Necessary Evil
"Joo-ye! Look out—!"
Ki Joo-ye had jerked her body back from the edge of the escalator without even realizing it, but she hadn't gotten a proper look at what had startled her, thanks to her manager clutching her shoulder.
She quickly fished her phone out of her clutch.
🔍 Search: War on the Rule of Law premiere
The moment she searched for the premiere, photos of Ki Joo-ye from minutes ago popped up. Just as she'd expected, the reactions were glowing.
Ki Joo-ye Appears at the War on the Rule of Law Premiere… A Refreshing Dress Radiates It-Girl Charm
Ki Joo-ye at the Premiere — Loveliness Explosion
Top Class's Ki Joo-ye — Even Her Photo-Wall Pose Is Top Class~ Adorable Finger Hearts at the Premiere
And yet something felt off. Han Yeo-reum, whom she'd only glimpsed in passing, kept grating on her.
The moment she stepped into the screening hall and took her seat, Ki Joo-ye refreshed the search page again.
Damn it….
Her uneasiness had been dead on.
The VIP premiere of this year's most anticipated film, War on the Rule of Law, was held today at 1 p.m. at POEX Modern Box in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, to great fanfare. At the premiere, particular attention went to the 'same dress, different vibes' fashion moment between idol Ki Joo-ye and rookie actress Han Yeo-reum.
Idol Ki Joo-ye showcased the brand's design exactly as it was with a minimalist styling, pairing a simple brooch with long, straight hair to complete an elegant look.
By contrast, actress Han Yeo-reum pulled off the same dress with an added touch of sweetness, drawing 'dad smiles' from the reporters on site. With a sleek updo and a ribbon tied at the back of her neck, she radiated gift-like cuteness from every angle. Netizens praised her thoughtful styling, commenting 'Give her a stylist award!' and 'So adorable!'
Ki Joo-ye quietly bit her lip. In the last opinion poll, Han Yeo-reum had at least ranked below her — but the articles coming out now were placing the two women's photos side by side.
As if to say it outright: Ki Joo-ye and Han Yeo-reum were in the same league.
So she tied her hair up and stuck a ribbon on her dress. What's so impressive about that?!
Anyone could manage styling like that. Ki Joo-ye squeezed her eyes shut to hold down the irritation.
And I should've worn the designer piece. The one that nobody else could even dream of wearing.
She was mentally compiling everything she intended to demand from her coordinator the second this schedule ended, when Han Yeo-reum's voice carried over.
"Oh, there's Yeo-reum."
"Hey, Myeong Je-ha!"
It turned her stomach, watching Yeo-reum act all chummy with Myeong Je-ha in front of a crowd. Looking at Han Yeo-reum, Ki Joo-ye barely managed to choke the feeling down.
Once Top Class airs, no one's going to see anything but my styling anyway.
She had no intention of losing to some cross-dressing stint.
Ju Jun-seo, the greatest senior of all. Five stars. I gave a small, respectful bow to Ju Jun-seo, the one who had leaked Ki Joo-ye's styling information to me in advance.
In response, Ju Jun-seo held up his phone and sent me a message.
At this point, failing to play along almost felt like something was missing. Last time, when I'd uploaded the coffee truck certification shot, I had very subtly tagged Chu Ga-eul's account above Ju Jun-seo's — and this was the result.
I sent back a groveling-bow emoji.
People were filing into the screening hall one by one. Before I knew it, the movie was about to start.
Is it really possible — that I'll find my Seoryeong in here?
I read through the pamphlet in my hand once more. That distinctively slick, laminated paper slid across my fingertips.
Carving people up into yours and mine with the law?
Let's give it a try.
1990. Back when Nameless Gangster swept the nation,
everyone laughed, saying society had finally cut away its stained, rotten edges.
All except one — the boy Jeong-woo,
watching his father dragged away from where he hid inside the wardrobe.
Was the pitch-black really only ever in the back-alley gangs?
Were the hands that received fat stacks of cash in white envelopes clean?
The war on crime is not over.
This time, it is a war on the rule of law.
The son of a bottom-rung gangster returned as a Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office prosecutor.
Fists with fists. Law with law.
"You want to know who the real criminal is? Bastards like you."
While I was reading, the lights in the screening hall dimmed in silence. The emergency light at the top of the stairs glowed green, and the black screen slowly brightened.
We would like to make an announcement before the screening. In the event of an emergency, please follow…
Then came the distributor's video. With a mischievous sound effect, a little ball bounced atop a yellow box before the whole thing exploded.
BOX SHOW
That peculiar pre-movie thrill set my heart fluttering. Come to think of it, it had been quite a while since I'd last watched a film in a theater. Without realizing it, I found myself quietly absorbed.
My Seoryeong was hidden somewhere inside these two hours.
Vrrrrm—.
The film opened on an old television screen brightening to life. To the sound of a round brass dial turning, a black-and-white news broadcast played.
A neatly dressed anchor began to speak.
— The government today formally declared war on organized crime and criminal syndicates.
The screen cut rapidly. The president stood at the podium, delivering a speech with a face full of fury.
— Organized crime, rooted deep in our society! Corruption and graft! If we do not root it out, can this Republic of Korea possibly function as it should?!
Click-click-click—.
Camera flashes burst in a dizzying strobe. The president declared, stern and imposing:
— The war on crime! We will lead it to certain victory!
Beginning with a police whistle, sirens wove into an upbeat, jaunty score. A heavy drum-and-bass line drove the tempo forward.
[This Morning at 6 a.m. — Daejeon's 'Seongho Gang' Swept Up]
[The 'Yellow Dragon Gang' That Ruled the Gyeongsang Region — Actually Japanese Yakuza?]
[Gangwon Provincial Police Arrest 'Gangsan Gang' Action Chief… Evidence of Human Trafficking Found]
Bang! Bang! Bang! Over booming sound effects, bold thick-stroked captions flooded nearly the entire screen.
— This morning at six, police launched a large-scale raid, arresting one hundred gang members across the Daejeon region in a single sweep.
— A number of those detained have been found to have long been involved in illegal gambling and organ-trafficking networks, and authorities plan to thoroughly dig into the forces behind them.
The anchor and field reporters announced the day's victory. But one reporter, wearing enormous horn-rimmed glasses, told a different story.
— However, a considerable portion of those arrested carried only past records of simple assault, or had unclear ties to any organization, sparking controversy that this was little more than a 'showcase crackdown.'
Beeeep—.
A ringing, tinnitus-like noise rose, and the wide screen shrank in an instant — narrowing to a slit no wider than a single finger.
"You little bastard! You worthless piece of trash!"
"Enough. It's about time we got dinner, anyway."
Men in leather shoes had barged into the shabby one-room apartment.
Hidden inside the wardrobe, the boy could do nothing but weep as he watched his father, hunched over, submit to indiscriminate violence.
"Better off dead, honestly."
Thoo—. Beside the detective who spat at his father, a prosecutor gnawed on a cigarette and murmured quietly.
"It's guys like him that keep this society turning. If everyone were a decent citizen, what would the likes of us live on?"
"Mr. Prosecutor, really — such a generous heart you have."
The tears kept threatening to burst out. Our dad isn't like that. He isn't. I wanted to throw open the door and rush out to stop them, but I couldn't find the courage.
Finally turning his head, his eyes met his son's — and his father forced a smile, as if to say don't worry.
His face drenched in blood, he barely lifted his swollen eyelids and sent his son a wordless signal.
Jeong-woo. Stay still.
The prosecutor, catching the father's glance, smirked as if to say, well, look at this.
Did he see me? The boy's whole body went rigid.
"Hmm…."
Inside the cramped one-room apartment, the prosecutor covered the distance to the wardrobe in a single step.
Just one step. Just one — and it pressed down on the throats of both the boy and his father.
Stumbling, the father weakly clutched the prosecutor's ankle. A plea: please, spare only the child.
The prosecutor knocked the father's desperate hand away with the toe of his leather shoe.
"Right. This is what they call…."
Then he said it, loud enough for both of them to hear.
"A necessary evil — isn't that the phrase?"
Chick—. The prosecutor roughly stubbed his cigarette out against the top of the wardrobe and turned away with a smile.
It wasn't mercy. It was pure, unmistakable mockery.
The detective seized the father by the nape and dragged him out like a dog.
In an instant, silence swallowed the room. Where the father's blood had spilled, a cigarette butt lay discarded.
Clunk—.
Pushing open the wardrobe door with a limp hand, the boy stepped out and pressed the still-glowing ember into his palm to snuff it.
Sssss—.
Even as flesh sizzled faintly, the boy did not cry. He only bit down on his lip.
The hollow, empty eyes gradually filled with vengeance.
Vrrrm—.
The television dial clicked again. Somewhere along the way, the black-and-white news had turned to color.
— Korea! We've finally made it to the World Cup semifinals!
— With the 'well-being craze' sweeping the nation, Korea's pace of economic growth is drawing worldwide attention.
— Korea's GDP per capita ranking….
In front of the old television, the boy worked through a workbook set on a low dog-leg table. Just as the world outside was slowly changing, so the boy grew.
The papers he casually set aside changed one after another: a perfect 100-point test, a top-tier report card, a degree from an elite university — and at last, his bar examination certificate.
A necessary evil. The boy Jeong-woo had finally, finally clawed his way up to the same position as the prosecutor from that day.
If my Seoryeong is going to come out of this….
Watching a film with a completely different setting and situation, I found myself thinking of Seoryeong from Strange Tales (Gimyodam).
The protagonist's emotions that had surfaced in the film so far — injustice, helplessness, and vengeance.
Things that, in one way or another, are already melted into my own interpretation of Seoryeong.
A relaxed, unhurried melody began to play. It was music that sounded like an announcement: the revenge was about to begin.
I kept watching, waiting for Myeong Je-ha to appear on the screen.