Goblin Library - Chapter 198

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 198.

Uncle (Paternal) belatedly realized that the man before him was a lawyer and that this lawyer had been at Lee Gang-hyuk’s house. He looked at Choi Jin with a moment of bewilderment.
“Y-you’re really a lawyer?”
At Uncle (Paternal)’s words, Choi Jin pulled out his phone. He then displayed a web browser on the screen and held it forward.
“You seem like the type who wouldn’t believe me even if I showed you a business card… so please call and verify yourself.”
“Call who?”
As Uncle (Paternal) looked at the phone, the screen displayed a law firm’s homepage.
“Oh Happy Law Firm?”
“I’m Choi Jin, attorney at Oh Happy Law Firm.”
“Dad, look at this.”
Lee Gang-soon also saw the phone screen and dialed the number displayed there.
“Hello. I had a question. Is there an attorney named Choi Jin there? Oh, there is. Is he in the office right now? He’s out meeting with a client? Well, is there a client named Lee Gang-hyuk among your clients? Ah… I see. Yes.”
As Lee Gang-soon hung up the phone, Uncle (Paternal) asked.
“What did they say?”
“He’s there. He’s out on a business meeting with a client right now…”
“Lee Gang-hyuk is a client?”
“They said they can’t disclose client information.”
After hearing their conversation, Choi Jin spoke.
“Then I’ll see you in court.”
Choi Jin grasped the front door and opened it. As a signal for them to leave, Uncle (Paternal) glanced back at the house before speaking.
“Then what do you mean about being defrauded? You said he lost the house to fraud and also lost something criminal-related.”
At Uncle (Paternal)’s words, Choi Jin looked at him.
“A cousin who never visited me once during my 15 years in prison suddenly came smiling. So I decided to test him.”
“A test? How could you test a family member like that!”
“During my time in prison, my clients encountered criminals most often. What did I learn from them? To be wary of people who approach with a smile.”
At Choi Jin’s words, Uncle (Paternal) looked at him with a hardened expression before suddenly asking.
“You seem to have known Lee Gang-hyuk for a long time?”
“I have known him for a long time.”
“What money does Lee Gang-hyuk have to know you, a lawyer, for so long? And besides, Lee Gang-hyuk was in prison?”
It was a rather sharp question, but Choi Jin answered matter-of-factly.
“Money, of course.”
“What money could a man in prison have?”
“You don’t seem to know your nephew very well.”
“What do I—”
“You don’t need to know how Lee Gang-hyuk has money. And there’s one thing you should understand here… it’s fortunate that you tested a family member.”
Choi Jin shifted his gaze toward Lee Gang-soon.
“Because there was someone who tried to defraud a family member.”
At Choi Jin’s words, Lee Gang-soon looked at him with bewilderment before speaking.
“F-fraud? What do you mean, fraud!”
Choi Jin turned the question back on Lee Gang-soon.
“Then where were you planning to open this store?”
“That is…”
As he fumbled for words, Choi Jin continued.
“And if you’re short 400 million won, the business plan must already be underway to some degree. Please bring me the building lease contracts, merchandise purchase plans, employee recruitment documents—anything related to it. Then… I’ll give you the 400 million.”
“You’ll give it?”
“I will. Three hours should be more than enough, wouldn’t you say?”
At the mention of three hours, Uncle’s and Lee Gang-soon’s faces went rigid.
If the business were genuinely underway, they could simply retrieve the contracts and documents from home. But since it was nothing more than idle talk, they couldn’t produce them on the spot.
“Hmph! Let’s go!”
As Uncle tried to leave with Lee Gang-soon, Lee Gang-soon suddenly cried out.
“Gang-hyuk! Your brother wasn’t like that! Gang-hyuk!”
Uncle dragged him away as he spilled excuses, and Choi Jin closed the door before heading inside.
Inside, Choi Jin could see Lee Gang-hyuk gazing out the window, and Lee Ho-yeol in the corner with a cigarette dangling from his lips.
“Those bastards deserve to be torn apart. How dare they disrespect our hyung…”
Watching Lee Ho-yeol mutter curses under his breath, Choi Jin approached Lee Gang-hyuk.
“Hyung, they’re gone.”
“…”
“Hyung, is there anything troubling you?”
At Choi Jin’s words, Lee Gang-hyuk sighed and shook his head.
“I thought seeing those two in distress would make me feel good… but I don’t feel particularly satisfied.”
At Lee Gang-hyuk’s words, Choi Jin looked at him and spoke.
“Should we stop?”
“Stop?”
“We can do whatever you wish.”
At Choi Jin’s words, Lee Gang-hyuk thought for a moment before speaking.
“Continue. Even if we do, I don’t think I’ll feel particularly good… but I don’t think I’ll feel good if we don’t either. It might be easier on my conscience to go through with it.”
“Understood. I’ll submit the documents now. And I’ll send people from the Gambling Establishment as well.”
“Do that.”
Lee Gang-hyuk spoke while smacking his lips.
“Uncle should learn by now that misfortune never comes alone.”
Just as the Prison, his mother, and his father’s death had come together for me… misfortune never arrived by itself.

***

[The investigation results into the incident that shook South Korea have been released. Through a confidential internal investigation, the Prosecutor’s Office examined corruption allegations against current and former high-ranking officials in the prosecution and police. According to the confidential investigation materials announced by the Prosecutor’s Office….]
Jang Ma-ru, watching the news on television, spoke with a smile.
“I was worried they’d block it from above, but they investigated everything thoroughly.”
At Jang Ma-ru’s words, Lim Sung-un looked up from his documents and spoke.
“The materials were disclosed in front of dozens of prosecutors… and the prosecutor handling this case has political ambitions, so he’s doing it properly. He’s thinking about entering the National Assembly with this case.”
“Whether it’s ambition to enter the National Assembly or whatever, it still feels good that they’re catching the bad guys.”
At Lee Hye-eun’s words, Choi Tae-sik also nodded.
“I wonder if people who study so much and climb to such high positions never study ethics.”
“Those people probably had high ethics grades when they were in elementary school too.”
Lee Hye-eun, answering with a laugh, watched the television and spoke.
“So what happens to those people?”
“For now, they’ll all go to prison.”
“And then?”
“Later, they’ll be released on parole.”
“As expected… it always works out that way for the wealthy. Is there no way to prevent them from getting out?”
“The parole system is established by law, so… there’s nothing we can do. While some people abuse the parole system, others use it to build new lives, so we can’t eliminate the system entirely.”
At Lim Sung-un’s words, Lee Hye-eun smacked her lips and watched the television. On the screen, the middle-aged prosecutor handling this case was giving a speech, proclaiming just jurisprudence and fairness.
“Looking at it that way, that prosecutor really seems like a man of justice.”
At Lee Hye-eun’s words, Lim Sung-un nodded and looked at Jang Ma-ru.
“What about The One’s movements?”
“That’s the strange part—there’s been no particular activity.”
As he spoke, Jang Ma-ru typed on the keyboard, then suddenly saw something and clicked on it.
“Ah….”
At the sight of Jang Ma-ru exhaling in exasperation, Lim Sung-un looked at him.
“What is it?”
“It’s an email sent to several people within the company. But the content….”
At Jang Ma-ru’s words, Lim Sung-un pointed at the monitor. Jang Ma-ru then sent the email he’d been viewing to the screen displaying the television broadcast.

“I’m not sure if you’ll read this, but I’m sending it assuming you will.
I’m very interested in who you are. I also know that you’ve been involved in several cases and made wrongdoers face the consequences of their crimes.
If you’re interested, I’d like to talk with you.
If you’re uneasy, send a hacked message to 010-****-****. Then I’ll have a conversation with you at that number.”

As Lim Sung-un squinted at the email’s contents, Choi Tae-sik spoke urgently.
“They didn’t mention who, but they’re talking about us, aren’t they?”
“Probably.”
“Then… they know we hacked into that company?”
『….』
Choi Tae-sik watched Lim Sung-un stare silently at the monitor, his expression grave.
“Hyung, have they caught our trail?”
At Choi Tae-sik’s words, Lim Sung-un paused briefly in thought before letting out a bitter laugh.
“Our trail is short. Even if there were something to catch, it would be difficult. Probably…”
Lim Sung-un chuckled softly.
“Lee Gang-hyuk seems to have gotten along better with those soldiers than I thought.”
“What do you mean?”
“Our only trail is one thing: the soldier we released and the money.”
“What are you saying?”
“It must have leaked from there.”
At Lim Sung-un’s words, Lee Hye-eun asked.
“The escaped soldier had no reason to tell Lee Gang-hyuk, so the remaining platoon members told him instead?”
“That’s right.”
“But they shouldn’t have any information about us.”
Lim Sung-un answered Choi Tae-sik, who spoke with furrowed brows.
“They do.”
Lim Sung-un continued, eyes fixed on the monitor.
“That we left money behind. That we’re at least three people. And that the composition is two men and one woman.”
Lim Sung-un chuckled.
“And one more thing… that there’s a man who fights exceptionally well.”
“What could they possibly figure out from that? We’re not professional thieves, so there shouldn’t be anything to find even if they investigate us.”
“There would be.”
Lim Sung-un shook his head and looked at Choi Tae-sik.
“How many fighters in the entire country could match you at that level?”
“Like that soldier?”
“Yes.”
“I’m not certain, but… there can’t be more than five.”
At Choi Tae-sik’s words, Jang Ma-ru spoke as if he couldn’t believe it.
“Come on. You’re saying there are five more monsters like hyung?”
At the word “monster,” Choi Tae-sik squinted before responding.
“There’s one in Jeolla Province. A monster of a guy… and one in Gyeongsang Province too. And that soldier as well.”
“What about the remaining two?”
“I haven’t fought everyone in our country, so I left room for two. There must be at least two masters I don’t know about.”
“So three are certain then.”
Lim Sung-un, who had been listening to their conversation, spoke.
“That soldier’s skills are well known to Lee Gang-hyuk and his team. So your fists become a clue. Martial prowess that’s hard to match domestically.”
“That’s… a clue?”
“If it were ordinary-level fists, it wouldn’t be a clue. But at your level, it becomes one.”
At Lim Sung-un’s words, Choi Tae-sik sighed and lowered his head.
“I apologize.”
“No. That’s not your fault.”
Lim Sung-un spoke while looking at the monitor.
“These bastards simply picked up the scent well.”
“Just from the fists?”
“Fists, money, and crime.”
At Lim Sung-un’s words, the team members looked at him with puzzlement. Lim Sung-un sighed at their gazes.
“Those bastards are a criminal organization. So they understand criminal characteristics well. No thief would release a witness after stealing that much money.”
“Thieves don’t carelessly kill people either.”
“But they wouldn’t let them go so easily either.”
“That’s… true.”
“And thieves try to pocket every last won. They wouldn’t hand over hundreds of millions to a witness for escape funds. And they absolutely wouldn’t add tens of billions more for other people to take. By seeing that, you should have realized it. That we aren’t thieves motivated by money.”
“Ah…”
As the team members gasped in realization, Lee Hye-eun sighed.
“I should have stopped that back then. What kind of thieves give hundreds of millions to run away? Damn it! I should have stopped that.”
At Lee Hye-eun’s words, Choi Tae-sik squinted his eyes.
“You only said that because you were reluctant to part with that money.”
“So what do we do now?”
At Jang Ma-ru’s words, Lim Sung-un fell into thought for a moment before speaking.
“Send a hacking message. And… let’s talk.”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————