“Good morning.”
“Good morning? The fax is there. Bring it over.”
Jung Yoon, with a fluorescent towel draped around his neck and brushing his teeth, greeted the senior detective who appeared.
The detective, unable to hide his exhaustion from not having slept at all, threw his words with a tired face and went on his way.
The report included the bloodstains collected from the water, which matched the victim’s DNA, as well as trace epidermis that appeared to belong to the perpetrator, which also matched the suspect’s DNA.
Jung Yoon placed the result sheet on the senior detective’s desk and found his seat.
“He’s a real tough guy, that bastard.”
“That’s why he made it to the rank of captain at that age. I heard he’s taking on a team this time.”
“Yeah, sure, ‘taking on a team.’ If it’s a cold case team, well… whatever.”
One of the detectives, who seemed to have just washed up, suddenly stopped talking while wiping his face with a towel.
Jung Yoon, who had been turning on the monitor, looked at him with a strange feeling.
He quickly turned his head away.
Another detective, who had been looking puzzled, immediately erased the expression from his face and cleared his throat loudly.
Jung Yoon, still confused by the strange glances from the detectives, watched them leave in a hurry.
“Seriously, just don’t say anything.”
Jung Yoon shook his head and stared at the monitor.
The date next to the time, which indicated morning hours, caught his eye.
Was it today?
Jung Yoon remembered the day ‘Woo Jung Yun’ was assigned to the cold case team.
The story had started with the description of the joining date, so that detail was etched clearly in his mind.
He never expected that a single line would become the story of the next six months.
“How’s the result?”
As he was lost in thought, his team leader approached and knocked on the partition.
Jung Yoon, coming to his senses, calmly responded.
“It matches.”
“Damn, I knew it! After all that yelling, it’s just as we thought. Get the warrant. Prosecutor Kang will be thrilled.”
“Yes. Understood.”
The team leader sighed deeply as he fiddled with his phone and then clicked his tongue
He couldn’t hold back any longer and tossed his phone onto the desk, swearing loudly.
And he had every reason to.
The suspect indicated by the results was a husband who had murdered his 8-month-pregnant wife.
The suspected motive was insurance money.
A massive sum of nearly 5 billion won in insurance money would be decided depending on the case’s outcome.
The husband, the prime suspect, continued to deny his involvement, and the investigation, which had been stagnant, regained momentum after a shirt, believed to be his, was found in a nearby sewer close to his company.
Jung Yoon had been the one to find the shirt.
Although he pretended it was an accidental find, Jung Yoon had known about the shirt from the start.
It was all thanks to The Third Eye.
Among the information he read, it was the only useful piece, and fortunately, it turned out to be a critical piece of evidence.
Pretending to find it at the right moment was cumbersome, but it was necessary for the story to unfold like in the original.
From there, Jung Yoon seamlessly inserted himself into the narrative.
That’s how he became today’s Woo Jung Yoon.
Having completed his task, Jung Yoon calmly waited for the news to be delivered.
“Hey, turn on the TV.”
“The TV? What’s on?”
“You’ll find out if you turn it on, idiot.”
Following the team leader’s order, Jung Yoon grabbed the remote control from the partition and turned on the TV.
Resting his chin on the desk with a bored expression, his posture immediately stiffened as soon as he heard the voice and the name.
[This is Mun Jeong Rok, Captain of the Major Crimes Unit. I will now report on the investigation results regarding the motel murder case.]
Mun Jeong Rok.
The three syllables sent a shock through Jung Yoon’s senses.
He wondered if he had misheard, but the name was too significant to ignore.
Still, Jung Yoon tried to stay calm.
It was an uncommon name, but not impossible.
He told himself not to panic and slowly turned his gaze.
But as soon as he saw the man’s face on the screen, he couldn’t hold himself back.
[In addition to the three main suspects, we also compared DNA from convicted criminals with similar prior offenses, including those released on parole. Based on the DNA results, we have identified a former inmate, Kim Mo, whose DNA matches the evidence. He was apprehended at 5:15 AM after a stakeout.]
His body froze, and his mind went blank.
A dizzying sensation spread through him, and his heart felt as if it were being squeezed.
Without realizing it, Jung Yoon rubbed his left chest.
He couldn’t believe it.
Even if the names were the same, that face… that face couldn’t be his.
It wasn’t because of their past relationship.
He had a look that could not be called common anywhere.
A head of thick hair, noticeable facial features, and a strong jawline.
Even his physique was one that could intimidate someone who didn’t know his kindness.
Everything was like Jeongrok.
No, it was him.
Jung Yoon, if he could, wanted to step into the TV and grab that man, the one called Mun Jeongrok, and ask him.
“Why are you there? Why are you here? …No, is it really you?”
“Is that him?”
“Who, Mun Jeongrok?”
“Yeah. The crazy dog, the son of the chief. That’s him, right?”
Whispers were heard behind him.
Jung Yoon turned his head at the mention of “son of the chief.”
“Yeah, that’s him. Look at him acting all calm in front of the camera, the bastard.”
The detective who called Jeongrok a crazy dog shook his head.
He clicked his tongue, saying it was all an act.
Hearing this, Jung Yoon’s expression grew subtle.
Crazy dog?
That wasn’t a word that matched the Jeongrok he knew.
hile Jung Yoon was confused, Jeongrok on the screen, after finishing the briefing, lowered his head.
The camera shutter sound popped like fireworks, and the chief of the Gangnam police station, dressed in a uniform, stepped up to the podium.
Jung Yoon’s attention, however, was focused solely on Jeongrok, who had disappeared off-screen.
His eyes mixed with yearning, doubt, and confusion, tracing the Jeongrok who was now out of sight.
At the same time, he mentally picked out the next briefing location.
[Next, I will discuss our future investigation plan. Based on the recent case, we’ve learned that DNA can be detected in cases long after they have been buried, so we will now begin reopening investigations into cold cases involving violent crimes.]
The chief was talking about the cold case task force, which was important to him, but Jung Yoon wasn’t listening.
His mind was entirely consumed by Jeongrok.
He had to meet him.
[We have organized a task force of 50 people, including the victim protection team, statement analysis team, legal review team, and external advisors, led by Deputy Chief of Gyeonggi Southern Police, Choi Hyuncheol.]
Jung Yoon returned to his seat and, with trembling hands, managed to grab the mouse and log into the police intranet.
After several deep breaths, he finally placed his hands on the keyboard.
Jung Yoon felt a painful tightening in his chest.
To hide it, he gritted his teeth and, pretending to be calm, slowly began typing the name he had longed for, starting with the letter ‘ᄆ.’
Finally, after typing the last ‘ᄀ,’ he took another deep breath.
He felt as if he might cry at any moment, so he had to calm his mind once more.
Jung Yoon closed his eyes, as if praying, and then, just as he was about to hit Enter…
“Hello!”
A voice suddenly stopped Jung Yoon’s fingers. He couldn’t press Enter.
“Team leader, how have you been?”
At the next voice, Jung Yoon stiffened, clenching his teeth.
The approaching footsteps made all his senses sharpen, and his heart pounded wildly.
For a brief moment, everything went quiet, and then, suddenly, Jung Yoon opened his eyes wide.
Could it be that the person he had been waiting for had disappeared like a mirage?
Or could it have all been a misunderstanding, making him snap back to reality?
“Hello?”
‘…Hmm? Not so much of a hello?’
Jung Yoon, like a person who had lost his words, just stared blankly, his lips parted.
The incredible sight before him was neither a delusion nor a fantasy.
When he opened his eyes, standing right in front of him was a man with a body as large as a door and a face that was hardly that of a detective, with soft, light brown hair that seemed to cover his forehead, and the very familiar face of the man he had longed for.
With his heart pounding loudly, the sound of footsteps gradually grew closer. Jung Yoon forced himself to put on a serious expression and furrowed his brow.
Then, a long shadow was cast over Jung Yoon’s head.
Knock, knock.
A sound was heard as if someone was tapping on the partition.
Jung Yoon, almost as if unaware, looked up at the person.
He leaned his elbow on the partition and placed his clasped hands near his mouth, studying the man carefully.
The man’s pale skin, reflecting the white light, almost looked translucent.
One shallow double eyelid, and the mole on his cheek.
The very person he had dreamed of, the one he had missed so much.
Jeongrok was there.
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