Joowon’s cold remark was like a death sentence cast down upon Han Jiwon.
Jiwon’s face turned as pale as a sheet, and his legs were visibly trembling, barely able to support his weight.
On the other hand, Joowon looked at Yoonwoo with a stoic expression, revealing no emotion.
The depth of the regret and apology hidden within his wavering eyes was impossible to gauge.
Yoonwoo slowly turned toward the C Company executives. His voice was low and calm, yet it carried an unwavering conviction.
“As you can see, our Studio Yeon has never committed such shameful acts as plagiarism. I truly apologize for causing concern through such an unsavory incident, and I sincerely thank C Company for trusting us until the end and giving us the opportunity to clarify our position.”
At his words, the C Company staff exchanged glances, unable to hide their awkwardness.
It was true that they, too, had been swayed by the ‘evidence’ presented by Jiwon and the sway of public opinion.
Just then, CEO Kang Seoyeon stood up abruptly.
Her face was filled with relief, along with a cold fury toward the conspirators who had caused this situation.
“I would like to take this opportunity to make one request of C Company!”
She cut through the silence of the conference room with a firm voice.
“I request a thorough audit of Company C’s Assistant Manager Kim Minjun, who is another conspirator in this incident!”
All eyes instantly darted to Kim Minjun. Stunned by Seoyeon’s sudden statement, he couldn’t hide his panicked expression, his eyes wide as a rabbit’s.
“What? I, I didn’t do anything…!”
“I don’t think you can claim ignorance.”
Seoyeon coldly cut him off.
“We have discovered numerous documents in Han Jiwon’s laptop containing evidence of collusion with you, Kim Minjun. Of course, one cannot rule out the possibility that these were unilaterally fabricated by Han Jiwon’s side or obtained through coercion. Therefore, I ask that C Company conduct a thorough internal audit to uncover the truth.”
At Seoyeon’s bombshell declaration, the faces of the C Company executives stiffened coldly, and Kim Minjun’s face turned deathly white, beyond mere paleness.
He broke into a cold sweat and tried to make excuses, but the atmosphere had already turned completely against him.
Breaking the heavy silence, the C Company Marketing Executive slowly rose from his seat.
His face was filled with deep regret and an apology toward Studio Yeon.
“I offer my sincere apologies to Studio Yeon and Chief Designer Seo Yoonwoo. Thank you for proving your innocence with such clear evidence today. C Company takes full responsibility for this plagiarism dispute, and we will immediately launch an internal audit regarding Assistant Manager Kim Minjun to get to the bottom of this without leaving a single doubt.”
He bowed respectfully to Yoonwoo and Seoyeon.
“Furthermore, if the misconduct of Assistant Manager Kim Minjun is proven to be true, C Company promises to take full responsibility and provide appropriate compensation for the damage caused to Studio Yeon’s reputation and business.”
Then, with a cold gaze, he turned to Joowon and Jiwon, who looked as if he had lost his soul, and continued.
His voice, stripped of its previous softness, was icy cold.
“However, CS Design, we can no longer tolerate you. Not only this project, but do not even dream of any future contracts with C Company. Any contract with any of our subsidiaries, including this one, will be impossible. We can no longer work with a company that has betrayed the trust of the industry in this way.”
His firm declaration was equivalent to a death sentence for CS Design.
However, Joowon silently nodded.
Rising from his seat, as if to take full responsibility, he bowed deeply to the C Company staff.
“…Everything is due to my negligence. I apologize.”
His calm voice was permeated with the sense of responsibility as a representative, as well as a deep realization that this entire catastrophe had ultimately stemmed from his own past wrong choices.
Joowon slowly turned toward Studio Yeon’s side. He looked at Yoonwoo, Seoyeon, and then Dojin in turn, and bowed deeply once again.
“To Studio Yeon and Chief Designer Seo Yoonwoo… I sincerely apologize. As the representative of CS Design, I deeply apologize for the damage and pain you must have suffered due to the unsavory actions of our employee. I will accept any punishment.”
His apology was dry, but its weight was far from light.
It contained an accumulation of regret for the person he once loved and remorse for a past that could never be undone.
The long final clarification meeting ended, and all the stakeholders began to leave the conference room with hardened faces.
Yoonwoo followed behind Seoyeon, along with Dojin.
His mind was still complex, but he felt lighter, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.
That was when it happened.
“Aaargh!!! This is nonsense! This is all a conspiracy! How… how could you do this to me!”
Suddenly, Han Jiwon shrieked sharply, fueled by malice. His face was hideously distorted with extreme anger and embarrassment.
“How could I… why… to a mere Beta like that…!”
He lashed out as if he couldn’t accept reality, glaring at everything around him with eyes full of resentment, until he eventually collapsed to the floor with a pale face after a single, short scream of “Ugh!”
His eyes were closed weakly.
It seemed as if the shock of all his meticulously crafted schemes turning to ashes and the fear of the harsh reality to come had crashed down upon his frail body.
The despair of seeing everything he had worked so hard to build collapse in an instant was too much for him to bear.
“Jiwon!”
Joowon shouted his name in surprise and ran toward him.
The conference room instantly turned into chaos.
While everyone was flustered and didn’t know what to do, Joowon urgently called 119.
A moment later, he carried the unconscious Jiwon and hurriedly left the conference room with the paramedics.
After the commotion, a heavy silence and bewilderment hung over the people left in the room.
It was CEO Kang Seoyeon who broke that silence.
She strode toward Lee Minjae, another culprit of this entire situation.
Even though the situation was over, Minjae was awkwardly avoiding eye contact, as if he still didn’t want to admit his guilt.
“Mr. Lee Minjae.”
Seoyeon spoke in a stiff, business-like tone, unlike her usual self, as if she no longer considered him a team member.
“You should get ready to eat prison food, too. First, pack up all your things in the company. And just quietly wait for the lawsuit.”
There wasn’t a shred of pity in her eyes.
At her words, Minjae’s face turned white. He urgently knelt before Seoyeon.
“CEO! I, I’m sorry! It was all my fault! But… but I had no choice! Han Jiwon made me do it…! I really didn’t want to do it!”
He spilled tears and pleaded his innocence.
It was a cowardly excuse, trying to avoid responsibility while admitting his guilt.
However, Seoyeon didn’t even blink at his pathetic begging.
She only looked down at Minjae with a cold gaze.
When his tears didn’t work on Seoyeon, Minjae urgently looked for the next target. It was Yoonwoo.
He crawled toward Yoonwoo and grabbed the hem of his pants.
“Chief, I… I have committed a sin deserving of death! You were so successful and talented… I was blinded by jealousy! I’m not usually like this…! Please… please forgive me just once! If I get fired like this, I’ll never be able to work in the design industry again! Please…!”
Minjae clung to Yoonwoo desperately, begging for forgiveness.
His face, covered in tears and snot, was pathetic, and his actions looked like a final struggle.
Yoonwoo stumbled slightly, losing his balance at the sudden touch.
Seeing this, Dojin, unable to contain his fury, rushed at Minjae and roughly tore his arms away.
His eyes were shining colder and more terrifyingly than ever before.
“You bastard, still not coming to your senses…! Do you know how the Chief was treated for the last few weeks because of your filthy inferiority complex?! His career, built up over several years, was entirely denied!”
Dojin’s voice was muffled with rage.
“How can a designer yourself turn another designer into a plagiarist! Someone like you should be sued, ruined completely, and permanently expelled from the industry!”
Dojin glared contemptuously at Minjae, who was sitting on the floor sobbing, and then, as if he weren’t worth any more of his time, took Yoonwoo by the arm and led him out of the conference room.
Yoonwoo, still seemingly unable to recover from the shock, moved his feet helplessly as he was led by Dojin.
All the way from the conference room to the parking lot, Yoonwoo couldn’t say a word.
When they got into the car, Dojin examined Yoonwoo’s complexion with worried eyes.
His face was still pale, and his breath was trembling slightly.
“Chief, are you okay? You look terrible.”
Yoonwoo shook his head faintly.
“No…. It’s just… so many things happened all at once… I’m a bit dazed.”
His voice was exhausted, but there was a hint of relief somewhere in it.
He looked out the window for a moment, then suddenly asked Dojin something he had been curious about.
“I heard a little bit at the restaurant, but… Dojin, how did you prepare all these materials? I didn’t even know there were comparison materials…. Wasn’t it very difficult for you to do it alone?”
Dojin smiled softly at Yoonwoo’s question.
“It’s okay, Chief. And… I didn’t do it alone. There was someone who helped me.”
At those words, Yoonwoo recalled their meeting at the restaurant two weeks ago.
