Beep. Beep. Beep.
I wake up to the sound of my cell phone alarm.
The time is 7:30.
The habit of waking up before 6 o’clock every time has been delayed by an hour and a half in less than half a year.
At least I set an alarm to wake up at this time, otherwise I would have been sleeping for over 10 o’clock.
“Um… … .”
I drink a cup of coffee in a daze. Maybe it’s because I slept late yesterday, but I won’t be awake today.
I forced myself to get up and head to the bathroom.
My dirty face in the mirror stares at me. I looked at the other person for a long time and muttered to myself.
Are you happy?
no smile on face I guess I’m not happy.
Are you sad?
Neither is it.
Guilt?
I do not know. maybe… … There seems to be none. I thought there would be something a little different, but it was just a normal morning as always.
As usual, after 8:30, I leave the officetel and head to the office leisurely.
The working hours specified in KN Chemical are from 9:00, but everyone goes to work before 8:00. It’s not like I’m going to work because I’m coming soon. Just wasting time chatting about useless things.
I used to be like them, but I don’t have to anymore. I don’t have a boss above me, nor do I want a promotion.
“Oh, oh, did you watch the news this morning? An executive at a medium-sized company was killed by a subordinate.”
I went to the bathroom to have another cup of coffee, and I heard the chatter of the staff.
I didn’t want to eavesdrop, but it was so loud I couldn’t help but hear it.
“I saw it too. They say they poured gasoline on their bodies and set them on fire.”
“Be cruel. What kind of resentment did you have that made you do that?”
“The news I saw said he was still alive? It’s a serious level of body burns… … .”
“If you have a full body burn, you have to say that it is difficult to live.”
At that time, a woman with a particularly loud voice turns the topic.
“By the way, it was reported that the initials of that mid-sized company were Company K in Yongin. Isn’t that our company?”
“Probably right. Several reporters have come since morning.”
“Oh my gosh.”
“There are rumors that the victim is Executive Director Park.”
“Who is the culprit? Speaking of subordinates working with Executive Director Park, they belong to the integrated management department… … .”
The conversation goes on until then, and then suddenly cuts off.
He seemed surprised to see me standing at the entrance to the bathroom.
“Why are you so surprised?”
A subordinate who worked with Park Min-gyo.
One was Baek Seung-tae, who went missing a month ago, and the other was me.
Pretending nothing was wrong, I walked over to the coffee machine and pulled out an Americano.
Weiyiying-
While the coffee machine brews coffee, no voice can be heard in the bathroom.
Everyone is just watching as if they have forgotten how to speak.
Horok.
I took a sip of the freshly brewed coffee and muttered as if talking to myself.
“There was just breaking news on the portal, and the culprit on the run is Baek Mo, in his 50s.”
Only then did the anxious gazes pouring down on me slightly soften. It is said that it has softened up to the end, but it is still not a good reaction.
At that time, a member of the accounting department, who is usually close to work, asks.
“excuse me… … Does Chief Shin know something?”
“What do you mean?”
“This incident. You were close to Executive Director Park and Manager Baek. They belong to the same department.”
The eyes that had been wary until just now turned into curiosity and poured out.
“I don’t know.”
Disappointed responses pour in from all sides. What answer did these people expect from me?
Before I even left the kitchen with my coffee, the chatter resumed.
“If the president continues to struggle with the disease, and the executive director who actually led the company becomes like that, what will happen to the company?”
“Does the boss’s son, who went abroad to study, want to come back?”
“The higher ups will take care of the headaches like management.”
“that’s right. It’s enough when we get a good salary. So pretend you don’t know and just work hard.”
As I listened to those words, ridicule flowed without my knowledge.
If you do a full investigation on this case, you will find out that the barn is empty, but the money is 180 billion won.
I don’t know if even part of it is recovered, but it wasn’t, so KN Chemical was confirmed bankrupt.
‘If I return the money in my virtual currency account, I can attach a respirator, but is there a reason for me to do that?’
I hate this company. He hated Park Min-gyo and Baek Seung-tae, who were falsely accused, as well as all the general staff.
It’s not hate without reason.
When I was arrested in the past, my mother asked all employees of the company to testify on my behalf.
However, no one came forward as a witness until the day of the trial.
As a result, Baek Seung-tae was released without charge, and KN Chemical went bankrupt because it could not recover the embezzlement money.
‘Think of this as your cause and effect.’
* * *
After lunchtime and into the afternoon, breaking news about yesterday’s incident poured in in earnest.
In the early days, the name of the company that appeared in the initials, such as Yongin’s K company, was exactly revealed as KN Chemical, and the victim’s name, age, and rank were continuously on the news.
Up to this point, it seemed like an ordinary criminal case, but an audio file that was subsequently released shocked the entire nation.
-I caught Baek Seung-tae’s wife and daughter hiding in the house. Now what?
– What should I do? Whether it’s cutting off a finger or plucking an eye, find Seungtae Baek’s location by any means necessary.
-All right.
– Did you guys hear that too? fingers and eyes. Which way would you like to go?
-We really don’t know where he is! One phone call in the morning and that’s it! please believe me!
-If you pluck your eyes here, the car seats will get dirty, so let’s start with your fingers. Bring a plastic bag and a fruit.
-Help me! Wow! please! please!
Since the audio file was released, the case has been classified as a violent case involving gangsters, and the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency will directly investigate.
“Are you Shin Woo-hyuk?”
A sharp-looking man came to me with a policeman.
“Yes, but who are you?”
“I am Investigator Lee Han-seok of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. I would like to ask for your cooperation.”
When the police come to the office, all eyes are on them.
“What kind of cooperation can I do?”
“Please tell us in as much detail as possible what happened between Park Min-gyo and Baek Seung-tae.”
I got up first and gestured.
“I don’t think that’s what we’re talking about here. Please follow me.”
I led the cops to the smoking area on the roof.
At first, there was nothing there, but I brought a chair and a desk, and put up a screen, so it was a good place to be.
As soon as I sit down, the investigator asks.
“Shin Woo-hyuk is very calm. It’s normal for us to be embarrassed when we come.”
“Yeah, I saw the news beforehand.”
“Did you know we were coming after watching the news?”
“Yes, I thought it was finally here.”
The investigator’s expression becomes quite serious. The police officer standing behind even turned on the tape recorder.
“Do you know anything about this incident?”
From noble mtl dot com
“Working in the same department in the same company, I often witnessed prodromal symptoms. Their relationship was like a ticking time bomb about to explode.”
“Mostly what… … ?”
“It is embezzlement. Not just one or two pennies, but hundreds of billions of company money must have been taken away by them.”
I confess the dubious behavior of the two one by one.
Buying land under a borrowed name, purchasing large amounts of gold bullion, and buying and collecting artworks were acts that anyone could see smelled like money laundering.
Then, towards the end of the story, I take out the USB I had prepared in advance and hand it to him.
“The evidence I’ve gathered so far is in here.”
“You’ve gathered evidence, you’re thorough.”
“I had no choice but to do this in order not to be accused of being an accomplice with them.”
“I understand, but if you knew about the crime beforehand, you should have reported it. If that were the case, this incident could have been prevented.”
“My life is more important to me than the common good.”
Upon hearing that, the investigator smiled bitterly.
“Therefore, please keep all information provided anonymously.”
* * *
When I arrived at Park Min-gyo’s villa, Baek Seung-tae had already cleaned up the embezzlement money and set the villa on fire.
I thought it was better. Baek Seung-tae took the money and ran away, so isn’t that proof that you can’t take it out or beat it?
I sent the solvers back and waited for Park Min-gyo alone.
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
It was decided to apply the principle of East Asian retaliation, which was also found in the Code of Hammurabi, as it is.
Death to Park Min-gyo who killed me, murder to Baek Seung-tae who was framed for embezzlement.
* * *
After talking with the inspector on the roof, I returned to my seat and there were a lot of people.
Vice presidents and executives, who are usually hard to see, and even the general affairs team were mobilized.
“What are you doing?”
When I open my mouth, an executive suddenly raises his voice.
“Hey, what did you just say to that cop? You didn’t come here to talk nonsense, did you?”
“Isn’t that a pointless story?”
“So, there is something called image in our company. If you bring up this and that for no reason, it means that nothing good will come of it.”
I thought I had maintained my poker face well until now, but this time I couldn’t stand it and burst into laughter.
“Poop.”
Of course, the other person is hot and his voice rises.
“Now is the time to laugh!”
“Oh, sorry. But this is such a funny situation… … I can’t stop laughing.”
How funny it is that a company that is on the brink of bankruptcy after all its warehouses have been robbed in the world is not trying to catch thieves first, but is thinking about their face first.
Meanwhile, an employee hurriedly runs to the vice president.
“Boo, Vice President, we’re in trouble! Look at the news that just broke!”
“What kind of Newson is that?”
“This is the news that this incident occurred during a quarrel over embezzlement money from our company.”
Astonished vice presidents, as well as executives, stare at their cell phone screens.
“Embezzlement from our company? Isn’t this article misleading?”
“The reporter must have made a mistake.”
“Check properly!”
“All right!”
Just then, as if a fire had gone out in their feet, all the employees jumped here and there to figure out the situation.
When I saw that, I burst out laughing. Park Min-gyo manipulated the ledger, but I would have thought he still didn’t know about the embezzlement.
‘It’s going to get louder in the future.’
I sat down in my seat and quickly made two documents and printed them out.
One sheet of sick leave application.
The other is a resignation letter.
As long as Park Min-gyo disappeared, there was no reason for me to remain here.
If I’ve focused on clearing up the past so far, I’ll do my best in my new future from tomorrow.