The Lawyer Who Reads Tomorrow - Chapter 48

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 48

 

 

Today, Lim Do-hyuk was occupying the office like it was his own bedroom at home.

 

Now, Assistant Manager Yoon Ha-young no longer made chamomile tea for him.

Instead, Lim Do-hyuk went to the break room himself and pulled espresso shots.

 

“…Lawyer Lim Do-hyuk, why do you come here every day?”

 

Even Noh Hae-min, who had treated Lim Do-hyuk like a VVIP client, seemed tired of the game and abandoned his service mindset.

 

I knew this would happen eventually.

But it was quite a rapid change.

 

“Ah, Ilchul’s coffee tastes the best, you know.”

 

Lim Do-hyuk leaned back on the sofa that supposedly cost ten million won and spread open a newspaper.

 

They say when the tiger’s away, the fox rules the den.

As soon as Ho-shin Senior left his seat again, Lim Do-hyuk came and went from the office like it was his own home.

 

“I also don’t know why Lawyer Lim Do-hyuk moved here using me as an excuse.”

 

A few days ago, I spoke honestly to Ho-shin Senior.

 

“Though I suspect there must be some reason for it.”

“…A reason….”

 

Senior pressed his lips tightly together and fell into thought.

I knew well about Kim Ho-shin’s grudge against Haeil.

I too held quite a large grudge against them, being inextricably tied to Cheondong.

 

“However.”

 

Ho-shin Senior’s gaze turned toward me.

I answered with the utmost sincerity to that stubbornly upright gaze.

 

“Lawyer Lim Do-hyuk might think he’s monitoring us.”

“….”

“Of course, his exact intentions are still unclear.”

 

Ho-shin Senior stared at me quietly.

 

“We can monitor him just the same.”

“…You mean.”

“Yes. Didn’t you say he’s Representative Lim Sang-jin’s son?”

 

Ho-shin Senior’s eyes glinted dangerously as he caught the intention behind my words.

 

“…Are you saying we should use him?”

“If necessary.”

 

Lim Do-hyuk was a gourd that had rolled into our office on its own feet.

 

“I’ll keep an eye on Lawyer Lim Do-hyuk.”

“Hah….”

“If necessary, we might be able to use him as a means to pressure Representative Lim Sang-jin.”

 

That’s how the agreement between Ho-shin Senior and me about Lim Do-hyuk was concluded without Lim Do-hyuk present.

But back then, I never imagined Lim Do-hyuk would come out like this.

 

“Sung Tae-hyun.”

“What.”

 

Lim Do-hyuk, who had neatly folded the newspaper he’d finished reading and placed it on the table, opened his mouth.

Now, even when he called me this way, neither Noh Hae-min nor Assistant Manager Yoon Ha-young bothered to look our way.

 

“You, how much would it take?”

 

No, cancel that.

 

At the second-generation chaebol lawyer’s out-of-the-blue statement, everyone’s attention gathered.

Assistant Manager Yoon Ha-young’s hands began flying over the keyboard.

It was an unprecedentedly fast speed.

 

* * *

 

“Senior, I’m expensive.”

 

Noh Hae-min’s eyebrow twitched.

His intention to pretend not to know was clearly visible.

 

But as if he didn’t care about others’ gazes, Lim Do-hyuk spoke very seriously.

 

“How much would it take? Ilchul must have set fees too.”

 

Of course we do.

 

Though it varies slightly between law firms, generally the fees for lawyers with short experience like Sung Tae-hyun aren’t that expensive.

In the first place, they rarely handle cases independently.

If you have a title like ‘former judge’ like Ho-shin Senior, your value skyrockets though.

 

“Five thousand as a retainer fee.”

 

I spouted nonsense.

 

Even Noh Hae-min, who was sitting far away at his own seat, had his pupils shaking greatly at that absurd amount.

I gave him a slight smile, then turned back to Lim Do-hyuk with a crooked grin.

 

“Five thousand?”

 

Lim Do-hyuk froze for a moment as if surprised.

Had my warning to stop clinging to Ilchul properly gotten through to him?

 

“That much is possible.”

 

However, Lim Do-hyuk did something crazy that far exceeded my expectations.

 

“Shall we start by drafting a non-disclosure agreement?”

 

It seemed he really intended to entrust me with work.

While I was lost in thought, Associate Yoon Ha-young took action.

With her usual expressionless face, she found a contract from who knows where and placed it in front of Lim Do-hyuk.

 

“Retainer fee of five thousand, the contract is here. Please read it carefully.”

 

To think she’d work so efficiently even in this situation.

However, I grabbed the wrist of Lim Do-hyuk, who was about to sign without any fear.

 

An office where everyone except me has lost their minds—that’s exactly what this Ilchul is.

 

“First, let’s hear what this is about.”

 

Associate Yoon Ha-young clicked her tongue as if disappointed.

She was truly serious about that five thousand retainer fee.

 

“What kind of work are you trying to entrust that you’d sign a blank contract worth five thousand?”

 

Lim Do-hyuk stared at his wrist that I was holding, then looked up and smiled.

 

“Why? What kind of story would make you refuse?”

“Let me hear it first.”

 

Work that Lim Do-hyuk wants to entrust personally.

 

Instead of Haeil?

If I had to guess, it would probably be some shameful family secret he wouldn’t want to know about.

Even so, I don’t understand why he’d entrust it to me.

 

“Wow, Lawyer Sung Tae-hyun. Are you worrying about me right now?”

“That’s unlikely.”

“No way? It seems like you’re worrying though?”

 

Lim Do-hyuk’s mouth is the problem.

I let go of his wrist and leaned back crookedly on the sofa across from him.

 

“I’m worried whether the work you’re specifically entrusting to me is something I can do with a sound mind.”

“Me?”

“No, me.”

 

It was a gentle refusal, considering Haeil’s position.

However, Lim Do-hyuk didn’t seem to have any intention of giving up.

Lim Do-hyuk, who had been looking at the contract while holding a pen, quietly opened his mouth.

 

“It’s about my sister.”

 

Ah, as expected.

This is something I don’t want to know about.

 

As for Lim Do-hyuk’s family, I had no interest except for Lim Sang-jin, that damn old man.

There didn’t seem to be any particularly well-known figures in the legal field either.

 

So, unless it was about Lim Do-hyuk, who was just now practicing to be a successor at Haeil.

 

“I can’t entrust it to Haeil. It’s also a disgrace to my father.”

 

Look at that.

At some point, Lim Do-hyuk had a sunken expression.

 

Noh Hae-min, who couldn’t resist melodrama, cautiously approached.

He was holding a mug filled with warm chamomile tea.

 

“Ah, thank you. Lawyer Noh Hae-min.”

 

Noh Hae-min easily spreads kindness even to this damn bastard.

While that might be fine humanly speaking, he’ll be the one who gets hurt.

 

“Not at all. If it’s a sensitive matter, we don’t need to know, so you can go into the inner room for consultation.”

 

He was just as he had always been.

Noh Hae-min is kind to everyone who is hurt and broken.

What kind of person they are seemed irrelevant to him.

 

“…What a good person.”

 

Lim Do-hyuk spoke in a voice low enough for only me to hear.

 

“If you know that, don’t mess with him.”

“You acting like that just makes me more curious, Tae-hyun.”

 

What does Lim Do-hyuk really want?

Is the current Lim Do-hyuk, completely different from what I saw at Haeil, the real Lim Do-hyuk he had hidden while living his social life?

 

“I’ll set the success fee at one hundred million.”

“That’s a bit steep, isn’t it?”

“You said it’s about Representative Lim Sang-jin’s daughter. I should receive that much for it to serve as hush money, shouldn’t I? Senior.”

 

The face that had been grinning the whole time crumpled for the first time.

Though it was only for a moment.

 

It felt like I had stolen a glimpse into Lim Do-hyuk’s true inner thoughts.

 

* * *

 

“It’s nothing big.”

 

After boldly approving fifty million won, and as a retainer fee at that, he says it’s nothing big.

 

I looked at Lim Do-hyuk’s perfectly normal face.

I was curious if he was really in his right mind.

 

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Senior, how many fingers am I holding up?”

 

When I held up three fingers in front of Lim Do-hyuk’s eyes, he shook his head.

 

“Stop fooling around.”

“You signed a fifty million won contract and then say it’s nothing big.”

“…My involvement can’t reach my father’s ears.”

 

Hmm, so it really is hush money after all.

 

“And?”

“If possible, I’d like this handled quietly, without making it a big deal.”

 

I don’t know what this is about that requires such a long explanation.

When I nodded, Lim Do-hyuk took out a document envelope and handed it to me.

 

“…A restraining order application?”

 

I don’t know what it is, but I can already sense some dirty chaebol family fight coming.

When I stopped taking out the documents and looked at Lim Do-hyuk, he nodded as if telling me to continue.

 

“It came to my sister. The other party is her ex-husband.”

 

The applicant’s name is Park Mu-hyun.

The respondent’s name is Lim Do-i.

This must be Lim Do-hyuk’s sister, so did she commit some major wrongdoing?

 

A restraining order application from an ex-spouse is pretty obvious.

It’s usually a temporary measure against someone who habitually commits violence.

 

“Senior.”

“What.”

“In good conscience, I’ll cancel the hundred million.”

 

Lim Do-hyuk let out a hollow laugh.

Actually, responding to this kind of restraining order application wasn’t that difficult.

It doesn’t take long to get to the hearing, and if the explanation is proper, it’ll be over quickly.

 

“Be a little more greedy.”

“Will you give me whatever I ask for?”

 

Then I’ll take more, of course.

 

Family law isn’t my specialty, but.

I turned my attention to the documents that had arrived for Lim Do-i.

 

[The respondent shall not approach the applicant and Park Noah, who is the applicant’s child, directly or indirectly against the will of the applicant and the said Park Noah.]

 

“Is there a child?”

 

Park Noah. An unfamiliar name.

However, from the wording of the application, he appears to be Park Mu-hyun’s child, and Park Mu-hyun filed the restraining order application asking to prevent Lim Do-i from approaching both himself and Park Noah.

 

It was a bit different from typical cases, but well.

 

“Yeah, when they divorced, the ex-husband took custody.”

 

Just from the wording, Lim Do-i seems like quite an unstable person.

From the application purpose to the reasons, everything.

 

[The respondent is the applicant’s former spouse… After marriage in 20XX until the dissolution of the marriage in 20XX, she repeatedly showed frequent emotional fluctuations and impulsive words and actions, displaying inappropriate behavior and parenting attitudes toward the child Park Noah.]

 

“Hmm….”

 

[In particular, recently the respondent has been loitering around the institution the child attends, unilaterally attempting to call and message the child….]

 

[…She came to the applicant’s residence, kicked and pounded on the front door, and used abusive language, repeatedly engaging in threatening behavior that disrupts the child’s peaceful life.]

 

This is a bit dangerous.

 

[As a result, the child is experiencing extreme emotional anxiety and fear, and the applicant is also suffering mental anguish, including decreased concentration at work due to repeated threats and emotional exhaustion.]

 

The attached evidence list was similar.

Call recording audio file transcripts, text messages, anonymized child psychiatry medical certificates and medical records for Park Noah, etc.

 

“…Senior.”

 

For once, Lim Do-hyuk didn’t look relaxed.

 

“Yeah.”

 

Still, I had to ask.

I slowly put down the document bundle on the table and looked straight into Lim Do-hyuk’s eyes as I asked.

 

“What do you want from me?”

 

The restraining order application that ex-husband Park Mu-hyun sent to Lim Do-i.

 

Responding wouldn’t be difficult, but I was curious about why Lim Do-hyuk specifically chose me.

Even more so after realizing he was Lim Sang-jin’s son and Haeil’s heir.

 

Such a sensitive matter, to me of all people?

I could understand it being difficult to entrust family matters to his own law firm.

But why me?

 

“…Sung Tae-hyun.”

 

Lim Do-hyuk wore a troubled expression.

His darkened eyes turned toward the documents placed on the coffee table.

 

“My sister’s ex-husband Park Mu-hyun is the son of Chairman Park Chang-beom, my father’s longtime friend.”

 

Oh no.

I didn’t know who Chairman Park Chang-beom was, but

what flashed through my mind was something straight out of a drama.

Arranged marriages between chaebol family children… something like that.

 

“As you probably expected, he wasn’t someone my sister loved.”

 

It was so predictable it was troubling.

I hadn’t even been particularly curious about such circumstances.

 

“So what?”

“When my sister said she wanted a divorce, my father was furious. He said he wouldn’t treat her as his child anymore.”

 

That sounded like something Lim Sang-jin would do.

He was the type of person who would use even his own children as tools.

 

“Everyone in our family, including Haeil, can’t help my sister.”

“…”

“That’s why I came to you.”

 

I didn’t quite understand that last statement.

 

“Because I trust you.”

 

What was this supposed to mean?

 

“So please take this case. Just handle the restraining order response and wrap it up as quietly as possible, keeping it confidential.”

“…”

“What you’ll gain is five thousand and…”

 

Lim Do-hyuk’s eyes were so deeply sunken that it was difficult to read his intentions.

 

“…my trust.”

 

The words he added carried an annoyingly heavy weight.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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