At Seji’s subtly thrown words, Seyoung snorted.

“So Seo Taein is pregnant? That’s very fortunate. So what?”

Seyoung’s expression, which had been sulking alone, darkened even more.

It seemed like she was imagining a scenario where, if it weren’t for Taein, she would have married Kang Nokhyun and happily lived with his child.

Seji clicked her tongue inwardly.

“When I captured Seo Arin as a hostage, Seo Taein gave up everything, including his job and house.”

Seyoung, who had been blinking stupidly at Seji’s words, suddenly opened her mouth as if something had come to mind.

Seji understood Seyoung well.

Seyoung was stubbornly simple. If she wanted to eat, she had to eat, and if she wanted something, she had to have it. Her mind was relentlessly focused on desires.

Seyoung slowly nodded her head.

It was a suggestion to use the baby to extort money from Taein. Seyoung needed money, and Seji simply wished for Taein’s unhappiness.

If it succeeded, it would be a win-win situation for both Seyoung and Seji.

“I’ll come up with a plan, so don’t mess things up for no reason and stay quiet.”

Seji warned quietly. But Seyoung wasn’t the type to keep such warnings.

There was no reason to wait patiently when there was a hole where money could come out. Seyoung used her brain in her own way.

Seyoung believed that, although Seji and Taein were excessively clever, she wasn’t stupid.

So Seyoung believed. That’s why Seyoung’s plan was to secretly trail Taein.

Waiting for the right moment, she would sneak into his house, take the baby, demand money, return the baby, and safely go abroad. Taein was a fool who would do anything for his own flesh and blood.

However, there was one problem.

To tail him, she needed money. But Seyoung had no collateral, and her credit was also in shambles. Banks were unlikely to lend her money. Even loan sharks would be difficult, and she would have to use an unregistered loan shark.

Seyoung immediately went to a shopping district where the offices of loan shark companies were concentrated. However, there was not a single company willing to lend money to Seyoung, who had no ability to repay. It was an expected outcome.

Disappointed, Seyoung walked out of the shopping district as if the ground was about to collapse, and sighed deeply.

“Do you need money?”

At that moment, a middle-aged man with glasses approached Seyoung and handed her a business card.

He had a neat appearance and a well-groomed demeanor. He seemed like a man who would fit in well with Yeouido’s financial district.

“But I have no collateral, and I’m a person with bad credit.”

Seyoung sighed once again.

“There’s also unsecured loans. The interest is high, though.”

“How much is the interest?”

“42% annually. But it’s currently zero interest for one month. Most people who need emergency funds without collateral borrow quickly and pay it back before the interest kicks in. Can’t you pay it back?”

“…Well.”

“There’s an option to repay, isn’t there?”

“Yeah, I can repay!”

As the man asked again, Seyoung strangely felt confident. It was a conviction that everything would progress smoothly, and she could repay immediately.

“How much do you need?”

“About 100 million won…?”
Seyoung deliberately raised her voice. So, if it didn’t work out, she planned to negotiate. However, the man hesitated for a moment and then nodded.

“Let’s discuss it in the office first.”

Seyoung followed the man to the office. The office was on the 2nd floor of the adjacent shopping complex.

“Please have a seat here.”

“Yes.”

Seyoung sat on the sofa and looked around the interior. Although the shopping complex looked shabby, the interior was neat. Somehow, it instilled confidence.

An employee in the office brought tea and cookies. Seyoung, who happened to be hungry, hastily put a cookie in her mouth. It felt as if her brain was melting at the long-forgotten sweet taste.

Suddenly, she remembered that time. When she had an afternoon tea set with her mother.

Now it felt like a dream-like past.

She remembered the mochi she left behind while living as a homeless person.

“If I borrow money, I should start from there.”

“Do you have an ID? Just give me your ID first, and then sign here.”

The man brought a thick stack of documents. Seyoung, who was about to sign right away, pretended to skim through the documents. Then she found a waiver of physical harm.

“This is…”

Seyoung couldn’t sign and hesitated.

“Am I making a mistake here?”

She remembered the extra in a drama who couldn’t repay the money, got tied up, tortured, and had to sell organs.

The man, who noticed it, subtly opened his mouth.

“It’s just for show to the boss, so you don’t have to worry. If our boss finds out that we lent money to an unsecured bad-credit customer, it’ll be chaos.”

“Ah…”

“But you can really repay it quickly, right?”

The man glanced up and down at Seyoung and asked.

She could easily repay about 100 million won, as she planned to squeeze Taein for about 1 billion won.

Confidently, Seyoung nodded her head.