<Episode 66>
Right after the broadcast, the internet exploded.
On top of the leaked audio recording already spreading across the Tube, the exposé program had aired as well. People who felt completely blindsided began voluntarily digging into his past.
– Wow, his eyes right after awakening were seriously insane kekek Creepy as hell….
– Compilation of suspicious early Park Jaemin interview clips (with video)
– Comparison shots of the sword from the CCTV and Park Jaemin’s weapon
People endlessly compared his “post-awakening appearance” with the restored CCTV footage as they tore through his history.
And that wasn’t all. Videos from the time when victims protested in front of the Management Bureau began circulating again, causing public opinion to boil over even faster.
It wasn’t simply because this was the “Incheon Gate Incident” that things had grown so massive. People who had long felt uncomfortable with society excessively deifying hunters also began voicing their dissatisfaction.
Perhaps the government also wanted to use public opinion to keep the Management Bureau in check.
‘Looks like even the Hunter Management Bureau understands how serious this situation is and has given up trying to defend Park Jaemin.’
Vice Director Park Seongcheol appeared to be desperately trying to save his son, but with footage of Park Jaemin personally confessing, it wasn’t easy.
“The atmosphere is quite favorable. Wouldn’t you agree?”
“Mm, yeah. Though it’s more intense than I expected.”
As I stopped scrolling, Hunter Lee Hyunwoo handed me a cup of warm tea.
“They say warming the body helps relieve tension.”
“Ah, thank you. I’ll enjoy it.”
The scent of chamomile drifted upward. It really did feel like the tension in my body was gradually easing.
“This body would also like something to drink, nya.”
“Hanyang, I’ll take care of yours too. Hold on.”
I filled a cup with bottled water I had hastily brought along to use in place of Hanyang’s bowl.
It was a shame I didn’t have any proper supplies for Hanyang. These days, the place I spend most of my time isn’t the dormitory but Team 1’s office.
‘Suspicious people were lingering near the dormitory, so I had no choice.’
Men in suits kept wandering around as if searching for someone. They could have been Vice Director Park Seongcheol’s people, or Park Jaemin’s.
Staying alone at the dormitory was dangerous. So in the end, I had been relying on Team 1’s office.
Thankfully, they already had spare bedding and toiletries prepared for overtime shifts.
“…I’m sorry. Because of me, you even had to come into work on the weekend.”
“Hunters do not really have weekends to begin with, so it is fine. Please do not concern yourself.”
But considering that, none of the other team members were here working….
Well, I had heard they were planning to stop by in the afternoon to hang out.
It had also been difficult trying to stop Ari from insisting on coming. For the time being, I would probably have to be especially careful even while commuting.
Other things were weighing on my mind too.
For example, the Director’s reaction.
“…Has the Director perhaps said anything?”
“As a matter of fact, he did contact me separately, but I do not believe you need to worry too much.”
Lee Hyunwoo Hunter sat across from me and shared the details of his call with the Director.
“He said he knows how much hardship Hunter Haneul has endured until now, and that he was glad he could be of help at least in the end.”
“I destroyed the Management Bureau’s image, though… Didn’t he say anything about that?”
“Not at all. He grumbled that his workload had suddenly increased, but if anything, he seemed rather pleased.”
Come to think of it, the Director had readily agreed when I requested his cooperation.
And before long, I learned why he had been pleased.
“…The Director wasn’t in the office during the Incheon Gate Incident?”
“That is correct. After the Incheon Gate Incident, the Hunter Management Bureau urgently brought in the current Director.”
After the Incheon Gate Incident, which resulted in hundreds of casualties, most of the high-ranking officials in the Hunter Management Bureau had been forced to resign and take responsibility.
And the current Director had taken their place.
The Director had tried to reform the outdated system after assuming office, but Vice Director Park constantly blocked him. Apparently, Park Seongcheol had already firmly established his own faction within the Bureau, causing the Director considerable trouble in the early days.
‘It would’ve been nice if Vice Director Park Seongcheol had stepped down back during the Incheon Gate Incident too.’
I clicked my tongue inwardly.
He really was absurdly tenacious when it came to survival.
But this time, the criminal at the center of the incident was his own son. There was no way he could escape the backlash.
“Ah, and there is more news.”
“More news?”
“A formal inspection is expected to begin soon.”
And indeed, just a few days later, a large-scale internal audit began.
Normally, internal investigations were little more than formalities, but this time was completely different.
The main headlines plastered across news sites made that abundantly clear.
[Signs of Protecting a Specific Individual? Citizens’ Watch Coalition Demands Strong Accountability from the Management Bureau]
[Twelve National Assembly Members Release Joint Statement: “Hunter Management Bureau Must Explain Missing and Manipulated Reports”]
Civic organizations and politicians had begun moving in earnest.
Facing demands to hold the Hunter Management Bureau accountable, the Bureau had no choice but to promise a transparent investigation.
Naturally, the number of inspectors doubled compared to normal, and the team was filled with outside personnel rather than people connected to Vice Director Park Seongcheol’s faction.
Customers visiting the shop glanced outside and lowered their voices.
“Man, the atmosphere is really chaotic these days. Who knows when this investigation will end?”
“Seriously! I heard there was even a physical fight with the security team the other day….”
“Well, the incident itself is huge. Still, I was honestly shocked. On the surface, he seemed incredibly kind. Park… that guy, I mean.”
Because Park Jaemin had such a good image even among hunters, the incident appeared to be all the more shocking.
“You were surprised too, right, boss? That guy used to come here sometimes. Acting all friendly with you and everything.”
“So that’s why you always seemed uncomfortable around him? Could you tell from the start? Amazing.”
Instead of answering, I merely smiled.
The identity of the whistleblower had only been referred to anonymously, and my face never appeared in the footage, so only a very small number of people knew that I had exposed him.
Because of that, customers still freely talked about the Incheon Gate Incident inside our shop without hesitation.
Of course, among them were occasional comments defending Hunter Park Jaemin, but I simply let them slide without taking them to heart.
‘The scales have already tipped.’
Vice Director Park Seongcheol himself had personally stepped forward and held a press conference.
Did he defend Park Jaemin?
Of course not.
He was the type of person who valued his own reputation more than his own bloodline.
Standing at the podium with a grave expression, he solemnly declared that he would cooperate fully with the investigation and that, to avoid personal bias, he would step away from involvement in the case entirely.
Then he bowed his head, saying he would accept whatever results emerged.
The moment he saw the public reaction, he immediately cut ties with Park Jaemin.
Perhaps because of that, the suspicious people around the dormitory all disappeared as well.
‘Park Jaemin must have trusted only Vice Director Park Seongcheol. There’s no way out for him now.’
And that wasn’t all.
The brands he modeled for all pulled their advertisements, while sponsors rapidly announced the termination of their contracts.
Since he had obsessed over maintaining his image, his downfall came faster than anyone else’s.
Meanwhile, there was one person smiling brighter than anyone.
Yoon Seah, who had contributed enormously to all this.
Ever since the program aired, she had been smiling nonstop all day long. Because of that, rumors had even begun circulating behind the scenes that she might be the whistleblower.
And she didn’t seem to feel any need to correct those rumors.
“My fiancé died during the Incheon Gate Incident. What I did to Hunter Lee Hyunwoo before… honestly, it was because I wanted help. I wanted attention. I was foolish.”
“Ah, so that’s what happened….”
Rather than denying the rumors, she was using them as an opportunity to clean up the mistakes she had made in the past.
Hunter Lee Hyunwoo seemed oddly exhausted by it all, but since he had received a proper apology, he apparently had no intention of making an issue out of it.
“I’m just glad things worked out well. Even Chief Han, who kept pestering me with calls, suddenly stopped contacting me altogether.”
“So he really was connected to Park Jaemin after all. Then what you told Park Jaemin that day….”
“It was true! I saw the two of them talking with my own eyes, okay? I thought they were suspicious from the start!”
Seah looked genuinely relieved as she beamed brightly.
She said that although her dead fiancé could never come back, she was satisfied simply because the truth had finally been revealed, even if late.
“The five years after Juhyuk died and left me behind were truly horrible. Sometimes I wanted to follow him too, but at the same time I couldn’t let things end like that because it felt too unfair…. So I endured somehow, and now a day like this has finally come.”
And finally.
After the long investigation, Park Jaemin confessed to everything he had done.
And I…
“You’ve finally arrived. Sit wherever you’re comfortable.”
…was summoned to the Vice Director’s office.
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