Chapter Four – The First Lead
By midday, the forest was cordoned off and the body already on its way to Seoul for autopsy. The village felt unsettled—shops half-closed, neighbors whispering in clusters, rumors blooming faster than rain puddles.
Yoo Hara sat at her desk in the cramped police substation, pretending to work while her mind buzzed. Kim Dongseok's voice hadn't left her since the night before.
"Check the hands. Scar. Cigarette burns. That's how you'll know him."
She had scribbled the words in her notebook, disguising them as casual notes. If anyone saw, they'd think she was making ordinary observations. Only she knew they came from a dead man's fury.
The door swung open, and Detective Lee Jungkook entered, a folder under his arm. He looked out of place in the worn-down office—sharp suit, sharp presence, like steel dropped among wood.
"I pulled what I could from HQ," he said, dropping the folder on the desk. Photos and reports spilled out—mugshots, gang affiliations, maps of Seoul turf wars. Dongseok's empire had been wide, violent, and filled with enemies.
"Half of Seoul wanted him dead," Jungkook continued. "The question is who had the reach to find him here."
Hara flipped through the photos, her eyes catching on a face: a man in his thirties, lean, tattoo crawling up his neck.
Before she could react, the whisper surged.
"That one. Min Jae-ho. My right hand. My traitor."
Hara's fingers tightened on the page. She forced her voice steady. "What about him?"
Jungkook glanced up. "Min Jae-ho. Former lieutenant. Disappeared three weeks ago after a fallout with Dongseok. Rumors say he was planning to start his own crew."
Her skin prickled. The ghost's anger coiled in her ears, hot and sharp. "I trusted him. He sold me out. Find him."
Jungkook tapped the photo. "If Jae-ho's in the area, he could be our first lead. I'll need to know if anyone in the village has seen a stranger like him."
Hara swallowed hard. "I can ask around. People talk to me more easily than outsiders."
"Good," Jungkook said. His tone was brisk, professional—but then his gaze lingered on her for a moment longer than necessary. "You saw something in that file. What was it?"
She hesitated. If she answered too quickly, he'd know. If she stayed silent, he'd press harder. So she settled on a middle ground.
"Just a feeling," she said softly. "Sometimes you look at a face and… it fits."
Jungkook's brow furrowed, skeptical but thoughtful. He didn't challenge her. Instead, he gathered the files and stood. "We'll start with the village. If Min Jae-ho's hiding here, someone's seen him."
As he headed for the door, Hara let out a slow breath she didn't know she was holding. Dongseok's voice was still simmering, urgent.
"Don't let him slip away. Don't let that bastard breathe free air."
Hara rubbed her temple. She wasn't sure what frightened her more—the killer still at large, or the ghost riding her every thought, using her as his last weapon.
Either way, the hunt had begun.