“Why are you still there?”
My voice naturally grew sharp.
Someone who hadn’t properly followed my orders—no, to be precise, someone who had blatantly disregarded them—was still there, the very person who had cracked the world that Choi Na-kyung had been slowly building.
[……After I was fired, Miss personally rehired me.]
“Sara….”
Upon hearing that, Choi Na-kyung closed her mouth.
……Sara, how…?
Right, I know something has changed.
I heard about the article in the newspaper, and about the problems happening at school.
But the article only had a picture and a short caption describing it.
I couldn’t recklessly go after the press because of that.
After all, she already had rumors swirling around her.
I had thoroughly investigated that ‘friend’, and I had always thought that I would have to separate them one day.
What happened at school wasn’t much different from what had happened in elementary school.
Sara had grown a bit smarter than back then, but the fundamental problem was the same.
It was just a matter of paying the teachers more to make them handle things better.
……Even when I heard that Sara was ‘hanging out’ with other girls.
At that time too, I wanted to run out immediately, but I held back.
Because the only person Sara loved, the only one she could love, was Choi Na-kyung.
Sure, I made a mistake once out of impatience, but I could slowly fix it from now on.
Or so I thought.
But now, Sara was acting completely unexpectedly.
My heart began to beat faster.
Where did I start to lose track?
How much do I even know?
The fact that the servants of the mansion hadn’t contacted me in a situation like this meant that Sara had almost completely taken control of the mansion.
No matter what methods she used.
Was money lacking?
Should I have invested more money into this?
……No.
No matter how much money I poured in to place new people there, as long as Sara realized that ‘that place’ was ‘her place’, the same thing would happen again.
No, that wasn’t the issue right now.
The problem at hand was Yang Hye-in, who was talking to me on the phone.
Sara had called Yang Hye-in.
Yang Hye-in had returned to Sara.
Despite my warnings.
Choi Na-kyung was sure that it wasn’t just a matter of money.
“……So, why are you calling? Were you planning to warn me?”
Once I raised my voice, it wasn’t easy to calm it down again.
I knew I shouldn’t handle things this way.
After sitting in this position for years, I’d learned that you should never show even the slightest hint of your emotions to your opponent.
Even a brief glimpse was enough for them to identify your weakness.
[No.]
But, regardless of whether I showed my emotions or not, Yang Hye-in continued to speak in her usual businesslike tone.
Her attitude was different from when she had been looking at me in the car.
[Miss would like to see the Chairwoman.]
“…….”
Upon hearing that, my mind froze for a moment.
When I regained my senses, I was already standing up.
It seemed I had unconsciously jumped up from my chair.
……Fortunately, no one else was in the Chairwoman’s office.
[Miss Ye Sara has asked to meet with the Chairwoman.]
It was something I had never heard before.
No, well.
Strictly speaking, maybe it wasn’t the first time.
When Sara was very young, I’d heard it a few times.
And even after she grew up and stopped saying it herself, the servants’ reports occasionally mentioned it.
That Sara missed me terribly.
That she wanted to see me.
But Sara had never said it so directly.
She had never instructed a servant to call and arrange a meeting because she wanted to see me.
My heart pounded rapidly.
Perhaps it was beating as fast as it had the first time she arranged to meet me outside of the hospital.
Right, I waited for so long.
I had waited so long.
I wasn’t wrong.
I knew I wasn’t wrong.
But I had to be careful.
Yes, calm down.
Choi Na-kyung quietly steadied her breathing, so the other person couldn’t hear it.
[…….]
Yang Hye-in remained silent, as if waiting for Choi Na-kyung’s response.
In hindsight, I had gone too far in our last meeting.
I had broken our quarterly appointment out of impatience.
Of course, I always wanted to see Sara—to see her face—but I had endured it.
I wanted her to look only at me.
I want to make everything about her mine.
That was Choi Na-kyung’s true intention.
That’s why I was so delighted when she called me ‘Chairwoman’.
That’s why I was so happy when she said she had pushed away her fiancé by her own power.
Yes, I’m the only person in the world who can love you.
It’s just the two of us.
I had waited for so long.
Finally, she’s—
—No, no. Not yet.
Choi Na-kyung barely managed to stop her racing thoughts.
Not yet.
Sara—she still wasn’t complete.
In reality, she had acted out of my control and done various things.
While I was glad to hear her say that she wanted to meet, there was still the possibility that she might slip out of my hands and into someone else’s.
I realized my breathing had become a bit rough.
In that sense, it was a relief that Yang Hye-in was the one handling the matter.
At least this wasn’t the first time she had seen me like this.
When I opened the fist I had been clenching, there were nail marks on my palm.
“……I see.”
Choi Na-kyung responded in a calm voice.
[Yes, that’s correct. What would you like to do?]
What would you like to do, huh.
That wasn’t what Yang Hye-in was supposed to say.
It should have been, “What should we do?” not “What would you like to do?”
As Choi Na-kyung stared intently at her palm, she answered.
“Then, do as she asked.”
Last time, Sara had rebelled, and the meeting had ended too soon.
Since it had been much shorter than our usual meetings, it might be better to make up for that time and return to the usual duration.
And next time, I would need to be more cautious.
From now on, I had to be much more careful.
There weren’t many cards left in my hand.
[Yes, understood. Then we’ll proceed—Ah.]
Even this sound wasn’t something Yang Hye-in would normally make.
She had been trained as a professional maid, educated thoroughly not to let out sounds like that under any circumstances.
I heard a small clattering sound, like someone covering the receiver with their hand. And beyond that, I faintly heard someone’s voice.
……Was she really talking to someone else while on the phone with me, the Chairwoman?
I was more surprised than annoyed.
[……Chairwoman.]
After a brief pause, Yang Hye-in called out to me.
“Go ahead.”
[Miss would like to have a brief conversation with you.]
“…….”
For a moment, Choi Na-kyung said nothing.
“For what reason?”
She asked briefly, fearing that if she spoke too much, her emotions might spill over.
[……She wants to hear your voice.]
“…….”
Choi Na-kyung was silent for a long time.
“Then, let her.”
She finally managed to say.
*
“……Um…”
I was about to say “Mother”, but the words wouldn’t come out, so I decided to change the word.
“Chairwoman?”
[Yes.]
A cold, almost mechanical voice came from the other side of the phone.
It was a stark contrast to the gentle voice I had heard during our last meeting.
……Does this person really love Sara?
No, she must.
I was almost certain of it.
Honestly, even if she didn’t, I didn’t have any other options at the moment.
I had to recover Ye Sara’s memories, after all.
There was a telephone in the mansion.
I could have used my smartphone or contacted Yang Hye-in directly, but she had said that using the mansion’s phone would be a faster way to get a response, so I had chosen this method.
Strangely enough, in an age when everyone had a smartphone with a touchscreen, this place had an old rotary dial phone.
It matched the decor, though.
Fortunately, just hearing her voice only made my heart race and my face flush without any other oddities.
Then again, maybe that alone was strange enough.
“……I want to see you.”
I said, trying my best to captivate Choi Na-kyung.
I noticed the expressions of the four people watching me tense up slightly.
[…….]
Choi Na-kyung didn’t respond.
“Can we meet next weekend?”
[…….]
Still no answer.
If she kept staying silent like this, I would start to doubt whether my assumptions were correct.
I took a deep breath and spoke again.
“Please….”
[…….]
Just when I thought she wasn’t going to answer again,
[……Alright.]
Finally, she replied.
[Should I come to you that day?]
“……Yes.”
I answered.
And after a moment of silence, the phone suddenly clicked and the call ended.
When I carefully placed the receiver back down, the four people who had been watching me quietly came closer.
“How did it go?”
So-hee was the first to speak.
“She said she’ll come here. This weekend.”
“Did she give you a specific time or date?”
Yang Hye-in asked in a calm voice.
“……No.”
Choi Na-kyung hadn’t mentioned any specific details.
Last time, she came on a Saturday.
But there was no guarantee she would do the same this time.
According to Yang Hye-in, Choi Na-kyung visited Sara once every quarter.
The visit was always on the first day of the new quarter.
Naturally, it wasn’t always on a weekend.
And there was never a set time for when she would come… at least, that’s what Yang Hye-in had told me.
“Then we’ll just have to wait all weekend.”
Ha-neul said, as if it were the most obvious thing.
“Right, we’ll stay with you then.”
Soo-ah chimed in from the side.
It was reassuring to hear.
These three were the only people in this world whom I could fully trust.
But at the same time, I was worried.
I had to act sweet in front of Choi Na-kyung.
I might even have to wear something like that wedding-dress-like dress I wore last time.
……Would they be able to just stand by and watch me do that?
However, as if they knew exactly what I was thinking, the three of them gave me gentle smiles.
……Right, worrying alone wouldn’t accomplish anything.
Somehow, I had to struggle forward.
Otherwise, I’d drown instead of staying afloat.