Chapter 14

[The Kim]

The three young heirs of the big Kim family were gathered together in Kim Kibum’s private library, his sacred place. Kibum felt like a hypocrite sometimes. He wanted to leave his share of the inheritance, yet he would feel very reluctant to be separated from the facility his father gave him, the library. Well, perhaps he could convince his father that the books were nothing as a Kim’s treasure so that he could still get his books even after rejecting the inheritance.

But that was another issue.

“So, what’s the progress?”

Kibum’s oldest cousin, Kim Heechul, posed the question to him and Ryeowook. Kibum stayed silent and let Ryeowook did all the talking. Besides, Ryeowook wanted to look useful in Heechul’s eyes, so Kibum would just let him take the spotlight.

“Can’t find Yoona-sshi. We’ve searched to the places she often visits, to her cousins and friends’ houses. Zero. If the police can’t even find him, than how could we? However, Kibum Hyung and I are planning to look for clues in her room.”

Heechul looked amused. “You’re going to her room?”

“Yes, I’ll just let her parents know that we’re also looking for her and we want to find clues.”

“So honest,” remarked Heechul. “Nothing’s wrong with that though. But will we ever find new evidences? Considering the Police must have checked her room too?”

“But the police don’t reveal what they found to us in detail. Cannot really trust them, can we?” argued Ryeowook hesitantly. A relieved sigh was let out though, when he saw Heechul’s head nodded in agreement.

Kibum then brought up the next issue. "But we cannot move recklessly. The police are spying on us.”

While Heechul was already aware of that fact, Ryeowook was taken aback. “They do?”

Heechul casually added. “No need to worry though, Wookie. It’s not as if we’re doing anything illegal.”

“Yes,” confirmed Kibum. “Besides, we can make ourselves safe enough while investigating this case. I have a friend in the police department who could leak me police information. And I’ve also ordered the tracking devices secretly. The equipment shall be sent here in a week.”

Ryeowook seemed to be a bit surprised. “Aren’t you… going too much, Hyung?” he asked Kibum.

“It’s a necessary precaution,” reasoned Kibum. “Soon, we’ll be able to move freely. The police will probably loosen their surveillance soon anyway,” he commented further. “Im Yoona has been missing for more than a week now. Their priority would be to find her. Most probably the special services assigned to watch over us will be appointed as additional team to track her down. The Im was getting more frantic each day. Perhaps they will get to the point of sending a national army to look for their sole heiress.”

Heechul chuckled, “And it all begins in a ing club. Only one step into it, and you’re tangled in the mess.” He leaned his back on the study chair and gazed up at the high ceiling of Kibum’s private library. “Whoever the culprit is, what’s his or her purpose in doing all of these?”

“Some people have weird definition of fun,” Kibum shrugged.

“Fun,” Heechul repeated as he closed his eyes. “This so-called fun thing never happened before in the earlier period of Der Märchenclub, did it?”

“Our parents managed to enjoy the club just fine.”

“Who organizes this club, actually?” inquired Heechul. “Leeteuk Hyung can’t be working to manage the club alone right? Who appointed him as the manager? Is the title something inherited? Or is it by votes? Who were to vote?”

“The Choi would surely be the most suspicious one. They bought Seoul Opera House and transformed it as the venue of Der Märchenclub’s meeting point. All families of the invited members of Der Märchenclub are fixed donators, but the Choi is probably the largest financial donor. And that would mean they have power over the management,” analyzed Kibum.

“The Choi,” Heechul let out the words in distaste. The Kim and the Choi families were South Korea’s top two most influential family empires, and for generations, they had acted like silent rivals. Both families dominated different scope of business: the Kims were more focused on claiming the spot in South Korea’s politic and to expand their oil companies, while the Choi had wider varieties of business but in lesser monopolistic powers.

The rivalry got personal in Heechul’s case sometimes, for he hated Choi Siwon in particular. He always refused to answer the reason why though.

“But…they are generally nice. Choi Sooyoung, for example, is very nice,” Ryeowook cautiously defended. “I am aware of the fact that our families are not exactly on the best term, but it just seems… impossible for them to randomly kill people.”

“Duh, Wookie,” Heechul clicked his tongue at his youngest cousin’s naivety. “Ambition. Revenge. Even boredom. One does not really need a reason to do crazy things. Sheesh, what can we expect from you?”

Ryeowook looked down in embarrassment.

Disappointment, again. You are a disappointment, as always.

“But you raised an interesting issue,” Heechul added and Ryeowook lifted his head almost expectantly. The oldest cousin continued, “Choi Sooyoung. You might want to dig more information from her.”

Ryeowook blinked. Choi Sooyoung was his friend from high school and she was very kind to him even when he was often bullied. To manipulate such kindness, he felt like an awful person.

But then again…