He was on the sofa in the living room.
Not sitting comfortably, but with his buttocks on the armrest of the sofa and legs stretched out.
It had been 4 hours since he woke up, and now it was 10 a.m.
Damn it.
He pinched his cheeks about a hundred times, and even cut his left pinky finger with a German-made kitchen knife made of steel.
It hurt, and blood oozed out.
He must have looked in the mirror about a hundred times too.
How am I supposed to understand this?
According to the calendar, the internet, and the TV, the date confirmed when Professor Kim Hak-ro would call Cheon Jung-myeong was that very day.
"Sigh."
So, he had gone back one year in time.
Let's just consider everything, from the difficult year he clearly remembered to the miserable and unjust death, as something he experienced in his imagination or in a dream.
That's fine.
If it's a nightmare, that's what it is.
But then, why was he sitting on the sofa with Cheon Jung-myeong's body and his bleeding pinky finger?
He was asking if I was looking down on him.
"Phew."
Seong Chang-uk sighed, feeling suffocated.
One year ago today, Professor Kim Hak-ro said he would call Cheon Jung-myeong at 11 a.m.
Seong Chang-uk picked up the mobile phone placed beside the sofa and looked at it intently. If Professor Kim Hak-ro's call actually came in a short while at 11 a.m., then this must be something like a perfectly realistic nightmare.
But that aside, why did Cheon Jung-myeong, that damn bastard, try to kill an innocent person?
No! Let's solve more important things first.
His train of thought was tangled and twisted.
"Cheon Jung-myeong, where are you right now?"
Seong Chang-uk asked and lowered his head to examine his body.
A perfectly sculpted body made with money. It was the result of machines, fitness coaches, and a desperate sense of mission not to look lazy.
His train of thought rewound.
If Professor Kim Hak-ro recommended a secretary, what name would he mention?
If the graduating student he recommended was Seong Chang-uk, who would actually be inside that body?
Seong Chang-uk exhaled with a trembling head, as if it were a habit.
Ziiing. Ziiing. Ziiing.
The mobile phone in his hand shook, and the screen displayed the name "Kim Hak-ro."
With a moment of hesitation, Seong Chang-uk used his thumb to press the call button.
"Hello?"
Hello? Is this Representative Cheon Jung-myeong? This is Kim Hak-ro.
Damn it, is this really a dream? Or is it a real situation?
Hello?
"Ah, yes. Please go ahead."
Did I call too early?
"No, it's fine."
I'm calling to recommend a suitable student for the personal secretary position we talked about last time.
After taking a deep breath, Seong Chang-uk slowly responded, "Yes."
What name will come up?
Among this year's graduates, there's a student who is a bit older, has rich social experience, and is a former special forces member, making him suitable for a sort of bodyguard role.
"I see. What is the student's name?"
Ah, yes.
Even though he clearly knew the name, Kim Hak-ro hesitated for a moment.
Come on, just say the name already!
Yes. The student's name is Seong Chang-uk.
Thump thump. Thump thump.
Seong Chang-uk's heart raced wildly after a long time.
"Can I meet that student?"
I'll send him over tomorrow.
Ah, wait! There was something to check first!
"Have you already had a meeting with that student today?"
Originally, I was supposed to receive a few precautions and pledges, but for some reason, they haven't arrived yet. Don't worry. Seong Chang-uk also wants to serve our Chairman Cheon, hahaha.
Bowing his head as he answered the phone, Seong Chang-uk looked up and gazed at the display case in front of him.
The glass case held a bottle of whiskey and matching glasses, clearly reflecting Cheon Jung-myeong's figure.
"Well then, let's arrange the appointment as soon as you get in touch."
Can I set the time?
"I'm hiring a person, so let me know as soon as it's decided."
As expected of a businessman. Understood. Then I'll text you the time once it's fixed.
As a precaution, Seong Chang-uk checked if the call had ended before bursting into a burst of satisfied laughter.
"This is crazy, really!"
It's none other than Seong Chang-uk himself.
A soon-to-graduate student with rich social experience and a former special forces member, that's Seong Chang-uk.
Seong Chang-uk raised his head towards the display case and grinned.
The real Seong Chang-uk is here, so who is the guy inside that body?
No matter how much he thought about it, no one other than Cheon Jung-myeong came to mind.
In that case, the only thing left was the real Cheon Jung-myeong, who must be understanding the absurd situation and rushing over here, gasping for breath.
Oh, this guy.
Even if it's just a dream, or perhaps a hallucination born out of too much injustice before dying, he will enjoy it to his heart's content.
"Hehehe. Hahaha. Hahaha."
Seong Chang-uk tried to burst into laughter to feel refreshed, but it didn't come out as satisfying as he wanted.
Turning his head left and right, Seong Chang-uk slowly got up from his seat and headed towards the shower room.
Outside the living room, there was a 100-square-meter villa overlooking the comprehensive sports field and the Tancheon River.
It was Cheon Jung-myeong's favorite house, where he boasted about surpassing his two older brothers and taking over the Jikyung Group.
After a quick shower, Seong Chang-uk took out the expensive suit pants and shirt that the guy used to wear from the wardrobe and put them on.
Expensive clothes really feel different.
In front of the dressing room mirror between the shower room and the bedroom, Seong Chang-uk quickly extended his fist.
He felt a bit lacking in strength, but it should be enough.
Next, Seong Chang-uk applied pomade to his hair and swept it back. Then he washed his hands in the sink in the dressing room and dried them with a towel from the bamboo basket.
An ajumma (middle-aged lady) comes to this house to work at 1 PM.
The company covers the cost, but no one said a word about it.
"Even if it's a nightmare, this should be enough, right?"
Seong Chang-uk grinned at himself in the mirror.
Beep beep beep beep beep. Trilluluk.
The sound of the entrance door opening reached his ears.
Who would confidently enter the passcode like that?
You've come, Cheon Jung-myeong!
Seong Chang-uk took a deep breath and walked towards the living room.
And there, he came face to face with Cheon Jung-myeong, who was entering the entrance.
Their eyes met, and they couldn't move for about 10 seconds.
The Cheon Jung-myeong standing at the entrance was faced with Seong Chang-uk's confident and determined gaze as he stepped into the living room.
"What are you doing? Come in."
"You... You are... You...."
"Learning to talk? Why do you keep saying the same thing? Isn't it unlike Cheon Jung-myeong?"
Wide-eyed, Cheon Jung-myeong suddenly jumped into the living room and rushed breathlessly towards Seong Chang-uk.
"You! You're also like that, right? You're Seong Chang-uk, right? You bastard...."
Snap!
Seong Chang-uk slapped Cheon Jung-myeong with all his might.
Thud!
Seeing his own body falling to the ground instead of Cheon Jung-myeong was not a pleasant sight for Seong Chang-uk.
Putting that aside, there were things that needed to be done now.
Lowering his stance, Seong Chang-uk tightly grasped Cheon Jung-myeong's shoulders.
"Enough!"
"Where do you get the nerve to curse like that?"
"Grr! You...! Seong... Cough!"
"You still don't seem to understand the situation. You should figure it out now, right?"
"Ugh... Sniff."
Cheon Jung-myeong tried to push Seong Chang-uk's hands away with both hands, struggling.
It was clear that Seong Chang-uk's body was much stronger in terms of physical strength.
His left hand holding Cheon Jung-myeong's shoulders was constantly pushed back.
Whack! Thud!
So, Seong Chang-uk brutally smacked Cheon Jung-myeong's lower ear and neck.
Then he forcefully pushed his left hand away.
Thud!
"Kukhuk! Cough! Cough!"
Cheon Jung-myeong, collapsed on the living room floor like a tragic protagonist, continued to cough with a pitiful face.
"You should assess the situation well. You know that I can order someone like you to be killed and buried with ease."
"What... What are you going to do...."
Cheon Jung-myeong turned his surprised face with a disheveled look.
It seemed he couldn't even manage to use polite language.
His gaze still retained a stubbornness, refusing to yield.
But seeing his gaze, memories of the miserable incident at the Pyeongtaek factory suddenly resurfaced in Seong Chang-uk's mind.
Slowly approaching, Seong Chang-uk ruthlessly kicked Cheon Jung-myeong's side as he half-lay on the floor.
Thud!
"Kuh!"
Thud! Thwack! Thud! Thud!
"Argh! Aaah!"
When Seong Chang-uk stopped the kicking, Cheon Jung-myeong burst into tears and nasal mucus, crying like an animal.
Why did you kill a perfectly healthy person like that?
They are employees, not slaves, and you are not their owner, so why did you act like that?
Walking towards the glass display, Seong Chang-uk grabbed a chair.
It was an expensive chair with a rounded back and a footrest in the middle where one could place their feet.
Seong Chang-uk put his foot on the footrest and sat down, staring intensely at Cheon Jung-myeong crying in misery.
"Let me ask you just one thing. Why did you try to kill me?"
Upon receiving the question, Cheon Jung-myeong stopped crying and looked up.
However, in his eyes as he turned around, there was still a burning fire of anger and injustice.
"You don't understand everything."
Getting up from the chair, Seong Chang-uk approached him and kicked him forcefully.
Thud! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
"Even if I was poor!"
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
"I worked under you to earn a living legitimately!"
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
"Stop! Please, stop!"
"You couldn't do whatever you wanted to me!"
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
After about ten minutes of relentless kicking filled with sincerity and patience, Seong Chang-uk stood back up, and Cheon Jung-myeong's face was covered in tears and mucus, looking utterly defeated.
"G-god, okay."
The moaning from Cheon Jung-myeong stopped abruptly.
"Even so, really...!"
His groaning came to an end.
"If you knew the kind of training I had in the past, you would know how much I'm holding back right now. Is the military to your liking? This damn jerk!"
As Seong Chang-uk pulled back the foot that had been aimed at Cheon Jung-myeong's stretched-out leg, the latter curled up in pain.
"Huh. Let's do this again."
Seong Chang-uk climbed onto the same chair and placed his foot in the middle.
"The reason you tried to kill me?"
There was no answer.
Silently, Seong Chang-uk stood up from the chair.
"That was...," Cheon Jung-myeong's words came out laboriously as he tried to lower himself.
"You knew... right?"
"What?"
Seong Chang-uk had no idea what Cheon Jung-myeong was trying to say.
"You knew that I was planning to set fire to the factory, right?"
Cheon Jung-myeong glanced at Seong Chang-uk weakly and then opened his mouth as if giving up.
"To claim the insurance money... You knew that's why I gave up on it, right?"
"Speak clearly!"
"The Icheon Cold Storage. You knew I was trying to claim the insurance money and gave up on it, didn't you?"
As Cheon Jung-myeong faced Seong Chang-uk, who was sitting on the chair, he stood up with a face that looked like his life had fallen apart.
"That's why I did it. Since I was already suspected, I changed my target to the Pyeongtaek cosmetics factory, harboring resentment over the company's downsizing, and set fire to the factory."
"What about the security guard?"
"I got rid of the CCTV and... the security guard was there during the fire accident."
Seong Chang-uk took a deep breath and looked at Cheon Jung-myeong lying on the floor.
A heavy silence engulfed the interior of the 100-pyeong villa, and about ten minutes had passed in this way.
"Why did you go to such lengths? You have enough money to spare, don't you?" Seong Chang-uk asked in a calm yet firm voice.
"After the fire incident, there was a decision about the successor..." Cheon Jung-myeong replied with a lingering sense of injustice.
"Why would a fire be necessary to choose a successor?"
"I couldn't refuse the orders of my brothers..."
"Oh, you idiot! You must have wanted to use yourself as a scapegoat! You were never even considered as a candidate!"
Seong Chang-uk vented his frustration and turned his gaze to the window. The dream felt so vivid that he couldn't make sense of it at all.
"Don't even mention becoming the successor! I have no interest in that filthy position! I don't like that kind of life at all! What I want is to find a way to get my body back."
"But if you become the successor, you can try every possible means..."
Seeing Cheon Jung-myeong harboring such a random hope, Seong Chang-uk sighed deeply.
**
Silence descended once again.
In that quietness, Seong Chang-uk couldn't stand looking at Cheon Jung-myeong swallowing his dry saliva over and over.
"Go and wash up and come back."
It was clear that Seong Chang-uk was finding it hard to deal with the situation. The silence stretched on, and he finally spoke up again, "I'll consider it."
Seong Chang-uk felt a pang of pain seeing Cheon Jung-myeong struggling to stand up with a pitiful expression on his face. He must be in pain. Serves him right, thought Seong Chang-uk with a frown.
As Cheon Jung-myeong limped towards the shower, Seong Chang-uk noticed that he was wearing the only suit he had bought for the interview. Why did things turn out like this? He let out a sigh, finding it odd that he kept feeling this way.
From the dressing room, he could hear the sound of running water followed by Cheon Jung-myeong's muffled sobbing. Seong Chang-uk wondered about the meaning behind those tears. After trying to kill someone and ending up like this, what could those tears signify?
Seong Chang-uk sat down heavily, feeling a strange emotion rise within him. He couldn't believe that the face in front of him was his own, up until yesterday.
"Sigh!" He let out a heavy sigh, his emotions twisting inside.
"Cheon Jung-myeong."
"Yes..."
"There's something you need to clearly understand. I never envied a life like yours, not even one bit. If I had the chance, I would change my body right now."
"Yes."
"But if such an opportunity arises, I'll completely crush your thighs and knees."
Cheon Jung-myeong swallowed nervously, understanding the determination in Seong Chang-uk's words. The look of terror and surprise in his eyes spoke volumes.
"Clean up and come out. Let's find a way."
As Seong Chang-uk turned to leave the dressing room, he suddenly looked back.
"One more thing."
Cheon Jung-myeong flinched at the sound of his voice.
"Don't entertain any foolish thoughts. If I ever catch you aiming for me, I'll kill you on the spot. Even if I do that, my life will end with this body. Got it?"
Cheon Jung-myeong nodded quickly.
"And keep your mouth shut, what use will you have for it?"
"Yes?"
"From now on, answer only with your mouth."
With that final remark, Seong Chang-uk left the dressing room, leaving Cheon Jung-myeong to contemplate the consequences of his actions.
When Seong Chang-uk shook his head, the sobbing turned into a grievous cry that couldn't suppress his anger. "Quiet down! What's so unjust about a murderer who killed someone working hard to live? Nonsense!"
As the crying abruptly stopped, Seong Chang-uk found it hard to suppress his boiling anger. He marched towards the dressing room. The heir of a conglomerate? He was nothing more than a killer disguised as a human.
Cheon Jung-myeong was taken aback by Seong Chang-uk's sudden appearance and pushed himself back into the corner of the washbasin. Seong Chang-uk had wanted to kill him. No, he was so furious that he could have beaten him to death.
However, when he saw the tears and water dripping from Cheon Jung-myeong's still unwashed face, his heart softened.
"Sure!"
Seong Chang-uk, letting out a deep sigh, emerged into the living room, raising his head.
"Do you have any cigarettes?"
Then he shouted towards the dressing room.
"Hey!"
It's funny.
Cheon Jung-myeong hurriedly came out with unsteady steps.
With comical movements, he went around the home bar to the kitchen and took out cigarettes, a lighter, and an ashtray.
"Why have I never seen this before? I've never asked you to get me cigarettes, have I?"
"I only use them when the girls come over..."
"Oh, really!"
What else could he say?
Seong Chang-uk put the cigarette in his mouth and picked up the lighter.
Click.
The golden lighter opened with a clear sound.
Seong Chang-uk's gaze was intense, causing Cheon Jung-myeong to hastily respond.
"If an accident happens now, I'll have to live in this body for the rest of my life. So, you don't need to worry until my body changes."
It was a sincere remark from Cheon Jung-myeong, but Seong Chang-uk, after hearing it all, had an incredulous expression and didn't even get angry.
"You're telling me not to worry until your body changes because when it does, you'll kill me and then I should worry?"
"Yes?"
Seong Chang-uk shook his head as if he couldn't believe it.
"Geez, are you being honest or just being immature?"
In a frustrated mood, Seong Chang-uk brought the cigarette back to his mouth.
As he exhaled the smoke, filled with a sense of suffocation, it happened.
Ring, ring. Ring, ring. Ring, ring.
Cheon Jung-myeong's cell phone, placed on the living room table, loudly rang.
Seong Chang-uk turned his gaze towards the table.
"We have a family gathering today. It's in the evening."
Then came Cheon Jung-myeong's urgent voice from behind.
"You don't have to answer it."
"It's probably just my younger brother calling, but it's better to answer first..."
"We're not going anyway."
Even after looking at Cheon Jung-myeong, the phone continued to ring.
"It'll be awkward if you don't answer it."
"Why?"
"We'll need money to find a way to change bodies, and we'll need someone to arrange things, so..."
"Phew."
Taking a drag from the cigarette, he felt some of the tension within him ease.
"You don't need to worry."
At that moment, without even asking, Cheon Jung-myeong offered a response from across the home bar.
"What?"
"I mean, I'm not planning to harm you or anything like that."
"If there's a problem between siblings, the support from the younger one always gets cut off."
The phone's vibration abruptly stopped.
Cheon Jung-myeong turned his gaze towards the coffee table with a disappointed and worried expression.
Ring, ring. Ring, ring. Ring, ring.
The phone rang again.
Fine, let's answer it for now.
Seong Chang-uk walked over to the sofa and picked up the phone.
The caller ID displayed "Younger Brother."
"Hello?"
Why did you take so long to answer the phone?
"I was showering. I just finished exercising."
Cheon Sang-gi, Seong Chang-uk's second younger brother, had a more confident tone compared to when he was working as his personal secretary, but he didn't say anything else.
You remember the promise for today, right? Come to our hometown in Pyeongchang-dong at 7 p.m.
"Yes."
Before he could finish his response, the phone was abruptly hung up, leaving Seong Chang-uk feeling a bit scared.
Seong Chang-uk walked back to the home bar, placed the phone down, and stubbed out his cigarette.
"They want us to gather at the family home...?"
Seong Chang-uk slowly raised his head.
"Yes!"
Cheon Jung-myeong's tone, which was becoming shorter, instantly became polite.
"If you go to the family home tonight, they will talk about the incident with the Icheon Frozen Warehouse and the Pyeongtaek cosmetics factory."
"Did you plan the arson a year ago?"
As if he had nothing to say in response, Cheon Jung-myeong shook his head.
"Ugh, you fool!"
Seong Chang-uk spun the chair towards the living room window, wanting to vent his frustration.
He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself.
While Cheon Jung-myeong had his head down, he suddenly opened his eyes wide and glared at Seong Chang-uk's back through the window.
Getting tired of all this, seriously.
Seeing him rolling his eyes like that even after attempting to kill someone, Seong Chang-uk couldn't help but let out a sigh and a mocking laugh at the same time.
Well, it would be a mistake to expect his character to change in an instant after giving orders to kill someone and pushing for it.
If he ever gets the chance and retrieves the money, even in his changed body, he would still be the one to stab someone in the back without hesitation.
'Right. In that case...'
Seong Chang-uk had a sinister thought.
The living room window still showed Cheon Jung-myeong looking around nervously with his eyes now white.
Swish.
Seong Chang-uk slowly stood up from the chair he had turned towards the living room.
Cheon Jung-myeong quickly changed his expression and appeared through the living room window.
Startled.
As Seong Chang-uk turned his body, Cheon Jung-myeong was nonchalantly flipping his lifeless face over.
"Cheon Jung-myeong."
"Yes."
His response came out calmly.
"I saw everything, you glaring at me from behind."
Cheon Jung-myeong's face showed surprise and realization as he looked at Seong Chang-uk through the living room window.
Seong Chang-uk walked slowly, and Cheon Jung-myeong began to step backward.
"That guy! What are you doing? Clean it up quickly! He's a former special forces member!"
"I'm being electrocuted, so my body is convulsing. Like a squid on a grill."
"Damn it...!"
"Oh, scary! Oh, damn, he's really scary."
The cruel man's screams echoed in Seong Chang-uk's ears as if playing on a recording device.
"That, that, that bastard! Look at this! How dare he! I thought he'd do something like this! Smash his head quickly!"
Yeah, he was the kind of person who gave orders without batting an eye.
But even if he kept him around and ended up dead, it wouldn't be because he was a bad person, but because Seong Chang-uk was sentimental.
"He might have hidden cash in a bank account or precious metals, or he could use secret family stories to persuade his brothers. Isn't that right?"
"What are you talking about..."
As Cheon Jung-myeong was retreating, he hit the kitchen counter.
"Isn't it a way to say that you could kill me at any time? It means you have information that could be useful in the successor fight, right?"
"I could also manipulate the little brother."
His hands were fumbling behind him.
It seemed like he was trying to grab a knife made of steel.
One of the kitchen knives is set in a wooden block.
"Take it out quickly. Choose the one you like."
Cheon Jung-myeong's hand came to a sudden stop.
"If you manage to stab me even once with that, I'll spare your life."
His Adam's apple bobbed up and down.
"Count to five. If you don't grab the knife within that time, I'll break your neck, and I'll have the guys from the factory bury you. You figure it out."
"The professor... the professor knows! He knows I came here!"
"Don't bluff. The professor hasn't given you the address yet. And if we erase the CCTV records here, it'll be over. Isn't that right?"
Cheon Jung-myeong had just swallowed dryly.
"One."
"Don't do it! Please, don't!"
Seong Chang-uk began to count slowly.
"Two."
"Please spare me! Please! Please, I beg you!"
"Three."
Thud.
The man knelt down and desperately wiped his hands more intensely than a fly.
"Four."
He's going to kill him.
He didn't know what would happen afterwards, but he'd rather die than be caught again. Seong Chang-uk had firmly made up his mind as he was about to say the number five.
"I think I know why we ended up like this!"
The man who was wiping his hands suddenly blurted out an unexpected statement.
"In six months, there will be new machinery arriving at the Icheon frozen warehouse and the Pyeongtaek factory!"
"What kind of machinery?"
Seong Chang-uk became curious.
But regardless, if it was nothing important, he would just say the number five and be done with it.
"Is this bastard going to keep playing with people until the end?"
He was about to extend his hand without even needing the number five.
Ding-dong-dang-dong. Ding-dong-dang-dong.
Someone pressed the bell at the villa's entrance.
As he glanced at the front door and then back at him, Cheon Jung-myeong's face looked like he had returned from hell.
"Ji-eun from Daegyo Construction is coming! Right! If she presses the bell and I don't open the door, she'll enter the passcode and come in right away!"
When someone was desperate, it could be amusing, and that's how Seong Chang-uk felt right now.
"Do you remember? Today, Ji-eun is supposed to come to the house to do that! Remember?"
He was speaking urgently, and right after he finished, the sound of someone entering the passcode was heard.
Beep-beep-beep-beep-beep-beep.
"Look! Look!"
Thump-thump.
And the door opened.
As Seong Chang-uk was about to break free, Oh Ji-eun entered through the entrance.
"Oh? Were you with a guest?"
With her brown hair, wearing a dress and holding a handbag, Oh Ji-eun glanced at Cheon Jung-myeong in the kitchen.
"Well, then I'll come back another time."
The man greeted me briefly and awkwardly walked back to the entrance. Then, like a fish escaping from someone's hand, he quickly disappeared outside the front door.
They say you'll live longer if you swear at people, but he certainly looked like he was in a hurry to leave.
"Who...?"
As she turned her gaze from the man leaving, Oh Ji-eun asked the question.
"The guy I was thinking of hiring as my personal secretary. But that's not important."
He was about to tell her to leave now.
However, without giving him a chance to say anything, Oh Ji-eun smiled meaningfully and pulled her shoulder out of her dress.
It was the same dress that Cheon Jung-myeong had bought her as a gift.
He had raved about how women in dresses looked sexier, like passing words to Seong Chang-uk when he first started working. He even boasted that he had bought this dress for Oh Ji-eun as a gift.
"That's not it."
"Are you in a hurry?"
Without waiting, Oh Ji-eun swiftly lowered the dress, like pulling off a pair of rubber pants.
"Damn it!"
It's not like I don't have any money.
"Look! Just like you said, I didn't wear anything inside. So, I was a bit surprised earlier."
Something was definitely going wrong.
"What are you doing?"
Her face wasn't unpleasant. But she wasn't strikingly beautiful either.
She was a woman who dreamed of becoming part of the Jigyeong Group, using the excuse of taking care of her father.
"Looking at you so closely makes me embarrassed."
Oh, Ji-eun covered her lower body with her left hand and her lips with her right hand, and she let out a playful smile.
Shouldn't she be covering her chest with her right hand?
As Seong Chang-uk was lost in his random thoughts,
"Oh, Eun-ah!"
Completely undressed, Oh Ji-eun approached him with a cute act.
Damn it, this is getting on my nerves.
Seong Chang-uk let out a weary sigh.