VDN Ch 134
by STARStanding in front of the large Hanok-style[1] gate, Nam-woon anxiously paced back and forth. At that moment, he heard the sound of a car approaching from behind. Nam-woon stepped aside and turned his head towards the driver’s seat.
The black-tinted windows rolled down, revealing a familiar face.
“You came early?”
Nam-woon spoke quickly as he approached the car.
“Hey, get out for a second.”
He planned to just say what he needed to say here and go home, since he might run into Seo if he went inside the store. He was in a hurry because he still had to finish packing the luggage he’d started packing in the morning. However, Hae-geon smirked and drove straight into the parking lot.
“Damn it, that guy.”
Nam-woon muttered, glancing around before raising his hand to cover his face. He then followed the car’s rear end into the parking lot. As Hae-geon got out of the car, Nam-woon approached him and immediately spoke up.
“I’ll just say this and go. Chairman Seok…”
But Jin Hae-geon grabbed Nam-woon’s wrist and pulled him towards the restaurant. When Nam-woon resisted with strength, Hae-geon turned around and said.
“Someone might hear. Let’s talk inside.”
“It’s fine. Nobody’s following me anymore.”
Last night, Nam-woon agreed to follow Chairman Seok’s orders, he had managed to secure enough time to organize things with Kwon Seo-oh and received a promise that Chairman Seok wouldn’t assign anyone to follow Seo-oh and himself. However, Hae-geon scoffed.
“You’re too naïve. You actually believe that?”
“……”
“I don’t trust your dad.”
Nam-woon glared at the back of Jin Hae-geon, walking slowly. Nam-woon followed him, pulling down the baseball cap. The restaurant he followed into had a unique yet luxurious atmosphere. Expensive-looking ceramics were placed here and there, and large paintings hung on the walls. There were so many of them that it felt like a foreign museum. It had an old-fashioned yet modern interior.
Seo-oh is working in a place like this… Nam-woon unconsciously realized his gaze was directed at the staff and lowered his head again.
“Welcome. Do you have a reservation?”
“One o’clock.”
In response to Hae-geon’s short answer, the employee checked something on a tablet, nodded, and guided them to a room inside. The room was set up for sitting on the floor. Nam-woon, having taken off his shoes, cautiously stepped into the room while glancing around. At that moment, a notification sound rang out.
Ding!
[Congratulations!]
[You have successfully completed Role Fulfillment Clause No. 6, Seok Nam-woon interferes with Jin Hae-geon’s matchmaking date.]
[Special rewards are given for the villainous role of Seok Nam-woon, who pushed away the match date partner and took their place!]
[Special Reward for Villain Role Performance ▶ 2 lottery tickets]
What did I push away and what place did I take? Nam-woon frowned at the series of notification windows that appeared. At first, he thought the prosecutor had finally succeeded in persuading her grandfather, but that wasn’t it. It seemed the system had just been waiting for Nam-woon to stop by this place with Hae-geon. No wonder. No matter how long he waited, the notification for a failed date never came.
Still, he was relieved to have crossed that significant hurdle. Nam-woon sighed in relief and plopped down across from Hae-geon.
“So, your dad’s coming after me now?”
Nam-woon twisted his lips at Hae-geon’s playful question. He wanted to reprimand him for joking around like that, but soon swallowed his words and lowered his eyes.
“I’ll try to find another way, so just give me a little more time. And I’m sorry… I ended up causing you trouble because of me.”
Nam-woon slowly revealed the conversation he had with Chairman Seok with a displeased expression. He hesitated for a moment during the conversation, but he couldn’t hide it from Hae-geon, who might get dragged into trouble because of him, so he decided to share it.
“I’ll try to come up with another plan, so just wait a little longer. And I’m sorry for causing you trouble.”
Hae-geon responded indifferently as he saw Nam-woon’s troubled expression.
“Great.”
“….?”
“Just make it real. That marriage proposal.”
“What are you talking about?”
Nam-woon frowned at the sudden remark.
“Nam-woon, what’s the problem? Think about it simply. It’s a win-win for both Chairman Seok and you.”
“Are you crazy? To meet with you with marr… that as a premise? Who knows what Chairman Seok might be plotting with this marriage proposal. Did you even listen to what I said properly?”
“I don’t understand why you’re so worried about it. I told you. Use me. I’m just expanding your options so you can make better use of me.”
“Options? Is marriage a joke to you?”
He was already upset to begin with and now he was hearing nonsense. As Nam-woon looked at him in disbelief, Hae-geon tilted his head, resting his elbows on the table and propping up his chin.
“If it were a joke, it would be better. To my grandfather, my marriage is nothing more than a means to have children anyway.”
“What? Then marrying you would be an even bigger problem! I’m a man!”
Nam-woon shouted. Hae-geon’s eyes widened as if he were hearing something unexpected, and then he burst out laughing. Nam-woon realized his mistake. This was a world where there were Alphas and Omegas. In the face of such absolute standards, gender had no meaning or value anymore.
But a mistake is still a mistake, and it’s still uncomfortable.
Nam-woon looked at the usually composed Hae-geon with a sullen expression.
“Let’s leave the part about children for later. But the proposal itself doesn’t sound so bad, right? You and I both know it won’t be easy to stay free for long.”
In a way, it seemed that both Jin Hae-geon and Nam-woon were in quite similar situations. The elders in their families had no qualms about using their bloodlines to solidify their power. He hadn’t met Chairman Jin yet and didn’t know the details, but it seemed that way just by listening to Hae-geon. Looking at Hae-geon’s sly face, which still held a hint of a smile, Nam-woon quietly asked something he had been curious about for a while.
“By the way, where are your parents?”
“You’re moving fast. Already onto the background check?”
With Hae-geon’s nonchalance. Nam-woon sighed in frustration.
“…Forget it. What am I even talking to you about? Just don’t forget what I said today. Be careful for a while. You have money, so get bodyguards or something.”
At the mention of a bodyguard, Hae-geon laughed again. Ignoring him, Nam-woon stood up abruptly, but then he heard a voice calling out to him.
“My uncle is coming in a little while. I told him you’d be here, so stay and eat.”
“Why would I stick around when I haven’t even been paid?”
“You’re so cold.”
Leaving Hae-geon behind, Nam-woon opened the sliding door. He quickly put on his neatly arranged shoes on the floor by the door, quickly left the restaurant and called a taxi. He stood in front of the gate, gazing at the road, anxiously waiting for a taxi to arrive. He was anxious about possibly running into Seo-oh.
Fortunately, a taxi arrived shortly after. Nam-woon got into the car right away.
There was no contact from the Chairman.
The detective needs to catch Chairman Seok quickly.
He could pretend to meet with Hae-gan for a while, to take Chairman Seok’s attention from Seo-oh and set him completely free. However, he couldn’t drag it out, and he definitely couldn’t let it go as far as a marriage proposal. He couldn’t cause more damage to Jin Hae-geon.
In the end, he had no choice but to quickly find evidence or figure out another way.
Nam-woon’s legs trembled as he thought. Before that, the first thing he had to do was…
First, let’s go home and pack everything before Seo-oh came. Nam-woon let out a deep sigh at the mountain of things he had to do.
***
After successfully purchasing Nam-woon’s bicycle, Seo-oh headed to the restaurant with light steps. As he approached the large hanok-style gate, he spotted a man getting into a taxi.
“…Hyung?”
A blue baseball cap, a loose white t-shirt, and dark tracksuit pants. The straight, expressionless profile looked just like someone he knew well.
“Hyung!”
However, Nam-woon didn’t seem to hear his voice and got into the taxi, and the car soon started moving.
What is Hyung doing around here?
Seo-oh tilted his head in confusion and then stopped as he looked at the items in his hands. After buying the bicycle, he had received a water bottle and a pump as part of the service, dangling in his hands without a bag. Calling out to Hyung while holding these items could have easily revealed that he had stopped by the bike shop. As he walked into the restaurant, he pulled out his phone to contact Nam-woon.
“Seo-oh, are you here? Come quickly!”
However, at the urgent voice calling for him, Seo-oh couldn’t send the message and had to hurriedly move to the kitchen.
The traditional Korean restaurant, Jeongwon, where Seo-oh works, has been handed down for three generations and has been loved by politicians and business leaders since ancient times. The restaurant, which is well-known for its neat appearance and luxurious taste, was also famous for its excellent service.
The manager of Jeongwon carefully scanned the faces of the staff roaming around the dining area. Today, the Mooyoung Group was visiting the restaurant, and the manager was on high alert to ensure they provided optimal service and delicious food without upsetting their guests.
“Hmm, there’s no one that really catches my eye.”
The manager believed that good service required a neat appearance and pleasant looks, so he had always put great effort into selecting his staff. However, today, there wasn’t anyone he found particularly appealing.
At that moment, he heard footsteps approaching from behind. The manager turned his head. A person entered the restaurant with smooth, clean skin, straight shoulders, dark eyes, and lips flushed red from the heat. And a tall, well-proportioned figure. The manager’s face lit up instantly upon recognizing the person who entered the restaurant.
“Oh, Seo-oh! I was wondering why you weren’t here!”
He approached Seo-oh and pointed to a room inside.
“You’ll be serving in the Moran Hall later.”
“Me?”
Seo-oh raised an eyebrow in surprise. From what he had observed during his brief time working there, it seemed that the Moran Hall and the Plum Blossom Hall were usually handled by long-term staff members. It didn’t seem like a place they would assign to short-term workers like him, so he was puzzled as to why the manager had assigned him this job.
“Since the appetizers have already been served, there’s no need to bring in new plates. Just take the cart and set it up as you did in the other rooms. Be careful, there are a lot of dishes.”
The manager patted Seo-oh’s shoulder and returned to the counter. Seo-oh stared at him for a moment and headed to the changing room. It was to put back on the uniform he had taken off when he left. Just as he was taking off his shirt, two employees who had just entered the changing room saw Seo-oh and let out excited voices.
“Seo-oh, are you going into the Moran Hall?”
“Yes.”
When Seo-oh confirmed, the staff members looked at him with envy.
“Lucky you. I noticed earlier that the guests in Moran Hall are really handsome.”
“Really?”
When Seo-oh asked the question with a tone that didn’t sound interested, One of the employees playfully slapped Seo-oh’s solid exposed bicep with a smile on their face.
“Yeah. He was as handsome as you, Seo-oh! Working here and only seeing pot-bellied middle-aged men, I was really shocked when I saw those customers earlier.”
“But what’s the relationship between those two? The person wearing the hat was practically being dragged along.”
Footnotes:
- Hanok-style: Hanok-style is a traditional Korean architectural style known for its natural materials, curved roofs, and harmonious design with nature. ↑