<Episode 67>
Trying not to show that I was nervous, I rolled my tongue once inside my mouth before quietly swallowing.
‘…I thought he’d be too busy dealing with Park Jaemin’s sentencing for a while.’
I assumed his attention would naturally be focused on Park Jaemin, who had confessed to the crimes.
So I had let my guard down.
Never did I expect to be dragged into the Vice Director’s office late at night, right as I was leaving work.
“It was rather difficult bringing you here without others noticing. You wander around quite a bit.”
Vice Director Park Seongcheol, seated across from me, looked unbelievably calm.
Even though his own son had been exposed as a murderer, not even a trace of shock or panic could be seen on his face.
“Are you satisfied now?”
At his sudden question, my fingers, which had been touching the teacup, froze as I looked up.
“…Excuse me?”
“You’ve caused quite an entertaining mess.”
He set the cup down with a sharp clack and looked down at me.
The chilling gaze behind his rimless glasses slowly swept over me.
“After releasing the recorded footage, you bypassed the Management Bureau entirely and sent it straight to a current affairs program…. Yes. You put quite a bit of thought into this.”
The corners of his lips twisted upward strangely.
But he couldn’t hide the fury beneath it.
The faint smile gradually faded toward the end.
Finally returning to a completely expressionless face, he gave me a quiet warning.
“You made the wrong choice. You should have stopped while I was still being favorable toward you.”
“…”
“You’ll soon realize exactly what kind of person you decided to provoke.”
He was definitely anxious.
Even though he had publicly severed ties with Park Jaemin, he was clearly trying to predict how much damage would still spread to him.
Eventually, I voiced the question that had lingered in my heart all this time.
“…Did you know Hunter Park Jaemin had killed civilians?”
The moment my question ended, Vice Director Park Seongcheol burst into laughter as though he had just heard the funniest joke in the world.
“Ahahaha! You’re asking whether I knew? Of course not. But what exactly is so important about that?”
That reaction.
He definitely had known about Park Jaemin’s crimes for a long time.
But he must have buried it himself because dealing with it would have been troublesome.
His eyes, visible after the laughter faded, had turned ice cold.
“Did you watch the footage from the Incheon Gate Incident? It was hell itself. Even if that child hadn’t foolishly caused trouble, those poor civilians would have died at the monsters’ hands anyway.”
“…A foolish mistake?”
My breath caught in my throat.
Park Seongcheol was dismissing what Park Jaemin had done as nothing more than “a reckless act from his immature days.”
I barely managed to suppress the rage and disgust surging inside me.
“Well, if Hunter Park Jaemin hadn’t been there, maybe my parents would still be alive.”
“Oh, dear. I wondered why you were risking your life over this. So your parents were victims. I see.”
Barely concealed annoyance flickered across his face.
Yet not even the slightest shred of guilt over his son’s horrific crimes could be found there.
“If you had shared things with me from the beginning, I could have compensated you generously. Before things became so twisted.”
Vice Director Park Seongcheol sighed and leaned back into the sofa.
Then he deliberately softened his voice in a sickeningly fake manner.
“I, too, lost someone precious in a gate incident. So I understand how you feel, Hunter Haneul.”
Falling into thought for a moment, he tapped the sofa armrest with his fingers.
“But what if you looked at it this way? Park Jaemin is an A-rank Hunter. He possesses the ability to save hundreds, even thousands of people in the future.”
“…Why are you suddenly bringing that up?”
“I’m asking you to consider utility and value.”
A gentle smile appeared on his face.
“Is it really right to render such an outstanding A-rank Hunter permanently useless over a single mistake from his immature years…? That’s what I’m questioning.”
He even tilted his head slightly.
His tone sounded like an adult gently lecturing a clueless child.
Rather than answer him, I simply stood up.
I no longer wanted to continue this pointless conversation.
“If this is all you called me here to say, then I have nothing more to discuss. I’ll be leaving now.”
He didn’t stop me.
Instead, he calmly bid me farewell.
“Well, if that is truly what Hunter Haneul wants, then there is nothing I can do.”
But the moment I turned my back, his low voice came from behind me.
“But remember this. Today… is the last time I will ever treat you favorably.”
I walked straight out of the Vice Director’s office.
Only the sound of my own breathing echoed through the silent hallway.
I clenched my trembling fists tightly, unable to tell whether the emotion shaking me was fear or rage.
***
Some time later, the Director officially hosted a memorial service for the victims of the Incheon Gate Incident.
It was a drizzly, rainy day.
Even before the memorial began, the place was already filled with crying.
These were the tears of bereaved families who had endured a lonely battle alone for so long.
“Would the bereaved families please move toward the front?”
As a staff member guided them, people quietly headed to their seats.
Holding a large umbrella, I remained near the back and slowly walked forward.
I could see the Director stepping onto the platform.
The tiny sound of the microphone turning on echoed unusually loudly.
“Today, I stand here to take responsibility for the horrific stain left by the Incheon Gate Incident. I promise that we will do everything possible to ensure such a tragedy never happens again.”
The Director’s firm voice rang through the microphone.
“To the victims, and to the bereaved families… on behalf of the Hunter Management Bureau, I sincerely apologize.”
She deeply bowed her head toward where we stood.
At the same time, the Bureau officials standing behind her all bowed as well.
“Hngh… sob.”
“You worked hard… You really worked hard.”
“You worked hard too, unni….”
At last, the tears Yoon Seah had been suppressing burst out.
The people around her embraced her as they wiped away liquid they couldn’t even tell was rain or tears.
Watching them, I clenched both hands tightly.
The sensation of my nails digging into my palms felt strangely comforting.
Quietly, I turned away and headed toward the columbarium where my parents had newly been laid to rest.
Perhaps because the memorial service was still ongoing, the inside of the columbarium was silent.
I gently touched the framed photograph placed within the small space.
“Mom, Dad. How is the new place? Spacious and quiet. Pretty nice, right?”
The moment the words left my mouth, something hot surged up my throat.
In the photo, my parents were still smiling brightly, as though they had no idea how I felt.
“…I’m really sorry. For not knowing anything all this time. For stupidly believing everything the police said.”
Seah had spent five entire years trying to uncover the truth behind her fiancé’s unjust death.
But me?
What had I done during all that time?
I hated myself for blindly chasing only my own happiness without knowing anything.
How wronged must Mom and Dad have felt all this time?
How terrified?
How frustrated?
“Now that I’ve uncovered everything, please come visit me in my dreams next time. Tell me you’re proud of your daughter. Tell me thank you. Please….”
At that moment, a gentle breeze swept through my hair.
When I looked up, I saw the open door at the end of the hallway.
Had I left it open when I came in?
“Ah….”
Before I knew it, the rain had stopped, and sunlight had appeared.
Beyond the glass door, cherry blossom petals drifted slowly through the air like a painting.
Looking at the full arrival of spring before me, I smiled faintly.
“Are you comforting me? Thank you, Mom. Dad.”
Hanyang walked over beside me and lightly bumped against my leg.
Laughing softly, I picked Hanyang up.
“Hanyang! Do you want to say hello to my parents too?”
I carried Hanyang over in front of the photograph.
Hanyang pressed his nose close to the frame and stared at it silently for quite a while.
“They’re my parents. What do you think?”
“…Hm, now that I see them like this, I understand immediately, nya.”
“Understand what?”
“You really resemble your parents a great deal, nya.”
Hanyang swished his tail back and forth.
I burst into a soft laugh at his strange reaction.
“Well, of course I do! I’m their daughter!”
“That is not what I meant, nya.”
“Haha! Alright then. Shall we head back now?”
As if answering, Hanyang let out a light meow.
Before leaving, I took out a fish-shaped keyring.
Then I placed a recent photo of Hanyang and me beside the frame.
‘I’m doing well. So don’t worry about me and rest peacefully. I’ll come visit again.’
From now on, I should come see my parents often.
Thinking that, I stepped outside into the rain-cleared world.
And the very next day…
Seah came to work at the shop and submitted her resignation letter.
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