CHAPTER 65
Yeonho slipped back into the hall the second he wrapped up his business.
Hana slumped in an armchair near the administrative suite, her skin a sickly, papery gray. Her hands trembled in her lap, looking like she'd faint if a gust of wind hit her. Her secretary, Sungho, was nowhere in sight—probably off running another one of her errands.
'Perfect. Time to twist the knife.'
"Ms. Choi?" Yeonho approached with an easy, fluid stride, tilting his head. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," she rasped, trying to pull her shoulders back. "We need to finish finalizing the venue."
"If you pass out, we won't finish anything," Yeonho replied softly. He sighed—a slow, heavy sound loud enough to draw her eyes right to him. He crouched beside her chair, dropping his voice to a conspiratorial murmur.
"Honestly, I think you should leave the rest to the production crew and take a break."
"No. It has to be perfect—"
"Ms. Choi," he cut in, leaning closer until his breath fanned her cheek. "If you don't take care of yourself, she might take advantage. Seungjo's ex-girlfriend. You remember she's still holding that blackmail over you, right?"
Hana froze.
"She's been following you," Yeonho whispered, his tone dripping with fake concern. "What if she's somewhere in this building right now? What if she's just waiting for you to collapse so she can drop those photos? What if she ruins your birthday… or worse?"
Hana snapped up out of the chair, her eyes darting frantically across the empty corridor.
"I can't… she has those photos. I couldn't stop her—"
"Keep your voice down," Yeonho murmured, placing a grounding hand on her arm.
"Did you ever manage to destroy those pictures of you drugging Woo Gyeongjae?"
"Shut up!" Hana hissed, yanking her arm back. "Not out here."
"Of course, Ms. Choi." Yeonho bowed his head, playing the dutiful employee to perfection.
He ushered her into a private lounge down the hall, closing the door shut behind them. The room was soundproof, secluded, and completely empty.
"So," Yeonho turned around, folding his arms. "What actually happened, Ms. Choi? I'm all ears."
Anxiety was practically radiating off her skin. She paced back and forth, her heels clicking rhythmically against the tile floor.
"I tried to destroy the files. I really did. But when I confronted her, she told me she had backups. She said if I don't stay away from Seungjo… she'll ruin my life."
"Oh no, Ms. Choi–" Yeonho gasped softly, putting a hand over his chest.
"Hana," she corrected him, her voice cracking. "Just call me Hana. We're alone, and you already know about all this anyway."
"Alright. Hana." Yeonho took a step toward her, his expression softening into something warm and reassuring. "You need to calm down. You're stressed. Why don't you take a short break? We can figure out how to handle Seungjo's ex later. Maybe call a doctor? Or a therapist?"
"A therapist?" Hana repeated, pausing her frantic pacing.
"Yeah," Yeonho urged gently. "Talking to a licensed therapist could help you process all this stress. They're bound by confidentiality, remember? Even if a patient confesses to something terrible, they can't legally say a word to anyone. They just listen."
Hesitant at first, Hana eventually nodded. The secret was suffocating her, and up until now, her secretary was the only one who knew parts of it.
"...Okay," she breathed.
Yeonho offered a small, comforting smile and patted her shoulder.
"I actually know someone. He's an amazing listener. I'll bring him right in—just wait here for a moment."
The second the door shut behind him, the gentle smile vanished from Yeonho's face.
A silent, vicious chuckle bubbled up his throat as he pulled out his phone and speed-dialed Jeungmin.
He met Jeungmin down at the staff entrance, guiding the nervous man back up to the administrative floor. They stopped right outside the lounge door.
"You brought it?" Yeonho asked flatly.
Jeungmin patted the leather bag slung over his shoulder, nodding quickly. "Yes."
"Good. Now go and do your job."
"Understood, Mr. Choi—"
"Ah." Yeonho held up a finger, a dark smirk curling his lips. "Not 'Mr. Choi.' Call me Mistress. I like the sound of that much better."
Jeungmin swallowed hard, adjusting his glasses. "Yes… Mistress."
"Good."
Inside the lounge, Hana was practically jumping at her own shadow. When the knock finally came, she startled violently before forcing her posture straight.
"C...Come in," she called out, attempting to steady her voice.
Yeonho entered first, followed closely by Jeungmin carrying his medical briefcase.
They pulled up two chairs across from Hana's couch.
"Hana, this is Dr. Kim Jeungmin," Yeonho introduced, gesturing with a hand.
"He's a licensed physician and therapist."
Jeungmin offered a formal bow before sitting. "It's an honor to meet you, Ms. Choi. I hope I can help ease the heavy burden on your mind today."
Hana relaxed slightly, though a faint flicker of suspicion remained. "Are you sure he's trustworthy? What if he leaks my secrets? What if you leak them?"
It was classic Hana—arrogant, paranoid, and desperately needing an outlet to whine about the consequences of her own dirty actions.
Jeungmin knew Hana's public reputation as the kind, perfect heiress. Looking at her now, he felt a sting of guilt over what they were about to pull off. He couldn't imagine her doing anything truly evil.
But he had no idea how wrong he was.
"We'll begin now, Ms. Choi," Jeungmin said softly, placing his leather bag in the center of the low coffee table. He turned to Yeonho.
"Please step outside. We require absolute privacy."
"I'll be right outside the door," Yeonho offered Hana a reassuring nod. "Don't worry, he's totally safe. I vent to him all the time. Right, Jeungmin-nim?"
Jeungmin gave a tight nod, opening a leather-bound notebook.
"I'll leave you two to it," Yeonho said, stepping out and closing the door softly behind him.
Once the latch clicked, Jeungmin leaned forward.
"Now, Ms. Choi. During this session, I need complete honesty. My role here is to provide a safe space. Nothing said in this room leaves this room. I'm here to listen without judgment."
Hana sat up a bit straighter, her defensive walls lowering.
"Do you trust me?" Jeungmin asked.
She hesitated for three long seconds, then gave a single nod. "Yes."
Jeungmin reached into his bag and pulled out a small, unlabeled glass bottle filled with a golden liquid.
"What's that?" Hana asked instantly, her eyes locking onto the vial.
"It's a specialized herbal concentrate. It calms the nervous system and eases high levels of anxiety within minutes. Would you like to try it?"
Hana stared at the glass, her paranoia warring with her exhaustion.
"It's fine if you'd prefer not to," Jeungmin added, starting to withdraw his hand. "We can just rely on standard verbal therapy—"
Before he could put it away, Hana snatched the bottle right out of his hand, popped the cap, and chugged the entire thing down in one desperate gulp.
She slammed the empty bottle onto the table with a loud thud, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.
Almost instantly, her tense shoulders dropped. A strange, floaty sensation began washing over her brain.
"Tell me everything you want to get off your chest, Ms. Choi," Jeungmin murmured.
Hana shook her head, her eyelids suddenly feeling heavy. "I… wait. I feel lightheaded. Is that normal?"
"Completely normal."
She blinked rapidly, her gaze losing its focus as her body sagged deep into the couch cushions.
Jeungmin wasn't entirely sure if the first phase had fully kicked in yet, so he probed further.
"Why don't you start from the beginning? Tell me what's on your mind. Don't hold back, even if it feels dirty or bad. I'm here to help."
Hana's eyes suddenly cleared for a fraction of a second as her self-preservation kicked in.
"I… I can't. Actually, I think I'm fine."
She made a move to stand up, realizing she was on the verge of making a massive mistake.
Jeungmin nodded understandingly, but he knew the initial sedative was just taking hold.
Hana took a single step, froze in place, and dropped her head.
"Ms. Choi?" Jeungmin tilted his head, leaning over to check her expression.
"Can you hear me?"
He waved a hand in front of her eyes. Unfocused, glassy eyes stared straight through him.
"Do you want to talk now?" Jeungmin asked one last time.
Hana sat back down heavily, nodding like a dazed puppet.
The oral dose had paralyzed her mental defenses, but to ensure total compliance, Jeungmin pulled a pre-filled syringe from his kit. He needed her mind completely open.
"How do you feel?" he asked, leaning in.
"Head in the clouds…" she slurred out.
"Like I'm… seeing stars…"
"Good. Want to see a little more?"
Hana nodded absently.
"Excuse me for a moment."
Jeungmin flicked the syringe twice to clear the air bubbles, found a vein on her forearm, and pressed the needle in, slowly injecting the clear liquid.
The cocktail was lethal in its precision.
The liquid drug forced the brain into total submission—a chemical truth serum that stripped away all ability to lie, mask, or fabricate stories.
Attempting to resist would induce agonizing headaches, forcing the subject to spill the truth effortlessly.
Better yet, it induced retrograde amnesia, ensuring she'd wake up believing she'd simply fainted from exhaustion.
Outside in the hall, Yeonho leaned against the wall, checking his watch. Five minutes later, the door swung open.
Jeungmin stepped out, bowing his head.
"The serum has taken full effect. She's completely compliant."
Yeonho's face broke into a cruel, triumphant grin. "Let me see."
He pushed past Jeungmin into the room.
Hana sat on the sofa like a discarded ragdoll. Her mouth was slightly open, her eyes wide and blank, staring into nothingness. She looked completely out of it.
Yeonho let out a sharp laugh, stepping up right in front of her face. She didn't even blink.
"Look at her," Yeonho cackled softly. "She looks completely wasted."
Jeungmin shifted uncomfortably near the door. "Mr. Ch—Mistress. Should we begin? I have other appointments scheduled later today."
"Go on," Yeonho commanded, taking a seat in a plush armchair nearby. He crossed his legs, resting his chin on his palm. "Set up the camera and start asking the questions."
Jeungmin pulled a compact digital camera from his bag, mounting it on a small tripod on the coffee table so the lens was aimed directly at Hana's face. Yeonho settled back, his eyes gleefully fixed on his twin sister.
Jeungmin picked up the paper containing Yeonho's handwritten list. His hands trembled slightly as he read the first line.
"Don't hesitate now, Jeungmin," Yeonho warned lazily, his voice slick with poison. "Or you won't get what I promised you. Don't waste your pity on her. You're about to realize she's a monster."
Jeungmin picked up the sheet of paper Yeonho had prepared, his hands trembling slightly as he read the first question.
"Ms. Hana… did you… did you try to kill your brother, Yeonho?"
"I did," Hana answered instantly, her voice flat and completely devoid of emotion.
Jeungmin's eyes widened in horror at her immediate admission, but he forced himself to keep reading.
"Did you steal an important item from your father and frame your brother for it? If so, what was it, and why did you do it?"
Hana's eyes shifted slightly, a eerie, vacant smile spreading across her face.
"Yes. I stole from my father. It was an inherited jewelry set that belonged to my mother's family. I framed my brother for the theft because I hated him... I was jealous of him."
Jeungmin felt a cold shiver run down his spine, but he pressed on.
"Did you… frame your brother in a sexual scandal?" Jeungmin read, his voice faltering. "Explain how you did it."
Hana went dead silent for a second, then broke into a unsettling, manic giggle. There wasn't a trace of her gentle persona left—just pure malice.
"At my father's annual gala, I invited a group of powerful men. I set a trap to lure Yeonho into a private room so they could rape him."
"What?" Jeungmin gasped, completely freezing up.
"I ordered them to violate his body," Hana repeated casually, as if talking about the weather.
"Then I brought my father, the media, and all the gala guests right to the room while it was happening. It was so funny… his life went completely downhill after that, and I took everything that belonged to him."
Jeungmin wanted to stop. He wanted to turn off the camera and run out of the room, sickened by what he was hearing, but Yeonho's sharp, commanding gaze kept him rooted in place.
"Did you steal your brother's design portfolio from your father's firm?" Jeungmin asked, his throat dry.
"Yes."
"Are you pretending to be sweet and innocent so no one suspects you?"
"Yes. I act like a sweet little angel so I can manipulate everyone around me. That's what my mother taught me—use my face, fool everyone, and take what's mine."
"Did you orchestrate everything so your brother would be disowned and kicked out of Korea?"
"Yes. I did everything I could to destroy his entire life."
Jeungmin swallowed hard, moving down the list. "What about other people? Have you destroyed anyone else's life? Why?"
"I've destroyed plenty of lives," Hana droned on. "Some of them were killed by my men. I hated them because they were good people… I hated them because they sounded and acted just like my brother."
Question after question poured out, exposing every monstrous act Hana had ever committed, until Jeungmin reached the final section of the paper—the part involving the powerful men chasing her.
"We're on the last question, Ms. Choi," Jeungmin, adjusted the camera focus.
"Okay."
Jeungmin set the paper down and stepped back. Instead of reading from the script, Yeonho leaned forward, deciding to ask the final questions himself.
"Hana," Yeonho began, leaning down right in front of her glazed eyes. "You have five powerful men pursuing you, right? Are you dating all of them at the same time?"
"Yes."
"Do you actually like any of them?"
"No."
Yeonho blinked, caught off guard for a fraction of a second. "No? Why date all five of them if you don't give a damn about them?"
"Because it feels amazing to watch them crawl after me," Hana answered, her dazed face breaking into a hollow, triumphant smirk.
'This crazy bitch. She doesn't even like them.'
He knew there had to be more to it. Her obsession with keeping tabs on the male leads went deeper than just a simple power trip.
"Admit it—you drugged Woo Gyeongjae, didn't you? Why did you do it? Tell me your exact motive."
Hana's eyes flickered slightly.
"Yes… I admitted it. I drugged him because I was scared."
Yeonho raised an eyebrow. "Scared of what? Explain every detail."
"I did it because..."
Thirty minutes later, the drug had completely cleared from Hana's system. She finished up her scheduling arrangements, totally unaware of what had transpired during her gap in memory.
Outside the venue, Yeonho stood near the curb, bowing politely as Hana prepared to enter her car.
"I'm heading out now," Hana said, rubbing her temples with a weary sigh.
"I feel a bit dizzy… Don't forget about my dress. Bring it on my birthday—everything has to be absolute perfection."
"Of course, Ms.Choi," Yeonho said respectfully.
He watched as her driver pulled away into the afternoon traffic. The second her car turned the corner, the respectful posture vanished, replaced by an arrogant, triumphant swagger as he walked toward the underground parking garage.
Carl and Jeungmin were waiting beside a black SUV.
"Mistress, you're back," Carl said, stepping forward instantly to take Yeonho's bag.
"Are we heading back to the hotel?"
"Yeah," Yeonho replied, rolling his neck. "Tomorrow I'm heading out alone."
Carl frowned, concern lacing his tone. "But Mistress, you need to rest. The Master will be furious if he finds out you're overworking yourself in your current health condition."
Yeonho stopped in his tracks, turning his head to glare daggers at Carl.
"You won't say a damn word about me going out tomorrow," Yeonho warned, his voice dropping into a dangerous hush. "Just tell him… I'm taking care of business he already knows about. Do you understand me?"
Carl bowed his head.
"Forgive me for stepping out of line, but… Master called last night. He asked what you were doing at Mr. Baek Seungjo's private estate. I made up an excuse saying you were handling official styling business."
Yeonho clicked his tongue. "We'll talk inside the car. Jeungmin, give me the camera."
Jeungmin quickly handed over the digital device. "I'll take my leave now, Mistress. Please don't forget our arrangement."
"I won't. Get out of here."
Jeungmin bowed, stepped into his own car, and drove off.
Yeonho climbed into the back seat of the SUV, immediately powering on the camera display. He hit play, watching the crystal-clear video of Hana confessing to every single crime, frame-up, and murder she'd ever orchestrated.
It was better than he could've ever dreamed. This single video file was a nuclear weapon—something that could erase Hana Choi from existence with a single click.
And on top of that, the hidden truth she'd revealed about why she drugged Gyeongjae was going to completely blow this game wide open.
A wild, unhinged laugh escaped Yeonho's lips, echoing through the quiet interior of the car.
"I seriously can't wait for tomorrow," Yeonho cackled, clutching his stomach as he stared at the screen. "Hahaha!"
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