The first thing he encountered were green eyes that were as transparent as glass beads.
"He's awake."
Suddenly, several faces appeared in his view. Seo Min-gi, the boy puppet, Jung Bin, Bae Won-woo, Kang Ji-soo, Honeybee, Yoon Ga-eul, and even Kkokko. Everyone wore serious expressions, and Yoon Ga-eul was sobbing so hard that her face was red.
"What the hell—?!"
Cha Eui-jae stopped talking and touched his face. Luckily, he was still wearing his mask. He slowly sat up and racked his brain. He'd definitely gone in Seo Min-gi's shadow to see the fragment. But this place…
'A hospital room?'
It was the Seowon Guild's hospital room. He had no idea what had happened for him to be here. Yoon Ga-eul, noticing his confused gaze, blew her nose into a tissue and mumbled a nasal voice.
"I'm sorry, the connection was cut… but even though I tried to wake you up, you still wouldn't wake up…"
In short, her sobbing explanations were as follows; Whether it was because Kkokko had climbed on him, or because of some other problem, this time the connection with J's consciousness was suddenly cut off. Normally, a person would wake up immediately when the connection was lost, but this time there was not even a sign of that happening. The connection didn't reconnect, and J didn't wake up. Yoon Ga-eul was greatly flustered. So, looking for someone to help, she frantically knocked the shadow…
Seo Min-gi rubbed his stomach with a pale face.
"My stomach still… ugh."
"I'm sorry. I was in such a rush…"
"It's… okay. Next time, please… just call… urgh."
Seo Min-gi covered his mouth and ran out of the hospital room. Jung Bin smiled sheepishly. Apparently, Seo Min-gi vomited violently in front of the Director and Jung Bin. Anyway, as soon as Yoon Ga-eul came out of the shadows, she yelled at Jung Bin and the Director.
"J-ssi isn't waking up!"
Naturally, it turned into an emergency. Jung Bin carried J on his back in place of Seo Min-gi, who was still retching. Yoon Ga-eul chased after them, not caring whether her position would be exposed. Meanwhile, an emergency communication network was deployed, and Bae Won-woo and Kang Ji-soo arrived at the Seowon Guild as substitute guards for the absent Lee Sa-young.
'Then what about Honeybee?'
As Cha Eui-jae's gaze fell upon her, Honeybee tucked her hair behind her ear and answered coyly.
"I came to see the Doctor for business. But I heard that both the Doctor and you fainted, so I came to visit you."
Jung Bin asked carefully.
"Are you okay? Don't hesitate to tell us if you've reached your physical limits."
"I'm really fine. There's no need to overreact like this…"
"Overreacting?!"
Bae Won-woo suddenly shouted and was met with sharp glares. He cleared his throat and spoke with a feigned serious expression.
"J-nim, you haven't really gotten enough rest, either before or now, have you? You keep running around doing anything. Everyone's worried about you."
The people around him nodded. Bae Won-woo scratched his head awkwardly.
"We may not be able to help much… but we still want to. It's too much work to do alone."
Cha Eui-jae looked around at the people. Everyone had warm gazes. The gazes felt both familiar and unfamiliar. He wanted to say something. However, no sound came out. Cha Eui-jae moved his lips several times, but in the end, unable to say anything, he closed his mouth.
Just then, a warm hand rested upon his shoulder. Jung Bin smiled gently.
"They're quite reliable, aren't they?"
"…"
"Before, you had to carry all the burdens alone, J-nim… but now there are so many people to share them with."
"…"
"You don't have to handle everything alone, J. We'll help you."
The wind seeped in through the half-open window.
Before he knew it, the scenery around him had changed to the emergency stairs of the former Awakened Management Bureau. The emergency stairs where he usually sat with Jung Bin. Just as he was twirling his cigarette in his hand, the sound of boisterous chatter from the top of the stairs could be heard. J looked up. They were hunters he had met several times during missions. They waved, greeting him. J awkwardly waved back.
Come to think of it, even back then there were people he could call as comrades…
Cha Eui-jae stroked the thin white blanket and asked,
"By any chance, are there any big-mouthed monsters that have been secured?"
Honeybee, who was twirling her hair with her fingers, nodded.
"I caught one and gave it to the Doctor."
"Is the carcass still there?"
"Well, I heard they're going to preserve it for research….I think it'll be quicker if you ask this kid."
When their gazes met, the boy answered clearly.
"Yes. We have preserved the monster and kept them for archival purposes."
"Then, can I see it…?"
As Cha Eui-jae tried to get out of bed, several hands surrounded him and pushed him back down. Cha Eui-jae's eyes widened. What? Bae Won-woo sighed.
"Gosh, you really didn't learn anything…"
Jung Bin, who was still holding his shoulder, smiled gently.
"J-nim, what did I just say?"
"No, I need to see this for myself…"
"J-nim?"
"No, but this is really…"
"No."
The pressure from that smiling face was overwhelming. Damn it, he appreciated the concern, but there was no need for this overprotectiveness. Cha Eui-jae squeezed his eyes shut and shouted.
"I'm saying I need to get inside that monster's stomach!"
A terrible silence enveloped the place.
The hands that had been gripping his body were released one by one. Honeybee shook her hand that had been holding Cha Eui-jae tightly and murmured.
"Wouldn't it be better to just keep him restrained? He doesn't seem right in the head."
"Hmm, I'll consider it."
"Please take good care of him. I have business to attend to."
"…Are you going to meet with that person?"
"Well, I've already gotten permission. Don't even think about stopping me."
She waved her hand dismissively and walked out of the hospital room. Kang Ji-soo muttered.
"You must have had a really hard time…"
Pitiful gazes fell on him. God, this was driving him crazy. Cha Eui-jae stared desperately at Yoon Ga-eul, his last savior, his last lifeline.
"Student Ga-eul, I saw it."
"W-what?"
"The path to the White Hole! I saw it when you lost my connection!"
"Eh, in that monster's stomach…?"
Could she have imagined the sight? Yoon Ga-eul's face went pale, and she took a step back. Cha Eui-jae let out an internal scream. He felt like a two-eyed person coming into a one-eyed village.1
For the first time in his life, Cha Eui-jae missed Hong Ye-seong. If he were there, he would have played along with even such nonsense. If he wanted to escape, Hong Ye-seong would have used all sorts of means to help him. Feeling the touch of hands lying him to bed and covering him with a blanket, Cha Eui-jae repeated a name.
'Hong Ye-seong.'
Hong Ye-seong was needed. Right now.
***
Honeybee entered the dark room with her arms crossed. Behind the iron bars that lined the room, someone was tied to a chair. Did they sense her presence? The person tied to the chair slowly raised their head. Tangled brown hair covered half of their face.
"Ah… I was wondering when you'd show up."
The corners of her lips curled up slightly. The curved, round lenses of her glasses glinted. It was Ga-young. After being caught trying to infiltrate the Seowon Guild, she was locked in the room where Matthew had once been isolated.
Ga-young laughed, her shoulders shaking.
"I enjoyed the commercial, Honeybee."
Bang!
Honeybee kicked over a chair placed across from the cell. She walked right up to the bars, grabbed them, and whispered,
"Hey, stop talking nonsense and just answer my question."
"You're being too rude…"
"Since when?"
"What?"
"Since when have you tempted Matthew?"
"Hehe…"
Ga-young shook her shoulders and laughed.
"Tempted? That's a strange way of saying it… he's been on our side from the start."
"Don't talk nonsense! Why would Matthew side with heretics like you?"
"Well, maybe I know Mok Tae-oh better than you. He may be a good colleague… but is he really a good person?"
Hearing that sarcastic voice, the veins on the back of Honeybee's hand tensed. The bars she was gripping cracked and bent. Ga-young burst out laughing.
"Ahaha! You don't think of Mok Tae-oh as some kind of saint, do you? A responsible guild leader? A man who looks sharp on the outside but has a warm side inside? Do you see him that way? Haha… Ah, you really don't have a good judge of character."
The laughter lasted for a long time. After a while, it stopped, and Ga-young let out a small, exhausted sigh and tilted her head. Honeybee put her hands in her pockets and bent down slightly to look Ga-young in the eye.
"Matthew hates the awakened."
"…"
"Is that why he joined you? To prevent the apocalypse and eliminate the awakened with human strength?"
Ha, Ga-young snorted. She lifted the corners of her mouth high into a mocking smile.
"Overcoming the apocalypse with human strength? That man doesn't care about such things."
"…"
"He doesn't care whether he lives or dies. Drugs? He injected that himself, you know?"
"…"
"Have you ever seen a fire that only burns in one place? It spreads everywhere…"
Ga-young suddenly lifted her head, her brown eyes gleaming.
"I tell you, the one who wants nothing more but the world to end is that man, Mok Tae-oh!"