IRLPLBIO Chapter 13 Part 2

A momentary look of regret flashed across Han Yun-cheol’s face. Not missing the moment, Jae-gu quickly winked.

“Do you see this? All scratched up. Ugh, already bleeding from the nose at this age. I don’t know what he was thinking, getting hit in the head right before exams. What if his grades suffer?”

“…I’ll compensate you sufficiently.”

“So, you agree to a settlement, right?”

“Yes.”

The ‘settlement’ Han Yun-cheol mentioned implied not only money but also his intention to deal with Han Seong-cheol exactly as Jae-gu wished.

Im Ho-sin, watching them call a lawyer and then come to a conclusion amongst themselves, chuckled.

He hadn’t known it was related to the Dae-yeong Group before coming to the police station. Even after arriving, he hadn’t expected Han Yun-cheol himself to appear. With one unexpected event after another, his capacity for surprise had vanished.

Realizing there was no longer a need to confront Lee Su-seong, Im Ho-sin was the first to extend his hand.

“Well, now. I should delete those texts.”

“Yes, yes. That would be greatly appreciated. This is my business card.”

“Oh, my. In that case, I’ll give you one too.”

Im Ho-sin and Lee Su-seong exchanged business cards.

Lee Su-seong, about to put the received business card into his wallet, paused.

Im Ho-sin. It was a name he’d heard somewhere before.

When he heard it spoken, it hadn’t immediately clicked, but seeing it in writing brought a sudden realization. The name of the lawyer, passed down like a legend at DK Law Firm, which had a cooperative relationship with Dae-yeong, was indeed ‘Im Ho-sin’.

Lee Su-seong, taking a deep breath to suppress a gasp of surprise, quickly wiped his suddenly sweaty palms on his trousers. Carefully putting away the business card, making sure not to crease even a corner, he asked even more cautiously,

“By any chance… were you at DK before?”

“That’s right. Do you know me?”

“Oh, of course! Of course I know you, senior!”

Lee Su-seong unconsciously adopted a respectful posture.

During the noisy period of debate over whether the Judicial Examination would be abolished, those who had passed the Judicial Examination early while still in university were so famous that their names circulated on lists. Caught up in the fervor of drawing ‘energy’ from them, Lee Su-seong had also prayed to the names of famous figures before taking the Judicial Examination himself.

Among them, stories of Im Ho-sin’s brilliant activity across various fields since his days as a junior associate were still passed down as a guideline for solving cases.

“I really wanted to meet you! When I joined, I was so disappointed to hear that you had already left. But even after leaving DK, you remained at the center of rumors. From stories about eloping with a beautiful married woman, to hiding in a quiet provincial town to protect Dae-yeong’s illegitimate child…”

Once his mouth opened, the unnecessary words went on endlessly.

Im Ho-sin nodded with a smile but was slightly fed up. While it was common to say various things to butter up an opposing lawyer, seeing Lee Su-seong fluently recount specific actions made him seem ‘genuine.’

However, none of the rumors he spread were true. Im Ho-sin knew Han Ga-yeon, the beautiful married woman, but he hadn’t eloped with her, and while he was keeping an eye on Dae-yeong’s child, the child was not an illegitimate child.

“I read the defense briefs you left behind until they were worn out. I was so moved, wondering how you could have made such a perfect defense with no room for counter-argument, that I even transcribed them to try and imitate your style. I memorized case records and collected all the articles about your work. You can’t imagine how many juniors, like me, are tracing your footsteps!”

Lee Su-seong’s words became increasingly verbose. From the middle onwards, he seemed to be so caught up in his own emotions that he was oblivious to those around him. His professionalism had long since vanished.

Had the standards at DK deteriorated significantly, or had Han Yun-cheol deliberately chosen such a person?

Im Ho-sin subtly glanced at Han Yun-cheol. Perhaps Han Yun-cheol hadn’t been very keen on saving his younger brother, Han Seong-cheol, from the start. In any case, it was a relief that everything had concluded without further issues.

From behind Im Ho-sin, who let out a small sigh, Han Ga-yeon stepped forward. She did so with a bright smile, so much so that it was strange he hadn’t felt her presence until now.

“Long time no see, Yun-cheol.”