Chapter 43

Chapter 43: The Hippo Hunt #3

“So what?”

Cho Kang-suk’s voice rang out in the darkness .

Kim Jong-wook’s eyes widened in shock, and was unable to understand what was happening right now . Kang-suk, whom he stabbed in the heart, was still alive and talking . Was this an illusion or something? Maybe this was…

“There is no magic that moves the dead . ”

Kim Jong-wook looked at his right hand that was still holding the knife . It had obviously been stuck in Cho Kang-suk’s chest .

“Perhaps a bulletproof vest… No, I definitely pierced his chest!”

Jong-wook had felt it through his fingers . The knife had clearly pierced his target’s heart . The evidence was that a red liquid had emerged from Kang-suk’s chest . His hands were sticky with blood, but there was plenty of water to wash it off .

Jong-wook didn’t like using knives, as it caused the other person to die too quickly . He couldn’t feel the ecstasy, the rush of watching the person die . Therefore, he avoided killing with a knife as much as possible .

It was the same feeling garnered from eating delicious food all at once . The best delicacies were those that were enjoyed very slowly . But this time, it couldn’t be helped .

Jong-wook’s opponent wasn’t an herbivore that he normally preyed on . It was a beast with sharp teeth and claws . If he didn’t kill the other person first then he would be in danger . Therefore, he had stabbed the other person when they were off guard .

Yet he didn’t die . He was alive and taunting Jong-wook . Jong-wook got goosebumps .

Kang-suk continued speaking with a knife in his heart .

“The hippo’s prey are all vibrant women in their 20s . The stronger the will to live, the better the prey . You think that Jung Yuri is the best delicacy . She took on her sister’s role and moved with her strength . She is currently in the most brilliant moment of her life . ”

“Uh, how are my though-…!”

“Well, I know why you approached Jung Yuri . The first time you met her, she was the family member of one of Yoo Cheol-ho’s victims and you were a cop in the precinct . Jung Yuri was like a living corpse at the time though, so you didn’t choose her as prey .

“……”

Jong-wook’s eyes widened as he listened to Kang-suk’s reasoning . It was surprising . It seemed like Kang-suk was looking into his heart .

“Then you met her again . You were fortunate when Cho Kang-suk caught Yoo Cheol-ho . You went along with him as a representative of the jurisdiction . In the few months since you saw her, Jung Yuri had completely changed . It was like a tree sprouting . Don’t you think?”

“… Y-You! What the hell is this?”

“At that moment, the monster called the Hippo, who was sleeping in Kim Jong-wook’s heart, opened his eyes . You were filled with a constant desire to kill Jung Yuri . However, it wasn’t easy . She is the daughter of the vice president of a large corporation, after all . There were even secret body guards . So you first killed other victims while aiming for her . Eventually, you got what you wanted . This is my reasoning . How is it? Isn’t it accurate?”

Jong-wook grit his teeth and said .

“You, you’re not Cho Kang-suk!”

“Ahaha . That is the right answer . ”

Kang-suk replied with an expression that was still blank . No, he hadn’t made any expression from the beginning .

Jong-wook tried to withdraw the knife from Kang-suk’s chest, but couldn’t .

“W-What the?”

What he thought was blood was actually sticky glue . Jong-wook’s hand was stuck to Kang-suk . Jong-wook hit Kang-suk’s body with his free left arm .

Bam! Bam bam!

However, it was like beating a sandbag . When he hit Kang-suk’s face with all his strength, the eyeballs popped out . After a few more hits, the head spun around . However, Kang-suk was still laughing .

Jong-wook finally realized what was going on .

“What, this? A doll!”

It was a very elaborately crafted wax doll . In the aquarium, all lights were turned off except for dim lighting . Thus, he failed to realize that the other person wasn’t a human .

“… This, my… you know…”

The microphone of the phone was damaged by Jong-wook’s attack, and Kang-suk’s voice started to be cut off .

“F-fuuuuuck! What is this?”

Jong-wook roared wildly . However, his right arm was still stuck to the wax doll . After a few more hits, the annoying voice was no longer heard . The doll was completely quiet .

“… Aigoo, I lost my phone . That cost one million won, and I don’t even have a job . A new one… Maybe I should charge Yuri noona for the expenses?”

Instead, the grumbling voice of Cho Kang-suk started to approach in the darkness .

“Aaaagh!”

Jong-wook frantically thrashed about, but he was stuck due to the glue and couldn’t get away from the doll .

Cho Kang-suk said .

“Ah, you should be careful . If you make a mistake then you might peel off your skin . ”

Jong-wook looked in the direction that the voice was heard . He saw a high school student wearing a wet t-shirt and an iron pipe in his right hand . He was holding something like a walkie-talkie in his other hand . It seemed to have transmitted his voice through the smartphone that he placed inside the doll .

“W-What the hell is this?”

Kang-suk… No, Seo Tae-hyuk, who acted as Kang-suk using the Voice Modulation skill, replied .

“Hello Hippo . Is this our first face to face meeting? There’s no need to know who I am . Just think of me as someone who doesn’t like you .

Jong-wook yelled .

“I-I won’t let his go! I will kill you!”

“You remind me of a young brat from my past . ”

Tae-hyuk ran to Jong-wook and wielded his iron pipe .

@

Tae-hyuk was lucky .

His first plan was to draw a picture to lure the Hippo . However, he still felt anxious . His opponent wasn’t simple . He was a serial killer who murdered several people . That’s why it was necessary to prepare a better trap . If he missed even a 0 . 0001% chance, then someone might be victimized .

Then he received a message that he got one affinity point, due to the birth of a new relationship after saving Jung Yuri .

Tae-hyuk pondered on how it could be used as effectively as possible . He could strengthen his crime skills using the affinity points, but he still didn’t have enough points to do that right now .

In the end, he decided to try the Instant Enhancement on the second tab of the skills page . It consumed one affinity point to give a temporary effect .

Tae-hyuk found a large amount of wax candles prepared for a later performance in the warehouse . He made a crude doll of Cho Kang-suk using it . The result was beyond what he expected from the Forgery skill .

A special feature was produced, due to the added affinity point . It wasn’t possible to make big movements, but the doll could move like a person . He put the smartphone inside and could talk through it .

It was unreasonable to give an expression to the doll with just one affinity point . It was stated that 10 points were required to create a doll with personality . Of course, that there was just like reaching for a pie in the sky .

Still, it was good enough for hooking the Hippo . He put a large amount of glue inside the doll . A device was installed so that if the throat or heart were ever pierced, the glue would spurt out .

There were a few risky moments . But as he thought, he could completely limit the behaviour of the Hippo . Now the Hippo was literally a punching bag .

“Keook!”

Jong-wook moaned as he was hit by Tae-hyuk’s iron pipe . He bent over at the waist . He used his left arm to guard his weak points, but there was a limit .

Bbuduk!

In the end, Jong-wook’s left arm was broken .

“Eh? You are still fine . Well, I should do successive hits…”

Tae-hyuk swung the iron pipe at Jong-wook again . It made a cheerful sound in the air .

“Kuak! Ugh! Eek! W-wait a minute!”

“Why? Again . ”

The Hippo bent over again due to the pipe .

“I-I lost . Hand me over to the police if you want! But do you want to know why a police officer became a murderer?”

“Hrmm . ”

Jong-wook started to talk about how the hippo was born .

“When I was in high school…”

“Did I ask? Let’s keep going . ”

“Cough!”

Tae-hyuk wasn’t curious about what he would say and just kept on quietly doing his work . In the end, he lost consciousness after a few more minutes of being beaten by the iron pipe .

“……”

Tae-hyuk threw the iron pipe on the ground .

Clink!

After a while, the iron pipe disappeared . It was a complete crime . This was the end .

“Once a serial killer is caught, they always tell the same story . He was abused as a child . The lack of affection… I’ve seen a lot of people like that . So I came to one conclusion . A madman is just crazy . Is that a story? Absolutely ridiculous . ”

Tae-hyuk stripped off the clothes on the doll of Kang-suk . Then he tied up the hippo .

“So let’s give an anonymous tip to Kang-suk hyung . Good night, Hippo . ”

Tae-hyuk pulled out a bag containing the SD card with the video of the hippo’s crime and put it in the hippo’s mouth .

“… Should this be sufficient for a promotion? If Hyung wants to marry Noona then you should at least be an investigator . ”

Tae-hyuk disappeared into the darkness .

@

“A-are you alright?”

After exiting to find Kang-suk, Joo Hyun-ho discovered a half-naked woman in a concession stand . She was Jung Yuri, the victim .

Hyun-ho took off his trench coat and covered Yuri with it .

“… Yes . Although it is freezing cold, my body is warm due to the heater . I can bear with it . ”

Jung Yuri explained how she was grabbed in a calm voice .

“As expected, the hippo is here… Still, I’m glad that you are okay . I will call an ambulance once away . ”

“Yes… Please . ”

“Detective Cho Kang-suk is here . I will immediately contact him to arrest the hippo…”

“The hippo is probably already caught . ”

“Huh? That…”

Jung Yuri raised a finger to her lips and said .

“I’m sorry . I’ve decided to keep the details a secret . ”

Jung Yuri smiled as she recalled the man who saved her .