TCBW C97

Chapter 97

Chairman Han’s expression twitched unpleasantly at Dowoon’s gesture, which seemed to remind him of someone, yet he did not dare voice a single complaint.

Dowoon, well aware of the man’s inner turmoil, behaved as though it were of no consequence at all, leisurely sweeping his gaze across those gathered in the room.

The room, no more than about fifty square meters, contained two well-built Alphas who appeared to be Chairman Han’s personal aides, and one recessive Alpha lawyer whose pheromones were faint enough to resemble a Beta’s.

They frowned upon seeing Dowoon seated at the place of honor, clearly displeased.

Dowoon, however, acted as though their discourteous stares did not exist.

“…Well, I am also here in my capacity as the CEO of Yongseong Financial.”

Invoking Yongseong’s name was, in effect, a warning: he had no intention of humbly following Chairman Han’s lead, and expected to be treated accordingly.

In the end, it was Chairman Han who lowered his tail first.

“Ahem… r-right… of course. President Lee. Then I won’t waste time. What is it that you want?”

He met Dowoon’s light-brown eyes, which seemed to pierce straight through him.

A month was long enough to drain a man’s blood dry.

When Chairman Han finally broke the silence, his voice carried every ounce of suffering he had endured over that time.

“You delayed things for an entire month. Why? What exactly are you planning?”

He seemed deeply unsettled by the fact that Dowoon had not gone to the police immediately after Sara drugged him.

More than that, the month-long silence—the grace period—had tightened the noose around his neck.

Sara Han was already under police investigation for another illegal drug case. If her actions against Dowoon were added on top of that, his only remaining heir would be sent straight to prison without reprieve.

For the Saeman Group, which had no successor other than a newborn grandchild, it would mean the collapse of the entire lineage.

What kind of deal could Dowoon possibly want, to hide all of that?

Chairman Han sat down slowly, staring at Dowoon’s unreadable face.

And of all people, it had to be Lee Dowoon of Yongseong.

Even abducting some random man and feeding him illegal drugs would have been catastrophic—but the victim was a scion of a globally known conglomerate family.

Chairman Han felt as though his head might split apart.

In truth, while Dowoon had been overseas, Chairman Han had considered moving first—pulling strings with the police and prosecution.

But there was no group willing to challenge Dowoon, who bore the Yongseong name and had already been aiding the faltering Saeman Group amid its succession issues.

Which meant only one thing: without reaching an agreement with Dowoon, total ruin was inevitable.

“I believe you already know,” Dowoon finally spoke.

“What I ingested was an illegal rut stimulant not distributed in Korea. And as I understand it, your other children have also caused you no small amount of trouble—embezzlement, fraud, and the like.”

As Dowoon calmly laid out the circumstances strangling him, Chairman Han could not lift his head, like a sinner before judgment.

“And on top of that, if the last remaining heir is found to have imported illegal stimulants through underground routes, abducted someone while using them, and gone as far as committing a sexual crime—”

“S-sexual crime? That… that never actually happened, did it? I mean—it didn’t, right?”

“That would be called attempted.”

In stark contrast to Chairman Han’s face, contorted with rage, Dowoon looked as though he were briefing someone else’s case entirely.

I should have met the second son instead of the eldest, Chairman Han thought bitterly.

And for a fleeting moment, he regretted not forcing the issue back when Sara had made a fuss about marrying Dowoon after falling for him.

But there was no point in dwelling on the past now. He steeled himself and focused on what lay ahead.

“So you’re saying that if I turn a blind eye to the harm my daughter caused you, you’ll give me whatever I want?”

Though he spoke thus, Chairman Han, a businessman to the core, already had a fairly clear idea of what Dowoon intended to bargain for.

There might be additional demands, which had cost him many sleepless nights—but he had at least prepared what he was certain Dowoon would want.

That was the Yongseong Electronics stock held by Sara.

Ordinarily, an heir needed to hold a substantial stake to ensure stable management rights. Dowoon’s shares, however, were paltry compared to those of his younger brother, Dohyeon.

That glaring disparity had openly marked Dohyeon as the successor, as headlines like “Abandoned Eldest Son—Is Yongseong Choosing the Second?” had proclaimed.

Or rather, it had—until recently.

Not long ago, Chairman Lee of Yongseong had abruptly transferred more shares to Dowoon than to Dohyeon, making moves that seemed to pull Dowoon back into the succession race.

When Chairman Han heard that news, he assumed Dowoon would no longer covet Sara’s shares.

Yet Dowoon unexpectedly continued meeting Sara, albeit infrequently, and that behavior rekindled Chairman Han’s hopes.

The shares his father gave him aren’t enough. He’s aiming for my daughter’s shares to completely edge out Dohyeon and seize Yongseong Electronics.

That was Chairman Han’s conclusion.

But Dowoon’s true thoughts were different.

He regarded the shares his father handed him as bait for the curse—a ploy meant to force him into a grotesque ritual of offering a child as sacrifice.

Thus, he needed solid “insurance” against Chairman Lee’s possible change of heart. And that insurance was Sara’s shares.

“Then transfer all of Han Sara’s Yongseong Electronics shares to me.”

At last, Dowoon stated his demand. Chairman Han nearly sighed in relief.

“If that’s all, I’ve prepared it.”

Without attempting any obvious haggling, he promptly pulled out a stock donation agreement from the bag his lawyer was holding.

In his mind, it was a small price compared to what his daughter had done.

Dowoon extended his hand to Haeeon for his glasses, then examined the contract Chairman Han thrust toward him.

Indeed. No matter how much business he does, he’s still green.

Propping his chin on his hand, Dowoon read through the agreement as Chairman Han watched, convinced everything was unfolding as predicted.

Dowoon swiftly scanned the nearly ten pages filled with complex tax terminology, cross-checking them against the shares he had already investigated to ensure all of Sara’s holdings were listed.

“May I add one clause?”

Before Chairman Han could even ask what kind, Dowoon calmly wrote a single sentence at the bottom of the final page in his neat handwriting.

“What is this…?”

Chairman Han looked baffled as he read the newly added clause.

“She’s a filthy person. This is just in case.”

Dowoon made no effort to conceal his disgust toward Sara.

That frank contempt burned Chairman Han’s insides.

Though it was true that Sara had committed vile acts, she was still his child. Resentment was unavoidable.

Even so, he stamped the contract—using Sara’s seal, obtained while she was under police investigation.

Given the immense value involved, the transfer proceeded swiftly thanks to the extensive preparations already made.

Dowoon skimmed the sealed contract once more, then handed it back.

“We’ll process this promptly on our end.”

“No. Do it now.”

“What? Now?”

“…….”

Though puzzled by Dowoon’s resolve, Chairman Han complied, calling over his secretary and ordering an immediate call to the brokerage to initiate the transfer.

One of his secretaries stepped out.

Unable to discern Dowoon’s intentions or his haste, Chairman Han nonetheless chose to comply to avoid provoking him.

“Pure coincidence, but we’d also prepared the documents to expedite things. I’m glad you’re so perceptive, Chairman.”

Dowoon sipped his tea calmly, offering needless pleasantries about something that was obvious to both of them.

Watching him, Chairman Han clenched his fist.

From sitting at the head of the table to his repeated provocations, everything grated on Chairman Han’s nerves—but there was nothing he could do.

“I thought this would be enough to appease you, President Lee. Given the scale of the incident, I was prepared to pay a heavy price.”

“Prepared?” Dowoon asked coolly. “Very well—let’s say the crimes Han Sara committed against me have been paid for with this. But that doesn’t mean we’re finished, does it?”

Before Chairman Han, who looked ready to explode, Dowoon covered his mouth with his hand and fired off a razor-edged question.

“What else remains?” Chairman Han snapped.

“I waited a month. Why did you not even offer an apology?”

Dowoon’s face hardened without mercy at the insincere reply.

Though his hand obscured his lower face, there was no mistaking his anger.