The Regressed Chaebol Grandson Finds It Hard to Forgive - Chapter 106
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 106. I Won’t Forgive (14)
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A mansion in Mayfair, located in an upscale district of London Westminster.
A platinum-blonde middle-aged man with a dignified bearing sat alone at the head of a large twenty-person table, dining.
The main course was a thick salmon steak.
A brown checked suit and classic necktie complemented him elegantly.
His platinum hair was swept back with enough pomade to tolerate not a single strand out of place.
Every motion of knife and fork was restrained and measured.
It looked less like an enjoyable meal and more like a monk’s training ritual.
His blue-tinted eyes fixed indifferently on the perfectly cooked salmon.
Even the speed and number of chews were rhythmic.
Clink.
The meal, marked only by the soft contact of utensils, had come to an end.
Pour.
A server in a white shirt and bow tie, who had been standing several paces back, approached and filled the glass with black tea.
Gulp.
The man lifted the cup, took a light sip, and rinsed his mouth.
The lengthy meal had concluded.
“Sebastian.”
“My lord. What are your orders?”
A man in his early fifties approached where the server had stood.
It was Sebastian, the butler.
A blue suit suited him well.
“Where is Isabella?”
“She remains at the Korean client’s residence.”
“Still? What time is it now?”
“By their time, it would be around ten at night.”
“Hmm.”
A slight furrow crossed the platinum-haired man’s face, and a short sound of disapproval escaped his lips.
It was Rupert Hales, the Earl and head of the household.
Though he resided in London, he was not of the English aristocratic establishment.
He came from a prominent Scottish noble family that had once resisted England.
Burdened by that history, he—and indeed the entire family—was cold and resolute.
They had endured harsh years to survive among the English gentry.
Though his title was Earl, the English aristocracy still scorned him.
His ancestors had long retreated into the shadows.
Though they presented themselves as a boutique law firm, the Hales Family was in reality a professional money launderer dealing in dark funds.
They safely housed the wealth of the world’s richest people in tax havens.
Their reputation for stability rivaled Switzerland, boasting centuries of history.
Because of that legacy, no one dared take the Hales Family lightly.
Without their assistance, it was nearly impossible to launder substantial funds perfectly.
“I’ve looked into our client, Ha Tae-ung. He’s a descendant of Korea’s Haryun Group.”
“Haryun…?”
“One of Korea’s top ten conglomerates.”
“Is that so?”
The Earl understood the status of Korean chaebol within Korea.
They formed the upper class that wielded power rivaling that of nobility.
On that point, he felt reassured.
His youngest daughter Isabella had been swept up in the Korean wave and couldn’t seem to break free.
He knew of her deep fascination but hadn’t discouraged it.
She was too precious in his life to rely solely on family authority.
The daughter who called him “Dad” and nestled against the stern Rupert, kissing him and coddling him with affection.
“What kind of work is he engaged in?”
“His asset accumulation is notable.”
“Family Slush Funds?”
“That’s not it.”
“Then…?”
“It appears to be from cryptocurrency investment returns.”
“Cryptocurrency?”
Cryptocurrency, which the Heils Law Firm also used as an important means of accumulating hidden assets.
“He’s quite young.”
“…?”
Still holding his cup of tea, the Earl regarded his butler.
“He’s barely come of age.”
“Yet he’s using my firm?”
“I’m investigating, but it seems suspicious.”
“…A succession dispute?”
The conglomerate succession disputes of Korean chaebol were renowned even in this world.
In the past, the scale of funds Korean chaebol had smuggled abroad was enormous.
Though it couldn’t be disclosed, the Heils Law Firm had contracts with several Korean groups.
They tended uniformly to establish slush funds for group succession.
“He’s excluded from the family structure. Yet… he signed up for the VIP Package. That’s what’s strange.”
The VIP Package!
This was the course that perfectly laundered funds through tax havens.
Even the world’s most competent tax officials could never trace that route.
To this day, that route remained intact.
“Keep watch… and inform me.”
“Understood, my lord.”
“You may go.”
Sebastian gave a subtle bow and turned to leave.
“Ha Tae-ung….”
The Earl’s gaze turned impassively forward.
His eyes swept across the silent, empty dining table.
The walls around it were lined with portraits of his ancestors in succession.
“Soon the paradigm of wealth will shift. When the storm arrives….”
The movements of high-net-worth individuals had grown ominous.
Flows of capital retreating to havens and alternative assets, much as they had during the world wars.
Evidence of the economic warfare that had intensified over the past few years.
The ripples could spread anywhere.
And in such circumstances, the name of a Korean chaebol heir—connected through Isabella—had come to his ears.
The Earl’s finely honed instinct sensed a special signal emanating from that name.
* * *
Just as the front door was about to close, a sharp voice from outside stopped Seo Da-hee in her tracks.
‘That bitch!!’
It was Koo Mi-ryeo, her manager.
Lately, Seo Da-hee had driven her to the brink of madness.
For a long time, Seo Da-hee’s self-esteem had been worn to nothing by insidious gaslighting.
Koo Mi-ryeo had relished watching her crumble slowly.
It went beyond mere managerial jealousy of a beautiful singer-songwriter with a good voice and high popularity.
But recently, Seo Da-hee had changed.
Somewhere along the way, an unexpected confidence took hold, and she showed an unguarded attitude toward the company and Koo Mi-ryeo.
Worse, she’d even barred the manager from the Signiel.
Though infuriated, the manager couldn’t act immediately.
May, with its countless festival events, had brought fewer work opportunities than ever.
The company had scheduled nothing for Seo Da-hee.
It was a ploy to renegotiate her contract at a pittance, using lack of work as the excuse.
Pressure intensified in her personal life as well.
They’d arranged for her to occupy expensive housing, then legally deducted settlement payments from her earnings.
The company processed costs while Seo Da-hee’s dividend was entirely consumed.
Yet recently, this woman who had been little more than a mark had transformed.
She’d openly rejected Yang Do-cheol’s renegotiation proposal right in front of him.
Yang Do-cheol, outraged, immediately ordered her out of the apartment.
The lease was transferred to Koo Mi-ryeo’s name.
The company ordered Koo Mi-ryeo to evict Seo Da-hee and force her to renegotiate.
In exchange, she could live there for the remainder of the contract period.
Koo Mi-ryeo had come late at night to proceed with Seo Da-hee’s eviction immediately.
Once evicted from here, Seo Da-hee would have no choice but to return to her hometown.
She’d even hummed cheerfully imagining the girl cast out onto the street.
But then!
The scene she witnessed before her eyes!
Seo Da-hee was entering the neighboring apartment.
A glimpse of a man’s forearm.
Koo Mi-ryeo’s eyes rolled back, and she called out to Seo Da-hee in a sharp, biting voice.
Seo Da-hee, who had been stepping inside, froze.
‘Caught you red-handed!’
Koo Mi-ryeo had found her evidence.
The very scene of a secret rendezvous between the meek, innocent-acting Seo Da-hee and a neighbor man.
To the tabloid media, it would be juicy gossip.
Koo Mi-ryeo immediately pulled out her smartphone.
She needed to preserve evidence.
‘You trusted me and came out? How stupid.’
Her instincts had activated, and Koo Mi-ryeo was riding high on inspiration.
Seo Da-hee entering the neighboring man’s apartment at such a late hour.
She’d wondered why the girl had seemed to gain such confidence lately—now she’d found the reason.
“Seo Da-hee! What the hell are you doing!!”
Koo Mi-ryeo huffed noisily and stamped forward, her heavy footsteps announcing her approach.
She closed the distance to Seo Da-hee quickly.
Her gaze immediately shifted to the man holding the door open.
“You and Da-hee….”
Koo Mi-ryeo had been about to shout her accusation loudly.
“Hngh!!”
The moment their eyes met, Koo Mi-ryeo froze in shock.
The man’s dagger-like, ice-cold gaze silenced her with its very intensity.
Tremble.
Koo Mi-ryeo trembled in bewilderment.
The blazing momentum that had surged through her seemed to turn to ice.
His penetrating, cold stare was that of a judge.
“May I ask what’s going on?”
The man spoke in a voice as cold as a veil.
“It’s… about Da-hee’s apartment….”
“Wait! That’s not right at all!!”
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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