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Cough, cough, it was a series of scorching days where breathing was difficult. Prosecutor Jang took off his jacket and hung it on his arm, taking a moment to rest in the middle of an alley. He thought he had climbed a lot, but there was still about half left to go.
He had no idea why people like Yang Seon-woo came here, which made him more suspicious. The neighborhood was sparsely populated, and there were no street lights or CCTV. Therefore, making it an ideal place to avoid being noticed. A group of young men in their twenties descended from above as he was cooling off.
Prosecutor Jang stood up and smiled kindly as he approached them.
“Excuse me, are you guys from this neighborhood? I have something to ask.”
One of them chewed his gum gruffly and replied.
“Who are you?”
One of them, a young man with dyed yellow hair and brow piercings, appeared tired and worn out. His eyes had a dark circle and he kept sniffing the air, suggesting he was on drugs. Prosecutor Jang held out Yang Seon-woo’s photo.
“Have you seen this person before?”
The man narrowed his eyes and checked the photo before nodding.
“Someone else came asking about him a few days ago.”
It seems that this person was the one who Secretary Park met when he was running errands.
“Oh, really?”
“Why are you asking about him?”
“I’m just curious
”
“The guy who came before was giving out money while asking questions.”
Ah, money. Prosecutor Jang smiled bitterly and took out his wallet from his pocket. The young man frowned when he took out three ten thousand won bills and handed them over. Buy something to eat with this. He gave him an extra 30,000 won because the man grumbled, but he still seemed dissatisfied.
“What are you curious about?”
“Just tell me everything you know.”
“Well
 I don’t know his name, but he comes here occasionally and stays for a while. He buys us ice cream and beer when he sees us.”
Right, right. At first, it was a bit scary, but he’s a really nice guy. The other young men nearby chimed in, confirming that they knew Yang Seon-woo too. Prosecutor Jang’s eyes twinkled with excitement.
“Do they still come here often?”
“Not these days. Oh! And there’s another guy who comes sometimes, his personality is just
”
The pierced man stopped talking and sighed as if he didn’t even want to think about it. The peers next to him have the same expression, probably thinking the same thing. Prosecutor Jang could guess who they were talking about; his own expression would be no different if he thought of that man.
“Anyway, that’s all I know.”
“Have you ever seen what they do here?”
“No, but I’ve been inside their house a few times. We grilled meat together and stuff.”
“Did they mention anything specific? Like where they go, what they do, or who they are?”
“He’s unemployed now. I don’t know what he used to do before.”
“Do you keep in touch with them separately?”
“Nah, we’re not that close.”
Prosecutor Jang frowned and looked at the 60,000 won the man was holding. There wasn’t much valuable information he could get with this money. He should have given him just 20,000 won. He regretted it, and the man seemed to have noticed and discreetly put the money into his back pocket. He gave a curt farewell and left with the group.
Prosecutor Jang sighed and started climbing again. He should have built up his stamina more. Huffing and puffing, he finally reached a blue door. He straightened his back and surveyed the area. He couldn’t see any CCTV cameras or anything like that.
Kock, knock, he knocked on the door with his fist, but it remained quiet. He knocked again. Slowly, he walked towards the wall and climbed up to peep inside. Contrary to his expectations, the garden was blooming with flowers, and a small table was set up in the yard with slippers left on the veranda as if someone had been there recently. It was a peaceful scene, like a snapshot from a photo.
Hesitantly, Prosecutor Jang took a second look around and hung his jacket on the fence. After taking a deep breath, he climbed up the wall and jumped over.
***
Chiik, as the foam of the canned beer rose, Wang Lun quickly brought it to his mouth. Beside him, Wang Han and Ja-kyung were lying on sunbeds enjoying the sun. Upbeat pop music played from the speakers, and in one corner, cicadas chirped loudly.
Ja-kyung, who had been lying face down for a while, suddenly turned over and sat up. He took off his sunglasses and grabbed a beer from the ice-filled bucket, then rubbed it against his nipples. Wang Lun frowned at his actions.
“What are you doing?”
“It’s sore.”
“Why.”
“Because of CEO Kang.”
There were so many bite marks all over his body that they know what he did yesterday without asking more. Thanks to this, he realized every time how strong and firm Kang Il-hyun’s teeth were.
“You don’t intend to hide it at all?”
Ja-kyung retorted with a resigned face.
“Anyway, there’s no one in this house who doesn’t know that I and Kang Il-hyun are having sex.”
“Wei. Don’t be like that. Why do you keep becoming more and more like CEO Kang?”
“Me?”
“Yeah. At least you’ve always been a boy when it comes to sex.”
It was either an insult or a compliment. While laughing with an incredulous expression, Wang Han’s phone starts ringing. He gets up from where he was lying down, looking disheveled, and answers the call with a muffled voice, asking, “Hello? Who’s this?” Lun and Ja-kyung’s gazes turn towards him. Wang Han covered the phone with his hand and his eyes widened.
“I got a call from the prosecutor.”
Wang Lun asked curiously.
“The prosecutor, why?”
“He says my bank account was hacked.”
Lun abruptly stood up when they heard that. Who dared to mess with him like that! Ja-kyung, who was lying around, motioned for the phone to be handed over. Ja-kyung spoke firmly after he took the phone.
“Don’t make this kind of call. We’ll find you and tear your head off.”
The person on the other end cursed, and Ja-kyung motioned to Wang Han to trace the location. The damn bastard. If they catch him, they will not let him go lightly. However, the man hung up before his location was revealed. Ja-kyung, who had been resolute, mocked the Wang brothers, saying what would they do if they were so easily fooled.
Embarrassed, the two stood up, blaming the cold beer for no reason. At that moment, Ja-kyung’s phone made a beep-beep warning sound. Ja-kyung’s complexion hardened as he turned on the screen to check. Wang Lun, who was on his way to get more beer, hesitated and stepped aside.
“What’s with that serious expression?”
A CCTV video appeared on the screen of the mobile phone. The house where Ja-kyung was born and raised. So, someone came to that mountain village. The man who knocked on the gate looked inside over the fence, confirmed that no one was there, and went straight over the fence. A mischievous smile spread on the corner of Ja-kyung’s lips when he saw that.
Wang Lun frowned and asked fiercely.
“What is this bastard?”
Ja-kyung laughed and murmured.
“Looks like the real prosecutor has appeared?”
***
On the way out from the meeting, Kang Il-hyun ran into Kang Tae-han, the eldest brother. Although Kang Tae-han represented the company on the surface, it was only superficial. If one looked inside, they’d see that he was just a scarecrow and a shield set up by Kang Il-hyun.
The two of them got into the executive elevator and didn’t speak to each other the entire time they headed upstairs. Il-hyun looked at the number changing with a nonchalant face, then looked back at Kang Tae-han and smiled.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“About what?”
“I heard my sister-in-law filed for divorce.”
Tae-han’s face was distorted, and Il-hyun smiled sadly.
“So, why are you cheating on her?”
“Who said that?”
“Everyone knows.”
Il-hyun said mockingly, and Tae-han’s eyes twitched. It was well-known that Kang Tae-han suspected Il-hyun’s involvement in their father’s death, but all his efforts to find evidence had been in vain. Now, he was afraid of drawing attention to himself and Kim Seon-young.
“So, how about you? Are you getting married soon? What about kids?”
Il-hyun laughed and responded firmly when he abruptly changed the subject.
“I will not. I will live with my cat for the rest of my life.”
Ding, the elevator opened just then. Il-hyun raised his hand to bid him farewell and entered his room without looking back. He took off his jacket and sat down before pulling out his phone and connecting to the CCTV.
In the split-screen, people were moving around. He quickly found the swimming pool screen with Ja-kyung and tapped on it to watch. Ja-kyung was resting on the pool’s edge, talking with Wang Han.
What kind of enjoyable conversation was my cat having with his brothers? Il-hyun zoomed in on the screen to get a closer look at his face, but he was interrupted by a knock, and Park Tae-soo entered. He placed a black envelope on Il-hyun’s desk. Il-hyun put down his phone and picked up the envelope instead.
“How convenient the world has become. You can find out your bloodline in just a day.”
Taesoo remained silent. He used a knife to cut open the top of the envelope and took out the documents. The first thing he found was a genetic identification certificate. As he read through it, he turned to the next page, which was filled with lengthy explanations.
Tsk, his gaze stopped at the very last sentence after clicking his tongue.
“Tae-soo.”
“Yes.”
His gaze moved from the document to Park Tae-soo.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
Il-hyun’s gaze went back to the document. His lips hardened. He threw the paper onto the desk and leaned back in his chair. His eyes still lingered on the document.
Y Chromosome Analysis Result: 16 Genetic Types Matched 99%. The same lineage is confirmed.
So, they are indeed blood-related.
In the absurdity of the situation, he couldn’t help but burst into a hollow laugh.
“Ha, fuck. Looks like he had become Juliet.”