Chapter 58: What Did You Do to Me?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 58: What Did You Do to Me?
A camera?
It wasn't a professional broadcasting camera.
There was a man standing quite a distance away from the staff, pointing a lens toward us.
His camera was fixed solely on Yeong-eun.
A thought flashed through my mind.
‘A reporter?’
I remembered the trouble we’d gone through just a few days ago because of a single tabloid article.
I had a hunch.
At that moment, the reporter’s eyes met mine.
The second our gazes locked, he made a move to bolt. That confirmed it.
It was him.
The reporter who had written that ridiculous scandal piece about Yeong-eun and me.
Reporter Lee Hae-something.
“Stop right there!”
Before I knew it, I was chasing after the fleeing reporter.
“Jae-ho? Where are you going?”
“Just a moment!”
I hadn't originally intended to give chase like this.
But seeing him startle and run the moment he saw me, how could I not?
He wouldn't be running like that unless he had a guilty conscience, right?
I had to catch him first. We could talk later.
I sprinted after the reporter as he ran blindly.
“Huff, huff!”
It wasn't hard to catch up to a reporter who clearly didn't exercise.
As he tried to scramble into the bushes, I reached out and grabbed him by the scruff of his neck.
“Gah!”
The reporter struggled pathetically in my grip.
“Let go! Let go of me, you son of a—! Do you have any idea who I am? If I so much as lift a finger, I can bury a commoner like you in an instant!”
Wow.
I never thought I’d hear a line like that in real life—something you only hear in movies or dramas.
Listening to his bluffing shouts as he tried to escape the scene, I could only shake my head in disbelief.
Did he really think I wouldn't know?
“Why is such an important person running away like this? Reporter Lee Hae-soo of Dream Daily.”
The struggling reporter flinched violently.
“H-How do you know that?”
“Do I really need to explain? How many reporters would be following Yeong-eun’s car since early this morning?”
I’d noticed a car trailing us from the moment we left the house and I got into Yeong-eun’s car.
I’d wondered if I was just seeing things.
“Sigh, what kind of nonsense article were you planning to write this time that you followed us all the way to the filming site?”
“Nonsense article? Hah, don't make me laugh. I have testimonies from students, and you’re still going to deny it?”
“Did the students say I was dating Yeong-eun? Who?”
“Why should I tell you? You must have a guilty conscience, huh?”
He wasn't someone you could reason with.
He had come here with his own 'truth' already decided in his head.
He was the type to snap a few convenient photos and then write an article filled with wild speculation.
Words wouldn't work.
But violence was out of the question.
Now that I’d caught him, what should I do with this guy?
As I was pondering my options...
“That’s enough.”
I heard Yeong-eun’s voice from behind me.
“I wondered what was happening when you suddenly took off during filming...”
She looked down at Lee Hae-soo with her characteristically haughty expression.
“Is it you again?”
Yeong-eun let out a sigh, her voice as cold as frost.
“I believe I gave you a clear warning last time.”
“I am simply serving the public’s right to know...”
“Right to know, my foot. You’re just someone obsessed with increasing traffic and getting clicks.”
Yeong-eun snatched the camera from Lee Hae-soo.
“You certainly took a lot.”
His camera was filled with photos taken from malicious angles—from us getting out of the car together to us standing in front of the cameras.
There were shots that made it look like we were holding hands.
Others that made it look like we were whispering in each other's ears.
The last photo, if glanced at quickly, almost looked like we were kissing.
Yeong-eun deleted all the malicious photos that had used perspective and framing to distort the truth.
“Reporter Lee Hae-soo, do you think I don't know you were a successful social affairs reporter until you caused trouble and fell this far? Taking bribes from companies to write favorable articles, and then taking hush money to write rebuttals when something goes wrong.”
Yeong-eun continued with a scoff.
“Jeil Industries refused to give you work and turned you away, didn't they? Is that why? Is that why you’re stalking me like this?”
“Bullshit!”
“I’m telling you this because it seems you still haven't come to your senses.”
Yeong-eun’s gaze turned chilling.
The actress Yoo Young-eun had vanished, replaced by Yoo Young-eun, the granddaughter of Chairman Yoo of the Jeil Group.
“Don't you ever point that damn camera at me again. Unless you truly want to be socially buried.”
Her voice was enough to give anyone goosebumps.
If I felt that way, I could only imagine how Lee Hae-soo felt.
“Korea is a country with freedom of expression! Do you think it’s okay to treat a reporter like this just because you’re from a chaebol family?”
“I suppose bribery wasn't enough for you?”
“What?”
“Will you only wake up once a sex scandal is attached to your name, Reporter Lee?”
The moment she mentioned a sex scandal, Lee Hae-soo’s face turned pale.
“Sexual harassment of your juniors at your previous job wasn't just a one- or two-time thing; you even committed sexual assault. I’m also aware of your secret solicitations of prostitution. Wouldn't the public have a right to know about those things as well?”
“W-What kind of nonsense is that...”
Lee Hae-soo couldn't stop his body from trembling.
“Do I need to name the victims for you to admit it?”
“Hic.”
“Did you really think I wouldn't know? You pretend to be clean while crying out about the public’s right to know, but in the end, aren't you just a corrupt, filthy reporter?”
Lee Hae-soo thought to himself.
He had been too complacent.
Was it because he had been away from the social affairs beat for too long?
He had forgotten that Yeong-eun wasn't just a simple actress.
No, to be precise, he had let his guard down.
Even if she was a chaebol granddaughter, he had considered her insignificant because she was far removed from the line of inheritance.
He never imagined she would have such a sharp blade ready.
“Write a decent article. Don't do anything stupid, and...”
Yoo Young-eun reached into the reporter’s inner pocket.
“Ah...”
“Don't bother acting.”
In her hand was a small voice recorder.
“T-That’s...”
“Were you planning to play the rat and eavesdrop on others to squeeze out an article? Not a chance.”
Crunch!
She crushed the recorder under the heel of her shoe.
“Chief Park, search this man thoroughly to make sure he isn't hiding anything else, then send him away.”
“Understood.”
As I watched Chief Park drag the reporter away, Yeong-eun approached me.
“That was reckless, being so rough with a reporter. Do you have any idea how persistent those people can be?”
She snapped at me in a scolding tone.
However, her voice was much softer than when she had been speaking to Lee Hae-soo.
Wait, didn't Yeong-eun treat him way more roughly?
She was practically digging into the man's wounds with his weaknesses.
Stop! His HP is already at zero!
Of course, I wasn't brave enough to say that out loud to Yeong-eun, who was still fuming because of the reporter.
“My body just moved before my head could think.”
“Sigh, you gave me a heart attack. It’s a good thing I followed you immediately. I just saved you from being featured in an article for assault.”
“Thank you.”
“I only said that because I was worried. Actually, I should be the one thanking you. Thanks to you moving first, I was able to cut off that annoying tail. Hehe.”
Yeong-eun stretched.
“Ugh, I’ll be able to live without worrying about reporters for a while. Though it probably won't last more than a few days.”
“Do reporters like that come around every day?”
“Of course. Actually, today was on the quiet side. It’s expected since the legal team got involved with that tabloid reporter recently, but once things settle down, they’ll swarm back. Reporters always follow the buzz.”
The buzz, huh.
It was huge news, after all.
A dating rumor involving an actress who was also a chaebol granddaughter.
If it weren't for her firm stance on taking legal action, the filming site would probably be crawling with reporters by now.
I found myself marveling at the power of the Jeil Group once again.
“We still have filming left, so let’s head back. Kim PD is going to be very angry.”
“Ah, I’m sorry. I just acted without thinking.”
“I told you, I’m grateful. So, I’ll cover for everything.”
Yeong-eun stretched once more.
“Ugh, no matter how much I stretch, I can't seem to get rid of this stiffness. What do you think? Won't you give me a PT session after filming today?”
Huh?
Wasn't this the first time Yeong-eun had asked for PT first?
I recalled how the revisit rate had climbed to nearly fifty percent.
As expected, hard work pays off.
But there was a problem.
Points.
I was a little short on points to recruit her for a Poster.
‘I’m exactly 50 HP short.’
“Is today not good? I really want to receive it.”
My brief hesitation vanished at Yeong-eun’s sincere request.
It was the first time she had made a proposal to me.
Usually, I was the one suggesting things.
My efforts so far were finally starting to bear fruit.
Otherwise, the prideful Yeong-eun would never have brought it up first.
Fifty points was an amount I could easily earn while training her.
“Alright. Let’s go as soon as filming is over.”
*
After successfully finishing the shoot, we returned home—or rather, to the gym.
Kim PD had been a bit annoyed about me suddenly running off, but thanks to Yeong-eun’s persuasive (?) words, it ended without incident.
So this is what it’s like to have connections.
They say life gets easier when you have powerful people backing you, and it’s certainly true.
‘As expected of the Jeil Group.’
I didn't show it, but I was deeply impressed inwardly.
To think I have to bring someone like her in as an official member.
If I failed, I couldn't even imagine what the fallout would be.
The pressure was immense.
“Jae-ho.”
As soon as we stepped inside the house, Yeong-eun called my name.
She slowly pressed her body against mine.
“W-Wait a second. What are you doing?”
“There’s something I’m curious about.”
While I was flustered...
Thud!
Yeong-eun pinned me against the wall.
She was close enough that I could hear her breathing.
“Tell me. You... what did you do to me?”
Something felt very wrong.