It had been years since she last saw Yoo Jung-ho. After storming out and declaring that he was fed up with living in such a pathetic excuse for a home, he hadn’t contacted her at all — not even to send her a text message. When her father died, she had no way of contacting him, so she couldn’t ask him to come.

This is why it hadn’t occurred to her that he might exploit their father’s death for financial gain.

She’d been too naive.

She should have realised that if Se-hyeon had used their story to improve his company’s image, Yoo Jung-ho would certainly have found out.

“Well, well. Look at my sister—married into money and glowing like a diamond.”

Jung-ho grinned as he looked at her.

In front of him sat a bowl of blood sausage soup and two soju bottles. One was already empty; the other was halfway gone.

“Money really is everything, huh? Who’d ever believe you’re the same Yoo Ji-an who used to live in that crummy basement apartment?”

Jung-ho clicked his tongue, took another shot of soju and grimaced.

Sitting across from him made her stomach churn. He looked completely wrecked — unrecognisable from the man he used to be.

Had he been living on the streets? After taking that much money from Yang Jin-hee, how could he still look like this? It was enough to make her blood boil.

“Do you call yourself human? Wearing a human face and pulling stunts like this?”

Clenching her teeth, Ji-an hissed the words, wary of being overheard. But Jung-ho didn’t flinch. He simply looked at her as though she were pathetic.

“We barely got by on those tiny paychecks… But still, credit where it’s due—Dad ended up doing more for us than we ever gave him credit for, didn’t he?”

What a lunatic.

How could he say something like that? Ji-an’s fist trembled under the table.

“Thanks to Dad, look at you now—wearing nice clothes, loved by that fancy husband of yours…”

He picked up the green bottle, filled his glass halfway and downed it in one go.

His glassy eyes settled on her, glinting with something dark.

“You’ve got all that money and you’re living the high life on your own. You don’t care if your brother lives or dies.”

He was the one who cut off contact first.

Yet he spoke with no shame.

“You wouldn’t give me anything, even if I begged, would you? That’s why I went to that woman and took what I could. But she’s not paying anymore, so what else can I do? I have to ask you now. Maybe I should have gone straight to your husband.”

“If you even try to contact Se-hyeon, I swear I’ll kill you with my own hands.”

“Oh, trying to stay on your husband’s good side, are you?”

Jung-ho burst into raucous laughter, loud enough to draw curious glances from the next table. Even in broad daylight, the sundae soup restaurant in the market was busy. Worried that someone might recognise her, Ji-an adjusted her scarf to hide more of her face.

“So hand it over. Two hundred million.”

“Where on earth would I get that kind of money? Do you think 200 million won is the name of a family dog or something?”

“Then I suppose I’ll pay your husband a visit. He’s the CEO of W Electronics, isn’t he? He must be filthy rich.”

Ji-an placed a black envelope on the table with a soft thud.

Jung-ho’s eyes dropped to the envelope.

“That’s everything I have. There’s nothing more.”

He quickly snatched it up and peeked inside. After roughly counting the stacks of 50,000-won bills, a crooked grin curled his lips.

“Five million? You’re kidding me?”

“Where do you think I’d get more?”

“You lying b*tch.”

He could say that only because he had no idea how the marriage had come about.

It was a contract marriage.

Just a transactional arrangement — one that she had agreed to on the condition that she would be used.

She had married him purely out of necessity, just to pay her grandmother’s and sister’s hospital bills. She was only twenty-three and hadn’t even had the chance to finish college.

Clueless about the context, Jung-ho seemed to believe everything the media told him.

It was a so-called fairy-tale romance, one of those ‘love stories of the century’.

“I’m serious. I don’t have any more money. If you really want the rest…”

Ji-an took a deep breath.

After all, this ordeal might finally come to an end in just six months.

She could endure it until then — and only until then.

She didn’t want to make things any more pathetic than they already were.

“Six months from now, I’ll give it to you then.”

Not that she had any intention of giving him a won, but that was information he didn’t need.

Jung-ho’s eyes lit up, completely missing the meaning behind her words.

“Oh? So your rich husband’s handing over a fat bonus or something?”

“That’s right. If you want a bigger cut, then sit tight. Six months. Be quiet and don’t make a fuss.”

“My smart little sister, still sharp as ever, huh?”

A slimy grin spread across Jung-ho’s face, finally satisfied.

Tapping the bundle of cash in his palm, Jung-ho finished his drink and stood up.

“Some people inherit fortunes. Look at us, using Dad’s life insurance money. I gotta say, it’s coming in handy.”

Ji-an’s eyes blazed, a fiery red fury igniting in her gaze as she locked eyes with him.

Looking down at her with a sneer, Jung-ho patted her on the shoulder and muttered something in her ear.

“Who knows? Maybe this is all for the best. Hey, why don’t you just have a baby? A son. You might get an even bigger payout. Right?”

He laughed obnoxiously, turned, and strolled out of the restaurant.

Ji-an sat frozen at the table, now completely alone.

“Hey, young man! You have to pay before you leave!”

The proprietor shouted after him, then hurried over to Ji-an.

“The young lady will cover it. One sundae soup and two bottles of soju. That’ll be twenty thousand won.”

Looking at the receipt in front of her, Ji-an let out a hollow laugh.

How had her life become so twisted? She had thought that she was finally free from supporting her grandmother and brother, but then she had discovered an even worse villain lurking in the shadows.

She didn’t want to seem any more pitiful to Woo Se-hyeon.

Just as she was reaching into her wallet to pay.

Rrrr—

Her phone vibrated unexpectedly. Startled, she hurried to check the screen. The name flashing across the display made her eyes widen.

Why was he calling her at this time of night?

She went pale, as if she had been caught doing something wrong.

After clearing her throat twice, she steadied her voice and tapped the answer button.

“Yes?”

—”A dinner appointment just came up. It’s a couple event.”

“Ah… I see.”

—“……”

She could barely muster a response, and Se-hyeon fell silent at the other end of the line. Anxious, Ji-an glanced around, her dark eyes shifting nervously.

Was it too noisy?

Perhaps she should have ignored the call and found somewhere quieter before calling back. Regret washed over her in a wave. Her heart began to pound with unease.

“Se-hyeon?”

—”Where are you? Why is it so loud?”

His sharp voice cut through the line, stabbing at her ears. Flustered, Ji-an’s lips parted, and she rushed to offer an excuse.

“I—I just stepped out. Grandma mentioned she was craving rice cakes…”

It was true that Seong-rim sometimes asked for rice cakes. Typically, a member of staff would go out and purchase some for her, but Ji-an could not think of a better excuse at that moment.

—”Be there by 6:30. Don’t be late.”

“Okay. I’ll get ready.”

She finally sighed with relief when the call ended. She left twenty thousand won on the table and hurried out of the restaurant.

***

“She’s acting… suspicious.”

Staring at his phone after ending the call, Se-hyeon muttered to himself.

—“I just stepped out. Grandma said she craved rice cakes.”

He had a general idea of Ji-an’s daily routine. Nothing on that list should have been as noisy as what he had just heard over the phone. The background noise had almost drowned out her voice.

“She went out… to buy rice cakes herself?”

The Yoo Ji-an he had known for the past three years felt like an entirely different person compared to the one he’d seen over the last month.

He’d thought he knew her pretty well. But now, that subtle shift in her behavior kept picking at him, like a splinter he couldn’t ignore.

Se-hyeon tilted his head slightly before making another call.

Soon, a familiar voice answered on the other end.

—”What’s this? You’re actually calling me?”

The voice was sharp and mildly sarcastic. Given how rarely Se-hyeon reached out to Seong-rim himself, the reaction wasn’t all that surprising.

“What are you doing right now?”

—”Why do you care what I’m doing?”

“No real reason. Just curious… especially today.”

—”You cheeky brat.”

Even as she clicked her tongue in disapproval, her tone was laced with fondness. She clearly didn’t hate the unexpected call from her grandson.

From the sound of her, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

Se-hyeon paused for a moment, thinking. Then, in a deliberately casual tone, he brought it up.

“If there’s anything you’re craving, let me know.”

—”There’s nothing, you rascal.”

“That can’t be right. Don’t you like rice cakes? Or traditional sweets?”

—”Hmph. Haven’t had rice cakes in ages—they’re too hard to digest.”

She doesn’t eat rice cakes. In an instant, a sharp glint flashed through Se-hyeon’s eyes.

“I’ve been a neglectful grandson. Got it. Please rest well.”

Just as he was about to end the call.

“Se-hyeon!”

Seong-rim’s voice called out to him, stopping him short. He brought the phone back to his ear.

“Yes, Grandma?”

A dull headache throbbed behind his eyes, and his brows furrowed as he answered.

But the words that followed made one of his eyebrows arch sharply in surprise.