I Became a Rookie Cop (3)
Inside the cafe with "Duchil's Coffee Beans" written on the sign, Park Eun-young and Kang Jin-ho arrived to find a hulking black police officer stroking his chin in evident distress. It was Raphael, the chief of the Eastern District Police Station No. 7 Substation, whom they'd seen earlier.
"Chief?"
Park Eun-young stepped forward and addressed him.
"Oh, you're here? And the newbie too. Tough first day, huh."
"Is this the owner?"
"Yeah. I was just hearing her out, but this case is a real headache. Doesn't seem like there's much we can do."
Behind Raphael stood a middle-aged woman in an apron, trembling anxiously. Her clothes and expression left no doubt—she was the owner herself.
"What do you mean there's not much we can do...?"
"This one's almost certainly a superpower crime. I just got here myself and was in the middle of the briefing. Wanna hear it together? Sergeant Kim, mind filling them in?"
"Yes, sir."
At Raphael's signal, Kim Kyung-jang, who had arrived first on the scene, began his report in measured tones.
Last night, the entire counter from the cafe vanished. The cash inside came to exactly 987,000 won.
"Hold on—don't most cafes these days rely on card payments, so they don't keep much cash in the register?"
"We only accept cash..."
"...Ah, got it."
Raphael let out an awkward cough, and Kim Kyung-jang continued the briefing.
"The internal CCTV had been broken for three weeks, so we couldn't check the footage from the time of the crime."
"What about external cams? You checked the ones on the main street by the front door and the alley behind, right?"
"Yes, we reviewed the external footage thoroughly, but... after the shop closed yesterday afternoon, only one person came and went—through either the front or back door."
"One person?"
The cafe owner answered in a quavering voice.
"I-I realized I'd left something behind, so I stopped by around 7 p.m. The counter was still there then... But when I came back this morning, it was completely gone..."
"Hmm..."
Raphael stroked his chin, piecing together the info. Between 7 p.m. yesterday and this morning, no one entered the shop, yet the counter inside had disappeared. A perfect locked-room theft.
Common sense might scream foul play by ghosts or the like, but this was Light City. No superpower was too outlandish here.
"Invisible person...? Nah."
"Right—the door would've opened and closed visibly."
"Teleportation...? Possible, but doesn't add up."
Space-teleportation ability users were among the rarest and most powerful. One risking it all for under a million won at a hole-in-the-wall cafe like this? No way.
Superpower crimes were a nightmare for exactly this reason. The possibilities were endless—any ability that could plausibly commit the crime—and without a matching superpower, pinpointing it was nearly impossible.
"Ma'am, let me be straight with you."
Raphael, having sorted his thoughts, addressed the owner with a grim expression.
"If you hire an information-type hero, they'd probably catch the perp."
"B-but aren't they swamped already?"
"True. The damage isn't huge, no casualties, so it won't get much attention. Slim chance they'd take the case. We'll do our best, but catching the culprit... probably won't happen."
"Ch-Chief? A word over here?"
Park Eun-young, who had been listening with keen interest, cut in.
"Huh? Officer Park? What's up?"
"Well..."
Confirming they were far enough from the owner, Park Eun-young spoke in a cold tone.
"Doesn't this scream inside job?"
"Inside job?"
"Yeah. Too many coincidences."
Park Eun-young methodically pointed out the oddities.
"The internal CCTV just happens to be busted. A superpowered thief takes what barely counts as big money—a million won. Too perfect a coincidence. Too minor for heroes, too tricky for regular police."
"...Someone who knows the cafe well could've done it. I agree it's suspicious."
"Who knows it best? The owner. With crime insurance, this smells like insurance fraud."
"Hmm..."
Raphael tilted his head but pressed on.
"Not impossible... but could the owner hide a whole counter? If she hauled it out, CCTV would've caught it—Sergeant Kim would've mentioned it."
"Yes, she was definitely empty-handed."
"Hide it somewhere inside the cafe. Or smash it into bits and smuggle it out in her clothes. What bugs me most is the counter vanishing whole. What thief hauls off an entire register? Cash alone is less risky, more efficient. Even a teleporter wouldn't bother with the bulk."
"Mm."
Raphael found himself nodding despite himself. Park Eun-young's reasoning was compelling. Far more than some random teleporter popping in for pocket change, an insurance scam by the owner made sense.
But plausible didn't mean actionable.
"I buy your theory, Officer Park. But we don't have enough for an on-site arrest. You get that, right?"
"...Yes, of course."
"Speculation ends here. Let's wrap up: finish photos, conclude the owner interview, head back and file the report. Homicide or major crimes handles the details. We do our part."
"..."
Despite Raphael's pragmatic orders, Park Eun-young bowed her head with a dissatisfied look. No one quite noticed, but her shadow seemed to writhe subtly.
"Uh, that is!"
"Hm? Newbie? What's up?"
Kang Jin-ho, who'd been watching, suddenly stepped forward. Park Eun-young's shadow had looked ready to snap everyone's necks, so he'd blurted out the first thing to defuse it—only to draw a blank on what to say next.
"What's wrong? Got something to add? What does the genius newbie think?"
Park Eun-young's eyes sparkled as she asked. Kang Jin-ho, avoiding her gaze, steeled himself.
Alright, I stuck my neck out—might as well go all in. No turning back now.
Composing himself, he spoke in a calm, serious tone.
"I'm just hungry... Mind if I get a cake to go?"
"...Huh?"
Park Eun-young blinked in confusion at the curveball. Raphael waved it off.
"Sure, sure. Owner, can we box up a cake?"
"R-right now? Uh, sure..."
The owner awkwardly opened the display case.
"Not that one. The squished one in the corner."
"Oh, this? I was gonna toss it—it's misshapen..."
"Gotta support you in tough times, even if it's imperfect. Heh."
"I'll give you a discount then. 6,000 won."
"Cash only, right?"
"Yes, but transfers work too."
"..."
Amid the investigation, casually buying cake drew a murderous glint to Park Eun-young's eyes. Meeting it briefly, Kang Jin-ho nearly wet himself but held his cool.
I'm a genius. I'm a genius. I'm a freaking brilliant genius.
To leave a deep impression on Park Eun-young, this nonchalance was key.
Back at the substation. Park Eun-young said nothing.
"..."
She just occasionally eyed Kang Jin-ho up and down, clearly pondering how to force him to quit.
Enduring the prickly silence like sitting on thorns, the two patrol cars returned.
"Alright, reports first, everyone. Superpower crime, so stick to facts—what we saw, confirmed info only. Got it?"
"Yes, Chief."
"Newbie, shadow Officer Park on the report. Just get a feel for it. Oh, and you were hungry? Eat your cake."
"About that cake you mentioned..."
Kang Jin-ho pulled the boxed cake from his pocket and set it prominently on the table for all to see.
"Time to confess."
"?"
The officers, shedding jackets, stared at him en masse. Fresh off the scene—what was this?
"N-newbie? What the hell?"
"I was talking to the perp. Can't run now that we're back, right?"
"?"
Question marks practically floated over their heads. Perp? Brought here? When?
Kang Jin-ho pointed at the boxed cake and stated flatly,
"This cake is the one that stole the counter."
"..."
A beat of silence.
"Heh, interesting."
As Park Eun-young's eyes lit up, Raphael exchanged quick glances with the others.
"I heard that right? What'd you say?"
What was this new recruit spouting?