Ch.161Chapter 161. Parent Observation Day (1)

“Hmm. This is the incident report. And what’s this? An explanation letter?”

“……”

In the Chief Prosecutor’s office.

Juliane couldn’t bring herself to look up as she stood before the Chief Prosecutor’s desk.

“So you’re telling me that while claiming to be conducting close surveillance on your target using your feminine charms, you were actually having a genuine romantic relationship.”

“……”

The Chief Prosecutor scratched his sideburns while flipping through the pages of the report.

It was an utterly ridiculous situation no matter how you looked at it.

She seemed well aware of this fact, her face flushed red as she completely avoided eye contact.

“And taking in his daughter to gain his favor was actually just because you thought she was cute.”

“……”

“And this so-called cover marriage was just because you wanted to live together?”

“……”

“I thought it was strange how exceptionally well you were doing your job! When I sent an investigator, everyone was shocked like some Hollywood actress had arrived! And now I find out it wasn’t acting at all but genuine feelings! Oh my goodness! Good grief!”

“……”

The Chief Prosecutor grabbed the back of his neck from stress.

The rookie investigator assigned to monitor an unprecedented released death row inmate had ended up falling for her surveillance target.

After making distressed noises for quite some time, the Chief Prosecutor finally suppressed his intense pain and threw the crumpled paper he’d been clutching onto the desk.

“The higher-ups are demanding I fire you. What should I do?”

“While I admit I was wrong in this matter, firing me would be a tremendous loss for the prosecution.”

“Oh? And why is that?”

“Have you seen the Navy investigation request I submitted?”

“I have.”

“Then I believe you recognize my capabilities as an investigator.”

“……”

Juliane was now standing straight, making proper eye contact.

The Chief Prosecutor couldn’t help but smile at the strong confidence evident in her gaze and tone.

There had been an investigation request that Juliane submitted the day before the scandal broke.

He had immediately discarded it, finding it absurd that she wanted an investigation into the Navy without proper authority, but it was revived as soon as investigative authority was approved by Congress.

The request had proven extremely valuable to the investigation.

It had already secured and documented key evidence to pressure the Navy, and even anticipated that the Navy might destroy evidence, listing what evidence would likely remain intact.

Moreover, by pointing out the outdated nature of the Navy court’s record storage system and suggesting that lost evidence might be wedged in corners or wall cracks, she had greatly helped in obtaining the crucial CCTV footage.

The special investigation committee had essentially followed the guidelines Juliane had provided from start to finish.

“If you were fired, what would you do?”

“I plan to work at a law firm. I’ve been receiving many offers lately.”

“Kuk…! What?!”

“Are you going to fire me?”

“Damn it. You audacious woman. Take this.”

“…?”

The Chief Prosecutor, who had spilled coffee all over his clothes, roughly wiped his hands and handed her a folded paper.

Juliane approached with confusion and took the paper.

It read:

-Letter of Recommendation. Los Angeles Law School…

“W-what is this?”

“It seems someone high up thinks it would be a waste for you to rot away as an investigator. They want you to become a prosecutor.”

“But you just said they were demanding you fire me?”

“That was the prosecution leadership. This is from someone even higher up. An elected official.”

Juliane’s eyes widened.

Among elected officials, neither senators nor representatives had the authority to write recommendation letters for investigators.

The Attorney General was an appointed position, so not them either.

That left only one possibility.

“The President?!”

“Lower your voice.”

“Yes…”

“You have plenty of time to decide. Whether to remain an investigator or become a prosecutor with greater authority. If you decide to attend law school, your tuition will be fully covered, and you’ll continue receiving your investigator’s salary during your studies. Of course, they’re only guaranteeing admission—you’ll have to graduate on your own merit. The same goes for passing the bar exam.”

“I understand.”

“If you understand, that’s good. You may go now.”

“Yes. Thank you.”

Juliane walked awkwardly out of the office with the recommendation letter in hand.

She was still having some difficulty walking due to last night’s aftermath.

As the door closed with a creak, she pinched her cheek hard.

“Ouch.”

It hurt.

This wasn’t a dream.

She had actually received an offer from the President to become a prosecutor.

She was quite—no, very—surprised by the suddenness of it all, having never even considered becoming a prosecutor.

Moreover, they were offering not only a tuition waiver but also her investigator’s salary during her studies.

It was an offer no one but a coward would refuse.

“Hehehe…”

Juliane tucked the recommendation letter into her chest with a smile.

Things had been going incredibly well for her lately.

She was so happy it almost felt wrong.

If she could be greedy about just one more thing, getting pregnant would make her happiness complete.

***

I heard that Saint Catalina School has a unique system.

It’s a system where parents can observe their children’s club activities.

Of course, mere observation wouldn’t be considered unusual.

What makes it special is that these observations are unannounced.

This means I can personally verify whether these kids are actually doing club activities or just smoking cigarettes and fooling around while leaving their club room empty.

Click…

The door opened, accompanied by the sound of clicking high heels.

It was a woman in a business suit with glasses, the very image of a career woman.

Why did she look so familiar though?

“Hello. I’m Jinsoo Kim, Cuss’s father.”

“I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Haha. From the news?”

“No, through my son. I’m Victoria Damon, Eugene’s mother.”

“Nice to meet you.”

So this woman is Eugene’s mother.

That kid is lucky to have such a beautiful woman as his mother.

Beautiful people tend to have short lives, so he should be filial while she’s still alive.

Otherwise, he’ll regret it like I do.

“Haven’t we met somewhere before?”

“I’m not sure. I don’t recall.”

Her charming smile was truly attractive.

With her tall, slender figure, she looked like she could be a model.

But if I had met someone like her before, I wouldn’t have forgotten.

I might not remember the face of the homeless guy I see every morning, but I can recall down to the last mole the face of the pretty government official who comes to do safety inspections at the factory once a month.

Maybe it was just déjà vu.

“You said you’re Eugene Damon’s mother?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“What kind of kid is Eugene?”

“Hmm… Well. He’s often called an old soul. But he’s quite clingy with me.”

I think I get the general idea.

Cuss mentioned he wears glasses and always carries books.

Probably the type who read a few books as a child, got hooked on being called mature, and now acts reserved and aloof to maintain that mature image when he actually wants to run around and play.

The type who becomes affectionate at home as a reaction to maintaining that facade outside.

“My kid, you know, she’s bright and cheerful, but she’s got a few—no, maybe ten—screws loose. Anyway, I never know what she’s thinking, so I get anxious just letting her out on her own. You know what I mean? But she’s not stupid either—she’s good at studying. She’s quite peculiar. Would you like to see some photos? I’ve got several cute ones.”

“Um… Excuse me, but you don’t have dementia, do you?”

“What? Why would I have dementia?”

She’s really making impolite comments out of nowhere.

I showed the beautiful woman, who now looked slightly concerned, more photos of Cuss.

“Isn’t this one super cute? Right?”

“Umm… Yes…”

“Oh, and this one is really adorable. Look at those puffy cheeks.”

“Yes… She is cute…”

They were incredibly cute photos no matter how many times I looked at them.

This little brat really gives off the impression of an intelligent noble lady when she keeps her mouth shut.

I don’t understand how her face becomes so silly-looking the moment she opens her mouth.

As I was flipping through my phone gallery for quite some time, the door suddenly burst open.

“I see both of you are here. Jake’s mother sends her regrets that she couldn’t make it today due to unavoidable circumstances.”

“That’s too bad. I really wanted to meet her.”

An elderly teacher entered.

He appeared to be the one who would guide us through the club observation.

It was truly disappointing that Jake’s mother couldn’t come.

I really wanted to meet her and chat with her again.

“Have you introduced yourselves? Shall we proceed?”

“Yes, yes. Let’s go. Quickly.”

That’s right.

Today I need to check what they’re doing in that suspicious club.

I hope they’re not up to any funny business trying to seduce my Cuss.

Damn it. Just thinking about it makes me anxious again.

“This way, please.”

“This is quite an old building.”

“Yes. It’s one of the buildings that has been here since the school was established.”

It was an extremely shabby building with walls completely covered in ivy.

It certainly befitted a school with a long history.

There’s nothing more romantic than having sex in an empty classroom of such a classic school after hours.

Old memories came flooding back.

“Here we are. This is the Reading Club’s room. You can either announce yourselves before entering or surprise them by opening the door suddenly. After that, you can ask the children about their club activities.”

We finally stood before the door.

Beyond this door, Cuss was with two boys.

“I’ll open it right away. Is that okay?”

“Yes, that’s fine.”

“Phew… Here we go!”

BANG!

I grabbed the doorknob and pulled it open.

With a loud noise, the door swung open and—

“Huh? Jinsoo, what brings you here?”

Cuss appeared, her face lighting up.

Cuss sitting somewhere…

But there was something strange about the chair she was sitting on.

It looked unmistakably like she was sitting on the back of a nerdy boy who was lying face down.

And beside him, Jake was also lying face down as if waiting for his turn.

Fuck, is my eyesight getting bad?

“Shall I close the door?”

“Yes, please.”

“Oh, Mom! This is a misunderstanding—”

Thud.

I immediately closed the door.

I’ll have to come back for the observation another time.