Chapter 189
Chapter 189
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 190
Chapter Title: 1 vs 100
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Nearly a hundred reporters engaged in a verbal battle with Kang Hyun.
However, not once did any single reporter manage to follow up with a second question.
"Any more questions?"
"...None."
One reporter, who had risen with fire in his eyes to unleash a barrage of questions, slumped back down powerlessly.
Another victory for Kang Hyun.
The reporters' momentum ground to a halt, and Kang Hyun began to shine brighter and brighter.
Eventually, having exhausted their prepared questions, the reporters resorted to awkward, half-baked, low-quality queries flung into the air.
"TBS here. You're saying the dating rumors between Kang Hyun and Yoon Haneul are false?"
This time, it was the heckler.
The same guy from the Namyangju intersection collision incident, the one who'd caused a scene in front of the morgue.
Kang Hyun smiled.
"The initial 'Dispatch' report on the 'Yoon Haneul dating scandal' was a manipulated photo taken by a reporter stalking her private life—meetups, gym visits, restaurants, the works—and maliciously edited for distribution. Most articles are speculative, ripping off others without sources."
Murmurs rippled through the crowd.
Speculative? Ripping off other articles without sources?
Those were words guaranteed to rile up the journalists.
"Ha! That was a mistake on your part. We'll run it as a story. You think reporters are a joke?"
The TBS reporter, thrilled at having found an opening, stepped forward as if representing the press.
And with no response from Kang Hyun, he spread his arms wide in excitement and shouted.
"Got any proof? Proof that most articles are speculative and plagiarized!"
A sharp grin tugged at Kang Hyun's lips.
As if he'd been waiting for the man to step forward in a huff.
"Well said. Let's review all the related articles right now, starting with yours."
Murmurs again.
The reporters buzzed as if they hadn't caught what he'd said.
-What did he just say?
-He means he's gonna check them himself?
This was Kang Hyun's trump card.
"W-What?"
The TBS reporter's eyes bulged as Kang Hyun shot to his feet.
"TBS Entertainment Desk, Reporter Choi Haeng-su. You've shown a lot of interest in me since the Namyangju incident."
"Well, you're always at the center of controversy..."
"But your competence as a reporter is questionable."
"What?"
"As of 4 a.m. today, you've posted 11 suspicious articles under your name. How does one manage 11 articles on the same topic in a single day?"
His pointed words made Choi Haeng-su scowl deeply, his face twisting in disbelief.
But Kang Hyun answered that disbelief with a bold declaration.
"Out of those 11, seven are so lowbrow—just 'there's suspicion of this' or 'rumors say that' with no sources—that they're not worth reading aloud.
Articles like 'Yoon Haneul and Kang Hyun Scandal: Bold Moves,' 'Is Yoon Haneul Okay Like This? The Hidden Truth Behind Her Bright Image,' 'Drug Party with Yoon Haneul: Signs of Kang Hyun's Involvement?' and 'Yoon Haneul Linked to Five Men in Incident'—you excerpted those from Seoul Ilbo's entertainment planning team. Copy-pasting word-for-word without changes? Disappointing."
Point by point. Clear and concise.
"First article: Yoon Haneul and Kang Hyun Scandal: Bold Moves. Amid reports of an improper relationship between Yoon Haneul and Kang Hyun, attention is drawn to Yoon Haneul's provocative see-through fashion spotted in Milan in the past.
The Milan Fashion Week S/S collection was about six months ago, before she even returned to Korea. You used it well to grab eyes. Next article: Is Yoon Haneul Okay Like This? The Hidden Truth Behind Her Bright Image..."
Exposed in plain sight—the reporter's name called out by Kang Hyun, his suspicious articles recited one by one.
-Did he memorize all that?
-No way...
It was jaw-dropping, utterly astonishing.
Because Kang Hyun sat there with no notes whatsoever.
Not even glancing at his phone or reading from anything.
That's right.
In just one day, he'd analyzed over 100 initial articles, up to around 400 in total, and committed them all to memory.
It's not like skimming them made them easy to recite. Nor were they the kind of things you could just stuff into your head.
"I'll continue."
"Stop! Just stop!"
"You're the one who posted them for everyone to see—why be ashamed now? I'll keep going."
Kang Hyun had no reason to stop. He continued reciting every article Choi Haeng-su had uploaded that day.
His actions transcended imagination—superhuman, monstrous ability.
Amid the reporters' stunned silence, Choi Haeng-su stammered incoherently.
Sweat poured like rain, soaking his armpits and back.
"Huff... huff..."
His face drained of color, his feet instinctively backing away, sharp glares from the other reporters piercing him.
But Kang Hyun didn't stop there.
"Next up. As I mentioned, as of 4 a.m. today, there have been 27 offline broadcasts, and 483 related articles online. Let's verify them all."
In that moment, the dynamic between the reporters and Kang Hyun flipped.
Some reporters slunk away quietly; the called-out one stood to confirm if the article from his outlet was accurate.
"For that article, the bottom paragraph about a drug party attended by Jack Daniel starting at 8 p.m. in Gangnam—source?"
"Th-that was excerpted from TBS."
"Any TBS reporters here who wrote that? Not many TBS folks left—anyone wanna answer?"
Silence.
This pattern repeated endlessly.
The press conference-style Q&A that began around 3:30 p.m. showed no signs of ending even by 6 p.m.
A first for these journalists.
Most glanced at their watches, growing visibly frustrated, but some pulled out laptops in the provided space to draft new stories.
They'd witnessed firsthand that Kang Hyun's media verification was reliable.
One hour passed, then another.
Facing so many, he should've been exhausted, but Kang Hyun grew stronger with time. Lips pressed tight, he could feel his opponents' energy draining.
Swoosh.
As more reporters began to leave, Kang Hyun sensed victory and eased up slightly.
'Got 'em.'
The familiar rush of triumph as things fell into place drew him deeper, exciting him further.
'Haneul must've gone home by now.'
What more investigation content could there be to urgently summon Yoon Haneul like this?
The case details were more thorough than the complaint and statements, with all related materials attached—and he was the party to the dating rumors involved. Nothing more was needed.
In other words, this marathon verbal battle of over four hours was the grand finale, the main event. Things had gone exactly as Kang Hyun planned.
"That concludes my responses to your questions."
Finally over.
No one approached him as he retreated into the prosecutor's office.
He caught a glimpse of Choi Haeng-su, drenched in sweat, lingering awkwardly at a distance, flustered.
Kang Hyun felt much better, having landed a solid hit.
"Good work, Prosecutor!"
As Kang Hyun finished the marathon responses and entered, Seong Tae-oh greeted him.
"Thanks for the solid prep."
"Give thanks to the office. The section chief gave special orders—prioritize support for Prosecutor Kang Hyun's office."
"I see. What about the coverage?"
Seong Tae-oh scrolled through his phone, his expression not bad at all.
"Right now... since today's events shifted to a closed investigation, the reports are just about holding a simple press Q&A. Looks like a success."
A frontal assault.
Not reckless, but a bold one with full preparation.
The impact was huge. The reporters halted their indiscriminate article spam and began regrouping.
Success.
"Whoa, as expected... Respect, Prosecutor. Now all that's left is the defamation case."
"Yeah. Take a day off, then we charge ahead tomorrow. Gotta sync schedules with Chief Park Min-seong too."
"Pardon? What about Yoon Haneul's witness interview?"
"Huh? Didn't Yoon Haneul go home?"
He'd clearly said she could leave if it dragged on.
At Kang Hyun's surprised look, Seong Tae-oh scratched his head matter-of-factly.
"Nope, still here. Says she has something important to tell you. Claims she has a grievance to state."
Bang!
Room 323 prosecutor's office, rich with a familiar scent.
Whether she'd changed tactics or had new thoughts after yesterday's events.
The door flew open to reveal Yoon Haneul, sitting primly upright—until her sullen face appeared.
Looking at him like a child who'd stayed up all night from injustice, she spoke.
"I've been waiting. I have something to say."
"Okay. Go ahead."
"It's not that you got bored or tired of me 'cause I didn't contact you. I was just struggling."
"I know. Who's saying otherwise? What about Choi Tae-ri—no, the staff with you?"
She paused, mixing her response with her prepared words in confusion.
"She went to eat... I vanished 'cause I was sick."
"For three years? What was wrong?"
"My heart."
It was a heartbreaking word from her pursed lips and sparkling eyes.
Hearing that from Yoon Haneul, full makeup on like the celebrity she was, felt almost comical.
"..."
Kang Hyun sat down slowly, facing her squarely.
It had been so long since he'd seen her face properly in good light.
The same for her. Yoon Haneul scanned him over carefully, observantly.
"If it was tough, I told you to tell me. I told you to run to me, didn't I?"
"Didn't wanna bother you. Thought I had to overcome it on my own."
"What about your mom and dad?"
"We fought."
"What're you talking about?"
"No contact."
"No contact?"
"It's been years."
He recalled visiting her mother because Yoon Haneul had been out of touch for so long. Her mom had said she was doing well abroad. It had hurt.
"...Anyone else?"
"What."
"No one you talked to?"
"Nope."
"Still, you must've had someone around. If it was that bad... you could've told somebody."
"Who, Team Leader Seo?"
"..."
Kang Hyun, who'd seen how Team Leader Seo treated Yoon Haneul, bowed his head wordlessly, thinking of her enduring alone.
In her mad dash for dreams and career, she'd gained money, fame, honor—but scarred her soul.
Bang!
"Yoon Haneul! I came back in five minutes... Oh, Prosecutor?"
"Uh, yeah."
"Seems like a serious talk? I'll head out, got work."
Slam!
Choi Tae-ri flung the door open, saw Kang Hyun slumped as if crushed by Yoon Haneul's words, and swiftly shut it again.
She'd caught on that they were having a private, secretive chat.
"..."
"I'm busy."
"But you waited four hours."
"It's quiet here, and Choi Tae-ri has a cute, kind voice."
Kang Hyun nodded. In this empty prosecutor's office with no visitors, resting with someone like Choi Tae-ri might be better for Yoon Haneul's mental state.
"...What's next on your schedule?"
"Self-reflection."
"You said you're busy..."
"Exactly."
Kang Hyun listened to her final prickly response and decided on the next move.
"Eaten yet?"
"Nope."
"Wait a sec then. Let's grab food."
"Where? I wanna eat quietly."
"Know a good spot. Meat okay?"
Kang Hyun tapped his phone and made a call.
A quiet, warm place to restore her spirits—food first.