The Cop Is Too Strong [EN]: Chapter 146

146. First Day at Work

When Madam called for Hak-soon, a skinny man with yellow hair and a black tracksuit appeared. He swaggered over, his eyes widening slightly when he saw Haru.

“Surprised, huh? He doesn’t even bat an eye at most women, so you must be really pretty. That’s the first time I’ve seen him make that face.”

Hak-soon approached and scanned Haru up and down, asking, with a gaze that strangely lacked lust.

“What’s this?”

“What do you think? She’s here to work. So, what’s your name?”

Madam’s gaze lingered on Haru. Haru answered calmly.

“Miso.”

“Such a pretty name. Is it your real name?”

When Haru didn’t respond, Madam interpreted it as she pleased.

“Oh, you already came up with it? Perfect. It sounds like a stage name, so the customers will love it. And it doesn’t overlap with the other girls. Sit here for now. Oh, you’re so lovely, and your figure is so slender.”

As soon as Haru sat down, Madam scrutinized her face in detail.

“So, have you done this kind of work before? Are you going to commit? You will commit, right? Commit, and I’ll take good care of you.”

“…Commit?”

Haru had no knowledge of the terminology used here. Madam liked that even more.

“A newbie? Great, just great! The uncles [a term of endearment for older male customers] are going to go crazy for you, I can already see it! ‘Commit’ means you only work at our karaoke. Like a company employee, coming to work every day. You get a fixed salary based on your attendance. It’s much better, so don’t waste your energy wandering around other places. Stay here, and I’ll treat you well.”

Haru glanced at Hak-soon, who was leaning against the counter chewing on a toothpick, then looked back at Madam and nodded.

“Yes, I’ll commit.”

Haru’s employment was very smooth, regardless of her acting skills. She gave Madam the burner phone number she had prepared and left the place.

* * *

The next day, her work started at nine PM.

At eight o’clock, Madam called.

-Miso, are you getting ready? I’ll send Hak-soon to pick you up, like we discussed.

“Yes.”

Haru, who was at headquarters with the team, took the call and changed her clothes.

The makeup was done by the youngest member’s girlfriend, Jeon Yuri, who came by after work.

She also gave Haru a makeup tutorial, as she wouldn’t be able to come for a few days due to her flight schedule.

Toc, toc.

As Haru changed and came out from behind the partition, the team members were instinctively captivated.

Black matte high heels with a red sole, a black mini dress that accentuated her long, slender legs, and a slightly exposed collarbone.

The team members reflexively closed their eyes or looked away at the alluring sight.

“That, that Ha Police Officer. You’re going through a lot, really a lot.”

“Hmm… it’s kind of heartbreaking, like a youngest sibling going to work to support her unemployed older brothers.”

“That’s right… that’s the perfect expression. Ha junior, be careful.”

“Yes, I will.”

Haesu got up to take Haru to the meeting place and left the headquarters with her.

As soon as Haru left, the team members scattered to gather the equipment to take to the mobile headquarters, a van.

This was to be ready in case a key figure from the Mujin gang appeared, or if something happened to Haru, allowing them to eavesdrop and be on standby within 100 meters.

Toc, toc.

On the way to the parking lot, the gazes of passersby and people inside the police station were drawn to her in that short amount of time.

Even though she was wearing a thin long-sleeved shirt, it was thanks to her long legs and the sound of her high heels.

Haesu, who had been wearing a heavy expression since leaving the headquarters, opened the car door for her and muttered.

“We need to find another way next time.”

“No, I feel like I’m making a big contribution to the investigation this time, so I’m very happy.”

“…Okay, let’s go.”

The meeting place was a five-minute drive from the police station, in front of a studio apartment.

Before Haru got out and closed the door, Haesu looked at her slender figure and spoke.

“Haru.”

“Yes?”

Was it because of the way she was dressed up? She answered in a more feminine voice than usual as she turned around.

The moonlight illuminated the outline of her profile, subtly permeating her face and creating a bewitching atmosphere.

Haesu was suddenly breathless in the face of her unguarded appearance.

“Uh, if, uh, anyone tries to touch you, break their fingers. I’ll take responsibility.”

A faint smile spread across Haru’s lips.

“Yes.”

As she answered and slightly bowed her head, a few strands of hair fell beside her face. She brushed them behind her ear with her fingers. The gesture was truly feminine, like other women.

The clothes and makeup seemed to have transformed her.

As Haru turned and stood in front of the studio apartment, a van quickly arrived and picked her up.

* * *

Hwangjin Karaoke.

There was a small room attached to the side of the karaoke counter. Hak-soon flung the half-open door wide open.

Three other women were already there. One was lying on her back on a folded blanket, looking at her phone, and another was squatting with one knee up, puffing on a cigarette. Her posture was so unguarded that her red underwear was clearly visible, but neither Hak-soon nor the woman cared.

A woman inside was changing her clothes, and she was indifferent even with Hak-soon watching.

“This is Ms. Miso. She’s new, so teach her well.”

Hak-soon pushed Haru inside and closed the door.

The woman playing with her phone didn’t care, and the woman smoking glanced at Haru before quickly looking away.

Haru stood blankly at the entrance of the narrow room, watching the woman change her clothes, and thought.

‘I should have worn comfortable clothes and changed here… No.’

Haru frowned as she thought of the many scars on her body and shook off the thought.

“What are you looking at, you bitch?”

Suddenly, a curse was heard. The woman who had finished changing glared at Haru.

Haru wondered how to respond.

“Um, your belly fat?”

-Ha, Ha Police Officer…

-Awesome…

“Wh, what?”

“Pfft!”

The woman was dumbfounded and covered her stomach with both hands, while the woman on her phone chuckled.

“You crazy bitch!”

As the angry woman strode towards Haru to grab her hair, a low, resonant voice was heard.

“Stop the bullshit and sit down. Why the hell are you trying to assert yourself in a place like this?”

It was the woman who had been smoking. She looked at Haru and motioned for her to sit next to her. The woman who had been about to attack Haru muttered something and went outside with a wet wipe.

“Pretty, young, and raw?”

The woman had thick eyebrows and sharp eyes, and seemed to have quite the temper. She seemed to be the top dog in this room.

Haru, hearing the unfamiliar term again, asked.

“Raw?”

“Definitely raw, I could smell it. I’m Jooyeon, that’s Hana, and the one who just left is Ddalgi (Strawberry).”

“I’m Miso.”

She had been fine with short answers, but this time it was outright rude. Jooyeon paused, took a deep drag of her cigarette, and exhaled the smoke into Haru’s face.

“Hoo… Is your tongue cut in half?”

“No?”

When Haru showed her pink tongue, Jooyeon chuckled and shook her head.

“You’re an interesting one.”

-I think I’m going to have a heart attack listening to this.

-It’s hilarious. It’s spectacular.

Soon, the first customer came in.

Madam opened the door and looked at the girls.

“Three people, oh, and Miso, come on out.”

“Yes.”

The phone girl didn’t seem to have any intention of going out from the start, as she remained lying down, and Haru, the smoking girl, and the cursing girl got up.

Madam opened the door to Karaoke Room 3, peeked her head in, and said to the customers.

“The girls are here.”

“Ah, hurry up, it’s been three minutes.”

The smoking girl, the cursing girl, and finally Haru entered, and exclamations of admiration poured out from everywhere. Madam smiled contentedly at the reaction and added an explanation.

“This girl is a newbie who just joined us. Pretty, right?”

“Ooh.”

“Wow, is she a celebrity?”

“Her! I want her no matter what!!”

Madam calmed the men down at their enthusiastic response.

“It’s her first time doing this, so be gentle. Got it?”

“What the hell, why should we? Come here! Sit right next to me, oppa [term used by females to refer to older brothers or male friends]!”

The cursing girl, Ddalgi, pushed Haru towards the man who clearly looked like a troublemaker.

But when Haru actually sat next to him, the man was mesmerized by her beauty and just stared at her.

It was as if he felt he couldn’t dare to touch her.

“Wow, wow… I’ve never seen anyone as pretty as you in my forty years of life. Ho, how old are you?”

“Twenty years old.”

This was something she had agreed on with Madam in advance. If her face could pass for it, it was always better to be younger.

“Oh my, you’re such a baby, look at your fair skin.”

Even the other men, who had girls sitting next to them, kept glancing at Haru. Among them, a man with a thick beard frowned and stood up abruptly.

“Hey, what are you doing, you bastard? If you’re just going to stare at the girl after paying good money, you might as well watch a celebrity on TV. Move.”

-What the hell is he talking about?

-Ha Police Officer, I’ll take responsibility, so if that bastard tries to touch you anywhere… Charge! Where are you going! Hey, Oh Gyeong, grab him!

While Haru’s earpiece was buzzing with noise, the bearded man crab-walked over and sat next to Haru.

Then, he naturally tried to place his hand on her thigh.

Before his disgusting hand could touch her skin, Haru snatched his fingers and tried to break them.

At that moment.

Swish-

At that moment, another slender hand suddenly reached out and grabbed the man’s hand.

It was the smoking girl, Jooyeon.

“Ah, oppa, she’s still a baby, and it’s her first day today, you know?”

“What about you?”

She moved her seat and squeezed in between Haru and the man, then placed the man’s hand on her own thigh.

The man’s expression softened slightly at the soft sensation.

“What if she doesn’t come to work tomorrow because of oppa? She’s pretty, we need her to keep coming so we can keep seeing her. You need to give her time to adjust so you can see her often, touch her, and go out with her, right?”

“Go out? Just the two of us?”

“Maybe?”

“Ah, yeah, that’s right, hehe. Okay, I was too overwhelming from the start. Sorry, baby, it’s just that you’re so pretty, so pretty. You understand, right?”

Haru recoiled her upper body as if disgusted when the bearded man brought his large face close to her, and shook her head.

“No.”

“What, did I mishear?”

“Leave her alone, she’s cute.”

“I guess so.”

Haru sat upright like a mannequin, and the man next to her just sparkled his eyes as if he was happy just to see her.

After a while.

While the man next to her went to the bathroom with a cigarette in his mouth, the cursing girl, Ddalgi, approached Haru with a bright smile.

“Hey, you! Do something, feed oppa some fruit or something.”

Haru’s eyes slowly moved to look at her, then returned to their original position, fixing her gaze forward.

“Ha, I shouldn’t have said anything, how did someone like you end up here? Huh, oppa wasso [cute way of saying ‘oppa came’]? Ddalgi waited for you!”

As soon as her male partner came in, her tongue was cut in half and she greeted him with a cute tone.

When the man next to her sang a song, Haru suddenly picked up the tambourine on the table.

“Huh?”

“Oh, the baby’s moving.”

Tung tung tung tung tung turung tung tung turung tung

She slowly kept the beat, then gradually split the beat intricately and played the tambourine. People were surprised by her unusual skill.

“Wh, what, she’s good?”

“Pfft, no, what is it, why is it funny?”

* * *

“Oppa, come again, I’ll be waiting.”

“Bye, muah!”

The women came out first, and the men, heavily drunk, staggered out.

“Ugh, my head.”

“Ah, that was a waste.”

Madam greeted them with a smiling face.

“Oh my, did you have fun?”

The bearded man gave a thumbs up.

“The best, the best, that tambourine ace, I’m going to book her no matter what! Got it?”

“Ah, the baby? Of course~ Just let me know in advance and I’ll set her aside.”

“She’s really like watching a TV celebrity. It’s amazing, why is someone like that hanging out here?”

“She probably wants to earn some pocket money, there are many pretty girls like that. Let me calculate your bill.”

* * *

Because the next group of customers was waiting, they were only given a 10-minute break.

Jooyeon took out a cigarette and put it in her mouth again in the narrow room, and the phone girl, Hana, remained in the same position as before.

Haru stood still for a moment, then got up and headed to the bathroom.

Ddalgi glanced at her and gave a bitter smile.

Shuaaa

Haru was washing her hands in the bathroom when Ddalgi came in. She stood in front of the door, smoking a cigarette, and threw a lighter at Haru.

Tak

When Haru caught the lighter, she raised her chin and said.

“Light it.”

Haru looked at the lighter in her hand, then looked at her and asked seriously.

“Don’t you have fingers?”

Ddalgi threw the cigarette on the floor and raised one hand.

“You crazy bitch!”

* * *

At the same time, outside the mobile headquarters of the Violent Crimes Unit.

Haesu was on his way to meet the hell-bound passenger who dared to touch Haru’s body when his phone rang.

Zheeing, zheeing.

He would ignore any other call, but this was Jung Young-soo, who only called when he had crucial clues about the case, so he couldn’t ignore it.

“Yeah.”

-Detective Shin?! Did you fight with CEO Ahn Seo-eun, who has all the wealth and beauty?

“No, why?”

-The reporters from Daesung are tearing you apart? Something about Ban Mo, who died in prison?

“…What?”