“Nam Ju-hyeon!”
At the angry voice of the department head calling her name, Nam Ju-hyeon quickly bowed her head.
“Ju-hyeon, did you cause trouble again?”
At the voice coming from beyond the partition, Nam Ju-hyeon shook her head with a pale face. But it wasn’t the first or second time she had caused trouble.
“I-I’m just going outside for a bit.”
“Nam Ju-hyeon, don’t think about sneaking away and come here right now.”
At the department head’s voice, Nam Ju-hyeon squeezed her eyes shut. Unable to resist the department head’s voice that seemed to see right through her, Nam Ju-hyeon had no choice but to drag herself to the department head’s office.
As soon as Nam Ju-hyeon entered the office, the department head’s nagging poured out.
“Nam Ju-hyeon, what article did I ask you for?”
“A special feature on Weltschmerz…”
“What did you give me?”
At the department head’s words, Nam Ju-hyeon adjusted her thick horn-rimmed glasses and pouted her lips. In place of her silence, the department head continued speaking.
“Who’s behind the Bomnal Orphanage incident?”
“W-well, strictly speaking, that is also an article about Weltschmerz…”
“No, it’s not! There’s not a single thing related to Weltschmerz!”
At the department head’s words, Nam Ju-hyeon cautiously spoke up.
“Don’t you think it’s strange, Department Head? Of course, Weltschmerz did commit the massacre there. But it’s also true that someone was operating that orphanage. Terrible things like human modifications and experiments happened there!”
As if her previous cautious demeanor had all been a lie, Nam Ju-hyeon slammed the desk and stood up, starting to rant like she was at a speech contest.
“The whole country is mesmerized by the Weltschmerz bait, but actually the person who ran the orphanage is the real villain…”
“Enough, enough.”
Those words were cut off by the department head. Nam Ju-hyeon closed her mouth at the department head’s fierce attitude. She had more to say, but it seemed like it wouldn’t end with just a scolding if she spoke carelessly.
“You did this last time too, didn’t you?”
The department head continued with an exasperated expression.
“The Kang Yi-sin case.”
At the department head’s words, Nam Ju-hyeon continued with an excited face.
“Ah, that was strange too. It’s exactly the same as this! Of course, Kang Yi-sin did commit murder, but the real villain is the person who operated the illegal Gate afterwards, right? I’m asking why there’s not a single report about that.”
She always walked with her gaze fixed on the ground and didn’t talk much with others, but at times like this, she was quite the eloquent speaker.
The department head sighed. Nam Ju-hyeon was an excellent reporter. No, she was someone with enough potential to become an excellent reporter.
That’s why it was even more troublesome.
“I told you there’s no need to investigate that case. What I originally assigned you was something else.”
“That’s why I did what you assigned and then investigated this on my day off.”
She gave up her day off to write the article and submitted it, but unfortunately, that article was discarded without even being considered for publication.
“I told you the articles we can publish in print are limited, didn’t I?”
“But on the internet…”
“What’s the point of posting an article that won’t make money and will only cause controversy? In the first place, those Weltschmerz guys left evidence at the scene for people to badmouth them. Everyone wants articles related to Weltschmerz, they don’t want anything else.”
“Is someone blocking the article?”
Even with her timid face, Nam Ju-hyeon said what she had to say. To think she would say such things while rolling her eyes like a small animal watching a predator.
The department head sighed deeply with a headache-stricken expression.
“You can probably guess too.”
The media had been under control for a long time. After the appearance of Gates, the rules of the world were revised several times.
Capital became more important than ever. In a world where if you lack money, you could be driven ‘outside’ and your life could be in danger at any time.
Buying life with money was no longer an exaggeration. As such, the media had long been conquered by capitalists.
Things that stagnate are bound to rot. It was the same where money stagnated. He didn’t mean to criticize all capitalists, but he was disgusted by those who tried to convert people’s lives into money, taking advantage of these chaotic times.
The department head’s nagging poured down on Nam Ju-hyeon’s bowed head.
“You, why are you so dissatisfied when you came in first in the open recruitment? If you just do as you’re told, success is guaranteed.”
The department head clicked his tongue as if frustrated.
“Anyway, go back. Let’s do as we’re told, Ju-hyeon. Okay?”
Nam Ju-hyeon bit her lip as she left the department head’s office. Once again, the article she had worked hard on would be discarded.
As she came out with slumped shoulders, she was greeted by Park Hee-jae, who had joined the company at the same time as her.
“Did you get shot down again today?”
Nam Ju-hyeon nodded at Park Hee-jae’s question and said:
“Hah, I need a smoke.”
“Wow, such a sophisticated expression?”
Among the many professions, she chose to be a reporter because she wanted to dig into the truth.
She entered the best university in Korea, took the journalism exam, and then entered the best newspaper company, thinking she could fulfill her aspirations.
But the reality is like this.
Whether it’s because she hasn’t accumulated enough years of experience yet, or whether this field was rotten from the start. A place that only sparkled from afar now just reeked of stench.
Park Hee-jae saw Nam Ju-hyeon’s rotting expression and nudged her side.
“This won’t do, let’s have a smoke.”
The two sat side by side in the smoking room and lit their cigarettes. Puff, puff. Nam Ju-hyeon exhaled smoke and whispered to Park Hee-jae:
“While digging into Bomnal Orphanage, I caught onto a big fish.”
“What is it?”
Park Hee-jae, who always tried to stop Nam Ju-hyeon but was actually just as curious as her, immediately lent an ear to her words.
“There was someone who regularly donated to that orphanage. It’s one of the members of the National Assembly?”
“Isn’t it not that strange for members of the National Assembly to sponsor orphanages?”
“Maybe. But listen. It’s definitely strange to keep donating to just one place for 15 years, right? Especially when human modifications and experiments broke out there. Moreover, the donations weren’t made openly.”
The assemblyman who always put on a show by bringing along reporters and taking photos whenever he did volunteer work, quietly made donations to that orphanage in particular.
He even used the name of someone he knew to pretend he wasn’t the one doing it.
But Nam Ju-hyeon persistently dug into it and finally found the connection.
“Don’t you think it’s strange no matter how you look at it? Isn’t it okay to see that person as the one behind it?”
“Hey, that’s dangerous?”
Park Hee-jae, who had been listening to Nam Ju-hyeon’s words at first, soon whispered in shock.
“I know. That’s probably why the department head was so shocked and said that. But I feel like this is just the beginning. Not just ending with donations, I think that person might have created and operated that orphanage.”
It’s like her sense of duty as a reporter pricks her conscience to just ignore something strange in front of her eyes.
“It’s not just this case, there are many strange cases. Every time I watch the news, it’s so frustrating. It feels like everyone is looking at the trees, not the forest. The culprits they catch are all just small fry. No one tries to hit the head.”
“Hmm, but that’s not our job, right?”
“What then? Leave it to the incompetent Awakener Crimes Department?”
Nam Ju-hyeon shook her head.
“Park Cheol-wan is a good person, but he’s not someone fit to lead a department. He’s perfect for just keeping his seat, but that’s it.”
“But Do Chae-hee…”
“That person? She’s a field type, not an office type. Who on earth put someone who shines the most in the field in a team leader position in the first place?”
Of course the Awakener Crimes Department is incompetent! Nam Ju-hyeon spat fire. In her eyes, she saw a common point in all these incidents.
“Someone is blocking it. Whether it’s information, investigation, whatever.”
“Hey, that’s a conspiracy theory.”
“If there’s evidence, it’s not a conspiracy. Alright. Let’s find evidence first.”
Seeing Nam Ju-hyeon’s sparkling eyes, Park Hee-jae said:
“Hey, that’s not it.”
“I’m going out for some fieldwork for a bit.”
“What fieldwork! Hey, come back!”
Park Hee-jae shouted belatedly like that, but it was too late to catch Nam Ju-hyeon who had already run off like an excited puppy.
* * *
“Hic, huuung.”
Nam Ju-hyeon shed tears drop by drop.
How did things end up like this?
She was in the middle of finding someone who was said to be related to Bomnal Orphanage for an interview, and based on that interview, she was digging up information related to the specific assemblyman. In the meantime, she contacted someone who claimed to be a former aide to that assemblyman and heard some pretty good information.
Just when she thought she just needed to break this news, someone hit her on the head. She lost consciousness at that moment, and when she opened her eyes, she was in this state.
Her wrists and ankles were tied with stiff ropes and her mouth was gagged. Nam Ju-hyeon, trapped in the middle of a damp, humid warehouse that smelled of blood, shed tears continuously.
Am I going to die here? Without even properly uncovering the truth? Just getting erased in the middle like this!
If I had known this would happen, I should have been more careful.
I should have cherished others’ advice instead of treating it carelessly.
Mom, I miss you.
As she was crying and shedding tears like that, it happened.
“Aaaagh!”
Someone’s scream was heard nearby. Nam Ju-hyeon trembled at the commotion heard from outside. The sound of something breaking and shattering was also heard. Nam Ju-hyeon closed her eyes tightly and trembled at the ominous sounds coming from all directions.
What on earth is happening?
“This is why you shouldn’t have been poking around everywhere.”
At the voice heard from behind, Nam Ju-hyeon screamed.
“Uuungh!”
Because of the gag, it sounded exactly like a pig squealing. Nam Ju-hyeon raised her eyes, swollen from crying. Due to the backlight, she couldn’t see the man’s face properly. Nam Ju-hyeon twisted her body at the shadow cast in front of her eyes.
“Uuungh!”
She wanted to run away from the man behind her, but her tied-up body wouldn’t move properly.
Perhaps finding her wriggling like a caterpillar funny, the man let out a low laugh.
“Uuuhuuung!”
Nam Ju-hyeon crawled on the floor and pleaded. Please save me, I really don’t want to die here?
But all that came out of her mouth were cries that couldn’t be called words.
At that moment, moonlight seeped through the bars. Nam Ju-hyeon’s eyes widened. The man’s face hidden in the shadows was revealed. Though she couldn’t see properly because of her dirty glasses, she could see the man’s blurry face beyond the glasses.
No, wait.
The moment she saw the smiling face mask, Nam Ju-hyeon was shocked.
“Bltzmrtz!”
Weltschmerz?! Nam Ju-hyeon, who shouted that one word, fainted right there.
* * *
I clicked my tongue looking at the fainted Nam Ju-hyeon.
“So weak-hearted.”
Then a bright voice unsuited to the situation was heard from behind.
“Boss! I’ve cleaned up everything outside!”
“Oh, alright. What about Jae-ho?”
“Jae-ho hyung is gathering the corpses in one place now. Ah! Can I take a few of them?”
Looking at Han Seo-hyeon smiling shyly, I nodded.
—I feel the humanity inside me drying up.
‘He’s a necromancer. And they’re all bad guys anyway.’
What does it matter what happens to the corpses of bad guys?
Ahem, after clearing my throat internally, I turned my gaze to Nam Ju-hyeon.
Tsk, how did things get so tangled up like this?