---
The scene begins with the echo of a gunshot.
Jaeahn, Jongsuk, and Eunwoo freeze.
Another gunshot follows—sharper, closer.
They rush toward the sound.
A man collapses on the cold floor, blood spreading beneath him.
Another silhouette stands a few feet away, a gun still raised.
Before Jaeahn can shout, the man fires again.
The bullet tears through the air and grazes deep into Eunwoo's arm.
"EUNWOO!" Jaeahn screams.
The gunman turns and bolts down the stairs, disappearing into the darkness.
Jaeahn kneels beside the wounded man on the floor, checks his pulse—
Nothing. He is already gone.
She immediately calls the police, hands shaking, then rips off her scarf to stop Eunwoo's bleeding.
On the way to the hospital, she clutches Eunwoo's hand.
"I'm fine, big sis… don't cry," he whispers.
But her eyes don't listen.
---
At the hospital
The treatment is quick, and Eunwoo's arm is bandaged.
By the time they return home, the sun has set.
Jaeahn sits on the couch, replaying the scene in her mind.
"…He didn't kill randomly," she murmurs, voice low.
"My gut says we're getting close. That man knew something. That's why he was silenced."
The others nod.
---
Unlocking the Laptop
Jaeahn opens the laptop she stole from the secret lab.
Eunwoo says, "Big sis, there must be a passcode."
"No need," Jaeahn replies and types the code written in Hyejin's notebook.
Beep.
The screen unlocks.
Inside are dozens of files.
Clients' names.
Transactions.
Requests.
People who wanted the human clone experiment done.
People who financed the illegal marrow injections into unborn babies.
Jongsuk scrolls through the documents, stunned.
"They already started Phase One," he says.
"DNA alteration… in wombs…"
Jaeahn mutters, "We need to find the mothers… the victims."
"But first," she adds, "call Do Hwan. And Jihu. Why aren't they back yet?"
They try calling both.
No answer.
---
The Dead Man's Phone
Jaeahn picks up the phone she took from the dead man's pocket.
Threat messages fill the screen—
all from someone saved as "H."
> You need to keep quiet.
Leave the city.
If we find you, you're dead.
Eunwoo whispers, "Big sis… you were right. He knew everything."
"And someone killed him for it," Jongsuk adds.
---
Where are Jihu and Do Hwan?
They call again.
Nothing.
Jaeahn's chest tightens.
Jongsuk asks, "Should we go to Jihu's home and check?"
"No," Jaeahn says.
"Not now. We wait till night. If they don't return, we go tomorrow."
But when night comes, Jaeahn quietly puts on her shoes.
She whispers, "I'll go alone… I don't want them to get hurt because of me."
But—
The lights turn on.
Eunwoo stands there, arms crossed.
Jongsuk leans on the wall.
"I knew it," Jongsuk says.
"You're not going alone."
"Yep. We go together," Eunwoo adds.
Jaeahn sighs, defeated but touched.
"Fine… let's go."
---
At Ahn Min Ji's House
They enter the house.
Jaeahn goes straight to her mother's office.
"Where is Jihu? Where is Do Hwan?" she demands.
Ahn Min Ji doesn't answer.
Instead, she slaps Jaeahn hard across the face.
Jongsuk and Eunwoo immediately step forward.
"How dare you lay a hand on my big sis!" Eunwoo shouts.
Ahn Min Ji steps closer, eyes cold.
"Do you want to die?" she whispers to Jongsuk.
Her voice… wasn't a threat.
It was a truth.
Jaeahn steps between them.
"I asked you one thing," she says quietly.
"Do you know where they are?"
"I said I don't know," Ahn Min Ji snaps.
Security guards rush in.
She orders them to throw the kids out.
Jaeahn glares back.
"Touch me again," she says,
"and I promise—you'll be finished."
---
At the Park
They sit on a bench under the streetlight.
Jaeahn stares ahead, voice soft.
"She didn't react when I said Jihu's name. If she believed he was dead, she should've been shocked. But she wasn't…"
She swallows.
"…I know she doesn't care if I die. But Jihu… even one scratch on him, she'd break."
Jongsuk and Eunwoo stay silent.
Jaeahn forces a smile.
"Let's go. It's late."
On the walk home, she droops her head slightly.
Jongsuk and Eunwoo suddenly grab both her hands.
"Let's goooo," they say together, pulling her forward with childish speed.
A tiny smile appears on her lips.
I'm lucky to have them, she thinks.
They run toward home, hand-in-hand.
---
Meanwhile…
In an abandoned building, Do Hwan and Jihu sit tied to chairs.
A woman enters.
She picks up their phones, smirks, and leaves.
The door shuts.
Chapter End.
---