CS Chapter 16

Another week had passed.

 

After checking out of the hotel, Seowoo got into the sedan, escorted by a driver.

 

Although Cha Minjun had arranged for the wedding to be three months later due to his consideration, Cha Jinwoong wasn’t one to just sit back and watch. He had urged Seowoo to move into their marital home as soon as possible.

 

Since she couldn’t stay in the hotel indefinitely, Seowoo readily followed Chairman Cha Jinwoong’s words. Of course, because she was in a position of a perfect subordinate from the start, she didn’t even have a good reason to refuse.

 

The sedan smoothly drove along the road and reached its destination.

 

A residence in Itaewon-dong, Yongsan-gu. It was a detached house built by Chairman Cha Jinwoong solely for the purpose of passing it down to his grandson, and it was said to be the most expensive place in Seoul in terms of official land prices.

 

After passing through the vast yard, the ‘ㄷ’-shaped house immediately caught her eye.

 

Using white stucco finishing material, the overall house was sleek and neat, but at the same time, it was also an unbelievably extravagant house.

 

“…….”

 

Seowoo stood there blankly, staring at the space that would become her residence. Because it was in complete contrast to the place she used to live, she became even more dazed.

 

She was just overwhelmed by the wealth held by the man named Cha Minjun.

 

And strangely enough, she thought of her family. If such things hadn’t happened, she wondered if her mother and Junseo might have been here with her in this space now.

 

Or perhaps not. Could it be that she was able to be in this place now because such a thing had happened in the first place? As her mind grew complicated, she felt a bitterness in her mouth.

 

“Madam, please rest well.”

 

“Thank you.”

 

After bringing the few luggage inside, the driver bowed respectfully to her and disappeared.

 

Then, two employees wearing shirts and aprons made eye contact with Seowoo.

 

The employees, who seemed to be the age of her mother, bowed so deeply in front of Seowoo that she, who was receiving the greetings, felt embarrassed.

 

“Madam, please call us anytime if you need anything.”

 

“Yes, thank you. Um…by any chance where is my room?”

 

“Madam, your personal room is on the second floor, across from the hallway. Shall I guide you there?”

 

“No, I will take a look around myself. Thank you.”

 

Seowoo, who couldn’t get used to being called ‘Madam,’ quickly went up the stairs to the second floor.

 

Unlike the grand exterior of the building, the interior was relatively simple in terms of furnishings. If done wrong, it could have looked barren, but the bright-toned furniture was placed in all the right places, which reduced the emptiness.

 

When she opened the door that the employee had told her about, Seowoo’s eyes widened for a moment. She liked the interior, but when she saw the GED workbooks filling the bookshelf in the study, strangely, tears welled up in her eyes.

 

“Do you need anything else?”

 

“Yes…?”

 

“You said you’re taking the GED exam. Don’t you need study books or anything? You’ll obviously need writing tools.”

 

“Um…”

 

“Send me a text with whatever you can think of. I’ll have it prepared.”

 

She had thought it was just a passing conversation, but the thought that the man had remembered her words made one side of her chest ache. It was an emotion that she was feeling for the first time in her life, an emotion that was hard to define.

 

Then, the phone she had put in her jeans pocket vibrated with a long buzz. As soon as she saw ‘Chairman Cha Jinwoong’ flashing on the screen, she quickly answered the call.

 

-Oh, my granddaughter-in-law. Did you enjoy looking around the house?

 

When she heard the kind grandfather’s voice from the phone, Seowoo had to bite her lip to keep from crying. The kindness she had never received even once from her parents kept making her heart feel soft.

 

“Grandfather… I like everything so much.”

 

-Tell that husband of yours about any lacking household items. That fellow will take care of it swiftly.

 

“It’s more than enough, thank you so much.”

 

-Okay. You’re preparing for the GED exam, aren’t you?

 

“Yes…”

 

-Alright. Since you’ve decided to do it, do your best.

 

After thanking Jinwoong several times, Seowoo carefully hung up the phone.

 

She felt so overwhelmed with emotion that she paced around the wide room and ran her hands over the wooden desk, just killing time.

 

At 8 PM, she heard the sound of the front door opening downstairs. Just like they had done for her, she heard the sounds of employees greeting the man coming up the stairs.

 

She hurriedly walked to greet Minjun, when she heard calm footsteps coming up the stairs.

 

“You’re here?”

 

“Yes, I’m here.”

 

At the same time, the smell of alcohol wafted over her. If it weren’t for the smell, she might not have realized that he had been drinking, as there was no change in his face.

 

She stood awkwardly in front of the man and called out to him carefully.

 

“Um…”

 

“Not ‘um,’ Mr. Minjun”

 

“…Ah, right. Um, no… Mr. Minjun, thank you for the study and the workbooks.”

 

“No need to thank me. I told you. This marriage is going to end in divorce anyway.”

 

“…!”

 

“Even after the divorce, you’ll be given a substantial amount of alimony, but still, don’t settle and try to go to university. You need to be able to make a living.”

 

“I will… keep that in mind.”

 

“Then, good night.”

 

He said those words as if they were a formality, and then walked past Seowoo indifferently.

 

Left alone in the living room on the second floor, Seowoo stared at the man’s back for a long time.

 

***

 

Sky Paradise was a complex facility located on the outskirts of Gyeonggi Province, and was also the main residence of Elder Daniel of the Sky Salvation Church.

 

Every Friday, late at night, the church members blocked all light and strictly controlled the entry of any possible outsiders. They were making every effort to bring about the blessing of Elder Daniel, which would take place today.

 

“Elder, it’s Pastor Lee.”

 

Pastor Lee Yeokyung was Daniel’s closest aide, acting as his right-hand man. Every Friday night, she had been pushing the women that the elder had pre-selected into his room for several years.

 

“I have brought the child who will receive Elder’s sacred blessing today.”

 

As soon as the acceptance was given, Pastor Lee Yeokyung carefully opened the door to Elder Daniel’s bedroom.

 

“Sister, come this way.”

 

In the dark room, with only a few flickering candles, a woman with a hood covering her whole body cautiously approached the bed where Elder Daniel was lying down.

 

Elder Daniel, in only his underwear, grinned, baring his teeth as soon as he saw the woman.

 

“You’ve just turned twenty, haven’t you?”

 

“Yes, Elder…”

 

“What is our cute sister’s wish?”

 

“Please… please heal my father, Elder… I really can’t live without my dad. Sob, sob.“

 

“Then, you must give your all tonight with sincerity. You must never fear or refuse what I tell you to do. Do you understand?”

 

“Y-yes, of course, Elder.”

 

“Then, take off your hood now and lie on the bed.”

 

After a moment of gathering her breath, the woman took off the hood she was wearing. As Daniel saw the woman’s naked body exposed in an instant, he chuckled again.

 

“Ohh my, our baby sister. Your breasts are bigger than I thought. It’s a sexy body blessed by God. You look just like our Miss Seowoo. You are the finest of all the imitations I’ve found so far.”

 

While smearing saliva on various parts of the young woman’s skin, Daniel mentioned Ji Seowoo’s name several times.

 

After missing Ji Seowoo, Daniel had given instructions to Pastor Lee Yeokyung. He told her to bring him a woman with a similar appearance to Ji Seowoo among the members of the Sky Salvation Church.

 

And so, every Friday, women in their early twenties knocked on the door of Elder Daniel’s bedroom and were indiscriminately violated, without even realizing they were being sexually assaulted.

 

However, no matter how satisfactory the imitation was, a fake can never compare to the real thing.

 

While raping the trembling woman, Elder Daniel couldn’t stop thinking about Ji Seowoo.