Chapter 767
Chapter 767
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 767
Chapter Title: Modern World Outing (6)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
1.
The neighborhood police station we arrived at in the patrol car was in an uproar.
"Hey, officer! Isn't this attempted murder?"
"No, hand over your ID. Why keep changing the subject? You drunk? Wanna spend the night in the drunk tank?"
"Is that how you talk to an assault victim?"
"He's just wasted, that's all. We didn't fight for real. It was a one-sided beating."
"Look at this! See this? My nose is still gushing blood."
"So who threw the first punch?"
"That gigolo bastard sitting over there! He started it!"
I'm the victim, that guy's the killer.
I got hit first, he struck first.
Sergeant Jo let out a deep sigh as he watched the usual circus unfolding from the station's repeat offenders.
To Sergeant Jo, who'd given up promotion to captain and been grinding away at the substation instead, the picture was crystal clear.
Thugs like these always rolled in packs, and none of them ever had their heads screwed on straight.
"Officer Kim, go calm them down. This ain't their living room. Damn punks... tsk tsk."
"Yes, sir."
Sergeant Jo clicked his tongue a couple more times and picked up where the commotion had interrupted their conversation.
"Let's see..."
Even to a grizzled veteran like him, this case felt a bit off.
A trivial assault complaint.
Normally, he'd just hand it off to the rookies, but the oddity of it had him handling the statements himself.
"So, you're a Grade 1 secretary... a diplomat, then?"
Sergeant Jo flicked his eyes back and forth between the diplomatic ID handed over by the pink-haired foreigner in front of him and her appearance.
The anti-forgery hologram gleamed on the ID, featuring a woman so stunning it was hard to believe, but the real thing was even more striking.
"That's right."
"And... the gentleman next to you?"
"My husband."
"May I have his name and resident registration number? Or his ID."
"He's American."
"No passport either?"
"Not on him right now."
Sergeant Jo scratched his head vigorously.
Diplomats and their families generally enjoyed immunity from prosecution and arrest privileges.
Of course, a scuffle like this wouldn't lead to cuffs anyway, but...
There was no manual for handling a situation where a diplomat's husband got tangled in an assault case without verified ID.
"This is a headache..."
He kept the possibility of a fake ID in mind, just in case.
Because the woman before him looked far too youthful to be the 33 years stated on it.
And with a face like that, she'd be an actress, not a diplomat.
Maybe one of those viral YouTube pranks his kid mentioned? Some hidden cam "hilarious" stunt?
"Miss, forging official documents carries heavy penalties."
Even if it was fake, punishment for a clear foreigner like this pink-haired woman was secondary; Sergeant Jo issued the warning anyway.
The pink-haired woman responded calmly.
"It's genuine. Feel free to verify."
"They're running it through channels upstairs, but..."
Yet in conversation, she exuded a natural air of authority, like someone higher up.
That was the source of the cognitive dissonance Sergeant Jo had been feeling.
Was it her gravitas? Or was his brain glitching from facing a diplomat one-on-one for the first time?
Every time their eyes met—her pupils shimmering like colored contacts—he felt himself shrinking.
They were so straight and piercing, as if seeing right through him.
Even at his age, hearing informal speech from a woman two decades younger didn't bother him enough to correct her.
No humiliation at all.
Sergeant Jo, tapping the table with his fingertips, asked in a much more cautious tone.
"Leave your contact info and head home first?"
"Very well."
As Eloa rose from her seat, the station door burst open.
The man who came rushing in was an elderly gentleman in an expensive suit.
His hair was snow-white, but his piercing gaze and robust presence spoke of vitality.
"Wh-what brings you here... sir?"
Officer Kim, who'd been dealing with the thugs, approached the pale-faced old man scanning the room wildly—and ended up gaping himself.
He looked familiar despite it being a first meeting.
Then he spotted the gleaming "National Assembly" pin on the suit collar.
"L-loyalty!"
The man was none other than Kim Jun-beop, six-term congressman for the district and Speaker of the National Assembly.
A veteran politician anyone who watched the news would recognize.
"Bro, doesn't that old guy look familiar?"
"Kinda like someone from TV... an actor?"
Even the street punks.
"Loyalty!"
Sergeant Jo, eager to clear out the headache of a case, sprang up and saluted as well.
His mouth went dry.
Politicians were often caricatured and mocked in media, but they sat at the pinnacle of the system holding society together.
For someone at the bottom rung like Sergeant Jo, their power hit much closer to home than for the average citizen.
A six-term powerhouse who'd risen to party leader and now Speaker? Even the police commissioner would grovel.
Why was someone like that at a substation at this hour?
As his thoughts stalled, Kim watched the congressman abandon decorum and hurry toward someone.
"Oh dear, what in the world happened?"
"Long time no see, Congressman Kim."
"I heard from Lady Sua and rushed right over. I sincerely apologize for involving such a distinguished guest in this unfortunate incident."
"No need to trouble yourself."
His destination was the self-proclaimed Grade 1 secretary woman.
The congressman bowed repeatedly to the young woman who looked like his granddaughter, fawning over her.
Sergeant Jo blinked in disbelief.
He'd heard she'd made a phone call earlier, but why the Speaker?
Second in the protocol order, right below the president?
Had the power of a U.S. Embassy Grade 1 secretary skyrocketed without him knowing?
Even meeting an ambassador wouldn't warrant that level of deference.
Not election season, yet Congressman Kim kept bowing as he addressed Sergeant Jo.
"Your tireless dedication is appreciated. Is there a quiet place to talk?"
2.
The existence of witches was treated as top secret in society.
Thus, most humans knew nothing of homunculi or witches.
But a heavyweight politician like Congressman Kim had access to Level 1 secrets.
He was the one who'd liaised with Tiferet Duke during the Coex massacre and rainwater tunnel incidents.
So he knew exactly who Tiferet Duke was.
One of the witches with the greatest influence in the modern world.
A pro-human witch who'd founded the Location Point for witch-human coexistence, and a close friend of Lady Sua—the guardian deity of Korea.
The "Grade 1 secretary" title was mere window dressing.
Just recently, without her aid, a monstrous horror would've rampaged through downtown Seoul.
Moreover, witch society was in chaos lately.
She was a key figure the government had to keep friendly—for national security.
Someone they'd already benefited immensely from and would need ongoing support from.
For such a person to get hassled by street thugs and end up at a substation? A diplomatic blunder of the highest order.
Seated in the meeting room, he wiped sweat beading like rain with a handkerchief, mustering excuses.
"We had no idea you'd come to Korea. If you'd contacted me in advance, we'd have received you as state guest."
"It's fine. I'm not bothered at all. Just handle this matter fairly and squarely."
"Of course. Might I ask exactly what happened?"
Eloa answered the cautious congressman.
"I was harassed by those ruffians, and they insulted my disciple. He stepped in and gave them a lesson fitting their rudeness."
Harassed? And insulted her disciple?
Congressman Kim enunciated each word forcefully, foaming at the mouth inwardly.
"I'll handle it personally and thoroughly."
"I trust you."
Thank heavens the duchess herself seemed unperturbed.
Then his gaze shifted to Si-woo.
"Um... are you Mr. Si-woo?"
Tiferet's disciple, history's first male witch—and at great witch level, no less.
Impossible not to know the man who'd rocked witch society.
A Korean-born talent they absolutely had to recruit.
"Yes, that's me."
"It's an honor to meet you."
Si-woo, caught off guard at being pulled into the conversation, answered awkwardly.
"The world's first male sorcerer from Korea of all places. Truly impressive. This is national prestige right here. I'd love to treat you to a meal sometime— just say when, and I'll be there. Or if you ever need anything, call me directly."
Si-woo received a face full of flattery, a handshake, and a business card.
Eloa, pleased, accepted the premium whiskey Kim had rushed to bring.
The two departed the station as planned, heading back to Gehenna.
"Whew..."
Left alone in the meeting room, Congressman Kim sighed deeply.
From the vibe, it seemed resolved amicably enough to face Lady Sua.
A fire extinguished before it could spread.
But he still had work to do.
Eloa had requested a fair resolution.
Given her character, not leaning on influence, he figured if it was one-sided provocation turning mutual, it could be hushed without backlash.
But Congressman Kim had no intention of letting it slide lightly.
He called in his secretary, who'd been briefing the sergeant outside.
"Yeah, Chief Choi."
"Yes, sir."
"Those punk thugs out there—strip 'em to their pocket lint and report back to me personally."
A few days later.
A massive crackdown hit illegal hold'em pubs across Seoul, with the bosses who'd run the joints strung up like dried fish and handed to prosecutors on gambling facilitation charges.