Some paths don't look dangerous at the beginning.
That's why people walk into them.
⸻
The board hadn't changed.
But the way they looked at it had.
⸻
Kang Min stood in front of it, eyes moving slowly from one victim to another.
Not rushing.
Not guessing.
Thinking.
⸻
Ara stood beside him, arms crossed.
"You said the locations are connected," she said.
"What did you mean?"
⸻
Kang Min didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he picked up a marker and circled the four locations on the map.
"Distance," he said.
Ara frowned slightly. "What about it?"
"They're spaced too evenly."
⸻
Bong Soo leaned forward from his desk.
"…is that a problem?"
"It's not natural," Kang Min replied.
⸻
Ara stepped closer to the board.
"They're not close enough to overlap," she said slowly.
"But not far enough to be random either."
⸻
Su Young turned her screen toward them.
"I ran a quick grid overlay," she said.
Lines appeared across the map.
Clean.
Precise.
⸻
Ara's eyes sharpened.
"…it forms a pattern."
⸻
Kang Min nodded once.
"He's choosing locations deliberately."
⸻
Jae In's absence lingered in the room.
Unspoken.
But present.
⸻
Bong Soo shifted slightly.
"So what does that mean?"
⸻
Kang Min pointed at the center of the grid.
"He's operating within a controlled zone."
⸻
Ara followed his gesture.
"…this area."
⸻
Su Young zoomed in.
Residential blocks.
Small businesses.
Old buildings.
Nothing stood out.
Which made it worse.
⸻
"He blends in," Ara said.
"Yes," Kang Min replied.
⸻
A pause.
Then—
"We narrow it down," she said.
⸻
Across the city—
Kang Ha Eun sat quietly at her desk.
The newsroom buzzed like always.
But she wasn't part of it.
Not today.
⸻
The file her team leader returned sat in front of her again.
Untouched.
Officially.
⸻
Unofficially—
She had already started.
⸻
She opened her laptop slowly.
Typed something.
Paused.
Then continued.
⸻
"Let's see…" she murmured under her breath.
⸻
She wasn't looking for headlines.
She wasn't chasing attention.
⸻
She was looking for patterns.
⸻
Victim names.
Dates.
Locations.
⸻
Her screen began to fill with notes.
Connections.
Questions.
⸻
"Why these people…" she whispered.
⸻
She leaned back slightly, thinking.
Then something clicked.
⸻
"…they're not connected to each other."
⸻
Which meant—
⸻
"They're connected to something else."
⸻
Back at CID—
Ara grabbed her coat.
"I'll check this area," she said.
Kang Min nodded.
"I'll take the opposite side."
⸻
Bong Soo looked between them.
"…we're splitting again?"
⸻
Ara glanced at him.
"We're not making the same mistake."
⸻
Su Young added, "I'll stay on comms. If anything moves, I'll see it."
⸻
This time—
They were careful.
⸻
The city moved around them like nothing had changed.
People walked.
Cars passed.
Lights flickered on.
⸻
But for Kang Min—
Everything looked different now.
⸻
Every face.
Every corner.
Every shadow.
⸻
He walked through the streets slowly, observing.
Not just looking.
Studying.
⸻
Somewhere in this area—
The killer existed.
⸻
Not hiding.
Not running.
⸻
Living.
⸻
Across another street—
Ara moved just as carefully.
Her eyes scanning details others would ignore.
Entrances.
Cameras.
Blind spots.
⸻
She stopped briefly.
Something caught her attention.
⸻
A small café.
Nothing special.
But—
Its location.
⸻
She stepped back slightly.
Looking at it from a distance.
⸻
"…this fits," she muttered.
⸻
Her phone buzzed.
A message from Kang Min.
"Anything?"
She replied:
"Maybe."
⸻
Across the city—
Ha Eun closed her laptop slowly.
Her notes were messy.
Incomplete.
But something was forming.
⸻
She reached for her phone.
Hesitated.
Then—
She stood up.
⸻
If she wanted answers—
She wouldn't find them sitting still.
⸻
Back outside—
Kang Min stopped walking.
His gaze fixed on something ahead.
Not obvious.
Not loud.
⸻
Just—
Out of place.
⸻
He didn't move closer.
Not yet.
⸻
Because instinct told him—
To wait.
⸻
To watch.
⸻
To understand.
⸻
And somewhere—
Not far—
Someone else was doing the same.