Prosecutor Kim Seo-Jin - Chapter 186

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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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A Rope of Danger (6)
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun possessed a pathological inability to trust anyone.
It mattered not whether they were his limbs, family, or nephews—his suspicion remained absolute.
He doubted, countered, and doubted again.
Because Kim Young-jun’s ascent to power had been built upon exploiting others’ weaknesses.
Thus, he assumed everyone else operated by the same principle.
‘I can use this.’
I thought to myself.
One day, that very nature of Kim Young-jun’s would become my leverage.
Those who reach the summit through false strength all meet the same end.
Though power seems to rest in their hands, history’s current inevitably sweeps them toward ruin in a tide of blood.
I picked up my pen.
The fact that Kim Young-jun stood beyond the glass partition gave me no reason to hesitate.
The interrogation of Eom Seon-ju would not conclude in one or two hours.
At minimum, ten hours.
Throughout all that time, Kim Young-jun could not possibly keep his gaze fixed solely on this room.
In other words, I only needed to be cautious while he remained present.
I slowly lifted my head and met Eom Seon-ju’s eyes.
Her gaze burned with malice—her body trembling with the rage and humiliation she had suffered at her sister’s hands.
Then, as if seized by sudden resolve, she glared at me and began to move her lips.
She was about to say something.
Whatever it was, it would not be something Kim Young-jun would wish to hear.
I opened my mouth to silence her.
“You orchestrated illegal debt collection through Kim Hyun-bong, didn’t you?”
But Eom Seon-ju did not yield to my intent. She continued speaking in a slow, composed voice.
“Did you sleep well? I didn’t sleep a wink. I spent the whole night thinking. What did I do wrong? What crime did I commit? Why am I here?”
“Eom Seon-ju!”
I raised my voice, but her expression remained unchanged.
Instead, she drew a desolate smile across her face and swept her hair back.
“I can’t be the only one to fall, can I?”
“…!”
What Eom Seon-ju had just said was not what I anticipated.
I had expected her to reveal something about Kim Young-jun’s family affairs.
But instead, she was provoking him.
And directly at that—targeting Kim Young-jun himself.
“They say a dog covered in dung criticizes a dog covered in chaff—and that’s exactly what he is. Do you know what kind of person your uncle is? How did a man with nothing climb to Prosecutor General? Aren’t you curious?”
“…!”
“I’ll expose it to the world. When I fall, when I face the world’s condemnation, I’m curious who will suffer more. Why should I die alone? We should die together.”
“…!”
“I have the money for it, and even if I thrash about until I’m exhausted, I have no reputation to lose. In a mud-slinging fight, I’ll win. And it doesn’t matter to me. Even if I spend a few years inside before coming out, I’ll still have my money, won’t I? I’ll just think of it as taking a break. I’ll keep living high on the hog.”
Eom Seon-ju smiled serenely as she watched Seo Jin’s eyes widen in shock.
Then, without a care in the world, she lifted the water cup to her lips and took a sip.
*
*
*
“Cut it.”
Kim Young-jun, watching the interrogation room from outside, spoke in a low voice.
The staff member hurriedly stopped the recording and playback, exhaling a dry sigh.
“Cut. It’s off.”
Kim Young-jun’s jaw clenched so tightly his teeth seemed ready to shatter.
He had anticipated that Eom Seon-ju wouldn’t go down easily, but she continued to act deplorably until the very end.
Kim Young-jun had threatened to destroy Eom Seon-ju’s entire family, yet she charged at him with a willingness to die together.
A cornered rat has nothing left to lose.
Kim Young-jun’s expression grew increasingly grave.
Her next moves were predictable.
She would call for a lawyer and make contact with journalists.
Under the guise of a prison letter, she intended to expose Kim Young-jun’s secrets.
Kim Young-jun exhaled a long breath and turned away.
Then he strode briskly out of the interrogation room.
There was no time to remain here watching Eom Seon-ju’s interrogation.
He needed to move swiftly.
*
*
*
“Why? Shocked? Did you think I wouldn’t go this far? Then go tell your uncle—if he doesn’t want us to die together, let me out!”
Eom Seon-ju’s desperate struggle continued.
And Seo Jin received a message from Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk.
Kim Young-jun had left the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office.
‘Kim Young-jun, who heard Eom Seon-ju’s plan and departed. Eom Seon-ju, unaware of his absence….’
I lowered my head to conceal my expression.
I was already anticipating the clash between these two.
Of course, it was obvious that Kim Young-jun would emerge victorious.
Eom Seon-ju was underestimating the power wielded by the Prosecutor General of South Korea.
What I truly anticipated was what would unfold after their confrontation ended—the thought already sent a tingling sensation through my stomach.
‘Eom Seon-ju….’
She stood now at the edge of a cliff.
She screamed desperately, clawing for survival.
But soon she would plummet from that precipice into a torrent of raging waters.
Within those depths, she would not even be able to scream.
She would merely flail her hands helplessly.
If I take that hand, Eom Seon-ju will likely spill all her information.
‘I like it.’
Eom Seon-ju stared at me with her lips twisted into a smirk.
I had adopted this posture to hide my smile, but Eom Seon-ju interpreted it differently.
She believed I was suppressing anger, that my mind was wavering.
In any case, I was Kim Young-jun’s nephew.
She concluded that the reason someone from Dongnam County could climb to the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office through the Gangwon District Prosecutors’ Office was Kim Young-jun’s backing.
In other words, if Kim Young-jun fell, my future would plunge into utter darkness.
For a bright future, she believed I had no choice but to follow her words.
“If I don’t get out by tomorrow morning, you’d better be prepared.”
Murderous intent flickered coldly in Eom Seon-ju’s eyes.
It seemed as though she would overturn everything if anything contradicted her thoughts.
Her gaze was sharp enough to slap my cheek at any moment.
But I said nothing.
Today’s interrogation of Eom Seon-ju ended here.
Now I simply waited for her to plummet from the cliff and be swept away by the raging current.
*
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*
That afternoon, in the Lawyer Visitation Room of the Detention Center.
Eom Seon-ju was meeting with her lawyer.
The lawyer placed cigarettes on the table and opened his mouth.
“Didn’t you say you quit?”
“Do I look like I quit?”
Eom Seon-ju lit a cigarette and inhaled.
As hazy smoke filled the space, her gaze turned toward the lawyer.
“Starting tomorrow morning, blow them up one by one. Use Jirashi first.”
Eom Seon-ju decided to reveal first that the Prosecutor General’s in-laws came from a family of major players.
And she would do it through Jirashi, not the media.
“Scare them slowly and just let them know I’ve drawn my blade.”
A blade is most terrifying when it remains in its sheath.
The moment you draw it, you risk cutting yourself.
Eom Seon-ju understood this principle well, and she intended to show Kim Young-jun first that she was not someone to be trifled with.
“Will he be frightened?”
“Has my name appeared in the media even once? No, right? What about Kim Hyun-bong? Nothing, right? Why? Because they’re keeping it under wraps. They’re afraid my name might get out and cause complications. My brother-in-law is an ambitious man. So don’t worry. The more someone has, the more they fear losing it.”
The lawyer nodded at Eom Seon-ju’s confident tone. She continued.
“In the afternoon, let it be known that the Prosecutor General received money from a Loan Shark Boss to study for the bar exam.”
“Through Jirashi as well?”
“Yes. Up to that point, it’s Jirashi.”
“Then what comes next?”
“If I show them the knife and they still won’t listen, then I have no choice but to use it, right? I’ll leverage the media. Tomorrow evening, I’m meeting with the heads of the major news outlets. I’ll give them some money and feed them the story. Just enough to sting—like a paper cut.”
Eom Seon-ju exhaled cigarette smoke and smirked.
The lawyer nodded and pulled out a notepad.
He was jotting down Eom Seon-ju’s instructions when his phone vibrated against his palm.
The lawyer’s hand froze as he reached for the device with an indifferent expression.
His eyes widened in shock as he stared at the screen.
“Sir, Director…”
“What?”
“This… this.”
The lawyer stammered, hastily thrusting the phone toward Eom Seon-ju.
Eom Seon-ju’s brow furrowed as he took the device.
A video was playing on the screen.
The title read: “Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun Direct Briefing.”
Eom Seon-ju’s face twisted in an instant.
He quickly pressed play on the video.
On screen, Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun stood at the podium with a stern expression, bowing slightly toward the assembled reporters.
What followed was shocking.
-Early yesterday morning, our Prosecutor’s Office arrested a loan shark named Eom, who was in collusion with violent criminal organizations.
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun paused and surveyed the room.
The reporters’ eyes gleamed at that silence.
The Prosecutor General himself had appeared for a mere organized crime crackdown.
And he was deliberately drawing out the moment.
The reporters knew this was when major scoops broke.
And their instinct proved correct.
-The loan shark Eom is my brother-in-law.
Eom Seon-ju’s hand trembled as he gripped the phone.
His face drained of color, and cold, anxious breath escaped his lips.
He had never imagined Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun would go this far.
Eom Seon-ju wanted nothing more than to silence the Prosecutor General immediately.
But Kim Young-jun’s voice continued relentlessly.
That Eom Seon-ju’s arrest was a direct order from himself.
That no matter how close family was, crime could not be tolerated.
That precisely because he was a prosecutor’s family member, he would pursue the case to the bitter end to ensure the harshest possible punishment.
Eom Seon-ju couldn’t watch the video to its end.
He stopped the playback, closing and opening his eyes before bursting into mad, hysterical laughter.
When that laughter abruptly ceased, his eyes turned a cold, murderous blue.
He hurled the phone toward the lawyer and spoke in an icy voice.
“Call them.”
“Sir?”
“Who else! Call the heads of the news outlets right now!”
“Yes, of course!”
Under Eom Seon-ju’s piercing gaze, the lawyer jabbed at his phone’s buttons repeatedly.
The dial tone continued. But no one answered.
All he heard was.
-The customer did not answer. After the beep….
He tried calling elsewhere, but it was the same.
No one picked up.
Of course, some did answer.
But their words were identical.
-I’m down in the provincial area right now….
-Oh dear, what can I do? I have a prior appointment.
The lawyer set his phone down on the table with a devastated heart.
“…I apologize. There’s no one left to call.”
Eom Seon-ju bit her lip so hard blood began to seep.
She had realized the truth.
All the money Eom Seon-ju possessed, every sum she had distributed over the years, had been blocked by Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s power.
There was no one left to help her.
Public opinion was not on her side either.
Everyone was supporting Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun.
-Wow. He even caught his sister-in-law?
-He’s really following the law. No one’s helping her.
└That’s cool. Kim Young-jun.
-The Prosecution Service is trustworthy these days.
-Isn’t this sister-in-law crazy? She must have gone around bragging that the Prosecutor General was her brother-in-law. Insane×.
└I was worried because I trusted Baek, but he didn’t see it. lol
└Kim Young-jun said it himself—because they’re family, he won’t help her even more.
└Death penalty! Death penalty! Death penalty! Death penalty!
└The death penalty might be too much, but the Prosecutor General gave direct orders, so she’ll get at least 10 years?
└How old will that woman be when she gets out in 10 years?
-Kim Young-jun, run for president. You’ve got my vote.
In that moment, Eom Seon-ju tore at her hair and screamed.
“Aaaaaahhhhh!”
She had glimpsed her horrific future.
Yesterday, today, and tomorrow—time that would never escape the prison walls.
“What did I do wrong! Aaahhh!”
Eom Seon-ju raised her palm and slammed the table—bang, bang, bang.
Then she grabbed everything on the table—the lawyer’s phone, his notebook, his pen—and hurled them.
“D-Director!”
“Let go! I said let go!”
Eom Seon-ju’s eyes were bloodshot crimson.
Tears streamed down his face in torrents.
Of course, they were not tears of remorse—they were tears of bitter injustice.
He wept because he was helpless, utterly powerless to change anything.
“Aaaaaahhhhh!”
At that moment, the door to the Lawyer Visitation Room swung open.
The lawyer turned his head, assuming staff had entered to escort Eom Seon-ju out.
But the figure standing there was no staff member.
It was 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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