Jae-young surveyed the group with a sharp gaze. The smile on his lips seemed quite proper.
The reporters, who had been gauging each other’s reactions, soon, as if planned, stared at one person. All eyes turned to the only man in the group who had a stiff face—Kim Jung-han.
Though Jae-young had already seen Kim Jung-han’s face in photos, he acted as if seeing him for the first time and showed a welcoming expression.
“What? Is that true?”
“The person who provided the source was from Sebin?”
The reporters unanimously pressed for the truth. Kim Jung-han’s face was gradually turning pale.
When Sa Gong-hyun had instructed to pass on the LK documents, he had added that Kim was an obedient reporter. So at this point, Kim Jung-han was supposed to play the role of a shield by feigning ignorance.
“…I’m sorry, but the person who tipped me off was anonymous. The materials related to the allegations also came by mail. Having that much information means they must be quite high up, and I wouldn’t have failed to recognize the voice of a Sebin executive. The voice I heard was unfamiliar. The number was also untraceable.”
Jae-young nodded as if understanding while listening to the drawn-out lies. Then suddenly, as if something suspicious had caught his attention, he tilted his head to one side and gave Kim Jung-han a dubious look.
“How can you be so sure? It could have been a secretary or employee acting under instructions, not an executive. Moreover, I’m the one who directly saw that person entering Sebin with my own eyes.”
“Couldn’t they have been a regular visitor or client? Did you take a photo?”
“Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to take one. That’s why I came here just to get confirmation, even if there’s nothing to write about immediately—I have a bit of an occupational disease. I thought reporter Kim Jung-han might know something. As everyone knows, NBS reporter Kim Jung-han was the first to break the exclusive.”
Jae-young’s calm, articulate questioning seemed more credible. The reactions of the reporters, who were taking interest and closely observing the conversation, suggested as much.
“I can’t believe it. It couldn’t have been Sebin. Above all, Sebin and LK are like brother companies.”
Is that all you can come up with? Jae-young displayed skepticism all over his face while maintaining his smile, as if wondering what nonsense this was.
“Can companies really be like brothers? I haven’t seen that in Japan, so I’m not sure.”
“…Listen. What are you trying to do here? How do you plan to handle spreading such rumors in front of reporters? Even if you reveal groundless suspicions here, do you think anyone would know the truth? If they did, they would have already reported it. Are you really a reporter?”
As if he could be a real reporter. Unfortunately, that wasn’t Jae-young’s responsibility. The real Hayashi Ren was in Japan, not Korea, and Jae-young had merely forged a press pass with his own face on it.
Since he was using an umbrella, his face wouldn’t have been caught on the Prosecutor’s Office entrance CCTV. The cameras brought by the various broadcasting stations hadn’t even been turned on yet.
Jae-young shrugged once, then stepped back one step and smiled leisurely. He belatedly put the press pass he had been holding into his jacket pocket.
“If you don’t believe me even after I showed you my press pass, there’s nothing more I can say. It seems neither side has any evidence. Yes, I understand. Please excuse me while I take this call.”
Then he double-tapped the Bluetooth earphone in his ear. Since there was no phone connected, it was just an act of pretending to take a call.
“Yes, Mr. Nakamura. I’m currently verifying facts in front of the Prosecutor’s Office. Oh, now? Yes, I’ll go there right away.”
After throwing out a few convincing Japanese phrases, Jae-young turned to the reporters and gave them a bright smile.
“I’m sorry, but something more important has come up, so I have to go. Oh, and you mentioned groundless suspicions.”
“…”
“There’s one thing I learned while investigating this matter—half of the articles you write are related to Sebin, and you were the first to report all potentially profitable exclusives? Since you don’t know the source of this incident, it can’t be helped, but what if a reporter like you, who has been tapping into Sebin, found out about this fact?”
“Hey you!”
“Now that you’ve got another exclusive scoop, will you become a champion of justice and write an article, or be a faithful dog and pledge your loyalty?”
“Is this how you talk to people?”
Unable to contain his anger, Kim Jung-han’s face reddened as he lunged at Jae-young. He grabbed Jae-young by the collar. Jae-young tightened his grip on the umbrella, determined not to drop it.
As the sudden commotion erupted, the attention of everyone gathered in front of the prosecutor’s office focused on them. Jae-young tilted the umbrella forward and jabbed Kim Jung-han’s head with the tip connected to the umbrella ribs.
Reporters nearby grabbed Kim Jung-han and pulled him away to stop him. Jae-young straightened his disheveled tie and glanced around.
Judging by the cameras in position, the red lights seemed to be on.
“I’m just suggesting reasonable doubt. Do you really think I’m the only one with something to hide?”
Jae-young looked around at the reporters with a brazen expression, nodded, and turned away. He didn’t forget to cover his face with the umbrella to avoid exposure.
There had probably already been whispers among the reporters. That Kim Jung-han had an informant inside Sebin.
This incident would likely cause reporters to overtly monitor both Kim Jung-han and Sebin. They would stay up all night investigating the relationship between LK and Sebin, and move forward with Sebin marked as the mastermind behind this case. They would dig and dig in search of an exclusive story. Jae-young hoped Sa Gong-hyun would experience enough hardship to make him shudder during this process.
As soon as Jae-young turned around, he heard what sounded like the crowd dispersing.
Before leaving, he had received a call from Seung-kwon saying he had just departed, so it was almost time for Sa Gong-hyun to arrive. Jae-young’s next schedule was to change into the clothes he had brought and meet Sa Gong-hyun.
Jae-young stood absentmindedly in front of the gate that, like its owner, appeared hefty, hard as rock, and even cold.
The rain had stopped long ago. Standing in place, he occasionally lifted the tip of his right foot. The wet ground made a sloshing sound as it rubbed against the toe of his sneaker.
He knew the homeowner had not yet returned, so this was a feeling of helplessness that came from realizing the situation he was about to face.
Not even a dog’s bark could be heard from beyond the fence. It was completely quiet, even though someone would know he was lingering in front of the house.
Finally, Jae-young approached the gate and carefully pressed his ear against it. As expected, it was still quiet.
“Ver, are you in there?”
This time, Jae-young whispered softly with his mouth against the gate, then put his ear to it again. Woof! Recognizing Jae-young’s voice, Ver barked loudly. It sounded quite distant, suggesting he was tied up.
Ver was usually tied up when Jae-young left this house during the day. Why was he tied up today? While wondering about this, he brought his lips close to the gate again to speak to Ver.
“Hey, Ve—”
“What brings you here?”
If Sa Gong-hyun’s voice hadn’t come from behind him, he might have made the absurd request for Ver to open the door.
His shoulders reflexively twitched. Jae-young awkwardly turned around. Sa Gong-hyun, dressed in black trousers and a black dress shirt, was approaching with unhurried movements. A black sedan that had been parked behind him smoothly crossed the street.
He was clutching his jacket crumpled in his hand, and a couple of top buttons on his shirt were undone. His hair was less tidy than expected, but even seeing him like this, Jae-young almost found himself involuntarily expressing admiration.
One would think he’d develop some immunity to that face after encountering it so many times, but strangely, it was getting worse over time. Honestly, there must have been others who were so captivated by that face that they pretended not to hear all sorts of trash talk.
But Jae-young was different from those people. Of course, on his list of ideal types, there was someone whose appearance would appease his anger just by looking at them, but the subject wasn’t a woman but a man.
Get a grip, Jae-young. You’re not gay. Whether he’s handsome or not is of no use in your life. Jae-young looked down and tried to reassure himself.
“…I came to get the clothes I left behind last time.”
He was nervous. His throat was parched, and his mouth felt unnecessarily dry.
What would Sa Gong-hyun counter with? Would he tell him to get lost? Or would he just hand over the clothes and send him away? He was gnawing on his lower lip when it happened.
“Is that really all you came for?”
Sa Gong-hyun, who had approached right in front of him, continued his questioning.
Was he expecting some other purpose? That he had come because he regretted his actions, or some such submissive apology?
No, that wasn’t it. His voice was too dry for that. This tone was like the perfunctory response one gives to a friend complaining about feeling hurt. Something like, ‘So what do you want me to do about it?’
It was annoying. This wasn’t like playing tug-of-war with a wall. As Jae-young kept his mouth firmly shut, Sa Gong-hyun was the first to speak.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
