The Sweep Mission

I was the star of tonight's dinner.

"Here, rookie, have a drink. Congratulations on your promotion to corporal."

"Thank you, senior."

"What's with the 'senior'? Sounds so cold. Just call me hyung when we're off duty."

"Yes, hyung."

Sergeant Park Inhyeok, who had a silver tongue, led the atmosphere of the gathering.

"Team Leader. Did you see what this kid was doing when we breached the Chief's office?"

"Of course I did. He had Hwang Dongchul in a headlock."

"Huh? You need to get Lasik before it's too late, boss."

"That's not what happened?"

"Did you not see the ballpoint pen shoved in that guy's ear?"

"A ballpoint pen?"

"Our rookie took down a former wrestler with a single pen."

"No way, really? Detective Min. Is what he's saying true?"

"Yes. I didn't think I could match him in raw strength."

"Wow, how did you even think of that in that situation? And I heard you climbed the outer wall of the building to get into the Chief's office?"

"I had to catch Hwang Dongchul off guard. I figured the door would definitely be locked."

"I knew it! My eyes never deceive me. And who was it that stopped a talent like him from throwing in his resignation and leaving?"

Sergeant Park raised his hand.

"That would be me. As an experienced senior, I gave him heartfelt advice..."

"He threw a fit and said he was resigning because he couldn't stand preparing for the Internal Affairs audit with you. Don't you remember?"

"Come on, that's not how it went."

"Detective Min, who's telling the truth?"

Team Leader Na Sangdo might have poor eyesight, but his memory was sharp.

However, I decided to walk the middle path.

"Please forget the past, and I look forward to working with you all."

"Right. The future is what matters. Now, to the bright future of Violent Crimes Team 1's returning rookie!"

"Cheers!"

Ding!

The notification sound for a text message rang out again.

It was probably spam or an ad, which made it quite annoying.

Just then, Team Leader Na Sangdo stood up.

"I'm going to the restroom."

"I should go have a smoke."

"I'll go with you. Rookie, you come too."

"I quit smoking. Go ahead without me."

"Tough bastard. We'll be right back. Keep eating."

Everyone left, leaving me alone at the table.

I pulled out my phone and checked the unread messages.

"A Beomjappa message?"

All I had done for the past hour was drink.

What kind of message could it be out of nowhere?

Curious, I opened the unread inbox.

"All of a sudden?"

The countdown had started without warning.

I had been busy all day.

That was why I had put it off until tomorrow.

There was no mention of a time limit, and now it was suddenly counting down with ten seconds left?

6!

5!

4!

3!

"Fine, I'll do it! Accept mission!"

Everything about this system was great, except for how incredibly unfriendly it was.

It was always so pushy, just like my kendo instructor back in school.

"So what is it? The new mission?"

"Publicly wanted criminals..."

A wanted notice is issued when a suspect has been identified, but their whereabouts are unknown, requesting cooperation from police stations nationwide.

Wanted notices are broadly divided into two categories.

Public wanted notices, which are made into flyers for the general public to see, and private wanted notices, which share information only within law enforcement agencies.

Most wanted notices are private.

If investigative details are made public, the suspects might see them and use them to flee.

Public wanted notices are a last resort—issued when the police have searched and searched but found nothing, pleading for anyone who spots them to call.

It is also a manifestation of the police's desperate determination to drag them to court before the statute of limitations expires.

Once in the first half of the year, and once in the second half.

Only twenty carefully selected individuals, vetted by the National Police Agency's Public Wanted Committee, make it onto the flyers.

In short, this "Publicly Wanted Criminals Sweep Mission" was a game of finding these masters of hide-and-seek within thirty days.

In terms of difficulty, it was the absolute worst.

"But all I have to do is find them."

Arrest warrants had already been issued, so my job would be done once I caught them and handed them over to the respective jurisdictions.

With just these three steps, I could find anyone.

With Beomjappa in my hands, this mission was easier than taking candy from a baby.

"Oh, why are you alone?"

Team Leader Na Sangdo, returning from the restroom while adjusting his pants, walked back.

"Where did everyone go, leaving our precious rookie all by himself?"

Judging by his slurred speech, he was already drunk.

Before I could answer, Inspector Choi and Sergeant Park returned.

"We're back from our smoke break."

Whatever they had discussed outside, Inspector Choi asked me before he even sat down.

"Sergeant Park says you beat up over eighty guys by yourself at a club. Is that true?"

"Did you not watch the news?"

"Who has time for the news? Two gangs and eight corrupt detectives? Or was it nine? Did you really catch them all by yourself?"

"Why don't you pour me a drink first?"

The second part of the welcoming party began with the tale of a brave country cop who waged war against criminal organizations in a remote rural town.

"Ugh, my head. Did everyone get home safe last night?"

Team Leader Na Sangdo arrived late to work, his hair looking like a bird's nest.

Inspector Choi and Sergeant Park, who had arrived earlier, weren't looking much better.

"I don't even remember how I got home."

"Me neither. I closed my eyes, and the next thing I knew, the taxi driver was telling me we'd arrived."

Team Leader Na spoke up.

"You young guys are so weak. Don't you remember Detective Min calling taxis and paying for all your fares out of his own pocket?"

"Ah, as expected of our precious rookie."

"But who paid for the dinner? I don't remember that part."

"Didn't you pay, Team Leader?"

"No. If I had swiped my card, I would've gotten a text, but there's nothing. The cash in my wallet is untouched too."

"Could the rookie have paid for that too?"

"No way."

"Ask him when he gets here."

"Has Detective Min not come in yet?"

"He's here. He stepped out for a moment to visit the Support Team."

At that moment, I was at a nearby convenience store buying a jar-shaped banana milk and three bottles of hangover cure.

The hangover cures were for my seniors in Violent Crimes Team 1, and the banana milk was a bribe for Officer Song Hana of the Support Team.

To complete the mission, I needed to stay on everyone's good side.

Flattery and bribes were essential if I wanted to move around freely without getting questioned and gather the information I needed whenever I wanted.

"You like this, right?"

"Oh my! Is this for me?"

"Yes. Thanks to your help yesterday, Officer Song, I think I scored some points with the Chief."

"You're too modest. I'll enjoy it. Is there anything I can help you with today?"

"Actually, yes. I need the list of publicly wanted criminals."

"Should I give you the wanted flyer?"

"Their resident registration numbers aren't on there, right?"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Right. They used to be, but some people abused them. Kids would steal the wanted criminals' registration numbers to watch adult videos or sign up for gambling and gaming sites."

"There really are a lot of bad people in the world, aren't there?"

"Tell me about it."

"Just the flyer is fine. I'll look up the registration numbers myself."

"Please wait a moment."

Song Hana stepped away to retrieve the flyers kept in the cabinet.

While she was gone, I overheard the Detective Team 1 Leader chatting with the Support Team Leader.

"Team Leader Choi, we don't have any female officers on our team. Send Officer Song over to support us when we're in a pinch."

"Are you kidding me? Officer Song already has so much on her plate."

"I'm not saying we're taking her permanently. Just let her assist us when we absolutely need a female officer."

There are times when it's difficult for male detectives to step in.

This is especially true when the suspect is female.

They can't perform body searches, and they can't even question them carelessly.

There are countless cases where male detectives stepped in out of urgency only to end up sued.

"Just ask them to hire a new one. It's not like this happens once or twice. Are you going to call Officer Song every single time?"

"We did ask. But what's the point? There are no applicants."

"True. I heard even male patrol officers don't want to take the detective qualification exam these days. They say having the title of detective makes it hard to get married. The current rookies might have to remain rookies until they retire."

"I'll quit being a detective before I see that happen. Anyway, just send Officer Song over to help us out often."

"Why does it have to be Officer Song? There are other female officers."

"You haven't heard?"

"Heard what?"

"Officer Song took down a subway groper yesterday."

"Huh? With that slender frame of hers?"

"She knocked him out cold with a shoulder throw. I heard he didn't wake up until the transit police arrived."

It was a side of Officer Song that even the Team Leader hadn't known about.

The Support Team Leader turned to Officer Song, who was just closing the cabinet.

"Officer Song! I heard you pulled off quite a feat on the subway yesterday?"

"Oh, it was nothing."

"That doesn't sound like nothing."

"I grabbed that pervert's hand and pulled, and he just flew forward. So, I just twisted my hips like they taught us at the academy."

"Wow, I didn't realize I was working with a master."

"Stop teasing me. It really wasn't a big deal."

Song Hana didn't reply further to the team leaders' jokes and walked over to me.

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"Officer Min. Here it is. It's the same version we posted on the bulletin board yesterday."

"Thank you."

Twenty high-profile violent criminals filled the flyer.

They were the precious clients who would bring me wealth and promotions.

"By the way, Officer Song."

"Yes?"

"Did you take the detective qualification exam?"

"Oh, come on, Officer Min, not you too. I tell you, that guy was a total weakling."

"But you passed the exam, right?"

"Yes, well..."

"Then please help our team out in the future. We don't have any female officers, so we often lose cases to Violent Crimes Team 2."

"If the Team Leader allows it, of course I will. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I'm part of the Detective Division too."

"Thank you. And thanks for the flyer."

"Don't mention it."

Requesting support from other teams was usually the team leader's job, but there might come a time when I had to take the initiative in an emergency.

It was never a bad idea to know where available resources were located.

"I've really changed a lot."

Just two months ago, I was grumbling about making less money than a convenience store part-timer.

I could feel for myself that my attitude toward work was completely different now.

The harder I worked, the more I stood to gain.

When I returned to the office, Team Leader Na was the first to greet me.

"Oh, Detective Min."

"You're here?"

"Everyone else is dying of a hangover, but you look perfectly fine. Is it because you're young?"

"Drink this, and you'll feel like yourself again."

I handed out the hangover cures I bought at the convenience store to my seniors.

They all looked like absolute wrecks, which made me chuckle.

"Did something good happen? Why are you smiling so early in ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the morning?"

"The weather is nice. It's the perfect day to catch some bad guys."

"You've gone mad. Oh, by the way, did you pay for the drinks last night?"

"Yes. I treated everyone using the reward money from the Commissioner."

"Oh, dear. How much was it? I'll transfer it to you right away."

"No, it's fine. Consider it my treat to celebrate my return."

"It must have been quite a lot."

"I can afford that much."

"Still, we can't just let a junior foot the bill..."

"It's really fine. I wanted to pay."

"..."

Team Leader Na stared at me blankly.

"Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something on my face?"

"No, it's just... you seem different."

"In what way?"

"Well, it's hard to put my finger on it, but you look full of life. You almost seem... excited?"

Since observing people was his occupational hazard, it was going to be hard to hide my true feelings.

"Since I have to do it anyway, I might as well enjoy it. I've decided to change my mindset."

"Oh, our rookie went to the patrol division and came back enlightened. Working with a smile is great. Very desirable."

"I'll make sure you guys smile a lot too, hyungs."

"Haha, let's do that. Let's have a good laugh thanks to our rookie."

How could I not be happy when money poured in every time I worked?

Let's smile. And let's live generously.

Unlike me, these people were grinding their bones to realize a just society while surviving on a meager salary.

My mentor must have felt the same way.

"Wow, by the way, the weather is absolutely killer!"

Who should I catch first today?