Chapter 98

Chapter 98 – Advance Notice of a Storm #3

A few days later, it was Saturday night .

Since it was the weekend, the number of guards was minimized . Tonight he was going to look at the first floor, and he would look at the basement on Sunday night .

Tae-hyuk confirmed the guards’ work schedule in advance .

“It would be a pain if I disguised myself as a guard and then caused a stir with a doppelganger . ”

In order to prevent this, he registered the faces and voices of four security guards in the Demon Revealing Mirror . Luckily, he was able to get their clothes from the laundry room . It was the type of place where the employees brought their uniforms before leaving work . No one would notice that one more security guard was working during the weekend .

It was 11 o’clock on a Saturday night . The nurses’ rounds tapered off at dusk so Tae-hyuk got up from the bed . He took out the guard’s uniform that was hidden under the table . He chose a disguise that people wouldn’t be surprised to see walking around, so a guard was perfect . There was no accessory, such as a security rod or key, but if someone asked then he could just say he forgot it .

“I worked as a guard in the past, so isn’t this the perfect disguise?”

The security guards patrolled from the place of low importance to the place of high importance . If he understood their movements, then he would roughly know where they were . Of course, he could ignore such things and move around as he wished .

However, this was a back alley hospital where illegal operations were performed . Discipline was more strict compared to ordinary places . Otherwise, it wouldn’t be controlled .

He used the memories of the future to grasp the patrol route of the security guards . Tae-hyuk looked at the pre-drawn blueprint . There were many areas marked with a highlighter, all places with cameras or areas that needed a key to enter and exit .

“No matter how I look at it, the ground floor is hard . There are a lot of CCTVs installed near the secret room . Moreover, the number of security guards that patrol that area is twice as high as other areas . This means the hospital also thinks it is important . ”

Jung Eui-do had clearly said that he couldn’t find any relics of the Japanese here, but why did he need to install so much equipment near that area? It was literally a contradiction .

“It means that he must be hiding something . ”

Maybe he would obtain a clue to a crime .

“I haven’t got any crime skills recently . Ohuhuhu . ”

Tae-hyuk quietly slipped from his room and acted as a guard patrolling . The on-call nurse was dozing off at the desk .

“You worked hard . ”

The nurse turned and glanced at Tae-hyuk .

“Hmphh… Work hard now . Oh, can you go to the boiler room and raise the temperature of the radiator? It is a bit chilly . ”

“I understand . ”

The nurse’s head started to shake like a pendulum again as she dozed off . She couldn’t imagine that the security guard she was talking to had been a fake .

‘She wouldn’t know if a bandit was having a feast in the next room . ’

Tae-hyuk was able to safely pass the nurse and enter the warehouse . The blueprint showed that the secret room was in a corner . The size wasn’t so big so it was tight with two adult men . But it was perfect for hiding something . Tae-hyuk tapped the wall while listening carefully, then he found a different reaction .

“Well . Here it is . ”

Once he arrived at a certain area, he heard a blunt sound, as if he was hitting an iron plate . Tae-hyuk took out a knife and carefully peeled off a section of the wallpaper . A large steel cabinet was exposed through the wooden panels . He touched the surface, but it didn’t seem that old .

“Hrmm…”

Tae-hyuk cautiously opened the door . There were many documents that didn’t have dust on them . He pulled out a few and read them . He could understand without needing to check any books . It contained brief information on people who had received surgery . There were also signs of buying and selling something .

“This much sensitive data isn’t stored in digital form . ”

As he turned over the papers, the Demon Revealing Mirror started ringing .

[Crime Skill: Illegal Surgery has been learned . ]

-Various surgical operations can be done .

-However, treatment isn’t possible .

-The criteria to fully learn it hasn’t been met yet .

‘Illegal Surgery?! It seems to be an obscure skill…’

Tae-hyuk stopped his hand over the papers . The fact that the Demon Revealing Mirror responded meant there was something on the page that he just passed over . He was able to find it without any difficulty .

‘20 payments of nine million won… What is this?’

He couldn’t tell what it was for just by what was written . However, it was certain that this was associated with a crime . Once Tae-hyuk got what he wanted, he would slip out of here as quietly as possible .

However, it was a different story if he could get a crime skill . If he knew what the crime was and destroyed it, then he could get the opponent’s skill .

Tae-hyuk took as many photos as possible . Just the evidence of illegal abortions here was sufficient . He would send the information to Kim Do-shik and Cho Kang-suk using Phantom’s name, and they would take care of it . However, he had to find out what the hidden crime was .

“Maybe there isn’t just clues to a hidden treasure . ”

Tae-hyuk returned the documents to their original place . He had enough 4K resolution photos on his SD card to cover the ceiling . It was sufficient to read the text on the photos .

Tae-hyuk restored the wallpaper and quietly slipped out . It was time for the guards to make their rounds again .

All the puzzles would be solved tomorrow .

@

Blue Dragon was one of four prisons in the country operated using the American system .

It was built on an island far away from land, based on America’s Alcatraz, a very famous prison where Al Capone was imprisoned . Among the four prisons of the Red Phoenix, Black Tortoise, Blue Dragon, and White Tiger, the Blue Dragon was famous for being the most like Alcatraz . Of course, the prisoners there were the ones who committed the worst crimes .

The reason why the prison was created was simple . A few politicians decided to declare war on crime before a general election . They were elected with a high percentage of votes on the premise that the public didn’t have to share the same air as the criminals .

Thus, the prisons of the four gods were born .

“Weren’t all the prisons built on naval bases that were built during the Japanese colonial period?”

Kang-suk read the data and asked Hyun-ho who was sitting across from him .

“Sunbae has a deep relationship with that place . ”

“Huh? Why?”

“Yoo Cheol-ho is now trapped there so that he can’t escape from jail again . ”

“Kuoong… That name sounds familiar . ”

Kang-suk groaned as he remembered Yoo Cheol-ho . The case had occurred over six months ago . Yoo Cheol-ho had a high bounty on him after breaking out and Kang-suk met a weird student in the process .

“I’ve been quite busy since then . ”

“With who? Sister in law?”

“S-Sister in law… C-Cough!”

Kang-suk turned bright red and coughed .

“Aish, please eat your noodles quicker . ”

“I-I’m trying!”

The reason why Cho Kang-suk and Joo Hyun-ho gathered in the police library’s data room to investigate the prison was simple: Park Sung-yul was imprisoned there . Kang-suk suddenly thought of something .

“Then Park Sung-yul is in the same prison as Yoo Cheol-ho?”

“That’s right . Isn’t it filled with criminal all-stars?”

“He told me that he would escape again from the next place he was imprisoned . Well, he would need to swim to get out of there . ”

“That’s right . He would need to be a human seal . ”

“Then it would be good to see him after a long time . ”

Kang-suk laughed .

Park Sung-yul confessed that he was a serial murderer who killed 14 people . Kang-suk didn’t know if it was the truth, but after following the puzzle he sent, they discovered another body .

“Have the autopsy results come back?”

“Only that it happened a long time ago and that she died when she was in her late 20s . ”

“In the end, figuring out her identity is something we have to do from now on . ”

Kang-suk nodded without saying anything . From now on, Cho Kang-suk and Joo Hyun-ho would go to question the criminal who was in jail .

They had to go to the infamous Blue Dragon Prison and find out if what he was saying was true .

“Park Sung-yul had been stuck in jail for three years . If he committed murder, it was a crime that is at least three years old . All the evidence will be lost to the passage of time . We might literally have to put the pieces together like a puzzle . ”

Joo Hyun-ho smiled widely .

“But there is no mystery that Sunbae and I can’t solve . ”

“Why not? You know…”

“That guy itself is a foul . ”

After half a day, the two people boarded a ship heading for Blue Dragon Prison .

@

“Detectives, you have come . ”

The prison warden smiled and welcomed Kang-suk and Hyun-ho . The officer who guided them to the door bowed .

“Then have a good time!”

“Uh, thank you . ”

Hyun-ho whispered to Kang-suk .

“Sunbae . The atmosphere here is strange . ”

“Hey . Be careful what you say . Sound carries . ”

“Come come, please sit down here first . I will come back with tea and refreshments . ”

Kang-suk said quietly,

“Warden-nim . Thank you for your sincerity . I only have 10 minutes for the visit . I would like to meet him right away . ”

Then the warden laughed,

“You don’t know how to deal with the prisoners yet . Visitation days are like festivals to them . They get a morning bath and they can wear neat clothes that they don’t normally wear . In their eyes, the people of the world… Ah, I’m sorry . I’ll correct it to the outside world . At any rate, everything will be the same . So why don’t you go and make them wait? Then you will be able to hear what you want from them . I think they are great people . ”

“Then you are telling us to go late on purpose?”

“Until the coffee cools and the beer foam disappears . You should be roughly 20~30 minutes late . That is the law in dealing with them . ”

It was definitely a hierarchical relationship . It was the way of the guards . It seemed useless but the warden was a man who worked with prisoners for decades . He had more experience in dealing with them .

Hyun-ho saw that Kang-suk’s expression wasn’t good and said,

“Sunbae, let’s do as the warden said . Deliberately delaying the appointment is also a technique used in negotiation . ”

Two people were making the same argument . Kang-suk licked his lips .

“I understand . Then I will have a cup of tea before going . ”

“I have some good quality tea leaves . ”

Kang-suk went to see Park Sung-yul after spending a moderate amount of time drinking tea and eating sweets . The officer warned them before they entered the room,

“Even if he is tied up, I don’t know what he will do . Be careful . ”

It was encouraged to only converse with prisoners while fully shielded by tempered glass . However, Kang-suk said that he would talk in the family visitation room . The other person would be wearing a straitjacket but he would be in the same room .

Hyun-ho nodded and said,

“Well, will you be able to obtain information by feeling it with your skin?”

It wasn’t wrong but the nuances were strange .

Kang-suk elbowed Hyun-ho’s side .

“Something like that . Also, the atmosphere is important in an interrogation . I can tell whether it is a lie or truth based on the air he breathes onto my skin . ”

“In short, your senses . ”

Kang-suk laughed at the words . but it was right .

Park Sung-yul was sitting at a table in the corner of the visitation room . Despite wearing a straitjacket for over 30 minutes, his face was full of relaxation . He had a sophisticated look that would make him look like a business executive if he was wearing a suit instead of the prisoner jumpsuit .

Park Sung-yul laughed when he saw Kang-suk, as if he was meeting an old friend .

“Detective Cho Kang-suk! I’ve been looking forward to seeing you for a long time . I wanted to see you . ”

“…Park Sung-yul . ”

“Huh?”

Kang-suk skipped all the trivial things and threw a fastball at once .

“Did you really kill 14 people?”

Park Sung-yul was silent for a moment before slowly opening his mouth .