"It shows that Gyu-Ri hasn't left his building since entering it, and there are no other exits from that building."
After ending the call, Jae-Hyun looked at the upscale residential area in front of him and muttered, "This Manager Jung is quite wealthy."
The two didn't go directly to Manager Jung's house to find Kang-Min. Instead, they used their authorisation to review the community's surveillance footage.
Around the time of the incident last night, Kang-Min and Manager Jung were seen leaving work together and heading home. They parked in the underground garage and got out of the car a few minutes later.
The two held hands, and Kang-Min leaned against Manager Jung.
This was exactly what Min-Joon had suspected earlier.
Both he and Jae-Hyun were somewhat surprised.
"Oh dear, the police are looking into them!"
Min-Joon looked away from the surveillance screen. "You know them?"
"Hey, of course we do. That family is… rather unusual."
Jae-Hyun became interested. "How so?"
"That house used to belong to him. The owner bought it himself. The one you saw wearing that outfit—it's a designer brand. Some of my colleagues know these things. They say the watch on his wrist costs over a million."
"Later, a family of three moved in—they had a son in junior high. Not long after, another person moved in."
The man pointed at Kang-Min on the screen. "That's him… supposedly the master's younger brother."
"After that, people in the neighbourhood started noticing strange behaviour. Some kind-hearted neighbours even tried to warn him."
"And guess what he said?"
Jae-Hyun replied, "What did he say?"
"He said it was a family matter, and others shouldn't interfere."
"You still want to talk about it? A man's duty is to… carry on the family line."
After leaving, Min-Joon remained silent for a long time.
"Such a situation… I've never encountered anything like this in real life," he finally said.
Based on the information sent by Jae-Hyun's team, there was no longer a need to investigate Kang-Min further. He had gone to the hospital that morning.
"I'm pregnant, and there are signs of a threatened miscarriage. That's why I took the day off."
The phone rang again. Jae-Hyun, who was driving, casually pressed the speakerphone.
"Investigating the victim's social circle is proving difficult. He barely knew anyone in this city, but he does have one close friend. They're already at the station."
Police Station
Min-Joon poured Ji-Ah a glass of water.
The woman sitting opposite him had cried so much that her makeup was completely ruined. Several times, Min-Joon worried she might collapse from exhaustion.
After she calmed down a little, he began questioning her.
"Did he ever mention someone following him? Or someone pursuing him?"
Ji-Ah shook her head.
"Before he started dating Gyu-Ri, he was completely focused on making money. There was no history of anyone pursuing him."
"As for stalking… no, nothing like that."
"The bathroom window in his home couldn't close properly. It was a security risk."
"I advised him to move, but he said the rent was cheaper and refused."
Meeting Room
Ara spoke first. "We found the murder weapon—it was in the trash can downstairs from the crime scene. A kitchen knife."
The forensic doctor added, "The test results confirm the blood on the knife belongs to Woo-Jin. In addition, we recovered two sets of fingerprints."
"That's excellent news!"
Excitement spread through the room.
"One set belongs to the deceased. The other does not match his boyfriend, Gyu-Ri. Therefore, it likely belongs to the murderer."
He let out a breath.
"Although we haven't identified the suspect yet, this evidence will make future arrests much easier."
Jae-Hyun nodded. "What about the rest of the investigation?"
"Woo-Jin's social connections in Seongrim are minimal. After a thorough investigation, we couldn't identify a single strong suspect."
"From what people said, he was quiet but well-liked. He didn't seem like someone who would provoke others."
Jae-Hyun turned to Tae-Wook and Jin-Seok. "What about your side?"
Jin-Seok scratched the back of his head.
"We'll continue this afternoon. Based on surveillance from nearby intersections, no one appears to have followed the victim into the residential area."
Tae-Wook closed his eyes wearily. "I've copied all the available footage. I'll go through it again tonight."
Jin-Seok gave a bitter smile. "At this rate, we're going blind."
Jae-Hyun nodded. "Good work."
Just as he was about to continue, he glanced at Min-Joon, who had been unusually quiet.
"The overall picture has improved," Jae-Hyun said. "Min-Joon, share your findings."
Min-Joon didn't hesitate. He summarised his investigation and the analysis he had discussed with Jae-Hyun.
"Although Woo-Jin's boyfriend cannot fully establish an alibi through testimony alone, surveillance confirms he never left his building. There are no alternative exits."
"The same applies to Manager Jung and Kang-Min."
Jae-Hyun nodded. "Seo-Jin, keep digging. See if any additional suspects emerge."
He concluded,
"To put it simply—aside from the fingerprint, we gained almost nothing this afternoon."
The meeting room fell into silence.
The outcome was far from encouraging.
Min-Joon quietly organised his thoughts.
I feel like I'm overlooking something…
I need to revisit the crime scene.
Jae-Hyun set down his pen and looked around. "Does anyone have anything to add?"
Everyone shook their heads.
Just as Jae-Hyun stood up to conclude the meeting, there was a knock on the door. A colleague peeked in.
"Team Leader Jae-Hyun—the victim's family has arrived."