Ghost of the Drowned (7)

Seol Ha-woon has been chosen as the ending fairy for Episode 11. Ironically, Seol Ha-woon, who received the ending cut at 96th place in Episode 1, has now proven himself to be the core of the upcoming labyrinth as well as the entire season, receiving shout-outs from fellow explorers...

In Episode 1, he stares at the camera with a sorrowful, lonely look, but in Episode 11, he gazes directly into the lens with absolute confidence.

"Oh... Episode 1 and Episode 11. Did they edit that on purpose?"

Seoul Gangnam Police Station.

Lee Young-ho was walking down the hallway, an iced Americano in one hand and his phone in the other, scrolling through community posts.

Lee Young-ho tapped his screen, typing out a comment of his own.

Seol Ha-woon had signed dozens of autographs using the truck's body, and had even gifted them merchandise, including a Labyrinth Exploration NaN T-shirt that was nearly impossible to get. It was the first time he had seen his daughter smile like that.

Even when he bought her a Tunaping doll in the past, she hadn't been that happy.

The least he could do was return the favor with a little online support.

"This little punk... Ah, if only I were ten years younger, I'd be on Labyrinth Exploration NaN too."

It was a shame. Even now, whenever he went out for media briefings, the press would make a fuss about the "handsome ranker inspector."

"Being born early is practically a privilege, a privilege~"

He sighed as he walked, but suddenly, his body went rigid.

A spark of static electricity pricked his fingertips.

The cause was the window of the interrogation room hallway.

Through the blinds, he caught a faint glimpse of someone's hand.

A hand wrapped tightly in bandages.

"..."

A conversation from a few weeks ago flashed through Lee Young-ho's mind.

The day someone dug up Kim Yoon-jun's grave, his mother had said:

"There wasn't even a scratch on him."

And his own reply:

"He must have gotten at least a scratch."

A scratch.

Inspector Lee Young-ho grabbed the nearest passing officer.

"Hey, you."

"Ah, yes, Inspector."

"Who's inside?"

He pointed toward the interrogation room.

"Oh, that's a witness for the Kim Yoon-jun case."

"I'm asking who..."

In that split second, the interrogation room door swung open.

As if time had slowed down, a man stepped out.

Watching him, Lee Young-ho quickly schooled his expression, maintaining a perfect poker face.

He was a man who wore sunglasses even inside a police station.

Perhaps he refused to abandon his trademark. Or perhaps the eyes behind those lenses were too innocent.

DK.

He shook hands with the investigator, turned around, and locked eyes with Lee Young-ho. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

Lee Young-ho returned the smile, showing no sign of his inner turmoil.

"Well, well. If it isn't Mentor DK."

"Ah... Ranker Lee Young-ho... No, it's Inspector now, right? Long time no see."

He extended his hand. His left hand, wrapped conspicuously in bandages.

At that moment, Lee Young-ho's cerebral cortex flared. His thoughts raced at a fever pitch.

Why was DK's hand bandaged?

Was this the man who dug up Kim Yoon-jun's grave?

Even if he was, it was strange.

The trap had been set with explosives. Of course, an ordinary person would have been vaporized, but a ranker of DK's caliber would have healed quickly, leaving only a minor scratch.

Yet, DK had gone out of his way to wrap it in bandages.

So conspicuously.

How should he react?

If he gritted his teeth and ignored it, that would be even more suspicious. It was too loud of an injury to ignore.

If he asked, how should he frame it?

He didn't have much time. His reaction couldn't be delayed by even a fraction of a second. He had to ask the most natural question without betraying a single shred of his inner thoughts.

That was the way of the ranker's world.

Perception, judgment, execution. The entire process had to be completed in a fraction of a second.

"What happened to your hand? Where did you get hurt?"

"Ah... I got bitten by a rat."

Had DK prepared this answer in advance?

"Must have been a big rat. I guess you're still active in your adventures."

"I'm thinking of retiring soon. I was worried I might get stabbed too, just like Kim Yoon-jun."

DK curled his lips as he mentioned Kim Yoon-jun.

In that instant, Lee Young-ho's intuition flared.

This man hadn't come to be investigated.

He had come to search.

"Don't worry. Magic formulas and science have advanced so much lately. I've been losing sleep trying to keep up with my work, you know?"

"Can a five-digit ranker really handle it, though? When a four-digit ranker died just like that."

"Ah, haven't you heard the news?"

Lee Young-ho pretended to check his surroundings before whispering in a barely audible voice.

"The Volcanic Sect is on the move."

It was a bluff. A complete lie.

But surely, at least one of them must have come down by now. One of their own swordsmen had been murdered, after all.

"That's a relief, then. I'll be on my way. Keep up the good work."

Pat. DK patted his shoulder, smiled, and walked away.

Lee Young-ho watched his retreating figure and clicked his tongue.

"...That young punk, speaking so casually to me."

"Huh? Inspector, aren't you the same age as DK?"

Ju Dong-seok, a junior detective sergeant, had approached him.

"I was born early in the year, so I'm a year older. Didn't you know?"

"You told me before to stop using the 'early birthday' excuse."

"Ahem."

Lee Young-ho shook his iced Americano and sat down in his chair. Ju Dong-seok followed him, murmuring suspiciously.

"You know, Inspector... about Kim Yoon-jun's grave. It exploded, right?"

"Yeah. It blew up."

He stared calmly at his monitor.

"But just now, DK had a burn on his hand. Don't you think that's a bit strange, Inspector?"

A burn.

Lee Young-ho took a long sip of his coffee, acting completely unbothered.

"Did DK say it was a burn?"

"What?" Ju Dong-seok tilted his head.

"Did he personally tell you it was a burn?"

"Uh... no. I didn't ask, but isn't an injury like that usually a burn?"

Lee Young-ho chuckled.

"He told me he got bitten by a rat. Must have been an embarrassing way to get hurt."

"Haha. I guess so..."

"And besides, kid. That grave blew up weeks ago. A ranker of DK's level would have fully recovered by now. That trap was meant to catch grave robbers anyway."

"Ah... I suppose that makes sense."

This was a perfectly reasonable response.

The kind of ordinary thought anyone would have.

"But still... Kim Yoon-jun's body definitely blew up there, right?"

"Yeah."

Ju Dong-seok sighed.

"Sigh. His mother... I can't even imagine what she's going through. Even in death, the world won't leave him in peace."

Lee Young-ho, on the other hand, suppressed a sigh of his own.

Dong-seok. Since when did you start sharing such emotional laments with me?

You always claimed you were an INTP and struggled with empathy.

"Still, I can understand his mother's heart. Better to blow it up ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠than let grave robbers desecrate it... Tsk. What's there to say."

"Sigh... It's tragic."

Ju Dong-seok went back to his desk and sat down, while Lee Young-ho looked over his documents.

No, he only pretended to look at the documents ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠while scanning the office.

Detective Sergeant Ju Dong-seok. Officer Kim Tae-jun. Detective Sergeant Jang Min-ho. Officer Choi Ji-hoon. And countless other police officers constantly moving in and out...

Among them, there was a mole.

Maybe more than one.

Lee Young-ho clicked his mouse, lost in thought.

Did DK kill Kim Yoon-jun?

No, in fact, DK definitely did not kill Kim Yoon-jun.

If he had, he would have retrieved the body that very day.

The fact that DK was searching for Kim Yoon-jun's body meant he was, at the very least, on a different side from the killer.

Then, was DK an ally?

Was he searching for the person who stole the body because he was an ally?

...No.

That was absolutely not the case either.

The atmosphere in the police station, which had shifted at some point, proved it. Ever since Kim Yoon-jun died, something had been changing.

It was a labyrinth.

All the fragments were scattered like a puzzle, and he hadn't even gathered a single piece yet.

There was only one hypothesis his intuition could confirm with absolute certainty.

Labyrinth Exploration NaN.

The truth was undoubtedly hidden within it.

A TV, perfectly clean and tidy!

A laptop in front of the TV!

Lee Si-ah sitting in front of it!

"Whew!"

Lee Si-ah tried to calm her racing heart! She ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sat on her cushion, waiting ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for the broadcast to start! But her excitement wouldn't die down! The exclamation points in her mind wouldn't disappear!

Since the ending roll of the last episode had been Seol Ha-woon, how could anyone hold back?

Lee Si-ah smiled and typed into the chat as well.

Finally, the broadcast began!

From the very opening, the defense team was shown agonizing over their mercenary choices.

"I'll go with... this side. I'll work with the B-rank mercenaries. We have the construction team, defense team, cooking team, all divided... Oh, there's even a mercenary team specializing in rations?"

Yun Hwa-rim selected her mercenaries as if she were picking items from a food delivery menu.

Excluding her bonus coins, she spent 300,000 of her own coins.

"One S-rank mercenary. And fifteen B-rank mercenaries."

The Chinese spellcaster, Ryu Wei, chose one S-rank mercenary.

He was quite popular too. While the continent's absolute one-pick was Jo Woon, Ryu Wei was right behind him.

"I will hire fifteen A-rank mercenaries."

Jo Woon made a clean choice of fifteen A-ranks.

He spent 100,000 more than Yun Hwa-rim.

"First, I'll hire three S-rank mercenaries."

The warrior Min Seok-jae, Alice of the Rose Order, and the Night Runner Kellinic.

"And twenty B-rank mercenaries, along with three A-rank mercenaries."

She spent 700,000 coins out of her own pocket. Absolutely massive.