Chapter 47
“…!”
Startled, Heeju hastily ended the call and turned to face the figure leaning against the door.
Baek Sa-eon stood there, gripping his briefcase, his expression utterly rigid as his piercing gaze locked onto her. A frantic rhythm pounded in her chest, leaving her pale and gasping for air.
“What were you doing, Hong Heeju?”
“…”
Her mind went blank and she struggled to regulate her breathing. But Baek Sa-eon’s breathing was just as ragged as hers, and his straight gaze was terrifying.
‘Why is he acting like this all of a sudden…?’
Frantically, she shoved her phone beneath the covers, trying to maintain a facade of calm.But she couldn’t hide her flushed cheeks and watery eyes from the climax she had never experienced before.
“Do you want me to come over?”
Heeju hugged the quilt and shook her head urgently. But the man leaned forward, palms pressed against the bed.
His bloodshot eyes scanned Heeju’s face closely and slowly.
“So this is the look you make.”
“…!”
Before she could process his words, his lips crashed against hers, devouring her with a fervent, almost desperate hunger.
The kiss was wild and unrelenting, his tongue invading her mouth with an intensity that made her gasp. Pinned under his weight, she had no choice but to yield, her lips parting involuntarily to accommodate him.
He seemed insatiable, like a man starved, consuming every trace of her breath as his tongue tangled deeply with hers.
What’s happening?!
He had phone s3x with someone else, and now this?!
What does he even think I am?!
Driven by a surge of defiance, Heeju bit down hard on his lips.
“…!”
Despite the sharp pain, Baek Sa-eon didn’t recoil. Instead, he tilted his head and pressed further into her, his lips and hands both unyielding. The faint taste of blood spread in her mouth, but he seemed unfazed, gripping her face with an almost punishing intensity.
“Why? Do I seem like a b*stard now?”
His lips barely left hers as he growled in a low, guttural voice.
“If I’m going to be cursed out, I might as well do something to deserve it.”
He twisted his head to dig in deeper, despite the obvious difficulty. The taste of blood spread from somewhere in his mouth, but he didn’t care, gripping her face harder.
“…!”
“Didn’t I tell you… There are many ways for a married couple to communicate.”
Between their lips, which met again in a heated rush, saliva pooled and mingled sweetly. Soft inner flesh pressed and tangled repeatedly as his lips trailed downward— from just beneath her ear, along her jawline, to the curve of her neck. The searing heat left a sensation like a brand, making her legs involuntarily cross.
This man… after being on the phone with 406… Now he’s doing this with me?
Heeju began pounding her fists against his shoulders. Wasn’t he the one who claimed he was waiting for her to say it herself?
‘Is this what he meant by that?’
It felt as though he was trying, once again, to coax words out of her through actions. A sudden wave of rebellion surged within her.
Instead of pushing him away, she grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him down.
“…!”
He hesitated for a moment. But give her the chance to lean in boldly and initiate a kiss of her own. Awkward yet determined, she moved her jaw as she stared him down. Tentatively, she licked and nipped at his stiff lips, trying to coax a response.
Her tongue brushed against his teeth and grazed his inner cheek. In that instant, he abruptly pulled back with a sharp exhale and straightened up.
Covering his jaw with one large hand, he looked strangely dazed, as though intoxicated. But his neck was flushed red. Heeju blinked in confusion at the sight.
“…You’ll catch a cold. Put on your pants.”
He gestured to the clothing scattered on the floor and left the room without another word.
Her face turned crimson as her eyes drifted down. His pants, still undone, had an unmistakable bulge.
***
Heeju woke up to the sound of chirping morning birds.
She was still groggy from the early discharge from the hospital. She squinted at the sunlight streaming in through the curtains, then snapped out of it.
‘….!’
A good night’s sleep had finally calmed her frazzled mind. What she was faced with next was the aftermath of the storm.
She kissed Sa-eon for the second time.
‘Have I gone crazy….!’
The phone call, the obscene talk, the kiss… her active participation in all of it. Groaning, Heeju grabbed at her hair.
‘What the heck is the hostage-taker doing right now?!’
With nowhere to vent, Heeju could only blame the hostage-taker.
In hindsight, she had to admit it—her attempt at blackmail had been doomed from the moment the call veered into uncharted territory.
Nothing could faze Sa-eon. He even manipulated 406 effortlessly. Blackmailing him now seemed impossible.
‘This is a disaster…’
She sighed heavily.
‘Or maybe I’m just now waking up to reality.’
Baek Sa-eon seemed convinced that he could control everything, the slander, the accusations, the rumours, everything.
Heeju never thought he would be so steadfast.
It was hard for an inexperienced person like her to challenge him. That makes me even more desperate for the help of the hostage taker who was backing me up. But he’s been frustratingly silent lately.
As I sat at the kitchen table, forking my salad, my mobile phone buzzed briefly.
‘……!’
Reacting like lightning, Heeju threw down her fork and checked her phone. But it wasn’t the hostage taker she expected. It was the PR chief’s office.
— “Hello? Is this Ms. Hong Heeju? This is the right number for the interpreter, correct?”
Heeju swallowed the vegetable she was holding in her mouth and tapped the screen.
—”Well, the President has a special address scheduled for today, as well as a spokesperson briefing. It’s going to be broadcast live, and ideally, you would have been involved, but unfortunately, it seems you can’t this time.”
As she listened, the frustration within her only grew.
—”There will be a few more briefings in the near future, though. If you’d like, you could take this chance to get a feel for the atmosphere ahead of time.”
For a moment, her eyes sparkled.
***
On his way to work, Baek Sa-eon was stopped at a red light, leaning his forehead against the steering wheel.
Listening to the morning news on the radio was part of his daily routine, but today, he couldn’t focus at all.
His patience was wearing thin.
Though he had twisted the blackmail call in his favor, Heeju’s determined responses left him both amused and infuriated.
It was becoming increasingly vexing, despite being something he had initiated.
Whenever he looked at her, she kept her lips sealed as though determined not to engage.
‘Does she really want to end this marriage that badly?’
The veins on the back of his hand bulged as he gripped the steering wheel tightly.
The previous night, while she was sleeping, he had searched everywhere for her second phone—her bookshelf, wardrobe, vanity, even her bag—but came up empty-handed.
Eventually, his gaze landed on the blanket. Without hesitation, he yanked it back, revealing pale ankles, smooth calves, and the curve of her thighs…
“…!”
Thoughts of the phone vanished entirely.
‘If only I could bite into that soft skin…’
Honk! Honk!
The sharp blaring of car horns jolted him back to reality, and he hastily hit the gas. A faint irritation simmered within him from the start of the day.
Suddenly, the radio began broadcasting a cultural news segment.
[ “…Efforts are being made to increase accessibility for disabled audiences. The play The Prince and the Pauper recently became the first in the country to feature two weeks of Korean subtitles for all performances. The National Theater plans to include sign language interpretation, audio descriptions, and Korean subtitles in future productions. They have also been invited to next week’s special screening of the late Baek Jang-ho’s documentary…” ]
The unexpected mention of his grandfather’s name made his gaze turn icy cold.
His fleeting expression, softened by thoughts of Heeju, disappeared entirely. He immediately turned off the radio and gripped the steering wheel with barely restrained force.
***
“Aaaaaaa-”
The moment Baek Sa-eon stepped into the public relations office, a sharp, grating scream pierced the air. He frowned at the sudden commotion and quickened his pace.
“What’s going on?”
“Spokesperson, well…”
Someone stammered, on the verge of tears.
Pushing through the shocked crowd, he spotted the source of the disturbance: a sturdy, transparent plastic bag, like the kind used to carry tropical fish.
“It’s just that… when we got here… this was…”
A staff member, visibly disturbed, covered their mouth as if nauseated.
Inside the bag, floating in murky water, were dozens of severed goldfish heads. Their milky eyes were frozen wide, and the jagged edges of their necks were grotesque and disturbing.
“And they were put on your desk too, sir…”
Another staff member spoke up, their eyes tightly shut.
Baek Sa-eon, his expression unreadable, strode to his desk. Another bag, containing the dead goldfish, lay there.
“Ugh…”
Someone behind him covered their mouth, suppressing a gag.
The fish’s bellies were crudely stitched with fishing hooks, the chaotic needlework making it hard to look at directly. Blood seeped from the wounds, staining the water red and cloudy.
As the others averted their gazes in horror, Baek Sa-eon’s lips curved into a long, subtle smile.
‘Finally, you’ve come out of hiding.’
It was the message he had been waiting for—the real blackmailer had revealed themselves.
Returning to his composed demeanor, he reassured the staff.
“I’ll handle this. Please return to your work.”
He immediately took both bags and headed to the restroom.
Once inside, he locked the door and opened one of the bags, pulling out a mutilated body. His expression remained cold and detached as he examined it.
‘Fishing hooks, huh…’
His pupils were void of emotion as he scrutinized the mess of stitches.
Skilled hands carefully removed the hook and opened the fish’s belly. Though his fingers were slippery with blood and fish guts, his movements were methodical and precise.
Handling the disemboweled fish felt second nature to him. He repeated this process for each goldfish in the bag.
Then, suddenly, Sa-eon’s hands froze.
