“Team Leader, who has been digging into Apophis all this time, would know well how cunning they are. You have never actually even approached their core figure, K.”
“…!”
Jeongwon’s eyes slowly widened.
His light brown eyes glittered as they caught the sunlight.
They were a beautiful color at first glance, but Raon found them a little strange.
He knew that Jeongwon always wore a wig and colored contacts because he disguised himself for missions.
The eyes he was looking at now must also be wearing colored lenses.
“How do you know that? Information about K should be top secret.”
Jeongwon asked, raising the corners of his mouth crookedly.
He was trying his best not to show any signs of being flustered, but it was visible due to his stiff cheeks and awkwardly moving lips.
That’s how flustered the veteran of the Intelligence Division was.
But he had no choice. Information about Apophis’s main figures was kept secret even within the military.
Especially the existence of K, who could be called the leader of Apophis.
‘Apophis is unique in that they call each other by the alphabet.’
Currently, there were a total of five core figures of Apophis identified by the military.
A, J, L, and M, centered around K.
Among these, three were Espers and two were Guides.
However, that was the maximum amount of information the military and the Intelligence Division had grasped.
“I hope you don’t underestimate Hanmyung’s intelligence.”
Raon invoked Hanmyung’s name for now.
The information about Apophis was what he knew from the novel and his past life.
He knew their future plans to some extent, but if he spoke about them in detail now, Jeongwon would be suspicious.
“Of course, with Hanmyung’s intelligence, they could know that much. But why would they tell Team Leader Raon?”
“Hmm.”
It seemed Jeongwon was well aware of how he was treated at Hanmyung.
As the Team Leader of the Intelligence Division, he had been watching Hanmyung, a corporation that maintained close relationships with the military and the Center and produced excellent Guides, for a long time.
Hanmyung must be quite a nuisance to Jeongwon.
Therefore, he seemed to have already investigated and knew what position Raon, an S-Class Guide, held in Hanmyung.
“Of course, in the past, Hanmyung wouldn’t have leaked sensitive information to me. But the situation has changed a bit now.”
“Did Team Leader Raon form a faction inside Hanmyung?”
“Well, you could say something similar.”
Raon deliberately did not correct the misunderstanding Jeongwon had and maintained an ambiguous attitude.
This way, Jeongwon wouldn’t suspect him.
“Hmm, now that you mention it, you seem to have changed a little recently.”
Jeongwon muttered softly and scanned Raon from top to bottom with eyes full of curiosity.
Raon was tense under that sharp gaze, but he kept his neck stiff to avoid showing it.
“Intriguing. Did I misjudge Team Leader Raon? Or is there another reason?”
“Who knows.”
Jeongwon was doubtful, but unfortunately, it was a question Raon couldn’t answer.
Jeongwon was doing what he should as the Intelligence Division Team Leader.
It was just that Raon had unexpectedly lived freely, outside the control of the System, for a while now.
“Perhaps I just matured. At some point, I felt like I shouldn’t live like this anymore.”
“Isn’t it a bit late to mature?”
“Men usually mature late.”
“Ah, I guess so.”
Jeongwon smiled warmly at the absurd remark.
It was unexpected that they got along well with this kind of joke.
Raon returned an awkward smile, looking back at him.
“Anyway, I understand what Team Leader Raon is saying. Let’s communicate via the terminal from now on, without meeting face-to-face as much as possible.”
Ding.
“Ah.”
As soon as Jeongwon finished speaking, an alert sounded from Raon’s work terminal.
Checking it, it was a contact with a number entered as a code.
It was clearly Jeongwon’s.
“Then I’m busy, so I’ll take my leave.”
“…!”
Raon, who was checking the terminal, looked up belatedly.
But Jeongwon was nowhere to be seen.
There was no trace, as if he hadn’t been there from the start.
Raon was flustered and turned his head.
But no matter how much he looked around, he couldn’t see even the edge of Jeongwon’s clothes.
He felt as if he had been tricked by a ghost.
“Hyung, did you wait long?”
“Ah, no.”
Just then, Siwoo returned.
Raon’s preference was an iced Americano with a subtle vanilla scent, and it seemed Siwoo had gone far out of his way because there was no store nearby that sold it.
“Here you go.”
“Yeah, thanks.”
Raon took the drink Siwoo offered.
He didn’t want it this badly, but fortunately, Siwoo’s absence allowed him to talk with Jeongwon.
If it were the nearby guards, that was one thing, but Siwoo wouldn’t like Jeongwon, based on instinct.
Raon sipped his drink and squinted slightly.
“Why? Does it taste bad?”
“No, it’s fine.”
Raon shook his head at the worried Siwoo.
The drink really was excellent.
“Should we just go home if you’re struggling?”
“Hmm.”
Raon delayed his answer for a moment and took another sip of his drink.
The cold coffee wet the back of Raon’s throat.
“Kyah!”
“Hahaha!”
The small park close to his house was surprisingly crowded.
Although the weather was hot, today was a holiday.
Perhaps because of that, there were many families out for a stroll.
Raon gazed intently at them.
Most of them were smiling brightly without any worries.
Gates had opened and many had died, but that was now a thing of the past.
Normally, the national crisis alert level rises to the highest grade after an Irregular Gate occurs.
But it wasn’t so in this life.
Thanks to the activities of Raon’s Guide Team, there hadn’t even been any sacrifice of ability users until now.
So, the world now was peaceful.
Even in Sector 1, where the frequency of Gate occurrences was significantly higher than other places, the faces of the people who came outside were not grim.
They seemed to firmly believe that the current peace would continue, and a vibrant, bright energy could be felt on his skin.
“It’s a bit hot, but it looks good, doesn’t it?”
“…Yes.”
Siwoo, sitting next to Raon, nodded his head slightly in agreement.
His gaze was also directed toward the people.
“Not just the Gates, but these people will be in danger if a terror attack happens, too, won’t they?”
“…”
“I want to stop that.”
Siwoo didn’t answer, but Raon continued to murmur as if talking to himself.
Raon didn’t consider himself a highly moral person.
But if he, who knew the future, tried, he could save countless people and earn merit.
There was no reason to refuse that opportunity.
“I understand your feelings, Hyung.”
After a little while, Siwoo opened his mouth.
He was looking at Raon with a serious face.
“I’m trying to stop you because I’m worried about you, but I feel the same way.”
“Siwoo.”
Raon also gazed into Siwoo’s eyes.
Looking at those upright eyes, a setting from the novel came to mind.
High-level Espers like Dojin and Taegun mostly fought in the Gates to fulfill their selfish desires, but Siwoo was not like that.
Having awakened at a young age and lost friends who grew up with him inside the Gates, he had no hesitation in sacrificing himself to protect others.
“Do whatever you want to do, Hyung. I’ll help you.”
“Okay.”
Raon smiled easily at Siwoo’s serious answer.
The warmth of their intertwined hands was hot.
“Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
When Raon sincerely thanked him, Siwoo quickly turned his head, as if embarrassed.
But this time, too, his earlobes had turned red.
Raon almost burst into laughter at his consistency.
“It’s okay. Nothing bad will happen to us.”
Raon whispered and lowered his head. It wasn’t that he wasn’t anxious.
He still couldn’t be sure whether he could achieve results against the terrorist group Apophis, not to mention the System.
Since the situation was different from before the regression, there might be many variables, just like the Irregular Gate.
But strangely, Raon felt confident that things would be okay.
Was it because the dependable Siwoo was by his side?
Raon smiled again faintly, thinking an idle thought.
*
The large multiplex, enjoying a holiday, was bustling with people constantly moving around.
It was crowded with people who came to see the latest movies in the cinema, the heart of the building, those who came for a nice meal with family or friends, or those who came to look at nice clothes and goods.
Though the whole world was rife with danger due to the Gates, the people here were smiling as if the worries outside didn’t concern them.
And in reality, South Korea was quite peaceful now.
“Gates? I’m not worried at all.”
“What is the reason?”
In one corner of the multiplex, a reporter was interviewing a passerby.
The man, walking hand in hand with his girlfriend, readily agreed to the reporter’s interview and nodded.
And he gave an unreserved answer to the question.
“We have the Guide Team. They say it’s fine if the Guides go in together.”
“Are you referring to the Guide Team led by Team Leader Han Raon?”
“Yes, that one.”
When the man nodded greatly, the woman, who seemed to be his companion, also vigorously moved her head in response.
The reporter did not express much doubt, as if it was the answer he had already expected.
