Chapter 113
Chapter 113
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 113
Chapter Title: Shin Dong Mountain
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Shin Dong Mountain.
It was usually quiet, with only the occasional hiker passing through, and not many people frequented it otherwise.
Yet, right at the base of the mountain stood a cluster of four- to six-story buildings—a strangely urban foothill.
Now, police were swarming the place.
Kim Ho-cheol, the Violent Crimes Division Chief who had been about to start a briefing, headed straight there himself.
The moment he got out of the car, he immediately scanned for the suspect.
“Hey, where’s that bastard?”
“We’re just about to load him into the patrol car…”
Kim Ho-cheol grimaced as he watched the middle-aged man, handcuffed, being shoved into the back seat of the patrol car.
He looked utterly ordinary.
No striking features, no marks on his body.
Just… the picture-perfect image of any random hiker you might spot anywhere.
To think this guy had committed such a horrific crime.
Kim Ho-cheol had seen plenty of people and dealt with dozens, hundreds of crimes…
But murder was still something he couldn’t wrap his head around.
Other violent crimes? Sure, he could understand them to some extent.
Drugs?
The guy was addicted, couldn’t kick the habit.
If he was distributing? Probably just needed the money.
Rape?
Some sick bastard lost control to his lust.
That made sense.
But murder?
No matter how you sliced it, all he could think was, *Did you really have to kill someone?*
Not that he was defending other violent crimes—murder was just… different.
For victims and perpetrators alike.
No matter what, murder stood apart.
Kim Ho-cheol approached the guy with an irritated scowl but ultimately stopped short.
What was the point?
He’d just vent some anger and give the perp pointless fodder for stories.
In this state, there was no way he’d get anything useful out of him.
Letting out a small sigh, Kim Ho-cheol turned toward the victim instead.
A middle-aged female hiker.
She was huddled under a blanket, shivering near the ambulance—for reasons known only to her.
Someone had handed her a cup of warm water, which she clutched in her hands.
Kim Ho-cheol watched her for a moment before speaking up.
“Excuse me. I’m Kim Ho-cheol, Violent Crimes Division Chief from Ilsan West Police Station. Mind if I ask a few questions?”
“Oh… sure.”
The woman nodded and forced out a response.
She still looked a bit frightened, which was understandable given what had just happened.
“Did you know the perpetrator beforehand?”
“No, no. First time I saw him today.”
She waved her hands hurriedly.
Kim Ho-cheol furrowed his brow.
He glanced at Oh Min-seok, the Team Leader standing beside him.
“You said the crime scene was off the main trail, right?”
“It was pretty deep in, down a side path.”
Oh Min-seok nodded in confirmation.
Kim Ho-cheol turned back to the woman.
“So, what made you go that deep into the woods with a total stranger? Did he threaten you or something?”
“Uh, well…”
She hesitated at his question.
Kim Ho-cheol studied her briefly, then glanced around.
With all the police cars, curious hikers had gathered, murmuring among themselves.
“No, see… He was about the right age, seemed like we might hit it off. So I chatted with him a bit, but he was kinda passive.”
“…I see.”
“Then I tried ignoring him, but… he kept following me. I figured he must’ve been into me, so I thought I’d talk privately, away from the hiking group.”
“Got it.”
Kim Ho-cheol nodded impassively.
He could piece it together now.
Sure, plenty of people hiked purely for the exercise, but ever since that movie *Reason for Hiking*…
Others had different motives.
This woman seemed to be one of them.
Kim Ho-cheol wasn’t the type to judge crimes by moral standards anyway.
“Just be more cautious next time if a guy starts tailing you.”
With that, he turned away.
Oh Min-seok followed behind him.
Kim Ho-cheol scanned the area a few times, then frowned again.
“Min-seok.”
“Yeah, boss.”
Oh Min-seok bowed his head slightly at the call.
“Where’s that guy?”
“We loaded him into the patrol car earlier.”
“No, not the perp. Sergeant Lee Jae-hyun.”
He’d arrived at the scene and still hadn’t spotted him.
Word was Lee Jae-hyun had caught the guy, but he wasn’t here now—that wasn’t normal.
“Oh, he handed off the perp and left right away.”
“Left?”
“Yeah.”
“Where to?”
Right on cue, Kim Ho-cheol pressed.
The perp was caught.
He could’ve stuck around, waited for backup, questioned the victim and suspect, dug deeper.
But handing off and bolting? Bizarre.
“Funeral home, I think?”
“Why?”
“Said there might be more than one perp.”
“What the…?”
Kim Ho-cheol’s brow furrowed at Oh Min-seok’s words.
More than one?
He hadn’t been there from the start, so grasping the full picture was tough.
Oh Min-seok continued, filling him in.
“Not confirmed yet, but the scene evidence… There’s suspicion the first and second crimes show different perp profiles.”
Kim Ho-cheol sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth as he listened.
There might be two perps—or not.
Either way, spotting those scene clues fast and piecing it together? Impressive skill.
Even if it turned out wrong, constantly questioning, holding onto doubts until absolute certainty—that was detective work.
*Maybe I really do need to beg him to join us three times over?*
Kim Ho-cheol rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
* * *
Meanwhile, Lee Jae-hyun had returned to the funeral home.
He’d climbed the mountain, nabbed the perp… then come straight here. Things had been hectic.
But he couldn’t exactly skip out.
Lee Jae-hyun straightened his disheveled clothes and stepped inside.
The altar for the first incident’s female victim.
Her husband and son were there as chief mourners.
Lee Jae-hyun paid his respects briefly, then took a seat.
Even he knew this was a funeral parlor.
Even if a suspected second perp was here, he couldn’t just charge in.
Sure, they called him Mad Dog, but that was for crossing lines with perps in his sights—not victims.
He hadn’t earned the name by disrespecting victims.
This was her altar. Out of respect for her, not the perp, he had to keep things quiet.
Lee Jae-hyun sipped a drink and observed.
Then, the son got up and headed outside.
Lee Jae-hyun rose quietly and followed.
Outside, the son had a cigarette in his mouth.
Unlit, he glared at Lee Jae-hyun.
“What? Why’re you tailing me?”
“Someone’s full of themselves. I just stepped out.”
“…Fine, whatever. No need to talk like that.”
The son glared a bit longer, grumbled, then pulled out a lighter.
Lee Jae-hyun smirked as the guy lit up.
Calluses on his hands.
Could be from anything, but swinging a baseball bat a lot did that too.
Lee Jae-hyun waited as the son inhaled deeply, then exhaled.
“Those hands—athlete’s hands? You work out with weights? Hit the gym?”
“…Yeah, I like working out. Why?”
Still sharp-toned.
Lee Jae-hyun shrugged.
“Me too. What’s your thing? Just gym? Or sports?”
“I do a bit of everything. But why keep asking?!”
Irritated, the son snapped.
Lee Jae-hyun didn’t flinch at the harsh tone or glare, firing off the next question.
“You into baseball?”
“…Ha, seriously. You don’t listen.”
The son shook his head and turned away.
Lee Jae-hyun watched him smoke slowly.
Annoyed, on edge…
He hadn’t been friendly with the detectives either.
Sure, losing your mom could make anyone prickly.
But bristling at the cop who might’ve caught her killer? Harder to swallow.
The husband knew about the affair, resented her…
But he grieved genuinely, cooperated fully.
The son? Opposite.
Extreme grief could explain it, but that off vibe from the first meeting? Couldn’t ignore.
Plus the calluses… and dodging the baseball question.
Lee Jae-hyun tossed out a jab.
“Scared?”
“Huh?”
“You scared or what?”
“What the fuck, man. Think you’re hot shit ’cause you’re a cop? Don’t talk to me like that. Why would I be scared?!”
The son erupted.
Lee Jae-hyun just shrugged lightly.
“Dunno. You’ve got no reason to be, sure. But you look kinda spooked right now.”
“What, you saying I’m the perp? You saw me with the detectives when that other guy killed someone.”
“Yeah, I saw. But I caught that guy.”
“…What?”
Lee Jae-hyun nodded flatly.
The son froze, stunned.
Her killer caught—and no joy, no outrage for mom, no vengeance.
Just… rattled.
Lee Jae-hyun’s lips curved up.