Dr.NoH 후아유?

*INVITAtIOn$

A black Aslan stopped in front of Seung Woo.

The driver got out and opened the door; the license plate indicated the car was a high civil servant.

"Inspector Choi, please get in."

Seung Woo did as asked, intrigued to find out who summoned him though he had a rough idea.

The inspector's suspicions were confirmed as he found himself announced by the Secretary to chief prosecutor Noh Chang Won.

Seung Woo expected to meet the prosecutor; he just did not know when the encounter would occur. The inspector did not imagine the prosecutor would force such a meeting.

"You may enter."

Seung Woo walked into the office. The walls decorated with photos of the prosecutor with renowned personalities, including Korean presidents, struck him straight away. Then there were the achievements, diplomas, and awards, which filled a whole display.

Like most Koreans, prosecutor Noh hammered his success in front of everyone's face in a way that made you feel small in the immensity of his office. Then there was the man.

"Please take a seat," the prosecutor said as he took position behind his desk and adjusted himself in his chair.

The man himself had so much aura leaking out that Seung Woo knew not where to lay his eyes.

Seung Woo had only seen the chief prosecutor once in real life, but the whole country knew Noh Chang Won's face for various reasons.

Seung Woo was a child when Noh Chang Won became the youngest prosecutor in the country. He then made a name for himself, hunting down Stein and his copycats. People forgot the first reason for his sudden celebrity.

People called prosecutor Noh, the tiger without fright.

Noh Chang Won was a brave man who everyone respected, including Seung Woo, who felt intimated by the man's charismatic persona.

"So we finally meet," the prosecutor said. He clutched his hands.

Seung Woo could not tell whether what he distilled in the prosecutor's eyes was anger or not.

"Yes, Sir."

"I just wanted to."

Seung thought he should go ahead of the man's arguments, "If it's about the doctor, I understand that you want your daughter of the case."

The prosecutor grinned, "what makes you think I want Noa off the case?"

"Her health-."

Prosecutor Noh chuckled. Seung Woo could see the glint in his eyes as he said, "oh, but I'm sure you've heard about Noa. My daughter is a genius and sane. I think you misunderstand; I don't want Noa off the case. I think you are doing a great job."

Seung Woo straightened up in his chair, "I beg your pardon, Sir."

The prosecutor's remark startled the inspector, whose eyes widened in surprise.

"First, thank you for keeping my daughter's little secret. Secondly, I don't desire Noa to stop working with you; we need her to catch Stein."

"But she's, your daughter needs help," Seung Woo surprised himself as it was he who gave the arguments against the doctor's participation.

"Why, because she's crazy?" Prosecutor Noh said, cocking an eyebrow making the inspector gulp.

"Sir."

"Do you know who or what Noa is?"

"Sir, I'm afraid I don't understand."

"Have you heard of the Jane Doe, the Lost Girl, or the Nation's Child case?"

"Of course, who hasn't?"

The lost girl or the nation's child was a criminology classic. In 1992 a girl was found on a highway without any identification whatsoever. The police quickly established she was Korean, but she did not correspond to anyone on the national missing person database. She fascinated Seoul citizens, but no one knew what had become of her as people rejoiced that Stein had stopped killing.

Korea lived ten glorious years, where tourism and economics benefited from growth.

While Stein hibernated, other killers created their legends, such as The Raincoat killer Yoo Yong Chul, an ex-convict who admitted killing 21 people between 2003 and 2008. The murderer targeted prostitutes and prosperous men of Seoul. He ate their liver, mutilated, and burned. When asked his motives, he answered women shouldn't be sluts, and the rich should know what they've done.

Yoo Yong loathed the rich and killed escorts after being left by a companion who discovered his past. He told reporters he hoped people would learn to be kind to those with a criminal history.

Jeong Nam Gyu carried on with the killing from 2004 to 2008. An abused child, Nam Gyu killed and insulted those he estimated to be weaker than him. He, too, murdered the rich. In prison, he confessed to having no regrets.

"Ever wondered what happened to our Lost Girl, The Nation's Child?"

As prosecutor Noh spoke, an image of an apple big and ripe appeared in Seung Woo's mind. The apple fell to the ground and split into two perfect halves.

"Inspector?"

"Ah, ye [yes], what happened to The Nation's Child?"

"I adopted her, "the prosecutor announced proudly.

What a good man he was; Seung Woo could almost see the prosecutor's halo gleam. Still, the statement shocked him.

"Mwo? "Seung Woo yelled before following up with a sincere, "Cheseongayo, [sorry] what do you mean by you adopted her?"

"I'm unmarried, and I have a child, a child which I raised, feed, and gave my name to, a child which I protected the best way I could by making a few files disappear here and there."

The prosecutor appeared like an angel in Seung Woo's mind. Not only did he fight for justice, but he raised an orphan.

Seung Woo's face seemed suspended over time as the prosecutor pursued.

"I mean, what the use of having the influence and power I have if I cannot protect a family member? Despite that, I can't tell you who Dr. Noa Noh is, but I know one thing, somewhere in her head lays the face of Stein," the prosecutor said while tapping a finger on his forehead. "One of those crazy alters of hers knows who and where she came from."

The halo suddenly crumbled as Seung Woo perceived all the perversity behind Noa's adoption.