A high-end sedan screeched to a noisy stop in front of a gleaming building.
A man who had been boldly smoking beneath a sign marking the area as non-smoking by the entrance was smacking the heads of rookie employees with a stack of documents when he frowned.
Shouting, Which bastard is it, fuck, he confidently lifted his head—only to lock eyes with Gu Seunghyeok behind the wheel. The moment he realized who it was, he flicked his cigarette butt away into the air and rushed toward the car.
The rookies standing behind him followed after reading the room, but before they could even reach it, the driver’s door opened and a pair of black shoes hit the ground.
The man who’d been running bent at the waist in a full ninety-degree bow, lowering his head.
“Shall we go in, boss! I’ll park the car!”
“Boss?”
“Ah—sorry, Manager Gu!”
Maybe it was because he’d already witnessed a fucking awful sight in front of a motel that morning. The constant groveling, the faint stench of cigarettes, even the backs of the man’s hands covered in faded tattoos—everything grated on him. Seunghyeok looked down at the man with icy eyes and spoke.
“You looked busy. Why stop? Finish what you were doing.”
“N-No, sir. I’m sorry, Manager Gu.”
“State your department.”
“…Management Support Team Two. Assistant Manager Moon Hyunseung.”
As the man tensed his body, even the ones standing behind him bowed repeatedly with frightened faces. There wasn’t a single thing about them that didn’t irritate him. Seunghyeok lifted Assistant Manager Moon’s shirt cuff with his index finger, then let it drop.
“If you wanted to look like a gangster, you should’ve stayed on site. Not play dress-up and guard kids in the headquarters lobby.”
“I-I’m sorry. I’ll correct it!”
“Correct my ass. Starting next week, report to a container site. I’ll tell the field team.”
For a moment, Moon’s face went blank in shock, his mouth hanging open, but Seunghyeok only stared down at him crookedly. He closed his eyes and dragged a hand over his brow.
“Do I need to say it twice?”
“N-No! Understood! Thank you, boss!”
As Moon folded himself over with a stricken look, the rookies behind him mimicked the gesture. Judging by their expressions, they still hadn’t fully grasped the situation.
Having no intention of standing there to explain it kindly, Seunghyeok turned away and headed for the building. A small sound, like a stifled groan, rose behind him.
As he approached the sleekly designed lobby, the massive building of bluish glass loomed in all its splendor. Everyone knew—though no one said it out loud—that the respectable structure planted in the heart of Seoul had been built on people’s blood and flesh.
In front of the lobby, the words Taeseong Group were carved into a massive stone easily two meters tall. Only a few years earlier, they’d been called the Taeseong faction, a group drifting through back alleys.
Expanding an organization that barely survived on managing entertainment venues and drug sales in Incheon, Bucheon, and western Seoul into full-scale smuggling, narcotics distribution, prostitution, and more—that was the achievement of Chairman Gu, who now sat at the top of that building.
But the vague label group ultimately just meant they did anything that made money. It was nothing more than a refined name slapped onto something that operated outside the law.
Chairman Gu knew that too, which was why he’d always wanted to tack solid, respectable words onto Taeseong’s name—construction, development, logistics, entertainment, things like that.
Corporatizing the businesses they’d long run underwater during their days as an organization, turning Taeseong into a holding company—that long-held wish of Chairman Gu was now just within reach. That was likely why he’d summoned Seunghyeok, who had quietly handled all the dirty work, to the clean headquarters.
Seunghyeok swept his disheveled hair back with one hand and undid the top button of his shirt. Just thinking about going up and facing that snake-like face made his throat feel tight already.
“Manager Gu, greetings!”
“Greetings!”
Spotting Seunghyeok striding straight across the lobby, a group of men in suits hurried over and lined up in formation. The sight of several burly men standing at attention made the café patrons’ eyes go wide.
“Easy, easy, boys. You’ll scare the customers off.”
Clicking his tongue lightly, Seunghyeok headed toward the elevators. Someone at the front quickly pressed the button for him and bowed obsequiously.
“You’re here, boss.”
“The chairman’s upstairs, right.”
“Yes, but at this hour, what brings—”
“So he can hear my report?”
Tilting his head crookedly as he spoke, Seunghyeok froze the man’s face. He bowed deeply, repeating apologies over and over. Seunghyeok looked down at him, then let out a short laugh and turned away.
“Look at you, shaking.”
The elevator stopped on the nineteenth floor. Without hesitation, Seunghyeok turned toward the chairman’s office.
One of the crew members who’d gotten off with him hurried after him as if he had something to say, but the moment Seunghyeok flung open the office door and stepped inside, he stopped, only wetting his lips with his tongue. Greeting Seunghyeok was Secretary Yoon, springing up from his seat with a startled face.
“Manager Gu, it’s only two o’clock—what brings—”
“Let’s go in.”
“Just a moment, right now—!”
Ignoring Secretary Yoon as he rushed to intervene, Seunghyeok shoved open the heavy inner door. The first thing that caught his eye was two people seated on a glossy leather sofa.
Feeling four eyes snap toward him at once, Seunghyeok ground out a brief curse between his teeth. Shit. So that’s why everyone was acting like that.
“Manager Gu, I’m sorry, but if you could come back a little later—”
“Oh, Manager Gu. I was just thinking of calling you in a bit early anyway. This works out.”
Chairman Gu, who’d been shooting sharp looks at the interruption, relaxed his expression and curled his lips upward. Faded hair tinged with gray, deep wrinkles carved into his forehead—there wasn’t an ounce of kindness to be found on the old man’s face, only the indelible marks of time.
Along with the sickly pallor that no amount of money, power, or prestige could hide.
“Secretary Yoon, bring another cup of tea.”
“…Yes, Chairman.”
“Good. Seunghyeok, come sit here.”
He had no desire to sit at the same table and play happy family, but it wasn’t as if he could turn back now.
Until then, Seunghyeok had been standing by the door. Gritting his teeth, he stepped inside. Instead of the seat Chairman Gu indicated, he dropped heavily onto the spot beside it.
The man sitting opposite him, lifting a teacup, raised his eyes sharply. Seunghyeok leaned back against the sofa and flashed an exaggerated smile.
“Didn’t want to get indigestion staring at each other over tea.”
“……”
“Maybe not you, but I’m more delicate than I look.”
As Seunghyeok chuckled and shrugged, Jinhyeok turned his gaze away from him, face cold. Secretary Yoon then came in and set an elegant tea set down in front of Seunghyeok. Steam curled gently from the dark golden liquid, barely rippling.
“So. Nexus. How was it when you checked in?”
“All those places are the same. Nothing special.”
Leaning back with both arms draped over the sofa’s armrests, Chairman Gu reached into a wooden case on the table and took out a cigar stick. The wrinkles of his hand trembled visibly, but no one mentioned it.
“Right now, thirty percent of the funds flowing into Taeseong pass through there. That’s why I wanted to hold onto it to the end.”
“……”
“But during the TS Capital screening, it looks like those listing committee bastards caught on.”
The sharp cigar cutter snipped off the end, and Jinhyeok flicked a lighter, holding the flame up before Chairman Gu’s face. Click—the lid snapped shut with a light sound.
“I was thinking of putting Nexus in your hands, Seunghyeok.”
“……”
A thin silence settled over the office. Everyone knew that beneath the guise of a suggestion was an order, and that Seunghyeok’s will didn’t matter.
Instead of answering, Seunghyeok jiggled his crossed foot and clicked his tongue against his teeth. At the flippant attitude, Jinhyeok shot him a sharp look from behind his glasses.
“Gu Seunghyeok.”
“Leave it.”
At Chairman Gu’s single word, Jinhyeok fell silent, like a dog tucking its tail between its legs. Watching that, Seunghyeok raised his teacup to his lips. His twisted smile was half-hidden behind the ornate blue porcelain.
“It’s too tangled like a spider’s web to hand off to someone else. From where I stand, Manager Gu seems the most suitable.”
“……”
“You should start settling in and move into headquarters properly.”
As he rolled the fragrant tea over his tongue, Chairman Gu let out a long breath of cigar smoke. Seunghyeok stared down at the steaming cup, idly tapping his finger.