Chapter 83: When the Net Tightens

Incheon Seobu Police Station.

Upon arriving at the Police Station, Sergeant Seon Yujun immediately called in Lee Jaehyun and Sergeant Oh Seohyun for the investigation.

“Um… so, are you two really friends?”

Sergeant Seon Yujun asked a question to ease the atmosphere before starting the interrogation.

He was letting them know this wasn’t an official interrogation, just a casual chat.

To this, Lee Jaehyun shook his head slightly.

He thought it was a bit ambiguous to call them friends.

“No, not really…”

“Yes, well. We decided to become friends starting today.”

At the same time as Lee Jaehyun’s answer, Sergeant Oh Seohyun replied.

Since their answers were contradictory, Sergeant Seon Yujun blinked in surprise.

Lee Jaehyun scratched his cheek and answered again.

“Yes, I guess that’s right.”

“Hah….”

Sergeant Seon Yujun was dumbfounded.

He soon changed the subject.

“Well, let’s just say you’re friends. I get that you’ve been personally concerned about the School Violence case, but isn’t it a little strange to be drinking at a club with the perpetrator’s father?”

“We just got lucky. We went there to check which club he frequented… If the timing was right, we thought we could find out who he was meeting, too.”

“But then you even went into a Room with him? Without any plan?”

“I just went along when the MD came and suggested it.”

Sergeant Seon Yujun asked with a slight tone of reproach.

Sergeant Oh Seohyun answered with a nonchalant expression.

“Well… that’s how it happened. But what’s with the drugs? If there were drugs involved, you should’ve told me from the start.”

“I didn’t know about that, either.”

“No, I know. We don’t know for sure yet. We’ll have to test it to get exact results, but judging by his behavior, it seemed almost certain.”

“No, really. I had no idea.”

Oh Seohyun shook her head slightly, as if she truly didn’t know.

At her words, Sergeant Seon Yujun glanced over at Lee Jaehyun.

Lee Jaehyun quickly nodded, affirming her words.

“Yes, all we had figured out was that there was some under-the-table dealing with Daehan Bank… We suspected there might be other illegal activities, but we didn’t know exactly what they were, so we never expected him to get caught up in a Drug Case.”

If it really was GHB, Lee Jaehyun could only call it a stroke of luck.

Well, if Park Man-seok had been using GHB frequently, it was only a matter of time before he got caught, so “unlucky” would be a better word for him.

But for Lee Jaehyun and Oh Seohyun, “lucky” was the perfect description.

Even first-time offenders get heavy punishment for drugs, and the evidence was destroyed right in front of the detectives’ eyes.

There’s no way he’ll get off easy…

And even if, by some miracle, he does, the School Violence case that Lee Jaehyun and Oh Seohyun were originally after would already be resolved.

They’re busy dealing with the Drug Case—who would have time to worry about anything else?

Things like withdrawing the daughter’s accusation wouldn’t even cross his mind. He’d be too busy trying to save himself from the Drug Case.

“Still, we need to make sure he never gets out of this.”

Not just for the drugs, but for everything else too.

There were plenty of rumors about him assaulting employees, and supposedly he’d even threatened his own daughter that he’d fire her on the spot. You can’t just let that go.

“We’ve got a lot to do.”

They needed to thoroughly dig up Park Man-seok, and if possible, find out more about Park Man-seok’s company and the Hyunmin Group he’s connected to.

That wasn’t all.

They also had to bring the crimes of the Branch Manager of Daehan Bank’s Tanyang Intersection branch to light, so he could be properly judged.

Judging from the situation so far… other than embezzlement and breach of trust, the bank manager’s misdeeds were probably related to drugs.

They’d have to cook it up nicely and wrap this up well.

It was clear they wouldn’t have a moment to rest for a while.

If there was anything to be thankful for, at least…

“Under-the-table dealings with Daehan Bank…? Alright. If the drugs check out, let’s get the team together and start a proper investigation. I’ll formally request support from the Financial Crime Investigation Unit for the Daehan Bank side.”

“Yes, understood.”

Sergeant Oh Seohyun answered crisply.

“Um, and Sergeant Lee Jaehyun… are you alright with this?”

“Yes, I’m fine. Please just catch him properly.”

Lee Jaehyun nodded as he replied.

Even so, Sergeant Oh Seohyun couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy.

Understandable, since the outcome here could affect her record—something that could make anyone sensitive.

Losing credit for a case you worked so hard to crack—it’d make anyone wary.

“Well… we’re not the kind of people to steal someone’s record. I’ll make sure to put Sergeant Lee Jaehyun’s name in the report.”

“Thank you for thinking of me.”

It didn’t really matter to Lee Jaehyun either way.

He’d just been promoted to Senior Police Officer a few days ago.

He wasn’t exactly desperate for achievements… and he wasn’t doing this for the record, anyway.

He just wanted to keep his Promise to Song Ah-ram and resolve this case properly.

***

Meanwhile.

Club ‘Daepo’.

“What the hell is this…”

Kim Seonwoo, the son of the Branch Manager of Daehan Bank’s Tanyang Intersection branch.

He’d come to the club for the first time in a while, and had ended up witnessing something huge.

He knew Park Man-seok came to ‘Daepo’ often.

His own father, Kim Jin-cheon, also partied at ‘Daepo’ with Park Man-seok, and sometimes even called him there directly.

That’s partly why he visited this place.

At other clubs, he might get kicked out for being underage, but here, no one ever checked his ID when they saw him.

If he ran into Park Man-seok while he was here, sometimes he’d even be lucky enough to get a Room.

As the friend of the club owner’s daughter, all his expenses were covered.

Of course, to Kim Seonwoo, ‘Daepo’ was a familiar place.

But today, it felt foreign.

Suddenly, the police barged in and dragged Park Man-seok out.

Park Man-seok, who’d seemed untouchable, got arrested.

It was unbelievable.

He was so shocked that alarms started ringing in his head.

Then he realized where he’d seen the face of the man who left with Park Man-seok when he was caught.

“That time. That cop bastard!”

He hadn’t recognized him at first because he was wearing handcuffs, but now that he thought about it, it was the same cop who’d been called Song Ah-ram’s cousin.

He considered calling Park Hyunjin, but she wasn’t the problem right now.

Not just Park Man-seok, but even the cops got taken away?

He had no idea what was going on.

“I don’t know why they were arrested… but our family isn’t involved, right?”

Kim Seonwoo couldn’t be sure.

His dad and himself, too.

Their whole family was connected to Park Man-seok’s family.

There was a reason why Kim Seonwoo and Park Hyunjin were so close.

Snapping back to reality, he quickly called his father, Kim Jin-cheon.

“Uh, dad. It’s me.”

— What is it? I’m busy, so make it quick.

Kim Seonwoo felt a sudden jolt of fear.

Busy?

Had the police come looking for his dad, too?

With a trembling voice, he spoke.

“Wh-what happened?”

— I’m out for drinks, you punk. If you’ve got nothing to say, I’m hanging up.

Maybe it was the tension, but at the mention of a company dinner, his legs buckled in relief and he let out a sigh.

“No, this isn’t the time for that.”

Pulling himself together, Kim Seonwoo hurriedly continued into the phone.

“No, dad, this is serious. Something’s happened to us.”

— What? Did you mess up again? I told you to lay low for a while!

Kim Jin-cheon sighed and yelled at the urgency in Kim Seonwoo’s voice.

But deep down, he probably didn’t think much of it.

Probably assuming he’d gotten caught smoking again, or something like that.

Just some minor mischief.

After all, how serious could it be if his kid caused trouble?

So Kim Jin-cheon clearly didn’t think it was a big deal.

Feeling a headache coming on, Kim Seonwoo gripped his head and spoke.

“I didn’t cause the trouble—something happened!”

— What? An accident? Are you hurt?

“No, just listen for a sec.”

— Yeah, go on.

At Kim Seonwoo’s words, Kim Jin-cheon told him to explain.

He knew his son well.

No way his kid would call just to say he’d witnessed someone else’s trouble.

It wasn’t like he was the one who caused the problem or called because he saw it happen.

And it wasn’t in his son’s character to prank call him over something trivial, either. So, Kim Jin-cheon decided to listen for now.

“I was at Daepo, and suddenly the police showed up and took Uncle Man-seok away. What happened?”

— What? Daepo? You went there again? I told you to stay out of trouble for a while! People are working…

“Dad! Now’s not the time for that kind of talk!”

Uncle Man-seok just got arrested, and his dad was scolding him?

Frustrated, Kim Seonwoo shouted, and heard his father’s deep sigh on the other end.

— Ha… What could have happened? He’ll just get questioned for some simple assault and come out soon.

Unlike the panicked Kim Seonwoo, his father sounded indifferent.

To become a Branch Manager, Kim Jin-cheon had faced plenty of people who’d tried to drag him down.

The method he chose to rise above them was insurance.

A kind of shield, to make sure nothing that happened anywhere could harm him.

And his insurance at club ‘Daepo’ was the gang, Dokki Pa, who held shares there.

Because he’d pumped plenty of money into them, those thugs were like lapdogs to him and Park Man-seok, always feeding them real-time info about what went on.

If something serious happened, they’d protect not just Park Man-seok, but Kim Jin-cheon and Kim Seonwoo as well.

There was no need to make a scene—they’d get anything done for the right price.

So he hadn’t been worried about this incident either…

“But the police got arrested too.”

— Of course the police would arrest them. Who else would?

“No, the cops also got arrested.”

— What?

Listening to the situation, it seemed like things were getting more complicated.

If Park Man-seok was taken by the police at the scene, that’s one thing.

But cops arresting other cops?

Did Park Man-seok try to bribe a cop and get caught?

That would be bad.

There was a good chance his own dealings could be revealed during the investigation.

“The cop was handcuffed and taken away by other cops, too.”

— …Damn it. Alright, hang up for now.

The call ended abruptly.

Kim Seonwoo, feeling anxious, ruffled his hair in frustration.

“No way… are we really screwed?”

He muttered quietly.

And as always.

Whenever you think, “No way,” that’s exactly when it happens.