The Unbelievers

Chapter 13

“So… can’t you just continue the family line? Why did Father do that? What was so unbearable that he lived in hiding?”

“…”

He put down the drip coffee maker. The filtered coffee gradually decreased and eventually dripped in drops.

He turned around, chose one of the expensive-looking cups from the large glass cabinet, poured coffee into it, and after appreciating the aroma of the coffee beans, slowly savored it sip by sip.

Eunseong watched as his Adam’s apple moved slowly. The wolf with gleaming eyes on his neck seemed to squirm and swallow something along with him.

After drinking half the cup of coffee, Yoo Siwoon hooked his finger on his tie and loosened it.

“What is it exactly? What’s so difficult that you had to run away?”

“It’s an extremely difficult task.”

“…”

“Any father with a son would hate to impose such a task on him.”

“What kind of task is it?”

“…A task so difficult it’s hard to explain. No, a task that’s detestable.”

“How difficult and unpleasant is it? Surely… surely you don’t have to kill people?”

“…”

“Do you really have to kill people, commit fraud, and beat others?”

Eunseong’s frightened eyes were trembling. They were the eyes of a boy of that age who had never experienced or thought about such things, where the scariest thing he could imagine was merely death.

It wasn’t easy for Yoo Siwoon to face the eyes of the child who had claimed to have a lot of part-time job experience and know quite a bit about the world, now looking like he might cry at any moment.

He looked at Eunseong and slowly nodded. He was saying that it was such a task, that the position of heir sometimes required doing such terrible things if necessary.

“W-when? When do I have to kill people?”

“…Hmm, maybe in about ten years?”

“What if I don’t want to do it, if I can’t do it? What if I say I don’t want to be the heir?”

“Then you run away. Just like your father did.”

“…”

Eunseong thought he understood why his father had made such a choice. With his self-loathing and compassion, he might be able to hit his child but could never kill others, and with his weak nature, it would have been impossible for him to pass on such a task to his child. That’s why his father had abandoned the family and lived as a fugitive.

“Do I have to do that too?”

“…When the time comes to bear it, you’ll have to, whether you like it or not.”

“I don’t want to do such terrible things. I don’t want to become an heir if it means doing that… I really hate such things. I was so shocked when Choi Jung-eon said he took revenge for me. I was really scared.”

Eunseong had lived as a weakling. Exposed to his father’s violence, he knew better than anyone the pain and suffering that the weak endure. That’s why he didn’t want to hurt anyone, and couldn’t do so.

Having never enjoyed it, he had no greed, and not having possessed anything, he didn’t develop a desire to have more. Eunseong refused, saying he couldn’t and didn’t want to do such things.

“You don’t want to do it?”

“No… I don’t want to do it.”

“Then don’t do it.”

“What?”

“I brought you here to prevent you from having to do that. I’m trying to protect you.”

“…”

His father had said that Yoo Siwoon was the only sane person in the family. He claimed that Yoo Siwoon wouldn’t force Eunseong to do things like killing people, and that to prevent such things from happening, Eunseong needed to be under his protection, not his father’s.

Eunseong could now clearly understand everything Yoo Siwoon had been saying.

“Can you really protect me?”

“That’s what I’m going to do. I won’t force you to do things you don’t want to do.”

“…”

He didn’t state his promise resolutely. His tone and attitude were casual, as if talking about everyday matters.

As he finished his coffee, Yoo Siwoon asked as if he had just thought of it:

“What, should I get you some orange juice? Or do you drink milk? We should have milk. Director Nam likes lattes. We don’t have any carbonated drinks though.”

It was an awkward question, suggesting that he had never offered anything to someone of Eunseong’s age before.

“No, I’m fine.”

“Make yourself comfortable. If you want to eat something, there’s food in the fridge, help yourself. If there’s anything you need that’s not there, tell Director Nam and he’ll get it for you.”

“…Is this Director Nam like a butler? Rich people have those, right? Like a servant.”

“A servant?”

Yoo Siwoon burst out laughing as if he found it ridiculous. The laughter on a face that rarely smiled somewhat eased Eunseong’s tension in this unfamiliar place.

“The Director would be really upset if he heard that.”

He muttered as if talking to himself, then chuckled again at the thought of a servant.

“Can I just stay here?”

“Yes, you can just stay here.”

“While going to school?”

“You’re a student, so of course you should go to school.”

“…”

Eunseong was curious about what would happen after that. He wondered if he could live without difficult or hard tasks just by diligently attending school under ahjussi’s protection, if that was okay.

It seemed easy to say, but in reality, it probably wouldn’t be so simple.

While he felt reassured by Yoo Siwoon’s promise not to put him in dangerous situations, on the other hand, judging from his father’s decision to run away, he anxiously guessed that the elders of the family Yoo Siwoon referred to as “them” were not likely to be easily handled as Yoo Siwoon guaranteed.

There was nothing more to ask Yoo Siwoon, who wasn’t demanding anything. In the awkward atmosphere that felt even stiffer with nothing left to say, Eunseong, who had been standing there staring blankly at Yoo Siwoon, bowed his head and left first.

Eunseong went to the dining room when he heard a knock telling him to eat. It was already dinner time. On the large dining table, a meal was set for Eunseong alone.

“…Where’s ahjussi?”

Eunseong asked Director Nam. He had been told to tell him if he needed anything. He seemed to be something like a butler, if not exactly a servant. Director Nam was standing there, watching the housekeeper who was busily moving between the table and the kitchen as if supervising, though the table seemed fully set.

“The CEO went out on business. You can eat alone today.”

“I see…”

As Eunseong sat down in the prepared seat, the housekeeper approached and glanced at him. Eunseong nodded his head in greeting when their eyes met. The housekeeper also gave him a light nod in return. If his mother were alive, she would have been about that age.

Eunseong had kept his mother’s solo wedding photo between the pages of a book. He was planning to buy a frame for it later. His father hardly ever talked about his mother. Even without his father telling him, Eunseong could see from the photo how beautiful his mother had been. It was a shame that only one wedding photo remained of such a beautiful mother.

His impulsive and weak father, unable to bear the pain of his mother’s absence from this world, had thrown away everything that could remind him of her. He regretted it after discarding everything. Even the torn wedding photo would have been lost forever if Eunseong hadn’t accidentally discovered it and hidden it. Eunseong had kept it secretly, fearing his father might throw that away too.

Would ahjussi know his mother?

Given that his ahjussi was now thirty-three, if he had seen his mother when she was alive, he would have been about fourteen or fifteen.

“What are you thinking about so deeply? With the food right in front of you.”

Director Nam asked Eunseong, who was quietly staring down at the table while holding his spoon.

“Ah, I was thinking that ahjussi might have seen my mother. I was planning to ask him when he returns if he had ever seen her.”

“Probably not.”

“How do you know, Director?”

“Just eat your meal quickly.”

Meanwhile, the housekeeper brought the last bowl of soup and placed it on the table.

“Enjoy your meal.”

She said with a smile and turned away. This kind of attentive service felt so unfamiliar and embarrassing that it made Eunseong feel awkward.

“…Thank you for the meal.”

Eunseong greeted the housekeeper who had already turned away and started his meal by taking a spoonful of soup. He had expected to eat alone, but Director Nam didn’t leave and silently watched Eunseong eat his dinner.

Why is he just staring at someone eating like that, didn’t he say he wasn’t a servant, but he seems like one.

It was quite uncomfortable and awkward for Eunseong. Becoming the heir to a chaebol family wasn’t as easy as he had thought. However, if this level of discomfort was all he had to endure, it seemed bearable enough. Eunseong recalled the few pennies he had received after being slapped not long ago.

“Is the food to your liking?”

The housekeeper asked as she brought some brewed tea. Director Nam was standing stiffly, supervising Eunseong’s meal, but he didn’t interfere with the conversation between the housekeeper and Eunseong.

“Huh? Oh, yes, it’s really delicious.”

“If there’s anything you particularly like, please let me know. I’ll prepare it for you.”

“I eat everything well without being picky. Thank you.”

The housekeeper smiled kindly at Eunseong and went back to the kitchen. Eunseong unnecessarily glanced at Director Nam. He continued eating quietly, scooping rice into his mouth and chewing. Only the sounds of eating, drinking, and dishes clinking filled the empty space.