Chapter 123

Chapter 123 – Swallow the Sun #1

Shatter the Sun Cult .

At first glance, it seemed simple to handle them using the Bomber or the Phantom’s abilities . However, unlike all the previous cases, this wasn’t a problem that would end so simply .

Would it end just by blowing up the base of the Sun Cult with a bomb? They would simply move elsewhere . He knew of the crimes committed by the leader, but plenty of people went to jail instead of him .

In the end, he couldn’t use his previous methods to get rid of Sun .

“First, I should classify the chess pieces that are available right now . ”

He needed to use everything he had to fight the Sun Cult . If possible, he wanted to avoid working as Seo Tae-hyuk as much as possible, but there was a limit to Phantom’s network .

Tae-hyuk opened a desk drawer and pulled out an old chessboard that he used to play with . After unfolding it, he placed the black king in the middle .

“This is me, Seo Tae-hyuk . My identity absolutely can’t be revealed, so it is something to be unconditionally defended . ”

Next was the queen . It was the strongest piece that he could move freely .

“That is Phantom . ”

The loss of the queen would play a huge part in the king’s resignation . Both ends of the chessboard were for the rooks .

“Then Big Mama and Moonlight Flower . ”

They were chess pieces made before he started acting as Phantom . When he met them, he had to hide that he was associated with Phantom as much as possible .

Big Mama’s intelligence network . Moonlight Flower’s hacking and stealing skills were necessary to deal with the Sun Cult . Tae-hyuk held a bishop and muttered,

“I don’t like it but the bishops will be Shin Se-ho and the Bomber . ”

They were difficult to use, but had the ability to reverse the situation . The pawns were the members of Nuclear Bomb that could be freely mobilized with money .

Finally, there were the knights . Tae-hyuk placed the knights on an empty space and said .

“This is Detective Cho Kang-suk and Investigator Joo Hyun-ho . ”

They had the authority to investigate and arrest the enemy .

He had to meet the rooks and pawns as Seo Tae-hyuk . He would meet the knights and bishops as Phantom .

He imprinted this firmly in his mind and reached out towards the white king, who could be called the enemy .

“Now, let’s go slay the king . ”

@

“You have been promoted . Why are you still eating noodles?”

Kang-suk heard a familiar voice as he was organizing the investigation headquarters . It was his junior, who was smirking while eating spoonfuls of butter .

“It is a busy day . Have you come to help me clean up?”

Joo Hyun-ho placed an ice coffee in front of Kang-suk and said,

“Oho, avoiding the answer means that something is going on . The suspect will answer the investigator . ”

Kang-suk thought about what happened yesterday and cleared his throat a few times .

“Actually, I proposed to Seo Ha-ran . ”

“Wah! You finally made a decision! Congratulations Sunbae! Aren’t you moving at the speed of light?”

“Here . ”

“Wow! A ring that I never thought I would see on Sunbae’s finger! It is somewhat modest, but made of platinum, a symbol of unchanging love! Judge, this is definitely an engagement ring!”

Kang-suk couldn’t help laughing as Hyun-ho made a fuss .

Who would have ever thought that he was an investigator from Russia’s Federal Security Service? Of course, he had returned to Korea after half a year of working there, stating that it didn’t fit him .

However, he was considered one of the top three investigators in South Korea . Hyun-ho was delighted .

“So when is the wedding?”

“I think May would be perfect . I want to give Ha-ran the happiest day . ”

“Of course, the inspector will be glad…”

“The inspector?”

“When I saw him, Inspector-nim was worried about when Sunbae would finally get married, so I asked him what he would do if it happened . He said that he would bow deeply to the bride . I just want to see that . ”

Kang-suk felt dizzy at the thought . Such a bet was going on without him realizing it? Then why? He didn’t hate it .

“Hrmm, so?”

“…I’ll sing the congratulatory song . ”

“That’s okay, you can just emcee . ”

As Kang-suk desperately waved his hands in rejection, Hyun-ho looked at Kang-sk with wide eyes .

“Kang-suk doesn’t want Phantom to emcee?”

“Why would he be interested in emceeing my wedding?”

“You are best friends . ”

What? Who would want Phantom as the emcee of his wedding?

Kang-suk looked at Hyun-ho with a perplexed expression .

“I’m sorry, but I don’t want the special troops as guests for the wedding .

“Huhu . Won’t it be spectacular?”

Hyun-ho took off his trench coat and placed it on a coat hanger . Then he sat in his chair and started to whisk the whipped cream in his coffee with a strange face .

“Since then, have you been in contact with Phantom?”

“Well . No? He just took the money . He is strangely quiet . ”

“Then, does Sunbae know a way to contact Phantom separately?”

“No . There is no way to contact him first . It’s a burner phone . The number is changed every time, and the one time I tracked the location, he appeared to be in Sichuan China . ”

Despite the interest of the police commissioner, Phantom’s identity was still veiled .

“He is like 007 . But if you have a chance to meet Phantom again, will you take me with you?”

Kang-suk narrowed his eyes at the other person .

Joo Hyun-ho had started to show a large interest in Phantom not long ago . It might not be for a big purpose . It seemed like he wanted to play a game against Phantom .

There was a strange feeling in his mind, but he couldn’t say what it was . Kang-suk couldn’t help laughing at the thought . Phantom was someone that even people from other sides of the earth were interested in . It was no wonder that Hyun-ho was interested in him .

“Do you want to embarrass yourself like last time you met Phantom?”

“Aish, surely not . At any rate, you said you recorded it the last time Phantom contacted you . Can you send it to me?”

“I already sent it to the main office . Can’t you go and look directly?”

“I wanted to listen while writing a few reports . Well, it doesn’t contain anything important . In addition, an investigator like me will be bombarded with things to do if I go to the main office . ”

There was always a desire to ask his opinion on new cases . Furthermore, he wasn’t in a position to refuse . Thus, the work would steadily accumulate .

Kang-suk looked at him with a sympathetic expression .

“You are also suffering a lot . ”

In the end, that was the trouble with being too talented .

@

Not much had changed about Big Mama’s pawn shop . Tae-hyuk deliberately built up trust by trading her forged artwork that was worth several million won at a time .

There were two types of criminals that stolen goods brokers dealt with: Those who were lucky enough to get lucky and sell many goods, and those who would bring in a small, but consistent profit . Of course, it was the latter that stolen goods brokers wanted to trade with for a long time .

“Omo, did Tae-hyuk come?

Big Mama smiled as she checked the door and rose from her seat . There were no other customers inside the pawn shop .

When they first met, Tae-hyuk had felt a prickling on his skin . However, after some steady trading, her voice was soft, like they were old partners .

“I’m sorry but I won’t be selling anything today . ”

“Really?”

“Do you know the group ‘Sun’, active in Z City?”

“Um, that is an emerging religion . ”

Big Mama narrowed her eyes and said some neutral words . She didn’t know what he had to do with that place, so she refrained from any negative vocabulary .

Tae-hyuk smiled and revealed his relationship with Sun in one word .

“Yes . That cult . ”

“Hoh . You know . Do you need information about it?”

“The more information there is, the better . I also want to know some family members who have gone missing due to the cult . ”

“This seems quite lucrative . ”

“I heard that they have some of Gauguin’s oil paintings there . ”

Big Mama’s eyes changed .

Paul Gauguin was a French painter that was the representative of post-impressionism . He left numerous oil paintings behind that were traded at a price of over 100 million won .

“I didn’t know that they had such a classy hobby . ”

“Ah right . Once I get the goods, I will make a deal with Big Mama . Can’t we profit from each other?”

Big Mama looked down slightly and laughed,

“Ohuhu… I welcome such a good deal . By the way, can you do it by yourself? If necessary, I can introduce other experts to you . ”

“I’ll ask you at a later time if I need it . ”

Big mama wrote message on her tablet .

“Wait two days for the information . And the price will be this . ”

She showed Tae-hyuk the number she had written on the tablet screen .

10 million won .

“In the past, it would be 20 million won . Is this a regulars discount?”

“Yes . I hope for your support in the future and will be giving you a special service . And even if you don’t have any work, you can always come by to play . I will make you delicious tea . ”

“Cough… Maybe after this is over . Then this is a deposit . ”

Tae-hyuk handed over a bundle of 50,000 won bills . Thus, the information deal with Big Mama ended without any problems . If he bargained a big more, then he would’ve received free information on the condition that he turn over Paul Gauguin’s paintings .

However, this deal with Big Mama was just right, since he might get damaged if he went too far . He had to always keep an eye on the other person .

Tae-hyuk didn’t forget that fact .

@

Sun’s nest was on the outskirts of Z City in Gyeonggi Province . They purchased a ruined university and built their own kingdom on that vast site .

Tae-hyuk was sitting in a cafe and drinking coffee while reading the information that Big Mama gave him . How much did he read?

He stood up and cried out,

“Oh, this is too much for half-price information!”

Indeed, there was no free discount in this world . The amount was only 1/3 of the other information he bought .

“This lady…”

In fact, he had expected it to some extent . Sun was a strictly closed off religious group . Finding out information about such a place would be difficult . The amount was small, but it was better than nothing .

Apart from the owner sitting at the counter and looking at a photo book, no other person could be seen . Tae-hyuk approached the cafe owner and asked slowly,

“I’m sorry, but can I ask for a refill?”

The cafe owner stood up with an embarrassed expression .

“Aigoo, that’s right . I was lost in thought for a moment . I will come straight away . ”

“This cafe has a good atmosphere . But there doesn’t seem to be too many customers…”

“Haha… Is that so? In fact, when the store first opened, many people came from the nearby university . However, it eventually closed down and people left for the Seoul campus . ”

“It must’ve been hard for Boss-nim . ”

“Still, there are occasional customers from nearby factories . By the way, did you come here for a business trip?”

He had transformed into a white-collar worker with the crime skills . The misunderstanding was natural .

Tae-hyuk lied easily,

“Actually, my family member fell into some strange group . I came to meet someone from the Internet to come up with some countermeasures . ”

“Ah, it is like that . Hu… There really are things like cults in this country…”

Tae-hyuk avoided the gaze of the cafe owner and confirmed the location of the hidden cameras installed in the shop .

‘I didn’t say anything and he is already talking about a cult . Isn’t this too amateurish?’

It was true that he came here to meet someone . However, Tae-hyuk knew that this cafe was one of the traps created by Sun .