Ji Ho felt strangely broken.

His mind that was filled with investigation suddenly became occupied with Ra Jin’s image as if he was hypnotized. She, who always carefully watched others’ reactions as if walking on thin ice, seemed so different today for some reason.

Was it because of the comfort the house provided? Or was this lively appearance her true self? Seeing Ra Jin so excited, Ji Ho also smiled along with her.

“Ah. I have that perfume too.”

“Is that so?”

“That’s why Ji Ho’s scent felt familiar.”

She clapped her hands in delight as if the perfume that could be bought with money was a special coincidence.

That appearance was so pretty that Ji Ho nodded along to what she said and continued the conversation with sincerity.

After a few exchanges of ‘Is that so?’ and ‘I see.’ with smiles in between, Ji Ho suddenly found himself in front of a large dining table. It felt like he had skipped time, as if the middle process had flown away entirely.

From a guy who laughs well to now a dazed one. Ji Ho let out a hollow laugh, feeling unfamiliar with his own malfunction.

“Ji Ho. Shall we eat first before having the important talk?”

“Sure.”

“Give me your jacket. I’ll hang it up for you.”

Ra Jin’s cheek slowly turned pink as she held out her white hand. No matter how naturally she acted, it must still be awkward for her. Thinking that Ra Jin was making an effort, Ji Ho acted even more naturally.

“Shall I sit here?”

“Ah. Yes. Please have a seat there.”

As Ji Ho sat in the guided seat, she disappeared and reappeared repeatedly. She was so busy that just watching her left no room for boredom.

“Last time, you couldn’t even have a meal because Oh Jong Hyuk barged in.”

“It’s not like he did it on purpose. Well.”

Since there were so many unexpected situations, skipping a meal was nothing for Ji Ho.

“Actually, I thought a lot about the menu. I wanted to treat you to something delicious, but I wasn’t sure what would be good.”

Ra Jin, standing in front of the sink, glanced back slightly.

“Delivery doesn’t seem sincere, but I can’t cook either.”

Sighing, she bit her lip slightly. Then she picked up a white plate with both hands.

“The only thing I know how to make is kimchi fried rice.”

With an apology for the ordinary menu, she put down the plate. Kimchi fried rice topped with a perfect fried egg that looked like a model. Grilled salmon and fruit salad were placed in front of it in turn.

“Did you make it yourself?”

Even though it was a simple question, she jumped up like a rabbit looking for a hole to escape.

“Ah, yes. It’s nothing special, but I can guarantee the taste.”

Even while emphasizing ‘definitely’, she looked so unconfident that Ji Ho smiled.

“Because Ji Ho is a prosecutor.”

“?”

“You don’t lie. If you say it’s delicious, I’ll really believe it.”

“I do lie. When necessary.”

“Uh… that won’t do.”

A sigh poured out between Ra Jin’s teeth as if it was a blunder. Still, she alternately looked at the bowl and Ji Ho, as if she wanted to hear a taste evaluation.

Ji Ho quickly put the kimchi fried rice in his mouth, wanting to live up to Ra Jin’s expectations.

The savory aroma of oil that wasn’t offensive, the rice grains coated with egg yolk, and the spiciness of kimchi went quite well together. She said she could only make one thing, but that one thing was truly excellent.

“It’s really delicious.”

“Really? It’s not a lie out of necessity, right?”

“Did you notice?”

Ra Jin, who was about to pick up her spoon along with him, stopped like a paused screen.

“Uh, uh. I, I’ll order something else for you.”

“I joke too. When necessary.”

“?”

Was the joke too serious?

She seemed to have gotten the wrong idea, so Ji Ho hurriedly waved his hand. But Ra Jin kept watching as if she couldn’t believe it until Ji Ho’s plate was half empty.

“I guess I made the joke too serious.”

“I was so surprised, thinking the flavor wasn’t right.”

Today’s her was good, disliked, laughed well, and knew how to tremble.

Was she a little more comfortable now? She, who was in tears just yesterday when they met, looked like a completely different person in just a day.

“It’s really edible, right?”

“It’s delicious. I always order food, so I like everything homemade.”

“Really?”

When Ji Ho lightly nodded, her spoon moved as if it was dancing.

Since when had it become a daily routine to give up his desk to a mountain of documents and hastily finish a meal? A simple but delicious meal like today was really rare.

The meal accompanied by Ra Jin’s voice, which sounded like a gentle song, was no less than any restaurant, without fancy dishes or expensive wine.

Then, as the plates were almost emptied, the conversation naturally flowed to the visit to the Myung Jin main house.

Starting with how large and scary Kim Yu Jun’s hunting dog was, the complex structure of the Myung Jin family and Chairman Kim Gi Tae’s study were depicted like a scene from a movie.

“Wait a moment. I have something to show you.”

As the plates were cleaned, Ra Jin abruptly rose from her seat. The white paper she handed over was filled with small, round handwriting.

“Do you happen to know Won Sang Seop?”

Why was the name of the Vice Minister of Justice mentioned here?

The relaxed atmosphere tightened with Ra Jin’s words.

“Where did you see the name Won Sang Seop?”

“In the chairman’s study. There was a strange document with a photo, and the title was ‘H Trend Report’.”

If it’s a trend report, is it a list of key figures managed by Myung Jin?

Ji Ho tilted his head, recalling the abbreviation ‘H’. Then he took out his cell phone and searched for the vice minister in the legal directory.

“Is this the right person?”

“Oh! That’s right. This person.”

“He’s the Vice Minister of Justice.”

Why was the vice minister connected to Myung Jin? It was a completely unexpected person’s appearance. The minister had a faint connection to Myung Jin as a second cousin, but the vice minister had no contact at all.

For a moment, Ji Ho’s mind got tangled like a knotted thread.

“And there was something strange too.”

“Something strange?”

“You see this memo here, right?”

Ra Jin tapped the code written on the paper with her finger.

―J, V, Won, 25, M, G, 100M ↓.

“What is this?”

“This was written under the photo and name.”

“For each photo?”

“Yes. It was different for each person, and for another person it was this.”

Ra Jin pointed to another code she had memorized to compare.

―E, D, Ha, 23, M, HF, 50M →.

“What does Myung Jin mean by writing this?”

Two contrasting codes. If it was under the photo, it must be an important mark, but what could it mean? Ji Ho stared intently at the vice minister’s code, which at least had basic information.

Various hypotheses floated through Ji Ho’s mind.

If J is the Ministry of Justice, is V the vice minister’s position? Then won would be the surname. Up to the third one, it made sense to some degree. But what the hell are those numbers and arrows?

Ji Ho stared at the vice minister’s profile, then suddenly hit the table.

“Ah! Years of service.”

“Pardon?”

“It seems that Myung Jin has its own notation method to prevent outsiders from recognizing it.”

Ji Ho explained the vice minister’s workplace, position, surname, and years of service briefly like a code expert.

“And here. Both people have M in common.”

Ra Jin swallowed her saliva and became lost in thought.

“Could it be membership, something like that? Like a department store membership.”

Suddenly, Ji Ho’s eyes sparkled.

“Usually, you have to spend billions to become a VIP at a department store. If you become a VIP, you get various good benefits.”

If a VIP membership that requires a large amount of accumulation is provided for free? That alone could be a huge bribe.

“Then G could be golf.”

“Oh! Then HF is a hotel fitness membership? That’s also expensive.”

Plausible assumptions were overflowing.

For something thrown out casually, it strangely fit together perfectly. It wasn’t flawless, but it was a rather strange yet quite fitting picture, as if they had been working together for a long time.

Ji Ho smiled, looking at Ra Jin who provided completely unexpected clues and ideas.

“It’s too early to jump to conclusions, but it seems to be a list of people managed by Myung Jin.”

“That could be. In the past.”

“?”

“Myung Jin held parties twice a year. On the chairman’s birthday and the anniversary of the company’s founding.”

Perhaps because of her long relationship with Myung Jin, her memories poured out like a burst of water.

“At that time, there were so many ministers and bureau chiefs that I thought it was strange.”

Since when have they been managing key figures? Ji Ho’s temples throbbed at their surprisingly solid cartel. The influence of Myung Jin was so extensive. The aftertaste turned bitter for Ji Ho.

“Was there anything else?”

“Can we do it while having tea? I’m thirsty from talking a lot for the first time in a while.”

Ji Ho nodded and got up from his seat. Out of habit since living independently, he put the empty dishes in the sink.

“Oh no, just leave it. I’ll do it.”

Ra Jin, startled, approached and grabbed Ji Ho’s arm.

“Who does it doesn’t matter.”

“Doing the dishes for a guest? No way.”

“I came here for work today, so let’s split it fairly. I’ll take the table, and Ra Jin, you make the tea.”

Persuading Ra Jin that this was necessary to start the real talk, Ji Ho clicked and took off his watch. As he neatly rolled up the sleeves of his white shirt to the elbows, Ra Jin stood next to him, not knowing what to do.

“This isn’t right. I’ll just do it.”

“In this case, the person who gets wet first does it.”

As Ji Ho abruptly turned on the faucet, lukewarm water poured out. As if not backing down, he put strength in his legs, and her hand flailed in the air.

“Ah, ah no. Still.”

“Didn’t you say you’d give me tea?”

“Of course I should. I’ll bring it right away… ha.”

When he winked as if telling her to give up, Ra Jin hurriedly stepped back.

She kept glancing at Ji Ho while pouring bottled water into the wireless kettle, taking out stylish teacups, and placing colorful macarons.

As Ji Ho finished the small amount of dishes and turned around, Ra Jin approached with a towel.

“Are you okay?”

“Of course. I’m good at doing the dishes.”

“You worked hard. Come here and have some tea.”

The tea she prepared was chrysanthemum tea, as she said she really likes flowers. Small flower petals floating between the white rising steam. It looked so much like today’s her, bobbing around.

“I didn’t even think about dessert.”

“It felt awkward to stand still while wrapping flowers. The famous patissier was right next door.”

“Ah, yes. But the colors are so pretty that I don’t know which one to eat first.”

Ra Jin examined the macarons back and forth as if facing an important life choice.

What was she agonizing over so much, should he say to just eat any and he’d buy more next time? Were they close enough for him to say such things to her or not?

As Ji Ho’s worries deepened, it was that very moment.

“Ji Ho. Shall we share? Half and half, amicably.”

Us? Amicably?

Suddenly, the face of Ho Jin shouting ‘office romance’ came to Ji Ho’s mind. Unnecessarily…