Episode 467
It is rarer than you think to know the smell of blood.
In fact, there was nothing that could be done about it; the normal wound did not bleed enough to be smellable.
Even if you cut your finger on a piece of paper, step on something and get a hole in the sole of your foot, or even worse, lose your fingernail, the smell is not so blatant that you would say, ‘Oh, it smells like blood!’
But homicide detectives were different. They have caught many crazy people carrying knives and seen many of the bodies of the victims sacrificed by those crazy people. Detective Ahn, who caught the criminal despite the fact that his body was bleeding, could faintly sense that the smell of blood coming from Lee Jae-heon.
“….”
“….”
The problem was why it was me.
Lee Jae-heon, who became expressionless, looked at Detective Ahn and muttered.
“The smell of blood.”
“…Uh oh.”
Detective Ahn stiffened.
At that moment, a strange thought occurred to me.
‘…What is this…? what’s this…? Is this the smell of blood? That’s right. Why does this smell come out of nowhere? Isn’t it okay to do this? Why am I like that? Did I do it wrong? It’s not? It’s not?’
And perhaps because of first impressions, his assumptions went to extremes.
‘Who did this person kill?’
These days, not only the ‘industry’ that Hong Kyung-jun and I are chasing, but also the mental world of criminals who cause serious trouble are truly mysterious. There were many screw-ups who enjoyed the thrill of hiding the victim’s body in the path where detectives came and went.
‘The house must be large, so it would be perfect for hiding a body…’
Lee Jae-heon’s home is a dignified two-story house, which is rare in an apartment-type building. The house was wide both vertically and horizontally, and had a lot of rooms, all of which were well twisted. Even if you deliberately hide a fresh corpse, it is difficult to find it.
‘But isn’t the situation so bad…? Even if Lee Jae-heon is a murderer, do I have the authority to dig it up? Kwon Kwon is a fucking dead person and it’s not the time to discuss such things, but I was just talking about my relationship with Gyeongjun. Why did I say out loud that I smell blood? The situation was strangely twisted. I could have left the house and talked quietly to Kyung-jun, but in this situation…’
And the problem arose somewhere else.
“….”
“…you…?”
Hong Gyeong-jun was blinking as if he knew something was going on.
Detective Ahn’s eyes showed a clear sense of embarrassment, as if he didn’t know he could smell blood coming from Lee Jae-heon. At the same time, it seemed as if he was trying to defend Lee Jae-heon when he was watching him.
‘Could it be an accomplice…?!’
Detective Ahn, who had been thinking about it, immediately corrected it.
“Oh, that can’t be possible.”
“…Detective Ahn, I can explain.”
“Uh, uh, I understand, so please explain, Detective Hong. “I didn’t take charge of this wrong, did I?”
“It’s not that you took charge of it wrongly, but it’s not related to a crime.”
“Yeah, you can’t do that….”
Not only did Hong Gyeong-jun hate crime, but there was trust built up between them while working as detectives. Rather than saying that his beloved junior detective actually had a hand in the conglomerate’s crimes, it was much more convincing that the detective knew that he had misunderstood the person who had a scary appearance and looked like a serial killer to anyone.
And Hong Gyeong-jun showed a strange reaction again.
“No, it is true that he is involved in a crime, but…” “
….”
As Detective Ahn looked back and forth between Lee Jae-heon and Hong Gyeong-jun in disbelief, Hong Gyeong-jun looked at Lee Jae-heon and belatedly continued speaking.
“This is the victim.”
“Oh, thank goodness…”
Detective Ahn, who was sighing in relief, soon changed his tone.
“Isn’t that fortunate?”
“No, I guess.”
“…Is this a case I can intervene in?”
“I don’t think so.”
“I thought so.”
Detective Ahn pulled out his head.
“What is this…! “What is this? Seriously, Gyeongjun, what are you doing on a regular basis?”
“I’m in front of Mr. Lee Jae-heon. Please calm down.”
“Aren’t you really obnoxious?! uh? know?!”
No matter how confusing it was, it was still only an assumption that the victim was meeting him for the first time, but it was extremely wrong to show this kind of behavior in front of the victim… but since the other person was Lee Jae-heon, who resembled a poisonous snake, I couldn’t control myself even more. All I could do was flutter around in excitement and confusion.
After a while, Detective Ahn muttered helplessly.
“No matter how much I think about this, it feels like I got involved in some big scenario. “I feel like I found out something I shouldn’t know.”
“It’s similar.”
“….”
Detective Ahn, who was licking his lips as if he had a lot to say, sighed and looked back at Jae-heon Lee.
“…If you are a victim and you smell blood, does that mean you were injured?”
“…little?”
“It wouldn’t smell like this if it was slightly injured.”
“I am receiving consistent treatment from a skilled doctor. Thank you for your concern.”
Lee Jae-heon’s smile and light drawing of a line showed his determination not to reveal the deeper situation. In fact, what can you tell a detective who came to conduct a show-and-tell investigation under orders from higher-ups?
‘Looking at the nuance of what you say, it seems like it’s a story that would hurt someone like me if they knew.’
When I heard that he was injured to the point of bleeding and that Hong Gyeong-jun was the victim, there were some things that caught my eye. A thick knit that covers the neck and wrists without any sense of season. One foot that was severely limping. A face that looks particularly bloodless.
I wondered if he was wearing warm clothes because he was very cold, as was the boiler…
‘Maybe he was trying to cover up his injuries.’
Detective Ahn frowned and cautiously opened his mouth.
“…Could you check your wounds for a moment?”
“You have a strong work ethic. “It won’t be difficult.”
Surprisingly, Jaeheon Lee willingly rolled up his sleeves. It may be true that he received consistent treatment, but there was a rough scab on his wrist, and Detective Ahn could tell how the wound was formed.
“…Did you get kidnapped somewhere? sorry.”
It was a mark of deep chafing from a rough rope.
“It was a very sensitive question.”
“it’s okay. “Anyway, the charges against me are gone now?”
“Ah, well…”
Honestly, unless I heard a proper investigation and heard the circumstances, I didn’t know whether Lee Jae-heon was the perpetrator or the victim. There is no law that says the perpetrator won’t get hurt. With Lee Jae-heon’s background, wealth, and acting skills, it seemed like Hong Gyeong-jun would have been able to fool him.
However, Detective Ahn had no right to know about the person named ‘Lee Jae-heon’. Even now, I’m here as a scarecrow detective, so what’s the investigation like? I was just worried that my beloved younger brother, Hong Gyeong-jun, was involved in something too dangerous.
“Now really, really… let’s go back.”
“I’m sorry for causing confusion.”
“It was nothing. “Take care of yourself.”
Detective Ahn, who was leaving the front door, could see Hong Gyeong-jun casting a strange glance at Lee Jae-heon.
“…Gyeongjun?”
“I’m on my way.”
“Oh yeah…”
Weren’t you just looking at me with such disapproval?
‘Is Lee Jae-heon caring for Gyeong-jun to the extent that that level of rudeness is a daily occurrence?’
I don’t know when we became that close.
‘It’s just like when I went to Doksarang…’
By the time I felt a sense of déjà vu, Hong Gyeong-jun appeared. Detective Ahn sighed as he returned to the parking lot.
“…I don’t know what the hell is going on.”
“I guess you don’t have to keep not knowing.”
“Is that what you want to say to your brother? “What are you going to say to your senior?”
Detective Ahn, who was in the driver’s seat, asked in a casual tone.
“So it’s okay, right?”
“What are you talking about?”
“You and that guy named Lee Jae-heon, well. All.”
“I think it’s probably okay.”
“Then that’s it.”
No matter how short-thinking Detective Ahn may be, there was a part of him who lived on this floor. I didn’t live in vain during that time, and I had at least some insight. Since he was a chaebol and a high-ranking person, and since Lee Jae-heon, the person involved, had drawn the line, Detective Ahn could not investigate the circumstances related to him.
I felt an indescribable sense of helplessness and desolation, and at the same time, a strange feeling of nausea arose.
“….”
He was also a detective.
There was a sense of duty and a certain amount of will. It would be even more strange if, despite receiving good treatment and care, no one felt anything when they saw a citizen injured so badly that he could smell blood. Still, Detective Ahn could do nothing.
Because I wasn’t allowed.
“…You should work hard too.”
“…? “I am always working hard.”
“Try harder.”
“Yes, I will listen carefully.”
“okay.”
Anyway, this is why I don’t fit in with the political world.
Detective Ahn left the parking lot, muttering calmly.
* * *
After the two police officers left.
“….”
Lee Jae-heon, sitting on the sofa, opened his mouth.
“…Do you think it went well?”
Perhaps naturally, it was Lee Jae-heon’s intention that Detective Ahn smelled blood.
It wasn’t a huge plan. However, I thought it was too much to have Hong Gyeong-jun as the only manpower to research the ‘industry’, and I felt that at least there was a need for someone internally who could talk to Hong Gyeong-jun.
‘Because the detective just seemed like a perfect fit.’
Not very stupid and not very skilled. However, perhaps because he had lived as a homicide detective for many years, his sense of duty seemed excellent. Therefore, he must have made such a complex and subtle expression when he checked on Lee Jae-heon’s injury, which was his first meeting with him.
‘I stimulated only a little sense of duty and guilt, and through Lee Jae-heon, I sufficiently raised my guard against this party and the higher-ups. From now on, if Hong Kyung-jun asks about industry-related work, he will probably try to cover or help as much as possible. There is a big difference between not knowing at all and being aware of it.’
Moreover, Detective Ahn was human.
So, it was not a mannequin, but a fully living person.
Considering Hong Gyeong-jun’s words that most of his co-workers were replaced by mannequins, Detective Ahn must have been one of the lucky few.
‘I don’t know exactly how Hong Kyung-jun decided to treat the mannequin, but I think it would be easier to have a healthy human as an assistant rather than a mannequin.’
Raising the temperature of the boiler or moving around to irritate the wound and make him smell blood was Lee Jae-heon’s attempt to create allies within Hong Gyeong-jun so that he could easily investigate the industry.
I don’t think it was a very great move.
“I might get a call later.”
It reminded me of the cocky chick who was glaring at Lee Jae-heon’s injury very disapprovingly.
Due to Hong Gyeong-jun’s personality, it was likely that he would receive a call to say hello toward the end of the evening after finishing his main job. I heard a story about someone getting hurt while catching Seong Dae-young, but it must have felt different from seeing it in person.
‘I couldn’t check properly because my partner detective was with me.’
Lee Jae-heon turned on his cell phone screen, thinking that he would have to pay more attention to Detective Hong Gyeong-jun’s main job for the time being.
“…what.”
Among the texts that came, there was one that was extremely awkward.
“Song In-myeong?”
The content that appeared on the screen was a common greeting message. I heard you were discharged from the hospital. How is your body? Are there any aftereffects? From the words of worry to the words to be careful next time, nothing suited Song In-myeong. Even if I read it with the utmost care, it didn’t seem like a metaphor for something or felt like it had any particular purpose.
It was unexpected in many ways.
‘…I thought at least if you were going to send a text like this, you would have sent it earlier.’
To Song In-myeong, everything in the world felt light. So, no matter what happens with Lee Jae-heon, since we had a fun collaboration, I thought he would do it sooner even if I contacted him, or I thought he wouldn’t do it at all.
I also wanted something like this. For Song In-myeong, it would have been more natural to send an immature text message like, ‘Oh, it was so fun. Let’s hang out together again next time.’ This is not a brief message of worry.
“….”
Lee Jae-heon’s expression became strange.
“…Does that make sense?”
No matter how much he tried to get Song In-myeong to see him as an equal human being, he had no idea that he would be in so much trouble.
‘So, the nervousness I saw in Seong Dae-young’s studio the other day was all real.’
Then, how on earth did this bastard’s human relationships turn out? How can you act like this if you don’t have proper family or friends?
I think he was acting like this because he didn’t know how to treat an older person with whom he had developed a relationship that could be considered a true friend, but at this point, I was starting to feel pathetic.
“If this is the case, doesn’t the promised three-year trial become almost meaningless?”
We made a promise not to catch each other three times even if we met in real life. Song In-myeong made the offer first in order to persuade ‘Lee Jae-heon’ and gain his favor to make it into a work, but when things turned out this way, Song In-myeong was practically giving up on making Lee Jae-heon into a work.
So, I am curious about how Song In-myeong will use the two remaining opportunities in the future.
‘I don’t know about everything else, but he has good adaptability, so he will do everything he can to improve. How Song In-myeong will grow depends on how I poke at him in the process. If possible, becoming an obedient dog would be of great help in your future schedule, but how should I roast and boil it?…’ Since I didn’t know when I
would enter the other side of the world, I had to be careful during the two remaining opportunities. Not only Lee Jae-heon but also Song In-myeong will do the same.
While Jaeheon Lee was deep in thought, the sound of the doorbell came to his ears.
“ah.”
Seo-ah, who had gone out to play with Choi Min-hong’s children, seemed to have returned.
After a brief greeting with teacher Lee Yun-byeol, who took care of the two children outside, Lee Jae-heon brought Seo-ah into the house. His face was red and he was breathing colorfully, as if he had had quite a good time. He asked as he took off his outer clothes.
“Did you have a good time?”
“yes.”
“It’s nice to keep seeing Minhong these days.”
“yes.”
“Look at him out of breath. “Would you like some honey with milk?”
“Yes.”
The fact that Lee Jae-heon was single was a fact that could be found with a little research. A detective who doesn’t know the situation would think it was strange to have a child in Lee Jae-heon’s house, so Lee Jae-heon sent Seo-ah to President Choi Jeong-man’s side.
The house was a little messy, but Detective Ahn didn’t seem to think anything was strange. Jaeheon Lee may have made a mess or a guest may have stopped by.
‘I’m glad I didn’t see any children’s products.’
He gave the child milk with honey and asked.
“Now you have to go to work too, so what should we do because we’re so sad?”
My ankle had not yet fully recovered, but if I postponed going to work any longer, the only solution was to resign.
Even though he complained about the car accident, the reason he was able to rest for so long was because of family pressure. I didn’t mind getting criticized for talking about parachutes in the background, but the manager had to go to work soon because he was a manager.
The child who drank the milk asked.
“When will you come?”
“Probably around 6:30 or 7:00.”
“It’s too late.”
He was very superior.
“Little one.”
I laughed and thought at the same time.
I think it’s sort of sorted out now.
(Continued in the next part)
