Chapter 64: Did You Think I Wouldn’t Know? (2)
I didn’t know why they were laughing, but Hyeon-yul continued his explanation.
<I caught the guys just a little while ago. There were no ordinary people around, just exactly 5 villains.>
It would have been nice if there were more.
I thought so and waited for the message.
<I assume you handled it well, but what did you do about the CCTV?>
Shin-woo asked.
Hyeon-yul also knew that he shouldn't do anything that could leave a trail right now.
<I destroyed it.>
<Nice? They're watching us through the CCTVs in our rooms right now, right? Even if they want to suspect, they can’t.>
Ji-hwan's message popped up.
<For reference, the guys were holding drugs in their hands.>
As Hyeon-yul mouthed the words, Na-yoon's message appeared.
<Are you talking about the hallucinogen?>
<No.>
<Not hallucinogens? Then did it look like some other kind of drug? Or maybe something like a truth serum.>
At Na-yoon’s rapidly appearing messages, Hyeon-yul denied it.
<None of those.>
<…Hmm. Bad thoughts keep occurring to me.>
Ji-hwan's message was cautious.
It seemed he had guessed what it was.
Hyeon-yul didn’t delay and informed them.
<That drug has the effect of temporarily turning a non-Awakened person into an Awakened one. It was used in Experiment Subject experiments and was discarded because the side effects were extremely severe. Anyone injected with it will die, sooner or later.>
<……No. That, that.>
Na-yoon couldn't continue, and Shin-woo's long sigh appeared as a message.
<Earlier, I don't know his name, but that man who handed trash to Mr. Ye Ji-hwan reeked heavily of blood. It could be seen as the smell of blood from disposing of bodies, but it seems like he was directly involved in some incident.>
<Wait a minute, Hyung. Trash? What I received was gold, though? My heart was pounding so hard because of it.>
<Right. It was definitely gold? Hyeon-yul, didn't you see it wrong? I saw it clearly.>
Following Ji-hwan, Na-yoon's message popped up.
<It looked like that to me too?>
Shin-woo’s message also indicated he had seen it that way, making Hyeon-yul think for a moment.
<No. It looked like trash to my eyes. It seems a hallucination was activated in the meantime.>
There was no other way to explain it.
Would they believe me?
Hyeon-yul waited for the message.
<Then, doesn’t that mean that guy is the key figure? There’s no way Hyeon-yul saw it wrong.>
Following Na-yoon's message, Ji-hwan sent a message.
<Hyeon-yul hyung has incredibly high mental defense, right? …Ha, what a relief. I really thought it was gold and thought I was in big trouble. Thanks, Hyung.>
<Whether he's the real key figure or just pretending to be will be revealed tonight. Anyway, it seems best for me to pay attention too. If the three of us saw the same thing, it must be tremendous.>
Shin-woo mentioned the mental power that man possessed.
<Now, where should I send the 5 people I caught?>
After reporting, Hyeon-yul mentioned what he most wanted to ask.
The place where I had trapped the guys was within darkness.
It could also be called within shadow.
A sea of space where countless dimensions were entangled existed, and leaving them there longer might drive them mad.
More than anything, just their existence felt beyond unpleasant, making my stomach churn.
It felt like holding all sorts of filth in my mouth.
<I trapped them in my darkness, but if I leave them there longer, they might go crazy and be unable to even testify.>
<Wait, wait!>
Shin-woo hastily sent a message.
<Calm down, Baek Shin-woo. Hyeon-yul. I'll check through the Team Leader if we can send an Eagle. An emergency message will also go to the Managers.>
<I am calm. Ji-hwan, you check for a suitable place to deploy an Eagle and let me know. Hyeon-yul, I'll go, so just follow my lead.>
Following Na-yoon, Shin-woo's message appeared.
<Yes. That's what I do best.>
After Ji-hwan's message, no more came.
Hyeon-yul pulled the blanket up again.
Hearing about the White Sparrow reminded me of the White Sparrow who had come here with us.
He had been bothering me constantly.
‘Let’s check.’
There was no harm in checking.
Suspecting and being cautious would prevent being stabbed in the back.
Hyeon-yul sent his eyes and ears towards the White Sparrow he had already marked in the shadows.
Someone else was present too.
‘Is that a White Sparrow?’
Whether they were drinking coffee, each held a paper cup in their hand.
“Do you know there are still mosquitoes in this weather?”
Another man spoke first.
“What? No wonder, I got bitten too.”
“I don’t know when they’ll all disappear.”
“They’ll disappear since there’s an electric mosquito swatter. Right?”
It sounded like a normal conversation, but it was currently transitioning from winter to spring.
What mosquitoes in the cold weather?
‘Ah.’
Assuming that man was also a White Sparrow, their conversation seemed to mean ‘mosquito = villain’ and ‘electric mosquito swatter = Black Eagle’.
“That’s true. Ah, are there no flies flying around?”
Slurp.
He asked very cautiously while drinking coffee.
‘Does fly mean traitor?’
Hyeon-yul inferred and listened intently.
The answer didn't come quickly.
“Thought I saw a few, but there aren't any.”
“Got it. It’s cold, I’m going in.”
The White Sparrow raised his coffee and turned back first.
The White Sparrow who had come with me watched him.
As Hyeon-yul was also watching, he felt a vibration.
Knock, knock.
“Chan-dae. Want to go for a walk?”
Shin-woo spoke, but it didn't reach Hyeon-yul's ears.
After confirming something, Hyeon-yul simply got up from his seat and opened the door.
[What’s up?]
After holding out the phone, he quietly clenched his fist and tapped his forehead a couple of times.
Emergency.
Seeing that, Shin-woo's expression wavered.
An emergency.
What else had he seen?
But Shin-woo cleared his throat and said.
“Let’s go for a walk.”
[Okay.]
[You’re not bringing anyone else, right?]
[If you do, you’re a traitor, Hyung.]
Traitor.
At the word Hyeon-yul informed him of, Shin-woo swallowed dryly.
‘Who…?’
The only one who came to mind immediately here was the White Sparrow.
“We’re not even close, why would I bring him?”
[Do I have to go out with that ajussi from earlier?]
Hyeon-yul pointedly mentioned him.
Just before Shin-woo entered this place, I had clearly seen it.
「Saint. The Black Eagles currently do not know there is a traitor inside.」
‘As expected, no matter how strong one is mentally, continuous exposure to a stronger power makes it unavoidable.’
Was this really a one-time occurrence?
Hyeon-yul simply wondered.
Honestly, from the perspective of a villain crazy about expanding their influence, even if they knew there was a Black Eagle inside, it was better to pretend not to know.
If they quietly fed just one branch office to them, like giving up a single finger, the Black Eagle would feel they had succeeded, and the villains could use that situation to blind the Black Eagle's eyes and ears and expand their influence to places the Black Eagle couldn't even predict.
Shin-woo saw Hyeon-yul's indifferent expression and realized again that it was reality.
‘……It leaked. His mind was infiltrated.’
Shin-woo quickly racked his brain.
“Get ready. Hyung will get ready and come too.”
[Okay.]
After Shin-woo left, Hyeon-yul looked at the message that popped up.
<The mind of the White Sparrow accompanying us has been infiltrated.>
<What…?>
Na-yoon sent a message, looking surprised.
<Na-yoon. Inform the Team Leader about this, and Ji-hwan, you continue the work from earlier.>
<Okay.>
Ji-hwan also sent a message.
They all seemed urgent, but Hyeon-yul just stared blankly, thinking.
Who was the leader?
Shin-woo and Hyeon-yul walked outside, accompanied by the White Sparrow.
Buildings lined both sides of the road wide enough for buses to pass, like twins.
There were decorated spots here and there in between, but no one paid them any attention.
“…It’s okay outside.”
The White Sparrow whispered amidst the continuing silence.
But Shin-woo didn't let his guard down.
The top priority was to restore the White Sparrow's mind and check if there were other White Sparrows whose minds had been brainwashed.
‘They failed to notice it despite the mental assessment. Things must be chaotic internally right now.’
Shin-woo was troubled.
Here again, the White Sparrow and Hyeon-yul were entangled.
Wasn't this the White Sparrow who had even apologized to Hyeon-yul?
He had said it was okay, yet this mess happened again.
‘Will Hyeon-yul be able to trust White Sparrows now?’
Shin-woo was concerned.
Tap, tap.
Hyeon-yul nudged Shin-woo with his finger and held out his phone.
[Why do you keep looking?]
“……Just because.”
Shin-woo smiled awkwardly.
‘Is it because of the White Sparrow?’
Hyeon-yul looked at the White Sparrow.
Was the White Sparrow competent?
He could answer yes to that question.
The incident involving me and his competence were separate issues.
[Don’t worry about it.]
Hyeon-yul did his best to convey his thoughts on the current situation.
Although a problem had occurred with the White Sparrow, this incident had to be viewed separately.
It was simply that the opponent's power was stronger, and I had no intention of blaming him for something unexpected.
Honestly, the most troublesome thing right now was the text I had to write on my phone.
Just worrying about what to write was enough to make my head hurt.
Hyeon-yul walked forward and then stopped, noticing a formula.
Here.
It was Ji-hwan's magic.
Hyeon-yul immediately turned right.
“Chan-dae. Where are you going?”
[Going this way.]
It was a gap between buildings.
It certainly seemed like a place without CCTV.
Shin-woo cautiously stepped into the space.
Looking around, he prepared what he had received from Hae-ryeon.
It was medicine to break free from mental domination.
The only methods were to make him ingest it or inject it via syringe, but the syringe wasn't prepared.
The only remaining option was to make him ingest it directly.
Shin-woo was conscious of who was behind him.
Glancing back, he saw the White Sparrow following them.
Hyeon-yul reached out and moved his fingers.
One.
Two.
Three.
The moment the signal was given, only black smoke remained where Hyeon-yul had been.
Hyeon-yul appeared behind the White Sparrow.
The White Sparrow was writing a message on the phone he had taken out at some point.
‘He’s fast.’
I conjured darkness and snatched the phone from the White Sparrow's hand first.
Startled, the White Sparrow looked up just as Shin-woo approached.
From behind, Hyeon-yul grabbed the White Sparrow's face, and Shin-woo opened the bottle cap and administered the medicine.
Gulp.
Even after the White Sparrow swallowed the medicine, Hyeon-yul didn't let go.
He waited until the drug took effect.
“……!”
The White Sparrow looked at them with startled eyes.
Memories flooded back, and he exhaled.
His breathing quickly became ragged.
The look in his eyes towards Shin-woo changed.
“Are you coming to your senses?”
Shin-woo asked.
“……Sorry.”
Before he could finish speaking, the White Sparrow's eyes shook violently.
All sorts of emotions washed over him along with the returning memories.
He couldn't continue his sentence.
What had he been doing all this time?
Despair engulfed him, followed by a wave of nausea.
“More important than that right now, tell us how far you're entangled.”
Hyeon-yul said, tightening his grip on the White Sparrow's face.
The situation had to take precedence over emotions right now.
Because they needed to know how far and how things were connected to respond.
“You must speak clearly. Who was subjected to mental domination?”
“Including myself, 3 people… sir.”
“Are you sure?”
“I am sure.”
“Feed them this.”
Hyeon-yul handed the spare doses he had received just in case to the White Sparrow.
The White Sparrow nodded.
This had to be done, no matter what.
“You were affected by that man from earlier, right?”
When Shin-woo asked cautiously, the White Sparrow nodded again.
He felt it earlier too, but even now, he thought that man was unusual.
Could that man be the leader?
“How much did you find out? How much do you know?”
Hyeon-yul thought trivial questions were unnecessary.
There was no time right now.
“I know the number of villains.”
He had the memories from when his mind was dominated.
The White Sparrow steeled his resolve.
“How many?”
Shin-woo asked. (Note: The Korean text says Seon-woo, likely a typo for Shin-woo. Translating as Shin-woo for consistency).
“45 people.”
More than expected.
Since they had seen 8, that meant 37 remained.
“Before dinnertime, at a suitable moment, can you walk around with our team member to places where those guys might be? The reason for moving together doesn't matter. Just roughly describing their appearances as you go will be enough.”
Shin-woo believed in Na-yoon's power.
Just knowing their appearance would be enough for her, in coordination with Ji-hwan, to mark them properly.
The White Sparrow held his breath and nodded.
Right now, he had no choice but to do as told.
“I will do it. Unconditionally, I will do it.”
The White Sparrow suppressed the surging emotions.
“Ah, also, can we call an Eagle?”
Shin-woo hadn't forgotten about the villains Hyeon-yul had caught.
“…If you wait just a moment, delicious food will be served. We didn't know what our Morning Stars like, so we prepared many things.”
Myeong-ja said, clapping her hands together.
She rejoiced greatly as if it were her own affair.
Four seats were lined up side by side, with a long table in front of them.
The floor facing the seats was filled with people.
Everyone was kneeling, praying, and muttering.
It was a strange scene to anyone watching.
However, none of the three Team 3 members showed any strange expression.
They were just smiling as if intoxicated by drugs.
Amidst the muttering sounds, a man walked over.
He smiled faintly, seemingly satisfied as he looked at the four people seated side by side.
“I apologize. There was a listening device installed in the room.”
As if initiating everything, the man began to wag his tongue.