Translator: Elisia
Editor/Proofreader: Wojo
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“……Do I just need to prove that I am Sara’s family?”
At Choi Na-kyung’s words, the director paused briefly before responding.
“Just being family isn’t enough, is it? What kind of world do we live in these days? Even parents aren’t treated as such if the relationship with their child isn’t properly established.”
“……”
“Is that company still putting pressure on you?”
“……That’s something that couldn’t be helped operationally.”
“Is that so.”
The director stayed silent for a moment, then picked up the cup on the table.
But he didn’t bring it to his lips.
Holding the warm cup in both hands, the director, who had been quiet for a while, spoke up.
“You know, among Sara’s friends, there’s the heir to Lee Won Enterprises.”
“……”
“That company is not one you can look down on as easily as the one you’re dealing with right now. Although we provide them with business and they follow our requests, it’s a mutually beneficial relationship for both sides.”
Then he raised his head and looked at Choi Na-kyung.
“As I’ve told you before, constantly dealing with those you don’t like in this manner is not a good habit for a business leader. There are limits to how much you can crush people with power. Even though your company is often labeled as one of the most powerful, wouldn’t solidifying that image create a serious problem?”
“I’ll handle what I can.”
“Didn’t you say you’d leave the management to the board?”
“……”
“Please, don’t let personal feelings blind you to the point where it hinders the future of the company. We are here to pursue profits, not to resolve the Chairwoman’s personal emotions. Please remember why you were able to rise to this position.”
“……”
The reason why she was able to become the Chairwoman.
Surely, this man was telling her to remember the grace of the former chairman.
As a lowly nurse, who struggled with grueling three-shift work, it was all thanks to that person that she could become the richest woman in the world.
Of course, Choi Na-kyung’s choice to rise to the position of Chairwoman had nothing to do with that.
She only ever wanted one thing.
“You may be the largest shareholder of Eugene Electronics as an individual…… but I want to remind you that the board collectively holds a significant portion of the shares. And, your current actions are negatively affecting the company’s image. Investors are becoming anxious.”
“……”
“Even though you’ve been steadily buying back company shares, there’s no telling what might happen in the future.”
“……Sara’s and my shares……”
“Sara’s shares are Sara’s shares.”
At the director’s words, Choi Na-kyung fell silent.
That’s right.
Sara’s shares.
Ordinarily, they would have been seen as one with Choi Na-kyung’s shares, her only mother’s.
But.
“……So, show that you still have a parent-child relationship with Sara.”
If not, the outcome is already determined.
Votes within the company are driven solely by capital logic.
“……I’ll prove it. Without fail.”
Choi Na-kyung gritted her teeth.
*
It was an ordinary day, just like any other.
Of course, “ordinary” only applied within the confines of this school.
Outside, this school was anything but ordinary.
This was a place where the children of the richest families in the country attended.
All the facilities were the best in the nation, even the teachers were top-tier.
And this was a school that ran purely on tuition fees from the students, with almost no government support.
It boasted tuition fees higher than many private universities.
For a “normal” family’s child to attend this school, they would either have to study incredibly hard to get in on a scholarship or take on massive debt.
The environment inside the school was even more absurd.
As children of families at the extreme end of capitalism, it was routine for students to exchange “gifts” with each other, and the luxury-brand teachers, tired of students who didn’t even attend classes properly, seemed to have forgotten how to act as educators.
Money flowed freely between students, between teachers, and even between students and teachers.
There was even a bank officer stationed at the school just for this purpose.
The deeper you delved, the more it diverged from what one would normally call “ordinary.”
But no matter how strange a place it might be, if you stayed there long enough, you’d come to think of it as normal.
The children who used to ostracize Ye Sara probably thought the same, as did the teachers who nonchalantly went along with it.
In fact, it could be said that Ye Sara’s sudden wild resistance disrupted that “normality.”
Her position in the school had changed significantly.
Even teachers, despite being ignored by the students, had at least a modicum of authority.
They gave students their grades, and while those who paid their way through school could ignore them, they were still a terrifying presence to “the students attending for free thanks to those students.”
Scholarship students, who should have been treated well for their excellent grades, were actually at the bottom of the food chain.
They were “kids who would someday need to be employed.”
The students who paid to attend could easily put a leash on them.
……And Ye Sara.
The thought that “the money Ye Sara has isn’t hers” wasn’t all that strange.
Because, for most students at this school, that was true.
No matter how old they were, they were still students, not yet adults.
How many students at this school could confidently say, “This money isn’t my parents’ but mine”?
Moreover, Ye Sara was actually under the control of her so-called mother.
……Of course, that was just a misconception.
By effortlessly throwing around money that someone could earn in a lifetime, Ye Sara had taken over the school.
And so, the situation that had unfolded didn’t feel ordinary at all.
No one could ignore her anymore, and people had to listen when she spoke, at least for now.
……In a place full of one-eyed people, the one with both eyes is considered abnormal.
Those who have lived their whole lives with one eye will see the person with two as strange.
And in such a society, it’s impossible for the person with two eyes to be treated as “normal” unless they pluck one out.
However—
“Ye Sara.”
During roll call, the teacher suddenly called Ye Sara’s name.
As always, she wasn’t paying attention to her surroundings, just staring out the window.
She turned her head a beat late, staring blankly at the teacher.
“You don’t need to attend class today.”
“……Pardon?”
Ye Sara looked bewildered, a reaction that had been quite common earlier this semester.
Her classmate used to poke her in the side, making her let out strange noises.
But recently, the noticeably calmer Ye Sara didn’t often show such signs of confusion.
“Could you repeat what you just said?”
She spoke as if she were deliberately provoking the teacher.
The homeroom teacher frowned slightly but replied,
“Someone is here to see you.”
The entire class was now watching Ye Sara.
“……”
Her jaw dropped slightly in surprise.
“……Who?”
“You’ll know when you go and meet them.”
“No.”
Ye Sara’s answer was sharp.
But a complicated expression appeared on her face.
……Or was it anticipation?
Despite her apparent confusion, the corners of her mouth lifted ever so slightly.
Or maybe it was an angry face.
Her brows twitched, and she looked at the teacher as if she could cut him down with her gaze.
“Ah, the rest of you, don’t stand up. You’ll face consequences if you do. How many classes have you skipped so far?”
The teacher warned Yoon Da-ho and Yoo Ha-neul, who had begun to rise.
Yoo Ha-neul flushed, and Yoon Da-ho gritted his teeth.
“I said sit down.”
The students held their breath.
How could this be?
The teacher who had been unable to even look at Yoon Da-ho after being exposed for taking bribes was now standing tall.
“It’s fine.”
Ye Sara stood up and spoke.
“……I figured this would happen eventually.”
“……Sara.”
“I’ll be back soon.”
With that, Sara looked toward the teacher.
“……Where should I go?”
“They’re waiting in the faculty office.”
The homeroom teacher simply answered.
Ye Sara stared at the teacher for a while, then turned toward the classroom door.
“Sara, maybe—”
Yoo Ha-neul started to say something, but—
“No.”
Ye Sara immediately cut her off.
“This is something I have to finish alone.”
“……”
Ye Sara didn’t look back.
As the classroom door closed, a silence enveloped the room.
“Now, let’s begin roll call.”
The teacher smiled confidently as he spoke.
“……”
And that became a kind of signal.
The students judged that the teacher had regained his confidence.
Ah, it’s time for things to go back to “normal.”
They didn’t understand exactly how things were turning out, but they’d figure it out in time.
If things were going as they should.
Their gazes turned toward Yoon Da-ho and Yoo Ha-neul, who remained in the classroom.
—In a world full of one-eyed people, those with both eyes are treated as abnormal.
And for those “abnormal” ones to become “normal,” they have to pluck out one eye.
However, there’s one important thing.
When plucking out an eye, you must carefully choose which one.
Because if you choose the wrong eye, you’ll end up pulling it out and still be treated as abnormal.