RG 122

Faced with the horrifying scene before him, the A-class Hunter broke into a cold sweat. He had already known, just before coming here, that the intruder was an S-class. But he hadn’t expected an S-class to be this powerful. It was his first time encountering an S-class today, and he now truly grasped their overwhelming strength. The 34 Hunters who had died before him probably came to the same realization.

‘He didn’t even use a skill, did he?’

Any Hunter, when using a skill, emits a detectable aura. There was no way not to notice it from this close a distance. That S-class hadn’t used a single skill. He had won purely on his own strength. They said there were big differences even among S-classes, and this one was clearly at the top. If someone that skilled were to actually start using skills on him…

‘Shit, I’d be dead for sure!’

He had to run. Sure, he might get caught and killed while running, but the opponent was also quite exhausted. If there was any chance of survival, it was now—he had to retreat.

The moment the A-class Hunter turned to flee—

“You’ve got some skill, don’t you?”

A voice laced with scorn echoed through the hallway, followed by the sharp sound of high heels clacking.

Behind the A-class Hunter, a black-haired woman appeared, leading four other Hunters.

The Director, standing among the corpses, twisted her lips into a sneer as she stared down Cha Seohu. “I had a feeling the aura I sensed wasn’t bad—of course you’re an S-class.”

Cha Seohu straightened his back without responding. Under the deeply pulled-down hat, sweaty blond hair was visible. Even when he lifted his head, his face remained obscured by the hat and mask, but the Director already knew what lay beneath.

“You bastard. Do you know how many guilds I had to dig through to find out where you belonged?”

On the day of the research facility attack, more than ten guilds had collaborated with the Yesung Guild.

The Director had believed Cha Seohu to be one of the Hunters from those guilds and had scoured every participating group after escaping the facility. But Cha Seohu was nowhere to be found.

“And you’re even an S-class. So you’re with the Association or the Bureau, huh? I’d heard rumors that those bastards were secretly raising Hunters like rats in the dark—but turns out it’s true.”

At the Director’s mocking remark, Cha Seohu tilted his head, raising an eyebrow. He had suspected as much, but it seemed the Director couldn’t even see the bodies of the people who had died defending this place.

Granted, he had been the one to kill them, so he didn’t have the right to speak. Still, for the leader in charge to not even acknowledge the deaths of her own men…

‘Poor bastards.’

This damn cult-like group really needed to be rooted out. Clicking his tongue silently as he looked at the bodies scattered at his feet, Cha Seohu finally spoke. “So all that babbling just means you couldn’t find out anything because your intel sucks. And? What do you want me to do about it?” He flicked the blood off his blade and continued, “Instead of running your damn mouth, how about getting the hell out of the way?”

Beyond where the Director stood in the hallway was a staircase leading downward. He’d seen it earlier when he was being chased by thirty people—he was sure of it.

Despite the blunt warning, the Director just laughed, showing no intention of stepping aside.

Inside his mask, Cha Seohu took a deep breath. He forced himself to ignore the iron tang of blood in his mouth and calmly assessed the situation.

‘Five A-classes.’

Could he take them?

He had to act like he was fine in front of the Director, but after hours of nonstop combat, his stamina was nearly drained. From the attack at the office, to meeting Eun Woojeong, and making his way here—this single day had dragged on endlessly. Fighting five A-class Hunters in this condition was nearly impossible.

But even so, he had no intention of giving up. At this point, there was no safe escape route, and more importantly, he didn’t want to leave Cha Sahyeon behind.

“Sorry, but you’re not going down there.”

The Director grinned and took something from a Hunter standing beside her. It was a small remote, just about palm-sized. When she pressed the button, the floor and ceiling rumbled violently.

Rumble!

A deafening roar echoed like an earthquake, as dust and debris fell from the ceiling. Regaining balance amidst the shaking, Cha Seohu quickly realized.

‘The floor… it’s rising!’

From where he stood to where the Director was, the hallway floor was beginning to lift, and the ceiling was opening in both directions like a door. He hadn’t expected the entire floor to rise like an elevator. 

As the stunned Cha Seohu looked on, the Director tapped the remote against her chin and spoke. “It’s obvious what you came here for. You think I’m stupid enough to just let you go downstairs?”

“Director, you…”

“You’re going to die here. Oh! But I’ll leave your head. If I hang it in the streets of Gangnam, even if no one knows what faction you belong to, it’ll still send a clear message, don’t you think?”

Boom!

The trembling stopped. After all that effort to reach the basement level, Cha Seohu was right back on the first floor of the church.

At the Director’s signal, the four A-class Hunters standing like soldiers stepped forward. The Hunter who had been trying to flee reluctantly joined them under her glare.

This time, the situation was different. With five A-class Hunters assembled, even an S-class would have a hard time winning.

‘This is… bad.’

Seeing the five A-class Hunters slowly closing in, Cha Seohu bit his lip. He could probably handle four of them, but the one on the far right… He was on a completely different level. The energy radiating from him was in another league.

‘That guy’s just a hair short of being an S-class.’

Under normal conditions, it might’ve been manageable, but not now. And the other four A-classes weren’t weaklings either.

“I’ll go first.”

The Hunter at the front, holding a curved blade, stepped forward respectfully. Crackle! Sharp lightning danced from his hand and coiled around the blade.

Clang! Boom!

As the man charged and his sword clashed with Cha Seohu’s, the air filled with the roar of lightning strikes.

Even as Cha Seohu gritted his teeth and blocked the attack, the electricity traveled up the blade, searing his hand and arm. With each clash, the pain in his sword arm spread like a burn.

“Urgh…!”

Swallowing a groan, Cha Seohu planted his feet firmly, resisting the force. He didn’t retaliate with a skill—he just blocked, and that emboldened his opponent, who began swinging his sword even faster with a triumphant grin.

Clang! Clack!

The Director, arms crossed, watched the fight from behind.

Then, one of the waiting A-class Hunters checked his phone and rushed over to the Director.

“Director.”

“What is it?”

Instead of speaking, the Hunter showed her the phone screen, careful not to let the S-class Cha Seohu overhear.

As she read the message on the screen, the Director’s face turned pale. “What… Is this real?”

“You need to get out of here immediately.” 

The Director, biting her lip anxiously, finally gave the order to the remaining Hunters, “Handle that bastard however you want. You—come with me.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

She took the Hunter who had shown her the phone and hurriedly exited the scene.

“Where do you think—ugh!”

Even while dueling the frenzied blade wielder, Cha Seohu had kept his eye on the Director, instantly noticing her retreat. But when two more Hunters jumped into the fight, he was forced to deal with their attacks and couldn’t chase her.

***

With her expression twisted in frustration, the Director stormed out of the church building and shouted irritably, “How the hell?! Why did it break—how did he get out of the glass chamber?”

“They… they said it suddenly shattered. And the CCTV in the lab seems to have malfunctioned too—there’s an issue with the footage…”

“Fuck! I was finally going to see that bastard die!” The Director kicked the outer wall of the church and raked her fingers furiously through her hair. “What the hell is Jay doing? What about the craftsman? What the hell happened in the lab for this kind of mess to occur?”

“Jay’s whereabouts are currently unknown, and the craftsman left the lab a long time ago. A-and… a lab staff member is dead.”

“Dead?”

“Yes. The body is reportedly so damaged it’s unrecognizable.”

“Unbelievable. What a complete shitshow…”

Muttering curses, the Director pulled out a pack of cigarettes from her coat. The Hunter led her toward the car she had parked and continued explaining, “The atmosphere is unstable. For now, it would be safer to move to another sanctuary and dispatch an apostle here afterward.”

“Why go through that hassle?”

“B-because… the likely suspect in the staff member’s death is the Test Subject. And the Test Subject is far stronger than an S-class. It’s dangerous.”

Seeing the Hunter unable to hide his anxiety, the Director put a cigarette to her lips and smirked. Her eyes narrowed while her mouth twisted upward in open mockery. “Hah, stupid. So what if the Test Subject killed a few staff? I’m practically that bastard’s parent…”

But she never finished her sentence.

Plink. A droplet of blood splattered across her cheek. A fine line appeared across the Hunter’s neck as he stood listening—then his head dropped to the ground with a dull thunk.

Thud.

His now-headless body followed. The Director, still wearing her mocking smile, froze as the Hunter she’d been talking to seconds ago was killed instantly.

“Parent?”

A calm voice spoke from above. The Director, still staring blankly at the corpse, instinctively turned her head toward the sound.

A shadowy figure sat atop the car. Perfectly blended with the darkness, only his green eyes gleamed brightly.

“Parent, huh.” Repeating her words, the shadow narrowed his eyes as though recalling old memories. “Right. For twenty-two years, that’s what I was taught. So ‘we’ believed it. Believed that we were saved by a parent after being abandoned, after dying.”

“Wh-what… how…”

“To be exact… we believed. Past tense.”

Trembling, the Director collapsed. She knew she had to run—but her body wouldn’t move. Her instincts screamed. If she so much as looked away, her neck would be torn apart. The overwhelming force bearing down on her paralyzed her to the fingertips.

“I understand now. That was all meaningless crap, not even worth thinking about,” the shadow whispered with a soft laugh. A dark shape suddenly rose from the ground and lifted the Director into the air.

“Gah! Wh-what the—!”

Terrified by the shadow hoisting her up, the Director finally tried to move, but too late—a massive hand snatched her throat like prey.

“Kh—!”

The powerful grip crushed her windpipe in an instant. Choking, the Director scratched desperately at the attacker’s hand, but didn’t leave a single mark. The flesh around her neck darkened and bruised under the pressure. She couldn’t even scream—only let out broken gasps.

Watching her die in his grasp, the shadow whispered again, “Don’t worry. I won’t hang your head in the streets of Gangnam.”

“Urgh… kgh…”

“Instead, you’ll wander through the space I created. Forever.”

Tears of blood welled in the Director’s wide-open eyes. Soon after, a crack echoed as her stiffened body went limp.

As if discarding filthy trash, the shadow flicked his hand. The Director’s body fell to the ground and was absorbed into the darkness, leaving no trace behind.

The moon peeked through the clouds. Under its gentle light, Cha Sahyeon smiled brightly, a faint blush on his cheek.

“…Brother.”

That was the last thing he needed to take care of. Now, he could finally go see him. His steps were light as he left the car and walked toward the church.

[Main Quest: Reunite with the antagonist (Time Remaining: 2 hours 36 minutes)]