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Psst! We're moving!
An eerie moonlight poured down on the men as they left the arena. Geum Gang-seop was hurriedly moving to an emergency shelter, surrounded by Espers from the special operations unit. From the very moment he became aware that a video recording of his secrets had been sent to Ark members, he completely revised his plan.
It had been a very difficult day for Geum Gang-seop. Today, he had nearly lost his life in his own backyard, Nautilus City, due to spies. It was a plan that had failed, but as someone who had believed in Gaia, it was an event that he couldn’t help but be greatly flustered by.
A little while after that, the people who should have rushed to his call had not answered and had gone into hiding. The disappeared guild leaders were arrogant and self-righteous, but they knew that they had to follow Geum Gang-seop's words until the project was over. Hadn’t they lowered their stance until now for their own benefit? But they didn't come.
More than two coincidences were likely to be an enemy's plot. Geum Gang-seop was convinced that his bad luck was a meticulous trap set by Lee Hae-kyung and his colleagues. The enemy had reached his doorstep and was pointing a gun at him. That meant that the peaceful plan he had set up earlier had to be abandoned. His temples throbbed as if they were on fire.
As he was leaving the walking path around the arena, Geum Gang-seop constantly searched for the point where things had started to go wrong. The light from the streetlights, which were unusually brightly lit, was annoying.
Since when had Gaia's control been handed over to them? Had the guild leader of Carina persuaded the other guild leaders to betray him? Altair and Rigel were guilds that were supposed to help the special operations unit and guard the VIPs. If it was discovered that they had pulled out from the front line, even more collaborators might leave. He had to stop that.
When he reached the end of the walking path, a dark sea and several yachts appeared. The special operations unit and Geum Gang-seop first boarded three separate boats, then turned the bows of the boats toward the module where their hideout was located. Geum Gang-seop, who had taken his place on the boat, caught his breath and gave an order.
“Shoot down anyone who tries to approach us. It doesn't matter if they are civilians. We need to shed some blood to make them think twice before approaching us.”
“Yes.”
“Destroy all electronic devices that have a possibility of accessing the main system, and use a military walkie-talkie even if the communication range is short. Place foreigners who can communicate in a unique way in each area to make sure the special operations unit moves according to my instructions in any way possible.”
Eom Byeong-wook said he understood and then gave a few instructions to his subordinates via walkie-talkie. Looking at the white water that split on both sides of the boat, Geum Gang-seop composed himself. He still had the key, the Chimera, and the fissure.
First, he had to open a fissure on land to cause chaos, then turn the enemy's attention to it. After that, he would use the keys he had collected to summon Kal’s subordinates. The plan had been moved up a bit, but it didn’t matter since the aquatic city had already reached the promised coordinates.
In preparation for this kind of event, Geum Gang-seop had included the condition that a physical key was needed to activate the energy tower. The enemies who hacked Gaia were probably chasing after Blackwood and Lee Won-shik to get the keys by now. But he had given an order to the Chimera and the special operations unit first. The cruelty of killing the people who had the keys to remove any future threats had created a refuge for him.
“How long until the fissure opens on land?”
“It would have been five hours, based on the original plan.”
Eom Byeong-wook, who was loading a gun beside him, answered.
“Don’t wait five hours, tell them to open the fissure as soon as they are ready. We need to show our guests that our power is intact. First, resolve the contract killings they requested. We need to get our hands dirty quickly to scare off any rats that might try to escape the boat if things go south.”
“I understand. What about the Chimera and Kal?”
“Tell both of them to hurry. And give the Chimera an order to collect Blackwood's key and bring Cheon Geon-young with her. It doesn't matter if she has to use force.”
Eom Byeong-wook, who seemed like he would carry out the Chancellor's orders without any hesitation, showed a sign of faltering for the first time.
“Cheon Geon-young is an Esper of the same rank as Yoon Tae-ha.”
“So?”
“He hasn't learned how to use his abilities flexibly since he just awakened them, but his destructive power is probably the highest among the fire-based Espers who can currently fight.”
“You're saying he can handle the most powerful fire on earth. Then we need to bring him in even more.”
“There’s a risk that the Chimera could be damaged while performing that mission.”
Geum Gang-seop looked at Eom Byeong-wook’s serious face and then smiled unpleasantly.
“Did you not realize when you watched him go berserk looking for Yoon Tae-ha on the green sea?”
“Pardon?”
“Cheon Geon-young is like his foolish father. Even if he knows that the Chimera isn't the real Yoon Tae-ha, he won't be able to hurt it. Or maybe he’s cunning, pretending not to know that the current Yoon Tae-ha is different from before.”
Leaving Eom Byeong-wook, who was uncertain, behind, Geum Gang-seop sat in a chair and leaned back.
“As long as the keys are brought in properly, the work will be successfully completed.”
A little while later, the boat weaved its way through the hydroponic farms and arrived at module A-11, which was disguised as a research facility.
Module A-11, which was also equipped with its own navigation function, was the place where Geum Gang-seop could hide in case of an emergency. He had not revealed the existence of this module to his other collaborators, and had even built a control system that was completely separate from Gaia.
As soon as he got off the small boat, the special operations unit, who had been waiting, surrounded Geum Gang-seop and guarded the area. At that moment, the door of the research building was thrown open, and an agent ran out. The agent, who stood in front of Geum Gang-seop, shouted, filled with fear.
“Yoon Tae-ha is here!”
“The Chimera doesn't know about the hideout.”
Eom Byeong-wook said with a puzzled look, but the agent, turning pale, shook his head. A tablet was in his hand, which was dripping with cold sweat.
“I'm not talking about the Chimera. I'm telling you that Agent Yoon Tae-ha, who was presumed to have died in Lethe, has returned alive!”
While the agent was turning pale and making a fuss, Geum Gang-seop safely entered the building. As soon as a ceiling was over his head, he grabbed the agent by the collar and pushed him hard against the wall. With a thud, the back of the agent’s head hit the wall.
“Tell me in detail what you're talking about. Who came back alive?”
Geum Gang-seop asked impatiently.
“It's definitely Yoon Tae-ha. I participated in molding the Chimera's face, so I remember her face clearly. That woman entered through Farm G-20.”
The agent held up the tablet and showed him the surveillance camera footage. Geum Gang-seop stared at the gray screen as if he couldn't believe it.
Indeed, Yoon Tae-ha’s face was captured faintly among the people moving nimbly in the video. Next to her was the security team leader of the Korean office, known as a close aide to Lee Hae-kyung and Yoon Tae-ha. An armed force was infiltrating the main island that he had meticulously designed. The sense of the enemy closing in from all directions was chilling, but Geum Gang-seop gave strength to his jaw, pretending to be calm.
“It seems they plan to enter the main island through Residential Area D-3 or Orchard B-1. It seems to be an attempt to seize the headquarters located there and control the city.”
“Is there a possibility that the video is manipulated?”
Geum Gang-seop let go of the collar and asked. The agent grabbed his constricted Adam’s apple and coughed, then finally spoke.
“Special operations unit Team 3, which was on standby on the main island, has been dispatched there. If the video isn't manipulated, they will confirm Yoon Tae-ha’s existence.”
How much of this should he consider to be connected? Geum Gang-seop, in a state of fear that he would lose if he continued like this, fell into a brief panic. At that moment, Eom Byeong-wook calmly opened his mouth.
“If that's really the real Yoon Tae-ha, we must not let Cheon Geon-young and her meet. He might have already contacted her, but at least the Chimera has to finish the operation before Cheon Geon-young actually comes face to face with her.”
With his face turning ashen, Geum Gang-seop muttered.
“Right… That's right. We have to do that.”
He entered a safe place, but he couldn't rest comfortably at all until he received a message that the Chimera had secured the keys and Cheon Geon-young.
A little while later, when special operations unit Team 3 delivered the news that it was true that Yoon Tae-ha and Seo Do-jin had entered the main island, his anxiety doubled. Geum Gang-seop held a handgun in one hand and a remote control in the other, waiting anxiously.
Soon, a message arrived from the Chimera saying that she had secured the keys and Cheon Geon-young. He put down the handgun, hid the remote control in his clothes, and followed Eom Byeong-wook.
Yoon Tae-ha, who was out at the rendezvous point and waiting, anxiously glanced at the medical capsule placed next to her. Cheon Geon-young was lying inside the capsule. His face, seen through the transparent glass, was delicate and beautiful, like a sculpture made of ice, but she couldn't just admire him.
It was Cheon Geon-young's idea to pretend to be asleep by using the candy that Lee Won-shik had given him. Yoon Tae-ha didn't want to face the Titans with him in a situation where he couldn’t move freely, but there was no other way.
Cheon Geon-young was an Esper who could attack others without using a weapon, and Geum Gang-seop clearly knew that. Cheon Geon-young's words that Geum Gang-seop would not feel at ease no matter what kind of restraints he put on him if his eyes were wide open, had finally convinced her.
She let out a faint sigh and tapped the lid three times, and Cheon Geon-young opened his eyes. Their eyes met. Unsuited to the urgent situation, Yoon Tae-ha felt like a knight who had come to save someone who had fallen under a curse. She couldn't stand the sight of him jumping into danger, but she also couldn't deny that his presence was a comfort.
At that moment, Yoon Tae-ha, who had been maintaining an intentionally cold expression, heard the sounds of unfamiliar people approaching. She lightly tapped the side of the capsule to let Cheon Geon-young know that the enemy had arrived. And a little while later, dark figures slowly appeared from the dense forest.
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