The Real Culprit
[The real culprit is someone else. The real culprit is watching me, so I lied to get away from you, Detective.]
Han Jaejeong pocketed the note and kept his eyes fixed on the direction where Lee Yeon-hui had disappeared.
Was that why she'd spouted such bizarre nonsense?
That was the reason she'd muddied the waters with irrelevant stories and kept circling back to square one at every crucial moment.
Lee Yeon-hui must have been racking her brains the whole time they talked.
To escape Jaejeong meant escaping the real culprit's gaze on her.
Still, one puzzle remained unsolved.
Couldn't she have just spilled everything back at the barracks from the start?
Sure, maybe she didn't trust Jaejeong, but a detective in the middle of an investigation could offer that much cooperation.
Then again, that was just from Jaejeong's perspective.
"So what the hell am I supposed to do about it."
The words slipped out before he realized it.
He got it now, but what next? What was she expecting him to do?
Handle it on his own since he was in charge of the investigation?
Regardless of anything else.
The fact that the real culprit had Lee Yeon-hui under close watch could definitely restrict Jaejeong's movements.
He needed to meet her right away and get her testimony on the case to track down the culprit.
Jaejeong pondered.
How could he summon Lee Yeon-hui somewhere without raising any suspicion?
He even considered meeting the suspect locked up again, but quickly dismissed it.
Still, he was curious.
If the real culprit was someone else, as per her statement, why had the man confessed so readily?
Either way, both of them had lied to Jaejeong.
He needed to think this through carefully.
Then, an idea flashed through Jaejeong's mind.
A way to draw the culprit's eyes off Lee Yeon-hui.
Create a bigger incident.
Jaejeong headed to the barracks where the soldiers lived.
He called out Kim Chan-yeol and Choi Hoon.
"You two, spread the word about the murder case to everyone. Say the culprit's been caught and it'll be handled publicly tomorrow. As fast and as far as possible."
"Just say it's being handled?"
Kim Chan-yeol asked.
"Yeah. Make it as provocative as possible. Execution or whatever. You get the idea?"
"But why are we doing this, sir?"
"Hey, just do what I say. Why overthink it?"
Choi Hoon scolded Kim Chan-yeol, who couldn't contain his curiosity.
"Once everything's sorted, I'll explain. For now, trust me and follow through."
"Got it, sir. I trust you enough as it is. Right, Sergeant Choi?"
"Obviously. Should we start now?"
"Yeah. Do a good job."
Jaejeong patted their shoulders and stepped out, waiting for time to pass.
As sunset hit, he went outside, and everywhere he turned, people were talking about the case.
In the cramped confines of the safe zone, rumors spread like wildfire.
Soon, the sun set, and darkness fell.
Jaejeong pretended to head toward the construction site but turned toward Lee Yeon-hui's house.
The moment he knocked, she opened the door as if she'd been waiting.
He'd assumed she'd be staying with her boyfriend and his group, but she had her own place.
Jaejeong set his smartphone on the table.
Then he hit record.
"From now on, no lies. Spill every single fact. Can you promise that?"
"Yes. I promise."
Lee Yeon-hui swallowed dryly, her eyes resolute.
"Forget the past for now. Just the case. Start whenever you're ready."
"The victim died on a foggy night."
"How do you know?"
"I smelled blood on him that night."
"Who is 'him'?"
"On a foggy night, visibility was shit, so everyone stayed inside. No one sane—man or woman—would go out in that. Except one person who could wander without suspicion. The only left-handed person out that night."
Lee Yeon-hui stared straight into Jaejeong's eyes.
"It's the Work Leader."
Work Leader?
Jaejeong felt like he'd been clubbed in the back of the head.
The Work Leader was the first discoverer and one of the people helping with the investigation.
For him to be the killer?
Impossible to believe.
"Evidence?"
"In his house. A kitchen knife."
Jaejeong tilted his head.
"How do you know? And why did the Work Leader come to your house that night? Just saying this puts you on the suspect list."
"I don't care. I can't take it anymore. I told you—I couldn't refuse him. Even after my boyfriend helped me, he kept coming at night."
"No way..."
"Yes. The Work Leader, that fucking bastard. He threatened to throw me to the starving ones if I refused, said he'd use his position to screw me over. Even said he'd hurt my boyfriend. So I... to that Work Leader bastard..."
Thick tears rolled down Lee Yeon-hui's cheeks.
But whenever she said "Work Leader," her eyes flashed with murderous intent.
It gave even Jaejeong, watching, chills.
"There was no way out. It was pure hell. I lived in fear every day that my boyfriend might find out."
"I... don't know what to say. Must've been rough."
For Jaejeong, past or present, these moments were the hardest.
Especially in sex crime cases.
There were female officers for that, but they couldn't be there every second.
Lots of awkward situations like this.
Whether Jaejeong liked it or not, Lee Yeon-hui was getting worked up, on the verge of bawling.
"I'd gotten a separate house thinking I'd live with my boyfriend, but he got isolated in some weird guys-only place after our fight. After that, the bastard came openly, all the time."
"Alright, got it. Summing up: Work Leader's the killer. He went out that night, smelled of blood. That's testimony. We need the murder weapon from his house. You're sure it's there?"
"Yes. If he walks free without charges, I'll just die. Better that way."
"Even if that happens, we'll handle that part as a separate case. Don't worry."
Lee Yeon-hui suddenly grabbed Jaejeong's hand.
He tried to pull away, but her desperation made it impossible.
"Catch him. Please catch that bastard. I can't live like this. It's too much."
"Yeah, we'll make it a separate case..."
"That won't cut it! Do you know how dangerous he is? Are you seriously clueless? The face he shows people is a mask. He's a whole different person."
"You don't know me that well either."
Jaejeong snorted shortly and patted the back of her hand.
"I'm not what people see. Don't worry about that. Just need the evidence."
"...If this goes wrong, I'll kill myself."
Her face twisted like death was imminent.
Jaejeong swallowed dryly at the sight.
Work Leader or this woman—both gave him the creeps equally.
"Anything else helpful?"
"The person he killed might not be the only one. Can't prove it now, but know that. And he's no ordinary guy."
Jaejeong stopped the recording.
"One last thing from me. I'll investigate based on your statement, but both you and your boyfriend—the current suspect—have given false testimony and a false confession. I can't take everything at face value. You get that. And I'll come back if needed. Alright."
With that, Jaejeong stepped outside.
The streets were pitch black except for sporadic streetlights.
Walking for a while, he glanced back on impulse.
Lee Yeon-hui's house was faintly visible in the distance.
He hadn't asked, but one odd thing nagged.
Why would the Work Leader hide the murder weapon in his house?
He could've buried it or tossed it in the river.
It was the first doubt that hit after her testimony.
First things first... head to the Work Leader.
Back at the barracks, Kang Youngman was waiting.
No more time to waste.
After hearing the recording, Youngman clenched his fist tight.
"Never seen such a piece-of-shit human."
"Calm down. We can't get heated. We don't even know if it's true yet."
"Would a woman lie like that? What's in it for her? Just stirs up weird rumors and tags her with a bad rep."
"Fair point. Normal people think that way. But we can't. Stick to the facts."
Jaejeong soothed him.
But Youngman looked unconvinced.
"No, lad. Age teaches you things. This woman's not lying. If she could lie that well, she'd be a star actress by now. Right?"
"I don't think it's outright lies either. Just keeping the possibility open."
"...Sigh. Fine. What's next?"
"We go in."
"Where?"
"Hunt for evidence."
As Jaejeong stood, Youngman hurriedly slipped on his shoes and followed.
First, they needed to lure the Work Leader outside.
Kim Chan-yeol and Choi Hoon handled that.
They found him chatting with the daily necessities manager and pulled him away on a pretext from the tower, to the boundary zone.
From afar, Jaejeong and Youngman watched, then burst into the Work Leader's house.
It was spotless.
The two paused, taken aback by the pristine order.
This went beyond a typical housewife's clean.
They took off their shoes and entered.
No dust on the table, windowsill, shoe rack—nothing.
"This level? Wiping morning and night, every day."
Youngman said, impressed.
"Yeah."
"Looks like he belongs in a pigsty, but damn."
The place was so tidy, no major search needed.
Just check closets, cabinets, drawers.
But nothing that looked like a murder weapon.
Jaejeong, standing still, spoke up.
"This obsessive clean might be hiding something."
"Really? Dirtier surroundings make hiding easier, no?"
"Nah. Too messy, and investigators comb every inch. They do anyway, but."
"Doesn't seem like the type to think that deep."
"Maybe."
Jaejeong decided to look harder.
If the cleanliness was deliberate against his nature, traces would linger somewhere.
Like shoving time-consuming stuff into one spot in a rush.
Houses without such spots meant the owner really cleaned often.
"Huh?"
Scanning around, Jaejeong's eyes caught the sofa where Youngman had sat.
"What?"
"Isn't this a fold-out sofa?"
It transformed from bed to sofa, with storage drawers below.
The only spot in the house to hide something.
"Is it?"
They hurriedly opened the drawers.
And there—bundled blankets instead of neat folds.
They exchanged glances, then slowly unfolded them.
"...Fuck."
Youngman grimaced and stepped back.
Inside the blankets lay a kitchen knife, crusted with dried blood.
They'd secured the decisive evidence at last.
Infected People