When The Phone Rings

Chapter 56

/contains sensitive words/

“Spokesperson Baek Sa-eon, Candidate Ui-yong’s approval rating is plummeting in real-time…—!”
“Please comment on the current infidelity allegations! Is your silence perhaps a tacit admission?”
“Spokesperson Baek Sa-eon! Look over here, please!”
“Hurry, take the shot, quickly!!”

Baek Sa-eon pushed through the swarm of reporters swarming him at the entrance and entered Baek Jang-ho’s Memorial Hall.

He ignored the incessant calls from his parents without even checking them.

The clamor outside receded as he progressed further into the hall.

“Everything is ready,” his assistant, Park Do-jae, said, handing him an earpiece.
“We’re going to give you instructions… W- What’s wrong?”

Baek Sa-eon just stared at him without putting the in-ears on. Seeing his questioning gaze, the man smirked and finally placed the earpiece in his ear.

“Park Do-jae, back in our university days, you attended the same classes, academic conferences, and extracurriculars as me. We were often in the same circles, weren’t we?”

Hearing Baek suddenly switch to a casual tone, breaking his usual polite boundaries, Park’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Do you know why I brought you on as my direct assistant?”
“…….”
“It’s because I want to control even what happens behind my back.”
“……!”

Park Do-jae’s foolish smile hardened a little, but he straightened his clothes nonchalantly.

Straightening his cuffs and smoothing his tie, he stared directly at his assistant.

“Leave this area to me and head over to the screening room. Manage the reporters there, and while you’re at it, watch the Baek Jang-ho documentary.”
“…Excuse me?”
“You’ve done well so far.”

Without waiting for a response, Baek Sa-eon ascended the stairs and stepped onto the podium.

Park Do-jae glared at him with clenched fists before disappearing down the stairs.

Today is the day of the special documentary screening of the late Baek Jang-ho. It was the premiere of a documentary made for the record to honor Baek Jang-ho’s achievements.

But Sa-eon had deliberately announced the press conference at the same time, and the room was swarming with reporters from the Ministry of Social Affairs, the Ministry of Political Affairs, and the Ministry of Culture.

“There he is! The spokesperson is here…!”

Even as flashes exploded around him like fireworks, Baek Sa-eon maintained a composed, emotionless expression.

His mind, however, lingered on Heeju’s room, the last place he had visited. His Adam’s apple bobbed slightly as he suppressed his thoughts.

“Spokesperson Baek Sa-eon—!”
“Spokesperson Baek Sa-eon, clarify the infidelity allegations immediately!”
“Who was the woman you exchanged obscene calls with? Do you have any comments on her identity?”
“The woman’s voice wasn’t audible at all—does an unedited version of the recording exist?”

Amid the chaotic shouts, his thoughts strayed repeatedly to Heeju.

All he wanted was for her to remain unharmed. Even if it meant sacrificing his name, he wouldn’t allow anything, or anyone, to endanger her.

It was also time to uproot an old, lingering fear once and for all.

He grasped the microphone and turned to face the reporters.

[ Can you hear me? ]
“……!”

A sudden, unfamiliar voice came through one side of his earpiece.

That voice… Even as his mind raced, Baek Sa-eon continued with his greeting without faltering.

“Good afternoon. This is Baek Sa-eon.”
[ Yeah, it’s me. You clearly know who I am. Long time no see. ]

The voice matched the erratic, rambling tone from the first manipulated call. Before he used the voice modification.

It was the real voice of the other Baek Sa-eon, the man presumed dead until now.

[ You look fine, while I’ve been living in utter hell. ]

As Baek Sa-eon reached up to remove the earpiece, the voice grew louder.

[ Go ahead, take it off—see what happens…! ]

‘He’s monitoring me.’

Baek Sa-eon calmly calculated his next move.

[ If you remove it, I’ll tear Hong Heeju to pieces. ]

…This bastard. Pain shot through his jaw as he clenched his teeth.

This was the real grandson of the late Baek Jang-ho, a man whose nature had always been vile.

Even as a child, his cruelty knew no bounds— he was said to have killed and dissected a cat with his own hands at the age of four.

Baek Jang-ho was the one who first discovered the boy, staring in a trance at his bloodied hands with an innocent face.

[ As a child, I only played with pitiful and cute things. ]
“…….”
[ Just like Hong Heeju. She’s perfect, isn’t she? ]

The chilling words were punctuated by a mocking laugh, a chilling performance that seemed to bring him a twisted pleasure.

[ I’ll scrape away the filth you’ve smeared on my name. But Hong Heeju, living as Baek Sa-eon’s wife, is a nuisance. I wanna start with a blank slate! ]

Listening to this, Baek Sa-eon’s eyelid twitched involuntarily.

[ So don’t even think about taking out that earpiece. ]
“…….”
[ You’ll act according to my instructions. ]

Sa-eon felt his tie was suffocating him like a snake.

[ Admit all your sins here and step aside. ]

If he didn’t deal with this man, Heeju might remain a target forever.

[ Say it in front of everyone. ]
“…….”
[ Reveal who you really are. ]

Yet, as he listened to the eager voice vibrating with excitement, Baek Sa-eon secretly curled the corner of his lips upward. Sorry, but today, the name “Baek Sa-eon” will meet its end. So that no one could use it willfully.

[ When your honor is destroyed, that name will be mine again. ]

Finally, the two men whose fates had been swapped stood face to face.

 

***

 

The first time I met the white-haired Assemblyman Baek Jang-ho was when I was twelve years old, living quietly with his reclusive father.

The boy was born nameless. His father was a fisherman, and their home was a ramshackle hut near the fishing grounds. A place where the stench of fish lingered in every corner.

From morning to evening, my father would clean the fishing rod and thread the wiggling worms onto the hook. There was only one customer at such a fishing spot, and that was Assemblyman Baek Jang-ho.

Baek Jang-ho was the only visitor to such a fishing spot, and every time he came, he scrutinized the boy’s body and face as if assessing how much he had grown.

Baek Jang-ho always kept a poker face, but the boy, sharp by nature, could sense the old man’s concealed satisfaction and unease.

At first, he didn’t understand what it meant.

Still, his father always bowed his head and occasionally boarded the old man’s boat to disappear into the distance.

“Father, what are you and that old man throwing into the river?”
“……!”

The boy asked, meeting his father’s silent gaze.

“I saw you dumping something in the river.”
“Don’t be curious.”
“But, Father—”
“I told you not to call me that. I’m not your father.”
“…….”
His father kept baiting hooks, repeating his task mechanically.

I could feel, that even if I were abandoned, I would end up being a fisherman like my father.

He would grow a bushy beard, have a built physique, and be the same man who threads worms on his hook.

Then one day, Baek Jang-ho brought a child.

“This is my grandson.”

The boy was the same age as me. But his eyes were sparkling with excitement.

“I’ll steer the boat, so lend me one.”

My father said nothing and merely bowed.

As the boat cut through the water, I ran along the lakeshore. It was a circular lake— no matter how far they went, the water route was predictable.

Splash!

And, as always, I saw a large bag sink to the bottom of the river. Once it sank, it never resurfaced.

‘Did they put stones in it?’

From then on, the visits from the old man and his grandson became a weekend routine.

Each time, they threw heavy bags into the water.

The grandson always wore a grin that stretched from ear to ear, while Baek Jang-ho’s expression grew darker with every visit.

Slowly but surely, I grew accustomed to their absurd behavior.

One night, close to midnight… The boy woke up due to the sudden noise.

The sound of thrashing, like a giant fish struggling against a net, filled the air. It echoed eerily in the darkness.

He grabbed a flashlight and stepped outside. Pitch blackness surrounded him and in the inky water stood a figure.

‘Isn’t that the old man?’

Was he trying to catch fish barehanded at this hour?

As the boy approached, his grip loosened.

“……!”
The flashlight slipped from his hands, clattering against the pebbles. Baek Jang-ho turned to face him, his bloodshot eyes piercing through the darkness.

His usually neat white hair was disheveled, his trousers soaked to the knees, and his sleeves submerged past his elbows.

“What are you doing…!”
“Don’t come closer.”

Baek Jang-ho’s heavy breathing was ragged. Beneath him was… His grandson, the boy who always wore a broad smile, flailing desperately in the water.

At that moment, everything became clear.

“What are you doing!”

The boy lunged forward, grabbing Baek Jang-ho’s sturdy leg, trying to stop him. But the old man kept shoving his grandson deeper into the water, preventing him from rising.

“Stop it!”
“Don’t interfere!”

Baek Jang-ho roared, his eyes blazing with a feral intensity.

“This monster… This monster must die here…!”
“……!”
“This is the only way to protect everyone!”

Despite his age, Baek Jang-ho was incredibly strong. He was forcing his grandson further into the depths.

The boy clawed at the old man’s arm and screamed, but the decrepit hut remained dark and silent.

Gradually the thrashing sounds faded.

“…….”
“…….”

An unnatural stillness settled over the water.

The boy stared at Baek Jang-ho in disbelief, paralyzed with horror.

Baek Jang-ho remained impassive as the current gently bore his grandson’s body away, then turned his back without a trace of emotion.