The Tyrant Husband - Chapter 1.3

Chapter 1.3

One hour later, in the mansion’s bathroom.  

Standing in front of the bathroom shelf, Eun-sol let out a small sigh.  

“How many are there, really?”  

The shelf was packed with sanitary pads. Winged, liner-type, panty-type—there were all kinds. It made sense since everything from the convenience store’s display had been swept up.  

‘I told him I didn’t need this much.’  

Even when spoken softly and gently, he was the kind of man who insisted on his way, even with trivial matters like this.  

‘Maybe he’s trying to make sure I never use sanitary pads as an excuse to go out again.’  

Eun-sol pulled a pregnancy test kit out from her sleeve. Just thinking about the moment she had stolen it made her dizzy again.  

‘I’m sorry, convenience store owner.’  

The reason she had to deceive not only Kwon Jeong-hyeok but also the convenience store owner was because of the recent incidents.  

The shrimp paste test hadn’t provided her with any clear answers, so she had gone to the police station afterward.  

“Officer, could you check my fingerprints? Am I really Kim Eun-sol?”  

It wasn’t just a matter of whether Kwon Jeong-hyeok was really her husband; she couldn’t even be sure if she was truly Kim Eun-sol. After all, her name was something he had told her.  

“Yes, Ms. Kim Eun-sol. Twenty-nine years old. Your current residence is listed as Seoan County, Chungcheongnam-do. Both your parents are recorded as deceased. You do have a husband—Mr. Kwon Jeong-hyeok, age thirty-two.”  

The officer’s response was concise. Perhaps that’s why it felt even harder to believe.  

“Really, is that true? Is this man, Kwon Jeong-hyeok, really my husband?”  

The reaction she received was as if she were a delusional patient.  

“We’ll contact your guardian and have them take you home.”  

“No! Absolutely do not contact him.”  

She didn’t want Jeong-hyeok to find out that she had gone to the police station. However, the officers weren’t so easily persuaded, and eventually, even the station chief got involved.  

“It’s our responsibility to safely escort residents back to their homes. In that case, we’ll take you home ourselves.”  

In the end, she found herself riding in a patrol car back to the house, after extracting a promise that they wouldn’t contact him.  

The station chief, while driving, spoke with enthusiasm, spitting as he talked.

“Thanks to CEO Kwon’s efforts, this area was able to secure approval for a luxury resort and leisure complex! You have no idea how thrilled the residents were.”

Kwon Jeong-hyeok was the owner of Sowon Construction. Sowon Construction was one of South Korea’s top five construction companies. Since he inherited management rights, the company had become the first in the industry to successfully enter the global carbon market, causing its stock prices to soar.  

“On top of that, it’s not just any construction company but Sowon Construction, so of course, they’ll build it exceptionally well! I’m sure even his ancestors are looking down and praising him from the heavens.”

This area was said to be the hometown of Kwon Jeong-hyeok’s mother, and his maternal family had been prominent figures in the region since the liberation from Japanese rule.  

It had already been suspicious why he, who had lived in Seoul all along, suddenly moved down here after getting married.  

At first, she thought it was simply because this was his parents’ hometown. But the station chief’s subsequent remarks sent chills down her spine.

“CEO Kwon is the beacon of this region. During the COVID-19 pandemic, every single small business owner in this area borrowed funds from Sowon Construction. The interest rates were even lower than the banks’. Who else would do something like that? If CEO Kwon asked, they’d probably pluck the stars from the sky for him!”

In short, this region was practically his little kingdom.  

When they arrived home, Kwon Jeong-hyeok was already waiting. The sun hadn’t even fully set yet, so it wasn’t the time of day he would typically be home, as he usually returned late at night.  

“Oh my, it’s such an honor to meet you, CEO Kwon. As per your request, I’ve safely escorted your wife back home.”  

The police station chief greeted him with utmost politeness, rambling on as if he were a new employee desperate to showcase his achievements.  

It was only then that Eun-sol realized the police station chief had ignored her request and contacted Kwon Jeong-hyeok, likely using the situation to curry favor with him.  

If the police station chief was like this, it was possible that everyone in the area acted as his eyes, ears, hands, and feet.  

A few days later, she deliberately stopped by the township office to obtain a copy of their marriage registration. While it was true on paper that he was her husband, the timing of the registration was suspicious. It had been filed while she was unconscious from a car accident.  

Why would he go out of his way to register the marriage at such a time? It was impossible not to feel uneasy about it.  

The visit to the township office had reached his ears almost instantly. Even the fact that she had stopped by the café next to it after leaving the office had been reported to him.  

Though it seemed like she was moving freely, in truth, she was still within his sphere of control.  

‘Maybe the reason he suddenly moved from Seoul to this seaside town was for that very purpose.’

To isolate her completely and hide something…?!  

‘Is he really my husband? Did we truly get married because we loved each other?’  

The more she thought about it, the more confused she became. She couldn’t tell where excessive paranoia ended and reasonable doubt began.  

In any case, she couldn’t trust anyone in this region. That included the convenience store owner, which was why she couldn’t confidently purchase a pregnancy test kit.  

“Sigh…”  

Snapping out of her thoughts, Eun-sol opened the packaging of the pregnancy test kit.  

“One line means not pregnant, two lines mean pregnant…”  

She repeated the instructions once more before wetting the test stick with her urine. The liquid was quickly absorbed along the stick.  

Just one extra red line could turn this chaos into even greater chaos. Her vision blurred red, and she felt like vomiting.  

“Ah…!”  

It was only after a few minutes that her wavering vision returned to clarity. She widened her eyes and checked again, but the test stick showed only one line.  

Eun-sol collapsed onto the bathroom floor.  

All she had done was buy a pregnancy test kit from the convenience store and use it, yet she felt as though she had walked a journey of ten million miles.  

* * *  

At some point, the long hand of the waterproof clock hanging in the bathroom had completed a full rotation.  

She tightened the belt of her robe firmly and left the bathroom. Dragging her heavy body along the long corridor leading to the bedroom, she clung to a faint hope.  

‘Please, let Kwon Jeong-hyeok have fallen asleep already.’  

But as soon as she turned the corner, that hope was shattered. He was sitting on the sofa, reading an economics magazine.  

“Done with your shower?”  

Their eyes met as he calmly lifted his gaze. His disheveled hair framed eyes that glimmered coldly, like a predator’s eyes shining brighter in the darkness.  

“I was just about to come in and check since you were taking so long.”  

Resting his chin on his hand, he spoke in a languid tone.  

“…T-the bathroom?”  

Eun-sol stammered, her voice unintentionally sharp.  

Since Kwon Jeong-hyeok usually returned home late at night, Eun-sol pretended to be asleep to avoid interacting with him.  

Following the doctor’s advice that the quality of sleep was crucial for her recovery, they used separate beds, which made it possible for her to avoid him.  

Of course, there were occasional days when Kwon Jeong-hyeok came home early. On those days, she would soak in the bath until her fingers wrinkled. The bathroom was her only refuge.  

And now, he was threatening to invade even that sanctuary.  

At the ominous feeling that she might lose her last place of retreat, Eun-sol could only blink.  

“I was wondering what cute little thing you might be up to this time since you weren’t coming out. Were you testing for a tap water allergy this time?”  

His low voice carried a teasing rhythm.  

Eun-sol struggled to keep her trembling lips in check. The phrase “a thief caught in the act” came to mind. The word “test” that he had casually thrown out struck a nerve.  

‘There’s no way he noticed I took a pregnancy test. He’s just mocking me about the time I tested for a shrimp paste allergy.’  

If she reacted too sensitively, it would only make him more suspicious.  

“I didn’t realize so much time had passed.”  

She answered calmly. Now that she thought about it, she noticed his hair was wet. It seemed he had just come out of the first-floor bathroom after a shower. Perhaps because of the moisture, his dark hair appeared even darker and heavier, like the depth of night.  

Moreover, he was dressed in a bathrobe—worn so loosely that his chest was exposed.  

Her startled gaze slid downward, but that was a mistake.  

The knot of his bathrobe, tied precariously around his hips, looked as though it might come undone at any moment, signaling an unknown danger that seemed imminent.  

Come to think of it, he was always impeccably dressed in suits or casual homewear. Never once had he exposed his skin.  

‘What does this mean?’  

Despite the loud alarm of danger ringing in her head, she couldn’t come up with a quick answer. In moments like this, it was best to leave the space entirely.  

“I’ll… dry my hair and come back.”

Only after turning her back did she realize her mistake. 

Why did I feel the need to add “come back”? 

It sounded as though she had made plans to do something with him after drying her hair.