Starting from Scratch

The sales team's first business trip was over.

They had cleanly resolved all fifteen cases, bringing in over thirty million won in fees alone.

It was a late start, but a highly successful debut.

Although one person was found dead, that couldn't be considered a failure.

After all, we couldn't guarantee whether a target would be alive or dead.

"We found the runaway kid in a karaoke room, but the high schoolers he was with blocked our way. Kids these days have no fear. They actually tried to take me on, even after seeing my size! There must've been about ten of them."

Manager Geum, who had returned to the office, was vividly recounting his experience in Cheonan.

Section Chief Eun, who had worked solo, showed curiosity in Manager Geum's heroic tale.

"So, did you strip off your shirt again?"

"I was going to, but the rookie didn't give me the chance."

"Why? What did Assistant Manager Dong do?"

"He smashed a perfectly good karaoke table with his bare fist. You should've seen those high schoolers shaking in their boots. Of course, we had the misfortune of paying the owner for the table, though."

"Well, at least he didn't hit anyone. Good job holding back, rookie."

"Do you know what the cops said when they arrived a few minutes later?"

"Hold on. Stories like this are best enjoyed over a drink."

"Hey, hyungs."

Assistant Manager Dong, the protagonist of the tale, spoke to the two older men with a deadpan expression.

"Read the room, will you?"

"Why?"

"Can't you see how tense the atmosphere is over there?"

"Huh?"

The two turned their gaze to where Assistant Manager Dong gestured with his chin.

Hyeon Jubaek, who had first discovered the body and called 112, was reporting the situation to me.

"Detectives from the Taean Police Station arrived, secured the scene, and recovered the body."

"Did the client see his son's body?"

"No, not at the scene. I stopped him from looking."

As a former military police officer, his handling of the situation was swift.

"You did well. It would have been a massive shock if he'd seen it himself."

"It looked like an autopsy would be necessary, but I couldn't bring myself to say that to him."

"The Taean station will probably request it anyway. Whether to proceed with the autopsy is up to the bereaved family."

I stood up and addressed the sales team members who had returned from their mission.

"Despite it being our first day, you all did a wonderful job wrapping things up. Thank you for your hard work. Normally, we should celebrate with a team dinner, but the client's son was found dead today."

"Oh, dear..."

"I'd like us to wrap up quietly today out of respect for the deceased. How does everyone feel about that?"

"Yes, of course we should."

CEO Cha, who had been staying in the office until then, readily agreed to my suggestion.

"I believe that's the right call as well."

"I agree."

"Naturally."

No one objected to my opinion.

I was grateful for that.

The next day, I arrived at the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency a bit early.

I stopped in my tracks in the hallway leading ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to the Quick Investigation Team's office when I saw the bulletin board on the wall.

"It's finally up. I've been slacking off for a while, so it's time to get back to work."

The avatar army, centered around Team Leader Na of the Seongam Police Station, hadn't been earning much lately.

When was the last time I received a reward text message?

One of the reasons was that the crime rate in Seongam-si wasn't what it used to be.

To use the money deposited into the Black Card legally, I needed to launder it, and I still had one Laundering Ticket left.

The first Laundering Ticket had burned through a 4.4 billion won balance on the Black Card to grant me a lottery number worth nearly 20 billion won—almost five times the original amount.

"It's the way of the world that the larger the bet, the bigger the payout."

I didn't know if the same rule would apply to a smaller pool, but I couldn't help but feel expectant.

To increase the accumulated amount on the Black Card, I had to increase the number of arrests first, but honestly, the current avatars were a bit...

Just then, excellent replacements appeared right in front of me.

A list of officers slated for promotions and awards was posted on the bulletin board.

Excluding desk workers and administrators, I selected four sharp detectives who mainly worked in the field.

"For now, I'll just write down their departments and names..."

I could find their photos in the organizational chart.

And the organizational chart was easily accessible through the police intranet.

Once I uploaded the photos to the Beomjappa system and registered them as sub-users, the auto-hunt feature would be complete!

Using photos as keywords made the task much easier.

I had felt a bit anxious since morning.

But after replacing all the sub-users, my mind was put at ease.

As soon as I finished the task, Ju Harin called.

"Yes, Director Ju."

"Can you talk right now?"

"Yes, my workday hasn't started yet. Go ahead."

"I got a call from the Investigation Bureau of the National Office of Investigation. They said the list of wanted suspects to be arrested in February is ready, and they want us to pick it up."

"Why make us go in person when they could just email it?"

"They said it might be a security issue."

"Send CEO Cha. He needs to visit the National Police Agency often to get used to it."

"Understood. And..."

Ju Harin had one more piece of business.

"Apparently, Assistant Manager Hyeon Jubaek got a call late last night."

"From the Taean Police Station?"

"Yes. They asked him how he ended up at the scene."

"And?"

"He told them he went with the client to find the missing son."

"And then?"

"They asked him to come in for questioning as a witness."

It was only natural for them to be suspicious.

Although a dog had dug up the sand to find it, Hyeon Jubaek was the one who reported it.

And right next to the scene, accompanied by the deceased's mother.

This wasn't something to leave to Assistant Manager Hyeon; I had to handle it myself.

"Tell him not to go and to wait. I'll take care of it."

"Okay, will do. See you this evening."

Ju Harin hung up without even asking how I planned to resolve it.

I searched the address book for the phone number of the Taean Police Station's Detective Division.

Just as I picked up the receiver to call the detective in charge, the door to the Quick Investigation Team's office opened.

"Oh, Detective Min, you're already here?"

It was Park Kangtae, the Chief of the Metropolitan Investigation Unit.

"Salute! Good morning, Chief."

"Is Inspector Seo not here yet?"

Just as I was about to say no.

"Seo Jihye, reporting for duty!"

Seo Jihye swept into the office, bringing a gust of cold air with her.

"Traffic was a bit backed up. Oh? I'm not that late, though."

With a cheerfulness that belied her status as a mother, Seo Jihye preemptively blocked any scolding from the Chief.

"Who said you were late? I just came to let you know a new case has arrived."

"Oh, a case! What is it? Arson? Serial murder? Rape?"

Seo Jihye clasped her hands to her chest, her eyes sparkling.

How many women in South Korea could utter such horrific words with such a bright expression?

"A body buried in the sand was found on Hamyeon Island in Taean. The deceased is a twenty-one-year-old male, a sophomore majoring in business administration at Hankuk University."

I knew I had a bad feeling about this.

"The Commissioner ordered us to wrap this up before Lunar New Year."

"Understood."

Seo Jihye answered immediately, but I couldn't.

"Detective Min?"

The Chief asked, noticing my silence.

"Yes."

"You're confident, right?"

"...I'm not sure."

"Not sure? Since when do you say things like that?"

"I think I'll have to investigate first to know."

Seo Jihye nudged my side and spoke.

"Come on, what's with you? You know what they say about excessive modesty, right?"

To Inspector Seo, who thought I was joking, I spoke honestly.

"I really don't know."

I meant it.

This was also the reason I had been anxious since morning.

When I ran Smoking Gun Tracking using the photo of the deceased college student, the response I got was:

Did Beomjappa even have a database?

Unregistered information could not be serviced?

Yesterday, I realized for the first time that even Beomjappa had its limits.

A sudden doubt crossed my mind.

If the information wasn't complete, did that mean the system could suddenly disappear one day?

"What are you thinking about so deeply?"

Seo Jihye, who was at the wheel, glanced at me and asked.

We were on our way to the Taean Police Station to meet the detective in charge.

"It's nothing."

"It doesn't look like nothing. Did you fight with your girlfriend?"

"You might as well ask if I fought with a ghost."

"Ah, a solo-since-birth type."

"Inspector, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure. Anything's fine."

"Why do people usually commit murder?"

Perhaps it wasn't the question she expected, as a small chuckle escaped Seo Jihye's lips.

"Do you want a profiler's answer?"

"Yes."

"Hmm. During a robbery, either accidentally or planned. Out of a sense of duty because they believe it's right. Due to mental instability. Because the pain of a breakup turned into hatred. Or because of common money problems."

"That's a lot of reasons."

"The motives for murder are countless. Some even kill out of curiosity."

"Like a psychopath?"

"Yes. But those are rare cases. Most murders are driven by grudges. That's why if you look closely at the deceased's past life, you can quickly figure out who killed them and why."

Who would hold a grudge against a twenty-one-year-old college student, and for what?

"Of course, Detective Min, with your outstanding intuition... or was it a hunch? Anyway, with that..."

"I'm serious. I really don't have a hunch this time."

"Oh, that's not good. Should we stop by Mount Gyeryong on the way?"

"Why there?"

"To recharge your spiritual energy?"

"My divine inspiration has run dry, so going there won't help."

"Aw. So, we're starting from scratch?"

"Yes."

Though we joked, I was entirely serious.

I still had no idea where to start.

"The victim is a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠college student named Shin Haejun. Fortunately, his mother came to the excavation site, so we obtained her consent for an autopsy. The body was sent straight to the National Forensic Service in Seoul."

Inspector Oh Myeongjae of the Taean Police Station's Violent Crimes Unit was looking at us with a lukewarm expression.

It was understandable.

Before they could even begin their investigation, orders had come down from above to hand the case over to the Quick Investigation Team.

It meant they were being told to back off.

There was no reason for him to be pleased.

"I heard you called Hyeon Jubaek."

"And who did you hear that from?"

"From Hyeon Jubaek himself."

"Do you know him?"

"Yes. He's an employee on the sales team at Dachaja Co., Ltd."

"Dachaja? There's a company with that name?"

"It's registered as a partner company with the National Police Agency. They specialize in finding people who are hard to locate."

"Ah, is that the company mentioned on the police intranet?"

"...What was posted?"

"Yes. A notice went up this morning telling us not to hang up if we get a call from a company that locates wanted fugitives, but to follow their guidance and make the arrest. It looked like it was written by the Investigation Bureau of the National Office of Investigation."

They had already put up a notice.

I could guess the level of expectation they had for Dachaja.

"That's correct. I also happen to be the private partnership liaison managing that company."

"Ah, I see."

I wrote down my phone number on a slip of paper and handed it to him.

"If anything comes up while you're looking into this case, please give me a call."

"Isn't your team taking over the case?"

"The Quick Investigation Team consists of just the two of us. It'll be hard to wrap this up before Lunar New Year by ourselves."

"Then...?"

"Let's cooperate."

"Cooperate?"

"Once the estimated time of death is determined, Inspector Oh, please find out where the deceased stayed and if he had any companions."

"I'll have to comb through all the CCTV footage in that area."

"Unless he came down for a day trip, he probably got a room near Anji Beach."

"Naturally."

I didn't ask because I thought Inspector Oh Myeongjae didn't know such basic facts.

I was currently going through the process of questioning and answering myself.

My late mentor had said this to me when he was alive.

Was that back when the Commando didn't have the navigation system?

A detective who ran on his feet, an investigation that dug in like a rabid dog.

It was like the legacy my mentor had left me.

"...Detective?"

I hadn't heard Inspector Oh properly because I was lost in thought for a moment.

"What did you just say?"

"I said there probably aren't any punks in that neighborhood. All the young people have moved to the cities."

"Punks aren't always young, you know."

"Well, that's true. So you're treating this as a homicide?"

"A person can dig a hole on their own, but burying themselves is a bit tricky. We have to assume someone buried him there."

"Indeed."

"I'll let you know the estimated time of death and cause of death as soon as we get the results from the NFS. We'll visit the school the deceased attended, so please handle this end, Inspector Oh."

"Understood. But, about the lead investigator for this case..."

"Naturally, it's you, Inspector Oh. Even if we catch the culprit, we'll bring them back to the Taean station."

"Understood."

Inspector Oh's motivation was reignited.

Thanks to that, I also recovered my old memories.

I was a detective even before Beomjappa existed.

A detective who bit down and never let go, raw and relentless.

"What are you, Santa Claus?"

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

I got scolded by Seo Jihye in the car heading back to Seoul.

"I'm sorry. I made the decision on my own without even asking for your opinion, Inspector."

"I don't mind. I don't really care about performance points. But what about you, Detective Min?"

"I'm not worried about performance points either. I don't plan on getting a special promotion through this anyway."

"Special promotion? Don't tell me you think that's the only way to get promoted?"

"There are other ways?"

"Wow, look at how bold this guy is."

"I absolutely hate taking exams. A man should do it in one shot. A clean sweep promotion."

"I like your spirit. And I like that you're more energetic than before."

"Do I look that way?"

"Yes. It all shows on your face, Detective Min. You actually look a bit excited right now."

Seo Jihye hit the nail on the head.

Unlike the frustrating morning, I could see a path forward now.

I felt like I had a grasp on how to conduct the investigation.

"Let's pull over at a rest stop to refuel. I need to make a phone call too."

I planned to call Ju Harin and tell her to let the Dachaja sales team rest for the day.

My heart raced at the thought of doing some good old-fashioned, grueling detective work for the first time in a while.