Chapter 147:
Obedient weapons? Crush their will?
How could he utter such horrific words?!
Everyone glared at Jang Woo-seok, his face ashen under their scrutiny. Accusatory gazes, questioning how she had obtained such evidence, were directed at Seo Jae-yi.
‘How did I get it? Pretty Oppa got it for me, of course.’
Kwon Yi-soo had been able to move around the Center more freely than Seo Jae-yi. He had even overthrown Oh Yoon-seok and become the Center Head.
Obtaining this evidence was nothing to him.
“The victim, Seo Jae-yi, saw Prime Minister Jang Woo-seok numerous times during her time at the Center and was often pressured to produce significant results.”
The courtroom fell silent as the lawyer continued.
The sheer volume of irrefutable evidence made even the judges’ heads spin.
The judge called for a recess, but everyone knew Jang Woo-seok’s fate was sealed.
As expected, when the recess ended, Jang Woo-seok’s side couldn’t present any evidence to refute the claims, and the verdict was delivered swiftly.
The government was ordered to pay 1 billion won in compensation to each victim, including Seo Jae-yi. Jang Woo-seok was removed from his position as Prime Minister and sentenced to seventeen years in prison for conducting experiments on numerous minors.
【Title: Did you guys see the verdict today? It’s even more horrifying than I imagined…】
【The video footage was only shown in court and wasn’t leaked, but even hearing what people who were there are saying is terrifying…
Drawing blood from children, torturing them… Are they even human?! And the reason was to turn Espers into weapons… LOL… What kind of nonsense is that, loyal soldiers of the state?
Awakened individuals are already subjugating dungeons and fighting monsters; why turn them into weapons?! I can’t understand; am I too much of a normal person?
And the mastermind was the Prime Minister… And the government supported it… Is this even real? I can’t believe the true nature of the government I’ve been supporting all this time… I’m speechless.
And the victims were S-ranks?! Seo Jae-yi?! Are they crazy?! What if Firestarter had abandoned the country after the trauma of being experimented on? Are they insane? Do they even have brains?!
Firestarter, still staying in Korea and fighting for us… You’re the real deal…】
【Comments】
Jang Woo-seok was dismissed from his position, but people weren’t satisfied.
As news spread that Kwon Yi-soo, upon becoming the Center Head, had terminated all illegal experiments, disbanded the organizations involved, and completely reformed the Center and the Association, the criticism directed towards them gradually subsided.
But Oh Yoon-seok, the previous Center Head, was still missing. All the public’s anger was now directed at the government, the last remaining culprit.
And then, Jang Woo-seok’s voice recording, in which he stated that the government had orchestrated the experiments, was leaked. And someone revealed that one of the people who had given the order was the current President, Kim Joon-pil.
Public outrage reached a fever pitch, and protests erupted across the country. What had started as small demonstrations quickly grew into a nationwide movement.
People, carrying torches, demanded the impeachment of the President and the government that had treated Awakened individuals like slaves.
Their anger wouldn’t subside until all those responsible were brought to justice.
“I’m so touched that so many people are angry for me.”
Seo Jae-yi couldn’t hide her joy, seeing the news reports and online posts about people taking to the streets.
She was relieved that it wasn’t a lonely fight anymore.
“Think of it as a reward for all your hard work. You never ran away, Unnie.”
Seo Won-yeong patted her shoulder.
She was right. Seo Jae-yi had never turned her back on danger, no matter how perilous. She had always stood at the forefront, protecting people.
Seo Jae-yi, who had shielded them from countless dangers for over ten years.
Now, the people she had saved were returning the favor.
“This is why I can’t abandon this country. There are so many good people here.”
Seo Jae-yi smiled brightly.
Seo Hye-ryeong, Seo Won-yeong, and Baek Joo-won, who were with her, were relieved by her genuine smile.
They had been worried that the trial, which forced her to relive her traumatic past, would affect her, but thankfully, she seemed unaffected. On the contrary, she seemed happy, finally getting the revenge she had craved.
“You’ve been through so much, Jae-yi.”
Seo Hye-ryeong hugged her niece tightly, knowing her emotions were genuine.
Regret for not being able to help her niece, pride in her growth, and relief that it was finally over.
A myriad of emotions poured into the embrace.
“Yes, I have. It was really hard.”
Seo Jae-yi, nestled in her aunt’s arms, whined like a child. Seo Hye-ryeong was pleased to see her niece express her true feelings without reservation.
“Now all that’s left is to find and crush Park Jung-soo. Everything will be over once we take care of him.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
They didn’t know where he was, but they would find him soon. Jang Woo-seok and the ruling party, who had been protecting him, were gone.
It had been a long journey.
“Yes, my dear niece. Just a little bit longer.”
“Yes.”
Seo Jae-yi smiled as Seo Hye-ryeong patted her back.
“But Jae-yi, there’s something I’ve been wondering about.”
“What is it?”
“What’s this about you cultivating and selling dungeon plants in a dungeon?”
Hiccup.
Seo Jae-yi and Seo Won-yeong both hiccuped simultaneously at Seo Hye-ryeong’s unexpected question. Their reactions were so transparent that it was almost comical.
“N-n-no! That’s not it!”
Seo Jae-yi, still in her aunt’s arms, looked at Seo Won-yeong with wide, pleading eyes. Seo Won-yeong shook her head frantically, feeling utterly betrayed.
“So even my daughter knew about this.”
“…”
Seo Won-yeong, startled by her mother’s words, immediately dropped to her knees.
“I have sinned, Mother… I was only concerned about you and Unnie…”
“We’ll hear your excuses later. Let’s hear what our niece has to say first.”
Seo Won-yeong slumped in defeat, ignored by her mother.
But it was Seo Jae-yi who wanted to collapse right now.
“H-how did you find out…?”
“Vice President Jeong Joo-hyung called me today. He said the Guiding Center and the Esper Association would be providing compensation to the victims involved in the incident.”
Seo Joo-il, Seo Jae-yi’s father and Seo Hye-ryeong’s brother, had also been a victim.
The compensation related to him would be given to Seo Hye-ryeong, so that was probably why he had called her.
“And he asked if I knew about your dungeon plant business.”
‘That damn Basement Dweller!’
So he was the one who had spilled the beans. Seo Jae-yi trembled with rage. She would never forgive him.
“So it was true. Why didn’t you tell your aunt about this?”
But Jeong Joo-hyung didn’t matter right now. Seo Jae-yi also knelt beside Seo Won-yeong.
“Well, you see…”
She had no choice but to confess.
Of course, she didn’t reveal everything.
She just said that she had killed a dungeon master during a subjugation, and the dungeon had become very friendly to her after she used his magic stone!
It was a slightly modified version of the lie she had told Kang Sung-yeon, Jeong Joo-hyung, and Kim Yoo-sung during the dungeon plant sales negotiations.
Telling her aunt that she had willingly entered a dungeon to suppress her overload would be too much.
She could feel Baek Joo-won, who had suddenly become a dead dungeon master who had coughed up his magic stone, staring at her with a dumbfounded expression, but Seo Hye-ryeong was her priority, so she ignored him.
I’m sorry, Hae-wi. I’ll apologize later; please forgive me just this once.