A Killer Paradox episode 3 continues after the dramatic second episode where protagonist Lee Tang killed another person after she threatened to blackmail him.
While Lee was initially distraught over what he had done, he soon realized that his newest murder victim was just as bad as the first man he'd killed, and she had murdered her own parents. There's a pattern here, and everyone Lee kills seems to have done terrible things in their pasts.
Interestingly, this episode picks up following Lee's most recent murder victim, so we get to learn a little more about Yeo-ok before her sudden death. In episode two, she made it clear she was a schemer, so we get to learn a little more about that.
Meanwhile, Lee connects with the Only For Heroes Telegram and is shocked to learn that they know about him, becoming worried for his safety.
Here's what went down in A Killer Paradox episode 3...
Only For Heroes
Episode 3 starts with a flashback to Ye-ok's past. In it, we see a younger version of her hanging out with her friends. When she lights a cigarette, it is revealed there was a gas leak and the place explodes, causing her to lose an eye and left her with burn marks.
This apparently inspired her to orchestrate the death of her parents, as we flash to an adult Yeo-ok, where she used a pipe to send gas into her parents' bedroom. However, before she could finish the job, her mother woke up. We see her grab a knife instead.
Yeo-ok had signed her parents up for eight life insurance policies and had planned to kill them. Detective Jang reads about the story on a social media post and he meets the woman who wrote it, who turns out to be Yeo-ok's cousin. She claims that she once poured boiling water on her face because she "enjoyed it", saying she was a very sadistic person.
On the way home, Jang tells his colleague Yong-jae a story about a case he had worked on. He tells him a girl named Kang Yeon-seo took her own life after she was sexually assaulted. At her funeral, the boy's mother arrived and caused a scene, and Jang reveals she was Yeo-ok's cousin, saying that people can be both victims and victimisers.
Jang speaks to the convenience store owner and learns that Yeo-ok had been standing on the street nearby around 10 PM. The detective asks about Lee Tang and the owner gets angry because he took his money, but confirms that Lee knows the woman.
At home, Lee connects with the Only For Heroes Telegram account but is scared when they reveal they know who he is, and blocks them. Later that day, he receives a court summons regarding the fact he stole his boss' money.
Yong-jae visits the house of the girl from Jang’s story. Yeon-seo’s father, Sang-muk, suddenly confesses to killing the boys that raped his daughter.
Meanwhile, Lee has decided to turn himself in, calling the detective in charge of the fraud case. However, the detective misunderstands his intentions and tells him to visit him. Lee sets aside some money for his mother and for his boss, before packing up evidence of his murders, and then leaving the house.
Sang-muk gives his statement, saying he killed the boys with a brick but can't remember where he put the murder weapon. Jang figures out he's lying and points out some inconsistencies. First; he doesn't smoke but the victims had cigarette burns on their bodies. Second, he's left-handed and the killer used their right hand for the attack.
Jang then gets a message about Lee Tang. Yong-jae apologises about being rash. He then says he informed the high school boy’s mother that they had a suspect. He asks if that could be a problem.
A flashback shows that Sang-muk received a package containing a knife and that he did intend to kill the boys who had assaulted his daughter. He was messaging the same person who contacted Lee, the mysterious Only For Heroes account.
Lee deposits his cash into his bank, but while he's occupied, his bag is stolen by two thieves on bikes. Not finding much inside, they throw it away along with all the evidence pointing towards Lee's murders.
Sang-muk is confronted by Jang, who asks him why he's protecting the real killer as he knows he didn't kill the boys. Sang-muk gets another text from Only For Heroes. He crosses paths with Lee, who is disturbed to learn that Sang-muk knows who he is. Lee flees the scene but Jang spots him and decides to follow.
Lee opens his Telegram again to see that the account has been deleted, which arouses suspicion. Later, Lee's sister and mother come looking for him at his apartment, but the place seems to be cleared out.
A flashback at the end of the episode shows Sang-muk drinking with someone, talking about how Yeon-seo didn’t die immediately but she suffered in the hospital for hours and he admits he wants to kill the men who hurt his daughter. The person sitting across from him, a younger man, tells him that he can do something about it.
All episodes of A Killer Paradox are available to stream on Netflix.
