If punishment is supposed to make the recipient reflect on their actions, can this even be called punishment? Soo-hyun glanced sideways at Ho-beom sitting next to him. He’d wondered why someone who supposedly rarely came home would show up for breakfast so early, but apparently it was punishment for yesterday’s incident.

This felt more like punishment for Soo-hyun than for Yang Ho-beom.

And for some reason, Yang Ho-beom kept staring blatantly at Soo-hyun’s fingers every time he used his chopsticks. Soo-hyun tried to ignore it, but because of this, he could hardly tell if the food was going into his mouth or his nose. This bastard Yang Ho-beom, does he have a finger f*tish? Or is he annoyed that I’m eating his family’s side dishes?

Feeling self-conscious, Soo-hyun reached for vegetables instead of meat, when Ho-beom put down his spoon and abruptly took Soo-hyun’s chopsticks. Startled, Soo-hyun watched as Ho-beom grabbed his hand and repositioned the chopsticks between his fingers. When Soo-hyun tried to pull away in surprise, Ho-beom adjusted them again.

Only then did Soo-hyun understand why Ho-beom had been staring—because of his clumsy chopstick handling.

“Why is someone your age worse at using chopsticks than a kindergartener?”

This bastard always smiled kindly while saying something offensive. Soo-hyun jerked his hand away, and Chairman Yang cleared his throat. Soo-hyun, who had been about to say something, gave up, while Yang Ho-beom continued eating as if nothing had happened.

Despite being at the dining table, there was hardly any conversation. After finishing the meal, the staff brought in tea. As they poured the brewed tea into cups, Chairman Yang called to Soo-hyun.

“Have you thought about it, Mr. Baek?”

Soo-hyun took a sip of water and nodded. Yes.

“Good. What have you decided?”

“I’ll cooperate fully. But in return, pay me.”

It felt a bit awkward to directly mention money, but beating around the bush about compensation wasn’t Soo-hyun’s style either. The old man removed his reading glasses and asked, how much? Soo-hyun shared what he’d been thinking about all night. To pay off his debts and live a clean, honest life from now on, he’d need quite a substantial amount.

“About… 1 billion won?”

Kuk. Ho-beom snickered beside him. Soo-hyun glanced around nervously. He checked the old man’s reaction and also looked at Woo-jin, who quietly ate his meal across from him…. Why are they reacting like this? Did I ask for too much? Still, he didn’t want to back down.

“So you’d sell your father for 1 billion won?”

“I’ve lived as if he didn’t exist for a long time. I’m sure it’s the same for him.”

In truth, Soo-hyun found it hard to believe that Baek Gwang-mu would come looking for him just because he knew his son was alive. If he’d been that attached to his child, he wouldn’t have created this situation in the first place. Though Soo-hyun hadn’t suffered physical abuse growing up, he didn’t have memories of living harmoniously like other families either. His father was always away, and even when he did come home, he’d just throw money at him and leave. There was never any real affection between them.

After pondering for a while, the old man asked Soo-hyun a question.

“Some people say that children should bear the punishment for their father’s sins. What do you think?”

Soo-hyun smirked at the unexpected question.

“That’s bullshit. If that were the case, would there be anyone in this world who isn’t guilty?”

The old man’s expression remained subtle. Soon, a smile spread across his wrinkled face, and he nodded repeatedly. It might have been his imagination, but Soo-hyun noticed Yang Ho-beom’s expression had hardened. Regardless, what mattered to Soo-hyun was this:

“If we’re going ahead with this, please make sure to write up a contract. I’ve had my foot chopped by an axe I trusted too many times since I was young.”

“Of course. That’s only right. But I have a condition too.”

At the mention of a condition, the smile on Soo-hyun’s face slightly faded. Chairman Yang continued.

“How about you learn to work here until we find your father?”

He almost spat out his water. Completely blindsided by Chairman Yang’s proposal, Soo-hyun looked at Yang Ho-beom sitting next to him. His expression showed no surprise and remained calm. He seemed a bit displeased, but he clearly knew about this in advance. What the hell are these two plotting?

“Work…?”

“It’s hard to find strong-willed young people these days. In our time, we worked regardless of the circumstances, but nowadays, everyone just wants to take the easy way out. In that sense, I quite like you.”

Strong-willed, regardless of circumstances—only those two phrases stuck in his mind. This bastard is planning to make me do some serious physical labor.

“What if I refuse?”

“I told you yesterday, didn’t I? It’s up to you.”

Soo-hyun thought about it. If he left now, could he guarantee his own safety? Who was Kim Chang-nam? He was the man who had tracked down Baek Soo-hyun from Seoul to Ulsan in just one day. Yet such a person had been completely silent. And what about the butcher shop owner? He seemed dangerous enough to make Kim Chang-nam tremble, but the fact that neither had contacted him meant either something had happened to Kim Chang-nam, or this old man had enough power that neither Kim Chang-nam nor the butcher shop owner dared to touch him.

“What do you say?”

Soo-hyun nodded.

“Alright… I’ll do it. But will I get paid separately for the work?”

The old man laughed heartily. That seemed a bit ominous, but whatever. Money is money.

“We’ll arrange that.”

What kind of work would it be? Looking at the old man, he clearly wasn’t an ordinary person.

Before Soo-hyun could ask, the old man spoke first.

“You’ll learn the work under Beom.”

The smile disappeared from Soo-hyun’s face. What? Thinking he might have misheard, he glanced to the side to see Yang Ho-beom unwrapping gum with a peculiar smile and popping it into his mouth. The old man scolded him for chewing gum at the dining table.

Instead of responding to the old man, Yang Ho-beom turned his head to look at Soo-hyun.

“Looking forward to working with you, Mr. Baek Soo-hyun.”

This can’t be happening. Soo-hyun looked desperately at Chairman Yang.

“Chairman… I’d like to learn the work here, but your grandson and I have an awkward relationship, so working together seems…”

“Why? I don’t mind.”

Yang Ho-beom smiled brightly. Right. You don’t mind. But I hate it, you bastard. Do you think I don’t know what you’re plotting? You want to torment me all you want when your grandfather isn’t around. Soo-hyun ignored that face and stared straight ahead.

His eyes met with Woo-jin sitting across from him, and Soo-hyun desperately pleaded for help with his gaze. Woo-jin, you said you’d take my side once. That time is now. Please… Then Woo-jin hesitantly opened his mouth.

“I know it’s not my place to interrupt such an important conversation…”

All three turned to look at Woo-jin. He pushed up his glasses once and bit his plump, red lips before releasing them.

“I think it would be fine if Soo-hyun hyung just stayed here. Secretary Yoon mentioned he was looking for a new bodyguard for me, and Soo-hyun hyung could do that instead.”

Hearing this, Yang Ho-beom leaned back, folded his arms, and laughed. Woo-jin couldn’t bring himself to look at that face directly and shifted his gaze toward the food in front of him. They might be brothers, but their relationship clearly showed.

“Woo-jin, do you like Mr. Baek?”

Without hesitation, Woo-jin answered the old man’s question. Yes. At that, the old man made a “hmm” sound, and wrinkles formed between his eyebrows. Soo-hyun inwardly cheered. Honestly, men and especially younger ones weren’t his type, but if that’s what you want, this hyung could maybe just once,

“Give in to Beom this time. Beom was the one who proposed it to me first.”

Ah, sh*t. He almost cursed in front of the old man. A flash of indignation crossed Woo-jin’s face, but he quickly suppressed it and hid his expression.

“I will, Grandfather.”

Soo-hyun felt like the food he’d just eaten sat heavily in his stomach. Just then, Yang Ho-beom leaned toward Soo-hyun and reached out his arm. His face came closer. Soo-hyun flinched instinctively, but Ho-beom just grabbed an apple from the left, took a bite, and smiled like a villain.

“Scared?”

Soo-hyun sensed it.

Soon, it wouldn’t be the apple going into that mouth, but his own neck.

***

I’m screwed. This is all wrong. Should I just quit? But what would I do if I left this place? I’d just get caught by Kim Chang-nam and beaten to death. Should I contact him now and explain that I’m being held captive? Promise that I’ll somehow recover the stolen USB and return it?

But there’s no way he’d buy that. And finding a way to get it back wouldn’t be easy either.

As he sighed deeply, someone knocked on the door. His body jerked in response. The door opened, and Woo-jin appeared. While Soo-hyun let out a sigh of relief, Woo-jin entered with a shopping bag in his hand and placed it on the table.

“Grandfather asked me to bring this to you.”

Curious, Soo-hyun checked it and found bundles of cash. Seeing his surprise, Woo-jin quickly added an explanation.

“It’s not a gift; he says it will be deducted from what you’ll receive later.”

Still, it was better than nothing. With not a penny to his name, Soo-hyun thought this was fortunate.

As he put away the cash, he noticed that Woo-jin hadn’t left but sat there, staring intently at his face.

“What? Do you have something to say to me?”

“I’m sorry. I tried to stop it somehow…”

I take back what I said about him having a lecherous side. Compared to Yang Ho-beom, he was a very kind-hearted boy. If only Yang Ho-beom had even a quarter of his character, how much better things would be.

“It’s okay. How could you stop your grandfather and brother when they’re both pushing for it? Thanks for trying, though.”

Woo-jin truly looked apologetic. Then he picked up a pen and wrote something on a memo pad. It was a phone number. He handed it to Soo-hyun.

“This is my number. When you get a phone, please let me know yours too.”

“Why?”

“Just so we can contact each other occasionally.”

Soo-hyun tilted his head in confusion. Occasionally for what? We’ve barely just met. Woo-jin put down the pen and formed a barely perceptible smile at the corner of his mouth. “Who knows? It might be helpful then.” After saying these cryptic words, he disappeared. Soo-hyun stared at the numbers he had written down.

Not only is he good-looking, but his handwriting is neat too. If I had a brother like him, I would have treated him well.

Then, remembering that he had to follow Yang Ho-beom in a few days, his face contorted. Ugh, I really hate this. Soo-hyun flopped onto the bed, groaning and pulling at his hair. Should I just give up on everything?