News of the special tax investigation into the five major groups was made public through the press.

Photographs capturing men in suits descending on the headquarters of the five major groups and hauling away documents drew the public's attention.

"Aren't these people just rotten bastards?"

A man smoking a cigarette looked at the photo in the newspaper and shook the paper at his colleague.

"The country's struggling and the people are going hungry, and what do these bastards do? Embezzlement and tax evasion? And they call themselves corporate heads?"

"They ought to throw every last one of them in prison."

The man's colleague spoke in an equally worked-up voice.

"Even little kids are pooling their money to help pay off the national debt, and here the big corporations are looking out for nothing but their own hides... And after laying off all their workers, how much did they skim? A hundred billion? Two hundred billion?"

"People like this should all go under, every one of them."

And this sentiment spread rapidly among the public.

Corruption that surfaced while the country was in dire straits was more than enough to become a target of public condemnation.

The level of public criticism only grew harsher, to the point that some people even demanded government-led dismantling of the corporations, as in the days of the old military regime.

And Ilhyeon could not stay free of this wave of criticism either.

"Father. Please save me..."

"And who exactly is going to devour you?"

Tak-hyeon frowned and rebuked Sang-jong at his words.

But Sang-jong, still wearing an expression like he might cry, pleaded with Tak-hyeon.

"I really don't want to go in. Father... please...?"

Apparently displeased at the sight of Sang-jong like this, Tak-hyeon clicked his tongue and said,

"Tch tch. A grown man well past forty, making a sniveling face in front of his own children."

Tak-hyeon looked at his grandchildren visible behind Sang-jong.

Sang-jong's wife, Min-yeong Oh, was pleading with Suk-ja Chu.

"Mother. Their father can't go in. It's getting colder and colder now — how can he go into that freezing place?…