The 'thing' in the sky was active for exactly 31 minutes and 44 seconds. No, "active" wasn't even the right word. According to J, it merely opened its eyes and watched. Yet, the damage caused during that brief span was immeasurable.
When 'it' opened its eyes, blindingly white monsters erupted everywhere, people mutated, and eroded dungeons became violently active, the whitening process around them accelerating at a terrifying pace.
Ham Seok-jeong rested her chin on her hand as she studied the graph on the screen. The lines representing casualties and mutants were skyrocketing in real time. It was hard to believe these numbers reflected only the devastation of a mere thirty minutes.
Once it has opened its eyes once, it will open them again. How much time is left? How long will they stay open next time? And what if, instead of closing… they remained open?
The world would face its end in an instant.
Standing nearby, Jung Bin lowered his head and whispered something into her ear. Ham Seok-jeong frowned, turning toward him.
"What? Matthew is missing?"
"Yes. And also…"
Jung Bin continued with a troubled expression.
"Prometheus has officially sent a letter. As of this moment, they are terminating cooperation with any 'incompetent' nations and agencies."
"They specifically called them incompetent?"
"Yes. And… there's also an unofficial demand. They want Researcher Ga-young, currently detained by the authorities, to be released."
"Tch." Ham Seok-jeong clicked her tongue and propped her chin back up. Tapping the desk with her finger, she asked
"Where is J right now?"
***
"This way."
Honeybee strode quickly down the long corridor, dragging Eui-jae by the wrist. Even as he was pulled along, Eui-jae kept glancing nervously over his shoulder.
"Honeybee! J! Wait up!"
That was because Team Leader Han was chasing after them, panting heavily. For an ordinary human, keeping pace with Hunters was impossible, but Team Leader Han stubbornly followed anyway. Honeybee, however, ignored him completely.
"Shouldn't we listen to the Team Leader?" Eui-jae asked.
"No need. He'll just lie again. You saw it yourself, didn't you? He keeps dodging questions, never giving a straight answer!"
Soon, a door marked 'Guild Master Office' came into view. Without hesitation, Honeybee kicked it open. The door flew off its hinges, crashing onto the floor inside. She stepped over the dent her foot had made and marched in. Eui-jae shrank back. He'd broken down doors himself before, but watching someone else do it felt oddly guilt-inducing.
'And this is the HB Guild too…'
Right after losing Matthew, Eui-jae had contacted Honeybee and shared his story about Matthew. The past where, after awakening, he had lost control of his powers and burned his sister and her family to death.
But Honeybee's voice had come back confused.
"That makes no sense. The story I know is completely different."
"What story do you know, then?"
"Matthew told me himself. His family died in a gas leak accident. He awakened trying to save them."
Whose version was the truth? Right after the White Hole reverted into a Black Hole, Honeybee had grabbed Eui-jae and rushed to HB Guild.
"We need to confirm it."
Eui-jae, however, already had a sinking suspicion that the version he'd heard was the real one.
Team Leader Han finally staggered to the doorway, clutching the frame.
"Chae-hyun… please… huff… calm down. There's… huff… too much to deal with already…"
"What's there to deal with? Covering up Matthew's disappearance? Just tell the media he can't appear because of injuries. You still have connections from your reporter days, don't you?" Honeybee shot back sharply.
Eui-jae bowed politely to the exhausted Team Leader Han before following her into the office. Inside, a wide desk and chair stood against tall windows, cabinets lined the walls. It felt far less like a guildmaster's office and more like… a sterile corporate workspace. Not a single sheet of paper or stray pen was out of place.
"Damn bastard!"
Honeybee kicked a chair, sending it crashing noisily across the room. Team Leader Han gasped.
"Hey! Property damage is—"
"Shut up! Property damage is the least of our problems right now!"
She yanked open drawer after drawer beneath the desk. Eui-jae stayed at her side rather than joining the search. She would know what to look for better than him.
Then, thunk. Something stuck. The last drawer was locked. Honeybee didn't care; she forced it out with brute strength.
"Why lock it when it's this easy to open?"
'That's only because it's you…' Eui-jae thought.
She tossed the drawer to the floor. Inside was only a single palm-sized photo frame, lying face-down. Honeybee flipped it over.
"…This is…"
The photo was charred at the edges. In it, a young couple held a child, all smiling happily.
The burn marks left only their mouths visible. But scrawled near their bodies, in pen, were the words:
[Do not forgive]
"..."
On the shyly smiling boy's face, Eui-jae saw Matthew's features. It felt unsettling. He understood why someone would hide it, face-down, locked away. After all, he himself couldn't bear to look at his aunt's photograph.
Honeybee thrust the frame toward Team Leader Han.
"What the hell is this?"
"…"
"This is Matthew's handwriting, isn't it?"
Back when they first signed a contract, Honeybee, Yoo Chae-hyun, had hesitated for a long time. She hadn't wanted to abandon her dreams of fencing, of championships, of the Olympics, of gold medals, of standing at the top.
And above all,
'Can I really trust this man standing before me?'
As if sensing her doubt, Matthew had suddenly spoken
"Do you not trust me?"
It struck her deeply. She averted her eyes, lips pressed tight. He blinked slowly, then continued
"Then I'll share one of my secrets. My greatest weakness. Do with it what you will. Blackmail me, expose me to the media, I don't care."
Honeybee's voice trembled now as she asked
"Team Leader Han… you knew, didn't you?"
"Yes."
"…"
"A newly awakened Hunter killed his entire family in a fire… In peaceful times, that would have been sensational news. But back then, the world needed a new hero. That was the judgment from above."
Team Leader Han's voice was calm.
"A hero couldn't have the stain of murdering his family. So we… altered the truth. We covered it up as a gas leak accident."
Before joining HB Guild, Team Leader Han had been a political journalist famous for his wide influence and powerful connections. He'd helped Honeybee many times with articles, advertisements, and shaping public image.
"Ah… so that's why the great journalist quit and joined HB Guild. I never realized."
"It was a secret only between the Guild Master and myself."
Eui-jae stared at Team leader Han. The man who used to smile warmly over soup at local restaurants now seemed unrecognizable. The truths he had believed in shattered before his eyes.
Eui-jae asked quietly:
"Did Matthew accept it?"
"He had no choice. By the time he came to his senses, the scene had already been manipulated, and public opinion was set. The Guild Master awakened while trying to save his burning family."
"…."
"That's the truth."
Honeybee let out a bitter laugh, her bright brown eyes flashing cold.
"You say it so easily… no guilt at all?"
Team leader Han pushed up his glasses. In that moment, he looked strikingly like Matthew.
"That's why I'm here. To take responsibility."
"Responsibility, my ass." She sneered.
"Call it what it is, you were here to monitor him. If Matthew ever dared tell the truth, it would all come crashing down. The ones who staged it, the ones who printed lies, the powerful people pulling strings, everyone!"
Team Leader Han didn't answer. And in silence, that was as good as confirmation. Honeybee buried her face in her hands.
"This is the worst… all of it…"
Eui-jae closed his eyes. Matthew hadn't been unable to forgive himself, he had been robbed of the chance to seek forgiveness at all.
…
At that moment, Eui-jae's phone buzzed in his pocket. A message from Jung Bin:
[The Director would like to see you.]