A Lie Has Become Reality

6 – Tiger’s Den (2)

As if someone had just come to the surface after being buried in a deep abyss, his breathing came out fast.

Beep-

I gasped with my eyes closed, then slowly opened my eyes to the distant tinnitus. The only thing I hear in the quiet silence is my breathing at irregular intervals.

Looking around, it seems that someone has moved the unconscious me into a room.

I recalled

The moment she fainted from the pain as she tried to recall her grandfather. Unfamiliar memories of ‘another me’ that came like a tsunami.

The past of growing up with love and pampering, the bloody struggle for rights in the chaebol family, the death of questionable parents, and then the family relationship headed for catastrophe.

Fishik.

I burst out laughing.

My past, abused and abandoned by my parents, disappeared without a trace, leaving only the past where I grew up being loved by ‘another me’.

This is a bit unfair.

“… Ha”

Awkward.

I don’t know what to say after seeing me.

To reveal the truth of your parents’ death? Should we find out who is behind it and hold them accountable? Or do I have to get involved in a f*cking battle of interests?

Why me? For what?

Ha-!

I burst out laughing because I was full of energy. Even though life has changed completely now.

I have no intention of burying my pain and wounds in the past like a time capsule.

Because that’s the least consideration for me in the past.

I feel sorry for ‘another me’, but I have no intention of spending my emotions on this useless family relationship.

It’s a busy life to spend the money you have and enjoy yourself.

It seems that my mind is clearer now.

I took a deep breath and stood up.

****

“Is it okay if I move already? No more rest.”

“Because I’m not that careless.”

The previous plan to go out quietly is cancelled.

He’s such a careless man. Can I rest comfortably in this place even though I am crazy?

I stared at my grandfather, who had a worried expression in front of him, with cold eyes.

“Since I called the doctor, lie down and get medical attention.”

“Very well. No problem.”

“Inseok-ah, I am saying this because the old lady is not at ease.”

“Ha ha, just kidding. Are you here now?”

Since I don’t have the hobby of answering Zen dialogue, I put a wedge into it with a cynicism.

I want to get out of this unpleasant space as soon as possible.

This should be enough. When I turned my back without regret, I heard a sharp, nervous voice.

“Making sick, you are making a big fuss. Even if you do a show like that, you have to ruin the atmosphere to unlock your aptitude?”

My aunt, who had been looking at me disapprovingly, spat out in a low voice.

“You pitiful bastard.”

My uncle, who had his arms folded beside him, also helped. Seeing that the mates match better than I thought, it seems that the sum of the family is well matched.

I feel like I’m in a play when I’m receiving all the attention around me with this body.

“Noisy… !”

“I ruined the mood.”

I intercepted the words of my grandfather who was about to shout with bloodshot eyes.

This whole situation is just ridiculous. It was so disgusting that I wanted to vomit.

“That is very fortunate.”

That’s why he ridiculed him even more. As if something had gone wrong, she raised the corners of her mouth.

“Let’s go first.”

Ah-

I’m tired.

It’s time to go back to my place where I should be.

I should go home and play a game.

****

A family gathering once a month at a private residence in Hannam-dong. It must have been the same meeting day as usual that day.

Until I saw my grandson bowing his head at 90 degrees as soon as our eyes met.

“….”

I couldn’t even open my mouth as if I had glued it on.

That day was drawn before my eyes.

When the youngest son and daughter-in-law, who did not hurt even if they put it in their eyes, returned as cold corpses. And when he heard the news that the eldest son Ki-yong and daughter Ye-won were behind the death.

And I came to know that all of this tragedy started with me, who overheated the group’s competition for succession.

Did you say Jangjangjiae? It is said that the grief of a parent who has lost a child is like the pain of a broken intestine.

It was a very unfamiliar, yet vivid pain for me, who had lived with the sole purpose of growing a company.

I stayed up all night with dry lips and bloodshot eyes.

Her wife, who had been cursing me, soon left for her parents’ house, saying that she was fed up with it.

Now, even the grandchildren say that a day is far away. Where did you hear it Her own parents had been murdered by her uncle and her aunt, she cried in tears of blood.

It’s all my fault. She couldn’t bear to blame Ki-yong and Ye-won for driving her youngest son to death.

They are all my babies. Even if everyone in the world pointed fingers at her, she didn’t want to lose her remaining children.

I’m sure if you care for it with faith and love from now on, everything will find its place. Wouldn’t it be enough to be a lumber to take over the company.

That’s how I buried all the truth in my heart. He also ignored the cries of his grandson who cried out desperately.

I worked hard to ensure that hundreds of billions of assets could be safely inherited to my grandchildren without missing a dime.

In order to alleviate my guilt, I donated real estate generously with my own money.

Yes, at this point, you will understand this old woman’s heart. Wasn’t she a kind child who was more affectionate and caring than anyone else?

But from one day onwards, the grandson stopped showing his face.

Curious about her whereabouts, I tried to investigate her background, but the answer that came back was that she was stuck in every corner of her house and did not move a single step.

Yes, he will need time to sort out his feelings too.

Obviously time passes… One day, he will return as his grandson, Kim Seong-woo, who cried out for his grandfather with a loving voice.

I waited endlessly for that day. We held family gatherings every month so that we could return to the arms of this grandfather at any time.

I sent the place and time to him through Ki-yong every month so that he could come by chance.

“It’s been a while, Grandpa.”

And after many years, the voice actor finally attended the meeting.

It should definitely be a thrilling reunion.

When I saw those empty eyes. I had a hunch that something was wrong.

These eyes were like those of a dead person.

“Yes… have you calmed down now?”

“Yes, you can’t be hung up on the past forever.”

This is definitely what I always wanted to hear.

I hoped that he would bury all his mistakes in the past and look at the present.

Where did it go wrong? Maybe my method was wrong?

“Keah!!”

Push-

Ah, heaven has abandoned me.

****

Fortunately, the guy who came to his senses quickly left the room with a polite and indifferent expression.

The atmosphere gets colder the more you ask about it. The guy who obviously avoids me.

I was just expressing my inner feelings out of nervousness.

“Inseok, I am saying this because the old lady is not at ease.”

“hahahaha, just kidding. Now?”

A guy who looks at me like he’s having fun and smirks.

There was no hostility or goodwill in those eyes that looked at me.

There was only emptiness inside. As if you have no interest.

Ah, my mistakes have returned as karma.

The guilt that I had been trying to ignore for so long materialized and surrounded me.

But what should I have done in that situation?

Did he have to expose the filthy truth even if he threw his remaining children in prison?

As if there was nothing left to see, he turned his back without regret.

You have to catch on. I have to untie the tangled knot as soon as it gets tangled.

“Making sick, you are making a fuss. Even if you do a show like that, you have to ruin the atmosphere to unlock your aptitude?”

“You pitiful bastard.”

I doubted my ears. Anger rose to the top of his head.

What are you saying to your nephew who just passed out?

I was about to yell.

“Noisy… !”

“I ruined the mood.”

”I’m so glad you did.“

I was about to yell at my children for their words, but I kept my mouth shut.

A face distorted in such a mess that I couldn’t dare to fathom what was inside. A voice that said that all this situation was disgusting and could not bear it.

Even my children who are still consistently ignoring and contempt.

What expression am I making right now?

My intestines were all overturned, and my stomach was regurgitating.

Suddenly, the last conversation I had with the voice actor flashed through my mind.

What were you talking about?

‘My grandfather still has two children left.’

Yeah, I’m sure it was just as empty at that time as it is now.

As if he won’t hold any expectations any more…

‘I have no one left.’

My heart sank. To say that there is no one left, isn’t this filial piety?

‘Grandpa lost someone today too.’

Please. Please stop. I was wrong I….

‘At least one grandchild who loved my grandfather is lost.’

Ah.

Tears flowed.

On that day, my beloved grandson, who was full of charms, died at my hands.