Chapter 4: Code Zero

Mu-yun looked at his colleague sitting next to him.

Eun-shin shook her head.

“Stray cats are also protected under the Animal Protection Act, aren’t they?”

Senior Patrol Officer Kim Hye-shin, who had been quiet, interjected.

“That’s true.

And cases like this, where so many disappear at once, are a bit bothersome.”

When Sergeant Lee, the Team 1 leader and the most senior person present, stepped in, both Sergeant Song and Sergeant Park shut their mouths with sullen expressions.

There was a bit of a spat, but the shift change was completed without incident.

Before starting the night shift, Mu-yun poured himself another strong cup of coffee, placed it on his desk, and then reread the missing person reports he had only glanced at the cover page of earlier.

Sergeant Song had attached a separate sheet indicating whether such a batch of reports had come in before Mu-yun was even assigned.

Combined, the number far exceeded thirty.

This batch of reports included not only stray cats but also quite a few that had been pets.

And it wasn’t just cats—there were also several young puppies.

“This is going to be hard to find, right?”

Sergeant Park looked at the stack of papers in Mu-yun’s hand and shook his head, clicking his tongue.

“Most of them won’t be found.

With this weather, they might be in basement boiler rooms of apartments or something.

The ones that have lived on the streets for a long time are hard to catch, too.

Most importantly, this kind of work isn’t our responsibility anymore.”

Mu-yun knew that as well.

Animal-related work now fell under the jurisdiction of the community service center.

There had been a period of criticism when responses to robbery reports were delayed because officers were dispatched for missing animals, and eventually, since people came first, such missing cases had left their hands.

“Also, there are many reasons for disappearance, so unregistered animals are even harder.”

“That’s right.”

At Sergeant Lee’s agreement from the side, Sergeant Park let out a deep sigh.

“Besides, look at Rambo.

Those types won’t even let themselves be caught.”

Mu-yun, who had been half-listening to Sergeant Lee, lifted his head.

“Rambo?”

“Yeah.

He exists.

The resident cat of this neighborhood.”

“The one with black stripes all over?”

At Mu-yun’s question, Sergeant Lee glanced at Sergeant Park.

“Officer So knows Rambo?

Have we had another dispatch involving him recently?”

“No.”

Sergeant Park shook his head.

Feeling their questioning gazes, Mu-yun smiled awkwardly.

“I saw him yesterday evening while out for a walk.

Someone had rescued him from getting stuck in a drainage ditch.

That person called the cat Rambo.”

“If he was stuck in a drain or something, that’s definitely Rambo.”

Hye-shin, behind him, laughed.

“Three years?”

“Four.”

Sergeant Park spread his fingers wide.

Seeing that, Senior Patrol Officer Kim shrugged.

“For several years now, whenever we get a report about a cat stuck in some drain, and the fire station or police box goes out to check, it’s always the same guy.

‘No point in rescuing you, Rambo.’”

Mu-yun laughed softly.

“For being rescued so many times, he swung his paws fiercely and ran away.”

“He’s brave.

But since someone called him Rambo, it must be either us or the other side.

Does the fire station rescue Rambo, even though they don’t take cat rescue reports anymore?”

Mu-yun looked at the fire station, which was clearly visible even in the darkness outside the police box.

“It was a firefighter from there, but it wasn’t a dispatch.

He was doing it after work.”

“Who?”

At Senior Patrol Officer Kim’s question, Mu-yun let out a short breath.

He had seen the face three times but didn’t know the name.

He had heard it, but trying to recall it now, it was hazy.

“I don’t know his name, but he’s around my age.

This tall, with a build like this.”

“Captain Won?”

Sergeant Park, who had been listening, uttered an unfamiliar rank.

“Captain?

He didn’t seem like that high of a rank.”

“Ah—right, they’re all called Captain over there.

For firefighters like firefighter or senior firefighter, they just call them Captain.”

“I see.”

At his senior’s explanation, Mu-yun nodded.

Watching him, Senior Patrol Officer Kim smiled.

“Anyway, if he’s a firefighter and handsome by anyone’s standards, it’s probably Captain Won.”

Mu-yun, who had been fumbling through his explanation, wrinkled the bridge of his nose.

“…He is handsome.”

He felt like saying he was very ugly, but objectively, he had a handsome face.

Somehow, he didn’t even want to compliment him, which made his words drag.

Interpreting his expression somehow, Sergeant Park chuckled.

“It’s okay, don’t be intimidated.

You’re handsome in your own way too, youngest.”

At Sergeant Lee’s words, which might or might not have been meant as comfort, Mu-yun burst out laughing.

‘Handsome’ and ‘handsome in your own way’ seemed a bit far apart.

“Still, just because he’s handsome, don’t gladly accept a drink if he offers you one.”

Sergeant Park, who had been laughing for a while, suddenly turned serious as if remembering something, and added.

Conversations that flowed according to the train of thought sometimes had unpredictable segments.

“That very handsome Captain Won across the street once received a civil complaint over an iced latte, and also got an expression of gratitude.”

On the first day, he had been warned that if he wanted to last long as a public official, he should never accept anything from a civil complainant, but receiving both a complaint and gratitude over one iced latte was a story that made his eyes widen.

“Is that true?”

Everyone nodded.

“It’s true.

What’s the use of risking your life to put out a fire in a burning house?

He was given a drink for his hard work, but at the scene he was too busy to drink it.

The next day, someone came directly to the fire station with a drink to say thank you.

Even though he refused, he got a complaint filed and also got an apology.

All because of one measly drink, people said he must have put out the neighbor’s fire first.”

It was the kind of story that would make anyone jolt awake in their sleep from sheer injustice.

“Watching that, your love for humanity just vanishes.”

Sergeant Park clicked his tongue.

But the time for chattering was brief.

Starting from evening patrol time, the police box phone rang without pause.

Dispatch requests came in nonstop, as if trying to break yesterday’s record, and Mu-yun drove frantically, rushing to places where drunks were causing disturbances.

They patrolled the commercial area crowded with bars, cracked down on offenses, sent drunks home with their companions, turned around, and then another dispatch came.

After several grappling incidents, the day changed in an instant.

Mu-yun chased after Sergeant Park in a daze.

Sometimes when he looked up, he saw as many ambulances and fire trucks leaving the fire station across the street as the number of patrol cars leaving the police box.

The night was deepening.

***

[Code zero.

Code zero.

Area 6.

Report of a suspected suicide.

The reporter is the younger sister; the older sister has been out of contact since daytime. 119 has been simultaneously notified.]

At Senior Patrol Officer Kim’s radio call from the situation desk, Sergeant Park responded quickly.

“Patrol 17.

Received.

Over.”

Mu-yun blew air into his cheeks instead of tension, and checked the reporter’s location, which appeared like a police map.

“You know the way here?”

“Yes.”

From their current location, going straight down below Geumjincheon Intersection led to an alley area crowded with studio apartments.

Mu-yun turned on the siren and, as soon as he checked for oncoming traffic, made a bold U-turn.

If nothing went wrong, they could arrive at the scene within three minutes.

Perhaps because it was a case linked to 119, as they passed the intersection, a small pump truck turned down the road in front of them with its siren on.

Their destination was the same, so all they had to do was follow.

As soon as the car stopped, Mu-yun confirmed the firefighters pouring out, then parked the patrol car and checked the surroundings.

“Captain Sa.”

Sergeant Park quickly approached one of the firefighters.

“Oh, Sergeant Park.

We received a request for door opening.”

The team leader of the dispatched firefighting team sighed and gestured, as if telling them to move quickly.

The firefighters ran up the studio apartment stairs, pulling various tools from the cabinet on the pump truck.

“Officer So, follow!”

“Yes!”

Mu-yun ran up, staying at the very back to avoid getting in the way.

As soon as they reached the top floor, the fourth floor with no elevator, the firefighters latched onto the door.

Mu-yun looked for the reporter first.

Spotting the only civilian standing in front of the door, he approached.

“I’m from Seoheung Police Box.”

Seeing his uniform, the reporter, who had been stomping her feet anxiously, looked at Mu-yun with reddened eyes, flustered.

“Is your sister alone inside?”

“Probably.

She hasn’t been answering since yesterday, and I got this text three hours ago.”

The reporter held out her phone, saying she had come herself after dozens of calls went unanswered.

Mu-yun tilted his head and looked at the screen.

It was a message that anyone could see was something like a final farewell.

“Door open complete.”

The reporter and Mu-yun’s heads turned toward the door simultaneously.

“Go in while recording!”

Sergeant Park gave the order and then stood in front of the reporter, as if swapping places with Mu-yun.

Mu-yun attached himself behind one of the firefighters.

The large build felt somehow familiar.

Not ‘handsome in his own way,’ but a genuinely handsome face looked at him.

Mu-yun quickly pulled out his phone and averted his gaze.

Whether it was aware of his desire not to seem like he knew him, fortunately, the man in front had no particular reaction either.

The door opened.

From the moment he stepped into the entrance, Mu-yun felt a chill run down his spine.

The moment the entrance’s tiled floor, so clean and polished without a grain of sand or dust, sparkled in his vision, a sound came from inside.

He quickly lifted his head.

He threw his body rapidly toward the direction of the sound, which was something opening very slowly.

It wasn’t toward the connected kitchen and living room.

As soon as he entered the small room right next to the entrance, his collar fluttered in the wind blowing in through the open window.

Leaving behind someone’s frantic cry, a woman with a rope around her neck turned her head and looked outside.

“Grab her!”

Throwing aside the phone he was holding, Mu-yun lunged.

📚 Also on NHV Novels

This Hidden Class Is a Bit Off

ActionFemale ProtagonistGender Bender

Read Now →
Not interested