For several days now, Yeoju had been tracing back the flow of the 240 million won that had vanished from Seonil Capital.
From one account to another, and then that one to yet another.
The flow that had ended there at Manager Seongho's level before had gone one step further this time.
The account holder line on the final account. Her fingers stopped.
Seonil Holdings.
She called for Dongmin right away.
"…Here. The money went into Seonil Holdings. The money Manager Seongho took out ended up going into a company on Lee Sanghyuk's side."
Dongmin stared at the screen and swallowed.
"…Then that means this wasn't just simple embezzlement. It means he did it on orders."
"Right. Seongho carried it out, and Lee Sanghyuk received it. This is evidence."
*
That afternoon, the atmosphere turned strange.
Unhak called. He said all access records on the BND server side had been deleted as of yesterday.
"…Who erased them?"
"With admin privileges. I couldn't stop it either. Every single log was wiped."
Dongmin's face hardened.
"…They figured out what we found. There'd be no other reason to wipe everything at this timing."
Her heart was pounding fast. Less than half a day after finding the evidence, the other side had started moving too.
"…What about our materials?"
"They're only on my computer, so they're fine. But at this speed, next they may go after the account materials."
"…We have to move before it's too late."
*
At night, the three of them hurriedly met again.
"…We have to go to the Financial Supervisory Service or the police economic crimes team, anywhere. If we drag this out any longer, they'll erase the evidence first."
Yeoju said. Unhak nodded.
"The FSS side would be better. Tracing embezzled funds is their specialty, so if we hand over the materials, they'll start investigating right away."
"Tomorrow. Let's go first thing tomorrow morning. Settlement day is the day after tomorrow, so we have to finish this before then."
"…Then let's go together."
Unhak said it as if it were obvious. Yeoju shook her head.
"…No. I'll go alone."
Dongmin's expression froze in place.
"…What are you talking about?"
"If the three of us move together with the materials, it'll only be more dangerous. The thing Manager Seongho's side is most focused on right now is this evidence, isn't it? Rather than all three of us getting exposed at once, it's better if I take it alone."
"You said that to me yourself not long ago. That you were trying to handle it alone, dragged Unhak into it, and kept me out of it."
Dongmin said quietly.
Yeoju went speechless for a moment.
"…Are you starting to shoulder everything by yourself again?"
"It's not like that—"
"What's not? When something looks dangerous, you always try to carry it alone. That's your habit. Unhak and I both know it."
Unhak interjected carefully.
"…I think hyung is right too. Aside from what you've said, there's no reason right now for you to go alone."
"…Still."
"No. Tomorrow, we'll all go together. All three of us."
Dongmin squeezed Yeoju's hand hard. Hard enough to keep her from saying anything else.
"…No matter what happens, this time I'll stay with you till the end."
Yeoju shut her mouth.
She looked like she was losing, but deep inside, she still hadn't given in.
*
Unhak left first, and Dongmin escorted her home.
"…Dongmin, just remember one thing for me."
"What is it?"
"Both times, the way they died was the same. They were hit by a car. The first time it was the brakes, the second was a hit-and-run. On the way tomorrow, be careful of cars. Only on the main roads, and stay close to the sidewalk."
Dongmin stopped walking and faced Yeoju. There wasn't a trace of playfulness on his face.
"…Understood. Let's all travel that way. I'll tell Unhak again too."
"…Thank you. For believing me, even when I say things like this."
"There's no reason not to believe you. You're saying it as someone who's gone through it twice."
Only then did Yeoju smile.
Dongmin pulled her shoulders in and hugged her.
"…Tomorrow, I'll be nervous too. I won't let you be the only one."
"…Are you still upset about what I said earlier?"
"I'm not upset. I'm scared. The look on your face earlier wasn't the face of someone who had completely given up."
Her chest jolted. It wasn't wrong.
"…If I lose contact, I won't just sit still. Then I'll drop everything and come after you for real."
His tone wasn't playful.
Their foreheads touched. After a short kiss, Dongmin whispered low.
"…The morning after tomorrow, I hope it's just an ordinary day where we wake up together."
At that, her chest grew warm.
"…That day will come."
*
Back home, she looked at the calendar.
The circled date was right there in front of her eyes.
Even though she'd promised she wouldn't, those words kept bothering her.
*
The next morning, Unhak was already waiting in front of the subway station they had agreed on.
Dongmin arrived shortly after.
"…Where's Yeoju?"
"Not yet. She's not picking up either."
A few more minutes passed.
Dongmin called again.
It only rang, and she still didn't answer.
Only then did a text message arrive.
"I'll go on ahead. Don't worry."
The color drained from Dongmin's face.
"…Damn."
He swallowed hard, then turned and started running.
"Hyung! Where are you going!"
Unhak shouted from behind him, but there was no time to answer.
Only then did last night's expression finally make sense in a completely different way.
