At the Special Investigation Unit's meeting room, a woman was presenting in front of detectives selected from various police stations.
Moon Ji-hyuk was momentarily at a loss for words when he first saw her. She had the kind of beauty that could be mistaken for a celebrity.
With her sleek bob haircut, a pristine suit, and a tight skirt, she exuded a cold and composed aura—the quintessential image of a "cool city woman".
"Everyone, the criminal you are tracking, Red Maniac, is a vampire."
"..."
The detectives all stared at her as if she were speaking nonsense. Moon Ji-hyuk mimicked their sceptical expressions to avoid suspicion.
"What I am about to explain is highly classified. First, I am Team Leader Choi Sun-mi from Section 4 of the Korean Black Cross Association. I understand that what I am about to say might be hard to believe, but once you see this video, you will have no choice but to believe me."
Choi Sun-mi spoke in a firm tone as she displayed a video on the screen. It was footage of Red Maniac murdering at the Noel Fitness Club.
The expressions on the detectives' faces, including Moon Ji-hyuk's, hardened. In the video, Red Maniac dodged bullets and slaughtered over twenty people with a single knife. It was beyond human capability.
"Everyone, vampires are real. Red Maniac's strength and abilities are proof. If this isn't enough to convince you, I can show you more evidence. But judging by your faces, I don't think that will be necessary."
It was hard to believe anyone could watch that video and still think Red Maniac was human.
A detective raised his hand and asked Choi Sun-mi a question.
"I can believe that crazy bastard is a vampire, but what's with him suddenly moving so fast? Does he have some kind of superpower?"
"You have sharp instincts, as expected of a veteran detective. Red Maniac, as a progenitor vampire, does possess superhuman abilities. However, his abilities are more related to mechanical manipulation than sudden acceleration. We believe the sudden increase in speed was him moving at his full capacity."
"So, you're saying that insane speed was just his normal physical capability?"
"Yes."
"Jesus. A monster like that exists in the world."
The detective let out a laugh of disbelief.
"He is a progenitor, a special kind of vampire. Engaging him in combat will be the task of our Black Cross Association's combat unit, the Vampire Hunters. Your role is to track and locate him."
Choi Sun-mi spoke coldly.
This Special Investigation Unit was nothing but a façade. The Black Cross Association had no real expectations from this unit.
"Detective Moon Ji-hyuk is here. Won't the police special forces get involved in this?"
"They would if requested, but that won't be necessary. We, the Black Cross Association, will capture Red Maniac first. We are professionals when it comes to hunting vampires. No matter how famous the special forces are, they can't compete with us in vampire hunting."
"..."
"I will provide you with more information on Red Maniac. According to the data, the recent murder case at Saeoneul Apartments was… "
Moon Ji-hyuk's eyes widened as he looked at the documents. The recent murder case at Saeoneul Apartments was mentioned.
'The victim's body was found beheaded. If it was by Red Maniac's sword, it makes sense.'
A broken CCTV footage of a man in a suit came to mind. The man's physique matched Red Maniac's.
'…That man is him.'
There were six bodies found in the apartment. Three of them were the victims of the bloody alley incident.
'…Perhaps he is.'
He had a lead.
Moon Ji-hyuk decided to organize his thoughts and proceed with the investigation step by step.
***
I sat by the window in a motel near Kim Chun-seok's secret villa in Yeongdeungpo. Before me, there was a desk with a laptop on it.
I glanced out the window through the curtains. The four-story building outside was Kim Chun-seok's secret villa. It was built in a secluded area but looked like an ordinary villa from the outside.
'8 PM. He should be arriving soon…'
Once a week, every Thursday, a female celebrity would visit the secret villa with the president of her agency.
Mostly actresses, but sometimes female singers and girl groups as well. Around ten celebrities seemed to rotate in and out.
They usually left about an hour after entering the villa.
'…Here they come.'
A black van pulled up in front of the villa. The door opened, and five people got out. One was the agency president, and the other four were members of a rising girl group.
They were all trying to cover themselves with coats and hats. Thanks to prior research, it wasn't hard for me to figure out who they were.
They weren't rookies but had recently gained popularity after a long period of obscurity.
'Ha! Today's video will be good.'
I was after a sex video.
I could easily storm in, kill the guards, and behead Kim Chun-seok.
'But that would just make him a victim of Red Maniac's revenge. It would be annoying if he died like that.'
I waited until the celebrities entered the villa, then activated my hacking skills.
[Hacking successful.]
[You can hack Kim Chun-seok's smartphone for 20 minutes.]
The screen of my laptop changed to display the live feed from Kim Chun-seok's smartphone camera.
'…A short video would be great. Even photos would work. Just one shot.'
If this failed, I planned to don the clown mask and forcefully raid the place to get the photos and videos.
[Heh Heh! My pretty girls are as healthy as ever. Why are you standing around? Hurry up and take off your clothes.]
[Ah, yes.]
[You too should stop standing still and undress. This isn't your first time… Do I have to commend you every time?]
[Sob.. Yes.]
[Tsk. Don't cry. I hate the sound of women crying the most.]
...
'…The sound is clear, but the video isn't. Let's switch to selfie mode.'
I switched to selfie mode, and the video came up.
I smiled in satisfaction. The screen was clear.
It seemed Kim Chun-seok had thrown his smartphone on the table, and the ceiling mirror reflected the room.
The room had an interior that rivalled that of luxury hotels. Kim Chun-seok sat naked on the bed, and the four girls were slowly undressing.
"Trying to use that small, old, barely functioning dick on women?"
I muttered in disbelief. They say even a man with the strength to hold a spoon will seek out women. It seems that's almost a universal truth.
[Two of you, come suck my cock. The other two, come over here.]
[…Yes.]
[You will give us a new song, right?]
[Not just a new song. Drama, movie, radio… Tell me what you want. There's nothing I can't do in Korea. I am the king of Korea.]
'What a joke. King of Korea, my ass.'
It took Kim Chun-seok over five minutes to get ready after getting his dick sucked.
'It takes me five seconds, but it takes him five minutes. I'm never getting that old.'
[Enough. All of you lie on the bed. I need to taste each one of you.]
...
[I've been under a lot of stress lately, but your bodies are rejuvenating me.]
The affair ended in just ten minutes.
Yet, Kim Chun-seok didn't let go of the women's bodies, clinging to them for dear life.
Twenty minutes passed. The hacking session had ended. I rewound the footage on my laptop and chuckled.
"This guy's done for. Should I sell this for money? …Nah, nobody would dare buy it, too scared of Kim Chun-seok. I'll have to blow this up myself."
I packed up my laptop and left the motel. Honestly, I had the urge to storm in, kill Kim Chun-seok, and take the women for myself, but I held back.
'Thank goodness those girls aren't real idols. If they looked just like real-life idols, I might've rushed in.'
One day, I'll definitely choose a Play World involving idols and have a wild time. I will, for sure.
***
Dressed in comfortable workout clothes and wearing a clown mask, I started climbing the mountain. My destination was a remote village in the corner of Gangwon-do. It's the place where Kim Chun-seok is suspected of hiding his slush funds.
It's a place so obscure that it doesn't even show up on internet searches, so I had no choice but to search for it myself.
Fortunately, with Kang Eugene's information, I found the mountain village in just two hours.
Hiding slightly behind a large tree, I surveyed the village interior with a scope I got while stealing a sniper rifle from an armoury.
"Seven households. It's barely enough to call a village… And there are only men. Looks like I found the right place."
The men posing as residents were gangsters. Their tough appearances and large builds made it obvious.
"About 30 of them, huh? Quite a lot. That means Kim Chun-seok must have hidden a lot here."
The place where he is suspected of hiding the slush funds is the largest house in the village centre. It seems to be a community hall, with over five cars parked and more than twenty people gathered.
CCTV cameras were scattered around the village, and the men patrolled every hour.
"Those guys… their inner pockets are bulging with guns. They look like they've received professional military training…"
I started thinking.
"No need to rush. I have plenty of time."
It was 9 PM. Roughly nine hours until dawn. Even if dawn came, it didn't matter. The advantage of this place is its concealment, and the disadvantage is slow support.
"They're probably monitoring the village from the community hall 24/7 with the CCTV cameras."
It seemed best to avoid the CCTV as much as possible. To leisurely take Kim Chun-seok's slush funds, I'd need to kill everyone here. No, I'd have to kill them all to take it.
"The answer is assassination."
A plan formed in my mind.
I liked and played many assassination games, so I knew what to do.
"The essence of assassination is simple."
If there are no witnesses, it's an assassination.
Having made up my mind, I decided to wait a bit. These guys are human too, they'll get sleepy, and their guard will loosen.
"They've never been discovered here, so they'll feel at ease."
I could tell just by looking at the faces of the patrolling men. They were completely bored, with no tension. They were only doing it because they had to. That's the vibe.
Midnight.
I started moving.
Using Yeongcheon's practical skill, Gi-eunbo.
I began descending the mountain using footwork. Even stepping on fallen leaves, there was no sound. Gi-eunbo is optimized for stealth actions.
"Good. Gi-eunbo is perfect."
I headed to the side without CCTV.
A barbed wire fence blocked my way. Over 1.5 meters high, an ordinary person can't climb over. You'd need wire cutters to get through.
But I had something far superior to wire cutters: Hwaryeonbido.
Using Yeongcheon style practical skill, Saryeom.
Gripping the sword with both hands, I swung it with all my might.
The barbed wire was cut in one stroke. Still, it looked a bit tough to pass through, so I used Saryeom a few more times to slice the wire.
"The amazing thing about Saryeom is that it cuts through barbed wire without making any sound."
It wasn't completely silent, but the noise was minimal.
When Saryeom successfully cuts its target, the sound is either non-existent or very quiet.
I sliced the barbed wire into small pieces and quietly infiltrated the village.