“Yea I think I saw something strange. It was at around... 3 or 4 in the morning if I’m not mistaken. This black car pulled up here with tinted windows. It just stopped right there.” The station attendant said, pointing at a secluded spot by the corner. “No one got in or out of the vehicle for almost half an hour. We knocked on the window since it was the only car here, but no one responded. We almost called the cops but then someone came out.”

“Do you remember how he looked like?” Yuna asked, letting the man think.

“We couldn’t see his face. He was wearing a mask and a hoodie and always had his head tilted down slightly.”

“Did he go in to buy anything?”

“Yea. A pack of cigarettes and a bottle of beer. He paid in cash though.” The attendant said and Yuna nodded.

“Thank you so much.”

“Is he a criminal?” The attendant asked before Yuna could run to the store to tell Junseo.

“I believe so. A dangerous one too. But it’s alright, we’ll catch him.” Yuna said and the man nodded with a smile. She turned and ran into the store where she saw Junseo conversing with the cashier.

“Did you get it?”

“Another guy is in the back retrieving the tapes.”

“Tell him to narrow it down to the time period at around 3-4 am,” Yuna said as she pushed Junseo towards the room. The boy walked in to convey the message. It took a while before Junseo and the other man reappeared from the room. They thanked them and walked back to the others who were standing by their cars which were attracting the attention of passers-by.

“The footage is inside. I’ve checked.” Junseo said and handed the small thumb drive to Yerin.

“Excuse me for a moment,” Yerin said as she walked away, taking her headset off to place a call.

“What now? They’re clearly not here.” Eunbi said.

“Maybe there’s a clue somewhere,” Sojung suggested.

“The stations attendant said he was loitering over there. Do you think he might have dropped a clue somewhere?” Yuna asked.

“Doesn’t hurt to look around.” Yewon shrugged. They walked over to the secluded spot and began searching the bushes and grass patch for any foreign objects.

“Yuna,” Yerin called out. “Did he pay by cash or card?”

“Cash. He probably doesn’t want to leave a digital trace.” Yuna replied. Then, they saw Yerin sprinting from the car to the store.

“Woah, that’s fast,” Eunha said when she saw the girl run by.

“She must have discovered something,” Sojung said. “Wait here, I’ll go check.” She said and ran in after Yerin.

“Were you on duty at around 3-4 am?” Yerin asked the cashier.

“Yes, why?”

“Did a suspicious looking man come in to make a purchase?”

“Oh yes.”

“Do you still have the cash he tendered?”

“Yes. We hadn’t had many customers yet and most paid by card. He gave me the exact amount.”

“Can you try to find it for me? It’s really important.” Yerin said urgently, placing both hands on the countertop. The attendant nodded and opened the cash register. She sifted through the notes and took out 2 pieces of 10000₩.

“These are the ones he gave.”

“You sure?”

“Absolutely.”

Yerin pulled a pair of gloves from her pocket and slipped them on before picking the notes up, holding them against the light.

“They’re counterfeits,” Yerin said. Sojung’s jaw slacked, shocked by how her friend managed to piece the clues together. “Do you have a ziplock bag?”

The cashier nodded and quickly took a new ziplock bag from under the counter and handed it to Yerin who bagged up the notes and sealed it.

“Thank you,” Yerin said as she took out 20000₩ from her pocket and handed it to the cashier before running out. They still had a business to run after all and their boss wouldn’t be too happy about unbalanced accounts.

“Jihyo? I need you to contact whatever department you have in Cheongju and have them test 2 counterfeit notes for fingerprints and run them through the database. Now.” Yerin said, holding the phone between her shoulder and ear as she hopped into her car.

“Right on it. Go to the police department at Juseong-dong. I have you on highest priority. Just hand it to them when you’re there.” Jihyo said before ending the call.

“Eunbi, come with me,” Yerin said and looked at Sojung who nodded. Yerin and Eunbi got into their cars and left.

“Where are they going?”

“To the police station. As for us... take a short break. I think we need it.” Sojung said and glanced at Junseo.

∴ ════ ∴ ❈ ∴ ════ ∴ ════ ∴ ❈ ∴ ════ ∴ ════ ∴ ❈ ∴ ════ ∴

“Yerin-ssi?” The officer said as soon as the pair walked through the doors. Yerin handed the ziplock bag to him.

“It’s not contaminated. Please hurry.” She said and the officer nodded before rushing off.

“How long is the waiting time?” Eunbi asked Yerin.

“Could take 4 hours. But I don’t know. There’s something else I need to do with those notes.” Yerin said as she looked towards the door.

“The fingerprints are out, and we have a match. He’s part of the infamous IRC that’s active in South Korea right now. Are you placing a report?” A lady in a lab coat said as she approached Yerin, holding the ziplock bag with the notes in it.

“No. I just need his prints. Thank you very mu