The Lawyer Who Reads Tomorrow - Chapter 53

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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 53

 

 

“…Cardia?”

 

How should I interpret this?

I was examining the documents 404 had sent while pondering the connection between these unfamiliar terms.

 

[404]: Kardia Cult. Seems like a new cult. Well, new is generous – looks like it’s been around for over 20 years?

 

What I had requested from 404 was the identity of the vehicle that hit Lim Do-i.

Lim Do-i said she had never seen that car before, but it could have belonged to Park Mu-hyun.

Even though 404 wasn’t exactly a master hacker, I figured video analysis would be within their capabilities.

 

But then.

 

[ME]: You’re saying the vehicle that hit Ms. Lim Do-i had some kind of logo on it?

[404]: That’s what I’m telling you!! Look, here. See it? That weird logo that looks totally cult-like?

[404]: Photo

 

Indeed.

It was a logo that would have been difficult to spot in the CCTV footage.

 

First of all, it was too dark.

The spot where the vehicle was parked was also in an ambiguous location that was hard to capture with the apartment’s CCTV.

Moreover, with the dim streetlight reflecting awkwardly, you couldn’t even tell there was a logo on the car.

 

[404]: If you look closely here, it’s blurry but there’s a logo.

 

404 was right.

The enlarged photo 404 sent – though hard to make out, there was definitely something there.

 

[404]: And this is what yours truly! Found! The Cardia logo.

[404]: Photo

 

Was he feeling some sense of accomplishment?

404 was definitely excited and in high spirits.

 

[ME]: What is this ‘Cardia’?

[404]: Some weird organization lololol

 

The van that hit Lim Do-i.

The same car that Park Mu-hyun had gotten into with a child who “somehow looked strange.”

And the logo of some strange organization called ‘Cardia.’

 

I had a feeling this would become troublesome if I dug deeper.

Could this be why Sung Tae-hyun tried to dissuade me?

 

[404]: I looked it up and they even have a homepage, and there’s even an account on video platforms pretending to be normal lololol

[404]: Check this out first lololol

 

I clicked on the link 404 sent.

 

[KARDIA Community OFFICIAL]

 

So it really was a legitimate organization.

When the link opened, a homepage with ambiguous design – neither expensive nor cheap – appeared.

The first thing that appeared was large text.

 

[Ecclesia 111]

 

“What is this?”

 

Soon after, the logo 404 mentioned appeared over the white background of the homepage.

 

[404]: Did you see?? 80s? No lol more like a hundred-year-old design lololol

 

404’s assessment was quite harsh.

Considering Hwan’s age, the words “You weren’t even born in the 80s, how would you know?” almost came out naturally.

 

However, I stopped my fingers from moving on their own.

That would just be pointless old-fashioned nagging.

 

[ME]: So, does this cult have a relationship with Park Mu-hyun?

[404]: Ah of course they dooooo he blatantly took the kid, isn’t it obvious????

[404]: And that car isn’t among Park Mu-hyun’s registered vehicles lololol

 

My head was full of questions.

 

Does Lim Do-i know about this?

No, did Lim Do-i even see that logo in the first place?

 

[ME]: …Let’s start by looking into the relationship between Park Mu-hyun and that cult.

[ME]: If it’s a closed cult, it might be difficult to find information.

[ME]: But you’ll have to do at least that much if you don’t want me to be reluctant about making further deposits.

 

Even if 404 wasn’t such a great hacker, this much should be possible, right?

 

This was a bit different from the Nexarum Gate incident.

404 had said they received contracts through Hwan to do system maintenance for Nexarum Bio.

So unlike when they helped me before, this might be difficult work for this young hacker.

 

[404]: Wow are you like? Dissing? Me? Right now?

[ME]: No.

[404]: Just wait lol this is so annoying seriously lol

[404]: Prepare some coin for the service fee lol

[404]: If you make a small advance payment I can do it faster lol

 

The connection with 404 was cut.

Since I had no way to approach this from my end, I’d have to wait until 404 found something.

Before that.

 

“…This is unexpected.”

 

A man who got into a cult-owned vehicle with his child in the middle of the night.

To think he’s married to Lim Sang-jin’s daughter.

It’s such an unthinkable combination that my head feels frozen.

 

Who should I shake down first?

 

Lim Do-hyuk, who’s nearby right now?

Or Lim Do-i, who was Park Mu-hyun’s spouse?

 

* * *

 

In conclusion, I decided to exclude Lim Do-i from my list of targets to visit for now.

 

“Senior, don’t you have anything to tell me?”

 

Instead, I decided to shake down Lim Do-hyuk.

 

Lim Do-i prioritized finding ‘The Child’ above all else in this entire process.

With her current unstable mental state without The Child, it would be difficult for her to think properly.

Especially since it hasn’t been long since her foot surgery.

 

“…!”

 

Lim Do-hyuk froze like a deer caught in headlights.

How surprising, when he was the one who moved next door.

 

This was the first time I’d entered his place by punching in the passcode, so he seemed flustered.

 

“…Sung Tae-hyun, weren’t you angry?”

 

Lim Do-hyuk was in the middle of eating cereal at the kitchen table.

I roughly set down my bag and sat across from him.

 

“Angry? Me?”

“…Earlier, when you took Representative Park Ji-hwan away.”

 

So Lim Do-hyuk was capable of thinking after all.

I casually pulled out a spoon from the utensil holder on the table.

Lim Do-hyuk’s body flinched as if I had hit him with the spoon.

 

“…I didn’t do it on purpose.”

 

I see.

I listened to Lim Do-hyuk’s words with half an ear while scooping up a spoonful of cereal and putting it in my mouth.

 

The cereal, properly soggy in milk, was quite delicious.

Come to think of it, I hadn’t eaten a proper meal today.

 

When I completely took over his bowl and started eating, Lim Do-hyuk sighed in defeat and put down his spoon.

 

“You’re really impossible to figure out.”

 

As for me, I was currently putting into my stomach something worth at least 0.000001% of Lim Do-hyuk’s wealth.

 

“My blood sugar dropped, so be quiet, senior.”

 

Lim Do-hyuk hesitated for a moment, then brought over the cereal box and poured more into the bowl.

 

“Eat a lot.”

“After eating this, I need to add some beef too.”

“…Do whatever.”

 

After finishing off even the remaining milk in the refrigerator, I picked up my bag again.

The one-time link I’d used to communicate with 404 and the files 404 had sent were already deleted, leaving only the printouts.

As if regressing to the analog era, I placed the few sheets of paper I’d printed out in front of him.

 

“What’s this?”

“Enlarged CCTV footage.”

 

And additionally, general information about a new cult called Cardia.

The cult must be eager to proselytize, as Cardia’s homepage had missionary pamphlets and such available as downloadable PDF files.

 

“…”

 

I observed Lim Do-hyuk’s face as he silently read through the documents.

The usually expressionless guy looked slightly gaunt, having apparently suffered quite a bit mentally over the past few days.

 

Indeed, beef is necessary.

Not because I want to eat it, but for Lim Do-hyuk’s sake.

 

Isn’t it Korean sentiment to feed someone first before starting anything?

Of course, I have no intention of spending my own money.

 

“Cardia…”

 

Lim Do-hyuk’s previously closed lips slowly opened.

He looked confused.

 

Don’t tell me he doesn’t know much about Park Mu-hyun and Cardia?

Several possibilities were getting tangled together.

 

“The car that hit Lim Do-i on the day of her accident and left without taking any measures.”

“…”

“It seems to belong to a new religion called ‘Cardia’.”

 

Lim Do-hyuk looked through the several photos again.

 

The ‘Cardia’ logo printed on the side of the vehicle.

And it seemed like he was comparing it several times with the Cardia logo I had printed from the homepage.

 

Lim Do-hyuk finally put down the paper and let out a long sigh.

 

“I don’t know.”

“Really?”

 

He nodded.

 

“Not at all. I have no idea why hyung, no, Park Mu-hyun put Noah in that car.”

“Can you contact Park Mu-hyun?”

 

It was Lim Do-hyuk who brought me the ‘Restraining Order Application’ that Park Mu-hyun had filed against Lim Do-i.

It was also Lim Do-hyuk who came with Park Mu-hyun’s deal, asking me not to report that night’s incident in exchange for withdrawing the restraining order application.

 

They were connected somehow.

 

“…Sung Tae-hyun.”

“What.”

“…Do we really have to go this far?”

 

As expected, he’s hesitating.

 

“Senior, do you know where Park Noah is right now?”

“…”

 

Lim Do-hyuk hesitated.

But soon, he took out his mobile phone and directly showed me his message history with Park Mu-hyun.

 

“Look. This is everything I know. I only heard that Noah is at the Family Home.”

 

It was true.

Messages with someone still saved as [Brother-in-law] filled the screen without omission.

 

[Brother-in-law]: Don’t worry. Noah is fine.

[Brother-in-law]: Do-i kept coming over and the child was getting anxious, so I brought him to the Family Home. Mother is taking care of Noah.

[Brother-in-law]: (Photos)

[Brother-in-law]: You don’t suspect me too, do you?

 

Park Mu-hyun even sent a photo of Park Noah playing with sand at what looked like a playground.

 

Just looking at the content, there didn’t seem to be any problem.

There was even a legitimate reason that Lim Do-i had become a threat, so he had evacuated the child.

 

Then.

 

[Father]: Come home right now! What kind of trouble are you causing that makes Park Ji-hwan contact everyone! You…(truncated)

 

A new message arrived on Lim Do-hyuk’s phone screen.

 

Oh my, it’s Lim Sang-jin.

Several messages arrived in succession, but I could tell they were profanity without even reading them.

 

Lim Do-hyuk quickly snatched his mobile phone back.

 

“…Senior doesn’t know about Cardia either?”

 

I asked, pretending not to have seen Lim Sang-jin’s message from earlier.

Lim Do-hyuk’s face, which had briefly turned red around the ears, quickly returned to its original color.

 

“Right. I’m just learning about that religion for the first time now.”

“Ecclesia 111 Degrees?”

“…What’s that now.”

“Senior, didn’t you read the documents properly?”

 

I scolded Lim Do-hyuk and pointed to the page with the description of Cardia.

 

“…I don’t know. Anyway, I’m not interested in religion. Everyone in our family is non-religious.”

 

So Lim Sang-jin was non-religious too.

Well, that bastard’s life wasn’t one that deserved recognition from God.

Though that doesn’t mean all believers are virtuous either.

 

“Is it true that Park Noah is at the Family Home?”

“I don’t know that either. I received photos, but…”

 

The photo Park Mu-hyun sent didn’t specify the location.

It was outdoors like a playground, so even if I couldn’t tell exactly where it was, it definitely wasn’t at home.

 

“That’s not at home.”

“I know that too. But at least I confirmed that Noah is doing well without any injuries.”

“Senior.”

 

I looked straight at Lim Do-hyuk.

 

This guy is really confusing.

Is he stupid, or pretending not to know?

Or is there some other reason?

 

“How can you believe this photo was taken on the day Park Mu-hyun sent you the message?”

“That’s…”

“It’s not at home, and the shooting date can’t be confirmed.”

“…”

“Let me be blunt.”

 

I said something I couldn’t bring myself to say to Lim Do-i.

 

“Your nephew, Park Noah. Are you sure his whereabouts are actually known?”

 

Lim Do-hyuk’s face turned pale white again.

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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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