TLWSS 09

Chapter 09

I arrived at the office early in the morning.

Perhaps because their attempt to take over my first case had been exposed, the office manager Kim and deputy Oh were clearly watching my reaction.

As soon as I walked in, the atmosphere in the office seemed to slightly sink.

“Attorney Yoo, you’re here? Today Attorney Park came in, so come out and greet him.”

Attorney Kim Chang-su, acting casual as always, led me to Room 3.

“Attorney Park, this is Attorney Yoo Hyun-jae. Yoo, this is Attorney Park Hyun.”

“Hello. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

Attorney Park Hyun greeted me first with a friendly smile and a handshake.

He looked to be in his mid-40s. Although his hairline was aggressively receding, his thick, bear-like build and sharp movements made him seem like someone who had trained his body a lot.

“Nice to meet you.”

I shook his hand and slightly bowed my head.

Attorney Park asked Attorney Kim Chang-su,

“Attorney Kim, are we having a company dinner today?”

“If you want to, of course we should. Hahaha.”

Attorney Kim laughed easily.

Attorney Park laughed heartily in response.

“Hohoho. Now that Room 4 is finally full, we should at least spend some office money on a dinner. What’s the point of letting all that money just sit there? Right, Attorney Kim?”

“Well… it’s not like we’ve got that much money lying around.”

As Attorney Park smiled with rounded eyes, Attorney Kim awkwardly laughed along.

Watching the subtle power struggle between them was interesting.

If Attorney Kim tried to make me pay for the dinner like last time, I was planning to say something—but because of Attorney Park, he didn’t say anything to me this time.

Company Dinner

The dinner started after work at 7 PM at a barbecue restaurant near the office.

Attendees included four attorneys—Kim Chang-su, Oh Ji-seong, Park Hyun, and myself—and two staff members, Manager Kim and Deputy Oh, making six in total.

The restaurant in the Gojan-dong food street was busier than nearby places.

Attorney Oh Ji-seong, who said he couldn’t drink, quietly focused on eating meat without saying much.

Contrary to his sharp impression, he was a quiet person who was serious about eating.

Attorney Park Hyun looked pleased as soon as the soju came out.

“Yoo, do you drink?”

“Just moderately.”

“Moderately? That means you’re good at it, right?”

I accepted the glass he poured.

As we drank back and forth, I scanned his aura.

Attorney Park had a deep, vivid red aura.

Experience told me that this kind of red indicated someone passionate and strongly justice-driven.

He probably had a quick temper too.

But the red wasn’t murky—it was clear and deep, meaning he was also kind-hearted.

The more I talked with him, the more I liked him.

“Yoo, do you play golf?”

Attorney Kim suddenly jumped in again.

Was he trying to pick a fight again?

“I don’t play golf.”

“I knew it. These days golf is basic, you know? You need to understand the charm of standing on a wide field and hitting the ball. I wondered why Yoo feels so stiff—there was a reason.”

“I don’t plan on learning golf in the future either.”

As I cut him off firmly, Attorney Kim suddenly burst into laughter.

“Hahaha! I like young people with this kind of confidence. Even if you teach them good things, they can’t tell what’s good or bad. Right, Attorney Park?”

“Well, you don’t really have to learn it. Lawyers mostly play golf to entertain judges anyway. And once you start entertaining with golf, it’s not just golf—you have to take them out for drinks after too… Golf isn’t even really exercise. Tennis would be better.”

Attorney Park smoothly changed the topic.

Attorney Kim’s face turned slightly red with frustration, then he turned to Attorney Oh.

“Hey Oh, what do you think? You play golf, right?”

“Well, it’s a personal choice.”

Attorney Oh adjusted his glasses.

His aura was blue—cold, slightly dark blue.

That kind of aura usually belonged to realistic, calculating, slightly selfish people.

He would cooperate if it benefited him, but never if it caused him loss.

As the atmosphere cooled, Attorney Park ordered more soju and beer.

“I’m good at making bomb shots… want to have one each?”

“In our office, bottle rights always belong to Attorney Park anyway.”

“That so?”

Strangely, Manager Kim was flattering Attorney Park.

Attorney Park made beer-soju bombs and handed them out one by one.

It seemed like a common occurrence, because no one refused—not even Manager Kim or Deputy Oh.

Even Attorney Oh, who said he didn’t drink, still accepted the glass.

—So this is the famous bomb shot.

The red-eyed presence that always appeared when there was something tasty showed up again, licking its lips beside me.

I deliberately placed the glass slightly aside so it could “taste” it.

—Wow, bomb shots are totally my style. Yoo, get close with that guy.

The red eyes got excited.

Attorney Park laughed.

“I’m good at soju-bombs. Let’s all have one.”

Manager Kim quickly agreed beside him.

“Of course. Attorney Park is the master mixer here.”

“Haha, of course. I’ve been making drinks for 15 years. Since my days as a criminal investigator.”

“A true master, hahaha.”

I hadn’t known he was a former detective.

No wonder his movements and expressions weren’t ordinary.

“Attorney Park, you were in criminal investigations?”

“Ah, Yoo doesn’t know yet? He used to be a police officer. Then he prepared for the bar exam later and passed it.”

Attorney Kim explained.

I remembered seeing the massive stack of files in Attorney Park’s office.

So that’s why he had the most cases in the firm.

Even though he had only been practicing for three years, his police connections brought him the most cases.

—So that sly Attorney Kim can’t touch him for a reason.

The red eyes nodded while sipping the drink.

“You must handle a lot of criminal cases then.”

“Hm? What kind of case did you take recently, Yoo?”

“A fraud case… it was settled before trial.”

“That’s impressive. I heard you got it on your very first day.”

“No, I was just lucky.”

“No need to be modest. Getting the consultation is luck, but turning it into a case is skill.”

Attorney Park smiled warmly and nodded.

“Honestly, Attorney Park gets far more cases from police connections than from consultations here, right?”

Attorney Kim said, slightly envious.

“People like me and Oh—even if we went to prestigious universities—can’t compete with police networks. Alumni networks don’t bring many cases. Everyone already knows lawyers there.”

Attorney Oh gave a slightly self-deprecating smile in agreement.

He also seemed to expect something from Attorney Park, but Park pretended not to notice.

“We’ve eaten enough meat. Shall we go for a second round and have some beer?”

Attorney Park suggested.

“I’ll head out first.”

“I should get going too.”

Manager Kim and Deputy Oh stood up.

After the staff left, the four lawyers moved to a nearby beer pub.

Even while drinking lightly, Attorney Park continued telling me stories—mostly experiences from criminal cases.

I had done internships in law school, but hearing real-world stories from a senior attorney with field experience was valuable.

“You seem in a good mood today, Attorney Park.”

Attorney Kim jumped in.

“Why wouldn’t I be? The office is full now, and we’re finally having a company dinner after a long time.”

Attorney Park replied calmly.

“I should’ve done this more often.”

“Let’s do it more often from now on. Kim, everything’s good about you except you’re too stingy with office management. Right, Oh?”

“Yeah, a bit.”

I hadn’t noticed, but both Attorney Park and Attorney Oh seemed dissatisfied with Attorney Kim’s management.

For a moment, Kim’s face twitched. But he quickly laughed exaggeratedly and changed the topic.

This “separate partnership” law office was a structure where independent lawyers shared an office.

Attorney Kim rented the four-room office, and Park, Oh, and I each paid separately to work there.

Salaries for Manager Kim and Deputy Oh, as well as rent, electricity, paper, and equipment costs were split four ways.

But since Manager Kim was Attorney Kim’s younger brother and Deputy Oh was also his person, Kim could essentially run the office in his favor.

—Looks like this isn’t the first time he’s taken someone else’s case.

The red eyes glared at Kim.

—Looks like this guy’s been shady before.

“I agree.”

—What a sneaky bastard.

The red eyes cursed.

“Haha… after paying salaries and rent, there’s barely anything left.”

“Really?”

Attorney Park raised his eyebrows.

“Really. I have to think hard just to save operating costs.”

“Then drink.”

Attorney Park raised his glass.

“Ah, I’m fine now…”

“It must be stressful running the office. Let’s just wash it all away today.”

“Haha, really now…”

Kim couldn’t refuse and drank.

Except for Oh, both Kim and Park were heavy drinkers.

Their faces barely changed, so they seemed like seasoned drinkers.

I stepped outside to the restroom.

“Oh, I’ll go with you, Yoo.”

Attorney Park followed me.

We stood side by side at the urinals.

Then Park muttered,

“I like you, Yoo.”

“Haha, what part?”

“I’ve been a criminal investigator for a long time. I can tell by looking at faces. And you… you’re my type.”

“Thank you.”

“Mm, hehe.”

“…What type is that?”

“A guy who looks like a good fighter.”

Something warm rose in my chest.

We returned inside together.

The red eyes were standing in front of our table, laughing loudly.

—Hahahaha!

What is so funny?

When we reached the table, Attorney Oh had already passed out, slumped forward.

Next to him, Attorney Kim was slapping his own face.

Smack! Smack! Smack!

His cheeks were red and swollen with handprints.

“Uh… Attorney Kim, what are you doing?”

As I tried to stop him, Attorney Park grabbed my hand.

“C-c-c… just leave him. It’s his habit.”

“What?”

“It’s his drinking habit. He usually avoids drinking because of this. Oh always falls asleep after a single drink. Kim didn’t even drink that much, but he must’ve gotten drunk quickly today.”

“…Ah.”

Smack! Smack! Smack!

The relentless slapping continued.

Even just watching made my face sting.

Then I noticed something strange.

Kim’s face was overlapping with a woman’s face.

There was only one explanation for that.

He was possessed.

I wasn’t sure who the woman was, but she seemed extremely angry at him.

When Kim’s consciousness blurred from alcohol, she seemed to take over his body and punish him.

“Will he be okay?”

“He’s been like that for about a year. He knows it himself. We tried stopping him at first, but he’s too strong when it happens.”