Chapter 97

Chapter 97 – Advance Notice of a Storm #2

–Detective Cho Kang-suk, congratulations on your promotion . Detective-nim thought I only killed one person, but you were wrong . I killed a total of 14 people .

The letter continued but Kang-suk coughed and asked Kim Do-shik,

“T-This, is it real?”

“That’s why I called you . Continue reading . ”

“Yes . ”

This time, Kang-suk read Park Sung-yul’s letter to the end .

–I know what you are thinking . Is he crazy? But I am very normal . In fact, it was an accident that I was caught . Detective Cho Kang-suk should admit it as well . It was like someone stepped on a domino that I had lined up in a row . But now I can confidently announce my puzzle to the world, and I think that Detective Cho Kang-suk should have the honor of being the first person I show it to . Detective-nim, do you think there can be a perfect crime in this world?

The letter ended there . Kang-suk felt like Park Sung-yul had sent him a challenge gauntlet .

“…There is one more page . ”

Behind the letter was a picture that seemed like an elementary school student painted it . Kang-suk couldn’t understand it .

“Are Park Sung-yul’s words true?”

“I don’t know yet, but if it is true, it will be the worst hidden crime in our history . ”

A Hidden crime was when a crime occurred but wasn’t included in the official statistics, due to the investigating agency not recognizing it . Kang-suk looked at the picture drawn with crayons . It looked like a landscape somewhere, but it was impossible for him to interpret it .

“This is the same as a map . ”

“I thought so as well . I don’t know why Park Sung-yul, who has been in prison for three years, is sending such a thing now . ”

“Maybe he thought that the way he was caught was unfair . ”

“Wasn’t it due to a drunk driving crackdown?”

Kang-suk nodded and thought back to when he caught Park Sung-yul three years ago .

On that day, Kang-suk went out to support some drunk driving crackdowns . There were always skirmishes with drunk drivers . As a large-sized Homicide detective, just standing there would make people control their anger .

“At the time, Park Sung-yul was driving a mid sized sedan . He submitted to the breathalyzer without saying anything . I couldn’t find any traces of drinking, but he even abstained from smoking in front of the police . I accidentally saw his eyes, and it was like looking at a frozen lake . I didn’t feel any emotions from him . I couldn’t help but feel like he was a bad guy…”

Kang-suk remembered the situation at that time . It really was an accident that he caught Park Sung-yul, now that he thought about it .

“There was obviously only Park Sung-yul in the car . However, the rear tires were similar to the front, meaning that there was something heavy in the trunk . It was something that weighed around the same as a human being . ”

Kim Do-shik coughed .

“It might be an accident, but it is only a slight difference . Finding it like that… You really are a detective . At any rate, continue . ”

“Then for the first time, Park Sung-yul showed some emotion . After seeing it, I was sure that he was hiding something . Originally, it was impossible to search the interior just for a DUI, so I used a little coercion to open the door of the trunk and looked inside . There…”

“I know from there . There was a body inside a black plastic bag . ”

“Yes . ”

Park Sung-yul was arrested and charged with murder and abandoning a body . Park Sung-yul was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment in ‘Blue Dragon Prison’ because he acknowledged his sin and had no previous convictions .

“Others might say you were lucky but I think that your observations skills and ability to carry it out is really great . ”

“Other people call it my senses . ”

“Haha . This brat . ”

Kang-suk stared at Kim Do-shik with a serious expression .

“I would like to be in charge of this case . It felt like a gauntlet was sent to me, so I’ll definitely finish it . ”

“It still isn’t sure if this is a case or not . Giving you solid support will be hard . ”

Kang-suk touched his lips .

“It’s okay . If this is a hidden crime, the victims’ families will be waiting forever for them to return . If I can at least tell them the truth then I will be happy . ”

Tracking down a hidden crime was hard . He couldn’t save anyone, and eventually people would end up unhappy . Even so, Kang-suk wanted to be in charge of the case .

“I understand . Starting today, you will be personally in charge of Park Sung-yul’s case . Although there won’t be a headquarters for the investigation, please work on it . ”

Kang-suk closed his mouth and nodded . First of all, he had to interpret this stupid password .

“There is a child who likes these type of things .

Someone’s face popped into his head .

@

“It sounds interesting Let me help you . ”

Joo Hyun-ho accepted Kang-suk’s offer in an instant .

“I feel relieved now that you have accepted, although it will be hard to get any proper support . ”

“Originally, I wanted to catch Phantom together . But before that, we have to solve this . ”

“You… Aren’t you lacking sincerity?”

“Sunbae is too serious . Wouldn’t it be better to clean this place up first?”

Kang-suk coughed and looked around .

He built a temporary investigation headquarters by borrowing a place that was originally a warehouse . It was inevitable that it would be filled with dusty boxes .

“Have you read Park Sung-yul’s letter?”

“Yes . I think he is overly self-conscious . Then let’s work on deciphering this . ”

Kang-suk placed the Park Sung-yul’s letter and picture on the table .

“It is drawn with crayons that are commonly available in prisons, and the paper is cut out from a sketchbook . ”

“Hrmm…”

Joo Hyun-ho pulled out his laptop that contained his profiling materials . He started to compare the picture to information he had about Park Sung-yul .

“Do you know something?”

“It is a simple trick . I think I’m probably right . ”

“Hoh…”

Joo Hyun-ho pointed to the 5-1 that was written in the corner of Park Sung-yul’s picture .

“First of all, I can tell what this means just by looking . ”

“5 – 1? Then it is 4 . But why did he write his name after that?”

“It indicates the grade . In a picture contest at school, this information is often written down in the corner .

“T-that’s right . ”

“Grade 5-1 . Looking at Park Sung-yul, I can see the schools and classes that he graduated from . Perhaps he is talking about A Elementary School . ”

“It could be middle school or high school . ”

“There is no 5th grade . ”

Kang-suk nodded with a convinced expression .

“First of all, we should go to this school . ”

The two people headed to Park Sung-yul’s elementary school . Due to the fuel cost not being supported, he had to ride in Joo Hyun-ho’s car .

“There should at least be funding for fuel . ”

“It’s okay . Thank you for doing this for me, even if it is interesting . ”

The elementary school that Park Sung-yul was a branch school in the mountains . Surprisingly, Park Sung-yul’s teacher was still at the small school that didn’t even have 20 students . Of course, 20 years had passed so he was now the principal .

As he drank the tea that the principal made, Joo Hyun-ho started the questioning .

“Park Sung-yul? I still remember . He was a truly smart student . ”

The principal looked into the air like he was reminiscing .

“I didn’t need to teach him much, and despite behind an elementary school student, he had already learned up to the high school standard . He was a brilliant mind in this rural school . Four years ago… He came to visit me once . I thought he was a successful businessman because he was wearing a suit . By the way, what did he do? Why are detectives…”

Kang-suk felt sorry to shatter the principal’s memories, but he didn’t want to hide the truth .

“He is currently in prison for killing a person . ”

“…That kid? I’m sorry Detective-nim . Anything you need…”

The principal bowed to Kang-suk .

“It isn’t Teacher’s fault . Get up . By the way, did Park Sung-yul ever join a painting contest in fifth grade?”

“Could you please wait a moment? Obviously the student journal … . “

The principal brought out the old papers where events were written down . After looking it over, he said,

“Ah, yes . There was a drawing contest for landscape paintings when he was in the 5th grade . Sung-yol participated . ”

“Then do you remember seeing this?”

Kang-suk extended Park Sung-yul’s drawing to the principal .

“I’m sorry but this was a long time ago… However, if he was the winner, then it might still be here . The branch school has a magic box that holds memories . It is hard to throw things away . ”

The principal went back to the warehouse before bringing out a number of drawings .

“Here it is . ”

Surprisingly, the same picture from Park Sung-yul’s letter was drawn on the faded paper . Kang-suk compared the two images and mnuttered .

“…It is exactly the same . Did he remember the painting from 20 years ago and drew it perfectly again?”

“I guess so Sunbae . It seems like he is bigger than I thought . How the hell did you catch him?”

“Senses . ”

“Haha…”

The principal looked closely at the picture and said,

“Ah, I think I know where this place is . ”

“Really?”

“I’m not sure but… It might fit . I’ll show you . ”

Under the guidance of the principal, Kang-suk and Hyun-ho climbed a hill behind the school . Although it wasn’t very high, the landscape of the countryside appeared once they reached the top .

“Wait a minute…”

Kang-suk pulled out the painting and compared it to the surrounding landscape . It was an exact match . This landscape was the one in the picture .

“I guess it was the correct answer . ”

Joo Hyun-ho talked to the principal . The principal told Joo Hyun-ho things like Park Sung-yul’s usual appearance and personality .

Kang-suk interrupted the two people and said,

“Park Sung-yul visited here a few years ago?”

“Yes . It was on Teacher’s Day . ”

“Did he do anything questionable?”

“Not at all . Ah, the weather wasn’t that hot but he was sweating a lot . ”

“…It can’t be . ”

Kang-suk hurried down to the school . He had an idea . After gaining another teacher’s consent, he borrowed a shovel and returned .

“It seems like I should dig around . I don’t know how much time it will take alone, but I have to try it . ”

The principal touched his mouth and said,

“Could you please wait a moment?” I’ll be happy to help . ”

“I’m confident when it comes to shovelling . ”

Kang-suk, Hyun-ho, and the principal recalled their memories of the army as they started digging . After two hours, the mountain top was so messed up that there was no more places to dig .

“Is it not this mountain?”

Kang-suk asked while wiping his sweating head with a towel . Park Sung-yul might have lied to get them out here in the middle of nowhere . Maybe it was revenge for being trapped in prison?

At that moment, Joo Hyun-ho called out to Kang-suk in a heavy voice .

“Sunbae . Take a look at this . The land here is exceptionally good and…”

There was a body in a black plastic bag . The flesh was rotting, but he could tell it was a petite woman .

“…Well, I guess we found it . This is definitely a hidden crime . Park Sung-yul was right . He is a serial killer . ”

Kang-suk used the radio to call for support .

@

After Tae-hyuk recovered to a certain extent, he started to search the hospital .

When he entered the hallway, an alarm flashed on the Demon Revealing Mirror .

[The Forgery skill has found an intense image . ]

[The work can be completed through automatic clerk mode . ]

He looked up to see what room was in front of him .

“Surgery rooms . ”

Tae-hyuk clicked his tongue and got rid of the screen of the Demon Revealing Mirror .

He knew what intense image would be drawn . There were more than 10 cases of abortion performed here every day . It felt like the entire hospital was shrouded by death . It was harder than expected to find a hidden passage .

“I guess I should use that . ”

He was going to draw the entire hospital, just like how he drew all of Atlantis in order to escape . In order to do that, he needed a large drawing paper and a pencil .

“Excuse me! You shouldn’t be here!”

A nurse came running over after finding Tae-hyuk snooping in front of the operating room . Tae-hyuk put on as innocent an expression as possible and said .

“Noonim . I’m sorry . Do you have any pencil and paper?”

“N-Noonim… Are you the patient from Room 207? I understand . I’ll try . ”

“Can it be as big as possible?”

The nurse blushed and nodded . He went back to his room and waited . The nurse came back with drawing paper and a pencil after 10 minutes .

“I-Is this okay?”

“Thank you Noonim . ”

Tae-hyuk bowed his head .

The nurse smiled and sat on a chair in the corner of the room . Even if it was a back alley hospital, he was someone wealthy enough to be admitted to a single room . In addition, he had a fairly handsome face .

“It seems like drawing is your hobby . ”

“I was in the art department at school . I was bored lying in bed . ”

The two people chatted for a while . The nurse looked back just as she was about to leave the room .

“Can I come again next time to talk?”

“Of course . ”

Tae-hyuk laughed .

It seemed like he had become more popular .

“Then shall I begin?”

Tae-hyuk used Spying to scan the whole hospital . He used the range expanding attribute that could only be used once a day and started to draw the place using the automatic function of Forgery . Now that he was fully accustomed to the skill, he could complete it easily .

“Hrmm…”

The hospital consisted of three levels . While looking around, he had felt the unique atmosphere of an old building . It really seemed like there would be secret rooms hidden somewhere .

Tae-hyuk’s eyes shone as he looked at the blueprint . It was something that only Tae-hyuk could obtain with his crime skills .

“There really are hidden rooms . ”

There weren’t just only one or two rooms, but three .

“Wasn’t this built by the Japanese? I guess they like things like this . ”

Japan had constantly been at war since ancient times . Therefore, the shoguns directed soldiers to make pathways to escape and places to hide when building . It was the same here when this building was built 90 years ago .

“The problem is that the treasure map can be hidden in any of these three areas…”

Tae-hyuk laughed .

“Well, I have a lot of time . I can look at all of it . ”

One of the places was on the ground floor, and two were in the basement .

Among them, the clue to the gold left behind by the Japanese army was hiding .