Moon’s Labyrinths - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - Dark Day of the New Moon

“Did he leave?”

It was the top most floor of the highrise building where Sungyoon had made a commotion . This was a room that normal people could only see in dramas or movies . The furnishing made it quite obvious that this was the president’s office . The room was large, and there was a luxurious sofa and a coffee table that could be used to greet customers . Then there was an executive desk and chair placed in front of the large window . An expensive name plate was placed on top of the desk . It had the president’s name and position engraved on it .

A man was sitting behind the desk . At a glance, he looked to be in his mid 20s or early 30s . In reality, he was in his late 30s like Sungyoon . However, he took care of himself . Therefore, he still maintained an athletic body and firm skin that belied his age .

He was handsomely tall and he had a well defined face . On a scale of one to ten, he would register as an eight or nine . He possessed an appearance that people would compliment . The only thing that marred his face was his slightly upturned eyes . It made him look cruel .

He was the president and owner of this building . His name was Lee Jaeho, and Sungyoon had been trying to desperately get a hold of him .

“Yes!”

Jaeho’s secretary, who had been standing in front of him, gave a reply in a polite manner .

Jaeho clicked his tongue .

“He should be thinking about how to revive his company . Why the hell is he making a scene by coming here?”

Sungyoon named Jaeho as a friend . However, Jaeho didn’t treat Sungyoon as a friend . One wouldn’t ignore and show contempt towards a friend .  

“Are you sure this is fine? If he starts to respond through the legal system, it’ll cause quite a headache for us . ”

“Hey, secretary Kim . You can’t run a business if you are afraid of the law . ”

Jaeho dismissed secretary Kim’s words .

“Moreover, it might have been possible if he had done it earlier . Now, he has nothing . He is millions in debt . Also, do you think our team of lawyers will twiddle their thumbs in the meantime?”

“You are right . However, I’m afraid the chairman won’t look fondly at the mess being created . ”

Jaeho agreed with that sentiment . He had used all kinds of dirty tactics . He had even stabbed a man, who was known to be his friend, in the back . Why did he do all that? It was to inherit the empire built by his father and grandfather . He had to achieve better results than his other siblings . However, a commotion might sour his father’s mood . It wouldn’t matter if he had improved his record . His secretary was correct .

“That’s true . It is best to wrap this up quietly . Don’t worry . I have a powerful ally in this matter . ”

“You have an ally?”

“Yes . She is an ally that is capable of taking complete advantage of his weakness . ”

Jaeho thought about ‘her’ .

“That is why you don’t have to worry about it . ”

Secretary Kim bowed his head instead of answering him .

After dismissing secretary Kim, Jaeho propped his chin on his palm as he tapped his desk . His thoughts returned to his college days .

『Hey! Lee Jaeho! Did you do all your homework?』

『Ah . Shit . The hangover is killing me . It feels as if someone is rattling steel balls inside my head . 』

『Bastard! You went to a group blind date yesterday! That’s really cheap!』

The familiar voice ran through his thoughts . Jaeho placed no importance on that voice . Soon, a face of a man appeared alongside the voice .

He wore a graduation cap . He was laughing merrily as he held a bouquet of flowers .

『Ah ha ha ha ha! Let’s continue to be close friends!』

‘Hmmph! He doesn’t know his place . ’

Jaeho snorted . Friend was a word that can be used amongst equals . He was from a rich family, and he was going to inherit a large empire . Sungyoon was beneath his notice . He freely admitted that Sungyoon was capable . He had built and run a successful company . However, his company was like a child’s toy that could be stolen by Jaeho .

Jaeho laughed at Sungyoon, who had deluded himself into believing Jaeho was his friend .

‘Still, I should clean up after myself . ’

He had to avoid any commotions . He picked up the phone to quietly resolve this situation . Above all else, Sungyoon had a critical weakness that could be exploited . Jaeho called to contact his ally .

‘This will be a harsh life lesson for you . Well, you don’t have to thank me . You don’t even have to pay me a fee for this lesson . After all, we are friends, right?’

Jaeho’s narrow eyes curved to make a crescent shape . He let out a cruel laughter .

* * *

Sungyoon was sitting in a cafe . His appearance differed greatly from how he looked in front of the building owned by Jaeho . It had only been a couple days, yet he no longer looked like an invalid . He had cleaned himself up, shaved his beard, had worn clean clothes . His messy hair and his wrinkled suit was nowhere to be seen . However, he couldn’t hide his troubled heart . His cheeks looked a bit gaunt . But this made him look a bit like his younger self, so the women around him were glancing towards him from time to time .

Ring!

The bell rang as the door to the cafe opened . Sungyoon looked towards the entrance, and his face brightened .

A woman had entered the store . She looked to have put on a bit of makeup, and she wore a fluttering black one piece dress . She wore many jewelries . She wore earrings, necklaces and rings embedded with many precious gems . She looked like a big spender . Still, she looked beautiful . At a glance, she looked to be in her late 20s . However, there were crows feet at the corner of her eyes . It was a sign that she was older than she looked .

Sungyoon raised his hand to make himself known to her . The woman had her chin up high as she surveyed her surroundings . She looked almost arrogant and snooty . She noticed Sungyoon’s presence .

Tap!　Tap!

High heels rhythmically tapped the floor . She walked like a model, and most of the male customers kept glancing at her . Some couples bickered with each other when their significant other was caught stealing glances .

However, she and Sungyoon didn't pay attention to their surroundings . They were used to such reactions .

“Welcome . ”

Even if he looked emaciated, Sungyoon looked happy as he greeted her . When she sat down, she placed her handbag on the next seat . The handbag had the logo of a famous brand on it, and it was even was shining .

“What do you want to eat?”

Sungyoon looked at the menu placed atop the counter . However, she shook her head from side to side .

“It’s fine . I’ll buy my own . You are short on money . ”

“I still have the means to buy my wife a cup of coffee . ”

Sungyoon raised his voice slightly as if his pride had been hurt .

Her name was Lee Miyun . She was Sungyoon’s wife .

They met each other during college, and they had been a famous couple on campus . Sungyoon was handsomely tall, and he had the classic good looks . Lee Miyun was the beauty queen of the campus . They were a handsome couple . They had started dating in college, and it led to them marrying each other after school finished . They were a couple that everyone envied . They even had a beautiful daughter named Shinhae . When Sungyoon’s business started to take off, the envy around them got stronger . At that point in life, Sungyoon boasted to others that he regretted nothing in life . He had a beautiful wife and a cute daughter . He had succeeded in business . The only shortcoming was the fact that Miyun was loose in how she spent their money . However, he hadn’t cared because he was making a lot of money . As a man, he thought it was his duty to support her luxurious spending to a certain degree .

“It’s fine . ”

He didn’t know what was wrong, but Miyun was unusually cold to him today . She glanced at the empty spot on the desk in front of him . She got up . It was as if she was criticizing his current state, so his cheeks reddened a little bit . He immediately shook his head to shed his embarrassment .

‘Yes . She’s speaking that way for my sake . ’

If he was being honest, he didn’t have any money . It was the truth . His wife had to go to her parent’s house with their daughter . Repossession tickets were placed all over his house . The money she was using right now was probably allowance given to her by his father in law and mother in law . Her parents were quite rich . Jewelries and the designer handbag had all been provided to her by her parents .

He decided she was acting this way, because she was worried about him . He berated himself . He was probably letting his hurt pride put her actions in a negative light .

After his business failed, he was stabbed in the back by his friend . He had been traumatized, and this was why he had relied a lot on Miyun . Still, it was clear that something was amiss . Her husband was on the run from debtors, yet she was wearing expensive pieces of jewellery and designer handbag . He made an effort to overlook it .

It didn’t take long for Miyun to come back with two cups of coffee . She pushed one towards Sungyoon .

“Thank you . ”

Sungyoon wordlessly grasped the coffee cup . It was a cold ice coffee, so there was a lot of condensation around the cup . His hands were getting wet, but he didn’t pay attention to it as he fiddled around with the cup . He said he had enough to buy his wife a cup of coffee, yet when it came down to it, he hadn’t even bought coffee for himself . He didn’t want to waste his money .

He placed the straw between his lips, and he sucked in the liquid . The coffee was cold and bitter . Miyun also used a straw to drink her coffee .

“So why did you want to see me?”

Sungyoon let go of the straw as he asked the question . He was constantly on the move trying to salvage his fallen business . He was also busy trying to get his revenge on Jaeho, who had stabbed Sungyoon in the back . This was why he hadn’t been very happy when he received a call from her . Still, he had caused a lot of trouble for Miyun when he got in debt as his business failed . He owed it to her to make some time for her .

Miyun put down her coffee cup . The cream atop the brown coffee jostled a little bit at the impact .

“I want a divorce . ”

She spoke coldly as if she was cutting the thread of their relationship with a knife .

“····what?”

Sungyoon looked dumbfounded as he repeated her words .

“D . . . divorce?”

“Yes . A divorce . ”

Unlike the flustered Sungyoon, Miyun didn’t show any emotions as she spoke . Her words put Sungyoon in a corner .

“W . . . why are you suddenly saying this?!”

Sungyoon abruptly stood up . He had been pushed to the edge by the betrayal of his friend and the failure of his business . Miyun’s request was like the final nail in his coffin .

“Please sit . ”

Miyun looked at her surroundings as she spoke . Sungyoon’s shout had drawn the attention of the other customers . Half of the cafe was surprised, and the other half was curious as they focused their gazes on the two .

However, Sungyoon wasn’t in a state where he cared about the gazes of others .

When Sungyoon showed no signs of sitting down, Miyun let out a sigh . She picked up her handbag as she got up .

“Let’s talk outside . ”

She didn’t even look back as she walked towards the entrance of the cafe . Sungyoon looked at her back with a blank expression on his face . It was as if he had just woken up from a dream . He quickly followed after her as they left the cafe .

The two half-empty coffee cups remained in front of their empty seats .

* * *

The two of them arrived at a quiet park . The sun was high up in the sky, so there weren’t many people visiting the park . At most, there were a couple of old people taking advantage of the slow hours to do a brisk walk around the park . Sungyoon and Miyun moved far away from the seniors .

Miyun faced Sungyoon .

Her husband looked betrayed, but his face still held a glimmer of hope as he looked at her . There were traces of his old self left, but he looked completely like a middle-aged man . He had a potbelly, and there were light wrinkles all over his face . She had no regrets . Miyun shifted her weight to one leg as she looked at her husband .

“‘I'll say this once again . Let’s divorce . ”

As expected, he hadn’t heard wrong . Sungyoon’s expression became desperate .

“This request for a divorce is so sudden! Is it because of my business?”

“Yes . ”

Sungyoon shut his mouth . Miyun didn’t beat around the bush as she told the truth, and her words stabbed deep into his heart . He wanted to make some kind of an excuse . However, no words came to his mind . He knew what kind of situation he was in .  

He owed millions of dollars . In society, it was said that human life was more important than money . However, no one honestly thought that . It was a material world . Millions of dollars could determine if a person would die or not .