Chapter 4

"Prosecutor, you're on the rise! - Chapter 4 (4/341)

Whistleblower (2)

“Text? What text? I can only see the home screen.”

Thinking I might have touched the screen incorrectly and exited out, I looked at my phone, but a video was playing on the screen.

“Stop messing around and look. It’s serious.”

The voices of Jung Jae-won and Im Sung-jin started to come from the phone.

Despite this, Shin Yong-ho tilted his head, looking completely clueless, and stared at me.

“What are you trying to show me?”

His eyes were wide open.

There was nothing wrong with his face.

But he can’t see it?

Am I seeing things?

I rubbed my eyes and checked again, but the video was still playing, and the sound was still coming through.

Even when I turned the volume up to the maximum, Shin Yong-ho’s reaction was the same.

Something’s off.

“I’ll send it to you.”

I saved the video, captured the text message screen, and went into the gallery to send it to him.

What’s going on?

It’s not visible.

The video I saved is not visible.

I clearly clicked the save button, but the video had vanished from the gallery, and the screenshot I just took only showed the home screen with a few apps open.

“What the...”

I was flustered and immediately checked the text message inbox and call log, but there was no record of any text message.

This can’t be.

Ever since last time, it feels like someone knows about my personal life.

I have no idea who it could be.

I’m completely in the dark.

This is the first time in my life that my mind is so muddled.

Shin Yong-ho’s voice cut through my thoughts.

“Isn’t this too much? Do you want to take a break?”

“I just saw the text with my own eyes...”

I couldn’t bring myself to say it.

“No.”

My head is pounding.

“I’ll just go smoke a cigarette.”

“Do you want me to come with you?”

“It’s fine. Just wait here and don’t contact Professor Jung Jae-won.”

“Okay.”

I went up to the rooftop alone, lit a cigarette, and fell into deep thought.

The same situation as last time.

Back then, a text message definitely came but disappeared without a trace.

This time, Shin Yong-ho can’t even see it, making it even more serious.

I wondered if it could be a malicious app or a hacking program, but if that were the case, it would be visible to both of us.

Am I just too exhausted from working overtime and seeing hallucinations?

That can’t be it.

I’ve been working like this for a while, and there’s no way I’d suddenly start seeing things.

If there were a sudden health issue, it wouldn’t be limited to just specific texts.

The video can’t be saved, can’t be captured, and can’t be seen by others.

It’s only visible to me.

Could it be telling me something that will happen in the future?

No, that’s impossible.

But last time, it clearly told me to contact Shin Yong-ho.

If I hadn’t, I wouldn’t have contacted him, and I wouldn’t even know about this.

What is this thing?

My head is splitting.

This is beyond my comprehension.

I need to let it go.

I’ll put this aside for now and think about it later.

Thinking about it now won’t lead to any productive thoughts.

Let’s focus on the content of the text message.

To summarize the conversation in the video, Im Sung-jin has pinned all the corruption on Shin Yong-ho.

The information that we were going to attack Im Sung-jin was likely passed on by Professor Jung Jae-won.

Why?

Why would that righteous professor suddenly do this?

No.

The image he showed to students might have been just for show, and his true nature could be different.

Especially since the sinister look on Jung Jae-won’s face when he handed over the card key still makes me frown when I think about it.

Is the person in the video his true self?

I don’t know.

I’ve only met him privately once, during my school days with friends.

If the video is true, why did Professor Jung Jae-won leak information to Im Sung-jin?

I could guess the reason without much thought.

Im Sung-jin used the connection of being a senior to bury the Gwangju mayor corruption case and brought Shin Yong-ho into his fold.

In other words, Im Sung-jin is also a graduate of Korea University.

According to the video, Im Sung-jin is also a student of Professor Jung Jae-won.

Moreover, Professor Jung Jae-won likely values Im Sung-jin, who is a star prosecutor and rising in status, much more than a common prosecutor like us.

Not to mention, it seems there was a secret deal between them.

But how did he know about Shin Yong-ho?

Even if I met Professor Jung Jae-won and talked to him, I wouldn’t have been foolish enough to try to take down Im Sung-jin or reveal his identity.

However, if Professor Jung Jae-won already knew about Im Sung-jin’s connections, he might also know that Im Sung-jin cut ties and abandoned Shin Yong-ho.

Given that he knows Shin Yong-ho and I are close friends from school, he might have deduced that I was talking about Im Sung-jin and passed the information along.

That’s a scary thought.

It means Im Sung-jin might have more connections than I can imagine.

How can I set up a situation to bring him down?

The cold wind blew, cooling my head, but no good ideas came to mind.

I tried hard to think of other methods but ended up chain-smoking out of frustration. Soon, Shin Yong-ho came out and leaned against the railing next to me.

“Why are you chain-smoking?”

“I just lit one, man.”

“Putting out the ashes on the ground and lying about it.”

“Ah.”

He chuckled and looked into the distance.

“I found Professor Jung Jae-won’s contact. I already sent it to your phone.”

“Really?”

“Do you want to call him?”

No.

If we call, Shin Yong-ho might really be in trouble.

I’m not sure if the text message is about something that will actually happen, but there’s no guarantee that Professor Jung Jae-won doesn’t have connections with Im Sung-jin.

We need to choose a difficult but certain path, not an easy one.

“No. I think it’s better to find another way.”

“Suddenly? You said it was fine earlier.”

“I thought about it. Im Sung-jin is also a graduate of Korea University. Even Professor Jung Jae-won would treat him as a fellow student.”

“Would it be a problem even if we don’t reveal Im Sung-jin’s identity?”

“How sharp is he? We don’t know what will happen. Let’s put it on hold for now.”

“Okay.”

He nodded, understanding.

“It’s not urgent. We need to be cautious and check things out carefully.”

“Thanks. You’re doing this even though it’s not your business.”

“It’s your business, and it will be my business. I can’t just let my friend get hurt and rise to the top.”

“...Thanks.”

I patted Shin Yong-ho’s back and chuckled.

“Go down. I’ll finish my cigarette and come down.”

“Okay.”

After he left, I smoked three more cigarettes, deep in thought, before I could organize my thoughts.

We don’t need to cross a dangerous bridge, but we need to check if it’s safe.

I took out my phone and called Professor Jung Jae-won.

After a long ring, he answered.

- Yes, this is Jung Jae-won.

“Hello, Professor. This is Choi Seo-jun. I’m from the 08 class and was assigned to the Gwangju District Prosecutor’s Office...”

- Oh, Seo-jun. I remember you!

Professor Jung Jae-won greeted me with his characteristic raspy voice.

- How are you doing?

“I’m doing well, thank you. How are you, Professor?”

- I’m always doing well. Is everything okay with your work?

“Yes, everything is fine. Except for the constant overtime.”

- Hahaha, our country’s prosecutors really work hard.

I couldn’t bring up the topic of Im Sung-jin.

Mentioning it could raise suspicion.

- Are you still at the Gwangju District Prosecutor’s Office?

“Yes. I should visit, but it’s hard to find time because I’m in a different region. I’m sorry.”

- Don’t be sorry. Take care of yourself and visit when you can. Come by if you’re in Seoul.

“I will.”

Up to this point, it was a smooth conversation between a teacher and a student.

The next part is the main topic.

“By the way, Professor.”

I probed.

“Is your daughter doing well? I remember you mentioned that she was preparing for law school when I was in school.”

- Ah, I remember. I probably helped her with interview preparation.

“Yes, that’s right. Your daughter is very beautiful, and I still remember her.”

- Hahaha, thank you. My daughter is at Korea University Law School and preparing for the bar exam. This is the last bar exam, so I told her to prepare for law school, but she insists on taking the exam.

Exam!

In the video, Im Sung-jin clearly mentioned exam-related materials.

Could it be that the exam was related to the bar exam?

He must have had the ability to leak bar exam questions.

Im Sung-jin might be more dangerous than I imagined.

I have many questions, but I know that stepping on a dangerous bridge can lead to sinking, so I need to take a step back.

“I see. I hope she does well.”

- Thank you. You take care too.

“Yes, I will definitely visit. Goodbye!”

- Okay.

With that, I ended the call.

To Professor Jung Jae-won, it was just a casual call to check in, but I gathered a lot of information.

The video in the text message seems somewhat reliable, and Professor Jung Jae-won doesn’t know that Shin Yong-ho and I are preparing to take down Im Sung-jin.

This means the text message isn’t a threat from someone targeting me.

While the sender of the text message is unknown, I can gauge that Professor Jung Jae-won is a dangerous person.

I need to find another way, a safe and certain one.