The Cop Is Too Strong [EN]: Chapter 177

177. The Informant

Kwak Eun-jung stared blankly at the monitor screen.

-Thirty-nine, forty, forty-one…

A high-quality orc mask, seemingly stained with fresh blood around the molars, repeatedly descended and ascended on the screen.

After forty-one repetitions, the camera angle lowered to capture the full figure of the woman doing pull-ups.

Slender ankles, balanced and shapely legs, a trim waist, and, undeniably, prominent trapezius muscles.

‘…It’s Haru-nim [a term of respect, like ‘Ms.’ or ‘Mr.’ attached to a name]!’

Eun-jung was certain. There was only one person in the world with such a perfect warrior’s physique.

Eun-jung immediately subscribed to Haru’s channel and began to devour all the uploaded videos.

Her eyes gleamed with excitement.

Eun-jung was even more delighted to learn that Haru had quit the police force to become a fitness YouTuber.

As a police officer, she would hardly ever see her unless she went looking, but as a YouTuber, she could see her every time she uploaded a video.

As soon as she was discharged from the hospital, she bought an orc mask, joined the fan cafe, and even purchased a doorway pull-up bar to install in her room.

“Haa, kuu… Heok, heok.”

Eun-jung hung from the pull-up bar with her bare hands, unable to even do one, falling after only a few seconds.

“It’s this hard… Just who is Haru-nim….”

Eun-jung searched for methods to increase pull-up counts for beginners, bought pull-up assist bands, and properly started doing pull-ups.

Kwak Team Leader tilted his head at the sight.

“My little girl? Why are you suddenly exercising so hard?”

“Huh? Oh, just….”

Eun-jung couldn’t bring herself to say she was following Haru, and timidly swallowed her words. However, Kwak Team Leader’s expression turned serious.

“Is someone bothering you again??”

Realizing her father’s misunderstanding, Eun-jung frantically waved her hands.

“No, no, I just want to get stronger by exercising, and maybe even become a police officer! I think being a police officer like Dad is so cool!”

She made up excuses on the spot. But this time, Kwak Team Leader’s expression was unusual again.

Eun-jung flinched and glanced at her father’s face.

‘Dad looks cool…!’

Kwak Team Leader, his heart struck by his daughter’s words, clutched his chest and nodded.

“Our daughter… Okay, Dad will work hard too!”

“U-huh, D-Dad, fighting [a Korean expression of encouragement, like ‘You can do it!’].”

Eun-jung gave an awkward smile at the overly positive reaction.

* * *

“…That’s what happened, you know?”

In the Violent Crimes Unit office.

The other teams were out on cases, leaving only the newly formed Team 4 to listen to Kwak Team Leader’s boasting about his daughter.

Oh Geng frowned.

“Come on, surely, it’s obvious Eun-jung was just making it up.”

“Tsk! Making up? Our little girl can’t lie. She was just pretending, but the truth is, she thinks her dad is really cool. You guys should hurry up and get married and have a daughter like our Eun-jung.”

Hae-soo slightly averted her gaze at Kwak Team Leader’s words, while the youngest member nodded vigorously and gave a thumbs up.

“Yes! I also want to get married soon and have a daughter just like Eun-jung!”

“Oh~ Are we eating noodles [a reference to the tradition of eating noodles after a wedding] this year?”

“Ah, that’s still, hehe [a nervous laugh].”

As the youngest member scratched the back of his neck and gave a cute smile, Hae-soo approached him and whispered in his ear.

“Have you ever been hit with soy sauce [a veiled threat of violence]?”

“N-no, I haven’t. Sorry!”

“If you ever ‘hehe’ again, you’ll be staggering….”

Ding-di-ring-ding-ding-ding.

Just as Hae-soo was quietly threatening him, the ringtone went off.

Usually, personal cell phones are on vibrate during work, and walkie-talkies have ringtones.

Kwak Team Leader immediately took out his walkie-talkie from his pocket and answered.

“Violent Crimes Unit… Huh?”

-…So, you’re saying she’s currently confined in the bathroom of her house? You don’t know where it is.

[…Yes]

-Does the bathroom have a window?

[It does… but it’s small. There are bars, so I can’t get out. I’m scared… Haa.]

-Don’t worry. The police are tracking your location and are on their way, so please don’t hang up the phone…

It was a report call from the situation room.

Kwak Team Leader immediately muted the call so the situation room staff wouldn’t be confused, and then checked the messages coming through the situation room messenger.

A kidnapping report call is a situation where every second counts.

As soon as they saw the team leader’s expression, the Team 4 detectives, who had been laughing and chatting just moments before, immediately understood the situation and grabbed their walkie-talkies, car keys, and jackets.

The team leader put on his earpiece, listened to the live call, and showed the detectives the walkie-talkie screen displaying the messages.

[20s Female Kidnapping and Confinement Situation]

[Kidnapper Sleeping at Home]

[Reporter Escaped to Bathroom After Cutting Restraints]

[Estimated 1st Floor Detached House]

[Red Brick 2nd or 3rd Floor House Visible Through Bathroom Window]

[010-336-001]

They had connected the call directly to the Violent Crimes Unit as soon as they received the kidnapping report, so they probably hadn’t requested location tracking from the intelligence division yet. That’s why they sent the phone number.

Oh Geng immediately called the intelligence division to request location tracking, and Hae-soo took an earpiece and gave it to the youngest member and Oh Geng.

“Team Leader.”

“Yeah, sure, I’ll share it with you.”

“Yes, then.”

Currently, only Hae-soo is sharing the live situation room call, and Oh Geng and the youngest member receive updates from Kwak Team Leader or Hae-soo if the situation changes.

If all three of them listen to the live feed, they might not be able to focus on the present, which could slow things down.

-In-kyung-ssi, what do you see outside the window?

[It’s too dark to see well… The window is high up… I can see a house…]

-What does the house look like?

[Just a red brick house, like a 2-story… or maybe 3-story… When are you coming? I’m scared, unnie [a term used by a younger woman to address an older sister or female friend].]

-The police have already left. Can you throw anything out the window to help us find your location from the outside? Like tissues.

The trembling in the reporter’s voice fully conveyed how terrified she was.

As they moved to the parking lot to get into the car, Oh Geng shouted while looking at the walkie-talkie.

“Got the location. Sending it now, let’s start searching immediately.”

“Yes, hyung-nim [a term used by a younger man to address an older brother or male friend], I’ll go ahead.”

Thud, thud-

At that moment, a few large raindrops fell on the car. Oh Geng frowned.

“Rain? Shit…”

Hae-soo immediately entered the address displayed on the walkie-talkie into the navigation system and revved the motorcycle’s accelerator.

Vroom-

The reporter’s call was coming through the earpiece, and the Violent Crimes Unit’s radio was set to speakerphone.

Hae-soo was anxious.

It was just her luck that she had already used a reset once today. She was reminded of the high school girl who had become paralyzed in her lower body because she had already used a reset before and failed to save her. It had been resolved with Dae-sung’s help, but the same thing couldn’t happen again.

The radio crackled with Kwak Team Leader’s request for support from one Violent Crimes Unit team and three patrol cars from the local precinct.

[The battery is… Ah, I don’t have any tissues, I’ll throw anything.]

-Yes, In-kyung-ssi, you’re doing great. Many police officers are heading to that location now. Tell us what you’re throwing, and is there anything you can use to block the door?

[No… a cleaning brush and a drain cover… Ah, he, he seems to be awake. What do I do?]

She wasn’t screaming, but it sounded like a scream as she spoke while holding her breath. Then, a rustling sound could be heard in the distance.

Kwak Team Leader immediately radioed the team.

-She threw a cleaning brush and a drain cover out the bathroom window.

-Backnet cleaning brush drain cover received.

-Sunyeol One received.

-Sunyeol Two received.

The accuracy of the location tracking is within a 50-meter radius. The location was in a dilapidated residential area on the outskirts of Gangjin City, a maze-like place with small houses packed closely together.

Swish-

To make matters worse, the rain, which had been falling lightly, turned into a downpour.

“Ah….”

Hae-soo, who was the first to arrive at the location, sighed softly.

The houses were built on a slope.

It was likely that the cleaning brush and drain cover thrown by the reporter through the window would be washed away.

Still, if she found them, it would mean she was nearby, so she bit her lower lip and quickly looked around.

‘The future vision….’

The possession that allowed her to see the future didn’t activate.

However, just because it didn’t activate didn’t mean the victim wouldn’t die. It wasn’t a 100% activation, and in fact, it was much more common for it not to activate.

Squeak-

As she wandered around aimlessly, she saw a white cleaning brush.

Hae-soo first looked around. There were no detached houses that appeared to be 2 or 3 stories tall.

She got off the motorcycle and carefully examined it to see if someone had just thrown it away or if the reporter had thrown it.

At the end of the cleaning brush, the white bristles were faintly stained red.

Hae-soo immediately grabbed the walkie-talkie and quickly moved upwards.

“Backnet cleaning brush found, Jangang-ro 88beon-gil 12-3, presumed washed down by the rain, heading up….”

At that moment, a loud noise suddenly echoed through the earpiece.

Knock knock knock!!

[Come out, come out when I’m asking nicely. If you come out, I won’t kill you, but if I come in, I’ll cut your throat.]

It was the perpetrator’s voice.

A low-pitched voice, the end of his voice trembling slightly. Trembling not with fear, but with anger. Hae-soo’s face turned serious. This kind of perpetrator is impulsive and kills their kidnapping target quickly.

[Haa, haaa… Unnie, unnie, what do I do. Please save me. Please save me, please.]

-In-kyung-ssi, In-kyung-ssi, calm down. Never open the door…

[Come out, this is your last chance.]

[What do I do… What do I do, Momma [a child-like way of saying ‘Mom’]…]

[I guess I’ll just have to kill you.]

Knock knock!

The sound of the bathroom door being struck with a blunt object pounded like Hae-soo’s heart.

Knock, crash!!

Soon, the sound of the door breaking was heard.

[Hwaa, heuu! Kyaaak!!]

[Come here, you bitch!]

Thud, thud!

[S-sa, save…]

Thump-

Suddenly, everything went silent, ending with an ominous, short scream. The situation room staff also held their breath, unable to say anything.

[You bitch, daring to… What is this, a report? Police? Ha.]

Then, the perpetrator’s voice became much closer.

[Come and find me, let’s see if you can come before this bitch dies.]

Click-

The call was disconnected. Hae-soo threw down the earpiece and ran upwards at full speed. There was no time to look around. She focused on the ground, looking for the drain cover.

Step-

Hae-soo’s feet stopped. The drain cover was lying below. Long strands of hair and blood clots were tangled on it.

This guy, this isn’t his first time.

She quickly walked upwards, looking around. A 2-story detached house was visible on the left. A small window and bars visible on the right, a rusty blue iron gate, Hae-soo kicked the blue iron gate without hesitation.

Crash!!

The iron gate twisted and fell off, and she turned the doorknob of the old wooden door inside. The door opened easily. Wet footprints were imprinted on the floor. The broken bathroom door was visible inside.

Thump, thump, thump!

Hae-soo rushed inside and looked around. There, a young woman in her underwear was lying on the floor, blood gushing from her head.

Hae-soo quickly approached her, checking her condition and desperately shouting inside.

‘Reset, reset, reset, reset!!’

But the reset didn’t respond, unfortunately.

Thump, thump.

Then, she felt a pulse. Hae-soo immediately grabbed the walkie-talkie.

“Come up and turn left to the broken blue iron gate! The reporter’s condition is not good! Hurry up and come!!”

-We’re here! We’re here, Hae-soo!!

Oh Geng’s voice was heard almost immediately. His direct voice was closer than the walkie-talkie sound. Oh Geng immediately came in and checked the woman’s condition, and Hae-soo made eye contact with him and immediately got up.

“This bastard didn’t go far. Mountaineering walkers [hiking boots], size 260 [Korean shoe size, approximately US size 8], height between 165 and 175 [cm, approximately 5’5″ to 5’9″].”

“Okay, I’ll join you as soon as I hand over the reporter, find him first.”

Hae-soo tapped the shoulder of the youngest member who was following behind and started looking for the wet footprints.

The rain hides sounds and traces. But it can’t hide the psychology.

In the call, the guy focused more on killing than escaping.

He must have already considered an escape route or method.

A place nearby that wouldn’t be easily discovered.

Knock knock-

“Police. We need your cooperation.”

Squeak-

An old iron gate opened, and a female student showed her face. Her complexion was pale.

“Ah, are you alone, student?”

She nodded silently.

“Okay, did you see any strange men?”

“…No.”

“I see. I’ll be going now. Contact me if anything happens.”

Hae-soo gave the female student her business card and came out.

Thump-

The female student closed the door and turned around, tears streaming down her face. In the living room, a man was holding a blood-stained knife to her mother’s neck.

The man sneered at the female student.

“Good girl. You did well, now come closer to Uncle.”

At that moment.

Crash!!

A large window in the living room shattered, and something as big as a tiger jumped in.