The apprehension team left Tongyeong at four in the morning.
Kaien and I were not part of the physical operation. That was correct procedurally — we were investigators, not enforcement officers, and the actual apprehension of So Jun-won fell under Inspector Gwon's authority and Sergeant Ma's operational command. Our role, once we had provided the analysis and the address, was to be present when it was done: to receive the subject, to conduct the initial formal interview, to manage the evidence chain.
We drove in a separate vehicle behind the operation's lead convoy, moving through the dark forested hills of the southern interior, following a road that wound inland from the coast and grew progressively narrower as it climbed. The forest was dense on either side. The headlights caught the pale trunks of pine trees and occasional glimpses of the road's edge dropping away into darkness.
Nobody spoke.
