By Zephyria The air hung heavy. Jung-bin, who had placed the notebook on his lap and clasped his hands together, squeezed his eyes shut. The corpses buried there. There would be several Hunters Jung-bin knew among them.
And the last survivor who watched their final moments…
‘It’s a miracle he came back like this.’
It was even more so because there were countless Hunters in the world who went mad from seeing their comrades die right next to them. Stories that those who hadn’t experienced it themselves couldn’t dare to comfort or understand. So Jung-bin barely managed to open his mouth in a businesslike manner.
“…Yes, I understand why you appeared in the Invasion Dungeon. If that’s the reason, of course, we should cooperate. You’ll need information about the Invasion Dungeon, too, I presume.”
“Will it be alright?”
“There’s no reason it wouldn’t be. Like you said, you’re a national hero.”
Keuk. J let out a short groan and writhed slightly, twisting his upper body. Jung-bin, who had spoken with sincerity in his own way, scratched the back of his neck awkwardly when he received a more violent reaction than expected.
Jung-bin cleared his throat briefly and frowned slightly.
“Ah, but providing information about the Invasion Dungeon will take some time. It’s not under my jurisdiction.”
“Who manages it?”
“You may have heard of him… Hunter Nam Woo-jin, the Guild Master of the Seowon Guild, manages it. He was the first to discover it, and he’s been in charge of observing it ever since.”
J’s shoulders twitched for a moment. Jung-bin, who was looking at him with a puzzled expression, pressed his temple with the end of his pen.
“But he’ll organize it quickly if I ask. Should I not reveal that you, J, requested it?”
“…Yes, for now.”
“Understood. And…”
Jung-bin quickly organized J’s requests. Data related to Prometheus, the first appearance of Lee Sa-young, who was an Experiment of Prometheus…
It would be good to convey as much as possible that could be conveyed in this place. There was no guarantee that they would be able to contact each other like today. Soon, Jung-bin raised his head. J was still standing straight. Jung-bin asked carefully.
“How much do you know about Prometheus?”
J answered without a moment’s hesitation.
“They lure Awakened with drugs and use them to create artificial Awakened. In the past, they used ordinary people with peculiarities, such as Rift victims, as test subjects. They talk about preventing Doomsday, but they’re just incompetent pseudo-religious bastards with no successful cases.”
“……”
“……”
A moment of silence flowed between them. It felt like their eyes met behind the mask.
“……”
He probably had eyes like a puppy who had caused an accident. Jung-bin suddenly felt certain of that. Anyway, he stared blankly at the black mask and thought.
‘There’s nothing more to tell?’
J’s summarizing skills were excellent. No wonder, he had managed to summarize hundreds of pages of reports into three-line summaries, pinpointing only the essentials. It was such a perfect summary that he wanted to make sure his subordinates heard it. Jung-bin couldn’t help but blurt out.
“You already know everything…”
“……”
“……”
J, who had been exercising his right to remain silent, slowly squatted down in front of Jung-bin. He pressed the mouth of the mask with his fist and muttered.
“Can I cancel what I said just now?”
“I think you’ve come too far to cancel it…”
“Can’t you pretend you didn’t hear it? We have that much loyalty, don’t we?”
“I’m sorry.”
“…Shit.”
J, who uttered a gloomy curse, pondered something for a long time before opening his mouth.
“Then do you know what Doomsday those pseudo-religious people are talking about?”
“Ah, Doomsday.”
Jung-bin organized his thoughts and then slowly opened his mouth.
“Prometheus has beings called Seers. They say they see the future where Doomsday comes in their dreams. Even though they are all different people, the scenery of the Destroyed world they speak of is surprisingly similar.”
“So they just believe that and act? That such a Doomsday will really come?”
“That’s right.”
Jung-bin smiled bitterly.
“Actually, it’s a hard story to believe. It really feels like a pseudo-religion. But even if it’s a lie, the problem is that they believe it, grow their power, and harm people. Besides…”
Naturally, the image of the girl with glasses came to mind.
Yoon Ga-eul, the girl who sees Fragments of the world. She read the Destroyed world and predicted that Doomsday would come to this world as well. Jung-bin rubbed his mouth and sighed.
“…Doomsday will really come. I can’t tell you the details. Um… But I guess I can tell you. There’s a Hunter who reads special information. He also predicted Doomsday. And there’s reliable evidence.”
J’s shoulders twitched greatly once again.
As expected, even he would be surprised to hear that Doomsday was coming. Jung-bin looked at J with pity. He survived that hellish Rift, but now it’s Doomsday. It was shocking enough.
“That’s why I was trying to find you, J. I came to the conclusion that we need you to prevent Doomsday.”
And Cha Eui-jae thought.
‘What should I do?’
His kind old comrade, Jung-bin, was examining Eui-jae’s black mask with a face full of concern. He seemed worried about the shock he might have received.
Shock? He did receive it. In a different sense.
‘Shit…’
It was a relief he was wearing a mask. He wouldn’t be able to hide his complicated feelings and expression with his poker face trait right now.
Anyway, this was a big problem.
‘I knew too much…’
Most of the information that Jung-bin was providing with great determination wasn’t new!
Eui-jae began to reflect on himself. He was clearly trying to live quietly. He didn’t know how, but he tried anyway. And he failed miserably. To think that a mere Hangover Soup Restaurant part-timer would know everything from the confidential matters strictly managed by the Management Bureau to the purpose of some pseudo-religious group!
‘Nam Woo-jin, who manages information related to the Invasion Dungeon?’
He knew him. He wasn’t just an acquaintance, he had met him in person, had Grandmother treated, and even gave him a black ticket.
‘A Hunter who reads special information and predicted Doomsday?’
He knew that person too. It was probably Yoon Ga-eul. That student came to the Hanover Soup Restaurant first, predicted Doomsday, and even showed him the Destroyed world.
At this point, he was even afraid of himself. Eui-jae muttered without realizing it.
“I guess I’m not destined to live quietly…”
“Yes?”
“It’s nothing. Then what about Lee Sa-young?”
“Lee Sa-young… Um, when he first appeared…”
Jung-bin frowned again as if recalling the memory, and then slowly opened his mouth.
“It was seven years ago. The Awakened Management Bureau received a tip. It was about a research facility that kidnapped people and experimented on them…”
Seven years ago.
On a night when the cold air settled, shadows hidden in the darkness moved silently as the clouds covered the moon. The man walking at the front, lowering his body, sent a hand signal to the back. All the footsteps that followed stopped.
The man who sent the hand signal, Jung-bin, adjusted the bulletproof helmet and mask he had turned upside down to cover his face. The mountainside at night was strangely quiet. Not even the sound of a common roe deer could be heard.
A burly man crouching behind a tree whispered.
“…Captain, are you sure this is the place? I don’t feel any signs of life or anything.”
“If the tip is true, probably.”
“Geez…”
“If it’s a false tip, it’s even better. Please confirm.”
Jung-bin replied briefly and gestured to the man. The burly man, Bae Won-woo, took out night vision goggles from his waist and looked around.
At that moment, a sweet scent suddenly rose and tickled his nose. Jung-bin frowned. When he turned around, the other members seemed to have smelled the same scent.
“Don’t you smell something?”
“I know. What suddenly…”
“C, Captain!”
Then Bae Won-woo raised his voice. Jung-bin turned around quickly.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ah, you have to see this for yourself… There’s something, no, someone…”
Bae Won-woo, who was clearly flustered, hurriedly handed the night vision goggles to Jung-bin. Jung-bin looked around with the night vision goggles as Bae Won-woo had done. And, he widened his eyes.
There was a pure white building that didn’t match the lush green mountains. But why hadn’t the sensitive Hunters noticed such a foreign building?
As if to show the answer, the wind blew. The clouds cleared. The full moon, which had been hiding behind the clouds, slowly revealed itself, and ‘it’ shone as it received the light. Jung-bin muttered without realizing it.
“…Good heavens.”
What covered the building was a black, sticky liquid. No, should it be called a liquid? It writhed as if it were alive, completely covering the intact surfaces of the building.
Siiiiik…. There was a sound of something melting. Everything surrounding it was corroding.
And in the middle of it, there was something white.
“That’s…”
“That’s a person, right?”
Bae Won-woo asked excitedly. Jung-bin didn’t answer and lowered the night vision goggles. The darkness had cleared, so he could now see with his bare eyes. In the middle of the building covered with black liquid, there was a white, round floor that was not covered in Poison.
The wind blew. The shaggy, disheveled hair that covered his neck fluttered. A sweet scent wafted.
And there…
“……”
A boy in loose white clothes was standing.