Affectionate Obsession - Chapter 46

“It’s understandable you’d covet that position. Selling your time for a few bucks, I can tell what kind of life you’ve lived without even hearing it.”

Yeonhee pressed her lips together, her jaw tightening.

It wasn’t worth a reply.

The elder’s calm voice was clearly intended to provoke her, to drag her down to the lowest depths.

She had known from the moment he spoke of only acknowledging Junhyeok as family from his current position.

Choi Sookhee, while conversing with Junhyeok throughout, had been targeting her.

Their intention was so obvious that she tried not to react.

But the composure she hadn’t possessed from the start couldn’t suddenly appear now.

Yeonhee felt herself being pushed to the edge of an emotional cliff, exactly as Sookhee intended.

The more so, the harder she gritted her teeth.

Today was merely a place for a declaration of war. It was enough if she could convey that she had no intention of willingly returning Yoon Sera’s position, that they would have to watch her future actions closely, and that she would make her intentions known to that extent.

However, Sookhee seemed to have a strong will not to simply stand by and watch that happen.

“Still, you should be able to discern right from wrong, shouldn’t you? That position is not one you, of all people, can dare to covet. You must feel it too.”

“……”

“Even today, you must have been exhausted dealing with the people here. Since you’ve never seen anything like it, you wouldn’t know common courtesy towards people like them, would you? All you can do here is try to gauge how to respond to every action and word directed at you. Or perhaps, hide behind Jung Junhyeok.”

Yeonhee ground her teeth. Currently, it was clear that position belonged to Yoon Sera, but as Junhyeok had once said, if RM hadn’t abandoned her, it might have been hers.

Even if the position still belonged to Yoon Sera, she wouldn’t have had to endure such humiliation today.

But the person who created this absurd situation had the audacity to say such things, and she couldn’t stand it.

Moreover, the remark about never having seen anything like it was tantamount to insulting Yeonjeong.

She knew it was unnecessary to show emotions beyond her purpose for attending this event.

However, she wasn’t the type of person who could simply endure insults to Yeonjeong without complaint.

Though she still felt emotionally cornered, Yeonhee’s heart was colder than ever.

Yeonhee relaxed her rigid posture, which she had maintained, and languidly crossed her legs.

She sank deep into the chair, a strange twist forming on the corner of her lips.

“You’re absolutely right. I’ve never seen anything like it, so I don’t know any of that courtesy you’re talking about, Grandma.”

Yeonhee looked straight ahead, pretending to be focused on the event without a hint of wavering. But the words that slipped through her lips were all aimed at Sookhee.

Having regained her composure, Yeonhee was chillingly calm. This, unknowingly, made Sookhee tense.

“Grandma, I think there’s something you’re overlooking.”

A snort could be heard at her words.

From Choi Sookhee’s perspective, it must have seemed pathetic.

Of course.

She probably saw it as nothing more than a petulant act from a pathetic girl she had been ignoring.

That’s why she wanted to make it clear.

That just because she seemed insignificant to you, didn’t mean she was insignificant to everyone, and that you shouldn’t dismiss her so carelessly.

“People like me, who have lived at the bottom since birth, haven’t seen much, so I don’t know the proper etiquette for places like this, but the less you know, the less you fear. Furthermore, what is there to lose in a life spent only at the bottom? And even if there were, would it compare to you, who commands a conglomerate?”

“……”

“That’s why people like me aren’t to be trifled with. Once we set our minds on something, we become blind to everything else.”

As Yeonhee spoke, she fixed her gaze firmly on Sookhee’s face.

Though she was acting nonchalant, her subtle rigidity clearly indicated that the current situation was unsettling Sookhee.

This meant that Sookhee was also being affected by her actions.

So, her heart should have pounded with pleasure.

But Yeonhee felt no joy.

Yeonhee shifted her gaze slightly. Then, behind Sookhee, she saw the face of a woman who was constantly looking only at her.

A woman with a face resembling Yoon Sera’s.

And a face that resembled her own.

Without needing to ask, she knew it was her birth mother.

The moment their eyes met, the woman’s pupils trembled violently. Then, tears welled up in her eyes.

“……”

Yeonhee bit her lower lip hard.

According to the information she had received, her parents did not know that Sookhee had abandoned her.

For over 30 years, they had lived believing one of their twin daughters was dead.

An indescribable emotion filled the woman’s trembling eyes.

This, in turn, weakened Yeonhee’s resolve.

Yeonhee quickly averted her gaze. Then, she stared intently at Sookhee’s profile again.

Sookhee’s expression remained unchanged throughout, except for one thing: her elder’s eyelashes, which fluttered, betraying her inner discomfort.

Yeonhee cleanly erased any inappropriate warmth that didn’t fit the situation and poured out her prepared words without reservation.

“You said that excessive greed leads to ruin, didn’t you? That you heard those words directly over 30 years ago.”

“……”

“What was it that you were greedy for all those years ago?”

Yeonhee had no way of knowing who had said those words to Sookhee, or why.

But hearing that it was over 30 years ago, it was certain that it was around the time Yoon Sera and she were born.

Yeonhee’s lips parted with a look of certainty.

“Perhaps.”

“……”

“It was Yoon Sera……”

The moment Yoon Sera’s name was mentioned, deep wrinkles formed mercilessly around Sookhee’s eyes.

The cracks around her eyes, like a parched paddy field, were endless.

That confirmed her suspicion, and Yeonhee’s desire for revenge solidified further.

“So, I’m going to do the same to you.”

“……”

“Just as you stole my life, I intend to do my best to ruin the things you are most greedy for and hold most dear.”

It was the absolute truth.

She would do her best to tarnish the RM Group, which Choi Sookhee was most greedy for, and she was determined to thoroughly ruin Yoon Sera, whom Choi Sookhee cherished the most.

Yeonhee had nothing more to say to Sookhee. As if to show her business was concluded, Yeonhee turned her head back to face forward.

The hall quickly heated up with the auctioneer’s progress.

Although the event was far from over, Yeonhee already felt utterly exhausted.

So much so that she wanted to go home immediately.

The thought of going to the restroom for a moment to catch her breath crossed her mind.

But then, Sookhee’s voice, laced with emotion, pierced her ears unexpectedly.

“Your insolence pierces the heavens. That I stole your life… You are making a ridiculously arrogant mistake.”

“……”

“I cannot comprehend how you, a mere girl, could possibly have a life valuable enough for me to steal.”

It was raw emotion, uncontained. But her expression had somehow regained its composure, and the elder sat up straight, looking shamelessly defiant.

The sight was an eyesore, and she wanted to crush her spirit with any words. But at that moment, warmth spread across the back of her cold hand.

Yeonhee instinctively lowered her gaze. Then, a familiar hand gripping hers tightly filled her vision.

“……”

Following that hand, she slowly turned her head. There, Junhyeok’s face appeared, subtly shaking his head with a blank expression.

She knew what it meant without him saying it.

Yeonhee gritted her teeth. She was frustrated that she had to stop without retorting to Choi Sookhee’s words.

However, thinking rationally, it was right to stop here, as Junhyeok signaled.

Yeonhee took a deep breath. Then, she tried to compose herself.

After a few more deep breaths, she felt the turbulent emotions subside slightly.

But she didn’t want to end the conversation as if Sookhee’s words had intimidated her.

“If you’re going to be complacent with that thought, then I am all the more grateful.”

Yeonhee finally managed to utter the words with a meaningful tone.

Even if clinging to her pride in the end was akin to losing, she felt she couldn’t bear the indignation otherwise.

Fortunately, Sookhee’s voice did not follow.

Yeonhee clenched her fist, still held by Junhyeok.

She had expected it to be difficult, but it was beyond her imagination.

Meanwhile, the auction continued fiercely.

Yeonhee let out a quiet sigh, unheard by anyone.

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