By Zephyria “The footage was captured cleanly! It should be sufficient as evidence.”
Yohan, who had turned to look at Lee Hyun-muk without much thought, was surprised. Lee Hyun-muk was staring intently at the monitor with dark eyes, his expression blank. Looking behind him, the team members also had grim expressions. Yohan figured they must have been reminded of the day Go Jae-won betrayed them and they fell into the Abyss, so he tried to change the subject.
“Shall we stop watching this and look at other videos?”
“…Yes, let’s do that.”
Only then did Lee Hyun-muk offer a faint smile and turn off the video. When they turned on other videos to check, Yohan’s face hardened as well. Seo Yakrin clicked his tongue, letting out a “Huh.”
“These bastards really weren’t just doing this for a day or two, were they?”
They were originally people who scoured Rifts like scavengers, and when they happened to encounter survivors, they would take them hostage and extort enormous sums of money from their families. Survivors with no connections were toyed with until they were bored, then thrown before monsters to destroy evidence—they were truly vile.
Later, it seemed they even started taking assassination contracts for money. Having gotten a taste for toying with people, they risked danger to roam Rift zones. They were quite skilled, pulling off hit-and-run operations with uncanny precision.
Yohan turned away from the video, feeling nauseous, and sat further away. It was obvious how Park Seung-min had gotten involved with such people. People naturally flock together. It was then. Joo Ho-young, who had been fast-forwarding through the videos with a look of disgust and listening intently, tilted his head.
“Did I just hear the name Hwang Young-chul?”
Seo Yakrin, who had been coddling the dejected Yohan and offering him plum tea,’s eyes widened. Hwang Young-chul, the Minister of the National Land Safety Department. The one who bribed Go Jae-won to betray the Sunrise Team, and the target of the team members’ revenge. Yohan also picked up his plum tea and returned to the laptop.
— That Hwang Young-chul guy is really something else.
It was a scene where Kim Hyun-woo, who had a habit of saying “really something else,” was chatting with his teammates while eating.
— He can barely get it up anymore, but even at his age, he’s still so lustful for women. The other day, when we were drinking together, even drunk, his hands were still alive, crawling like snakes, wriggling like this…
Joo Ho-young had somehow managed to catch that brief mention from the conversation. Seo Yakrin burst into laughter.
“Maybe that bastard was dealing with these guys too?”
There had to be another clue somewhere. But there were dozens of videos confiscated from the mercenaries. Each video was several days long, so it would take a long time to review them, and Seo Yakrin sighed.
“I’ll look into this. I think I’m the only one who can properly watch and listen while fast-forwarding.”
Thus, the traces of the Flood were to be investigated by Lee Chan-ha, and the clues regarding Hwang Young-chul by Joo Ho-young.
“I’m having so much fun every single day lately~.”
As revenge proceeded smoothly and step by step, Seo Yakrin, with a genuinely happy face, hummed a tune and refilled Yohan’s empty teacup with plum tea.
‘Is revenge supposed to be a pleasant feeling?’
Yohan, having returned home from work, stared at his hands and fell into a daze. The feeling of having assaulted Kim Hyun-woo was still vivid. That… was truly different from hunting monsters. It was somehow unpleasant, unsettling, and not particularly joyful. However, he didn’t regret it. The thought of having dealt with Kim Hyun-woo made him feel like something tightly clenched in his heart had been resolved.
‘He really was a terrible human.’
Even as he thought that, Yohan was somewhat out of it. It was due to the shock of experiencing something for the first time. Lee Hyun-muk, who opened the refrigerator to check for dinner ingredients, glanced at Yohan’s complexion and casually suggested,
“Yohan, how about we eat out tonight to lift your spirits?”
Yohan, who had been sitting blankly on the sofa, replaying the day’s events, suddenly looked up.
“Wow, that sounds great!”
The malice he had witnessed in the body cam footage flashed vividly before his eyes, and his previously dark complexion brightened. A date! As he rummaged through his closet, wondering what to wear, a loud beeping sound suddenly erupted. Yohan jumped in surprise and rushed back out.
This sound was an alarm that rang on the mobile phones of Awakened individuals registered in nearby residences when a monster appeared. He had heard it a few times at the Sun Guild. However, this was the first time he had heard it from Lee Hyun-muk’s phone.
“What grade is the monster?”
Lee Hyun-muk, after checking his phone, replied without much surprise.
“An 8th-grade monster has appeared at the Yeouido Broadcasting Station.”
Yohan gasped. An 8th-grade monster was a dangerous level, difficult to tackle even for several mid-grade Awakened working together. Especially since Jeong Si-young was in Busan to suppress a monster cluster, the government would have had no other choice but to summon Lee Hyun-muk. This was also due to the geographical characteristics of Yeouido.
Ten years ago. During the Great Rift incident that occurred simultaneously worldwide, the Rifts descending from the north of Seoul stopped at the Han River. Although the Han River bridges were mostly destroyed, monsters occasionally still crossed the river. Yeouido, in particular, was a frequent site of monster appearances.
However, due to the numerous important facilities and its position as the frontline of the southern Seoul Rift, it could not be abandoned. Instead, a large number of military forces and the Special Suppression Unit were stationed there. The appearance of an 8th-grade monster in such a place had caused alarm, leading to an immediate summons for Lee Hyun-muk.
“Then you have to go right away.”
Yohan, not even regretting the canceled date, worried about the potential damage in Yeouido. But Lee Hyun-muk looked at Yohan with a thoughtful expression. He was contemplating whether to bring Yohan along. Yohan, knowing he couldn’t openly use his purification ability and would only be a nuisance during a fight, quickly said,
“It’s okay if you leave me here! I’ll be good.”
Then Lee Hyun-muk smiled and said,
“What are you talking about, Yohan? Except for the press conference day, I’ve never left you alone.”
“What?”
“Hmm, yes, I should take you with me.”
“What? You’ve never left me alone?”
What was he talking about? How many times had he been alone until now…?! While Yohan was blankly trying to recall, Lee Hyun-muk picked up his discarded guild uniform jacket, put it back on him, and said,
“At Hyunsan Hospital, there are many eyes and Awakened constantly stationed, so I could leave you there temporarily. But not in a residential area like this. Chan-ha and Seung-ryong are currently tracking the traces together, Ho-young is reviewing videos, and Yakrin is handling guild matters. There’s no one to leave you with right now.”
“But I’ve been alone before…?”
Lee Hyun-muk looked at the bewildered Yohan tenderly and adjusted his clothes. Meanwhile, the loud alarm sounded again. Lee Hyun-muk sent a reply on his phone and said,
“Shall we go?”
With dozens of question marks hanging in the air, Yohan followed Lee Hyun-muk out. He had gone to the convenience store alone so many times? He had even gone to the hair salon? He had met college friends and eaten dinner with them? He had even watched the house alone when Hyun-mook Hyung went to the Rift Management Agency?
“Awakened Lee Hyun-muk. We have been waiting for you.”
As they left the building, a vehicle from the Rift Management Agency and two members of the Special Unit were waiting at the main gate. They politely opened the car door, and their expressions turned to surprise when they saw Yang Yohan getting in first.
“…Awakened Yang Yohan is also going?”
He’s a low-grade Dealer. Taking a low-grade Dealer, not even a mid-grade, to face an 8th-grade monster? Such questions filled the faces of the two men. Lee Hyun-muk, after seating Yohan, replied with a smile,
“I’m bringing him along because I’m uneasy leaving him alone. Let’s depart.”
“In that case, the Special Suppression Unit will protect you during the operation.”
The smile vanished from Lee Hyun-muk’s face. As he simply stared, the two unit members swallowed nervously. At that point, Yohan also felt an ominous feeling from the offer. He realized it wasn’t a genuine offer to protect him out of concern, but a proposal made because he was close to the Sun Team and yet weak.
“Hmm… it doesn’t seem like there’s much urgency. I don’t mind departing at a leisurely pace.”
Lee Hyun-muk said again with a smile, and the two control unit members departed without complaint. Although it was rush hour, they drove directly to a nearby helipad without any traffic thanks to the pre-controlled shoulder lanes. Yohan’s eyes widened at the loud helicopter noise. It was his first time riding a helicopter.
‘Wow, this is quite an ordeal….’
To the sensitive hearing of an Awakened, the helicopter noise was immense sonic pollution. It only became somewhat bearable after putting on noise-canceling headphones. Yohan flinched at the sensation of the helicopter lifting off, but soon calmed down.
‘Riding with Yakrin Noona, half-crazed and flying, was much scarier.’
Flying on a giant Monstrous Bird with no safety equipment was far scarier than riding a helicopter. Having experienced that extreme hardcore mode beforehand, he felt like life’s difficulty had generally decreased.
— I will give a brief briefing. A monster presumed to be 8th-grade has occupied the broadcasting station. The monster’s appearance is as follows.
A Special Unit member showed a picture on an electronic pad. Although slightly blurry, the shape was recognizable. A gaunt, dog-like monster made of tangled wire was crawling into the broadcasting station entrance. Yohan stared intently at the image.
— It is a monster covered in a metallic exterior and possesses powerful magnetic abilities. Because of this, radio waves are not transmitting within the broadcasting station, and all attacks using metal are neutralized. Please kill and eliminate the monster as quickly as possible.
The briefing was very brief. Yohan waited for a moment, but there was no further briefing. Unable to resist his impulse, he asked,
— What about civilian rescue?
The Special Unit member, whose face was hidden by a mask and goggles, looked at Yohan and replied,
— According to government directives, it is not the highest priority.
In other words, it was up to them whether to rescue them or not. A sense of defiance rose within Yohan, but instead of questioning it, he firmly closed his mouth.