章節 16: Chaebol

Following him, who was walking like he owned the place, we got inside a luxurious shop with a unique exterior and a very fancy interior. I've seen many beautiful places but not fashion districts. I'm not really fond of dresses. They're so uncomfortable to move in, and there's always a risk of your skirt flying up or something like that.

Looking at the mannequins, I sighed. Just the sight of high heels was enough to give me a headache.

"Do I need to dress like those mannequins?" I asked him, though I already knew the answer.

He laughed at my misery.

"What's wrong? Can't handle them?" he teased. "You'll be wearing more of those in the future. New Money couple, remember? Did you think you can wear pants and shirts during parties or whenever we meet important people?"

"I know I can't, but… urgh. Just give me the most comfortable one, please."

"Good morning, sir and ma'am. You have arrived," one of the salesladies greeted us and ushered us into a luxurious white couch to sit. "It's a pleasure to see you again."

Arrived? Were they the people he was talking with on the phone earlier? Again? Was he a regular here?

"How may I assist you? Are you looking for anything specific today?"

The other staff offered us tea and snacks as we sat on the couch. Speaking of snacks, I hadn't had my breakfast because of this jerk. Thank you, friendly staff people.

I munched on some biscuits they served while Agent Helios, aka Jeon Eun-Woo, spoke to the saleslady.

"Can I see your new collections?"

"Right away, sir."

She then showed him a catalog while the others took some clothes from the shelves or presented mannequins wearing fancy dresses.

"These just came in for our Summer collections. The fabrics were specially imported from… and designed by…."

Blah. Blah. Blah. I couldn't understand anything. Should I start learning about fashion? I need to familiarize myself with it if I'm going to act like a spoiled wife of a rich husband. Should I start reading those CEO light novels that Agent Persephone suggested before? No, I'll probably cringe. CEOs were mostly old, ugly dudes in real life, and I'll keep imagining that if I ever read those.

"Babe," a sweet voice called out to me.

Hm? Babe? Oh, right, that's me.

"Yes, babe?" I quickly turned to him as soon as I remembered. I need to get used to being called that cringe name.

"Try those on," he replied, pointing at the fancy dresses and shoes.

Looking at them closely, he chose pretty decent ones, I guess? Not too revealing or sexy, and the skirts were long enough, extending below the knees. Plus, the shoes weren't too high-heeled. How considerate of him, huh? Or did he choose those based on his dad's preferences? Of course, parents wouldn't want their sons to end up with indecent girls, right?

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Oh no, did I stare too much?

"Do you not like them?" he pressed on, acting like a caring boyfriend. "I picked those that I thought would look good on you, but if you don't like them, we can check the other stores."

"Ahm, no, I like them. I'll go ahead and try them on."

Please, I don't want to end up touring this whole neighborhood just for a dress.

And so I tried on a few dresses and showed them to him, feeling embarrassed. I'm really not used to wearing these. Ugh.

While I agonized over my outfit, he had fun taking pictures of me with each dress I wore. As to why he's taking them, I had no idea, but he should've asked for my consent first! I don't want my picture to be on his phone! Who knows what he'll use them for? I'll make sure to tell him off later.

After what seemed like an hour of choosing, we finally settled on the white one.

"I'm taking the others, too. Pack them up," he told the saleslady as he gave them a black card.

"Right away, sir."

"Wait, I just need one dress," I whispered to him. "And how much is it? I'll pay—"

"No need to be shy, babe," he said, grinning at me. "Consider this payment for the… entertainment."

I knew it. He enjoyed watching me force a smile as I wore those uncomfortable clothes! And he even bought more to annoy me.

"Ah, I see," I replied, grinning back at him. "Since you were so entertained, why don't you buy everything in this store? My talent fee is very high, you know?"

He chuckled.

'Huh! How's that? You can't afford everything in this store? They'd probably be millions of dollars, enough to buy another luxury car or two.'

But to my shock, he replied to me…

"Is that all?" he asked while smiling so confidently. "Should I buy the whole store, too? Or the whole district? Or maybe the whole neighborhood?"

Lies. How could he afford the entire neighborhood? Even if he sold his car, it wouldn't be enough. He's bluffing.

"Oh, dear sir, please have mercy on us," one of the salesladies who heard him pleaded.

"Don't take him seriously. He's joking," I told her since she looked so scared for some reason.

"Eh? I wasn't joking, though," Agent Helios pressed on. "If you want it."

"No! I don't want it!" I blurted out. How could he say something so absurd? Was that part of his doting boyfriend act?

"Thank you, ma'am," the saleslady replied, sighing in relief.

"There's no way he could actually buy—" I mumbled.

"Hm? Oh, but he really can if he wants to," she corrected me.

That time, Agent Helios was on the counter, signing something.

"What do you mean?" I pressed on, wanting to know a little bit more about my annoying partner.

"You didn't know, ma'am?" she carefully asked. "He's Mr. Jeon Young-Jae's son."

"Yeah… that's the name of his father."

Nodding her head as if she wanted me to realize something, she continued, "The richest man in Korea and the top 3 richest in Asia."

"Huh?... What?"

Jeon Young-Jae… no wonder it sounded familiar. I probably heard it in the news somewhere or read in the newspapers. But there was never a mention of his son, right? Or I just wasn't interested enough to remember?

'So that's why he's so careless with money. He earns money just by breathing! A real, living, walking, and handsome chaebol! I never thought I'd met one in real life. Woah. Isn't this like the setting in one of those CEO light novels? Just less the impossible drama, cheating and slapping, and other mundane things?'

As I let myself be shocked by that truth, one thing bothered me.

'If he's so rich, why did he join Mythos?'