RG 158

At an old shopping mall’s back alley, a place rarely touched by human footsteps, Hunters were standing guard around the building. Judging by their black suits and earpieces, they were clearly bodyguards.

From a nearby rooftop, Hyeon Dowun frowned as he observed the scene through binoculars.

‘Why the hell are they guarding that place?’

Lowering his binoculars, Hyeon Dowun spoke up, baffled by the strange sight. “Are you seriously not going to tell me who those bastards are?”

The man next to Hyeon Dowun replied curtly, “I told you, I don’t know.” The man’s tousled, brown hair fluttered in the breeze. Leaning against the rooftop railing, irritation flashed in Kwon Seoyul’s eyes as he watched the bodyguards.

‘I can’t sense any aura at all.’

There wasn’t even a trace of life, not even from Cha Seohu. The second floor of the building, which used to serve as Cha Seohu’s office, was completely empty. And yet, the security personnel loitered around the building, refusing to leave. What could possibly be their purpose?

Kwon Seoyul’s already short patience was burning away in real-time. If they weren’t in a position where they had to stay hidden, he would have stormed the place already.

‘I have a good guess who’s behind this, though.’

Today marked exactly two days since the two had escaped from their district. Sneaking out of a district that was larger than most cities hadn’t been an easy feat. If it hadn’t been for Hyeon Dowun, who knew the sector’s entire network and could tamper with the CCTV, they would’ve surely failed.

They regretted the three days it had taken to escape, but they had no choice. They needed to stay out as long as possible—there was no guarantee that their “father” would allow them to go out again.

“If you’re that curious, just let me go. I’ll beat the crap out of them, kill them if I have to, and find out what’s going on.”

“Yeah, because announcing you’re going to commit a crime is such a smart move.” Turning his gaze from the grumbling Kwon Seoyul, Hyeon Dowun sighed heavily. “What’s the point of sneaking out if you’re just going to cause trouble?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be some hacker? You can’t even find where Big Bro Seohu is? You brought your laptop and everything. Can’t you do something?”

“Do you think I’d be standing here if I could? We came all the way here because we lost contact with him.”

There was a way, but it could only be used once—so he had to be extremely careful.

Watching the overly cautious Hyeon Dowun, Kwon Seoyul squeezed out the last of his patience. “Only until today. If nothing changes by tomorrow, I’m doing it my way…” He trailed off mid-sentence. His face twisted into a scowl as he glared at the building, then he suddenly spun around.

“What? Where are you going?”

“Shut up and follow me.”

“Kwon Seoyul! Damn it, that bastard!”

Startled by Kwon Seoyul’s sudden move—flinging open the rooftop door and rushing down the stairs—Hyeon Dowun quickly hurried after him.

The rooftop they had been watching from was just one block away from the shopping mall. Sprinting through the back alleys without hesitation, Kwon Seoyul arrived in front of the guarded building and shouted loudly, “Hey!”

Standing opposite him was a tall man. Despite the warming weather, he was immaculately dressed in a three-piece suit, buttoned up to his neck.

The man with dark blue hair turned to face him. His neatly shaped eyebrows twitched in irritation when he spotted Kwon Seoyul.

Whether the man was wary of him or not, Kwon Seoyul didn’t care. He strode right up and asked, “Where’s Big Bro Seohu?”

“What?”

“I said, where are you hiding Big Brother Seohu?”

At Kwon Seoyul’s bold and shameless question, Kwon Taehyeok’s dark eyes turned icy cold. “What kind of bullshit are you spouting?”

“God, are you stupid or just pretending?”

With a sharp whistle—short and quick—a faint spark flickered in the air. As the killing intent became palpable, an aggressive energy slowly seeped out from Kwon Taehyeok as well.

The air between Kwon Taehyeok and Kwon Seoyul shifted in an instant.

Just as the tense atmosphere threatened to explode, Hyeon Dowun came running up in a panic and shoved himself between them. “Kwon Seoyul! Don’t cause trouble, you crazy bastard!”

They had barely escaped the district after three grueling days of hellish effort. They couldn’t afford to get caught before even meeting Cha Seohu, not because of some reckless outburst.

But Kwon Seoyul, who neither understood nor cared about Hyeon Dowun’s worries, shoved him aside with a scowl. “Get out of my way! That bastard definitely knows where Big Bro Seohu is!”

“What?” Hyeon Dowun turned to look at Kwon Taehyeok, who had tilted his head slightly.

At this point, even Hyeon Dowun had to realize it. It was obvious now who the real master behind all the bodyguards around the building was. Which only made things even more confusing. If his information was right, this man was none other than the guildmaster of the famous Yesung Guild.

Why would the Yesung’s guildmaster be guarding a building that Cha Seohu used to stay in?

“That bastard’s the reason,” Kwon Seoyul said nonchalantly. “Big Bro Seohu’s fuck buddy.”

“…!”

At the utterly outrageous statement—lacking even a shred of tact or decorum—Hyeon Dowun’s jaw dropped.

‘…Cha Seohu’s fuck buddy?’

He wasn’t talking about a woman, but a man? No, more than that—the guildmaster of Yesung? How the hell did Cha Seohu end up in that kind of relationship?

Overwhelmed by a flood of chaotic thoughts, Hyeon Dowun instinctively turned to look at Kwon Taehyeok.

Just moments ago, Kwon Taehyeok’s gaze had been sharp with murderous intent, but now his eyes were wildly unfocused, completely losing their composure. It was so obvious that Hyeon Dowun couldn’t believe what he was seeing.

‘What the fuck… seriously?’

The same guy who used to roll around with women left and right back in the district—was messing around with men too now?

“…”

“…”

An odd silence settled over the back alley.

Kwon Taehyeok wore a complicated expression, Hyeon Dowun looked disgruntled, and Kwon Seoyul was rapidly losing his patience.

After about ten seconds of heavy stillness, just as Kwon Taehyeok finally opened his mouth to speak—

“Misundersta—”

“Guildmaster.” One of the bodyguards, who had been pretending not to listen, stepped forward and quietly spoke. “We’ve received a mid-mission update from the driver. They’ll be arriving soon, so you need to leave now.”

The bodyguard, having recognized that Kwon Seoyul was an S-class DPS, deliberately avoided mentioning any sensitive details. Nodding slightly, Kwon Taehyeok turned his gaze back to Hyeon Dowun and Kwon Seoyul for a brief moment.

Truthfully, Kwon Taehyeok wasn’t thrilled about this situation either.

While Cha Seohu was away at the request of the Circle Guild, stationed at the snowy mountains, Kwon Taehyeok had been monitoring this building. The lab that had once attacked Cha Seohu and Cha Sahyeon might strike again, after all.

But despite several days of constant surveillance, there was no real outcome.

Now that Cha Seohu had returned to Seoul, he had intended to end the watch today—only for Kwon Seoyul to show up, and with a new S-class Hunter who also seemed to be from the same district.

‘Hunter Cha Seohu said the attack didn’t come from the district, but still…’

Regardless, Kwon Seoyul, who had attacked and threatened Cha Seohu, remained an annoyance. So was the other guy from the district.

‘I’ll have to let Hunter Cha Seohu know about this.’

After giving Kwon Seoyul and Hyeon Dowun a last glance, Kwon Taehyeok turned away first. Leading his bodyguards without hesitation, he quickly exited the back alley. 

Hyeon Dowun, who had been dumbfounded watching him leave, snapped out of it. “Hey, was that guy really—”

“Quiet,” cutting off Hyeon Dowun, Kwon Seoyul closed his eyes and focused.

Beyond the back alley, along the busy street where many people passed by, amidst the tangled noise of the city, Kwon Seoyul expertly picked out exactly the sound he wanted.

It was a power stemming from Kwon Seoyul’s specialty in music and performance—an ability he had earned through relentless training, not an awakening skill.

After a moment, Kwon Seoyul opened his eyes, confidence shining on his face.

“Big Bro, use your skill.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure. They said it would take about thirty minutes. He’s arriving around the same time as Big Bro Seohu.”

Kwon Seoyul repeated the words he had overheard from Kwon Taehyeok’s departing bodyguard, almost word for word. Even an S-class couldn’t hear conversations this far away so clearly. This was something only he could do, thanks to his unique gift.

“…If it’s a thirty-minute distance, then he’s still somewhere in Seoul. Got it.”

It would’ve been nice if they had caught the exact destination, though. With a reluctant sigh, Hyeon Dowun began to gather his strength.

Crackle!

Sparks flickered around Hyeon Dowun’s eyes. His eyes, wide open, turned pale blue as everything before him dissolved into a sea of 0s and 1s.

The world rapidly unfolded in his mind: roads, buildings, and lifeforms, all interconnected like the roots of a plant. In that tangled mass, Hyeon Dowun searched for a single unique code—and before long, he found it.

Crack, snap!

“Haah…!”

The surge of heat made his head feel like it was about to explode. Gasping, Hyeon Dowun hastily deactivated his skill and stumbled.

Leaning against a wall to steady himself, Hyeon Dowun caught his breath while Kwon Seoyul stood nearby, arms crossed, watching him.

“Did you find him?”

“Yeah.”

Sweating heavily, Hyeon Dowun pulled a pair of glasses out of his inventory and put them on. Slowly, the residual sparks faded, and the veins bulging around his eyes began to calm down.

“…I know where that bastard went.”

Still with faintly glowing blue eyes, Hyeon Dowun recalled an incident from the past. He had once retrieved CCTV footage at Cha Seohu’s request. It was definitely a case involving the Circle Guild.

Connecting Cha Seohu’s current location with that memory, Hyeon Dowun spoke to Kwon Seoyul with a worn-out expression. “Circle Guild. Let’s head there.”

***

“Brother, what’s wrong?”

Someone grabbed my hand. Sitting next to me, looking up at me, were Cha Sahyeon’s green eyes.

“…It’s nothing,” I gave a brief answer and turned my gaze back out the car window.

We were currently riding in a Yesung Guild car, heading toward the Circle Guild. It was honestly ridiculous—right after we’d come down from the mountain, wondering how we were going to get back to Seoul, we immediately ran into drivers from the Yesung Guild.

The drivers, as if they had been thoroughly prepared, quickly rattled off their explanations to our bewildered group.

“We were taking turns standing by under the guildmaster’s orders.”

“In case your distress signal flare went off or a dangerous situation occurred, we needed to respond immediately.”

“Are you planning to return to Seoul? We can escort you.”

And just like that, we were able to return comfortably to Seoul in Yesung Guild vehicles. They even had two cars ready, so we were able to split up, two people in each car, for a very comfortable ride.

Naturally, I rode with Cha Sahyeon. We also brought along Eunbok, who took the open space in our car.

The cat didn’t seem fazed at all by being in a car—he simply sprawled out on my thigh, yawning lazily. I had been a little worried, but thankfully, it seemed fine.

Everything was going smoothly. Except for one thing.

‘It’s driving me insane.’

About thirty minutes ago, I had felt a burning sensation just below my waist. More precisely, a sharp pain had spread from around my tailbone.

It had lasted for only a brief moment—so fleeting it could almost be called instantaneous—but knowing exactly what was located there, I couldn’t help but be deeply unsettled.

‘Hyeon Dowun used his skill to locate me.’

Thump, thump, my heart started pounding with growing anxiety. I swallowed dryly, forcing myself to think through the worst-case scenario.

‘No way…’

Had that person given the order? If he had used Hyeon Dowun’s skill to track me down…

“We’ve arrived.”

The driver’s voice cut through my spiraling thoughts. I quickly masked my unease and stepped out of the car with as calm a face as I could manage.