The Legendary Detective Catches All the Criminals - Chapter 125



Only Noblemtl

◈Episode 125◈

Death flag

Shim Soo-jin asked in surprise.

“Jaeseong, what on earth are you talking about?”

“Mom, I’m sorry… I think I made a big mistake.”

Shim Soo-jin held her son’s shoulders with both hands and spoke calmly.

“No matter what happens, Mom is on Jae-seong’s side. Tell Detective Shin the truth about what you did wrong.”

“That’s······.”

Jaeseong hesitated for a moment and then told the truth.

“I left a malicious comment on a celebrity I don’t like.”

Shin Dae-seong nodded and asked.

“How bad is the comment?”

“Because direct swearing wasn’t allowed due to the filtering, I had to use really harsh, indirect swearing.”

“When did you post that mean comment?”

“A year ago.”

“By any chance, after seeing that malicious comment, what happened to the celebrity you dislike? Did they retire due to mental issues, or did they make an extreme choice······.”

“No, that unlucky guy is still doing well. He doesn’t seem to care about hate comments at all.”

Shin Dae-seong tilted his head and asked.

“It’s true that you did something wrong. But it doesn’t seem like a crime that deserves such a grudge, does it?”

“Think about it. Mrs. Hye-ran, my mom, the detective, and Han-gyeol. They would never do something like that. Then, there’s no one else who would do that.”

Shin Dae-seong smiled and patted Jae-seong’s head.

“Never again commit such a reckless act. It’s not like there’s necessarily someone like that among us. It’s possible that the one who lured us here committed a crime that wasn’t committed.”

-Tiring~ Tiring~.

It’s a call from Kim Han-gyeol.

“Who are you at this hour? Even hiding your caller ID······ Hello?”

Kim Han-gyeol received a suspicious phone call.

-Warning.

It was a distorted voice whose gender and age could not be guessed.

“What are you warning me about?”

-You cannot leave the Baekryong Hotel without my permission.

“for a moment······.”

Kim Han-gyeol stopped the call and spoke to Shin Dae-seong.

“Detective Shin, it looks like the guy who planned this is calling. He said we can’t leave the hotel without his permission. What should we do?”

“Switch to speakerphone and talk.”

“Huh? Everyone else is listening too?”

“We are also his targets. If we want the guests to cooperate, we must not hide anything either.”

“All right.”

Kim Han-gyeol followed Shin Dae-seong’s words.

-Bam.

“I switched to speakerphone, so tell me again. I can’t leave the Baekryong Hotel without your permission?”

-That’s right, if you disobey my orders, there will be a severe punishment.’

“What kind of harsh punishment is it?”

-The guy who runs away to live alone will be okay. But other people will get hurt.

“Can you be more specific?”

-If the first traitor appears······the mother giving birth and all triplets will die.

Kim Han-gyeol shouted.

“Hey! Don’t touch the mother and the babies. Isn’t that too much for a human being?”

-That’s what I’ll do if there’s a traitor. When they die, curse the traitor who ran away from the hotel. And if you report this to the police, the mother and triplets will die.

“······.”

-If a second traitor occurs, the guests or hotel staff who did not run away will die. If one person runs away, one person. If two people run away, two people. The number of people who run away is the same.

Shin Dae-seong asked in a calm voice.

“Why did you plan something like this?”

-Isn’t it fun?

“fun······.”

-I don’t think I can live like you, Detective Shin. Is it okay for a psychopath to be so right?

“Did you kill my wife?”

Kim Han-gyeol became very nervous.

I waited with bated breath to see what the answer would be.

-If you’re curious about that, you’ll have to catch me?

“That’s the answer I expected. What should I call you?”

-You’re trying to get my information like this? Well, I’ll fool you once. I’m Detective Shin, and I want you to call me a genius criminal.

Shin Dae-seong responded with a smiling face.

“What’s so difficult about it… I’m happy to call you that. But why would a genius criminal do something like this? It seems a little bit petty.”

-It won’t be fun if I tell you now. Detective Shin will find out for himself. And I warned you clearly. What happens from now on is up to you. Bye-bye until the triplets are born safely~.

The brilliant criminal ended the call.

Immediately, the guests and hotel staff began to murmur.

“I want to leave here right now. If I do that, will the triplets and their mother really die?”

“This is driving me crazy… Shouldn’t I report this to the police?”

“I told you that if you report it to the police, you’ll die······.”

Kim Han-gyeol shouted at the agitated people.

“Everyone, please be quiet. What the genius criminal said must not be a lie.”

“How long will I have to be stuck in this hotel?”

“Didn’t you say that until the triplets were born safely?”

“I think we heard that too. But when will the triplets be born?”

Kim Han-gyeol immediately called detective Han Yeong-su.

The call was made immediately.

-Yes, Detective Kim. What happened?

“No······I was wondering when the triplets would be born.”

-It’s not time yet. They say it could take a few more days if it’s severe. I’m so nervous.

“If you hear any good news, please contact me right away.”

-Of course it should be. But the Baekryong Hotel murder case is really not a problem at all, right?

“Yes, don’t worry about anything. Just focus on your wife.”

Kim Han-gyeol finished the call and spoke to Shin Dae-seong.

“I don’t know the exact time yet. If there are any problems, it could take a few more days.”

Shin Dae-seong nodded and spoke to the people gathered inside the restaurant.

“You may now return to your room or accommodations.”

“Do I have to wait until the triplets are born?”

“There is no other way now. You may remain free, but personal revenge is absolutely prohibited. And the culprit who killed the general manager must turn himself in.”

It’s when the people in the restaurant start to leave like the tide.

“Can we talk for a moment?”

Shin Dae-seong called Go So-yeon over.

“What’s going on?”

“I need to check a few things. Is the CCTV in the hotel still not working?”

“Yes······ Even the experts say they don’t know what the problem is.”

“You said your father was the manager of a boxing gym, but it doesn’t seem like he has the skills to do it as a hobby?”

“I also had a professional career. My skills were recognized, but I had to quit because of an injury.”

“Are you by any chance related to Mr. Jeong Su-ho?”

Gosoyeon’s expression hardened.

“Why are you asking that?”

“When he hit Jo Myeong-su who was trying to take away his car keys. Even though he had the skill to easily subdue him, he threw a punch with emotion.”

“······.”

“If it weren’t for Mr. Jeong Su-ho, such behavior wouldn’t have occurred.”

Gosoyeon looked around and opened her mouth.

“The person who taught Suho oppa boxing was my dad.”

“okay.”

“My father taught me boxing because he felt bad for me because I was always getting beaten up. But Suho was surprisingly good at boxing. I can’t tell you how happy my father was that he was able to teach me. But in the end, it was because I taught him boxing that Suho died.”

“Isn’t that too much of an exaggeration?”

“I told my father the same thing. But my father couldn’t shake off his guilt easily. He became addicted to alcohol and died from alcoholism. I think I unconsciously clenched my fists when I thought of that.”

Kim Han-gyeol praised her and said,

“You did a great job. That kind of person should be completely kicked out.”

“Are you saying you’re going to sue me?”

“Don’t worry about that. If something like that happens, Detective Shin and I will personally help you.”

“Thank you! You will be blessed.”

“By the way, do you have any idea about the genius criminal? I think you know the hotel situation the best, Soyeon.”

Gosoyeon thought deeply and opened her mouth.

“Now that I think about it······ There was someone who strangely caught my attention. Now that I think about it, it seems even more suspicious.”

“Can you tell me more about what happened?”

“Yes, I will. Maybe a week ago? We had an event before the official opening. I was at the front desk······.”

* * *

Early in the morning when everyone is asleep.

Room 1301, shared by Kim Han-gyeol, Shin Dae-seong, and Jae-seong.

-Slurp······.

Shin Dae-seong, who had been lying in bed, quietly got up.

Soon after, he shook Kim Han-gyeol, who was in the bed next to him, awake.

‘Detective Kim, wake up. Hurry up!’

Kim Han-gyeol opened his eyes wide and asked.

‘Wh, what’s going on?’

‘First, get dressed and come out. We have to hurry.’

‘All right.’

Kim Han-gyeol quickly got dressed and followed Shin Dae-seong out of the room.

-Little by little.

Kim Han-gyeol asked Shin Dae-seong, who was heading up the stairs.

“You have to tell me what’s going on?”

“I’m going to catch the culprit who murdered the general manager.”

“Yes? Don’t you already know who that guy is? You even gave me a chance to turn myself in until 6pm tomorrow.”

“No, I don’t know······ I was just pretending to know.”

“You lied to me too?”

Shin Dae-seong answered as he went down the stairs.

“I had no choice but to catch the culprit. I could feel the sincerity in Detective Kim’s words.”

“Well done. Whether you deceive the enemy or your own forces, all you have to do is catch the culprit.”

“As expected, Detective Kim is very generous.”

“Thank you, please keep praising me.”

“later.”

Shin Dae-seong and Kim Han-gyeol came down to the first floor.

A sign was posted at the entrance notifying that the opening was delayed and that they were no longer accepting guests.

“Who is the culprit?”

“We should just wait quietly.”

Shin Dae-seong hid behind the front desk where there were no employees.

“A genius criminal. Isn’t he the one who killed the general manager? His accomplice made the call at the restaurant.”

“No, that guy and the criminal can’t be accomplices. The criminal was played by a genius criminal.”

“Then······ is the genius criminal the murderer who killed your sister-in-law?”

“······.”

Shin Dae-seong answered a beat late.

“I think he’s the prime suspect. He’s the guy who most likely killed my wife.”

“Doesn’t that also mean he’s that dangerous?”

“Detective Kim has become a great detective now. He can analyze things comprehensively, not piecemeal. Now he can do it well enough on his own without me.”

Kim Han-gyeol said with a hardened expression.

“Detective Shin, don’t say things like that.”

“You kept asking me to compliment you earlier. Why did you suddenly change your mind?”

“Detective Shin’s words sound exactly like a ‘death flag.’”

“Death flag? What is that?”

“It’s a combination of death and flag. If you say or do certain things, you will definitely die. For example… showing a picture to the main character in a war movie, going down to the basement even though it’s dangerous in a horror movie, or saying things you wouldn’t normally say like Detective Shin.”

“It’s funny… but I have no intention of dying until I catch the person who killed my wife.”

“Saying things like that is dangerous.”

“······.”

Shin Dae-seong kept his mouth tightly shut.

It’s not because of the danger of death flags.

Because I felt someone coming down the stairs.

-Step by step······.

Footsteps were heard across the lobby.

Kim Han-gyeol couldn’t hold back his curiosity and quietly raised his head.

‘Oh my god, that guy was the culprit?’

-Tuk, tuk.

Shin Dae-seong hit Kim Han-gyeol on the shoulder and got up.

“Where are you going at this hour?”

“!”

The person who was about to leave the lobby turned around in surprise.

Shin Dae-seong approached slowly and spoke.

“I’m sure I gave you a chance. You’re the one who killed the executive vice president. Director Lee Tae-gu of Cheonggyecheon Real Estate Development.”

“!”

Lee Tae-goo looked at Shin Dae-seong and Kim Han-gyeol with a puzzled expression.