Later that afternoon, Yun-ji insisted they leave the office.
"I owe you lunch."
Won-Shik looked genuinely confused.
"You don't."
"I do."
"You came asking for a favor."
"Exactly."
She smiled mischievously.
"Which means I should at least feed the person helping me."
"You make it sound like I'm easy to bribe."
She laughed.
"Maybe just slightly."
Against his better judgment, he agreed.
The restaurant she chose wasn't extravagant.
Instead, it was a quiet traditional Korean restaurant tucked away from the busy streets.
The atmosphere was calm.
The aroma of freshly prepared dishes filled the air.
As they sat across from one another, conversation flowed naturally.
No awkward silences.
No forced politeness.
Yun-ji possessed an effortless ability to make people feel comfortable.
Won-Shik found himself relaxing in a way he rarely did during business meetings.
Halfway through lunch, he casually asked,
"Can I ask you something?"
"You already are."
He smiled.
"The company whose shares you purchased."
She looked up.
"What about it?"
"How did you know?"
She blinked.
"Know what?"
"That its value would rise so dramatically."
His eyes remained fixed on hers.
"Most professional analysts overlooked it."
"You invested at exactly the right moment."
He leaned slightly forward.
"That's not ordinary luck."
For the briefest moment, Yun-ji's heartbeat quickened.
She lowered her spoon before offering a light laugh.
"Maybe I just have unusually good luck."
"I don't believe that."
"I read several reports."
"Those reports predicted average performance."
She smiled innocently.
"I suppose I interpreted them differently."
He continued watching her.
She never looked nervous.
Never avoided eye contact.
Yet something about her answer felt carefully crafted.
Not exactly a lie.
But certainly not the whole truth.
After a long pause, he simply nodded.
"I'll accept that."
Internally, however, he remained unconvinced.
There was something unusual about Yun-ji.
Something beyond intelligence.
Her decisions seemed too precise.
Too calculated.
Almost...
As though she already knew what the future held.
He immediately dismissed the ridiculous thought.
Impossible.
As they stepped outside the restaurant, Won-Shik suddenly remembered something.
"Oh, before I forget..."
"Hm?"
"My mother asked me to pass along a message."
Yun-ji looked at him curiously.
"Mrs. Kim?"
He nodded.
"You remember meeting her a while back?"
Of course she remembered.
Although they had met only once, Seo-Yun never forgot her.
"Mother still talks about you," Won-Shik said with an amused smile. "She was quite fond of you after your first meeting."
Yun-ji blinked in surprise.
"Really?"
"She insisted that if I ever met you again, I should invite you to our home."
He laughed softly.
"She said she'd like to have lunch or dinner with you whenever you're free."
Yun-ji smiled warmly.
"That is very kind of her."
"So... should I tell her you'll come?"
"I'd be happy to."
"I'll let her know."
As Yun-ji walked back toward her car, neither of them noticed several FORTUNE employees watching discreetly from the lobby windows.
The rumor that the mysterious young woman had not only visited the CEO's office but had also gone out to lunch with him spread through the company before the afternoon workday had even begun.
By sunset, almost everyone in FORTUNE had heard some version of the story.
Only Kim Won-Shik and Yun-ji remained blissfully unaware that a perfectly innocent business meeting had become the company's favorite topic of gossip.
Three days after the purchase agreement was finalized, Yun-ji finally held the brass key to the neighboring house in her hand.
The small key rested quietly in her palm, yet it carried the weight of a future she had sworn to change.
In her previous life, the house had remained abandoned for years before eventually being sold to strangers. She had passed it countless times without sparing it a second glance.
This time...
It would become a place where dreams could take shape.
Not just hers.
But Min-Ho's as well.
After finishing her classes that afternoon, Yun-ji made her way to a small café near the bus stop with Min-Ho.
Even though both of them had many problems in their lives, they always made time to meet each other. It was especially difficult for Min-Ho, as she could not leave her house whenever she wanted because of her family's strict control. Still, she always found a way to meet Yun-ji.
Their friendship was not built through school or by studying together. It was created by the mysterious pendant they both shared and the second chance at life they had received.
Ever since they became friends, Min-Ho had slowly started opening up. She laughed more, smiled more, and was gradually becoming her cheerful self again. As the poison in her body continued to leave under Yun-ji's treatment, she felt stronger and more energetic every day. It was a feeling she had not experienced in years.
"You've been impossible to catch lately. For someone who usually tells me everything, you've been acting incredibly mysterious these days."
Yun-ji smiled innocently.
"Have I?"
"You have."
Min-Ho rested her chin on her hand.
"Every time I ask what you're doing, you smile and say, 'You'll find out soon.'"
"Then you disappear."
"You even refused to tell me why you needed my entire afternoon today."
Yun-ji calmly stirred her drink.
"I wanted it to be a surprise."
"You know I don't like surprises."
"No."
Yun-ji laughed softly.
"You only pretend not to."
"I only like surprises involving food."
"Unfortunately..."
Yun-ji stood, picking up her bag.
"This one isn't edible."
Min-Ho sighed dramatically.
"There you go again."
"So mysterious."
Yun-ji simply smiled.
"I'm not hiding anything from you."
"I just wanted you to see it with your own eyes instead of hearing about it."
Curiosity immediately replaced Min-Ho's complaints.
"...See what?"
"You'll know in twenty minutes."
When they finally stopped before the vacant house beside the Choi Residence, Min-Ho looked between the weathered building and Yun-ji several times.
"...Don't tell me."
Yun-ji slowly lifted the brass key.
"I bought it."
Silence.
Min-Ho stared blankly for nearly ten seconds.
Then—
"You bought a house?"
Yun-ji nodded.
"I did."
Instead of saying anything else, Min-Ho burst into laughter.
"So this is why you've been acting like the mysterious heroine in a drama."
"I thought you'd be excited."
"I am!"
She grabbed Yun-ji by both shoulders.
"But you seriously bought an entire house without telling me?"
"I wanted your first visit to be special."
Min-Ho shook her head, smiling helplessly.
"You really are unbelievable."