253 Pest Control (1/2)

A few days have passed since Yeo Ri's first official public appearance.

She had been very busy and did not have much free time between work and taking care of the house. On top of that, she had chosen to work hard so that she could free up some time to celebrate her upcoming birthday.

”—We're here, miss.” Yeo Ri raised her head and put away the document she had been reading as she heard Secretary Kwon's voice.

”Mm,” she replied absentmindedly.

Yeo Ri donned a black hoodie with the hood up as the car came to a stop inside an underground parking lot.

”Right this way, miss.” Courteous as always, he held the door open for her and waited for her to come out. They walked into the building and got onto the elevator without exchanging any words.

Ding!

The display flashed with '14' and the elevator door opened automatically. The two walked out, with Secretary Kwon leading the way.

The halls were empty, and it appeared as if the floor was unoccupied.

”It's this one, miss.” He gestured towards a door, taking out a keycard and swiping it on the sensor. The door beeped as it unlocked. ”The password is your birthday, but we can change it whenever you like.”

”Mm.” Yeo Ri nodded, looking around the place curiously.

”...It's pretty big,” she noted. There were some basic furnitures inside the house, but it remained undecorated which made it seem bare and spacious. It was even bigger than the apartment she was currently living in, she realised.

”Your father wanted you to be comfortable,” the older man said. He turned on the light switch as they passed by the living room, illuminating the somewhat dim space.

”Hm...” Yeo Ri let out a vague sound of acknowledgement, seemingly unfazed by her biological father's favour. She unhurriedly explored the place, running her finger over the surface of the cabinets, couch, and curtains.

Finally done with her exploration, she abruptly turned and faced her accomplice. ”Well, I don't really care about that. Where's that 'thing'?”

Secretary Kwon adopted a grim expression. ”...Right this way, Miss Yeo Ri.” With a gloved hand, he rummaged his breast pocket for a set of keys, then led the girl to one of the rooms. He stuffed a key into the keyhole, unlocking it for her.

Secretary Kwon entered first, again turning on the lights before doing anything.

”Hmmngh...!”

Inside the barren room was a singular chair, where a man had been sitting. As the lights turned on, he stirred from his light nap and began making stifled noises.

Secretary Kwon addressed his lady with an apologetic attitude. ”He kept trying to bite when we tried feeding him so we had no choice but to gag him for the time being. Please excuse his unsightly appearance.”

The man on the chair breathed heavily, staring at the two newcomers with intense hatred.

Secretary Kwon eyed her warily. The stubborn young miss actually apologised to him? Did pigs learned to fly?

So she did realise that what she ordered him to do was wrong. But then again, he didn't want to bother questioning her motive. If he could help his boss tame the girl, then he'd do anything, as long as it was within his means.

”So it's you.”

Yeo Ri turned her gaze to the captive. His arms were bound by handcuffs, and rope was used to securely tie him to the chair. He bore a look of utter desperation and anger, his body shaking with every battered breath.

”You look awful. I hope they didn't mistreat you,” Yeo Ri said, her expression changing from indifference to kindness in a matter of seconds. She took on a gentle tone as she approached the man.

”Miss, be careful. Even if he's bound right now, it doesn't change the fact that his original objective was to hurt you,” cautioned the bodyguard. Secretary Kwon stopped her by putting himself between the two.

”It's alright. I want to ask him a few questions.”