Chapter 196
Why Did You Kill Her?
Leaving the room where Min Seong-cheol was confined, Yu Yeon-seo immediately checked the memory card. He scrolled quickly, verifying the data.
Thankfully, he hadn’t been given a fake. Along with photos and documents, he also found audio recordings and video files in the location where the original was hidden.
‘He collected quite a lot.’
It seemed Min Seong-cheol had gathered it all in case a moment like this ever came. Judging by his actions, he might have been preparing for a world without Lee Hui-seo, intending to one day become his son’s savior.
‘That could be it…’
He was certain. Min Seong-cheol would have killed her himself, then used the evidence to control him. The thought was nauseating. He had become too momentarily immersed in the role of Min Seong-cheol.
A cough kept escaping him as he rapidly scanned the data. Yu Yeon-seo glanced at the shimmering form above the monitor. That too would soon be over.
[Don’t grab so hard. It’ll be a problem if you leave a bruise.]
[You, you’re that stalker from back then…!]
Then, upon hearing a recording labeled only with numbers, he shot to his feet, clutched his head, and began to pace.
“You son of a…”
He never imagined that incident had been recorded.
‘What do I do now?’
The hope of finally being free from the memories that had tormented him and the hatred of at last being able to exact revenge mingled, clouding his rational judgment. After thinking it over and over, he snapped his head up.
‘Is there even a need to think?’
He had already caught all the accomplices. Besides, it wasn’t like he didn’t know the identity of the mastermind. Can’t I just go and get him? It had taken far too long to learn the truth of the incident.
[Yeon-seo. Are you okay?]
One question remained: why did Park Gyeong-seok do it? Park Gyeong-seok, along with his aunt Yu Seon-yeong, had been close and affectionate with his nephews. Was all of that simply an act born of guilt?
‘Beta, I need to review my memories of Park Gyeong-seok.’
‘Do it.’
I need to know the reason. It will make it clearer how I should kill Park Gyeong-seok. Closing his eyes for a moment to revisit his memories, Yu Yeon-seo let out a short breath.
“...Ha.”
Now, the electric signal throbbing in his head pointed to one thing. ‘Insight’ kept insisting it was fine. Yu Yeon-seo shot to his feet. He couldn’t be satisfied with just sitting and thinking. He decided to act on his body’s impulse.
“Back already? Did you like the data?”
Yu Yeon-seo returned to the room where Min Seong-cheol was held, strode toward him, and threw a punch. With a thud, Min Seong-cheol’s head slumped lifelessly.
“I’ve wanted to do this for a while now.”
Min Seong-cheol hung his head, motionless. He hadn’t killed him, just controlled his strength enough to knock him out.
“Haaa…”
Still, his anger wasn’t appeased. He scrubbed his face with both hands. In the aftermath of ‘reviewing memories,’ his face had quickly turned pale, and the rims of his eyes were red. Soon, his gaze sharpened, and he left the place.
“…”
Park Gyeong-seok’s face came to mind. The man who always greeted him with a warm smile, who always begged his grandfather to let him off the hook no matter what trouble he caused. Behind that facade was a hideous shadow. Yu Yeon-seo had been letting the culprit he so desperately sought slip right through his fingers.
‘I’m going to kill him.’
Just as he had thought during the drama shoot—yes, this is what I’ve wanted to do for a long time.
Meanwhile, after receiving a call from Gwak Chi-hun, reporter Han Jin-seok entered a cafe near the Juseong H&C building and set up his camera. He happened to be in the area, allowing him to arrive faster than anyone else.
“Oh, he really came.”
Screech! A luxury sedan came to a noisy halt as its tires scraped the pavement. There was only one person who would drive like that. Reporter Han raised his camera. A pair of long legs appeared. He saw Yu Yeon-seo slam the door shut with an irritated motion. Well, that was a definite parking violation, at least.
“…Is something really going on?”
Yu Yeon-seo’s expression and gait were unusual as he headed into the building. Wasn’t that the kind of absolutely furious expression you only see in dramas? Why?
‘…This is a scoop!’
After a moment’s thought, Han Jin-seok picked up his phone and scrolled through his contacts.
‘If I try to handle this alone, I might get burned…’
His opponent was Juseong. And their precious second grandson whom they coddled so much. He didn’t want to take all the blame if it turned out to be a false report.
“Hello? Hey, Reporter Kim. How have you been?”
He couldn’t compete with the guy’s information network anyway. He could find out the reason for the visit to Juseong H&C through Gwak Chi-hun. He would toss out the information like charity to earn his colleagues’ trust. Just getting a shot of Yu Yeon-seo leaving the building would be a win.
“Nah, it’s not like that. I’ve got a really killer piece of info, but—whoa… are those cops…”
Following Yu Yeon-seo, Baek Seo-jun and his team members flashed their IDs and entered the building. Yu Eun-ho, arriving shortly after, also ran inside. Reporter Han, filming the situation, let his mouth hang open. Whoa, something huge must be happening.
(Cops? What is it? Don’t keep it to yourself. Hello… Hey, Han Jin-seok.)
“Don’t ask why, just get to Juseong H&C right now!”
Pushed aside by Park Gyeong-seok and with his own position now precarious, Hwang Seung-jun kept thinking until he arrived at a single conclusion.
‘He definitely knows something.’
What if Park Jeong-ho was the one who caught Yang Hong-sik and Park Gyeong-won? Director Park might be secretly reinvestigating his daughter-in-law’s death. Park Geum-ju had liked Lee Hui-seo without caring about her background. No, the entire Chairman Yu family had.
‘…I was just doing what Park Gyeong-seok told me to.’
If he brought them the evidence, Park Geum-ju and Park Jeong-ho might understand. Park Geum-ju, who had warmly welcomed him when he was being oppressed… Having already decided to side with her, Hwang Seung-jun squeezed his eyes shut as an ashtray came flying at him.
“Does it make sense that you still can’t find them?”
“Sir.”
“This won’t do. You’re off the case.”
Park Gyeong-seok pulled a manila envelope from his drawer and tossed it at Hwang Seung-jun.
“What is this?”
“Can’t you tell by looking?”
It was a plane ticket and a bankbook. In other words… Park Gyeong-seok was forcing him into retirement. It was a demand to get out of South Korea because he knew too much.
‘Can I even live well if I stay here?’
The destination printed on the ticket was the Philippines, and the bankbook contained a sum of money large enough to be a lottery win, but it wasn’t enough for him. I did all the dirty work for you, and this is all I get in return?
Hwang Seung-jun had also been involved in Choi Nam-yun’s death. If he did as he was told and went to the Philippines, he could disappear without a trace.
“I can still work. I want to stay here.”
“I can’t just keep you around when you can’t even follow a simple order to find and kill three people.”
Is killing people simple? Hwang Seung-jun clenched his fists and answered in a low voice.
“...If you do this, I won’t stand by idly either.”
“And what will you do if you don’t stand by idly?”
Park Gyeong-seok approached his glaring subordinate, brushed a piece of dust off his shoulder, and said.
“Seung-jun. What’s wrong? You’re wearing clothes like these thanks to me, aren’t you?”
“I did my best.”
“I know. But you’ve been a bit disappointing lately. So just retire. Go enjoy the rest of your life on a beach in Boracay.”
Hwang Seung-jun couldn’t take that at face value. By doing all of Park Gyeong-seok’s dirty work, he too had learned far too much.
“If I go there, will I even be allowed to live?”
“What?”
“Sir, I also know the truth of that day.”
“And what are you going to do with that? Go snitch to the police? Who would believe you?”
Park Gyeong-seok scoffed. The Hwang Seung-jun he knew wasn’t the type to do something so bold.
Seeing his superior still looking down on him, Hwang Seung-jun felt whatever lingering respect he had completely evaporate. He glared at the back of Park Gyeong-seok, who had turned away as if he didn’t want to talk anymore.
“Stop with the nonsense and get out. I hope I don’t see you again.”
“…Thank you for everything until now.”
See you next time in a prison cell. Hwang Seung-jun swallowed those words and bowed his head. After he left, Park Gyeong-seok sat down and let out a small breath.
“No way…”
No, it couldn’t be. The Hwang Seung-jun he knew wasn’t that meticulous. He was dull and stupid, which made him perfect for handling matters related to Lee Hui-seo’s death. The fact that the truth of that case hadn’t come to light even after more than twenty years suggested that Hwang Seung-jun had probably just blurted that out in a fit of anger.
‘I should probably have him watched, just in case.’
In any case, Hwang Seung-jun was fated to be shot the moment he arrived in the Philippines. As he sat comfortably, pondering who to assign the task of finding the three remaining people, a commotion erupted outside.
“Excuse me, you can’t go in right now…”
The secretary’s urgent voice, trying to stop someone, was followed by the office door being thrown open violently. The person holding the doorknob was Yu Yeon-seo. Park Gyeong-seok reflexively raised the corners of his mouth into a smile.
“Yeon-seo? What brings you here?”
“Why did you do it?”
The abrupt question made Park Gyeong-seok’s smile twitch. Could it be that Hwang Seung-jun…?
“What are you talking about?”
“My mom. Why did you kill her?”
With the already famous Yu Yeon-seo suddenly appearing, many eyes were on them. His unexpected words caused gasps from behind. Park Gyeong-seok gestured to his secretary to close the office door.
“Yeon-seo, are you practicing a scene? What are you talking about?”
“Choi Nam-yun.”
Until that moment, he had thought Yu Yeon-seo had stormed in impulsively after talking to Hwang Seung-jun, but the situation took a turn. The names he had been so wary of started spilling from Yu Yeon-seo’s lips.
“Yang Hong-sik, Park Gyeong-won, and Min Seong-cheol. Familiar names, aren’t they?”
“...You.”
“Who do you think caught them?”
The atmosphere was so charged it felt as if a look alone could kill. Park Gyeong-seok instinctively swallowed. Perhaps because Yu Yeon-seo was subconsciously revealing his future physique, his killing intent alone was enough to overwhelm people.
“...This won’t change anything.”
“Oh, it will. At the very least, you won’t be in this world anymore.”
With a click, Yu Yeon-seo aimed a gun at Park Gyeong-seok. Park Gyeong-seok sucked in a breath. Just then, the office door burst open again.
“I told you to close the door!”
“Mr. Park Gyeong-seok, police.”
Baek Seo-jun first presented his ID. Then, he calmly approached Yu Yeon-seo from behind.
On the way to Park Gyeong-seok’s office, he had seen a bodyguard lying on the floor. Baek Seo-jun had instantly realized it was Yu Yeon-seo’s doing.
‘How did he think to overpower a bodyguard and take his gun…?’
He knew Yu Yeon-seo possessed extraordinary skills. But that wasn’t what was important right now. The security team for Chairman Yu’s family was one of the few in South Korea authorized to carry live ammunition.
‘He might actually shoot.’
Baek Seo-jun swallowed hard.
“Yeon-seo. Put that down. It’s dangerous.”
“...You knew all along, didn’t you, hyung?”
“Yes. I knew. I just kept it a secret while I was looking for evidence. I’ve found it all now, so put that down.”
Yu Yeon-seo stared blankly at Baek Seo-jun, who was trying to persuade him. Park Gyeong-seok, feeling relieved and assuming he wouldn’t actually shoot, let a small smile play on his lips.
“...Then you must also know why I have to do this.”
Bang! The gun went off, and everyone except Yu Yeon-seo reflexively ducked.