🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 10
“To be honest, this time I agree with Prosecutor Kim.”
“Why else would he park here of all places if it wasn’t intentional?”
“This is the footage right before the crash. As you can see, the bastard had his lights off and the engine off until the very last moment.”
“He was waiting for the target to appear.”
Park Kyungmoon, chief inspector of Violent Crimes Unit 2 at Insan Police Station—the station handling Yeoreum’s case—answered while showing him the black box footage recovered from Yeoreum’s car.
This case, he insisted, was premeditated.
Won had worked many cases with him before, but he had not always agreed with his conclusions.
At least this time, however, he agreed completely.
This was a planned crime.
Then who? Why? For what reason?
He was certain now that it wasn’t a simple accident or a crime of impulse, yet questions endlessly crowded his mind.
Who on earth wanted to kill Yeoreum, and why?
Did they not hesitate at all about Winter’s life—the one who had been with Yeoreum?
Nothing was clear, and the pounding uncertainty made Won rub his temples in frustration.
“…Sir, Prosecutor Kim!”
“…Yes? Ah, sorry, Section Chief Im. What did you say?”
“I organized the documents you asked for earlier and left them on your desk.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you for your hard work.”
Seeing Section Chief Im looking at him with concern, Won gave an awkward smile.
The fact that he had been so distracted he couldn’t even hear someone calling him made anxiety settle heavily in his chest.
In truth, he had repeatedly requested that Yeoreum’s case be assigned to him, but Minjun remained stubbornly silent.
Won feared that at this rate he might never take charge of the case—might never solve it.
If that happened, he would never be able to face Yeoreum, neither in life nor in death.
A sigh escaped him unconsciously as he hung his coat on the standing rack.
Just as he was about to sit down, Won noticed Section Chief Im still standing in front of his desk and tilted his head slightly.
“Is there something you wish to say?”
“Have you been sleeping lately?”
“…Excuse me?”
“Your complexion looks terrible.”
“Ah…”
Im was around the same age as his uncle and had always cared for him like a real nephew.
Knowing the man’s concern came from genuine kindness, Won smiled as though to reassure him.
“I’m fine. I can manage.”
Despite his cheerful answer, Im’s expression remained stiff.
Wondering if he truly looked that bad, Won brushed the back of his hand against his cheek.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Is my face really that—”
“How far has Prosecutor Han’s case progressed?”
Im’s tone was calm.
The faint smile vanished from Won’s face.
He knew Im was not like the reporters.
Still, the mocking voices of journalists—accusing him of trying to stir up the case for attention—flashed through his mind.
“…What exactly are you trying to say?”
The question came out sharper than intended.
Even under Won’s hardened gaze, Im continued speaking evenly.
“Prosecutor, do you know something?”
“…”
“It’s already been nearly two years since I started working under you.”
Won blinked at the sudden remark.
Trying to understand what the older man meant, he silently studied his face.
Im looked over the mountain of files piled on Won’s desk and let out a shallow sigh before continuing.
“Other people might think two years is a short time…”
“…”
“But honestly, exaggerating just a little, last year I probably saw your face more often than my own wife’s.”
A quiet laugh slipped from Won at the joke.
But while Won’s expression relaxed slightly, Im’s only darkened further.
Looking directly at him, Im spoke slowly.
“So I’m going to be honest with you, using those two years as my excuse.”
“…”
“This won’t work.”
“Section Chief Im.”
“You’ve probably noticed already, but there are many people inside the prosecution office who do not want you handling this case.”
“…”
“Your workload hasn’t decreased, yet you’ve been throwing yourself entirely into Prosecutor Han’s case.”
“…”
“I know you believe that if you find decisive evidence, it’ll help even a little in getting the case assigned to you.”
Won let out a faint breath.
“But you’re only human too. You can’t keep going like this.”
“…”
“The reason Prosecutor Han’s case hasn’t progressed isn’t because you lack ability.”
As much as he hated admitting it, Im was right.
Everyone had their own reasons for not wanting Yeoreum’s case.
And at the same time, everyone had their own reasons for wanting it.
Likewise, they all had reasons both to give the case to Won—and to keep it from him.
“You visited Insan Police Station today, so you must know already. The police aren’t sharing everything with you either.”
“…”
“And they’ll continue doing that until decisive evidence appears. To them, there’s no case more tempting than Prosecutor Han’s.”
Absurdly enough, there was nothing wrong with what Im said.
For the police, who sought independence in investigative authority, there could hardly be a more desirable case.
If a prosecutor from a district office died in what appeared to be an accident, and it was the police—not the prosecution—who caught the culprit…
Won’s fist tightened on top of the desk.
Watching the veins stand out blue against his hand, Im sighed quietly before asking:
“Have you met Han Gyeoul?”
At the question, Won remembered Winter—the woman he had encountered by chance in front of Yeoreum’s funeral hall.
Han Gyeoul.
The moment he met the woman who was supposedly Yeoreum’s older sister, Won had felt a strange sense of dissonance unlike before.
“I’m Kim Won, a prosecutor from Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office, Criminal Division 2.”
When he first met Winter six months ago, Won had thought she carried an atmosphere completely different from Yeoreum’s.
Yeoreum had been like the blazing summer sun and a child happily running beneath it.
Just as watching children laugh and play naturally lifted one’s mood, Yeoreum was the sort of person who made others smile simply by existing.
Winter, on the other hand, resembled a withered tree standing against the cold winds of deep winter.
Even though they were sisters, they felt entirely different.
And when he met her again, that impression had not changed much.
But the moment he cautiously greeted her, a single tear fell from her large eyes.
Before he even had time to react, she burst into loud sobs like a child.
The contrast between her first impression and her behavior left him bewildered.
Yet strangely, the sight of Winter crying did not feel unfamiliar.
Holding her had definitely been an impulsive act.
If he had to justify behavior so unlike himself, it was because her tears reminded him too much of Yeoreum.
The woman crying before him looked so painfully similar to Yeoreum.
So much like Yeoreum from one year ago—the first and last time she had cried bitterly in front of him.
And so, without realizing it, Won had pulled Winter into his arms.
Her small body fit entirely within his embrace as she wept miserably against him.
So desperately that it felt as though she might drown in her own tears.
By the time her heartbreaking sobs finally began to subside, Won regained his senses.
But then he no longer knew whether to pull away or continue holding her, so he awkwardly patted her back instead.
After crying for a long while, Winter finally seemed to come back to herself and stepped out of his arms.
Trying to ease the awkward atmosphere, Won changed the subject as though nothing had happened.
“I’ll do everything I can, day and night, to clear Yeoreum’s name.”
“……”
“Unfortunately, the culprit couldn’t be identified because the camera was too far away. But I’ll find them. Please just wait a little longer—”
“…Was the car a ghost car?”
Something felt strange.
The casual way she spoke and questioned him felt oddly familiar.
“Won-ah, I heard the case you’re working on this time is pretty complicated?”
“It’s manageable.”
“Still, were you able to trace the vehicle?”
“Probably not. It was a ghost car…”
“What? The car was a ghost car?”
Why had that memory surfaced at that exact moment?
His confusion escaped before he could hide it.
“Excuse me? Ah, yes. That’s correct. Do you remember anything unusual?”
“I think it didn’t have a license plate. It all happened so fast that I can’t be sure, but…”
“…Sir, Prosecutor Kim!”
“…Ah, yes.”
“What are you thinking about?”
“Ah, no. It’s nothing.”
Since that day, Winter’s face kept resurfacing in his thoughts.
Trying to force the image away, Won clenched and unclenched his fist.
Seeing Im still waiting for an answer, he carefully gathered his thoughts.
“Ah, right… Regarding your question about meeting Han Gyeoul—I have met her.”
“…Did she say anything unusual?”
“No. She still seemed too overwhelmed by the incident.”
Silently listening, Im pulled a business card from inside his jacket.
“You know as well as I do, Prosecutor. We can’t solve this alone.”
“…”
“We need more allies. People willing to work with us.”
“…”
“The best ally would obviously be Han Yeoreum’s sister, Han Gyeoul. But if she’s still difficult to approach, then bringing someone close to her onto our side might work too.”
JT Entertainment CEO Joo Taeuk
“This is a card Chief Kim—who used to work under Prosecutor Han—came by and left for you.”
“…”
“He said that if Prosecutor Han truly was murdered and disguised as an accident, just as you suspect…”
“…”
“…then please make sure to clear her name.”
The name on the business card was not unfamiliar to Won.
Having finally found a possible breakthrough, his eyes shone with hope.
