The Decoy and the Chase

[…Lawyer, the sun is about to rise. Are you alright?]

‘I can handle it better than I thought.’

[Even with the help of the skill, you’ve been overdoing it a lot lately.]

‘This will help too. Since it’s a righteous act.’

[That’s only when you’re alive. I’m telling you, you’ll be in big trouble if you don’t get enough sleep.]

‘Oh, you’re nagging.’

But I understood Gram’s concern.
As Gram said, Choi Suhyeok and I had been wandering all over Seoul and Gyeonggi Province for hours without a break.
It was because of the message that had arrived when we left the hospital.

[Let’s split today’s pay]
[Half of the 16th course]
[Half of the dividend]
[I’ll do the 3 to 6 o’clock course]

I hurriedly checked the photos taken on the 16th in my phone’s gallery.
My impression was, well…

“I feel this every time, but I wonder how they do this kind of thing so meticulously.”
“It would be better if these bastards used their abilities for something else… but since they don’t, it’s even more of a problem. They’re evolving day by day.”

Choi Suhyeok was right. Crime was constantly evolving.
Like a toy doll where if you open one, there’s another one inside, it was more often the case that it wasn’t uprooted even when it seemed to be.
I opened my mouth with a sigh.

“Now I’m going to be suspicious of everyone on a motorcycle.”
“Now? I’ve been like that for a long time. I’ve decided to think of it as an occupational hazard.”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at Choi Suhyeok’s words.

“Why are you laughing? I’m being serious.”
“I’m laughing because you’re serious.”

We were in the car, suppressing our presence and looking out the window.
While also making trivial conversation to keep ourselves from falling asleep.

‘At least now, we’re having a conversation like this, so it’s a relief.’

Because a while ago, Choi Suhyeok had seemed to be in a complete panic.
But I understood.
No, I had no choice but to.
Choi Suhyeok was now trying his best to suppress his trauma.
The anxiety that Han Seungmin might be framed and lose his job, the fear that he might follow the same path as his father.
All of those things were enveloping Choi Suhyeok, and I could see it.

‘It’s really amazing that he’s found this much composure.’

Everyone has memories that can’t be forgotten.
Memories that you build a dam in your mind, in your memory, and push everything into.
But memories that you thought you had forgotten like that, but that flood out like a flood with a single crack and sweep you away.
I shook my head lightly and followed Choi Suhyeok’s gaze out the window.

‘Don’t think of other things. Just think about what’s in front of you.’

We hadn’t just been chasing the tail of the guys while the sun was rising.
We had also secured CCTV footage, as well as communication records.
And in the process, we had also learned that the ‘drop’ locations had a certain regularity.

“Yes, Detective Choi. I can’t get his location now, but his last location was the one in the picture.”

It was a shame that we could only confirm the last signal because he usually turned off his phone, but we had made some progress.

‘Lawyer Cha, are you sure this is the place?’
‘Yes, it is.’
‘…Are you really saying it’s one of these rocks? What kind of rock is it under… I don’t even know what I just uncovered.’
‘So it probably means that there’s a regular clientele, which is a big problem. …Oh! I found it.’

And so, after turning over countless rocks one by one and finding the MH5 under one of them, I almost let out a cheer without realizing it.
Now, Choi Suhyeok’s fellow detectives were on a stakeout, waiting for the buyer to come to the place where the MH5 was found.
And we were at the last location, waiting for the owner of the message.
Choi Suhyeok rested his arm on the steering wheel and opened his mouth again.

“Sometimes people say things like that. That criminals have it written on their faces. But as you know, Lawyer Cha… there are more guys who look normal.”
“…Yes, like that person?”

Screech.

A rider who had just appeared was looking around.
Then, as soon as my words ended, he took something out of his pocket.
The man moved his motorcycle a little, pressed it against the wall, and then stayed there for a few seconds.

“Did you see that?”
“Yes, I think that’s him. He just put his hand behind the outdoor unit.”
“Then let’s catch that guy first.”

Choi Suhyeok held onto the door.
I hurriedly grabbed Choi Suhyeok, who was about to jump out at any moment.

“Not now, Detective Choi. Let’s follow him first.”

After a short thought, Choi Suhyeok moved his hand from the doorknob to the steering wheel.

“…Hah. So this is… I don’t know what I’m looking at.”

Even though he wasn’t as calm as usual, Choi Suhyeok was still a detective.

‘Something ingrained in the body doesn’t just disappear easily.’

And so, we succeeded in quietly tailing the guy.
Even though the man, whether it was a habit or a command, had been moving around the same neighborhood for hours.

‘It was good up to that point, but what is this now?’

I was as dumbfounded as Choi Suhyeok, who was expressing his bewilderment with his whole face.
It was because of the map I was looking at on my phone.

Ding.

[No search results found.]

Just in case, I checked the car’s navigation once more, but the result was the same.

“It’s not on the map, and it’s not on the car’s navigation. It just comes up as an ordinary commercial building.”
“…Even though anyone can see that it’s a post office?”

As Choi Suhyeok said, the man had led us to a post office for several hours.
The man had gone into the red and white sign, changed his clothes, and come out.
From an ordinary black jumper to a mailman’s uniform.

“I recognized him by his shoes, I almost missed him. The motorcycle’s license plate was also changed.”

And in front of that post office, several motorcycles were parked in a row.
Choi Suhyeok frowned, took a picture, and immediately made a call.

“Oh, Detective Kim. Please check the numbers of the motorcycles I just sent you. Don’t hang up, right now. …So it’s a non-existent number? No, I’ll call you back.”

Choi Suhyeok hung up and looked at me.

“…Lawyer Cha.”
“I know what you’re going to say. You’re probably going to say let’s raid them now.”
“…How did you know?”
“Because you look desperate. Your face right now, Detective Choi.”

At my words, Choi Suhyeok looked up at his own expression in the rearview mirror.
Then, with a look of realization, he hurriedly wiped his face.

“So it’s even more of a reason not to do it now. I understand the situation, but if we raid them now, we won’t even get to their waist, let alone their head.”

The scene of the post office’s shutter going up was unfolding outside the window.
I pointed out the window with my fingertip.

“First, you do what you can do now, Detective Choi.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Don’t you think something will come up if you check everything from those motorcycles to the buildings in this area?”

I slowly listed the things he had to do next to Choi Suhyeok, who was constantly losing his reason due to anxiety and pressure.
The method of clearing the air with a question was more effective than I thought in times like these.
Just turning his gaze was enough.

“Let’s start with things like whether there’s a person with a matching name, and if there’s a missing person or a person with a drug-related criminal record among them. I’ll do what I can do.”
“…Be careful.”
“Yes, I will.”

Thump.

And so, we each started doing what we could.

Whir.

The shutter went up for a few seconds even after I got out of the car.

‘What time is it?’

[It’s 9:01. I feel even more ridiculous that they’re keeping the opening time.]

‘At this rate, they’ll probably keep the closing time too.’

I slowly walked towards the ‘post office’. Just in case, I turned a corner to buy some time.
When I looked back slightly, Choi Suhyeok’s car was already gone.

‘He’ll do well. Because he’s that kind of person.’

It was very difficult to build trust once, but the trust that was once built did not disappear so easily.
The Choi Suhyeok I had been watching for the past few months was a trustworthy person.
He was the detective that the citizens, and the people, wanted.
Before leaving Han Seungmin’s house, Han Seungmin had hesitated a few times and then finally opened his mouth while Choi Suhyeok was going to get the car.

‘Lawyer Cha, there’s something Suhyeok does on his few days off.’
‘Yes?’
‘That bastard goes around looking for cold cases by himself. He doesn’t even pretend to listen when I tell him it’s dangerous and not to do it.’
‘Ah, I know that well.’
‘Haha, that bastard’s stubbornness is no joke, right? If there’s even a single thing that’s suspicious, he’ll dig into it until the end.’
‘That’s why I think he’s a good detective.’
‘I think so too. There are a few cases that Suhyeok has solved on his own like that. I heard that’s how he got to know you too, Lawyer Cha.’

I recalled the look in Han Seungmin’s eyes as he looked at me.
Though I was the one in front of him, Han Seungmin was looking at Choi Suhyeok warmly.

‘If Suhyeok gets involved in my case… He’s a really precious guy. Please help him, Lawyer Cha. I mean Suhyeok, not me.’
‘Hmm, then I’ll help Detective Han even more. Because that’s helping Detective Choi.’

As I was replaying my conversation with Han Seungmin, I had already walked a few blocks for observation and was now in front of the post office.

“Hello.”
“…Hello.”

When I entered the post office, a few people were already sending packages with a familiar appearance.

“Ma’am, shall I process this as it is?”
“I don’t know if I wrote the address correctly.”
“I’ll call it out for you again in a little while.”

From the employee who greeted me to the employees who were helping with the package registration at the counter, it was so natural.

‘It’s not just a disguise.’

Seeing that nonchalant appearance, I even began to wonder if it hadn’t been registered on the map yet.

‘Just from what I can see, there are more than twenty.’

[There are twenty-two.]

‘Thanks.’

I headed for the place that had been prepared for packing parcels.
I took out a ballpoint pen from my bag, put it in the box to pack, and looked around.
And so, I found a man with a post office manager name tag on his chest.

‘That person seems to be the person in charge here, right?’

[Yes.]

The man had a friendly appearance and a warm image.

“Oh my, ma’am. Give it to me.”

He ran to a person who had come with a heavy object and quickly took the box.

“How did you manage to carry this heavy thing? What is this, ma’am?”
“Oh, kimchi for my granddaughter. What can I do when she says she wants to eat her grandma’s kimchi? I have to make it for her a little more before I die.”
“Oh, you’re still so healthy, what are you talking about?”
“How much longer will an old woman like me live?”
“Don’t say such things, even for your granddaughter’s sake. We’ll be careful and send it well. Did you write down the address?”
“The address? Here.”
“Yes, please wait a moment.”

[Wow, it’s a proper one. I would have been fooled too.]

‘Looking at it now, there are more elderly people than young people.’

Young people would look for it on a map or use a convenience store, but the elderly would come looking for the post office mark in front of them.

‘He’s so kind right now…’

Nevertheless, this place was a lie from one to ten.
A strange sense of incongruity continued to stimulate my nerves.
I couldn’t find out that incongruity here right now.

Rip.

I roughly taped the box and headed for the counter.

“Yes, is the recipient Kim Jiho?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Should I send it here? Hyoshin-dong 76-5?”
“Yes.”

I nodded at the kind employee with a smile.
Well, in fact, it was a package I was sending to Im Suho, not Kim Jiho.
More accurately, it was just one of the addresses that Im Suho had.