Episode 413
“…So….”
Click.
Lee Jae-heon asked after returning from seeing off Jeong In-ho and Ha Seong-yoon.
“Are you sure you’re going tomorrow?”
“I don’t have a tight schedule like the two people who just left.”
“I guess it’s easy to make a living as a detective?”
“It can’t be. “It’s a trick.”
“Huh…”
Lee Jae-heon placed a new snack across from Hong Gyeong-jun, who was still sitting at the table. Unlike before, which focused on sweet cookies and cakes, it was a salty pretzel with salt in it.
“…Are you going to get me some alcohol? “It’s closer to a snack than a refreshment.”
“If you want, bring out whatever you like.”
“Haha… no. “I don’t enjoy drinking that much.”
“That sounds like me.”
“is that so.”
Hong Gyeong-jun, who answered softly, immediately closed his mouth.
“….”
Emotions are maximized in the hidden world.
Hong Gyeong-jun was particularly susceptible to stimulation from the underworld, and as a result, he often did stupid things when he went to that world. Part of that was seeing Lee Jae-heon’s ability to be a good shooter.
“…I never thought I would find out about my senior’s current situation like this.”
But now I finally understand it a little bit.
“It’s almost like a ghost’s current situation, but…”
“Ghosts or whatever, you’re living well on your own, aren’t you? “There’s no way that obnoxious person is making excuses for being a ghost.”
That’s why they looked so overlapped.
“So, I wouldn’t really worry about him.”
I guess it was because Lee Jae-heon learned a lot from that obnoxious senior.
Hong Gyeong-jun also learned various techniques and ways of thinking from him, but in terms of actual period, the time he was a pair with him was not that long. It was natural that there was a difference from Lee Jae-heon, whom I met when I was quite young and continued my relationship in the secret world.
“Wouldn’t that gentleman be disappointed?”
“It’s good to hear that you grew up well and that people don’t like you. He showed great interest in my growth… well, even now that I think about it, I feel a little disgusted. “It’s an ambiguous sentiment to have against a ghost.”
“A vague sentiment?”
“Yes, it’s ambiguous.”
Hong Gyeong-jun answered while touching the already cooled tea cup.
“…There was an uproar when my senior was arrested and sentenced to prison. “I killed not just another person, but a serial killer targeting children, so I wondered if maybe I would get some leniency… There were many colleagues who secretly hoped that I would be released, even though I knew it made no sense.”
“….”
“But there were too many issues to believe it was an accidental accident caused by excitement during the suppression process. It was a planned crime. He cleaned up the house, which was originally empty, and even abandoned me, who was his partner, for fear that his crime would disadvantage other colleagues, and he also took away the tools of the crime and other things….” “I guess he went with a plan in mind.
”
“I had no choice but to see it that way. Moreover, the body of the criminal you killed was so horrific. “In addition to the premeditated crime, the brutality that was clearly demonstrated… it was a situation in which leniency could not be received no matter how one looked at it.”
Hong Gyeong-jun still hasn’t forgotten that day.
“It was bright red… holding a sharp knife… its smiling face wasn’t much different from usual, but its eyes were different.”
“Snow?”
“It wasn’t the kind of eyes that made me feel like I was going to die because I couldn’t bear the boring daily life, and it wasn’t the kind of eyes that made me click my tongue at the stupidity of my colleagues but didn’t hate them. “It wasn’t the playfulness he showed while teasing me, a stubborn junior, or anything like a faint affection.”
“….”
“He just looked relieved.”
It was joy mixed with sadness.
“That was the first time I… saw him emotionally. “I committed suicide not long after I entered prison, so it would be fair to say that it was my first and last time.”
Hong Gyeong-jun still didn’t understand why he looked so relieved. I didn’t even know that someone who was always mean-spirited, but in essence was cold and vicious, could make such an expression. There was nothing to guess other than that he had shed some heavy burden at the time.
“…What was so frustrating? “What was so difficult and painful that he smiled with that face?”
Hong Gyeong-jun asked Jae-heon Lee.
“Is it that difficult to be the main character?”
“…I don’t know what to answer.”
“I have a rough guess because I heard the story from In-ho Jeong and others. You must have stepped away from the role of the protagonist before committing or planning the crime. “Even if I died, I couldn’t die, so I must have been relieved to finally be liberated.”
“Maybe so.”
“But I still… don’t understand.”
My voice trembled.
“…Why did he do that?…”
I couldn’t shake off the question for a while after my senior died.
“Did I really hate interviewing victims, chasing criminals, catching them, putting them in jail, and ending the day applauding each other for a job well done? “When we had free time, we would rush to our favorite restaurant, eat soup, drink a cup of cheap instant coffee, then come back and talk about various things before leaving work, and I wonder if our daily life was really that boring.”
I felt resentful.
“You didn’t have to… do that. I ended up having to grab that person with my own hands. “I don’t understand why he acted like that.”
“Isn’t it because he’s such a twisted person?”
“It was a mess, a lot of mess. I knew that from the moment we first met. My intuition kept telling me, ‘Wow, that’s really someone who will do something someday’… Actually, his face doesn’t look that good, does it? “It caused a lot of big and small conflicts from the beginning.”
“Didn’t the criticism with his face stop with Ha Seong-yoon? “Why is everyone like this?”
“It is true that it is a harsh impression. As I tread dangerously between the law and the law, my hands naturally become tense… and I start cursing when I don’t want to….” “….” ”
…
Haha….”
Hong Gyeong-jun I laughed helplessly.
“It’s really disgusting even thinking about it now.”
I respected that obnoxious person.
“Senior, you changed me. By massaging my stubbornness with both hands, he made me more flexible. There were many times when he treated me like a child and ignored me or led me into danger… but when it mattered most, he always kept the line. And it showed in the results.”
“What did you show me?”
“It was a result of how much better things get if you act flexibly. I respect that man. Miuna Gouna is my senior. I respect that flexibility and competence. In the end, you taught me a way for the greatest number of people to be happy.”
of course.
“…I don’t think you were happy.”
If he was happy, he wouldn’t have died like that.
“…I feel hateful, resentful, and angry. That’s why I lived my life forgetting about that person. “I lived with the confidence that my damn senior’s death wouldn’t have a big impact on me.”
“For something like that, wasn’t the reaction always strong?”
“I only found out about it when I went to the other side of the world. Oh, I really had a hard time. The shadow of that character destroyer was so dark. I thought I had forgotten everything, but no. How can you be so stupid? “It shouldn’t have been like this, it shouldn’t have been like this…”
Emotions are maximized in the behind-the-scenes world.
It even leads to some realities.
“…All my colleagues knew that I was trying hard to pretend not to know. They paid a lot of attention to me in one way or another. I received a lot of help. “They are good people.”
“….”
“Even though I know now that they are already dead and have become mannequins….”
“Are you sad?”
“maybe.”
He took a sip of the cooled tea and said.
“I guess I’m not very tactful.”
“No, you found out about it now?”
“They say people who don’t notice are naturally like this. “He doesn’t even know he’s oblivious.”
“You have finally become self-objective.”
“Senior always criticized me for being a tactless bastard, but I’m starting to admit it now.”
“Huh.”
“I was always late in accepting it.”
He continued speaking while looking into the almost empty teacup.
“Maybe that’s why I still feel…”
“…”
“…I’m not sure how I feel.”
Is it because it was so sudden?
“I found out the whereabouts of the dead gunner. Shouldn’t I have reacted more strongly? I want to… but I don’t have the strength in my body to do that…”
What is so sad about the person who died like that that he remained as a ghost and why he stays in the mirror instead of Lee Jae-heon’s mannequin? How on earth was that damn protagonist in such a great position that he ruined so many people and even made a respected senior commit suicide? There were many things I wanted to ask and know.
No, no. Even if it’s not like there are so many questions, it’s just.
“….”
Just….
“…I don’t know.”
I didn’t know what I wanted to do.
* * *
Rumble –
rumble –
thud.
“….”
The man opened his mouth as the phone connected after an uninteresting tone.
“…hello?”
“….”
“Yes, this is Seong Dae-young. “It’s been a while since I contacted you.”
“….”
“No, really. I’ve already received a lot of support, so I’m not greedy enough to ask for anything more. Haha, sure.”
“….”
“It’s no different….”
Slurp.
Thick blood stained my shoes.
“The event on Friday and Saturday this week.”
“….”
“…Yes, I’m a little interested.”
Seong Dae-young glanced at the corpse lying on the floor.
“No, how beautiful the event held by the sponsors will be… grand and sophisticated. Since I’m only going back and forth between school and my studio, I feel like the scale of my work is getting smaller. I felt the need to ventilate the whole thing….”
“….”
“Hahaha, sure. If I had the backing of a teacher who supported me, wouldn’t everyone look up to me? The only person who can make me like that from a humble person is my teacher. You know. Yes yes yes of course. “Yes, that’s right.”
“….”
“If it’s okay with you… Oh, sure. yes. It is an honour.”
Tuk.
He hit the corpse’s head with the toe of his shoe. A familiar face comes into view.
“Intention? What do you mean by intention? I really wanted to go there just to vent. I can’t believe I’m trying to get another line from the teacher who cares for me so much. Wouldn’t that actually be a loss? Ah hahaha. “Yes, that’s right.”
A woman with a ponytail.
Until yesterday evening, she was the secretary who accompanied Seong Dae-young.
“…Oh, is that so? Friday is hard….”
“….”
“Good. That too is an honor. Rather, don’t you say that the second part of the event held by sponsors is the peak? “A party where you get together with only people you know will have a different taste.”
“….”
“Yes, thank you. I’ll see you then.”
Pop.
Seong Dae-young quietly placed the disconnected cell phone on the table.
“…Hmm.”
His gaze was focused on his former secretary lying on the floor.
“What should I do with this?”
If, as Song In-myeong said, the youngest member of the Lee Dang group was hiding his true personality, then that was incredibly important information. So, I killed the secretary who was listening to the story just in case, but I had no intention of turning it into a work of art.
Even if something that was already dead was turned into a work of art, its value was not great.
“Haa….”
After all, I have no choice but to just clean it up.
“I don’t know what this is because of that kid.”
It was a calm tone that matched his gentle appearance, but the bloody smell of the workroom added to the sense of discomfort.
Seong Dae-young did not trust Song In-myeong. Simple-minded and extremely selfish, he was a problem child who gave me a headache when I met him occasionally, even if I didn’t meet him often.
This guy who was wandering around because he couldn’t decide on a style for his work is proud of being loved by sponsors just because of his dexterity.
‘I can’t stand it against a brat who doesn’t even have a signature…’
Song In-myeong is bold enough to look like an asshole, but Seong Dae-young admits that he is also shrewd. It was not wise to meet the youngest member of the Lee Dang Group unless you knew what his intentions were. Unlike Song In-myeong, who was like a crazy colt, he was cautious.
But if you just watch from afar.
“….”
That might not be that bad.
Without any expectations, Seong Dae-young promised to meet Lee Jae-heon.
(Continued in the next part)
