It felt as if they had just poked a rabid dog from a chaebol household.
"Taewoong. Today's incident was a mutual misunderstanding…"
Parent Association Treasurer Lee Gyeongja forced a smile onto her stiff face and spoke. The only sensation filling her right now was a single, simple one.
We're fucked.
Even among chaebols there was an unspoken ranking. Families that belonged to the top ten conglomerates stood on an entirely different plane. As long as you lived in South Korea, you did not touch them. Once you did, peaceful nights of sleep became a distant dream. Of course, no one foolish enough to create that kind of problem was supposed to exist.
"I refuse."
"…"
Ha Taewoong's gaze swept across every face present.
"I've been slapped repeatedly at school since I arrived this morning. And now you want me to just endure it? For whose sake, exactly? Do you still see me as a Sabaeja?"
He drove the point home without the slightest pretense. The principal, Park Donggeun, Jo Huijeong, and Lee Gyeongja all went pale at once. Lee Gyeongja in particular fixed Jo Huijeong with an icy glare.
That vulgar nouveau-riche housewife! I stepped in shit by associating with her for no good reason.
If her husband fell out of favor with Haeryun Group, his entire career could shatter into pieces. Sweat slicked her palms until they were damp. If her husband learned of today's events, she might be thrown out on the spot. She had to contain this as quickly as possible.
"Th-then… what is it that you want, Taewoong?"
Lee Gyeongja asked, doing her best to sound unshaken. Refraining from casual speech had been the right choice. This was no longer a matter of dealing with a mere high-school sophomore. It felt as though she were facing a carefully educated successor whom a chaebol family had hidden among ordinary people. That was why Ha Taewoong's arrogant gaze had bothered her from the moment he first stepped into the principal's office.
She swallowed dryly despite her efforts to stay calm. The principal and Park Donggeun, already broken, looked like mice before a cat.
"But who are you supposed to be, Auntie?"
Lee Gyeongja found Taewoong's blatant form of address grating, yet she showed nothing. She accepted it as naturally as she could.
"…Ohjeong Accounting Firm…"
"You're the representative's wife?"
"Yes."
"Then why would someone like you…"
"Pardon? What do you…"
"No, I just mean associating with a tasteless nouveau-riche auntie like that… It lowers your dignity, doesn't it?"
While pretending to elevate Lee Gyeongja, Ha Taewoong ground Jo Huijeong into the dirt. Standing beside them and forced to listen, Jo Huijeong could not make a sound. Her face had gone white; she clenched her teeth until they ground together. From the moment she entered the principal's office she had poured out abuse and curses, and every word of the conversation since had been recorded by a chaebol grandson. If that recording ever leaked, it would truly be the end.
"I'm already regretting it myself."
Lee Gyeongja spoke shortly and turned a quiet, cold look on Jo Huijeong. After today she intended to make certain the woman could never show her face not only among the Parent Association executives but even at ordinary social gatherings. Every high-society circle would become off-limits.
"I… i-if there's anything you want…"
Jo Huijeong lowered her eyes, clenched both fists tightly, and asked in a voice that sank into the floor. Fury still boiled up inside her, but she was capable of reading the situation. One wrong move here and every effort she had poured in so far—along with everything else—would fall apart.
"What I want… Heh."
Having seized complete control, Ha Taewoong leaned back leisurely in his seat and wore a cold, mocking expression.
"Tell us. We'll accept every condition you name, Taewoong."
Lee Gyeongja quickly spotted a fragile thread of hope. No matter that he was a chaebol grandson, the reality remained that he was still only a second-year high-school student—socially still very young. She wanted the matter settled before Haeryun Group itself learned of it.
"What should I do? It's already out of my hands."
"…??"
"What do you mean by that…"
While everyone exchanged flustered glances—
Thud. Tap. Thud. Tap.
The measured sound of dress shoes and a cane striking the floor in rhythm reached them. Behind Teacher Kim Changyong, the principal's office door still stood open. Every nerve in the room stretched taut as the footsteps drew steadily closer. And then—
Swish.
A cold-faced middle-aged gentleman stepped into the principal's office.
"Ah! R-Representative Kim…"
Lee Gyeongja recognized the man first and startled. She had met him several times at dinners with her husband—the managing partner of a law firm. A former high-ranking prosecutor, he was known for his meticulous handling of cases. With many juniors who followed him, his reputation and network were extensive; people sought him out constantly. And now he had appeared in a place she had never expected.
The attorney paused in the doorway, swept his gaze once around the principal's office, and stopped on Ha Taewoong. Then—
"Young master, you summoned me."
The moment their eyes met, he bowed his head and offered formal, respectful courtesy.
Young master?
Attorney Kim Jeongryul had answered my summons. Calling me "young master" the instant he saw me—I nearly burst out laughing. His acting was flawless.
I had expected things to explode this afternoon. Since this was the school I had returned to, I wanted the matter wrapped up cleanly. Having started the fight, I intended to finish it before the day ended. It was something I had learned during special-forces tactical doctrine training: once you decide to eliminate an enemy, attack until they are dead. Half-hearted blows and misplaced pity only give them room to counterattack—and that can get you killed.
So I had called him. A former prosecutor specializing in violent crimes. One look at the attorney's eyes and even thugs would shrink. I had sent him the recording. A moment ago I had given him the time and place. Of course he had answered that he would come. The loyal attorney Grandmother had connected me with. I never expected to meet him again so soon.
"Attorney, you've confirmed everything I sent?"
"Yes, young master."
"I'd like an appropriate price extracted."
"Understood."
There was no need for a long conversation. Everything necessary had already been exchanged by text. I had demanded the maximum financial remedy.
"I'll be looking forward to the price for the cheek that got hit today."
Swish.
I left the rest to my legal representative and rose from my seat. What followed required technical legal skill. There was no need for me to remain any longer. Borrowing the tiger's majesty—I planned to make good use of Grandfather this time. Today was only the beginning. I had high expectations for everything that would follow.
"And include the fact that they subjected my friend to school violence for an entire year as well. I wonder how high the damages will climb."
I let a faint note of concern color my voice as I looked at Oh Seora's trembling mother. The knife handle was completely in my grasp. Having taken it, I intended to swing it with gusto.
"Attorney."
"Yes, young master."
"If a settlement is not reached smoothly… report it to the press. A title along the lines of 'School Violence Against a Sabaeja at One of Korea's Luxury Private High Schools' should do nicely."
I drove the nail in to block any half-baked schemes they might try midway.
"They'll come running from every direction. The world is changing, after all…"
I paused. At the word "press," the principal's face darkened sharply. The Cheonghwa Foundation prized its reputation above all else. If articles about school violence appeared, the principal's head would roll on the spot.
"I will handle it thoroughly."
"…"
Heavy silence filled the principal's office. I fixed my gaze on Park Donggeun. He avoided my eyes with uncanny speed.
"Someone lacking the basic qualifications and character of an educator would do the students a favor by taking a few months off."
I pinned Park Donggeun with a look. He immediately dropped his head. The brave man who had raised his voice and clenched his fists only moments earlier was nowhere to be seen.
"Everyone, watch your mouths. If my grandfather finds out…"
I left the rest to their imaginations and cut myself off.
"Well then."
I gave a slight bow, the picture of a polite student, and walked out of the principal's office with light, refreshing steps.
"Heh heh heh."