Prosecutor Kim Seo-Jin - Chapter 244

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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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Cutting Off the Head (10)
A cold smile played at the corners of Kim Young-jun’s mouth.
“…Was it you?”
I didn’t answer. But in Kim Young-jun’s mind, all the events that had transpired flashed rapidly before him. From Kim Yun-hwan to Eom Seon-ju, and every incident that had occurred until now—I had always been there.
“This is maddening.”
At that moment, Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk brushed past Kim Young-jun and approached me. But Kim Young-jun didn’t stop him. The gangsters I’d brought far outnumbered them. Struggling here would be laughable. So Kim Young-jun simply let out a series of chuckles, laughing to himself.
And Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk, standing before me, smiled bitterly and handed over the envelope he’d been holding.
“You’ve worked hard.”
Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk patted my shoulder twice, then walked toward Jang Seok-min. I opened the envelope and checked its contents. It was a copy of the account that had received 100 million won.
A sigh escaped my lips. The feeling when something I’d anticipated was actually revealed was truly repugnant. How could a man calling himself Prosecutor General—how could anyone born human kill their own parents for money? My gaze slowly turned toward Kim Young-jun.
“Kim Young-jun, you are under emergency arrest on suspicion of attempted murder of Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk. You have the right to remain silent….”
As my voice continued, Kim Young-jun exhaled cigarette smoke and opened his mouth.
“Seo Jin, I thought you of all people would understand.”
My eyes narrowed at his sudden words. Kim Young-jun’s voice continued calmly.
“Not caring about the means or methods for success. Killing parents, killing siblings—what’s wrong with that? After all, we only live once, and if you want to climb higher, you have to bear that much resentment on your shoulders, don’t you?”
“Stop wasting your breath.”
“Wasting my breath?”
Kim Young-jun chuckled once more. Then he flicked the nearly finished cigarette butt to the ground and continued speaking.
“Seo Jin… you started in Dongnam County and climbed all the way here, didn’t you? You said I helped you, but it wasn’t an easy path. But I clawed my way up from the cliff’s edge with bare hands. Everything was by my own strength, without any help. And even now, I’m confident I can climb further. I won’t fall from a single misstep.”
“…!”
“Come on, let’s begin. I tried to kill Ji-hyuk? Ji-hyuk, answer me. Did I try to kill you? Did I say even a single word like that? No. All I said was that I’d give you a chance.”
Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk couldn’t answer and kept his mouth firmly shut. Because what Kim Young-jun said was true. And Kim Young-jun’s expression was leisurely. Not a trace of anxiety showed. His voice continued with infuriating shamelessness.
“I heard that Ji-hyuk’s vehicle had been reported stolen, and thinking something was amiss, I came looking for him.”
“…!”
“The people who came with me? They’re foreign workers from the factories around here. A boss I know well called them over. He said since they know the local geography well, I should get their help.”
Kim Young-jun stepped closer to me and lowered his voice.
“Where is my crime? Don’t bother with expired statutes of limitations. Tell me what you can actually charge me with right now.”
My brow furrowed. Kim Young-jun split his lips in a grin and continued speaking.
“Right now, you’re in a disadvantageous position. You showed up here with gangsters. Why would a prosecutor who should be in Seoul come all the way here hand in hand with gangsters? You tried to kill me. Will people believe the gangsters’ words? Or will they believe the words of Jang Ji-hyuk and you, who joined hands with gangsters? If you have a brain, you’ll understand. People will believe my words as Prosecutor General.”
“Until the very end….”
“Your connection to gangsters is evidence that will surface the moment we dig through just a few bank accounts. If you used a proxy account, your crime becomes even greater.”
Kim Young-jun stood beside me. And looking down at me with contempt, he continued speaking.
“You popped the champagne too early. You should have stayed hidden a bit longer. Once you revealed yourself… you should have thought about the aftermath. But you were impatient, and you lost this game.”
Kim Young-jun tilted his umbrella. The rain that had been pouring down on me now flowed along the umbrella. Kim Young-jun twisted his body and gently brushed my back as he spoke.
“I’ll be at the office. So bring whatever you’ve hidden in your pocket. And keep using the umbrella I keep giving you. I’ll polish your future for you, so just follow along obediently. Walking a guaranteed path isn’t such a bad life.”
Kim Young-jun pressed the umbrella into my hand and walked away with heavy steps. Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk blocked his path.
“Move.”
Kim Young-jun’s voice sounded menacing, but Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk didn’t budge. He simply glared at Kim Young-jun with aggrieved eyes. Kim Young-jun shook his head as if exasperated.
“I’ve let you slide many times. But now we’ve reached the limit. Move.”
“….”
“Do you want to remain a prosecutor who conspired with gangsters alongside Seo Jin? Do you want to be recorded in history as a disgrace to the prosecution? If not, step aside!”
It was when Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s voice thundered like lightning. Seo Jin’s voice pierced through to Kim Young-jun’s ears.
“Kim Young-jun, I’m placing you under emergency arrest on suspicion of attempted murder-for-hire against Prosecutor Seo Jin. You have the right to remain silent, and anything you say from this moment forward may be used as evidence against you….”
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s pupils slowly twisted. He glared at Seo Jin and asked.
“What?”
“I said I’m making an emergency arrest.”
“…Do you have evidence?”
The sudden accusation of murder-for-hire left Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s expression darkening.
Seo Jin tossed the umbrella Kim Young-jun had given him to the ground with a thud and approached him with heavy, deliberate steps. Standing before him, I answered with a sinister tone.
“I have it, so I’m making the arrest.”
“…!”
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun scrutinized Seo Jin’s expression with wide eyes. He tilted his pupils, searching his memory for anything he might have overlooked. But no matter how hard he thought, there was nothing. He had left no traces.
Suddenly, a phone call he’d received that morning flashed through Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s mind. A call from the nursing home in Hongcheon.
-Sir, Park Jung-gil has disappeared.
Seo Jin stood before Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun and opened his mouth.
“Park Jung-gil is a man with many sins and just as many fears. That’s why he recorded everything. He has proof of you trying to kill me too.”
For the first time, Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s face hardened. His complexion shifted moment by moment. His pallid face darkened to ashen, and his composed expression vanished, replaced by anxiety.
Seo Jin’s voice continued.
“I’m confident I can get a detention warrant within 48 hours, so let’s stop here.”
“…!”
“Kim Young-jun, the game isn’t ending—it’s just beginning now.”
In that instant, murderous intent blazed in Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s wavering eyes. He glared at Seo Jin’s face and clenched his lips tightly.
“If you catch me, you’ll die with me. You won’t be able to live as a prosecutor.”
“I don’t care. I’ve already caught the Prosecutor General—what more is there for a prosecutor to do?”
“Jaejeong Construction will collapse. Everything your father has built will disappear.”
At the sinister words, Seo Jin shook his head.
“It won’t disappear.”
“I’ve already finished preparing to destroy Jaejeong Construction. At my signal….”
Seo Jin abruptly thrust his phone screen toward Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun.
“…!”
On the screen was Chief Prosecutor Jo Woo-jae’s contact information. Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s pupils trembled. And in an instant, his eyes turned blood-red. He sensed something ominous.
Watching that expression, Seo Jin pressed the call button firmly. Chief Prosecutor Jo Woo-jae’s voice came through.
-Yeah, Seo Jin.
“How’s the Jaejeong Construction operation going?”
-I’m preparing a scenario that’ll squeeze tears right out of people. With this, your father becomes the perfect victim. But is this really okay?
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun frantically alternated his gaze between the phone and Seo Jin’s face. He couldn’t grasp exactly how the situation was unfolding. But one thing was certain.
‘Jo Woo-jae?’
Chief Prosecutor Jo Woo-jae was now following Seo Jin’s will, not Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s orders.
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun, who had been momentarily dazed, finished assessing the situation. And a curse spilled from his lips.
“Damn it, Jo Woo-jae!”
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun spat out Jo Woo-jae’s name as if chewing it. At the same moment, Jo Woo-jae’s voice that had been rambling vanished like evaporating water. All that came through the phone was the sound of panicked breathing.
Seo Jin opened his mouth with a cruel smile.
“I’ll be in touch.”
Seo Jin pressed the call end button firmly. Then Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun glared at Seo Jin with bloodshot eyes and grabbed him by the collar.
“You bastard….”
“Right now… I’m liking that face.”
This was exactly the expression I had longed to see. That face writhing desperately at the cliff’s edge, the despair of being unable to do anything. A monster’s end had to be pathetic.
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s lips twisted.
“You think you’ve won now? I won’t die. Power stands above the law.”
“Wait and see. I’ll show you there’s a basement beneath the ground. And below that, there’s hell too.”
“You bastard!”
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun raised his fist as if to strike Seo Jin. But the fist never swung. Jang Seok-min, who had stepped beside them, grabbed his hand.
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun glared at Jang Seok-min. Then he confirmed Jang Seok-min’s subordinates surrounding him.
“Tch!”
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun released the tension from his clenched fist. Then Seo Jin pulled handcuffs from his pocket, dangled them, and spoke.
“It’s over. So, I’d appreciate it if you’d come quietly?”
Rain poured down on the faces of Seo Jin and Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun.
*
*
*
-Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk of the Special Prosecution Team, who had been investigating allegations of embezzlement by Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun at Jaejeong Construction, announced today at 3 p.m. that he had made an emergency arrest of Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun on charges of attempted murder for hire. Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk stated that he would definitely secure detention….
The door of Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk’s vehicle opened roughly. In front of it, reporters who had been waiting for an unprecedented situation swarmed like bees. They pointed their cameras at Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun being dragged out by Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk’s hand.
“Prosecutor General! Is it true that you ordered a contract killing?”
“You tried to kill Prosecutor Jang Ji-hyuk again today, didn’t you!”
“Prosecutor General!”
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun, who had been facing forward with his mouth closed, turned his gaze toward the reporters. And with an expression of disbelief, he shook his head and spoke.
“It’s all lies. This is all a political conspiracy by the ruling party and the tyranny of political prosecutors. I have nothing to be ashamed of before heaven, and I have lived without shame as a prosecutor.”
Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun remained shameless to the end. Because he still believed in Baek Ki-ho.
Baek Ki-ho was also collapsing, but if he took power, everything would change. The investigation would fizzle out, and Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun could be perceived by the world as a martyr who had stood against the current administration. That’s what Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun believed.
And Seo Jin stood at a distance, watching it all unfold. I felt as though I could read every thought in Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun’s mind. The actions of a cornered rat are always predictable.
‘Struggle all you want. The more you do, the deeper into the swamp you’ll sink.’
A faint smile played at the corners of my mouth.

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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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