Ghost Story Club-Chapter 143: Sixteenth Ghost Story The Mysterious 4th Period (7)

“Haa, alright, I’ll let you win this time.”

The young detective walked to the whiteboard with a sigh.

“I’ll share the details of the cases the police have investigated so far, as you wish. But.”

In the next moment, he glared at us with his eyes wide open.

“Once the explanation is over, everyone will immediately leave without a word of complaint. Only that guy, with the name Lee Joon or Sam Joon, will stay.”

“Okay.”

Jinhee answered curtly, while Hayoon nodded quietly.

As expected, our club members seemed to be cooperative with me, but the other two female students next to me looked very uncomfortable with this situation.

Vice Class President Chaerin, with a face that seemed to question why she had to be here, narrowed her cat-like eyes even more, making her gaze appear fiercer.

And the devoted Christian girl Joo Yeseul was fidgeting with her hands with an anxious expression.

However, since the detective had no idea that there were such divisions among us, he assumed that the opinions of our Ghost Story Club represented the whole group and began explaining without hesitation.

“Okay, focus. This is the range of the CCTV that the teachers and I just checked.”

He roughly drew the area, from the central entrance to the east-side entrance, and marked half of the main building with the marker.

“Here, this part, this part. There are CCTV cameras here. Do you understand?”

The way he subtly mixed informal and formal speech with us probably wasn’t because he was trying to be respectful toward us.

I nodded while looking at the map.

“The location where the victim was found is the east-side hallway, in front of the teachers’ office on the first floor.”

He drew a circle with a red marker, indicating the place where the body was found.

“The CCTV covers a wide area, enough to capture the central entrance, but unfortunately, it doesn’t reach the hallway. So, I don’t know why the victim suddenly ended up over there at some point. That’s what I meant when I said the angle was precise. But.”

The detective stared at us with fierce eyes.

“According to the testimony, that moment is clear. It was right after those two girls went into the teachers’ office for their consultation session, and before the witness found the body. It must have been during those 10 minutes or so, right?”

The detective pointed to Hayoon and Yeseul, who were the last to be consulted.

The two girls, who were pointed out, nodded their heads.

It was really obvious.

When Hayoon and Yesul crossed the hallway to enter the teachers’ office for the session, there wouldn’t have been any dead bodies like that.

“……”

There wouldn’t have been any, right?

It was such an obvious fact, but I still turned my head and asked Hayoon.

“You didn’t see anything when you went for the interview, right?”

“Yeah. There was nothing.”

She answered with her usual calm expression.

The detective let out a sigh.

“Hey, student. I already confirmed everything when I was questioning your statement earlier. If they had seen something strange, do you think I’d be holding onto you right now?”

“…. Right.”

I awkwardly nodded my head.

And at the same time, I voiced the question that came to mind.

“….But you mentioned there are more newly installed CCTV cameras, apart from the one at the central entrance.”

“Yes. One at the west-side entrance and one at the east-side entrance.”

“What about those CCTV cameras? Did they capture anything?”

“Of course we found something strange.”

The detective raised the marker and pointed at me.

“You said you used the restroom on the east side but didn’t appear on the footage.”

“Ah, no, what I mean is…..”

Feeling flustered, I tried to explain to him again.

“Forget about my story for now. I’m talking about the body, the body.”

“…Hmm?”

“If there was nothing captured at the central entrance or the east-side entrance, then where did that body come from?”

“……”

Only then did the detective turn his head and looked at the map again.

That’s right.

Both sides of the east-side hallway were being monitored without any gaps by CCTV.

Then, where and how did the body, and the culprit who moved it, come in?

“…That’s obvious.”

The detective picked up the marker and drew an arrow.

“Since nothing was captured on both sides, then they must have come in through here.”

“The hallway window leading to the back of the school. It would make sense if they entered through there, right?”

“……”

Everyone seemed to agree with the detective.

Agreement or not, if both sides were blocked, there was obviously no other way but through there.

But I couldn’t help but bite my lip at that arrow.

‘… Damn it.’

Suddenly, I felt someone’s gaze on me and looked to the side. Perhaps Hayoon was also thinking the same thing, as she was subtly glancing at me.

Whether he knew what we were thinking or not, the detective continued to explain.

“I took a look at the scene, and it seems that most of the hallway windows weren’t locked. It was probably for ventilation purposes.”

“……”

“Then the criminal and the victim must have entered through the hallway windows from the back of the school. Well… they probably have exited that way too.”

Hayoon, with her black hair hanging down the side of her face, and through her slightly lowered eyelashes in the middle, was looking at me.

Exactly.

There was no way the corpse could have come in from there. Because.

Because I was hiding behind the store building and spying on Hayoon in the teachers’ office the whole time from that spot.

And coincidentally, around that time was also supposed to be the time of the crime.

But I didn’t see anything.

‘Locked room murder…?’

In fact, the area behind the school building was surprisingly wide, enough for two cars to pass through, so it was not the kind of place where someone could quickly come and go while I briefly turned my head to adjust my position.

“I’ve explained enough, so I should be able to ask a few questions now.”

The detective pointed at me with the marker pen.

“Lee Joon. You stated that you were in the east-side men’s restroom at that time, but after checking the CCTV, that turned out to be a lie.”

“……”

“Then where on this map were you? Can I ask you this?”

“……”

The detective pointed at me with a fierce glare.

I couldn’t help but clench my fist.

Damn it, I had been dragging the situation out on purpose to prove my innocence.

At this rate, I only seemed more and more suspicious.

“……”

“……”

The detective glared at me with his eyes wide open, just as he had pointed.

And when I didn’t answer, the four girls slowly turned to look at me.

In the end, I had no choice but to bite my lips and tell the truth.

“…I was behind the school next to the store at that time.”

“…..!”

Everyone was shocked for a moment.

“Ohh, aahh.”

The detective also reacted with exaggerated gestures, pretending to be surprised.

But his eyes remained wide open as he continued to stare directly at my face.

“Why were you there? Huh?”

“……”

Jinhee, with a surprised look, poked me lightly as if asking if it was true.

“Hey, is that true?”

I had no choice but to remain silent.

“Why were you there? Huh?”

“……”

“I don’t understand. Why would you be there at that time?”

He crossed his arms and made exaggerated gestures, looking back and forth between the map and me.

Then he suddenly became serious and lowered his voice.

“Hey.”

“……”

“Answer me. Why were you there?”

“……”

The other female students also looked at me with suspicious expressions.

… F*ck.

In the end, I had no choice but to close my eyes tightly and tell the truth.

“…..I was trying to eavesdrop on the girls’ session.”

“…What? What did you say?”

The detective grinned widely and leaned in closer.

Yeseul and Chaerin flinched and took a step back.

“What did you say? What?”

“…On the girls’.”

I bit my lip so hard it nearly bled and said again.

“…I was trying to eavesdrop on the girls’ session.”

“Oh my, oh myyy!”

The detective clapped his hands together and then touched his forehead.

“I made a big mistake! Oh my, I’m sorry. I’ll apologize.”

“……”

Jinhee looked up at the ceiling as if she couldn’t stand it anymore.

“Ah~ I made a big mistake. I’m sorry.”

The detective continued to clap his hands together, and Vice President Chaerin and church girl Yeseul looked at me with eyes as if they were looking at a bug.

“You were a sincere and diligent student who was hiding to eavesdrop on the consultation session of the girl you liked, but I almost made you a murderer. I’m sorry, man. I’m genuinely sorry. I’ll apologize.”

Then, he suddenly changed his expression to a wicked one, and glared at me.

“Did you really think I would believe such nonsense? You killed him. Do you know how scary the police are? If you keep lying, you b*stard, I’ll arrest you and take you away-”

“It’s true.”

At that moment, Hayoon’s clear and calm voice echoed through the broadcasting room.

“I saw.”

“…What?”

The detective turned his head her way and approached menacingly as if he wanted to eat her up.

“What did you say?”

“I saw it. Through the window.”

“……”

A clear voice, as if a bead were rolling.

Hayoon crossed her arms as she said that to defend me, and avoided eye contact with everyone.

“I saw him hiding behind the store the whole time I was being interviewed.”

“……”

“From the moment I entered until we heard the screams. Joony didn’t move from that spot.”

“….Oh really.”

The detective glared at her with his eyes wide open, but Hayoon remained aloof, not even giving him a glance, lowering her eyelashes delicately in a dignified manner.

That untouchable attitude somehow added credibility to the testimony.

Hayoon’s unique aura of indifference, as if she would never utter a word of nonsense, seemed effective.

“……”

After a brief moment of glaring at her, the detective quickly turned his head and looked at Yeseul.

“You were interviewed with that girl, right?”

“Yes? Yes, yes……”

The church girl with short hair, Joo Yeseul, cowered in anxiety and answered.

The detective pointed his chin at Hayoon and asked her.

“Is that true? The testimony?”

“Uh? Ah, no… I don’t know…..”

The girl trembled.

“I didn’t see it… I was focusing on the interview……”

“……”

The detective, who had been looking back and forth between me and Hayoon, finally let out a sigh.

“Alright. Since someone saw it.”

“……”

“Then I’ll ask again politely, Student Lee Joon.”

“…Yes.”

“Did you notice any suspicious movements or sounds around you while you were hiding behind the teachers’ office from behind the store?”

“……”

Once again, I had no choice but to bite my lip tightly and shake my head.

“No…..”

“Haa……”

Then the young detective sighed again as if he was exhausted.

“Does that make sense……”

“……”

“Both sides of the east corridor are thoroughly monitored by CCTV. If you’re standing on one side, and it’s obvious that students are studying in the classroom, logically, the only remaining option is the hallway window.”

“……”

“But if even the hallway window was being monitored by you, Lee Joon, from the back of the school, then how did it appear? Did the body rise up from the ground? Who am I supposed to suspect in this situation?”

At that moment, a sentence the detective said just now flashed through my head.

‘On one side… it was obvious that students were studying in the classroom..…?’

I slowly lifted my head, which had been bowed.

Then I stared at the map he had drawn on the whiteboard in front of me.

“……”

“……”

Soon, the detective followed my gaze and looked at the map.

“What, is there something here?”

“…Yes. There is.”

I slowly raised my finger while sitting.

“Over there. From there, it would have been possible to get in.”

“…..What? Where?”

He flinched and then stared intently at the map.

That’s right.

Whether it was the culprit or the body, there was only one place where they could enter without being caught on the CCTVs on either side, and at the same time avoid my eyes.

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.

“……”

There was exactly one place like that.

The detective stared blankly at the spot I pointed at, and Hayoon narrowed her eyes.

Of course, the spot I pointed at wasn’t the correct answer.

At that moment, it was just a quick escape I made up on the spot, a tiny gap to save myself, nothing more.

But there, right there, was where it started.

The time where I, who had been swept up by the situation and kept my head down until now, finally attempted to counterattack.

Perhaps somewhere in my brain, there’s a specific part that only activates when the situation becomes urgent, responsible solely for quick thinking on the spot.

Now, that part of my brain, which had been completely blocked in this situation, finally loosened for the first time and started to activate wildly.

I can do it, I can do it.

Superhuman inspiration poured into my brain like a waterfall with the speed of lightning.

T/N: Extremely sorry for the blurry images 🥲. I can share a clearer version of the pictures if you join the discord server.