Chapter 63
Chapter 63
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: The Sudden Arrest
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63.
One minute, two minutes...
About five minutes passed like that, with Kang Hyun and Im Cheol-su standing silently on the empty street.
Rumble! Boom!
Finally, raindrops began to fall plop, plop, and thunder echoed through the dry sky.
It looked like a pretty heavy rain was coming.
Im Cheol-su, who had been hemming and hawing, began to pour out his worries, crushed by the darkening atmosphere.
"Teacher... you said you're a law student, right?"
"Yeah."
"Then..., do you know any prosecutors?"
He seemed more like a victim than a suspect.
"For now, shall we go to a nearby cafe? I'll buy you something, let's talk there."
"...Okay."
With rain about to pour down any second, Kang Hyun hurriedly led Im Cheol-su to a nearby cafe.
Tutoring time was approaching, but that wasn't what mattered now.
"First, want something to drink?"
"..."
After arriving at the cafe and shaking off the rainwater, Im Cheol-su kept his head bowed until the drinks arrived, staring only at his phone and turning back into a mute.
"What are you looking at on your phone?"
Im Cheol-su just kept glancing back and forth between Kang Hyun and his phone.
Small vibrations kept coming nonstop, as if something was incoming.
Kang Hyun met his eyes and adopted a listening posture to draw out the main story before he sank deeper into a quagmire where he couldn't speak.
From experience, once a victim clammed up, it took a long time to get them talking again. He had to make him open up as quickly as possible.
"Tell me. What happened?"
"...No. I just don't want to say."
"I know prosecutors."
"Yes?"
"I know prosecutors. Lots of them. I worked at the Prosecutors' Office, so if I tell them, they'll help anytime. If that's too much, I can step in to keep things from blowing up. So tell me. I'll help."
As Kang Hyun finished speaking, a glimmer of hope appeared on Im Cheol-su's face.
The way he gripped his phone tightly seemed connected to why he usually couldn't put it down.
And Kang Hyun's hunch was spot on.
"...Voice phishing calls keep coming."
"Voice phishing?"
"Yeah. Calls keep coming. Pretending to be the prosecutor's office..."
Kang Hyun nodded.
Voice phishing scams had grown more varied lately, with impersonations getting increasingly sophisticated.
Recently, they'd even use real Prosecutors' Office numbers, impersonating prosecutors to demand deposits or account numbers and personal information.
At that level, it was so systematic and cunning that even actual Prosecutors' Office staff could fall for it—a major headache for dedicated police and prosecution teams.
"It's probably just impersonators, so don't worry."
"...Right?"
Kang Hyun spoke softly first to reassure him a little.
But the image of him handing that envelope of money to the man wouldn't leave his mind.
Kang Hyun had witnessed that moment without Im Cheol-su noticing.
"What do they keep calling about?"
"Telling me to come to the Prosecutors' Office."
"Why?"
"Saying I was involved in voice phishing and to appear."
Emboldened by Kang Hyun's hopeful words, he started opening up more.
"Not asking for your account number or resident registration number?"
"No."
As he spoke, Kang Hyun picked up on the oddity and asked again.
"Phone financial fraud cases usually start with police investigation. If there's no contact from the police station, it's likely impersonation. What name did the prosecutor give? Do you remember?"
"Yeah, Central District Prosecutors' Office, Criminal Division 3, Prosecutor Han Tae-ung's office."
"Huh? Who?"
The constant calls had clearly bothered him enough to remember the exact department and prosecutor's name.
But it was truly strange.
"Han Tae-ung?"
Han Tae-ung was a real prosecutor—and especially so in Central District Prosecutors' Office Criminal Division 3.
Back in high school, during his time at the Prosecutors' Office, Han Tae-ung had been part of the trial division's Central District prosecutors group that came and went around him.
He had a burly build, thick beard, and a masculine look, but he was thoughtful on the inside.
Even when buying coffee, he was the one who usually pulled out his card—a generous type.
But he was lightning-quick too; no one came second to him, and Kang Hyun had heard he'd been making waves in his office since.
And now that name had come out of Im Cheol-su's mouth.
"Wait a sec."
The moment he heard Im Cheol-su's story, he pulled out his phone and dialed someone.
Better to check directly than speculate alone.
-Hello.
"Practical Affairs Officer, hello! Sorry to call after hours."
-Oh, Kang Hyun! How've you been?
Practical affairs officers were the go-to for this. They knew internal cases and details inside out, and news and rumors spread fastest through them.
"Hope you're doing well? Got something urgent to ask."
That's why Park Eun-hye had come to mind. She would give a straight answer.
-If it's something Kang Hyun wants to know, of course I'll tell you. What's up?
"Prosecutor Han Tae-ung—where's he at now?"
-Han Prosecutor? What's Kang Hyun doing looking for Han Prosecutor? Not just reminiscing about old times, I hope?
"Got a situation. Please help me out."
-Hold on, let me check exactly. It's been chaos with the personnel shuffle.
He could hear her tapping on the keyboard, checking the internal messenger.
In the brief silence, Im Cheol-su swallowed hard and looked at Kang Hyun with anxious eyes.
Then her answer came.
-He's in Criminal Division 3, phone financial fraud dedicated team. Oh, and I heard Criminal 3 is swamped. I saw him in passing the other day.
"Voice phishing dedicated team, by any chance?"
-Exactly. How'd you guess? I heard a big case came in—they're working day and night.
Im Cheol-su's situation didn't look simple to resolve.
"Thanks, Officer. I'll pay my respects properly later."
-Sure, let's grab a meal sometime!
The moment Kang Hyun set down the phone, Im Cheol-su—who had overheard the conversation with Park Eun-hye—went pale and shot up to bolt from the cafe.
"Where you going?"
"Pretend you don't know, please."
Kang Hyun grabbed Im Cheol-su, who tried to dash out, and spoke calmly.
"Pretend what? Is this something you can just ignore? And we don't even know the full story yet. I'll check directly with the office. Don't worry. Sit down and talk first."
He sat Im Cheol-su back down and continued.
"You've got more to say, right? Tell me—I'll help."
"..."
"Even if you've got something to hide or you're worried, it's better to be honest. What can you solve by suffering alone?"
Kang Hyun had a gut feeling.
He was probably going to spend this week shifting from tutor to dedicated lawyer.
"You're a minor, so if it's a real summons from the prosecution, your mom definitely knows. They always contact the guardian."
"Mom... doesn't know."
"You sure?"
"Not entirely... but she never mentioned anything."
"No summons notice? No indictment? No mail from the Prosecutors' Office?"
"No..."
To even go to the Prosecutors' Office and talk, he needed more information.
The situation was still unclear.
"Hand over the phone for now? I'll make contact."
"No. I'll handle it."
"Then I'll ask your mom." "Teacher, why are you butting in?"
"It's not butting in. I'm trying to help."
The old Kang Hyun might've snapped, but this was a young kid.
He calmly picked words to persuade Im Cheol-su and kept going.
"Isn't it better to have someone help than suffer alone?"
"..."
"It's hard to tell your parents, right? Then wouldn't I be a better 'someone' for it?"
"..."
He seemed to be mulling it over.
"If you really don't want to, I won't."
Im Cheol-su, lips pressed tight and staring at the floor, didn't even seem to have the energy to push Kang Hyun away.
"...I'll tell you."
It was the moment he finally gave up resisting Kang Hyun and prepared to explain everything.
Right then.
Bang.
Through the pouring rain, two burly men pushed into the cafe. They were searching for someone, their eyes repeatedly drifting over, so Kang Hyun and Im Cheol-su halted their talk.
Kang Hyun suddenly sensed something ominous.
The vibe was different from when Im Cheol-su had met the man in the black hat earlier, but it carried the same air of urgency.
They approached Kang Hyun and Im Cheol-su at the window seat as if it were natural.
As the two men drew close, Kang Hyun knew exactly who they were. They flashed their badges and spoke.
Plainclothes cops.
Detectives.
"Im Cheol-su?"
"Y-Yes?"
Im Cheol-su raised his head, eyes wide as saucers.
"You're Im Cheol-su, correct?"
"Yes... but."
It was clear they'd come for Im Cheol-su.
After eyeing Kang Hyun and Im Cheol-su for a moment, the two men pulled something from inside their jackets and spoke.
"Im Cheol-su, you are under arrest as of now for suspected violation of the Electronic Financial Transactions Act."
"Huh? What? Wait, hold on. What does that mean?"
Im Cheol-su froze solid, breathing raggedly as he flailed his hands. It seemed like an unexpected turn.
But the police ignored Kang Hyun sitting right there and focused on executing the warrant.
"Here's the warrant—take a look. Im Cheol-su, you are under arrest as of now for violation of the Electronic Financial Transactions Act. You have the right to make a statement, the right to refuse self-incriminating statements, and the right to appoint an attorney."
Tears were already welling up in Im Cheol-su's widened eyes.
"I-I... I didn't do it. I didn't do anything!"
He was a sturdy teenager. When he didn't comply meekly and started swinging his arms in resistance, the police had no choice—they pulled out handcuffs and seized his wrists.
Watching from across the table, Kang Hyun stepped in, blocking their hands as he spoke.
"Detectives, sorry, but I'm with him. What's going on?"
He stood to face the police directly.
After a moment of debating whether to just watch or step in, he'd decided to speak up.
The police showed clear annoyance and asked Kang Hyun.
"You're... with him?"
"Yes."
The police looked put off by Kang Hyun's sudden appearance. Fair enough—their target, Im Cheol-su, was right there, but now there was an unexpected interloper.
"What's your relationship?"
"I'm his tutor."
"Hmm... so not a guardian. This is an important matter—please step aside."
"No. I don't think so. You're executing an arrest warrant in a cafe without regard for the suspect's rights, dragging off my student, and telling me to step aside?"
"No, that's..."
Kang Hyun glanced over the arrest warrant and spoke.