Dr.NoH 후아유?

"#SiCARiUS#*

Seung Woo left. The doctor's daughter left him with  a good impression. She brought her father to live with her and her husband, who was also a doctor. 

If Stein hadn't stolen his sister's life, perhaps she would have lived this way.

It wasn't often, but sometimes Seung Woo let himself drift into a what-if motion where all fantasies were allowed. Perhaps he would have been an uncle at this age. His sister would probably blackmail him into babysitting or something. Maybe he wouldn't be an inspector. His sister's death was the unique reason for his vocation. The little boy would have preferred to be a maths teacher or a journalist. All Seung Woo desired was justice. He knew the road was long, but Seung Woo hoped his life dedication would have the last word.

The visit wasn't a waste of time; Seung Woo headed to the national library.

"Annyeonghaesyo, cheonen [hello, I'm] Inspector Choi from Yongsan police. I wondered if it's possible to check the list of books borrowed by a certain Mr. Mul Jang Ji."

The man looked at him suspiciously. Seung Woo felt obliged to show his insignia.

"잠깐 만요 [just a sec/minute], here you are. Ah, I remember the doctor was fascinated by the Korean war. I asked him why he only borrowed books about it; he told me he would write a book."

Seung Woo showed a sign of empathy in a smile, "I see. Can you print the list for me, please?"

"Sure, ah," the man typed, " I see there are three books that are still not returned."

"How much is the penalty if they are not returned?" Seung Woo asked.

"150 000 won."

Seung Woo paid; he understood the family's grief. There was no wrong for them to keep the books the doctor read. For Seung Woo, it was as though he paid his respect.

"Eh, just another question do you keep the CCTV footage by any chance?"

"If nothing occurs, we don't. We only have the current month."

"If you need more footage, you can find the last six months. They are kept by our server operator INEX COM," said a woman sitting next to the man speaking to Seung Woo.

"Thank you very much for your help."

"You are welcome," the woman said while she beat her lashes like a butterfly.

Seung Woo smiled. The gesture of smiling, even when insincere, always left a good impression.

INEX COM was a private surveillance company located in Pusan, but they had a branch in Seoul Seung Woo that went there directly. Once again, Seung Woo gave his identity. The team in place were cooperative. The inspector just asked for the last three months of footage. He checked the dates on which the doctor borrowed the books from his list.

Unlike what the INEX employee thought, Seung Woo didn't look at what the doctor borrowed but what he noted. The inspector needed to recognize what support the doctor used.

His daughter was right; he had many notebooks.

One video caught Seung Woo's attention. In it, the doctor appeared to put back a book, but Seung Woo was sure the man slid something into the pages by how he looked about before replacing it. The inspector noted the aisle's name and number. Seung Woo thanked the INEX employee who received him. He then returned to the library. This time, the woman who told him about the CCTV server made herself available for his inquiries.

"This way, please, inspector, my colleague is busy. I can answer your questions."

Her colleague sneered at her, and she threw him a black gaze.

"Tell me how I can help you?" the woman said.

"Ah, I would like to know where you keep the books on Celtic symbols."

"Go straight down the central aisle, and you turn on your left. I can accompany you if you need it."

"He's a grown man he'll be fine, Hye Gyeong, in it, inspector?"

"Yes, thank you again."

Seung Woo could hear the threats Hye Gyeong threw at her colleague as he went.

The aisle was easy to find. Seung Woo walked to the middle and checked the books one by one. He didn't want to ask them to zoom on the aisle when he was at INEX. Doctor Noh's case, added to Stein's, made him paranoid. Seung Woo feared the national security guys would check.

Finally, he flicked through a book, and in the middle, there was one small hand-cut paper with a South Korean flag, and on it was written:

SICARIUS

11 09 12 12 06 18

Seung Woo took a photo of the paper and returned it where it was. It was better for whoever immediately followed to doubt he had found something.

He left the library, eyes darting everywhere. Seung Woo recognized a national security car parked across the street from his. He ignored it and climbed into his car.

What on earth was going on?

The inspector felt he had made a step forward with what he found, but what did the message mean?

Another thing bothered him. It seemed too easy. The two other divisions could have found the paper and followed the same modus operandi he did. And just like him, they could have left the message to see who it would reel in.

"Get a grip on yourself, Seung Woo," he muttered.

His vibrating phone startled him, caller:

Yong Dong Geun

"Ya, eodinya [where are you informal]?"

"I was seeing a witness."

"You better bring your butt back here. The superintendent is going crazy. There are guys from national security going through everything in the basement."

Seung Woo started his car and stepped on the pedal.

He remembered doctor Baek's words: "don't focus on the tree." Stein was the tree, and doctor Noh was a forest of secrets everyone wanted to find.