More than it seems-

Seoul, South korea

The forest had never been this silent,

not a single bird sang,

not a single leaf moved.

The only sound echoing through the darkness was the hurried footsteps of the police officers rushing toward another crime scene.

Blue and red emergency lights painted the trees in eerie colors.

Officer john stopped a few feets away from the yellow caution tape. His expression hardened as he looked at the lifeless body lying on the cold ground.

Another victim.

Another mystery.

Another family waiting for answers.

A young female officer walked beside him, clutching a file tightly.

"Another death." she whispered, her voice trembling. "How long is this going to continue."

John did'nt answer immediately.

His sharp eyes carefully scanned the surroundings.

No footprints.

No weapon.

No signs of struggle.

It was as if the victim had simply ..... Stopped breathing.

Or something impossible had happened.

After a long silence, John finally spoke. "We still don't have enough evidence to prove this was not any animal attack.

"But sir.." the Officer hesitated. "Every victim was found in differet places."

"No witnesses."

"No fimgerprints."

"And yet..." She swallowed nervously.

"They all died in same way."

John clenched his jaw. He knew she was right.

This was not normal, this was not coincidence.

This was something much darker.

A young constable suddenly came running toward them.

"Sir..." He was breathing heavily. "We found something."

John turned immediately.

"What is it??"

The constable carefully opened a transparent evidence bag.

Inside.. Lay seven tiny crimson cherries.

Fresh.

Bright.

As if they had been picked only minutes ago.

The female officer frowned. "Cherries "

The constable nodded. "we found them right beside the victim.

John stared at them silently.

Something felt wrong.

Very wrong.

The officer beside him looked confused. " But ... This doesn't make any sense. It's not cherry season."

"There shouln't be fresh cherries anywhere near seoul."

The entire team fell silent.

John slowly took the evidence bag into his hands.

"...how did these get here??"

No one answered.

Because no one knew.

One week later......

Busan

Warm sunlight poured through bedroom window. A loud ringtone shattered the peaceful morning.

A sleepy young man reached for his phone without opening his eyes.

"Hello."

"SIJUUUUUUU!"

The voice on the other side nearly burst his eardrums. He quickly pulled the phone away.

"WHAT ?!?"

"YOU GOT ACCEPTED !!"

His eyes flew open. "what are you talking about?"

"The university."

"The admission results!."

He sat upright. His heartbeat quickened.

Without wastimg another second, he rushed toward his laptop with trenbling hands.

The webpage loaded painfully slowly.

Loading..

Loading..

Laoding..

"Come on."

His fingers tapped the desk impatiently.

Then...

The screen refreshed.

CONGRATULATIONS !

Your admission to Seoul Natuonal University has been confirmed.

For a moment...

Eveything around him became silent.

He blinked once...

Twice.

Then suddenly.

"I GOT IN!"

His loud scream echoed throughout the house.

"What happened?" His mother rushed upstairs, followed by his father. Both looked worried until they noticed the huge smile on his face.

Si Ju turned the laptop toward them. "I got accepted..."

For a second... Neither of them spoke. Then his mother covered her mouth as tears filled her eyes.

"You really did it..." She hugged him tightly.

"We're so proud of you."

Si Ju finished packing the last of his belongings and zipped his suitcase shut.

Just then, his mother's voice echoed from downstairs. "Si Ju! Dinner is ready!"

"Coming!" he replied. As he reached for his suitcase, a folded newspaper on his study table caught his attention.

Absentmindedly, he picked it up. The bold headline immediately stood out.

ANOTHER BODY FOUND IN SEOUL.

Police Still Have No Clue About The Serial Killer.

His eyes scanned the article for a brief moment.

"...Seoul really is a strange city."

He folded the newspaper, placed it back where it belonged, and walked out of the room without another thought.

To be continue...............

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