The Legendary Detective Catches All the Criminals - Chapter 72



Only Noblemtl

◈Episode 72◈

Killing two birds with one stone

The female employee looked around the office and answered.

“Is Manager Noh Jun-hyeok here today?······ I’m not a member of the public relations department. Oh, over there! Ask Manager Cho.”

Kim Han-gyeol and Shin Dae-seong approached the person she was beckoning to.

I was leisurely playing a game on my phone alone in a busy office.

Manager Cho, sensing the presence of others, quickly raised his head.

“Who, who are you?”

Kim Han-gyeol answered, showing his ID.

“Police. Has Mr. Noh Jun-hyeok arrived at work?”

“Not yet······.”

“Are you not going to work today?”

“I told you I might be late because I’m not feeling well. Should I call you?”

Shin Dae-seong replied, trying to dissuade him.

“No, that’s not necessary. Can we ask you a few questions?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Manager Cho readily agreed.

There was no urgent matter, and the reaction was that the detectives’ visit was strange.

“What kind of employee is Manager Noh Jun-hyeok?”

“An honest, hard-working, responsible, and polite employee.”

“Didn’t you go on a business trip to Seoul two days ago?”

“It wasn’t a business trip, it was for personal reasons.”

“Please look carefully at the date I am showing you. Can you confirm whether Mr. Noh Jun-hyeok came to work?”

Manager Cho received the memo handed over by Shin Dae-seong.

“10 years ago was before Manager Noh joined the company······ I went on a business trip for the remaining four cases.”

“How do you know without even checking?”

“The one you gave me was the day of the murder at Gangnam Station, right? Another employee said yesterday that Deputy Noh went on a business trip. But don’t misunderstand. I told him to go on a business trip.”

“So you’re saying that it wasn’t that Manager Noh wanted to go, but that the manager ordered him to go?”

“Yes, I think so······.”

Shin Dae-seong spoke while looking at Manager Cho’s eye level.

“Think carefully about whether that was really true. Did Manager Noh not want to go, but the manager forced him to go?”

“It was so long ago that I don’t remember. But I’m not the type to force my employees to do things they don’t want to do.”

“Who was the employee who was closest to Mr. Noh Jun-hyeok?”

“I’m going.”

Shin Dae-seong asked Manager Cho, who was raising his hand.

“Have you ever been to Mr. Noh Jun-hyeok’s house?”

“No, I heard that Mr. Noh lives in a small studio apartment. It’s so small that he can’t invite other people.”

“What about Mr. Noh Jun-hyeok’s family relationships?”

“I heard that your mother passed away 10 years ago, and you’ve been living alone. I don’t think you have any relatives to meet during the holidays.”

Kim Han-gyeol whispered to Shin Dae-seong.

‘Could my mother’s death have been the trigger?’

‘That’s not very likely. It could be that the leash of a wild dog has come off.’

Manager Cho took the opportunity to ask.

“Why did you come to see Manager Noh?”

“I cannot speak lightly about matters under investigation.”

“What kind of investigation are you conducting?”

This is when Shin Dae-seong responds with a faint smile.

-Squeak.

Noh Jun-hyeok opened the office door and came in.

“Sorry I’m late.”

Manager Cho raised his hand and called him.

“Manager Noh, come here quickly.”

Noh Jun-hyeok glanced at Shin Dae-seong and Kim Han-gyeol, then asked Manager Cho.

“Why did you call me?”

“That’s what I wanted to ask. What on earth happened that brought the detectives here?”

“!”

Noh Jun-hyeok tried his best to hide his surprise.

Shin Dae-seong asked him that.

“Are you Noh Jun-hyeok?”

“Yes, but······.”

“Can you talk to us for a moment?”

“Should I go to the police station?”

“If you’d like to accompany me, that would be great. Would you like to go to the police station together?”

Noh Jun-hyeok firmly refused.

“No, I don’t have time for that.”

“Then let’s talk in a quiet place.”

* * *

The office of the Unsolved Cases Unit.

The office, which was once bustling with reports, is now deserted.

This is because all but two detectives from the unsolved crimes unit went down to Busan.

Hwang Yeo-ju asked Detective Kang Tae-gyu while touching the laptop.

“It’s okay if you don’t go down to Busan. You sang a song saying you wanted to go out to the field.”

Inspector Kang Tae-gyu answered while typing on the computer keyboard.

“I need to investigate Noh Jun-hyeok’s financial situation here. That will help the investigation more.”

“That’s a great attitude. But are you really here for field work?”

“Why do you ask that question?”

-Tododododok······.

Hwang Yeo-ju also responded, tapping briskly on her laptop keyboard.

“Detective Kang was the top ace in financial investigations. There’s no way the main office would send him······.”

“Isn’t that the same for Detective Hwang? Why is a person that even the FBI in the United States covets here?”

“It’s because of Detective Shin Dae-seong. The character itself is interesting. I’m watching him closely and studying him.”

“Aren’t you reporting it to the head office?”

“How could that be? I despise spies the most. Inspector Kang, why are you here?”

The two continued to ask and answer questions while working on their laptops and computers.

“It’s because of my remarriage. They say this is the Hollywood police station of Korea. I’m going to remarry a woman who looks like a celebrity.”

“I guess your ex-wife wasn’t very pretty?”

“Yeah, I thought if your face isn’t good, you’d have a good personality, but that wasn’t the case. It’s the worst when both your looks and personality are bad.”

“Is this a remarriage strategy to avoid the worst?”

“That’s right! Got you, you little shit······.”

“What did you catch?”

“Evidence that the Gangnam Station serial killer is Noh Jun-hyeok. Even if he only uses cash, he can’t escape my pursuit.”

“I found something similar, but it’s not conclusive. It’ll be hard to get a warrant.”

Inspector Kang Tae-gyu nodded and asked.

“Does Detective Hwang also think that Noh Jun-hyeok is the culprit?”

“Of course. It’s in the 9,900 people I carefully selected.”

“Isn’t that too many numbers?”

“Yes. But in addition, he is also included among the ten suspects that Detective Shin had anticipated.”

“The more I look at Detective Shin, the more he seems like a research subject. Have you already narrowed down the suspects to ten?”

Hwang Yeo-ju shook her head and replied.

“Not already. Detective Shin had already narrowed the suspects down to ten before creating the montage.”

“What? Are you saying that you went into the investigation with some degree of anticipation of who the culprit is?”

“That’s right. Well, getting started is half the battle.”

“It’s getting scary now······.”

“What does it matter to us? It’s easy if you know the answer and solve the problem. But this guy doesn’t leave any decisive traces. There’s nothing to search and seize.”

* * *

A staff lounge with a cafe-like atmosphere.

Shin Dae-seong stopped in a corner.

“Shall I sit here?”

“yes······.”

When Noh Jun-hyeok sat down on the chair, Kim Han-gyeol became nervous.

This is a pivotal moment in revealing who the Gangnam Station serial killer is.

Shin Dae-seong started by making light conversation.

“Should I get you a drink?”

“No, I have a lot of work to do. I’d like to finish it quickly.”

“Okay. Why did you go up to Seoul two days ago?”

“It’s personal.”

“Was there one near Gangnam Station?”

“Yes, there was.”

“I heard you live alone in Busan. When did your mother pass away?”

Noh Jun-hyeok acted defensively.

“My mother passed away ten years ago. Why are you asking me that?”

“It’s an important issue, so I’m handling it carefully. I’m checking the reactions when I lie and when I tell the truth.”

“Are you a human lie detector, detective?”

“Yes, that’s right. It’s more accurate than any lie detector. Now, let me get straight to the point. Are you the Gangnam Station serial killer who committed five murders?”

“no.”

Noh Jun-hyeok answered immediately.

Kim Han-gyeol observed Shin Dae-seong’s reaction.

“lie······.”

“yes!”

Kim Han-gyeol clenched both his fists and shouted, as if something he had desperately wished for had come true.

“Yes, yes, yes!”

He kept screaming with joy.

Noh Jun-hyeok frowned and got angry at Shin Dae-seong.

“What is this that someone else’s company is doing?”

“Please understand a little. We are looking for the criminal we desperately wanted to catch. How do you feel? I really didn’t think we would come looking for you.”

“!”

Noh Jun-hyeok quickly controlled his expression.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“As expected, he’s clumsy. How could this guy have committed five serial murders without being caught······.”

“Can you frame someone like this? Do you have any evidence that I am a serial killer?”

“None. I have to look for it now.”

“······.”

Shin Dae-seong turned his head to Kim Han-gyeol.

“Detective Kim?”

“Yes, Detective Shin. Go ahead.”

“We found the culprit, but there’s no evidence. Deploy the unsolved crimes team from Seoul to Noh Jun-hyeok’s movements. Even if we identify the culprit, we absolutely cannot allow a sixth victim to occur.”

“Understood, Detective Shin.”

Noh Sang-hyeok reacted that it was absurd.

“Don’t you know that this is a violation of human rights? It’s torturing innocent people without any evidence.”

“Then you should report it to the police······ You’re not the Gangnam Station serial killer, but the unsolved crimes unit is mistaking you for the culprit.”

“!”

Kim Han-gyeol showed another way.

“We are asking for help from the media. We are holding a press conference to say that Mr. Noh Sang-hyeok is not the Gangnam Station serial killer.”

Noh Sang-hyeok glared at Kim Han-gyeol fiercely.

Because it was an absurd method.

“Or, you can appeal to personal broadcasts like YouTube. Live broadcast a day in the life of someone who was mistaken for the Gangnam Station serial killer. The number of views is guaranteed to skyrocket.”

-Suddenly.

Noh Sang-hyeok stood up from his seat.

“You guys, get out of here.”

Shin Dae-seong got up from his chair, but did not go outside.

“Detective Kim, request a letter of cooperation from this company. Detective Kim and I can go there for a few days. Is that possible? We’ll openly conduct an undercover investigation in front of the criminal.”

“It’s so refreshing! Besides, I dreamed of being an ordinary office worker. My proposal was criticized by my boss. There might be an ordinary company dinner today. No, I’ll make sure to make it happen!”

“Are you kidding me?”

Shin Dae-seong spoke to Noh Sang-hyeok, who was looking at him in disbelief.

“I told you so. I’ll bleed you to death… And I’ll also grant Detective Kim’s wish for a normal office life. Killing two birds with one stone, huh?”

Noh Jun-hyeok responded without being discouraged.

“Do you think the company is a joke······ I won’t cooperate with your detective game.”

* * *

Public Relations Department Office of Yuseong IT Co., Ltd.

-Clap clap clap clap.

Manager Cho clapped his hands and called the public relations staff.

“Attention, I have an urgent notice. I would like to introduce you to the interns who will be working with us starting today.”

The PR staff looked bewildered,

Kim Han-gyeol greeted us with a lively voice.

“Hello! I am Kim Han-gyeol, an intern at Yuseong IT. I will devote my life to working for the company.”

“Hello. I am Shin Dae-seong, an intern. I will solve any of your problems.”

A few of the employees were muttering.

‘Weren’t those guys detectives?’

‘That’s right.’