The Secretary's Power (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 12
A darkened conference hall played back CCTV footage from the customer service room.
A middle-aged woman sat in her chair with an overbearing posture, looking down at the airline staff kneeling before her.
Even branch managers who weren’t supposed to attend the meeting had gathered there.
Though the video was fast-forwarded at 8x speed, none of the employees moved even slightly. Occasionally, the middle-aged woman picked up a magazine and threw it, or tossed the provided snacks carelessly around.
Tae Beom rubbed his furrowed brow as if suffering from a headache, then raised his hand slightly.
The lights in the conference hall turned on, and the video stopped.
Having obtained the passenger’s information, Tae Beom shifted his gaze to the report.
“Are they demanding compensation for the losses?”
“Yes. Moreover, they also insist on compensation for future damages caused by the failure to finalize the contract.”
“Are there any similar precedents?”
“Five years ago, Delta Airlines in the U.S. had an identical incident, and three years ago, it also occurred at Nuri Airlines domestically. Both cases proceeded to trial.”
“Is there any record of the plaintiffs winning?”
“None so far.”
Tae Beom put on his glasses and looked at the documents handed to him. There had been a class-action lawsuit filed by passengers, but ultimately, the court ruled in favor of the defendant.
The judgment stated that the airline had fulfilled its maintenance obligations according to established procedures, and the delay had been an unavoidable measure taken for passenger safety.
In the Nuri Airlines case, the airline was acknowledged to have explored every possible option to arrange the earliest available flight and had spent 120 million won on accommodations and transportation.
“What’s the probability of us losing this case?”
“Zero.”
“Are you confident in proving our position?”
“Absolutely.”
The defect in the thoroughly inspected vehicle ultimately fell under force majeure—
the court deemed it akin to an act of God, not human error.
“Have we identified the cause of the defect?”
“That component isn’t subject to mandatory internal inspection per the manufacturer’s manual, so it’s currently been sent to the manufacturer for further investigation.”
“I’ll meet the manufacturer’s representative myself.”
“Yes, Managing Director. I’ll arrange the schedule.”
Tae Beom looked up from the document filled with complex terminology.
His lips parted as he stared at the middle-aged female passenger frozen on-screen. After watching the employees kneeling on the floor, he clenched his jaw.
A faint grinding sound came from his molars.
“Prepare a compensation plan for passengers who agreed to settle and submit it to me by the end of today.”
“Yes, understood.”
“In any case, litigation with this passenger seems unavoidable. We need to prepare accordingly.”
“Yes, Managing Director.”
The sound of laptop keyboards clacking echoed throughout the room.
Tae Beom’s instructions continued.
“We’ll also initiate legal action from our side. Report them as a ‘black consumer’ and evaluate grounds for defamation and obstruction of business.”
“But, Managing Director… Suing a passenger is unprecedented for our company. It might be a bit…”
“Director Yang Cheol Jin.”
“Yes, Managing Director.”
Tae Beom gave the hesitant director a cold stare the moment he questioned the idea of suing the passenger.
“Director, have you ever knelt before a customer?”
“No, never.”
“Then proceed.”
“Yes, Managing Director.”
“Ah, and Assistant Manager Yoon Hye Won.”
At the low call of her name, the room briefly stirred.
Unconsciously searching for Hye Won, Tae Beom turned his head left and right—but she was nowhere to be seen in the meeting room.
“Where did the assistant who came with us go?”
An employee standing by a small table, operating the video equipment, quickly replied.
“The passenger seems highly agitated, so Assistant Manager Yoon Hye Won moved to the customer service room.”
“What?”
Tae Beom removed his glasses.
He turned his eyes back to the paused footage.
“Stream the live feed.”
“Yes, Managing Director.”
The employee swiftly connected to the real-time view of the service room.
As soon as the screen appeared, the room stirred again, and Tae Beom’s lips parted slightly.
After just a few seconds, Tae Beom stood up from his seat.
“How dare she.”
He kicked the door open, sending a cold gust of air through the hallway. The hesitant executives scrambled to their feet and hurried after him.
On the screen left playing, Hye Won was gripped by the hair by the middle-aged woman.
It was unclear how long this had been going on.
“Why can’t you understand a single word I say? Are your ears blocked?”
The middle-aged woman grabbed Hye Won’s hair and swung her around carelessly.
Her head jerked violently left and right under the woman’s rough grip.
“I told you to call the person in charge! Why do you keep sending useless trash like you? Call the person in charge!”
Hye Won tightly shut her eyes and relaxed her entire body.
Though the woman’s sharpened nails threatened to pierce her scalp, Hye Won showed no sign of pain. She let herself be shaken or gripped without resistance.
Before meeting any passenger, thorough internal discussions were essential to gather all relevant information. Someone had to buy time, and someone had to absorb the passenger’s fury with their own body.
If headquarters staff ignored the situation, branch employees’ morale would plummet—so Hye Won headed straight to the consultation room without hesitation.
“Hey! Do my words sound meaningless to you? Do you even know who I am?”
As time passed, the middle-aged woman’s voice grew increasingly furious.
Already seething with frustration, she became even angrier when some lowly assistant came in and offered an unsatisfactory apology.
“How do you plan to compensate me, huh? Tell me! What about my time? My contract? Are you going to compensate for everything yourself? Will you?”
She twisted Hye Won’s head sharply to the other side.
Hye Won’s head swayed limply with the motion.
“I said call the person in charge! Why? Did they tell you up there to take the hit with your body? Are you good at taking hits with your body?”
The implication was ambiguous.
“Is this how you work—taking hits with your body? And you get paid for this? How much do you even make?”
At the end of her sentence, the middle-aged woman let out a mocking laugh.
Hye Won’s silent, submissive demeanor—showing no cry of pain even as she lay flattened and begging—only further inflamed her anger.
“Look at this one. She’s a real hard case.”
…Hard case.
Hye Won exhaled a long breath.
An old nickname she’d almost forgotten suddenly surfaced. During school days, classmates had often mocked her with that word for her stubborn resilience.
Blood will tell, after all. Her relatives had once said her mother was a hard case too—how else could she abandon her own children and elope with a younger man?
“You’re just like your mother—a hard case. You live without an ounce of proper human emotion.”
“This bitch is clearly out to drive me mad! Hey! Hey!”
The middle-aged woman raised her voice even louder. Realizing that merely pulling hair no longer intimidated Hye Won, she momentarily lowered her hand.
Was it over? Hye Won slowly lifted her eyelids.
At that moment—
“I’m going crazy. Get me some water.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Hye Won answered politely and walked over. She took a bottle of provided mineral water, poured it into a crystal glass, and placed it on a tray.
The middle-aged woman seemed as if she might drink the offered water—but instead, she immediately threw it all over Hye Won.
The cold water doused her already burning, grabbed scalp, and the lingering pain flared up as if in protest.
Water streamed down her head. Her soaked eyelashes blurred her vision each time she blinked.
“You said you’re an assistant?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I’m going to sue your airline. Because of you. You’ve made me even angrier.”
“Please forgive me. I sincerely apologize.”
“Apologize? Did you sell your soul and keep only your mouth? Do you really think people are just water to you—?!”
Irritated by Hye Won’s detached tone, the middle-aged woman raised her arm high.
The next move was obvious, so Hye Won squeezed her eyes shut tightly.
Slap—!
The sound of impact was much louder than expected. Yet feeling no pain, Hye Won slowly opened her eyes.
Ah…
Tae Beom, having taken the slap meant for her, slowly moved his hand to touch the corner of his mouth.
Then his eyes met Hye Won’s. Seeing water dripping from her disheveled hair, his expression grew even colder.
“Assistant Manager Yoon. Step back.”
“……”
“Now.”
Grabbing her stiffened hand, Tae Beom stepped forward once more.
Hye Won flinched. For just a moment, an oddly intense warmth surged through her fingertips where they’d touched him.
As his broad back blocked her view of the middle-aged woman, she tightly shut her eyes.
Quickly curling her heated fingertips into a fist, she pushed out a strained breath, forcefully keeping her eyelids pressed down.
She strained every muscle to expel this moment—this moment that threatened to imprint itself deep within her—from her body.
…She had to push it out.
She didn’t want another unforgettable memory added to her life.
Especially not one involving that woman—because memories like that only brought regret later, no matter how carefully stored or preserved.
“Oh, Managing Director Ha Tae Beom.”
Only the middle-aged woman and Tae Beom remained in the consultation room; all other staff, including Hye Won, had left.
They sat facing each other across a low table. The moment Tae Beom entered, the woman instantly recognized him as the person in charge and softened her expression slightly.
Glancing at Tae Beom’s business card, the woman opened her clutch and handed him her own.
“I’m Lisa Jang. I’m currently residing in the UK and running an import-export business.”
“I see.”
Tae Beom looked at her card and placed it on the table.
Lisa Jang leaned forward and addressed him.
“You’re even more impressive in person. I think I saw you once on the news before.”
Her demeanor was completely different from when she’d been yanking Hye Won’s hair around at will.
Of course Tae Beom wasn’t just any managing director—he belonged to the Yusun Airlines family.
Well, someone of this caliber should at least be reasonable, right? Trying to find common ground, Lisa Jang continued.
“Oh, by the way—do you know Congressman Kong Hee Taek? The one who just won his fourth term?”
“Oh, yes.”
“I know him very well. His wife is a close friend of mine—we were classmates at Yonghye High School, Class of ’12.”
“I see.”
“The world really is small. Everyone’s just a few connections away—especially in this tiny country of Korea.”
Lisa Jang leaned back into the sofa. Tae Beom’s curt, perfunctory replies were rather unpleasant.
Yet, strangely, she wasn’t as angry as she’d been moments before. It was an odd feeling.
“Well then, Managing Director—please tell me how you intend to resolve this unpleasant situation for me.”
She gave a slight, dismissive flick of her hand toward Tae Beom, as if challenging him to speak.
Tae Beom paused as if considering something, then finally spoke.
“Have you retained legal counsel?”
Lisa Jang’s expression turned blank.
The conversation had taken an unexpected turn.
Male lead fell into her trap — and shattered when she walked away
This is also on my reread list!
This one is a slow burn, but when it burns, it burns hard.
Definitely worth a read, y’all!
The story follows a thousand-year-old seductive spirit who, on a bet, sets out to charm the male lead—a once-promising but unfortunate cultivator.
But just when she succeeds in making him fall for her, she heartlessly leaves, driving him to madness.
Determined to find her at all costs, he captures her, keeping her by his side no matter what, even if she hates him.
I love this kind of trope—I enjoy watching the male lead suffer in agony.
The ending drags a bit with unnecessary filler, but that’s fine.
As long as I enjoy the beginning, I’m good.
Intro
As an enchantress, Su Heng possesses captivating eyes and charming beauty, easily manipulating the joys and sorrows of living beings at her fingertips.
But to enchant a god, making him taste the bitterness of love’s separation, long-lasting resentment, unattainable desires, and inability to let go…
Do you dare?
Su Heng assists a divine lord in his cultivation, aiming to make him experience all the sufferings of love, so that he can attain the Great Dao.
Only after being chased down from the heavens by the divine lord, confined and completely possessed by him, does she realize how successful she has been.
The once gentle and polite youth has transformed into someone she no longer recognizes.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
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