#18

The case placed on Manager Ahn Siwon’s palm had those words written on it. Why a Cheongsimhwan all of a sudden? I tilted my head to the side, unable to understand. What is this? Isn’t this something people take when they’re startled or nervous? But why is he giving this to me now? I lifted my gaze from the Cheongsimhwan and looked at Manager Ahn Siwon, who was holding it out to me.

“Why are you giving this to me?”

Thinking it was better to just ask rather than to worry about it alone, I asked honestly. Manager Ahn Siwon gave an awkward smile and said.

“Please don’t ask for now, just take it.”

His request felt oddly desperate, so I hesitated for a moment before slowly nodding and picking up the case from his palm. Then, I opened the lid and tossed the golden pill inside the case into my mouth.

As I chewed the pill in my mouth, a bittersweet yet slightly sweet taste spread. I don’t like herbal medicine. Even as I frowned at the overwhelming taste of traditional medicine filling my mouth, I thought about Manager Ahn Siwon’s consideration and forced myself to chew and swallow it all. Seeing me do so, Manager Ahn Siwon, looking apologetic, unwrapped a grape-flavored candy and placed it in my mouth.

“Is this good enough?”

“Yes, it’s good.”

As I rolled the candy around on my tongue and asked, a positive response came back, much to my relief. That was good. If he had said it wasn’t enough and made me take another one, I would’ve been in trouble.

“Then, can you tell me now what you’ve been hiding?”

“Well, the thing is…… I should have told you earlier, but I couldn’t because I thought you would be really angry if you found out……”

Manager Ahn Siwon, glancing at me cautiously as he began to speak, seemed incredibly nervous. Just what is he about to say that has him this tense? Worried, I found myself stiffening my shoulders along with him.

“Well, President…… the dorm where our Tartarus boys are staying…… is a little, no, honestly, it has quite a lot of issues.”

That was a problem I had fully anticipated. Given how President Lee Yongjun treated Tartarus, it was more likely that he didn’t provide them with a decent dorm rather than that he did.

After getting out of the van, I glanced at Tartarus, who were huddled together and looking in this direction, before quietly speaking.

“I already expected that.”

“No. Whatever you expected, it’s probably worse.”

That was quite a bold statement. Seeing Manager Ahn Siwon’s firm expression, I finally started to feel a creeping sense of unease.

“Is it really bad?”

“Yes. Bad enough that I want to chase after President Lee Yongjun and beat him to a pulp.”

With my expression darkening, I bit my lip hard before slowly turning my head to look at the four-story villa where Tartarus’s dorm was located.

“Sir, what’s wrong?”

Perhaps finding it strange that I, Manager Ahn Siwon, and Secretary Sung Yoojun were huddled together whispering, Nam Yisol, who had been standing in front of the van, quietly approached and asked. At the sound of his voice, I shifted my gaze from the villa to Nam Yisol.

Seeing Nam Yisol’s innocent face staring at me without a clue, for a moment, I thought, ‘Should I not go inside?’. No matter how bad it was in there, no matter what problems existed, it didn’t matter if I got angry. That was my emotion to deal with. But what if everything I saw inside became a source of shame for these kids, something that hurt them…… What then?

Like a fool, I was scared. I was terrified that my actions might end up hurting these young kids. Maybe I should just wait until they finish packing and then secretly check inside? As I was contemplating this, Nam Yisol’s cheerful voice interrupted my thoughts.

“Aren’t you going in? Inside.”

“Ah……”

“It’s a bit cramped, so you won’t be able to stay long, but it’s not completely unlivable.”

His voice was more nonchalant than I had expected. Hearing that, I found a small bit of courage.

“I was planning to ask for permission before going in.”

“Permission?”

“Yes. It would be rude to enter someone else’s home without permission. So, in that sense, may I go inside with you?”

Hearing my polite question, Nam Yisol’s eyes widened in surprise. He stared at me with his round eyes before breaking into a soft chuckle.

“I really like our president…… Sure. You can come in. The others probably won’t mind either. Right, guys?”

“Yes, hyung. I’m fine with it.”

“I don’t really care either.”

The ones who gave positive responses to Nam Yisol’s question were Lee Gaon and Yoo Euiseo. Jung Hosu remained expressionless as usual, showing no particular reaction, while Lee Daon scoffed and sharply turned his head away.

“Oh, don’t worry. When they act like that, it means they’re okay with it. Let’s go.”

I see. That reaction meant they were okay with it.

Accepting it without much doubt, I followed Nam Yisol as he walked ahead. He entered the villa entrance with practiced ease and stepped down the stairs leading to the basement. Then, he stopped in front of the gray iron door at the bottom of the stairs.

“Wait a moment. I’ll open the door right away.”

As I saw Nam Yisol enter the digital lock’s passcode, I turned my head slightly to the side. It wasn’t polite to watch someone input their passcode.

After a few beeping sounds and a cheerful chime, the door unlocked. As I turned my head back, Nam Yisol, who had fully opened the iron door, was grinning brightly.

“Tada! Welcome to Tartarus’s dorm!”

“Should I go in first?”

“Yes! Normally, I wouldn’t yield, but since it’s you, President, I’ll make an exception~.”

Nam Yisol spoke playfully and winked at me. His expression was quite endearing, making me smile faintly as I stepped into the dorm.

It took only two seconds to pass through the gray iron door and step inside the entryway. Compared to the time I had hesitated outside, it was an incredibly short moment. Stopping at the entrance, I took in the sight of the dorm where Tartarus had been living. There was no need to step further inside. The structure and size of the place made it clear that everything could be seen from the entrance.

The dorm where Tartarus had been staying looked like a single room.

The reason I couldn’t definitively call it a single-room space was that, no matter how I looked at it, this place didn’t seem to have been designed as a living space. At best, it appeared to be around 12 pyeong (approximately 40 square meters), and there was truly nothing inside. Not in the sense of lacking furniture or necessities, but in the sense that it lacked even the most basic essentials for human living.

There was no sink, no washbasin, no windows, not even a bathroom. The only things inside were an old yellow linoleum floor, walls covered in dark gray wallpaper, a fabric wardrobe placed in a corner, and a pile of blankets and pillows stacked neatly to one side.

Careful not to make it seem like I was scrutinizing everything too closely, I observed the room meticulously before shifting my gaze to Nam Yisol, who stood beside me.

“If I stay here while you pack, I’ll just be in the way. I’ll wait outside. Take your time packing and come up when you’re ready.”

“Okay! We’ll be up soon after we pack!”

At Nam Yisol’s cheerful reply, I nodded gently and stepped out of the entryway. The moment I did, as if they had been waiting, the members of Tartarus entered the dorm. Watching them, I waited until all of them were inside before turning and heading up the stairs.

One step, two steps, then three. As I climbed higher, the soft expression I had been wearing hardened into something cold. By the time I stepped out of the villa’s first-floor entrance, my face was not just cold—it was utterly emotionless, chilling to the point of eeriness. Without turning around, I spoke to the presence following me.

“How did the kids manage to live there?”

“I heard the first floor was the former Tartarus manager’s dorm. They had to use the manager’s place to wash and use the restroom……”

At my sharp question, Manager Ahn Siwon quickly answered, his voice filled with concern about how I would react.

His concern was entirely justified. Inside me, a fire was burning as if someone had poured gasoline onto already raging flames. The manager got a proper dorm while our kids were left with that excuse of a room?

“Secretary Sung, give me the car keys.”

“Here they are.”

“W-wait! Why do you need the car keys all of a sudden? Sir, you’re not planning to go to Lee Yong Entertainment right now, are you?”

“Yes. I think it’s time I paid him another visit.”

As I said that, I started the sedan’s engine with the smart key that Secretary Sung Yoojun handed me. Seeing me looking as if I was about to drive straight to Lee Yong Entertainment, Manager Ahn Siwon turned pale and grabbed my waist.

“What exactly are you planning to do when you meet him?! No! Absolutely not!!”

“There’s no need to worry. I’ll take care of it, so Manager Ahn, please stay here and look after the kids.”

“Do you know that ‘I’ll take care of it’ is the scariest thing you could say?! Oh, President! I understand that you’re really angry, but that doesn’t mean you can just act recklessly like this!”

“This isn’t reckless behavior. I’ve already thought of about 13 ways to resolve this without any consequences. Even if I use just one of them, I can take care of President Lee Yongjun very easily.”