Prosecutor Kim Seo-Jin - Chapter 19

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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 Friend (3)
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“Hey, did you see that? Soon as they spotted us coming, they yanked the curtain shut. Do kids these days hang out in places like this? Pretty thrilling, I’ll admit.”
“Kids these days wouldn’t come here. That’s old-school stuff, isn’t it? From the ’80s.”
The snickering voices of Park Sang-young and Ji Dong-min echoed from beyond the curtain.
I signaled Lee So-hee with a glance.
“Shh.”
Lee So-hee nodded.
Then she tapped my hand, which was pressing down on her head, and whispered.
“Move it. You’re being obvious.”
Her voice was ice-cold.
“Sorry.”
I withdrew my hand.
But neither of us lifted our heads.
To describe this place: it was like a curtained-off section in a pojangmacha with uncomfortable wooden seating.
Even with the curtain drawn, it hung too low.
If someone wanted to see our faces, they could—caution was essential.
I cracked the curtain open slightly and peered through to confirm Park Sang-young and Ji Dong-min’s movements.
The two of them had settled at a table some distance from mine.
They’d even drawn their own curtain, as if discussing something secretive.
I sat up straight and whispered.
“Wait. I’m going to leave my phone in the back seat.”
“Your phone?”
I pulled out my phone, switched it to airplane mode, and pressed the recording app.
I intended to record whatever conversation they were having.
Lee So-hee nodded, her lips moving silently.
“Be careful.”
I headed toward where Park Sang-young and Ji Dong-min were sitting.
Just then, their curtain suddenly swept open and Park Sang-young burst out.
“I’m heading to the restroom.”
I came face-to-face with Park Sang-young.
My expression froze in an instant.
Park Sang-young, in his gray suit with that thug-like face, stared at me with crooked eyes.
I averted my gaze, and Park Sang-young paid me no mind as he headed toward the restroom.
Fortunately, Park Sang-young didn’t recognize my face.
“Phew.”
And that was it.
I hid my phone in the back seat where they were sitting and returned to my spot.
I’d only moved about ten meters, but I thought my liver was about to burst from my chest.
I exhaled a long breath and gulped down my coffee when Lee So-hee set her cup down and asked me a question.
“What would you have done if the person who popped out wasn’t Park Sang-young, but Ji Dong-min instead?”
“I was going to say we were dating. This place is perfect for couples, after all.”
“Would he have believed you?”
“Who knows.”
Lee So-hee shook her head and popped a pastry into her mouth.
Even in tense moments, her expression remained remarkably composed.
She brushed the crumbs from her hands and asked me.
“Did you know those two would come here?”
There were plenty of coffee shops near the District Prosecution Office, yet I’d deliberately dragged Lee So-hee all the way here.
The fact that both of them walked in right on cue was suspicious, to say the least.
I didn’t deny it.
“I overheard Ji Dong-min making a phone call this afternoon.”
The timing was absurd, the coincidence too convenient—Lee So-hee nodded in understanding.
“Are you really just a lucky guy? I thought it was skill.”
“Let’s say I have both good fortune and ability.”
“That’s just bragging.”
That was the end of it.
Lee So-hee and I didn’t exchange another word.
We simply sipped our coffee and occasionally commented on what we could see outside through the gaps in the curtains.
And shortly after, Ji Dong-min and Park Sang-young left.
I immediately retrieved my phone and sat back down across from Lee So-hee.
“It’s a bit hard to hear clearly here. Should we move somewhere else?”
The coffee shop was too quiet.
It wasn’t an ideal place to listen to the recorded conversation.
Lee So-hee slung her small bag over her shoulder and spoke.
“Chicken?”
“Again?”
“Chicken has its own separate stomach.”
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“There were earbuds.”
It was a pojangmacha.
I plugged in the earbuds and handed one to Lee So-hee, who burst out laughing.
“If you had earbuds, we could’ve just stayed at the coffee shop?”
“Yeah, well. We’ve never had a drink together as classmates before, right? Think of it as killing two birds with one stone.”
Lee So-hee nodded, and I manipulated my phone.
And then the smiles faded from both our faces.
Truth is neither beautiful nor elegant—it is ugly.
Depending on how events unfold, I might even be able to slap handcuffs on Ji Dong-min’s wrists.
“Ready?”
“Yeah.”
Hearing Lee So-hee’s voice, Seo Jin tapped the recording file.
-Ji Dong-min: Be careful. You’ve become a subject of investigation.
Seo Jin’s eyes narrowed.
As expected, Ji Dong-min had leaked investigative information.
Now I needed to determine whether Ji Dong-min was actually involved in the case or not.
Seo Jin stroked his chin and continued listening intently.
-Park Sang-young: Me? Why is the Prosecution Service interested in me?
-Ji Dong-min: Did you ever slip money to any civil servants?
-Park Sang-young: Of course I did—plenty of it. When you run a business, you grease the palms of bureaucrats and all that. It speeds things up. Is that my problem? It’s the civil servants’ problem. Anyway, are you investigating me because of that?
Park Sang-young’s voice was full of complaint, but Ji Dong-min’s remained calm.
-Ji Dong-min: The Gangwon Urban Development Corporation suddenly withdrew from the project. And then your company was dramatically selected as the preferred negotiation partner. How did that happen? Who did you bribe and with what?
-Park Sang-young: Ugh… I met with a county council member, set up a woman next to him, and gave him some money. Isn’t that enough? Should I break down what drinks we had and what appetizers we ate?
-Ji Dong-min: Hey!
-Park Sang-young: Never mind. Just tip me off about whatever the Prosecution Service digs up. Then I’ll make sure you get transferred out of Dongnam County at the next personnel reshuffle. Why that expression? Did you think I didn’t know? There’s only one reason you’re wagging your tail at Kim Yun-hwan—you want to leave Dongnam County. I’ll put in a good word for you. You know we’re close, right? He seems to be building his own team these days. If you get into that team, Dongnam County is history.
With that, their conversation ended.
Park Sang-young stood and left the coffee shop.
Seo Jin stopped the audio file and looked at Lee So-hee.
Lee So-hee removed her earbuds and nodded.
“I get the general picture now.”
Ji Dong-min wants to escape Dongnam County.
Without connections or money, his only lifeline seems to be Kim Yun-hwan.
He must be grasping at straws.
Lee So-hee continued.
“Anyway, he mentioned a county council member, right? Should we look into that person?”
“No, a county council member is still a politician.”
Most people don’t realize it, but even a local council member wields tremendous power.
Seo Jin’s voice continued.
“The classic approach when targeting a politician is to strip away the outer layers first. Even with a local council member, you have to approach it like you’re taking down a national legislator.”
Seo Jin accessed the Dongnam County homepage on his phone and examined the organizational chart.
Then he pointed to a name.
“This person is ideal. Park Beom-gyun, Director of the Environmental Tourism Development Division. We’ll start by dismantling from here… but I’m not about to let the council member off the hook either.”
“So?”
“Give me a moment.”
Seo Jin, lost in thought, slowly opened his mouth.
“Here’s what we’ll do. You meet with the development director. Of course, quietly—away from prying eyes.”
“Quietly?”
“If he calls saying he had an accident while parking, he’ll come out alone. We meet up quietly and apply pressure.”
“What about you?”
“You meet with the Development Director, and if there’s a source, I’ll go straight to meet a County Council member. Quietly, of course.”
I speak about meeting a County Council member as casually as meeting a childhood friend.
Anyone watching would think I was a prosecutor with ten years of experience.
“You’re weird sometimes.”
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“Your name is Yoon Jung, right? From now on, call me oppa.”
“Pardon?”
“Your home is in Wonju? I’m from that area too. So think of me as your hometown oppa.”
A few days later, at a Grilled Pork Belly Restaurant.
The Dongnam County Orchestra’s company dinner—the entire restaurant was reserved, and the sizzling sound of grilling meat echoed from every corner.
Everyone was enjoying themselves, eating and drinking.
But the air around the head table where Wi Jun-sang sat wavered with unease.
Wi Jun-sang had seated a female orchestra member beside him and was uttering words bordering on sexual harassment.
“Call me oppa, go on. Oppa.”
But no one dared to stop him.
They only smiled awkwardly and raised their glasses.
The reason was simple: Wi Jun-sang was their superior.
The orchestra’s operational authority rested not with the County Office but with the County Council, and they were all contract workers.
Moreover, Wi Jun-sang was the standing committee chair of the Self-Governance Administration Committee.
Failing to appease him meant the orchestra’s budget would inevitably be slashed.
In other words, Wi Jun-sang held their livelihoods in his hands.
“You really are pretty for a hometown junior. Should we meet up often and grab some meals? Do you like to drink? I’ll buy. Give me your number.”
Yoon Jung had been with the orchestra for two years and was thirty-three, an unmarried mother.
With a six-year-old child at home, losing her job at the orchestra meant facing real fear about survival.
So she couldn’t directly refuse Wi Jun-sang’s advances and looked around desperately.
She could see the Culture Director and Arts Director right in front of her.
But they quickly averted their eyes from hers.
Getting involved could cost them their heads on the spot.
“Drink.”
Wi Jun-sang draped his arm over her shoulder and poured her a drink.
When she flinched, Wi Jun-sang chuckled.
“What? You don’t like it when oppa does this? It’s just because you seem like a little sister to me. You know, right? I’m not thinking anything sinister. Hahaha.”
The directors laughed along with him.
“…ha, ha, ha.”
“Everyone drink up, drink up.”
Wi Jun-sang set down his glass.
My face had flushed without my noticing.
But without losing that greasy smile, I pulled out a 50,000 won bill and scribbled my phone number on it before sliding it toward her.
“If I don’t get a good morning message tomorrow, your oppa’s going to be upset. Puhaha!”
“…Yes.”
That’s when the male staff member sitting across from me gathered his courage and spoke up.
“Council Member, it seems you’ve had quite a bit to drink…”
That was the moment.
Wi Jun-sang’s eyes turned vicious.
He glared at the male staff member as if he might devour him, his voice dropping to a low, menacing tone.
“Tch, this guy. Can’t read the room. There’s always one idiot in the world who takes jokes seriously.”
The atmosphere turned suffocating, and the male staff member’s face went rigid.
But no one came to his aid.
Instead, they blamed him.
“What’s wrong?”
“Apologize to the Council Member right now!”
Wi Jun-sang shook his head and opened his mouth.
“Damn it, you’ve ruined the mood. Hey, Director of Culture.”
“Yes.”
“I’m going to the restroom, so get rid of that bastard.”
“Ah, yes. Understood.”
“Get the atmosphere back up.”
“Yes.”
Wi Jun-sang rose unsteadily and headed toward the restroom.
The Director of Culture hurried over to the male staff member.
“Leave now. Go on.”
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“Damn fool, can’t tell the difference between a joke and the truth. Everyone was having fun.”
Wi Jun-sang stood before the urinal with a cigarette between his lips.
I fumbled with the zipper and my body trembled slightly when someone entered and closed the restroom door behind them.
Then came a click as the door locked.
Wi Jun-sang turned his head.
“What?”
“Finish up first.”
“Who the hell are you!”
“I came to ask you some questions.”
Wi Jun-sang squinted, peering ahead.
A young man, appearing to be in his mid-to-late twenties.
Wi Jun-sang zipped up and asked.
“Who are you?”
The young man standing before me smiled quietly and opened his mouth.
“I’m Prosecutor Seo Jin Kim from the Dongnam District Prosecutors’ Office.”

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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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