Chapter 26

“I… was being sensitive, that’s why.”

As Jang Chae-hui’s voice softened, Chaeheon tilted his head.

“What I have to say is…”

Meaning it was still a bit uncomfortable to hear, Jang Chae-hui’s voice was clearly subdued. Only then did Chaeheon act as if he would listen, and Jang Chae-hui brought up what she had said earlier.

“I couldn’t find Uncle. We need to catch him quickly, but I can’t see where he’s hiding.”

“Uncle is also part of our family. Of course, you can’t find him if he’s determined to hide.”

As if she had been expecting some comfort, Jang Chae-hui’s eyes sharpened, then quickly softened.

“Help me.”

“That’s a task I left to you, older sister. If I step in, you won’t get the shares. Are you okay with that?”

Previously, Chaeheon had put his shares on the line for Jang Chae-hui to solve this. Naturally, Jang Chae-hui, coveting those shares, tried to find him herself but failed.

“I will find him. Just tell me how you found him last time.”

Chaeheon, understanding what Jang Chae-hui wanted, curved the corner of his mouth. Her greed for wanting to receive shares while also getting his help was obvious. She was acting foolishly, even though that wouldn’t make her the chairman. This made him laugh even more at how pathetic she was. As he raised only one corner of his mouth, Jang Chae-hui’s strained lips turned white.

“Think about places Uncle might rely on.”

“What does that mean?”

“Instead of chasing him, set a trap where he’s likely to go.”

“But we need to know where he’s going to set a trap, don’t we?”

Jang Chae-hui’s voice grew exasperated, but then she glanced at Chaeheon and subtly lowered her tone.

“So, how do we find those places he might go…?”

“That’s not my job; it’s something to delegate to the people below.”

Chaeheon drew a clear line, indicating he wouldn’t do more. If she couldn’t grasp what he was saying, she would end up just chasing him and gaining nothing.

“Is that all you have to say?”

Chaeheon looked at the cold appetizer. He had no lingering attachment to a course that hadn’t even progressed to the main dish. He simply wished to get up from his seat.

“Are you really going to wash your hands of this?”

“I told you I wasn’t interested.”

The chairman of the company… He had never thought that position was his from the beginning.

“What if Grandfather thinks of you?”

At the mention of their grandfather, the current chairman, Chaeheon’s gaze turned towards Jang Chae-hui. But what was he supposed to do about it?

“So, what will you do if he passes the shares on to you?”

“Are you asking because you’re worried I’ll jump into the succession battle?”

At Chaeheon’s question, Jang Chae-hui reluctantly nodded. Reading the anxiety on her face, Chaeheon stood up instead of offering comfort.

“Just protect your current position. Don’t even let that be taken from you.”

“You…”

Jang Chae-hui, perhaps offended, sprang up, but it didn’t matter to him. There was no way for her to achieve more than that.

Still, as she was his older sister, he offered his own kind of advice and left the place.

NK Group.

The company Jang Han-gil founded, starting with a small factory, rose to become a leading domestic enterprise under the hand of his son, Jang Han-gyeong. Its excellence wasn’t limited to this country; its semiconductor division was globally recognized, and its automobile division had maintained its undisputed world #1 sales share for ten years.

Chaeheon was born into such a formidable company, one so great that it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it supported the nation. From a young age, he witnessed various types of people. From those who frequented his home to push business ventures, to following his parents to different places, being told to socialize broadly.

Being born a direct descendant of a top-tier company was remarkable, but even more so, perhaps because of his brilliant mind, he received an unusual amount of attention. The emotion that accumulated from being exposed to such attention was a weariness unsuited for a child.

He couldn’t do what he wanted and was only forced to do what he didn’t. There was much to learn, as he didn’t know which subsidiary he might be tasked with leading later, but he couldn’t do what he truly desired. Everyone treated him like a prince and catered to his convenience, but it wasn’t an enjoyable life.

Then, one day, Chaeheon sought out his grandfather, and through a secret deal between the two of them, he obtained an ordinary life. Thanks to this, he went to a suitable school and lived as if he were born into a moderately well-off family.

He did what he wanted to do and learned what he wanted to learn. And he started a romantic relationship with someone he was attracted to. Since he moved according to his heart’s desires without anyone else’s interference, life couldn’t have been more interesting.

Normally, he would have refused his parents’ suggestion of studying abroad, but imagining living abroad with Lee Jun, he thought it might be okay, so he agreed. He even prepared a suitable excuse, fearing Lee Jun, who thought he was born into a middle-class family, might refuse due to feeling burdened.

Driven by the desire to live with Lee Jun as soon as possible, he confessed his feelings amidst that exhilarating morning atmosphere, and the result was…

“Tsk.”

It was utterly shattered. Thinking back to that day still saddened him, but he could gradually return things to how they were. Once Lee Jun became his lover again, he would tell his story more carefully than before, and then…

“I’ll have to make sure he can’t go anywhere again.”

Perhaps marriage would be the best way to do that. With a mumble that sounded like he would never let go of him, Chaeheon returned home.

“I wonder what reaction he’ll have tomorrow.”

Since meeting Lee Jun again, his time had begun to flow normally once more.

‘This wasn’t the reaction I wanted.’

At Chaeheon’s sigh, everyone else turned to look, but Lee Jun alone didn’t turn his head. During class, Lee Jun didn’t look at Chaeheon. Chaeheon always stared at him enough to disrupt class, and it was the same this time, but Lee Jun didn’t show the slightest disturbance.

It had only been one day. Just yesterday, he had been gruff but responsive, and even pretending otherwise, he had been quite warm towards him, but suddenly, it felt like they were back to the first day of the semester. To that time when he kept his distance and ignored him.

Chaeheon watched Lee Jun take notes in his book, repeatedly observing the change in atmosphere compared to yesterday.

“If you have a complaint against me…”

Even as he whispered loud enough for Lee Jun to hear, the hand holding the pen continued to take notes.

“Wouldn’t it be better to just say it?”

It would have been better if he at least showed dislike, rather than keeping such a distance. But even at his words, Lee Jun seemed completely unfazed, turning to the next page.

“I don’t like it.”

Chaeheon’s last words were uttered so softly that Lee Jun couldn’t hear them.

“For the remaining time, I’ll give you time to prepare your group presentations.”

Chaeheon, who hadn’t been listening to the class until now, brightened at the professor’s words. Recently, when they were told to form groups, he had written Lee Jun’s name down and put them in one group.

Finally, an opportunity to talk with Lee Jun had arrived.

“May I sit here?”

Kim Gyeong-hun approached Chaeheon and pointed to a nearby seat. The names Chaeheon had casually put into the group, excluding Lee Jun, were Kim Gyeong-hun and Lee Jeong-yun.

Kim Gyeong-hun sat in the front seat and gestured towards Lee Jeong-yun. Only then did she come and subtly pull out a chair, making Chaeheon curious about what expression Lee Jun would make. Group activity – it was the very medium that had allowed him to properly converse and start dating Lee Jun a long time ago, and it was repeating once more.

As the two sorted out the books and laptops they had brought, Chaeheon whispered into Lee Jun’s ear.

“Doesn’t this remind you of our past?”

Lee Jun pretended not to hear, looking straight ahead, but Chaeheon had been staring intently at him throughout the entire class. This meant he knew exactly how to unsettle Lee Jun.

“Let’s clash well and date well again this time.”

Seeing Lee Jun’s eyes turn back to him, Chaeheon smiled an almost imperceptible smile.

It seems he’ll have to keep unsettling his Senior.

Lee Jun’s eyes met Kim Gyeong-hun’s, who was now sitting in front of him.

“Hello.”

As Kim Gyeong-hun offered a warm smile and greeting first, Lee Jun nodded. Kim Gyeong-hun wasn’t uncomfortable because he kept an appropriate distance, perhaps out of concern that Lee Jun might feel burdened. Remembering how cautious he had been when first speaking, Lee Jun didn’t say anything more to Kim Gyeong-hun and looked at his book.

He wished he could have read the pages from class just one more time, but he closed the book with a feeling of regret. If Chaeheon hadn’t kept staring, he might have been able to focus on the class.

…No, perhaps it was an environment where he couldn’t have focused from the beginning?

Lee Jun glanced back at Chaeheon and then fixed his gaze on Kim Gyeong-hun again. He could hear Chaeheon’s complaints about him keeping his distance again, a result of the conversation he had with Park Dong-hu yesterday, but he had no room to indulge them.

While Lee Jun sat in silence, Kim Gyeong-hun began to speak.

“Chaeheon, what’s our topic?”

At Kim Gyeong-hun’s casually posed question, Chaeheon shrugged and pointed at himself.

“We should decide that together, why are you only asking me?”

“I just thought you should take the lead.”

Kim Gyeong-hun asked as if Chaeheon knew how to lead this situation, and no one was unaware that this was a veiled reference to Lee Jun. With Lee Jeong-yun even blinking her large eyes in agreement, Lee Jun pretended not to notice and turned his head.