By Zephyria 
While repeatedly tying and untying his tie, a message arrived. It stated that approximately 3 million won in loans and interest had been repaid. He let out a low sigh. Having covered his father’s hospital bills and the living expenses for the rest of his family, he had been buried in debt since his mid-twenties.
He had worked part-time jobs while others studied, and becoming a prosecutor didn’t change anything. The debt was still a work in progress. His mother worked while nursing his father, but it was far from enough to make a living. He wished his Hyung would just get his act together. As the eldest son, his brother lived like a ghost; Hee-shin felt a complex mix of resentment and pity toward him.
After some deliberation, he chose a blue tie. As he put on his coat, the doorbell rang. The person appearing on the worn-out intercom screen was the man he had seen at Im Gyeong’s house. Long hair tied back in a ponytail and wearing glasses. Even through the screen, his gaze flashed sharply.
“The young master sent me.”
After asking him to wait a moment, Hee-shin threw on his coat and stepped outside. The man said nothing as they walked toward the parking lot. He was more taciturn than expected. As the old elevator descended, the man’s gaze fixed on an illegally posted advertisement.
It was an ad for a newly opened gym nearby, offering a discount on tuition if one signed up for three months at once. Shortly after becoming a prosecutor, Hee-shin had also been fooled by such an ad and bought a membership. In the end, due to his busy schedule, he couldn’t even finish a single month, effectively just giving his money away for nothing.
Upon arriving at the parking lot, a black limousine was waiting. An ultra-luxury vehicle rarely seen. He had seen the same model when tracking the embezzlement of corporate funds by a certain conglomerate last year.
The man opened the rear door and gestured politely. After a slight nod, Hee-shin entered the car, and the door closed immediately. The interior was impeccably clean, and once the door shut, it felt completely sealed off from the outside air.
The vehicle was spacious and equipped with all sorts of things. Curious, he pressed a few buttons, and the seat reclined. As he let out a small “Oh” of admiration, his eyes flickered and met the driver’s. He gave a bright smile and a thumbs-up, but the man’s expression remained unchanged.
A moment later, the car left the parking lot. As it stopped at a crossroads signal, the gaze of pedestrians crossing the street shifted toward them. Watching some young kids taking photos from afar, he felt a brief surge of pride, as if he had become someone important. Though he soon felt embarrassed.
After driving for about an hour, they arrived at a secluded alley in a market district. It was a place that had been all over the news due to clashes between hired thugs and merchants. Now, most visitors and merchants had left, leaving behind rows of empty shops.
The car stopped, and the man stepped out to open the door.
Hee-shin stepped onto the ground and straightened the front of his jacket.
“Nice car.”
At Hee-shin’s remark, the man gave a faint smile and gestured forward. In the pitch-black alley, another car had already arrived. He didn’t need to be told who owned the gaudy red sports car. Guided by the man, he entered a restaurant that had closed long ago.
“You’re here?”
Upon entering, Im Gyeong was leaning back in a chair, waving his hand. Behind him, a man wearing an apron was heading inside with a large fish in a landing net. The bald man was shirtless, wearing only an apron, and his back was covered in tattoos and knife scars. At a glance, those weren’t cuts from slicing sashimi.
Inside, there were two other people preparing fish, and their aura was equally intimidating. It finally clicked for Hee-shin whose bloodline Im Gyeong—whom he had thought was just a rich young master—actually came from.
“I picked the menu as I pleased; is that okay?”
Hee-shin pulled out a chair and sat down. The musty-smelling restaurant had no CCTV. The paths leading here were the same. He had seen places like this in TV shows or movies—secret meetings where someone could be killed off without anyone knowing.
Slightly tense, he deliberately straightened his back to hide the stiffness in his neck.
“Why did you call me to a place like this? It’s scary.”
“You noticed? If things went south, I was planning to just kidnap you, Kang Hee-shin.”
“You’ve picked the wrong target. I have absolutely nothing to my name.”
“Nothing? From where I’m sitting, you have plenty.”
Avoiding Im Gyeong’s strangely smiling gaze, Kang Hee-shin changed the subject.
“When is the person you said you’d introduce arriving?”
“I got a message saying they’ll be here in ten minutes. Want a drink?”
He lifted a kettle beside him and poured it into a bowl. Looking at the milky white makgeolli, Hee-shin frowned slightly. He personally didn’t like makgeolli. In his childhood, makgeolli was the drink his father consumed as much as soju. That musty smell that permeated the house often came back to him even after he became an adult. As he just stared at it without drinking, Im Gyeong asked.
“Not your taste? Should I give you something else?”
“It’s fine.”
He said so, but he couldn’t bring himself to reach for it. Im Gyeong was emptying his second bowl of makgeolli. He looked like the type to insist on high-end foreign liquor, yet he drank this with ease. He set the glass down and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
“My maternal grandfather loved this drink. I used to sneak sips from him as a child. My mother hated it, though.”
As if reading his thoughts, he answered the curiosity. Since it would be awkward to just stare, Hee-shin poured more into his glass with an indifferent face. As he received the drink, Im Gyeong suddenly clicked his tongue.
“Pour with both hands. I’m the elder here.”
Give me a break, what a joke.
“Please understand. I’m not married yet.”
Smiling, he continued to pour with one hand until the end and set the kettle down.
“Well, no one knows if I’ll actually be able to get married, right?”
“Are you hoping the wedding falls through?”
“Why would I? I told you I like you, Kang Hee-shin. You’re quite cute. They say there’s no cure for cuteness, so this is a problem.”
“I’d rather you just call me unlucky or curse at me.”
“I’m being sincere.”
What kind of mindset leads someone to call a grown man ‘cute’? He wondered if it had anything to do with what was said while handing over the cookies. Instead of drinking, Im Gyeong now crossed his arms on the table and leaned forward, gazing intently at him. Even though they were both men, being looked at that way was uncomfortable.
“Kang Hee-shin. You hear that you’re handsome a lot, right?”
“Yes.”
“Me too.”
“…….”
“Let’s get along well, since we’re both handsome.”
Instead of responding to the childish wordplay, he downed the makgeolli in front of him. His throat felt drier than usual. As he stood up to drink some water, a quick-witted employee brought over a bottle of Evian. Makgeolli, kimchi, and Evian. He didn’t know what kind of combination that was.
As he opened the cap and moistened his throat, he heard voices behind him.
At the same time, Im Gyeong stood up to welcome someone.
“You’ve arrived.”
Startled, he stood up and turned around. For a moment, he almost spat out the water he had just drunk. Assemblyman Choi Dong-hyun? He wasn’t mistaken. Behind him stood his aide with his hands behind his back. His aide, a former journalist, played a significant role in capturing votes with his handsome looks and eloquent speech.
“It’s been a while. Have you been doing well?”
“Yes, thanks to you. Ah, this is the friend I mentioned.”
Im Gyeong pointed to Kang Hee-shin. Hiding his flustered expression, Kang Hee-shin gave a polite greeting and extended his hand. Instead of introducing himself as a prosecutor, he simply said, “I am Kang Hee-shin.” He only gave his name because there was nothing to gain from meeting an Assemblyman—especially the father of a key witness—privately.
“Ah—Central District Prosecutors’ Office, right?”
However, the other party had no intention of pretending not to know.
“I’m honored that you recognize me.”
“Of course I do. I’ve seen you on TV a few times. I thought you just looked good on screen, but you’re much better in person. Let’s sit first. It’s fate that we meet like this.”
Once seated, Assemblyman Choi continued.
“I was curious who the person our President Im mentioned was, and it turned out to be Prosecutor Kang. Haha, it’s a small world. Actually, I really liked the prosecutor while watching TV. I thought bringing in a talent like that would be helpful. Don’t you agree, Ji-hoon?”
He then asked his aide. The aide did not deny it and responded with a smile. While his words were friendly, Assemblyman Choi’s eyes were meticulously scanning Kang Hee-shin. The same went for his aide.
“Excuse me for a moment.”
While Im Gyeong and Assemblyman Choi exchanged pleasantries, Hee-shin left the table under the pretext of using the restroom. As soon as he entered the old restroom, a curse word escaped his lips.
Choi Dong-hyun was a man who had served seven terms as an Assemblyman. He was older now, and although he had been pushed out of the presidential race this year due to party unification, he was still a powerful figure in the opposition party. The bigger problem was that he was Choi Yoon-oh’s father. He had never dreamed he would meet such a person here.
Furthermore, Choi Dong-hyun was on bad terms with Chairman Yoon, Yoon Se-na’s father. Of course, it wasn’t like that from the start. Chairman Yoon had been indicted on charges of providing election funds to the opposing party, and in the process, Assemblyman Choi’s side had launched a barrage of attacks through the media, completely ruining the relationship between the two.
Of course, the case was dismissed due to insufficient evidence.
He washed his face to clear his head and looked at his reflection in the mirror.
“Damn it….”
He couldn’t tell if this was a blessing or a curse. If he was unlucky, this could lead to rumors later on. After agonizing over it, he organized his thoughts and stepped back outside.
The two men were in a jovial mood, their age difference seemingly irrelevant. Seeing them share trivial small talk, it seemed they had maintained a friendship for quite some time. On the blue table sat thick slices of freshly cut sashimi. Assemblyman Choi picked up a piece of fish and lifted his bowl.
“Kheu, this is it.”
A smile spread across his face.
“Prosecutor. Our President Im is very thoughtful. Do you know what this makgeolli means to me?”
He brought up a story from his childhood. After his father, who ran a brewery, passed away suddenly, the family fortune declined, and the brewery eventually passed into someone else’s hands. He mentioned that the brewery was still producing liquor in that neighborhood across generations, and that Im Gyeong sourced the liquor from there every time he visited.
He praised Im Gyeong, saying he was a friend with great charm not only as a businessman but also as a human being.
“Since we’ve been treated to such precious liquor, shall we get to the point?”
At Assemblyman Choi’s gesture, his aide brought two manila envelopes from a bag. He then placed them side-by-side on the table. As Hee-shin watched in silence, the man’s hand pointed to the first envelope.
“This one is my son, Choi Yoon-oh.”
The finger then moved to the side.
“And this one is Chairman Shim Eun-seop.”
What? His eyes widened involuntarily. Shim Eun-seop? Recently, rumors had been circulating about Shim Eun-seop, the chairman of a construction company. It was said that a financial director under him had fled abroad with a significant amount of data, and that Shim Eun-seop was searching everywhere to find the director’s whereabouts. The rumors suggested that the slush fund files held by the financial director might contain details regarding the entertainment and election funds of several assemblymen.
“What is this?”
When he probed with a hint of suspicion, Assemblyman Choi made a gesture as if pointing toward the sky.
“The key to take our prosecutor over there.”
Kang Hee-shin laughed silently.
“Isn’t it too early for me to go to heaven?”
“Haha, you have a sense of humor.”
Without a word, he turned the envelope upside down, and a USB drive fell out. The same happened with the other envelope. One was black, one was white. As he glared at them on the table, Assemblyman Choi leaned forward.
“Now, choose. Will you catch my son, or will you catch Chairman Shim?”