Was the caller truly the Ryu Sunghyun he knew—or just another false being, like the “Kim Kyungmin” this strange world had fabricated?
Kwon Taehyuk hesitated, eyes fixed on the phone screen, before finally answering the call.
“...Yes.”
He kept his response brief, since he /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ couldn’t confirm the identity of the caller.
A moment of silence followed before a cautious voice spoke.
— ...Hunter Kwon Taehyuk, is that you? As in, the one who knows “Cover”?
Kwon Taehuk’s eyes widened slightly.
Relieved, he answered without hesitation.
“Yes, that’s me. And you—are you the same Ryu Sunghyun I know?”
— Yes.
Ryu Sunghyun let out a short sigh of relief, then immediately asked,
— Where are you right now?
“I’m at Yesung Guild. I came to about twenty minutes ago. You?”
— About the same. I’m at Circle Guild. But...
Ryu Sunghyun trailed off briefly.
— It’s difficult to explain over the phone. It’ll be better if we meet in person. Can you come here? If this space really is an illusion—or something fabricated—then it’s safer for us to regroup.
“Understood.”
Ending the call cleanly, Kwon Taehyuk didn’t put the phone away right away.
After a moment of thought, he searched for Cha Seohu’s number. But it wasn’t in his contacts.
'Why not?'
Frowning, he manually entered the number from memory and called. Unlike Ryu Sunghyun, Seohu didn’t answer.
A bad feeling crept up his spine.
He tried twice more, but the call never connected. In the end, Kwon Taehyuk decided he had to find Ryu Sunghyun first.
He opened the office door and stepped into the hallway—just as Kim Kyungmin was returning, his face puzzled.
“Sir, where are you going? The Association staff will arrive any minute for the meeting—”
“Cancel it.”
It was all a well-crafted fake world anyway. A meeting here meant nothing.
Kwon Taehyuk gave the command coldly and stepped into the elevator. Kim Kyungmin, startled, rushed in after him.
“Sir? Cancel it, just like that? They’ll be here any minute!”
“I don’t care. Cancel it—make up any excuse.”
“How am I supposed to—”
The elevator reached the first floor. Kwon Taehyuk stepped out quickly, ignoring Kim Kyungmin’s flustered protests, and crossed the lobby—
“Sir, please!”
Kyungmin caught up, lowering his voice in desperation.
“If you leave like this, what am I supposed to do? They’re already here!”
He motioned toward the main entrance, where several men were entering.
Kwon Taehyuk raised an eyebrow.
He recognized most Association Awakeners by face in real life, but these men were all strangers.
'As I thought... this place is wrong.'
Almost identical to reality, yet slightly off—that subtle difference grated on his nerves.
He turned to leave anyway, but Kyungmin continued,
“The man in front is the new head of the Strategy Team—the one you’ve been meaning to meet.”
“...!”
Kwon Taehyuk froze mid-step.
He turned his gaze toward the indicated direction. The faces were still unfamiliar.
“You’re saying that man is the Strategy Team leader?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And Park Minhyuk?”
Kwon Taehyuk looked straight at Kim Kyungmin.
“The Strategy Team Leader. Wasn’t that Park Minhyuk?”
“Pardon?”
Kyungmin’s eyes widened, confusion washing over his face.
“Sir, what are you... is this some kind of joke?”
“......”
Kwon Taehyuk didn’t answer. He simply stared.
Kyungmin’s complexion paled.
“Sir, seriously—what’s wrong? I reported it to you last month.”
He hesitated before adding, clearly reluctant to say it aloud.
“Team Leader Park Minhyuk... passed away. That’s why the Association appointed someone new.”
Ignoring Kim Kyungmin’s anxious muttering about overwork and memory lapses, Kwon Taehyuk got into his car and drove straight toward Circle Guild.
All the while, the secretary’s earlier words echoed in his head—Park Minhyuk is dead.
And then the explanation that had followed.
[It was a B-rank dungeon, but the Association’s raid team was wiped out—no survivors. The Association was in chaos for weeks after that.]
Kyungmin had shaken his head, sighing.
[Every day, new rifts open somewhere, and every raid team that enters gets annihilated. With all that going on, I can see why people online keep talking about the Catastrophe. Though I’m sure it’s just nonsense spread by cult lunatics.]
'Catastrophe. Cults.'
Kwon Taehyuk muttered the two words under his breath.
Soon, the Circle Guild building came into view—looking older, shabbier than in reality.
It reminded him of how the guild had looked years ago.
Parking the car, he stepped out. Ryu Sunghyun emerged from the building, as though he had been waiting.
“You’re here.”
“You said I had to see it in person—what did you mean?”
Kwon Taehyuk asked while scanning their surroundings. Everything looked perfectly ordinary—just a quiet street.
And yet it was unnerving how precisely this place mimicked reality.
“...First, Hunter Kwon Taehyuk, did you try to contact Hunter Cha Seohu before coming here? Or meet him, perhaps?”
It was obvious from the tone that the “Cha Seohu” Ryu referred to was the same one who had entered the rift with them.
“I tried calling before I left. He didn’t answer. You?”
“I...”
Ryu hesitated, unable to finish—when suddenly,
“Hyung?”
A familiar voice came from behind Ryu’s shoulder. Both men turned their heads at once.
“What are you doing out here? Aren’t you coming in?”
Cha Seohu approached, looking puzzled.
Kwon Taehyuk froze for a breath.
'That aura...'
It was far weaker than in reality—barely B-rank level.
'Why?'
Was this another distortion of the space, like the monsters or Park Minhyuk’s supposed death?
Seohu’s casual tone and the way he spoke informally—calling Ryu hyung—made Ryu Sunghyun smile awkwardly.
“Ah, yeah. I was just about to.”
In truth, the first thing Ryu had done upon waking in this place was speak politely to Seohu—and immediately get scolded for it.
[That’s a boring joke, hyung.]
Even as Seohu smiled faintly, there had been a trace of hurt in his eyes.
That expression—so natural, so achingly familiar—had made Ryu’s chest tighten in both awkwardness and warmth.
“I’ll be right in. Don’t worry about it.”
At Ryu’s words, Seohu nodded quietly, then glanced toward Kwon Taehyuk. His jet-black eyes carried unmistakable wariness.
“......”
Meeting that gaze, Kwon Taehyuk suddenly understood something. The realization made his mouth move before he could stop it.
“Hunter Cha Seohu.”
Seohu, who had turned to go back inside, halted.
He turned his head slowly, looking at Taehyuk with cold detachment.
“Me? Do I know you?”
“I called you. Three times. Why didn’t you pick up?”
Seohu frowned, lips twisting into a dry smirk.
“What? Some unknown number kept calling over and over—I thought it was some pervert. How’d the great Guildmaster of Yesung even get my number?”
...As expected.
This world’s Cha Seohu didn’t know him at all.
'So that uneasy feeling in the office... this was it.'
He’d expected it, but facing Seohu’s cold, guarded demeanor still hurt enough to stop his thoughts short.
For a long second, Kwon Taehyuk’s lips moved soundlessly before he managed a whisper.
“...I’m sorry.”
Seohu’s expression chilled further at the apology offered with no explanation.
“Sorry for what? I asked how you got my number—answer me.”
“Seohu.”
Ryu Sunghyun, who had been watching tensely, quickly cut in.
“Let it go. I’ll ask him, all right? You go on ahead first.”
He tried to soothe him with a calm smile, pretending nothing was wrong.
'Will it work?'
Ryu held his breath, glancing anxiously at Seohu.
After a moment of glaring between the two men, Seohu finally exhaled and relented.
“Fine. I’ll go first.”
His ready concession left even Ryu momentarily speechless.
“Hyung, there’ve been a lot of weird people picking fights lately. Don’t stand out here too long, okay?”
Leaving behind that faint note of concern, Seohu went inside the building.
Only when his figure disappeared did the two men finally relax.
“...Now I understand why you said it’s hard to explain over the phone,” Taehyuk murmured.
“Right?”
Ryu gave a weak laugh, then his face grew serious.
“This isn’t a simple illusion or a psychic-type skill. It feels like the entire space itself was designed. We need to find the other two as well.”
Kwon Taehyuk nodded shortly.
“Agreed. Reuniting with our team should be our top priority. But...”
He trailed off, voice heavy. Ryu didn’t need to ask what he meant.
Cha Seohu. What were they supposed to do about him?

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