Episode 3 — The Chairman's Daughter
The driver's door opened and a dignified man stepped out.
Immaculate suit. A tie that hadn't a single thread out of place.
There was an air about him that warned against treating him carelessly.
The man walked straight toward Sojin.
Sojin tilted her head as she studied him.
Who is this guy? What's going on?
'Wait... do I know him? He doesn't look familiar at all.'
The man stopped a careful distance in front of her, and with an impassive gaze, looked her up and down.
Heavy makeup, a dress straight out of a nightclub, and bare feet.
Saying nothing, he took off his suit jacket and draped it over her shoulders.
"Wh-what are you doing?"
Sojin tried to push his hands away, but the man only tucked the jacket more snugly around her.
He spoke in a calm, measured voice.
"Young Miss, it's late. You should head home now."
"Who are you, and why are you doing this to me...?"
The man drew a short breath, then recited the words as if reading from a script.
"...Why, I'm Secretary Han, your personal attendant. The Chairman is worried about you."
"The-the Chairman?"
It was the moment suspicion crystallized into certainty, but she denied reality for now.
"I'm not any 'Young Miss.' I don't even know who this Chairman person is."
"...Young Miss Sojin."
The instant the name Sojin left Secretary Han's mouth with perfect precision, Sojin's face froze.
Was my suspicion wrong? How did he call my name? How does he know it?
"Get in the car quickly. This is no time for games."
"No, I'm telling you, I'm not the Young Miss!"
At her protest, Secretary Han paused as if considering something, then—clearly well practiced—opened a notebook from his breast pocket.
He spoke with deliberate care.
"Then let me confirm a few things. What is the Young Miss's name?"
"...Lee Sojin?"
He drew a circle in the notebook.
"Where is the Young Miss's home?"
"Seongbuk-dong..."
He drew an X.
After that, he asked about the size of her house, which university she'd graduated from, her family relations—and kept drawing X after X.
With each X, his expression grew stiffer.
"I see. Understood."
"Understood what, exactly?"
Secretary Han leaned in toward Sojin. He took a deep breath, then straightened himself back up.
"There's no smell of alcohol, but the circumstances suggest you've been overdrinking again. I must report to the Chairman at once."
"Report what...? No, hold on a second! Who are you calling?"
As Secretary Han murmured something into his phone, two sedans emerged from that alley and rolled toward Sojin.
Instinct screamed danger, and Sojin stumbled backward.
'If I stay here, they're going to drag me off.'
I have to run.
Sojin backed away slowly, watching him for an opening.
The moment his attention flickered elsewhere, she bolted like a madwoman in the opposite direction from the sedans.
The men in the sedans leapt out and gave chase.
"Young Miss!"
"It's dangerous, Young Miss!"
"Please come back!"
"Leave me alone, please!"
Sojin weaved between people and ran straight ahead.
But the chase didn't last long.
Sojin was remarkably fast herself, but the attendants must have trained for exactly this, because they caught up to her in no time.
"Hah... hah... Young Miss, please don't do this."
"I'm not the Young Miss!"
Secretary Han issued a firm command to the men.
"Put the Young Miss in the car."
The men seized both of Sojin's arms with practiced ease and hauled her toward the sedan.
"Let go! Let go of me!"
Sojin thrashed and struggled to break free, but the strength of grown men was not something she could overcome.
In the end, she had no choice but to be dragged along obediently.
They arrived at a lavish mansion.
Passing through a beautifully manicured garden, Sojin was practically carried into the house.
The moment she crossed the front door, the attendants all stepped back a single pace in unison.
Sojin was rubbing her newly freed arms when someone came rushing out from inside.
"Sojin, my darling!"
A dignified middle-aged man—the one the secretary had called the Chairman, if she remembered right.
The Chairman swept Sojin into a hug in a single stride.
Behind him, a woman with the aloof elegance of a cat strolled out at her leisure.
The woman watched the two of them and smiled faintly.
"Honestly, your doting on our daughter is something else."
Even as she heaved a sigh, the woman's gaze on Sojin brimmed with love.
"Honey, she's thirty years old now."
"In my eyes, she's still my little girl."
Sojin stood there awkwardly—unable to push the Chairman away, unable to hug him back, just hovering in the middle.
'I feel like I've seen him somewhere before... but who?'
The Chairman took Sojin by the arm and led her inside.
"Come in first. We'll talk inside."
Still in a daze, Sojin set foot inside the unfamiliar house.
Stepping into the living room, she was greeted by overwhelming opulence.
The ceiling soared two stories high, and a crystal chandelier cast a soft, radiant glow.
Sojin's eyes went wide at the sight of it.
It was so dazzling that the light scattering off the crystals nearly blinded her.
'Is that chandelier actually made of gold?'
The floor was premium marble with a cold, polished sheen, and a plush rug spread generously over it.
'It's enormous. And gorgeous.'
The moment Sojin sat down on the living room sofa, the servants moved with flawless precision to set a tea service before her.
There was something rigid about their movements—like robots running on code.
"This tea is good for hangovers."
The servants draped a soft fur blanket over Sojin's shoulders and placed a cushioned footrest beneath her feet.
The tea was neither hot nor cold—exactly the right temperature.
It was that very precision that felt strangely, unsettlingly alien.
The Chairman and the woman took their seats across from Sojin.
He exchanged a glance with the woman, then spoke up cautiously.
"Who told you to drink like that, hm?"
"Haha..."
"The attendants lost track of you halfway through and had a terrible time finding you. They say you couldn't even remember where your own house was?"
Sojin awkwardly averted her eyes.
What could she possibly say, when she wasn't even actually drunk? All she could do was smile.
The scolding dragged on and on behind her, until at last the end came into sight.
"Good grief, you promised me the same thing last time. If you come home dead drunk again, you'll be in real trouble, you hear me!"
"Honey, Sojin has heard enough by now. She must be exhausted—tell her to go to her room."
"Fine, go get some rest. I'll have them cook up a hangover soup for tomorrow, so eat it when you wake."
"Um, but..."
"Yes? What is it?"
"By any chance..."
Where exactly is this place?
And these people clearly don't know me, so how do they know my name?
Why am I your daughter?
Countless questions flashed through her mind, but she held her tongue.
If she blurted out something pointless, they might notice something was off about her.
And if she was found out, she might be hauled off somewhere again, just like before.
Sojin steadied herself. Whatever this place is, don't panic.
The important thing right now was to get an accurate picture of her situation.
What question could tell me for certain where I am?
After much deliberation, she finally spoke.
"...How do the staff normally address the two of you?"
"What an odd question. Chairman Lee and Madam Jeong. That's how they address us. Is something the matter?"
Sojin's gaze wavered.
'Chairman Lee...?'
She remembered now—he was a character mentioned only ever so briefly in the short-form drama.
Praying with all her heart that she was wrong, she opened her mouth slowly. Sojin looked at Secretary Han, standing beside her.
"Then... Secretary... nim?"
"...You may simply call me Secretary Han, as always."
"Do you happen to know... a name? Lee Sera?"
It was a name Secretary Han absolutely had to recognize.
Sojin stared at his mouth with a pounding heart.
But what came out of his mouth was entirely unexpected.
"No, Young Miss. I've never heard that name before."
"Then what... where on earth am I..."
A sudden thought struck her, and Sojin froze. She looked around the house, then asked again.
"...Then, about the puppy that used to live in this house—the one that died a few years ago. Do you know its name?"
She added awkwardly,
"The puppy... I used to raise."
Madam Jeong cut in abruptly.
"You used to cry every time that puppy came up... let's not talk about that."
"...Please answer me, Secretary Han."
Secretary Han kept glancing at Madam Jeong's expression, then spoke up carefully.