Min-Joon's private jet sliced through the air,
returning him to Seoul before dawn. He sat in the opulent cabin, not resting, but reviewing the preliminary reports streaming in from his Chief Security Officer, Mr. Park, and his personal investigator, Mr. Han. The cold, analytical part of his brain was processing the data; the small, deeply wounded part was preparing for a final, necessary confrontation.
The financial betrayal—the unauthorized transfer of billions—was confirmed. Park's team had traced the transfer's initial jump point to a network accessed via a private modem on the jet, exactly during the flight's ascent. The evidence was irrefutable. But the identity of the accomplice, Han Joo-Hyuk, was still the missing piece of the personal betrayal.
Min-Joon's investigator, Han, reported back with devastating swiftness.
The initial report detailed Joo-Hyuk's profile: a freelance photographer, minor exhibitions, deep financial debts, and a vehement anti-corporate stance. Then came the second, crucial report—a deep dive into the apartment building in the quiet alley that Seo-Yun frequented.
The photos were crisp, undeniable, and utterly devastating to the remnants of Min-Joon's controlled reality.
The images showed Kang Seo-Yun, his elegant, perfect wife, entering the rundown building on multiple occasions, always late at night, often wearing a simple, dark disguise. The photos culminated in a sequence taken just last week: Seo-Yun was captured embracing Han Joo-Hyuk in the dim light of the alleyway, the raw passion and intimate familiarity between them starkly clear.
Min-Joon lowered the tablet onto his lap. The sound of the jet engine was a distant roar, but the silence in his mind was absolute. This was not a business rival or an opportunistic thief. This was a lover. His wife had not merely stolen his money; she had tainted his marriage, his home, and his public image with the presence of a petty, insignificant man.
The betrayal was complete: Financial Treason + Marital Infidelity.
His reaction was not the desperate shout of a heartbroken husband, but the calculated fury of a CEO whose perfectly engineered system had been compromised. He felt a chilling clarity. The 'headaches,' the 'yoga classes,' the need for 'emotional space'—all were meticulous lies designed to facilitate a reckless, petty affair that grew into a massive financial conspiracy.
He was betrayed not by love, but by cold, strategic contempt.
Min-Joon arrived back in Seoul before 5:00 AM. He did not go to the penthouse. He went directly to the K.M. Holdings headquarters.
He summoned Mr. Park and Mr. Han to his private, fortified office.
"The money is secondary," Min-Joon stated, his voice flat and expressionless. "The immediate goal is to locate them and retrieve the evidence. Where are they?"
Mr. Han presented the final piece of evidence: "Chairman, we tracked Joo-Hyuk's boat charter. They fled south, likely heading for Southeast Asia—perhaps Phuket or Bali, using the untraceable offshore accounts. However, we had a contingency plan."
Han displayed a small, digital map on the wall. A small, persistent tracking icon glowed red, moving slowly across the South Sea.
"Joo-Hyuk's boat was intercepted by one of our security vessels fifteen minutes ago, based on my prediction of their trajectory. They are currently being escorted back to the mainland. They should reach a secure, private harbor near Busan by 10:00 AM."
Min-Joon stood up, walking toward the window. The city was just beginning to stir. "Busan. Good."
He then looked at his Security Chief. "Mr. Park, the financial records, the biometric key, the unauthorized transfer. All of it is evidence of a massive, premeditated corporate espionage attempt. Do not let this look like a domestic incident. This is a theft against K.M. Holdings."
"Understood, Chairman. We have already initiated the legal freeze. The funds are inaccessible to them, though the accounts are open," Park confirmed.
Min-Joon knew the freezing was only a temporary measure, but it was enough. Seo-Yun had successfully stolen the money, but he had successfully cut off her escape route and her access to the funds.
At 10:30 AM, Kim Min-Joon stood waiting in a desolate, heavily secured private warehouse near the Busan docks. The air was cold and smelled of diesel and salt.
The boat arrived, docking quietly. Two of Min-Joon's towering security men escorted the pair onto the dusty warehouse floor.
Kang Seo-Yun looked utterly defeated, her chic travel clothes rumpled, her face pale, the dark circles under her eyes starkly visible. She looked like a woman who had run a desperate marathon only to be caught at the finish line.
Han Joo-Hyuk stood beside her, his expression a mixture of defiance and terror. His eyes immediately darted to Min-Joon's face, searching for a hint of the furious, screaming husband.
Min-Joon gave them no such satisfaction. He looked at them as one would look at a soiled, broken object.
He addressed Joo-Hyuk first, his voice dangerously soft. "You were the catalyst. The ambitious fool who thought he could steal from me."
Joo-Hyuk remained silent, his fear palpable.
Then, Min-Joon turned his full, terrifying attention to Seo-Yun. He pulled out the tablet and displayed one of the photos from the alley—the image of her embracing her lover.
"You said you were tired," Min-Joon stated, his voice a low, burning ember. "You complained of headaches, the oppressive nature of my life, the lack of 'real feeling.'" He paused, his eyes drilling into hers. "And all the while, you were not only stealing the foundation of my empire, but cheating on me with this... this common thug."
Seo-Yun finally found her voice, a desperate, broken whisper. "You never saw me, Min-Joon! You only saw the asset! I hated the perfection, the lies!"
"Lies?" Min-Joon's voice finally rose, not in a scream, but in a devastating roar of cold logic. "The perfection was what you demanded! The lies were your chosen tools! You betrayed my trust, you attacked my life, and you risked my entire corporation for a moment of reckless passion with a man whose greatest ambition is to sabotage what others build!"
He walked closer, his physical dominance asserting itself. "You are not a victim of perfection, Seo-Yun. You are a strategist of betrayal. You stole my money using the key of my trust and tarnished my name using the excuse of love. But you forgot one thing: I am always one step ahead."
He motioned to his men. "Take the accomplice. Mr. Park, initiate the corporate espionage charges. The bank transfer records and the physical evidence are sufficient."
He looked at Seo-Yun one final time. The look was not hate; it was complete, utter dismissal. "As for you, Mrs. Kim... the divorce will be handled by my lawyers. You will receive nothing but the shame you have earned. You will be known as the woman who betrayed her husband and stole from the company. Your 'freedom' will be purchased at the cost of your reputation."
Seo-Yun watched in horrified silence as Joo-Hyuk was dragged away, his defiance finally crumbling into terror.
Min-Joon had not just caught her; he had dissected her betrayal, weaponized her own methods against her, and prepared to destroy her social existence. The cheating was revealed, not as an emotional wound, but as a fatal flaw in her strategy.
Min-Joon turned his back on the debris of his shattered marriage and his exposed wife. The chapter of Min-Joon and Seo-Yun was officially closed.