The People's Backing
"Yun-hyeok!"
When he visited Doma-myeon, Jang Yu-ri's mother ran up to him in front of the town hall, her face lighting up with joy.
"Mister!"
Yu-ri did the same. Soon, the village chief and the neighborhood elders poured out in a crowd.
"I heard you blew up Mayor Baek Hyeong-guk!"
The local leaders were particularly thrilled about that part. Doma-myeon's leaders traditionally leaned toward supporting the Liberty Party, while Baek Hyeong-guk belonged to the rival Hanmin Party.
"That bastard embezzled over fifteen billion won under the table!"
"Good riddance! A crook like that deserved to be kicked out!"
"Ha! I knew our Yun-hyeok had what it takes!"
Yun-hyeok exchanged warm greetings, catching up briefly before heading into the town hall. Just as he was about to bring up his main point...
"You need campaign contributions, don't you?" the village chief asked first.
"Yes, sir," Yun-hyeok replied with an embarrassed smile.
The local leaders already knew exactly why he had come.
"I'm not affiliated with any major party, and I'm still young. To be honest, I don't have much money."
Yun-hyeok had saved up a decent sum over time, but after deducting the fifty million won deposit required for official candidate registration, he had barely enough left for basic living expenses. He had no personal funds left to transfer into his political campaign account.
But campaigns were expensive. From renting campaign offices and vehicles to labor costs, advertising, and even the minor fuel expenses incurred while driving all over the city.
He needed donations.
The elders' expressions softened warmly.
"When you were working at Doma Elementary, you seemed like a superhero, but today you look just like our own grandson."
"Don't you worry about a single thing."
"It's only natural not to have money at your age."
"Even those fifty- and sixty-year-old candidates come begging us for money."
"Gathering fifty million on your own is already impressive!"
The elders of Doma-myeon were incredibly proactive. Moreover, they were thoroughly well-versed in the Political Funds Act. This region had long been a fertile ground for Mir City candidates to harvest campaign funds.
"An individual can donate up to five million won, right?"
"Take the full two hundred and fifty million won today."
"We already have fifty people lined up to give five million each to make up the two hundred and fifty million."
"I'll make an announcement over the village PA system right now to call the donors to the hall, so just wait a moment."
"Have something to eat while you wait."
But Yun-hyeok politely declined a portion of the funds.
"Thank you so much, but I only intend to raise fifty million won here."
"Why's that?" The village chief tilted his head in confusion.
"If I raise too much from a single area, my debt of gratitude becomes too heavy. I believe a local government leader should never put themselves in that position," Yun-hyeok said.
A soft murmur of admiration rippled through the elders.
"In our old age, we've truly been blessed with a good man."
"The more I see of you, the more remarkable you are, Yun-hyeok."
"How on earth did a man like this spring up in Mir City?"
Then, the praise suddenly shifted to Yun-hyeok's father, Lee Byeong-jae, in a slightly meddlesome but affectionate way.
"How did you raise such a fine son, Mr. Lee?"
"You've done a truly magnificent job."
"Excellent family upbringing, truly excellent."
"Is Yun-hyeok looking to get married? Any interest in a blind date?"
"My eldest granddaughter works at Sambyeol Electronics. What do you think?"
"My youngest daughter is exceptionally sweet and well-mannered..."
"..."
Yun-hyeok's father's eyes shook in sheer panic and embarrassment.
Amidst the warm, boisterous atmosphere, the village chief of Doma-myeon looked slightly concerned.
"I understand your principles, Yun-hyeok, but raising campaign funds is no easy task. How do you plan to raise the remaining two hundred million?"
He was right.
Two hundred and fifty million won was by no means a small sum. In reality, even established mayoral candidates rarely filled their donation caps entirely through individual contributions.
So how did they do it?
They received party support. The central party's funds would finance their campaign organization, public relations, and operations.
"But you don't have a party, Yun-hyeok."
That was true. While he had no intention of playing solo as an independent forever, he had no immediate plans to join a party.
"So wouldn't it be better to take the full amount while you can get it here?"
"Thank you, but if I fall short, I'll just run the campaign with whatever I have."
Yun-hyeok remained firm. Instead, he asked:
"Instead of donations, could I perhaps ask for your signatures on my nomination petition?"
To run for mayor, an independent candidate needed the endorsing signatures of one thousand citizens. Candidates nominated by political parties could skip this process, but as an independent, Yun-hyeok had to pound the pavement.
"Of course! Give it here. Let's hop in the truck and drive around the village to get those signatures."
The village chief readily signed his name at the very top of the National Election Commission's nomination petition.
By the time Yun-hyeok finished touring Doma-myeon, he had raised fifty million won in campaign contributions and gathered two hundred endorsing signatures.
Yun-hyeok headed to the plaza in front of Mir Station.
The human fixture of Mir Station had returned.
Yun-hyeok, who had once spent days on end camped out here to gather signatures for the bus routes, began collecting signatures once again.
"Hello, everyone. I am Lee Yun-hyeok, running as an independent candidate for the Mir City mayoral by-election."
He handed out business cards, which he had registered in advance with the National Election Commission.
"Yun-hyeok!"
He was already a well-known figure there.
"Are you collecting signatures again?"
"What is it for this time?"
To the crowding citizens, Yun-hyeok explained kindly.
"As an independent, I need the signatures of one thousand endorsing citizens to officially register as a candidate. Would you be willing to help?"
"Oh, of course!"
"Thanks to you, my commute has been so much better lately."
"I can leave thirty minutes later in the morning and still make it on time."
Citizens eagerly lined up to sign.
"Don't you need campaign donations?" some asked.
Yun-hyeok only answered truthfully when asked directly. He told them he had raised fifty million won in Doma-myeon, but frankly, it was still far from enough.
"Please give us your campaign account number."
People immediately opened their mobile banking apps.
"Think of how much taxi fare I've saved thanks to your transit reforms!"
Contributions began pouring into his political campaign account.
While there were no high rollers throwing in a million won at a time like in Doma-myeon, small but precious donations of twenty thousand or thirty thousand won steadily piled up.
At some point, word must have spread, because a significant number of people coming to sign the petition began asking how to donate.
The reason was soon revealed.
"Yun-hyeok!"
The tenant representatives of Yeok-dong's Raymi Castle had arrived.
"It's been a while."
The president of the tenant association was even more excited about Yun-hyeok's candidacy than Yun-hyeok himself.
"We looked up the Political Funds Act and quietly shared the details in our group chat. We made sure to emphasize that it has to be completely voluntary and absolutely no coercion, but told anyone interested that you'd be here at Mir Station if they wanted to drop by."
"Thank you so much."
He was genuinely grateful. Transparent individual donations were the very essence of the Political Funds Act.
This was also why Yun-hyeok politely declined the next offer.
"Do you not accept corporate donations?"
Choi Jun-taek, the Chief Financial Officer of Raymi Castle, had called to ask.
"Yes. For starters, anything other than individual donations is illegal."
"The law says that, but there are always ways around it."
What on earth were you planning...
"I want to practice politics without relying on loopholes."
"Hmm. I figured you would say that. But donations under an individual's name are fine, right? I truly want to support you."
That day, Choi Jun-taek deposited one million won into Yun-hyeok's campaign account.
In front of Mir Station, Yun-hyeok gathered one thousand signatures and another fifty million won in donations.
"Hello, everyone."
Yun-hyeok visited the Tanseo High School Parents' Association.
"Oh my goodness! Hello, Yun-hyeok!"
Word traveled fast. The parents' association had already prepared cash and endorsing signatures.
Come to think of it, it made sense. They say anyone in the world is connected to the President of the United States through just six degrees of separation; in a city of 490,000 like Mir City, it was practically a village. Among the countless people passing through Mir Station, there were bound to be connections to the coalition of parents' associations from the thirteen elementary, middle, and high schools near Tanseo High.
"I came to give you my business card. And to ask for your endorsing signatures."
He had already reached the required one thousand signatures. However, preparing extra signatures in case of typos, incorrect addresses, or duplicate entries was standard practice for independent candidates.
But his true objective lay elsewhere: rallying his supporters.
"Of course, of course!"
The officers of the parents' association eagerly signed the petition.
"Our kids are so happy lately because the school bullies are gone and the environment is so clean!"
"How did you ever come up with such an ingenious method, Yun-hyeok?"
"We really hope you become our mayor, Yun-hyeok."
They showered him with encouragement.
"Don't you need campaign donations as well?" asked the vice president of the Tanseo High Parents' Association, who ran a real estate rental business.
"Yes, I do."
"To be honest, we already tracked down your campaign account, but we were waiting to hear it from you directly."
"Please make sure to become mayor and put it to good use."
From the joint parents' association of the thirteen schools near Tanseo High, Yun-hyeok gathered six hundred endorsing signatures and fifty million won.
"You're finally here!"
Chu Hyeok-su, the president of the association, set down his meat cleaver and rushed out of his butcher shop.
"Though my hands probably smell like raw meat."
"That's fine, I'm having pork belly for dinner tonight anyway."
Yun-hyeok shook hands with Chu Hyeok-su.
"Yun-hyeok, you're a hero among the small business owners of Mir City. I don't know much about politics, but I'm certain of one thing: you're going to win."
Just then, Chu Hyeok-su's son ran out from the back of the shop.
"Thanks to you, Mr. Yun-hyeok, five hundred and sixty people in our association who couldn't get their money back then have already received their subsidies!"
In an instant, the owners of neighboring shops—Haengbok Rice Cake, Gwangmyeong Seafood, Hyeongje General Store, and more—began crowding around.
"I'm not allowed to actively campaign yet. I can only engage in basic political activities today."
During the pre-candidate registration period, candidates were legally restricted to gathering endorsing signatures and campaign donations.
"You all heard him, right? Watch your step!" Chu Hyeok-su warned the overly excited merchants. Then he asked, "Give us your campaign account number too."
"No, donations are quite alright."
Yun-hyeok politely declined.
"I only came to greet you all today and ask for your endorsing signatures."
He genuinely did not want to burden them. These people had been going through incredibly tough times recently. After all, they were the very merchants who had only just received their delayed subsidies.
But...
"How can we just stand by and do nothing?"
"That's not how we do things!"
"Just give us the account number. Even if we only chip in ten thousand won each, think of how much that adds up to!"
"We want to help you too, Yun-hyeok."
"Our network is no joke, so we actually already know your account number. Even if you refuse, we'll just send it secretly, so you might as well just tell us."
Faced with their clamorous insistence, Yun-hyeok had no choice but to share his account details, adding a firm plea that no one should overextend themselves.
Yet, the Small Business Association still managed to raise fifty million won, along with six hundred endorsing signatures.
"Ah, now I feel much better."
"You must win, Yun-hyeok."
"Whether it's the Liberty Party or the Hanmin Party, smash whoever they throw at you!"
He now had two hundred million won.
He was fifty million won short of the legal limit. But there was still one more place left to turn to.
Yun-hyeok uploaded a post to his YouTube channel.
The post instantly attracted an immense amount of attention. The response was electric.
Within a single hour, the remaining fifty million won poured into Yun-hyeok's account.
And among the names on the deposit notifications, Yun-hyeok spotted a familiar one.
Sender:Ji Hye-min
Amount:50,000 KRW
Where does a college student get money to send? Hye-min...
Yun-hyeok posted a notice that the fundraising was closed.
It had been ten days since he first visited Doma-myeon.
The fundraising was completed in less than two weeks. To be honest, even Yun-hyeok hadn't been entirely sure he could raise the full two hundred and fifty million won so easily.
Perhaps, even more than he had realized...
The citizens were desperately thirsting for a breath of fresh political air.
"What on earth is this?"
News of the independent politician who had burst onto the scene like a tempest and filled his entire 250 million won donation cap in just ten days solely through citizen contributions began to spread like wildfire.
It reached the leadership of both the Hanmin Party and the Liberty Party.
"That kid raised two hundred and fifty million won?"
To established politicians, it sounded like an absolute pipe dream.
"Is this information correct? How does an independent rookie—a thirty-one-year-old greenhorn, no less—raise two hundred and fifty million won? And entirely through donations?"
The central party headquarters checked the facts multiple times, but there was no room for doubt.
For one, Lee Yun-hyeok had publicly disclosed every single deposit transaction on his channel.
From small contributions starting at five thousand won to larger ones of one million won, the small, individual donations of ordinary citizens had stacked up like a tower to reach the 250 million won limit.
This wasn't a presidential election, nor was it a general election.
It wasn't a provincial gubernatorial race either. He wasn't even a candidate basking in the spotlight of a major political party.
For a local government mayoral race in a city of 490,000, raising even thirty million won in donations was usually considered a massive success.
Yet, a wet-behind-the-ears independent rookie had raised the full two hundred and fifty million won?
"Contact him. Set up a meeting. Tell him I want to see him."
Lim Jun-won, a three-term Assemblyman of the Liberty Party representing the Mir-Eul constituency, immediately gave orders to his chief of staff.
The fall of the Hanmin Party mayor due to embezzlement.
In a by-election held under such circumstances, the Liberty Party should have had an incredibly high chance of winning. But the current situation was turning bizarre.
The Mir City by-election was plunging straight into the eye of a storm.