Prosecutor Kim Seo-Jin - Chapter 124

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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 Chaebol’s Son (3)
Shin Ji-yeon burst into laughter at Seo Jin’s audacious words.
Then she abruptly stopped and turned toward him.
“I thought you were just handsome, but you’re quite bold, aren’t you?”
“I appreciate the compliment.”
“But you’ve misunderstood. As his older sister, I can’t just watch my youngest brother rot in prison, can I? Even rotten teeth need to be fixed and used.”
It was a lie.
Shin Ji-yeon and Shin Il-seung had different mothers.
That’s why Shin Ji-yeon truly despised Shin Il-seung.
Because he was born as the child of a concubine and she had to share her inheritance with him.
But there was only one reason Shin Ji-yeon had refused.
She wanted him to give her justification.
She was signaling for him to prepare grounds substantial enough to throw her brother in prison.
And Seo Jin had come prepared.
“You’re aware that your brother participated in the ENS stock price manipulation, aren’t you?”
“Nothing would be under his name. It would all be under aliases. And he’s probably already prepared someone to take his place in prison. Even if he’s not bright, he’s cunning enough for that.”
“The fact that I’ve said this much means I can secure testimony and evidence that your brother used aliases, doesn’t it?”
Hope flickered in Shin Ji-yeon’s eyes.
“You can secure evidence?”
“Yes, and there’s one more thing… There are rumors that he uses drugs as a recreational substance.”
Shin Ji-yeon shook her head.
“That can be explained away as using painkillers because of poor health. That’s the end of it. Don’t you know that?”
“Stock price manipulation and drugs—two charges. And an actress.”
Shin Ji-yeon’s eyes widened.
“An actress?”
“You’ve seen it in gossip columns, right? ‘Rumors that actress A and chaebol group heir B use drugs together.’ That’s actress Lee Sol-ah and Shin Il-seung.”
A smile played at the corners of Shin Ji-yeon’s mouth.
“…If that gets exposed, it’ll be quite a mess, won’t it?”
“Yes. You should think of the chairman. He’s elderly and in poor health—we wouldn’t want reporters showing up at his door, would we?”
“What should I do?”
“I’ll handle it as quietly as possible.”
“What do you need from me?”
“Please keep the chairman at bay.”
“Okay, and?”
“Our prosecutor general as well…”
Shin Ji-yeon stared at Seo Jin intently.
Then she covered her mouth and laughed, speaking.
“Didn’t you say he’s your uncle?”
“Exactly. That’s what makes it harder. I can’t just do as I please.”
“Fine. I can handle that much.”
“Thank you.”
Shin Ji-yeon lifted her wine glass.
“How about sharing a drink with this handsome young friend? It’s the end of the year, after all.”
“I’d be delighted.”
“My, even the way you speak is lovely.”
Shin Ji-yeon gazed at Seo Jin with a lustful gleam in her eyes.
Seo Jin felt a chill run down his spine, but he smiled as best he could and averted his gaze from her stare.
“What? Are you afraid of this noona?”
*
*
*
Shortly after, Seo Jin left the hotel room.
He stepped out of the elevator, made his way to the lobby, and let out a subtle smile.
‘This is good.’
The Shinma Group’s family tree was something I’d investigated back when I was Seo Jun-kyung, a prosecutor.
‘Looking back now, I was truly insane.’
A man with nothing had relied on a single prosecutor’s badge and made enemies of the entire world.
After living a few more years, I came to realize just how reckless and foolish that had been.
But my power now as Seo Jin is incomparable to what it was back then.
I have money and the secrets of powerful men in my grasp.
Now that I’ve grown stronger, even if only slightly, I can finally understand.
You only see what you know—and now I could truly feel just how vast my opponent was.
Those who live above the law fear the law not at all.
To have recklessly charged at them with the law as my weapon was nothing short of rushing toward my own death.
‘I must hurry.’
My final target became crystal clear.
Crush the Shinma Group, devour its subsidiaries, seize the throats of the powerful.
‘Then I take down Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun.’
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun could turn into an enemy at any moment.
He acts without hesitation or restraint.
He’s the kind of man who could kill even his own brothers and son without blinking.
That’s why I must capture him—so my family can be happy.
Seo Jin stepped out of the hotel.
I’d barely drunk anything, yet intoxication swam through my senses.
The cold wind brushed against my cheeks, but I didn’t shrink away.
‘Let’s go.’
Seo Jin walked toward where the cold wind blew.
*
*
*
-In a special crackdown on illegal loan operations, approximately twenty individuals, including unregistered loan sharks like Kim, who had been collecting exorbitant interest rates of up to 31,000 percent annually, have been arrested. These criminals targeted people unable to obtain loans from financial institutions, charging between 200,000 to 1,000,000 won per transaction….
“It’s Seo Jin, isn’t it?”
“Yeah.”
While others savored the pleasures of year-end festivities, the prosecutors at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office who despised Seo Jin felt winter’s chill cut deeper than ever.
Seo Jin was indiscriminately apprehending loan sharks left and right.
While they deliberated over indictments and dismissals, staring at desks piled high with documents, Seo Jin continued displaying his trophies—and it grated on them.
“That bastard—didn’t the prosecutor general exempt him from duties?”
“Apparently not. I asked his team, and they said he works through the nights on his regular duties but spends his days pulling this nonsense.”
They searched for something to criticize, but it proved difficult.
And so, ultimately.
“With a guy like that around, even when we bust our asses, we’re treated like idiots…. Wait?”
The prosecutor who’d been disparaging Seo Jin picked up his phone.
After checking the caller ID, he glanced nervously around before slipping out to the smoking area.
He walked toward an empty spot and raised the phone to his ear.
“Yes, sir.”
-Ah, “sir” is too formal. Just be comfortable. Though don’t get too loose about it.
It was Shin Il-seung, the youngest son of the Shinma Group.
“What brings you to call, sir?”
-Come on, let’s see. So-yul’s growing up well, right? It’s been ages since I gave our niece some spending money.
Greed flickered in the prosecutor’s eyes.
He called it spending money, but the amounts were substantial.
Ten to twenty million won casually tossed out at a time.
And he knew the reason why.
“Where should we meet?”
-You know the hotel I always book? I’m practically living there these days, so come by.
“Understood.”
The prosecutor’s name was Han Chang-hee.
Four years Seo Jin’s senior at the Prosecutor’s Office.
*
*
*
And at the hotel.
Shin Il-seung set down his phone with a chuckle.
An actress beside him pressed against him, running her hand across her chest as she asked.
“Who was that?”
“Oh, just people grinding away, waking up at dawn to make money, struggling to survive. Working that hard and still not earning ten million won. Pathetic bastards.”
“Huh? Then why meet with someone like that?”
Shin Il-seung smirked, lit a cigarette, exhaled smoke, and spoke.
“There’s this one mutt down there barking at me, telling me to follow the rules of dogs. But humans don’t fight dogs, do they? Humans watch dogs fight each other and place bets. That’s what humans do. So I’m going to watch this dog fight, see how well it bites.”
“There’s some damn dog down there barking at me, telling me to follow dog rules. But humans can’t fight dogs, right? Humans bet money watching dogs fight each other. So I want to see a dogfight once, see how well they fight.”
A moment later.
A knock sounded at the door.
Shin Il-seung spoke to the actress.
“Go wait in the bedroom.”
The actress nodded and headed into the bedroom with her clothes.
Shin Il-seung trudged toward the door.
Upon opening it, a prosecutor stood before him.
It was Han Chang-hee, the prosecutor from the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office he’d just spoken with.
Shin Il-seung greeted him with a broad smile.
“Well, well, my friend. It’s been ages—you’re looking quite radiant these days.”
Though the man wasn’t even thirty, spouting such flattery, Han Chang-hee smiled and nodded in return.
In this society, money made kings.
He needed funds from this man to keep his daughter enrolled in an international school charging tens of millions in annual tuition.
Shin Il-seung gestured toward the sofa and spoke.
“Have a seat.”
“Yes.”
Han Chang-hee noticed the cannabis on the table.
But he turned away, pretending not to see it, and looked toward Shin Il-seung.
Shin Il-seung smirked and pulled out an envelope, placing it on the table.
“I suspect what you want isn’t my face, but this.”
“Th-thank you. But what brings this about?”
“There’s someone I’d like to take down. I’m asking for your help in the hunt.”
“Who?”
“Isn’t it true that a prosecutor can destroy anyone if he’s willing to shed his clothes?”
“Ha, that’s an old saying.”
“Can’t you do it?”
At Shin Il-seung’s twisted gaze, Han Chang-hee laughed awkwardly.
“It depends on the target.”
“Another prosecutor.”
Han Chang-hee’s eyes darkened.
“…Who?”
“Seo Jin.”
“…!”
Seeing Han Chang-hee’s flustered expression, Shin Il-seung chuckled wickedly.
He then pulled out cannabis, placed it between his lips, and continued.
“I know, I know. His uncle is the Prosecutor General, isn’t he?”
“Can you stop the Prosecutor General?”
“How could I stop someone of that rank? We’d just have to wait for him to die of old age. But here’s the thing—if you take down Seo Jin, you’d have to resign, wouldn’t you? That’s what you’re worried about?”
Han Chang-hee did not answer.
Because it was the truth.
Shin Il-seung continued speaking with a broad smile plastered across his face.
“Are you planning to be a prosecutor your whole life? You said yourself that if you can’t get promoted, you’d have to quit, right? So you’re thinking of becoming a lawyer? How much can you make being a lawyer your entire life?”
“B-Boss…”
“I’m going to hang something big around Seo Jin’s neck.”
Han Chang-hee’s eyes hardened with intensity.
Shin Il-seung laughed wickedly as he continued.
“You know my scale isn’t petty, right? When I say something big, it’s really big.”
*
*
*
“The Secretary Director will become the scapegoat.”
At that very moment.
Seo Jin was meeting with Shin Il-seung’s Secretary Director at a Korean traditional restaurant in Namhansanseong.
Forty-six years old, with a notable detail: he had a son in the sixth grade of elementary school.
The Secretary Director chuckled softly.
“So? Are you telling me to turn in Boss Shin Il-seung?”
“Yes.”
“I apologize. I was curious what you wanted to say, but it seems I came for nothing.”
The Secretary Director rose to his feet.
At the same moment, Seo Jin spoke.
“Shin Ji-yeon, the eldest daughter of the Shinma Group chairman, has approved this.”
The Secretary Director’s body went rigid.
He slowly turned his head toward Seo Jin.
“…Shin Ji-yeon approved this?”
“Shin Il-seung will stand on the photo line. But if you don’t help, it will be you standing there instead. You’ll become a shameful father, bearing all the guilt.”
I knew it well.
That’s how the chaebol families operate.
When there’s a problem, they find a scapegoat.
They handle it at a level the Prosecutor’s Office can accept.
For Shin Il-seung, that scapegoat is the Secretary Director.
Seo Jin picked up the bottle and filled his own glass as he spoke.
“Stock price manipulation using private loans—with that much, they say a chaebol can hire a really good lawyer and serve about three years before getting out. But there’s a problem: public sentiment. Do you know how many people committed suicide because of this stock price manipulation?”
“…”
“I heard your son is in the sixth grade. You’ll meet him again after he’s discharged from the military.”
“…”
“I’m confident I can do this. If you understand, sit back down. My neck hurts from looking at someone standing.”
The Secretary Director exhaled a heavy sigh and sat down.
Seo Jin then picked up the bottle and filled the Secretary Director’s glass as he continued.
“Honestly, I don’t care. As long as I meet my quota. Whether it’s Shin Il-seung or you.”
“…”
“I have no desire to watch an innocent person bear another’s sins and struggle through hardship. Make your choice. What will you do?”
The Secretary Director stood frozen.
‘Shin Ji-yeon is behind this?’
The eldest daughter had made her move.
And the blade she wielded was Seo Jin.
That Seo Jin—the one rumored throughout the political and business circles as a madman.
It was entirely possible he wouldn’t see his son again for another ten years.
But following Seo Jin’s words blindly was equally difficult.
Secretary Director or not, he was a salaried employee—his family survived on the monthly paycheck that arrived like clockwork.
If that disappeared, they would starve.
How would he repay his loans? His son’s academy fees? The comfortable life he’d grown accustomed to?
The Secretary Director had never liked Shin Il-seung either.
But Shin Il-seung was his lifeline.
A hollow sound escaped the Secretary Director’s lips.
The anguish in his expression radiated from his eyes.
In that moment, Seo Jin’s voice pierced his ears.
“I can help ensure your career continues.”
“Pardon?”
“I know an investor who wants to shake up Shin Il-seung and swallow one of the Shinma Group subsidiaries. Ah, but that’s where you come in. Which subsidiary would be best? How do we acquire it?”
The Secretary Director couldn’t comprehend what Seo Jin was saying.
His eyes simply widened in bewilderment.
Then the door creaked open, and Do Gwang-hyun entered wearing sunglasses.
Do Gwang-hyun flashed a broad smile at the Secretary Director and spoke.
“Have your fortune told. It should say you’ll meet a noble person today.”
Do Gwang-hyun—who’d spent a month on a beach assignment to secure three hundred billion won from the pseudo-religious cult.
His skin was darkened to an extent unsuitable for winter.
Do Gwang-hyun sat beside the Secretary Director without hesitation and opened his mouth.
“Let me be direct. What’s your current salary? Whatever it is, I’ll double it.”
“What do you mean—”
“And once you take down Shin Il-seung and acquire the subsidiary…”
The Secretary Director swallowed hard.
The dark-skinned man before him, Do Gwang-hyun, followed his offer of double salary with the word “and.”
Even if this sudden madman’s words made no sense, even if it was a con, he wanted to hear what came next.
Because it might actually be real.
And Do Gwang-hyun continued.
“You’ll be the representative of that subsidiary.”
“…!”
“I’m the investor—I don’t know management. Why? Does what I’m saying sound like a lie? Like some madman spouting nonsense? Would you believe me if I showed you the capital? Or should I give you an advance?”
Shortly after, the Secretary Director made his decision to betray Shin Il-seung.
Staying by Shin Il-seung’s side meant a lifetime of thankless work before retirement.
But if I grasped Do Gwang-hyun’s hand, I could obtain the title that every salaried worker dreams of—”CEO.”
*
*
*
As I left the Korean Traditional Restaurant, my phone vibrated.
The caller was Lee Jung-ho, the son of a minister I’d met at the last gathering.
“Yes, this is Seo Jin.”
-The meeting date has been set. We’re planning to hold a year-end gathering this week. Do you have time?
“Yes, that works for me.”
I smiled quietly.
Now it was time to meet Shin Il-seung.

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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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