Special Investigation Team BTS 2

EP 21. The Truth About Aquariums After Closing Time (5)

The place, with its dazzling red lights and various cocktails on the table, evoked a club atmosphere, but only three people were sitting on the chairs.

A woman, her shoulders bare, inhaling a breath as if inhaling dust scattered in the air, exhaled deeply. She completely ignored the people lying on the ground around her, gasping for breath.

프시케

"Hey, is this killing the effect?"

사브라

"Of course. Who made it?"

프시케

“If someone saw you, they would think you made it all by yourself.”

"Psyche. Area A-4?"

A new voice rang out between the two people conversing. Unlike the two sitting close together, a third person sat a little further away, pouring a cocktail.

프시케

"Saita. I told you before that it wasn't an aquarium!! There's no place cleaner to kill, but it's too public to be spilling drugs to the public."

Saita. Psyche shook her head, mumbling and explaining to Saita. She added that if she had held him any longer, things could have been very bad.

"So, we destroyed the certificate a week ago, just in time. It was ours to begin with, so we didn't care about the aftermath. As for the test subjects, did you kill them all?"

프시케

"No. There were about six left, but they must have developed a tolerance, and the medicine wasn't working very well. So I left them to see how long they could hold out... But then a cat and a squirrel stole them away."

Cat and squirrel. Psyche ran a hand through her long, waist-length hair, muttering a word only they could understand. The alluring scent of roses drifted into the air.

"What were the results?"

프시케

"If we just look at the results excluding those six... 75%? It's highly addictive, has a great hallucinogenic effect, and makes you feel like you're flying through the sky."

프시케

"75% of them are poisoned. Oh, but maybe because we did the experiment in the aquarium, they just jump in at the sight of water. So, I don't think we need to treat them separately, they just get rid of it on their own."

사브라

"It seems to be greatly affected by the environment. It could be quite useful."

Sabra, sitting next to him, took a sip of her cocktail and answered. Dressed in all black, he looked like the son of a noble family, perhaps thanks to his striking appearance.

사브라

"Oh, right. What about Nero?"

프시케

"Nero? Cat? Min Yoongi went to the police station. Why?"

사브라

"No, not him. There's Nero, who's prickly but cute. He growls at the slightest touch."

프시케

"What's with that grumpy Nero? Why are you suddenly so interested in cats... By any chance, Bombay?"

Psyche frowned and asked, "Bombay?" Sabra nodded, winking. Psyche, who had been smiling faintly, immediately lowered the corners of her mouth.

At the same time, the glass Psyche was holding fell to the floor with a clatter, and the atmosphere that had been heated by the alcohol suddenly became cold.

프시케

"I should have just killed him."

사브라

"Why are you like this again? You're not saying this because you got hit in the face, are you?"

프시케

"Are you defending that bitch in front of me right now? I've been putting up with it a lot because you told me to just warn her."

프시케

"I somehow managed to hold back from ripping that mouth open for giggling without understanding the situation. But, to me who held back so much, what? Nero?"

사브라

"I told you to put it in an aquarium, not to become shark food? Speak clearly. I'm the one holding it back, not you."

사브라

"I was trying to avoid making a single flaw, but you messed with it. You did it on your own, and now you're trying to pass the buck to me?"

bang-!!

Amidst the increasingly tense atmosphere, gunshots were heard. The source of the sudden noise was Saita.

I fired at the nearest man, who was sprawled out on the ground. The bullet lodged in his chest, and he jerked violently before falling back down. I knew it without even checking. He was dead.

"It's fun to see you fighting. Why? Should I join in and have a proper fight with a gun and a sword?"

프시케

"…no."

사브라

"…sorry."

"Then shut up. Don't forget to send the goods to Area A-3 as scheduled."

Saita stood up, leaving behind the two who gave curt "yes" answers. He seemed too lazy to even handle the glass in his hand, so he smashed it with the gun in his other hand.

Blood flowed down the wound from the shards of glass, forming a line. Saita looked at it expressionlessly, then the corners of his mouth turned up into a sly smile.

“You too… must be in this much pain?”

Behind Saita, who was leisurely leaving, there were people lying in a mess, covered in blood.

정호석

"Okay, lady, have one more. Ah–."

연여주

"Oh, I'm really full now."

정호석

"Come on. Ah–."

연여주

"……."

Yam. Yeoju used her pillow as a backrest and took a nice bite of the apple Hoseok offered her. From breakfast, porridge, medicine, drinks, snacks, lunch, and now the apple.

Regardless of whether it was health food or portion-sized food, he brought them all and stuffed them into Yeoju's mouth. For Yeoju, who usually only eats the amount necessary to maintain muscle mass, the amount was a bit overwhelming.

But, even so, Yeoju had no choice but to continue accepting the food Ho-seok gave her. Every time Yeoju refused the food Ho-seok gave her three times… … .

정호석

“…Why? You don’t like the food I give you…?”

연여주

“What do you mean… I’m just full,”

정호석

"Look. You're using formal language with me again. You always use informal language with Yoongi, Taehyung, Jimin, and Jungkook, so why are you only using formal language with me? Am I... uncomfortable?"

연여주

“…I want to eat that. I’m suddenly hungry.”

Hoseok's face was sullen and the corners of his eyes drooped. Every time Hoseok, whose face looked like it might burst at the slightest touch, did that, he couldn't sit still.

I'd only ever seen her cry, begging for her life, but this was the first time she'd cried like this, begging for food. How should she respond? How should she stop crying? For the female protagonist, it felt awkward and unfamiliar.

On the other hand, Ho-seok recognized this woman immediately. She had injured her right shoulder and couldn't use her right hand. He deliberately fed her food and tried to become friendly with her.

There were times when the female protagonist really stubbornly refused, but that could have been resolved with a single tear. But then she refused again, and then awkwardly avoided eye contact while eating the food...

정호석

"…cute."

연여주

"Huh? I didn't hear you just now, what did you say?"

정호석

"No. Here. Ah–."

The heroine didn't seem accustomed to receiving such small favors. Ah, it was a favor filled with selfishness, so it wasn't a small favor.

Jimin, who was slowly eating the leftover snacks behind him while watching Hoseok strategically use smiles and tears to deal with the female lead, spoke to Yoongi.

박지민

"Oh my. Look at that guy. If someone saw him, they'd think he couldn't even use his left hand."

민윤기

"……."

박지민

"Hey, hey, your eyes are so irritating. Why are you suddenly like that?"

Jimin poked Yoongi's arm, demanding an answer, but Yoongi remained oblivious, his eyes fixed on his phone. When Jimin said he was going to the bathroom, he simply nodded.

민윤기

"……."

In fact, Yoon-ki was incredibly nervous. His phone screen was black, and he thought he was going to die from pretending to scroll down.

Seeing Hoseok and Yeoju clinging to each other, I felt like something inside me was about to burst out. Normally, I wouldn't have held it back, but I didn't really understand what this feeling was, and I felt like if I just got involved, it would only make me look ridiculous, so I held it back.

정호석

"Oh, I asked something here."

연여주

"Yes? Where are you?"

Shit. What's there to ask when eating an apple? Seeing Hoseok blatantly trying to manipulate me made me furious. But why didn't he even notice that? Is he just a pure idiot? He didn't forget to curse the female lead during the gap.

김석진

"Did you have a good rest? I haven't seen you in a day, it feels like it's been a while."

Seokjin, who I thought would be late, entered the hospital room, carrying a fruit basket in one hand. Yeoju, who I'd expected to be delighted by the fruit basket, froze in surprise.

김석진

"Why? Oh, are you allergic to peaches?"

연여주

"Oh, no. I like peaches. Thank you."

Yeoju hugged the fruit basket Seokjin had handed her. This too will soon be in my stomach... How many hours will it take...? No. How many minutes...? Yeoju glanced at Hoseok, lost in thought.

김석진

“I came here to personally convey the information about what happened at the aquarium. I thought it would be best for you, Yeoju, to hear it, as you contributed greatly to solving the case.”

연여주

“What about the white powder? Did the National Forensic Service get the results?”

Hoseok handed Seokjin a chair, and Yoongi, who had been sitting far away, also came over to Yeoju's side. Jimin, who had entered without anyone knowing when, also sat down next to Seokjin.

김석진

"I couldn't find out the exact name. They said it seemed like a mixture of various drugs, including some used for medical purposes."

연여주

"Hmm... I thought so. Kathartish started developing a new drug a year ago. I wondered why there hadn't been a drug with an unknown name yet... and here it is."

민윤기

"Qatar… Tish?"

박지민

"Development of a new drug?"

… Ah. I didn't explain this…? I realized it too late. They knew that Kathartish was a two-person organization. They didn't even know who their enemy was, yet they tried to explain this…

연여주

"Uh… Kathartish. That's the name of the organization that Sabra and Psyche belong to. And the boss of Kathartish is a man named Saita."

정호석

“Huh…? So there’s only Sabra and Psyche, but there’s also someone called Saita?”

연여주

"Yeah. I couldn't say anything, but... there was that incident where a man was dropped from the third floor before Mr. Kim Hyun-woong was murdered. Saita was the culprit."

김석진

"...Huh? Kathartish... So you're saying that the boss of the organization came all the way to a place where the police are swarming just to drop one person?"

연여주

"Yes. I think I asked Mr. Kim Hyun-woong to get Sabra out of prison. And Psyche, of course. Here's a photo from that time."

The heroine took out a piece of paper she'd always kept carefully in her pocket and handed it to Seokjin. The two of them were pictured on a sheet of A4 paper. In the dizzying sight of them hanging from a railing, Saita's tattoo stood out.

연여주

"For some reason, Saita, or rather, Kathartisi, is targeting the Special Investigation Unit. So, don't rely solely on the information you have now."

연여주

"The special investigation unit I've seen is brave and righteous, but that's why it has more flaws. When are you going to give Kathartish a chance to eat while you're taking everything you can?"

민윤기

"……."

연여주

"If we keep going like this, we'll all die. Everyone. How can we possibly catch up with Kathartish when we don't even know what Kathartish is?"

The four remained speechless in response to the heroine's pointed question. They were certainly aware of this. The information they had was limited to what they had researched up until two years ago.

김석진

“How do you know about that, Miss Yeoju?”

연여주

"I have my own secret. So don't worry. I'll share everything I know with you."

He didn't mention that he'd passed the program down to them. It was a highly personal matter, and even if they knew about it, they wouldn't be able to use it.

김석진

"But, is it okay for me to help you like this? From what Yeoju said back then, it seemed like she wasn't going to do that kind of work anymore... If we do this, won't we get involved again?"

연여주

“Well… it’s okay. I’m on the team leader’s side.”

김석진

"...Ms. Yeoju."

박지민

"What is this pink atmosphere?"

정호석

"……."

민윤기

"……."

박지민

"I've really pissed people off a lot today."

Jimin roughly ran his fingers through his hair, while Hoseok and Yoongi glared at Seokjin and Yeoju with heated eyes. Regardless, Seokjin smiled warmly, seemingly touched, while Yeoju simply continued to rack her brain.

I had to make Seokjin believe I was no longer killing people. To do that, I had to pretend to be a good person.

연여주

"Kathartisi was trying to get me to join their organization. I kept refusing, so I think that's why they did it to me this time at the aquarium."

민윤기

"what?"

연여주

"Psyche said it. It was a warning. Sabra told me to do it, you know. That's none of my business."

민윤기

"Why do you say that so lightly?"

연여주

"That's why! Let's all be careful from now on! Take care of yourselves! If you can't take care of yourself, hide behind my back! Got it?"

Yoon-gi, with a serious expression, began to speak, but Yeo-ju cut him off. Yoon-gi's expression crumpled as he abruptly stopped talking, but Yeo-ju, undeterred, raised her voice and finished.

Now, she can turn her back on them. She knows them well enough, and trusts them. Looking at their still worried faces, the heroine smiled confidently.

Actually, the person in charge was a member of Qatar's organization. It passed by so quickly... hahahaha

(Character count excluding Saddam)

⚠️Next episode will be serialized when 200 comments are received⚠️

Those who haven't read the must-read notice, please read it quickly!! It's a must-read. Yesterday was the first post after the notice, so I just skipped it, but from this time on, if you don't follow the rules, I'll stab you in the reply!!!(?)😤