You Are Defended - Chapter 525



Only Noblemtl

Episode 525

“Are you on our side?”

“They are completely on our side.”

We were able to confirm the contents as soon as Kim Mi-ja sent us the recording file.

Although it was late, we rushed into Kang Min-jae’s hospital room as soon as we received the file, and handed the laptop to Kang Su-il, who was cutting the fruits that Heo Min-woo had bought yesterday, and asked him to translate it right away.

When Kang Su-il heard the voice, he even said, “Satoshi Oda, are you going to cry like this?”, so we could see how much of a righteous life reporter Sachiko Kirihara had lived.

“You’re crazy, you weak dog. The more I think about it, the funnier it gets.”

“In our country, there is a common saying that goes, ‘An empty cart makes the most noise,’ but a weak dog looks funnier than an empty cart.”

“Brother, you also found out about the activities of reporter Sachiko Kirihara. Please tell me about that too. You didn’t even tell me that you were going to talk about it in front of everyone.”

At Kang Min-jae’s words, Kang Su-il came and sat down on the sofa.

After the meeting yesterday, when we left, Kang Soo-il said he went through Japanese web documents and looked for articles and responses written by reporter Sachiko Kirihara.

“I think I know what Ms. Kim Mi-ja meant by that. If reporter Kirihara were Korean, I think he would have been very close with reporter Choi. He is basically a humorous person, and he has earned many nicknames by making sharp remarks on politicians who are experts at talking nonsense, including Satoshi Oda. At ICIJ, he has participated in many projects related to the environment and human rights. In Japan, he is a political expert, and at ICIJ, he works in a wide range of fields.”

“In terms of political inclinations, do you have a negative feeling toward the current ruling party?”

“Well, actually, Japan has a ruling party that has been in power for quite some time now, and it has a big tent nature, so there is a cultural difference from ours. Even if the same party is in power, the feeling changes depending on which faction has hegemony within the party. So, to be precise, it would be correct to say that reporter Kirihara particularly dislikes politicians who have been doing well recently.”

“Then, is there a politician that reporter Kirihara likes?”

“I like it… … It’s not that I’ve never written a good article. But it’s not consistent. I think it’s right to say that there’s no politician I support. I criticize more than I praise. When I was teaching at a journalism school, I said that political reporters are people who think hard about the ideal politician in their heads and then monitor politicians to make sure they become that type of person. They tell them not to compromise.”

“If I were to say something really bad, I would say that I am the type to criticize if something doesn’t meet my standards. In fact, all criticizing dolls have clear strengths and weaknesses. Since I am interested in and criticize a wide range of areas, it is good to be recognized as someone who often speaks out loud to the public. However, at important moments, I am often excluded because of the image of someone who only sees the negative aspects and only criticizes.”

Kang Min-jae looked quite troubled.

“Right. Then when we break this story, it could go in a weird direction like, ‘There was someone in Japan who reported the same thing, but he’s famous for talking nonsense, so everyone’s ignoring him.’ I’ve seen that kind of thing happen more than once or twice.”

“Furthermore, if you have an image of being too idealistic, that can cause rejection in its own way. Lack of a sense of reality. Especially because the world has become so harsh, there is a tendency to think that people who pursue ideal states are fools. Personally, I think idealism is necessary, but what other people think is more important than my opinion. However, if it is something you said in a university lecture, it means that it is a quality that you want to emphasize to future journalists.”

Choi Jong-hyun also nodded.

Then Kang Su-il added.

“You could say that. But I think the image of the ‘ideal politician’ that reporter Kirihara talks about is not simple. In fact, when I asked him about this statement in detail, reporter Kirihara himself said that he wasn’t sure what the ideal politician should be like. The emphasis in his statement is on ‘thinking hard and making assumptions.’ So he wanted to tell reporters that they should think about politics without stopping.”

Regardless of whether it is good or bad to take a certain attitude as a journalist, we have been thinking about what kind of person and what kind of tone of voice will most effectively appeal to the public.

But to determine whether Sachiko Kirihara is the right person to receive information from us in advance, we need to know what kind of person she is.

“What do you think about the tea? Of course, this alone isn’t the only thing that will determine whether or not you share it with him, but how do you feel about it? Do you think it’s worth contacting?”

Choi Jong-hyun asked me, who had been keeping his mouth shut.

Although it wasn’t my intention, starting this job has made me think a lot about the meaning of journalism.

Of course, my activities are limited to investigative journalism, but when I cover a case with journalist Choi Jong-hyun, I think about what to show people and how to show it, so it is a natural concern.

I can’t judge whether Sachiko Kirihara is a good journalist or a bad journalist.

However, as one of the many people who have delegated the watchdog function to journalists, I do not prefer journalists who illuminate the world only with an extremely realistic perspective.

Because it feels like it leaves room for compromise.

So if you ask whether the remarks Sachiko Kirihara made in her university lecture were problematic, I don’t think they were disqualifying.

Also, her past activities provide some evidence that her words are sincere.

If it were her, she would not turn a blind eye to the crimes committed by Ushin and Onodera within Japan.

My personal impression is that I like it.

However, this is just my personal opinion and is not an important criterion for deciding whether to contact her or not.

“When you looked into reporter Kirihara, what was the image of reporter Kirihara in Japanese society?”

“I think it’s pretty good. Because of his unique cynical attitude, he’s not popular with the older generation, but he’s supported by the younger generation. He uses SNS appropriately, but not excessively, so I think it’ll be good for swaying public opinion in the early stages of an incident. His level of speech is similar to that of Reporter Choi, and his authority is….”

Kang Soo-il hesitated for a moment before speaking.

But we all seemed to know what he was trying to say.

“Right. You go to university lectures and have more experience than me, so of course you can’t compare yourself to someone like me.”

You look a bit upset. Is it just my imagination?

“We should focus on shooting down Wooshin. In fact, on the Japanese side… … . If reporter Kirihara has the same opinion as us and is a trustworthy journalist, it doesn’t really matter to us what method he takes. We just run after Wooshin, and reporter Kirihara can take care of the Japanese side.”

“That’s true. So, let’s just consider someone who will never leak information, and someone who will expose the Onodera clan. Those two conditions must be met.”

“Yes. Just look at those conditions. We don’t have to clean up all the corrupt aspects of Japanese society. We are trying to expand the scale to complete a structure that will be subject to pressure from the international community even if Wooshin is silenced domestically.”

Reporter Kirihara is the person who created the nickname “weak dog” for Satoshi Oda.

I don’t know if it was intentional, but the skill of caricaturing villains is not ordinary.

I think Choi Jong-hyun and Juk would get along well.

Besides, this is a surprisingly important task.

In particular, violent criminals tend to be perceived as fearsome beings without realizing it, and younger criminals may even think of them as trophies.

Therefore, heinous criminals should be the object of utter contempt and ridicule.

There are many social devices to prevent crimes, but they are still insufficient.

Wouldn’t it be nice to have one more brake, the fear of being excluded and despised by society?

Also, people tend to gather where laughter is elicited.

It also serves the role of putting in firewood to keep the fire from going out.

“I think you’re worth contacting. I’d like to meet you in person and talk. Is that possible?”

I think Sachiko Kirihara is a suitable person, but that doesn’t mean that verification is not necessary.

Sachiko Kirihara is the first outsider to come into contact with this case before even the domestic police are aware of it.

Unlike other ICIJ reporters, isn’t Sachiko Kirihara in a position where she can profit from direct dealings with criminals?

“Meeting in person? Not even a video call?”

You can’t trust someone unless you use their abilities to prove it, and my abilities only activate when you face them directly.

But I can’t say that to people who don’t know anything…

In times like this, I guess I’ll have to resort to the old-fashioned method.

“I need to meet him in person at least once when I’m going to be working with him on important matters. He’s not someone I know well, he’s someone I don’t know at all.”

“Okay, then. I’ll contact you. Should we meet without telling the ICIJ?”

“Yes. And… … . It may sound rude, but if possible, could you please ask if we could support all the expenses and come to Korea? We don’t think we can leave Korea right now, so we can’t go to Japan.”

“okay.”

* * *

“Hmm… … . Detective Jang Hyun-wook must be excluded.”

Yoon Se-yeon chewed on the straw while looking over the list of candidates for internal police collaborators that Heo Min-woo had sent her.

“Detective Jang Hyun-wook, why? Aren’t you close with him?”

Choi Jong-hyun asked as if it was unexpected.

The list uploaded by Heo Min-woo included 12 detectives and investigators.

As the risk increases with the number of people, we decided to secure no more than 3 to 5 people.

The goal is to prevent Wooshin from fully understanding the situation from immediately after the arrest until we report on the case.

Anyway, whether it’s Im Hyeon-il or someone from Wooshin’s side who was moving with So-eun, the moment the police take them away, they’ll contact Wooshin to call a lawyer, so the secret that I bit the bait will be broken.

It’s not like you have to keep it a secret for that long, so just be someone who can keep quiet and not give up the evidence when asked by higher-ups.

It goes without saying that the Ushin spies should not be like that.

The important thing is that the police’s presence must be kept secret until they are arrested at the airport, but that part is not a big problem.

Heo Min-woo only tells them that he needs someone to accompany him to arrest a criminal, and he won’t reveal his purpose until the arrest is made.

It doesn’t have to be as rigorous as Sachiko Kirihara’s verification work.

“Detective Jang Hyun-wook, you’re a nice person. And you’re not the type of person to have bad intentions, nor are you the type to receive money from Woo-shin.”

“But why filter it?”

“I’m a reporter, so of course I can’t help but like detective Jang Hyun-wook. He tells a lot of stories. But to seniors and lawyers, aren’t people like that the ones you should avoid the most?”

“Let’s filter it out right now.”

Choi Jong-hyun crossed out the name Jang Hyun-wook.

“What is the starred thing next to it?”

“This list is made up of rumors and reputations within the police force, but Chief Inspector Heo personally marked the good people he knew.”

“Oh, Detective Heo, you have a keen eye. Make sure to include Kim Hak-chan here. He really never talks. And I heard his family circumstances are difficult.”

“If your family circumstances are difficult, doesn’t that mean you might be swayed by money?”

“No. With all the experience of a detective, you could have taken as much money as you wanted. But still, being poor means you never take money.”

That makes sense.

Besides that, I also know a few people.

I quietly crossed out the name Jo Byeong-seok.

“Oh my, why this guy?”

Yoon Se-yeon asked with wide eyes as if she couldn’t understand.

According to what I confirmed in my previous life, a few years later, an incident related to prostitution broke out.

At this time, there was chaos when it was revealed that some police officers had accepted bribes and turned a blind eye.

That’s when I saw Jo Byeong-seok’s name.

“This person likes money.”

“Wow, you like money? I heard that this guy has a lot of money at home, so he’s a police officer as a hobby.”

Is that so?

I don’t know about that.

I guess I’ll end up in debt later or something.

“I said that because I heard it personally.”

“Oh my… … . What is it?”

“I just heard that this guy likes money.”

“Oh, you’re not going to tell me again. You’re really annoying. I’ve helped you so much! Why aren’t you telling me? You don’t even tell me, senior! You always exploit me! And you don’t even tell me why you’re rejecting these people!”

Yoon Se-yeon stomped her feet wildly, her face distorted as if she was about to cry.

I know it’s all an act, and I know she won’t cry.

“Did you say exploitation?”

“Yes! I give you high-level information, but you don’t give me money or information!”

My gaze naturally turned to her bag.

“Then what’s that laptop in that bag?”

“……yes?”

“I thought a laptop would be enough, but is it not enough?”

“… … .”

Yoon Se-yeon rolled her eyes and then carefully hugged the bag she had placed on the chair.

“… …Uh, when did you find out?”

“It’s been a while.”

“I have to return it… … ?”

“It doesn’t matter. Just take it.”

“Thank you, even though it’s late. I’ll use it well… … .”

Even though I told her to take it, Yoon Se-yeon seems to think I’m going to take the laptop away from her.

He was still carrying his large bag.

“But when and how did you know? You didn’t know then.”

I almost passed it by without noticing.

But after a while, the card expired and I got a new card, and when I gave the card back to Choi Jong-hyun, he refused it.

When I asked why, he said it had been a long time since he had used it, and that he could now afford the average level of activity expenses.

But I immediately saw a record of about 1.5 million won being stolen last month, and I was even puzzled because the words floating above Choi Jong-hyun’s head were [Truth].

I asked if they had ever lost it in the meantime, and they said no, so I contacted the Han-Young store directly.

And then I looked.

CCTV footage showing Yoon Se-yeon purchasing a laptop at Han Young Store and handing over my card.

And her steps as she left the Han-Young store were light, as if she was walking on clouds, and she even jumped to the rhythm.

“Is it important?”

“Oh, no… … .”

“Then it’s not exploitation anymore. I think the price has been paid.”

“That, that’s right. That, then… … . But actually, besides the laptop, there’s also… … .”

“Oh, DSLR?”

“… … .”

“It doesn’t matter. I have no intention of reporting it now, so don’t worry.”

“I’m sorry! Ha, but I was so annoyed that you kept dine and dashing without telling me anything, so I did it because I wanted to rip you off once. Do you realize that this is all your fault, lawyer?”

“If the investigation of the list of investigators is delayed by even one minute, I feel like reporting Reporter Yoon. What do you think?”

“Oh, detective Park Jun-hee from number 7 here is also really good. She’s a rookie, but she’s full of passion, and since they’re a married couple, she’s very careful about her actions because she’s afraid of getting in trouble with her husband! Haha. Hahaha!”

Yoon Se-yeon smiled at me, aggressively circling the name Park Jun-hee.

No matter how big the country is, you can’t spit on a smiling face.