Noh Hyun-Hee was the daughter of the former Minister of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport Noh Jang-Joon. She was also the wife of HK Inc.'s Chairman Hong Moon-Gyu, who was ranked 12th in the business world. Tall, with strong features and an imposing charisma, she actively built connections with the wives of political and business elites. And using those connections, she had done countless things that benefited HK Inc.. In other words, she was effectively the second-in-command at HK Inc. Hong Moon-Gyu would even joke that the real boss of HK Inc. was his wife. And now, she had shown up here at the L.M.L Black Label fashion show at Daechon Department Store. Several other chaebol wives were with her—all members of the Pyeongchang-dong Cooking Society, an exclusive culinary club hosted by Noh Hyun-Hee and made up of Daechon Department Store’s VVIP clients. Click. Clack. Click. Clack. Noh Hyun-Hee and other chaebol wives' footsteps toward me grew faster. Her eyes were colder than ice; it was a look filled with resentment for the man who had her sons arrested. At that moment, Lee Ha-Yoon leaned in and whispered. "Mr. Jung, Mrs. Noh wasn't invited. Please don't misunderstand." Aware of the conflict between me and HK Inc., Kim Ae-Ryeon had intentionally not invited her. VVIP fashion shows were invite-only events, so Noh Hyun-Hee's reason for showing up remained unclear. In the meantime, she was now right in front of me. Lee Ha-Yoon quickly stepped in front of me with a smile. "Oh my! Hello, Mrs. Noh~" Clasping her hands and beaming, Lee Ha-Yoon greeted her and prompted Noh Hyun-Hee to finally stop. The other wives following her halted as well. "Ha-Yoon, what are you doing here? And what's with that outfit?" Being part of the same chaebol circles, they were on familiar terms. Lee Ha-Yoon shrugged. "I heard the ladies were attending today, so I came to help my mom out." "Well, helping your parents in advance is a good habit. Now, would you mind stepping aside? I need to have a word with the man behind you." Noh Hyun-Hee asked her to move, but Lee Ha-Yoon continued smiling. "I'm sorry, but Mr. Jung here is a guest who came with a valid invitation. I'm sure you understand what that means." At events like department stores or VVIP-only gatherings, invited guests were expected to temporarily set aside personal feelings. After all, causing a scene at such an event would be seen as disrespecting the host. Those who broke this unspoken rule would not only lose future invitations but could be ostracized from high society for lacking class. Lee Ha-Yoon invoked this etiquette to block Noh Hyun-Hee. Yet, Noh Hyun-Hee didn't back down. "The event hasn't started yet. Don't be so uptight." "No. Once you've entered the parking area, you've entered the venue." Noh Hyun-Hee's brow furrowed slightly. "Ha-Yoon, are you really going to play it this way?" Lee Ha-Yoon nodded with a smile. "Yes. We have a reputation to maintain as hosts." Noh Hyun-Hee let out a short sigh and looked around at the wives with her. "Ladies, looks like I won't be attending. What will you do?" At those words, Ahn Seo-Jung pulled a dark brown envelope from her leather bag—an exclusive VVIP fashion show invitation stamped with Daechon Inc.'s emblem. She was the wife of the chairman of HB Construction, ranked 51st in the business world. "Ha-Yoon. If Mrs. Noh isn't attending, then I don't think I'll be attending the show either." That was just the beginning. Park Se-Yeon, wife of Taeyeon Electronics' CEO, also held out her invitation. "Ha-Yoon, I think I'll have to pass on today's show too." "Take mine too won't you, Ha-Yoon?" "Mine too. What kind of VVIP show is it if Mrs. Noh can't attend?" In an instant, ten invitations piled up in Lee Ha-Yoon's hands. Only then did her face stiffen. Losing ten out of about fifty expected VVIP guests could lead to serious consequences. "Are you all serious?" Ahn Seo-Jung acted as Noh Hyun-Hee's right-hand woman and responded for the group. "Yes. It's not like we caused a scene inside the venue, right? Tell your mother we declined politely for her dignity's sake." Noh Hyun-Hee's left-hand woman, Park Se-Yeon, also nodded. "This way, we've actually saved Mrs. Kim Ae-Ryeon some face. Let's see how much revenue you manage without us." Lee Ha-Yoon's expression hardened even more. The point of inviting a small number of VVIPs was that each one was guaranteed to spend big. But if they all walked out, it would cause a massive sales loss. That could label the show a failure and damage the image of the newly launched L.M.L Black Label brand. Seeing Lee Ha-Yoon flustered, Ahn Seo-Jung and Park Se-Yeon turned to Noh Hyun-Hee with satisfied looks. "Madam President, where to next?" They called her Madam President out of flattery, as she was the head of the Pyeongchang-dong Cooking Society. Noh Hyun-Hee addressed the VVIP members she had brought. "Chef Edmond is at the HK Hotel. Want to go have a French full-course meal together? It's a bit late, but totally doable. Edmond lives at the hotel." She was casually suggesting the absurd idea of summoning a chef at 10 p.m. for a full-course meal. As much as power-tripping was routine for her, it was still outrageous. The others around her were just as bad. "Oh my, you brought Chef Edmond from Dubai?" "Of course. My husband went all the way to Dubai to bring him back. These days, guests fly from Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan just to eat his food." "Last time I was in Dubai, it was his day off so I missed out... This is perfect. Let's have some late-night dining, shall we? We should be fine eating as long as we reduce the portions, right?" "Of course~ Shall we head to the hotel?" "Alright. I'll give Edmond a call." Flustered by the sudden development, Lee Ha-Yoon began to hesitate. She had taken on the role of VVIP coordinator, but clearly didn't anticipate Noh Hyun-Hee pulling something . If they all left, it could lead to bad rumors affecting Yoo-Jin. To prevent that, I spoke up to Lee Ha-Yoon. "I'm fine. Please contact Mrs. Kim. I'll have a word with Mrs. Noh since she said she just wanted to talk to me." I knew not just Noh Hyun-Hee, but every one of these ladies all too well. Before the regression, I had accompanied my celebrities to many events and met them multiple times. That was why I wasn't afraid of them. If anything, they were more likely to fear me. Lee Ha-Yoon said, "I'm sorry. I'll go make a quick call." Once Lee Ha-Yoon left, Noh Hyun-Hee stepped right up to my face. Her perfume was so strong I almost grimaced. "So you're Jung Yoon-Ho?" "I'm pleased to meet you." "I see. I came because I wanted to see in person the man who sent my sons to a cold prison." Noh Hyun-Hee's eyes were filled with hostility. Every word she spoke was laced with the determination to bring me down. But I remained composed. "I do feel regret over your sons being imprisoned. But don't you think it's untrue to say that their arrest was because of me? I understand your anger, but I think you're directing it at the wrong person." Noh Hyun-Hee looked at me, bewildered. "You're saying it wasn't because of you?" "They were punished because they committed crimes. I didn't fabricate anything." "What... What did you say?" If it were in her nature, she would've slapped me by now. But with the other wives watching, she barely held herself back. She took a few deep breaths and stared at me. "Sigh... Fine. Young people can get carried away. I'll acknowledge that. But this time, you made a mistake. I'll let it slide just this once, so go to the prosecutor and say it was all a misunderstanding. Do you understand?" She was asking me to cover up everything when Prosecutor Seo Jae-Ill already had all the evidence. The fact that she came just to say that was truly absurd. I shook my head and said, "The evidence has already been submitted. There's nothing I can do." "There's nothing in Korea that money can't solve. Just go and tell them to drop it. I'll take care of the rest." Maybe she planned to use money on Seo Jae-Ill to get her sons out. I wondered what kind of life she had lived to judge things so selfishly. "If that's what you came to say, there's nothing more to hear. I'll pretend I didn't hear it." At that moment, Noh Hyun-Hee glared at me and began trembling with anger. "Think it over... again." "There's nothing to reconsider." Noh Hyun-Hee stared at me, then looked to the side and spoke. "You all heard that, right? This bastard just turned down my offer." The other wives nodded. "Yes, we did." Noh Hyun-Hee nodded and issued her order. "From now on, pull every single ad involving Jung Yoon-Ho's celebrities. Got it?" I had expected something , but it still didn't feel great to experience it firsthand. Still, I wasn't about to take it lying down. So I immediately decided to break their unity. I could handle them one-on-one, but facing them as a group was too risky. Taking a deep breath, I began to reveal things I knew from before the regression. "Do you really think everyone here is going to follow your orders, Mrs. Noh?" I pointed at Ahn Seo-Jung and Park Se-Yeon. "Take Mrs. Ahn Seo-Jung of HB Construction, for example. Did you know how much she talks behind your back when you're not around? I heard she complained that HK Construction hasn't paid for the subcontracted apartments in Hwaseong. She must be holding a grudge, so do you think she'd really follow you?" Immediately, Ahn Seo-Jung's face turned pale. "Wh-when did I...?" Before the regression, Ju Yung-In overheard her gossiping at another fashion show and told me about it. Next, I pointed at Park Se-Yeon, wife of the CEO of Taeyeon Electronics. "And the same goes for Mrs. Park Se-Yeon. I heard when the joint product development with HK Electronics failed, she was made to pay all the costs. Since HK Electronics went bankrupt, I heard she's preparing to file a lawsuit against CEO Hong Seok-Joon, who's now in prison. You didn't hear about that?" Park Se-Yeon let out a shriek in shock. "Oh my, oh my! Why are you making up lies like that? That's not true! Madam, it's not true! I swear!" Before the regression, Taeyeon Electronics tried to secretly drain money from bankrupt HK Electronics and got caught. That too was something I had experienced. Noh Hyun-Hee looked furious and stared at both of them. Ahn Seo-Jung and Park Se-Yeon waved their hands frantically and pleaded. "No, Madam! You're not going to believe that guy, right?" "You know how much I respect and follow you, right? You trust me, don't you?" They tried to explain desperately, but it was too late. Noh Hyun-Hee was highly suspicious by nature. I used that moment to glance at the rest of the group with a smile as if to say, 'I know all your secrets too.' The others quickly avoided my gaze. Just moments ago, they were all ganging up on me. Now they were too nervous to speak, scared of what bombshell I might drop next. Thanks to that, Noh Hyun-Hee's entire plan fell apart. 'Time to head home, Mrs. Noh.' Right then, Lee Ha-Yoon came back from her call and walked over quickly at the perfect timing. Lee Ha-Yoon addressed Noh Hyun-Hee firmly. "Mrs. Noh. If you insist, we'll issue a special invitation for you." Noh Hyun-Hee snapped out of it and turned away from the others to glare at me, grinding her teeth. I thought she would give up and leave, but she made an unexpected move. "Ugh... Fine. Give me the invitation!" Lee Ha-Yoon nodded. "Do you see Assistant Director Ahn over there? Please follow him. I'll return the invitations to the rest of your party as well." Noh Hyun-Hee gave me one last glare before heading toward the elevator. Behind her, Ahn Seo-Jung and Park Se-Yeon followed with bitter expressions, clearly vowing revenge. But I wouldn't be seeing them again. There was no way someone as suspicious as Noh Hyun-Hee would let them off. The rest of the group followed her, watching me cautiously. The elevator doors closed and they were gone. Lee Ha-Yoon let out a long sigh. "I'm sorry for the trouble. Mom said she'll take care of it, so let's head up." Noh Hyun-Hee had lost face because of me, so who knew what she might try next. But I wasn't too worried, because I had EveryDay which let me see both the past and the future. Lee Ha-Yoon took the lead, and Wang Long and Lily followed behind her with me. Then Wang Long said with a mischievous expression, "You need help, Yoon-Ho? If it's HK Inc., I think they're doing some business in China too." Since Noh Hyun-Hee tried to use her friends to take me down, Wang Long suggested turning the tables the same way. However, I chuckled and replied, "This isn't a big deal. There's no need for that." I already owed Wang Long so much and I couldn't ask for help with this kind of thing too. I planned to handle HK Inc. myself. "Still, if you need anything, just say the word." "Thanks for what? Come on, we're friends." Unlike Noh Hyun-Hee's sandcastle of connections, Wang Long stood solidly behind me. Once again, I felt that choosing people over money in this second life had been the right decision. We arrived at the top floor of Daechon Department Store. Unlike a typical fashion show with a runway and seating on either side, today's VVIP fashion show was being held in a much more intimate space. The venue was an elegantly decorated import dishware section, now cleared out. Around a five-meter circular space, about 50 seats had been arranged. This type of VVIP show was also known as a "trunk show," named after the practice of showing limited collections from trunks when new clothing or jewelry launched. True to its name, the stage and seating were so close that guests could view the models up close. As I took my seat, I started scanning the faces of today's invitees. Noh Hyun-Hee sat in the front row, barely containing her anger. Ahn Seo-Jung and Park Se-Yeon sat far apart, perhaps feeling self-conscious. The distance between them was obvious to anyone. Beside them sat third- and fourth-generation chaebol executives. Each of them spent hundreds of millions of won annually at the department store. But, perhaps because a by-election was coming up, there wasn't a single political figure in attendance. Then Lee Ha-Yoon said after showing us to our seats, "I'll go tell my mom what happened." Lee Ha-Yoon scurried off toward the dressing and waiting rooms. Since Yoo-Jin was already being assisted by Yang So-Ri and Lee Mi-Ri, I sat back with Wang Long and waited for the show to begin. A moment later, Lee Ha-Yoon returned with a bounce in her step and a bright smile. "I told her. She said she'll keep an eye on things." Soon, Kim Ae-Ryeon appeared on stage. Wearing a tailored L.M.L Black Label suit, she took the mic and opened the trunk show. "Thank you all for coming to today's L.M.L Black Label design launch fashion show." People looked slightly surprised that the Daechon Inc.'s vice president herself had come. Kim Ae-Ryeon then introduced CEO Lee Yung-Ah of L.M.L Black Label. The room filled with polite applause and smiles. After greeting each of the VVIPs with a sparkling smile, Kim Ae-Ryeon spoke again. "The dress you're about to see is the one Miss Jung Yoo-Jin wore at the year-end drama awards. The piece is titled Glory. In English, Gloria." With that, Kim Ae-Ryeon gestured toward the aisle between the chairs. As classical BGM played, Yoo-Jin appeared in a dazzling white dress. With a confident expression and graceful steps, she walked between the chairs in the very dress she wore to the awards. But then I got a notification on my phone. [Notification: A new schedule entry for Jung Yoo-Jin has been added for January 31, 2021.] January 31 was today, and a new schedule entry had just been added. I immediately checked EveryDay, but the newly added schedule entry had something completely absurd written on it.