Prosecutor Kim Seo-Jin - Chapter 61

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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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An Unsolvable Problem (3)
“Please allow me to inform the media.”
Chief Prosecutor Ji Se-heon thought I must need something, so he asked.
But suddenly, the media? That came out of nowhere.
I continued speaking.
“The perpetrator left no trace behind. And if the remains hadn’t been discovered, it would have been handled as a missing person case.”
This could have been the perfect crime.
In a typical scenario, I would have been meticulous about it until the very end.
Buried in the ground, scattered in a ravine.
But this bastard….
“Left it exposed and abandoned.”
There are two possibilities in such cases.
One is if the perpetrator is a madman who wants to boast about the crime.
In such cases, they leave messages as if they’ve become a god presiding over death, deriving pleasure from people’s reactions.
But this time….
“The perpetrator wants to inform someone—not the world, but a specific ‘someone’—that the victim was murdered. I don’t know what grudge exists, but it’s the perpetrator’s own form of punishment.”
“Punishment?”
“That’s what he believes.”
This isn’t indiscriminate murder.
It’s a meticulously planned crime.
Yet there’s no message, only a focus on the murder itself.
“He’s planning a second murder. The target will be that ‘someone.'”
I relayed what I’d seen through psychometry as realistically as possible, and Chief Prosecutor Ji Se-heon nodded.
My argument wasn’t without flaws.
But he’d decided to trust me.
A recent conversation with Chief Prosecutor Lee Myung-soo flashed through Ji Se-heon’s mind.
“Leave it. I’ll bring him in.”
If Lee Myung-soo, who’d stopped trusting others since his exile, could say that, it was worth believing in once.
In fact, I had even found the hardware store’s ledger.
“So?”
“Until now, the abandoned house murder hasn’t received public attention.”
This is an era where politicians spout nonsense and brutal incidents occur almost daily.
Remains discovered in the mountains barely warranted a brief article.
“Once attention focuses on it, the police will move again.”
Cases that attract public attention make police station commanders anxious.
Moreover, this is a case involving a woman in her mid-twenties, in the prime of her life.
She was quite beautiful and deserving of public interest.
Public opinion will rise up, demanding that her resentment be avenged.
“I believe this will constrain the perpetrator’s actions.”
We have no evidence to arrest and imprison him.
But from now on, I plan to back him into a corner.
Keep him so anxious he can’t sleep.
As I left the Chief Prosecutor’s Office, I pulled out my phone and held it to my ear.
“Lee Eun-ha?”
The reporter from the current affairs program “Seeing the World”—Lee Eun-ha herself.
Her voice came through warmly.
-Yes, it’s been a while.
“I have a favor to ask.”
-Another exclusive?
*
*
*
-In a mountain area near Chuncheon, human remains have been discovered. The victim’s name is Shin Ji-min. She was only twenty-four years old, with dreams yet to be fulfilled….
At that same moment, at Chuncheon Police Station.
Department heads and team leaders from each division were rushing toward the elevators in unison.
Even as they moved, the news continued.
-The police have found no leads and are effectively concluding their investigation.
Shin Ji-min’s face was beautiful.
Those who saw the news were outraged, condemning the police’s incompetence.
-They didn’t fail to find clues—they just didn’t bother looking.
-When I reported a burglary at my house, they told me to wait and never called back.
-Our tax money just melts away like this.
-Who wants to call that police station and curse them out?
-Here’s the Audit and Inspection Office number, the Civil Complaints number!
-Forget the station, go straight to the National Police Agency
-2222
-33333
And then.
Crash!
The police chief hurled his phone across the room.
After enduring so much abuse in such a short time, even his ears had turned crimson.
“Brief me. Why is this suddenly happening?”
The chief’s voice wasn’t loud, but it was menacing.
As everyone exchanged nervous glances, the Criminal Investigation Division Chief cautiously opened his mouth.
“This case is….”
The incident was summarized.
“The problem is, the Prosecutor’s Office has gotten wind of it.”
“The Prosecutor’s Office?”
“A young prosecutor showed up there, and he’s quite….”
“What have you been doing all this time?”
“Pardon?”
“You’re losing to some desk jockey who does nothing but twirl a pen? What the hell have you been doing, you bastard!”
The station chief hurled everything within arm’s reach across the room.
“Get out! Bring him in right now!”
People scrambled out of the office.
But the Violent Crimes Team Leader remained standing.
The station chief’s face twisted as he demanded an answer.
“Why are you still here?”
“Chief….”
“Well?”
“You seem to have forgotten because you thought it was nothing, but that case—it’s that one.”
“What?”
“That woman….”
The station chief’s eyes narrowed.
He immediately clutched at his hair.
Ever since the Special Law on Sex Trafficking Prevention was enacted, the sex trade had gone underground.
They continued operations through massage parlors, illicit barbershops, and nearby motels, while the police received money in exchange for providing tip-offs and enforcement information.
But the woman who had been exchanging information with them had been found dead—nothing but skeletal remains.
“Damn it!”
*
*
*
A few days later, at a coffee shop not far from the District Prosecutor’s Office.
Lee So-hee set down the coffee and spoke.
“What time is the appointment?”
“In ten minutes.”
I had arranged to meet with Seo Dong-seok, the victim’s brother.
I deliberately chose a quiet coffee shop—to provide emotional stability for the grieving family member.
I brought Lee So-hee for the same reason.
Her tone and demeanor were naturally softer than mine.
“Here.”
I handed Lee So-hee a single sheet of A4 paper.
It was the list of questions for Seo Dong-seok.
Lee So-hee scanned through the questions and nodded.
“Okay. Got it memorized. But the chief said he’d provide everything you need, right?”
“Yeah.”
“I’m jealous. Really jealous.”
“If you’re jealous, take on a case yourself.”
“Nope. I have no ambition.”
Lee So-hee shook her head firmly.
Lee So-hee’s personality had changed quite a bit since coming to the Central Headquarters. Should I say she’d become brighter?
She was boldly spouting nonsense about lacking ambition and other strange things.
“By the way, did you vote yesterday?”
It was the day after the general election.
I didn’t care who won in Chuncheon, but in Songpa, Woo Jin-wook was elected just as I wanted.
In fact, Woo Jin-wook’s election was something everyone had anticipated.
I had systematically dismantled his opponents, including Congressman Eom Il-seop, so he secured an easy victory.
I received a thank-you call and promised to meet him the next time I went to Seoul.
“I originally wasn’t going to vote, but the candidate who ran had a criminal record. How could I just sit back after seeing that?”
“In that world, a criminal record is practically a qualification, isn’t it?”
“Don’t joke. And eight counts of drunk driving plus assault….”
While Lee So-hee was going on about various things, I tapped the table lightly with my knuckles.
Seeing the signal, Lee So-hee quietly closed her mouth, and I stood up and raised my hand.
“Over here.”
Seo Dong-seok, the brother of Victim Shin Ji-min.
He entered the coffee shop.
The reason the victim had a different surname was because they had different fathers.
Shin Ji-min’s mother remarried after her divorce, but Shin Ji-min never changed her surname.
“You’re Seo Dong-seok, right?”
Seo Dong-seok had apparently played baseball until middle school.
He had a solid build and a fairly handsome face.
If he were the perpetrator, the victim wouldn’t have been able to put up any resistance and would have been dragged away.
“Did you ever borrow or lend money? Or perhaps….”
Lee So-hee asked the question, and Seo Dong-seok shook his head.
“No, I didn’t.”
“What about his other work?”
According to the police investigation, Victim Shin Ji-min had no occupation.
Moreover, it was recorded that there was no reason for her to have made any enemies.
But what I saw through psychometry was different.
The perpetrator had clearly said it.
“Scammer.”
There was no way to hear such a word without doing something.
But Seo Dong-seok shook his head.
“I already told you. There was nothing.”
“What about a boyfriend?”
“There wasn’t one.”
Seo Dong-seok continued denying, and I quietly observed him.
His pupils were constricted and his arms appeared rigid.
He was clearly hiding something.
“My sister just stayed home. So please tell the prosecutor in charge—ask him to stop reopening her wounds. Mom and Dad are already suffering….”
Seo Jin, who had been quiet until then, opened his mouth.
“You want me to stop?”
“…Yes. Things are stabilizing now. The living must continue living. So I should speak with the assigned prosecutor….”
“Ah, I am the assigned prosecutor. I believe I mentioned it over the phone. We just introduced ourselves.”
“What? The prosecutor I know….”
“The assignment changed.”
Seo Dong-seok blinked.
He had imagined a prosecutor would be older and have a rather stern appearance.
The prosecutor he had met before fit that exact impression.
But Seo Jin’s face was entirely different from what he expected.
Not just his appearance—he looked young.
Even being generous, he couldn’t be older than his late twenties.
And he was handsome.
“A prosecutor? Not an investigator or something like that?”
“Yes.”
As Seo Dong-seok blinked, Seo Jin smiled quietly and spoke.
“So there’s nothing different from what you stated before?”
“…Yes.”
“Nothing new you’ve learned or anything that’s changed?”
“No.”
“I understand.”
Seo Jin closed his notebook and stood up.
Then he bowed respectfully toward Seo Dong-seok.
“If you change your mind or have anything else to say, feel free to contact me anytime.”
Continuing to sit while the other party remained silent was a waste of time.
Once outside the Coffee Shop, Seo Jin turned to Lee So-hee.
“You felt it, right?”
“Yeah.”
I couldn’t be certain, but Seo Dong-seok was hiding something.
Whether it was about the case or about the victim’s background.
‘What could it be….’
That was when it happened.
A van screeched to a halt in front of the Coffee Shop.
Seo Jin’s gaze shifted urgently.
Rough-looking detectives poured out of the van.
“There!”
“Seo! You bastard!”
They were heading toward Seo Dong-seok, who was departing in the opposite direction from Seo Jin.
Hearing the menacing voices, Seo Dong-seok flinched at the sight of them.
“What? What?”
He hesitated for a moment, then twisted his body and bolted.
But the detectives from the Violent Crimes Division were accustomed to pursuit.
A detective waiting in the direction of his escape swept Seo Dong-seok’s legs out from under him.
Crash! A loud commotion erupted as Seo Dong-seok tumbled to the ground, and the detectives piled on top of him.
“Let me go! Why are you doing this!”
“You’re under emergency arrest on suspicion of murdering Shin Ji-min. You have the right to retain counsel….”
“Who? Me? I didn’t do it!”
“We’ll discuss that at the station!”
Even with a sturdy build and considerable strength, Seo Dong-seok couldn’t overcome multiple detectives from the Violent Crimes Division.
All he could do was thrash about helplessly.
Then an unfamiliar voice reached their ears.
“What’s going on here?”
The Violent Crimes Team Leader waved his hand dismissively and spoke in a dry tone.
“Official business. Move along.”
“Ah, I’m on official business as well.”
The Violent Crimes Team Leader turned his head.
A man in his late twenties came into view.
It was Seo Jin.
The team leader asked.
“…Official business, you say?”
“Prosecutor’s Office.”
The team leader exhaled smoke and alternated his gaze between the identification and Seo Jin’s face.
‘Seo Jin.’
He knew him well.
It was Seo Jin who had made a fool of the police.
The guy who didn’t trust police investigations and conducted his own reckless inquiries, producing absurd evidence.
The culprit who had dredged up a case that should have quietly disappeared.
The Violent Crimes Team Leader clenched his teeth.
And glaring at Seo Jin, he asked.
“You’re the prosecutor handling the Abandoned House murder case, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“This man is the perpetrator.”
Seo Jin turned his head to look at Seo Dong-seok.
Pinned to the asphalt, handcuffs were being fastened around his wrists.
He screamed with an aggrieved expression.
“I didn’t do it! I’m telling you, I didn’t do it!”
Seo Jin’s gaze returned to the team leader.
“…The perpetrator, you say?”
“Yes, I’ll submit a report soon, so you can verify why he’s the perpetrator then.”
Seo Dong-seok was not the perpetrator.
His build was similar, but the voice I’d sensed through psychometry was completely different.
There was no way they’d believe me if I said that.
‘Damn….’
I exhaled a heavy sigh.
If the police dragged Seo Dong-seok away like this, the case would unravel and the real culprit could run wild.
Then the case would be ruined, and everything would play out exactly as Prosecutor General Kim Young-jun intended.
That wasn’t my plan.
I opened my mouth.
“Then I’ll take him with me.”
“What? Are you trying to steal the credit right now? Even if you are from the Prosecutor’s Office…!”
At that moment, I turned my head toward the team leader.
And I looked at him with cold eyes.
“Is there a problem?”
“…!”
The team leader flinched instantly.
He’d lived facing countless criminals.
He didn’t scare easily from most glares.
But my eyes right now were different.
‘This kid’s eyes have no mercy in them.’
A life with eyes like these was extreme.
Either a murderer or a prosecutor.
The type who doesn’t hesitate to cause trouble if things don’t suit him.
I brushed past the team leader and spoke.
“I’m not stealing the case. If my investigation confirms he’s truly the culprit, I’ll put all the credit on your shoulders, so don’t worry.”
The team leader clenched his teeth.
He couldn’t hand over Seo Dong-seok like this.
He’d have no face to show the chief.
“Wait, just a moment.”
The team leader grabbed my collar.
And that was the moment.
Psychometry activated without warning.

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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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