The Reporter’s Gambit

Those who were once bitten by Baek Soeun would initially scoff, but later, it was rumored that they would come begging with envelopes of money.
The famous quote left by Baek Soeun, who was a rookie reporter at the time, was still being passed down to this day.

‘I don’t accept envelopes. Bring me a box, a box. You know, an apple box? That size would be perfect.’

But does she just accept the box that the opponent handed her while crying?
She used that money to add another article on bribery.
How many people had exploded like fireworks at the tip of her fingers and lips?

“Congressman, you recently gifted a building to your mistress and illegitimate child through a loophole, didn’t you? Do your official heirs know about this fact?”
“What is the reason for causing the same accident again during your drunk driving probation period? Was the apology you sent to the victims a mere formality?”
“How do you feel about being called the ‘hidden power’ in this gate? I was lucky enough to get a picture of you smiling. The camera quality is really good these days, isn’t it?”

Baek Soeun was always at the forefront of every scandal.
She neutralized her opponents with a single blow, using the core of the issue that would put them on the guillotine as her weapon.
By asking questions where denial would be a lie, silence would be an affirmation, and affirmation would inevitably leave room for doubt.
Choi Suhyeok had already met Baek Soeun a few times due to cases.

“…But you didn’t come in disguise this time? That’s rare.”
“Ah, I got caught by you last time, Detective Choi. That was the first time I’ve ever been caught.”

‘It would have been a big problem if I hadn’t recognized her then.’

Choi Suhyeok, recalling the past, asked back with an uneasy expression.

“By the way, what is that ‘Serenity’ thing?”
“Huh? Detective, you don’t know ‘Cloud Nine’? ‘C9’.”
“I know that. They’re an idol group. It was written on all the walls of the concert hall.”
“The C9 fandom name is Serenity. And I’m a Serenity too. Oh, then why were you looking at that just now? Did something happen? Were our kids hurt? No? I didn’t hear anything!”

At the untimely commotion that broke out in the morning, glances were cast from all around.
Choi Suhyeok was not unaware that Baek Soeun’s act of raising her voice was a calculated move.

Swish.

Choi Suhyeok quietly got up from his seat. Baek Soeun followed behind him as if it were a matter of course.

Thump.

A short while later, Baek Soeun left the station with a calm face and got into her car.
A moment ago, Choi Suhyeok had skillfully given her a hint, avoiding the eyes of others.

“…I know that even if I keep my mouth shut, you’ll dig around, Reporter Baek. The suspect hasn’t even been identified yet, and the case is so sensational that it’s perfect for becoming a hot topic. I’ll contact you when anything comes up, so please put an embargo on it until then.”

Baek Soeun clenched her fists.

‘I can smell it.’

The smell of a scoop.
No matter how she thought about it, this was no ordinary case.
The street assault of a former prosecutor and current lawyer. The circumstances of a planned crime are clear, and in the midst of it, my idols could be involved.

‘How dare they drag our kids into a crime?’

Cloud Nine, C9 for short.
They, whom Baek Soeun had watched from their debut until now, were her only joy in this tough reporter life.
And so, Baek Soeun’s eyes burned fiercely.
Baek Soeun took out her phone from her bag and sent a text message.

[Cap, I can’t do my rounds for a few days, so send someone else. I’ve got an embargo that will make a picture.]

Beep, beep.

After pressing the send button, Baek Soeun next entered the address of ‘Dike Law Office’ into her navigation.
Near Olympic Park, a law office of a former prosecutor-turned-lawyer.
It wasn’t hard to find.

‘I need to do all the research I can in advance.’

Preparation, whatever it may be, never betrays you.
Baek Soeun stepped on the accelerator without hesitation.

Chime.

As soon as I opened the door, the bird-shaped wind chime greeted me with a clear and clean sound, as always.

“Ah. You’re here early, lawyer.”
“Yes, was everything alright?”

Jeong Donghyeok, who had returned to the office first from the hospital, got up from his seat and greeted me.
Behind him, I saw a familiar face I had forgotten about.

‘That person, no. Why is Baek Soeun here this early in the morning?’

Baek Soeun, who was sitting at the central table, smiled, approached me, and handed me her business card.

“Hello? I’m Baek Soeun, a reporter from ‘That’s Facts’. I was waiting for you, lawyer.”
“…I’m Cha Yohan.”

I saw a half-empty cup, so she must have already greeted Jeong Donghyeok.
I had known Baek Soeun during my Yoon Eunho days.

‘What is going on?’

I asked Jeong Donghyeok with my eyes, but he gave me a look that said he didn’t know anything.
I naturally spoke as if it were our first meeting.

“What brings a reporter to our office? Did you come to request a case?”

She must have countless acquaintances in the legal field, so it was unlikely she came to us for a request.
Baek Soeun took out a notebook from the back pocket of her jeans and answered.

“It would be more comfortable for both of us if we were honest, right? I came for an interview.”
“An interview? What kind of interview?”
“I heard that Lawyer Won Youngoh was attacked yesterday.”
“…Who is your source?”
“Protecting the identity of informants is my principle.”

Baek Soeun smiled with those words.

“Ah, I see.”

I asked back nonchalantly.

“Is the source of that information Songpa Police Station?”
“…How did you know?”

At my reaction, Baek Soeun narrowed her brows.
She didn’t seem to know about my relationship with Choi Suhyeok.

‘Did Choi Suhyeok intentionally leak it?’

I hadn’t heard anything from Choi Suhyeok, but my mind started to spin quickly.

‘If Choi Suhyeok opened his mouth, there must be a reason.’

I nodded and deliberately threw out a probe.

“I was just about to ask Detective Choi for an investigation. I didn’t know you would come, reporter.”
“You two must be close?”
“The relationship between a lawyer and a police officer is all the same. Shall we sit down and talk?”

And so, I naturally sat down opposite Baek Soeun.

‘It’s a new feeling to meet someone I knew during my Yoon Eunho days like this.’

Baek Soeun, holding a pen, spoke.

“Is there anyone identified as a suspect yet? Do you see it as the work of an acquaintance?”
“I’ll grant you the interview. In return, please write one article for me.”
“An article?”

Baek Soeun, whose eyes were shining sharply, tilted her head as if it were an unexpected remark.
There must have been an intention for this Baek Soeun to come to us this early in the morning.

‘I just don’t know what it is.’

It wasn’t a one or two-day affair for legal professionals to be threatened by released criminals.
Therefore, there was no particular reason for Baek Soeun, who only chases after scoops, to come all the way here.

“Yes. And I have a question before that. If you answer and agree to my request, I will also give you an answer.”
“Hmm, alright. Please speak.”

After a moment of thought, Baek Soeun readily nodded.

“I’ve heard of your reputation, Reporter Baek. I also know that you only chase after scoops. But isn’t this case too small in size?”

Clatter.

Jeong Donghyeok, who had brought some refreshments, put down the plate and sat down next to me.
Baek Soeun put down her pen with a tap and picked up a cookie.
Then she chewed on it and, after frowning once, spoke.

“Because I’m a fan of C9.”
“Ah, I see, what?”

What did she just say?
I was dumbfounded by the unexpected reason.

“I went to Songpa Police Station this morning to see if there was anything to catch, and I saw Detective Choi Suhyeok. If you’re acquainted with him, you’ll know that Detective Choi doesn’t usually take on ordinary cases.”

Baek Soeun smiled and made a circle with her thumb and index finger.

“They’re all of a certain size. Sometimes you can pick something up. But that Detective Choi was looking at the concert hall footage of our kids?”
“Our kids…”
“At first, I thought something had happened there. But it turned out to be a case. I never imagined that there would be a guy who would brazenly hide there after committing a crime.”

Crunch.

Baek Soeun, who had deliciously eaten three cookies while talking, took a sip of coffee to finish and then asked again.

“Can I hear it now? What happened, and what kind of article it is.”

The article I was going to ask for was only one, and it was obvious.
The client’s car accident case was proceeding too quietly, too quickly.
A case of this size would have been on the main evening news on terrestrial television, or at least have been featured in countless internet articles with the title ‘Touching Story’.
Instead of getting to the main point, I first offered the story that Baek Soeun was waiting for.

“As it is a meticulously planned crime, we are first looking at acquaintances. So we are currently looking through the criminals that Lawyer Won Youngoh prosecuted during his prosecutor days among the recently released criminals.”
“Then you’re saying you haven’t found anything yet? I feel like I’ve been tricked.”

Baek Soeun openly furrowed her brow.
I took a sip of coffee and nodded.

“But the moment we find the culprit, I will give it to you exclusively, Reporter Baek. And the article I’m asking you to write will not be a loss for you either.”
“I hope so too.”

I silently picked up a cookie and broke it in half with both hands.

“The timing is coincidental.”

One half of the cookie in my left hand, one half of the cookie in my right.
I raised my right hand first.

“A while ago, there was a car accident nearby. In a country where dozens, hundreds of car accidents happen every day, it’s not a big deal.”

Baek Soeun stared at my right hand.
I felt her gaze and slowly turned my wrist.

“However, this part is a little strange. The hit-and-run driver was not caught, and the person who saved people from that accident is now in a detention center.”

Only then did the interest return to Baek Soeun’s eyes.

“The hit-and-run driver was driving a supercar that only three or four of which have been imported into our country.”

I pushed the cookie in my right hand into my mouth.
I wasn’t particularly interested in cars.
As long as the car rolled, it was fine.
But Hyeon Yeongje was different.

‘To think there would be a day when Hyeon Yeongje would be useful in my life.’

A long time ago, at Hyeon Yeongje’s semi-forced recommendation, I had a meeting with a corporate chairman who was a car enthusiast.
At that time, the car he had boasted was a limited edition of which only thirty were sold worldwide, and it was the same model as the car in the accident.
Thanks to that, I was able to recognize it as soon as I saw the video.
Baek Soeun picked up my words.

“For a car like that to be involved in a hit-and-run and the suspect not to be identified…”
“There’s external pressure. At least, that’s what I’ve come to think. Since yesterday.”

And I shook the cookie still in my left hand once.

“If Lawyer Won Youngoh is in a situation where he can’t defend, who will benefit the most? In a normal case, the person who benefits the most becomes the suspect.”
“In that case…”
“It’s true that Lawyer Won has lived a life of doing many things from his prosecutor days to being a lawyer, but it’s been a while since he took off his prosecutor’s robes, and the timing is quite strange.”

I popped the remaining cookie into my mouth in one bite.
The buttery taste that remained in my mouth was smooth.
This morning, after leaving Won Youngoh’s hospital, I went to see the plaintiff, but I couldn’t meet him.
But that was fine up to that point.
Even if it’s not right now, if I just see his face, I can somehow try to readjust.
But what about the supercar driver?
The ’cause’ that has not yet been found?

“That’s a plausible story. I’m getting interested. If I connect it well, the size could be quite large.”

Baek Soeun nodded and broke a cookie with a snap, just like me.
Crumbs fell onto the desk.
Baek Soeun and I looked at the crumbs at the same time.
What we had to find was a presence like those crumbs.

‘The person who will benefit the most from getting away with both cases.’

I had to find that person.