Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 25

The Secret Temptation (6)

-I’m sorry. I don’t think I can do it.

-What are you talking about all of a sudden? What is this now?

-This is the money you gave me back then. I brought it to return it.

-What are you trying to do right now?

-I’m sorry.

-Do you know how much money is on the line here right now?

-…….

-I think you might be misunderstanding something big, so let me tell you, this isn’t a big deal. It’s just giving up one walk [allowing a batter to reach first base without swinging]. It’s not like giving up a walk during a game is anything special.

-Hyung-nim [term for older brother or respected male figure]…….

-Yes, Jeong-hwan. Just help me out this once. There’s a lot riding on tomorrow’s game. I won’t ask you for anything more in the future. And no one knows about this except for us. If only the two of us keep our mouths shut, who would know?

-I’m sorry.

-This bastard, really!

I opened the door and went inside.

The only lighting inside was from the lamps on each table, so it was dim.

I already knew where the two were sitting, but I pretended to look around, turning my head this way and that.

This much acting should be enough.

When I got closer, I saw Choi Jeong-hwan sitting with his head bowed, and Lee Joo-ho, his face red, unable to hide his anger.

Today, what caught my eye first was Lee Joo-ho’s outfit.

A tiger sitting on his stomach was glaring at me fiercely, as if it would devour me.

It was the kind of clothes I wouldn’t wear even if you gave them to me for free.

Where can you even get something like that?

Thanks to that, the stiffness in my arms and legs seemed to ease a little.

Lee Joo-ho made eye contact with me, cleared his throat once, and then averted his gaze.

Then, he naturally hid the money in front of him under the table.

“It’s nice to see you again like this.”

“Likewise, Hyun-woo-ssi.”

I smiled brightly and reached out my hand, as if I had no idea what was going on between the two of them.

Then, Lee Joo-ho also forced a fake smile and stood up to shake my hand.

-He bet his and his acquaintances’ money on the illegal gambling site he operates.

-He is furious at the thought of losing a large sum of money due to Choi Jeong-hwan’s refusal.

Looking at the updated information, all the pieces naturally fell into place.

He brought not only his own money but also money from his acquaintances.

If Lee Joo-ho’s plan had gone as he intended, the 100 million won he promised to give Choi Jeong-hwan would have been a mere pittance compared to the enormous amount of money he would have earned.

Now that he’s run into me, he’ll have to worry about going to jail in a little while.

“May I sit down?”

“Yes, of course. Please, have a seat.”

I carefully sat down next to Choi Jeong-hwan, watching Lee Joo-ho’s expression.

I could feel him trying not to show his emotions, but once his expression had been distorted, it didn’t return easily.

“Am I interrupting something?”

“No. Not at all.”

I continued to act as if I didn’t know anything.

“But what brings Kang Hyun-woo-ssi here……”

“It’s not a big reason. I thought you seemed to know a lot of people in this field, so I was wondering if it would be good to get to know you. I also had an appointment with Jeong-hwan.”

“Ah……. Is that so.”

Since I said I came without any special reason, he might be even more frustrated inside.

“Excuse me, but may I ask what kind of work you do? Are you in the sports field?”

“Hahaha. Well, I just do various businesses. I do anything that seems profitable.”

“You seem to have quite a few acquaintances among baseball players?”

“Rather than having acquaintances, it’s more like I’m interested in the field, so I know a lot of people.”

Even with this level of questioning, there was no change in his expression at all.

Rather, he seemed to have regained his composure more than before.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t even asked for your name yet?”

“Is that so? Hahaha. My name is Kang Min-seok.”

It seemed so natural for him to hide his real name and live under a different one.

“Could I possibly get a business card?”

“Ah……. I rushed out here today, so I forgot to bring one. I’ll give you one next time.”

He was also top-notch at smoothly getting past situations that were disadvantageous to him.

At that moment, the detective across from me signaled to me.

It meant that they would be approaching soon.

It was the timing to throw the decisive word.

“But if you don’t mind, may I ask you something?”

“Yes. Anything.”

Lee Joo-ho showed a greasy smile with a relaxed gesture.

“Do you happen to know someone named Lee Joo-ho? What is your relationship with him?”

“Yes……? What are you talking about?”

For the first time, Lee Joo-ho’s gaze wavered.

The fake smile on his lips also disappeared.

“You don’t know Lee Joo-ho-ssi? I think you know him very well?”

“What are you?”

Lee Joo-ho’s eyes changed sharply in an instant.

“You do know him, right? From what I’ve gathered, it seems impossible that you wouldn’t know him.”

“Why are you asking me that? What are you?”

Hearing his cold voice, I could even hear the sound of my heart pounding in my ears.

Nevertheless, I slammed the table hard and stood up from my seat.

It was an action that came out of me without any planning.

“What are you going to do knowing who I am? And what is that you’re hiding under the table right now?”

I pointed to the envelope of money that Lee Joo-ho was hiding.

“You hid it so well that it seems important, so tell me what you’re going to use it for first!”

“This bastard, really!”

Lee Joo-ho glared at me as if he would kill me and jumped up from his seat.

For a moment, he paused, realizing that the surrounding attention was focused on him.

Then, he quickly grabbed the money he had hidden next to him and ran away.

Thump, thump.

“Ahhh!”

The surrounding customers, who didn’t know anything, were startled and screamed.

The interior quickly turned into chaos because of Lee Joo-ho, who was sprinting with all his might, pushing and kicking everything in his path, whether it was people or objects, that were blocking his way.

“There he goes. Catch him!”

The detectives sitting around simultaneously jumped up and ran towards Lee Joo-ho.

Lee Joo-ho was so agile that I wondered if he practiced running away on a regular basis.

Moreover, he didn’t hesitate at all and ran straight towards the back exit, as if he had already figured out the location of the emergency exit.

However, the detective team was already waiting there for him to come out.

While the flustered Lee Joo-ho was looking around for a place to escape, one of the detectives running from behind tackled Lee Joo-ho and knocked him to the ground.

“Argh! Let go of me. Won’t you let go? I said let go!”

Lee Joo-ho struggled violently, but the detective handcuffed his wrist.

Another detective took out his police ID and reassured the customers there.

As the situation seemed to be settling down, I shifted my gaze to Choi Jeong-hwan.

He was sitting in his seat, tilting his head back and looking at the dark ceiling.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“……Did I do anything? I just did everything you told me to do, sunbae [term for senior colleague or mentor].”

“No. You really did a great job. Thank you for trusting me, Jeong-hwan.”

I patted Choi Jeong-hwan on the shoulder.

Soon after, Lee Soo-min ran towards us.

Behind her, Yang Dong-soo was approaching, giving instructions to the detective next to him.

“Hyun-woo-ssi. Are you hurt anywhere?”

“No. I’m perfectly fine.”

“What about Choi Jeong-hwan, the player?”

“I’m fine too.”

Lee Soo-min’s face, which had been full of worry, now looked a little more relaxed.

“By the way, Hyun-woo-ssi. You were so cool earlier. You even shouted so loudly in front of that person.”

As I suddenly remembered what I had done earlier, I wanted to hide right away.

“Actually, it wasn’t intentional. To be honest, I was a little scared too…”

At my words, Lee Soo-min chuckled and laughed.

Choi Jeong-hwan also let out a burst of laughter, as if his tension had eased a little.

As Yang Dong-soo approached, the topic of conversation naturally changed.

“Everyone has worked hard. I will contact you again after the investigation is over.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

Lee Soo-min and I bowed our heads to Yang Dong-soo.

Yang Dong-soo, who had turned around, took a step and then suddenly stopped.

Then, he turned his head again and looked at me.

“Hyun-woo-ssi. I’m sorry for misunderstanding you last time.”

Yang Dong-soo said in a low voice.

“It’s okay. I would have done the same if I were you.”

“If you need anything else, please feel free to contact me anytime.”

Yang Dong-soo, who had a faint smile on his lips, bowed his head slightly and left.

Only then did I feel relieved and collapsed into my seat.

But I didn’t forget the last thing I had to do.

“Soo-min-ssi. You didn’t forget what I asked you to do, did you?”

“Of course. Don’t worry.”

Looking at Lee Soo-min, whose lips were turned up in excitement, I smiled.

* * *

The next morning.

Choi Jeong-hwan and I went to the Korea Professional Baseball Association office together.

There, we met with an employee of the secretariat and had an interview for about an hour.

After finishing everything we had to do, I returned home and my cell phone rang.

Vibration-

It was a text message from Lee Soo-min.

-Hyun-woo-ssi. The article is up. Please check it.

As soon as I checked the text message, I clicked on the link in the message to check the sports news.

As soon as the Korea Professional Baseball Association distributed the official press release, Lee Soo-min’s article was published.

Thanks to that, it immediately decorated the main page of the portal site.

Since the fierce competition for the rankings at the end of the season was also coming to an end, this news was receiving even more attention.

The same was true even if you only looked at the posts in the baseball community.

The reaction was hot as the freshness of self-reporting was added to the issue of match-fixing.

└I think this is the first time I’ve seen someone voluntarily report that they were asked to manipulate a game?

└They say they’ll give you 100 million won if you just give up one walk, it’s amazing that he refused. I would have just closed my eyes and done it.

└It seems like this voluntary report and reward will be a good precedent.

My body was tired from running around for a few days, but my heart was full of pride at the thought that I had changed the life of a player.

Ding-dong.

At that time, the doorbell rang.

‘Who is it?’

There’s no reason for Kim Min-hwan to come here at this time.

And he knows the password, so he can just come in.

Ding-dong.

The bell rang again.

I went out to the living room and checked the intercom.

Someone’s figure was visible on the intercom screen.

Even though it was a small screen, I could quickly tell who it was.

As soon as I saw him, I couldn’t hide my joy.

I hurriedly slipped on my shoes and ran out.

“What brings you here?”