“Hyung. Then we’ll be working together from now on.”

He blankly stared at Myung-hwon’s back by the door and Ji-woo’s figure following behind him. Ji-woo glanced back before closing the door.

That was when it happened.

“…Huk.”

He unconsciously took a deep breath. As the cold air hit his lungs, his body began to tremble.

“Ju-eon?”

Kang No-hun, who hadn’t left yet, approached with a puzzled look. Cold sweat trickled down his back. He wanted to faint right then and there.

‘You’ve probably felt it already, but daily activities might become more difficult from now on.’

The doctor’s words flashed through his mind. Had they mentioned he might collapse? The physical pain was so intense that the doctor’s words were hazy.

“Are you okay?”

“…Yes.”

He couldn’t throw up or collapse here. It would be obvious to the team members who had just left.

“You don’t look well.”

“I’m just a bit tired. I’ll get up too.”

When Ju-eon hurriedly stood up, his body swayed. But before falling, he managed to maintain his stance by placing his hand on the desk. A clunking sound followed by silence filled the room.

“You don’t seem okay. Should you go to the hospital?”

“I’m really fine.”

Bang.

The door opened roughly as Ju-eon hurried out of the room. Keeping his head down, thinking he shouldn’t be caught like this, he moved quickly with forced steps. After leaving the office, he walked as fast as he could down the corridor on shaky legs.

“Ugh.”

A metallic liquid suddenly flowed up from his throat. He quickly stopped and covered his mouth. But soon he moved quickly into the bathroom.

After entering the last stall and locking the door, he removed his hand, and dark red blood dripped down.

“Urgh.”

He threw up everything he had eaten for breakfast. Chills ran through his entire body. He had received medicine but hadn’t expected to be in pain like this, so he’d left it in his bag.

‘I’ll have to keep it in my pocket from now on.’

Ju-eon wiped the cold sweat from his forehead while waiting for his body to feel better. He smiled, thinking he’d have to work through lunch.

These incidents would become more frequent from now on.

With that thought, he thought of Myung-hwon. Myung-hwon seemed unbothered about being on a different team. Earlier he had felt hurt, but now thinking about it, it was fortunate.

“…It’s for the best…”

Leaving Team 1 wasn’t so bad. It seemed better to be pushed out and quietly disappear this way rather than leaving because of illness. He had needed to look for a replacement due to his illness anyway, so he could think of this as that opportunity coming early. As he leaned against the door, he felt the cold and his sweat gradually cooling.

These moments would increase from now on. Suffering in secret, putting things in order, keeping distance from Myung-hwon.

He knew he should tell him, but if possible, he didn’t want to. He didn’t want to hold onto Myung-hwon out of pity.

“Let’s focus and get today’s work done.”

He would be around until the handover was complete, so he had to avoid being discovered until then. Though it would be difficult, that’s what he wanted. Even if it was useless pride, he couldn’t help it.

As he was about to leave the bathroom and walk, someone grabbed his wrist.

“Myung-hwon.”

“Why are you here?”

Ju-eon stopped at the sight of Myung-hwon and smiled as if nothing was wrong.

“There aren’t many reasons to come to a bathroom, are there?”

“With a bathroom right in front… Did you cry?”

“…No.”

When he avoided eye contact, worried about being caught, Myung-hwon grabbed his chin.

“Your eyes are red.”

“…My stomach wasn’t feeling well.”

Though his eyes were slightly red, it was so subtle that it wouldn’t be noticeable unless looking closely. He hadn’t expected to run into anyone in front of the bathroom at the end of the corridor, so seeing Myung-hwon waiting for him was awkward. When Ju-eon calmly made his excuse while trying to hide his confusion, Myung-hwon looked at him suspiciously.

Tap.

Not wanting to be discovered, Ju-eon brushed away Myung-hwon’s hand. Looking at the weakly lowered hand with an incomprehensible expression, Myung-hwon asked.

“Nothing to say?”

“You were the one waiting for me, don’t you have something to say?”

“It was classified, so I couldn’t tell you.”

“I know.”

“So?”

“That’s just how work is.”

“If you have questions, ask them here and let’s end it.”

A hint of annoyance showed briefly before disappearing. It was obvious he was trying to get ahead of any potential complaints about feeling hurt later. Before, he might have had many questions to ask, but now there was nothing to ask. Though it was early, things had worked out as he wanted.

“Why did you follow me?”

Ju-eon smiled faintly. He just wanted to confirm Myung-hwon’s affection one last time. He wanted to hear in Myung-hwon’s voice that he still cared about him, that he was still at the center of Myung-hwon’s world.

Myung-hwon stared at Ju-eon who had asked such a question. It was an uncharacteristically short question from Ju-eon, who usually fired off questions one after another. A subtle atmosphere hung between them. Myung-hwon examined Ju-eon’s face again. His eyes, which had seemed red earlier, were now fine.

He had expected to be drained answering troublesome questions, but it was comfortable since nothing was asked.

“The team leader told me to check on you.”

“…Really?”

Ju-eon smiled faintly at Myung-hwon’s answer. Why was he smiling like that? Perhaps Ju-eon was also feeling doubtful about their unchanging relationship. He thought it might not be bad to take some time apart at this point.

“Ju-eon.”

“…I haven’t done any morning work, I’m late.”

But Ju-eon seemed to sense what Myung-hwon was about to say and avoided the conversation by hurrying his steps. There was no need to explain in words since they were already keeping their distance anyway.

“Okay.”

Myung-hwon passed by Ju-eon, who was walking slower than usual, with his wide strides.

**

Selfishly, Ju-eon hoped the new S-class guide would be someone rough around the edges.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Lee Ho-yun. I look forward to working with you!”

But contrary to his hopes, the man greeted the Attack Team 1 members with an approachable attitude. If he had been a regular new employee, it would have been a normal greeting, but the team members showed favorable attitudes, saying how humble he was despite being from a wealthy family.

His face was unnecessarily likeable too, and even Yun-jin, who had worried about potential power harassment, quickly engaged in friendly conversation with Ho-yun.

“He really seems like a good addition.”

Yun-jin called out to Ju-eon in a subtle voice while working.

“You think so?”

“Yeah. Good-looking, nice personality, and well, he’s S-class so we just need to work well together. The world is so unfair, isn’t it?”

“…I suppose.”

When Ju-eon responded half a beat late, Yun-jin seemed to realize her mistake and laughed awkwardly.

“Oh right. I should watch what I say. Sorry, Ju-eon.”

“Come on, I’m not that narrow-minded.”

When Ju-eon laughed it off, Yun-jin joined in the laughter. She soon left, saying she needed to go to the supply room.

Ho-yun had blended into Attack Team 1 so seamlessly that by lunchtime, he even came to invite Ju-eon.

“Senior, aren’t you joining us for lunch?”

“No, please go ahead.”

He knew it wouldn’t be good to act awkwardly here. There was a reason the team members had sent Ho-yun. They probably thought he would be upset about being pushed out of his position.

“There’s a meeting right after lunch…”

“Don’t worry about it.”

Though it wasn’t true, there was no need to say so. If not, he would have to tell the truth, but he didn’t want to say that he didn’t have much life left, and besides, it wasn’t entirely wrong.

“Should I bring something back for you?”

“No, I’ll manage.”

Maybe like others said, he could be upset about Ho-yun becoming Myung-hwon’s guide instead of him.

Whoosh.

Ju-eon turned his head awkwardly enough to be noticeable. For some reason, Ho-yun’s gaze made him uncomfortable. He was very skilled at dealing with people, but that skill seemed almost too natural. There was nothing strange about it. But somehow, that aspect bothered Ju-eon.

**

An A-class dungeon appeared in the outskirts of Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi Province. Though the dungeon’s difficulty was high, they thought it wouldn’t be prioritized for conquest since it was in an area with low population. Especially with a new member joining, they had planned to progress gradually from C-class to B-class dungeons for the handover.

No matter how high-ranked someone was, dungeons were places where one could die from a single mistake. Though time was precious, it was right to take time to build harmony with the new team.

“Suddenly deploying for an A-class?”

“There’s word that anti-government guerrillas are targeting the dungeon.”

“…AGT?”

“Yes.”

The team’s atmosphere darkened at No-hun’s confirmation.

AGT.

Anti Government Terrorist.

Created dungeons are state property, and entry is prohibited except for state-designated individuals. It was a law to protect citizens by preventing dungeon dangers in advance.

The government agency managing ability users produced espers and guides each year, and their established system was for them to enter society in roles protecting citizens and handling dungeon risks.

However, some groups opposed this law, claiming that the government’s monopoly on dungeons and dungeon resources strengthened the ruling class’s power.

Among them, AGT was an extremist group.