IWDAR Chapter 14
by tsukkie𐙚“This friend is a Rabbit, CEO Mo.”
Han Wooyoung, who was standing stiffly next to the man who introduced himself as an agency President, his whole body bruised, was clearly not in a normal situation, no matter how favorably one looked at it.
“And yet, the favor you’re asking is…”
Tae-uk chuckled dryly and clenched his fist. He realized he was feeling quite disgusted.
‘Why?’
In the first place, it was a completely impulsive act for him to even talk about helping someone.
But what did I expect from that kid I saw for the first time today?
Tae-uk stared blankly at the traces Wooyoung had left behind, pondering what to do with them. It was then that the doorbell rang.
“…”
Tae-uk’s gaze fell on the distant hotel room door, swallowed by the pitch-black darkness.
He didn’t remember ordering room service, and his secretary, Do-hoon, wouldn’t dare visit his room without permission.
Tae-uk assumed that Wooyoung, who had turned away without hesitation, had returned.
Suddenly, he became curious.
What kind of expression would Han Wooyoung have on his face when he returned?
What kind of regret would the boy who realized he had thrown away an important opportunity feel, and how would he beg for forgiveness?
‘Ah, was I hoping for him to be desperate?’
Desperate for what?
Mo Tae-uk ignored the accumulating questions. He felt he needed to confirm the boy’s return first.
When Tae-uk reached the door in quick strides and opened it, what greeted him was—
“Hello, CEO Mo Tae-uk. It’s a pleasure to meet you for the first time.”
Hair.
“I was instructed by Chairman Mo Nak-hyun to at least greet you, so I came by rather urgently.”
Jet-black hair.
“You know of Fortune Teller Sung Gye-jin, right? I heard from her that you haven’t been doing well lately, so I came to see you rather urgently.”
Disheveled and hanging hair poured down like a waterfall through the wide-open door. It was a gruesome sight, almost too much for a sane mind to bear.
“I’ve heard a detailed explanation from Chairman Mo. Since we’re here, I was hoping we could spend some time together today…”
Tae-uk stared silently at the man who had willingly knocked on his door to carry out the insane request of the old man– to spread his legs for the sake of his grandson’s well-being.
To be precise, he stared at the dark, gloomy hair that covered half of the man’s face. Through the flowing hair, he could see the stranger smiling shyly.
Completely unaware of what was covering him.
Like a solidly built dam collapsing, more disgusting than the hair that seeped through the cracks was that smile.
“CEO Mo…?”
When Tae-uk remained silent, the man sent by Mo Nak-hyun cautiously called out to him. Covered in hair that seemed to creep into the room, the man looked like a giant lump of filth.
The moment Tae-uk stomped on the hair that had crept up to his feet with his outstretched leg—
—Finally gone, finally gone, the human making strange noises is gone, those disgusting things, thinking they could trick me, like I wouldn’t know, like I wouldn’t know, like I, I, I, I, I…
A low, grotesque voice, like an old tape on fast forward, shot at Mo Tae-uk’s ears.
All the words the evil beings had uttered to Tae-uk so far were filled with hatred. But anything repeated loses its impact. The usual hatred only bored him.
This time, however, it was slightly different.
—The human making strange noises is gone, gone.
Tae-uk turned around and looked at the table where Wooyoung had left the USB.
“CEO Mo, if my sudden visit was unpleasant—”
—But what is this sound? What is this sound? What is this sound?
Ignoring the mixed noises, Tae-uk approached the table and grabbed the small plastic object.
—It’s there.
A surge of intense hatred, unlike anything he had felt before, pressed down on Tae-uk.
Brushing it off lightly, as if a bug had landed on his shoulder, Tae-uk turned around again.
Everything had vanished.
The heavy hatred, the dirty hair, the chilling noise.
Tae-uk’s dark pupils blinked slowly.
The man, still unable to enter without Tae-uk’s permission, was watching him with a flushed face.
Now that the dirty hair was gone, Tae-uk could finally see the man’s face clearly.
The man seemed relieved to finally meet Tae-uk’s gaze, but only for a moment.
Tae-uk pulled out his phone and contacted Do-hoon.
Do-hoon answered before the second ring.
—Yes, sir.
“Get ready. I’m going home right now.”
—…But, sir. The Chairman…
“Ah, tell that Chairman to clean up the mess he’s made, right now, in front of me.”
Tae-uk hung up before Do-hoon could say anything else, and closed the door without even glancing at the man.
Putting on his jacket, Tae-uk slipped the USB he had been holding into his inner pocket. He needed to check what was inside, right away.
｡ﾟ•┈꒰ა ♡ ໒꒱┈• ｡ﾟ
“Please take my hand.”
Wooyoung was momentarily flustered by Do-hoon’s outstretched hand.
He had been quite dazed ever since he confirmed the trainee termination contract in the President’s office.
As if the lack of contact for several days after leaving the hotel had been a lie, everything happened so fast.
While Wooyoung skimmed the copy of the contract, Do-hoon called his manager, Soohee, and asked her various questions.
He seemed to be checking the details he had discussed with Hyun-jong and ensuring there were no errors in the existing contract.
Wooyoung could tell that Soohee was glancing at Hyun-jong every time she answered Do-hoon’s questions.
Although Wooyoung hadn’t directly signed the contract with Lilac Entertainment, this was the reality that the Han Wooyoung of this world had so desperately wanted to escape.
Just by looking at Hyun-jong’s attitude towards both himself and Soohee, it wasn’t hard to guess that the contract content wasn’t exactly normal.
The contract, which Wooyoung was seeing for the first time, stated the signing bonus he had received when he signed with Lilac Entertainment.
5 million won.1
It also stated that in case of breach or termination of the contract, he would have to pay a penalty of 20 times the signing bonus.
It was an amount that the barely adult Han Wooyoung of his past life would have perceived as a fortune.
‘Because of money, Han Wooyoung must have been so desperate to sign a contract with this place.’
After giving Wooyoung enough time to look over the copy of the contract, Do-hoon suggested, ‘If Mr. Wooyoung is alright with it, how about we proceed with an interview with our side today? What do you think?’
Wooyoung didn’t refuse the offer because Do-hoon seemed a little urgent, and there was no particular reason to. He was already staying at Soohee’s house for several days.
‘I’ve imposed on a woman living alone for too long.’
Although he knew Soohee didn’t care about his gender—Wooyoung felt a bit wronged about this—it would be better if the current situation was resolved as soon as possible.
Soohee’s face was filled with undeniable worry as she watched Wooyoung leave the office with Do-hoon.
Seeing her face, Wooyoung became worried about Su-hee instead.
Judging from Hyun-jong’s subdued state in front of Do-hoon, he could vaguely tell that everything Hyun-jong had planned had gone wrong.
Apart from his concerns about the continued existence of the tiny Lilac Entertainment, how much more abuse would Soohee have to endure after he left?
“Your movements seem uncomfortable, so please feel free to hold on.”
Perhaps misinterpreting Wooyoung’s dazed state, Do-hoon offered his hand again in the kindest tone possible.
In fact, Do-hoon was quite worried that the skinny Wooyoung might break something with a single gesture.
Unaware of Do-hoon’s inner thoughts, Wooyoung hesitantly took the man’s hand. Tall and long-legged, Do-hoon patiently matched Wooyoung’s pace as they walked from the underground parking lot to the elevator.
‘You don’t have to treat me so well.’
Judging from Hyun-jong’s state, Do-hoon didn’t seem like the type to be kind to everyone, so he didn’t understand why he was being so kind to him.
However, his thoughts couldn’t deepen further.
As he entered the elevator with Do-hoon, Wooyoung was mesmerized by the wide-open view outside.