Chapter 14: The Second Target

It had been over a month since the bastard had stayed at my house. I’d had to prepare an extra portion of food, put more care into cooking, and until recently, I’d even had to attend to all sorts of chores—so looking back, there had been a lot of hassle.

But in return, Choi Taehyuk had casually handed me 2 million won in cash for a month’s living expenses. Thanks to that, all the money I’d earned from work this month could go straight to paying off my debts, and my once-meager side dishes had become luxurious enough to put some oil in my own belly.

Not only that—I’d also bought all of Choi Taehyuk’s clothes and things with that money. And of course, I didn’t return the leftover cash.

The new part-time job’s hourly wage was high, but it was still short-term. While it lasted, I’d live a little more comfortably—but once it ended, I’d have to go back to my old life. At least while Choi Taehyuk had been staying at my place, I didn’t have to worry about living expenses…

I felt so depressed I could cry at any moment.

“Jinho-ssi. Could I have one more bowl of rice? This stew is killer. And these greens too.”

“Hey, you go get it yourself, bastard. Don’t you have hands and feet?”

“Ah, me too. Get mine too.”

“Just keep practicing your dialect, you.”

“Huh? Hey! Get mine too!”

“This bastard, seriously!”

…The problem isn’t just that. The more important issue is my safety.

If it were just about money, I figure I’d manage somehow with my past experience—but as I’m vividly experiencing right now, I seem to have stepped one foot into a dangerous world.

My timid little heart, which can’t even boldly curse out those loudmouthed bastards who just eat noisily, is telling me to grab onto Choi Taehyuk’s pant leg and beg him not to leave.

Because once he’s gone, it’ll be revealed that he’s alive and well. And once that’s revealed, people will try to find out how he’s so fine. And once they investigate, someone will eventually find out that I’m the one who helped him. And the bastards who swung knives to take out Choi Taehyuk might want to catch and take me out too… And then I’ll die again.

Just thinking about it makes my blood boil. Why did God make me such an insignificant human and put me through all this suffering?

“Hyung… Do you really have to go…?”

I looked up at Choi Taehyuk standing at the front door with the most pitiful expression I could muster. I don’t know how effective it’ll be coming from an ordinary grown man, but I grabbed the hem of his T-shirt to emphasize my timid desperation. Please don’t make me look disgusting.

Fortunately, instead of cruelly brushing my hand away, Choi Taehyuk looked down at me and smiled slightly.

“What if I didn’t go?”

Of course. Or else would I be doing this cringey act?

As I said before, as long as Choi Taehyuk himself kept staying at my place, no one could mess with me. Even if something happened, he’d find a way to handle it.

Whatever happened to him to end up in that state, Choi Taehyuk is such a big shot that anyone who messes with him would get crushed by the forces behind him. Provided they don’t get killed by Choi Taehyuk himself first, of course.

Ah, the more I think about it, the more I don’t want to let him go—but is there no way around it? It seemed like the pitiful look earlier worked a bit, so maybe I’ll just keep going with that. I racked my brain and decided to act like I was deeply sad and regretful about him leaving, just like before. What should I say this time? I hesitated over whether to say the thought that suddenly came to mind, but figured it’d work out somehow and just let it out.

“Yeah… If hyung leaves, I’ll have to sleep alone at night…”

“…Puppy…”

What? I just heard something that sounded incredibly insulting…

Anyway, it seemed to have worked somewhat, because Choi Taehyuk stroked my head sympathetically.

That bastard always acts like this when I’m being pathetic. I wanted to smack his hand away, but I held back and acted even more pitiful. I lowered my eyes, which had been looking up at him, gently released the collar I’d been holding, and spoke in a trembling voice.

“If you have to go, I guess it can’t be helped… I’ll be waiting…”

Humans tend to feel more attached when you let go than when you hold on. It’s like that psychology where a kid who fights tooth and nail when their mom yells at them suddenly does whatever they’re told when she sighs and says “Fine, do whatever you want.” I may not look it, but I’m a graduate of a prestigious university. I’m secretly pretty smart.

“Don’t worry. I might not be able to come often for a while, but I’ll visit regularly.”

Choi Taehyuk said that and bent his knees slightly to match my eye level. I was a bit flustered by his uncharacteristic gesture, but I smiled and shook my head without showing it.

“You don’t have to do that. Don’t push yourself.”

“Jinho.”

At that, Choi Taehyuk frowned slightly and called my name in a soothing tone. Why is he acting like this today. I had a feeling that if this atmosphere continued, I might get swept up and actually feel genuine regret about parting ways—not just acting. So I quickly put my hand on his shoulder and pushed him away.

“Just go already. They’re waiting outside.”

“…Call me.”

“Yes…”

So he’s really leaving after all. Still, he seemed to have grown some attachment to me—he kept trying to reassure me, clearly bothered that I was sulking. Petting my head, hugging me tight.

I should have found him disgusting, but my heart kept aching. Just… purely, I wanted to stay together…

Feeling genuinely down, I tried to send him off quickly—but then, still in the same hugging position, he started dropping a bombardment of nagging that left my head spinning.

“When you wake up in the morning, and before you go to sleep at night, don’t forget to call. If you can call while working, do it immediately. Report your exact commuting times by message. Call me when you’re going to cram school, when you arrive, and when you leave. Of course, leave a message when you get home too.”

“Huh?”

“Other than that, whenever you move to a different location, call me or leave a message no matter what. Don’t forget to report your whereabouts wherever you are. If you sense anything strange or see scary-looking bastards in front of your house, turn around and run while calling me. And if you wake up in the middle of the night and something scares you enough that you can’t fall back asleep, call me no matter what time it is. Got it?”

“…Yes.”

He must have grown quite attached to me after all. Anyone watching would think he was leaving his lover behind.

After making sure I’d nodded to everything, Choi Taehyuk finally walked out the front door. Even as he left, he looked back two or three times to check on me—so I waved enthusiastically until he got in the car. When I came back inside alone, the house felt even more silent than I’d expected.

-Identity verified.

Finally, my first day of work. I held the card I’d received with the file up to the sensor beside the side gate, and with a metallic click, the door opened. So they didn’t open that massive gate every time after all.

I walked toward the front door while quickly typing a message to send to Choi Taehyuk. Since he’d gotten angry about my long working hours, I’d promised to send messages or call during my free time. I’d already completed this morning’s wake-up mission, so a message should be fine.

I finished typing and arrived at the front door. This time, I used a different key card on the sensor and opened the door. Double-locking—rich people sure are cautious. Feeling the wealth gap again, I stepped inside and saw the butler grandfather.

“Welcome. Good morning.”

“Hello.”

As soon as we exchanged our brief greetings, the grandfather turned his body sideways to clear the path. I guess that means go straight to work. I gave a light bow again and walked to the elevator, following yesterday’s instructions.

Hmm… So, Min Seonwoo’s room is on the third floor, right? I still don’t understand why a house needs an elevator to get to the third floor, but I just shut up and pressed the button. It’s not like it’s my money anyway.

I got off at the third floor and walked down the hallway. I recognized the two doors I’d seen before—the brown door was Min Seonwoo’s room, and the beige door was the waiting room, I think.

To announce myself as the new housekeeper and make a face impression, I knocked on the brown door. Knock-knock—. The wood must have been high-quality, because a pleasant sound rang out.

But would he be in right now?

“Come in.”

Fortunately, there was someone inside. Though my memory was fuzzy, it was probably Min Seonwoo’s gentle low voice coming through the wooden door.

Terrified the handle might be real gold, I gently pushed down on the yellow knob and opened the door. Peeking my head through the slowly widening gap, I saw a man sitting in the chair in front of the desk, half-turned toward me—just as expected, it was Min Seonwoo.

Light brown hair, dark brown eyes. His lips, of moderate color and size, were slightly upturned even at rest, giving the impression of a faint smile. His gently downturned eye corners softened his overall image, but his straight nose and sharp chin radiated an untouchable nobility.

Beneath his long, slender neck, his body stretched out elegantly—he looked lean at first glance, but upon closer inspection, you could tell there were firm muscles beneath his clothes. The model-perfect physique, his not-at-all-short stature, and his fair skin all combined to give him a masculine presence.

He was widely known on campus for being kind and considerate to others. If you asked people to name the senior they wanted to get close to, or the man they wanted to date, nine out of ten would say his name. And he was my second target.

“Hello. I’m Kim Jinho, the new housekeeper. Nice to meet you.”

Though we weren’t strangers, I wanted to make the best impression possible on Min Seonwoo after such a long time, so I greeted him brightly as I entered. Min Seonwoo lifted his head from his seated position to look at me, then smiled warmly and spoke.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Min Seonwoo. Pleased to meet you.”

…f*ck. Every single one of these bastards. Irritation surged again.

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