IDTE 17

Chapter – 17

― Why Do We Have Erotic Dreams?

After hesitating for a long time, I typed the keyword into the search bar

― …While dreaming, the regions that become active during fantasy override the rational circuits.

Why did they have to make it sound so complicated?

― Excessive stress, lack of sleep, or the manifestation of unexpressed desire…

I scrolled that far and closed the window without another thought.

The manifestation of unexpressed desire? Absolutely not. I couldn’t believe it, and I refused to.

The feeling of plummeting hit me all at once. I grabbed a stack of scrap paper beside me and crumpled it in my fist.

“Attorney Yoo, are you okay?”

I lifted my head over the partition and saw Senior Choi’s face for the first time in a while.

After that day, thankfully, he must have picked up on the silent signal I’d sent—there had been no more contact.

“Yes, of course.”

I forced a smile. His eyes dropped to the paper crushed in my hand.

“You always crumple paper like that when you’re stressed.”

“Do I? I’m sorry.”

His lips, which had been about to say something more, settled instead on a brief “Good work,” before he stepped away.

“Yoo Min-ha, you’re not popular with men, are you?”

Strangely enough, when Do Yi-hyun had said that to me not long ago, the person who came to mind was Senior Choi.

There was a time when I admired him for standing by justice and righteousness.

And long ago—just for a fleeting moment—I mistook that admiration for romantic feelings.

I may have even misinterpreted his constant kindness and advice as something more.

Now, being this awkward with him felt faintly regrettable.

― One more favor. I like leaving this kind of thing to someone like you, Yoo Min-ha.

It was a message from Do Yi-hyun.

The aftertaste of those words kept lingering on my tongue.

The debtor’s address I had first reviewed came back to me.
“Seoul, XX District, XX-dong 17-5, 1st floor.” It wasn’t far from the office.

The documents had no legal flaws. Yet the feeling that something was wrong kept solidifying in my chest.

At the beginning of winter, the sticky rain dug gray puddles into the road.

Gray. Neither white nor black, but somewhere in between.

That gray felt like it was staring back at me, so I deliberately stepped into a puddle and muddied it.

Under the streetlights scattered along the narrow, steep alleyway, garbage bags were piled high.

Before long, I arrived at the address I remembered.

“Mr. Shin Jong-seo…”

I hadn’t come to meet him directly or confirm anything in particular.

It just so happened that the debtor from Seongjin Capital lived nearby.

And unfortunately, I was the one who had reviewed the documents for the compulsory execution of this property. I had felt a small twinge of sympathy.

Basic human compassion. And the desire to identify the source of the discomfort growing inside me—that was what had brought me here.

I pictured Mr. Shin, who lived in a villa that looked quite old even at a glance.

What kind of person was he? What kind of life had led him to accumulate such debt and lose this home to Seongjin?

The gray puddle at my feet deepened. The wind scratched coldly at my cheeks, freezing the tip of my nose.

Just as I was about to turn back, the door to Shin Jong-seo’s house opened and someone stepped out.

A hunched old woman with gray curly hair.

Our eyes met. Even from a distance, I could feel the weight of her life pressing down on her.

Instead of a cane, she pushed an old stroller that creaked as it rolled toward me.

“Who are you looking for?”

“Ah… ma’am. Is this Mr. Shin Jong-seo’s home?”

“He’s my son. Why?”

“I know him. I was passing by and thought I’d check if he’s doing well.”

“Well? Like hell he is. I don’t even know where that damned boy is. Who knows if he’s dead somewhere.”

“What do you mean?”

“Maybe he went out to sea. Maybe he’s alive. It’s been a long time since we’ve heard anything. How would I know?”

“Are there other family members?”

“It’s just him and me. What other family?”

Between her words came shallow, intermittent coughs.

“But how do you know my Jong-seo?”

Thoughts tangled inside my head.

Behind the documents I had approved for compulsory execution, there was only this bent old woman, living alone with the sound of her own coughing.

I felt my expression stiffen and feared I couldn’t hide it, so I muttered an apology and hurried away.

From a distance, the weak squeak of the stroller wheels felt as if it were chasing me.

Now I understood why Do Yi-hyun had tested my lie.

He must have found me laughable. He must have wanted to pour ink called guilt over my conscience.

― I like leaving this kind of thing to someone like you, Yoo Min-ha.

I could almost hear the low sneer behind the message.

When I returned to Do Yi-hyun’s house, a small light was glowing in the living room.

The person I most wanted—and did not want—to face right now.

That lone lamp burning near him felt like a trap set just for me.

“You’re home late.”

“And you’re home early, surprisingly.”

“The documents I asked you about are here. Thanks to you, I feel quite secure these days.”

I didn’t take the papers he held out.

“Are you having fun?”

His dark eyes pierced into me.

“With what?”

“With the constant sarcasm.”

“Yes. Is it obvious?”

“You hand me these flawless documents. Am I that funny to you—just reviewing them without knowing a thing? Quite a perverse taste you have.”

“Yoo Min-ha, let’s speak plainly.”

He suddenly stood and walked toward me.

“You knew, didn’t you? How money flows around people like me.”

The faint smell of blood clung to him again as he stepped closer.

“You’re not going to play innocent now and blame me, saying you didn’t know what those documents meant, are you? Let’s not go with such a cliché story.”

I wouldn’t deny it. Deep down, I had known where those documents would lead.

“I won’t deny it. The way you people operate is obvious.”

The muddy gray puddle from earlier came to mind.

That gray zone at the edge of the law—neither black nor white.

I had thought I could endure as long as I stayed in that gray.

But what I had actually seen wasn’t gray at all. It was a black mass that completely swallowed someone’s life.

“But I’m curious how you live so comfortably. I’m especially curious today. Maybe that’s why I find you particularly disgusting right now.”

“Sounds like there was a time you found me pleasant.”

I snatched the envelope of documents from his hand.

“If I keep rolling around in your world long enough, I’ll become like you too, right? I’m looking forward to it.”

He let out a short laugh.

“No. Someone who pretends to be as clean as you could never become like me.”

“Good. A blank sheet gets dirtied the fastest.”

“Stop forcing it and just go back to living the way you did.”

His mocking chuckle was turning into a low growl.

“No. I’ll roll around in that filthy world you live in.”

“Our Attorney Yoo must think this world is quite easy.”

His low voice now sounded like a wild animal.

“This is my final advice to you, as someone who cares about doing the right thing. Let go of this kind of work and live quietly.”

“I refuse.”

The tension stretched tight as a wire filled the room. The small lamp flickered.

“Just shrink back and live quietly.”

“I’m quite stubborn.”

If that small light was a trap calling to me, I would jump in without hesitation.

If being caught in it meant being dragged deeper into Seongjin Capital, then perhaps that was good news.

Better to burn to ashes without regret.