“So,” Hyun-woo said, looking between Min-jun and their newest companion, “who’s the kid?”
“You didn’t kidnap him, did you?” Si-yeol asked, poking his head over Hyun-woo’s shoulder. They were back at headquarters, working on a different case. Clients didn’t simply stop knocking on their door because Min-jun had hired them as well.
“My name is Kang Hye,” the boy said, bowing. Then he clasped his hands behind his back, the picture of a perfect son. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“He’d been approached by the suspect,” Min-jun said. He offered Hyun-woo the cipher. “They gave him this.” Hyun-woo took the paper, skimming its contents. “I thought it might be dangerous for him to wander alone after encountering that man.”
Min-jun took the documents from Hyun-woo’s pile, figuring that the sooner they finished up this case, the sooner they would be able to start working on Min-jun’s. Among them were messages exchanged between a dead nobleman and various other individuals: his wife, a traveling scholar, a merchant, his friends from the Academy, and lastly, the killer himself. It didn’t take long for the pieces to click together.
“It was the merchant.”
“How do you know?” Hyun-woo asked.
“He has the same handwriting as the killer.” He pointed to a few letters. Small details, nearly imperceptible, but they were there all the same. His mother had taught him how to pick apart a person’s script since before he could walk. She’d drilled Min-jun with all sorts of things, probably expecting him to be an investigator himself, even though he protested it initially.
“The freak strikes again,” Si-yeol murmured, looking at the papers Hyun-woo had given him.
Min-jun rolled his eyes. “You’d do well to stop calling everyone more intelligent than you a freak. It’ll get you in trouble someday.”
“Ooh,” Kang Hye whispered, a grin on his face, eyes flicking between them.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“If that’s so, why don’t you just solve the case on your own?” Si-yeol asked. “What’s stumped you so much that you need our help?”
Min-jun liked to think himself the best investigator in Wolgwang City, but even he had his blind spots. He didn’t have the sharp memory of Dae-yeong, or Eok-gi’s connections. He didn’t have Ha Jil’s natural knack for leadership, or Hyun-woo’s bravery and faith. Min-jun lacked in many areas, and in the ones he didn’t, he’d acquired from his mother. He’d sometimes wondered, ‘I’m rather unremarkable.’ Mother had crushed that feeling and given him meaning. ‘Not unremarkable. You are a match for the King. His angel of death.’ He might’ve fallen in love with that destiny.
“You okay?” Hyun-woo asked, always ready to lend an ear.
“I’m fine,” Min-jun replied. “Just an unpleasant memory, that’s all.”
“We’ll save him, Min-jun,” Hyun-woo said, an arm wrapping around Min-jun’s shoulders. Did he look so distraught? “Don’t worry.” Hyun-woo turned to Ha Jil. “Anything else we need to deal with?”
Ha Jil looked through the papers on his desk, shaking his head slowly. “None of the others are on a time limit. We can push them back to focus on this Time’s Plague problem. We can’t give the person more time to contaminate anyone else.”
“And the Wook family?” Eok-gi asked. “They’re one of the most powerful families in the City. If we neglect their son, it might reflect badly on us.”
Hyun-woo clicked his tongue. “That son of a bitch is probably halfway across the country by now. There’s no point in looking for him.”
News of Sanhae’s disappearance had spread faster than expected. Min-jun hadn’t expected such a respectable noble family to rely on a private investigative agency.
“Wasn’t Wook Sanhae one of your conquests?” Si-yeol asked. “Didn’t even come to say goodbye to his lost love, did he?”
“I would appreciate it if you didn’t speak this way in front of the child,” Min-jun said, coldly.
“No worries, Mister. I’m used to it,” Kang Hye said, having taken a seat next to Min-jun. It was strange to see how well he adapted to this environment. Maybe he really is used to it? Kang Hye glanced around the room. “Do you have snacks?”
“You just ate three bowls of jjigae.”
“So what? Mom says I’m a growing boy.”
“Let the boy eat, Min-jun,” Ha Jil said, seeming almost grandfatherly. “He’s skin and bones.”
Kang Hye accepted a plate of songpyeon from Dae-yeong and, with an eagerness, stuffed them into his mouth. “Did you make these yourselves?” he asked between bites. “They’re really good!” All the while, Min-jun chided him for eating too fast.
Dae-yeong nodded and smiled, showing off two rows of pearly teeth. For a commoner, he had spectacular dental hygiene.
Min-jun laid the cipher down on the desk they all shared. “This was given to me by the suspect. Kang Hye, tell them what you told me.”
Kange Hye swallowed the remainder of the rice cakes in his mouth, throat bobbing. Dae-yeong handed him a cup of tea, and Kang Hye gladly accepted it, thanking him. Hadn’t anyone ever told him not to accept food from strangers?
“Sure, he was a tall man, like, this tall, maybe . . .” Kang Hye continued, adding small adornments to the man’s appearance here and there. “And then, he started talking in riddles. He was really weird. So, why are you looking for him again?”
“Do you remember what he said to you exactly?” Ha Jil asked.
“Hmm,” Kang Hye said, crinkling his nose as he thought. “The weaver and . . . archer? Meet where the butterflies are, hmm, all scarlet, I think….”
Well, they couldn’t expect a child to remember something said in passing perfectly.
“It sounds like a line from a poem,” Eok-gi suggested.
“Indeed,” Min-jun replied. There were no poems he knew of that dealt with both weavers and archers. None of the others seemed familiar with it. Perhaps it was some obscure verse? But then, it wouldn’t make much sense to use it as a clue. Min-jun ran his fingers across the paper, flattening out its creases. Perhaps? “I know where he is.”
“But what about the cipher?” Hyun-woo asked.
“It’s a distraction.” Min-jun stood up. “I think.”
“You think?”
“Ooh,” Kang Hye hummed, following close behind him.
Min-jun turned on his heel and kneeled down to Kang Hye’s eye level. “And you are going back home.”
Kang Hye pouted, and Min-jun braced himself for another round of whining. “But whhhyyy?”
. End of Chapter .
A/N: Thank you for reading. If you liked this chapter, let me know with a comment. This chapter was betaed by Curio on discord. Thank you, Curio!
Also, we’re finally on chapter 60. We’ve got a long way to go yet. I hope you are all ready for what’s in store for us.
Thank you for the chapter
Thank you for commenting ❤
Min Jin gain a little tail?
a very cute one 🤣
Was Min-jun kinda brainwashed by Mother 😭
100% yes
Thanks for the chapter ♥️♥️
Thank you for commenting! ❤
Thank you!
Thank you for commenting ❤
Thanks for the chapter! I’m glad to hear we’ve got a long way to go, because I love this so much. You’re an amazing writer!