At 6 AM, at Daewon Construction headquarters.

Even the receptionist had not come to work yet. At a time when most employees were still in dreamland, a man of imposing physique, accompanied by his secretaries, appeared in the dead silent lobby.

It was none other than the 33-year-old CEO, Kwon Seung Joo.

As if every second wasted on movement was precious, he strode hastily towards the elevator when a woman blocked his path.

With a petite stature and a slender figure, her small lips turned pale white from tension. It was like a small rabbit blocking a tiger’s path.

“My name is Yoon Eun Seo, an employee from the planning team. I have something I must tell you, sir.”

As the secretaries were too flustered to stop her in time, Eun Seo spoke while looking straight at the CEO.

“It will only take a moment. Please spare some time for me.”

Glancing at the employee ID hanging around Eun Seo’s neck, the CEO slightly furrowed his handsome eyebrows.

“Contact me through the secretarial office.”

As Kwon Seung Joo turned to leave without hesitation, Eun Seo grabbed his sleeve and shouted.

“I tried contacting you several times, but you wouldn’t meet me, that’s why I’m doing this!”

At this point, the secretaries came to their senses. As they tried to pull her away, grabbing her arms from both sides, Eun Seo quickly spoke.

“Two years ago, Yeonsa-dong, on a rainy day.”

For a moment, the man’s expression, which seemed impenetrable, slightly wavered. Eun Seo knew then that he remembered.

So she could say the following words a bit more confidently.

“I also granted your request back then, didn’t I?”

As expected, no words of denial came back.

“So, just for a moment, I think you can hear me out.”

The man stared at Eun Seo for a while, then suddenly, without even looking back at the secretary standing behind him, he asked a question.

“Do I have any free time today?”

“Today, starting with the executive meeting in the morning, you have continuous external schedules from lunch onwards. Tomorrow morning, followed by meetings scheduled after lunch, you are expected to finish around 4 or 5 PM.”

Kwon Seung Joo nodded and said,

“Then tomorrow at 5 PM, come to my office.”

*

Having succeeded in securing an appointment, Eun Seo went down to the 5th floor where her office was located. Her heart felt like it would jump out of her mouth.

Her hands were shaking so badly that it took a while to open the water bottle. As soon as she managed to open the lid, she gulped it down. Only after emptying nearly all of the 500ml bottle did Eun Seo collapse into her chair.

“Haa…”

A feeling of exhaustion, as if she were dying, washed over her. Just seeing Kwon Seung Joo’s face, just being in the same space as him, made all the muscles in her body tense up tightly. It wasn’t just Eun Seo; he had that effect on anyone. So much so that it wasn’t uncommon for employees to claim they caught a cold the moment they saw his face.

Confronting such a person head-on and forcing an appointment out of him required tremendous energy.

However, there was no other way.

[The landlord says they want to end the contract.]

It was ten days ago when she received the notification that the lease contract could not be renewed through the real estate agency.

It was a house she had lived in for a full 15 years without the rent ever being raised. Since the contract had been implicitly renewed all along, she had never spoken to the landlord even once. In other words, the landlord was just a name that existed only on paper in Eun Seo’s consciousness.

Then one morning, the landlord jumped out from the documents into reality and made a bombshell announcement.

[It seems they want to demolish the house and construct a building on that spot.]

Regardless of the shocked Eun Seo, the real estate agency president continued,

[Actually, it’s a wonder they left it as is for so long, with the land value being what it is.]

The neighborhood had already started being developed about 10 years ago, and now the surroundings were filled with apartments, villas, and commercial buildings without any gaps. Surrounded by tall buildings like a young child among giants, standing alone was the spacious renovated Korean traditional house with a yard. That was the house Eun Seo lived in.

[Anyway, they’re notifying you 3 months before the contract expiration date as required by law, so keep that in mind and prepare to move out.]

However, Eun Seo was in a position where she couldn’t move out immediately just because she was told to leave one morning.

[Wait, isn’t there a thing called the lessee’s right to request contract renewal? I heard there’s a law that allows the tenant to demand to live for 2 more years if they request it once.]

She tried to cling to a piece of knowledge she had picked up from the news, but she was only met with a snort.

[There are exceptions to that too. It doesn’t apply when the landlord is completely demolishing the building.]

Looking at Eun Seo’s frozen face with pity, the real estate agency president advised,

[Seeing as how they contacted you through the secretarial office, the landlord seems to be quite an important person. Don’t waste your energy and just move out graciously, thanking them for letting you live comfortably until now. Then I’ll try to slip in a word about them providing some moving expenses for you.]

It wasn’t wrong. Even though it was an old renovated traditional house, it was a detached house with enough space to construct a decent-sized building, yet the rent was a mere 30 million won. That was the result of not raising it even once for a full 15 years.

Just letting her live at a price that was virtually free until now was a big favor in itself. So it was only right to express gratitude for their consideration so far and move out without a fuss.

However…

The fortunate thing in this misfortune was that Eun Seo actually knew the landlord. Of course, knowing them didn’t mean she could easily meet them.

Eun Seo started persistently contacting the secretarial office of Daewon Construction, the company she worked for, from that day on.

[I would like to meet with the CEO.]

When a second-year employee asked to meet one-on-one with the CEO, the secretarial office reacted in a very sensible way.

− Please state your business.

If she told the truth, it seemed like she would be rejected without even seeing his face. The possibility seemed higher if she could plead her case in person. So Eun Seo had no choice but to say this.

[I will tell that directly to the CEO when I meet him.]

The answer that came back after a moment was this:

− He says he will not meet you.

Being flatly rejected like that five times in ten days. In the end, she had no choice but to ambush him on his way to work and block his path.

*

The next day, Eun Seo couldn’t focus on work all day. As time passed, her tension grew worse, choking her breath. Every time she checked the clock, her heart sank to her feet.

“Why is your face so pale?”

Kim Sun Ah, a close colleague who joined the company at the same time and was in the same planning team, asked.

“Oh, I think I just ate something bad for breakfast.”

“I see. By the way, I saw Seung Joo in the lobby this morning?”

Sun Ah was a huge fan of the CEO, Kwon Seung Joo. She didn’t fall for him after joining the company; she had applied to this company in the first place because she liked Kwon Seung Joo. When she was a sophomore in college, she saw a small photo of him in an article titled “Daewon Group’s 3rd Generation Kwon Seung Joo Joins Daewon Construction as an Executive” and felt it was fate at first sight.

[When my friends were rushing to public broadcasts, I was rushing to shareholder meetings. When they were dragged out by their managers, I was chased out by secretaries.]

Perhaps it was stressful to have to hide it thoroughly after joining the company. In front of Eun Seo, her closest colleague, she was unabashedly unleashing the fangirl feelings she had been hiding. Calling him “Seung Joo” as she pleased.

“But today, for some reason, Seung Joo’s vibe is different.”

Her heart sank.

‘Could it be that he looked to be in a bad mood? He can’t be like that today of all days…’

Eun Seo tried to hide her anxiety and asked nonchalantly,

“Why? How was he?”

“His outfit is completely different from usual. He always dressed, how should I put it, very stiffly, you know? But today, he strangely looks refreshing. He’s even wearing a nice tie.”

Eun Seo felt her energy draining away. And here I was worried for nothing.

“Could he have a date or something…?”

Sun Ah tilted her head, muttering to herself, then quickly shook her head.

“No way, our Seung Joo doesn’t have time to meet women.”

Finally, the fateful 5 PM. As other people were getting ready to leave work and the office became a little chaotic, Eun Seo quietly slipped out. When she went up to the CEO’s office, the secretary guided her.

“Sir, Yoon Eun Seo is here.”

The CEO’s office, which she was entering for the first time, was much larger than she had imagined. The view of the city through the full glass windows seemed to represent this man’s social position. A man who always lives looking down on everyone from the top.

Towards Kwon Seung Joo, who was sitting in front of a large wooden desk, Eun Seo bowed deeply in greeting.

“Thank you for making time for me, sir.”

Kwon Seung Joo walked over and sat on the sofa first.

“I won’t be long, so no need for tea.”

Dismissing the secretary with a motion of his chin, Kwon Seung Joo first glanced at his wristwatch.

“I don’t have much time, so let’s keep it brief.”

He straightened his back and looked at her. Just that was enough to make her feel like all the blood in her body was freezing. It felt like the places where his gaze touched were burning.

Unable to look him straight in the eye, Eun Seo shifted her gaze to his suit’s chest area. Only then did she understand what Sun Ah had said in the morning.

Even though she had never paid attention to what the CEO usually wore, the change in his atmosphere was noticeable at a glance.

The man who held the position of CEO at the age of thirty-three always gave off a heavy feeling, even in his attire. But today, he was wearing a light-colored navy suit. Without the vest that always made him look stuffy, his large physique looked much more slender, and the dark brown tie even felt fashionable. She could see why Sun Ah had mentioned a date.

In front of a man who looked like he could step onto a runway without seeming out of place, Eun Seo felt even more discouraged. Her head kept drooping down. She belatedly regretted noticing the slight pilling on the knees of the slacks she was wearing. She didn’t have any nice clothes to begin with, but she should have paid more attention to what she wore.

Trying to shake off her thoughts, Eun Seo opened her mouth.

“I am the tenant of the house you own in Yeonsa-dong, sir.”

As expected, Kwon Seung Joo showed no sign of surprise.

“And?”

“I am sincerely grateful that you let me live there for the past 15 years without raising the rent even once.”

A hint of irritation crept into the man’s voice.

“Enough with the pleasantries, I’m asking about your business.”

“I heard that in 3 months, the house will be demolished and a building will be constructed in its place.”

Eun Seo bowed her head deeply.

“I know it’s a brazen request, but I would appreciate it if you could delay it by just one year.”

“The reason?”

The fact that he asked for the reason first instead of flatly refusing gave her a faint glimmer of hope.

“I have a reason why I can’t move out right away.”

CEO Kwon Seung Joo made an expression as if he understood. It seemed like one corner of his lips curved up slightly, but that might have been her imagination.

“I’ll make sure to provide ample moving expenses, don’t worry.”

Her face flushed with shame.

“It’s not because of money. Actually, I…”

Eun Seo took a deep breath and looked him straight in the eye for the first time.

“I have a younger brother who I lost 15 years ago.”