Chapter 107
Chapter 107
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 107
Chapter Title: The Heroic Tackle
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‘There was a closed door on the opposite side. If I go around there and grab him from behind…!’
Kang Hyun intended to rescue her.
He remembered the sealed iron door at the far end of the records storage room and started sprinting toward it frantically.
Blood surged through him from head to toe, his heart pounding as if it might burst.
This was a life-or-death moment unlike any he’d faced before.
The man was using the door as a shield, facing off against the on-site staff.
With the man wildly excited and drawing his knife, no one knew what he might do next—so Kang Hyun ran like mad to end the situation.
Pat.
“Hey, watch out!”
“Sorry!”
Kang Hyun brushed past several clueless staff members, enduring their complaints as he kept running.
Finally, he found the unused door on the opposite side and reached it, gasping for breath.
Rattle! Rattle!
“Huff, huff.”
Crash! Thud!
Big and small noises kept coming from beyond. The situation clearly hadn’t improved at all.
“Huff, huff… Damn it.”
But the door was firmly shut.
Catching his breath, Kang Hyun stood at a crossroads.
Should he go back around?
What if it was too late by then, and the man had already done something irreversible?
Someone would have to take responsibility for the horrific incident at the Prosecutor’s Office, and others would plunge into despair, weeping bitterly.
“Screw it.”
Kang Hyun spotted the fire extinguisher mounted to the right of the door at the bottom, hoisted it with all his might, and slammed it down hard on the locked door.
Crack!
Half the door handle flew off, but the iron door didn’t budge.
“Huff, huff.”
Once more.
Kang Hyun lifted the extinguisher with every ounce of strength and smashed it down again on the broken door handle.
He repeated this several times.
Crack, crunch!
Finally, the door handle shattered completely, and the door swung open.
At the same moment, the emergency alarm began blaring. It wasn’t something Kang Hyun had anticipated, but it made sense in the Prosecutor’s Office’s secure internal area.
Beep! Beep!
“Phew.”
Kang Hyun closed his eyes.
Though the alarm rang fiercely, the more it did, the calmer he became. He knew exactly what to do in a crisis.
‘His focus must be broken now!’
This might actually work in his favor.
The bell echoing throughout the building would make anyone hesitate, even mid-act—it had to be sowing chaos for the man too.
This was his chance.
‘Run.’
With the thought, he charged into the storage room at full speed.
At the opposite entrance, the man with the weapon must be holding the staff member hostage, facing off against the others.
Crash.
“Ugh!”
Something caught his leg for a split second, nearly tripping him, but Kang Hyun didn’t stop.
-Screeeam!
-Shut up!
The voices of the hostage and the perpetrator echoed from beyond the exit door.
The sound of his knife scraping something—dragging across a surface—signaled an imminent disaster!
“…!”
This wouldn’t do.
In that instant, Kang Hyun felt his body move before his mind could catch up.
Standing before the door, he flung it wide open without hesitation and launched himself at the man, who had his back turned.
“Wha—what the—?!”
Hearing the door, the man twisted awkwardly to look back, panicking at the sight of Kang Hyun hurtling toward him.
In that split second,
Kang Hyun threw his whole body at the man, slapping away the hand holding the weapon.
Thwack.
“Ugh!”
Luckily, it connected—the man’s grip loosened, and the knife clattered to the floor.
Clang!
Crash! Thud!
Kang Hyun tackled him next, and at the same time, the female staff member was flung aside.
Kang Hyun seized the moment, grabbing the man’s body and rolling with him to the opposite side.
The other staff members rushed in to help, grabbing at the man’s arms and legs.
“Argh! You bastard…!”
“Calm down!”
Kang Hyun shouted firmly at the man as he mounted the fallen body, pinning the back of his head with his arm.
“Grrgh… You little…!”
Kang Hyun instinctively launched into the arrest procedure, including the Miranda warning.
The staff didn’t waste a second—once his words ended, they moved to cuff the man’s arms tight.
With Kang Hyun holding him down, a few grabbing one arm and others his leg, the thrashing man finally went limp, as if giving up.
“Urk, grrk.”
Clink, clink.
The Japanese sword rolling on the floor.
A trace of someone’s blood beaded at the blade’s tip.
It truly had been a razor-edge moment.
But the timing was perfect, and Kang Hyun had pulled it off. He’d saved a life.
“Hic, h-hic…”
The female staff member finally collapsed, sobbing uncontrollably.
She’d come back from the brink of death, dazed and gulping air raggedly, but surviving with just this was sheer luck.
People surrounded her to calm her down, and soon after, police who’d received the support request arrived on the scene in force.
Slide.
“Phew…”
Kang Hyun leaned against the wall to collect himself, watching as the man was hauled away.
If he’d been even a little later, something far worse would have happened.
The staff, who’d only kept their distance in helpless panic, now sprang into action as if a blocked vein had cleared.
No one spoke, but everyone there knew exactly what Kang Hyun had done.
They knew he’d thrown himself into the fray, ready to sacrifice everything.
“First, let’s get Choi Yu-jeong to the hospital.”
“Yu-jeong, over here. You okay?”
“Someone help support Kang Hyun too.”
Sweat-soaked and disheveled, the people straightened their clothes and silently began clearing the scene.
Kang Hyun let himself be supported and slowly made his way to the break room.
Something no one else could do.
Even though he’d succeeded, he felt it in his bones: helping someone in mortal danger wasn’t as easy as it looked.
A late afternoon that seemed destined to pass ordinarily had turned the Prosecutor’s Office upside down.
But a courageous act had averted disaster. And everyone on site knew who the hero was.
Kang Hyun sat in a backless chair in the break room, leaning against the wall for a long while.
Only now did his racing heart slow to normal, his ragged breaths steadying.
Bang!
“You idiot!”
Kim Jeong-min burst through the break room door, yelling at Kang Hyun. His tie was loosened, and he looked like he’d rushed down from upstairs.
“You okay? Hurt anywhere?”
“…I’m fine.” “You could’ve died! What were you thinking charging in like that? You’re still just a student!”
“If I hadn’t, Assistant Choi Yu-jeong’s throat would’ve been slit.”
“…That’s not for you to—argh!”
Kim Jeong-min started to argue but swallowed his words, shoving them back down his throat. He needed time to cool off too.
Kang Hyun bowed his head, too drained for more back-and-forth, and Kim Jeong-min approached slowly, sat beside him, and calmed down.
“You… don’t ever do that again.”
“I’ll try. When I saw someone in danger… I didn’t have time to think it through.”
“…Argh, you punk. If you got hurt, how could I face your mother?”
“Yeah. Guess I should learn some self-defense.”
“Do that.”
Pat! Pat!
Kim Jeong-min patted Kang Hyun’s shoulder hard—his fingertips still edged with anger—cycling through expressions as thoughts raced, then finally ruffled his hair gently.
It was praise for a job well done.
“Come on.”
“It’s still work hours, though?”
“Just come.”
Kang Hyun was curious where they were headed but didn’t ask more. He’d already pissed off Kim Jeong-min enough today, so he followed obediently.
“Get in.”
He quickened his heavy steps, bundled Kang Hyun into the car, and punched in a destination—heading to the hospital, it seemed.
“No, really, I’m fine.”
“Yeah, you’re fine. We’re going to see Assistant Choi Yu-jeong.”
“Oh… Is she okay?”
“Thanks to you.”
“Huh?”
“She says she’s fine, just some scrapes.”
What a relief.
The last knot of worry in Kang Hyun’s chest melted away.
If she’d been seriously hurt, his reckless charge would’ve lost all meaning.
Since he’d staked so much on that perilous decision, the better the outcome, the better.
Vroom, screech.
Bang.
At the hospital, several familiar staff members clustered together, with her sitting inside.
Thankfully, she wasn’t admitted or even in a room—just perched on a chair behind the counter, nodding as staff spoke to her about discharge.
What a relief.
Petite with a bob haircut, youthful face, but experienced enough to navigate crises shrewdly.
In the end, she’d nearly met disaster, but Kang Hyun’s split-second decision had saved her.
“Oh!”
Assistant Choi Yu-jeong spotted him, her eyes lighting up as she jumped up and waved.
They’d never spoken, first time meeting today, but from that eye contact in the records room, a subtle bond had formed between them.
Shared trauma as incident survivors.
And above all, Kang Hyun had saved her life.
“Kang Hyun, right?”
“Yeah. Hi. You okay?”
“Yes, thanks to you.”
“Glad you’re alright. Investigator.”
“And you? You okay? Mine’s just shallow—band-aid was enough.”
“Yeah, I’m good as new.”
He even lifted his arm to show off his build. She chuckled at the exaggeration, then spoke earnestly.
“And really… thank you.”
“No big deal. Someone had to do it.”
“No. It was far from easy. Thank you so much! You saved my life and made me the heroine of a huge case that’ll echo through the Incheon District Prosecutor’s Office forever. Should I call this an honor?”
She winked playfully, expressing her gratitude.
Assistant Choi Yu-jeong, as a prosecutor’s investigator, seemed a bit different from the office clerks or handlers—more proactive, perhaps.
Small and cute on the outside, but brave and resolute.
She offered a handshake, which he gladly took, then suddenly pulled him into a joyful hug, putting a capstone on the incident.
“Anyway, dinner’s on me today! We cheated death, so let’s eat something amazing!”
“Uh… sure, thanks.”
Caught off-guard by the sudden hug, Kang Hyun flailed awkwardly for where to put his hands, but he could feel her genuine gratitude.
Cheers erupted around them, ignoring his awkwardness.
“Wow!”
“You did great!”
“Kang Hyun, nice one!”
Kim Jeong-min watched silently from the crowd, smiling.
Only then did today’s events sink in for Kang Hyun, a swell of pride rising for what he’d done.
‘Yeah, I did good!’