"Let's leave quickly. Before we miss her… we'll capture her first."
Si-yoon and the other females quickly changed their clothes and began preparing to go to the airport.
Jiwoo took off her headdress and apron and put on her usual hoodie and shorts,
and Chaeryeong hid her ears and tail and wore long jeans and a crop top.
'It'll take at least an hour to get to the airport from here…'
The hideout where Si-yoon and the females were living was in downtown City S,
and it would take at least an hour to arrive at the airport in City B, no matter how fast they went.
"Chaeryeong!"
Si-yoon rushed to Chaeryeong, who was hurriedly putting on her clothes, and grabbed her shoulders.
"Nyaaa…! What's wrong?"
Chaeryeong, who was in the middle of putting on her clothes, tilted her head with a puzzled expression, with only her skirt hanging around her waist.
"You said you can switch the positions of the clone and the main body, right?
If you move while holding something like an object in your hand, can you move with it?"
"I think it's okay if it's something small, about the size of a palm."
Chaeryeong said, showing the palm of her hand to Si-yoon, who was asking about her abilities.
'Then… it's possible if I enhance her ability, right?'
A female who has completed the 3rd stage of the imprint and become a 'Corrupted Slave,'
or Slave for short, can share or enhance her abilities.
Si-yoon was planning to enhance Chaeryeong's ability, 'Doppelganger,' to instantly move himself and Jiwoo.
"Just a moment… Can you put on all your clothes first?"
Si-yoon told Chaeryeong to put on all her clothes first,
and then opened the Corruption System's display and fiddled with it.
[ Welcome, Ha Si-yoon, owner of the System. ]
[ Current imprint targets near you: Yeon Jiwoo / Chaeryeong ]
[ Imprint targets in possession: Seolumi (Stage 2 - 35%) ]
[ Slave Management: Yoon Do-hwa / Yeon Jiwoo / Chaeryeong ]
[ Slave: Enhances Slave Chaeryeong's ability 'Doppelganger'. ]
While Si-yoon was trying out the Slave Management function,
Jiwoo had finished preparing and was standing next to him, waiting.
"Okay…! Chaeryeong. Do you feel like something has changed?"
"Nya…? I do feel something strange in my body."
Chaeryeong tilted her head, feeling a subtle feeling that she seemed to know but didn't.
Si-yoon grabbed Chaeryeong's arm tightly, who was making such an expression.
"Perhaps… would you like to try switching positions with the clone now?"
Chaeryeong was puzzled by Si-yoon, who was holding her hand with a suddenly confident expression, even though she had clearly said that she could only move with small objects.
However, as it was the command of her beloved Master,
Chaeryeong thought there must be a reason and took his hands back.
- Poofㅡ!
"Master and… Chaeryeong unnie have disappeared…!"
Then Chaeryeong and Si-yoon, who had been holding Chaeryeong's arm, disappeared somewhere,
and only Chaeryeong's clone at the airport remained in the hideout.
***
- Thump!
"Uaaat?!"
Chaeryeong, who was used to switching positions between the clone and the main body, stepped forward without any trouble,
but Si-yoon, who was new to this move, fell to the floor and landed on his butt.
"Ugh… Still, I'm glad we succeeded!"
"H-How did you do it? I'm sure it used to be just things like cards!"
Chaeryeong asked, surprised by the level of ability output that she had never done before.
Si-yoon answered the reason with a slightly smug expression to such Chaeryeong.
"By the way… it seems like some people are a little surprised."
The place where Si-yoon and Chaeryeong switched positions with the clone was somewhere in the airport food court.
Some citizens who were passing through the food court seemed a little surprised to see Si-yoon suddenly appear.
"Ahaha! It's nothing. It's nothing."
As Si-yoon and Chaeryeong walked away to another place as if nothing had happened,
the citizens also headed to their respective destinations with somewhat bewildered expressions.
"Let's go somewhere with fewer people first. We have to bring Jiwoo too."
After leaving the food court, which had a considerable floating population, and entering a place with fewer people,
Chaeryeong clapped her hands a few times and safely brought Jiwoo to the airport.
"Uaaat?!"
Jiwoo also landed on her butt like Si-yoon,
showing a surprised reaction, asking if teleportation was really possible.
"Do-hwa said Jiwoo contacted her, right?"
"Yes! She said that she's not too far from the airport and will arrive within 30 minutes."
"Then we can move now."
"Nya! Firecracker is at a cafe in that food court from before."
The three people went back into the food court where Si-yoon had landed on his butt,
and quietly approached the vicinity of the cafe where Firecracker was.
"That's her! The short woman with green hair."
The face I had seen in the executive information that Do-hwa had provided for the operation in the Alliance before.
Long green hair down to her waist, purple eyes,
and a rather petite physique made it certain that she was Firecracker.
However, perhaps to hide her identity, she was wearing ordinary skirts and a jet-black hooded zip-up,
instead of the modified cheongsam she usually wore.
"If there are strangers like me or Jiwoo, she'll definitely think it's suspicious.
So… it's better for Chaeryeong to go alone and bring her.
First, create another clone here,
and we'll take the clone and wait outside in a large taxi."
"Then… all I have to do is take Firecracker and switch positions with that clone?"
"That's right. You understand well.
And… if anything happens, contact me with this smartphone."
Si-yoon handed Chaeryeong a spare smartphone that he had prepared in advance.
The smartphone screen showed an internet map screen with the taxi pick-up location inside the airport marked.
"I've marked it on the map just in case, even though you said you've been here a few times and know the place,
and I've also connected to the Wi-Fi that works inside the airport. I'll leave it to you then."
"Nya! Leave it to me!"
Si-yoon and Jiwoo stood at an angle where they could quietly watch the inside of the cafe well,
and Chaeryeong entered the cafe where Firecracker was staying alone.
"Welcome!"
Then, pretending to be an ordinary customer, she first approached the clerk who was busily moving around in front of the counter.
"One iced Americano, please."
"Yes! It'll be out soon, so please wait a moment!"
Chaeryeong, who had paid with cash instead of a card, received the iced Americano that came out quickly,
and walked over to sit next to where Firecracker was sitting.
"It's me."
Whether she couldn't feel Chaeryeong's gaze looking at her, or couldn't hear her words,
Firecracker was only dozing off with her eyes half-closed.
"Luerin. I said it's me?"
"Uaaat?! Wh-Who are you?! Ueeet…?!"
Chaeryeong tapped her on the shoulder to induce her to turn her head,
she turned her head as if annoyed, then was startled by Chaeryeong's face and stuttered.
"T-Trickster-nim…?! Y-You were alive…?"
"Shh! If you say that outside, everyone will hear. Call me by my real name."
"Ahat! Y-Yes… Ch-Chaeryeong-nim…."
The affectionate appearance of a pet cat was nowhere to be found,
Chaeryeong had returned to her previous elegant and charismatic 'Trickster' appearance.
She calmed down Firecracker, who was flustered and blabbering loudly,
and sat with her for a while, sharing stories about what had happened in the meantime.
"I see…. Dain-yang has disappeared somewhere…
and Executioner-nim was eventually caught by the heroes…."
"Yes… J-Just in case, I kept coming here… but there was no one…."
It seemed that she had been circling around inside and near the airport for the past 3 days, just in case.
Then she caught the eye of Chaeryeong, who had left a clone.
"I know for sure what happened to the others.
You must have had a hard time too, Luerin."
"E, Everyone suddenly… disappeared… I was s-so anxious that I would be caught…."
Firecracker burst into tears and grabbed Chaeryeong's arm like a child.
The really interesting thing is that Chaeryeong is much more mature than Luerin and is actually older,
but such Luerin is 1 year older than Si-yoon, who has Chaeryeong as a pet cat.
"I'm glad I came here, thinking that everyone might be waiting here.
Then first… let's go to the place where I'm hiding."
"R, Really…?"
"Of course! If you go, you'll be able to see the leader too."
Firecracker believed Chaeryeong's blatant lie that the leader would also be there without any doubt.
The two returned the drinks they were drinking to the counter,
and walked out of the cafe holding each other's arms tightly.
"First, we're going to move to a temporary hideout on the outskirts of City B through a vehicle prepared outside the airport.
I'm going to teleport to that vehicle with my ability, so… you have to hold my arm tightly, Luerin?"
"Y, Yes…!"
While talking about the organization's future operating plans that would not exist,
she walked into a corner with few people passing by with Firecracker.
'Ufufu… Luerin will soon find out too. Who our true Master is…♥'
Chaeryeong clapped her hands together, holding Firecracker's arm so that she wouldn't let go,
and switched positions with the clone inside the vehicle where Si-yoon and Jiwoo were already on board.