“I handled it myself.”
“It’s your foundation’s business, so of course you handled it. But you know what? All this sexual harassment nonsense—it’s all because of idiots who don’t know the world has changed and are running wild.”
Jung Taeho raised his voice. As he did, he glanced at Kyungwoo, who was silently eating his cold soup.
Jungok hadn’t touched her food since earlier. Instead, she busily kept piling side dishes onto the spoon of the grandson by blood not hers sitting next to her.
“Exactly. The students still don’t understand how the world works.”
Professor Kim chimed in. At that, Jung Taeho put down his spoon with a sharp clack.
“Jung Hobyung, that bastard! Those kinds of bastards are the ones putting a stain on all men’s faces! Of all things to do, he had to go after kids!”
Thanks to his outburst, the only actual child sitting at the table coughed and spit out half-chewed rice.
“Don’t yell first thing in the morning and give me a headache. You’re scaring your grandson half to death.”
Jungok blamed her husband as she hurriedly gave her grandson water.
“Ugh, this is killing my appetite.”
Jung Taeho abruptly stood up from his seat.
“Ajumma! I’m going to work! Get ready!”
“Yes, Chairman.”
The highest-ranking among the housekeepers hurriedly chased after Jung Taeho.
At the remaining table, a cold northern wind blew sharply.
“I told you not to bring that up, didn’t I?”
Kyungrok glared coldly at her husband.
“But I thought Father might be able to help.”
“Don’t you know that side of things is forbidden at our family table?”
“Well, still.”
“You’re going to be late for your lecture. I’ll take Jooyoung to school, so you leave first.”
That was essentially telling him to get out immediately. Professor Kim pursed his lips in displeasure, then soon stood up. He bowed to Jungok before leaving the dining room.
“Your father’s temper never changes. You never know which way he’ll blow.”
“Professor Kim made the mistake today.”
Saying that, Kyungrok deliberately smiled, conscious of Kyungwoo.
“I’ll be leaving as well.”
Kyungwoo also stood up from his seat.
“Alright. Have a good day.”
After greeting Kyungrok and his nephew, Kyungwoo finally gave a slight nod toward Jungok, who wouldn’t even make eye contact.
It had been an ill-tempered morning from the start. Chairman Jung left first, and Professor Kim drove himself. When Kyungwoo subsequently exited the mansion gates, Choi Dohyun immediately got out of the car and bowed as if she’d been waiting.
“Wait a moment.”
Just as he was about to get in the car, Kyungrok followed after him.
“Do you need something?”
“I was too embarrassed to say in front of Dad. About that President Jung matter Professor Kim mentioned.”
“What about it?”
“I called Deputy Manager Park. I asked him to handle it quietly.”
Handling it quietly meant the same as quietly covering it up. Having an education sector figure who serves as a standing advisor to Taeryoung Foundation embroiled in a sexual harassment case was a major stain in 21st century South Korea.
Sensing Kyungwoo’s suspicious thoughts, Kyungrok continued.
“I heard it was passed to a prosecutor who knows our side well, but it seems things got a bit tangled. A summons arrived the day before yesterday. They want him investigated at the prosecutors’ office, and from the president’s perspective, just being investigated itself is a stain on his career. That’s why President Jung is begging and pleading with Professor Kim. He’s someone who helped Professor Kim a lot during hard times, so it’s difficult to just turn a blind eye.”
“A prosecutor who knows our side?”
“You probably know him too. Seo Jaeha.”
He hadn’t expected that name to come from Kyungrok’s mouth. Kyungwoo stared at Kyungrok. She smiled awkwardly.
“I normally wouldn’t ask you, but it’s difficult to bring Dad into this. Could you look into it for me?”
“If he’s a sex offender… just abandon him?”
“I’m considering that too. But Professor Kim is so insistent, you see. I’m wondering if there might really be a misunderstanding, and if there’s any possibility at all, couldn’t we salvage the situation? I’m not asking for a non-prosecution decision. Just asking for a thorough look.”
It was a situation where Kyungrok was asking him for a favor. How did the once-thriving executive director of a key subsidiary end up like this? Smiling and asking a younger brother for a favor must itself be a tremendous humiliation for her.
“I’ll try contacting him. But don’t get your hopes up. If you can’t make it happen, how would I succeed?”
“Still, an active player is better than a paper tiger. It’s enough if Professor Kim can save face with President Jung. Thank you, Kyungwoo-ya.”
“No need to thank me.”
“Still. Be careful and have a good day.”
Kyungrok smiled as she saw Kyungwoo off into the car. Even his birth mother never did such a thing in her life—only Kyungrok, as a half-sister, could make it possible.
Why did such an impressive woman marry a man like Professor Kim? And why doesn’t she divorce him?
“What a waste.”
“What do you mean, sir?”
Choi Dohyun, who was driving, asked.
“Nothing. But how did that weekend matter I asked you to handle go?”
“I handled it as usual. But that kid I mentioned before is a bit of a problem.”
“The middle school daughter?”
“Yes.”
“Do everything you can within reason for her. And keep reporting on her situation.”
“Understood.”
The black sedan soon merged onto the main road. While it glided smoothly, Kyungwoo took out his mobile phone and made a call.
—What’s the occasion this early in the morning?
Before he even identified himself, a comfortable tone came back as if receiving a call from a close friend. He must have saved the number, but receiving such a casual response was refreshing in its own way.
Since he wasn’t calling to chat, he got straight to the point.
“The Jung Hobyung case—did your side receive it?”
—You’re calling pretty quickly.
“How do you plan to handle it?”
—According to the law, obviously?
“No other options?”
—The victim’s testimony is extremely consistent. Just searching the school message board shows anonymous accusation posts going back several years. I could cover this up if asked to, but… This isn’t just anything—an educator committed a sex crime against students… Do you want that?
“If the evidence is solid, handle it according to the evidence.”
—I’ll do that even without you saying so.
“Then that’s settled.”
—This wasn’t sent by you, was it?
“If I’d sent it, would I be calling? And I have no business protecting sex offenders.”
—After seeing you cause a scene at the apartment before, I figured as much.
A scene. Kyungwoo wrinkled his eyes.
“Well then.”
—Wait.
“Hm?”
—Is that all?
“What?”
—…
“Speak.”
—I did what you asked.
“If you’re trying to get something from me over this case, that won’t work. Whatever happens to Jung Hobyung has absolutely nothing to do with me. I only made one phone call because I was asked to.”
—Not that.
“Don’t draw it out. I don’t have time.”
—The research.
For a moment, Kyungwoo felt like his insides dropped and then surged up. He was so startled he almost swore.
“…So?”
—When’s the results briefing?
“Do you have to bring up that topic first thing in the morning?”
—I should have called separately, I guess.
“I’ll check my schedule and contact you.”
—Try to set it for Friday or Saturday if possible.
“You’re not really in a position to be picky about dates, are you?”
—It’s not that, it’s just that it’s apparently more… severe muscle soreness than expected. There’s also separate preparation that needs to be done beforehand, and well, um, we need to spend a lot of time for the final stage too… Are you listening?
Before the words were even finished, Kyungwoo frantically tapped the voice volume button repeatedly. He lowered it to the minimum and worried whether Seo Jaeha’s bullshit might have been heard by Choi Dohyun, who was driving, unconsciously checking her reaction.
“What kind of dog-like nonsense is that?”
He growled, keeping his voice as low as possible. At the same time, he vividly felt the blood draining from his face.
—It’s not nonsense… Anyway, I warned you. Whatever I do is with your voluntary consent, and if you want to back out… now is your last chance. After this moment, no matter how you scream and cry beneath me, I can’t take it back.
Without hearing any more, Kyungwoo unilaterally ended the call with Seo Jaeha. Not satisfied with just pressing the end button, he threw the phone onto the seat next to him. The phone felt like Seo Jaeha himself.
“Huu.”
Furrowing his brows, Kyungwoo crossed his legs. His fingers on the seat’s armrest moved on their own, tapping restlessly.
Set it before a holiday because the muscle soreness is severe? Is that something to say on a fresh morning? Well, considering the ice storm that blew through the breakfast table, it was far from fresh. Kyungrok making requests to salvage a sex offender, and that fucking bastard shamelessly spouting shameful words.
And beneath him? That meant the current situation had him positioned as the one being pinned down by Seo Jaeha.
Kyungwoo glared out the window, unable to think about anything. His fingers tapping the armrest became increasingly irritated.
“Hey, Jung Kyungwoo.”
Instead of an answer coming back, a notification sound of the Bluetooth call disconnecting rang through the vehicle speaker. Jaeha’s lips twisted.
He’d clearly warned him. That it wouldn’t be easy and would be quite difficult. But Jung Kyungwoo had been resolute. In the unilaterally disconnected call, there was no sense of reconsideration. What was clear was that it wasn’t a refusal.
His twisted lips slowly curved into an arc. Strength entered Jaeha’s hands gripping the steering wheel.
Director Baek suddenly appeared again. What kind of director has such a light ass? Director Baek gestured toward Jaeha, who was about to stand up, telling him to sit back down.
“That case I gave you before—are you really going to prosecute?”
“Yes. The victim’s testimony is consistent and specific. And there’s not just one or two victims.”
Director Baek made a puzzled expression. He seemed to be gauging whether this was sincere or not.
“Did you talk with that side?”
“If you mean Taeryoung? The conversation is finished.”
“Really? From what I heard, they seemed to want a no-charges disposition.”
“It must have been incorrectly conveyed.”
“He’s a standing advisor to Taeryoung Foundation, and they’re just abandoning him like this. Must have lost in the political fight within the foundation. Got it. Keep working.”
As if that was the purpose of his visit, Director Baek immediately left.
The aspects of the cases he was continuously given were impressive. This time, he was assigned a case that everyone found difficult to handle.
It was a derivative case related to the drug scandal currently shaking the entertainment and sports industries. Because the case had spread so extensively, a separate team was formed. Among them, Jaeha was assigned a derivative case of relatively lower importance.
It was Director Baek’s consideration, or lack thereof, to help him gradually adapt to the Special Division. In other words, it was also an unofficial intern stage.
The case Jaeha was assigned was an abuse case involving sleep anesthetics whose shelf life had long expired. It was a case where some celebrities and upper-class individuals treated sleep anesthetics like vitamin shots and got them regularly, and it had been dragged back into the world due to this drug scandal.
The connection was a doctor. Among the suspects with clear suspicions of illegal drug administration that didn’t even need investigation, there was a supposedly skilled doctor who provided what’s called “investigation preparation.” This doctor outwardly ran a dermatology clinic, but in reality was the ringleader distributing all kinds of drugs.
There were ledgers and copies of various prescriptions submitted by the doctor. While flipping through an old file covered in fingerprints and dust, Jaeha froze solid upon discovering an unexpected name.
Jung Kyungwoo
The thought that it might be someone with the same name disappeared before it could even form. In the remarks column where nurses entered additional notes, the two characters ‘Taeryoung’ were clear.
