The Secretary's Power (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 16
“Who the hell are you?”
Fury glinted in his pupils.
A searing heat rose from deep within, making his chest sizzle and burn.
“I’m asking you—what exactly are you?”
Hye Won’s hands trembled faintly at Tae Beom’s blunt, clipped question.
Her heart sank with a sickening lurch, leaving a cold knot right below her sternum.
“M-Managing Director… what do you mean by that…?”
The fear she’d held back spilled out in a quivering voice, her lips trembling visibly.
Though his intention remained unclear, it also felt unmistakably sharp.
His drunken eyes locked onto her with intense focus, wrapping her in unbearable tension.
“I don’t understand what you’re saying… I’d like to leave now….”
Sweat broke out at the nape of her neck. Pressed against the wall where light shattered into fragments, Hye Won hunched her shoulders.
Regardless of his question, her only instinct now was to get away from him—immediately.
“Managing Director….”
“…….”
Even when she asked him to step aside, Tae Beom didn’t move, only glaring at her with piercing eyes.
No matter how much he drank or how deeply he buried himself among the crowd to erase his thoughts, all that remained in his mind was Hye Won’s lingering image.
Again and again, he’d turned to look at her—each time she smiled, each time she gazed warmly at the man seated beside her—and each time, anger surged within him without his realizing.
It was just an irritation born from drunkenness. Only the fierce resentment he harbored toward Vice President Ha Ji Seok had somehow spilled onto her.
He’d tried countless times to calm himself, yet his chest still churned and sparks flew from his eyes.
“I’ll go back inside now. I’ll head in first, Managing Director….”
Hye Won leaned under the arm braced against the wall and slipped past him, grabbing the emergency exit door.
As she turned the heavy handle, she glanced back at Tae Beom.
Though he appeared drunk, she couldn’t bring herself to say another word. Convinced it was better to return to her seat and call someone else, she twisted the handle and stepped outside.
Thud. As the door closed behind her and her heels faded into the distance, Tae Beom lowered his head.
The long-held breath he’d been suppressing finally escaped, bringing dizziness with it.
Ha….
“Freaking idiot.”
A self-mocking curse slipped out. Frustrated by his loss of emotional control, he squeezed his eyes shut tightly.
He turned and leaned back against the wall—the very spot where her back had just been—and stared blankly at the yellow-lit stairs.
Her words and manner, feigning concern that clearly wasn’t meant for anyone but him, kept reigniting his anger.
You, who smile so genuinely and warmly—why do you always give me that tense, guarded look? The thought irritated him deeply.
You, so tiny you seem like you’d vanish in an instant—
The sudden notion that you might actually devour me whole became utterly unbearable.
“Just who are you? Seriously, who the hell are you…?”
Why must you plague me all day long? It was maddening.
Why does my heart, which I thought had died long ago, now beat with such agony? A lump formed in his chest.
Why?
What makes you so damn special?
“What do you even want from me? Are you insane?”
He exhaled a long breath over and over, shaking his head.
His mind offered no peace. Though he hadn’t received an answer to who she really was—
She’d never tell him. After all, hadn’t they always existed outside that kind of relationship from the very beginning?
“Get a grip… Please, just get a grip….”
The absurdity of asking such a pointless question made him let out a dry, bitter laugh.
Had she answered straightforwardly at the end—that she belonged to Ha Ji Seok, that she was the vice president’s woman—what would I have done then? Only senseless thoughts clung stubbornly to his fingertips.
★
“Whew, Managing Director’s really drunk.”
After the dinner gathering ended and all regular employees had left,
the remaining staff whispered while watching Tae Beom let out a heavy, weary sigh.
“He didn’t refuse a single drink the staff offered—how could he not be drunk? Do you have any idea how much he actually drank?”
“Seriously, Managing Director’s incredible. If it were me, I’d already be crossing into the afterlife.”
He’d downed every glass filled by eager employees trying to make an impression.
By the halfway mark, he already felt the alcohol clouding his mind. A bit more, and he sensed real danger.
When he finally saw the end of the long line of well-wishers, he braced himself firmly, convinced he’d collapse right then and there.
Only after all employees had gone did his body finally slump.
“The car’s ready.”
Hearing that the vehicle assigned to take Tae Beom home had arrived, an executive approached him.
Gently shaking his shoulder, the executive roused Tae Beom, whose eyelids had drooped shut.
“Managing Director, your car has arrived.”
Shaken awake, Tae Beom raised a hand—clearly not in deep sleep.
He caught Hye Won’s eye from a distance and signaled the executive to prepare.
After exhaling slowly, Tae Beom pushed himself upright, supported immediately by three or four people.
Since they were taking the same car, Hye Won approached to hand him his coat.
“Managing Director, can you walk…?”
As Hye Won reached carefully for his swaying arm, he abruptly lifted it as if pushing her away.
Though clouded by liquor, his gaze once again fixed on her with fierce hostility.
How dare you. How dare someone like you.
His sharp glare clearly warned her not to lay hands on him carelessly, and Hye Won instinctively stepped back.
“Managing Director’s so drunk—Assistant Manager must be having a rough time.”
“No, not at all. It’s all part of my job.”
Watching Tae Beom stagger forward, Hye Won let out a small, quiet breath.
At the car, the driver opened the rear door for them.
Tae Beom got in and shut the door. Hye Won, stepping out a moment later, paused and stared at the vehicle.
Without waiting for her, the car immediately pulled away. Hye Won bit her lip hard as she watched it vanish swiftly down the road.
Ah….
“Oh dear, Managing Director just left without you! Don’t worry, Assistant Manager—I’ll call you a taxi right away.”
“Assistant Manager Yoon Hye Won, thank you for all your hard work today. Hope we get to meet again sometime.”
The voices of departing staff blurred faintly in her ears.
Hye Won managed a strained smile,
clutching tightly only the coat he’d left behind.
★
“Managing Director passed out completely. He couldn’t even stand, so I helped him all the way to his room.”
When Hye Won arrived at the hotel by taxi, a lobby staff member updated her on Tae Beom’s condition.
She looked down at his coat, which she’d been gripping the entire time.
Inside the taxi, she’d fought desperately against the lingering woody scent that kept filling her nostrils.
Eventually giving up, she’d draped the coat over her knees—then later pulled it all the way up to her shoulders.
“Assistant Manager, you should head up and rest soon too. You have your room key, right?”
“Oh, yes. I do.”
And finally, as if admitting defeat, she buried her face in his coat.
Her breaths grew longer, endlessly drawing in the scent, holding it, then slowly releasing it.
Just burying her face in the fabric made her mind go hazy. Her chest fluttered, and her toes tingled.
Only when it was time to step out of the taxi did she lift her face from the coat—feeling as if she’d just awakened from a brief, vivid dream brimming with happiness.
Right, a dream.
The moment she opened the taxi door and stepped out, it would vanish instantly.
The second she entered the hotel lobby, she’d be trapped again in that dreadful reality.
“Oh—wait, is that Managing Director’s coat?”
Noticing the oversized garment she held—too big to be a woman’s—the staff member asked.
Hye Won, still staring at the coat, nodded.
“It’s his coat. I guess I should hold onto it for now.”
Wondering if it contained any belongings, Hye Won reached into the pockets—finding his phone in the outer pocket and his wallet inside.
Both she and the staff member froze, their faces stiffening as if they’d just seen something they shouldn’t.
“Um… Assistant Manager, regardless of anything else, his phone… maybe we should return it…?”
“Ah… I was thinking the same….”
They both trailed off awkwardly. Nobody wanted to volunteer entering the den of a drunken tiger just to leave a phone.
Seeing the staff member’s face clearly screaming, ‘That’s definitely not my job,’ Hye Won gave a slight, wry smile.
“I’ll take it up to him myself.”
“Yes, Assistant Manager. Thank you so much. Please rest early after this.”
Holding the coat tightly as if to reassure herself, Hye Won stepped into the elevator. His room key card was also tucked inside the coat pocket.
Leaning against the elevator wall, she glanced down at the coat, clutching it as carefully as if it were a treasured possession.
As the elevator ascended quickly, she slowly closed and then opened her eyes.
Alright. Time to wake up from this dream.
★
Intending to drop off the coat and leave at the speed of light, Hye Won stood before Tae Beom’s hotel room.
Tapping the card key, she heard a beep, and the door unlocked.
A temporary light flickered on in the pitch-black room, illuminating the space.
Hye Won hurried over and hung the coat on the rack. She pulled out the phone from its pocket and turned toward the bedroom.
“The battery’s almost dead.”
Her unnecessary concern flared up again. Though logically she knew she could just set the phone on the table and leave, it wasn’t that simple.
Glancing repeatedly toward the bedroom where the charger likely was, she finally stepped inside. Tae Beom was surely in a deep sleep—if she just plugged in the phone quietly, it shouldn’t be a problem.
She muted her footsteps. Though darkness quickly enveloped the room again, her eyes adjusted fast enough for her to reach the nightstand without trouble.
Kneeling down, she pulled the charger cord toward her. The lampshade and cord clicked sharply as they collided.
Ah! Hye Won gasped, eyes widening in alarm.
She froze, watching him briefly—hoping he hadn’t woken. Only a vague human shape was visible on the bed, and she was almost relieved she couldn’t clearly see Tae Beom’s face.
She’d heard he’d drunk an insane amount. Hadn’t he overdone it yesterday too?
His deep, steady breathing confirmed his presence—like he’d been sucked right into the mattress. Regaining her composure, Hye Won plugged the phone into the charger with a quick shake of her head.
As she rose to leave the bedroom, the goose-down comforter rustled softly.
Hye Won spun around in alarm.
The troublesome nightlight flickered on.
“Ah—ah, Managing Director! You’re awake?”
…Wasn’t he supposed to be drunk?
Now his eyes gleamed sharply.
“I’m so sorry! You left your phone behind, so I came to return it—sorry, I’m really sor…”
Without warning, he rose from the bed.
Startled by his sudden movement, Hye Won stepped backward—bumping into a chair and collapsing onto the floor.
His shadow stretched up the wall toward the ceiling, feeling eerily like a spirit from another realm, and fear surged through her.
His slow steps widened her eyes in terror.
Her usual polished apologies and practiced smiles completely failed her.
He lowered himself onto one knee, bringing their eye levels nearly level.
Expecting his usual aggressive energy, Hye Won squeezed her eyes shut. His face, half-swallowed by shadow, remained unreadable.
How long had she stayed in this defensive posture, shoulders pulled back?
…His hand touched her head.
At the unexpected contact, Hye Won opened her eyes again.
“Yesterday… it hurt, didn’t it.”
His once-overbearing shadow now felt strangely sorrowful.
Seeing him buried in cold darkness, she couldn’t help but think he must be freezing—
“Tell me. How much did it hurt?”
Has your life been just as bitter as mine?
Was your time, like mine, entirely winter?
“Ah… that’s….”
“Why? Don’t you want to tell me?”
His gaze, now startlingly clear, pinned her in place.
“You’ve gone through so much.”
Was her breath completely blocked—or fully opened?
She couldn’t even tell if she was breathing or swallowing air.
His touch on her head set her whole body ablaze as if ignited.
“Assistant Manager Yoon.”
For some reason, he gave a hazy smile.
The gap between his earlier harsh, rejecting face and now—still drunk yet oddly gentle—only deepened her confusion.
“Assistant Manager Yoon Hye Won.”
She’d even forgotten she was supposed to answer.
“Yoon Hye Won.”
“Ah, yes! Yes, Managing Director.”
“I’m in big trouble.”
“…….”
“What am I supposed to do now?”
His voice wandered like a lost child’s; his eyes held no expectation of an answer.
Was that even a question?
“What am I going to do?”
It was a fragile soliloquy.
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
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