My Calling Is Profiler [EN]: Chapter 688

“Oh, now that you mention it, I didn’t tell you the charges, did I? Serial kidnapping and murder of women.”

The employee flinched at those words. Park Do-joon pretended not to notice and asked Lee Ji-soo,

“Would you work here if you were her?”

“Oh, are you crazy? I’d go somewhere else right away. How can I work for a company that protects serial killers?”

“Come to think of it, how many women have suddenly disappeared while working at this company?”

“Well, wouldn’t it be over 100?”

Lee Ji-soo said very naturally to Park Do-joon’s words. And Lee Ji-soo is right.

To be exact, most people work for a short time and can’t stand it, so they do what is called ‘running away in their underwear’ [a Korean idiom for fleeing in a hurry, often due to unbearable conditions], but it is not known whether that is a disappearance or simply running away.

“It would be interesting if a warrant came out?”

Park Do-joon did not hesitate and turned around to leave. In this case, trying to persuade them is a waste.

“Just a moment.”

As expected, as soon as Park Do-joon tried to leave, the employee ran up and grabbed him.

“So, you only need to check the company’s own records of employment.”

“No, it’s okay. I guess we’ll have to do it according to the rules. First, I will request a warrant. Oh, come to think of it, do you properly report missing people here? Just looking at the stories on the internet, it seems like over 100 people don’t come to work suddenly every year……”

Of course not. Because too many people run away.

But what if it’s linked to a serial killer?

The employee felt a chill down his spine. You can’t stop something that could have been stopped in the middle? Does the company get destroyed because he said something wrong? Then his life will be over.

“Just tell me the name… just the name….”

He had no choice but to speak almost pleadingly.

# Breaking the Mask

It was as Park Do-joon expected. The criminals were working at Wonjo Bakery. And they rested last weekend.

“It’s amazing that you found them, even though there are more than one or two other companies.”

Cho Sang-gyu said, sounding genuinely impressed.

“Even if many small and medium-sized companies work on weekends, it doesn’t mean there aren’t any that work five days a week.”

“Yes, I thought that might be the case at first. But there was also the issue of traces of labor.”

“There are more than one or two factories indoors, right?”

“That’s true. But those places don’t hire people as part-timers.”

“Well, that’s true.”

Even if it is a small or medium-sized company, they would rather hire them as contract workers than hire people as part-timers.

Because in that case, manpower supply becomes a mess.

“But I heard rumors that Wonjo Bakery hires a considerable number of day laborers.”

There are not enough people working, and many people run away. However, they do not hire many regular employees either. Contract workers who are hired cheaply are the vast majority of employees.

So how do you fill the shortage of manpower?

“So, day laborers.”

“That’s right.”

“Well, if they had entered as even a contract worker, it would have appeared on the computer.”

Lee Ji-soo understood and nodded. By law, the four major insurances [National Pension, National Health Insurance, Employment Insurance, and Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance] are mandatory. Of course, the police know their names and resident registration numbers, and they should have come up when they searched for them.

But it didn’t come out.

“So, they’re not even contract workers.”

“Certainly, the number of day laborers working internally is very small.”

Most day laborers work at places like construction sites. There are some employees who work indoors, but most of those places generally use female day laborers, not male laborers.

“Wonjo Bakery hires a lot of day laborers.”

And since they basically handle food, all employees wear disposable masks, hats, and sanitary clothes.

“Since they work indoors, completely covered, they won’t be exposed to the sun.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Hmm.”

“And the fact that they are poor was also a major factor.”

“Poverty is a factor?”

“Those guys don’t have cars, so they take the bus. But no matter what, if four people pool their money, they can buy a used compact car. But why don’t they?”

“Well?”

“Desperation.”

“Desperation… Well, no matter how much they make excuses, they can’t help but know their own sins.”

“Yes? But you clearly said it was a vigilante activity?”

“That’s what the external psychology would be. But the internal psychology is different.”

“Yes?”

“Rather, the very fact that they say that often means that their internal psychology is cornered.”

“What do you mean?”

“Um, let’s take the example of the abusive parents I mentioned before.”

“Yes.”

“What do they say when there is a social problem? Do they reflect?”

“They don’t.”

They do not reflect. Instead, they claim that the victim is an evil person who deserves to be beaten to death and that they have done the right thing.

“But do they really believe that? Or do they want to believe it?”

“Ah……”

Of course, it would be the latter. Because if not, they themselves would become criminals who deserve to be beaten to death.

“Serial killers, on the other hand, don’t have such worries.”

They know that murder is bad, but they don’t care about it. Because their desires come first. Of course, they don’t care whether victims are harmed or whether they are criticized in the process.

“People who criticize them from the outside are third parties who have no feelings for them. Why do criminals desperately send letters of remorse to judges, prosecutors, and police officers, but not to victims? From a criminal perspective, victims are considered third parties with no influence. In fact, that’s true, and unless an agreement is reached, they don’t care if they commit suicide from pain or not.”

“Huh, I didn’t think of that.”

In fact, there are criminals who beat people up and then throw 30,000 won [approximately $25 USD] as a settlement and tell them to get lost if they don’t want to take it.

“In other words, the very moment they claim that they are righteous and that they have done righteous things, they are internally aware that they are not righteous.”

If they didn’t have such thoughts at all? They would have lived a very natural daily life, earning money and living naturally.

The very fact that they are trying to think of themselves as righteous vigilantes is the strongest evidence that they are psychologically collapsing internally.

“So, they were eventually collapsing from the moment they quit and ran away.”

“In fact, there are more than one or two criminals who have engaged in vigilante activities.”

It’s rare, but it exists. But those guys just kill while calling themselves vigilantes and live a normal life.

Because they killed someone who deserved to die, so they have no pain or questions.

“When you handcuff a criminal and drag him away, do you worry about the punishment he will receive?”

“Not at all.”

From the moment they are arrested and dragged away, the criminal’s life is ruined. But the police don’t worry about that.

Because they think it’s karma.

“It’s the difference between what you believe inside and what you say outside.”

“So, what about these guys?”

“The external psychology is that they are engaging in private sanctions through vigilante activities, but internally, they are just in a state of collapse.”

And if there is no expectation or value for the future, there is no effort.

“So, will they try to work hard?”

“They won’t.”

“But they need money, and they don’t want to work at a construction site, and they want to get paid a lot.”

Just because I give up on life doesn’t mean my stomach isn’t hungry.

“So, they’re day laborers. Right. It’s a behavioral pattern that people who have given up often show.”

They work as day laborers and live day by day. Usually, it’s just an expression of living hard, but people who have really given up go out and earn money once, play for four or five days, and then go out and work again when they run out of money.

“There are four criminals. So, if they go out and work once, they’ll earn at least 500,000 won. I heard that Wonjo Bakery usually pays 130,000 won per day.”

They live together, so if they only work about twice a week, they can roughly satisfy their desires.

“500,000 won a day, 1 million won a week, so 4 million won a month.”

Enough money to eat what you want, drink as much as you want, drive an imported car, and swagger around.

“Giving up on the future is like that.”

“That’s right. That’s why I suspected that place.”

Reasonable money and a position that can be obtained at any time if desired. And considering various conditions, Wonjo Bakery was the most likely.

“It’s a relief that they’re working here, but.”

So, there is no evidence that they committed a crime.

“The good thing is that they come to work two days a week.”

I don’t know where they live, but they work together.

“So, it’s a matter of waiting.”

And fortunately, we didn’t have to wait long.

“There are more than one or two suspicious vehicles?”

Park Do-joon and Lee Ji-soo were disguised as on-site workers. In the meantime, Lee Ji-soo looked at the cars parked in the parking lot and said.

“What kind of expensive car is that?”

“There are more than one or two car poors [people who prioritize cars over other expenses]? There are more people living recklessly than you think.”

There are more people than you think who live recklessly, driving imported cars while working hard for a day or two.

“Because they are looking for a job where they can earn a lot of money in a short period of time, the choices are limited.”

Construction work doesn’t look good, and they don’t want to find a fixed job.

“But isn’t it more difficult here than construction work?”

“They pay that much. And it’s better to say ‘I work at Wonjo Bakery’ than to say ‘I’m doing construction work,’ so to speak.”

“Huh?”

“There are so many guys who live with such pretense. You need to learn about that too.”

Park Do-joon said leisurely while looking at the cars.

“But it seems difficult to find them because there are more than one or two of those guys.”

“I don’t think so, because it’s almost time.”

“Yes?”

“Wait and see.”

Park Do-joon said leisurely.

After a while, people who had finished their work today began to leave. Most of them took the commuter bus to go home, but some came to the parking lot and got into their cars. And Park Do-joon pointed out one of them.

“That Bintel [likely referring to a specific car model, but kept as is for character voice] over there. Do you see that car?”

“Yes? Ah, yes. Why?”

“Four people just got in. Let’s follow them.”

“Yes?”

“Think about it. They don’t even do construction work and come here just for show. Would those guys bring their friends?”

“Ah!”

Of course not. Because they don’t want to be ashamed. Of course, they will come quietly alone.

“But four people are moving together?”

“That’s right.”

If they don’t know what they’re doing, they won’t be able to go together. Lee Ji-soo nodded at Park Do-joon’s words.

“I’ve checked the car number.”

“Then if we follow them, we’ll know where they live.”