Chapter 9
Ā The Land of the Queen of Hearts
Everything suddenly stopped.
It felt as if she had been falling endlessly down a rabbit hole, only for someone to suddenly grab her and pull her back up.
“…Hm?”
Yeonhee slowly opened one eye. The first thing she saw was Jihan staring at her with one eyebrow raised. Still lost in the lingering feeling, she mumbled in a dazed voice,
“W-Why did you stop?”
“That’s enough for one day.”
Jihan refastened the two blouse buttons he had undone.
If he was just going to button them back up, why did he undo them in the first place?
Yeonhee covered her flushed cheeks with both hands. Her mind still felt as though it hadn’t climbed back out of the rabbit hole. She closed her eyes tightly as dizziness washed over her.
Then her body suddenly lifted into the air.
Jihan carried her from his lap and gently placed her on the sofa.
“You must be thirsty. I’ll see if there’s something to drink.”
He stood up and walked toward the kitchen with long strides. As his broad back disappeared into the room, Yeonhee let out a long sigh.
Artificial humans could still feel desire.
However, desire without love was nothing more than instinct.
As I thought… one day is far too short to understand love.
Besides, if the Artificial Human Virus couldn’t be cured, Yeonhee would never truly understand love.
Whether she dated for one day or a hundred years.
Still…
Just one day.
It really felt like a midsummer night’s dream.
Shaking her head, Yeonhee looked around the room.
Then her eyes landed on a display cabinet standing in one corner of the living room. Like the rest of the furniture, it was made of wood, and antique dishes were displayed inside.
Rather than sitting idly on the sofa, she decided to take a look while waiting for Jihan.
Some of the dishes had elaborate patterns, and several expensive-looking wine glasses were neatly arranged.
But on the very bottom shelf sat an old picture frame that looked completely out of place among the elegant tableware.
Squatting in front of the cabinet, Yeonhee quietly stared at the photograph inside.
On the left side of the picture was a young couple embracing each other with bright smiles.
And standing beside them…
What is this?
For a moment, Yeonhee nearly lost her balance.
She steadied herself and looked again.
It was still the same.
Completely forgetting that this was someone else’s house, she opened the cabinet as though possessed by something.
“…Mom? Dad?”
Holding the old frame in her hands, she couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
Standing beside the young couple were none other than her own parents.
Why is there a picture of Mom and Dad in Mr. Yoon Jihan’s house?
He said this wasn’t even his house.
Then…
What relationship did Jihan have with the people in this photograph?
Countless thoughts surged through her mind before sinking again, so quickly that even she couldn’t sort through them.
One fact alone was unmistakable.
The house Jihan had brought her to contained a photograph of her parents.
Almost unconsciously, Yeonhee removed the photograph from the frame.
She placed only the empty frame back inside the cabinet.
Just then, Jihan came out of the kitchen holding a small box.
“Is black tea okay? I searched everywhere, and this was all I could find.”
“Huh? Ah… no!”
Startled, Yeonhee instinctively hid the photograph behind her back.
“Oh… if you don’t like black tea, I’ll find something else.”
“No, it’s okay. Um… something urgent came up, so I have to leave.”
“What? What do you mean…?”
“I have something to take care of… I’m sorry. I have to go!”
Stammering words no one would believe, Yeonhee rushed past Jihan toward the front door.
Caught completely off guard, Jihan carelessly tossed the box of tea aside. Grabbing the jacket draped over the sofa armrest, he hurried after her.
“Miss Seo Yeonhee! Where are you going in this heavy rain?”
Whether because the rain was pouring so hard or because Jihan’s strides were much longer, he caught up to her almost immediately.
“At least wear this. You’ll catch a cold.”
He placed his jacket over her head.
Her blouse, which had barely begun to dry, was quickly soaked again.
Standing there in the pouring rain, Jihan held both of her shoulders and asked,
“Did something happen?”
Avoiding his gaze, Yeonhee slowly shook her head.
As her hand drifted toward the scar on her wrist, Jihan gently stopped it and followed her line of sight through her rain-soaked hair.
“Can I believe you when you say nothing happened?”
In the end…
Yeonhee couldn’t answer his question that day.
***
Bzzz… Bzzz…
Her phone vibrated relentlessly.
Deep asleep, Yeonhee showed no sign of waking up.
Only when the phone began vibrating for the sixth time did she suddenly jolt upright.
“Haa… haa…”
Pressing a hand against her pounding chest, she hurriedly looked around.
Only then did the familiar interior of her own room come into view.
How did I get home?
She couldn’t remember at all.
As she carefully sat up, something fell beside her.
A gray business jacket.
It was clearly a man’s jacket.
The moment she saw it, yesterday’s memories came flooding back.
She had eaten with Jihan.
They had gone to see the ocean.
Then it started raining…
“We went to that house…”
she murmured hoarsely.
Perhaps because she had gotten soaked in the rain, her head felt as though it would split apart.
Still, she slowly pieced together what had happened.
“Can I believe you when you say nothing happened?”
Jihan had asked while standing with her in the pouring rain.
Yeonhee hadn’t answered.
Whenever she wanted to avoid somethingāor tell a lieāshe would unconsciously press the scar on her wrist.
But Jihan had firmly held her wrist.
Then he wrapped both hands around her shoulders and guided her to the car parked outside the mansion.
Opening the passenger door himself, he gently helped her inside.
“I can’t let you go home alone this late at night, especially in weather like this.”
After getting into the driver’s seat, he shook some rainwater from his hair.
When Yeonhee tried to return his jacket, Jihan simply reached over and draped it back around her shoulders.
“If this is just acting… you can stop now…”
she murmured quietly.
Starting the engine, Jihan answered in a low but unwavering voice,
“It’s not an act.”
As Yeonhee recalled everything, another memory suddenly flashed through her mind.
“That’s right… the photograph!”
That old picture was the reason she had left the house so abruptly.
Afraid it would get wet when she hid it behind her back, she had shoved it deep into her pocket.
She quickly searched the jacket pocket and pulled out the old photograph, now slightly wrinkled.
Thanks to Jihan immediately covering her with his jacket, it had only a few damp spots.
It was otherwise unharmed.
Mom and Dad… they’re still the same.
A day hadn’t changed the people in the picture.
The smiling young couple.
Her parents.
Something isn’t right.
Why had that photograph been in the house Jihan showed her?
Who had lived there?
Come to think of it…
From the very beginning, Jihan had asked about The Way Research Institute, the laboratory her parents once operated.
Does he know something?
As she stared at the photograph, wondering whether she should ask him directly, something suddenly caught her eye.
“…JS Pharmaceuticals?”
Looking closer, all four people in the photograph were wearing identical white lab coats.
On the left side of each coat was the logo of JS Pharmaceuticals.
Her parents had originally worked there as researchers.
Later, they left the company and established The Way Research Institute on the very site where Damcheongwon now stood.
Then…
Were the other two people their fellow researchers?
There was only one way to learn the truth.
She had to confirm it herself.
Yeonhee picked up the phone lying on the table.
There were six missed calls.
Five of them were from Doyoon.
Since she usually stayed in touch with him, he must have become worried after hearing nothing from her.
She sent him a message saying she had gotten home safely and planned to rest for the day.
The remaining missed call…
Was from Jihan.
After hesitating for a long moment, she finally pressed the call button.
***
“So you’re the one who called first. What brings you here?”
Manager Sun’s face reflected clearly on the polished marble floor.
Yeonhee, who had been sitting on one of the plush chairs in the lobby of JS Pharmaceuticals, looked up.
“As I told you on the phone… there’s something I want to ask.”
“Couldn’t you have asked over the phone?”
Manager Sun asked arrogantly, as if she herself were the chairperson of JS Pharmaceuticals.
“No. I also have something I need to show you.”
Completely accustomed to such rudeness, Yeonhee remained unfazed.
What she needed wasn’t kindness.
It was the truth.
Manager Sun looked her up and down with obvious displeasure before crossing her arms.
“Believe it or not, our Chairperson personally agreed to meet you. Follow me.”
Without giving Yeonhee any chance to respond, she turned on her heel.
The sharp clicks of her high heels echoed across the marble lobby.
The elevator carried them to the top floor.
It was obvious at a glance that this office belonged to someone of the highest rank.
Everything was luxuriously decorated.
One wall consisted entirely of floor-to-ceiling windows.
On the left stood a comfortable sofa and table.
On the right were a large armchair and an enormous television.
In the center of the room sat an enormous glass desk.
“Knock before you enter, and greet her properly. She’s a very busy person, so don’t take too much of her time. You’re lucky she’s willing to meet you without an appointment.”
As if she’s someone so extraordinary.
Manager Sun clearly disliked Yeonhee for being an insignificant artificial human who had shown up without an appointment.
“Well then.”
Without another glance, Manager Sun walked away.
Yeonhee turned toward the massive dark wooden door before her.
Knock. Knock.
Silence.
She knocked harder.
Still no response.
Yeonhee glanced toward Manager Sun.
She was already sitting at her desk beside the elevator, staring at her computer monitor.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
“…Come in.”
Only after the louder knock did a sharp female voice finally answer from inside.
Yeonhee pushed open the heavy wooden door.
The office was lavishly furnished.
One side featured a floor-to-ceiling glass wall.
A luxurious sofa and coffee table stood to the left.
A comfortable lounge chair and large television occupied the right.
And behind the broad glass desk in the center sat a young woman reviewing documents.
“Hello. My name is Seo Yeonhee.”
The woman hadn’t looked up even after Yeonhee entered.
But at the sound of her voice, she finally raised her head.
Her neatly tied-back hair.
Sharp, cat-like eyes.
A confident smile.
She radiated an overwhelming presence that made her seem untouchable.
The woman smiled brightly at Yeonhee and said,
“Hello.”
“I’m Han Sehee, the Chairperson of JS Pharmaceuticals.”
