Chapter 218

Episode 218 Hong

Gyeong-jun, who was drinking the herbal tea he served while watching Lee Jae-heon skillfully unraveling a bouquet, asked in his characteristic toneless voice.

“Who are you going to confess to?”

“You don’t necessarily buy a bouquet just to propose, right?”

“For that matter, it’s a passionate red.”

Literally, the bouquet that Lee Jae-heon bought from CEO Yoon Garam was filled with bright red roses. Lee Jae-heon answered while separately collecting the gypsum flowers that were stuck in between.

“Someone I knew liked roses. Especially red.”

“Oh, is this a story about first love?”

“I died from my first love.”

“....”

“I want to say it’s a joke, but it’s true. Didn’t you hear the nonsense I said right before I came out in the other side of the world? “I heard you were shaking like crazy when you saw that monster?”

“...You leave me with nothing to say.”

Hong Gyeong-jun narrowed his eyes and sighed.

‘It probably means that he died while in the other world.’

While reporting the situation and having brief conversations, there were times when we brought up personal stories. Starting from trivial things like his favorite food, and more deeply, things like how Jaeheon Lee went back and forth in the underworld from a young age and what he experienced in the past. To the point where I could say out loud that my first love was dead, it seemed like what was happening in the underworld was true.

Hong Gyeong-jun folded his arms and crossed his fingers as he watched Jae-heon Lee cutting the stem of a rose to fit the length of the vase with special scissors.

“....”

“Why is this my first time seeing someone trimming flowers?”

“...To be honest, this is the first time I’ve seen it so close and in person. “Because there is no one nearby who likes flowers.”

“It’s not that I like flowers very much, but...”

“I guess so.”

Still, he didn’t seem to care much.

‘I don’t know what it’s like in reality, but I guess it means that I’m at least used to my lover’s absence.’

Thinking like that, Hong Gyeong-jun paused for a moment, stiffened his twitching fingers and stared into space. Hong Gyeong-jun, who gently stroked his chin, asked Jae-heon Lee, who was putting flowers in a vase as if he was used to it.

“You must have confessed, right?”

“I did it and it was accepted.”

“They say first love fails.”

“In some ways, isn’t this a failure too?”

“Can I comfort you?”

“No need.”

It didn’t really sound like empty words.

“We got along well and understood each other even though our tastes were different. “It’s hard to say it was a good ending, but I did my best to save it as much as I could.”

“That’s right...”

“It’s salted, right? I know.”

Lee Jae-heon laughed mirthlessly. He still hadn’t taken his eyes off the flower.

“I can’t help but regret it, but I don’t think the relationship back then was a mistake. “It means that you don’t have to choose your words by looking at your own opinions.”

“....”

“Don’t worry. I like talking about him. “Because we had more happy times than painful times.”

“...thank you.”

Lee Jae-heon, who said that, seemed really fine, so Hong Gyeong-jun muttered softly.

“You are strong.”

He was different from ordinary people who rummage through the empty space of a dead person, leaving scratches behind, but then put the memories aside. Right now, Hong Gyeong-jun and his strong first team colleagues are hardly willing to talk about those who left.

‘Especially the story about him.’

He thought of his gunner, who had died only a year or two after meeting him. He was neither a person I liked as a person nor a person I respected as a police officer, but he was someone who had an unusual ability to delve into people’s hearts. There was no colleague who brought up such a story about the shooter.

Lee Jae-heon stroked the corner of his mouth as he saw Hong Gyeong-jun’s sinking appearance. The other hand was holding a vase.

“...I just want to leave good memories as good memories. There is nothing to be strong or weak about.”

“Usually people are sensitive and sensitive to the deceased.”

“Well, that aside.”

Lee Jae-heon, who had pushed aside the flowers that were neatly arranged, soon sat down on the chair across from Hong Gyeong-jun. He took a sip of his share of the tea he had brewed beforehand and opened his mouth again.

“So is it over?”

“If you mean contact with survivors, then yes. “It is finished.”

Hong Gyeong-jun wandered around Seoul for a while. The case regarding Song In-myeong, currently in charge of Team 1, began to come under pressure from the top to see if his ‘sponsor’ was blocking it, but he worked hard to meet the survivor in person and check how he was doing while also doing his main job.

Unfortunately, some of us whose whereabouts we did not know had to be found using background investigation information provided by Lee Jae-heon...

“Do you know ‘Uncle Long Legs’?”

“...sponsor? What are you going to do by sponsoring us now? romantic relationship?”

“It’s similar.”

“Octopus legs?”

“You went too far. “Why is there so little prejudice?”

Lee Jae-heon said with a smile.

“I tend to be ignored at home. “I got into some trouble when I was young, and do you know how my image was affected after that incident?”

“well.”

“A hot-tempered, idiotic young bastard... and lacking in affection.”

When Hong Gyeong-jun frowned at the last word, Lee Jae-heon laughed softly as if he had read his puzzlement. The smile was still straight, as if it was made up, but his eyes were calm.

“Lee Jae-hyung, if you are my older brother, your thoughts will definitely go that way. Because that’s all they know about me. Well, other families are no different, but...”

As Lee Jae-heon said that, I couldn’t find a single trace of trust in his family on his face. Hong Gyeong-jun’s expression hardened as he looked somewhere between resignation and understanding, and Lee Jae-heon, who confirmed it, let out a low laugh. Unlike just now, it was a human laugh.

“Are you worried?”

“...Jaeheon Lee is a person who lacks affection for himself in many ways. “I was worried, but I apologize if you felt uncomfortable.”

“There is nothing to be offended by. Anyway, thank you for your concern.”

Lee Jae-heon, who calmly drank his tea, continued speaking.

“You probably think I’m looking for a place to lean on.”

“...Are you talking about mental support?”

“Yes. Even though there are no people around, his personality is dirty. “It means that they will think that they are building relationships by selecting people who can tolerate their personalities.”

“Is that how royals usually build relationships?”

“That’s how royals live. Even if it’s just your first meeting, you need to know what the other person looks like, what they like, and what they’re doing these days... so you can have a smooth conversation even if you’re meeting for the first time. From your point of view, you may think that such culture is being applied to the general public.”

“...I understand....”

“And that kind of relationship usually requires business exchanges, but what does ‘Jaeheon Lee’ have? “Even if we don’t have anything to do with each other, what is it that you will like even if everything is given to you?”

Jaeheon Lee made a circle with his thumb and index finger and grinned.

“It’s money.”

“...Jaeheon Lee usually gets scared when you give him a lot of money.”

“You probably think I don’t know that. In their opinion, the youngest member of the Lee family is hot-tempered, stupid, and lacking in affection. “You’re treating me like an asshole who struggles with human relationships.”

“....”

As Lee Jae-heon closed his mouth at the harsh words, he made eye contact with Hong Gyeong-jun.

“If you think about it in general, you would be embarrassed if money came in from an unknown source. There may be some who say it’s right, but most people are anxious. Then I’ll report it to the bank or the police. “By the way, what has our detective been doing around these days?”

“I went around meeting survivors.”

“Then what would an ordinary person think when they see this money from an unknown source and a detective who suddenly comes to visit?”

“...You came to get this money...?”

“Then, how does Jaehyung Lee, my older brother, view the detective’s actions?”

“Dakkari was a victim of Lee Jae-heon’s lack of affection...?”

“Then let’s put it all together.”

Lee Jae-heon continued speaking while snapping his fingers.

“Lee Jae-heon, who is inexperienced in human relationships, is looking for someone who will accept him, and in the process, Detective Hong Gyeong-jun is selected as his hunting dog. You follow the words of this love-deprived person and go to the people to whom Lee Jae-heon gave 1 million won. “It’s like they followed the wrong money.”

“...The deposit date seemed odd, maybe it was because of the order of events...”

“Hong Gyeong-jun, who contacted all the subjects, returns to Lee Jae-heon and tells him what kind of people they were. Lee Jae-hyung will guess that he sent Hong Gyeong-jun because what he knows through information is different from what he sees with his own eyes.”

“I suddenly took the woman I love hostage, and you just wanted to check it out...?”

“Remember, most royals do not see humans as humans. Biologically, you may think of the other person as a human being, but you see them as inhabitants of a completely different world. You may think it’s a bit excessive, but you’ll think it’s because Jaeheon Lee grew up in a greenhouse. “In our family.”

“....”

I wouldn’t say it, but I felt disgusted. I wonder what on earth Lee Jae-heon, who learned the spirit of sacrifice and self-improvement in such a family, is doing.

“...So... I thought this was all a ridiculous mess by someone lacking affection...”

Lee Jae-heon continued, laughing.

“In fact, it was the shit of an artistic patient, not a person lacking affection. “I didn’t find people who would love me, but I found people who wanted to kill me.”

“This...really...”

“What do you think? Does it look a bit like Song In-myeong?”

Hong Gyeong-jun wiped his face with both hands and laughed helplessly.

“It’s best.”

One way or another, in the end, Hong Gyeong-jun was also a crazy person who lived for the pleasure of catching criminals.

There was no one to stop these crazy people.