Chapter 188: You'll Regret This
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 188: You'll Regret This
[An unidentified drone is flying through the city center.]
The report came from the most-watched 9 o'clock news. Something that looked more like a robot than a drone was flying through the sky.
Before long, the object flying in the air began firing at the people passing below. It was an impossible event in the Republic of Korea, where firearms were strictly regulated.
But in the next moment, something impossible not just in Korea, but anywhere on Earth, occurred.
[A woman with wings on her back takes flight.]
Hekaterina, sprouting angel wings from her back, leaped into the air and smashed the robot that was shooting at her and the people below.
After that, dozens more flying objects began to target her—but Hekaterina didn't even blink as she started to wipe them all out.
This scene was captured by all sorts of cameras.
"...What the hell is this now?"
Yohan let out a deep sigh, turned on his smartphone, and went to an online forum. As expected, every community site was buzzing with talk of Hekaterina.
Smartphone cameras that happened to be filming her, nearby CCTV, and even dashcam footage from various vehicles...
Countless different videos had captured her, proving that she wasn't a fraud, a fake, or CGI, but the real deal.
─So what movie is this from?
ㄴ It's not a movie, it's real, you idiot.
ㄴ So what's the actress's name?
ㄴ I wanna know too.
─Sissssss, I'm dyingggggg
─Found the source. http://……
"This is insane."
Dozens of videos capturing her had been uploaded to YouTube and social media, and countless other videos were debating her identity, questioning whether she was a real person or CGI.
At this moment, the Republic of Korea, at the very least, was in the grip of a Hekaterina boom.
"I don't know what happened, so I don't even know how far back I should turn time..."
Scratching the back of his head, Yohan got up and headed to the living room to talk to Hekaterina.
But as soon as he got there, he realized Hekaterina hadn't returned yet.
'Ah... right. It would be weirder if she just came back after all that.'
She was probably being held at a police station or some government facility. Then, Yohan remembered that she was officially registered in the national database of the Republic of Korea, and that the address on file was this very place.
Ding-dong—!
─Mr. Kim Yohan? Is Mr. Kim Yohan home?
"Hah... fuck."
And on paper, Hekaterina was one of Yohan's wives.
Yohan sighed heavily and opened the door. A civil servant in a suit immediately shoved his ID in Yohan's face and spoke.
"Mr. Kim Yohan? We need you to come with us for a moment."
It was the start of a troublesome day.
He was blindfolded, his arms restrained by two men on either side. He supposed he should be grateful they hadn't handcuffed him.
Feeling the car intentionally driving in circles to disorient him, Yohan fought the urge to tell them to stop wasting time and just get to their headquarters.
If he said something like that, they would assume he knew something and become even more suspicious of him.
"We're here."
Feeling the agent next to him lead him out of the vehicle, Yohan obediently followed them.
He was only allowed to remove the blindfold after he was inside a certain room.
It was a pitch-black room. The only source of light was a small desk lamp illuminating the tabletop.
"Mr. Kim Yohan? A pleasure to meet you. My name is Choi Jin-gu."
A man, who had been sitting in front of him at some point, introduced himself. He said he was a level-7 public official from the Ministry of Land and Safety.
However, from his sturdy build and confident demeanor, Yohan could tell he was no ordinary civil servant.
'An NIS agent or something...'
Yohan thought to himself, giving a slight nod in return. The man chuckled at Yohan's reaction.
"The reason we've brought you here, Mr. Yohan, is..."
"Before that."
"Yes?"
"Could I get something to drink? My throat is parched from how tightly they were holding me."
"Haha, of course. Please wait a moment."
Glancing somewhere, Jin-gu used the radio on the desk to request some water. Yohan followed his gaze to a plain, dark wall.
The wall was vibrating ever so slightly. It was probably a one-way mirror. The kind you often see in movies.
[...Why is he so-]
[...don't you think he's...]
As he passed the time eavesdropping on the chatter from beyond the glass, the door opened and another employee entered with two bottles of water.
He'd hoped for Jeju Samdasoo, but he guessed this was what you got from civil servants. Two bottles of a cheap, tasteless brand of water were brought in.
Yohan immediately voiced his complaint.
"This stuff tastes awful."
"Water is water. Haha."
"Well, thanks for the drink anyway."
Watching Yohan quench his thirst, Jin-gu began to explain why he had been brought to such a place.
"Do you watch the news?"
"Yes, well. I don't not watch it."
"Then you must be aware of what Ms. Hekaterina has done."
"The news said she saved people."
"Did you know she was that kind of person... or should I say, being? In any case, did you know she was such an existence?"
"What if I said I didn't?"
Hearing Yohan's response, Jin-gu opened a file folder in front of him and began to read its contents aloud.
"Name, Kim Yohan. Twenty-one years old this year. No military service, an orphan. Until last year, you showed no activity, as if you were dead, but suddenly this year, you've earned tens of billions of won."
"My crypto investments paid off."
"And you even had a sudden international marriage... with multiple foreign nationals. Let me ask you. Mr. Kim Yohan, are you really Kim Yohan?"
Jin-gu was doubting Yohan's identity. He suspected that he wasn't Yohan, but some other entity who had stolen his identity.
But upon hearing this, Yohan scoffed and gave a thumbs-up. It looked like a gesture of praise, so Jin-gu tilted his head and stared at Yohan's finger.
"...What is this supposed to mean?"
"Check my fingerprint. See if I'm someone else."
"There's a possibility that your fingerprint was forged along with your ID..."
"Then that's a problem with the government of the Republic of Korea. Am I supposed to solve that for you, too? Isn't this the Republic of Korea? The country with the presumption of innocence? If it's a forgery, you're the ones who have to prove it. No, in the first place."
Yohan stood up, slightly annoyed.
"What do you think you're doing, dragging me to a place like this all of a sudden? Do you know how much I pay in taxes? And it's not enough to drag me here, you're interrogating me like a criminal?"
"Sit down."
"No. I'm leaving now. Please send me back."
"Sit..."
"─Sit the fuck down, you commie bastard!"
CRASH-!
"I was being nice, you think this is your fucking living room?"
A middle-aged man who had suddenly kicked the door open shouted as he grabbed Yohan's head and tried to slam it onto the desk.
But no matter how hard he grunted and pulled on the back of his head, Yohan's body didn't move an inch. He's not a pro wrestler, so how the hell is he this strong...!
Yohan pointed at the middle-aged man who had laid hands on him and spoke.
"Hands off."
"This bastard...!"
Unable to contain his momentary rage, the middle-aged man kicked out at Yohan's shin.
No matter how muscular or strong he is, he can't ignore the pain. Once he reacts, I'll use that momentum to subdue him.
─Or so he thought. But Yohan deftly dodged the incoming foot and returned the favor in kind. The middle-aged man clutched his shin, which had broken with a sickening crack, and rolled on the floor.
"Gyaaaaaaah—!?"
"Kim Yohan! What are you doing! Sit down!"
"This is self-defense."
"Shut up! Sit down now!"
When Yohan didn't budge despite his commands, Jin-gu immediately pulled out a pistol hidden under the desk and aimed it at him.
"Sit down if you don't want to die!"
"Is that a real gun?"
"Want me to test it on your head?"
Even Yohan couldn't act tough in front of a pistol. He could dodge a single handgun with his eyes closed, but the aftermath would be the problem.
Pointing a gun at him so openly meant this was an organization that used firearms freely.
And it was impossible for such an organization not to have rifles. He might be able to dodge a pistol, but he couldn't dodge rifles fired by multiple people.
As Yohan obediently sat down, Jin-gu dragged his writhing superior out of the room and spoke.
"Stay still. I'll shoot if you move even a little."
"Be my guest."
As the injured man was rescued, agents who had been waiting outside quickly began to fill the room.
Yohan looked at the agents aiming their guns at him with a bored expression.
"What's all this about?"
"─You're asking because you don't know?"
"What?"
"This morning, someone hacked the NIS server. And whatever they did, they even caused an unidentified robot terror attack inside the NIS headquarters."
"What does that have to do with me..."
"The address of that hacker is your house, Kim Yohan."
Hearing those words, Yohan clamped his mouth shut. He could roughly grasp how the situation was unfolding.
Seeing Yohan fall silent, Jin-gu gestured with his chin as if to say, "See?"
"We did a background check on you. You've filed ten marriage registrations under the same name. Somehow, they were all approved... Do you still have anything to say?"
"No."
"Seize him."
The agents immediately grabbed Yohan. But even with three or four able-bodied men holding him, Yohan didn't budge.
As the agents started to beat Yohan's body with their guns, Yohan left them with a single, chilling remark.
"You'll regret this."
After that, Yohan allowed himself to be subdued.