Chapter 124
......
At the same moment, the section chief scrolled the mouse wheel with trembling hands. He read Choi Jonghyeon's post on the company bulletin board, read it again, and then once more. He refreshed the page several times to confirm it was really on the internal board visible to everyone. But all that came into view were the views exploding with each refresh.
Everything was real.
"Fuck......"
The section chief bowed his head deeply, clutching it with both hands. Last night in the pre-dawn hours, when he'd confronted them in the office, he'd sensed that Choi Jonghyeon knew something. But he never imagined it would lead to this.
That laptop camera had been on. The screen had been recording. No such program had even been open.
As time passed, related posts began piling up one by one. Perhaps because Choi Jonghyeon had revealed his identity despite the anonymous board, other reporters started posting in support, disclosing their own names. The real problem was that not just rank-and-file reporters, but deputy chiefs were joining in.
'This isn't something we can just brush off.'
When reporters started acting collectively, management had no real countermeasures. He wanted to check the mood with reporters he was close to, but he couldn't risk getting his foot chopped off by the axe he trusted.
The section chief picked up the receiver with shaking hands. He dialed the familiar extension and pressed it to his ear. His tremors were so bad the vibration buzzed against his earlobe.
"......Editor-in-Chief!"
As soon as the line connected, he shouted. Realizing his voice might leak outside the office, he clamped his mouth shut.
-Ha....... From the receiver came Park Hyosung's sigh. His heart plummeted.
"Editor-in-Chief, you've probably seen the report, but......"
-How the hell did you handle things like this, anyway! The section chief squeezed his eyes shut at Park Hyosung's bellow.
"I'm sorry."
He had no time for apologies while cornered, but Park Hyosung was his only lifeline. If his handling had irked the man, no help would come.
-Tsk tsk.
"Editor-in-Chief. Please help me out. If this turns into collective action, I'm done for! We need to take down those bulletin board posts first. Just contact the admin once."
-Everyone who wanted to read it already has. What difference does pulling it now make?
"But we can't just leave it like this!"
-Pulling it will just make it look like the company's in on it. Things will blow up even more. We can't have that.
The section chief bit his lip. Wasn't the company complicit? No—precisely, it was the company's will. He was just a pawn moving at their direction.
Though anger surged, he pleaded once more. "Then find another way, Editor-in-Chief."
-I was just about to discuss it with the president. Wait a bit. There'll be a solution. So no rash moves until then. Stay quiet. Got it?
The section chief gripped the receiver with both hands and shot to his feet, bowing repeatedly to empty air at ninety degrees.
"Thank you, thank you......"
Before he finished, the line clicked dead. He set the receiver down and slumped into his chair, leaning back deeply, lost in thought.
The editor-in-chief would consult the president, so some plan would emerge. But he couldn't just sit idle. First, he had to monitor the bulletin board closely and gauge the situation.
"......"
Time slipped to 3 p.m. Two hours since Park Hyosung promised to consult the president, and still no word. He couldn't call and hound him again. The earlier tone had dripped with irritation. Pressing might just make him look bad.
The section chief clutched his churning chest and took deep breaths.
'How the hell did I end up like this......'
Then came a knock.
-Section Chief. Choi Jonghyeon here. Coming in.
His heart sank again at the name. Before Choi could fling the door open, the section chief dashed over and locked it. Hearing the click, Choi rattled the handle.
-Section Chief, did you just lock the door?
Terrified it might open, the section chief yanked the handle. But Choi twisted it wildly, pounding the door.
-Section Chief! Open up!
Opening now would make things spiral uncontrollably. No word from the editor-in-chief yet—he couldn't face him. Ignore long enough, and they'd give up.
The section chief leaned against the door, eyes shut.
-Choi Reporter. You're in there not opening the door?
-Ah, Deputy Chief. Yes. I heard the lock just now. He's inside.
Now Culture Department Deputy Chief Joo Hwayoung's voice. He'd been the first to back Choi Jonghyeon publicly. And he'd long clashed with the section chief—privately arguing over Iljungilbo's direction. No wonder Joo hadn't curried favor. Once in politics, he'd been semi-forced to culture ten years ago and stuck there ever since. Naturally, he'd leap at this with gusto!
-Crazy bastard. Dodge in moderation. You know the shitstorm outside.
Bang! Thud!
The pounding intensified. Joo had joined for sure.
-Deputy Chief, what's going on? And with Joo's arrival, more reporters gathered outside. He and Choi explained the section chief was hiding inside, refusing to emerge. Reporters hurled fierce denunciations, pounding together.
Bang bang bang!
The door shook violently. Not just one or two—likely a swarm outside, though unseen.
The section chief frantically barricaded with the sofa. Not enough—he dragged over the table and chairs. But the furious reporters didn't stop.
"Park Hyosung...... Park Hyosung!"
He lunged to the desk, snatched the receiver, and madly dialed the extension, praying he'd pick up.
"Editor-in-Chief! Reporters are pounding on my office door, demanding I come out! Please, please do something! I was just following your orders!"
-My orders?
"Wasn't it? Editor-in-Chief, you're not trying to cut me loose now, are you?" The section chief's voice sharpened.
-Cut you loose? You talk strangely.
"Strangely? It's the truth!"
-So Iljungilbo's face should plummet to hell with you over this crap?
The section chief let out a hollow laugh in disbelief. "So you're saying I should take all the heat alone?"
-You should've handled it properly. So sloppy you didn't notice the video recording?
"No other programs were active on the laptop! And I confirmed no one was around, no...... Is that the point now? If you don't cover for me, Iljungilbo gets humiliated too. You know Choi Jonghyeon outright said he was investigating Wooshin and Lee Jeongchan!"
-Humiliation passes. Once.
"......"
The section chief was speechless. The consultation with the president was done. They'd decided to abandon him. That's why no contact for two hours. They'd heard reporters swarming his door like dogs, yet ignored him until he called.
"I won't go down alone."
He ground his teeth.
-Won't go down alone? Then what?
"Don't play dumb. I'll say it was your orders!"
-Haha, scary talk. Forgot what you told Kim Jeongu?
Park Hyosung's voice carried amusement.
"What did I say?"
-You'll die if you do.
"......"
-We'll give you a fat severance. Just vanish quietly. I made sure to tell the president. But if that loose tongue of yours......
Park trailed off. The section chief swallowed dryly.
-I trust you get it without me spelling it out.
"Editor-in-Chief!"
No reply—the line went dead. He set the receiver down in a daze.
-Come out! Come out, you filthy scum!
During the call, the voices hunting him multiplied, grew louder, more enraged. They no longer held back curses. He'd anticipated crowds turning more radical than the initial few. That's why he'd wanted to stop it before collective action......
"Urk......"
Face flushed crimson, he swallowed boiling rage. Rattle rattle! The door shuddered as if to break. The locked door warped, gaps appearing. Through a sliver, he glimpsed Choi Jonghyeon's fierce glare.
Crack!
The wooden door couldn't withstand the reporters' force. A split formed—and in an instant, it shattered.
"Come out!"
The door splintered, reporters flooding in. The modest office filled with a dozen, including front-runners Choi Jonghyeon and Joo Hwayoung.
The section chief backed away until his back hit the wall. Nowhere left to retreat.
"If you wanted to be Wooshin's lapdog so bad, if you were gonna threaten, do it to my face...... Not some powerless junior like that?"
Choi Jonghyeon roared. Reporters behind him chimed agreement.
"Do you even know how much hell Jeongu went through because of you?!"
"......Choi Reporter, calm down."
"Calm down? You fucker!"
Choi spat curses. Seeing the terrified section chief conjured Kim Jeongu, who'd nearly chosen suicide over this man. His junior weeping on the rooftop. Guilt for failing to protect him. Emotions tangled wildly.
"And you call yourself a journalist? Hell, human?"
The section chief scanned the encircling reporters. What now? Apologize first. Clear evidence of forging the suicide note meant stonewalling would only fuel outrage.
"Choi Reporter, I'm sorry. I didn't want to, I......"
"Then?"
The editor-in-chief ordered it. Iljungilbo's will. He wanted to say it, but his mouth wouldn't move. Park Hyosung's recent voice echoed.
"......No choice. You charging in like that—I feared backlash. Had no choice!"
He cried out, voice breaking. Fury flared in Choi Jonghyeon's eyes. He raised a fist, ready to smash the section chief's jaw.
"Senior! Senior, stop!"
A urgent voice from the rear. Reporters turned. Kim Jeongu, who'd stayed put per Choi's request.
"Jeongu."
"Don't waste energy on trash like him. It'll just backfire on you."
Kim had a point. Even if Iljungilbo ditched the section chief, violence would taint Choi too.
"Yeah, Choi Reporter. Enough. He's done anyway."
Joo Hwayoung clapped Choi's shoulder. Choi glared at the cornered, heaving section chief.
"We'll make this a real issue. Your bosses will pay too. Get ready."
Choi barked. As he turned, the reporters filed out. Alone in the wrecked room, the section chief slid to the floor in a stupor.
It's over. All over.