Chapter 6

Chapter 6

[Translation By Divinity]

Park Hyuk-soo, excited as if he had accomplished something great as a teacher, continued to speak.

“…”

Kang Hyun silently watched how far Park Hyuk-soo would go.

It was absurd that a teacher, someone who was supposed to educate students, was so ignorant and illogical.

“I knew it all along! Vice Principal, this kid is a real troublemaker. Looking at his mock exam scores this time, it seems like he cheated big time.”

“Is that true?”

The vice principal seemed even more surprised by this new accusation and questioned Kang Hyun.

“Explain yourself, student Kang Hyun.”

“He’s always sleeping in class and causing trouble with his friends, that’s why things like this happen! You little punk, I pity your mother.”

At the mention of his mother, Kang Hyun couldn’t hold back any longer.

“Teacher.”

“How dare you raise your head like that…”

“You’re not qualified to be a teacher.”

“Wh-what?”

“If the teacher is worse than the student, they have no right to teach, don’t they?”

“You crazy bastard!”

“Student Kang Hyun!”

Kang Hyun smirked at their dumbfounded expressions and pointed at the summons.

“Article 146 of the Criminal Procedure Act, the court may examine anyone as a witness unless otherwise provided by law. Same Act, Article 150-2, the court summons a witness by serving a summons, by telephone, by email, or by any other appropriate means.”

“…?”

“…!”

The vice principal and Park Hyuk-soo were dumbfounded by the barrage of legal terms.

Kang Hyun pointed at the document and said,

“Don’t you know what a witness is? This is a witness summons that has been served. I am the reporter and witness of the incident in question. The judge of the relevant court is calling for me.”

“Wh-what?”

As soon as he heard this, Park Hyuk-soo’s face turned red, he grabbed the paper, and stubbornly argued,

“Y-You, you little punk, because you were wandering around outside, this kind of thing…”

“Please stop talking. The more you speak, the more my respect for you plummets. This incident happened while I was on my way home on the subway, and I witnessed and reported the person who committed the crime stated in this ‘witness summons.’ What does that have to do with me being outside?”

The vice principal, who had been silent until now, seemed to finally grasp the situation and stood up, stepping between them.

“Ahem, Mr. Park! What on earth are you doing! Student Kang Hyun, I apologize. We were just surprised…”

“No, it’s my fault. I live in a slum, so we don’t have a proper address. It seems the mail was delivered to the school, a place full of prejudice that assumes a student with improved grades must have cheated.”

“This, this kid is being sarcastic in front of the vice principal?”

Park Hyuk-soo, unable to admit his mistake, shouted, trying to suppress Kang Hyun even more.

Kang Hyun glared back at him with a chilling look in his eyes.

“Teacher Park Hyuk-soo.”

As Kang Hyun clearly enunciated his name and title, Park Hyuk-soo, perhaps overwhelmed by his aura, finally shut his mouth.

“There’s a widespread rumor that you were almost fired from the school for a similar incident.”

“Wh-wh-what!”

“Are you aware that there are rumors of a sex scandal?”

At Kang Hyun’s words, his pupils dilated.

“If you truly cared about the students, wouldn’t it be better to clarify your own situation and resign instead of running to the vice principal here without even confirming the facts and causing such embarrassment?”

“You, you little…”

“Furthermore, if you don’t exercise restraint and continue to act like a king in the back alleys, it will eventually blow up in your face. I’m saying this out of genuine concern.”

Kang Hyun coldly concluded, watching Park Hyuk-soo grab the back of his neck and the vice principal struggle to comprehend the situation.

“Ah, that was just my opinion. I apologize if I offended you.”

“Wh-what… such insolence…”

Park Hyuk-soo, seemingly aware of his wrongdoing, couldn’t continue speaking and only stammered.

Kang Hyun shrugged as if he had finished his business and bowed politely.

“Then, I’ll assume the misunderstanding has been cleared up, and I’ll be on my way.”

The vice principal, glancing at Park Hyuk-soo, gestured for him to leave.

“That… that little bastard…”

Kang Hyun left the room, leaving behind Park Hyuk-soo, who was trembling with rage, unable to find any more words to retort.

As soon as he returned to the classroom, Kang Hyun fell into deep thought.

It seemed he wouldn’t be able to study any further today. There appeared to be a problem with the case he thought was progressing smoothly.

‘This straightforward case…’

He looked at the white paper with the word “summons” written on it, a puzzled expression on his face.

‘It’s become complicated enough to require a witness examination?’

Usually, the process of calling a witness in any trial is an optional choice. Especially in criminal cases, if the evidence is clear and there’s no disagreement between the prosecutor and the defendant, a verdict can be reached relatively quickly.

“What could have gone wrong…?”

However, in this case, the judge had summoned Kang Hyun himself, the reporter and witness.

“First, I need to go to the court and confirm the assigned court and judge…”

Even if he couldn’t get the detailed trial proceedings, knowing the judge’s tendencies and the court assignment would allow him to grasp the overall flow.

He was once again surprised at himself for having a clear list of things to do just from seeing a single document.

‘But, if you’re a genius, do you naturally know all these things?’

He could understand recalling the ‘regulations on inspection and copying’ and knowing what documents to prepare and submit at the court for accessing case records, or the extent of information he could access without applying for inspection and copying.

This was something he could learn from books.

But as someone involved in the case who was neither the victim nor the defendant, he could only access the documents he had submitted himself, so there was little he could see by applying according to the regulations.

Hence, the idea of using an unconventional method to at least check the court and the assigned judge to see the progress of the trial.

Where did he learn about this method?

He was taken aback as the idea flashed through his mind and the details fell into place.

‘It’s strange, but I don’t know.’

But Kang Hyun shook his head and stopped thinking.

‘It’s fine.’

The big problem at hand wasn’t how he knew these things.

What was more important was how to handle the situation in front of him.

* * *

A few days passed, and until the day of his witness appearance, Kang Hyun’s days were ordinary.

He studied diligently, and in the mornings, he would ask Yoon Ha-neul for easier ways to solve problems with difficult principles, making the most of his time.

As they spent time together, he got to know her better, and she truly loved cooking. She explained things as enthusiastically as she studied, and Kang Hyun occasionally tried out the dishes he learned from her for his mother.

The morning of his witness appearance.

His mother called out to him.

“Kang Hyun.”

“Yes? What is it?”

“Is… something going on?”

He shook his head, assuring her that everything was fine. His mother sat down, looking a bit tense.

“I got a call from your homeroom teacher. He said… you’re having a bit of a hard time at school.”

“What?”

His mother said that Park Hyuk-soo had called and told her that Kang Hyun was struggling at school. Did he want him to transfer?

In any case, it was news that would naturally worry a mother who cared deeply for her child.

“Are the other kids bullying you? Are you stressed about your studies?”

“No, not at all! I’m doing fine.”

“…Is that so? That’s good then. I trust you, so I won’t say anything more. But if… if anything happens, be sure to tell me, okay?”

Seeing his worried mother, Kang Hyun felt a mix of absurdity and anger.

He was doing better than ever; what could possibly be hard?

This was clearly Park Hyuk-soo playing games with his mother.

’Is he picking a fight?’

Kang Hyun gritted his teeth inwardly while soothing his mother with a gentle expression.

He had somewhere to be, so he said goodbye and left the house, took the subway, and arrived at the court.

Standing in front of the courthouse, he read the inscription on the tall building.

“Seoul District Court…”

People in suits were busily coming and going, carrying documents. Their expressions were stern, but they didn’t seem lifeless.

“Oh…”

For some reason, this place, which he was visiting for the first time in his life, felt familiar and sparked a sense of joy within him.

‘First, let’s stick to the plan.’

Originally, he should have gone straight to the courtroom, but he first headed to the civil affairs office in charge of criminal cases.

“Hello.”

“Yes, how can I help you?”

The clerk responded curtly with an indifferent expression, but Kang Hyun remained polite.

His plan was to gather some information before entering the courtroom. This was something within the discretion of the clerk sitting at the front desk.

“I have some questions about a case.”

“Are you here for inspection and copying? Please provide the case number, your relationship to the case, and your ID.”

“Ah, no, that’s not it. There should be a first instance criminal case, ‘Seoul District Court 2015Godan4531,’ and I’d like to inquire about the progress of the trial.”

The clerk, who had been working without even making eye contact, suddenly looked up and scanned Kang Hyun from head to toe.

“We can’t provide information on that…”

“I already know the details. I want to know the progress of the trial as communicated by the assigned court.”

“I can’t tell you that.”

The clerk, perhaps sensing Kang Hyun’s young age, gave a dismissive answer and went back to his work.

Kang Hyun, as if he had expected this, calmly said to him,

“Since I’m not asking to see copies of the trial records, transcripts, etc., of the case records according to the court’s ‘Regulations on Inspection and Copying of Trial Records,’ it doesn’t violate any of the provisions in Article 4 of those regulations.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m saying that inquiring about the trial status is not restricted by law. Besides, the civil affairs office is responsible for handling inquiries about court schedules and providing information to the public, so there’s no way you wouldn’t know the answer to my question.”

“That’s true, but…”

He adjusted his posture and looked up at Kang Hyun. He found it strange that Kang Hyun, who looked to be in his early 20s at most, seemed so well-versed in court affairs.

“So, what was it that you wanted to ask?”

“The progress of the trial as communicated by the assigned court, the presiding judge, and the prosecutor in charge of the trial.”

“…Yes, just a moment. But by any chance…”

He shuffled through the documents he had taken out for today’s trial schedule and asked,

“Have you worked at the court before?”

“Excuse me? Oh, no?”

“Then the police?”

“I’m just a student.”

The clerk, who had been glaring at Kang Hyun as if he was about to devour him, tilted his head in confusion as Kang Hyun replied with innocent-looking eyes.

“You’re a student?”

“Yes.”

At Kang Hyun’s confident expression, he blinked a few times and then quickly started searching for the information.