The day began like any other. The bell hadn't even rung yet, but Daniel already felt the weight pressing down on his shoulders. A heaviness clung to him, something he couldn't shake no matter how hard he tried.
It wasn't the lessons. It wasn't the teachers. It wasn't even the usual quiet stares he got from his classmates.
It was her.
The Stalker.
She wasn't tucked away in the back of the room today. No, she had moved closer—too close. Daniel could hear her pen scratching across the page with manic urgency, every stroke sounding like claws tearing through paper. She sat directly behind him, her presence prickling at the back of his neck.
Every time he shifted in his chair, he felt her eyes. Every time he spoke, he caught the faint rustle of her notebook flipping open, her hand racing to capture his words.
By lunch, the pressure became unbearable. His stomach churned, his jaw ached from clenching too hard. The stares from others he could tolerate. But this—this fixation—was suffocating.
Finally, he snapped.
He spun around so quickly his chair screeched against the floor. His voice came out sharper than he expected. "Why are you following me?"
The room went still. Forks froze halfway to mouths, whispers cut short. Dozens of eyes turned on them.
The girl—The Stalker—lifted her gaze slowly, bangs shadowing most of her face. She didn't flinch, didn't shrink back the way most people would under the sudden spotlight. Instead, her lips curled upward into a faint, deliberate smile.
"You'll see," she whispered. Her voice was soft, almost tender, like she was sharing a secret meant only for him.
And then, just as calmly, she lowered her head again. Her pen resumed its frantic dance across the page, ignoring the stunned silence that gripped the cafeteria.
Zoe leaned closer to Daniel, her whisper a hiss in his ear."That… was creepy as hell."
Daniel's chest heaved, his pulse hammering against his throat. He tried to laugh it off, forcing the sound past his tight jaw. "Y-yeah. Just… weird."
But no amount of shaky laughter could dispel the chill burrowed deep in his bones.
That night, his other body trudged into the convenience store.
The ugly one.
Daniel adjusted the stiff uniform vest, his reflection in the freezer door almost mocking him. He tried to lose himself in routine—stacking drinks, scanning snacks, muttering greetings without meeting anyone's eyes. Mundane repetition dulled his mind, made him feel almost normal.
Almost.
The chime above the door rang.
He looked up—and froze.
She was there. Notebook clutched against her chest, head tilted slightly, lips stretched into that same faint smile.
Daniel's breath caught in his throat. "W-what are you doing here?"
The Stalker didn't answer right away. She simply stepped inside, the bell's echo fading behind her. Then, tilting her head in that unsettling way, she spoke."I wanted to see for myself."
The words lodged deep inside him, icy and sharp.
"What… what do you mean?" His voice cracked, the question spilling out before he could stop it.
Her smile deepened, and with unhurried movements, she opened her notebook. Page after page flipped past, each one filled to the edges with scrawled notes, crooked handwriting, and dark sketches.
Daniel's eyes widened. He saw his own face staring back at him in pencil lines—at school, at the store, side by side. Perfect body. Ugly body. Two lives carefully mapped and compared.
His blood ran cold.
She stepped closer, her eyes glinting with manic triumph."I was right," she whispered. "Two bodies. Two Daniels. But only one that's mine."
Her finger tapped against the page—against the sketch of his perfect self."This one. The real you. My Daniel."
Daniel staggered back, the counter digging into his hip. His chest rose and fell in panicked bursts."Y-you're crazy—"
But her smile didn't falter. If anything, it softened, almost affectionate."No. I'm the only one who understands you."
The bell chimed again, sudden and shrill. A customer shuffled inside, oblivious to the storm brewing in front of the counter.
When Daniel looked back, The Stalker was already slipping out the door. Her laughter drifted faintly through the night air, leaving his skin crawling.
Daniel collapsed against the counter, trembling so hard he could barely steady himself.
She knew. Someone finally knew.
Across the city, another fire burned.
The aftermath of Seong Min's counterstrike still clung to the warehouse air, thick with the scent of sweat, blood, and burnt adrenaline. Dog Pound's lieutenants gathered around the long table, their bruised faces half-hidden in shadow.
But it wasn't their wounds that silenced them.
It was the envelope.
Seong Min stood at the head, violet eyes sharp and unblinking as he slid a finger under the flap. He unfolded the single sheet inside with deliberate care.
The message was short.
You survived once. Now prove you belong. Meet me.
No name. Only an address, scrawled in ink that bit into the paper like claws.
A ripple of unease spread through the men.
"Boss… that's suicide," one finally muttered, his voice hoarse. "You know who this is. This isn't just some thug."
Another, older, swallowed hard. His eyes darted toward the floor as if saying the name aloud would summon disaster. "It's them. The First Generation pillar. If you go… you won't come back."
The words hung in the air, heavy and final.
But Seong Min didn't flinch. He folded the letter neatly, slipping it back into his jacket. His voice was calm, steady, like tempered steel."Then I'll make sure I do."
For a moment, no one moved. His men stared at him as if he had gone mad. But none dared challenge him. His presence was too overwhelming, his resolve too sharp to blunt.
When he turned and walked out, whispers filled the vacuum he left behind.
"First Generation…""Does he really think he can fight them?""Maybe he's not even human."
Meanwhile, in another part of the city, Tom Lee leaned lazily against his office window. The night lights glittered beneath him, but his focus remained on the report in his hand.
A smirk tugged at his lips, smoke curling from the cigarette between his fingers. His eyes, however, gleamed with something far more dangerous than amusement.
"So the boy gets an invitation…" He chuckled under his breath, exhaling slowly. "Let's see if he's really Gun's twin… or just another broken toy."
Back in his apartment, Daniel lay wide awake in his perfect body. Sweat slicked his skin despite the cool night air.
She knew.His secret.The one he had buried deeper than anything else—deeper even than his own shame.
Not his mother. Not Zoe. No one had been allowed that truth.
And yet now…
His hands trembled as he dragged them over his face. If she told anyone—if the wrong people learned—everything would collapse. His life, his fragile balance, his very identity would shatter.
He wasn't ready. He couldn't be.
And elsewhere, under the weak glow of a flickering streetlight, Seong Min stood alone.
The letter weighed heavy in his pocket.
First Generation.
The storm was coming.
✨ End of Chapter 57 ✨