By Zephyria 
Money in Central circulates. Wealth gathered in one place does not belong solely to that spot; it quickly flows toward its next destination under the guise of investments or support.
During this season, donation events are held frequently. Councilor Hwang, who managed a small foundation, collected the money that would flow out to others throughout the year around this time every year.
“It was a pleasure seeing you today. I hope everything you wish for comes true for the remainder of the year.”
A few attendees leave early. The event is gradually drawing to a close.
As the once-crowded hall became sparse, those who caught her eye finally appeared.
A man who stood a head or two taller than others, and a young man of similar age guarding his side. Two individuals who showed not a single slip in their composure amidst the ceaseless crowd.
Through her secretary, Councilor Hwang knew that the man standing on the left was one of the protagonists of the medal ceremony.
Though the funds might have flowed from elsewhere, a quite substantial amount of donation money had entered the defense force in his name.
‘That old man, he really shoves his connections into every possible nook and cranny.’
Since she was superficially aligned with the Councilor faction, Councilor Hwang could not refuse her relationship with Park Tae-sun.
Thus, she kept her dissatisfaction to herself. Only after the crowd had cleared a bit did she gaze at the two people approaching her.
“Oh dear. With so many matters to handle, I’ve been late to greet you despite sending the invitation.”
Though she welcomed them with a smiling face, her true intent was close to coldness. No matter how uninterested she was, as the host of the event, she should have shown her face sooner.
Naturally, as young people usually do, they should have shown a flash of offense, but interestingly, neither of them so much as blinked.
Jin Mu-hae, the recipient of the medal, instead wore a light smile as he took her hand.
“You must have worked hard. Since there were more attendees than planned, there must have been more to look after. Ah, this is Joo-oh.”
“Nice to meet you.”
She had heard he was a brat who rolled around in the slums, but he understood things quite well and gave a calm jab. Between his quick wit and a subtle star quality, it was easy to see why he had caught that old man’s eye.
Moreover, it wasn’t as if he were some 1+1 deal; he even dragged along a friend who looked noble next to his own handsome face. They were enough to capture and sway the attendees’ attention for a considerable amount of time.
Councilor Hwang unconsciously glanced at his long legs and broad back. It felt as if a healthy and strong physique radiated a presence even beneath the suit.
For a moment, a flash of envy, a sliver of jealousy brushed through her heart. Habitually shaking off these complex emotions, she met the gaze of the brown eyes that held no trace of a smile.
“Please, don’t say that. It was a great help. President Kim promised more donations than in previous years. He said the conversation he had with you moved his heart.”
“I merely shared an enjoyable conversation, so I am embarrassed that you mention it so kindly. Actually, there were a few mistakes along the way. Perhaps I was nervous, but I found myself wandering around outside looking for the restroom. I should have just spoken to a staff member first…”
“Haha, that can happen. Even I had food spilled on me from the start and had to step away for a moment.”
Not just wandering, but ‘scouring’ the area outside the event space… huh. Councilor Hwang’s lips twitched slightly at the deliberately chosen expression.
Since she frequently invited VIPs, she wasn’t particularly sensitive to someone walking the hallways. However, given the timing, it was phrasing sufficient to recall a recent incident.
Councilor Hwang unconsciously thought of her study. There, a frame she had received as a gift from ‘that man’ not long ago was hung neatly on the edge of the wall.
‘To tell me to hang it in an important place for a few months and use it as I wish.’
An object that she wondered if it would even be worth anything if she tried to sell it.
It was a request that sounded suspicious to anyone, but she hadn’t refused. Although tenacious connections were stationed within the Councilor faction, strictly speaking, she was close to neutral.
Furthermore, since she owed that man a favor, and he had explicitly stated it wasn’t for something like surveillance, there wouldn’t be any wiretapping devices or cams inside.
That was enough. Erasing the uncomfortable memory from her mind, Councilor Hwang looked at the unwelcome guests as if she welcomed them.
“Since I’ve spent a lot of time outdoors, I find myself continuously interested in the external environment and the Crystal Zone.”
“That is understandable. The defense force is a profession directly affected by external conditions, is it not? Thanks to that, the city remains this peaceful and safe.”
“If only we could control the generation of Blue even slightly, the work would have become easier; it’s a pity just to imagine it.”
“Hahaha. I suppose it is the way of the world that we cannot simply pick and choose only what we want.”
He really sounds like a child; I guess you can’t hide your age. Councilor Hwang unconsciously looked again at the man’s thick chest and a frame that looked as if it wouldn’t budge even if struck by a log.
Control of the Crystal Zone… Once, she too had a similar kind of interest.
However, when the child she felt she would spend her whole life loving was born, her life, values, and everything in the world surrounding her changed completely.
“I’m glad you liked the atmosphere. There are souvenirs, so please collect them at the exit.”
Though the man looked as if he had something more to say, he did not open his mouth.
After seeing everyone off with greetings, Councilor Hwang stretched her stiff back.
“Mother.”
Just then, a welcoming voice echoed in the empty hall.
A small spark of vitality rose in Councilor Hwang’s eyes. As she took her eyes off the pad, her son slid toward her through the wide-open door.
A small stature, even considering he was seated. Legs thinner than someone’s forearm.
An upper body restrained so that he wouldn’t fall forward.
The young man, who could barely even hold up his head, wore a strained smile while sitting in a motorized wheelchair.
She habitually checked the blue battery indicator and slotted a drink cup into the holder of the approaching chair.
“Why didn’t you wait outside?”
“It’s okay. Mother, you were… working.”
Councilor Hwang’s pace was as fast as her temper. Nevertheless, her sickly child followed her effortlessly at the same speed.
She looked at the smoothly rolling wheels of the chair and took a sip of her drink with a much lighter heart.
* * *
“Doesn’t seem like it, right?”
“Right. She doesn’t look like she knows what happened.”
Even before the explanation, Joo-oh noticed the situation first. There were suspicious points, but the host of the event didn’t seem to be the big shot Cheong had mentioned.
From the moment she looked at them, her eyes showed no sign of welcome. If it were as he said—that she would eventually find out—she would have given a sign or pretended not to know entirely.
Instead, he had salvaged something special from the study. Mu-hae hailed a taxi, conscious of his left hand tucked into his coat pocket.
Damn it, it would be better to just buy a car to get around the city, even if he had to pay in installments.
The Jaegang District was manageable, but in Central, it wasn’t just a few pennies; it was enough to make one suffocate.
“Did you hear anything?”
“I don’t know the details. I’ll have to go and see.”
“Is that also unrelated to the big shot?”
“….”
Instead of answering carelessly, Mu-hae stared silently at Joo-oh. Just as he tilted his head at the unsettling gaze, Mu-hae asked while collecting the expensive ornaments from his sleeve.
“I told you to just do your job; who were you chatting with so happily?”
“I wasn’t chatting happily.”
“Your voice was practically bouncing with excitement. Why did you shake hands with the same person three times?”
“Because they told me to.”
Sensing the foul mood, Joo-oh’s voice gradually grew smaller. Mu-hae untied his tie, kept it in his arms, and needlessly tugged at his collar.
Even after recovering all the accessories, the fellow still looked radiant. His eyes, as if drawn with a fine brush, captured the gaze of anyone who saw him daily.
And why were his lips so prettily reddish? Because he babbled with those lips, everyone was getting enchanted.
He was dressed that way for that purpose, but Mu-hae felt a creeping sense of irritation. He whipped his head around to look forward.
Until the taxi entered the Jaegang District and reached its destination, he remained silent, feeling the warmth clinging tightly to his arm.
“I found the records of the Return flight.”
“Return flight? There?”
“Yeah. Though she didn’t seem to be an actual accomplice.”
“Is it like the thing we found at Choi Hyung’s house?”
Hyung, my foot. He still calls that pathetic terrorist and clumsy fake ‘Hyung’.
It was a distasteful title, but regardless, Joo-oh wasn’t wrong. Even if the target wasn’t the Return flight, related items could be anywhere.
Hadn’t they even found a Return flight code in Sakdal’s adult shop? Behind a disgustingly wobbling red silicone mass, in the middle of an obscene picture…
It was just that the fact that a recent date was written on the frame felt unsettling. It felt as if things were moving honestly within someone’s grasp.
“You’ll know once we look at it together.”
As if. He was about to spit out an indifferent remark but stopped after seeing the other’s face.
He knew the fellow’s memory and his eye for catching necessary parts in the right place, but for some reason, whenever he stepped forward, Mu-hae found himself scolding him.
Though he wasn’t conscious of it, it was close to an unconscious defense. Because it felt as if he were trusting and relying on him more deeply than he had originally intended.
Fwish—!
In the basement of the Jaegang District, in a space far too wide for two people to use, a hologram document floated.
Mu-hae realized his prediction was correct as he counted the dates written on the first page. The information obtained by sneaking into someone’s house was a record older than his own age.
His fingertips, extended into the air, trembled slightly as he read through the content that was difficult to understand at once.
The surprise and excitement he felt when he discovered the record now seemed to shake his heart twice as hard.
[…Refer to. Accordingly, it is shown that the substance in question goes beyond simply allowing or blocking the transmission path of Blue Energy, and can reconstruct its intensity and direction. This means that energy no longer flows unilaterally according to previously known laws, but can be ‘tuned’ by a specific material structure…]
After going through Olga and Dmitri, then the NPS, the vegan society, and back to the vegan society and research facilities, what he had obtained was a report on the Star Path.
Not a study from Solar City, nor a secret study from the Tamjeunggwan, but a Star Path research report from the Return flight itself.
“I’ve collected three.”
Click. Beside Mu-hae, who stood frozen with a furrowed brow, Joo-oh touched the UI without permission.
Previous records popped up in a row to the left and right of the newly acquired record. Though the names they pointed to were different, they were all information regarding the Star Path.
Even in the recent one… an encrypted address was visible.
Mu-hae looked around with a sharp gaze. Though he wasn’t aware of it himself, it was the direction where Starlight Road was located.
The place where everything began. And the place where all questions lay dormant.
In front of the bluish glowing hologram light, his deeply sunken eyes flashed and glittered.
226 – I Became an Anomaly in a Dead Game