Chapter 15
Chapter 15
Just thinking about it made his chest tighten.
What if the representative of the Rothschild family had been beaten by thugs in Korea? The mere thought was horrifying.
That was fun, Jin-woo. I’ll come again next time… and the matter you requested will go smoothly, so don’t worry! —Your friend, Jerome Musso.
After leaving that message, Jerome Musso returned to France. Or maybe he went to the U.S.—who could be certain?
The bulge on the left chest of that Black bodyguard was undoubtedly a gun. The handle had been visible even to Jeong Jin-woo. He thought that for a VVIP like Jerome, it was plausible. But carrying a firearm in a country where it’s illegal?
“You were really lucky. Tsk tsk tsk,”
Go Yun-seok clicked his tongue, hearing the story.
“Right? Otherwise, that could have been a disaster. Hosting such a precious guest and then… what a lightning strike,”
“No, not you two—those thugs,”
“Huh?”
“Why did Jerome run? If he’d stayed, the bodyguards would have taken the thugs away. They’d be dead.”
“No… that’s absurd…”
“Hahaha.”
Go Yun-seok laughed, looking at Jeong Jin-woo.
“Jerome is a VVIP. The only person comparable might be the U.S. president. Even the president is somewhat beneath Jerome. He avoided the situation, but those guys will be traced. RCF doesn’t let such things slide.”
“No way…”
“You don’t need to worry about the chairman. You just had a fun drink. Deciding to be friends with him was the right choice. Gold Coin will proceed without issue now.”
Go Yun-seok chuckled, but Jeong Jin-woo couldn’t fully relax. He still had so much to learn about this world.
“Don’t worry. If anything truly dangerous had happened, the shadow would have stepped in. To both the shadow and Jerome, it was nothing serious.”
“Ah, the shadow…”
He’d forgotten. Instead of multiple layers of bodyguards, the shadow had been assigned to follow and protect. He’d neglected to tell it not to intervene. Perhaps if he had… who knew? Either way, yesterday, both Jerome and Jin-woo had ended up drinking without noticing the shadow. Drinking freely without any watchful eyes was nearly impossible.
[Last night. As crimes against foreigners in Korea rise, crimes targeting Koreans by foreigners are also increasing. Yesterday, another incident occurred. Let’s take a look at the footage.]
“Ah!”
The distant CCTV footage didn’t clearly capture faces, but it showed Jerome Musso defeating four thugs, even hitting the big man running toward Jeong Jin-woo. Then the two ran together.
[This occurred near Hongdae last night. A super-strong foreigner confronted passersby, attempting to steal valuables. Fortunately, the victims weren’t seriously injured, and police are pursuing the two individuals.]
“Wow… what fake news…”
“That’s typical. Better to quietly resolve it before it escalates.”
Go Yun-seok chuckled, amused, while Jeong Jin-woo still felt tense.
The weekend had passed in a blur because of Jerome Musso.
Thanks to him, Gold Coin was expected to settle smoothly into the global financial system.
Requests for homepage and intranet development poured in at JW affiliates, keeping the existing IT teams fully occupied. Director Oh Gong-tae seemed to be keeping the promised secret.
“How do you know that?”
“Team leader! You have a meeting! You can go alone now, right?”
Deputy Ji-jung treated Jeong Jin-woo casually.
“Isn’t Deputy Ji-jung coming?”
“If someone is negotiating outside, someone has to handle the inside. And you don’t need a mentor anymore—you’re the team leader.”
He’d been promoted partly to be useful. It was better than having someone shadowing him constantly.
“Alright. Where to today?”
“SG Global.”
“Hmm?”
“Don’t you know SG Global? A trading company famous for precious jewelry.”
Oh, he knew. He had worked there before.
“Who am I meeting there?”
“Let’s see.”
Ji-jung rummaged through some papers.
“You’ll meet Choi Ji-eun from the IT development team.”
“Is the deputy the decision-maker?”
“Yes.”
It had completely slipped his mind. His first workplace, where he’d worked hard, founded by his adoptive father… now with Jo Sung-gi as CEO, a man he didn’t even want to see. Memories began creeping back.
“Let’s go.”
“Appointment at 11, hurry.”
Ji-jung handed him a standard proposal.
Mixed feelings.
Entering SG Global, he felt both glad and uneasy. Everything was going smoothly now, yet stepping back into the past felt messy.
The first thought: Jo Sung-gi.
Next: Jo I-seon, the child Jin-woo had once believed was his own.
Then: No Mi-ra.
Three years, maybe? The building’s exterior hadn’t changed much. A jewelry-centered trading company, with careful landscaping and a slightly extended path to the entrance. A visually pleasing company, conscious of buyers’ impressions.
To sever ties with the past completely, he needed not only to avoid it but to become indifferent. Facing it was part of that process.
Jeong Jin-woo passed through casually, meeting Choi Ji-eun. She had a clean appearance and gave the impression of being precise in her work. A refreshing, pretty face, well-kept attire, crisp speech—trustworthy at first glance.
“The trade documents need to be linked with bank and insurance EDI. That requires their cooperation. Otherwise, creating what you requested isn’t difficult.”
SG Global wanted, in short, a jewelry museum: a virtual space where their jewelry could be viewed in 3D via monitors or VR glasses. Technically tricky, but not impossible.
“One favor, if I may?”
After settling language, development schedule, and price negotiations, Choi Ji-eun spoke.
“Go ahead.”
She had been staring at him intently.
“Following the proposal, the contract isn’t difficult… but…”
Was she hinting at a bribe? Surely not.
“Could you lend me four hours of your time tonight?”
“Huh?”
“If you do, we’ll proceed as per the proposal.”
“I’d need to know what it’s about first.”
“Dinner. I need you to pretend to be my boyfriend.”
“That’s unusual. Ask someone you know for that.”
“I already have. Didn’t work.”
Her eyes glistened, betraying vulnerability.
“My boyfriend of five years is bringing a new girlfriend. If I don’t go, I can’t attend this important gathering again.”
“You need a fake boyfriend to save face at an important event?”
“Yes!”
Ugh. Personal entanglements like this were tedious. But she spoke with such earnestness to a stranger… it must be urgent.
Choi Ji-eun didn’t seem like someone who’d plead with anyone.
“Alright. Then, tell me properly.”
“Huh?”
“Ask personally, not as part of a company deal.”
“Oh! Perhaps I played a petty move. Sorry.”
Quick to admit her mistake.
“Seeing you, Team Leader Jeong, I feel you could be my fake boyfriend. Just four hours. 200,000 won per hour, with top-notch wine and food. Please.”
“Fine.”
“Thank you.”
“See you later.”
Choi Ji-eun smiled brightly. Jeong Jin-woo thought: why not? Could be fun.
“Deputy Jo!”
Exiting SG Global, he heard a familiar voice.
“Do Ye-rip!”
Tall, glamorous, baby-faced Do Ye-rip.
“Now a deputy, deputy! What brings you here?”
“Oh, just some business…”
“You changed your phone number! Couldn’t contact you… so rude. Busy? Got time for coffee?”
The only pleasant memory here, someone he wanted to see—Do Ye-rip.
“About thirty minutes before my next meeting. Sure.”
Jeong Jin-woo joked while glancing at the clock.
“Let’s go here!”
“Hey, what?”
Do Ye-rip grabbed his arm and led him into a nearby café.
“Two iced americanos, please!”
She sat down heavily.
“You’ve gotten even more handsome…”
She leaned close, inspecting his face like she could memorize it in one glance.
“Hey, that’s intrusive…”
“I’m just making sure I won’t forget you. Who knows when we’ll meet again…”
“You’ve changed a lot.”
“Changed? I think I’m the same…”
Same as always: competent at work, but occasionally goofy.
“Thanks for that time,”
“For what?”
“Protecting me. The divorce lawyer called. Might have to prepare for an affair lawsuit… they were probably trying to sell services. And you protected me, taking the hit yourself.”
“Huh…”
Astounding. A lawyer using that as a sales pitch?
“Thanks to your consideration, I did well at the company. Now I’m moving to a new job.”
“….”
Words failed him. Boasting now would be ridiculous.
“So, what do you do?”
“Just a bit of this and that.”
She didn’t know him as ‘Jo Min-gi’ anymore; explaining the name change would take too long.
“Where do you work? Can I join? They’d need marketing staff too.”
“No, too shabby… can’t.”
“Even if shabby, here has style. Working at a jewelry trading company, looks better.”
“Appearance doesn’t matter. Substance does.”
Her words made him look at her, her large, clear eyes seeming to draw him in.
“Do you have a girlfriend?”
“No….”
“Good.”
“What?”
Why so happy?
“Shall we meet occasionally for dinner? Already mistaken for an affair… no harm in meeting.”
“Forget it! You deserve a good man, not a divorced guy.”
“Exactly. But if you’re willing to meet anyway, I’d be grateful.”
“I suppose.”
Grateful indeed. She was beautiful. But more importantly, she represented a single positive memory from a messy past—a time he’d done right by someone. He didn’t want to turn that into an uncomfortable memory.
“I appreciate that. I live a different life now… let’s leave good memories intact, Do Ye-rip. It’s nice to have at least one person to be happy to see by chance.”
“Ah…”
She nodded.
“At least your memory of me is a good one.”
“Yes, once your mentor, always your mentor… I’ll watch you live well.”
“Can’t you just help me live well instead?”
“What?”
She stared at him with big round eyes, teasing.
Jin-woo’s face turned red.
“You’ve got a cute side, Team Leader Jo? Face turning red, hoho.”
Do Ye-rip grinned, resting her chin on her hands in front of him.