PR 05

Chapter 5 …

“It’s already been a long time since we lost contact. People close to him testified that they even held the funeral themselves.”

The secretary general, Lee Hansoo, hurriedly followed Chai Do out of the elevator, continuing his report.

“Then at least a list of the deceased—”

Chai Do stopped mid-sentence as he took out a cigarette, narrowing his brows slightly before putting it to his lips. A faint crack appeared in his usually dry, emotionless gaze.

Of course, there were many people who held grudges against Chai Do, not just Yoo Hyung-jin. But Chai Do was the kind of man who never allowed others to find a weak point to exploit.

Unlike the bigwigs who would lose their senses the moment they were presented with a few attractive women, Chai Do never once touched a drop of alcohol, even when surrounded by flesh-colored feasts and carnal revelry.

Even when it looked like he might give in, he would always pull away at the critical moment — as if he knew everything and was playing along with the rhythm.

Every operation that tried to use women against him ended in failure. It was Yoo Hyung-jin who was caught out in the end because of his clumsy moves.

“You should’ve sent your daughter from the start. If you’re going to do something big, you need to go all in. Were you too stingy for that?”

The secretary general shuddered as he remembered Yoo Hyung-jin’s last appearance — kneeling beside a naked woman.

Yoo Hyung-jin, who had turned away from Hae-gang Construction after years of dealings and sided with Gwang-han Construction, used his lover to steal sensitive and illegal solar energy business documents from Hae-gang, then exposed them all at once.

Because of that, a government-backed construction project nearly shifted to Gwang-han’s side — but Chai Do, who had noticed in advance, made his move. In the end, the rebels were utterly destroyed, buried under charges of concealing crimes, bribery, and every disgrace imaginable.

The documents had been fabricated from the start.

And the woman Yoo Hyung-jin had planted as bait? She switched sides to Chai Do without him having to lift a finger. Foolishly, she’d genuinely fallen in love.

His upright appearance and impeccable speech — so unlike the typical construction tycoon — were another of his weapons. The arrogance of thinking that even to avoid betrayal he didn’t have to offer his own daughter had been his downfall.

Even when the woman, who had briefly played along with him, sobbed her heart out, Chai Do didn’t bat an eye.

“There’s no need for the list of the deceased. Report to me the moment any information comes in, no matter how small.”

Chai Do paused for a moment, then lit his cigarette. He wasn’t a puritan. The reason he had kept away from women all this time was different.

“It’s better… to just forget. We searched everywhere, domestically and abroad. If she were alive, there’s no way there would be no trace at all…”

Lee Hansoo continued despite knowing he was stepping on thin ice. Things had been quiet for a while, so why the sudden frenzy to find her again?

“…Don’t tell me you think that woman resembles Yoo Se-hee—”

Before he could finish, Chai Do stopped walking. A small, dark shadow stretched out at his feet.

“…Um…”

Following the shadow, they found Yoo Se-hee standing there, biting her lip as if she’d overheard something she shouldn’t have, looking for a place to hide.

“…I was just here to greet you…”

“……”

“I wanted to come out….”

“Go inside.”

Chai Do’s voice was neither warm nor cold — just indifferent. After that, Yoo Se-hee didn’t see him for a while, not even during their formal dinners.

“Then at least a list of the deceased—”

It wasn’t something she should have overheard, but Se-hee couldn’t move her feet at that moment. The expression on Chai Do’s face as he spoke was something that didn’t suit him at all.

A man like him — a man with neither blood nor tears — unable to forget a woman?

Could it be that Chai Do… had loved someone?

The absurdity of that thought made her let out a hollow laugh.

The reason he hadn’t touched her until now wasn’t respect or pity.

To think a man like Chai Do had that kind of past.

“You resemble someone I’ve been looking for.”

In the end, maybe all he wanted was a doll that resembled his old lover.

Se-hee stared into the mirror, examining each of her facial features. Without glasses and makeup, her bare face felt unfamiliar.

She had changed a lot — her features, her complexion, her expressions.

“But no matter what, you could never be like his real child, could you?”

The first foster parents who adopted her had been people who adored their children. For a while, they poured boundless love on her — until, miraculously, they had a biological child of their own.

Young Se-hee tried harder after that.

If I study more, if the neighbors praise me, if I behave better than my younger sibling, maybe they’ll love me again.

But what they wanted was someone slightly less pretty, slightly less brilliant than their real child — someone who would elevate their real child’s standing by being the perfect supporting character.

She was always meant to step aside when the real one appeared, to become a shadow. It took several abandonments before she truly understood.

She learned to first read others’ desires and fulfill them. That was how she survived her last foster home without being abandoned.

She no longer remembered what her real personality was, or who she used to be. She just flowed like water — becoming this kind of person in front of one type, and that kind in front of another.

Being someone’s replacement was second nature to her.

If he wanted, she could pretend to be Chai Do’s old lover. She hadn’t expected to come this far only to become someone’s substitute again.

But for the sake of the first “family” who hadn’t abandoned her, she could become anyone.

She mustn’t show any signs of hurt.

“Are you done undressing?”

Secretary Ahn, waiting outside the door, urged her. He clearly found her insistence on sending everyone away before changing clothes irritating.

“The guests are waiting.”

So she finally had a role to play.

Living idly, eating and sleeping while doing nothing to save her family had been uncomfortable. Now that she could finally do something, she even felt a little anticipation.

“Yes, I’m ready.”

Se-hee exhaled slowly and straightened her hair.

“Urgh.”

Se-hee braced herself against the wall, swallowing back the nausea clawing at her throat. The scent of increasingly strong incense and the string-like music made her stomach churn.

She slowly lifted her eyelids and looked at her reflection in the glass.

Her pale pink dress bared her shoulders, making no attempt to hide the arm in a cast. Her long, shiny hair was neatly arranged to reveal her white nape.

Perhaps from nerves, her face was completely pale, though the chandelier-shaped earrings sparkling on her ears gave the illusion of a little color.

The flashes, the barrage of questions, the crowd closing in, the pointing fingers — those memories resurfaced like trauma.

“Are you all right?”

The guide who had followed her asked. She knew the question wasn’t out of concern. No matter how nauseous or dizzy she felt, she had to act as if she was fine.

She didn’t know exactly what role Chai Do wanted her to play, but she wanted to do it perfectly.

“…Yes. I’m fine.”

“Director will arrive soon.”

She took a deep breath to steady herself. Her heart raced uncontrollably as she reached for the wooden sliding door made of hanji paper.

“All you have to do is sit. Don’t do anything.”

She recalled Chai Do’s voice and steadied her mind. Through the slightly open gap, she could hear snippets of conversation.

“So, is Gwang-han Construction completely finished?”

“Buried, basically. Prosecutor Yoo Hyung-jin sided with them, and they couldn’t even find his body afterward.”

“You really never know how life turns out. A prosecutor who once held the power to make even birds fall from the sky… ending up like that. I heard his daughter’s being held by Hae-gang instead.”

“Do you think Chai Do has caught on?”

“If he had, do you think he’d leave us alone? If it had been exposed, Prosecutor Kang’s daughter would’ve been in her place…”

As the door opened, the idle chatter abruptly stopped. She felt everyone’s eyes turn toward her.

Like a cow walking to the slaughterhouse, Se-hee slowly stepped inside. The secret annex was filled with people who radiated an unmistakably dangerous atmosphere.