#1.

Lee Han manipulated the camera to meticulously observe the every move of the woman he had targeted. The woman in the monitor was a petite beauty who looked to be in her late twenties. Her sharp eyes, high nose bridge, and red lips were impressive. However, the woman’s personal information was nowhere to be found.

,I guess I have to find that out myself…’

After several days of background checks, Lee Han was able to grasp a rough idea of her identity. The woman was a newlywed who had recently gotten married. Her husband was an ordinary salaryman working at a small to medium-sized company, and he often worked late to support their livelihood. The wife seemed to be staying at home without any particular job. She would occasionally go out, but she didn’t stay out long and quickly returned home.

Lee Han memorized the couple’s names and ages shown on the screen. The woman’s name was Han Su-jin, and she was 29 years old. The husband was a 34-year-old man named Park Tae-young.

,Han Su-jin, Park Tae-young…’

He repeated the two people’s names in his head. They were ordinary and common names, but now they seemed to be engraved in Lee Han’s mind with a special meaning. As the names of the first target, the first victim.

,How should I approach her… Threatening her doesn’t seem to have any particular issues, so it’ll be difficult. But kidnapping is… She’s a woman with a husband, so it won’t be easy.’

Lee Han racked his brains and fell into deep thought. He had to find a way to trap 29-year-old Han Su-jin. For a while, he tried to find her weaknesses by thoroughly observing her daily life. He was constantly looking for an opportunity.

But the answer still didn’t appear. This woman seemed to have nothing but the life of an ordinary wife. Even Lee Han, who had entered the path of crime, hesitated quite a bit. Ruining the life of an innocent person was never an easy thing to do.

One day, while watching the screen, Lee Han noticed Han Su-jin behaving strangely. She was rummaging through other people’s packages. After watching this carefully, Lee Han checked all the past videos.

After capturing Han Su-jin’s strange behavior, Lee Han carefully examined the past videos. And he found out a shocking fact. Han Su-jin had a kleptomania symptom. She usually seemed normal, but every certain period, she would secretly take other people’s packages and then put them back.

After analyzing the bathroom videos, it seemed that the timing coincided with her menstrual cycle. He had heard that some women rarely show kleptomania symptoms during their periods. Lee Han never imagined that Han Su-jin would be that type.

He had finally found her weakness. A faint smile spread across Lee Han’s face. He was lucky. He quickly printed out all the related videos and made them into photos. With the evidence in his hand, he could start blackmailing her right away.

But Lee Han decided not to act rashly. If he came on too strong from the beginning, it would only backfire. He couldn’t take out all the cards at once. He had to slowly, gradually lure Han Su-jin into the trap.

First, he was going to give her a slight warning with the kleptomania evidence. After observing her reaction, he planned to gradually increase the level of blackmail. Eventually, he would make Han Su-jin get caught in the snare herself.

Lee Han smiled darkly and began to plot his next move. A meticulous scheme to drag a woman into the swamp was being devised in his head. Led by the devil’s whispers, he was falling deeper and deeper into the darkness.

Then one day, Lee Han captured an interesting scene. An older woman and a young woman came to Han Su-jin’s house. The two people in the camera entered with stiff expressions.

,Mother, Su-jeong-ah. What brings you here?’

Han Su-jin greeted them with a puzzled look.

,Do you know that our son is suffering because of you?’

The woman who appeared to be Park Tae-young’s mother approached Han Su-jin and said as if venting her resentment.

,Mom, I told you not to marry her to oppa! I feel so bad for oppa.’

The woman named Su-jeong next to her glared at Han Su-jin and snapped.

,I love Tae-young-ssi. Please understand.’

Han Su-jin, unable to hide her embarrassment, made excuses, but the animosity of her mother-in-law and sister-in-law did not subside.

,How dare you talk about love? A woman like you doesn’t suit our Tae-young!’

,Yeah, tell oppa to divorce you right now.’

The two people poured out their reproaches and drove Han Su-jin into a corner.

At that moment, the front door burst open and Park Tae-young rushed in. He seemed to have rushed over after receiving a call that they were coming to his house.

,Mother, Su-jeong-ah. Please stop! Han Su-jin is my wife now. Please accept her!’

,But…’

,She’s family. Huh?’

Park Tae-young spoke softly, and his mother and younger sister couldn’t respond.

,Let’s talk outside first.’

He took his mother and younger sister, opened the front door, and went out. Han Su-jin looked at their backs with an uneasy look.

A little later, Park Tae-young returned alone. He approached Han Su-jin and hugged her.

,I’m sorry. My family made things difficult for you.’

,No. I’m the one who’s sorry. There’s friction with your family because of me…’

Seeing the tears welling up in Han Su-jin’s eyes, Tae-young looked regretful. He stroked his wife’s cheeks and comforted her.

,Don’t worry. I’ll convince them. You’re our family. Someday, they’ll all understand.’

,Yeobo…’

,If you’re having a hard time, tell me anytime. We can get through this together.’

Han Su-jin nodded, sobbing. She found comfort in Tae-young’s reliable embrace.

Lee Han, who was watching the scene with the camera, smirked. A plan to threaten her was being formed in his head.

The next day, after Park Tae-young went to work, Lee Han headed to her house, taking advantage of the time when Han Su-jin was alone. When he rang the doorbell, Han Su-jin opened the door after a while. Her face was full of wariness.

,Hello, I’m Lee Han, the building manager of this building. You’re Han Su-jin-ssi, right?’

,Yes, but what brings you here?’

Han Su-jin asked in a cold tone. Lee Han smiled kindly and replied.

,I came to see Han Su-jin-ssi because I have something important to talk about. Can you spare some time?’

,It’s difficult for you to enter someone else’s house without my husband. Come back later.’

Han Su-jin tried to send Lee Han away with a cold attitude.

,Just a moment. Take a look at this first.’

Before the door closed, Lee Han quickly held out a photo. At that moment, Han Su-jin’s complexion turned pale. It was a picture of herself taking something out of the parcel box.

,What is this…’

,Let’s go to my office first. I think we can talk about it slowly there.’

Lee Han spoke calmly to Han Su-jin, who seemed to have lost her composure. She looked at Lee Han with an uneasy look and nodded in a trembling voice.

After moving to the office, Lee Han sat her down across from his desk. Han Su-jin was sitting hunched over as if she was nervous.

,Han Su-jin-ssi, can you tell me what exactly is going on?’

It was a polite tone, but Lee Han’s eyes flashed sharply.

,That’s… I just did it impulsively. I didn’t intend to steal it.’

,Is that so? But these photos make it look like Han Su-jin-ssi took someone else’s belongings.’

Lee Han laid out several photos in front of her as evidence. Han Su-jin lowered her head with a pale face.

,I really didn’t intend to take it. I just touched it for a moment and put it back in its place.’

Lee Han stared at Han Su-jin, who was making excuses, with cold eyes. The important thing was that she had the ‘intention’ to steal.

,You can go now. I’ll think about whether to inform the parcel owner or report it to the police. I’ll contact you.’

Lee Han finished speaking in a quiet but firm tone. As Han Su-jin left the office, a wicked smile appeared on his face. It was a good sign. Judging from her reaction, he thought he could subdue her enough. He was already planning his next move in his head.

That night, Lee Han carefully looked into Han Su-jin’s house through the monitor. Seeing her listless appearance, Park Tae-young felt sorry for her, thinking it was because her family had come again. But Han Su-jin couldn’t say anything. Lee Han felt joy in her shrunken reaction.

The next day, Lee Han called Han Su-jin again through the intercom connected to each house. He calculated that making her come on her own instead of going to her directly would be a greater threat.

In front of Han Su-jin, who arrived at the office with a pale face, Lee Han still maintained a gentle attitude.

,Don’t worry. I haven’t told the parcel owner yet.’

As Han Su-jin sighed in relief, Lee Han hid his smile and continued.

,But after looking at the apartment management regulations, it turns out that eviction is the principle when such an unsavory incident occurs.’

Han Su-jin’s face turned pale at those words.

,That can’t happen. Please…’

Lee Han pretended not to know her situation. But he knew. It was not easy to find a house with such good conditions in Seoul. The moment she was kicked out of here, Han Su-jin would face a crisis of divorce with her husband.

Lee Han, pretending to be worried, paused for a moment and opened his mouth.

,Then I’ll have to tell your husband about this first.’

,No!’

Han Su-jin was surprised and jumped up. Tears welled up in her eyes.

,Please don’t do that. Please don’t tell my husband…’

Lee Han felt desire at her pleading appearance. But he thought it would only backfire if he acted hastily.

,Okay. Let’s find another way for now. Don’t worry too much.’

Lee Han left Han Su-jin’s side, pretending to reassure her. But his eyes were full of greed for her. As if he was going to slowly, slowly tie her up.

Watching Han Su-jin’s back as she trembled with fear and left the office, Lee Han smiled faintly. Eventually, she will be caught in the slowly tightening noose. So that she can’t dare to escape.