The muddled expression in J’s murky green eyes flitted between me and Cha Sahyeon, who stood in front of me, blocking the way.
“...There’s no need to be so on guard.”
J had started to speak informally but quickly changed to polite speech after catching a glimpse of Cha Sahyeon’s eyes.
“No one knows I came here.”
“No one?”
Since Cha Sahyeon remained silent and simply stared at the sudden intruder, Cha Seohu responded instead.
“Who exactly is included in that ‘no one’? You should clarify that.”
“......”
“Is it those cult bastards?”
J clenched his lips and looked away for a moment, then let out a resigned sigh.
“...Yeah.”
Cha Sahyeon’s eyes sharpened, prompting J to quickly add,
“...Sir.”
Damn, he really had those cult bastards whipped into shape.
Cha Seohu quietly thought it was a blessing that Sahyeon treated him like a proper hyung and checked the time.
‘Still just 10 p.m., so there’s a bit of room to work with.’
It wasn’t like he could just ignore and kick the coward out—he was curious about why this timid guy had snuck all the way here.
More importantly, J had been embedded in that cult for a long time. If he had come with the intention of cooperation, this might be a chance to build a relationship and extract some valuable intel.
As he calculated what benefits he could squeeze from J, Cha Seohu motioned toward the couch with a jerk of his chin.
“Sit.”
“I—uh, no. This won’t take long.”
The way J turned his head and sullenly tugged down the brim of his hat made him look like a stray cat that had wandered into the wrong place—despite being the one who showed up uninvited.
“I came here because...”
“......”
“......”
Ugh. Just spit it out.
“You came because...?”
As Seohu, never one for patience, pushed him, J finally looked at him with a determined expression.
“...You told me. About how this time, things might turn out differently... if I didn’t get that feeling, too.”
Cha Seohu’s eyes widened slightly.
He remembered the moment in the Great Dungeon when he’d confronted J near the flower.
Grabbing J by the collar, he had said:
“You’re getting the order of events all wrong. The cultists aren’t just randomly losing it—I’ve been the one stopping them every time. Doesn’t it click for you? That this time, it might end differently?”
“You definitely told me. That you’d stop everything, no matter what.”
J had never wanted to sacrifice the dying Hunters.
The reason he hadn’t pulled the flower was because he’d already experienced too many similar situations.
He had watched the world march toward destruction hundreds of times. From his perspective, everyone was already as good as dead.
Even if they managed to survive the Great Dungeon by some stroke of luck, they’d still die when the apocalypse came.
“In that case...”
Wasn’t it better to use them for something—to delay the end, even a little?
The act of weighing others’ lives.
Repulsive, yes—but to J, who had lived with his body and mind shackled to that cult through countless cycles, it was the only answer.
And the one who’d grabbed him by the collar and dragged him back up to the surface—
Ironically, was Cha Seohu, the man he detested so much.
“I don’t care if you don’t trust me. I’ll stop whatever those cult bastards try, now or next time.”
Cha Seohu’s black eyes had burned with overwhelming emotion right in front of him.
Not justice. Not a noble desire to save others. Not the will to protect the world.
It was obsession.
An intense, deep-rooted, all-consuming obsession. A fanatical resolve willing to throw himself into anything to achieve his goal.
And so, J chose to trust him.
He had seen too many people with morals and beliefs crumble. But this guy? He’d keep going—even with his head cut off.
“That’s why... I’m going to try trusting you.”
Letting out a bitter sigh, J absently fidgeted with the brim of his deeply pulled-down hat and continued.
“A new order came down from above.”
“...!”
“It’s scheduled for ten days from now. The location is Gangnam.”
“Wait, wait.”
At the sudden drop of high-grade intel, Cha Seohu laughed dryly and stepped past Cha Sahyeon.
J flinched and took a step back when Seohu approached him so casually.
This guy—he’s a Supporter! How is he not scared?!
Sure, it wasn’t like an attack would do anything with Sahyeon here, but still... that complete lack of wariness was something J couldn’t get used to.
He may have come here to offer intel, but he was still the enemy. Shouldn’t this guy be a little more alert?
“Ten days from now, Gangnam? What time?”
“That, I don’t know. I’m usually ordered to guard the Source, so the exact time and coordinates are only given on the day of.”
“On the day? So you just say ‘Yes, sir’ and go along with it?”
“Can we not ask unnecessary questions?”
The moment Seohu threw in a sarcastic jab, a sharp retort came flying back.
With arms crossed, Cha Seohu stared down at J and brushed his bangs back in irritation before asking in a calmer tone,
“Anything else you know?”
“...I’ve always guarded the flower alone until now, but I heard there’ll be more people assigned this time. Because of the failure at the Great Dungeon. You should factor that in.”
“And you won’t be able to side with us in front of those cult bastards?”
“Obviously.”
With a hard-to-read expression, J glanced at Cha Sahyeon, then turned his back.
“That’s all I came to say. Use it however you want.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Me? ...I’ll follow orders.”
Like he always had.
Just as J swallowed the rest of that thought, a black shadow rose beneath his feet.
Before the darkness swallowed his body completely, Cha Seohu called out to him.
“You know being a spy is the most dangerous job, right?”
“......”
“If you ever need a place to run to—”
Come here.
The shadow consumed J completely and vanished without a trace.
Whether or not he heard those last words, Cha Seohu didn’t know. But if the message got through... maybe it gave him a little room to breathe.
As he stared at the spot where J had disappeared, conflicted, Cha Seohu reached into his inventory.
He pulled out a luxurious, gold-trimmed invitation. Unfolding it revealed the time and location of the event.
“Ten days from now. {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} Gangnam.”
His face hardened as he muttered under his breath.
It was the same invitation Kwon Taehyuk had handed him as soon as he returned to the Yesung Guild earlier. Officially sent by the organizers of the charity gala.
The event would be held at the H Hotel in Gangnam in ten days.
Too perfect to be a coincidence.
“......”
A twisted smile formed on Cha Seohu’s lips.
“Well, look at it positively. At least now we won’t be surprised when it happens.”
Late at night, inside Circle Guild’s representative office.
Having heard everything about what happened in the Great Dungeon and the intel J brought, Song Jiwon sipped his tea and made a laid-back remark.
Seohu looked at him incredulously.
“Is that seriously what you’re going with?”
Song Jiwon shrugged as he tilted his teacup.
“Well, you were expecting it, right? That something else would happen after the Great Dungeon massacre plan failed.”
I mean, sure...
Cha Seohu sighed deeply and glared at Jiwon’s ever-relaxed face.
“What do you think about J? Is he someone we can trust?”
“He’s an interesting one.”
Setting his teacup down, Song Jiwon smiled faintly.
“Cha Seohu, you didn’t seem too pleased with the choice he made in the Great Dungeon.”
“Anyone would be against that kind of psychotic thinking.”
“Really?”
Leaning back into the sofa, Song Jiwon narrowed his eyes with a slow smirk.
“Shame. I found it quite... human.”
“‘Human’?”
Cha Seohu frowned.
Human, he said?
How could killing a hundred people just to slightly delay a larger disaster possibly be called human?
“Bullshit. That’s the exact opposite.”
“Sorry, but I didn’t say ‘humane.’ I said ‘human.’ Different meaning.”
“What?”
“I’m not defending him. Life is important, obviously. But since the Great Dungeon was resolved, shouldn’t we now examine the mistake J made, instead?”
Song Jiwon’s gaze shifted toward Cha Sahyeon, who sat silently beside Seohu.
“Most humans, when trapped too long in one place or driven to a corner, end up making bad decisions. J may not be human anymore, but his emotions are still very much alive—that’s why he made such a human mistake.”
“......”
“What could’ve caused that? If you ask me, I think the energy of the Catastrophe had something to do with it. J is called a failure, but... what if that very failure means he could return to a normal life someday?”
“...So.”
As Song Jiwon’s words dragged on, Cha Seohu’s expression grew icier, teeth gritting.
“Why are you looking at Cha Sahyeon while you say all that?”
“Ha. Playing dumb doesn’t suit you, Cha Seohu.”
Even as he laughed, Song Jiwon tilted his head with a look of pity in his eyes.
“You already know damn well that this thing is far from normal.”

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