Dangerous Investigation Diary

Ep. 19 ° Puppet Suicide Case (2)

I left the police chief's office with heavy steps and walked slowly down the hallway. Even pressing the intercom to order a re-mobilization wouldn't have been enough, but I felt sorry for my team members and wanted to speak to them face-to-face. As the police chief's words continued to echo in my head, I ran into my enemy in the hallway.

최종호 [33]

"Inspector Kim, where are you going?"

김석진 [32]

"...Detective Choi."

최종호 [33]

"Ah~ Are you on your way here after hearing about the joint investigation?"

From the moment I met him, he had a sinister grin on his face, and why did Superintendent Choi, who emphasized every word of the word "joint investigation," look so repulsive? He looked like he was already ready to go. Yes, he must be thrilled to have the team with the worst track record come up for a case after a long time.

김석진 [32]

"That kind of investigation, is that your doing?"

최종호 [33]

"Well... I just gave you two choices, sir."

최종호 [33]

"Either we pass on the case altogether, or we conduct a joint investigation."

최종호 [33]

"It seems that the superintendent changed his mind after Superintendent Kim questioned him."

김석진 [32]

"...If you have any thoughts, you shouldn't get involved with us."

김석진 [32]

"You guys know better who it will benefit and who it will harm."

최종호 [33]

"Well, you'll just have to try it to find out."

최종호 [33]

"How long will you be so confident that you'll be the best in the country?"

최종호 [33]

“Shouldn’t we let our team members know first?”

최종호 [33]

"I'm talking about this historic joint investigation."

김석진 [32]

"Yeah... It was your special trait to have to ask questions like a dog to know."

김석진 [32]

"We'll be there soon, so go ahead and pretend to be a police officer."

김석진 [32]

"If we go, we'll hear people gossiping about being part of the Strongest Team 1, so we should have fun before that happens."

김석진 [32]

"I'm only in charge of a few cases."

최종호 [33]

"Well, that's true."

최종호 [33]

"I'm going to show you how much better the new recruit's skills are than the new officer's."

김석진 [32]

"...what?"

최종호 [33]

"See you later~"

That kid is definitely crossing the line.

The office door swung open, and Superintendent Kim, his face contorted with anger, entered. Heedless of the bewildered faces of his team members, he strode briskly into the office, grabbed the microphone at his desk, and spoke.

김석진 [32]

"Incident number 2002do257, Imjeon High School, Imjeon-dong. A high school girl has committed suicide by jumping from a building. Dispatch suspended. Dispatch immediately."

민윤기 [31]

"...Strong Team 1, prepare to deploy."

김석진 [32]

"...and,"

김석진 [32]

"This will be a joint investigation with the 3rd Strong Team."

Confusion filled the eyes of Inspector Min, who had been holding the microphone and giving dispatch orders, alerted by Inspector Kim's bombshell. Not only Inspector Min, but all the senior officers who heard this froze, and silence fell. Including me.

Superintendent Kim, watching his team members, lowered his head with a complex expression and bit his lip. When he raised his head again and took the microphone, tears welled up in his eyes.

김석진 [32]

"I'm sorry for making the situation worse even though I didn't do anything for you."

김석진 [32]

"As the team leader, I will take responsibility for this matter and lead it, so please trust me and follow me."

김석진 [32]

"I hope you do that because I think I can exist because of you."

김석진 [32]

"Let's go."

Inspector Kim's trembling voice was filled with desperation, so the senior officers couldn't say anything else and simply boomed that they were ready to go. Some of them were sobbing, their voices thick with moisture. Inspector Kim nodded silently before speaking.

김석진 [32]

"Everyone, go to the car first. I'll talk to Officer Ha and follow you."

He opened his mouth and said he wanted to talk to me. A little flustered, I paused in my preparations for deployment, but Superintendent Kim handed me the equipment, allowing me to regain my composure and continue preparing for deployment.

As the seniors left, the inspector said a brief "let's go" and opened the office door. The crime scene felt more familiar than ever, but for some reason, I felt a little more nervous than usual. I clutched the investigation log even tighter as I left the office.

We walked side by side in silence down the hallway, then stopped in front of the elevator, where Superintendent Kim stopped. I was so nervous, wondering when he'd finally speak, that I just clenched my sweaty hands. Finally, Superintendent Kim spoke.

김석진 [32]

"My lady."

하여주 [28]

"...yes?"

I was taken aback from the very first words. Calling someone by their name instead of their title would never be something the principled Inspector Kim would ever do. But it seemed like he wasn't calling me by mistake, but rather with a serious tone, so I waited in silence for what he would say next.

김석진 [32]

"As a team leader, I am so lacking..."

김석진 [32]

"I'm scared because I think the nightmare from three years ago will happen again."

김석진 [32]

"If it breaks out again, you'll be the target this time..."

김석진 [32]

"Please be careful of the guys from Team 3."

하여주 [28]

"...ah."

김석진 [32]

"I'm sorry, this is all I can say to you as your team leader. So please, keep this in mind."

김석진 [32]

"If anything happens, tell me right away. Okay?"

하여주 [28]

"all right."

김석진 [32]

"thank you..."

김석진 [32]

"...Our Officer Ha, you have to go and show off your ace side~"

김석진 [32]

"Let's go."

I couldn't continue speaking, only nodding in agreement with Inspector Kim's seemingly imperfect demeanor. For the sake of Inspector Kim's sense of responsibility and the integrity of the Violent Crimes Unit 1, I had to stay sharp.

At the scene of the crime, senior members of Violent Crimes Unit 1 and Violent Crimes Unit 3, excluding me and Superintendent Kim, had arrived. After joining Violent Crimes Unit 1 and hearing their story, I learned that the investigation had still made no progress.

박지민 [29]

"The school says it was suicide... but there were no warning signs at all."

김태형 [29]

"The teachers keep saying that he's not the type of kid that would do something like that. He doesn't even have a will."

김석진 [32]

"...Let's first interrogate the students. How many have you recruited?"

김남준 [30]

"We have completed recruiting all students in the same class as the victim, as well as the homeroom teacher."

김석진 [32]

"Okay. Then... let's split up into teams."

김석진 [32]

"The field team consists of Officer Min, Officer Jeong, Officer Park, and Patrolman Jeon."

김석진 [32]

"And the interrogation team consists of me, Sergeant Kim, Sergeant Kim, and Ha Sun-g..."

김석진 [32]

"...No. Correction."

김석진 [32]

"Police officer Ha will join the field team, and police officer Jeon will join the investigation team."

민윤기 [31]

"Huh? Putting Officer Ha on the interrogation team..."

김석진 [32]

"...Well. Officer Ha does well no matter where you put him~"

Seeing the faint trembling of Inspector Kim's hands as he evasively explained the situation, Inspector Min and the other senior officers fell silent. And as always, the 3rd Violent Crimes Unit approached them with a provocative tone. Was this a joint investigation or a brawl?

송민기 [30]

"Aren't you going to distribute it to us?"

송민기 [30]

“But it’s a joint investigation, so it’s disappointing?”

김석진 [32]

"...those people."

김석진 [32]

"Because it's a chaotic team without even a clear position."

최종호 [33]

"...What?"

김석진 [32]

"Interrogation team, let's go."

Today, too, I lightly ignored their quibbles and headed to the school parking lot with Officer Kim, Officer Kim, and Patrolman Jeon, who had been called to the interrogation team. Leaving Team 3, who were laughing in disbelief, behind, I focused on the on-site investigation.

민윤기 [31]

"Uh... First, I have to go to the morgue to examine the body, but I haven't received permission yet, so let's take a look around here before that."

Detective Min seemed a bit uneasy, as it was his first time leading a team. He hadn't realized it, but the absence of Detective Kim must have been quite significant.

손나은 [29]

"Let's watch it together-"

이수담 [29]

"Yeah - really... are you upset about this?"

정호석 [30]

"I didn't take on this case to argue with you guys, so let's just end it quietly, right?"

이수담 [29]

"Sergeant Jeong, are we really that close?"

정호석 [30]

"Then what are we?"

정호석 [30]

"I don't want to talk to this officer anymore."

The war of nerves between the two had been particularly intense since last time, but today, the atmosphere was even more heated. Officer Park patted Officer Jeong on the shoulder a couple of times. Officer Jeong bit his lip in response to the touch, averting his gaze from the Violent Crimes Unit 3.

"excuse me..."

하여주 [28]

"...yes?"

한기범 [19]

"Are you police officers...?"

민윤기 [31]

"...Ah. Yes, that's right, but what's going on?"

A boy approached me. His face was young, but his clothes didn't seem to be anything like a school uniform. I wondered if he was a high school senior, or maybe just one of those so-called "playboys." A flurry of thoughts swirled around in my head, and I stared at him in silence.

한기범 [19]

"So... Joo Seon-yeong, you came here because of that guy?"

민윤기 [31]

"Yes. I was just briefly searching the scene."

Officer Min politely responded, but placed his hand on my back and gently nudged me toward the boy. He probably meant for me to talk. Officer Min was probably awkward around people, so he did that.

한기범 [19]

"Well, by any chance... the cause of death..."

하여주 [28]

"It has not been clearly determined yet, but it is presumed to be suicide."

하여주 [28]

"I think we'll have to investigate further to find out."

한기범 [19]

"ah..."

하여주 [28]

"...May I ask what your relationship was with the victim, Ms. Joo Seon-yeong?"

한기범 [19]

"Oh, I'm just... I'm not the same age as that kid, and we don't really have anything in common."

That being said, why did he suddenly call us? I just stared at the bewildered boy for a moment, wanting to ask his name, but when I opened my mouth, he hurried back into the school.

박지민 [29]

"...What is that guy?"

민윤기 [31]

"...It's probably nothing. I'm just curious."

Still, I remembered his face, so I'll call him later if I remember him. A male student, presumably a third-year student at Imjeon High School, wearing plain clothes... I took out my notebook and wrote down some brief information and a description, but then I noticed Team 3 of the Violent Crimes Unit, completely uninterested in the case, laughing and chatting amongst themselves.

I could immediately see why they were the worst performing team.

Beep_

김석진 [32]

@ "Strong Team 1, on-site team. Permission has been granted to examine the body. To the BU Police Station autopsy room immediately."

김석진 [32]

@ "If you heard, respond. Strong Team 1 Field Team."

민윤기 [31]

@ "Detective Min Yoongi has responded. I will go right now."

Beep_

민윤기 [31]

"Let's go see the body first."

민윤기 [31]

"The rest will become clear when you see the body."

With those words, we headed to the autopsy room to see the body. It was quite amusing to see Team 3, who had been busy doing something else and had only just discovered us, hurriedly following us. I wanted to tell them to just stay here.

민윤기 [31]

"...I don't think I need to follow you all."

민윤기 [31]

"You're so crazy."

최종호 [33]

"What do you want us to do?"

박지민 [29]

"Can we split it into two people each?"

박지민 [29]

"They probably know the situation better than you, but do we really need to take care of this?"

최종호 [33]

"...Okay. Okay."

최종호 [33]

"Sergeant Lee and I will go to the autopsy room, and Detective Son and Detective Song will stay here."

정호석 [30]

"...Let's hurry. We don't have time."

A joint investigation with such a ragtag team. I felt like this investigation would be even more difficult than usual, and my vision went dark.

In the heavy atmosphere of the interrogation room, Superintendent Kim, Sergeant Kim, Superintendent Park, and Patrolman Jeon were reading documents detailing the individuals they were to interrogate today. Their headaches from the joint investigation with the Violent Crimes Unit 3 were no different from those of the field team.

김태형 [29]

"But, Inspector, why did you take Officer Ha out to the field team?"

김태형 [29]

"Detective Ha, you're doing a good job interrogating..."

김석진 [32]

"...I just thought it would be better for a police officer to subdue someone if an unexpected situation arises during the interrogation."

김남준 [30]

"By the way... when are we going to interrogate all these people..."

전정국 [27]

"There are more people being interrogated than ever before..."

김태형 [29]

"Because there are more parents than the number of children we interrogated during the elementary school mass disappearance case..."

김석진 [32]

"...Okay, wake up."

김석진 [32]

"Is everyone ready? Are the recorders and cameras working properly?"

전정국 [27]

"Yes, there is nothing wrong."

김석진 [32]

"Since there are only so many people, we have to split up the work and everyone has to be on their toes."

김석진 [32]

"We have to interrogate a lot of students, so don't scare them too much."

김석진 [32]

"You all understand, right?"

김태형 [29]

"yes-"

김석진 [32]

"Then, let's begin."

First, we have to do our job, at least for the sake of the rest of the Strong Team 1 who are investigating the bodies with those idiots in the autopsy room.

I guess many people were disappointed by my slow pace and left. 🥲 Compared to my subscriber count, the number of readers and comments has decreased significantly. 😿 After midterms, I'm uploading episodes I've been writing in my spare time! This episode is expected to be a bit longer than the previous ones. 🫠

I'll try to upload one more this week! Thank you for waiting, and I love you 🥹💛💛

_ Number of characters: 5535