21st century Goguryeo

Chapter 377: Season 2 Book 15, Justice and Ideology – 3-5 Solve the Puzzle

 

November 21, 2023, 19:35

Nam Joo National Intelligence Service (Investigation Office of the Foreign Intelligence Service) in Gangnam-gu, Seoul​

Woo Byung-hoo, who had been interrogated for three days, was waiting for his release in the lounge when the agents escorted him back into the interrogation room.

“What? What exactly are you doing? It’s almost 8 p.m.! The clock is ticking. What else are you going to investigate by bringing me back here?” Woo Byung-hoo entered the interrogation room, yelling and shaking off the agents who were holding him. Then he heard a voice from the other side of the table.

“Why don’t you stop making a fuss and sit down?”

Woo Byung-hoo calmed down and then looked at the person who had spoken to him and said, “What? Who are you?”

“You don’t need to know that, and I need to ask you a few more questions.”

The man who was leaning against the wall approached the light and showed his face. It was Team Leader Park Gi-oong, who was interrogating Goo Sang-sik at the Counter-terrorism Investigation Bureau up till a few minutes ago.

“Whoa, that’s funny. You still have questions after three days of sleepless interrogation?” Woo Byung-hoo sat on the chair and smiled.

Team leader Park Gi-oong also responded with a light smile and immediately asked, “You know Goo Sang-sik, don’t you?”

“Goo Sang-sik? Who’s that guy?”

“You don’t know Goo Sang-sik? But he knows you well.”

“Don’t talk nonsense!”

Woo Byung-hoo stuck out his feet, as he had been doing for the past three days.

“You didn’t talk to him on the phone a couple of times? You also gave him bitcoins worth 500 million won. Is that incorrect?”

Woo Byung-hoo’s eyes shook slightly at that moment. Even though that he had a hunch that there was something fishy going on, he maintained his denial until the very end.

“Didn’t I say I didn’t know him? So, why are you still talking nonsense?”

“Why don’t you confess now? Goo Sang-sik has confessed to everything. And we have the evidence.”

“Don’t be ridiculous! It’s illegal to interrogate me like this.”

“Illegal? I see. Then shall we listen to this?”

Team Leader Park Gi-oong took out a small recorder from his pocket and pressed the play button.

Then, through the recorder, Woo Byung-hoo and Goo Sang-sik’s conversation on the phone could be heard. Woo Byung-hoo was so surprised that he fell from the chair and his eyes got bigger.

“Uh, how can…”

“What do you think? Are you ready to confess now?”

Half an hour ago, Goo Sang-sik, who had thought to himself for 10 minutes in the interrogation room, had revealed everything to Team Leader Park Gi-oong.

When Oh Ji-wan and his team received the proposal for the Typhoon No. 16 mission in China from Jo Myung-rok, they immediately began work. They crossed the border into Corea and then Goo Sang-sik received a secret mission from Woo Byung-hoo without his comrades’ knowledge.

The secret mission was to expose themselves to the National Intelligence Service before completing the Typhoon 16 mission.

It was an incomprehensible suggestion. Far from completing Typhoon 16’s mission, revealing their identities in advance would result in everyone’s death. The proposal was initially rejected by Goo Sang-sik. However, he eventually agreed to accept the mission.

A payment of 500 million won in the cryptocurrency bitcoin, which could not be tracked, played a role in his approval, as did the fact that after completing the Typhoon 16 mission, Jo Myung-rok’s subordinates announced their intention to kill them all. If he accepted the offer, he would not only receive the money, but he would also save his own life.

As a result, Goo Sang-sik betrayed his comrades in order to survive and satisfy his greed for money. So, a few days before the Typhoon 16 mission, he snuck out of their hiding place at night with two comrades and caused chaos in the Emperor’s Saloon to reveal their identity. He also made certain that the CCTV cameras captured their images.

Goo Sang-sik revealed the reason for his betrayal as well as the location where he hid the phone on which he exchanged text messages with Woo Byung-hoo and recorded files that could be used as evidence.

The place where he hid the phone was a locker in Pyeong-yang. Consequently, Team Leader Park Gi-oong immediately contacted the Pyeong-yang branch to secure the phone and recover the recording files and text messages, which were then sent to him as computer files.

Hearing his conversation with Goo Sang-sik on the recorder, Woo Byung-hoo got distressed and covered his face with both hands. Then, without even realizing it, he said, “Uh, how… Goo, Goo Sang-sik, did not die.”

“Why would he die? Were you trying to check him off the list by killing him?”

“Ugh!”

Because of his distress, Woo Byung-hoo presented evidence that he could not take back.

“I was just following Kim Hyung-chul’s order.”

“I know! So, if you tell us everything you know, your sentence will be reduced. What say you?”

“All right, I’ll you everything.”

* * *

November 21, 2023, 19:55

Nam Joo National Intelligence Service in Gangnam-gu, Seoul

Loolooloolool~

Kim Hyung-chul sat on the lounge’s sofa, resting his legs on the square table in front of him and humming with his eyes closed. He would be released from here within five minutes.

Crying!

The lounge door opened and someone came in. Deputy Director Kim Hyung-chul thought it was Woo Byung-hoo who would be released with him.

“Woo Byung-hoo?”

No one answered Kim Hyung-chul’s question. So, he opened his eyes, turned his head, and looked at the entrance door. A middle-aged man was standing there, but it was not Woo Byung-hoo.

“You’re not Woo Byung-hoo? We’re supposed to be released from here together, right?”

“Mr. Kim Hyung-chul?”

“You already know! You don’t have to call me. Let’s just get out of here!”

Kim Hyung-chul got up from the sofa, feeling relaxed, thinking he would be released. But soon, his body froze.

“I am formally charging you with complicity to the assassination by bombing and national subversion.”

“What? A formal charge of assassination complicity and national subversion? Who are you?”

When Kim Hyung-chul glared at him, the middle-aged man showed his ID.

“National Intelligence Service? Director Kang Ki-won? What? You’re not from the Secret Bureau of Corruption Investigation.”

Kim Hyung-chul had been questioned for three days and he thought it was the Secret Bureau of Corruption Investigation that was interrogating him.

“This isn’t an illegal interrogation. I’m filing a formal complaint, you punks.”

Kim Hyung-chul hit the table with his two hands and stared at Director Kang Ki-won. Then, two agents who were waiting outside came in and stopped Kim Hyung-chul, and soon put handcuffs on both of his hands again.

“You are charging me without evidence. Are you seriously not letting me go?”

“Deputy Director Kim Hyung-chul, we have plenty of evidence! Take him!”

“Yes!”

“Let me go! Bastards, let me go!”

When Director Kang Ki-won gave the order, the agents held Kim Hyung-chul from both sides and took him out.

* * *

November 21, 2023, 20:30

Nam Joo National Intelligence Service (Director’s Meeting Room) in Gangnam-gu, Seoul

Team Leader Park Gi-oong briefed about Woo Byung-hoo’s confession and the collected evidence to Director Lee Young-jin, First Vice Minister Youn Yeon-joon, Second Vice Minister Huh Young-joon, ACS Chief Youn Soo-gil, Foreign Intelligence Agency Director Kang Ki-won, and Counter-terrorism Investigation Director An Yeon-wu, who were all sitting around a big table.

Team Leader Park Gi-oong used Goo Sang-sik’s confession to put Woo Byung-hoo under pressure and eventually forced him to confess to everything.

There were three shocking contents that Woo Byung-hoo had confessed to.

The first was that he was the one who was behind the scenes arranging everything to help the Foreign Intelligence Unit 1 get from New China to Manchuria without any problem by faking their identities, all under the direction of Kim Hyung-chul and with the assistance of Governor Kim Chun-won, who was killed in the bombing.

The second was to receive a huge slush fund of nearly 5 billion won from Russia’s SVR (Ocean Intelligence Agency) and capture one of the first operatives to reveal their identity. In return, Woo Byung-hoo was successful in gaining 500 million won worth of bitcoins in exchange for handing over Goo Sang-sik and exposing himself by causing problems at the Emperor’s Saloon in Pyeong-yang. The question here was why Russia did such a thing.

The third was that he was the person liaising with civic groups that were leading protesters in the riots currently taking place throughout the Republic of Corea, and North Korean Governor Ahn Dong-tae was also involved in orchestrating the protests.

When Team Leader Park Gi-oong’s briefing concluded, the five men seated couldn’t keep their mouths shut. It was a truly incredible and shocking story.

“We can’t just let the Russians off. They have planned more than two manipulations against Corea, sir!” First Vice Minister Youn Yeon-joon expressed his anger, biting down on his lower lip.

“You don’t need to be so angry. We didn’t even know what they were doing beforehand.”

“I’m ashamed.” The Second Vice Minister Huh Young-joon bowed his head and seemed sorry. Director Kang Ki-won was also at a loss for words.

“This is our department’s fault. The department that was created for this kind of situation couldn’t do its job properly. I’m sorry…,” ACS Chief Youn Soo-gil bowed his head and blurted out.

“I’m not blaming you in this situation. Anyway, I’m glad we found out about it now.”

“That’s what I’m saying. If it wasn’t for Team Leader Park, the NIS and the Secret Bureau of Corruption Investigation would have been in trouble if they had released Kim Hyung-chul and Woo Byung-hoo without securing any evidence. The mere thought of it makes me dizzy,” Manager An Yeon-wu sighed with relief and praised Team Leader Park Gi-oong.

Then Director Lee Young-jin nodded and said, “It almost endangered the president, not to mention our organization’s security. Anyway, excellent work, Team Leader Park!”

“Oh, no. This case was solved by Manager Lee Hye-jin,” Team Leader Park Gi-oong gave the credit to Manager Lee Hye-jin.

“I know. Even though she was severely injured and had to stay in the intensive care unit, she still helped a lot, sir!” Director Kang Ki-won also praised Manager Lee Hye-jin.

“Yes, Manager Lee has done a great job. Director Ahn, please visit the hospital tomorrow and explain to her briefly about this case.”

“Yes, sir!”

“Please prepare the report, Director Kang, so that we can present it to the president. Since the current situation is too complicated, simplify it as much as possible.”

“Yes, sir.”

“When will it be available?”

“It will take at least three days to cross-check not only Kim Hyung-chul’s statements but also Oh Ji-wan’s, who is still hospitalized.”

When Oh Ji-wan’s name came out of Director Kang Ki-won’s mouth, Team Leader Park Gi-oong bowed his head. It was because he hit him too hard during the arrest. They had not been able to interrogate him until now.

“All right! Make a report on this horrible assassination attack in three days and post it. And what’s the name of the group that’s leading the protests?”

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“Red Revolutionary Youth.”

“Yes, Red Revolutionary Youth. Vice Minister Yoon, arrest all the members beginning with the highest-ranking ones and work your way down to the lowest, and if you think you’re short-staffed, send an official letter to all the assessment agencies, including the Secret Bureau of Corruption Investigation and the National Intelligence Service!”

“Yes, sir!”

Following the meeting, Vice Minister Yoon Yeon-jun dispatched emergency cooperation letters to all the assessment agencies, and over 2,000 field agents and investigators rushed to arrest members of the Red Revolutionary Youth Corps headquarters in Pyeong-yang and its branches in major cities throughout each state.