The Case of Mangwondong Homicide (Chapter 2)

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Myungsoo leisurely whistled along as he inserted his toast in the toaster and wandered around in his own laboratory, taking in that buttery scent. And after brewing some coffee he sat down in front of the computer that had the program he set up, all the while enjoying the soft aroma of coffee. When the nicely toasted bread peaked its head out, he placed it on his plate right away and set it right next to the mouse. He took one bite out of it and began typing something very quickly with his keyboard.

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” This doesn’t fit either. Should I try another one..”

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He was deciphering the code that Sungyeol had given to him earlier. It was tedious, but since Myungsoo had the interest he was having quite a fun time as he deciphered the code and used the program. As he was doing so, the door suddenly opened without a knock. Myungsoo could’ve been taken by surprise, but instead he calmly looked up as if he was used to it. After realizing that it was Woohyun– the head of this case– he raised his right hand and gave a slight shake.

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” Okay. How’s the code going? “

” I’m working hard on it, thank you very much. “

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At the same time as he was saying so, Myungsoo quickly entered some code and pressed enter, revealing a very big monitor behind Myungsoo that showed the computer screen. The screen showed a bunch of white letters coming in and out on a black background as the program began to decipher. Woohyun awed at Myungsoo’s skills, but Myungsoo just continued to eat his crunchy toast.

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” Uh? The program ended. “

” Ah, I guess it isn’t this one either. Hold on. “

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As Woohyun looked at the monitor and nervously gulped, an error sign came up and he told Myungsoo with a confused face. But Myungsoo seemed like he was used to it as he shrugged and enacted another program. And right after doing so, Myungsoo leisurely took a sip of his coffee and spoke up.

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” The culprit definitely put up an iron wall. “

” Huh? “

” It can’t be solved using security programs that are most frequently used. Not even the decimal system works. “

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The deciphering program you just saw was the one used for security. But not even that works… Myungsoo sighed unlike himself and Woohyun tilted his head slightly as he continued staring at the monitor. He had a very…. nervous-looking face. Myungsoo had glanced at Woohyun being like that. He shoved the rest of his toast in his mouth and casually spoke.

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” You should go now. I’ll give you a call when I’m done. “

” Oh. “

” And I’m more comfortable being alone. “

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As soon as Myungsoo was done speaking, Woohyun finally came back to his senses and nodded. Right after Woohyun went out, Myungsoo whistled and looked to be enacting another program.

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” This is fun. “

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***

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Sungjong had heard about the case later than others and was diligently digging through the files that his juniors had obtained for him.

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” The victim is Lee Sung Jin, a boss of a gang. The evidences found on site were a gun and a piece of note….. “

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That note was taken into the hands of the Hacker, Detective Kim…. As Sungjong continued to read, he felt that the name Lee Sung Jin sounded too familiar. Lee Sung Jin…. Lee Sung Jin….. Lee Sung Jin?

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” Is he the bastard who kept bothering Detective Kim?! “

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Sungjong looked as if he suddenly thought of something and snapped his fingers. That’s right. Yes. This person kept bothering Sunggyu with the title of being the boss of a gang. And Woohyun did not like that at all. Realizing that the victim of this case had a great title to his name, Sungjong was quite surprised.

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” In order for this kind of person to die….. a person must’ve had a great grudge against him. “

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The story unfolds easier this way. Sungjong showed sharp reasoning skills being the youngest detective in the team. Hmm… He continued to think as he examined the scene’s photographs and evidences.

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” Ah, the code needs to be deciphered in order to go on. “

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What could that code mean. Let’s take a guess. If that code was left by the culprit, then it could be a hint about himself. Or, it could be information to mess with us. Well, no matter what it is I think it could be a big help in solving this case.

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” The culprit is somewhat figured out, and I shall wait for the code to be deciphered. “

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A sudden death of a person who kept bothering him. It’s strange, isn’t it?

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***

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Sunggyu was receiving a lot of aid from the crime scene investigator, Lee Sungyeol. Since he’s the one at the crime scene all the time and went through things like this often, Sunggyu thought he’d be very helpful in this situation. And, as he’d predicted, Sungyeol was indeed a big help.

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” It was a gunshot. And it happened in this narrow alley. “

” Right. “

” Then that means, first, the criminal lured the victim here. He either called him out here, or naturally led him here. “

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Sunggyu nodded, actively listening to Sungyeol’s words.

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” And look. If this is the alley, think of yourself as the victim Detective Kim. Now, the culprit– Me– I’m looking at you like this. If I’m not doing anything and am innocently looking at you, the victim is bound to be caught off guard, right? “

” Yes, yes. That’s right. “

” All the while, I pretend to be coming closer and pull out a gun near my chest…. “

” ….and? “

” Boom. One shot. “

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Hearing Sungyeol’s explanation, Sunggyu’s eyes twinkled as he nodded. How could he reason out such a situation with so little evidence. Sunggyu felt that Sungyeol was quite impressive.

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” But the problem is… he didn’t die with one shot. “

” There were, traces of being stepped on. “

” After the bullet wound, had the culprit realized that the victim didn’t die and stepped on him afterwards? “

” Doesn’t that… make the most sense? “

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Sunggyu took Sungyeol’s question into consideration and slightly nodded, and Sungyeol seemed to be thinking the same and nodded along in agreement.

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“Then that means, after stepping on him because the victim didn’t die right away, the culprit erased his traces and disappeared leaving a code. “

” That… makes sense. “

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Sunggyu was impressed by Sungyeol’s clean conclusion and gave a round of applause. The applause was automatic. They had gone through the same things together as detectives, but Sunggyu had never seen a person as skilled in reasoning and logic as Sungyeol. Seeing Sunggyu clap, Sungyeol felt shy and scratched the back of his head.

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” Now all that’s left is, the meaning of that code. “

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After a little while, the answer will show.

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