Life Meat House.

Several large men raised their voices in excitement.

As the police chief arrived, the atmosphere reached its peak.

“…Did you see it back then? He came in, and they were all shrinking back, but our chief! ‘Hey, I unplugged the phone line! Don’t be scared and go all in! If you get fired, I’ll open a chicken restaurant and take care of you all!’ Damn! Our chief is the best!”

“I got chills back then. Even if I had taken the wrong job, at least I joined the right side.”

“Hahaha, that was just a bluff.”

The chief laughed and emptied his glass. Normally, he carried a gentle smile and had a down-to-earth personality, but when it came to standing firm, he showed incredible charisma.

The youngest, Woo Kang-chul, had only been hospitalized for two weeks, yet he attended the gathering with bandages wrapped around his arms and legs. Oh Kang-seok had his arm around the youngest’s shoulders and continuously recounted the story of that day.

“…Our boss grabbed the prosecutor and said, ‘You stink of shit, go wash up.’”

“Damn… Team leader, that was amazing! Against a prosecutor, no less!”

“It wasn’t that impressive. You could tell he was scared.”

“Hey! I wasn’t scared at all, okay? Prosecutor? So what? I’m the team leader of the Violent Crimes Unit 1 at Gangjin Station! Right, Shin-dol?”

“That’s right.”

“Then sing a song.”

“Yes, sir.”

At the sudden order from the team leader, Shin Haesu didn’t hesitate. He immediately stood up and answered.

“Haesu is a real man. Manly as hell.”

“Hey, guys! Our Shin-dol is gonna sing a song!”

“Woooooo!!”

“Shin-dol! Shin-dol! Shin-dol!”

Meanwhile, the youngest stuck a spoon into a soda bottle and handed it to Haesu as a makeshift microphone.

“I don’t need it.”

“Ah, okay.”

Haesu straightened his back, sharpened his gaze, and placed his hands on his waist.

Right on cue, Oh Kang-seok shouted.

“Ah hup! Two! Hup, two, three, four!!”

“The beautiful land of the Mugunghwa—three thousand li of mountains and rivers!”

Haesu’s eyes widened, and he swung his right hand powerfully as he sang in a booming voice.

The detectives were momentarily stunned. The police anthem. The mood was instantly shattered, replaced by complete silence, yet Haesu’s face remained serious—no, solemn.

“Was the police anthem always this intense?”

“Did he just sing the entire thing without looking at the lyrics? Damn, Detective Shin is the real deal.”

At that moment, the youngest, Woo Kang-chul, suddenly stood up, eyes filled with emotion. Clenching his right fist tightly, he shook it as he sang.

“With honor and duty—carried on our shoulders—”

“What’s with him now?!”

“Hey, someone stop the youngest!”

Oh Kang-seok bit his lower lip at the unexpected outburst.

“Ah, screw it.”

He jumped up and joined in the next verse.

“Standing firm on this land—Democratic police!!”

“Wooooaaahh!!”

In the end, the team leader was forced to participate as well, and by the final chorus, the entire unit was singing in unison.

“With sincerity, we serve—Democratic police!!”

“Democratic police!!”

As the police anthem concluded, the chief wiped away a tear and clapped.

Haesu, watching the detectives united under the anthem, nodded in satisfaction.

“If I ever make him sing again, I’m not human. Ugh, I got chills.”

“He’s a master. A true master.”

At the team leader’s words, Oh Kang-seok shook his head.

A few hours later.

“Ugh… Blerrgghh.”

Oh Kang-seok emptied the contents of his stomach into the sewer outside the building. Haesu, wearing the same unreadable expression as before, patted his back steadily.

“Haesu.”

“Do you want me to stick a finger in?”

“Ugh, blech, damn it. Haesu.”

Oh Kang-seok’s eyes were strangely sentimental.

“Yes.”

“Do you remember when we first started speaking casually?”

“During the Dying Night stabbing case?”

“Yeah, yeah. Back then, your uniform stood out so much that I couldn’t help but notice you. You looked like something straight out of a movie.”

“There’s no such thing when dealing with gangsters.”

“Damn… I like you. When I see you, the passion I thought had died out reignites.”

Haesu remained silent for a moment before opening his mouth.

“I, too, am burying my guilt—”

Just then, a loud shout rang out.

“Wooooaaahhh!!”

“Hey! Stop the youngest! You’re gonna tear your stitches!”

“That’s public disturbance, you idiot! Do you want to get arrested on the spot?!”

The youngest, charging forward like a wild boar with arms spread wide, couldn’t be stopped. Everyone flailed about in a panic.

Suddenly, he came to a halt, lifted his gaze to the full moon glowing high in the sky, and shouted.

“Come at me, world! The Violent Crimes Unit is here!!”

The detectives watching while smoking outside all covered their faces.

“Ah, damn.”

“I’m not dealing with this.”

“Ugh… the smell of booze.”

“Wow, here comes the guy who left his guts on the pavement last night.”

Oh Kang-seok waved his hand as he entered the office. Considering he was the second worst drunk last night, his face looked perfectly fine.

“Haesu, didn’t you drink last night?”

“I did.”

“Shin-dol drank more than you.”

“Damn, you’re something else…”

“Alright, the gathering is over. Time to get back to work—”

Riiiiiiing—

Before the sentence could be finished, the internal phone rang.

“Yes, Violent Crimes Unit 1, Shin Haesu speaking. Yes, no cases at the moment. Yes…”

“Of course.”

As Haesu hung up, the team leader immediately asked.

“What is it?”

“It’s a ‘real-life PK’ case.”

“PK? What’s that?”

This time, Oh Kang-seok answered the team leader’s question.

“Player Kill. It’s a gaming term. Basically, when people argue in a game and decide to meet in real life to fight. So in short, it’s an assault case.”

“What the hell? They have nothing better to fight about?”

Haesu received the case file from the situation room and read the report.

“They arranged a real-life fight, then a group of three threatened and assaulted the victim and even extorted game assets.”

“How much could it possibly be worth to go that far?”

Oh Kang-seok dragged his chair closer to sit beside Haesu.

“The person who reported the case claims the stolen in-game assets are worth... 120 million won in cash?”

“W-what?”

“We need to get to the scene first.”

Haesu shot up from his seat. With the rookie absent, he had to work even harder. Oh Kang-seok quickly followed him out of the office.

Several hours later.

Tap, tap, tap, tap.

“Boss, ease up on the knocking. You think pounding harder will make the suspect come out?”

“Sometimes it works.”

“Ugh.”

The Violent Crimes Unit 1 was in the office, reviewing CCTV footage. The victim was in the hospital and unable to come in, so they could only gather details over the phone.

Tap.

“Looks like them.”

Whirr—

At the team leader’s words, Oh Kang-seok pulled his chair closer. Haesu also leaned in.

“Everything matches—the time, the described appearance, the clothing.”

“Hmm… Yeah, but their faces are all covered.”

According to the victim, when he first arrived at the agreed location, a small-built man was waiting alone. The victim, expecting a fight, had brought a friend and dismissed the small man as insignificant.

The small man lured them to a more secluded spot, where men in caps and masks jumped out, wielding baseball bats and wooden clubs. They beat the victim and his friend.

Then, the small-built man unlocked the victim’s phone and transferred the in-game items on the spot.

The stolen items were sold immediately on an in-game marketplace and converted to cash, making it impossible to recover them even if they reported it as hacking.

“Wait, they took the items on the spot? They didn’t even go to a PC café?”

“Most games are mobile these days.”

“I requested a sketch of the decoy suspect. The victim has some drawing skills and said he’d send one over.”

The team leader nodded and tapped at the keyboard.

“This is turning into a real headache.”

“Yeah. Who knows when and where they’ll pick their next target, or what server they’ll be on…”

They requested support from the Cybercrime Unit to trace the suspect’s in-game character IP address, but all the logins were from public networks. The account had been recently purchased, and ownership had already changed hands again.

“These guys are meticulous. This isn’t their first time. There have to be more victims. Let’s gather more reports and build a suspect profile.”

“Understood.”

They contacted the game company and had them put up a notice: “If you have been a victim, please report to the police.”

Three more victims came forward. The same method, the same three-man team.

“The total damages amount to 230 million won… Damn, these guys are worse than voice phishing scammers.”

Haesu, doing lunges in the office, responded.

“Yes. We have to catch them.”

“But why do you look so intense, Shin-dol? You’re scary.”

“Because this is frustrating.”

“Right? I feel the same.”

The investigation was at a standstill. This wasn’t the kind of case they could solve by pounding the pavement. All they could do was wait—either for news from Cybercrime or for another victim to report in.

Then, Haesu suddenly thought of Haru. She had been into gaming lately, and it seemed like she played the same game.

The victim’s sketch was surprisingly accurate. Haesu debated whether to release it alongside the blurred CCTV images for a public wanted notice.

Just then—

Ding diring ding tingting—

His phone rang, piercing through the vibration mode. Haru.

Haru had never called first before. She only sent occasional texts.

Haesu immediately stood up and answered.

“What’s wrong?”

—Um… There’s a problem.

Without hesitation, Haesu grabbed his jacket and rushed out.

A few hours earlier.

After finishing her Korean language class, Haru lay on her bed, tapping away at her phone.

Her delicate brows furrowed slightly from time to time.

“Ugh… This is so irritating.”

She knew Haesu disliked her using slang she learned online. But there was something oddly satisfying about it, making it hard to stop.

There was a player who kept annoying her—hitting her character and running away repeatedly.

- HaruRung: Get lost.

- BunnyPants: No thanks. But I’m going to church soon.

- HaruRung: ?

- BunnyPants: You didn’t get that? Anyway, what are you gonna do? Kill me? You act tough in-game, but I bet you’re a nobody in real life. Wanna settle this IRL? If you beat me, I’ll give you all my items.

- HaruRung: Let’s do it.

- BunnyPants: Name the place. I’ll come right now.

- HaruRung: Gangjin City, Goam-dong…

In front of the convenience store near Daehan Bank, Goam Intersection.

Haru arrived on time, dressed comfortably in a gray hoodie and leggings.

A small-built man, Jeong Yeong-su, also arrived and looked around. But no matter how much he searched, he didn’t see anyone who looked like they were there for a fight.

He logged into the game and sent a private message.

- BunnyPants: Where are you? Chickened out?

- HaruRung: I’m here.

- BunnyPants: So am I.

Tap, tap.

Someone lightly tapped Yeong-su’s shoulder with a finger.

“Excuse me.”

He turned around—and his eyes widened in shock.

‘Whoa, is this some kind of goddess…? Is she trying to get my number?’

Trying his best to smile suavely, he replied.

“Yes? Can I help you?”

Haru swiftly grabbed his wrist. Checking his phone, she saw the game screen still open, along with their recent chat.

“Huh? Wh-what’s this? You can’t just grab someone’s hand like—”

“So you’re BunnyPants.”

“…Huh?”