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XI

     Felix had taken to Han's method of stalking people.

     Unfortunately, after his peculiar choice to dye his hair the most attention seeking colour possible, the person he was following easily noticed that Felix seemed to be wherever they were.

     "What do you want?" they asked with a scowl.

     "What you want," Felix said coolly, steeling his nerves.

     "To investigate Hwang Hoseok."

     "Seoul Police Agency, Detective Seo Changbin speaking."

     "Hey, it's... Kim Seungmin, the guy from the airport." Seungmin gulped. This phone call was the last thing he expected to make.

     "Oh!" Changbin's voice brightened. "I didn't expect to hear from you so soon. What can I do for you?"

     Seungmin took a deep breath. Here goes nothing. "I need to know what you know about Hwang Hoseok. Please."

     A pregnant pause at the end of the line.

     "It appears we both need something from each other," Changbin finally said.

     Seungmin could see his phone screen fog up from his hot breathing. "What would you need from me... sir?"

     More silence.

     "Just call me Changbin. Do you care for a coffee?"

     

     Changbin took his sweet time stirring the cream into his drink while Seungmin was already halfway through his iced coffee. "Why are you leading an investigation on Hwang Hoseok?"

     Changbin paused mid-stir, hesitated, then let the stirrer fall into his drink with a sigh. "What do you know about him?"

     "He was recently appointed as the head of branch for a corporation called Kakureta," Seungmin said. "He's a powerful person and he's... divorced."

     Changbin looked up at Seungmin with a start. "Wow- you know more than I thought." He didn't press on. "But you're right. The man has connections everywhere. He's the face of the business world in Korea and has recently gained a lot of leverage in Japan due to Kakureta. His record is practically spotless. Hwang Hoseok has every means, and believe me when I say he's used every means, to make any story about him simply... disappear." Changbin snapped his fingers for effect.

     "For a man with a clean record, you seem officially set on convicting him."

     Changbin's eyes darkened. "Oh believe me, Hwang Hoseok has the works . Embezzlement, exploitation, theft... rumours from his divorce even suspect domestic abuse." Seungmin grimaced at that. That was when Changbin leaned in closer to Seungmin, lowering his voice into a whisper. "He even potentially has blood on his hands. But there's not a single piece of evidence to prove any of it."

     Seungmin felt a shiver up his spine. He had been praying against this possibility. Who was he to ever cross his paths with a murderer? "Why are you so... determined to catch this guy? Is it some detective moral duty or something?"

     Changbin snorted. "I wish. Then I would have gotten some damn support in this case. Getting clearance has taken me years. And... I'm lucky I've gotten this far." He took a moment to fish the stirrer from the cup, finally taking a sip of the now cold drink. "What I'm about to tell you doesn't leave this shop, got it?"