The inspector is getting promoted!

Lim Seong-jin had collapsed.

He wasn’t just a defeated soldier; he was like a general captured as a prisoner of war in a fallen country.

Having already submitted his resignation, when the judicial exam scandal broke, he no longer had the strength to resist. He waved the white flag and admitted to all his charges.

Jo Won-hyung received a three-month suspension and was sent to a provincial position, but he didn’t resist.

He had hoped to stay in the Economic Crime Investigation Division, but given the situation, he was just thankful that he hadn’t been cut from the division, so he didn’t have any complaints.

As for me, if I had only exposed the Economic Crime Investigation Division’s case and removed Lim Seong-jin, it likely would have been a short-lived success that would soon be forgotten.

However, by exposing the judicial exam corruption and stepping back into the media spotlight, I was able to rise to stardom.

The prolonged judicial exam corruption gave me more opportunities to appear in the media, and as curious netizens started investigating me, news spread that I had come up from the provinces to the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office through SNS. This became even more of a hot topic.

The prosecutor who had hidden his power in the provinces and climbed to Seoul to take down a corrupt chief prosecutor in revenge for his friend’s sake.

It was the perfect material for creating a sensational story.

The most thrilled were, unsurprisingly, my parents.

Not only had I moved to Seoul, but my face was also becoming known, and the once-dried-up marriage proposals had started flooding in again, which was the biggest reason they were so happy.

These were even better conditions than when I first passed the judicial exam.

After coming to Seoul, I noticed that most of the prosecutors around me had spouses from wealthy families. I had thought about rushing into a marriage several times, but I kept postponing it.

Establishing myself at the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office came first. I didn’t have time to think about women for now.

Of course, as time passed, I began to feel more and more that having a good spouse was crucial to my success.

Just a few days ago, a prosecutor from the Criminal Division had barely survived being sent to the provinces. But, once his father-in-law became the new mayor of Seoul through a last-minute political upset, he was immediately moved to a prestigious position in the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office. I had witnessed that with my own eyes.

***

Six months.

It had already been six months since I joined the Inspection Division.

At the start of this year, Deputy Chief Prosecutor Kim Seok-won was promoted to Prosecutor General.

Not just any Prosecutor General, but the head of the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office.

It was highly unusual for someone to be promoted directly from Deputy Chief Prosecutor to Prosecutor General without first serving as a provincial Prosecutor General, and because of that, Kim Seok-won’s stature had risen to great heights.

Thanks to that, I, too, was able to quickly establish myself by following his line.

Since joining the Economic Crime Investigation Division and handling the judicial exam scandal, I had been able to make a name for myself and completely catch the eye of the Prosecutor General.

If things continued like this, I had hopes that when Park Seung-su, the deputy chief, was promoted to Chief Prosecutor later this year, I might be able to fill the position he would leave behind.

Of course, for now, it was just a possibility.

One thing had changed, though. There had been no more messages about the future.

I wasn’t particularly disappointed by the lack of messages since I had already been actively working in the Inspection Division, but I still had lingering curiosity.

Considering there hadn’t been any news recently, I wondered if some supernatural force had helped solve the issue with Shin Yong-ho.

“Prosecutor, are you free for a moment?”

Yoon Seol-ha approached me holding two documents.

She had been in this office for six months already.

I had brought her in as an investigator right after the Lim Seong-jin case was over.

As expected, her ability to handle tasks was impressive.

Other investigators had thrown in the towel, but Yoon Seol-ha managed to solve problems they couldn’t handle.

When I asked how she did it, she always said, “It’s a trade secret,” which annoyed me, but I knew better than to meddle in something that didn’t concern me, so I tried not to care.

The most important thing was that I could trust her.

That was the best part of working with her.

“What is it?”

“I’ve looked into the shared investigations between the Financial Crimes Division and the Economic Crime Investigation Division, and as expected, the investigations were not properly conducted and were buried. Both cases.”

Recently, I had been digging into a company.

Joo-ok Group.

One of the wealthiest conglomerates in South Korea.

“The so-called chaebol.”

The chaebol, the conglomerate that wields power beyond VIPs through money.

Under normal circumstances, as an ordinary prosecutor, I would have expected any involvement with them to be buried without a trace. But this time, it was different.

A power struggle between siblings.

Since the chairman of Joo-ok Group collapsed due to a brain hemorrhage, his children had been fighting to seize control of the group’s shares.

It hasn’t yet escalated to media attention, but I believe it’s only a matter of time.

In their efforts to dig up each other’s weaknesses, both sides have been offering bribes to the prosecution along with their materials, while the other side has been trying to cover it up with more money.

The prosecutor caught in the middle benefits the most.

And the division that stands out the most in this is the Financial Crime Division.

They can dig into anyone’s accounts in South Korea.

By now, even a regular prosecutor might have pocketed several thousand dollars, I suspect.

The reason I’m targeting departments related to Joo-ok Group isn’t for money.

It’s because it’s a clear opportunity for advancement.

When there’s a struggle like this, there are bound to be traces left behind.

No one would dig this up without guts, but I’m a man obsessed with advancement.

If I manage to dig up some information from one side, the other side will undoubtedly back me, ensuring not just a minor mention but a headline-grabbing opportunity.

It’s a chance to solidify my position as the top contender for the deputy prosecutor’s vacancy that will open up when Park Seung-su retires.

And after over a month of discreet investigation, just a few days ago, I found a clue.

“It seems someone higher up is pressing down on both departments.”

“That’s right. Looking at the materials you provided, all the responses have been swift and efforts to cover it up have only happened when Joo-ok Medical was involved.”

Since the Lim Seong-jin case, the Economic Crime Investigation Division has been completely reshuffled and is now under the direct control of the District Prosecutor.

However, Prosecutor Lim Joo-young, who is aiming for the position of Deputy Prosecutor General next year, has no reason to get involved in the chaebol fight, so he’s out of the picture.

Of course, he’s probably turning a blind eye to what’s going on under his watch.

If he were to take sides in the sibling rivalry, the opposing side would never just sit back and watch Lim Joo-young claim the Deputy Prosecutor General spot.

Since Lim Joo-young, the person actually controlling the Economic Crime Investigation Division, is out of the picture, it’s likely that the division is now following the lead of the Financial Crime Division.

The key lies with the Financial Crime Division.

But the problem is that I still don’t have definite information on the real power behind the two departments.

I can only think of the First Deputy Chief Prosecutor.

There must be some kind of link.

“Joo-ok Medical…”

Seeing my puzzled expression, Yoon Seol-ha grinned and pulled her phone from her pocket.

“Actually, I couldn’t come up with anything either, so I tailed a key member of Joo-ok Medical for a few days.”

She showed me a picture taken in a gallery.

“This photo came up last night.”

A dimly lit underground parking lot. A man, presumably an attendant, is seen putting three 007-style bags into the trunk of a black car.

The vehicle’s license plate is barely visible.

“Did you get the car’s plate number?”

“Yes.”

She said confidently.

“95-4106. It’s the car of Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-soo from the Special Investigations Division.”

Buzz.

My phone vibrated, but I set it aside and looked up at Yoon Seol-ha.

“Any shots of the face?”

“Unfortunately, no. After this shot, the guards noticed and I had to pull back.”

“If we dig into Kang Hyun-soo’s assets or account records, do you think we’d find something?”

“Probably not.”

But then Yoon Seol-ha added one more thing.

“But if we dig, there might be at least a little dust.”

I liked her attitude of trying to dig a little deeper rather than backing off.

That’s her biggest strength.

“It’d be hard without a warrant, right?”

“Yes. It would be nearly impossible to get anything publicly without one.”

“What about secretly?”

She grinned, as if she understood exactly what I meant.

“Give me two days.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Yoon Seol-ha immediately packed her bag and left the office.

After the door closed, I picked up my phone.

– Sender: 30

– Photo

It was a message.

A future message.

I had thought it was gone since it hadn’t come for a while, but it had eventually returned.

I noticed that the sender had changed for the first time.

Up until now, it had always been “29,” but today it was “30.”

Does this mean something?

No, I’ll think about it later.

For now, I need to focus on the contents of the message.

I immediately zoomed in on the photo.

A parking lot?

No, it’s a playground.

It’s quite a secluded spot.

Given the shabby signs nearby, it must either be a redevelopment area or a rundown neighborhood.

Just in case, I quickly jotted down all the signs I could see and then focused back on the photo.

Two cars were visible.

A black SUV and a foreign-made sedan.

The SUV’s license plate was 35Da 3741. The foreign car’s plate was 95Ro 4106.

Wait, 95Ro 4106? That’s the same number Yoon Seol-ha had just gotten.

The owner of the foreign car was undoubtedly Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-soo from the Special Investigations Division.

It was too dark to see clearly, but it was evident that two men were exchanging something.

It looked like they were exchanging a square bag. Could it be a 007-style briefcase?

It seemed that Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-soo was handing the bag to the owner of the SUV.

Slowly, the puzzle pieces began to fall into place in my mind.

Just to be sure, I rechecked the photo, made sure I hadn’t missed anything, and took notes on every detail before picking up the phone and dialing a police officer I knew.

“Yes, Prosecutor.”

“Run a background check on a vehicle number.”

“Go ahead.”

“35Da 3741.”

“Hold on a moment.”

I could hear the sound of typing, and then the voice came back.

“The owner is Lee Eun-young.”

“A woman?”

“Yes. She’s 39 years old and lives in Gangnam.”

Had I made a mistake?

No, that can’t be right.

“What about her husband?”

“Please hold on.”

After a brief moment of typing, the officer came back on the line.

“Her husband is Nam Woo-hyun. He’s 41 and lives in Gangnam as well.”

Bingo!

Nam Woo-hyun, the head of the Financial Crime Division.

“Thanks.”

“If you need anything else, just let me know.”

“I’ll buy you a drink sometime.”

“Sure!”

That’s it.

Everything fell into place in an instant.

I now understood how the puzzle pieces fit together and why Joo-ok Medical had handed over three 007-style briefcases to Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-soo.