Chapter 6 (Part 6)

A chill suggesting that if she crossed the line just once more, he would tear her skin apart.

Thinking he was angry, Seo-hye hurriedly apologized.

“Oh… I’m sorry for shouting—”

Then Do-jin let out a small laugh.

Seo-hye, flustered, bit her lips inward and watched him without breathing.

“……”

His beautifully sculpted eyes narrowed slightly.

Seeing him directly made Seo-hye’s heart vibrate like a pond struck by a stone.

“Who do you think is to blame for me picking on your words? Then why do you keep blaming me after you flirt first, Seo-hye?”

Seo-hye’s face turned as red as the sunset.

When she was with this man, she blushed so often that she started to get confused about whether her original skin color was supposed to be flesh-toned or red.

“I’ll go to the hospital after tomorrow. I’ll go by myself after you go to work tomorrow, Won Do-jin.”

As Seo-hye hurriedly reached out to press the floor button for Do-jin’s private room, he gently wrapped his hand around hers.

Returning her hand to its original position, he said.

“I don’t want a scar on your hand.”

“……”

“Your hands are quite beautiful. I have to see you holding a brush with those hands myself.”

Her heart, which had been racing the whole time, began to leap uncontrollably.

This man spoke as if he needed Seo-hye, who paints, not just the ‘painting’ she created.

An illegitimate child. Born as an unwelcome existence in the world, the time she was mistreated seemed to be somewhat compensated as a part of the hole in her heart was about to be filled.

Moreover, she wanted to ask him why he had to marry her.

Couldn’t he, after breaking off the marriage talks with her family, marry a woman much more excellent and beautiful than Hae-mi or herself?

A woman from a better family, raised without any wrinkles, smart and capable, wouldn’t he have plenty of such women beside him?

Then why did he set aside such women and choose me, whose parents’ existence isn’t even intact?

But she worried that asking might open up the hole she had barely filled.

If he gave an answer wrapped in trivial excuses like it seemed easy or because he met her before Hae-mi, the hole would grow several times larger.

She tightly sealed her lips, hiding her emotions.

***

The next day.

Do-jin was moving with Seok-young to meet Hwa-woong’s driver.

On the way, Seok-young handed him a tablet PC.

Displayed on the screen was information about Director Park Dong-cheol.

“He’s more of a businessman than a doctor.”

Hearing Do-jin murmur quietly while examining the information, Seok-young continued the conversation.

“Yes. He’s famous for making money off VIPs. He has a bad reputation for illegal procedures and attracting nylon patients. Of course, because those who need Director Park Dong-cheol hold high social status, no one reports him.”

(The term “nylon patient” is a derogatory term for a fake patient.)

Do-jin nodded dryly as he responded.

“Then, using house calls as an excuse, he mostly operates outside the hospital, going to locations set by VIPs or inviting them to his own home.”

“Yes, that seems to be the case.”

“He would be the perfect person to hide Seo-hye’s mother at his residence.”

As Seok-young continued the conversation, he flinched for a moment.

It seemed he hadn’t thought that far, and as soon as they stopped at a red light, he turned around.

At the same time, Do-jin closed the cover of the tablet PC and directed his gaze at Seok-young.

“Send someone to check out Director Park Dong-cheol’s house. Make sure they aren’t exposed.”

“Yes, understood.”

“If anything suspicious is noticed, have them report it immediately.”

Seok-young’s response was louder than before.

Hoping desperately that Seo-hye’s mother was at Dong-cheol’s house, Do-jin shifted his gaze out the window.

An hour later.

They arrived at a famous golf country club in Bucheon.

Mr. Kim, who had been contacted by Seok-young in advance, was there to meet them at the scheduled time.

Guided by Seok-young, Mr. Kim got into the back seat.

Unlike Do-jin, who sat with a calm expression, Mr. Kim looked tense, as if he might break if touched.

In response, Do-jin was the first to speak.

“I will address you as Mr. Kim.”

He nodded slightly.

“I investigated a person named Park Dong-cheol, who runs a private clinic and is an associate of Paintor Lee.”

Mr. Kim looked at Do-jin with a slightly surprised expression.

“It seems this is the right lead, seeing how you reacted immediately.”

“……”

“No matter how much we searched the hospitals in the metropolitan area, we couldn’t find Seo-hye’s mother.”

“……”

“If it’s Director Park Dong-cheol’s house, where he does shady things behind the scenes, there would be a reason why she hasn’t been found.”

Do-jin asked Mr. Kim, who was vaguely staring at him, directly.

“Is Seo-hye’s mother at Director Park Dong-cheol’s house?”

Mr. Kim scratched his forehead with a subtle expression before answering.

“Yes, that’s correct.”

When asked about the most suspicious situation, Mr. Kim confessed the truth without hesitation.

“Even though you already knew, why did you insist on meeting me…?”

“I was curious. Why someone like you, who is associated with Paintor Lee, sent Seo-hye to me.”

“……”

“Did you pretend to be Paintor Lee’s person from the beginning, or is there another reason?”

Do-jin’s voice became somewhat sharp.

Mr. Kim took a deep breath in the tense atmosphere and hesitated.

Do-jin did not rush him.

Thanks to that, Mr. Kim, who seemed to have organized his thoughts, began to speak.

“Hyo-young, I mean, Miss Seo-hye’s mother seemed to have very little time left.”

Do-jin’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Mr. Kim referred to Seo-hye’s mother in a familiar way.

Did they know each other from before?

“But if something happened to Miss Seo-hye before then, I thought I wouldn’t be able to let Hyo-young go peacefully… So that’s why I told you to take her.”

“How do you know Seo-hye’s mother, Mr. Kim?”

“We worked together as servants. I… had feelings for her.”

Do-jin couldn’t easily say anything in response to the unexpected reason.

“Miss Seo-hye doesn’t know. That her mother was a servant in this household. Or that I was close with Hyo-young…”

At that moment, Mr. Kim’s phone rang.

It was Paintor Lee.

Holding the phone tightly, he spoke.

“Anyway, Hyo-young is at Director Park Dong-cheol’s house. Please take her before it’s too late. No matter how well-equipped Director Park’s house is with professional equipment, it’s not as good as being cared for in a hospital.”

Mr. Kim quickly opened the door and got out.

Watching Mr. Kim hurriedly take a call and run off, the driver’s side door opened.

Seok-young got into the driver’s seat and asked.

“Executive Director.”

“It seems she’s indeed at Director Park Dong-cheol’s house.”

“Then should we go in right now and bring Seo-hye’s mother out—”

“No.”

Do-jin replied with a much heavier voice.

“Secretary Yoo, discreetly find out Director Park Dong-cheol’s schedule for today and tomorrow and let me know.”

“Why go through such trouble…?”

Seok-young thought it unnecessary to complicate things when they could simply bring her out.

“Seo-hye’s mother isn’t in a condition to leave on her own. Her condition seems quite poor, and if anything goes wrong during the process of bringing her out, it could be fatal.”

“Oh…”

“It’s best if Director Park brings her out safely.”

“Yes, understood. I’ll look into Director Park Dong-cheol’s schedule and report back immediately.”

“Yes. Keep the surveillance ongoing.”

“Yes. Don’t worry, Executive Director.”

Seok-young drove back to the company.

Do-jin gazed out the window with a pensive expression.

The fact that Seo-hye’s mother was a servant in Paintor Lee’s house was quite shocking.

However, it made sense that there would be a strong bond among the servants, and that Mr. Kim, who had good feelings for Seo-hye’s mother, sent her daughter to him, deeming it safer than at home.

“Secretary Yoo.”

“Yes, Executive Director.”

“You mentioned that after Lee Hwa-jun passed away, they dismissed all the servants.”

“That’s right. There were many servants, but I heard that after Paintor Lee lost his son, he significantly reduced the number of servants.”

“Meet with the servant who told you that and confirm if Seo-hye’s mother worked as a servant.”

“What? Seo-hye’s mother?”

When Do-jin didn’t respond further, Yoo Seok-young quickly dropped the subject and agreed.

If Seok-young can confirm from the servant he met while investigating Paintor Lee’s household that Seo-hye’s mother worked as a servant,

The trust in Mr. Kim will increase even more.

Perhaps it might become a decisive card in removing the presence of Paintor Lee, who is consuming Seo-hye.

Regardless of the intentions, being someone close to Paintor Lee, he would know Paintor Lee’s weaknesses better than anyone.

***

After washing up, Seo-hye opened the shopping bag that Do-jin had given her before going to work in the morning.

Inside was a neat shirt dress and a set of underwear.

“I asked Secretary Yoo to prepare something urgently. Let’s go to the department store together this evening. Since you’ll be staying here for a while, there might be things you need.”

“……”

“Think about what you might want to buy.”

It was something she hadn’t even considered.

She had left the house with nothing but the clothes on her back, yet she was thinking of going to class.

She was grateful to Do-jin for taking care of even that part first.

She picked up the dress and removed the tags.

She briefly noticed a lot of zeros on the tag but consciously avoided looking at the price and tossed it into the trash can.

The more burdened she felt, the harder it would be to stay here.

For the time being, only until the day I find my mother, I must somehow endure.

To do so, I must become shameless.

Seo-hye removed the tags from the underwear as well and put them on immediately.

Even though she hadn’t checked the size, it fit perfectly.

She unknowingly smiled and slipped on the dress as well.

After buttoning it up, she left the room.

As she headed to the first-floor classroom, Yoo-ra from the PR team, who had arrived early, greeted her.

“Seo-hye.”

“Manager. Hello.”

“Sorry for moving the time up suddenly. There’s an internal event at the orphanage late this afternoon, so they contacted me urgently to start two hours earlier.”

As soon as Do-jin went to work, Seo-hye, who was about to sleep a bit more, received a text from Yoo-ra.

She asked if it was possible to start the class two hours earlier.

After Seo-hye agreed, she had breakfast through the room service Do-jin had ordered and got ready to come down immediately.

“It’s okay. I didn’t have anything else planned before the class anyway.”

Despite Seo-hye’s assurance, Yoo-ra still looked apologetic.

Seo-hye gave a light smile to show she was really okay and was about to enter the Creativity Hall.

But then.

“Oh?!”

Suddenly, Yoo-ra grabbed Seo-hye’s hand.

“What happened here? Are you okay?”

It was only then that Seo-hye realized her right hand was bandaged.

“Oh… I just twisted it a bit. It doesn’t affect my drawing, but… it does look a bit concerning. Will it be a problem for filming?”

Yoo-ra shook her head slightly.

“Hmm, it’s not a big problem, but won’t it be difficult to draw?”

“Actually, I can use my left hand to some extent. It won’t be an issue for the class.”

“Wow, Seo-hye, are you ambidextrous?”

Yoo-ra asked in surprise, but Seo-hye found it hard to answer readily.

Her family, including Hwa-woong, didn’t know she was ambidextrous.

However, having left the house, there was no reason to keep it a secret any longer.

“Yes.”

“Oh, that’s such a relief.”

Yoo-ra, with a slightly brighter expression, nodded for Seo-hye to go inside.