Chapter 4: The Extension of the Investigation, Part 3

It was that kind of feeling.

Like being beaten senseless with nothing but his gaze.

Jiwon forced an awkward smile as she looked at Cha Seowan, who still hadn’t said a word.

“Is there… something you wanted to say?”

The moment the words left her mouth, she wondered if she’d been far too brazen.
She had messed up. Asking whether he had something to say wasn’t exactly the right choice of words.

Sure enough, Seowan remained silent, his eyes arrogantly raking over her from head to toe as if inspecting, dissecting her.

Unable to endure the suffocating tension, Jiwon spoke first.

“About yesterday… I’m truly sorry.”

“……”

“I didn’t know you were the new team leader. I made a mistake.”

“A mistake.”

So this was going to be one of those you finally see your sin moments?

A flicker of resentment stirred, but she swallowed it down. Since it had come to this, she might as well grovel properly.
As Captain Hwang said, lying flat and apologizing was her only option.

“Yes. First of all, I sincerely apologize for being disrespectful to you. I misunderstood. I thought you were—”

“Right. I’m well aware you thought I was some gang’s lackey and behaved like an idiot because of it.”

“……”

“And?”

Seowan lifted an eyebrow, clearly telling her to get to the point.

Jiwon ignored the sting of the word idiot and continued.

“And for delaying the suspect’s arrest on site, and for having my weapon taken—those were all my fault—”

“Have you lived overseas for a long time?”

“…Pardon?”

The abrupt, contextless question threw her completely off.

“N-no. I’ve never even been abroad. Why do you—”

“Then why do you use words however you please?”

Still not understanding, Jiwon looked at him blankly. Seowan continued, clearly unimpressed.

“Do you not know Korean? A mistake refers to an unintentional act and the error resulting from it.
Failing to recognize your new superior due to indifference toward your organization.
Standing around watching instead of acting when the suspect was right in front of you.
And on top of that, getting subdued by some unknown ‘lackey’ despite being a police officer.

Tell me—does even one of those qualify as a ‘mistake’?”

To see someone wrapped in such elegance say something so foul, so calmly—

It completely robbed her of speech.

Now she fully understood why people called him a legend.

Of all people, she had to cross paths with this one.
As Jaehong said—her luck was truly abysmal.

Suppressing her rising irritation, Jiwon bowed her head deeply.

“You’re right. Yesterday was not a mistake. It was entirely my fault, my negligence.
I will accept any punishment or disciplinary action you decide.”

“Are you sincere?”

“……”

“I asked if you’re sincere. About accepting any punishment.”

“Yes. I am.”

His gaze was chilling, but Jiwon nodded anyway.

A rough silence passed between them.

Seowan said nothing, his thoughts unreadable.
Her scalp and cheeks prickled under his stare, and she cautiously lifted her head.

Their eyes met.

Heat surged through her body all at once.
Every place his gaze touched felt scorched, unbearably hot.

Was he always the type to dissect people like this?
Under a stare like that, even the worst criminals would probably confess everything on the spot.

A frightening man.

“I hear you’re quite famous around headquarters.”

The pleasant low voice broke the silence.

“Three senior officials dismissed from Internal Affairs. All because of your whistleblowing.”

“…Ah.”

A quiet sigh slipped through her lips.

As if she hadn’t already ruined her first impression, this only reinforced every bad prejudice he could have about her.

“So ignoring procedure and acting on impulse is your specialty.
You’ve barely been back ten days since your reinstatement to the Violent Crimes Unit, and you’re already pulling this again.”

As expected.

The criticism was blunt and merciless, and Jiwon said nothing in response.

That, too, seemed to displease him. Seowan’s eyebrow twitched.

“No attempt at an explanation.”

Apparently, he’d expected at least a half-hearted excuse.

But Jiwon had no intention of giving one.
What was the point of explaining herself to someone who didn’t know the full context?
Even people who did know had turned their backs on her.

She answered calmly.

“There’s nothing to explain. It was my fault.”

“Sounds more like you don’t even care to respond. Am I mistaken?”

“…That’s a misunderstanding.”

“Misunderstanding.”

His gaze felt like it was slicing her apart at the atomic level.

Even without words, the contempt and distaste in his eyes were unmistakable.

He clearly thought she was a shameless leech—someone who’d caused massive trouble yet still clung stubbornly to the unit.

This was doomed from the start.
She and this ill-mannered new team leader were fundamentally incompatible.

“Consider this a warning. While I’m the team leader of Team Three, avoid words like misunderstanding or mistake.
I don’t care for vocabulary that sounds that dim-witted.”

Of course you don’t.

“Yes, understood—”

She froze mid-response.

Team Three?
Not Team One—Team Three?

Jiwon snapped her head up.

“That’s right. After the meeting, it was decided that I’ll be taking Team Three instead of Team One.”

Her ears rang.

That meant Cha Seowan was now her direct superior.

Just having him as another team’s leader would’ve been bad enough—but seeing him daily, working under him, constantly clashing?

Her vision went dark.

“Why… why our team?”

Seowan frowned slightly, clearly annoyed by her reaction.

“You’re not asking because you don’t know who controls personnel decisions, I assume.
What is it? Dissatisfied with the appointment?”

“No! Not at all—”

Her voice cracked at the end.

He caught it instantly.

“Doesn’t look like it. That’s the face of someone thinking they’re screwed.”

Uncannily perceptive.

“Whether you like it or not, we’ll be working closely for the time being. So here are a few more warnings.
I have no intention of tolerating idiotic behavior like yesterday under my command.”

Idiotic…

For a fleeting moment, Jiwon wondered if his reputation was actually understated.
This wasn’t just a bad temper—this felt like a fundamental flaw in personality development.

“Let me be clear. If you plan on hesitating, stalling, or hanging back instead of moving when it’s time to act, don’t bother.
And don’t even think about hiding behind others to test the waters.”

She had acted eventually.

Because of Team Leader Jo, yes—but she was the one who rushed in and cuffed Jang Gapsu.

Jiwon bit back the words clawing at her throat.

“That applies regardless of whose order it is. Other team leaders included.”

Her pupils widened slightly.

He knew.
He knew yesterday had started because of Team Leader Jo’s orders.

“…You knew?”

“Knew what? That you were crouched behind containers, dragging your feet because of Jo Young-bae’s command?”

So he’d known all along.

Then why pretend otherwise?
Why let her pile apology upon apology, humiliate herself, confess to things she hadn’t even been responsible for?

Her patience finally snapped.

“If you already knew, then let me say this clearly.
I am not someone who hesitates, stalls, or hides behind others.”

“Funny. That’s exactly what you looked like yesterday.”

“……”

“From now on, ignore every order except mine.
Stop doing pointless things and just do what you’re good at, Inspector Song.”

“And what exactly would that be?”

“Moving on impulse. Do what you’ve always done.
Don’t overthink or bend over backward worrying about what your superiors want.”

Was that praise? Encouragement? Or mockery?

“You’re not responding.”

“…Ah. Yes. I’ll try.”

“Trying is a given. What matters is whether your effort shows up in objective results.”

How did he manage to say something so reasonable in the most infuriating way possible?

“Yes. Of course.”

Jiwon forced her lips upward in a smile that refused to come naturally.
They said smiling through hardship made you first-rate.

“Good. If there’s nothing else, stop grinning stupidly and get out.”

This insufferable bastard.

She swallowed the curse rising in her throat, bowed politely, and turned to leave—

“Send me the medical bill directly.”

She turned back, confused, and found Seowan staring at her right cheek.

Instinctively, she touched the warm skin beneath the bandage. Only then did she understand.

“You’d resent me if it scarred, wouldn’t you?”

“I’m fine. It’s not serious—”

“Send it. No complaints later.”

He didn’t want loose ends.
No future leverage. No entanglement.

Honestly? She couldn’t agree more.

“Yes. Understood. Then… excuse me.”

Jiwon answered obediently and hurried out of Seowan’s office.

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