IWT 44

 Chapter 44

“Hahaha, ha, hahaha.”

Everyone’s eyes in the courtroom were drawn to Seung-beom, whose actions were incomprehensible.

Was it the laugh of someone who had given up entirely?
Or did it carry some other meaning?

No one could tell. But his unnerving laughter didn’t stop. On the contrary, it grew louder, as if mocking everyone in the courtroom.

Madness.

At that moment, there seemed to be no other word that could describe Seung-beom.

“Defendant, be quiet. What are you doing?”
“Kim Seung-beom, stop this.”

The judge and Lawyer Kim tried to restrain Seung-beom, but it was useless.

Suddenly, Seung-beom stopped laughing, jumped up, and started walking toward Tae-joon.

“Really, why are you doing this? Calm down.”

Lawyer Kim tried to grab Seung-beom’s arm, but it wasn’t enough to stop him.

“Defendant, sit down. Officer. Officer, restrain the defendant.”

The judge, thinking Seung-beom might harm Tae-joon, spoke urgently.

“Return to your seat immediately. If you resist, we will use handcuffs.”

Court officers rushed in, roughly grabbing Seung-beom’s arms and shouting.

“The fountain pen you’re holding has the blood of the deceased, Hwang Jung-sik. You want to say that, huh? Fine. Then read aloud, here, what the test results say! Read it!”

Dragged by the officers, Seung-beom yelled at Tae-joon at the top of his lungs.

“What…?”

Watching from the gallery, In-hye instinctively shivered.

Because on Seung-beom’s face twisted in anger, a faint, chilling smile occasionally appeared.

The same eerie, ominous smile she had seen during hypnosis in the clinic. Seeing it again, she instinctively knew that the unease and foreboding she felt would soon become certainty.

“Fine. If you insist, I’ll read it. According to the National Forensic Service’s detailed analysis of the fountain pen, the defendant Kim Seung-beom’s fingerprints and DNA were found on the pen…”

Tae-joon’s confident expression froze as he opened the sealed envelope to read the report.

“Why did you stop reading? Quickly tell me the results. Does it say I’m a murderer?”

Seung-beom’s voice grew louder at Tae-joon’s hesitation.

“Prosecutor. Read it quickly.”

The judge was equally curious about the results.

“…Yes.”

Tae-joon exhaled deeply, squeezed his eyes shut, and spoke heavily.

“The blood and DNA of the victim Hwang Jung-sik… were not detected on the fountain pen.”

“Hahaha, ha, hahaha.”

The moment Tae-joon finished, Seung-beom began laughing insanely again.

The courtroom was silent for a while, shocked by the unexpected twist.

And the silence was broken by Seung-beom, the triumphant victor of this game, who spoke arrogantly.

“Let go! I said let go of this.”

Seung-beom wriggled irritably as the court officers held his arms.

“Excuse me. I must have misheard. Could you read that again loudly? You were quite loud earlier.”

He mocked Tae-joon with a tone that was almost scornful.

Humiliation.
Disgrace.
Disappointment and anger washed over Tae-joon.

But there was nothing he could do at that moment.
Nothing except clutch the report in his hands.

“That’s impossible. What’s wrong? That bastard is the murderer!”

Hearing the test results, Seong-jin, who had been returning to the courtroom after getting Joo-chul’s call, roared at Seung-beom in disbelief.

All the evidence they had painstakingly gathered, the results they thought were conclusive, had vanished in an instant.

“Your Honor, don’t just restrain me. Restrain that one too.”

Seung-beom pointed at the furious Seong-jin, raising his voice at the judge.
He looked at Seong-jin as if saying, ‘You can’t catch me even if you wake up dead,’ with a smirk.

“You… bastard.”

Seong-jin’s fists tightened so hard that his knuckles went white, fueled by his growing sense of humiliation.

“Everyone in the gallery, be quiet.”
“Detective Kim, calm down. Just watch for now.”
“Ha—ha—”

In-hye tried to calm Seong-jin down, and under the judge’s authority, he reluctantly returned to his seat, exhaling heavily.

“Prosecution. Are you actually going to submit that test report as evidence?”

Even the judge was confused by this rollercoaster situation.

“….”

Tae-joon remained silent, staring at Seung-beom with anger.

He had been completely outplayed.
No, mocked was a more accurate term.

But what angered Tae-joon even more wasn’t being mocked.
It was that the scumbag would casually return to the world wearing his “good person” mask, blending in among others.

He wanted to remove that hypocritical mask by any means and reveal Seung-beom’s filthy true face to everyone.

Catch him.
Catch him.
Lock him up.
Lock him up.

He repeated it hundreds of times in his mind, but it was an empty cry.
No method came to mind.

Complete defeat.

No other words could describe the situation.

“So, it seems all misunderstandings about me are completely cleared up. Are you just going to keep standing there?”

Seung-beom looked at Tae-joon with a calm, leisurely expression.

“Prosecutor, should we assume you won’t submit that test report as evidence?”

“….”

The judge subtly urged him to answer, but he couldn’t bring himself to say the word “Yes.”

“Prosecutor, then we’ll assume the report won’t be submitted as evidence.”
“Ha—”

Tae-joon inhaled deeply, hesitated, and reluctantly spoke the words he didn’t want to say.

“…Yes.”

A humiliating acknowledgment of defeat.

Bang.

Then—

“Wait!”

The courtroom door suddenly opened, and Joo-chul ran in.

“I have additional forensic results regarding the murder case.”

All eyes in the courtroom turned toward him.

“Who is this? Creating a disturbance in the middle of a trial? Officer, remove him.”

The judge tried to eject Joo-chul from the courtroom.

“Wait! Wait! I am Yoon Joo-chul from the National Forensic Service. I apologize for the breach of protocol, but I urgently brought additional data regarding the Hwang Jung-sik murder case. This must be delivered.”

Joo-chul, being pulled outside by an officer, raised a file toward the judge and shouted.

“Officer. Hold on a moment.”

The judge stopped Joo-chul.

“So you’re saying the documents in your hand prove the defendant’s murder?”
“Yes. That’s correct.”

Seung-beom’s previously relaxed face darkened instantly.
But Tae-joon looked as if he had met a savior, rushing eagerly toward Joo-chul.

“Are these the new test results?”
“Yes. And I have something to tell you in private.”

Joo-chul handed the documents to Tae-joon, whispering in his ear.

Tae-joon’s eyebrows twitched as he listened.
Everyone in the courtroom watched silently.

“What are you doing? Don’t whisper—if it’s evidence, reveal it immediately.”

Kim, fearing they might lose the game they had already won, shouted irritably.

“Your Honor, I request a witness.”

After speaking with Joo-chul, Tae-joon suddenly addressed the judge.

“What? Another witness? Show the evidence or disclose it now.”
“Prosecutor, who is this witness? If it’s just questioning again, I will not permit it.”

“Your Honor, this witness is crucial for proving the defendant’s guilt. I ask that you allow it.”

Tae-joon approached the judge, eyes earnest.
This was the last chance. No more opportunities.

“Hmm… Witness request approved.”

After a moment of thought, the judge spoke firmly.

“Your Honor, this seems like a mere delay tactic by the prosecution. Please reconsider.”

Kim objected, incredulous.

“This is the last time. No further witness requests for delaying the trial will be tolerated.”

The judge gave Tae-joon his final opportunity firmly.

“Yes. Thank you.”

Tae-joon clenched his fist and walked to the prosecutor’s desk for the final showdown.

Shortly after, a man sat in the witness stand.
Courtroom whispers arose as everyone recognized him.

“Witness, please introduce yourself.”
“Yes, I am Jung Sang-jun, an announcer at SKM Broadcasting.”

Tae-joon’s first question made Sang-jun slightly nervous.

“What? Suddenly?”

The appearance of someone unrelated to the case caused Kim to frantically flip through documents.

Seeing Kim flustered, Tae-joon took a deep breath.

“What program are you currently working on?”

He carefully asked, determined to use this final opportunity.

“I do the 7 PM news, the 6 AM radio show, and a cultural program.”
“The cultural program broadcast live at 10 PM, ‘Celebrity Interview,’ correct?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Has the defendant ever appeared on that program?”
“Yes, he appeared recently.”

Sang-jun looked at Seung-beom in the defendant’s seat.

“That bastard… what’s he up to?”

Seung-beom muttered at Tae-joon, glaring.
Tae-joon tried to reason why he had called Sang-jun as a witness, but couldn’t figure it out, feeling anxious.
Just one more step to the finish line—he couldn’t fail now.

“I see. Witness, what is your impression of the defendant?”

Tae-joon glanced at the anxious Seung-beom.

“He has gone through a lot of hardships, but I thought it was admirable that he encourages and inspires others through his books. And he’s always smiling and kind to everyone, so I thought he was a warm person.”

“I see. But apart from that, did you notice anything else?”
“Huh? Anything else?”
“For example, coldness, ruthlessness, anger, or… murderous intent?”
“Murderous intent? No, not at all.”

Sang-jun waved his hands in surprise.

“Your Honor, the prosecution is leading the witness!”

Kim stood and shouted.

“Understood. Prosecutor, be careful.”

“Then another question. Have you ever received an autograph from the defendant?”
“Yes, after a broadcast recently, he signed my book.”

“Why keep asking about signatures? This line of questioning is unrelated to the case and only distracts from the trial.”

Kim protested to the judge, clearly unable to understand Tae-joon’s strategy.

“Prosecutor, will you continue questioning like this? If so, I will cancel the witness session.”

“Your Honor, this question is very important. Witness, did you receive the autograph with this fountain pen?”

Tae-joon ignored the judge’s warning, showing Sang-jun the fountain pen of Seung-beom, which had no traces of blood.

“Yes. That’s the pen. I’m a fountain pen enthusiast… sorry, a collector, so I remember clearly. He said it was a gift, and this model is rare in Korea, so I remember it exactly.”

Sang-jun couldn’t take his eyes off the pen in Tae-joon’s hand.

“Are you sure? You signed with this exact pen?”
“Yes, I’m sure.”

Tae-joon’s confidence began to shine.