The inspector is getting promoted!

“Hoo.”

After calming my chest, I started organizing the information, one piece at a time.

First, there’s the fact that Han Ji-yoo and I are involved physically.

This is an undeniable fact.

If the video had been manipulated, I wouldn’t have been able to keep quiet when Kang Hyun-soo showed it to me.

This is something that’s going to happen this year, when I turn thirty.

The video in the message doesn’t clarify if Han Ji-yoo and I got together because we were attracted to each other, or if it was because I received sexual favors.

If it were the latter, that in itself would be a weapon for blackmail. However, if Han Ji-yoo and I were genuinely attracted to each other and became a couple, it could be used to threaten me by spreading the video, which would damage her reputation.

Though the latter possibility is quite slim, it’s important not to make a quick judgment until the events unfold.

In both speculation and investigation, it’s key to keep all possibilities open.

Next, the timing mentioned in the message, at the age of thirty-four.

That’s four years from now.

From the conversation, it seems I have been promoted to the Deputy Chief Prosecutor.

The issue, however, is that I’m the Deputy Chief of the Special Investigation Division, not the Inspection Division.

I’ve been with the Special Investigation Division since I was thirty, and if I choose not to transfer to the Special Investigation Division this year, the contents of the message would be completely invalid. For now, I’ll assume I do join the Special Investigation Division.

After four years in the Special Investigation Division as a Deputy Chief, I might be forced out for some reason.

Given that I’m involved in these backdoor dealings, it doesn’t seem rational, but there’s probably something I’ll need to take responsibility for in Kang Hyun-soo’s place.

And one more thing.

Even if everything else falls apart, one piece of information remains unchanged.

Depending on how I use this, it could determine my path in the big storm that will unfold in four years.

This is crucial information.

Although it’s just one message, the value of its contents is immeasurable.

I need to make the most of it.

Every detail, as effectively as possible.

Two days passed, and just after midnight on the third day.

While Yoon Seol-ha, still with the lights off, was eating a sandwich she bought from a convenience store, a car slid into a narrow, dark lot.

Yoon Seol-ha put down her sandwich and turned her gaze toward it.

It was a black SUV. The license plate was 35da 3741.

She immediately took a photo with her phone and sent it to Choi Seo-jun.

Recipient: Choi Seo-jun
Nam Woo-hyun has arrived. I’ll keep watching.

Not long after, a reply came.

Sender: Choi Seo-jun
Call me immediately if anything happens.

Receiving the reassuring reply, Yoon Seol-ha resumed her watch on the car.

Soon after, another black foreign car slid into the lot.

It was the same car Yoon Seol-ha had seen a few days ago. 95ro 4106.

It was Prosecutor Kang Hyun-soo’s car.

His vehicle stopped next to the SUV, and the engine was turned off.

The two men, without hesitation, got out of their cars and stood facing each other, exchanging words.

Since they were too far apart to hear, Yoon Seol-ha couldn’t make out the conversation, but it was obvious.

It was likely about a recent incident and how they were going to handle it. Or, it could be about the internal situation at the Juok Group.

One of those, for sure.

Yoon Seol-ha didn’t let a moment slip by and kept taking photos.

After about five minutes, Prosecutor Kang Hyun-soo went to the back of his vehicle, opened the trunk, and pulled out a black bag.

Without realizing it, Yoon Seol-ha swallowed hard.

‘It’s real.’

Until I saw it with my own two eyes, I was half in doubt.

I trusted Choi Seo-jun 100%, so I never doubted him.

What I was worried about wasn’t him, but the information.

Who on earth leaked such perfect information, and how Choi Seo-jun found out, I didn’t know, but if we got a picture of this scene, we could completely destroy those two prosecutors.

Not just any prosecutors, but the heads of the financial crime division and the special investigation division at the Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office!

‘If I hand this over to the press…’

They would surely pay a huge amount in return.

It would be a sum that couldn’t even be compared to the annual salary of an ordinary prosecutor.

Of course, Yoon Seol-ha had no intention of betraying or backstabbing Choi Seo-jun, who saved her.

He had liberated her from Im Seong-jin and had taken her in as an investigator—it was something that couldn’t be measured by money.

It was just a reminder of how valuable the photo was.

As expected, Yoon Seol-ha didn’t miss this opportunity and perfectly captured the moment with her camera.

Nam Woo-hyun, who had received the money bag, couldn’t hide his smile after feeling its weight.

‘Dirty bastard.’

His filthy grin was also caught in the lens.

Chief Prosecutor Nam Woo-hyun, after lifting the bag a few times and savoring the weight, finally placed it into the SUV’s trunk.

The moment she perfectly captured this scene, bang!

A call came through from an unknown number on her phone, causing the screen to light up.

Since it was set to silent mode, there was no vibration or ringtone, but the light from the screen couldn’t be hidden.

She immediately rejected the call, but the light that had leaked out couldn’t be undone.

Perhaps noticing that light, Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-su said something to Nam Woo-hyun and then carefully started moving toward the area where Yoon Seol-ha’s car was parked.

‘Damn it!’

Yoon Seol-ha quickly pushed her chair back and tried to hide her body as much as possible.

However, Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-su, already starting to suspect, began checking all the cars around the area where Yoon Seol-ha was.

With both hands cupped by his eyes, Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-su started inspecting the windows of each parked car, finally approaching Yoon Seol-ha’s car.

‘Please!’

Yoon Seol-ha held her breath, trying not to make a sound.

It was nighttime, and the car had tinted windows, so she still had some hope, but as always, her ominous feeling turned out not to be just a feeling.

Bang!

Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-su slammed his fist against the driver’s side window.

“Who are you!”

Caught.

‘I’m screwed.’

Yoon Seol-ha quickly made a decision.

‘It’s impossible to hold out here…’

She hurriedly pushed the seat back and started the engine.

At the sound of the engine, Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-su once again slammed the window and shouted angrily.

“Who sent you, you bastard!”

Yoon Seol-ha immediately stepped on the accelerator.

Through the rearview mirror, she saw Chief Prosecutor Kang Hyun-su sit down for a moment before quickly getting up and running toward his car.

He would chase after her.

And most likely, with Nam Woo-hyun.

Yoon Seol-ha held the steering wheel with one hand while sending all the photos she had taken to Choi Seo-jun with the other hand.

Then, she immediately called him.

“Prosecutor, I’ve been caught.”

Caught?

Choi Seo-jun’s surprised voice came through.

Where are you?

The rustling noise indicated that he was likely hurrying to leave his house.

“I’m running away. I’ve sent the photos, so save them all.”

Where are you? I’ll come right now!

“Don’t come. Don’t come. Just in case, move the photos to your laptop.”

She explained calmly.

“If you come and get caught, it’ll reveal that you gave me the orders. You have to get out of here. If I get caught, I’ll just say I did it all on my own. You didn’t know anything. That way, we can both survive.”

It’s not your car, right?

“I rented it in a friend’s name. Officially, there’s no connection to me, so they won’t be able to trace it through the license plate number.”

As long as you can shake them off…

Flash!

Here’s the translation of the text:

***

The strong light reflected in the rearview mirror made me frown.

It was the high beams.

The car behind kept flicking its high beams on and off, obstructing my vision.

The vehicle visible in the rearview mirror was a foreign car.

There was still some distance, but the way it was accelerating like crazy, it was only a matter of time before it caught up.

“No. I don’t think I can shake them off easily. I’ll try to escape, but I’m not sure.”

The constant flickering of the high beams made it difficult to see clearly.

“Prosecutor, I’ll call you back.”

Investigator, Investigator! Seol-ha!

Yoon Seol-ha ignored Choi Seo-jun’s desperate voice calling her name and hung up the phone.

The foreign car was getting closer and closer.

“Damn, if I had known this would happen, I should’ve rented a more expensive car.”

It was too late to regret it.

The chance of being caught was growing bigger.

She had to be careful not to leave any evidence, especially the proof that the photos had been sent.

Deleting the record of the sent photos was the most urgent task.

With her opposite hand on the steering wheel, Yoon Seol-ha deleted the text message history with Choi Seo-jun and the list of calls from today.

She also deleted the photos she had taken.

That way, even if she got caught, she’d have an excuse.

Yoon Seol-ha stepped hard on the accelerator with her right foot, but the rented domestic car couldn’t match the speed of the foreign car.

Finally, Kang Hyun-su, who had caught up beside her, opened the passenger window and shouted.

“Hey, you bastard! Pull over!”

She gritted her teeth.

She wanted to shout back, “Would you stop if you were me?” but she couldn’t open the driver’s side window.

“Hey, you not pulling over?”

The speed had already surpassed 140 km/h.

She could feel the car’s balance starting to break down, and it was painful to realize she couldn’t accelerate any further.

Her hands gripping the steering wheel began to sweat.

Yoon Seol-ha exhaled deeply.

“Huuh.”

At that moment, she saw a fork in the road up ahead.

‘I have to shake him off there.’

She pretended to keep going straight and was about to veer to the right, but maybe realizing her intention, the foreign car actually slowed down and began following behind again.

‘All I have left is to trust my driving skills.’

If she could shake off Kang Hyun-su, there was a chance of escape.

Since he had followed closely behind her, it meant that if she turned right, he would follow her.

There was only one best option.

She pretended to go right, then quickly turned the wheel to the left.

If Kang Hyun-su’s reaction time was slow, she might be able to make him take the right exit and lose her.

Yoon Seol-ha took a deep breath one last time.

Just before the fork, she slightly turned the car’s nose to the right.

It was her one and only chance.

Kang Hyun-su’s car mimicked the same movement, and just before Yoon Seol-ha’s car hit the lane divider, she quickly turned the wheel to the left.

In that instant, Kang Hyun-su stepped hard on the accelerator.

Unlike Yoon Seol-ha’s car, which was turning left, the foreign car went straight, and as a result…

Kang Hyun-su’s foreign car slammed into the side of Yoon Seol-ha’s car, pushing it straight into the guardrail.