Chapter 122 : Red Letters on an Ashen Background
Red Letters on an Ashen Background
In-hyuk stared at Noah as she waited for his answer.
If he had taken more interest in her past, he might have discovered traces of Kooou, the mastermind behind Baek Si-hwan, much earlier.
Of course, maybe not...
"Before I hired you as a freelancer, I did a bit of background checking."
"How much do you know?"
"You were picked up and raised by mercenaries from Revenant right after you were born, and you became an elite mercenary, learning all sorts of knowledge and combat techniques there. Then, thirteen years ago, everyone except you was wiped out by some mysterious enemies."
Noah, who had been standing with a hardened expression, clenched her fists tightly.
"I just so happened to realize that you and I have the same goal. What do you think? I feel like this is a reason for us to join forces, not just work together."
"Are those guys really your target?"
"That's right."
"How far are you planning to take things?"
Now, only anger remained on Noah's face.
"All of them. Not a single one left."
"Can you take responsibility for those words? If you plan to stop in the middle, let's consider this contract null and void from the start."
It was clear she was thinking of ignoring In-hyuk and moving on her own.
But In-hyuk, perhaps without realizing it, emitted a terrifying atmosphere.
"Stop halfway? If anything, I'll go further than you, not less, so that'll never happen. Actually, if you get dissatisfied with the way I do things, you can drop out yourself."
His hardened face and eyes filled with killing intent turned to Noah.
Noticing the ominous air, she carefully spoke.
"What did those guys do to Kang?"
Up to just a moment ago, Noah had been pushing the conversation from her own perspective.
But seeing the horrifying vibe radiating from In-hyuk's whole body, she felt curious.
"Hmph... I've died to them once."
"... Died? Then who is this Kang standing in front of me now?"
"I died, and then I came back to life."
Unable to comprehend anymore, Noah glanced at Hong Yu-geon and Van Hester.
Of course, they had no idea what In-hyuk meant, so they just shook their heads.
A sigh soon escaped from Noah's lips.
"Hearing you say such nonsense, I guess you won't explain properly... So what's the plan? How far has it progressed? How much do they know?"
She wanted detailed information for her revenge.
As questions poured out, In-hyuk calmly collected himself and replied.
"I've figured out most of the general outline."
"The general outline... you mean, Jung Yoon-ju?"
"I don't know exactly what her position is, but if she's the deputy general manager at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, that's definitely not low. The other people are the same."
"Who else is involved?"
At her question, In-hyuk glanced at the others.
"For starters... Im Deok-chang, the deputy general manager at the Third Division of the National Intelligence Service."
"You dug that deep?"
"And the couple who are the chairpersons of WISE&WIRE Group, Baek Ji-woong and his wife."
At this answer, Noah's face twisted suddenly.
"Prosecutors weren't enough, so now you're saying the National Intelligence Service and a conglomerate too? No, why did those guys kill my child?"
She was referring to the mercenary group, revenant.
"I don't know at the moment. But if a group was active enough to wipe out Revenant thirteen years ago, it's bigger than we think. And back then, they must have had a reason for targeting Revenant."
"Is there a way to find out that reason?"
In-hyuk scratched his forehead and answered.
"We'd have to rob their original headquarters, or grab someone likely to be involved."
"Are you saying we won't know until everything's over?"
Because both options seemed difficult to get answers from quickly.
"No. The latter might be worth a try."
"Do you have someone in mind?"
"Just a hunch for now. Go Mi-ah. Can you hack into the Defense Ministry or administration servers?"
To that, Go Mi-ah frowned fiercely.
"Not impossible... but why those?"
"There's someone I need to find. The name is Jeon Eun-seong. The keywords in the Ministry of Defense are Defense Intelligence Command, major or lieutenant colonel."
"A soldier? Hold on a moment."
Go Mi-ah's fingers typed quickly on the keyboard.
Observing, Noah cautiously asked what was going on.
"Jeon... Eun-seong? Who is he?"
"Suspected as a member of Kooou, and involved in military affairs."
"Kooou?"
Since that name hadn't been explained, Noah tilted her head in confusion.
"It's a temporary name for those guys. When we shook down one of the lower-level grunts, the name 'KOOU' came up."
"KOOU... that's Japanese, isn't it? Is it a group connected to Japan?"
"It could be, or it could be a cover."
If it was an organization connected to state government, they might be using it to conceal their true affiliation.
"Was there anything else?"
"There was also information about a mercenary camp in Naya, Mongolia. But they must have gotten wind of us because they moved a long time ago."
"All the way to a camp? Well, if they wiped out my child, anything less would be stranger. Then I'll dig into that angle, too."
In-hyuk shook his head.
"No. Whatever you're thinking, just do the job I asked for."
"Why? Wouldn't more information lines be better?"
"We don't know how far their influence reaches yet. On the contrary, if we use those lines, we might get traced ourselves. That's why I'm moving this way, too."
Hearing that, Noah looked worried.
"I don't know how much money Kang is hiding, but those guys have enormous power and resources in this country. Can you really pull it off? With just the people here?"
It was a tense atmosphere, as if things could turn sour without the right answer.
"What if I told you AMK Partners is my company?"
That was the name of the investment firm that grew at breakneck speed in Asia and North America, and Noah also knew it.
But she couldn't immediately connect it with In-hyuk's words.
"What? AMK? That place belongs to Kang?"
"I started it. Norman McGrath is the branch manager for public operations, but I coach things from behind the scenes."
"Do you have proof?"
In-hyuk sighed briefly and answered.
"I don't know if this will convince you, but... try flipping AMK around."
"KMA? What's that?"
"The initials of her name."
In-hyuk pointed at Go Mi-ah, who was sitting in front of the computer.
Noah's eyes widened as she raised her voice.
"Ko Mi-ah? You named it after her?!"
"I didn't name it myself. I told them to just come up with something, and that's what happened. If you need funding or financial records, I can show you."
As he said that, In-hyuk looked at Hong Yu-geon and Van Hester.
But they, too, were just as surprised as Noah.
"What the... you guys didn't know either?"
That was the end of their astonishment. In-hyuk simply shook his head in disbelief.
* * *
[What's the status of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's investigation into the reported prosecutorial corruption? The Anti-Corruption Division at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office announced that they are handling the case, stating that identifying the whistleblower was intended as part of verifying the veracity of the report...]
[The SPO has kept silent on the identity of the prosecution corruption whistleblower! They explained that, since it's such a significant case, it's for their safety...]
[Breaking news! The whistleblower has been identified as Mr. K, who has been missing since about a year ago and was a staff member of the Taeshin Group's security team...]
...
...
Jung Yoon-ju, the deputy general manager, let out a long sigh as she skimmed through an article in her office at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office.
Just then, department manager Jo Moo-yeol of the Anti-Corruption Division came in cautiously after knocking.
"I've checked with the media outlet that released the whistleblower's identity."
"What did you find out?"
"They said the report came to them anonymously. The information included black box footage from a PC bang near where the tip was uploaded, along with identity details. We've obtained all the files for the investigation."
Jung Yoon-ju's sigh only deepened.
"Have you ordered a search for the anonymous whistleblower?"
"Yes. But how long must we suspend the investigation?"
There was a huge gap between what had been announced to the media and the actual situation.
Of course, it was none other than Jung Yoon-ju herself, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office deputy general manager, who had ordered things to turn out this way.
"We announced that we'd proceed with the investigation due to public opinion, but can we be certain everything in the whistleblower's report is true?"
"Don't we have to verify those things first?"
"What if it turns out to be false? Not only will the prosecution have been swayed by a single report, we'll be branded as idiots who turned on our own organization, won't we?"
There were 18 people implicated in prosecution corruption. Nearly half of them were her people.
She could cut them all off without hesitation, but that would weaken her own power within the prosecution, which made the choice difficult.
"Sooner or later the media will sniff around to see how far the investigation has progressed. If nothing comes of it, we may end up in an even worse position."
"Are those involved in the corruption in insignificant positions? If we handle it the wrong way, it could just damage the Supreme Prosecutors' Office's authority. That's why we need to find the whistleblower first—because we have to confirm how and where they got such evidence, or else we could face major blowback."
Her explanation made sense, at least on the surface. Jo Moo-yeol understood, but couldn't help his frustration.
He even considered moving without informing Jung Yoon-ju.
But, within the Anti-Corruption Division, except for himself, almost everyone else was one of Jung Yoon-ju's people.
No matter what, word would get back to her eventually.
"What if the article comes out before we find the whistleblower?"
That would be the worst-case scenario.
Jung Yoon-ju understood this and frowned.
"If that worries you, then instead of standing here, wouldn't it be better to focus on finding the whistleblower?"
In the end, the result was more postponement.
Jo Moo-yeol let out a very obvious sigh, nodded his head slightly, and left the office.
Once the door closed, Jung Yoon-ju let out a groan.
"Whatever the reason, it's a relief that they used someone already dead as the whistleblower."
She had ordered the Anti-Corruption Division to find the whistleblower in order to buy more time from the start.
This whole incident was meant to be swept under the rug, eventually shifting blame to department manager Jo Moo-yeol and sending him to a convenient location.
...
...
Jo Moo-yeol, having just left the deputy general manager's office, didn't return straight to the Anti-Corruption Division.
Instead, he stood on the building's rooftop. He just wanted to get some air to ease his stifled mood.
Last mid-year, when the Rizeburn incident erupted, he had been at the main office of the Daejeon District Prosecutors' Office, but was abruptly promoted to department manager at the Anti-Corruption Division of the Supreme Prosecutors' Office.
Because the incident was so grave, they chose someone as clean as possible for the role.
But here or there, things weren't much different.
"Are you alright?"
His Samu-gwan, Kim Sang-jun, approached from behind and asked.
Jo Moo-yeol, who had been sighing continuously, turned his head.
"How did you know I'd be here?"
"When you're frustrated, you always come up to the roof, boss. When I heard you went to see the deputy general manager, I figured you'd be here by now."
Kim Sang-jun, the Samu-gwan, had worked with Jo Moo-yeol with the same sense of purpose in the past, so unlike other prosecutors or staff, he was on Jo Moo-yeol's side.
"You know me too well, Samu-gwan Kim."
"So, did you get the deputy general manager's approval again?"
Kim could get a general idea of the situation just from Jo Moo-yeol's mood.
"Well, no."
"Then what should we do now? If this goes on, you might end up shouldering all the blame alone."
It wasn't hard to imagine the worst.
And since Jo Moo-yeol's predecessor had been one of Jung Yoon-ju's people, he knew the risks well.
"There's no approval from above, and the people below won't help, so... what can you do?"
If he limited the investigation to just regular prosecutors among the 18 implicated, it might have been doable, but he couldn't avoid touching the chief prosecutor line suspected of being connected to them.
Lost in complicated thoughts, a vibration buzzed in his pocket.
Bzzz— Bzzz—
A message had arrived.
"... Hmm?"
He was sure he had turned on the screen, but red letters appeared against an ashen background.