Prosecutor Kim Seo-Jin - Chapter 5

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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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Rebirth (3)
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Several days later, it was late at night.
I remained in the office, reading through the materials a staff member had handed me.
‘The deceased’s name is Woo Su-kyung. Age forty-one.’
She had lived separately from her husband for seven years.
Effectively divorced.
Two sons—one in second grade at elementary school, the other still in kindergarten.
She worked day and night without rest to raise her two boys alone.
On the day of the incident, there was a small gathering at the Raw Fish Restaurant where she worked.
The owner gave her taxi fare, but she walked instead to save money and was struck by a vehicle.
I narrowed my eyes and read that section again.
‘A gathering, walking to save money, struck by a vehicle….’
Lost in thought, I placed the documents in an envelope and left the office.
My destination was the Raw Fish Restaurant where the woman had worked.
Shortly after, my car came to a stop in front of the restaurant.
The Raw Fish Restaurant was quiet on this winter night.
If it were summer, this would be peak hours….
“We’re closed for the night.”
“Prosecutor’s Office.”
As I presented my credentials, the owner’s eyes widened.
“You’re here about Su-kyung, aren’t you? I’ve seen the police before, but this is my first time with the Prosecutor’s Office. Please, sit down.”
As I took a seat at the table, the owner removed his apron and rubber gloves, settling into the chair across from me.
I pulled out my notebook and asked.
“…Was that day’s gathering spontaneous, or did you announce it in advance?”
“The gathering? I mentioned it several days before. Everyone here has families, after all.”
“You gave her taxi fare?”
“Yes, well….”
“How much did you give her?”
“One hundred thousand won.”
“Isn’t that rather generous for taxi fare?”
The owner smiled bitterly and waved his hand.
“Ah, I knew she wouldn’t take a taxi.”
“You knew she wouldn’t take it?”
“Su-kyung wouldn’t even take the bus for short distances. She was the type who scraped together every penny, saying she’d buy her kids snacks with the money.”
“No matter how late it got?”
“Yes, even with the world being dangerous, she’d walk all the way. I forced her into my car once, and you know what? She got out at the corner and walked the rest of the way. If she’d just taken a taxi that day, she’d still be here working and smiling. Sigh….”
The owner shook his head with a bitter smile.
Seo Jin quickly organized the information he had just heard.
-The dinner gathering had been announced in advance.
-The victim walked around even at late hours.
-If murder had been planned, specifying the time and location wouldn’t have been difficult.
Stepping out of the Raw Fish Restaurant and settling into the driver’s seat, Seo Jin reviewed the documents again.
‘The victim’s older sister, Woo Su-jin. Age forty-five, unmarried.’
She runs a grilled pork belly restaurant at the Market.
The shop is about fifty square meters.
Business has been sluggish, and she recently took out loans.
Documented debt: 120 million won.
‘Debt, and loan sharks….’
Seo Jin flipped through another page of documents.
This time, information about the perpetrator appeared.
‘His name is Jang Dong-ik.’
He graduated from the same elementary school as the victim’s older sister.
Recalling that the entire student body of that elementary school at the time was around 220 students, the probability they knew each other was high.
He graduated from middle school and moved to Gyeonggi Province, with two prior convictions for violence.
‘He was recently released from prison….’
He has 30 million won in debt and moved back to this area last August.
‘The sister and the perpetrator didn’t contact each other separately.’
There were no overlapping call records.
‘The neighborhood is small, so they must have seen each other’s faces passing by….’
Seo Jin flipped through another document.
The victim had taken out life insurance thirteen months ago.
The insurance payout was 1 billion won—she had prepared so her two sons could live well even after her death.
But the beneficiary was… her sister.
Seo Jin narrowed his eyes and slammed the documents shut.
A prosecutor is someone who seeks the truth.
Sometimes that truth can be repulsive and vile.
This case was no exception.
The closer I drew to the truth, the more I felt a greedy, loathsome beast baring its fangs.
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-My opponent is someone under you. Seo Jin Kim, right? Are you teaching him well?
“Don’t meddle in other people’s affairs. Hang up.”
-He shouldn’t turn out like you. You want me to make him just like you?
“Hey….”
-I’m hanging up. If you have time later, let’s see each other and grab a meal.
The call ended.
Click.
Lee Myung-soo set down his phone and exhaled with a displeased expression.
Then, tapping his pen in a steady rhythm, he opened his mouth.
“Kim Seo-jin.”
When Seo Jin looked up and met his eyes, Lee Myung-soo asked in a subdued voice.
“How’s your debut case coming along?”
“Well.”
“A traffic accident? What should you check first?”
“Gross negligence among the twelve counts—specifically, this case requires analyzing the dashcam footage and verifying the violation of the duty to maintain forward visibility according to the speed limit.”
“And?”
“I need to request an analysis report from the Road Traffic Authority.”
“Did you get it?”
“The analysis shows the accident could have been avoided if braking had occurred between 53.2 meters and 73 meters before the collision point.”
“So what did the analysis show? Was there a violation of the duty to maintain forward visibility?”
“It’s a sharp curve, but the road is wide and open. If the driver had been paying attention, they could have spotted the victim.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes.”
Lee Myung-soo nodded.
“You answer well.”
Lee Myung-soo’s tone was different from usual.
Normally he was fierce, but now he was considerably gentler.
The reason was the phone call he’d just taken—from Seo Jin’s opposing counsel.
Lee Myung-soo and that lawyer were classmates from the Prosecutor’s Office.
They’d graduated from the same university and attended the Judicial Research and Training Institute together, but the paths they chose diverged.
While Lee Myung-soo moved according to the law, that bastard became a political prosecutor representing the powerful.
As a result, he became a well-paid lawyer, while Lee Myung-soo was exiled to a backwater post.
That bastard had just called and turned his insides upside down.
He couldn’t afford to dampen Seo Jin’s spirit—not when facing him.
“This is your first summons interrogation?”
“Yes.”
“Their lawyer is a former prosecutor. Don’t be intimidated by seniority—seize the initiative firmly.”
“Understood.”
“That’s it. Keep working on it.”
Lee Myung-soo considered reviewing the materials Seo Jin had prepared but decided against it.
It was a simple traffic accident, and from the answers he’d just heard, Seo Jin was already carefully checking the key points of contention.
“Do well.”
“Yes.”
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The next day.
A gleaming black sedan pulled up in front of the Local Prosecutor’s Office.
A Mercedes S-Class.
The man who stepped out had a sturdy build.
His name was Koo Sang-jin, and he was Seo Jin’s opposing counsel.
As he moved forward with his briefcase in hand, Shin Jong-seung, who had been waiting, positioned himself at his side.
“You’ve arrived?”
“It’s been a while. Your complexion has improved—must be the fresh air in this place.”
Shin Jong-seung was the son of Koo Sang-jin’s friend.
I’d always thought him immature, but now that he’d become a prosecutor and I was meeting him here at the Local Prosecutor’s Office, he seemed more dignified.
“So, what kind of prosecutor am I up against? Give me some intel.”
At Koo Sang-jin’s groan, Shin Jong-seung let out a subtle laugh.
“What’s there to know about a trainee? Ah, just so you know, his personality is a bit arrogant.”
“How can a trainee be arrogant?”
“His father is the CEO of Jaejeong Construction.”
“Sigh….”
A sigh escaped from Koo Sang-jin’s lips.
With the legal profession increasingly filled with silver-spoon types lately, occasionally someone appears who doesn’t know the meaning of fear.
“They need to get beaten down to learn respect for the law.”
“Go easy on him, haha.”
“No way. Those kinds of guys need to be disciplined.”
Koo Sang-jin continued, looking at Shin Jong-seung.
“Want to grab a meal after this?”
“Yes, I’ll take you somewhere delicious.”
Koo Sang-jin gave Shin Jong-seung’s back a light pat before climbing the stairs.
He belonged to one of South Korea’s top law firms.
Moreover, his overwhelming win rate and connections in political and business circles had made the name Koo Sang-jin itself a brand.
Watching his retreating figure, Shin Jong-seung grinned.
‘Kim Seo-jin… you’re about to be humiliated.’
Once this veteran lawyer got serious, someone like Kim Seo-jin would be dragged around helplessly, unable to tell right from wrong.
Shin Jong-seung decided to savor the spectacle from this moment on.
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Click.
The door to the Investigation Room opened, and Koo Sang-jin entered.
Jang Dong-ik, the perpetrator who had arrived first and was waiting, and Seo Jin shifted their gazes.
“I’m Koo Sang-jin.”
He placed his business card on the table before Seo Jin, then took a seat beside the perpetrator Jang Dong-ik.
After staring at Seo Jin in silence for a long moment, he spoke in a low voice.
“Prosecutor, forgive me for asking, but how old are you?”
A rude question—the opening gambit to seize the initiative.
But Seo Jin countered instead.
“If you know it’s rude, shouldn’t you have learned not to ask?”
Koo Sang-jin let out a dismissive chuckle.
But then he paused.
His expression turned serious as he continued.
“Fine. Let’s begin. A person darting out from an alley, a cyclist riding the wrong way on a curve, children running with their eyes fixed ahead—situations where the driver has no time to react. Yet the Prosecution Service treats the driver as a criminal, claiming everything is their fault.”
“And?”
“This case is no different. If we think rationally without pursuing an overreaching indictment, we can refute every claim made by the Prosecution. First, regarding the determination of speeding….”
“Wait a moment.”
Seo Jin stopped him.
Koo Sang-jin tilted his head, regarding Seo Jin with confusion.
“Why?”
“Before I hear about the traffic accident, I’d like to ask Jang Dong-ik something. Would that be alright?”
Jang Dong-ik tilted his head.
He was a two-time offender.
He’d met many prosecutors, but never one like this.
He turned to Koo Sang-jin.
“Attorney, what should we do?”
“Let’s hear what our young prosecutor is curious about.”
Koo Sang-jin nodded, and Jang Dong-ik opened his mouth.
“Go ahead.”
“Jang Dong-ik, I heard you have debts. But isn’t Attorney Koo Sang-jin’s retainer quite expensive? The travel costs from Seoul to Gangwon Province alone must be substantial.”
“Pardon?”
“Where did you get that money?”
At the unexpected question, Jang Dong-ik blinked, and Koo Sang-jin’s brow furrowed sharply.
“Prosecutor!”
“If I’ve offended you, I apologize. I was simply curious.”
Seo Jin ended his remark by leaning back in his chair at an angle, as if sinking into it.
It was an unhurried demeanor unbecoming of a trainee.
Koo Sang-jin’s eyes twisted as he watched Seo Jin.
‘This punk….’
The young prosecutor sitting across from him was still a trainee, and this was his debut case.
He should be intimidated by a veteran attorney like himself.
A senior of considerable standing, someone whose face occasionally appeared in the media.
Yet Seo Jin’s gaze was indifferent.
He showed no interest whatsoever in Koo Sang-jin’s credentials.
‘Is he really a trainee?’
Shin Jong-seung had mentioned he was somewhat arrogant, but this transcended arrogance.
In the old days, I would have had nothing to say even if I’d been caught red-handed.
Then I continued speaking.
I asked casually, as though the question were trivial, something mentioned in passing.
“Jang Dong-ik, you attended Dongnam Elementary School, didn’t you?”
“Yes? Yes.”
“Do you know Woo Su-jin? The victim’s older sister.”
“…Woo Su-jin?”
I didn’t miss the flicker in Jang Dong-ik’s eyes.
Jang Dong-ik was anxious now.
And Koo Sang-jin’s attorney felt it too.
“Jang Dong-ik, you don’t need to answer that question. Don’t answer.”
“Yes.”
Jang Dong-ik clamped his mouth shut after responding.
But my questions weren’t finished.
“The insurance beneficiary is the victim’s older sister. Did you know that?”
“Prosecutor!”
Koo Sang-jin’s attorney slammed the desk and stood up.
He glared at me with fierce eyes.
“What are you doing right now?”
“Asking what I’m curious about. That’s investigation and inquiry.”
“Is this an investigation? What does it have to do with a traffic accident?”
Strong displeasure resonated in Koo Sang-jin’s attorney’s voice.
But I paid no attention and turned my gaze toward Jang Dong-ik.
His expression had changed from moments before.
He sat anxiously, his hands fidgeting without pause.
I observed everything about him and spoke quietly.
“Jang Dong-ik, and attorney. There’s a possibility this isn’t a traffic accident but a different case entirely. That’s what I believe and have concluded.”
“…!”
As Jang Dong-ik flinched, Koo Sang-jin’s attorney’s voice cut through sharply.
“Don’t talk about possibilities—bring me concrete evidence!”
“I have evidence too.”
At my cold voice, Koo Sang-jin’s attorney’s movements froze.
Then Jang Dong-ik’s eyes, which had been cast downward, flickered toward me.
“…You have evidence?”

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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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