Chapter 208
Chapter 208
Jaeho entered his house . The house was really big for one person, and Jaeho had hired a housekeeper that came over every day, which was the reason his house was free from even a single speck of dust .
He usually lived along with his family in his family house, but he wanted to be alone today . This vacation house was the perfect place for that .
Jaeho took off his jacket and haphazardly tossed it on the sofa . For a brief moment, he felt that his necktie was closing in around his neck .
Anger flooded his heart .
“s.h.i.+t!”
He took off the tie and threw it on the ground .
“s.h.i.+t! s.h.i.+t! s.h.i.+t! s.h.i.+t!”
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
His legs ruthlessly battered the expensive necktie .
“Huhk! Huhk! Huhk!”
Jaeho panted . He was still fit as he had always taken care of his body, but he was getting old and losing stamina .
It was inevitable unless he could regain his youth like Sungyoon .
“f.u.c.k!”
Sungyoon"s image flashed in Jaeho"s mind, and he cursed and tried to get rid of it . Then, he sank on the sofa and roughly brushed his hair backward . The wrinkles on his face had deepened due to the anger .
Jaeho tried to kill his temper and desperately evoke patience .
“Hoo-ooh~!”
He let out a heavy sigh as if he wanted to blow all his worries away .
Dealing with this situation had tired him, and he hadn’t been able to sleep properly for the past couple of days . His work had taken all of his attention .
‘Everything is messed up . ’
When Jaeho had stolen Sungyoon’s technology, his company had become one of the few companies in the world capable of refining the moonstones from the Great Labyrinth . However, his time as one of the leaders of the industry lasted only for a short time . The bad news kept coming in waves .
The worst news to hit him first was the lack of supply of moonstones after the Super Golems had attacked Armstrong .
At that time, Jaeho had considered it a minor speed b.u.mp . He had thought it was inevitable that Armstrong would be restored and so would the supply of the moonstones .
However, his plans had gone down in flames when China and Russia announced the construction of a new Lunar city .
Armstrong had banned all the Connectors who helped build the new city, and this included a good number of Connectors who used to raid the Great Labyrinth in Armstrong .
Naturally, the supply of moonstones from the Great Labyrinth decreased even further .
‘Then there is that b.a.s.t.a.r.d Woo Sungyoon!’
Jungb.u.m had rapidly grown as a company, and soon, they had become Korea"s main supplier of the moonstones from the Great Labyrinth .
Jaeho"s company was already having a hard time breathing when Jungb.u.m had notified Jaeho that they would be stopping the supply of moonstones to Daesung Energy, his company . This incident had poured fuel on the fire lit up by the nosy media .
Jaeho was sick and tired of dodging questions from journalists who hovered around him like mayflies .
‘Then there’s the ore!’
Just hearing its name disgusted Jaeho . It was the new energy source discovered by Sungyoon, and Sungyoon had a large supply of it .
With the discovery of ores, the future of energy generation with the moonstones came into question . His company’s stocks had plummeted as a consequence .
However, then the news spread that the ores were still far from the stage of being ready for practical purposes, and his company’s stock had rebounded .
Yet, it didn’t change the fact that his company was in the business of refining and selling moonstones . The appearance of a new source of energy was bad news for him .
‘Still, I’ve somewhat moved all the pieces on the board . ’
Jaeho had used all his connections, and he was also attempting to acquire a sample of the ore . Although he had to pay above market prices, his company had procured a supply of moonstones from the Great Labyrinth .
Of course, it had cut into his profit, but it was necessary .
‘I somehow managed to invest in the new Lunar city . ’
In a strange way, Sungyoon had helped him achieve his goal .
The new Lunar city originally wanted to bring Sungyoon over to their side and use him to elevate their image .
However, Sungyoon had turned their offer down . Moreover, he had a big hand in Armstrong city"s return to normalcy .
Of course, the new city came to hate Woo Sungyoon . And when they heard Jaeho was Sungyoon’s mortal enemy, they agreed to let Jaeho become one of their investors .
Basically, the new Lunar city wanted to screw over Sungyoon .
Jaeho was the president of a global company, so his investment into the new Lunar city didn’t raise an eyebrow .
However, the number of people interested in investing in the new Lunar city was too high, and that meant Jaeho got the worse end of the deal . Still, he was grateful to be included .
‘I’ll have to focus on the new Lunar city with this . It seems that b.a.s.t.a.r.d Sungyoon has a lot of sway in Armstrong, and they probably view me in a negative light . ’
The cub that he had allowed to live had turned into a tiger . Jaeho had nowhere to retreat .
Bee-bee-bee-beep!
His phone rang . However, the ringtone belonged to his personal phone, and not his business phone .
Jaeho unconsciously frowned when he saw the name displayed on the phone .
“What?”
He spoke in a coa.r.s.e manner . However, the voice on the other side of the phone matched his harsh att.i.tude .
- I have something to say .
Miyun replied .
“I’m ending this call . I don’t feel like talking right now . ”
Just as Jaeho was about to end the call, Miyun rushed out her words .
- Wait a moment! Did you forget the favor you owe me?
Jaeho had asked her to stop Sungyoon from talking to the press about him . However, his plan had backfired, and it had the opposite effect of inciting the media .
“s.h.i.+t! I kept my part of the deal fair and square! You received the full amount of money I promised you, so why are you acting up like this again! Also, his company stopped dealing with my company after you spoke to him! Do you know how much damage I suffered! What are you going to do about it!”
- Why are you blaming that on me? I proposed the deal you wanted . I told him to stay away from the press! That’s it! He didn"t speak a single word to the press thanks to what I did! Everything else is outside the purview of the contract!
When Miyun had met with Sungyoon and Jimin, they had told her they would contact her, but they never did . However, they didn"t speak to the press either .
Miyun had used her thick skin to lie to Jaeho and take credit .
Of course, there was no way Jaeho knew about this .
“s.h.i.+t!”
How many times had he cursed today? Jaeho leaned back into the sofa and spoke with a tired voice .
“Just tell me what you want, then hang up . ”
When they had worked together to sink Sungyoon to the bottom of society, the two of them had perfect chemistry . However, their relations.h.i.+p had deteriorated to such a point now that it was irreparable .
- You canceled the supply order with my father’s company . What are you doing?
‘Is that what she’s calling about?’
Miyun’s father ran a company that provided parts needed for the moonstone refinery machines, and that company was a subcontractor of Jaeho"s company .
After the fiasco with Sungyoon, it had become known that Jaeho had an affair with Miyun . This allowed Miyun’s father to drastically increase his fortunes by selling parts to Jaeho’s company . Jaeho also allowed it as a personal favor .
“My company is barely hanging on right now . Of course, we have to decrease the number of parts we order . Above all else, the percentage of defective parts from your father’s company is too high . ”
- Still, how could you cut all the orders all at once like that! My father is already having a very hard time because he"s expanding his company!
“Hey, Lee Miyun . It seems you"re under a misconception . ”
This woman was sticking to him closer than a leech .
“I accepted your father’s products because you helped me take that technology . However, that’s old news now . My relations.h.i.+p with you ended long ago, and I can"t keep buying products from a company that sells defective products . This is especially relevant since my company isn’t doing so well right now . ”
- Wait a moment! Are you thinking about completely ending the contract with us?
“I gave your father a couple of chances to fix the problem . You guys were the ones who didn’t listen to me . ”
Jaeho was thinking about cutting underperforming subcontractors, and the company of Miyun’s father was at the top of that list .
- Just wait a little bit! I’ll talk to my father… .
“There’s no need . Our business has already ended . ”
Jaeho’s voice turned very cold .
- … Do you really think I’ll let you end it like this?
“What can you do? Are you going to expose what we did to Woo Sungyoon? Do as you like . You and I are accomplices in crime . If I get sent to prison, you"ll come with me too . Don’t forget that . ”
Miyun loved to live in luxury, so she would never cross the dangerous bridge that might put her in prison . Jaeho would even bet on it .
“If you get what I’m saying, just keep your head low and live your life . Don’t try to live off of me . You should tell that to your father too . ”
With those words, Jaeho ended the call .
“What a b.i.t.c.h . ”
His head was hurt before that call, and this annoying b.i.t.c.h only sprinkled salt on his wounds .
‘I gave her a bit of a good time because she stole Sungyoon’s technology . Does she think she’s on the same level as me? Is she that stupid?’
Jaeho decided to stop thinking about Miyun and erased all thoughts about her from his mind .
***
Puhk!
Even though it was one of the latest phones on the market, Miyun threw it on her bed .
She glared at the phone with a venomous gaze .
‘That son of a b.i.t.c.h!’
She felt humiliated . The deep scorn in Jaeho’s voice had been quite obvious . It enraged her so much that she bit her fingernails .
‘What should I do now?’
It was true that her father’s business was in deep trouble .
When she had sold out Sungyoon, Miyun had received money, but at the same time, a new avenue had opened up for her father . He had made a deal with a large conglomerate, which gave him a new source of revenue .
However, Miyun"s father knew he couldn’t trust or rely on Jaeho . So he had tried to expand his business . However, he had tried to do it too fast and consequently overblown it . Moreover, the incident in Armstrong happened at the worst time possible, and his company was in dire straits .
When Jaeho had decreased his order for parts due to his own company"s precarious situation, Miyun"s father"s company neared bankruptcy . And now, Jaeho planned on completely severing the relations.h.i.+p between the two companies .
All this made the situation grave for Miyun . She had invested all the money she had received from betraying Sungyoon into her father’s company . On top of that, recently, her father needed money to avoid insolvency . So she had used a good chunk of the money Jaeho had given her for stopping Sungyoon from going to the media, to help her father .
‘That b.a.s.t.a.r.d!’
Miyun couldn’t forgive Jaeho . She didn’t care if the products of her father’s company had a high failure rate . At this moment, Jaeho was a person trying to destroy her . Miyun turned to the corner of the room, and her gaze fell upon the lowest drawer of her desk .
***
If anyone mentioned the warm oceans of Southeast Asia, what would be the image that would come up to one’s mind?
Emerald green ocean? Blue skies? White sandy beach? A land full of palm trees?
One thing was certain . This place was better than all of this; it was an amalgamation of these imaginations .
Splas.h.!.+ Splas.h.!.+
s.h.i.+nhae was dressed in a cute swimsuit, and she was using an adorable pool float to splash the water around her .
Her face poked out above the white foam of the water as she paddled forward .
“Dad! I’m really good at swimming, right!”
“Of course! My daughter is really good!”
Sungyoon, who was by her side, raised his thumbs .
“I’m good at diving too!”
s.h.i.+nhae put on her goggles and swam underneath the water . The water of the ocean was clear and clean . She could see the small fishes swimming through the waters and the white sand swaying beneath the ocean .
“Poo-haht! Dad! Fis.h.!.+”
When she found a fish, s.h.i.+nhae quickly re-emerged above the water surface .
“Fish? There are fishes?”
“Yes! Over there!”
Sungyoon was delighted as he watched his daughter play in the water . He put his face underneath the water to check the place s.h.i.+nhae was pointing at, and saw several fishes lazily swimming .
“There really are fishes . Do you want to sneak up on them?”
“Sneak?”
“Yes . Let’s see where the fishes go . ”
s.h.i.+nhae’s eyes twinkled, but she shook her head from side to side .
“No! It"s too dangerous to go far into the ocean! We might drown!”
Sometimes, s.h.i.+nhae didn’t act like a child .
As a father, Sungyoon was proud of his responsible daughter . However, he was also worried that she didn’t behave like a child .
Was it because she was hurt as a child? It made him feel guilty .
“s.h.i.+nhae is right . How can you not know that as a dad?”
Sungyoon was watching s.h.i.+nhae with eyes that held an ache in their depths when Jimin approached the two of them .