A day passed, but the Industrial Bank governor still didn’t show himself.
“So Baek Seongjin says he doesn’t know who gave the order, huh?”
Eva ca in, looking drained, and gave her report. My expression naturally hardened.
“Governor Heo isn’t from MOFIA. He was parachuted into the position, so they say his relationship with the MOFIA officials hasn’t been good.”
“That makes sense. But still, even if he’s the governor, it’s a state-run bank, isn’t it? Approvals don’t get issued without consulting the bureaucrats. No— even if they were approved, those MOFIA guys could’ve contacted us before the loan was released.”
“...I’m sorry. I must’ve gotten too complacent. I was trusting MOFIA too much.”
I had pressed her, but the guilt that tinged Eva’s voice made feel uncomfortable.
“Eva, I’m not blaming you.”
“I know. I know, but still...”
“So, why was the loan pushed through so fast without even informing us?”
“Governor Heo bypassed MOFIA and issued the loan through his direct executives and staff. By the ti the MOFIA side found out, the money was already gone. They said it would be difficult to recover it now— the justification is airtight.”
Even if the tide was turning, Ilseong Group still ranked among the top five conglorates in the nation.
And once even a single credit card company collapsed, it would trigger a chain reaction— so there was more than enough pretext to approve that loan.
“I understand. Don’t beat yourself up over it.”
“I won’t make the sa mistake next ti.”
“It’s fine. I was too relaxed myself. I trusted Kim Hakgwon too much.”
“It wasn’t President Kim Hakgwon’s order.”
“I don’t think so either. So then who was it? Maybe Governor Heo took a bribe from Ilseong, or maybe there’s another reason.”
Honestly, I hoped it was the bribe. If it was sothing else, that would be far worse. If he had just taken money from Ilseong to issue the loan, I’d almost feel relieved.
Now all I could do was wait for Manager Ma to bring in Governor Heo Geun-yong.
“For now, go back and start investigating Ilseong Group. We may have to consider a hostile M&A.”
“Okay, boss.”
Eva stood up, hand on the doorknob to leave the study.
“Eva.”
She paused. When she turned back to look at , I t her eyes.
“You’ve done well until now. So don’t bla yourself too much. I trust you.”
Eva hesitated for a mont— a late reaction, and I caught a faint glimr of moisture in her eyes.
“Can I keep earning that trust?”
“Yeah, boss. Trust .”
Only then did Eva smile radiantly and leave the room.
I thought about calling her back to talk a little more, but soon shook my head.
Once Manager Ma brought in Governor Heo Geun-yong, it wouldn’t exactly be a pleasant atmosphere. It was better to send her away in advance.
I shook my head to clear my thoughts, then looked over the docunts on Heavenly Church while waiting for Ma to arrive.
The more I looked, the stranger this religion seed.
It was a religion founded by a Korean, yet it was far more famous overseas than in Korea.
It was also known for holding massive joint wedding ceremonies.
When the Church designated a spouse, the believers accepted it without question.
Last year, they had rented out the entire UN Headquarters, inviting UN representatives and religious leaders from various countries, and held a mass wedding in front of thousands.
“They rented out the whole UN building?”
If one could judge by one event, that alone said everything about the influence of Heavenly Church.
With generous donations from believers and corporate profits, they had lobbied politicians both at ho and abroad— now they wielded considerable influence not only in Korea, but in the U.S. and Japan as well.
The Catholic Church and Protestant denominations had long branded them as heretics.
How laughable. As if this were the first monster to wear the mask of religion.
“In the end, religion is still just religion.”
Anyway, Han Seongjin was quite a figure— but his family was a ss.
All three sons were scoundrels, and their spouses were even worse.
I decided to exploit the fact that they still hadn’t settled their succession plan.
Ha Myeonghun had warned that getting entangled with religion wasn’t wise.
But if I could shake their line of succession, keeping their attention trapped internally?
If I could split that church into multiple factions?
Then I could remove the threat entirely.
Even if I didn’t destroy them outright, planting the seed of discord inside might be enough.
I set the papers down and thought it through.
“Han Seongjin’s eldest, Han Hyunjin, and second son, Han Hyunwoo, don’t get along, and the youngest, Han Hyunsu, is more interested in business than religion...”
I spent hours thinking about how to sow division.
But as the sun set, I still hadn’t co up with a concrete plan.
I’d have to choose one of them and et him first before deciding.
While I was deep in thought, a knock at the door pulled back.
The one who stepped in was Manager Ma.
“Ah, you called for ?”
“Yes. They’re bringing him here now.”
I nodded slightly. Judging by how long it had taken, the man must’ve hidden himself well.
“Where was he?”
“At his private villa in Gangneung.”
“No resistance?”
“There was a brief scuffle, but we subdued him quickly. They’ll be here in about two hours.”
I gave a faint smile.
“Good. When he arrives, bring him here. And prepare the table with so drinks.”
Just as Ma had said, about two hours later, Heo Geun-yong was led in by my n.
Since Ma had ntioned a ‘small scuffle,’ I half-expected injuries— but fortunately, his face was unmarked.
His gait, however, was uneven. So they must’ve handled the parts that didn’t show.
“Nice to et you. I’m Kim Muhyuk. This is our first ti, right?”
“...”
“Please, sit down. It must’ve been tiring to co all this way.”
I didn’t wait for his answer and sat myself.
Heo Geun-yong still didn’t move.
“What are you doing? I said sit.”
I gestured impatiently. Finally, limping slightly, he walked over and sat down.
I began placing ice into my glass.
“You’ve been here before when my grandfather was alive, haven’t you?”
“...”
“Well, if you don’t want to answer, don’t.”
I filled my glass with whiskey, poured another, and slid it toward him.
“Have a drink.”
Heo Geun-yong just stared at in silence.
I smiled faintly.
“My arm’s getting tired. Take it.”
Reluctantly, with a grim expression, Heo picked up the glass.
He just sat there holding it, saying nothing. The clinking ice in my own glass was the only sound breaking the silence.
After the ice lted a little, I took a slow sip and spoke.
“Our esteed governor seems to have done sothing interesting. You approved a loan for Ilseong Group, didn’t you? Secretly, without anyone knowing, and then conveniently went on vacation to Gangneung.”
“...”
“The Blue House didn’t know, the MOFIA executives didn’t know, the bureaucrats didn’t know... So why would our Governor Heo do such a thing?”
He still didn’t answer.
“What’s the matter? Did soone lock your mouth shut?”
“Look here, Mr. Kim.”
At last, he spoke. Not that I liked what ca out.
“What is this rude behavior?”
“Rude?”
“Yes. I’m eting you for the first ti, but this isn’t how civilized people act. If you wanted to et, you could’ve contacted , set an appointnt, and t properly.”
I snorted softly. People who talked about manners were usually the ones who had none.
“You weren’t answering your phone. So I had no choice but to use so physical ans.”
“This is kidnapping! You’ve kidnapped the head of a state bank! Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”
He spoke to in that patronizing tone of a senior lecturing a subordinate.
“Release now, and I’ll pretend this never happened.”
“Well, sure. I’ll let you go— once you clear up my curiosity. You could at least do that much, right?”
“...”
“Still not talking?”
I clicked my tongue lightly, downed the whiskey in one gulp, and set the glass down.
“Governor Heo, let’s talk like civilized n, shall we?”
“I have nothing to say to you.”
“Did Ilseong Group pay you off? Is that why you approved the loan?”
I studied his reaction carefully as I asked.
“Or was soone behind you, giving the order?”
But his face remained stone. No flicker, no twitch. Was I even talking to a human being?
“If you keep this up, I’ll have no choice. We’ll go down to the basent.”
“What?”
“If that happens, you won’t be treated like a human being. My n are quite rough. I heard you’ve even been tortured by the KCIA back in the day— guess that doesn’t scare you?”
“...”
“Well, you were younger then. You’re not exactly in your pri now, are you? Let’s not overexert ourselves. Just tell what I need to know, and you’ll walk out of here in one piece.”
It was a clear threat, yet I smiled brighter than ever.
“I don’t know what kind of man you think I am, but people often misunderstand. They think I’m afraid of public scrutiny, that it holds back.”
“...”
“But you see, it doesn’t scare in the least. In fact, I’ve stopped caring entirely. Congratulations, Governor— you’ll be the signal flare for that.”
“You...”
He tried to say sothing, but I cut him off.
“Whatever you’ve heard about , forget it. I’ll give you one chance— your first and last.”
I opened the drawer beside and pulled out a folder, tossing it in front of him.
“Take a look. It’s been a while since you’ve seen your son in Arica, hasn’t it? Did you know he’s a junkie?”
“What?”
Heo’s eyes widened as he hastily opened the file.
In the photos, his son stared blankly into space, pupils dilated from drugs. For the first ti, Heo’s expression cracked.
“If I make a single call, your son will be arrested by the FBI. You know how harsh the U.S. is on drug cris, right? In Korea, you might get out as a first offender, but not there. And the amount he had— massive.”
“...”
“By the way, I heard your daughter’s wedding is next month.”
I trailed off, refilling my glass.
“I wonder if the groom’s family knows... that she used to frequent an OB-GYN clinic back in college?”
“H-how do you...”
I didn’t answer. I simply swirled the whiskey in my hand.
His pale, trembling face reflected through the glass.
“Still don’t want to answer my question?”
His hands, clutching the file, shook faintly.
“I said it was your last chance. I won’t give you long. Answer before I finish this drink. If you don’t, you’re going to the basent— and your son will be arrested, your daughter’s secret will reach her fiancé’s family.”
Heo remained silent. No sign of speaking.
I didn’t bother to push further— just emptied my glass. Then pressed the bell to summon Ma.
When Ma entered, I nodded toward Heo.
“Take him to the basent. Get every word out of him. Also contact the FBI— hand over the son’s file. I’ll handle the daughter’s side myself.”
“Yes, boss.”
At Ma’s signal, my n entered from the back.
“A man of loyalty, huh? Rare to see that these days. Dying for a sense of honor...”
I smirked as Heo lifted his head to look at .
Even while being dragged away by my n, he kept glancing at , eyes frantic. It was almost funny.
Maybe he saw sothing real in my eyes, because suddenly he blurted out, desperate—
“I’ll talk! Please...”
“Too late.”
“It—it was President Choi Sun-man’s order!”
“...”
“Please... Mr. Kim...”
The na I had expected. I almost sighed.
“So. Are you ready to talk now?”
Heo nodded vigorously.
“Release him.”
My n let go of his arms.
“Co back and sit down.”
His legs gave out halfway, and he half-crawled back to the sofa.
“Have a drink first.”
I gestured toward the glass.
Without a word, ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ he took the whiskey and downed it in one shot.
A thick smile crept across my lips. Finally, the man was in the mood to talk.
I crossed my legs, looking straight at him.
“Now— why would forr President Choi Sun-man suddenly get involved in Ilseong Group’s loan? Explain it to so I can understand.”
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