CHAPTER 21………………………………….
Whenever she remembered Oh Yeran’s jealous, imperious final look, it was obvious she wouldn’t sit still.
The brief thrill of revenge was overshadowed by the uneasy feeling of what might come next.
Seo-young regretted it for a moment, but soon shook her head.
All the more reason not to just stand there and take it.
If she stayed still, she’d just become an easy target—Yeran would only get bolder.
Not that she could ignore the possibility of backlash.
“People say you’re good friends with Jung Min-hee… Guess birds of a feather really do flock together.”
Seo-young opened her front door and stepped inside, wiping today’s events from her mind.
The tug-of-war for dominance with Jung Min-hyung was exhausting enough; she didn’t want to carry around trash like Oh Yeran as another concern.
* * *
Yeran, unintentionally drenched in wine, angrily replayed the sight of Hyuk-jin carrying Seo-young away, her rage shaking even her chest.
Entering one of the lounge’s private rooms, she quickly showered and immediately left the club.
As soon as she got into the car she’d called, she dialed Min-hee.
“Hyun Seo-young—she’s going to pay for what she did to me. Just wait.”
After venting her irritation with Min-hee, Yeran ended the call with a firm vow.
But the small bit of calm she’d regained evaporated the moment she remembered Hyuk-jin’s gentle demeanor toward Seo-young.
“AAAH! Why is he marrying that countryside nobody instead of ME?!”
Her scream was so loud that the driver flinched.
He glanced at her in the rearview mirror but quickly resumed his calm driving—it wasn’t the first time.
After ranting without caring whether the driver heard or not, Yeran picked up her phone again.
She scrolled through her contacts and made another call.
“Hello? Oppa, it’s Yeran.”
* * *
“This is strange, Director. It feels like information keeps leaking.”
Seo-young lifted her head from her documents at Jin-ho’s words. His expression was grim.
“Did the proposal fall through again?”
“Yes. And by just a hair—almost as if they knew our exact offer.”
“That is strange. And it’s happened more than once.”
Seo-young’s expression hardened.
It was already the third time. Too many to call it coincidence.
She stood and slowly turned toward the floor-to-ceiling window.
They had been scrambling to secure bids for international forums and global brand collection events.
Her hotel offered better terms than competitors, yet they kept losing.
This isn’t normal. Three failures in a row… something’s off.
Her face darkened further.
With the wedding around the corner and hotel matters falling apart, her nerves were stretched thin.
Seeing her sink into thought, Jin-ho checked his watch.
“The meeting starts soon, Director.”
Still staring outside, she nodded heavily.
“Right. Let’s go.”
With a sigh, she turned, forcing her expression into place.
“We’ll just have to push another idea for now and try to get some breathing room.”
Taking the documents from Jin-ho, she inhaled deeply.
Her shoulders looked unusually weighed down as she left her office.
* * *
Karlos Hotel conference room.
Surrounded by executives, Seo-young’s expression was dark, and the atmosphere matched—heavy, tense, like the calm before a storm.
Only Vice President Jung Min-hyung, seated at the head of the table as acting president, hid a smirk.
“Director Hyun Seo-young is usually very capable, but perhaps because her wedding is coming up, her focus seems to be slipping lately. Things keep going wrong. Anyway, let’s hear from her first—the one who achieved the impressive partnership with Hanho Construction.”
Though he sounded like he was praising her, he was clearly taking a jab.
Seo-young bit the inside of her cheek hard.
The executives’ expressions were not encouraging.
“First, I’d like to apologize for the repeated failures in our bids.”
She deliberately omitted any mention of suspected information leaks.
The last thing she needed was to be accused of failing to manage internal security.
After a slight bow, she began presenting the alternative agenda she had prepared.
“I understand the intention, but… isn’t this something another hotel is already negotiating right now?”
The marketing director’s comment made her eyes widen.
“…Negotiating? This is the first I’ve heard of it.”
“I was told just before entering the room.”
Min-hyung added to the marketing director’s words as if mocking her.
Behind her, Secretary Oh frantically checked her phone, texting rapidly. A moment later she looked up and nodded with a grim face.
Who is it?
It was possible others had similar ideas.
But the timing was far too suspicious.
Seo-young stared at her documents, frowning.
Proposals she had crafted as fresh, innovative ideas had already been pre-empted by another hotel—always one step ahead.
There’s definitely a spy.
Her expression hardened.
“I’ll bring another proposal soon. Something is clearly wrong, so I’ll excuse myself here.”
Seeing no point in staying, she rose immediately.
Executives gaped as she walked out without offering excuses.
This was serious.
Even with her recent accomplishments—the engagement announcement with Hyuk-jin and the Hanho partnership—Seo-young now realized how difficult the road ahead would be.
Only after the heavy door closed did she release a long sigh.
“I’m sorry, Director. I’ll definitely find who’s leaking the information.”
Jin-ho looked determined as he watched her weakened expression.
“Yes. Please do. Especially investigate Vice President Jung’s side. They’d benefit most from stealing our data.”
“Understood.”
After sending Jin-ho off, Seo-young headed to the lobby to meet friends who had come to congratulate her.
But when the elevator doors opened, she froze mid-step.
“Aren’t you getting in?”
Standing there was Oh Yeran—wearing long dangling statement earrings, an obviously expensive necklace over a silk blouse, her entire outfit looking like a runway model’s.
From head to toe she was draped in luxury goods, with an arrogant expression to match.
Recognizing Seo-young, Yeran’s red lips curled into a sly smile.
“What brings you here?” Seo-young asked.
Yeran let out a soft laugh, eyes lifting.
“Is there something wrong with me coming to a hotel?”
“Coming to a hotel isn’t the issue. But this is the staff elevator.”
Seo-young stepped out and gestured toward the guest elevators, watching Yeran’s expression carefully.
With an internal spy already giving her headaches, Yeran showing up now was more than suspicious.
Seo-young recalled that she was friends with Jung Min-hee—and a new hypothesis emerged.
Don’t tell me she’s scheming with Jung Min-hyung?
It was a thought she normally wouldn’t entertain.
But considering the lounge incident and her complicated history with Min-hyung, it wasn’t impossible.
Yeran maintained her haughty look and chuckled.
“Who knows? I might become your sister-in-law someday.”
…What?
Seo-young’s eyes twitched upward.
Yeran stepped into the elevator with confident strides, leaving Seo-young staring in disbelief.
The last thing Seo-young saw before the doors closed was Yeran’s triumphant, crescent-shaped smirk.
