The man said something to the guard inside the building and then took the elevator with Cheon Geon-young to a higher floor.

Stepping out of the stopped elevator, they were greeted by a desolate office space that was not yet organized. On the few desks, black boxes with “Handle with Care” stickers were placed. It was no different on the chairs.

A complex relationship diagram was displayed on one wall. A small number of people were discussing something in front of it. Below the name of the relationship diagram, sticky notes with snippets of information were densely attached.

Cheon Geon-young recognized a few of the Changcheon agents he had met at the Seoul headquarters. They also saw Cheon Geon-young and nodded lightly.

The unfamiliar man he had met outside took off his fedora and removed something from behind his ear. A mask like a snake’s shed skin drooped and fell from his face.

“It’s surprising you saw my finger from across the street.”

“It’s a distinctive scar.”

“My arm was itchy, so I scratched it briefly, and it came off in that short time. I’ll have to cover it more securely next time.”

Kim Doo-eon, whose face was slightly sweaty, smiled awkwardly.

Kim Doo-eon put the mask unfolded into a nearby locker and then gestured to Cheon Geon-young. They walked towards the glass window.

Kim Doo-eon, who roughly wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief from his back pocket, met Cheon Geon-young’s eyes and gave his characteristic wide-mouthed smile.

“Did you perhaps notice before our meeting today? That I’m not serving Arc.”

“I just assumed I wouldn’t be the first operative to infiltrate.”

Cheon Geon-young replied with an indifferent expression. As far as he knew, Kwon Hyeok moved only after cross-verifying the facts in at least three places. There was no way such a cautious pilot would be making plans based solely on his words. So, it was within Cheon Geon-young’s expectations that the advance team would monitor the follow-up team.

“It’s not because I don’t trust the operative.”

“It’s alright. Don’t worry about it.”

It was a nonchalant reaction that made the person who had gone to great lengths to deceive him feel more awkward. Kim Doo-eon wiped the sweat from his forehead again with his handkerchief, looking embarrassed. Cheon Geon-young had no expectations from Kim Doo-eon or Changcheon, so he had nothing more to say.

It is the upper echelons of an organization that test the trust of its members more often than anyone else. It’s the same wherever you go if it’s a group doing similar work.

Probably Yoon Tae-ha too. That woman must have gone through this countless times. And yet she smiles like that. She doesn’t find it difficult to give affection to others.

He could now fully understand the feelings of the people who gathered around her.

He turned his body slightly and looked out the window. He wanted to see the woman who had left the bed before him. He desperately wanted to bury his face in her neck right now and hug her softly scented body until it broke.

Kim Doo-eon glanced at the man’s face, which was like opaque ice and didn’t reveal his inner thoughts, before speaking.

“Guillermo’s and Baek Sang-ho’s teams will arrive here with the main force in ten days. I arrived here yesterday with the advance team to investigate the distribution route of the necklaces using green feathers.”

“I received a report that they will raid the lab immediately without rest.”

“They will move like that. We must be different.”

The gentle voice that had said it was awkward because their paths to the lodging were the same lingered in Cheon Geon-young’s ear.

“I would like to hear Changcheon’s plan.”

“All the operation plans so far have been based on Gaia. This means the headquarters knows all of Guillermo’s team’s schedule. It won’t succeed. Even if it does, it will be a half-baked success because they’ve already interfered. It will be impossible to extract proper information.”

“Will you move up the schedule?”

Kim Doo-eon nodded with a cautious expression.

“But the organization cannot officially step forward. It’s not just about catching Orca.”

He scratched his cheek with his index finger, looking a bit uncomfortable, before continuing.

“There are quite a few organizations here that don’t have a good relationship with Orca. Just recently, there was a conflict with Red Moon, and they are openly hostile towards the Black Lizard.”

Kim Doo-eon quickly reverted to the gaze of a soldier carrying out orders.

“Changcheon will impersonate the Black Lizard and raid the lab.”

A moment of silence passed. Meanwhile, an agent who had been in a heated argument with a colleague in front of the screen became annoyed and tore off all the sticky notes they had attached so far. When the man who had spoken in a low voice ordered the information to be re-collected, the staff all despaired. Cheon Geon-young briefly paid attention to the commotion on that side before turning his head towards Kim Doo-eon.

“Is that feasible?”

“Their identity is unclear. No one has properly seen their faces, and no intelligence agency has accurately grasped their numbers. The possibility of them coming out into the open to defend themselves is close to zero. We plan to attack the lab and spread rumors in the city that the Black Lizard attacked Orca. Even if an enraged Orca attacks the Black Lizard, it won’t negatively affect our organization.”

As Kim Doo-eon finished speaking, one of the frustrated staff members approached. He held out a notebook that showed traces of his efforts to organize it as neatly as possible.

“We are refraining from using electronic devices, so this is handwritten. We couldn’t bring all the equipment from the airborne carrier here. This is a list of influential figures, both domestic and international, who recently met personally with Secretary-General Kim Kang-seop’s aide.”

The staff member handed over the notebook and returned to his colleagues. Cheon Geon-young quietly turned the pages of the notebook, memorizing the names. Kim Doo-eon excused himself and headed towards the area where the commotion had occurred.

He roughly patted the back of the annoyed staff member, received the stack of sticky notes he had torn off the wall, and returned. Three sticky notes with information were placed on top of the notebook Cheon Geon-young was looking at. Kim Doo-eon gestured for him to read them.

“The Secretary-General is someone with ambiguous motives. I thought his dream was to take a position after returning to the country, but looking at his actions, he doesn’t seem interested in elections. We have confirmed that he has frequently contacted the CEO of Blackwood Systems, a multinational defense contractor, recently.”

Kim Doo-eon, who had been talking about a possible scheme the Secretary-General and the weapons company might be plotting, finished speaking and took a breath.

“And Yoon Jeong-hoon’s granddaughter is……”

“Yoon Tae-ha.”

“Pardon?”

“Not Yoon Jeong-hoon’s granddaughter, Yoon Tae-ha.”

A blizzard-like chill revealed itself behind the polite voice. Kim Doo-eon quickly corrected his address.

“Ah, right. Agent Yoon Tae-ha. Is it possible to operate without her noticing? She’s S-class, so her senses will be very sharp. If it’s difficult, I will approach her directly to divert her attention.”

“I will handle my partner on my own.”

His cutting-off attitude was firm. As if even a direct approach without going through him would break the cooperative relationship that had continued since childhood. Kim Doo-eon had no choice but to back down.

“If a situation arises where you need an alibi, please let me know immediately. I will help you.”

“Are there other Changcheon agents in Arc?”

“The sky is everywhere.”

“I suppose that means there are more.”

“I sincerely wish to inform you, but it is beyond my authority.”

As he spoke awkwardly, Cheon Geon-young showed a retreating attitude.

“I will not make difficult requests.”

Kim Doo-eon was genuinely impressed by the young man who remained calm despite his loyalty to the organization being questioned. Even though he had been doing this kind of work since he was young, Cheon Geon-young was twenty-three. His reaction felt almost inhuman.

Either his emotions were dry, or he had no expectations from the organization.

Afterwards, they moved away from the window and approached a desk where the surrounding terrain was rendered in a hologram. Kim Doo-eon moved the map and showed him the location where the airborne carrier was docked.

“If you discover any faces at the scene that are not on the list I just showed you, consider them enemies.”

Having received the faces of the agents included in the mission, Cheon Geon-young quickly memorized them. Naturally, it was a classified mission, premised on the fact that he had to completely deceive his partner.

A moment later, he returned the communication devices he had used so far and received new ones. He also received a new pistol that wasn’t from Arc. Cheon Geon-young, looking at the gun without the manufacturer’s mark, tucked it into the holster at his waist.

The gun felt heavy.

*

Mago was sitting in the conference room where Yoon Tae-ha and Lev entered. She saw Yoon Tae-ha, raised her right hand like a voting machine in greeting, and then looked back down at the map.

“It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other. Ms. Ma Yu-jin.”

“Tae-ha always calls me by my first name when we meet after a while. Is it because she’s worried I’ll forget my real name?”

“You thanked me for calling you that before.”

“I never said I didn’t like it. Just take a seat.”

She offered the coffee next to her with a cynical smile. It was an iced coffee as strong as poison, tailored to Yoon Tae-ha’s taste.

“I put in six shots. Should I have added more?”

“No.”

How long had it been since she had such strong coffee? Should she just take a small sip? Out of curiosity, Yoon Tae-ha lightly sucked on the straw, then scrunched up her face at the bitterness. How did I used to drink this? My past self must have had a severely impaired sense of taste.

Mago didn’t notice because she quickly turned her head to the side. Thinking of her effort, she tried two more times, but she couldn’t possibly finish it.

“How’s the guild doing these days?”

Yoon Tae-ha tentatively brought up the topic. Mago, who had been waving her hand in the air to adjust the size of the protruding holographic mountain range, met her eyes.

With a sharp nose and thin lips, she was a woman who gave a very intellectual impression. A geometric pattern was tattooed on the inside of her wrist, and that was the source of the power Mago used.