Chapter 248. The Employee’s Perspective (5)

Ji-Woong’s voice trembled with relief. “H-Hyung!”

In stark contrast, the director’s face was a spectacle to behold.

“Refrain from any remarks outside the scope of the defense,” he warned stiffly.

The overwhelming pressure he had once exuded had long since dissipated. The director, once imposing and mountain-like, now flushed rapidly from red to blue. No one had ever seen him this shaken.

“Of course,” Eun-Ho replied lightly.

Whether he noticed the agitation or simply did not care, he calmly stared at the cubes above Ji-Woong’s head.

[Embezzlement] [Bribery] [Fraud]

Eun-Ho’s gaze paused briefly on the first before shifting to the prosecution.

“Personnel Regulation Article 2. Definitions.” He began with one of the most basic clauses, found on the very first page. “Clause 810. Activity funds refer to money that has been spent or is scheduled to be spent for a specific activity.”

The director’s eyebrow twitched. He knew the personnel regulations by heart. Why would this man recite such a trivial definition?

“Are you explaining it in case I am unfamiliar with the term?” he asked coldly.

Eun-Ho did not answer directly, instead repeating, “Money that has been spent, or is scheduled to be spent.”

The director’s thoughts halted mid-track.

Scheduled?

A possibility flashed across his mind.

Fwoosh—

Then, a massive screen unfolded at Eun-Ho’s fingertips.

“What is that?!”

Charts, tables, and formulas filled the display in immaculate arrangement, akin to a work of art laid out on a single page.

“Exhibit One,” Eun-Ho said clearly. “Projected Activity Fund Expenditure Plan by Member.”

The prosecution nearly staggered in shock. Jeon Do and Guk, who had been watching in helpless frustration, were just as stunned.

“Division Chief! Did he make that in the ten minutes before arrival?!” Guk whispered urgently.

“Look at the formatting! That level of quality isn’t possible in ten minutes! He must have prepared it in advance.” Jeon Do concluded grimly.

“Did he know this situation would happen?”

“He didn’t,” Jeon Do replied. “Not precisely.”

He might have predicted something, but not the exact charges or circumstances, Jeon Do thought.

“That means,” Jeon Do continued slowly, “he likely has dozens, no, hundreds of documents like that prepared for various scenarios.”

“Huh?” Guk’s eyes widened. “So he categorized and prepared them all in advance just in case?”

“Most likely.”

They knew Eun-Ho was meticulous, but who could have expected him to be this thorough? A chilling realization struck Guk.

That team’s workload must be insane.

A murmur spread among the Audit Bureau officials.

“Is that it? Is that his entire rebuttal?”

“They won't actually accept that, would they?”

“What would the director do?”

The trial had been designed as a one-sided battle. The defense was not even meant to have time to understand the situation, let alone respond.

“Unfortunately, I cannot accept that,” the director said.

All eyes turned back to him.

“If it were actual expenditures, that would be one matter. But to recognize projected expenditures as activity funds—”

“You would require an estimation logic for calculating projected expenses,” Eun-Ho interjected smoothly.

The director’s mouth snapped shut mid-sentence.

“Appendix One contains the itemized estimation logic, annotated accordingly,” said Eun-Ho.

The director’s eyes widened.

“It mirrors the exact logic used by the Personnel Bureau that passed last quarter’s regular audit,” Eun-Ho added. “There should be no issue.”

It was a flawless response, the kind one would find in a textbook titled How to Excel at Work.

The director snapped. “W-wait!”

“To ensure credibility, Appendix Five includes the Personnel Division chief’s signed approval documents,” Eun-Ho finished.

The director had intended to press further, but he faltered. “Even so—”

“If you still find it insufficient,” Eun-Ho continued calmly, “shall we proceed with a formal audit request of the Personnel Bureau’s administrative system?”

Every stone the director threw was stopped by a boulder, and every spear met a shield. He had no room left to maneuver.

“D-Division Chief! Look!” Guk exclaimed.

The Embezzlement cube flickered twice and went dark.

[Embezzlement]

[Bribery] [Fraud]

The director’s clenched fist trembled faintly. Eun-Ho, who was expressionless, glanced at the remaining cubes.

“Next,” he said simply as if he was saying one follows two and left foot follows right.

Dragging an unused chair across the floor with a grating scrape, Eun-Ho set it down directly in front of the witness stand.

“W-what are you doing? Why are you coming here?” the witness stammered.

“Witness,” Eun-Ho said calmly.

He called him forward, met his eyes, and sat down. His movements flowed naturally, one after another.

“You’re quite eloquent,” Eun-Ho said gently.

His tone was courteous and refined, while his eyes curved into a pleasant smile. He appeared warm and reasonable to any onlooker, yet the witness shivered as a cold dread ran through him. He felt the pressure coiled within that gentle voice, the fire hidden behind those crescent-shaped eyes, and the killing intent carefully compressed into each polite syllable. Above all, there was the madness of someone who had prepared for everything.

“Please,” Eun-Ho said pleasantly, “repeat your earlier testimony.”

***

“Division Chief. We might actually win this trial!” Guk whispered the words, hope flickering in his eyes as he watched Eun-Ho’s unorthodox performance.

Jeon Do, however, did not share his optimism.

“The remaining charges are more troublesome,” he replied gravely.

“Are they?”

The next cube Eun-Ho had set his sights on was Bribery. The accusation claimed that he had bribed the chief secretary in order to secure personal gain. With a witness already brought forward, the burden now lay in proving that no such exchange had taken place. Naturally, it would not be easy. In fact, it would have been wiser to deny everything and stall for time. Take one step back to take two steps forward.

However, Eun-Ho showed no intention of retreating, not even half a step.

“So, Deputy Chief, where exactly did I exchange money or valuables?” he asked calmly,

“It was... at the Garden of Genesis,” the deputy chief answered in a trembling voice, swallowing dryly.

“Ah,” Eun-Ho nodded as if that confirmed something obvious. “The Garden of Genesis. You mean the place where you frequently meet your Personnel girlfriend in secret.”

The deputy chief nearly sprang out of his seat, his eyes bulging before he forced himself back down. “What?!”

“Why are you so surprised?” Eun-Ho asked mildly. “You told me yourself over drinks. You said that between brothers, there shouldn’t be secrets.”

“B-brothers? What nonsense are you spouting?!”

Eun-Ho lowered his gaze with what seemed like genuine hurt, even letting out a faint sigh.

Confusion spread like wildfire around the courtroom.

“What’s going on?”

“Do they know each other?”

“That sounds like more than just acquaintances.”

The deputy chief was clearly rattled, and the unease rippled through the audience.

“No way...”

“He’s probably just bluffing.”

“Come on,” Eun-Ho continued softly, “didn’t I even procure a rare gem for your girlfriend’s gift? The God’s Tear earrings.”

“What?!”

The detail was too specific to dismiss as a simple lie. No one could fabricate such a thing without intimate knowledge of the secretariat’s movements, or the deputy chief’s private life. The atmosphere shifted. Even members of the Audit Bureau in the front row began exchanging uncertain glances.

“Buying those would cost several million points.” Eun-Ho went on smoothly. “It was a win-win because I completed my trial with a single bribe.”

“What nonsense are you talking about?!” the deputy chief exploded, face flushed red. “When did I ever take a bribe from you?!”

“Then did you purchase the earrings yourself?” Eun-Ho asked calmly.

The deputy chief froze.

“Then please prove who gave them to you, and under what pretext.”

The man raised a trembling hand and dragged it down his face. “T-that’s...”

What the hell is wrong with this bastard? How does he know about the Personnel affair? And how does he know the earrings had been slipped to me along with illicit funds?

They had been payment for leaking confidential information about the chairman’s upcoming business project to a member of the Administrative Bureau.

Does he have an informant inside the Personnel Bureau? He hasn’t even been here long!

The situation was suffocating.

There wouldn’t be any evidence, right? If I just deny everything—

“Prove it if you don’t want to be tried for accepting bribes,” Eun-Ho repeated.

He rose slowly and approached the witness stand.

Clank—

Without warning, a metal hatch opened above the deputy chief’s head, and chains descended with a heavy rattle.

“What the...”

“Why is that appearing again?!”

“A consolidated trial?!”

The deputy chief jerked his head up, eyes nearly popping out.

No way. That’s impossible.

The courtroom system had accepted Eun-Ho’s accusation as an additional charge. Except when the director himself intervened, the system was rigidly bound to procedural legality.

“No! Noooo!” His face was drained of color, babbling unprompted, practically shouting his guilt for all to hear. “I-I don’t know anything! Director, I truly don’t know!”

Eun-Ho leaned close and recited the legal definition of bribery and its average sentencing guidelines in a low, even tone.

The deputy chief could not withstand it. “What are you talking about?! I’ve never even seen your face before today!”

“Never?” Eun-Ho repeated quietly.

He straightened. “I didn’t mean it like that—”

“You’re right, because it is our first meeting.” Eun-Ho appeared thoroughly satisfied, as if he had extracted everything he wanted. “I’ve never been to the Garden of Genesis. I’ve never exchanged bribes with you.”

“Wait, listen—”

Eun-Ho’s eyes blazed like wildfire, devouring the deputy chief where he sat. “I’ve certainly never seen your face before.”

If the man retreated now, he would be dead the moment he returned to the chairman’s office. If he pushed back further, he would burn alive right here.

The deputy chief sat frozen, unable to open or close his mouth. “Ah...”

I’m screwed.

***

What followed unfolded with ruthless efficiency.

[Embezzlement] [Bribery]

[Fraud]

The Audit Bureau scrambled to salvage at least the final remaining charge.

“Even a conviction on fraud alone would be sufficient for sentencing—”

“Exhibit Three.” Eun-Ho interrupted smoothly. “Labor Union Loan Approval Record.”

“What?”

It was a complete and utter failure. The document materialized in the air.

[Labor Union Loan Approval Record]

[Borrower Number One - Assistant Manager Choi Min-Young]

The director had argued that Eun-Ho’s promise to protect contract employees from deletion was a lie and a fraudulent claim meant to manipulate the workforce. However, Eun-Ho had just proven otherwise.

“He protected her?” someone murmured.

Eun-Ho had used the collected activity funds to ensure she would not be deleted. He drove that fact into the eyes of everyone in the courtroom, leaving no room for denial.

“But how and when?”

It was a flawless victory. A resounding silence fell over the courtroom.

In the midst of it, Jeon Do sensed something strange. He tapped Guk’s shoulder and asked in a hushed tone, “The message about the audit, what time did you send it?”

“Huh? I think it was 1:50 PM. Why?”

“Look.”

Jeon Do pointed at the timestamp displayed on Eun-Ho’s loan approval record. It said 1:55 PM Loan Review Request for Choi Min-Young from the Labor-Management Cooperation Team.

“1:55 PM? How does that line up so perfectly?”

“He instructed them,” Jeon Do muttered. “Told them to submit it.”

Guk’s face flooded with shock.

Eun-Ho had anticipated that this would be used against him, so he had prepared for it.

At 1:56 PM, the review was approved, and at 1:57 PM, the Labor-Management Cooperation Team submitted to the Personnel division chief for approval. Then at 2:00 PM, the Personnel division chief requested for supplementation. At 2:02 PM, the Labor-Management Cooperation Team resubmitted to the Personnel division chief with supplemented materials.

Just then, Jeon Do’s face paled as he noticed something further down. “Wait.”

Eun-Ho had received final approval at 2:02 PM.

At the same moment, Guk’s expression turned to shock. “2:02 PM?!”

“That’s after he entered the courtroom!”

“D-don’t tell me that’s what he was hiding behind his back when he walked in earlier.”

“So he was finalizing this?!”

A quiet, incredulous laugh escaped Jeon Do. He had been clasping his hands in silent prayer for the sake of his inexperienced subordinate.

Now, he slowly released them. “Guk.”

“Yes, Division Chief.”

“Never make an enemy of that bastard. Never.”