[The Cold Case Investigation Team, in charge of unsolved cases, announced that they have obtained significant evidence regarding the 2005 Hasaeng Supermarket owner, Mr. Kim’s case, which occurred in Chunwon City, and will officially commence the investigation.]
For a while, there was no sound, and the only light in the small space came from the TV.
Then, a presence stirred. The anchor’s voice, breaking intermittently from the old TV, seemed to be the very air, as the sound of heavy breathing filled the house.
Someone’s name spilled from the anchor’s lips.
Only then did two eyelids snap open in the gloomy space.
The whites of the eyes were as pale as if erased with a rubber, and the proportionally black pupils repeatedly appeared and disappeared through the blinking eyelids.
[Meanwhile, the police stated that if Mr. Jang is found guilty of the 2005 crime, he could be the same perpetrator of other cases showing similar modus operandi.
They added that they would focus on securing additional evidence by searching the suspect’s residence.
We will now hear directly from the Head of the Criminal Division of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, who is in charge of the cold case investigation team, regarding the investigation details.]
Eventually, the eyes, which had been facing the ceiling, slowly rolled towards a 29-inch monitor some distance away.
As the anchor handed the microphone to the reporter and the screen changed, the bulging blanket finally slid down.
A stale smell instantly filled the small space.
Since the light wasn’t on, a man’s body, dressed only in underwear, was revealed in the still night-like room.
His body was gaunt, but his seemingly solid legs were covered in scars.
The man moved quietly, never taking his eyes off the TV.
Occasionally, snickers and chuckles echoed darkly under the floor.
The man quietly got up, tidied his bedding, and then crawled towards the corner of the wall.
He glanced back several times, knowing no one would come, and then sniffled once he was close enough to touch the wall with his knees.
Tear
The floor mat, stuck to the bare floor from long disuse, made a bizarre tearing sound as it peeled open.
The man lifted the mat to the spot he had marked and lowered his head.
The man’s eyes gleamed, reflecting something.
Pfft, a weak breath fell to the floor.
The man’s lips twitched.
After gazing at what was before him with satisfaction for a moment, the man slowly curled up the corners of his mouth.
A short while later, he put the mat back down, pressed it firmly with his feet, and then returned to neatly fold the blanket he had previously arranged.
The man lay back in the blanket as if nothing had happened.
Covering himself up to his nose, he let out a pfft, pfft, pffft sound of laughter when the news moved on to another topic, and then closed his eyes.
Darkness once again enveloped the room.
***
Ultimately, the investigation returned to square one, unable to prove Jang Chang-hyun’s crime.
The cold case team closed the previous case records and decided to re-investigate in a completely different manner, officially beginning to dig into the case.
They sorted out similar cases from different regions that had occurred in recent times.
They thoroughly re-investigated all cases with many similarities that could be attributed to the same perpetrator, starting from scratch.
“This case has a witness?”
Hyun-cheol asked, pointing at something while reading the report.
Han-gyeol, who had suddenly stood up, approached Hyun-cheol.
Then he clicked his tongue and returned to his seat.
“They say the witness ran away, so they couldn’t investigate.”
A creaking sound echoed from Han-gyeol’s chair as he sat down.
Han-gyeol, who was accustomed to rocking and adjusting the chair’s backrest, placed his hands on the keyboard.
“What? Why did they run away?”
“I don’t know. I also checked and tried to trace it, but it seems nothing came up. They seem to have inquired around, but there was no one who knew anything.”
“Is that even possible?”
Jung-yoon, who was examining photos of the crime scene, lifted his head. Jeong-rok, clinging to his shoulder and resting his cheek, frowned and looked at the same spot.
“It was possible then, but not now.”
Han-gyeol, receiving everyone’s gaze, unexpectedly raised both hands.
He triumphantly moved his fingers in the air with a flourish, then stretched the corners of his mouth into a satisfying smile.
Soon, the office was filled with the noisy clatter of a keyboard.
The scratching sound was not entirely unpleasant but subtly annoying.
However, no one commented on the loud noise.
Each person at their desk simply waited, seriously and intently, for the sound and movement to cease.
And finally, Clack!
With a crisp sound, Han-gyeol’s hands stopped, and the scratching sound ceased.
Jun-hyeok smoothly rolled his chair close to Han-gyeol.
Jung-yoon, intrigued, was about to stand up, but Jeong-rok blocked him with his chin.
While Jung-yoon, forcibly made to sit, glared irritably at Jeong-rok, Han-gyeol slowly made a V-sign with his fingers and lifted his chin.
“Did you find it?”
Jun-hyeok asked, glancing at Han-gyeol’s monitor.
“Of course.”
“How?”
Jeong-rok, having successfully kept Jung-yoon seated, spoke instead.
Han-gyeol peeked his head over the partition and looked at him, shrugging his shoulders.
“It’s a secret.”
“You son of a…”
A somewhat ominous voice came from behind the boastful Han-gyeol.
Only then did Han-gyeol press his lips together, shrink his neck, and look around nervously.
The ominously approaching Hyun-cheol grabbed Han-gyeol’s head with both hands as if to crush it.
“You cute little rascal! Good job. Huh? Good job. It’s enough to find something, right? But we’re keeping it from the higher-ups, right?”
“Of course. You don’t have to worry.”
“So, what did you find?”
Hyun-cheol completely blocked the monitor with his large head.
Jun-hyeok glanced at it and subtly pushed Hyun-cheol’s head away with his hand.
Hyun-cheol, unyielding, shook Han-gyeol’s collar, urging him for an answer.
“Yoo Bo-ha, female. But she’s not Korean.”
“Not Korean?”
“No. She entered on a tourist visa in January of the year the incident happened and never left.”
“Damn it.”
Han-gyeol made a face and leaned back.
He sighed deeply, tapping his forehead with his fist as if he had a headache.
Following him, Jun-hyeok, still on his wheeled chair, muttered as if mulling it over, “She came in but didn’t leave.”
“There’s a high possibility she’s an illegal overstayer. Her visa was for three months, so it would have already expired around the date of the incident.”
“And she was already an illegal overstayer even then.”
Jung-yoon picked up on Han-gyeol’s words.
Han-gyeol nodded.
Behind them, Hyun-cheol’s sigh grew much longer. Jeong-rok, who had been quietly observing the entire process, added stiffly, “There’s a high chance she’s still in Korea.”
Jeong-rok tossed a stack of documents over the partition.
Han-gyeol, who instinctively caught them, checked the open section and made a strange expression.
Jun-hyeok, who peered over his shoulder, also let out a low “Ah…” without realizing it.
Hyun-cheol, who had been turned away, also reacted to that remark.
Contrary to his age, a peculiar madness gradually seeped into Hyun-cheol’s bright eyes.
Silence hung in the air for a few seconds.
The awkward smiles of Jeong-rok, Jun-hyeok, and Han-gyeol clashed as if attacking each other, all except for Jung-yoon, who didn’t know the contents.
Then, Hyun-cheol, who had his arms crossed like a person in charge of everything, leisurely extended his index finger.
Spinning, spinning, his finger twirled in the air.
Jung-yoon frowned, watching the strange sight, when suddenly Jeong-rok stretched out the hand that was gripping his chair and covered Jung-yoon’s eyes.
Hyun-cheol’s increasingly narrowed eyes suddenly opened wide at a certain point.
And then.
The finger that had been twirling in the air abruptly stopped somewhere.
“As expected, cases are best handled by those who’ve rolled around in the field, aren’t they?”
Hyun-cheol’s eyes, full of amusement, sparkled for a moment.
The direction was so precise that it was awkward to pretend not to know, so Jeong-rok, grinding his teeth, immediately retorted, “Who here hasn’t rolled around in the field? Section Chief, you yourself…”
“Right, you. It’s you. You rascal. It seems you feel attacked, don’t you? Knowing you’ve lost?”
Jung-yoon, unable to see the whole situation due to Jeong-rok’s hand covering his eyes, finished grasping the situation by listening and let out a small sigh.
Jeong-rok, feeling the sigh close by, stealthily removed his hand and, claiming unfairness, rubbed his eyes against Jung-yoon’s shoulder, whining.
“Detective Woo has a good saying, doesn’t he? Male harassment? Let’s report him for that. This is real harassment. He’s really awful, that person.”
“Oh, really? Did you harass Jung-yoon? Jung-yoon, did he?”
“What are you doing to my partner?”
Hyun-cheol, who had completely rolled up his sleeves, pointed a finger at Jeong-rok, who was casually leaning on Jung-yoon.
“That, that, I told you, Detective Woo. Just shoot him. If that doesn’t work, well, should I change your partner?”
Jung-yoon looked around awkwardly, scanning the situation.
He thought he heard a faint “damn it” from beside him but didn’t show it.
Before that, Jeong-rok had already sprung to his feet and moved.
“What are you doing? The Section Chief is talking.”