The Inspector Is Getting Promoted! [EN]: Chapter 148

Prosecutor, You’re Going Places! – 149

The Connecting Link (4)

As we descended underground, Yoon Seol-ha’s car, parked in the furthest corner, came into view.

I stopped her from getting out, having noticed me, and immediately got into the passenger seat.

“Thank you for your hard work at this late hour.”

“It’s nothing. I apologize for calling you during dinner time, but the information is quite important…”

Given the late hour, Yoon Seol-ha got straight to the point without delay.

“If you look at the summary, I’ll explain it to you.”

She handed me a few neatly organized documents.

“Go ahead.”

“Yes. As it says there, the leader of Gran Church is Pastor Shin Hyung-joo. It started as a Christian organization, but unlike the official doctrines, it was branded as heretical by all religious organizations due to distorted interpretations of the Bible. Shin Hyung-joo was stripped of his pastoral qualifications and is now operating a pseudo-religion.”

Yoon Seol-ha pointed to the bottom of the summary and continued.

“If you look below, it lists the problems of Gran Church…”

The more I listened to her explanation, the more I felt not just absurdity but also anger rising within me.

This was beyond the level of a pseudo-religion; it was more like a criminal organization aimed at satisfying the leader’s personal greed.

Among the many misdeeds occurring in Gran Church, the biggest problems were two things: a sexual crime scene called ‘Freedom Square’ and the migration to the land of freedom called ‘Eretz Hemdah.’

Eretz Hemdah.

In Hebrew, it’s the promised land mentioned in the Bible.

In Korean, it would be called ‘Naktto’ (Paradise).

Like a pseudo-religion, Gran Church was even using examples from Buddhism, such as non-possession and Nirvana, to preach to its followers that they must donate all their assets to Gran Church in order to go to the land of happiness, Naktto.

In the Bible, the actual location of this Naktto is specified as Canaan, but Gran Church takes money from its followers, promises to send them to Canaan, and is actually suspected of sending them to China.

And that’s not through formal overseas entry procedures, but through illegal immigration.

The men sent to China are used for organ trafficking or sent to work as forced laborers on deep-sea fishing vessels. If their physical condition is poor, their limbs are cut off to make them beggars.

The women are also subjected to organ trafficking, as well as being forced into prostitution or becoming surrogate mothers in the homes of wealthy Chinese families.

But that wasn’t all.

Even worse was the atrocity called Freedom Square.

It was a vile scene created to satisfy the greed of Shin Hyung-joo, the leader of Gran Church. To put it briefly, it involved habitual rape and sexual assault under the guise of purifying souls by sprinkling holy water from his body.

However, it didn’t end there. If a female follower became pregnant as a result of this sprinkling of holy water, she would be sent to China to give birth, and the baby would be sold as human meat. It was hard to see it as something a human would do.

I was shocked that this was happening in Korea, and I couldn’t believe that no one had reported it until now.

After listening to the other misdeeds that Yoon Seol-ha explained, I couldn’t help but be appalled.

“Is this all really happening?”

“Yes. I heard it directly from a man who was dragged to China and barely escaped, so it’s definitely true.”

“Hmph…”

I opened my mouth wide and couldn’t say anything.

“I couldn’t believe it at first either. But as I investigated, I found it to be true. It seems they were able to grow this big because they grew in the shadows and completely isolated their followers from the outside world.”

“Even based on the information in the documents, they’ve been doing this for at least three years, and it hasn’t been revealed to the media even once… No, why didn’t that escapee report it until he suddenly told you, Investigator Yoon?”

Yoon Seol-ha replied with a bitter expression.

“Actually, he plucked up the courage to report it to WBS News. But three days after reporting it, men in suits suddenly came looking for him. He recognized them as people who worked as security for Gran Church, and he ran away with all his might, thinking he would die if he was caught, and then lived in hiding. I was lucky enough to track him down and find him.”

“So there’s someone related to Gran Church at WBS.”

“Yes. And probably someone very high up.”

They had blocked the path to informing society from the very beginning.

In other words, those who tried to reveal the problems of Gran Church, like this informant, were all dragged away and suffered terrible fates.

If so, it’s somewhat understandable that Gran Church was able to hide in the shadows and grow without anyone on the outside knowing.

These dirty bastards are getting bigger and bigger.

I initially started investigating Gran Church to bring down Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong and Mayor Na Kyung-joon, but now that I know the truth, I’m filled with the thought that I must dismantle Gran Church and make sure Pastor Shin Hyung-joo is punished by law.

“We have to eradicate this kind of social evil.”

“That’s right. These are things that are hard to even talk about…”

Yoon Seol-ha sighed deeply and continued.

“And there’s another reason why I came to explain this to you urgently today.”

“What is it?”

“I heard there’s a Gran Church gathering tomorrow.”

“A gathering?”

“Yes. According to the informant, they will be recruiting additional followers for Gran Church for three days, from October 1st to National Foundation Day [a South Korean national holiday celebrated on October 3rd], and secretly granting some of them the authority to go to Gran Church’s sanctuary. That secluded training center.”

October 1st is tomorrow.

I felt like I knew what Yoon Seol-ha was going to say without even hearing it.

And, as expected, she said something that didn’t deviate from my expectations at all.

“I’ll go to the gathering. I’ll infiltrate Gran Church.”

“That’s not going to happen.”

I refused firmly.

“The risk is too great. You could get hurt, Seol-ha.”

“But we can’t prove this otherwise.”

That’s true.

But there was no way I could throw Yoon Seol-ha into the perilous Gran Church.

I slowly stroked my eyelids with my thumb and forefinger, lost in thought.

To bring down Gran Church, we need to understand them accurately.

To do that, the best way would be to look inside directly.

And from tomorrow, when the gathering takes place, would be the perfect time to infiltrate.

If we miss this gathering, we don’t know when the next one will be.

In the worst-case scenario, we might not be able to prove Gran Church’s charges, and Sung Tae-hyun might even fail to be elected as mayor of Seoul.

What should I do?

What choice should I make so that everyone can smile later?

I racked my brains for a long time.

How long had it been? Suddenly, a wonderful scenario came to mind.

That’s it!

We can do it that way.

In an instant, a plan was drawn up to perfectly handle everything from the case to attack Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong, to using Gran Church to take down Mayor Na Kyung-joon and, later, Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong.

If we do it that way, we can guarantee Yoon Seol-ha’s safety and make everything go the way I want.

“Even if you’re mixed in with Gran Church for a few days, Seol-ha, the most important thing is not to find out about the inside, but your own safety. Promise me that.”

“I will. I don’t want to leave this world at this young age either.”

Yoon Seol-ha winked at me lightly.

“Good.”

I nodded in satisfaction and began to explain my plan.

“You know that I’m preparing for shoddy construction and embezzlement as a case to hit Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong, right?”

“Yes. I know you’re working on it with Inspector Jung Hyung-joon. I also know that Prosecutor Jang Ha-young is helping out.”

“That’s right. But this is just to reduce his standing and shake things up; it won’t bring him down.”

The target of the attack itself is not Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong himself, but his wife.

“But Seo Gi-woong is as clean as they come. If he’s caught up in corruption, he’ll risk his life to restore his honor. He won’t retaliate in an unfair way, but I’m not sure he’ll step down either.”

When I attack Seo Gi-woong’s wife for embezzlement, I expect two reactions from Seo Gi-woong.

Either he takes off his clothes and steps down before his honor is further tarnished, or he endures until his honor is restored because it’s not something his wife actually did.

Considering Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong’s usual upright character and the trust between the couple, the latter is more likely.

“While they’re doing everything they can to restore their honor, we’ll reveal the truth about Gran Church and connect it to Seo Gi-woong to bring him down.”

“It’s a good plan, but…”

Yoon Seol-ha cautiously offered her opinion.

“But it won’t be easy to find a link to connect Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong and this Gran Church.”

That’s the most important and difficult part.

But that was already in my head when I came up with this scenario.

“The connecting link will be me and you, Seol-ha.”

“Excuse me?”

Yoon Seol-ha tilted her head as if she didn’t understand.

“In short, the fact that Investigator Yoon Seol-ha infiltrated Gran Church wasn’t our will, but the will of…”

I pointed to the ceiling with my index finger and continued.

“…Seo Gi-woong sent her.”

She furrowed her brow and listened to me.

“I told you that this case isn’t just about taking down one religion called Gran Church, right?”

“Yes. You said you’re preparing for when you hit Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong and Mayor Na Kyung-joon later…”

“That’s right. We need to not only understand Gran Church but also involve them all. I’ll make it public.”

She finally realized it and gasped.

“Don’t tell me, are you planning to step in yourself, Chief?”

“Yes. That’s the only way to perfectly link them to Gran Church.”

But Yoon Seol-ha asked worriedly.

“But that’s a double-edged sword, isn’t it? You could be in danger too, Chief.”

I waved my finger leisurely.

“The double-edged sword won’t be aimed at me. Chief Prosecutor Seo Gi-woong will be on one side of the blade, and Mayor Na Kyung-joon will be on the other.”

I smirked.

“Even if I’m the one who draws the sword, they’ll be the ones wielding it.”

“Ah…”

Yoon Seol-ha repeatedly expressed her admiration.

I put the documents in the glove compartment and shrugged.

“Looks like I won’t be going home early today. I’ll go change into outdoor clothes.”

“Understood.”

“Oh, and I didn’t bring my phone down, so could you call PD Song Jae-hoon for me?”

“Yes.”

She immediately called PD Song Jae-hoon and handed the phone to me, asking cautiously.

“But why PD Song…?”

“Jumping into enemy territory alone is like preparing for death. I don’t want to take any risks, even a little.”