Chapter 21
Villain in Love
- Traces
Manager Mun shook his head as he looked at Madam Shin, who still believed her daughter was simply on vacation from work. It was frustrating how clueless she could be.
“Vacation, my foot. What kind of company gives months of leave? Stop talking nonsense.”
“Then you’re saying it’s not a vacation? Did she quit? Yeonwoo? Why?”
“How should I know? If I knew the ‘why,’ she’d be my daughter, not yours.”
“She is my daughter, and even I don’t know.”
“Ugh, with her mother bedridden in the hospital, do you think the truth would just slip out of her mouth? She probably made it up so you wouldn’t worry.”
As Manager Mun clicked her tongue even louder, Madam Shin slowly gulped down her orange juice. Manager Mun narrowed her eyes and added her two cents.
“She likely said that to keep you from worrying, but she quit.”
“I had no idea. So she really quit. Well, I did think it was a bit strange. Just for a moment.”
When Madam Shin’s expression grew pensive, Manager Mun tapped her on the thigh. It was a signal to understand the depth of her daughter’s heart.
“Anyway, it’s better for both of you if your daughter leaves Domyeongjae as soon as possible. You shouldn’t let her settle there; take her with you quickly. You worked yourself to the bone washing dishes and sweeping courtyards just to send that girl to college, didn’t you?”
“It’s not that… but there’s no other way. I can’t leave Domyeongjae without a replacement worker.”
“Are you making your daughter unemployed just so you don’t lose your job? You stubborn woman.”
“Domyeongjae isn’t just important to you, sister. It’s a precious workplace for me too.”
Only then did Manager Mun close her thin lips as Madam Shin muttered.
It wasn’t that she didn’t understand that feeling, so her usual scolding didn’t follow.
Sigh. Madam Shin let out a heavy breath.
It upset her to realize belatedly that her daughter must have come down home while being unemployed. And of all times, she had to break her leg that day.
Our Yeonwoo was supposed to go back up and start fresh…
“What do we do now? I can barely walk, and discharge is still a long way off.”
“I don’t know. Anyway, once someone enters Domyeongjae, I can’t kick them out until they leave on their own. Unless she decides to walk out herself.”
At the end of her sentence, Manager Mun put a few side dishes she had brought into the small refrigerator while continuing her sharp nagging.
Then, opening a shopping bag sitting nearby, Manager Mun looked at Madam Shin.
“What’s this? Underwear?”
“Leave it there. I hand-washed them, but I wanted to boil them to get them clean.”
“Good grief. Just good grief. You’re doing everything while lying in bed.”
“Jayeong boils them at her house for me, so it’s convenient. Where would that habit of boiling clothes go? Just leave it, I’ll give it to Jayeong when she comes later.”
“Jayeong can’t come today. She’s on duty.”
“It’s the weekend, why is Jayeong on duty?”
Manager Mun was about to explain that Jayeong had to cover the shift because the Vice President had taken her daughter out, but she simply waved her hand.
“I’ll boil them for you, so wait. Your house is just up ahead, right?”
“Oh, forget it. The house must be a mess; don’t go looking at such a sight.”
“Ugh. When has the way you live ever been neat? Just stay still. I’ll go tidy up a bit. It’s no good leaving a house empty for too long.”
Manager Mun walked out carrying the shopping bag with the underwear. Then, with a somewhat softened face, Madam Shin called out to her.
“Sister.”
Manager Mun, who was opening the door, looked back.
“Don’t pick on our Yeonwoo, treat her well. She’s such a good kid.”
Manager Mun, acting as if she were letting Madam Shin’s words go in one ear and out the other, peeked back in and asked.
“By the way… she is your biological daughter, right? You didn’t pick her up from under a bridge or by a railroad track?”
“What are you talking about? She’s the daughter I gave birth to myself. Why all of a sudden?”
“Well… she doesn’t look like you at all.”
“…….”
“She doesn’t look like you, not even a bit. She’s like a different species.”
“Why are you attacking me personally on your way out? You want my broken leg to break again?”
Madam Shin raised her voice as if aggrieved, but Manager Mun disappeared behind the sliding door.
Yeonwoo’s outfit arrived in exactly forty minutes. The clothes, sent from the nearest Seolyang Department Store, were brought personally by the store manager. Though it was a modest delivery of three or four sets, the very first outfit was perfect, making it unnecessary to try on the rest.
As Yeonwoo changed into the dress, the manager skillfully fitted it. Standing still with her arms slightly apart, Yeonwoo slowly pushed out a nervous breath.
“Is it too tight?”
“No. It’s fine.”
The manager, holding the waist, checked again. Since there was no time for alterations, she had chosen a garment that could be adjusted with laces, and the skirt flowed elegantly and modestly below the waist.
The manager then took out several pieces of jewelry.
“I thought your features were quite distinct, so I brought accessories that aren’t too flashy.”
“Ah, yes.”
When Yeonwoo nodded, the manager expertly flipped the boxes over so the jewelry logos were visible. Then, placing a business card for the jewelry branch next to the table, she subtly promoted them to Yeonwoo.
It made sense. This was a direct order from Vice President Nam Sung-hun of Seolyang Construction, and although these were clothes for a companion, the manager judged that the woman’s influence would be beyond anything she could imagine.
While Yeonwoo put on the earrings, the manager lined up shoes by size. Then, she naturally placed another business card on top of the first.
After finishing the shoe setup, the manager fastened the necklace, and Yeonwoo stepped into the shoes that fit her feet. Her height suddenly increased, and Yeonwoo worried whether she could walk properly in them.
Then, she stared blankly at the formal wear from the Domyeong Costume Room lying on the bed. Wrapped in black silk, she felt dizzy at the thought that she had almost committed a truly terrible mistake.
“I believe we are finished. Is there anywhere uncomfortable?”
“No. Thank you.”
Her breath felt heavy and the heels felt precarious, but it was a burden she had to bear. The manager looked over Yeonwoo as if doing a final check and nodded with satisfaction.
“It suits you well. You are beautiful.”
“Thank you.”
While packing up various items, the manager finally placed her own business card on the table. Then, she bowed deeply—almost excessively so—to Yeonwoo.
“It was an honor to serve you. Please call on me anytime.”
Since she had been told the formal wear from the Domyeong Costume Room should be returned in three days, Yeonwoo naturally thought about the return process.
The manager, who had been walking quietly after packing her things, turned back, bowed, and answered.
“Vice President Nam Sung-hun has purchased these for you. Thank you.”
Before the startled Yeonwoo could even react, the manager left the room. Yeonwoo simply blinked. Then, she glanced tentatively at the stack of business cards.
There were no price tags, of course, but it didn’t seem like something that could be settled with just a few hundred dollars.
“…I can just return them to the Vice President later.”
She spoke to herself as if cutting off the thoughts that were spiraling. Then, she looked at her reflection in the mirror and slowly pulled up the corners of her mouth into a smile.
I have to smile. I have to smile well, no matter what.
Because he needs someone to smile in his place.
It was an opportunity to repay the debt she owed him.
And it was also the only chance she had to stand in for him.
Just as she was staring into the mirror with a resentful face, feeling like her nervous smile was lifting unnaturally, the room phone rang.
Walking with uncomfortable steps for fear of twisting a heel, she picked up the receiver.
— This is Nam Sung-hun. Are you ready?
At his voice, heard before she even had a chance to say ‘hello,’ Yeonwoo curled her fingertips.
“Yes. I’m all ready.”
— Then it’s time. I’ll see you at the meeting place. The twentieth floor.
“I understand, Vice President.”
He hung up after leaving only the necessary business.
Her heart was pounding so hard she couldn’t tell if it was because of the tightly cinched waist or the uncomfortable shoes.
Leaving Madam Shin’s hospital room, Manager Mun walked slowly, holding the crumpled shopping bag. Madam Shin’s villa was visible in the distance, and Manager Mun moved steadily toward it.
On weekdays, her schedule was tight because she even had to cook for the construction site. She barely knew how the days passed.
Since her youth, Manager Mun had been the type to prepare feast tables almost every other day. The number of guests coming and going was immense. She had served food while stirring dozens of large iron pots; her skills had been tempered for a long time.
However, lately, she felt her strength failing. Was it true that age could not be hidden? As she moved her body from dawn to cook for the site workers, groans of pain escaped her involuntarily.
Having finally found a bit of time, she had come out with the intention of handling the chores she had put off and tidying up the injured Yeonwoo’s mother’s house. No one would ever know how tightly she had managed her time to do this.
She climbed a somewhat sloped road. She was walking without a thought when a startlingly loud horn blared behind her.
“Hey! You there, old lady!”
Manager Mun turned around, wondering what kind of crazy person was honking like that.
“Old lady! Come here!”
A man with a frame so large the driver’s seat looked cramped was waving his hand with a menacing face. Manager Mun’s expression twisted strangely as she looked at his tattooed arms.
As Manager Mun stood there staring, the man got out of the driver’s seat. A tall man with a thuggish build approached with a vulgar gait and suddenly pointed toward the villa.
“Old lady. Do you know the woman living on the second floor there? Shin Sunmi?”
Manager Mun looked the man up and down. The glare from his eyes, which were pitifully small compared to the size of his face, was unpleasant just to encounter. His bald head, shaved without a single hair left, had a bluish tint that made his impression even rougher.
A stench of stale cigarettes spread ominously, and his protruding belly, which looked ready to burst even without him trying, was repulsive. The various tattoos covering him from head to toe were absurd.
“Who’s asking?”
He certainly wasn’t from around here.
“Damn it, the old hag talks too much. Just answer what I’m asking. Do you know this woman or not? They say she lives here, so why hasn’t she shown her face? Huh?”
Leading with a curse right away, the man stepped closer to Manager Mun. Manager Mun felt like her nose was going to rot from the smell of cigarettes.
“I’m asking you, old lady. Are you deaf?”
The impatient man pulled a photo out of his pocket.
“Forget the woman living here, look closely at this photo. Do you know this woman or not?”
The ID photo held in his hand, which was as large as a pot lid, looked exceptionally small. Manager Mun leaned back to see the woman in the photo.
“I told you to look at it properly up close, what are you doing?”
“I have presbyopia. I can’t see things up close. Wait until you get old, see if you can see things up close.”
“Ha, damn it, presbyopia or whatever, just look at it straight. Do you know this woman or not?”
Manager Mun’s expression turned ambiguous as she confirmed the woman in the ID photo.
“You don’t know? Old lady, if you live around here, you should know. You’ve never seen her?”
It was a photo of Yeonwoo.
