Prosecutor Kim Seo-Jin - Chapter 120

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Social Circle (1)
I smiled faintly.
“Why? Are you having second thoughts?”
“Well… let’s confirm the money first.”
So Sang-woo licked his dry lips and stared at me.
Two billion won—enough to buy a small apartment in Gangnam.
He thought I was insane for mentioning such a sum so casually, but the possibility that I was serious made it difficult for him to simply refuse.
“Confirm?”
“Yes, this is a credit-based society. Verifying collateral is essential.”
I turned on my phone with an indifferent expression and showed him my account.
The balance displayed was 3.7 billion won.
At the same moment, So Sang-woo’s eyes widened.
‘Jackpot.’
Just the cash in that account alone was 3.7 billion, and if he considered the other accounts and assets….
Greed filled So Sang-woo’s pupils.
“Uh… you know there’s usually an advance payment for work like this, right?”
“Five hundred million upfront, the rest after the job is done. How about it?”
So Sang-woo nodded.
“So all I have to do is find out who pushed the prosecutor, right?”
“Any ideas?”
“Anyone capable of pushing a prosecutor… there are some people who come to mind. But listen, I’m just going to find out. And you have to promise—you can’t tell anyone that I was the one who told you.”
So Sang-woo was still conflicted.
Anyone willing to throw a prosecutor around wasn’t in their right mind.
His life could be in danger.
But two billion won wasn’t money he could easily walk away from either.
While he was muttering “Damn it, damn it,” wrestling with his thoughts.
I resolved his conflict for him.
I placed the briefcase I’d brought on the table and opened it wide.
“…!”
At the same moment, So Sang-woo’s eyes bulged.
Stacks of ten-thousand-won notes filled his vision.
I tapped the briefcase lightly and spoke.
“This is yours.”
“….”
“If you succeed, the remaining 1.5 billion becomes yours too.”
“…!”
“And it’s pure cash, not a bank transfer. You could go to a convenience store and buy ice cream without anyone saying a word.”
So Sang-woo nodded slowly, his eyes glazed over.
He couldn’t refuse the ten-thousand-won notes waving before him with a smile.
“I… I’ll do it. But what about a contract? Actually, I don’t like having my name on record, you know? For work like this, confidentiality comes first….”
“It’s too much of a hassle, so let’s just trust each other.”
“You trust me?”
“Woo-jae, don’t you think we’re going to be good friends?”
“Don’t call me that!”
“Sorry.”
So Sang-woo frowned, but his lips were smiling.
It would be impolite to lose his temper in front of so many distinguished guests.
*
*
*
“A prosecutor?”
In a penthouse suite of a hotel—a vast room complete with a private swimming pool.
The Shin Ma Group Youngest Son was lying on a sun bed there.
He was on a call with So Sang-woo.
“Why would I meet a prosecutor?”
—He’s from the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office. He wanted to see you, sir.
“That’s what I’m asking—why would I meet a prosecutor! Do you think I’m the type to meet some lowly prosecutor? You bastard!”
He was the late-born youngest son of the Shin Ma Group chairman, who was over fifty.
Perhaps because he came so late in life, he had been raised with endless indulgence and appeasement.
As a result, his temperament was notoriously disagreeable, and there were rumors his chauffeur changed every week.
Though not yet thirty, his cruelty was already quite infamous.
—I apologize. Then I’ll let him know that—
“Wait, hold on.”
—Yes?
“Is it a female prosecutor? If it’s a female prosecutor, I might consider meeting her. Tell her to dress up nicely. You know how they dress in dramas—like they’re going to a funeral in formal attire? I like that. If she doesn’t have anything, tell her I’ll buy it for her.”
—No, it’s a man—
He ended the call without hearing the rest of So Sang-woo’s words.
Then he frowned and muttered to himself.
“Idiot, why would I meet a man? I don’t even have time to meet women.”
His gaze turned forward as he tossed his phone aside.
His date for the day—a beautiful actress—was waving at him from the swimming pool.
“Oppa, aren’t you coming in?”
The actress was famous for her image of innocence.
But her appearance now was entirely different.
She smiled decadently, her arms spread open toward him.
“Here I come!”
He stripped off the robe he was wearing and dove into the pool.
The actress laughed and splashed about in the water.
“By the way, who was that on the phone? A woman? You’re not seeing another woman besides me, are you?”
“I’m raising an insect. That insect just called.”
*
*
*
At that moment, in the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office.
I was on the phone with So Sang-woo in my office.
-I apologize. He said he was busy with work.
The Shin Ma Group Youngest Son had declined to meet with me.
I didn’t need to hear what he’d said—it was predictable enough.
He believed that unless someone came from a chaebol family like his own, they weren’t on his level.
Even if I ground my teeth and studied hard to become a doctor, prosecutor, or judge, I’d still be garbage in his eyes.
“Ah, I understand. If he doesn’t want to, that’s fine.”
There was no point in pushing if he refused.
We’d see each other soon enough anyway.
‘I would have liked to see his face before then….’
If I’d faced him and shaken his composure, things would have gone more smoothly.
It was a shame, but it didn’t matter.
There were plenty of ways to destroy him.
I set down my phone and picked up the documents on my desk.
‘The first player.’
I was in the process of selecting people to go up against the Shin Ma Group.
First was Jang Ji-hyuk, a former police officer turned prosecutor known for having brains made of muscle.
We’d worked together on the Gimpo warehouse murder case before.
He had a personality that drove him relentlessly at any hint of suspicion.
Even if his opponent was a chaebol, he wouldn’t hesitate to charge in.
I set Jang Ji-hyuk’s file aside and picked up the next one.
‘Jo Woo-jae.’
Next was Chief Prosecutor Jo Woo-jae.
The moment the Shin Ma Group chairman appeared, he’d instinctively flip and expose his belly.
He was fearful and greedy.
‘But.’
I held Jo Woo-jae’s leash in my hands.
He’d have no choice but to come running after me, tears streaming down his face.
The title of Chief Prosecutor at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office would prove remarkably useful in a fight against a chaebol.
‘And….’
As I flipped through the documents, I felt my phone vibrate.
It was my father.
“Yes, Father.”
-Would you like to have dinner together this evening?
“Yes, I’d like that. At the company? Yes, I’ll be there on time.”
That evening, I headed to the Jaejeong Construction headquarters in Yangjae.
I parked in the visitor lot on the ground floor and adjusted my appearance.
Since this was where my father worked, I wanted to enter looking presentable.
On my way to the lobby, I spotted employees heading home.
They kept glancing at me.
While whispering among themselves.
“That’s him, right?”
“Yeah, it is.”
I lowered my head.
Being recognized and gossiped about by so many people was rather embarrassing.
‘But then again….’
It was rare for people to recognize me so instantly.
Though I’d appeared in the media, I wasn’t a prosecutor or a celebrity.
Last time, some elderly woman even asked if I was an actor in a drama.
‘Is it because of my father’s company?’
I’m the son of the CEO.
So people naturally wonder if I might one day sit in an executive position and lord it over them.
That’s likely why the company’s employees paid closer attention to my articles and interviews than they would for anyone else.
That’s what I figured.
But then.
‘What the….’
I froze the moment I entered the lobby.
A massive screen positioned prominently in the center was continuously playing my interview on repeat.
Company advertisements would play, then my interview again, followed by more company ads and my interview once more….
This was brainwashing.
It would be strange not to recognize me.
I felt genuinely embarrassed and turned away.
I wanted to stare at the wall until my father arrived.
But then I saw something else.
The bookshelf in the lobby where visitors browsed, and the newspapers displayed there.
‘Surely not….’
Thinking ‘this can’t be happening,’ I reached out.
And I felt my father’s ‘infinite love.’
‘Father….’
A short while later.
I was seated with my father at a Korean Traditional Restaurant.
It was a place he frequented often, supposedly the finest restaurant in the area.
My father wiped his hands with a wet towel and spoke.
“You’ve been through a lot.”
Instead of answering, I let out a sigh.
I really had been through ‘a lot.’
‘Just a moment ago….’
My father appeared in the lobby and called out my name loudly.
“Son! Seo Jin!”
Naturally, countless eyes turned toward me.
Then a female employee approached hesitantly, asking to take just one photo.
My father laughed heartily and said of course, and that was the beginning.
It was difficult to count how many times we took photos.
I forced a smile and even made a peace sign with my hand.
As I recalled that memory, my father set down a wet towel and spoke.
“It’s been such a long time since the two of us have eaten together. How about it? Should we have a drink?”
My father ordered alcohol.
He filled my glass while sharing various things.
But he was still dancing around his true intentions.
It was after we’d finished two bottles of soju.
I laid out the mat for him to speak.
“…Please, go ahead. It’s fine.”
My father’s face, which had been continuing with a faint smile, grew serious.
My father drained a glass of alcohol before opening his mouth.
“I heard from your uncle. You were invited to that gathering?”
“Ah, yes.”
It was about the gathering that Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun had asked me to attend together.
A place where the true powers of South Korea gather.
My father asked with a hardened expression.
“Do you know what kind of place that is?”
“Somewhat.”
My father nodded.
Then he drank another glass before speaking.
“…By any chance, have your memories returned?”
I stared at my father intently.
He was asking about the gathering, then suddenly bringing up memories.
A completely unrelated topic, yet my father wasn’t drunk yet.
He wasn’t the type to speak unnecessarily.
I shook my head.
“No.”
“Is that so?”
My father smiled bitterly and opened his mouth.
“I looked into it a bit, and I heard that even if you lose your memories, certain obsessions can remain.”
“….”
“It seems I showed you an unsightly side of me in the past.”
About ten years ago, my father and Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun had apparently had a falling out for some reason.
At that time, Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun conducted a seizure and search of Jaejeong Construction and froze the company’s assets.
For a company where cash flows daily, asset freezing is a death sentence.
That is the power of the Prosecutor’s Office.
Of course, Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun had no intention of destroying the company.
He merely demonstrated the power of authority to his older brother.
An extreme sociopath who stops at nothing to achieve his own success.
“You all witnessed that.”
Seo Jin had dreamed of becoming a historian.
But after that incident, he changed his path to become a prosecutor.
“Seo Jin, if you’re going to that gathering because of your father, you don’t have to go.”
Seo Jin lowered his head.
A sigh escaped involuntarily.
For a moment, I thought I had Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun in my grasp.
But that cannot be.
He is the type who would abandon even brothers and sons if he deemed them obstacles to his success.
And he would feign sincerity.
“It was for you, brother.” “Yun-hwan, it was for you.”
Seo Jin slowly nodded.
‘I’ll have to kill him.’
Soon, through the Shinma Group matter, I’ll throw stones at Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun.
And gradually, I’ll fill his territory with my own power.
Having finished his thoughts, Seo Jin lifted his head.
Looking at his father, he opened his mouth.
“That’s not the reason.”
“Then?”
“I’m a prosecutor.”
Prey gathers where power and money converge.
Seo Jin spoke, thinking of those men.
“I have to catch them.”
At those words, his father laughed with embarrassment.
And in his father’s mind, the words Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun had spoken flickered through.
“Brother. Seo Jin is a prosecutor. And I mean it—no one is more suited to the profession than him. I’ll pave the way for his future.”
At the time, he thought it was flattery.
But now he sees it differently.
Seo Jin is a prosecutor. He truly is.
His father touched his glass and spoke.
“If there’s ever an opponent you can’t handle, tell your father. I have the power to help with that now.”
His father’s power was different from ten years ago when he faced Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun.
Jaejeong Construction had grown massive, holding major overseas projects in its hands.
While it couldn’t compare to the entire chaebol family, each subsidiary was worth attempting.
Moreover, he would always be on Seo Jin’s side.
“Thank you, Father.”
I filled my father’s glass with alcohol.
And I briefly entertained the thought of making my father a chaebol owner and becoming a chaebol heir myself.
*
*
*
I arrived home after 10 p.m.
Jin-young hadn’t returned from work yet, and my mother was supporting my intoxicated father as they headed to the master bedroom.
And I pulled out a bookshelf and stood before it.
I was examining the handwriting of the original Seo Jin, which resembled hieroglyphics.
‘Still….’
There was much content I couldn’t decipher.
D-C. E.
I tilted my head in confusion.
‘C? E?’
The original Seo Jin had scribbled various things in abbreviations only he could understand.
So even if I recognized the characters, it was difficult to grasp their true meaning.
‘If I knew the content, I might be able to find out who killed him….’
Just as I was tilting my head in puzzlement.
My phone vibrated.
It was Lee Eun-ha.
“Yes, Ms. Lee.”
-Are you at the office by any chance?
“No. I’m at home.”
-Already off work? Ah… I’ve written an article about the venture company ENS. I wanted to get your feedback on it.
“Send it by message. I’ll take a look.”
-Okay….
Lee Eun-ha’s voice sounded strange somehow.
As if she felt disappointed….
“Are you perhaps in front of the Prosecutor’s Office?”
-Ah, yes.
She must have rushed over with a printed copy to show me the article.
Assuming I would naturally be there, since I usually stayed at the office until midnight or 1 a.m.
I smiled slightly.
“Then, would you come to our neighborhood? It’s not far from there.”
Lee Eun-ha walked through the apartment complex.
And she spotted me sitting on a bench beneath the streetlight near the playground.
“Prosecutor?”
“You came?”
Lee Eun-ha wore an embarrassed expression.
“I’m sorry for coming so late. I wanted to discuss this with you in person. I thought it would be faster to talk face-to-face rather than through messages.”
Lee Eun-ha pulled a piece of paper from her bag and handed it to Seo Jin.
A printed article.
Though we could have discussed this tomorrow, I wasn’t sure what the urgency was, but I accepted the paper and retrieved the coffee I’d bought from the convenience store.
“Please, have some.”
“Thank you.”
Lee Eun-ha took the coffee in her hand and sat beside me.
While I read the article, she brought the coffee to her lips and opened her mouth.
“How’s the article? I’m embarrassed. You’re reading it right in front of me.”
“It’s good.”
“Really?”
Lee Eun-ha clenched her fist and exclaimed, “Yes!”
But my eyes were filled with concern.
“But will you publish this under your name?”
“Why?”
“Because the Shinma Group’s name is mentioned directly. It seems dangerous…”
“Come on, I haven’t been a reporter for just a day or two. I’m going to run this as a rumor piece. You know the actress Lee Sol-ah, right? There’s been talk lately that she’s been seeing the Shinma Group’s youngest son. I’m thinking of including that. What do you think?”
Corporate scandals aren’t what captures people’s attention.
People dismiss them as just another day.
But when an actress known for her innocence gets involved, everything changes.
“But are you certain about this? If you accidentally involve an innocent person…”
“I’m certain. I even have photos of them leaving the hotel. And I’ll write it as ‘A’ so there won’t be any problems.”
“Then let’s proceed that way…”
But then it happened.
Suddenly, a black-haired head popped up between Seo Jin and Lee Eun-ha.
“Sister-in-law!”
It was Jin-young.
His face was flushed from drinking with friends, and he was looking at Lee Eun-ha with genuine delight.
“Hey…”
I frowned, but Jin-young ignored me and shouted toward Lee Eun-ha.
“I’ve really wanted to meet you!”
Lee Eun-ha looked bewildered and turned to me.
“…Who is this?”
“My enemy.”
That night, Jin-young woke our sleeping mother and father and enthusiastically told them about Lee Eun-ha, whom he had finally met in person.
I had seen the devil today.
*
*
*
On the weekend, Seo Jin was heading to a hotel where he had a meeting with Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun.
As they passed along the Han River, Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun opened his mouth to speak.
“There will be people around your age there. They often bring their children along so they can get along with each other.”
“Yes.”
Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun lit a cigarette and continued.
“There’s only one thing you need to be careful about. Your mouth.”
“….”
“Just listen as much as you can. The one who talks too much loses.”
A gathering of the powerful—yet in this world, there are no permanent allies.
These men can turn on each other at any moment for the slightest reason.
That’s why one must guard their words carefully.
History shows that those who speak carelessly are eliminated the fastest.
*
*
*
Today was the general assembly of a gathering that happened only a few times a year—the hotel had rented out the entire restaurant.
It was indeed a gathering of the powerful, as I had heard.
People whose names alone were recognizable—politicians who had grappled and fought on television were here clinking wine glasses and laughing heartily together.
And people recognized Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun.
But their interest wasn’t in Chief Prosecutor Kim Young-jun.
“Oh my, who is this? Isn’t this Prosecutor Seo Jin?”

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