Chapter 46

At Moon-Ik’s Ancestral Home

The news about Sun-woo that broke today brought everyone together, including Chairman Yoon. No one spoke in the midst of the tense atmosphere, and the silence was broken by the sound of someone clearing their throat.

“Why on earth would you end up in such an article with your behavior?” Yeo-sa Choi’s words carried a tone of reproach that anyone could hear, but Sun-woo sensed the underlying satisfaction within them. Frustrated, his fingernails dug into his palm.

But what was more agonizing was Chairman Yoon’s sigh, almost as if resigning to the inevitable. With a pained expression, Chairman Yoon turned his gaze to Geon-ho.

“It can’t be your doing, right?” It was Yeo-sa Choi who sharply reacted.

“You! How can you look at our child and say such things?!”

Geon-ho, meanwhile, had the calm face of a tranquil lake, undisturbed by any turmoil. He felt betrayed that he was being investigated by Chairman Yoon, and he had no gratitude for Yeo-sa Choi, who was protecting him. He just focused his gaze on Sun-woo, observing the situation unfold.

“Hey, tell me. Is the article true today?” Chairman Yoon’s questioning stare was directed at Geon-ho this time.

Yeo-sa Choi, who wasn’t pleased with Chairman Yoon’s doubting tone, shot her arrow of anger back at Sunwoo.

Sun-woo spoke slowly, his lips parched as if all moisture had been drained by a passing drought.

“Mother, do you think that even makes sense?”

His response elicited different reactions from everyone. Chairman Yoon’s face relaxed slightly, Yeo-sa Choi’s expression seemed uncertain, and Geon-ho let out an incredulous laugh.

“Isn’t it odd to see smoke without fire? There must be a reason behind all this.”

“If there were a reason or evidence, I would have presented it too. Right now, the circulating rumors are nothing but baseless speculation without any proof.”

The tension in the air shifted as the words hung, awaiting their impact.

While maintaining his composure, Sun-woo’s response brought a flicker of regret across Yeo-sa Choi’s face. It was clear even without peering into her mind. She must have been desperate to catch Geonho and solidify his position. There was no intention to let things go as she wanted. But that was no different for Geonho.

“I guess we should probably put an end to the relationship with Chairman Park’s daughter,” Geon-ho said abruptly.

This caused a crack to form once again in Sun-woo’s carefully composed demeanor. Chairman Yoon’s gaze, which had just turned away, returned, and Yeo-sa Choi’s voice turned sharp, as if she were charged with energy.

“Chairman Park? My goodness, you’ve been pretending to be a loving father figure all this time. Didn’t you even visit that child’s memorial a few days ago?”

“Just a couple of times eating together.”

“Inviting her all the way to your house to have a chat, I suppose.”

Geon-ho’s casual addition cut off Sun-woo’s words. Chairman Yoon seemed to have noticed that Geon-ho wasn’t an innocent party either and raised his voice.

“Sunwoo, are you really in a special relationship with Chairman Park’s daughter? If rumors of a romance emerge in this situation, you must know it won’t end as a simple matter!”

“I won’t meet her. Don’t worry, Father.”

While doing his best to reassure Chairman Yoon, a small laugh was heard from up ahead. The laughter, which suddenly erupted, fueled Sun-woo’s barely contained anger. Geon-ho, targeted by that fierce gaze, met it with an unfazed demeanor.

“It’s already too late.”

Geon-ho stood up and looked down at everyone.

“There will probably be an article related to this tomorrow, with solid evidence included.”

“Geon-ho!”

Despite Chairman Yoon’s shout, Geon-ho seemed resolute. Rather, he gazed at Chairman Yoon as if questioning what the problem was.

“Didn’t Father mention it? He clearly said, ‘Make sure to calculate and repay the interest on what you receive.’ I’ve received things as well, so wouldn’t it be inappropriate not to repay them like this?”

“Received things? What on earth?”

“It is about the numerous scandals that Father had been suppressing with money all this time; did you really think I met all those women? Did you think I got caught by reporters meeting them one by one?”

Chairman Yoon’s head, as if struck at the back of it, quickly turned back to Sun-woo.

“Father, that’s—”

Before Sun-woo could even begin to explain, another voice interjected.

“Oppa!”

Ji-woo’s urgent cry and Yeo-sa Choi’s furious voice overlapped.

“You’ve gone completely insane! How dare you insult someone on your whim!”

Thankfully, the tea water that had been dripping down his chin had already cooled; otherwise, he might have ended up with burns all over his face this time. Both this woman and Seo Hae-gang, unless they weren’t ignoring me unconsciously.

Blood had oozed and stained the nails that he had been clutching.

Ideally, he would have wanted to eliminate both Choi Yeo-sa and Yoon Geon-ho, but it wasn’t the right time yet. If he appeared too hostile to Chairman Yoon, it was evident that the position of the next chairman, Moonik, was slipping through his fingers.

“Why are you keeping your mouth shut?! Stop acting all high and mighty like you usually do!”

However, amidst the barrage of explicit criticism, a small hint of doubt began to form in a corner of his rational mind. Could it really not be done? Even if it were impossible here, wouldn’t it be fine once he stepped outside the gate? As long as he didn’t catch Chairman Yoon’s eye.

Seeing Choi Yeo-sa, who still treated him like nothing more than a crawling insect, he found his thoughts increasingly swaying in that direction. Sun-woo gazed steadily at Geon-ho, who stood firmly before him. A faint glint of madness flickered in Geon-ho’s eyes.

Let’s kill him. After leaving this place today, let’s kill that bastard and settle this unfinished successor conflict.

“Did you really do what you’re being accused of?”

Ji-woo hastily handed him a tissue to wipe his face, and Chairman Yoon asked in an angry tone. There was no point in denying it any further.

“After all, isn’t finding one’s own path in life something we should do? I found my own path as well. I mean, I might have manipulated it a bit.”

“I-I mean, I just got the hole pierced in my lip!”

At his words, Chairman Yoon eventually closed his eyes, and Yeo-sa Choi gnashed her teeth. Even amidst the sound that was ringing in his ears, Sun-woo maintained a much more relaxed expression than before.

Go ahead and chatter all you want. After all, your arrogant son will die tonight anyway.

With that thought, the incessant squawking started to sound pitiful. Sun-woo’s gaze locked onto Geon-ho, fixating on him like prey. Meanwhile, the very Geon-ho who had caused this situation simply tidied up and stood up.

“I will leave first.”

Despite Choi Yeo-sa’s various insults towards him, Sun-woo’s focus remained fixed on Geon-ho’s retreating back as he walked out of the house. As Geon-ho left, Sun-woo followed suit, unbuttoning the first button of his damp shirt and lightly patting his neck.

“Well then, I’ll be on my way too.”

“Where are you going?! Are you not going to stand there?! Are you really not going to say anything? You! How much discomfort have you caused our Geon-ho all this time because of that thing, huh?! Because of that little-”

Ignoring the loud cries of Choi Yeo-sa, Sun-woo briefly, just for a moment, felt a twinge of guilt toward Ji-woo, who had to endure all this noise alone.

But that was truly a fleeting emotion. What mattered more was the fact that he couldn’t afford to lose Yoon Geon-ho at this moment. Sun-woo, who had come out, got into the waiting car and issued an instruction to the man who was always by his side.

“Follow Yoon Geon-ho’s car. Is my golf bag in the trunk?”

The driver, who had been silent as if trying to deduce the intention behind Sun-woo’s question, nodded and answered briefly.

“Yes. It’s there.”

Although ordering people around was a much neater way to do things, he wished he could strangle Yoon Geon-ho with his own hands.

When the news of his death comes out tomorrow, Seo Hae-gang will undoubtedly become restless. They should be well aware that Min Woo-jin is next in line.

It’s not limited to just her. Tomorrow morning, Sun-woo will feel a sense of bitter regret for not being able to see the expressions of those who had rejected him for so long, one by one.

After trailing Geon-ho’s car for quite a while, Sun-woo finally sensed that something was amiss.

“We’re not heading towards your home.”

Geon-ho’s car was moving away from the city and into more remote areas. Sun-woo signaled with a puzzled expression.

“Stop.”

However, the man in the driver’s seat continued following the car ahead, seemingly unaffected.

“Don’t you hear me telling you to stop?”

“We’re almost there.”

“What?”

And soon enough, the car came to a halt. In the pitch-dark surroundings, Sun-woo was about to ask why they had come here, but the car door opened. Startled, he looked up, and there stood Yoon Geonho.

“You brought him quite nicely.”

Sunwoo’s eyes widened at Geon-ho’s words.

As if it had been his rightful place from the beginning, the man who had stepped out of the driver’s seat moved to stand beside Yeongil behind Geon-ho.

Looking at Sun-woo, who couldn’t close his mouth, Geon-ho spoke in a nonchalant voice.

“Why are you so surprised, considering you also used Jang Jaemin? You should have known.”

Geon-ho gestured without removing his hand from his pocket.

“Bring him out.”

Sun-woo was roughly pulled, and his arm was grabbed with force. As soon as his feet touched the ground, Sun-woo swung his arm and landed a punch at the man who had grabbed him. Then, he exploded in rage.

“When did you start siding with that bastard? Why?! Why the hell?!”

But his punch was almost in vain. The man just staggered for a moment and quickly straightened up. Just a few minutes ago, he had been Sun-woo’s driver, but now he unhesitatingly used brute force to kneel Sun-woo in front of Yoon Geon-ho.

Amidst this absurd situation, a bitter laugh escaped Sun-woo.

“It turns out Yoon Geon-ho and I share the same bloodline. Seeing that we had the same idea on the same day.”

“Stop with the disgusting talk before I cut out your tongue.”

There was a glint of gold in Geon-ho’s eyes as if he genuinely felt repulsed. Sun-woo regretted. He should have made up his mind a day earlier. He should have taken action before that bastard, before letting Yoon Geon-ho strike first.

Feeling that he was defeated until the end was more unjust than the fact that he had to die like this. Unjust to the point where he couldn’t even close his eyes gracefully.

Sun-woo looked around at the empty surroundings. Geon-ho had chosen a place that was eerily deserted.

As his eyes darted around busily, Geo-nho entered his field of vision. His face was calm, as though he wasn’t about to take someone’s life. That sight made Sunwoo’s stomach turn even more.

“Yoon Geon-ho.”

The name that erupted was something that had made him feel inferior his entire life. No matter how hard he tried to belittle and surpass him, he wouldn’t even blink. Even today, it should have been Geon-ho in this position, not him.

How much strength had he given him? His jaw was hurting terribly.

“Yeah, it’s probably better to kill. Since your past will be exposed just like mine, you won’t be able to hide it! Is that why you planned this?”

Geon-ho, who had come closer, looked down at him while still kneeling.

“You seem to be mistaken about something. The reason you’re going to die today isn’t that.”

The mouth that had remained tightly shut, as if it didn’t want to mix with his words, began to speak at length for the first time.

“You hit Hae-gang with your hand. I thought about ending it by just breaking your hand that day, but no matter how I looked at it, it didn’t add up.”

If you want to support the Lunar Letters team, you can do so by pledging to us on Patreon and get to read advanced chapters of our novels! (Note: Patreon is not compulsory. Patrons are able to read ahead, but chapters will still be released to the public at a later date. This is only one way to financially support the team and keep the site running. Thank you very much!)

Browse our table of contents or Become a patron now!