Na Hee-seon was flustered. Seo Jung-woo was a detective working at a regular police station.

‘It’s only been a day since the fake news scandal broke out, and it’s not even like he used all that time—he investigated during his free time and found all this out? Even that the long-unsolved murder case culprit is the Knife Gang and Choi Sun-Myung, and even the reason for the murder?’

She was so shocked that she couldn’t speak. She stared blankly at Seo Jung-woo.

Seo Jung-woo picked up a shrimp from the course meal and ate it.

‘It tastes good, but I still prefer meat that grows on land over something from water.’

Seeing his relaxed demeanor, Na Hee-seon let out a deep sigh.

“Haaah. Detective Seo, do you know that several large law firms want you?”

“I’m not a lawyer, so why?”

“Law firms don’t conduct investigations themselves. But you’re special, Detective Seo. With your incredible skills, you can uncover the opponent’s weaknesses, making trials easier. Even if it’s a losing case, you can negotiate by leveraging other weaknesses and get the complaint withdrawn. That’s why several major law firms are eyeing you.”

Seo Jung-woo let out a brief chuckle.

“I’m not doing it. That kind of dirty work.”

“I figured as much. But…”

Na Hee-seon stared at Seo Jung-woo.

‘I’ve read in articles that no matter the murderer, if they ran into Detective Seo, they were caught within two hours. And it wasn’t just once. Still, I thought it was all luck or that the circumstances lined up just right. That would make sense.’

After meeting Seo Jung-woo today, she changed her mind.

‘Even if I accept that he found out who spread the fake news, how could he uncover all the secrets of a murder case that happened long ago? The reason for the murder and the culprit, too. How is that even possible? It’s only been a day.’

She didn’t understand it, but she didn’t think what Seo Jung-woo told her was wrong either. This is the man who caught serial killers, kidnappers, and even singlehandedly took down an international industrial espionage organization.

Another thought crossed her mind.

‘If a law firm hires Detective Seo Jung-woo, the rankings of law firms will change.’

Park Da-yeon asked,

“Mom, why are you just staring like that?”

Her daughter’s voice brought her back to her senses.

“Ah. I was just so shocked. I saw it on the news and heard it from you two, but wow… Detective Seo is truly incredible.”

“Right? There’s even more to be shocked about, but I can’t tell you.”

“Huh?”

“Don’t try to find out. It’s a secret.”

The twins didn’t tell Na Hee-seon that Seo Jung-woo was Dimension.

Na Hee-seon assumed the secret her daughter mentioned was about something else related to criminal investigations.

She smiled brightly at Seo Jung-woo.

“It’s a relief that Detective Seo isn’t going to a law firm.”

“I don’t really like that kind of stuff.”

“With the information you gave me today, I’m going to strike their necks. A murderer dared to use my daughter!”

“There’s still no concrete evidence.”

“If I attack carelessly without evidence, I’ll just get counterattacked. I’ll handle it discreetly and indirectly, so don’t worry.”

“The reason I explained what kind of person Choi Sun-Myung is, was so you’d be careful. I’ll catch him anyway.”

“Still, I want to take some revenge with my own hands. That way I’ll be able to sleep better at night. I’ll start with the freelance journalist.”

“Ah, yes. If anything happens, call me immediately. Please register my number on speed dial.”

“You don’t have to worry that much. This is South Korea. Just this much isn’t enough to touch a lawyer.”

In the car on the way home, Park Da-yeon asked,

“Mom. Di… isn’t he amazing? Detective Seo.”

Na Hee-seon nodded.

“I’ve met all sorts of people—those with sharp intuition, people who see what others can’t, those with brilliant analytical skills, and even ones who never forget what they see—but today I was truly surprised.”

“Hehehe.”

“Why are you laughing like that? You’re hiding something, aren’t you?”

“Don’t try to find out. If you knew more, you might faint from shock.”

“He’s really that amazing?”

“Yup!”

Na Hee-seon summoned a few reporters and announced that she had found the journalist who intentionally leaked the fake article. It wasn’t an official press conference—she simply invited a few reporters to her law office’s conference room. But more reporters showed up than she had expected.

After explaining the situation, she delivered her conclusion.

“So I will file a lawsuit against Kim Hak-ro.”

One of the attendees asked in confusion,

“Excuse me? Kim Hak-ro?”

“Kim Hak-ro is the original producer of the fake news. And it was a case where he used my daughter for a few bucks. As a mother, I promise—there will be no settlement.”

Reporters typically dislike hearing about lawsuits against journalists. That’s why she intentionally placed an acquaintance among them.

That hype-man asked a question for the others to hear.

“You just said ‘a few bucks’—does that mean someone else paid him?”

“Of course. We’ve identified that.”

“You wouldn’t make such a statement based on just suspicion, would you?”

“I know which company gave him the money.”

Na Hee-seon thought to herself,

‘Now Kim Hak-ro must be losing his mind. Let him lose sleep for a while too.’

Among the reporters present, some weren’t interested in her announcement but had other agendas. One of them asked,

“How did you obtain that information? Detective Seo Jung-woo was also used in the fake scandal—could it be that he’s your source?”

Na Hee-seon judged that it wasn’t yet time to mention Seo Jung-woo. She planned to talk about him after he arrests Choi Sun-Myung.

“I can’t say how I obtained the information.”

The reporter deliberately tossed bait.

“Well, Detective Seo Jung-woo is good at catching murderers and terrorists, but I guess he has limits when it comes to the entertainment industry.”

The young staff member standing next to Na Hee-seon was a fan of Seo Jung-woo. They muttered without realizing,

“This time it was also a murder case…”

The reporter’s eyes lit up.

“Excuse me?”

Na Hee-seon panicked because of her employee’s slip. She had shared the information from Seo Jung-woo with her law office staff. In order to get their help, they had to understand the situation.

She quickly said,

“Ah, no. It’s nothing. Please don’t report that. Just pretend you didn’t hear it.”

But no reporter would just pretend not to hear something because they were asked to. This was juicier than the scandal that was already resolved.

“Please, just tell us a little more. Did Detective Seo Jung-woo discover a murder case? Who died?”

“No, it’s a very old matter. So please don’t write an article about it.”

The lawsuit announcement Na Hee-seon made to the reporters was quickly turned into an article.

Choi Sun-Myung, the president of Wind Planning, leapt in shock when he saw the article.

“Gasp!”

The part about the old murder case was only mentioned in a few lines. Seo Jung-woo’s name wasn’t mentioned either. There was no information except for the employee’s accidental comment.

But Choi Sun-myung understood what the story was about just by looking at that.

“Damn it. Even the most recent one was already years ago—how the hell!”

He had originally thought that even if his scheme this time failed, it wouldn’t cause much damage. ES Entertainment was too small to have the capacity to properly investigate his manipulation. When he fabricated the scandal, he didn’t even know the man in the photo was Seo Jung-woo.

But now, the article contractor Kim Hak-ro had already been exposed.

He had anticipated that if things went wrong, Kim Hak-ro might be revealed. He had even expected that he himself might become a suspect.

However, he believed there was no way he would be the only one suspected. Mixed in with other suspects, he was confident he could deflect suspicion and bury the issue.

He had been so confident—until suddenly, the story of the murder case from ten years ago surfaced. This was something he hadn’t anticipated at all.

‘What does he know about that incident? The Knife Gang bastards all died last time, didn’t they? I was so happy because of that!’

Seo Jung-woo had wiped out the Knife Gang. Upon seeing that news, Choi Sun-myung had judged that everyone who knew about that matter was dead.

‘The building also burned down. If the boss had hidden any evidence of that time in his home, it would’ve come out during the police investigation.’

He had believed that everything he had done using the Knife Gang was now buried forever. He had even celebrated, thinking he could devour the gang’s money that was being laundered.

‘It’s such an old case, there’s no way any CCTV footage remains. Fingerprints or other evidence would’ve disappeared by now. Everyone who was involved is already dead. There’s no evidence anywhere in the world that could get me arrested.’

Still, the anxiety didn’t completely disappear.

‘But why did he bring up the word "murder case"? He shouldn’t know anything. Is it because the former CEO was killed by a robber and I took over the company? Did he just suspect based on that situation without any evidence?’

He thought that was the most likely possibility, but he still felt uneasy. After some thought, he eventually stepped out of the office.

“I need to properly ask someone who would know the situation.”

Na Hee-seon met with ES Entertainment’s president, Oh Dong-cheol.

Oh Dong-cheol was furious.

“That bastard Kim Hak-ro, how dare he! I won’t let him get away with this!”

Na Hee-seon shouted back.

“I’ll make him a total beggar!”

“Huh? Is that possible?”

“Not with just this one case. But it turns out Kim Hak-ro has done this kind of thing a lot. I keep getting calls at my office from people who’ve been harmed by him. I’m going to gather them all and see this through to the end.”

“You’re incredible. I’ll support you. But…”

Oh Dong-cheol cautiously asked,

“About the murder case…”

Na Hee-seon let out a sigh.

“No, I wasn’t planning to mention the murder case to the reporters. But one of our employees got caught up in the reporter’s probing and let it slip.”

“I won’t say anything to anyone. I’m involved too, so could you tell me what’s going on?”

“The one who commissioned the fake news from Kim Hak-ro is Wind Planning’s Choi Sun-myung. But the reason he was able to take over that company was because ten years ago, the former president was stabbed to death by a robber. The killer was never caught. It’s a long-term unsolved murder case.”

“Could the killer be…”

“It was a hit job ordered by Choi Sun-myung.”

Oh Dong-cheol rubbed his arm.

“Wow. That gives me chills. I knew Choi Sun-myung was scum, but I didn’t think he was that bad. But how did you find this out already? Lawyers really are something else.”

Na Hee-seon waved her hand.

“No way. I heard it all from Detective Seo Jung-woo. There’s no evidence yet, but he said he’s certain.”

Oh Dong-cheol nodded emphatically.

“If Detective Seo says so, then it must be true.”

Na Hee-seon leaned forward slightly.

“The reason I asked to meet today is because I have a proposal.”

“A proposal…”

“Doesn’t this company need a legal advisor?”

“Huh?”

“I can’t let my daughters go through something like this again. I want to properly establish a legal response system in this company. I’ll also include ES Entertainment as a complainant in this case. That way, we can completely finish off Kim Hak-ro. And if Choi Sun-myung gets caught by Detective Seo later, we’ll tie it all together and destroy Wind Planning too.”

“I’d be thrilled. But our finances aren’t great right now. We haven’t received much settlement money from appearance fees, so we can’t afford lawyer’s fees.”

“Just pay me later when you make money.”

“Lawyers accept IOUs?”

“Normally no, but this is about my daughters.”

“Hahaha. Then that’s great for me. Aren’t we Koreans known for eating even cows on credit?”

“Ah, is that why your company is struggling—no, never mind.”

“You’re just like your daughters—no, I didn’t mean it that way either.”

Na Hee-seon and Oh Dong-cheol left the office.

As she opened the door to her luxury foreign car, Na Hee-seon said,

“I’ll send over the documents needed for the complaint tomorrow. Let’s destroy Kim Hak-ro, Choi Sun-myung, and Wind Planning completely.”

Oh Dong-cheol hesitated.

“Ah, yes. But, um…”

Na Hee-seon frowned slightly.

“What? Don’t tell me you’re backing out now? If so, I can’t entrust my daughters to you.”

“No, it’s not that. Could you give me a ride to the subway station on your way?”

“Huh?”

“I don’t have a car.”

“There’s that van over there. The one you use to take the girls to the broadcasting station—it’s over ten years old.”

“There’s no parking space at my house…”

Na Hee-seon started to feel uneasy.

“President Oh. Can I really trust you with my daughters?”

“Hahaha. I may look like this now, but I’ll be hugely successful soon, buy a car, buy a house—”

“And my daughters?”

“Of course, investing in them is my top priority. Haha, hahahaha!”

Na Hee-seon smirked.

“Get in. I’ll drive you home.”

“Oh, you really don’t have to.”

Despite his words, Oh Dong-cheol quickly got into the passenger seat.

Na Hee-seon started the car. But just before they exited the alleyway, another car suddenly blocked their path.

She slammed on the brakes and got out of the car, yelling,

“Hey! Watch where you're driving!”

Oh Dong-cheol also got out of the passenger seat and shouted,

“Do you know who this person is? Huh?”

The van that had blocked them suddenly opened its door and a group of large men poured out.

Oh Dong-cheol was flustered.

“Huh? Huh?”

Finally, Choi Sun-myung got out of the vehicle and casually raised his hand.

“Hey. Oh Dong-cheol. Long time no see.”

Oh Dong-cheol’s face stiffened.

“Choi Sun-myung?”

Choi Sun-myung didn’t recognize Na Hee-seon. Her face hadn’t been shown in the article.

He had come here to meet Oh Dong-cheol.

“I have a few questions, so come with me.”

“Why should I!”

“Hey now. Even if you don’t want to, you’ll end up coming anyway. It’s okay, it’s okay. As long as you answer well, we won’t need the oil drum.”

As soon as Na Hee-seon heard the name Choi Sun-myung, she realized what was happening.

‘Didn’t they say Choi Sun-myung uses gangsters for his dirty work? These must be those gangsters.’

She quickly called Seo Jung-woo. The call connected immediately.

She spoke rapidly,

“Right now, in front of ES Enter—kyaa!”