BRF Chapter 3

The excessively beautiful man was also excessively agile. 

Was he a tail planted by Chageon Electronics?

“Are you alright?”

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His deep voice and precise pronunciation were as clear as a broadcast announcer’s.

“Hey, you bastard! Let go of me!”

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The man held the thin man’s knife-wielding wrist in his right hand while firmly supporting Eunseong’s back with his left arm. As the man tightened his grip and shook, the thin man’s body flapped like a paper doll.

“Yes, I’m fine.”

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As Eunseong replied calmly, the firm arm around her back slid away. She quickly straightened herself, having unintentionally leaned against the man.

The man, his well-defined eyebrows twitching, looked down at Eunseong. His long, narrow eyes were sharp as if drawn with a fine brush, and his irises were a transparent black with a hint of deep purple.

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His eyes flickered with interest, or perhaps curiosity. He seemed to be wondering how she could remain so unfazed after nearly being attacked.

As a reporter, she had been in and out of police stations for nine years. She had become accustomed to hearing unspeakable curses in the field and developed an immunity to minor threats, not even flinching at them. She had even learned self-defense in case of emergencies. Even if the man hadn’t intervened, Eunseong would likely have managed to subdue the thin man somehow.

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However, perhaps due to the shock of seeing the sharp weapon, her heart was beating faster than usual.

“You rotten scumbags! Damn reporter bastards!”

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The thin man yelled, his voice full of contempt as he thrashed about in a fury.

But… “bastards,” huh? Wait, is this man a reporter too?

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As Eunseong raised her eyebrows and looked up at the man, he tilted his head slightly.

Wondering if he was indeed a reporter, she quickly scanned his face.

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Since her rookie days, Eunseong had a firm grasp on the Gangnam area, covering the Seocho, Songpa, Suseo, and Gangnam police stations. Social affairs reporters were usually assigned to specific districts within Seoul, and Gangnam was the most crowded area for reporters.

A man with a remarkably striking appearance, possessing a rare balance and harmony that pleased the eye…

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No matter how many reporters frequented the stations, she was certain she had never seen this man before.

Could he be a rookie?

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But he seemed too polished for a rookie. He didn’t carry the characteristic stale smell that clung to the police station break rooms where rookie reporters often waited. On the contrary, he exuded a subtle sweetness, like he had dark chocolate hidden inside his coat.

If anything, she should be the one smelling stale. She hadn’t had a chance to wash properly, having just woken up from a nap in the broadcasting station’s on-call room.

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Eunseong barely suppressed the urge to lift her arm and sniff herself to check for any strange odors.

“Where are you from…?”

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Before Eunseong could finish her question, the thin man started thrashing again.

“Die, you bastards!”

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The man stared at the thin man silently. Dressed in a dark gray knit and a light gray coat, he had a commanding presence. He looked like he could easily crumple the thin man if he wanted to.

As he elegantly raised the arm that had been holding the thin man’s wrist, the thin man’s body swayed, his body folding in half. The brief glimpse Eunseong caught of the thin man’s eyes showed clear fear.

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Just as she was wondering why such a timid person would do something so reckless, the cafe door opened with the sound of a chime. Two police officers rushed in, as if someone from the cafe staff had reported the incident to the police.

“This is the police. We received a report. What’s going on?”

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Of all people, the responding officer was also a familiar face.

“What, Reporter Kang? I heard you weren’t covering Gangnam today. So, why are you here? Did you report this?”

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“No. I believe someone from the cafe staff made the report.”

At the appearance of the police, the thin man slumped to the cafe floor, defeated. The utility knife he had dropped lay beside his thigh. The handsome man, who had stepped away from Eunseong, swiftly pinned the tip of the knife with his shoe, as if to prevent the thin man from impulsively grabbing it again.

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“I called the police! That man suddenly started causing a scene! I scraped together every loan I could to open this place less than a month ago! If it weren’t for this customer here, something terrible could have happened. There was almost a stabbing here!”

The pale-faced cafe owner blurted out, practically screaming.

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“This man attacked the woman with a knife.”

The handsome man gestured towards the floor with his chin and removed his shoe from the knife.

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“If you require any further assistance, please contact me. I have an urgent meeting.”

The man handed a business card to the police officer. After asking him a few questions and confirming the presence of CCTV inside the cafe, the officer allowed him to leave.

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As the man strode towards the glass door of the cafe, he naturally drew Eunseong’s gaze. His black hair swayed softly as he walked, his coat fluttering around him.

Though his feather-light hair hadn’t touched her cheek, Eunseong felt a ticklish sensation and brushed her face with her hand.

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The man, who had been hurrying to leave, stopped abruptly at the glass door. His still back looked as solid as a fortress wall built of heavy stones. As if sensing Eunseong’s gaze, he murmured,

“Be careful.”

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A chill ran down her spine at the low warning.

Eunseong furrowed her brow slightly and tilted her head.

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“Officer Park, was I just threatened?”

There was no way the veteran Officer Park could have missed the threatening tone.

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“What are you talking about? What? Did I miss something? Is there a ghost or something?”

Officer Park, who had restrained one of the thin man’s arms, widened his eyes and looked around.

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“N… No, it’s nothing.”

“Are you coming with us, Reporter Kang, or not?”

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Eunseong, who had been looking towards the door, suddenly came to her senses and grinned. She looked as if the officer had asked an obvious question.

In this situation, the Chageon Electronics factory, which every reporter was covering, had to be pushed back.

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The real scoop was right here.

* * *

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“At a cafe in Gangnam, a man, a former employee of Chageon Electronics, waited for the reporter at the agreed meeting location, armed with a knife.”

The woman’s face from earlier appeared on the large TV screen. She had said she was a reporter, so she must have been a broadcast reporter.

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“I resented the reporters! What was the point of pouring out my frustration, hoping for even a sliver of help? All they did was churn out articles favorable to the company! The company was at fault, but why did we have to take the blame? It was bad enough that we risked our lives working there, I wanted to clear my name from the false accusation that I was fighting the company out of greed!”

Through the distorted voice of the man who had tried to attack the woman with a knife at the cafe, a story of resentment and frustration towards an uncaring world unfolded.

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“Although the Severe Accident Punishment Act, implemented in January, strengthened the obligation to ensure safety and health, workers are still being driven into harsh realities….”

Woojin stared at the woman speaking on the screen. She was reporting on unfair labor practices, seemingly having forgotten the morning’s commotion.

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“I really like that reporter.”

Hyohyun, who was peeling an apple on the sofa diagonally across from him, glanced at the TV screen and then returned her gaze to the sharp paring knife.

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“Why do you like her?”

Woojin fiddled with the remote and asked indifferently, as if he wasn’t particularly interested.

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“Look somewhere else, will you? Leave it on! I need to at least watch the weather.”

Woojin looked to be at most thirty, while Hyohyun was a middle-aged woman with deep wrinkles around her eyes.

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“Check the weather on your phone.”

“Watching the weather forecast on the evening news helps me sleep better.”

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Hyohyun poked a piece of apple with a dessert fork and offered it to Woojin, as if to a lover.

“Try some apple. It’s cool and sweet.”

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Woojin waved his hand dismissively.

“You’re doing this again! If you keep this up, I’m really quitting!”

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Hyohyun furrowed her brow threateningly.

“Suit yourself.”

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Woojin tilted his chin as if he didn’t care.

“Honestly, you’re so difficult.”

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Hyohyun stood up abruptly with the tray and marched into the kitchen.

“This is Kang Eunseong from ABS News.”

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The woman’s firm voice replayed a couple of times in his head.

“Be careful.”

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His own words from the cafe, spoken as he looked back at the woman, echoed in his ears. Woojin crumpled a cushion in his arms, and rolled around on the sofa.

Are you crazy, Jung Woojin?

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His hair stood on end. He had long ago established a rule of never interfering in other people’s affairs.

Humans were weak yet cruel, cowardly yet fearful.

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The man who tried to harm Reporter Kang Eunseong today had chosen a cruel method out of weakness. He was a man who had become cowardly because of his fear.

The accumulation of long years had taught Woojin one lesson.

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The pursuit of peaceful dignity.

There was nothing new in this tedious world where the same events endlessly repeated themselves. The news Kang Eunseong reported was an age-old problem. Labor issues could even be found in records of Egyptian slaves.

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Human society doesn’t change. Therefore, it was best not to interfere in the world of ordinary humans. That was how Woojin, who had neither the will to end his tedious life nor the illusion to dream of the possibilities in the future, maintained his peaceful dignity.

Then why had he interfered in the life of this woman named Kang Eunseong?

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Woojin stared at the TV screen, his face half-buried in the cushion. Perhaps because Reporter Kang Eunseong had gotten a scoop, she even appeared in the newsroom.

“Reporter Kang Eunseong, are you saying that similar industrial accidents are frequently occurring in workplaces?”

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Kang Eunseong nodded in response to the anchor’s question.

“Yes, that’s correct. Among the accidents that have occurred at industrial workplaces from January to last month….”

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As her almond-shaped, brown eyes gazed straight ahead, Woojin held his breath, as if their eyes had met up close.

No, why?

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If he held his breath every time he made eye contact with a woman, Woojin would have died hundreds of times already.

Why did he feel this way only when it involved this woman?

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What was it about her?