Free Web NovelOfficers from the Gyeonggi Police Agency cuffed Seo Jaehun’s wrists.
“Mr. Seo Jaehun, under Article 212 of the Criminal Procedure Act, you are being arrested without a warrant as a murder suspect. You have the right to remain silent, anything you say may be used as evidence against you, and you have the right to legal counsel. You may also apply to the court for a review of the legality of your arrest.”
The officer recited the formal procedure in a mechanical tone and escorted Seo Jaehun into the patrol car.
Ahn Hyunsu was also placed under emergency arrest and handcuffed, while Han Jiho, due to injuries to his hand, was transported to a nearby hospital by ambulance.
Once the police had arrived, Park Jihoon withdrew his troops.
“Hand over the recorder, and you go on ahead. You’ve done enough for today.”
Lee Seongjae reached out his hand, but I couldn’t hand over the original recording.
It wasn’t that I didn’t trust him—it still needed post-editing.
“I’ll make a few edits before submitting it to headquarters. Please just transfer the case to Seoul Headquarters as soon as possible.”
“...Does it really have to go to headquarters?”
He asked, frowning slightly, clearly wanting to handle it himself.
“Has there ever been a case like this that headquarters didn’t take over? If you try to hold onto it, it’ll only get messier.”
“If you step in, though...”
Anyone would be tempted by a case this big.
If he handled a case involving Seo Jaehun, his standing would undoubtedly rise.
But swallow too fast, and you choke.
“I understand you want to deal with this personally, sir. But there’s an order to things, isn’t there? This one belongs to headquarters. Still, I won’t forget the help you gave me today, so please don’t get too greedy, sir.”
Embarrassed at being read so easily, Lee Seongjae gave a short cough.
Still, being quick-witted, he didn’t argue further.
“When the National Forensic Service arrives, make sure they confirm Patrick’s cause of death and find Seo Jaehun’s change of clothes and gloves. They should be somewhere around here.”
It was time for me to leave. Lee Seongjae nodded, miming a phone call with his hand.
“Got it. I’ll be in touch later.”
“Thank you for today, sir. I’ll thank you properly another time.”
After expressing my thanks, I got into the car with Chief Ma.
Once we left the mountain road and merged onto the national highway, he called out from the passenger seat.
“Boss.”
I opened my eyes at his voice; I had been sitting with them closed, organizing my thoughts.
He turned to me, his face full of concern.
“Today was too dangerous. If anything had gone wrong, you could have been in real danger.”
I smiled faintly at his stiff tone.
“I know. Sorry for worrying you. Still, it’s a good thing I called Commissioner Lee Seongjae and General Park Jihoon when I did.”
“If they hadn’t arrived on time, who knows what might have happened. Please don’t personally step into such dangerous situations again, Boss.”
If we’d had proper equipment, Black Secret would never have been outmatched by a police SWAT unit.
But in Korea, openly carrying heavy firearms wasn’t possible, so we had only been armed with handguns. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com
Had Black Secret and the SWAT team clashed, both sides would have suffered heavy casualties.
Before reinforcements arrived, we likely would have been overwhelmed.
“I’ll keep that in mind. It’s all over now, so don’t dwell on it too much.”
“Understood.”
Chief Ma turned back forward, and I closed my eyes again.
I thought I’d feel relieved—but my mind was a tangled mess.
The car glided smoothly down the road, yet my thoughts wouldn’t settle.
* * *
[Exclusive] Ilseong Group Vice Chairman Seo Jaehun Arrested!
One of the Ilseong Group family, Vice Chairman Seo Jaehun, was urgently arrested by police on the 23rd.
Unlike the usual corporate crimes—embezzlement or breach of trust—this time he was arrested at the scene as a prime suspect in a murder case.
With scandals involving second- and third-generation chaebols becoming a major social issue, the arrest of Ilseong Group’s de facto leader sent shockwaves through the financial world.
Our paper will provide an in-depth and continuous investigation into this case.
The headline on the front page of the Koryo Daily stunned the public.
Today happened to be the day of Ilseong Electronics’ shareholders’ meeting, which made the impact even greater.
— Eva, you can handle the wrap-up, right?
“Yes, Boss. Ah, I’m here. I’ll call you when it’s over.”
Eva ended the call with Kim Muhyuk as she arrived at the underground parking lot of Ilseong Building, where the shareholders’ meeting was being held.
Stepping out of the car, she took the elevator and pressed the button for the tenth floor.
When she entered the main conference hall, all eyes turned toward her.
The once-buzzing room fell silent in an instant.
The only sound that echoed through the tense shareholders’ meeting hall was the sharp click of Eva’s heels.
Walking slowly but confidently, Eva took her seat in the front row.
None of the Ilseong Electronics executives had arrived yet.
Glancing at her watch, Eva leaned slightly toward Chairman Ha Myunghun beside her and whispered.
“Chairman Ha, no surprises today, right?”
Ha, who had been chatting with someone next to him, turned to her with a smile.
“Of course not. How could there be? Just look around, Ms. Eva—the atmosphere says it all.”
Indeed, the allies of the Ilseong Group wore dark, uneasy expressions.
“Now that Vice Chairman Seo has been arrested, their faces show they have no idea what to do next.”
Those holding shares friendly to Seo Jaehun were visibly panicked, fidgeting even before the meeting started.
Without him present, they had no path to victory.
Every motion requiring a special resolution—board reshuffles, bylaw amendments, auditor replacements—was now certain to pass.
Ordinary resolutions required approval from a majority of votes among attending shareholders holding at least one-quarter of the listed shares.
Special resolutions—such as the dismissal of directors or auditors, or amendments to the articles of incorporation—required approval from two-thirds of the voting rights present and one-third of all listed shares.
Counting both Eva’s shares and her allied holdings, she controlled 48% of Ilseong Electronics’ total listed stock.
That was the absolute maximum she could gather. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t scrape together more.
Seo Jaehun’s shares and those of Ilseong’s subsidiaries were effectively locked away.
But there was no need for more—victory was well within reach.
“All we need is to take control of the board.”
Ten minutes before the meeting began, Ilseong Electronics’ executives entered the hall.
Their faces already carried the look of defeat.
As the clock struck the appointed hour, the doors to the main conference room closed.
Yoon Yongseong, president of Ilseong Electronics’ semiconductor division, took the chairman’s podium to preside over the meeting.
The session began with the auditor’s report, the business report, and internal accounting control updates.
Every division except semiconductors was in the black—but the semiconductor division’s massive losses stood out.
Muhyuk’s prearranged proxy attendees began pressing hard with questions, focusing on the semiconductor losses. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
The hour-long barrage of inquiries was enough to drain the executives completely.
At Eva’s glance, the “meeting plants” fell silent.
Now the real game began.
“The first item on the agenda: approval of the 21st-term financial statements and consolidated financial statements.”
After the basic votes were done, Eva’s special motions came up.
“Agenda Item No. 3: Partial Amendment to the Articles of Incorporation.”
The issue Eva targeted was the unnecessarily large number of board members.
“The current provision allows between 3 and 14 directors. The proposed amendment limits it to between 3 and 9.”
After explanation, Q&A, and debate, voting began.
“We will now proceed to vote. Those in favor, please stand.”
The major shareholders in the front rows rose from their seats.
One by one, the minority shareholders followed suit, reading the mood.
Staffers moved through the aisles, counting the standing votes. Soon, the result was announced.
“Seventy-seven percent of the voting rights of attending shareholders are in favor. The motion passes.”
Then came one of Seo Jaehun’s own pre-filed proposals.
“The second part of Agenda Item No. 3: Amendment to strengthen director dismissal requirements.”
Eva’s lips curled into a faint smile.
This was Seo Jaehun’s desperate attempt to prevent the board from being replaced.
“The current rule allows dismissal of directors and auditors with the approval of one-third of issued shares and two-thirds of the votes at the shareholders’ meeting. The proposed change raises this to three-quarters of issued shares and four-fifths of attending votes, ostensibly to prevent hostile takeovers.”
Raising the requirement from 33% to 75% of issued shares, and from 66% to 80% of attending votes—an absurd increase.
Representatives from other conglomerates chuckled in disbelief.
Director appointments required only an ordinary resolution, meaning Seo could’ve reappointed himself with his current holdings.
He was clearly clinging to his seat.
“Those in favor, please stand.”
The executives on the podium all stood.
But no one in the audience moved.
Not even those with friendly shares to Seo Jaehun rose.
Even loyal allies couldn’t support a motion that stripped shareholders of their authority.
There was no need to count the votes.
“...The second part of Agenda Item No. 3 has been rejected.”
Yoon Yongseong let out a small sigh, barely audible.
He hadn’t wanted to chair this meeting at all.
But when the CEO refused to attend, the board forced the role onto him.
‘Damn it. So this is how it ends.’
Cursing inwardly, he moved to the next motion.
“Agenda Item No. 4: Dismissal of all current board directors.”
Voting began shortly after.
Eva and the major shareholders all stood, followed by the minority shareholders.
When the results came in, Yoon closed his eyes heavily.
“Chairman! Proceed!”
An impatient attendee shouted from his seat.
Yoon opened his eyes, leaned toward the microphone, and announced,
“Agenda Item No. 4, motion to dissolve the current board—has passed.”
Bang, bang, bang.
He struck the gavel three times.
Hearing the clear echo, Eva clenched her fist tightly.
Seo Jaehun’s board was dissolved.
The executives on the podium stood and left the hall amid a wave of boos.
As the losers exited, the mood inside the shareholders’ meeting brightened considerably.
“With all directors dismissed, we will now elect new board members.”
It was time to appoint a new master. The victors’ hour had come.
The candidates for internal and external directors, as well as auditors listed in the passed proposals, were called one by one.
Without opposition, they were all appointed as new board members.
Ilseong Electronics had finally fallen completely into Kim Muhyuk’s hands.
* * *
At the appointed hour, I headed to a traditional restaurant near the National Police Agency headquarters.
“Commissioner Lee, it’s been a while.”
“President Kim, it’s good to see ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) you.”
Commissioner Lee Hoyoung stood to greet me.
We shook hands, and as soon as we sat down, I went straight to the point.
“I asked to meet today because of Vice Chairman Seo Jaehun.”
“Yes, I’ve been briefed. But... is all of it true?”
He asked again, clearly struggling to believe it. Hearing reports was one thing—seeing the scene was another.
I nodded firmly.
“Yes. It’s true.”
“Hmm...”
“The Seoul District Prosecutors’ Office has already begun moving. Coordinate with Commissioner Lee Seongjae and have the case transferred to Seoul Headquarters.”
“Understood. But Ilseong Group’s legal team is already in motion. If an arrest warrant isn’t issued within 48 hours, we’ll have to release him.”
I clicked my tongue inwardly. Always too fast, those bastards.
Just then, my phone buzzed. Checking the caller ID, I smiled.
“Excuse me, Commissioner, may I take this call?”
He nodded, and I answered.
— Boss! The shareholders’ meeting’s over. We replaced the entire board with our people.
Eva’s voice was bright with excitement. After all, it was the culmination of everything we’d prepared for.
“Yeah? You did well.”
— We’re drinking tonight, right?
“Sure. I’m at a meeting right now, but I’ll call you later, Eva.”
— Okay, Boss! I’ll be waiting.
Ending the short call, I smiled faintly and turned back to Commissioner Lee.
“Apologies for the interruption. That was good news—Ilseong Electronics’ management has officially transferred to us.”
“Ah...”
Commissioner Lee’s eyes widened.
“The arrest warrant will be issued soon. The prosecution and courts are already standing by. Once custody is transferred to headquarters, file for the warrant immediately. It’ll be granted before the night is over.”
