My Calling Is Profiler [EN]: Chapter 130

“And while we can provide first aid in the field, the real treatment happens at the hospital.”

“That’s right. This isn’t a real war.”

If someone gets hurt, they can just hop in an ambulance and go to a hospital in the city. If it’s really bad, they can even call in a helicopter.

“Aside from those brief emergency moments, doctors are basically on standby.”

But because those emergency moments can determine a person’s life or death, doctors are considered emergency personnel and are allowed to be here.

“But it’s rare for a doctor to come all the way out here, isn’t it?”

That’s because a doctor’s labor costs a pretty penny. Losing a day of work is a huge loss.

“Yeah, well… from what I hear, he volunteers quite often.”

“Often?”

“Yes, I haven’t seen him this time, but fire stations aren’t the only places he goes.”

According to the firefighter, he’s a fairly well-known doctor in Seoul, a burn specialist who often visits fire scenes like this to treat firefighters.

“A burn specialist?”

“Yes.”

“So, where is his hospital?”

“Uh, well… it was some hospital in Seoul.”

The firefighter couldn’t quite remember.

“Anyway, he said it was pretty big.”

“Big, huh?”

Size matters. If the hospital is big, there are naturally salaried doctors working there. That means even if he leaves the hospital, other doctors can still see patients.

“Do you happen to know his name?”

“Yes, his name was Ham Seok-hwan.”

“Ham Seok-hwan…”

Park Do-joon muttered the name, glancing at Shin Cheol-kwang. And for a brief moment, he saw a smile playing on Shin Cheol-kwang’s lips.

# The Arsonist

Ham Seok-hwan was affiliated with a fire department in another district. Fortunately, the firefighter made some calls and found out where to find him.

And when he arrived, Park Do-joon squinted at the wildfire, which was far more intense than the last one.

“Damn it, what are you doing in such a dangerous place?”

“It’s dangerous, but we have to check. This is an important case, isn’t it?”

“You could just call and ask for the data.”

“I need to see the scene.”

Shin Cheol-kwang grumbled, seemingly unhappy about being dispatched to the scene. In fact, although he was a senior officer, he had just arrived, and moreover, the team leader had told him to accompany Park Do-joon. Originally, he was the type who hated going out.

“Hey, don’t you know the saying? Cases always happen in the office.”

“That’s a line from a Japanese drama, isn’t it? And that was a drama from years ago. And that line was created to criticize Japanese administration. Don’t misremember it.”

Shin Cheol-kwang flinched at those words. He probably didn’t expect Park Do-joon to know that.

‘Well, it is an old work.’

The line refers to Japan’s administration-centered system. It means that the person in charge of directing from above is more important than the people investigating in the field.

Of course, Park Do-joon thinks that’s bullshit. Skill aside, the amount of information you can get in the field is qualitatively and quantitatively different from what you can get in the office. No matter how well you take pictures, there’s always something missing.

In some cases, you even have to pay attention to the angles of objects, which often don’t show up in photos.

“Detective Park?”

Just as Park Do-joon arrived and was about to make a call, he saw someone approaching from the other side.

“I received your call.”

“Ah, you’re the one who’s going to help us.”

“I’m Kim Hyun-deok. Come on in. But is it true? You suspect him of being an arsonist?”

“Yes, we suspect he might be an arsonist.”

Park Do-joon nodded readily. In this situation, hiding it wouldn’t be good. Ham Seok-hwan already had the trust of the people here.

If they suddenly accused him of being an arsonist, they would naturally be at a disadvantage. That’s why they didn’t just show up unannounced, but contacted him through someone and only after receiving permission.

At least he wouldn’t believe them, but he wouldn’t attack them or spread the word, so they wouldn’t be attacked by others.

“But suspicion is just suspicion. There might be someone else who fits the conditions I presented.”

“Well, that’s true. When there’s a big fire like this, many people volunteer to help put it out.”

Not just volunteer firefighters, but many others.

‘Could that be it?’

Of course, it could be. But those people usually have their livelihoods at stake. That means they wouldn’t go out regardless of the region.

In contrast, the suspicious incidents occurred all over the country.

“For now, it’s best not to say anything bad about him. You’ll get a lot of flak. You’ll probably get kicked out.”

“He seems to be praised by those around him.”

“He’s the director of a large hospital in Seoul. He gives up his profits and comes all the way here to work hard, so you can’t hate him.”

“Do you happen to know the name of the hospital?”

“Ah, it’s called Seoul Naturalism Hospital, I think?”

Park Do-joon checked it online. Then he clicked his tongue.

‘It’s huge. He must be under a lot of stress. I expected as much.’

Naturalism Hospital. It’s called naturalism, but it’s just a plastic surgery clinic. It seems they named it that to imply they do natural-looking plastic surgery.

‘Well, I expected it since he’s a burn specialist.’

A burn specialist is clearly in the surgical field. And burn treatment and plastic surgery are closely related. Plastic surgery is essential to remove burn scars.

The building is a whopping six floors. According to the website, it has proper inpatient rooms and as many as ten doctors.

‘Looks like it was made to target the Chinese market.’

The fact that the website supports Chinese, despite being a Korean plastic surgery clinic, clearly indicates that it was created for Chinese people.

The story of Chinese people coming to Korea for plastic surgery is well known. In fact, there are quite a few specialized hospitals like that in Seoul.

‘But something’s strange? The nature of stress would be a bit different in a hospital like that, wouldn’t it?’

What this means is that the stress a person receives is generally lumped together, but strictly speaking, the intensity or response to that stress varies depending on the action.

For example, the stress of preparing for a wedding, the stress of running a business, and the stress of being stuck in traffic are all different, and their intensities are also different.

‘And one of the characteristics of an arsonist is that they feel ignored by those around them.’

But no matter how you look at it, a hospital the size of Naturalism Hospital is not a scale that would be ignored.

“Just a moment.”

Of course, you can never easily judge a person’s life. What you can see from the inside and what you can see from the outside are different, so confirmation was needed. So, Park Do-joon immediately called the team leader.

“Team Leader?”

-Oh, yeah. What’s up? Did you arrive at the scene? Did you meet the guy?

“I arrived, but I haven’t met him yet. By the way, could you look into a place called Naturalism Hospital in Seoul?”

-Naturalism Hospital?

“The main areas of treatment are plastic surgery and internal medicine.”

-Okay. I’ll look into it and get back to you.

“Thank you.”

Park Do-joon ended the short call and said to Kim Hyun-deok.

“Can we go inside?”

“Yes, follow me quietly.”

Park Do-joon followed Kim Hyun-deok and approached a tent set up separately some distance away.

“Is this the end of the line?”

“Yes, it’s the end. There’s a limit to what we can do here if a real patient comes in.”

“Well, that’s true.”

Eventually, they have to be transferred to a proper treatment facility in the city, so only emergency work will be available here.

“That person is…”

“I think I know without you telling me.”

The man was standing in front of the tent, staring blankly at the flames. Perhaps to others, he would appear to be worried.

‘Different.’

But what Park Do-joon saw in his expression was not worry, but joy. He was trying to appear calm, but the subtle differences within were definitely different.

‘If he were worried, he wouldn’t be standing with his hands behind his back like that.’

Humans naturally try to defend themselves by covering their front. For example, if you cross your arms while talking to someone, it’s a kind of instinct to defend yourself.

Or, if you unconsciously try to distance yourself from the other person, it also means you don’t trust them.

‘But to stand with his hands behind his back….’

Of course, it’s not uncommon for people to put their hands behind their backs when they’re deep in thought. But that’s when they’re focused on their thoughts and their posture changes without them realizing it.

Looking at one side with such a dazed expression is a posture of appreciating something.

‘Like a work of art.’

When you go to an exhibition, there are more people looking at the works in that posture than you think.

Park Do-joon could be sure as he watched the scene.

‘That’s the culprit.’

Eyes that look like they’re looking at a work of art they created. Could a normal person look at the scene of a wildfire with those eyes?

Even at this moment, thousands of people are risking their lives to put out the fire?

Park Do-joon looked at Ham Seok-hwan and then glanced at Shin Cheol-kwang. Then he turned around.

“Let’s go back, Detective Shin.”

“What? After coming all the way here?”

“Yes, if we approach him now, he’ll probably be on guard. And that’ll be more of a loss for us.”

“But he’s the culprit, isn’t he?”

“He’s probably the culprit. But he won’t commit any additional crimes for the time being.”

He’s a human who enjoys looking at his work to relieve his stress.

And this work is probably thought of as a masterpiece from his point of view. In fact, looking at the suspicious incidents that have occurred so far, this is the first time it’s become such a big fire.

“So, we have plenty of time to investigate him.”

“No, are you saying we should just go after coming all the way here? Without even a preliminary hearing?”

“Talking to him will only stimulate his wariness. And we’ve gotten everything we need.”

That dazed expression, like he’s looking at a work of art, was enough.

***

“After checking, Naturalism Hospital is on the verge of bankruptcy.”

Park Do-joon, who had returned to his office in Seoul, quietly went to see the team leader. Then he asked him about the situation. The team leader nodded and began to speak.

“On the verge of bankruptcy? Plastic surgery clinics don’t usually go bankrupt, do they? Especially a hospital in the prime location of Seoul?”

“Yeah, but business hasn’t been good lately. Because of the current situation.”

“What’s the problem?”

“China is the problem, but that’s not a problem that an individual can solve.”