You Have Been Defended [EN]: Chapter 542

“Order whatever you want to eat.”

Bringing up Son Jeongmin’s story worked.

Um Seongyun was deeply shaken as soon as he heard my words and eventually followed us into the room.

I opened the menu and placed it in front of Um Seongyun.

Um Seongyun glanced through it once and sighed.

“I don’t understand any of this.”

“Ugh, why are they writing the menu in Italian? This is Korea. I’ll order for you. Do you like pasta?”

“Yes.”

“Cream? Tomato? Or oil?”

“Tomato.”

“Then, for the meat… Do you like it dry, or tender – you know, with a greasy feel?”

“Tender.”

“How well done?”

Kang Minjae, as if he had become a restaurant employee, quickly grasped Um Seongyun’s preferences, pressed the bell, and finished ordering.

Although he maintained a consistently sarcastic tone, Um Seongyun looked noticeably anxious.

It was true that Um Seongyun had been bribed by the director and had done something he wasn’t proud of, but he was still a child and, in a way, a victim.

I have no intention of enjoying his anxious appearance.

I took out my business card holder from my pocket and placed it in front of him.

“…Are you a lawyer?”

Um Seongyun blinked, seemingly not expecting it, as he examined the business card.

Kang Minjae also handed over his business card.

Um Seongyun seemed to have never imagined that we would have such professions.

I guess so.

When listing the professions of successful people in Korean society, lawyers are usually included, and to think that such people were almost killed by Son Jeongmin.

“I’ll call you ‘Lawyer’.”

“Do as you please.”

“What does it mean that lawyers almost died because of Jeongmin?”

Um Seongyun still didn’t let his guard down.

I fiddled with the water glass in front of me and made eye contact with Um Seongyun.

“Let’s do this. We’ll exchange questions. You must answer.”

“…Okay.”

“Then I’ll go first.”

“I asked first, though.”

“I gave you both of our business cards. Who do you think would lose more if we disagree?”

As soon as I finished speaking, Kang Minjae quietly poked my side.

I turned to look at Kang Minjae, surprised by the unexpected timing of the attack, but he ignored me, smiled, and said to Um Seongyun.

“Seongyun, let’s clarify our purpose first. We came here to help you and Jeongmin. The reason we gave you our business cards is so you can contact us if you ever need help. Since you probably don’t have many people you can ask for help right now, we want to be an option.”

Um Seongyun fiddled with the business cards on the table.

“But, like this lawyer said, there are things we need to know in order to help you and Jeongmin. But since you’re meeting us for the first time, you can’t just trust us, right? So you might not tell us. You might lie. Then we can’t help you. That’s why we thought it would be good to talk in a way that exchanges what you want to know and what we want to know. That’s fair, right?”

That was a similar meaning to what I had said.

To be precise, I was planning to make him engage in the conversation by letting him know that we were at a disadvantage compared to Um Seongyun, at least in this conversation.

“…I understand what you mean. But why are you trying to help us? You haven’t told me yet, but you said Jeongmin tried to kill you.”

“Well, he didn’t exactly try to kill us directly. He was used as bait to lure us out. Someone used our desire to help Jeongmin.”

“Who?”

Um Seongyun looked back and forth between me and Kang Minjae.

“Who do you think it is?”

“Ugh, come on!”

As soon as I opened my mouth, Kang Minjae glared at me.

I wouldn’t have acted like this if Um Seongyun was an elementary school student.

Even if I couldn’t do as well as Kang Minjae, I would have tried my best to speak kindly.

But Um Seongyun is 18 years old.

Rather, he’s at an age where he would feel bad if you treated him like a child unnecessarily.

“I don’t know.”

[Lie]

He doesn’t seem to be willing to reveal that he was instigated by the director yet.

I don’t know what the director promised Um Seongyun.

Whether he used Son Jeongmin as a condition, as I expected, or promised to give him something else.

However, Um Seongyun seems to still be waiting for the price from the director.

Since he let him meet Son Jeongmin in person, does he think he will keep his promise?

Otherwise, he might try to make a deal with us.

“You met Jeongmin, right?”

“…Are you going to hand Jeongmin over to the police? You’re lawyers, so you know. You said Jeongmin didn’t try to kill you. You said Jeongmin was bait. Then he was used, is that a crime?”

“Well, there seems to be a misunderstanding…”

Kang Minjae seemed to think that he should continue to coax and appease Um Seongyun.

He spoke in a consistently gentle tone, but I thought it was just a waste of time.

In the first place, Um Seongyun’s wariness is so strong that even if we speak gently, his wariness won’t crumble today, so it’s better to clarify each other’s purposes.

“As you said, there’s no way to punish Jeongmin. Even if all of this comes to light, Jeongmin wouldn’t have known that what he did almost killed us.”

At my words, Um Seongyun asked with a relieved expression.

“…Then what about Jeongmin?”

“Jeongmin is in danger. Of course, you’re not safe either.”

“What does that mean?”

“You saw it too. What was Jeongmin’s condition like?”

We only saw him sticking his head out of the van window, but Um Seongyun got in the car and talked to Son Jeongmin for about 10 minutes.

Besides, Um Seongyun knows what Son Jeongmin was usually like.

“…He said he had a body ache. He was originally supposed to rest more, but he came out for a bit because I kept urging him.”

Were they trying to put guilt on Um Seongyun, who wanted to meet Son Jeongmin?

The House of Angels’ shallow trick is just laughable.

“Do you think that’s true?”

“…Then what is it?”

“Do you become half dead from a body ache like that? Besides, why can’t he speak so coherently? You’ve had a body ache before, haven’t you?”

“Did you see Jeongmin in person? Have you ever met Jeongmin? How do you know so well?”

“I haven’t finished speaking yet.”

“Didn’t it end with asking if that’s what you think? It ends with a question mark, too.”

Um Seongyun seemed to be trying not to lose.

“Seongyun, I understand that you’re wary, but don’t try to fight unnecessarily. I’ll tell you everything I can answer among the things you’re curious about. That’s why we came. I don’t intend to just get what I can and wipe my mouth.”

And that attitude seemed to stem from the distrust he had cultivated while seeing the adults he had met at the House of Angels.

No matter how many times we say that we are different from those people, nothing will change, but at least we have to say it.

“Unlike you, we have a lot to lose. If we act unilaterally, post something online. Use your position as a minor to say it more provocatively. Mention the company name on the business card. Say that we pressured and scared you, a high school student.”

“Even if it gets buried, that’s it…”

Um Seongyun muttered that, but he seemed to think that he wasn’t entirely at a disadvantage.

With a slightly subsided look in his eyes, he opened his mouth.

“What do you think is wrong with Jeongmin? It’s not just that he’s sick?”

“Search on your phone. Symptoms of drug addicts. I can tell you, but you might not believe it, so check it yourself.”

“…Drugs? Jeongmin is doing drugs?”

Um Seongyun looked at us with a face filled with shock.

When neither I nor Kang Minjae answered, Um Seongyun hurriedly took out his phone.

Then he sighed and said quietly.

“Is there Wi-Fi here…”

Seongyun, who asked the employee who brought the pre-meal bread for the Wi-Fi password, started searching as I said.

And his hands started to tremble more and more.

“If necessary, I can bring you a doctor’s opinion. Of course, I can’t be sure since I only saw it, but the answer will be that there is a high possibility.”

“Why, Jeongmin… There’s no way Jeongmin would do that. He’s a kid who likes to play around, but not this far…”

“I don’t think Jeongmin wanted to do drugs either. I think someone who has Jeongmin made him do it.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Um Seongyun frowned.

He didn’t seem to believe it.

Even if he was in conflict with the adults at the House of Angels, this much would have been unexpected.

In the first place, since the House of Angels is a welfare organization on the surface, it would seem unrealistic for it to extend to that area, no matter how corrupt it is.

“It’s a lie, right? That Jeongmin almost killed you, it’s all just a lie. I was going to believe it up to that point, but honestly, drugs seem like an exaggeration.”

Um Seongyun seemed to have come to that conclusion on his own.

The curiosity that had filled his eyes quickly diminished.

In the end, I had no choice but to present him with evidence.

The email I received from Son Jeongmin, the black box [event data recorder] from the accident site, and how badly Kang Minjae was injured.

There is more evidence, but since there is no guarantee that he will cooperate with us and Um Seongyun is still young to show him such a terrible sight, this is all I can show him.

“…”

“Check it if you’re still suspicious.”

“How do I check? What can I do… Do I ask them outright? There’s no way they’ll tell me if I do.”

“You have to ask indirectly to check. If you ask a few questions, you’ll be able to tell if those people really intend to protect Jeongmin safely.”

* * *

Kim Youngji was heading to the high school where Seongyun attended to meet him.

A few days ago, I went once to let him meet Jeongmin, and I was dumbfounded that the young one dared to order the adults around without fear, but I couldn’t help it.

Right now, I have to *match* [Korean idiom for ‘appease’ or ‘cater to’] Seongyun, even if it’s unpleasant.

The director also said that this is a time when we should never make noise.

At the same time, I was also told that I couldn’t even handle one child.

It’s easy to say, but we can’t use any of the means to effectively control the children, and we’re having a hard time preventing them from running wild, saying they’re going to reveal everything…

Kim Youngji sighed and arrived at the cafe in front of the school where she had agreed to meet Seongyun.

“Seongyun.”

Gathering her hardened expression, she sat opposite Seongyun.

“What’s the story that you insist on talking outside? You can come in and talk.”

“Jeongmin.”

“It’s Jeongmin again. I let you meet him then. Wasn’t that all your requirements? Is there anything else, Seongyun? You’re probably still young, so you don’t know, but once a person has agreed to do that…”

“Why is Jeongmin’s condition like that?”

“What are you talking about? That’s… I told you it was a body ache. Jeongmin told you himself, didn’t he?”

Kim Youngji was making every effort to speak without being sharp, but she couldn’t hide her annoyance.

Then Seongyun laughed as if he was dumbfounded.

“How is that normal? He’s completely gone. Do you get like that when you have a body ache, teacher? He said he’s had a body ache for 3 days. Do you lose about 15kg [approximately 33 pounds] in 3 days, can’t open your eyes properly, and talk strangely when you have a body ache, teacher? I searched it up, and that’s a characteristic of people who do drugs.”

“What?”

Kim Youngji looked sharply at Seongyun.