Chapter 77: Butcher (6) (1/2)
When Dowook opened the door of Room 2007, he saw Lim So Yool boiling water in an electric pot.
”Director.”
”You’re here.”
Lim So Yool, holding a tea bag in her hand, made eye contact with Dowook.
”Would you like some? Or coffee?
”Coffee sounds good.”
Lim So Yool opened all the cupboards in the reception room and found a container containing coffee. Dowook approached to help her open the lid since she was having trouble with it.
”I…”
”Huh…?”
Even before finishing her sentence, the container slipped from her hand. Coincidentally, Dowook naturally snatched it away. While he was holding it, he opened the lid and held it out.
”Here.”
”Oh, thank you.”
Lim So Yool, who was already scooping some coffee out, jerked her head up.
”Did you think I'd make a mistake?”
”It was a coincidence.”
”Coincidence is part of the probability. If you had predicted my usual pattern, it means that I've been acting that poorly. There was only one time when I dropped something absurdly in front of the doctor, ok?”
The switch of the electric pot went up, and Lim So Yool, who started pouring water, jerked back to look at Dowook. Then she carefully adjusted the amount of water as if she would never make a mistake.
Dowook smirked.
”Isn't life too tight if you try to figure out how coincidental everything around you is?”
”Even if you calculate the exact time of sunrise, the wonder of the sunrise across the horizon can not impaired.”
”That's impressive.”
”It's not a good counter argument to show that understanding the world with probability is fine. Here, coffee.”
”Thank you.”
Dowook took the mug and moved to the hospital room that now ambiguously resembled a residential and office room.
Sitting face to face with Lim So Yool at the table, he presented a photo of Detective Yoon’s notebook on his cell phone.
”This is the encryption sequence I told you about.”
Lim So Yool, who took a sip of the sweet-smelling herbal tea, asked while looking at the screen with interest.
”This patient must be a unique case. You’re bringing something like this over. What are you helping with?”
”It’s not a patient.”
Lim So Yool's gaze became sharp at his response.
”It’s not even a patient, but you're calculating like this?”
She seemed a little angry, and Dowook looked at her, ‘Huh?' he couldn't judge how she felt right now just by her expression.
”We didn't calculate together, we investigated together.”
”Investigate?”
A major accident occurred, and detectives and criminals were brought to the hospital together, and one of them was operated on and even helped with this.
After hearing it all, Lim So Yool lifted her notebook and pen with a relieved look.
”Oh, it's fine. But you overpowered a person twice?”
”I'm not exaggerating.”
”I think that's possible. Because it’s you.”
Lim So Yool, who expressed her belief, handed a pen to Dowook.
”Should we begin calculating?”
”Let's do it.”
Dowook placed his cell phone on the table and turned on the screen.
”How do you solve this code?”
”We need coincidence.”
”What?”
Lim So Yool smiled at the bewildered expression on Dowook’s face.
”One-way functions are useful to hide numbers so that only I can recognize them. Usually, we use a small number.”
A snooty number that only decomposes into one with oneself, a prime number, one of which was written on the note of Lim So Yool.
”The code that the doctor brought can be expressed one by one in an equation containing a few. It's entirely up to the mathematician's intuition to understand the 54 riddles in numbers. That's why we need coincidence.”
Lim So Yool, who opened her notebook, looked at Dowook.
”Let's start with Equation. I'll start from the front. You from the back.”
Dowook felt Lim So Yool's sense rushing into his hands. This impulse alone could tell him that she was excited about the challenge ahead of them.
Wiggling fingers.
These days, he felt very sensitive about accepting other people’s senses.
”How many days until the director's sense reaches 100%? ’
A different feeling from the familiarity of medical science. Dowook thought he would only know how much proficiency he could build after overcoming this unfamiliarity.
”Let's get started.”
The room became quiet for a while. Only the crunching of paper, scribbling of writing and sipping of drinks could be heard in the silence.
After about 10 minutes, the equations of the two overlapped in the 30th string.
Lim So Yool's pen, which was fiercely continuing her writing, stopped. And she looked at the tip of Dowook’s pen.
”You only did 24. You can do the one left.”
”I'll give it to you. I lost anyway.”
”Haha.”
The last equation was recorded, and Lim So Yool, who went through the results, began organizing it on a new page.
”These are all the numbers before encryption.”
Dowook confirmed that the number estimated as the account number and the number estimated as the IP address were clearly revealed and realized that Sergeant Ham's prediction was correct.
”Thank you, director. This will become a clue.”
”I hope you catch the criminal.”
Dowook, who was in a hurry to deliver it to Detective Yoon, waved lightly to Lim So Yool as a good-bye.
Bowing his head slightly before leaving, Dowook looked over her shoulders, and the spacious room behind her caught his eye.
The scenery of sitting alone next to the table looked very lonely.
”These days, I feel like I'm asking you for too many favors. Is there anything you want to ask of me?”
”Will you listen to anything?”
”Yes.”
Lim So Yool answered after thinking for a moment.
”Then please go somewhere with me.”
”Oka… Huh? Where do you want to go? It's not calculating something complicated?”
”It'd be better if you came and calculated with me as well.”
Dowook thought it wouldn't be a simple place, but once she spoke up, he nodded.
”Please contact me when the time is set. I'll make sure to leave my schedule empty.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
Dowook came out, walked to the entrance of the VIP ward and saw two large men standing upright. In front of them, two police officers in working clothes were also standing together.