By Zephyria 
The investigation into the two men was already complete.
But their only point of contact was when they had encountered each other in the underground vault, the graveyard of Guides.
‘I don’t know what Yeon Yu-jin said back then, but Hyeon Jae-ha would have been hostile towards Yeon Yu-jin, right?’
There was also no connection with his deceased partner, An Ga-hyeon.
Even while Lee Ha-ram was monitoring him, Hyeon Jae-ha didn’t appear before Yeon Yu-jin.
So, she had thought that Hyeon Jae-ha wouldn’t show any further interest in Yeon Yu-jin…
Hyeon Jae-ha had taken care of Yeon Yu-jin, who had stopped the Dungeon Break.
‘Does this make sense?’
Hyeon Jae-ha, who hadn’t even glanced at another Guide for the past 20 years, out of feelings beyond friendship for his former partner? Towards another Guide?
And a greenhorn Guide young enough to be his son?
“Has Hyeon Jae-ha gone crazy from being alone for too long…?”
Park Ha-na, who had fully recovered from her internal injuries, whispered to Shin Yun-hui, who was muttering in shock.
“But, Director.”
“…What.”
“That D-Class Guide, he was a bit strange, you know? Not only did he react quickly like a field Guide, as you said, but he also seemed to have extensive knowledge about monsters and Dungeon Breaks.”
“…A greenhorn Guide who’s almost a regular person?”
“Yes. And… his Guiding efficiency was surprisingly high. The four Espers were the main players in suppressing the Dungeon Break, but it would have been impossible if that Guide hadn’t injected Guiding.”
“Hmm…. That’s really strange. Keep talking.”
Usually, Esper and Guide teams were led by the Esper, who gave the main instructions, while the Guide simply played a supporting role.
Park Ha-na said that Yeon Yu-jin was completely different from ordinary Guides.
“He did all the calculations himself and gave orders to the Espers. The commander of that team was the Guide, Yeon Yu-jin, and the Espers were just pawns moving on his orders.”
The moment she heard Park Ha-na’s assessment, three names flashed through Shin Yun-hui’s mind.
‘Wasn’t An Ga-hyeon that type of Guide?’
The late An Ga-hyeon. The one and only SSS-Class Guide, past and present.
He was the Guide who acted as the teacher, supporter, and commander of the clumsy Espers during the chaotic era when there was no system.
Now that the center provides education for Ability Users, the hierarchical relationship between Espers and Guides is well-established.
But for a Guide who hasn’t even received education to act in a similar way to An Ga-hyeon was an issue that couldn’t be overlooked.
“Could it be… that An Ga-hyeon is alive?”
“Pardon?”
“No. No, that can’t be.”
An Ga-hyeon was dead.
Otherwise, Hyeon Jae-ha wouldn’t have spent 20 years with his eyes wide open, vowing to avenge the guy who killed his beloved partner.
‘Anyway, this Guide is suspicious, and it seems like he’s hiding something…’
Shin Yun-hui couldn’t figure out what it was.
‘Should I call Ha-ram?’
Just as Shin Yun-hui was about to call, hoping that he might know something more.
Ring ring-.
“Huh?”
“Huh?”
Shin Yun-hui and Park Ha-na were puzzled by the sound of a phone ringing nearby.
“Isn’t that Ha-ram’s ringtone?”
“It sounds like it…?”
Step, step. Someone was walking towards them. Shin Yun-hui and Park Ha-na took out their weapons and prepared for battle.
The person who emerged from the dark shadows into the bright light was…
“Oh? Seonbae? Director?”
“Huh?”
“Why are you here…?”
Surprisingly, it was Lee Ha-ram.
He was nonchalantly dressed in the suit he wore when working at the Management Bureau, heading to the park at this hour.
To the very spot where the Dungeon Break had occurred.
Shin Yun-hui, dumbfounded, asked Lee Ha-ram.
“You shouldn’t have stopped monitoring Yeon Yu-jin yet, so why are you here?”
“No, Lee Ha-ram. Did the order come from above? How did you happen to meet us here of all places?”
As the two confused women bombarded him with questions, Lee Ha-ram’s eyes spun.
“W-wait a minute. Please ask one question at a time.”
“Let’s sort out the urgent things first. Why are you here? And how did you manage to run into us with such good timing?”
Lee Ha-ram made a clueless expression at Shin Yun-hui’s question.
“Uh…? That’s right? Why am I here…?”
Like a lost child, Lee Ha-ram’s eyes trembled uncontrollably.
“I don’t know…. I don’t remember.”
“…Lee Ha-ram. Do you remember that you received an order from me to closely monitor a D-Class Guide named Yeon Yu-jin?”
“Not at all. I just woke up with a compulsion to go to the park, so I came here.”
“Damn it. That bastard Hyeon Jae-ha did it.”
He must have tampered with Lee Ha-ram’s mind using his additional Ability, ‘Memory Erasure.’
‘Why would he do that? Could it be… that he knew Lee Ha-ram was monitoring Yeon Yu-jin?’
If it was Hyeon Jae-ha, a veteran Esper with excellent sensory perception, he would have immediately noticed the signs of surveillance on Yeon Yu-jin.
The problem was ‘why’ he was showing interest in that Guide named Yeon Yu-jin!
‘Could it be love at first sight?’
No. That didn’t fit the image of Hyeon Jae-ha, who still longed for An Ga-hyeon and fought as a rebel.
Then why? Why?
Shin Yun-hui felt like her head was about to break from the unconnected mysteries.
“Ugh…”
“Director… are you okay?”
“I’m not okay. More importantly, Section Head Park. Lee Ha-ram seems to have been taken care of by Hyeon Jae-ha, so we shouldn’t send him as a monitor anymore. Something might happen.”
Lee Ha-ram was delighted by his superior’s words, even in his confused state.
“Does that mean I can go home now?”
“Yes, you’ve worked hard.”
“Yes!”
Shin Yun-hui said, watching Lee Ha-ram happily leave work.
“That Guide named Yeon Yu-jin is very suspicious, but he’s become so popular with the public because of the Dungeon Break incident that it’s difficult to touch him right now.”
“What should we do?”
“Hmm… Still, he’s a person of interest to Hyeon Jae-ha, and it seems like his skills have improved beyond D-Class, so how about we send down an official document telling him to get re-examined?”
“So, if his rank comes out high during the re-examination…”
“We should try to persuade him by saying, ‘How about living as a Hunter instead of living as a failed idol?’”
And at the same time, set a trap to catch Hyeon Jae-ha using Yeon Yu-jin as bait.
“He often has conflicts with the members, and he doesn’t seem to be adapting to the entertainment industry, so wouldn’t this be easy?”
Shin Yun-hui hoped her prediction would come true.
Park Ha-na, watching the Dungeon Gate that Shin Yun-hui had blocked off, asked as Shin Yun-hui whistled.
“But why did the monsters explode out of that Gate like that? Jin Eu-tteum Hunter wasn’t a weak Esper, despite his fame. The Dungeon’s rank itself wasn’t dangerous for him at all.”
“Well… it certainly didn’t seem like the rebels’ doing. I don’t know the exact reason. According to the investigation team, something changed in the Dungeon, or…”
“Or?”
“Someone found a way to artificially cause the Dungeon to go berserk.”
It was a ridiculous thought, though.
After dismissing it as nonsense, the two turned to leave, and a few minutes later, someone approached the blocked Gate.
As he whispered something, a round object rolled out of the keyhole of the tightly closed Gate.
It was a vivid red bead, like a ripe cherry.
He stuffed it into his pocket and disappeared.
After the Dungeon Break incident, Yeon Yu-jin’s agency became very busy.
To be exact, the schedule of the Secrety members, who had been upset because they had no schedules, became quite full.
Manager Kim Hyun-soo’s clear voice echoed in the dorm where the members lived together.
“This time, it’s a schedule for
Manager Hyun-soo Hyung was passionate. He had lost a little weight due to the flood of schedules, and despite the haggard dark circles under his eyes, his gaze was fiery.
The Secrety members had become like dried-up kimchi, being called to various TV talk shows with the theme of ‘Heroes Who Stopped the Dungeon Break.’
“Ugh… Manager Hyung. How many times are you going to milk that?”
Seo Yun-chae pretended to vomit.
“Are we beef bones? No, even beef bones aren’t milked this much!”
Shin Tae-beom screamed.
“Aren’t you tired of putting out the same repertoire with just the program changed? The viewers must be tired of it.”
Even Cha Si-yoon, who rarely spoke, complained.