Royal Coup d'État - Chapter 53

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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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Episode 53
“A traitor to the country…… You’re saying there’s a traitor to the country inside the Imperial Palace right now?”
The shout that had pierced through the glass doors still seemed to linger in her ears. A single remark Sun had casually dropped had set the world outside ablaze.
It could not have been otherwise. This nation was more sensitive to the word “traitor” than anyone else.
Why else would the Republic of Korea, despite being a Constitutional Monarchy, have chosen the name “Republic” rather than “Empire”? The Imperial family had led the war of independence, but it was the people who fought alongside them. It was a promise never to forget their sacrifice.
That was why. The mere suggestion that someone would sell the nation’s assets for personal gain was tantamount to denying all that history—an unbearable insult and the beginning of a terror that must never be repeated.
“Your Majesty!”
Sun turned away from the voice calling her name and passed leisurely through the glass doors of the main building. That soft humming, audible only to those beyond the reach of the reporters’ microphones, spoke volumes about how delighted Sun was at this very moment.
Her newfound influence was intoxicating. Now she understood why Uigu Daegun had been so eager to expand his own power and standing. For someone with formidable backing like him, everything must come easily and taste sweet.
“Your Majesty.”
His voice tickled her ear. Sun turned to face him. The face she had grown accustomed to was now fixed on her with an expressionless yet sharp gaze.
Sun studied him for a moment, then opened her mouth. Her voice came out slightly higher than usual, as if her buoyant mood had not yet settled.
“Captain Kwon.”
“Have you been practicing?”
“No. For someone like me, this is a profession.”
Sun shrugged her shoulders.
Only then did she notice how quiet the Police Headquarters’ main building was. This time, since it was an official visit, they had apparently restricted access at the entrance. Noticing his consideration, Sun’s lips curved upward ever so slightly.
“But when did you start calling me that?”
“Pardon?”
“‘Your Majesty.’ You just called me that.”
Sun raised her hand and pressed firmly on his shoulder. Watching Tae-o stumble backward with his body stiffening in surprise was almost amusing. How quickly he retreated, as if the firm body she felt through his leather jacket had been nothing but a fleeting illusion.
“Ahem.”
Tae-o brought his fist to his mouth and coughed awkwardly. His ears had flushed red—clearly flustered.
“And…… where is Seok-chul?”
“Seok-chul will be waiting in the car. I had some other matters to attend to.”
“Have you grown accustomed to having a secretary accompany you?”
It was likely a remark meant to deflect from the situation, yet it struck true.
When she had first met Tae-o, she’d felt anxious being separated from Seok-chul. But over these past months, as so much changed, Sun had changed too—for the better. It meant that she, raised in the safe shelter of the Imperial Palace, had found the courage to willingly step out into a world as thorny as a briar patch.
“Thanks to you.”
At Sun’s words, Tae-o opened his mouth as if to respond to something. But in the end, no words came. The flustered look showed no sign of fading.
In any case, Sun was in excellent spirits today.
The people would voluntarily take up the search for the traitor, and Uigu Daegun would have no choice but to lie low for a time, if only to avoid suspicion.
With Sun emerging as a new possibility for the Imperial family, all she needed was solid evidence, and the Imperial Throne would be hers—perhaps sooner than she thought.
“Let’s go. We can’t stay here much longer.”
Tae-o grumbled, and his true feelings seemed to show in the way he kept pressing the tip of his sneaker against the floor.
“No matter how much wrap covers it, there are far too many reporters waiting at the photo line.”
“You’re right. Let’s head to the Investigation Bureau.”
Sun replied with a bright smile.
Though Sun led the way without knowing the route, no one could have guessed at Tae-o’s true hesitation in not readily following.
* * *
The mere fact that they had transitioned to a formal investigation had changed everything.
Though they had gathered in the conference room every time the Task Force Team met, today they were guided to a proper office. It was a small room at the end of a corridor with only one window, but compared to before, the treatment was markedly different.
Sun slowly surveyed the small space furnished with five desks and a long meeting table. The cool metal cabinets lining the walls brushed against her fingertips.
“Were five people assigned?”
“Unfortunately, at present it’s four. But I believe we’ll be able to fill the vacancy soon.”
His voice remained characteristically expressionless, yet he too seemed pleased. His eyes glowed with enthusiasm as he glanced around the modest office.
Sun blinked and then moved forward. Though documents were scattered haphazardly on the meeting table set in the right corner, it was reasonably clean overall.
When Sun pulled out a chair at the center and sat down, Tae-o walked to the seat at the center of the five desks.
“I’ll give you the investigative materials compiled up to the current situation.”
“Has there been any progress?”
“It’s time to prove that I’m not incompetent.”
Tae-o’s voice was unusually bright as he spoke. When he’d lost his position in the Criminal Investigation Division and been confined to the Task Force Team, he’d claimed it was fine—yet the sense of loss had clearly been profound. Not even a week had passed since the transition to a formal investigation team, and the files on his desk numbered more than one or two.
When she first saw him, he’d seemed less like a passionate detective and more like a world-weary lifer. Yet his reputation, built through successive achievements, was no lie—he appeared genuinely enthusiastic now.
Soon a Yellow File Folder was placed before Sun. So thickly packed with papers that it wouldn’t close completely, the folder conveyed the full measure of his effort even before it was opened.
Sun rested her hand on the yellow cover. It was the kind of government-issue folder she’d grown familiar with in the Royal Household Administration—familiar yet strange at the same time. What could possibly be inside?
Outside the single window in the office, the murmur continued unabated. It was the sound of reporters loudly debating the question Sun had posed before entering Police Headquarters.
Using that cacophony as background noise, Sun slowly opened the face of the folder.
“You’ll never finish if you look at it that way.”
Perhaps because he’d prepared the document for presentation, the front page began with a table of contents. As Sun traced the list with her finger, Tae-o, who had been watching, smoothly extended his hand.
Unlike Sun’s delicate, pale fingers, his thick, long digits, darkened by sun and work, brushed past the same paper.
Their fingers didn’t touch at all, yet Tae-o cleared his throat awkwardly and pulled away. Why was he being so dramatic about it? It wasn’t like there was some contagion.
Embarrassed even at that, he shifted his hand beneath the documents, and Tae-o flipped the page quickly in his stead.
“The rest should be familiar to you. Start from here.”
Tae-o spread out the papers and tucked his hands behind his back. Never had he seen such a performance.
Sun pulled the documents toward herself with fresh intent and began reading the page Tae-o had indicated.
“…You had a forensic examination done on the vehicle.”
Yet beneath all his fussing, there was a reason Tae-o had bothered to locate these particular documents himself. Within this page lay evidence that the Crown Prince’s accident had been deliberate murder.
Tae-o spoke in a clipped tone.
“Yes. Fortunately, the forensic results came back after we converted to a Formal Investigation Team, so the investigation became possible. If the results had come through during the Task Force period, they might have been buried, as you say.”
“Quite likely.”
Sun trailed off, her answer incomplete.
Had these forensic findings leaked earlier, they might well have been suppressed—just as Tae-o suggested. Even when Tae-o had been team leader during the Task Force days, the real power lay with the Commissioner.
“Ah.”
Sun exhaled in relief, yet her eyes surveyed the report with unmistakable contempt.
The limousine the Crown Prince had occupied bore clear traces—dark marks from someone’s hands. The technical language was difficult to parse, but the meaning was unmistakable. Someone had intentionally murdered the Crown Prince and carried it out.
“A detailed explanation would be better, I think.”
Tae-o shifted his gaze toward the door as he spoke. Before Sun could even lift her head, the iron door swung open with a loud crash.
Beyond it stood people holding coffee. Though none at the National Police Agency could have been unaware of Sun’s visit, those who saw her seated in the place of honor seemed startled, their mouths hanging open.
Watching Sun awkwardly narrow her eyes, Tae-o uncrossed his hands from behind his back and folded his arms.
“And I’ll introduce you to my team members.”
As he spoke, Tae-o’s expression grew unusually bright.

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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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