* * *

—Anyway, after Seo Heewon left, things have been odd around here.

“What do you mean?”

—Way noisier than usual. Everyone’s acting a little crazy, like they’re not in their right minds. Plus, some of Kim Kyungmin’s key executives, who always stuck by his side, disappeared at the same time. There’s been a lot of visitors too, though I couldn’t figure out who they were yet.

Most of Kim Kyungmin’s executives are Awakened. They were definitely up to something.

“Do you remember when those executives left?”

—Yesterday afternoon, around four, I think.

That was roughly the same time I found out Seo Heewon had gone missing.

Could those bastards have known and acted on it?

“Any guesses about what’s going on?”

“Heewon’s gone. I think… they might’ve gone after him.”

—Gone?

“Yeah.”

—Are you looking for him too?

“Of course.”

—Sorry to take up your time.

“No, this helps.”

—I’ve got a lot more questions, but I’ll stop here for now. Let me know what happens later.

“Sure. Bye.”

I hung up and sighed. My mind was spinning.

What if the Baekmyeon Sect finds Heewon first?

What if he ends up joining them?

No, that’s ridiculous.

Heewon wouldn’t willingly join them.

But just as he ended up going to the church due to circumstances, he could be forced to take their hand.

Or they might coerce him outright.

That Lee Jaehee on their side is formidable… Heewon might not stand a chance.

Normally, I’d dismiss such thoughts as absurd. Heewon is an S-class Awakened, after all.

But his condition wasn’t normal.

He’d been showing signs—getting drunk on substances that shouldn’t affect him, looking alarmingly pale.

And now, coughing up blood before disappearing.

The warning signs had been there all along.

I should’ve forced him to let me check, no matter how much he hated it.

No—if Heewon hadn’t lost his memory, he would’ve told me himself that something was wrong.

But he hadn’t said a word.

Because he doesn’t trust me anymore. Far from it, he avoids me whenever possible.

The memory of him desperately trying to evade me made my chest ache.

What do I do now?

For now, Choi Yuhan will continue searching in the same way.

As for me…

“Damn it.”

A curse escaped my lips.

All I know how to do is fight, and now I can’t even be of use in finding Heewon.

Who knows what might’ve happened to him by now, and I’m completely powerless.

I unclenched my fists, noticing the crescent marks left by my nails digging into my palms, blood pooling in the wounds.

The bright red reminded me of Heewon.

I need to find him. Fast.

---

I rolled down the car window.

From a short distance away, Ahn Sangwook approached. I gestured for him to get in, knowing this wasn’t a conversation to be had outside.

Once he was inside, I started giving orders.

“Assign more people to Choi Yuhan. Tell them to search the areas near the mountains around Muju. You head to Seoul.”

“Yes. What about you, Guild Leader?”

I should’ve said I was heading to Seoul too.

But what came out instead was something entirely different.

“I’ll keep searching the mountains nearby.”

“…Pardon?”

“Why?”

“I just thought you’d be going to Seoul.”

“You can handle Seoul. I’ll stay here and keep looking. Report to me regularly.”

“…Understood.”

Ahn Sangwook’s expression was hard to read, but his thoughts were obvious.

I knew it too—going to Seoul would be the smarter choice.

But Heewon might still be nearby.

He might need help, urgently. I couldn’t leave him behind, no matter how foolish it seemed.

“Keep monitoring the Hunter Management Bureau. Report anything useful immediately.”

“Yes, sir.”

The Hunter Management Bureau of this cycle wasn’t particularly corrupt, but to prepare for any eventualities, I’d planted someone inside. A

t the time, I didn’t realize it, but this might end up being their most useful deployment yet.

“Be careful of Baekmyeon Sect. I’ve heard some of their executives have gone missing…”

I gave a few more instructions to Ahn Sangwook.

After he left, I almost set out immediately, but then decided to step out of the car instead.

I approached Seo Hoon, who hadn’t left yet.

His face looked significantly more haggard than it had just a day ago.

“Uncle.”

“Gunho.”

His voice was rough, full of worry.

“You seem really upset because of me.”

It was an obvious statement.

“Are you worried about Heewon?”

“Of course I am.”

The kind of person who would summon this many people just to capture Seo Heewon… I bit back the urge to be sarcastic.

Seo Hoon wasn’t in his right mind right now—he was brainwashed, after all.

…Even so, I couldn’t help but feel a surge of anger.

It seemed best to get to the point quickly.

“Has Heewon been sick recently or anything like that?”

“I don’t know. I… I have no idea.”

“…”

“He’s the kind of kid who tries so hard not to worry me. I didn’t notice at all.”

Seo Hoon buried his face in his hands, looking anguished.

“For him to be coughing up blood like that, and I didn’t even know… I’m a failure as a father.”

“I’ll be on my way.”

His self-deprecation hit too close to home.

I climbed back up the snow-covered mountain.

While I didn’t have any tracking skills, I did have items.

Using one, I surveyed the surroundings as I headed south.

If he’d run away, he wouldn’t have taken a hiking trail.

I followed paths that people wouldn’t usually tread, crossing the mountain as I searched for Seo Heewon.

But not even a strand of his hair was in sight.

The snow kept falling intermittently, piling higher and higher, making me more anxious.

I spent the entire day scouring the mountain, but to no avail.

It wasn’t just me—neither Choi Yuhan nor Ahn Sangwook had any luck either.

After searching the mountain endlessly, I finally descended briefly after sunrise the next day. I’d run out of the consumable tracking items.

Though I’d ordered them to be stocked in advance, they hadn’t arrived yet due to blocked roads.

I was told it would take about 30 minutes, and I debated whether to take a short rest.

Having stayed up for three nights, I wasn’t completely drained yet, but I had no idea how many more sleepless nights I’d endure until I found Seo Heewon.

It would be better to recover my stamina while I had the chance.

After a brief moment of consideration, I pulled out some sleeping pills from my inventory and swallowed them.

The pills were potent enough to kill a normal person, yet they had little effect on me.

Still, taking them was better than nothing.

I’d originally gotten them to deal with the insomnia I’d developed after Seo Heewon started pushing me away.

I hadn’t expected to use them because he was outright gone.

I forced my eyes shut.

Troubled thoughts kept me from falling asleep, so I ended up taking three more pills. Only then did my body begin to relax.

Thinking of Seo Heewon until the very end, I slowly drifted into unconsciousness.

---

I was walking down a narrow staircase.

The descent into the basement felt unsettlingly familiar—its appearance, its depth, and the metallic stench of blood that grew stronger the farther down I went.

The deep basement was pitch dark.

I turned on a light, revealing a grim, desolate room.

There was a large cage in the center of the room, crafted from dungeon ores processed through a special technique.

The cage was sturdy enough to withstand even a powerful awakened being.

Inside the cage, the past version of “Seo Heewon” lay curled up with his back to me.

He was a complete mess.

Numerous wounds across his body hadn’t healed, leaving raw, exposed flesh.

His arms were bound behind his back, and his neck was restrained with a short iron chain that limited his movement.

Such measures were necessary to fully contain “Seo Heewon.”

Just then, the “Seo Heewon” in the cage turned to face me.

But the pale figure staring back at me wasn’t the “Seo Heewon” I had fought countless times since my regression.

The one imprisoned was my Seo Heewon.

“Heewon.”

“…”

Seo Heewon didn’t answer.

He just gazed at me with sad, tear-brimmed eyes that seemed to insist he wasn’t crying.

“Ugh…”

He let out a low whimper.

His anguished groan was tinged with sorrow and pain.

Panicked, I rushed toward the cage, but Seo Heewon flinched and scrambled away.

Despite being unable to escape with the short chain, he struggled desperately, the rough metal scraping his neck.

“Don’t come closer!”

“Heewon.”

“Don’t… don’t come any closer…”

His face, filled with terror, was the same as when he’d pushed me away before.

That look drove me mad.

“Don’t…”

He couldn’t finish his sentence.

Instead, blood spilled from his mouth in a torrent.

So much blood poured out that it pooled at his feet.

Seeing the vivid crimson, my mind went blank.

“Heewon!”

“Urgh…”

I frantically tried to break the cage, but it was too solid.

Even when I struck it with all my strength, it didn’t budge.

I eventually resorted to using my weapon, but it only broke my blade.

“Why…”

Seo Heewon, pale-faced, opened his mouth to speak.

“Why are you trying to save me…”

“Heewon, don’t talk—”

“Just… leave me… Just let me be…”

“Heewon!”

“…”

He didn’t say another word.

Or rather, he couldn’t.

Seo Heewon’s body slowly tipped over and collapsed.

His trembling eyelids fluttered shut.

“Heewon!”

Desperately, I tried to break the cage, but it was useless.

His breathing grew weaker.

Slowly, Seo Heewon slipped away, dying in a place I couldn’t reach.

---

I woke up.

Still dazed from the dream, I looked around.

Realizing I was alone in the quiet car, I clenched my teeth.

It was too horrifying to dismiss as just a dream.

After all, I had no idea what state Seo Heewon was in right now.

The thought that he might be lying somewhere, helpless like in my dream, was unbearable.

If something happened to Seo Heewon…

Just imagining it made me squeeze my eyes shut.

If Seo Heewon truly… Then I wouldn’t be able to do anything anymore.

Please, let him be safe.

I prayed desperately to a god I didn’t believe in.

* * *