Chapter 61 - Infiltration (2)

* * *

“...I’ll keep this simple.”

The White Sparrow quietly began speaking the moment he confirmed inside the shop that Hyeon-yul and Shinwoo were Black Eagles.

“In about five minutes, someone they sent will come here. She’s an ordinary civilian, and she’s been thoroughly brainwashed.”

“Is she going with us?” Shinwoo asked.

“Yes. They’re extremely suspicious. She’ll keep probing you the entire way, and she may ask questions that sound friendly but are practically attacks. Even so, I’d like you Black Eagles to remain calm and follow the cover story you memorized beforehand.”

“Don’t worry about that. We learned it properly.”

“I was told there would be a rookie among you. Which one is it?”

‘They didn’t even tell him that much?’

At the White Sparrow’s question, Hyeon-yul thought for a moment before answering.

“That would be me.”

Hyeon-yul’s gaze toward the White Sparrow was anything but friendly as he wondered what the man was about to say.

“First, I’d like to apologize for the disgraceful incident that came from our side. I know this isn’t the right time, but I wanted to apologize properly.”

Hyeon-yul’s expression did not change. He had no way to know whether the apology was sincere or merely meant to shield them from blame.

“Don’t be nervous. Just stay calm and respond naturally. I’ll do everything I can to help from beside you as well. If anything feels strange, come straight to me, no matter what.”

“Why should I do that?”

The White Sparrow looked momentarily flustered by Hyeon-yul’s question, but he soon lowered his gaze slightly and answered. From a rookie’s perspective, the reaction was understandable, since the White Sparrows had been the ones to draw a line between them first.

“I was ordered to make minimizing your mental contamination the highest priority of this mission. I trust your strength and your abilities. I’m saying that, if something goes wrong, I can shoulder that part for you.”

Would he really be able to? Hyeon-yul gave a noncommittal answer.

“Understood.”

“Thank you.”

“Is there anything else we need to hear about this mission?” Shinwoo asked next.

“I’ll explain the details after we enter their headquarters. Several other White Sparrows are already undercover inside. They’ll give you a signal before approaching, so please remain wary of anyone who comes up to you without one.”

“...She’s coming.”

Hyeon-yul spoke after hearing approaching footsteps, and the expressions on both the White Sparrow and Shinwoo immediately changed.

“...Really? If we really do this, can my little brother actually speak again?”

As though that had been their conversation from the very beginning, Shinwoo instantly melted into his role. Hyeon-yul glanced sideways at him, surprised by how quickly his entire demeanor had changed. The White Sparrow did this kind of thing all the time, but Shinwoo did not.

‘...Oh, right. He said he used to be a child actor.’

Hyeon-yul soon remembered what Shinwoo had told him.

“Of course. Have you ever heard the saying that prayer is the heart, and prayer is the truth?”

Just as the White Sparrow began spouting nonsense, the door opened.

Jingle, jingle.

“You’re here?”

“Are these the New Stars who will be joining us?”

The newcomer was a middle-aged woman with an exceptionally gentle impression.

“That’s right. How could we refuse to help people who have lost their way?”

“Of course. Isn’t that exactly why we’re here?”

She smiled warmly and sat down, then shifted her gaze toward Hyeon-yul. When she reached out to take his hand, he reflexively pulled it away.

‘Should I have let her grab it?’

Even so, he had not wanted her to. Unpermitted physical contact was unpleasant.

“Don’t worry. Everything begins in the heart, and the heart can be healed through faith, New Star.”

The woman smiled brightly at Hyeon-yul.

“...Excuse me, but what is a New Star?”

Shinwoo asked while maintaining a mixture of confusion and caution. He made it look as though he had come here because he was desperate, but was still repeatedly questioning whether any of this was truly right.

“It means someone who will newly receive a miracle. Our Saint has saved countless people from darkness through faith and prayer.”

She looked at Shinwoo with a benevolent smile.

‘They say this openly?’

Hyeon-yul thought the method felt rather old-fashioned. These days, everyone was on high alert against all kinds of solicitation. Speaking this way would sound suspicious to almost anyone.

“I was saved as well. Can you see this?”

She rolled up her sleeve and showed them the scars left by self-harm. The many cuts carried traces of the anguish she had once struggled through.

‘...Ah.’

Shinwoo understood how the scheme worked. If someone deliberately raised a target’s guard and then introduced an unexpected reversal, that reversal would strike all the harder. They were pretending to share the same pain in order to create a sense of solidarity, and it was an infuriating method.

‘Of all things, they’re exploiting someone’s pain?’

Shinwoo ground his teeth. Pain was not something to exploit, and it should never be used that way.

“I couldn’t believe it before I was saved either. I couldn’t quite bring myself to die, so I just kept living while carving marks like these into myself. I kept wondering when I would die and when would be the best time to do it, and then I happened to hear about this place. I came here half believing and half doubting.”

As her gaze deepened while she continued speaking, Hyeon-yul decided he had heard enough.

‘This is pointless nonsense.’

If there was something wrong with a person’s mind, they needed to go to a hospital. Faith, prayer, and religious practices born from earnest devotion could provide psychological comfort, but they could not cure an illness. In the end, the answer was a hospital.

There were trained doctors in the first place, so Hyeon-yul could not understand why people avoided professionals and instead became captivated by someone without a license. They usually claimed that someone they knew had told them about it, but that acquaintance was not a doctor either. It was little more than irresponsible advice to keep clinging to hope.

“Prayer accompanied by the Saint’s teachings, and the activities we do there, slowly made me better. I never even realized it, but what had been eating away at me was terrible loneliness. You may be different from me, New Star, but I think it would be wonderful if we could search for faith together.”

She looked warmly at Hyeon-yul. Someone else might have been fooled, but the heavy medicinal scent radiating from her had already told Hyeon-yul that she was not in her right mind.

“My little brother has... suffered from mutism for a very long time,” Shinwoo said hesitantly.

“Our parents died in an accident...”

His emotions seemingly surged, and Shinwoo could not immediately continue. Their cover story was that their parents had died in an accident several years ago and Hyeon-yul had stopped speaking after witnessing it. Temporary records had already been prepared for both Hyeon-yul and Shinwoo, so it did not matter how thoroughly the group investigated them.

“It seems the trauma left him with a severe psychological illness. We’ve taken him to several hospitals, but there’s been no improvement. ...My little brother is the only family I have left. What wouldn’t I do for him?”

Shinwoo held back tears, but his eyes reddened. To anyone watching, he looked exactly like an older brother desperate to help his younger sibling.

“I understand that feeling very well.”

She naturally approached Shinwoo and clasped his hands, patting the backs of them as she comforted him.

“I really do understand. Rather than standing around here, why don’t we go meet them first?”

“Really...?”

“Yes. I truly want to help you.”

“Thank you. Thank you so much.”

“Then would you two wait in the car first?”

She walked ahead, opened the door, and guided them toward the car. Her movements were so practiced that it was obvious she had done this more than once or twice.

Shinwoo climbed into the car with a bewildered expression and beckoned Hyeon-yul over.

“Come on.”

After Hyeon-yul climbed in, the woman made a request.

“Please wait a moment. I have something to discuss with that man from earlier.”

Hyeon-yul nodded. Once the car door closed and she walked away, Shinwoo pointed at his ear. Hyeon-yul took a wireless Black Eagle earpiece from his pocket, put it in, and activated it.

“...Nervous?”

<There seems to be a listening device inside the car. I can hear something operating.>

“Yeah. Your big brother is a little nervous too.”

Shinwoo kept talking by himself. Leaving the audio completely empty could itself make it seem as though they were conscious of being bugged.

“What did you think of those people earlier?”

Hyeon-yul considered Shinwoo’s question for a moment, then covered one ear.

<I’ll listen in.>

Hyeon-yul focused on their voices, listening carefully to what was being said nearby.

“You chose them carefully, right?” the woman asked.

“I made the decision carefully. You saw the records yourself, including the doctor’s opinion. They say he hasn’t spoken for a full five years.”

“So, in short, all we need to do is make his voice come back?”

“That’s right.”

“He’ll be pleased. The boy is captivating enough to bring Him one step closer to becoming even greater. You did very well. I’ll make sure today’s contribution is properly reported.”

“Thank you.”

“By the way, are they both abilityless?”

“No, they aren’t.”

“That’s a shame.”

The woman fell silent with clear disappointment. Hyeon-yul decided nothing useful would come from listening to the continuing silence and lowered his hand.

<She says I’m an attractive prospect for Him. I assume she means the ‘Saint’ they kept mentioning earlier.>

“Let’s go see what the place is like first.”

<It looks like they plan to put me forward publicly. Mental illness isn’t something people can easily see, but the role I’m playing is different. Anyone would notice the difference between someone with mutism before and after being ‘cured.’>

“That’s true. Hopefully it turns out to be a good place.”

<Once we’re inside, I expect a lot of attention to be focused on me. Can you handle all of it?>

“No problem.”

Shinwoo smiled as though there genuinely would be no problem at all.

<Understood. I also confirmed that being ‘abilityless’ matters to them.>

“Huh?”

<I don’t know why yet either. We’ll confirm things one by one once we get there. She’s coming back now.>

Hyeon-yul removed the wireless earpiece and waited. The woman climbed into the car looking excited.

“Ah, you’ll probably get thirsty on the way. Have some water.”

She pretended to open the bottle before handing it over. There had been no sound of the seal breaking.

When Shinwoo accepted it, Hyeon-yul smelled a hallucinogen inside.

‘So this is how they start.’

Hyeon-yul took the water himself. It would not affect him, but Shinwoo, Nayun, and Jihwan were different. Haeryeon had prepared several medicines to counter hallucinogens, and they had taken them in advance.

Only after confirming that Hyeon-yul had drunk the water did the woman smile in satisfaction and start driving.

“Let’s go.”

* * *

The woman’s name was Kim Myeongja, and she did not stop talking for the entire drive. Nayun was also the type whose mouth rarely stopped moving, but this was different. Myeongja’s words somehow felt as though they were constantly scraping against a person’s nerves.

Apparently convinced that the hallucinogen had worked, she rambled endlessly about faith, about how they would witness His radiance when they met Him, and other useless nonsense. Listening to it was far more exhausting than Hyeon-yul had expected.

Shinwoo, however, kept enthusiastically playing along as though he really had fallen under the drug’s effects. In a different sense, Hyeon-yul could only call that impressive. He realized that if his cover had not required him to be mute, he might have been in real trouble.

Just as he was beginning to feel sick of it, the car stopped.

“We’ve arrived,” Myeongja announced excitedly.

Hyeon-yul looked out the window. They had passed through two separate checkpoint-like barriers, as though entering a secret compound, before arriving at a place backed by mountains and far removed from the city.

It was difficult to call it the countryside. The buildings he could see were far beyond what belonged in a rural village, with rows of three- and four-story structures more commonly seen in a city. It felt less like a village and more like a settlement built entirely for themselves.

‘So all I have to do is arrest the bastard running this place and the executives following him, right?’

It was not a particularly difficult mission for Hyeon-yul. The faster he worked, the sooner he could go home.

Hyeon-yul looked up at the sky. The sun was still up, and when night finally fell, he would be ready to see and hear everything.

‘I’ll finish it within a day.’

He was going to make absolutely certain of it.

Click, click.

Hyeon-yul was already looking at Shinwoo by the time the man snapped his fingers.

“Lee Chandae. Chandae?”

At the fake name, Hyeon-yul walked over to him and typed a message on his phone. He almost wrote the way he normally would out of habit, then hurriedly changed it.

[What is it?]

“You were just staring into space. Are you carsick?”

[No.]

[Do they have Wi-Fi?]

[Isn’t this basically the middle of nowhere?]

[I don’t really like places like this.]

His cover profile said he liked staying shut in his room watching videos and movies, so Hyeon-yul decided those were the most appropriate questions to ask.

“...You.”

Shinwoo let out a long breath and looked at Hyeon-yul as though he were an immature child.

“Is something wrong?”

When Myeongja approached, Shinwoo answered her with a relaxed smile on his face.

“No. My little brother was just, um... Do you have Wi-Fi here?”

“Of course. We have computers and laptops too, so don’t worry. It may not be as convenient as the city, but this is a good place. Stay for a few days and I’m sure you’ll like it.”

“To be honest, it feels a little... unfamiliar.”

Shinwoo awkwardly scratched the back of his neck, and Myeongja burst out laughing.

“Everyone feels that way at first. We use buses inside the settlement. You’ll need to ride one to get around.”

“A bus...? We can’t drive our own car inside?”

“It’s for traffic control.”

‘More like confinement.’

Shinwoo mocked her inwardly. One of the easiest ways to track everyone entering and leaving was to strip them of personal transportation. No one could leave whenever they pleased, and she was indirectly telling them exactly that.

Myeongja walked ahead, and the White Sparrow followed behind her.

Honk, honk.

Everyone turned at the sound of a horn behind them.

“We have quite a few New Stars today.”

A man got out with a welcoming smile, and Jihwan and Nayun appeared behind him. Hyeon-yul and Shinwoo looked at the two of them as well.

Their eyes met, but they pretended not to know each other. They simply observed one another like strangers who had all arrived in an unfamiliar place.

Shinwoo quietly rubbed the bridge of his nose. Their first objective, reaching the entrance to the compound, had been completed. After signaling the situation, he lowered his hand.

Now it was time to enter, identify the villains inside this place, and arrest them. In other words, it was time for the Black Eagles to go to work, and Shinwoo narrowed his eyes as he prepared for what came next.