🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 10
“Did the chairman call you here?”
Hyena acknowledged Joo-young without stepping out of the elevator. She looked fully dressed up, as if she had a lunch appointment with Choi Kwon-yong.
“That’s none of your concern. Mind your own business. I need to get off, so you should too.”
Joo-young nodded slightly. He didn’t want to waste time and was telling her to move aside quickly.
But Hyena didn’t get off. Instead, she pressed the basement 1 button and kept her hand on the door-open button.
“I forgot something. Let’s go down together.”
“Ha…”
Instead of getting off, she stayed—like a stubborn child. Joo-young sighed deeply and got into the elevator.
Ding—the elevator doors closed. As if she had been waiting for the moment, Hyena continued speaking.
“Suddenly, you’re in a romance rumor. Interesting. And with the eldest son of Seongwoon Group.”
“…”
“Why? Was the eldest son on the list of marriage prospects the chairman gave you?”
Joo-young didn’t respond to Hyena’s probing question.
But Hyena knew him well enough that a reply wasn’t needed. She already knew the answer. She had asked only to provoke him.
“Ah, so that’s why you want to marry him? To keep the Oido villa?”
Hyena’s smirk almost reached her ears.
“Wow~ You acted all noble, but in the end, Choi Joo-young, you’re no different. You’re using your body to keep the Oido villa.”
Hyena poked Joo-young’s shoulder with her index finger.
“You should’ve treated me better. If you had bowed your head and wagged your tail, I might have just let you keep the Oido villa…!”
At that moment, Hyena’s eyelids shot up. Joo-young had grabbed the hand that was poking his shoulder.
“I-I’m not letting go!”
Hyena struggled, but he was so strong that all she could do was thrash.
“Why would I? Even if I wasn’t in your good graces, the Oido villa will soon be mine.”
“Hah! You’re protecting it with your body.”
“You only see what you want to see. Do you really think I’m like you?”
“…”
“If I marry the eldest son of Seongwoon Group, my position in CS Group will be even stronger. You know what that means, don’t you?”
“…?!”
Hyena’s pupils began to tremble. Having learned from her time at the mansion in Hannam-dong, she immediately understood Joo-young’s meaning.
Suddenly, Joo-young pulled Hyena closer by her fingers.
“When I become the chairman, the first thing I’ll do is remove you, worn-out as you are, from the group.”
Then he leaned close and whispered in her ear.
“You’ll never see or touch anything you eat, use, wear, or sleep on again. You’ll be left completely empty-handed.”
Oh no.
You’re in big trouble.
His stomach churned.
It always felt this way when meeting his father or Go Hyena. Like someone had poured acid on his insides. He couldn’t shake the burning sensation.
So Joo-young skipped lunch and focused entirely on work. With the romance rumor causing a stir at CS Department Store, there was no shortage of tasks.
Even so, he had to finalize the deal with Bae Seong-hoon, so he adjusted his schedule to visit Seongwoon Hotel.
As soon as he reached the lounge, an employee recognized him and approached.
“Choi Joo-young?”
“Yes.”
“We’ve been expecting you. I’ll show you to your room right away.”
The employee guided him to a room inside the lounge. The walls were glass, offering an open feel, though blinds could be drawn for privacy.
“I’ll manage from here,” Joo-young said upon seeing Seong-hoon already in the room.
“Please bring an iced Americano and a glass of water to the room.”
“Yes, understood.”
The employee bowed politely, and Joo-young smirked slightly before entering the room.
When the glass door opened, Seong-hoon looked up.
“You arrived on time today?”
A taunt, perhaps. But there was no avoiding it. Even though he had demanded a 1% stake, Bae Seong-hoon still had a slight advantage.
Still, Joo-young didn’t bow submissively. Why would he give up 1% so easily?
Moreover, Seong-hoon was a man who responded to provocation with provocation—or with complete indifference. Joo-young ignored the provocation lightly and sat across from him.
“Busy, I see.”
“Not really.”
Seong-hoon shrugged.
At that moment, the employee knocked on the glass and entered, saying, “Excuse me.” He placed the iced Americano and water in front of Joo-young and left.
“Isn’t it too late for coffee?”
“I still have work. Not going to sleep immediately.”
Joo-young took stomach medicine from her handbag and swallowed it with water while making eye contact with Seong-hoon.
“Why?”
“I was wondering why you’d eat something right after arriving.”
Seong-hoon stood abruptly and drew the blinds. The room became completely private in an instant.
“Vitamin?”
“Something like that. More importantly, this.”
Joo-young took an envelope from her handbag and placed it in front of Seong-hoon.
“It’s the contract.”
After Seong-hoon had indicated a positive stance toward marriage the previous night, Joo-young stayed up late drafting the contract. She was dizzy from the alcohol and exhausted, but she wanted to finish quickly. She also didn’t want to waste her sleepless hours.
“It’s a prenuptial contract, if you like.”
“…”
“This is a draft. Read it. If there are clauses you want to revise or add, let me know. I’ll take Bae Seong-hoon’s opinion fully into account.”
Seong-hoon took the papers out of the envelope and flipped through them. Though he seemed to skim, his black eyes absorbed every detail.
“Clean. No ambiguous sentences. I’d believe a senior lawyer wrote this.”
“I didn’t write it for your praise, so just tell me if there’s anything to add or revise.”
Seong-hoon stared at her, then leaned back against the sofa.
“The part about how we separate was blank.”
“I’ll take care of that today—”
“Let’s discuss separation when the time comes. No need to waste time now.”
“No. How we separate is as important as marriage. To prevent future problems, we should decide now—”
“Decide now? How?”
His indifferent eyes turned sharp. That look. That fierce gaze that made the heart feel torn apart the first time you saw it.
“Choi Joo-young, you seem to be mistaken. You know that if the reason for divorce is used to gain 1% of Mulsan’s stock, it could create a situation where the cost outweighs the benefit?”
Seong-hoon was talking about alimony.
“Don’t worry about alimony. Even if we divorce, I don’t plan to file a lawsuit.”
In this world, losing half of one’s assets due to alimony was common. Joo-young had carefully included an alimony clause in the contract.
“You didn’t see it in the contract?”
“I did.”
Seong-hoon straightened from leaning back and leaned forward this time. Even with the round table between them, his dark eyes seemed to shrink the distance to the maximum.
Joo-young clenched her fists under the table but kept her exterior calm. She could never let her guard down for even a moment. One lapse and she’d become prey.
“But do you have the authority to make such decisions?”
His words were a warning—reminding her of her limits.
“Then, we’ll discuss the reasons for divorce when the time comes.”
Seeing her silent, Seong-hoon spoke again. His black eyes were calm now.
“My condition for agreeing to this marriage is simple.”
He raised his index finger, signaling ‘one’.
“Once a week, we’ll go on a date.”
“…”
“To show it to the world and add credibility to this marriage.”
Ten dates in total. After the ten dates, then marriage.
