The Empire's Servant - Chapter 43

Hyun Baek Hap was preparing to be discharged from the hospital when she received news about Lee Je Ni.

She was wearing a ring and stopped moving her hand due to a sharp headache. Her head was throbbing.

It was already a burden for Hyun Baek Hap that such an incident happened when Lee Hoe Jang was lowering himself. She didn’t have the capacity to cover it up like before.

“Sigh…”

Hyun Baek Hap sighed deeply and straightened her clothes. The chief secretary was just observing Hyun Baek Hap’s expression and stood there.

“I told you to keep quiet for a while.”

Hyun Baek Hap muttered through clenched teeth.

“She has been complaining of frustration both at home and on site.”

The one who was frustrated was Hyun Baek Hap. Sighs kept escaping consecutively.

“Ha, so what is she doing now?”

Hyun Baek Hap asked in a half-giving up tone.

“She is undergoing a drug test now.”

Hyun Baek Hap’s eyes shook dully.

The fact that it had progressed to the testing stage despite not having such accidents before also meant that things were going wrong.

In other words, the problem was not about covering up the matter well, but if they made a small mistake, the tower they had built up could collapse.

Hyun Baek Hap hurriedly called the police officials.

But for some reason, they didn’t answer the phone.

Were they avoiding her? No, that couldn’t be. It must be a coincidence. But she became impatient even though she tried to think so.

“Chief secretary, even if it doesn’t work with one or two lawyers, block it even if you have to buy the entire law firm. So that our Je Ni won’t have any flaws.”

It wasn’t maternal love.

She was just lamenting that she only had Je Ni to put forward as a successor.

* * *

– No matter how busy I am, I want to see you even for a moment.

Ha In looked at the clock after seeing the message from Je Guk.

It was already 10 p.m.

She was busy with Hyun Baek Hap’s summons investigation, which was now only a day away.

Ha In put down the pencil she was holding for a moment and tried to calm down.

When she lifted her head and looked around, the desk was piled up like a tower with documents except for the spot where the laptop was placed.

It was an old habit of hers to whip herself more cruelly the more desperate she was.

But she wondered why she felt so empty even after doing this.

It seemed like Cheonha Group’s unrivaled wealth would make Hyun Baek Hap flawless. She never wanted to be pushed by such power.

At that moment, Ha In’s cell phone vibrated.

– Ha In, I miss you.

Ha In also missed Je Guk.

When she met him, she could stop tormenting herself. When he embraced her, it felt like new flesh was filling her scarred heart.

In the end, Ha In finished her work and headed to Je Guk.

When she stepped out of the prosecutor’s office building, the cold wind penetrated her bosom. She had to go outside the main gate because there was no parking space nearby.

It was cold. And apart from that, she felt an eerie feeling in the deep darkness. Ha In, who always walked looking at the ground diagonally, lifted her head when she felt someone’s gaze.

She also had the expectation that maybe Je Guk had come. But it wasn’t the unique warm feeling Je Guk gave.

Ha In turned her gaze back to the direction where the car was. But there was something caught in that gaze.

When she reflexively turned her head again, there was nothing.

It seemed to be because her condition had not yet fully recovered.

“Sigh…”

A faint breath hung in the breath Ha In exhaled. Ha In hurriedly moved her steps.

It was past midnight when she arrived at Je Guk’s place.

Je Guk was working in the study and went out to the garden to greet Ha In as soon as her car passed the villa entrance.

Seeing Ha In, Je Guk opened his arms towards her. Ha In snuggled into Je Guk’s arms welcoming her. Je Guk hugged her with all his might.

“You must be tired, you waited a long time.”

Ha In said, lifting her head towards Je Guk. Being held by him, the tension in her body that had been there disappeared.

“Yeah, I waited for a really long time. But I’m not tired at all.”

Je Guk looked at Ha In with honey-dripping eyes.

That’s right, this warmth. Ha In felt warmth in that gaze.

“It’s cold. Let’s go inside.”

Then he quickly held her hand and went inside, worried that she might be cold. Ha In felt every single cell in her body heating up.

The house was filled with a gentle atmosphere.

The fireplace that was turned on in advance was also burning moderately red. There was also fragrant tea on the sofa table.

Je Guk sat Ha In on the sofa and sat next to her.

“Did you see all the documents you wanted to see without any regrets?”

“Yes.”

Je Guk also knew very well that Ha In could only feel at ease after completing what she had to do.

“But I’m worried. Actually, I hope prosecutor Choi Gang Jun goes in tomorrow.”

Ha In seemed to know what Je Guk was worried about. But she didn’t want to entrust such an important matter to her junior.

“Don’t worry. I think you really don’t know me, director.”

Je Guk wondered what he didn’t know about Ha In. If there was something he was missing, he wanted to know everything.

“Tell me. What I don’t know.”

“People call me a bad b**ch, a tough b**ch.”

Je Guk thought about what this meant for a moment and laughed. Je Guk had also heard what kind of prosecutor Ha In was.

“What does it matter to me what people call you?”

Ha In was just grateful that he said that.

“I absolutely won’t lose. I won’t lose again. Don’t worry.”

Ha In tried to reassure Je Guk.

“I’m not worried because I doubt your career or skills.”

He clearly trusted that part. Even if Je Guk didn’t acknowledge it, Ha In’s trial results could be seen from the collected data.

“Every day you stir up a hornet’s nest, how can I feel at ease worrying that you might get stung by bees?”

The problem was when the skilled Ha In aggressively took the lead.

“Ah, about Je Ni’s case.”

Ha In felt like she made a mistake and tried to explain quickly. But that wasn’t Je Guk’s intention. He was literally saying that because he was worried about Ha In.

“You handle that as a prosecutor. I just need my person to be safe.”

Je Guk prevented Ha In from worrying unnecessarily in advance. He didn’t want to interfere with the investigation Ha In was pushing forward.

“Same goes for tomorrow.”

Je Guk said, brushing Ha In’s hair.

“The most important thing is that you, Ha In, don’t get hurt. You promised not to get sick.”

It was a really warm touch and voice.

Ha In nodded without making eye contact with him because she felt like she was going to cry again.

* * *

The day of Hyun Baek Hap’s attendance arrived in a time that felt like a war.

No one knew how much Ha In had been looking forward to this day.

It wasn’t simply about finding evidence and gathering statements.

She had come this far through bone-cutting pain.

Hyun Baek Hap might want to believe that this was the Maginot Line of her downfall, but it was just the beginning. There were separate crimes to be dealt with.

Ha In swallowed the surging emotions at the faint memory of her mother’s last appearance, hardened her emotions, and left the office.

Numerous defense attorneys had already arrived at the prosecutor’s office before the attendance.

Ha In stopped walking at the crowd standing in front of the interrogation room. Gang Jun, who was standing next to her, showed a perplexed expression.

“I guess we should have notified them in advance to limit the number of people.”

Gang Jun spoke to Ha In in a low and small voice, slightly leaning his body towards her.

“If there are more people coming in, tell them to let everyone in.”

Ha In spoke in an even more confident manner, as if the number of defense attorneys didn’t matter at all.

The defense attorneys currently surrounding the interrogation room were the ones playing supporting roles, and the main-level lawyers were coming with Hyun Baek Hap.

At that moment, the gazes of the numerous defense attorneys turned to one side. Then they bowed their heads in greeting.

Ha In intuitively felt that Hyun Baek Hap had arrived. Ha In felt nauseous from the strong perfume smell that pierced her nose.

“Oh my, looks like you’re the prosecutor in charge of this case?”

Hyun Baek Hap pretended not to know Ha In well. The past contract that Ha In had risked her life to hand over had an effect.

Ha In turned to face Hyun Baek Hap.

She thought she would be fine, but she wasn’t. Ha In put strong force on her solar plexus to suppress her heart pounding with anger.

Hyun Baek Hap’s dark and greedy eyes were the same as before.

When it comes to attending a prosecution investigation, one would dress modestly, if not frugally, but judging by her noticeably flashy outfit, sparkling jewelry, and the bag she brought, there was no sign of remorse as expected.

Hyun Baek Hap approached Ha In.

Brazenly, Hyun Baek Hap offered a handshake to Ha In.

“I’m Hyun Baek Hap, the director of Cheonha Art Museum. Living life, I even come to a place like this.”

Ha In looked at the hand she held out with dry eyes.

That hand had cruelly tormented Ha In. The urge to do something to that hand was rising.

Ha In didn’t accept the handshake and went straight into the interrogation room.

Hyun Baek Hap tightened her facial muscles and followed Ha In into the statement recording room.

Ha In sat down first.

Hyun Baek Hap also sat down, guided by the defense attorneys.

Hyun Baek Hap glanced at Ha In as if observing her. Still, she kept her mouth shut about her ill-fated relationship with Ha In due to Chairman Lee’s order to absolutely keep it secret.

“Nice to see you. Feels quite novel? I heard you’re the prosecutor in charge of our Cheonha Group case, so I looked into you a bit. You’ve been living very diligently so far. Thinking about it again, it feels quite special.”

Hyun Baek Hap said so, raising her eyebrows.

The dynamic had changed from servant and madam to prosecutor and criminal.

It was understandable that it felt novel, as Ha In, who was just a child, was now a prosecutor facing her.

Ha In slowly blinked, keeping her gaze fixed on Hyun Baek Hap.

Ha In, for whom making facial expressions was awkward in itself, wondered what kind of face she was looking at Hyun Baek Hap with now.

No matter what expression she was facing Hyun Baek Hap with, facing a villain was a really painful thing.