Chapter 24

Chapter 24 – Power Deployment

Two weeks had passed since Seo Tae-hyuk received a month long suspension due to Park Sung-kwang’s efforts . By the way, it was much better than when he went to school every day .

In the morning, he did homework and helped Ha-ran with her household chores . Then, he ate lunch and went to work in Big Mama’s store . He completed chores according to her instructions until late in the afternoon . In the evening, he went to An Eun-young’s house to study .

He was so busy that it felt like there were 36 hours in a day .

His cognitive abilities increased considerably .

‘Shall I check it?’

As Tae-hyuk cleaned Big Mama’s store, he took out the Demon Revealing Mirror to check his stats .

Stats: Stamina (61), Intelligence (25), Agility (24), Dexterity (34)

‘Intelligence has increased by 11 . Dexterity by three . ’

The studying skill was indeed a big help, and Intelligence was the one stat that was rising the quickest . An Eun-young was amazed by his performance .

‘… By the way, stamina decreased again . ’

Stamina was steadily decreasing compared to his other stats . His stats needed 50 points for his ranking to be upgraded to ‘Noble’ .

His stamina was overflowing . However, his stomach hurt when he saw that his stats were decreasing .

‘I should exercise . ’

Studying also needed stamina . It was the real thing .

He was able to see his stats after obtaining the Spying skill . He knew the direct numerical values, so it was more efficient to train his body .

“Tae-hyuk . Please clean this up . ”

“Aye, aye, Sir!”

Tae-hyuk removed the dust in the store according to Big Mama’s instructions .

She didn’t teach him any skills as soon as he became a disciple . Big Mama gave Tae-hyuk a job and started forging artworks .

‘Just watching her is increasing my skill proficiency . ’

[You have watched a master craftsman work . ]

[Proficiency will increase rapidly . ]

[Forgery skill 17%]

The skills that he learned could be elevated by raising the level of proficiency .

‘Although I can’t learn any other skills since there is only one temporary skill window, this isn’t that bad . ’

He was able to raise his dexterity stat . Although it was currently lower than stamina, it wasn’t a bad performance .

‘The most important thing in forging art is how it looks . ’

There were artworks at least several hundred years old . There were just as many that were under 100 years old . In order to make fakes of such things, the perfection of the work was a basic thing . It was important for the artwork to look as old as the original year . If a 300 year old painting was as smooth as if it was painted yesterday, a child wouldn’t be deceived .

‘Applying a specially prepared solution to the surface of the painting will make it age fast! Isn’t this really good? Uh, wah! From the stains to the insect marks!’

It took a long time to create a counterfeit artwork . A person could take a week to a month . However, Big Mama completed a perfect quality work in only three days .

He couldn’t help but feel admiration .

‘Uh, my proficiency has gone up by one . ’

Once his proficiency level reached a certain level, he could know the meaning of what Big Mama was doing .

Tae-hyuk’s eyes shone .

He decided to do his own forgeries once his proficiency increased a bit more .

There were two weeks remaining until he had to go back to school . Based on the current rate that his intelligence was rising, he would be able to achieve his desired grades .

He first decided to concentrate on acquiring the Forgery skill .

* * *

“Crazy…”

Cho Kang-suk clicked his tongue .

He was a homicide detective, and had 10 years of practical experience before achieving this rank . He was familiar with seeing these things .

Even so, he frowned as he saw the body in front of him .

The body was odd .

He couldn’t say anything .

Cho Kang-suk skillfully ordered his men to form a blockade around the building . Signs that prohibited access were put up and the crime scene was closed .

Inspector Kim Do-shik, who arrived late, asked him . He would be the person in charge of this case .

“Detective Cho! Did you call the coroner?”

“Oh, Inspector-nim arrived? He’ll be here in a minute . ”

Kim Do-shik pulled back the tarp covering the corpse .

He couldn’t help but moan .

“What is this…?”

He raised a finger and pressed it firmly against the skin of the corpse .

“I don’t think she was drowned . ”

The corpse still seemed alive .

“Yes… The coroner can only know after conducting the autopsy . It is likely that she was suffocated . ”

“Hrmm . Is it strangulation?”

“No strangulation injuries were found on the neck . ”

Kim Do-shik quietly covered the body with the tarp again .

Cho Kang-suk reported what he had found so far .

“A female . Her age is in the early 20s, and her clothes have yet to be found . I have pulled the fingerprints to check her identity . The person who discovered it was a student who lived nearby, and I have someone taking care of them . After their shock has subsided, I will check the exact circumstances of the discovery . ”

“But Detective Cho, it is still too premature to say . Have you ever seen a body like this?”

Cho Kang-suk shook his head .

“The stomach… is her stomach full?”

“… Yes . It is like she is pregnant . ”

The two people’s faces darkened .

No matter how long they worked, they still couldn’t get used to this .

“Ah! The coroner has arrived!”

“Yes . First, let’s see what he has to say . But really… This body is odd . ”

“Yes…”

Cho Kang-suk couldn’t answer properly . He was more qualified to beat up a gangster than to do something like this .

“Then, tell me when the results come out . ”

Kim Do-shik sighed again .

“This world is really going crazy . ”

The case proceeded quickly . The identity of the body was revealed and the signs were also accurate . However, their questions weren’t completely answered .

Detective Cho Kang-suk asked the coroner .

“Min-soo . How did she die?”

Park Min-soo was a similar age to Kang-suk . In addition, they worked closely together so they were close friends .

Park Min-soo touched the glasses he was wearing and said .

“There are two signs . First, her intestines ruptured from drinking more water than they could tolerate, causing a blockage . She suffocated . ”

Kang-suk’s face turned white .

“… She was tortured with water . ”

Park Min-soo shook his head .

“It doesn’t seem like it . Do you know what happens when someone is tortured with water? In the beginning of the torture, they take some breaths . Eventually, the brain won’t receive enough oxygen and they will lose consciousness . Then what would happen? The human body would somehow try to breathe in order to live . They will take a deep breath . However, there would be no air so eventually, water would get into the lungs . This breath is the end… It is over . The lung cells are destroyed . The body will die, and any artificial respiration is useless . ”

Park Min-soo spoke calmly . However, the contents were creepy .

Cho Kang-suk asked .

“So why isn’t it water torture?”

“If someone was tortured with water, then they would naturally get water into their lungs . However, there is no water in her lungs . Therefore, this means that she drank a lot of water, but of her own will . And… The body didn’t lose consciousness until the last minute . ”

It was cruel .

She drank water until her stomach expanded and she died .

But she didn’t lose consciousness? Even until the moment she died from suffocation?

Cho Kang-suk bit his lip . He bit too hard and blood came out .

Park Min-soo approached Cho Kang-suk and whispered .

“Ah right . There were no signs of rape . It isn’t a rape killing . ”

“……”

Kang-suk’s face distorted .

He muttered quietly .

“Please, I wish that this body is the first and last . ”

Park Min-soo also nodded .

“Yes, I wish that as well . Kang-suk . Let me look at that crazy bastard’s face . Please catch the culprit . ”

Kang-suk replied with cold eyes .

“I will catch them… I must!”

* * *

After hearing about the body, Kim Do-shik called this the ‘watering hippo’ case .

That day, a special investigation headquarters was created .

Among the team members, Cho Kang-suk was included .