Chapter 124
Chapter 124
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 124
Chapter Title: Returning to Duties
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A brief silence.
In that very short silence, Yoon Haneul was the first to regain her composure.
She hurriedly turned her head in embarrassment, her long straight hair swaying.
"No need to answer!"
"H-Huh?"
Kang Hyun stood there blankly, staring at her, swept up in a dizzying storm of emotions.
It felt like cherry blossom petals that had long since passed were brushing past each other.
"Ah, I must be crazy. What am I even saying...?"
If anything, she seemed quite flustered by her own words.
"..."
Kang Hyun gazed at her flushed cheeks, finding her adorable, and thought to himself.
That Yoon Haneul was an incredibly lovable person.
But at the same time, a thought crossed his mind.
Was he worthy of her?
Was it right to take their long-standing friendship to the next level?
Kang Hyun carefully opened his mouth.
"Haneul. I..."
"Let's go buy some ramen quick."
Whoosh.
She bolted off, dragging Kang Hyun along under the pretense of getting ramen. Caught off guard, he chased after her.
"Where are you going? It's that way."
"I don't know."
Whoosh.
"I told you it's over here!"
"I don't know!"
"Watch out! You're gonna trip!"
Dodging through crowds of friends, families, and couples strolling in groups, the two just kept running.
Friends, families, couples walking three or five abreast. Amid them all, the pair ran together, laughing their hearts out.
April passed.
Having reached the pinnacle as a law student, Kang Hyun was able to return to school.
Now it was time to tend to the Korea University Central Student Council, which he hadn't been able to look after.
He hadn't led many people before, but he knew exactly how to extend his influence to every hidden corner of an invisible organization.
Know precisely what matters most and handle it perfectly.
That was the key.
It was one of the techniques certain prosecutors used.
They rarely went out to investigation sites themselves, but there was a reason they handled cases flawlessly.
Late at night.
Click.
As the light flicked on, the spacious Korea University Central Student Council president's office came into view after a long absence.
A small sofa that didn't suit the large room, an old desk disproportionately big compared to it, and a few sparse pieces of furniture. That was all.
But the mountains of documents piled up from the president's absence asserted their presence to Kang Hyun the moment he entered.
And standing behind them was Lee Myung-hwan.
The council had kept running smoothly thanks in large part to him, so Kang Hyun turned to thank the man standing a few steps back.
"Thanks for looking after everything until now."
"No problem. I handled most of the urgent stuff, but I'm still pretty green at this."
With the executive inauguration having come and gone in a blur, things would've been a mess without the Lee Myung-hwan he'd appointed.
But Kang Hyun had long since delegated all the monthly meetings and any emergency ones to Lee Myung-hwan, and true to his trust, the man had executed them flawlessly.
Lee Myung-hwan had a mild, agreeable personality and a systematic approach to work, planning meticulously.
Given his temperament, the people around him were mostly similar types.
This had dramatically meshed well with the former interim committee members waiting for them, which was why the autonomous council was running so smoothly.
"Call me if you need anything else."
"Got it, thanks. Head on home. Good work."
Vice President Lee Myung-hwan patted his shoulder and stepped back. Now it was all on Kang Hyun.
"Whew."
Once Lee Myung-hwan left, he closed his eyes for a deep breath, then opened them again. It was to maintain the slight tension rising before unleashing peak focus.
Today, Kang Hyun had resolved to return to the student council president's office.
Snap!
"Let's get started."
And so, Student Council President Kang Hyun's work processing began.
First goal: Clear all agenda items on the verge of deadline within three days.
Quick and decisive.
The core of proficient work handling was speed and accuracy.
If someone confident in speed was skilled at their job, it meant those two elements outweighed everything else.
That saying fit Kang Hyun's processing perfectly.
He quickly scanned the materials.
"..."
As Kang Hyun picked up his pen and began reviewing, the room fell silent, filled only with the rustle of turning pages and the cries of night birds.
One hour, two hours...
The scary part about his focus was that it never broke.
Time flowed like water, and the mountain-like piles of documents passed through his eyes, neatly organized one by one.
His first task was classifying by importance.
As Lee Myung-hwan had said, the most critical events of the first semester had been handled, so most papers were performance reports, post-event wrap-ups, and meeting minutes from completed business.
Priorities varied even among them, so he swiftly finished what could be done immediately. For those needing more time, he methodically scheduled them out.
Approvals for decided matters.
Electronic document processing. Confirming materials needing replies and sending them off promptly.
The related organizations and groups around Korea University's Central Student Council would be busy all night.
'Just a bit more, then rest.'
Snap.
Even slightly fatigued, Kang Hyun didn't stop his eyes from moving. His hands flew, but his eyes were even faster.
Thud!
"Urgh... done."
Tweet tweet.
When he finally looked up from starting his review under the moonlight, morning light was already streaming through the window.
And right then, bang!
"Why's the light on in an empty room? Huh?"
The one bursting through the door seemed like a fresh recruit to the student council.
Unaware the long-vacant president's office had an owner again, he'd flung the door open.
His eyes met Kang Hyun's as the senior stretched, and the junior freaked out, waving his hands.
"Whoa! Sorry, sunbae! I thought no one was here and was gonna clean the empty room..."
"Nah, it's fine. Hard at work early in the morning, huh."
"Ah... yes."
Thinking he'd messed up, the junior gave an awkward smile and a quick bow.
"Good work!"
Thud!
Kang Hyun smiled back and finished stretching.
Out of 104 major and minor agenda items total, 57 processed.
21 reviewed and set for this week, 25 reviewed, total completed: 103.
With terrifying speed and even scarier focus, he'd grasped the backlog and cleared most in a single day.
And on his desk remained just one item.
A document titled 'Investigation Cooperation Request' fluttered slightly before Kang Hyun.
Investigation cooperation request.
His eyes lit up with interest at the final document to catch his eye.
It was an official letter stamped with the approval of the Narcotics Crime Investigation Unit chief and the seal of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. The receipt date was old, and the reply deadline had long passed.
But for such a document to be sent to the Korea University autonomous body Central Student Council? It was unprecedented since the document exchange system went fully electronic.
Likely a misdelivery, but worth checking. Kang Hyun stood lightly and flung open the door.
Bang.
"Hold up. Got a question."
"Yes, sunbae?"
The junior from earlier was cleaning the hallway, so Kang Hyun grabbed him.
"Can you check if this document was processed?"
"Ah."
He nodded right away upon seeing the official letter.
"Yes, sunbae. It was supposed to go to the Student Affairs Student Management Office but came to the student council by mistake, so we already sent it electronically. Looks like it ended up there."
"Already sent electronically? And they replied to the police?"
"Yes, we finished sending to Student Affairs. Not sure what happened after."
"Ah, got it. Thanks."
Kang Hyun waved okay and left the hallway.
But instead of heading to the student center cafeteria as planned, he walked the opposite way.
His curiosity, which had seemed satisfied, had only grown after checking.
'No big deal, but...'
Simply put, it had been forwarded between departments, so nothing to worry about. The recipient was Student Management, and while university autonomous bodies could exchange documents, they weren't official departments.
Still, curiosity was curiosity.
The requesting unit being the 'Narcotics Crime Investigation Unit' piqued it, as did the recipient being Student Management.
'What happened?'
Kang Hyun's quick steps were already heading to the Student Division.
It was a hassle, but he planned to go in person and ask about it.
Student Division.
The university department centered on student management.
Step step.
As Kang Hyun arrived at the building and navigated inside, administrative staff he passed in the halls recognized and greeted him.
"Hello."
"Yes, hello."
His destination: 'Student Management Office.'
The target department for the 'Seoul Metro PD Narcotics Unit's' investigation cooperation request.
Knock knock. Slide.
A quiet space.
Only keyboard clacks echoing. When Kang Hyun arrived, eyes naturally turned to him.
But he had a specific person in mind. One staffer with a 'Clerk' nameplate.
They would've handled the official document, so asking there shouldn't be hard.
"Excuse me, I have a question."
"Ah? Sure, go ahead."
"We got an official letter at the Central Student Council by mistake and forwarded it, just checking if it was handled okay."
"Hm... I remember. Document number?"
"Received as Central-137, sent a week ago."
"Hold on."
Typing sped up briefly, then slowed.
"Hm. It's been closed out."
"Pardon? It was a police agency letter, right? Just closed?"
"Yes. Closed. We contacted the police, and they said no cooperation needed."
"Ah."
A flicker of suspicion crossed Kang Hyun's face, but he bowed politely, deeming no point pressing here.
"Got it. Thank you."
Finishing up, he left deep in thought.
'Something's off.'
One might think it was no issue at all. But Kang Hyun sensed something strange.
Normally, when an investigative agency sends a cooperation request to another organization, it meant a formal 'internal investigation' had begun.
Plus, reaching the 'cooperation request' stage involved careful case review, so reversals were rare.
At minimum, there should be a visit or confirmation of the cancellation reason.
But the police just brushing it off with 'close the document'?
Something fishy was definitely going on.
Kang Hyun, who had planned a simple morning bite, suddenly thought of something and pulled out his phone to search for a number.
His busy fingers paused, eyes sparkling.
Yoo Chae-eun.
He'd remembered she'd already finished her station duty and moved to Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency headquarters.