He smiled faintly, as if thinking of someone specific.
The greed hidden in his eyes showed deep satisfaction.
"I haven't met a suitable woman all this time, so I haven't chosen anyone yet." Kang Taegon swirled the remaining ice in his glass. "But actually, there's more work that women can do than I initially thought. It's not just about that. I simply happened to find something... interesting."
He shook the glass, watching the cubes clink together.
"Calm and stable..." A satisfied smile crossed his lips. "Yes. Like hard ice."
Even though he had received a detailed report, it was still difficult to believe what had happened. Besides an extraordinarily high pain tolerance—exceeding that of ordinary people—there was no other logical explanation.
This woman had gone through things that most people might never experience in their entire lives.
But she wasn't shattered at all.
The look in her eyes... was a look that even war veterans rarely possessed.
Kang Taegon shrugged, chuckling softly as he recalled that strange gaze again.
There were probably only two possibilities: either it was a talent she was born with, or she had been through a hell more severe than anything imaginable.
However, the documents about Han Seoryeong were remarkably ordinary—so boring, without any irregularities, which felt strange in itself. Kang Taegon had expected to find a record of illegal activities, a troubled past, *something*. But there was nothing at all.
It made him curious.
_How could someone live a life without any problems at all?_
"If my understanding is still correct, she shouldn't give up halfway."
Kang Taegon's voice dropped deeper.
"Not just anyone. I want a woman who can be a personal bodyguard for *that* Gentleman."
He placed the empty glass on the table. Behind him, the night lights of Seoul glittered like scattered diamonds.
"If it's just the surface, it won't be easy to deal with."
He stroked the eagle statue on his desk—the one that looked like it was clutching a small bird in its beak.
"Then, see you in Korea. I want to see if she can reach this level or not."
On the large monitor screen, a photo of Han Seoryeong appeared clearly.
---
## — The Hospital Room —
The winter orchid sent by Kang Taegon had now bloomed.
Even though it had never been watered or its leaves cleaned, it still grew on its own—white petals unfurling as if defying neglect.
Seoryeong had only opened the included care guide once, then put it in a drawer without ever touching it again.
_Does he mean I have to take care of this myself?_
_If I become one of the employees, will I get what I want?_
_Is this an opportunity... or a trap?_
Even though she didn't dare open the brochure again, just seeing the large, bold title made her heart pound for no apparent reason.
> **10-Week Basic Training Program for New Blast Company Employees**
_Why do I feel like this..._
Seoryeong pressed her chest, like someone suffering from indigestion.
Since then, she had often stared at the drawer for no apparent reason.
"Hey, you're looking at that flower again!"
"—!"
_No... I'm actually looking at that strange document..._
"Let's go out for a walk for a bit, shall we! Bask in the sun." The nurse spoke enthusiastically, already reaching for the coat hanging by the bed. "A young person like you must be bored constantly being in the hospital. I'll get your coat and scarf first, okay!"
Before Seoryeong could protest, the nurse was helping her into the thick winter coat, wrapping a scarf around her neck with practiced efficiency.
Unconsciously, she found herself walking.
Seoryeong stepped outside with her hand in a cast, suspended in a sling. This was the first time she had taken a leisurely walk since that last stroll with Channa in Thailand.
Channa was still unconscious.
The cold winter wind touched her already frozen cheeks. She felt like she had no place to go home to. She just walked, following the direction of her footsteps.
_Before meeting Kim Hyeon, my life had always been like this._
"..."
Finally, she sat down at a bus stop without any clear destination, watching the people passing by.
She opened her phone. Went into the gallery.
Nothing.
Even though she knew it was futile, Seoryeong still swiped the empty screen repeatedly, imagining the figure of the man who should have been in those photos...
"Hey, my older sister's friend replied to my message yesterday!"
"Wow, that's so cool..."
"But it's not over yet, listen—this time he typed 'kik' more than usual! Lately, he likes to send 'kik' mixed with 'kik' like that. You think he's interested in me, right?"
The cheerful voices of a group of uniformed schoolgirls floated past. They bumped shoulders and laughed merrily, their breath forming small clouds in the cold air.
Seoryeong watched them for a moment.
Then she stood up.
She knew where she wanted to go.
---
## — Jiseul Girls' High School —
The gymnasium. Jiseul Girls' High School.
She didn't know why memories of her old school had suddenly appeared so vividly.
Seoryeong looked at the weathered school sign without expression, then began to walk forward. The campus was quiet—most of the students had already gone home—and finding her way to the gymnasium wasn't difficult.
The large gymnasium, once the pride of this private school, had originally been a hall before being renovated. As she opened the heavy doors, a familiar aroma—almost forgotten—assaulted her senses instantly.
"..."
Seoryeong looked at the familiar gymnastics equipment one by one: the floor exercise mat, the vaulting horse, the parallel bars, the horizontal bar, the balance beam.
Sunlight streamed through the large windows, making dust motes appear to float slowly in the air—suspended, timeless.
The distinct scent of old wood. Well-worn equipment. White gymnastic chalk clinging here and there...
All the things that had once been a part of her life were still here.
As she sank into her memories, the lights in the gymnasium flickered on one by one.
When she turned around, a woman with a whistle around her neck—wearing a coach's outfit—entered with several teenage athletes in gymnastic uniforms. They looked surprised to see a stranger standing in the middle of the room.
Then their eyes widened.
The woman who appeared to be the coach stared at Seoryeong with wide eyes, then rubbed them as if she had just seen a ghost. She approached slowly.
"You... it really is you, isn't it?" Her voice trembled slightly. "Han Seoryeong?"
She looked Seoryeong up and down, as if trying to convince herself.
"You're really Seoryeong?"
"Yes."
"—!"
"Han Seoryeong? You're *really* Han Seoryeong?"
"Yes, it's me." Seoryeong tilted her head slightly. "But who are you..."
"You don't remember me?" The woman's face split into an enormous grin. "When you left, I was the vice-captain of the gymnastics club at Jiseul!"
"Ah..."
Hearing that, the woman's face began to feel familiar again.
"Wow! I met you again here!" She spoke with somewhat exaggerated enthusiasm. "I thought I was seeing a ghost!"
"..."
"How many years has it been! I can't believe I'm meeting you again in this gymnasium! I'm so happy I don't know where to start!"
"..."
"You're doing well, right? Oh yeah, I'm a coach at this school now. What about you? What have you been busy with these past few years?" She paused, something like concern flickering across her face. "I still hear news from other friends, but Seoryeong... you really disappeared."
Even though it was just a casual question about life, Seoryeong couldn't say anything.
When she thought about her past life, it felt like staring into a deep hole left by an explosion.
She could only respond with a faint smile.
Even though Seoryeong didn't say anything, the coach remained enthusiastic and turned to greet the students who had been stealing glances at them.
"Kids, this is a senior who's come to visit!"
The students immediately bowed politely in greeting.
"Time really flies." The coach shook her head with a nostalgic smile. "Don't you remember? We used to wear uniforms like that too—ten years ago."
The children began to take off their jackets and warm up earnestly. Seoryeong watched them with a blank stare.
The coach, still talking, occasionally gave instructions to the athletes: "Start with aerobics, then do the movement exercises!"
Seoryeong couldn't help but smile as she remembered the past—while the coach began to talk about old friends from the club, most of whom were now vague in her memory.
But suddenly, the coach clapped her hands and said:
"Oh yeah, did you hear about Joo Daeun?"
"..."
Seoryeong needed a moment to remember who Joo Daeun was.
"After leaving the gymnastics club, she majored in acting and film. Now if you turn on the TV, you'll see her often." The coach rolled her eyes slightly. "It seems she's capitalizing on her image as a gymnast with a 'bright future' as a child, and that's making her famous. Every time she appears on a variety show, she always talks about it. They even ask for videos from our school. Luckily, those videos have been lost for a long time, so we always refuse."
_Ah... Joo Daeun._
Seoryeong remembered a classmate who had once fallen from the high bar and broken her leg.
A faint smile appeared on her lips—but this time, it held a mocking tone.
"The one who broke her leg, right?"
"..."
The coach looked surprised by those words. She blinked a few times before finally answering, her voice suddenly awkward:
"Do you still remember why her leg broke?"
She tidied her bangs with obvious embarrassment.
The coach clearly remembered the events of that day.
Back then, Jiseul Girls' High School was known as a top gymnastics school in Korea—a rather rare distinction for a country not particularly celebrated in the field. Everyone knew Joo Daeun and Han Seoryeong as the school's promising new students.
Joo Daeun was known as a gymnastics prodigy since childhood—both her parents were Olympic gold medalists. The school's gymnastics club revolved around her.
But that quiet order began to be disrupted by the arrival of a classmate.
Han Seoryeong.