Chapter 235: Resignation 3
Junhyuk stared at Doyeol for a while before asking, “What do you mean by the other side?”
“You mean you don’t know?”
Junhyuk crossed his arm and continued to stare at him.
“I don’t know what you are referring to, but I want to make one thing clear.”
“What?”
“Even though I’ve sold you mana stones, that doesn’t mean I’m on your side.”
“You promised to sell me things from the battlefield.”
“Let’s not forget our agreement,” Junhyuk said, while Doyeol frowned but remained silent.
“Fine. Next time, if you bring anything back, contact me. We need the mana and bloodstones.”
“I understand.”
Junhyuk left Doyeol and walked over to Eunseo.
“How was it?” she asked him.
Junhyuk raised a thumb up.
“You were cool.”
“Thanks.”
The conference room looked like a warzone, and Junhyuk said, “It’ll trend on the internet.”
“Yes. The work is done. Do you feel like having a drink?”
“I can’t. I have a previous engagement.”
Eunseo guessed at what he was going to do and raised both of her hands apologetically.
“Of course. Your engagement must also be important to me.”
“Be understanding.”
“Sure. I understand.”
Eunseo took a step toward him. She got very close to him and whispered in his ear, “What did you talk about with my brother?”
“When I spill my secrets to you, you’ll know. But not yet,” he said, and she took a step back.
“I will have drinks with the Administrative Department employees.”
“My goodbye party is on Thursday!”
“I’ll drink then also,” she said and turned around.
Dohee walked over, and Eunseo left with her.
“Let’s clean up,” Junhyuk said to the others.
The Guardian employees started cleaning up, and the ST Capsule Strategy Department helped out.
Later, everyone went to have a drink, but Junhyuk went home, put on his disguise and went to meet Sarang.
He sent messages to her burner and sat at a coffee shop near the school. He was drinking his coffee while watching TV. The news about the news conference was on, and when he saw Eunseo on TV, he touched his lips. He could still feel her kisses.
“What are you doing?”
Junhyuk was startled and looked down to see Sarang in disguise sitting in front of him.
“Where is mine?” she asked.
“I didn’t know when you’d come?”
“Hm. Get me a cup now.”
“What do you want?”
“Red bean with Ice!”
He laughed and got her a bowl of red bean with ice. Sarang smiled and started eating it.
“Why did you ask me to meet you?”
“I have something to say.”
She stared at him with the spoon in her mouth. She was wearing a mask, but he could take a guess at her expression underneath it.
“Do you remember Eunseo Kim, Guardians’ CEO?”
“I remember. I got killed once for protecting her.”
“Right. She is a novice now.”
“What about her? She is my big sister!”
Junhyuk was speechless.
“Since when she is your big sister?”
“Why not? She’s older than me, so I’ll call her that.”
He continued, “I am trying to bring her to our side.”
“So?”
“She wants to know every secret.”
Sarang’s eyes widened.
“Every secret?”
“Correct.”
“That means she wants to be on our side permanently?”
“That is her condition.”
Sarang put the spoon down.
“Can we trust her?”
He pondered about it and answered, “We can either completely trust her or not at all. It’s one of the two options.”
“Why are you telling me all this?”
“She will know about you as well.”
Sarang realized something.
“So, you are here to get my permission?”
“Yes.”
She smiled.
“You make me feel good.”
“Why?”
“Because you are here to get my permission.”
Junhyuk told her to stop being nonsensical, and Sarang turned away. She saw Eunseo on the TV and said, “Completely or not at all?”
“That’s right.”
“How much do you need her?”
He took a moment to think before answering, “She is essential to our operation.”
“Essential?”
“Correct. We can ignore her money, but not her friends.”
Sarang laughed brightly, and the people around her looked at her.
“Don’t draw attention to yourself,” he warned her not to be so loud.
“Sorry. You said that money doesn’t matter.”
“Why is that so funny?”
“That tells me money is not a constraint.”
“Money doesn’t matter. After you graduate, you can come work for me part-time. I’ll pay you.”
“Really?”
“Do you think I’m joking?”
“Nope.”
She ate her red bean with ice and smiled.
“Let’s take her.”
“Are you sure?”
“It was only for a short while, but I’ve grown fond of her.”
He caressed her head, and when she smiled, he continued, “OK, we’ll have dinner with her later.”
“Good. Aren’t you buying me dinner tonight?”
“I am.” He got up and said, “Let’s go and eat.”
“I’m still working on my red bean.”
“After dinner, I’ll get you more dessert.”
She got up and wrapped her arms around one of his.
“You are the best!”
“Get away from me.”
“Why? It feels good.”
He sighed, and she followed after him.
After dinner, he took her home and went home himself. After taking off his mask, he called Eunseo. He had to tell her immediately.
She picked up the voice, and her voice seemed eager.
“You called early!”
“Did you drink a lot?”
“A little.”
“Then, let’s talk tomorrow.”
“Come and pick me up,” she answered quickly.
Junhyuk hesitated before asking, “Where are you?”
“I am at Ilsan’s Daemang.”
“I’ll go right now.”
Junhyuk hung up and grabbed a cab. He arrived at Ilsan’s Daemang, a traditional Japanese restaurant, and called her again. She came out with Dohee.
He approached them, and Eunseo looked at Dohee and said, “I will head home with Junhyuk.”
Dohee grabbed the car key and handed it to him, and Eunseo straightened herself up. He walked up to her, but she waved him off.
“I’m fine. I didn’t drink too much.”
He nodded and walked toward her car. He opened the door for her, and Eunseo entered it. Once they were both in, he started driving.
“Do you want to go home?”
“Can we get some air first?”
“Sure.”
As he drove, she looked out the window. She didn’t speak, and he stepped on the accelerator. The wind blew on her hair, and she adjusted it with her hands and said, “Let’s go someplace quiet.”
He drove somewhere quiet. The car stopped. She unbuckled her seatbelt, walked out and yawned hard.
He did the same without the yawning.
Eunseo gathered herself and said, “I’m ready to listen.”
“I’ve made a decision,” he announced, staring at her. “I need you.”
“That means…”
“That even if I lose everything, I still need you.”
Her eyes widened, and he said, “Let’s get together.”
She staggered from what she had just heard, but he supported her, and she smiled at him. Ordinarily, her smile was very secretive, but now she was smiling wide and bright.
He stared at her, and she hugged him suddenly. He hugged her back, and after a while, they separated.
She fixed her glasses and avoided his gaze.
“Thanks for supporting me.”
He wanted to ask her if that hadn’t been a hug, but he didn’t do it.
She looked at him and said, “I want to hear all of your secrets.”
He nodded and said, “Get in the car. I’ll tell you everything.”
She got in, and he continued, “Where should I begin?”
“I have time, so tell me absolutely everything.”
She wanted to know everything. He looked at her, and she looked at him.
“I’ll start with first time I went to the Dimensional Battlefield,” he said.
—
Daylight was starting to come up, and he smiled. His story had been long, and she had listened with enthusiasm. They talked for a while, and now the sun was rising.
“That’s hard to believe.”
“What part?”
“That Catherine is a high school student.” That was the only thing she had been curious about. She got up and yawned deeply before saying, “I want to meet her.”
“She wants to meet you too.”
“Arrange a meeting.”
“After I resign, I’ll do it.”
She looked at him as if she had thought of something.
“Are you really resigning?”
He nodded.
“No one can control me. So, I’ll need more power, and for that, I need independence.”
“But you have enough money already.”
He had already earned more than a billion dollars. While he had spent hundreds of millions of it, he still had some money.
“What do I bring to the relationship?” she asked.
“Money isn’t everything.”
“No. Money can buy everything, but you have to know where to spend your money.”
“Is that right?”
She nodded and got up.
“But Elise is an exception.”
“I’m cooperating with her. And I am her client.”
“No, I’m talking about her money.”
He laughed and nodded.
“She is an exception. She wants things from the Dimensional Battlefield for her research.”
“Like the iron soldier and the R-potion.”
“That’s only a part of it. Only Elise can make use of items from the battlefield and turn them into money. We need her help.”
“Are you going to make her join our side?”
He shook his head.
“Nope. We are just using each other. That’s good enough.”
She smiled at what he said.