A Game of Power

Click.

[Jin-shi-eo-jung-seon,]

With a single button press, the Buddhist scripture that had filled the car was cut off.
The original appointment time was six o’clock.
The time now, as I parked the car, was a little before seven.
Well, this wasn’t my choice.
It was because of someone’s whim.
The seven o’clock sky in winter is like night. The streetlights in various places had already been turned on.

‘This murky streetlight…’

As I looked at the faint light coming in through the front windshield and the window, I felt a new sense of emotion.

‘It reminds me of the old days.’

Thump.

As I got out of the car, that familiar and old sensation became even stronger.
I didn’t move and stood by the car, quietly taking a breath.

[What’s wrong?]

‘There’s an air that you can only feel in this place.’

[Air? I don’t feel any difference.]

‘It’s probably not the air, but a memory.’

Because a person accepts many parts of a space with their body.
And so, you get used to it as it accumulates in your body one by one.
I straightened my coat and slowly started walking.

[But I do think the atmosphere is a little different.]

‘Is this your first time here?’

[I only came here once for a short tour during my probationary period.]

‘Then that’s possible.’

I walked with a moderate stride and looked around.

‘This place doesn’t change much either.’

As if time had stopped.
Every time I turned my head, I could see the Supreme Court, the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office next to it, and the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office across the street, in turn.
I don’t know if people have a certain image, but the buildings here were far from glamorous.
If the buildings in Gangnam right next door attracted attention with their height and the glittering of their all-glass windows, then here…

‘It’s right to say that it’s suffocating just to look at it.’

Buildings like chicken coops made of achromatic colors.
And the monotonous windows at regular intervals.
In each of those windows, several people would be sitting, looking at documents all day until their eyes fell out.

‘And I used to be like that too.’

Habits die hard.
A few minutes ago, I had laughed at myself for parking my car on the Supreme Court side, as was my old habit.
And now, I was walking the same street I used to walk.
Looking at the neat, if not glamorous, buildings.
Even as I was walking through the narrow alley where only a few cars could pass, law firms and law offices kept coming into view.
To be precise, it was because several were located in one building, so I was seeing many places at once.

Step, step.

After walking for a while, I stopped in front of a small building.

[…It’s been a few years since I last saw it, but it’s still as hard to get used to.]

‘I feel the same way every time.’

Because the building and the sign are so grand?
Not at all.
In fact, it was the opposite.

‘Because it’s too ordinary.’

If you didn’t look at the sign carefully, it would be easy to mistake it for an ordinary building that you can find in any neighborhood.
But in this small building, most of the work related to the lawyers in the Republic of Korea took place.

‘The important thing is always the essence.’

And so, I entered the association.

“How can I help you?”

A security guard asked, checking my lawyer’s badge.

“I have an appointment with Director Seok Juho.”
“Please wait a moment.”

He put down the intercom he was holding, nodded at me, and then opened his mouth again.

“You can go up to the 4th floor.”
“Thank you.”

[Secretariat]

Under the sign written on the door, an organizational chart was briefly attached.

[Director – Seok Juho]

Professions related to the law are particularly strict in their hierarchy.
I looked at the name written at the top of the organizational chart, which was like a proof of that, and briefly recalled my conversation with Won Youngoh.

“But he’s a person who has kept his position in one field for more than twenty years.”

Why didn’t I know such a person?
When I thought about it for a moment, the answer came faster than I expected.
Because he was a person I didn’t have much of a reason to run into.

‘It’s not like I was going around making connections.’

Well, I think I’ve heard his name vaguely.
And that memory only came back after hearing Won Youngoh’s words that Seok Juho had made a name for himself in the field of ‘intellectual property rights’.

“He was a partner at the law firm ‘Taeyang’ for a few years. You can think of it as him having dipped his toes in most of the major law firms, even for a short time. Ah, he also lectured at a law school a few times.”

That meant that no matter what Seok Juho’s intentions were in calling me, he was by no means an easy opponent.
But there was no reason for me to be scared.

[But don’t you think it would be a bad idea to look down on him?]

‘Gram, I think you’re looking down on me right now?’

I answered playfully.
It’s a bit much to say it myself, but I was a co-representative of a law firm, and I was once a judge.
And most importantly, if I had treated people based on what kind of person they were, I wouldn’t have been able to walk this path any further in the first place.
And I would have had to give up the justice I had longed for long ago.

‘Well, but I still have to be moderate.’

I tidied my clothes for a moment and knocked lightly on the door.

Knock, knock.

“Hello. This is Cha Yohan, who has an appointment with the director.”
“Ah, yes. Lawyer Cha Yohan. Please follow me.”

A secretary stood up from her seat and led the way to the director’s office.

Knock, knock.

The secretary knocked on the door cautiously, unlike me a moment ago.

“Director, Lawyer Cha Yohan has arrived.”
“Come in.”
“You can go in.”

Creak.

Even before I entered as the secretary opened the door, I felt a gaze from the crack in the door.
It was the gaze of Seok Juho, who was sitting on the sofa.
Even though he was sitting, his tall height was immediately noticeable.
Seok Juho, with a lean build and rimless glasses, scanned me sharply.

Click.

The door closed quietly.

‘As expected, it’s not a face I remember.’

But from the aura that Seok Juho was exuding, I could tell.

‘What’s for sure is that he didn’t just get the position of director.’

Getting on the right side of people is a skill, but maintaining that line requires an even greater skill.
It was a result that could only be obtained by pouring in countless hours of time and effort.

‘Then he’s not just a simple strong-to-the-weak, weak-to-the-strong type.’

When Han Junyoung had come, Seok Juho had sent me a message.

[I have an appointment, so let’s meet at seven-thirty.]

For a person who had said that…
There was nothing that looked like work on the table in front of Seok Juho.
In fact, it was excessively neat, as if to represent his personality.

“Sit here.”
“Yes.”

I sat in the seat opposite him, which Seok Juho had indicated with his chin.

“You’re later than I thought.”

Instead of answering Seok Juho, I silently looked at the wall clock located above his head.
Though I noticed one thing at that moment.

‘This means that this is not the place where I would normally sit.’

There was no way a clock would be on the opposite side of Seok Juho.
Because that was the only clock in this neat room.
Seok Juho had not checked his watch even once since I had come in.

‘Is this a test?’

The original appointment time was seven-thirty.
It was now exactly seven-fifteen.

‘If anything, I’m early, not late.’

Seok Juho, who had raised his eyebrows following my gaze, finally checked his wrist once.
A voice that was neither slow nor fast followed.

“Usually, other lawyers arrive at least thirty minutes early and wait when I call them.”
“Ah, I see. I’ll keep that in mind from now on. I’m still lacking and have a lot to learn.”

I bowed my head once but did not apologize.
As if he had not expected my reaction, Seok Juho raised his left eyebrow slightly.
I met his gaze calmly without wavering.
Most lawyers would have apologized.
But it was not that surprising, nor was it something to be scared of.

‘Seok Juho is just the first, I’ve met countless people with this kind of personality before.’

If he were a truly respectable senior, I would have already bowed my head and gone in.
Thirty minutes, no. I would have come an hour early.
But Won Youngoh was also a person who had expressed it that way.

‘Now I’m starting to get a vague idea of why he called me.’

Still, I had no intention of being openly aggressive.
Because just in case, my guess could have been wrong.
Seok Juho asked me a question with an interested expression.

“Do you know why I called you, Lawyer Cha Yohan?”
“I don’t know for sure.”
“For sure?”

Seok Juho erased the interest that had been on his face and asked back, his brow furrowed even more than before.

“Given the timing, I have a guess, but it could be wrong. Because I’ve made not a few other mistakes so far.”

While I was answering, Seok Juho’s eyes sparkled this time.
He looked at me for a moment like that.

“Have you had dinner?”
“…I had a simple meal.”

To be precise, I had just enjoyed a very lavish feast.

‘There were four people, but both the owner and Junyoung are so generous.’

Although Lee Ilwoo had left for a personal schedule, I don’t know how much food there was in the first place.
So much so that Ha Seonghui, who had come up while preparing to close the cafe due to running out of ingredients, had covered her mouth in surprise.

‘If there’s any of this left, can I get some to go?’
‘Of course you can. Absolutely.’
‘Wow, thank you!’

Since there were plenty of untouched dishes, we hurriedly nodded.

“Simple?”
“I thought you would have a reason for postponing the appointment.”
“Huh, you’re a junior I can’t predict. Unlike your prediction, I haven’t eaten yet, so let’s go to a place I know.”

Seok Juho stood up from the sofa, grabbed his coat, and added again.

“Do you know how to eat raw fish? Even if you don’t like it, learn this opportunity.”

“Lawyer Cha, did you bring your car?”
“Yes.”

Seok Juho wrote down an address and told me to follow him.
I didn’t have to leave my car, and I didn’t have to be in the same space, so it was good for me.
Seok Juho, who had arrived a moment before me, was standing with his hands behind his back, watching me park.

Thump.

As I got out of the car and followed him, I saw an ordinary-looking entrance.
On the old wooden sign, the shark picture, which had originally been colored, now had only a white light left.

‘This place is…’

I stared at those white lines.
Seok Juho turned around and asked me.

“What, does it look too shabby?”
“No.”

I slowly shook my head.
But Seok Juho seemed to be somewhat displeased with my reaction.

‘What’s wrong?’

But Seok Juho soon opened his mouth again.

“Usually, when I bring people here, they’re all disappointed, but you’re not. It seems my level in your eyes is about as much as that sign.”
“Ah, no. I was just surprised.”

That was my honest impression right now.

‘I was surprised that it was still in business, but I was more surprised that Seok Juho had brought me to this place.’

I had also visited this place a few times in the past.
Because it was a place that someone had recommended to me when I had lost the joy of eating.
And it was a restaurant where I could at least feel that it was ‘delicious’.

‘It seems I’ve been given a pretty important treat and a test at the same time.’

[What do you mean by that? I think it’s a relief that you’ve already eaten dinner.]

Step.

I shook my head without Seok Juho, who was walking ahead, seeing me.

‘It’s not as good as the owner of Family Diner’s cooking skills, but this place is also great.’

[What? This place?]

‘Yeah. A meal here would cost at least two million won.’

And so, Seok Juho’s intention became even clearer.