< Chapter 137 Relationships (1) >
Sunday at noon.
In the VIP room of the Okhwadang, three women were having a heated discussion.
“The documents all passed without any issues.”
Shin Jia.
“The agreements with each company are going smoothly as well.”
Yu Hwa.
“The site is fine too. As soon as the materials arrive, we can immediately start the construction.”
Maiden.
The trio was in charge of this new secret project.
“What about the ancient relics that will fill the museum?”
“Mr. Ail has agreed to help. We have also secured promises from the contracted companies to hand over the relics they possess.”
Yu Hwa answered Maiden’s question.
“It seems like we will be able to buy all the ancient relics displayed in the VIP shop near the Gangnam department store as a batch.”
Shin Jia added.
“What about the cost?”
“Overseas is still under coordination, but domestically, it can almost be considered free. They seem to think this is a good opportunity to hand over the troublesome ancient relics without worrying about the government’s views.”
It was partly because the government requested it, and there was also an intention to create a connection with Maiden.
“There won’t be a problem acquiring the department store relics either. That shop was originally under government jurisdiction, so we can almost receive them for free.”
Shin Jia said with a broad smile.
“Why are the government bastards being so cooperative all of a sudden?”
“It probably makes a big difference to the high-ranking people in the government whether they have such a museum or not.”
Yu Hwa smirked.
“Ugh. Politicians are always the same. Did they say anything about the right to operate?”
“They did. They nagged quite a bit, suggesting that if it’s for the national interest, they should be given the right to operate.”
“There were a lot of words on the Shinwa Group side too.”
Yu Hwa and Shin Jia smiled bitterly.
“Ugh. They are like a bunch of hungry hyenas. Hand over the right to operate? Do they expect us to dig the ground and do business?”
All the funds going into this new mystery museum were invested by Maiden, Yu Hwa, and Shin Jia.
The government simply accepted the proposal and agreed to provide convenience. Asking for the operating rights on top of that, it was clear they had sold their conscience.
“They probably didn’t really think it would happen. Just trying their luck.”
“That makes it even more disgusting.”
Maiden clicked her tongue.
“Anyway, the issue with the operational rights has been resolved well, right?”
“Of course.”
Yu Hwa grinned.
“Any other problems?”
“Not on our end.”
“Nothing on the Shinwa Group’s side either.”
Maiden smiled satisfactorily.
“Okay. As soon as the materials arrive, we will immediately start the construction. We will make it the best museum in the world.”
Maiden laughed heartily. The spirit of an artist was burning.
“But unnie, is it really okay?”
“What is?”
“The money. Aren’t you investing too much?”
Maiden accounted for 80% of the investment in this mysterious project.
No matter how wealthy Maiden was, it was clearly quite a substantial expenditure.
“It’s fine. Money can be earned again. When considering the long-term benefits we will get from this project, it’s not a loss.”
“… It’s not a big gain either.”
Yu Hwa and Shin Jia might not find the amount of the investment significant compared to the scale of the business, and having their headquarters in Korea meant that there were many benefits to be had, including tax reductions.
However, this wasn’t the case for Maiden. The best-case scenario would be breaking even, and there could potentially be a loss.
“Ouch!”
Suddenly, Maiden flicked Yu Hwa’s forehead.
“Hey, what does it matter when money pours out even when I just breathe in the labyrinth.”
Maiden gave a faint smile while looking at Yu Hwa who was holding her forehead with her hand.
“And this project isn’t for my benefit….”
It was a very gentle smile.
“For the little one… It’s for Seo-yul.”
The construction of this mystery museum was purely for Kang Seo-yul.
A camouflage museum for Kang Seo-yul, who needed to collect ancient relics without attracting much attention from the public.
That is what the mystery museum is for.
“Considering the help I received from that little one, isn’t this much basically free?”
Maiden said, gently touching her own eyes.
She had received immeasurable help, including from those two eyes. This mysterious project was just one of the ways to repay that favor.
“…Yes, that’s right.”
Yu Hwa also smiled bitterly and nodded her head. Next to her, Shin Jia was continuously nodding, as if agreeing.
“Speaking of which, Jia is….”
Suddenly, Maiden’s eyes sharpened.
“How much do you know about that little one?”
“….”
Shin Jia’s eyes also narrowed.
“I had a favor to ask, and it is indeed somewhat odd to ask it now. But it keeps bothering me, so I have to bear it.”
“Uh, unnie. That’s something Seo-yul asked us not to talk about…..”
Yu-hwa hastily intervened, discouraging Maiden.
“Stay put. I have my own considerations too.”
Kang Seo-yul had asked, Shin Jia and Ha Si-yeon, who were unaware of their past, not to speak about that matter to those two.
Why would he say such a thing?
‘He must have been afraid. Worried that if his past was revealed to the two of them, the relationship would become twisted.’
The only reason Kang Seo-yul would say that was this.
Knowing this, she had kept her mouth firmly shut even though she had been curious.
After all, she had no bad hobby of revealing others’ secrets arbitrarily.
‘But no matter how I look at it, it’s strange.’
No matter how she looked at it, Shin Jia and Ha Si-yeon’s actions seemed to be those of people who knew about Kang Seo-yul’s past.
“You know that the kid is hiding his power. You know that he needs an ancient relic. Not to mention, you don’t even doubt Rena’s appearance.”
“…”
“That means you know a certain extent about the kid…”
Maiden continued speaking.
“That kid said that Jia and Si-yeon are unaware of ‘that matter.'”
No matter how much they thought about it, the relationship between Kang Seo-yul, Ha Si-yeon, and Shin Jia could not exist without the information about their past involving biological experimentation.
“No matter how I think about it, it doesn’t make sense.”
Maiden swept up her bangs.
“So, let’s have a heart-to-heart conversation.”
Maiden’s serious eyes pierced into Shin Jia’s eyes.
* * *
7:00 PM.
I was at home, playfully bickering and playing with Rena.
It was a simple game involving magic, and so far, I’m on a winning streak with ten victories in ten matches.
—Eeeek!
The princess, who had gotten all worked up, perked up her ears and glared at me.
—One more time! Let’s do it one more time! This time, I will win for sure!
—Sounds good. But before that, you have to carry out the penalty, right?
The princess chewed on her lip. Her cheeks were red and hot, and her eyelids were trembling. It was a face that didn’t know what to do with the embarrassment.
I slowly raised my phone while looking at that expression.
“Re…”
She was about to say something, but then she took a deep breath and exhaled.
She breathed in and out again.
Then, with determined eyes, she opened her mouth.
“Re, Rena is an idiot who doesn’t even know the ‘ma’ in magic……”
Then, with a face trembling, she broke into a wide smile.
“Kyuu… Kyuuuu?”
Placing her index fingers on both cheeks, she tilts her head cutely with a coy smile.
Trembling slightly.
Apart from the subtle trembling of her face, it was indeed a perfect display of aegyo (cute behavior).
“Okay, cut!”
“Euaaaaaaang! Goldie-yaaaaaa!”
At that moment, Rena, whose face had collapsed in embarrassment, rushed over to Goldie who was squatting quietly by her side.
Overwhelmed by embarrassment, she buries her face in Goldie’s body.
Goldie looks at her with a pitying expression, as if she were the most pathetic person in the world.
Initially, he comforted her, but after repeating it 10 times, it seemed like he had grown tired.
White Tiger had already run away from his room a long while ago.
“…Heup. Heoo. Haaa….”
Soon, Rena regained her composure and approached me with a determined expression.
―This time, I will definitely win!
She gritted her teeth and glared at me as if she wanted to kill me.
―This time for sure, I will make you face your embarrassing past….
Quietly, I played the Princess’s Aegyo VER.7 saved on my phone and held it out in front of Rena.
―1, 1 plus 1 equals gwiyomi…
The moment the Gwiyomi song Rena sang as a penalty flowed out,
―Kyaaaaaaaak!
Rena screamed.
Closing her eyes and covering both ears, she turned her gaze away from the video.
―You, you. Please turn it off. I, I was wrong. Please not the, the Gwiyomi song….
Her snow-white skin was now as red as a tomato, it was quite amusing.
I chuckled and turned off the video.
―Coward. This must be your scheme to destabilize me before the match. Hmph! I won’t fall for such a lowly trick…
―For someone saying that your face is quite red, no?
Desperately, Rena took deep breaths.
―I’m ready.
A moment later. Rena, who had regained a considerable amount of composure, spread out her hands and spoke.
―Let’s do this. This time, even you won’t be able to handle it!
Paat!
In front of Rena’s hand, a magic sphere with a peculiar shape floated up.
This was the magic-using game we were playing.
―Try to reverse-calculate it if you can!
Rena twisted the magic formula to form a magic of a special shape, and I had to reverse-engineer it to disarm it.
If I disarm it, I win. If I can’t, Rena wins.
―This magic involves a whopping 173 pattern modulations and cross-references. There’s no way you could possibly solve this…
I’m sorry, but my skill is invincible.
―It’s not 173, it’s 198.
―What?
At that moment, the sphere formed by magical power began to crumble.
―….
It took exactly 11 seconds to reverse-calculate.
It was certainly complex, but compared to Choi Ji-hoon’s [Asura Magic Armor], it was nothing but child’s play.
In other words, this reverse calculation game is a game I can’t lose.
―Looks like I won again, huh?
Wince.
―What should I make you do this time?
Each time I spoke, Rena’s ears twitched.
―I can’t think of anything specific.
Her ears perked up.
―If, if you have nothing in mind to make me do, then there’s no need to….
It seems like she’s harboring some hopeful thoughts. You shouldn’t see the world as such an easy place.
―Let’s just do something we’ve done before. Let’s go with the Gwiyomi song again.
Rena’s body stiffened.
It seemed as if the light in her eyes had disappeared.
―You remember the song, right?
―…I don’t remember.
The princess pouted her lips and spoke bitterly.
―Really? Then let’s just watch it again. It’s annoying to go back to that site again, so we’ll use the version you sang…
―I remember! I remember every single word!
The princess suddenly stood up and shouted.
…Ah.
This is too much fun.
That’s why I can’t stop teasing the princess.
―Ugh…. So I have to do it right now…?
She had an expression like a princess who had been captured by a demon king and had given up on life.
―Let’s get started…
It was then.
Ding dong-
The bell rang.
Who is visiting at this time?
Jia’s face appeared on the intercom screen.
―Opening the door is my jurisdiction!
Before I could get up, the princess shot up like lightning and headed towards the entrance. Her reaction speed was incredible.
“…Does she hate doing aegyo that much?”
I think her aegyo is almost perfect, befitting her appearance.
If I release the 10 aegyo videos stored on my phone to MiTube, I could get the gold button in an instant.
That’s how lethal the princess’s aegyo was.
“Hello, Seo-yul.”
Jia bowed her head slightly to me in front of the living room.
“Where’s Rena?”
“Oh, she said she had something to do and went to her room.”
…She ran away.
“Anyway, welcome. What brings you here at this hour?”
I got up from my seat and headed to the kitchen.
“Sit down. I’ll bring some tea.”
“Ah. If it’s tea, I can…”
“It’s fine. Sit down. I have some brewed coffee, I just need to pour it into a cup.”
“…Yes.”
I poured an appropriate amount of coffee into a cup and returned to the living room. Jia, who was sitting on the sofa, had a somehow dark expression on her face.
Thud-
Jia flinched at the sound of the teacup being set down.
“Why are you so surprised?”
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
“There’s nothing to be sorry about….”
I put my coffee on the table and sat down across from Jia.
It seemed like Jia had no intention of drinking the coffee, she was just strangely watching me while stroking the coffee cup with her index finger.
“What’s going on?”
It’s nowhere near the usual Jia. Something must have happened.
“…Well, today at lunch, I was talking to Maiden and Yu Hwa about the Project Mystery.”
“Ah. I heard there was going to be a meeting like that. What about it? Did something not go well? Did any problem arise?”
Jia shook both hands and spoke urgently.
“No, no! It’s not that. The project is progressing smoothly.”
“Ah, is that so? That’s a relief then.”
But it doesn’t seem like that’s the case.
“So, what is it?”
“…Well.”
Jia hesitated, fidgeting with her hands.
She opened her mouth and closed it repeatedly.
It seemed like a really serious matter, so I decided to wait quietly.
How much time had passed?
“Seo-yul.”
Finally, as if she had made up her mind, Jia opened her mouth with earnest eyes.
“Have you heard of the Sunshine Orphanage?”
“…!”
That was.
“I have something I want to ask you about that orphanage.”
It was something I hadn’t expected at all.
< Chapter 137: Relationship (1) > End
Updat𝒆d fr𝒐m freew𝒆bnov𝒆l.c(o)m