#116

The road to Namyangju was quieter than I expected. While texting Lee Daon—who must have heard from Manager Ahn Siwon about where I was headed and asked if I’d be very late today, I barely noticed the time passing, and before I knew it, we arrived at the factory.

“We’ve arrived.”

“Thank you for your efforts, Secretary Jung.”

As I stepped out of the car, I looked around. All I could see was a small mountain and the factory standing in an open lot beneath it. It was more secluded than I had imagined.

“Seems like quite the distance to come all the way here just to start a fire.”

At my calm remark, Secretary Jung Minjae nodded. If someone didn’t already know this factory was here, it would be difficult to find. There were plenty of other places they could have chosen to set a fire. The fact that they came all the way here suggested there was likely another reason beyond arson. And I had a strong feeling that the other reason was a desire for revenge, against me or Tartarus.

“President!”

Just as I let out a small sigh while taking in the view of the factory, I heard someone calling out to me from a distance. I looked over to see a middle-aged man running breathlessly from the factory entrance.

“That’s the factory owner.”

Jung Minjae leaned in to whisper quietly into my ear. I recalled the name of the factory owner that Secretary Sung Yoojun had once mentioned to me.

“P-President……!”

“Nice to meet you, Boss Jo Yoonhoe. I’m Goo Won, the president of Goo Won Entertainment.”

I greeted the panting Boss Jo Yoonhoe politely as he came up to me. After catching his breath somewhat, he bowed and replied.

“It’s an honor to meet you, sir. And I’m so sorry to have made you come all the way out here.”

“Not at all. The fire wasn’t your fault, after all.”

At my words, a faint expression of relief appeared on Boss Jo Yoonhoe’s face. Seeing his face brighten slightly, I continued.

“But Boss Jo, I received a report that this wasn’t just a fire—it’s suspected to be arson. Is that true?”

“……Yes.”

To my quiet question came a bitter answer. I suppressed the sigh trying to escape, and asked Boss Jo Yoonhoe again.

“Would you mind explaining the situation?”

“Of course.”

Boss Jo Yoonhoe nodded at my request and began to walk slowly. Secretary Jung Minjae and I followed behind him.

“The fire broke out in the trash area behind the factory. It’s a place that hardly sees any foot traffic, except when someone goes to throw out the garbage.”

“But it was discovered pretty early, wasn’t it?”

“Well, not too long ago, someone nearly started a fire by tossing a cigarette butt in the wrong place. So we installed a CCTV camera and have been checking it regularly.”

Oh, that’s a relief. I let out a quiet sigh of relief at what could only be described as a stroke of luck. I didn’t even want to imagine what would’ve happened if they hadn’t installed that camera.

“When I first saw the smoke on the monitor, I thought it was another carelessly discarded cigarette. But after putting out the fire and reviewing the footage to find out who did it……”

“……”

“What we saw on the footage was completely different from what we expected.”

Jo Yoonhoe, the factory owner, said this as he took out his smartphone from his pants pocket. He fiddled with it for a moment and then quietly handed it to me.

The screen of Boss Jo Yoonhoe’s smartphone displayed a photo. It was a picture of someone holding a gas canister in front of the trash area.

“This is the culprit. It’s a capture from the CCTV footage.”

“Is this the original video?”

“It’s already been submitted to the police. And just in case, I made a copy and saved it separately.”

As he spoke, Boss Jo Yoonhoe glanced at me. From the way he looked at me, I could tell that when he said ‘just in case,’ he had me in mind.

It seemed that Boss Jo Yoonhoe thought the arson had something to do with me rather than him. And I shared that suspicion, so I began to carefully examine the photo of the culprit.

However, the person’s face was completely obscured by a jacket zipped up to the chin, along with a hat and mask. Of course, no one would come to commit a crime without hiding their face. I clicked my tongue quietly and returned the smartphone to Boss Jo Yoonhoe.

“From the build, it’s definitely a man…… but other than that, there’s nothing that can help identify him. What did the police say?”

“They said they plan to check nearby CCTV and conduct a witness investigation, but since this place is so remote, I’m not sure if they’ll find anything. If I had known this would happen, I should have built the factory in a more populated area.”

Boss Jo Yoonhoe awkwardly laughed as he took back his smartphone. I let out a soft chuckle at his joke.

“Well, I think this place is peaceful and nice. It’s a bit difficult with something like this happening, but it’s not something that happens often.”

“And the land here is much cheaper than in busy areas.”

“Ah, now that you mention it, this place does seem better.”

At my playful banter, Boss Jo Yoonhoe’s face softened. With the mood lightened, we arrived at the trash area behind the factory where the fire had occurred.

Whether for further investigation or because it hadn’t been cleaned up yet, the pile of burned trash still showed traces of the fire. I gently rubbed my chin as I looked at the scene. According to Secretary Jung Minjae’s report, the fire hadn’t spread too widely.

“Fortunately, it looks like only the trash was burned. Aside from the soot on the outer wall, it seems the factory itself didn’t suffer direct damage.”

“Yes. It’s truly a lucky break.”

“Did the police say anything about preserving the site or anything like that?”

“No. They’ve collected all the evidence, so they said it’s fine to clean up.”

I see. I nodded at Boss Jo Yoonhoe’s words.

“Boss Jo, if it’s alright with you, we’d like to cover all the costs for the hospital bills of the employee who was taken to the hospital, as well as any other necessary follow-up expenses. Would that be okay?”

“What?! No, there’s no need for that!”

“I’d feel much more at ease doing so. Please, don’t refuse.”

Boss Jo Yoonhoe, after seeing my smile, seemed a bit flustered as he thought for a moment before slowly nodding his head.

“Well, if you insist, President……”

“Thank you for allowing it.”

“No, I should be the one thanking you.”

As I bowed my head and spoke, Boss Jo Yoonhoe waved his hands in protest, flustered.

“You can discuss the details with Secretary Jung.”

Naturally, I entrusted the task to Secretary Jung Minjae and, after seeing the exchange of glances between him and Boss Jo Yoonhoe, I spoke again.

“And I’d like to check the CCTV footage from that time, if possible?”

“Oh, yes! I have it here.”

Boss Jo Yoonhoe took a small USB from the pocket of his jacket and handed it to me. As I accepted it, he spoke cautiously.

“If you’d like to watch it right now, I can guide you to my office.”

Just as I was about to nod in agreement, my smartphone, which I had placed in my jacket pocket, rang. I excused myself to Boss Jo Yoonhoe and pulled out my phone to check a message from Lee Daon. It said he had bought some snacks and told me not to be too late. There was also a picture of a beautifully decorated roll cake.

I replied that I would return early, and his response was a message saying he would be waiting, with cute chick emoticons and hearts scattered around, which seemed totally out of character for him. I couldn’t help but laugh at the contrast to his usual image. Upon hearing my laugh, Boss Jo Yoonhoe looked at me curiously.

“No, I think I can check the video on the way back.”

I said with a subtle smile, and Boss Jo Yoonhoe, looking bewildered, nodded slowly. Unlike the confused Boss Jo Yoonhoe, Secretary Jung Minjae, who seemed to have a better understanding of the situation, calmly asked.

“Are you heading back right now?”

“Yes. We’re going home. I can check the video in the car on the way.”

As I said this, I thought about Jung Minjae’s work laptop in the car. It seemed Secretary Jung Minjae had also arrived at the same conclusion, nodding slightly with a look of understanding.

“Are you already heading back? You came all this way; why don’t you have a cup of tea before leaving……”

As we started heading back, Boss Jo Yoonhoe spoke with a slightly regretful voice. Under normal circumstances, I would have liked to accept his suggestion, but unfortunately, that wasn’t possible.

“I’m sorry. There are people waiting for me at home. If I return too late, they’ll be quite upset……”

Boss Jo Yoonhoe’s eyes widened at my apologetic words. He thought for a moment before resolutely nodding his head.

“Well then, you must go. After all, peace at home is the most important, isn’t it?”

Hmm, family…… Well, it would be a bit awkward to call those kids my family. Still, I didn’t contradict him and simply bowed my head to Boss Jo Yoonhoe.

“It’s truly regrettable that this happened, Boss Jo.”

Since we still didn’t know who the culprit was or what the motive was, I felt that ‘sorry’ was less appropriate than ‘regret’ in this case. If it turns out this incident is related to us, I can apologize properly then.

The suspicion lingers, but with no proof, it’s frustrating. I silently suppressed the sigh rising from deep inside me.