The judicial robe reflected in the mirror looked like a graduation gown.
Whenever he put it on, his heart and shoulders always felt heavy.
To Lee Hanyeong, it was just one case out of thousands each year, but to the people involved, a wrong judgment could ruin their lives.
Kim Yunhyeok spoke.
"Good luck."
"Thanks. You too."
"It'll go well."
Lee Hanyeong shook his head as he brushed past Kim Yunhyeok's voice and stepped into the hallway.
Even in his previous life, whenever Kim Yunhyeok spoke gently like that, he had felt a chill crawl up his spine.
It was the same now.
'Why can't I ever get used to that bastard's voice?'
As Lee Hanyeong walked down the corridor, Senior Chief Director Im Jeongsik quickly approached and fell into step beside him.
It was Lee Hanyeong who would be standing in court, yet Im Jeongsik's face looked even more tense.
"The court chief or other judges might sit in during the trial."
This was a trial drawing attention not only from public opinion but even from Court Chief Baek Iseok. Naturally, the eyes of many judges were also focused on it.
"Don't get nervous just because seniors are watching. Stay calm. You're expecting reporters to be seated, right? Those vultures move their fingers however they please, so ignore them. If things get confusing during proceedings, stop the trial and say we'll continue another day. We can think it through together."
"..."
"The prosecutor and the lawyer are both old hands. They might try to push you around because you're a rookie. Just remember one thing. The courtroom is a place filled with lies. Doubt, and doubt again."
Lee Hanyeong smiled faintly.
After listening to Kim Yunhyeok's artificial voice, hearing this rough but sincere encouragement made the knot in his stomach loosen a little.
"Thank you. I'll do my best."
Lee Hanyeong's expression was calm.
Seeing that, Im Jeongsik smiled and lightly tapped Lee Hanyeong's shoulder.
"You don't look nervous, so I can relax a bit."
"It looks like you're more nervous than I am, Senior Chief Judge."
"Why would I be nervous?"
But Im Jeongsik's face, forced into a smile, was stiff beyond hiding.
Reporter Song Nayeon fidgeted with her phone.
Beside her sat the parents of the victim, Kim Seonhui, and her younger cousin, Kim Gayoung.
Song Nayeon turned her gaze to Kim Seonhui's parents.
The expression of parents who had lost their child was indescribably miserable.
She opened her mouth very carefully.
"I met the detective in charge of this case."
Kim Seonhui's mother's eyes widened instantly.
The bereaved family had met detectives before, but Song Nayeon was a reporter.
They thought she might know more information.
"What did he say? What did the detective say? Did he say that bad man will be punished?"
"He said Seonhui's injustice will be cleared. He was confident that no matter which lawyer Park Hyeokjun hires, he'll get an actual prison sentence."
Perhaps comforted a little by her words, Kim Seonhui's mother clasped her hands together as if praying and closed her eyes.
The younger cousin, Kim Gayoung, asked,
"Which detective? We've met a lot of detectives, so we'd recognize his face..."
"He had short hair, about one-eighty tall? Sharp-looking."
"Sharp-looking? Who would that be?"
As Kim Gayoung tilted her head, Song Nayeon pointed ahead with her finger.
"Someone who looks like that..."
At the same time, a court officer shouted,
"All rise!"
Everyone in the courtroom stood up.
The person walking toward the judge's bench under everyone's gaze was Lee Hanyeong.
Song Nayeon froze, unable to lower her finger, staring at Lee Hanyeong with bewildered blinking eyes.
In the silent courtroom, only the faint sound of Lee Hanyeong's clothes brushing could be heard.
Kim Gayoung whispered to Song Nayeon,
"Someone who looks like that? The judge?"
"N-no. Someone who looks like a spectator up front."
"What are you talking about?"
"Haha, sorry."
A judge cannot meet people related to a trial.
Strictly speaking, Song Nayeon was not a related party, but to prevent any possible trouble, she changed the subject.
Seeing Lee Hanyeong, whom she had thought was a detective, appear in a judicial robe left her no choice but to be flustered. She wet her dry lips with her tongue and let out a small sigh.
Standing before the judge's bench, Lee Hanyeong slightly bowed toward the gallery and then took his seat.
As everyone else sat down, Lee Hanyeong alternated his gaze between the prosecutor and the defense attorney.
Both were advanced in age. People well accustomed to trials.
With the case circulating online and public attention focusing on it, it was obvious they had come thoroughly prepared.
Lee Hanyeong's gaze stopped on the defendant, Park Hyeokjun.
Park Hyeokjun looked tired.
But there was no sorrow on his face.
'A sorrowful expression would be acting.'
Lee Hanyeong's eyes moved to the gallery.
There were not only ordinary spectators but also many judges.
Lee Hanyeong gently closed his eyes.
He felt as if he could hear the judges whispering.
"Even the major newspapers are all here, right?"
"You think Lee Hanyeong can withstand this pressure?"
"Heh, if Lee Hanyeong messes up the verdict, he'll be on the chopping block."
Lee Hanyeong slowly opened his eyes.
Even if it was a trial he already knew from his previous life, he had to go over everything step by step to persuade the prosecutor and defense attorney and avoid errors in the written judgment.
After a moment of thought, Lee Hanyeong slowly spoke.
"Let's begin."
The prosecutor stood and spoke.
"Kim Seonhui joined a life insurance policy three months before the incident. The beneficiary was not her family, but the defendant, her boyfriend at the time, Park Hyeokjun. The family was completely unaware that Kim Seonhui had taken out such insurance. In this regard, we request Kim Gayoung, Kim Seonhui's younger cousin, as a witness."
Kim Gayoung stood at the witness stand.
"Prosecutor, proceed with your questioning."
In trials, the terms 'questioning' and 'examination' often appear.
Questioning refers to questions posed by the court, investigative agencies, or attorneys to witnesses or defendants, while examination refers to the court giving the defendant an opportunity to speak.
In other words, questioning may be done by prosecutors, lawyers, or judges, but examination may only be done by judges.
At Lee Hanyeong's words, the prosecutor approached Kim Gayoung, who wore a stiff expression, and spoke.
"Ms. Kim Gayoung, what is your relationship to Kim Seonhui?"
"I'm her younger cousin."
"A cousin? Specifically...?"
"She's my cousin. My father is my cousin's father's younger brother."
The prosecutor nodded.
"A relative, understood. I hear you lived in the same neighborhood as Kim Seonhui since childhood. Since when exactly?"
"Since I was born, we lived together in the same neighborhood."
Kim Gayoung looked nervous but answered the prosecutor's questions clearly.
"You must have been very close."
"Yes."
"How close?"
"People around us often said we were like real sisters. I believe there were no secrets between us, at least."
"No secrets? Then did you hear that Kim Seonhui had taken out insurance?"
Kim Gayoung shook her head.
"No. I didn't."
"When did Kim Seonhui and Park Hyeokjun break up?"
"Six months ago."
"Did you ever hear that they got back together?"
"No."
"What was Kim Seonhui's relationship with her parents like? Was it bad, perhaps?"
"No, it was good. Even the night before she died, my sister bought a cake. She invited me, saying we'd eat it together with her parents. That's why I remember."
"A cake? Whose birthday was it?"
Kim Gayoung shook her head again.
"No. My sister often bought cakes even when it wasn't a special occasion."
The prosecutor's gaze turned to Lee Hanyeong.
"The defendant and Kim Seonhui broke up six months before the incident. Witness Kim Gayoung never heard that they got back together. And three months before the incident, Kim Seonhui took out insurance and named the defendant, Park Hyeokjun, as the beneficiary—something no one, including her family, knew. Lastly, Kim Seonhui had a good relationship with her parents. That concludes my statement."
The prosecutor's eyes toward Lee Hanyeong were intense.
He was confident he could win.
Lee Hanyeong's gaze shifted to the defense attorney.
"Defense, would you like to conduct cross-examination?"
As if waiting for it, the defense attorney rose from his seat.
"Witness, where do you live now? Do you live together with Kim Seonhui at your house?"
"What? No. I live at my own house."
"Then did you meet Kim Seonhui every day?"
"Not every day. About once a week...."
"Please answer yes or no."
Kim Gayoung blinked.
The attorney pressed again.
"Yes or no. Did you meet her every day?"
"No."
"Then did you talk on the phone every day?"
"No. Not every day, but we talked often."
"Yes or no. Did you talk every day?"
"Ah, no."
The attorney nodded.
"You said there were no secrets between you and Kim Seonhui. Is Kim Seonhui the type to tell you every little detail—breaking up with her boyfriend, getting back together, going on dates in a car, eating together, kissing, going to a motel together, and so on?"
The prosecutor jumped to his feet.
"Your Honor! The defense is—!"
Lee Hanyeong raised his hand.
"That's enough. Defense, continue."
The defense attorney slightly bowed to Lee Hanyeong and turned his gaze back to Kim Gayoung.
"Answer the question."
"She didn't talk about things to that extent."
"Yes or no. Did she talk about every little detail?"
"No."
Kim Gayoung lowered her head with a sigh.
The defense attorney turned to Lee Hanyeong.
"I fully understand the grief of the bereaved family. However, the claim that the defendant murdered her for insurance money is nothing but suspicion. There is no evidence. The defendant is suffering from immense guilt over the fact that Kim Seonhui died in the car he was driving. To convey the sincerity I hear in the defendant's heart, I request the defendant, Park Hyeokjun, as a witness."
Park Hyeokjun rose from his seat and stood at the witness stand.
There was no sorrow on his face. He only looked tired.
Lee Hanyeong recalled what the defense attorney had just said.
'Suffering from guilt? He doesn't look sad.'
The defense attorney spoke to Park Hyeokjun.
"How do you feel?"
Park Hyeokjun lowered his head and did not answer.
The attorney placed a hand on Park Hyeokjun's shoulder and spoke.
"Mr. Park Hyeokjun, you can speak honestly. How do you feel?"
In the silence, Park Hyeokjun's lips trembled.
"I—I'm sorry...."
It lasted only a moment. Then a wailing sound burst from his mouth.
"I'm sorry! Mother and father Seonhui! I'm truly sorry! I'm so sorry! I'm sorry, sob...!"
As tears streamed down his face, Kim Seonhui's father stood up, pointing his finger.
"You son of a bitch! I'll kill you!"
"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I'm sorry."
"Just die! Our poor Seonhui, how could she...!"
Park Hyeokjun covered his ears and lowered his head.
Amid the commotion, Lee Hanyeong was watching Park Hyeokjun.
'Covering his ears?'
When the courtroom finally quieted again, the defense attorney spoke.
"Mr. Park Hyeokjun, did you murder Kim Seonhui?"
"No! Absolutely not. Why would I kill Seonhui...!"
"I understand. I believe you, Mr. Park Hyeokjun. Then let me ask another question. I hear you run a barbecue restaurant. What is your monthly revenue? No—what is your monthly profit?"
"About fifteen million."
"Profit, not revenue?"
"Yes."
The defense attorney's gaze turned to Lee Hanyeong.
"The defendant's monthly profit is around fifteen million. There is no reason to suspect that he committed murder due to financial hardship."
The defense attorney looked back at Park Hyeokjun.
"Did you know that Kim Seonhui had taken out insurance?"
"No. I didn't know. If I had, I would have stopped her."
"One more question. Did you and Kim Seonhui get back together?"
Park Hyeokjun slowly nodded.
"Yes."
"Then why didn't her family know?"
"Three months ago—around the time Seonhui took out the insurance—we got back together. She said it was embarrassing to break up and then reunite, so she wanted to tell her parents, family, and friends later."
The defense attorney's low voice flowed out.
"Lovers who break up and then reunite. In that case, it's possible that Kim Seonhui named Park Hyeokjun as the beneficiary of her life insurance as a token of love."
The prosecutor jumped to his feet again.
"Your Honor! The defense is obscuring the essence with speculative remarks!"
"No. Defense, continue."
Lee Hanyeong cut off the prosecutor.
The prosecutor scowled and returned to his seat.
At that moment, Court Chief Baek Iseok and Senior Chief Director Im Jeongsik entered the gallery.
They sat in the far corner, as if trying not to disrupt the trial.
But Lee Hanyeong could see them at a glance.
'You've arrived. I thought you'd come sooner.'
And then another person entered the gallery.
It was Kim Yunhyeok.
Lee Hanyeong and Kim Yunhyeok's eyes met.