Lee Jongseong’s answer was exactly what I had expected.

“I’ll give you half of the inheritance.”

“Half?”

“Yes. If we gather all the assets Chairman Byun Heebong hid away and consolidate the scattered company shares, it should come to around 50 billion won. It could increase a little or decrease a little, but......”

“You said you came here after looking into me, didn’t you? Did you really think I’d accept for such a tiny amount?”

Lee Jongseong stared at me blankly, but I let out a scoff and said,

“50 billion might be a huge amount to you, but to me it’s pocket change. And not even all of it, but half? That’s funny. Forget this pathetic little money talk. Don’t you have anything else to offer?”

Lee Jongseong couldn’t answer a single word.

Was this his first time seeing someone who didn’t even blink at 50 billion won?

“If you’ve got nothing else, then leave. I only met you because I got curious after you suddenly showed up. Go back and follow the natural course of things.”

Even when cornered with death hanging over him, he still wouldn’t say he’d hand over everything. That alone was pretty amusing.

Not that I had any intention of taking dirty money even if he did.

That damned money was the very reason he’d killed the people who followed him.

After a long silence, Lee Jongseong finally spoke in a stiff voice.

“......Then I’ll have no choice but to respond in my own way. I can’t die like this.”

“Do whatever you want. And look forward to what happens next. I never forgive people who challenge me.”

After finishing, I turned my head toward Manager Ma.

“Chief. Our guest says he’s leaving. Please see him out.”

Manager Ma stepped forward.

At that moment, Lee Jongseong suddenly dropped to his knees.

“Then what should I do? If you would just smooth over this investigation......”

So now he wasn’t even trying to negotiate anymore. He was begging outright.

My interest vanished completely.

When I said nothing, Manager Ma walked toward Lee Jongseong.

“Please stand up.”

“......”

“If you refuse, I’ll force you to stand. Please get up.”

Lee Jongseong violently slapped away Manager Ma’s approaching hand.

“......I’ll stand up myself. Don’t touch me!”

Growling harshly, Lee Jongseong rose to his feet.

He glared down at me with bloodshot eyes.

“You’ll regret this.”

I simply shrugged without replying.

Lee Jongseong turned away, then shot me one more vicious glare before leaving the office.

“Chief. Find out what kind of card Lee Jongseong is holding. Starting today, raise surveillance on him to the highest level.”

“To the highest level, sir?”

The highest level meant deploying every piece of equipment and manpower I could mobilize—wiretaps, hidden cameras, everything.

“Boss, wouldn’t it be cleaner to quietly dispose of him?”

Well, Manager Ma wasn’t wrong. Simply killing him would definitely be neat and simple.

But I shook my head.

“I’m curious. Just what exactly is making him so confident?”

“Wouldn’t it be Chairman Byun Heebong’s ledger? He’s probably planning to expose it.”

“That’s probably the most likely possibility. Then the moment Lee Jongseong finds it, have the men take it from him.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll handle it.”

“And once you secure it, lock him up somewhere.”

Lee Jongseong would definitely pull out his hidden card before appearing at the prosecution office.

That was when we had to strike.

After sending Manager Ma away, I thought again about Byun Heebong’s cause of death.

A drug that stopped the heart as if the victim had simply fallen asleep, yet left no detectable traces.

Could something like that really be obtained and used this easily?

I sank into deep thought for a long while.

* * *

Several days before Lee Jongseong’s summons to the prosecution office.

The prosecution first summoned four politicians from both the ruling and opposition parties.

The last person to appear was Kim Gihyeok, a fourth-term ruling party assemblyman from Daegu’s Suseong District.

From early morning, reporters and cameras had packed the front of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office.

As Kim Gihyeok arrived, reporters immediately bombarded him with questions.

“Assemblyman Kim! What are your thoughts regarding the solicitation allegations?”

“Are the bribery accusations true?”

“Is it true that you belong to the secret kye gathering?”

“Do you think this investigation will affect your political career?”

“Both the ruling and opposition parties have jointly requested a fair investigation into this case. What are your thoughts on that?”

Despite the sharp questions, Assemblyman Kim maintained a calm attitude.

“I am innocent. If I answer all allegations sincerely, I am certain the truth will be clearly revealed. I have always acted for the people and for the citizens of Suseong District who elected me.”

Kim spoke firmly.

But the reporters paid no attention to his words and continued firing questions.

Kim Gihyeok ignored their questions just as thoroughly. He only continued saying what he wanted to say.

“However, I believe this investigation clearly carries political intent. These reckless investigations being carried out by politically motivated prosecutors are damaging the separation of powers.”

Staring directly into the cameras, Kim spoke clearly and deliberately.

“For the sake of a just society, the political neutrality of the prosecution must be guaranteed. I hope this investigation will not become a procedure for political purposes, but a fair process solely for uncovering the truth.”

At that moment, one reporter shouted in an exceptionally loud voice.

“Assemblyman! Claims are being raised that this scandal is not limited to one party, but involves both ruling and opposition parties. Both sides are jointly calling for a thorough investigation without sacred cows. Don’t you think calling this politically motivated makes no logical sense?”

“......”

“Assemblyman Kim. You belong to the ruling party. Are you saying there’s political motivation behind investigating a fourth-term ruling party lawmaker?”

Instead of answering, Kim fixed the reporter with a sharp glare.

Without ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) saying another word, he entered the prosecution building.

The person waiting for him inside was Oh Hyunwoo.

“Welcome, Assemblyman.”

“You’re the lead investigator?”

“No, sir. There’s still a chief prosecutor above me. But I’m personally handling most of the investigation.”

“Hmm......”

Kim swallowed quietly while looking at Oh Hyunwoo.

There was no way he could try to browbeat Oh Hyunwoo.

Doing that would mean turning the entire legal world into his enemy.

“For now, please come upstairs. I’ll escort you.”

Oh Hyunwoo guided him to the interrogation room.

“Would you like some coffee?”

Assemblyman Kim nodded.

A moment later, Oh Hyunwoo returned with two paper cups of instant coffee.

He placed the cups before Kim and his attorney, then sat down across from them.

Boxes covered the floor, each stuffed full of evidence files.

“Assemblyman. Do you know the name Choi Hyuk?”

As Kim opened his mouth to answer, his lawyer cut in first.

“My client says he does not know such a person.”

“Please let the assemblyman answer personally.”

“Prosecutor Oh. Don’t push it too far.”

At that, Oh Hyunwoo slowly lifted his eyes from the laptop and looked at the attorney with dissatisfaction.

“Senior. Today we’re meeting as prosecutor and legal representative.”

“......”

“So please observe basic courtesy. Speaking informally is fine, but you still need to answer the questions.”

His tone was calm, but power was clearly embedded in his voice.

Caught off guard by Oh Hyunwoo’s unexpectedly firm response, the attorney became flustered instead.

“Prosecutor Oh, that’s not what I meant......”

“Well, I understand. Doing your best for your client is a lawyer’s duty. Still, please cooperate with the investigation.”

“Mm. Understood.”

Placing his hands back on the laptop, Oh Hyunwoo asked,

“Do you know Choi Hyuk, CEO of Joongwon Development?”

“No.”

Perhaps because of the warning, Assemblyman Kim answered directly this time.

“On April 7th, did you not meet CEO Choi Hyuk at Pungwol Garden in Gyeonggi Province?”

“......I did not.”

Oh Hyunwoo pulled a file folder from one of the boxes and opened it.

Inside were several photographs.

The moment Kim saw the pictures Oh Hyunwoo handed over, his eyes widened.

“T-this is......!”

The photographs separately showed both Kim and CEO Choi Hyuk entering the restaurant.

And Oh Hyunwoo didn’t stop there.

He placed a recorder on the table.

“This contains a recording of the conversation between the two of you. And this here is the transcript. Go ahead and read it first.”

The attorney hurriedly grabbed the transcript and began reading.

As time passed, his face gradually turned pale.

“Attorney Han. What is it? What happened?”

“......Assemblyman.”

The lawyer looked at Kim with a devastated expression.

Kim snatched the papers from his hands.

As he read through the transcript, the color slowly drained from his face as well.

Seeing that, Oh Hyunwoo pressed play on the recorder.

The voices of Choi Hyuk and Assemblyman Kim flowed out from the device.

Kim sucked in a sharp breath.

‘Of course he’d be shocked. Choi Hyuk himself handed it over.’

Oh Hyunwoo watched their expressions with a deep smile.

* * *

[Arrest Motions for Four National Assembly Members Expected to Be Submitted, Centered on Solicitation and Bribery Charges.]

The prosecution announced plans to submit arrest motions to the National Assembly for four lawmakers who had been questioned over solicitation and bribery allegations.

This is part of a broad investigation spanning the political world, with lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties reportedly implicated.

The submission of these arrest motions is expected to create major shockwaves throughout Korean politics.

Because arrest motions for lawmakers require National Assembly approval, the situation is expected to become a major test of lawmakers’ immunity privileges.

A prosecution official stated, “This investigation began while maintaining political neutrality, and every allegation will be thoroughly investigated,” adding, “Submitting arrest motions is essential for realizing justice and strictly enforcing the law.”

The National Assembly is expected to vote on the motions, and public attention has become intensely focused on the outcome.

With both ruling and opposition parties calling for “an investigation without sacred cows,” the public’s anticipation and interest in how the Assembly will decide continues to grow.

I lowered the newspaper I’d been reading.

They wrote it well.

“They’re moving quickly.”

“Yes. Most of the people summoned this time directly received bribes or entertainment from CEO Choi Hyuk.”

I smirked and nodded.

“Well, the evidence is solid.”

I had handed every document Choi Hyuk gave me over to the prosecution.

That bastard had meticulously recorded every conversation and had people photograph every meeting.

“CEO Choi Hyuk left behind quite the gift.”

Thanks to that, the people with physical evidence tied to them could be arrested immediately like this.

As I checked the report Manager Ma handed over, I picked up a ledger.

“This is the ledger?”

“Yes. We intercepted Lee Jongseong while he was retrieving it from Chairman Byun Heebong’s hidden villa.”

“He must’ve been desperate. Was this all?”

“There was also cash, gold bars, and various documents. We brought everything back and are currently analyzing them.”

“Good work. What about Lee Jongseong?”

“We locked him up in a warehouse in Gunsan.”

“Good. Then let’s go see him.”

Together with Manager Ma, I headed to the warehouse at Gunsan Port.

Inside were several men and Lee Jongseong, tied to a chair.

I slowly walked over and sat down in front of him.

“How have you been? We meet again like this.”

“W-what is the meaning of this?!”

“What meaning? Exactly what you think it is.”

I waved the ledger in my hand.

Lee Jongseong’s eyes followed it immediately.

“This thing’s pretty interesting. There are far more people involved than even I knew about. Even people that bastard Choi Hyuk didn’t know.”

“......”

The ledger was a treasure vault.

Far more names were written inside than what I had received from Choi Hyuk.

Even one of the Blue House senior secretaries had taken his money.

“You should’ve tried trading with this from the beginning. Then I might’ve at least pretended to think about it.”

I curled one corner of my mouth upward and mocked him.