The Inspector Is Getting Promoted! [EN]: Chapter 42

Smokescreen (1)

10:56 PM.

A deserted road.

I had confirmed there were no CCTV cameras, but I parked far away in case of any unforeseen dangers. Only after checking that no one was around did I get out of the car.

Pulling up the hood of a hoodie I had never worn before, I headed towards a public phone booth not far away.

With my hands in my pockets, I walked quickly, but the cold night air relentlessly stung my cheeks.

“Haa.”

A white breath escaped and shattered in the air.

I entered the phone booth and checked the time again.

10:58 PM.

By now, Bae Jin-soo and Wolhyang should have successfully made contact.

Just as I was about to pick up the receiver, the video I had seen a few months ago flashed vividly in my mind.

The scene of Bae Jin-soo, crazed, bringing a shovel down on Wolhyang’s head.

If I hadn’t seen the future text, Wolhyang’s life would have certainly ended today.

I shook my head to clear the thought and took out a few 100-won coins [approximately 10 US cents] I had prepared in advance, inserted them into the phone, and slowly dialed the number.

A voice came through after two rings.

-Yes, this is 112, police.

“Yes, I’m calling to report something suspicious I saw.”

-What’s going on?

“I was walking down the street, and I saw someone climbing over the wall of a house.”

-What is your current address?

“If you come down from Geumchon-dong in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, there’s an underpass towards Bongilcheon…”

A place only 100m away from the meeting point of Bae Jin-soo and Wolhyang.

Having been there in advance, I recalled the place in my mind and described it.

“…you can see it next to the crosswalk there.”

-Yes, I understand. We will dispatch immediately.

“Yes.”

Before the call could end, I hurriedly hung up the phone, left the phone booth, and returned to my car.

I started the car right away and headed to their meeting place.

Of course, through a road without CCTV.

***

11:04 PM.

Driving quickly towards the meeting place, I called Bae Jin-soo.

-Yes, Prosecutor Choi.

“Did you finish your work?”

I asked with a tense voice.

However, Bae Jin-soo replied with a calm voice.

-Yes. I checked the video, and I confirmed that Wolhyang went home.

The same words I heard in the video.

However, unlike what I saw in the future text, I deliberately pretended to be urgent and said.

“Reporter, are you still at the meeting place?”

-Yes, why is that…….

Before he could finish his words, a black sedan and Bae Jin-soo standing next to it came into my sight.

He only saw the light shining on him and hurriedly reached out to close the trunk.

His nervous voice was heard over the phone.

-I’ll call you right back.

With those words, the call was cut off, and I approached him and slammed on the brakes right in front of him.

Screech!

The sound of tires rubbing against the asphalt floor was heard sharply, and at the same time, I got out of the car.

“Reporter!”

In that instant, the veins on Bae Jin-soo’s arm holding the shovel seemed to disappear into his skin.

“Ah, Prosecutor.”

He swept his chest with surprised eyes and sighed in relief.

“What brings you here…”

I continued with an urgent voice.

“The police are coming nearby.”

Bae Jin-soo couldn’t hide his surprise.

“Police?”

“Yes. I don’t know what happened, but…”

Momentarily, his complexion turned white.

I asked as if I didn’t know anything.

“Did Wolhyang get away properly?”

“Ah, that’s…”

Bae Jin-soo couldn’t continue, as if he was flustered.

Naturally, I turned my gaze to the shovel he was holding in one hand and said, acting surprised.

“Reporter, don’t tell me…”

After staring at him sharply, I immediately opened the trunk without delay.

As expected.

Wolhyang was in the trunk.

“Reporter Bae!”

I immediately yelled at him.

“What is the meaning of this!”

“No, that’s…”

Just as he was about to make an excuse.

The sound of a siren began to be heard.

Bae Jin-soo and I turned our heads at the same time, and we saw a police car approaching from afar.

“Damn it.”

I spat out a curse under my breath and said in a hurried voice.

“It seems that the residents nearby heard the noise and reported it.”

“T, this can’t be happening. No, Wolhyang didn’t even scream… Could it be that they heard the sound of me hitting her…”

Unlike him, who was flustered and didn’t know what to do, I acted quickly as planned.

First, I opened my back seat and moved Wolhyang from Bae Jin-soo’s trunk to my car.

Then, I grabbed Bae Jin-soo’s shoulder and said coldly.

“Reporter, get out of here for now.”

“Then what about Wolhyang…”

“Haa.”

I frowned and let out a deep sigh, then snatched his shovel.

“I’ll take care of it.”

He looked at me with desperate eyes.

“Can you do that for me?”

“I have to. What else can I do? The police are likely to chase Bae Jin-soo’s car. Escape as far as possible.”

Bae Jin-soo clenched his fist tightly.

“Go 300m in this direction, turn right, and go straight, and you’ll see a road leading up to the mountain. If you go there…”

It seemed he had even scouted out a place to bury her in advance.

It was a sight that proved that it was not an impulsive act committed out of greed for money.

In the meantime, the police were getting closer, and the siren was getting louder and louder.

“Let’s talk about the details on the phone. Getting out of here is the priority.”

“Okay.”

Bae Jin-soo and I got into our respective cars.

Just as we were about to start separately.

“Wait a minute!”

Bae Jin-soo hurriedly got out of the driver’s seat and handed me a laptop, a USB, and a burner phone [a cheap, disposable phone used to avoid tracking].

“There are no other copies. I only received money from the higher-ups, but I never gave the data to them. The only copy is on the laptop, and the USB is the video I received from Wolhyang today. In case I get caught, I don’t know what will happen, so please keep it, Prosecutor.”

“Okay.”

Immediately after, we got into our cars separately and slipped away from the scene in the opposite direction from where the police car was coming from.

In any case, the police car would be heading to the place I reported near where we were, not where we were, but Bae Jin-soo was too busy escaping to realize that possibility.

He would only contact me after a long chase.

***

“The examination results show that there are no major problems. She can wake up right away if she rests for a while.”

“Thank you.”

I arrived at the emergency room and had her examined, but as expected, there were no major problems.

From what I saw in the video, Bae Jin-soo didn’t hit Wolhyang hard enough to kill her in one blow, but rather hit her off-center, so I knew it was just enough of an impact to make her lose consciousness, so I had her examined just in case.

I don’t know if Bae Jin-soo was trying to do something strange after knocking Wolhyang unconscious or if he was trying to drag her away and kill her, but it was a scenario that I could execute because I knew he wasn’t trying to kill her right away.

After waiting for about an hour, Wolhyang groaned and tossed and turned.

“Heeuuhm.”

After blinking her eyelids a few times, she soon opened her eyes and jumped up.

“Are you awake?”

Hearing my voice and checking my face, she made a surprised expression.

“Don’t be surprised. There’s nothing to worry about. It’s all settled.”

Only after taking out the IV drip that was stuck in Wolhyang’s arm through the nurse did I return to the car with her.

As soon as the car door closed, she turned to the driver’s seat as if she had many questions to ask.

“What happened? Did Bae Jin-soo get caught?”

“No. He’s running away now.”

“Running away?”

“So…”

Slowly, so that she could understand, I explained to her that I had discovered the scene and that I had decided to take care of Wolhyang’s aftermath due to the police.

She was still surprised and couldn’t hide her astonishment.

“Then how did the police get to that place…”

“It’s a coincidence.”

I had no intention of explaining everything to her in detail.

If I told her that I had called the police, it would mean that I knew in advance that Bae Jin-soo would attack her.

“Ah.”

Wolhyang clenched her fist tightly and placed it on her lap.

Then, as if resigned, she asked in a weak voice.

“So what are you going to do with me? Are you going to kill me? Or…”

“No. I have no intention of doing that at all.”

At my answer, she looked at me again with questioning eyes.

“Then why…”

“Go to the countryside. Wolhyang died in this place today.”

“Yes?”

“You were planning to go down to the countryside anyway. If Bae Jin-soo notices that you’re alive, I don’t know what he’ll do.”

“…I see.”

She nodded slowly.

“Tell me your address. Let’s go to Wolhyang’s house.”

“Yes.”

Following the address Wolhyang gave me, I started the car to her house.

After a long silence, Wolhyang carefully opened her mouth.

“Why are you saving me?”

I looked at her face once and answered.

“Is there any reason to kill you?”

“…”

“Wolhyang isn’t going to tell anyone, is she? Right?”

“…Yes. You don’t have to worry about that.”

“You helped me. Backstabbing those people will only end up grabbing my own leash [getting myself into trouble].”

Wolhyang clenched her fingers and lowered her head.

“Thank you.”

“It’s only natural.”

I wrinkled my nose and said carefully.

“Can I ask you a favor?”

“You saved my life, so what can’t I do for you?”

Wolhyang grabbed her collar with a pathetic expression.

“Not that.”

“Then what?”

After hesitating for a moment, I opened my mouth.

“Please don’t report Bae Jin-soo.”

“Is it because you’re worried that Prosecutor will get involved?”

“To be honest, yes.”

She bit her lip and nodded slowly.

“I will.”

“Thank you.”

“I’m upset with that guy, but if it wasn’t for Prosecutor, I would have been dead.”

With those words, silence flowed between the two.

Before the silence could dissipate, the car arrived in front of her house, and I said to her as she unbuckled her seat belt.

“Pack your bags and come out. As lightly as possible.”

“Yes.”

I didn’t deliberately follow her into Wolhyang’s house.

Because I had no doubt that she would report it in the first place.

The fact that she works at Paju Fairy [likely a hostess bar or similar establishment] was proof of that.

About two hours passed, and before the dawn twilight faded, she came down from her officetel [a Korean term for a multi-purpose building, often used as a residence] with two large travel bags.

“Did it take too long?”

“Yes, it seems so.”

“Ah.”

I chuckled at her embarrassed expression.

“I’m kidding. If we leave now, the first train time from Yongsan will be about right.”

I packed her two bags in the trunk and got back in the car.

Just as I was about to start the car.

My phone rang.

“Who is it?”

Wolhyang’s worried voice.

I checked the caller and put my index finger to my lips.

“Be quiet. Don’t even breathe.”