Chapter 62 - Infiltration (3)

* * *

“Is someone else coming too?”

When Shinwoo asked, Myeongja answered with a bright smile.

“Of course.”

Myeongja looked at Shinwoo and Hyeon-yul before pointing toward Nayun and Jihwan.

“Days like this aren’t exactly rare. Still, I suppose today is especially blessed.”

Myeongja welcomed them as well. A day when this many New Stars gathered was always a welcome occasion, because not just anyone was accepted as a New Star. They wanted people who were desperate, people whose condition would show a clear before-and-after difference once the Saint treated them, people who could bring even more New Stars from the wider world after becoming comrades, and finally, the abilityless.

Myeongja approached and silently asked with her eyes which numbers they were. The answer was three and four, conveyed as two fingers folded and extended in sequence, and excitement surged through her.

‘An abilityless person came!’

A wonderful New Star for Him had arrived. In a world where nearly everyone possessed some ability, no matter how small or great, an abilityless person was rare.

Myeongja shifted her gaze toward Nayun and Jihwan.

‘Which one is it? Which one is abilityless?’

The brothers she had brought herself were both ability users. One could emit black smoke, while the other could manifest sword-type weapons. Neither ability was particularly useful, which only made them even better candidates because His power would change that too.

Myeongja’s eyes curved with delight as she approached Nayun and Jihwan and held out a hand.

“It’s nice to meet you, New Stars. My name is Kim Myeongja.”

She did not explain what she did or what position she held. She had treated Hyeon-yul and Shinwoo the same way.

‘She’s on a completely different level from the man who brought us here.’

Nayun reached that conclusion the moment she saw Myeongja. Shinwoo and Hyeon-yul had probably thought the same thing. She did not know whether the others had noticed, but the instant Myeongja approached, the gaze, posture, and expression of the man who had brought them there all changed.

Nayun could perceive details other people missed, so even what normally remained unseen entered her sight. She looked at Myeongja warily.

According to their covers, Nayun and Jihwan had lost their entire fortunes through failed investments. People in that situation would hardly welcome this kind of talk and behavior. Their supposed reason for coming here was impulsive as well. They needed somewhere to hide from debt collectors, and they were desperate enough to grab the hand of anyone who claimed they could help them through their crisis.

Nayun kept those details in mind and deliberately turned her gaze elsewhere. At that moment, a chill raced across her skin.

‘...They’re watching us?’

Ordinary eyes would not have noticed it from here, but people inside the surrounding buildings were watching them. Every last one of them clung near the windows like puppets carrying out an order.

‘So some of the villains are mixed in among them?’

Nayun forcibly suppressed the corners of her mouth before they could rise. She was the only one assigned to play an abilityless person, because her actual ability made her the natural choice for the role.

“...Yes. Nice to meet you.”

Jihwan finally spoke. His cover story said he had come here for the same reason as Nayun.

If Nayun was playing someone who still possessed at least a little common sense, Jihwan’s role was far more unstable. He was supposed to be a man driven to the very edge of his life, unable to decide whether to live or die. He bit at his fingernail.

Click.

“Don’t be nervous, New Star. We’re here to help you.”

“This isn’t one of those places that takes all your money, right?”

Jihwan asked with an openly crooked attitude.

“Of course not. We actually give you an allowance.”

“A-An allowance?”

Jihwan looked at Nayun in surprise, and Nayun returned his gaze with a subtly smug expression that practically said, ‘See?’

What those two wanted was so obvious that Myeongja kept smiling.

“We use a different currency from the outside world here. You can use it to buy whatever food you want. Oh, and of course we provide you with a room and meals as well.”

Gulp.

Jihwan swallowed dryly. For someone who had supposedly been driven to the very end of his life, there could hardly be a more tempting offer.

“Shall we get going first? We’ll have plenty of time to introduce ourselves later, so there’s no need to rush.”

After treating Nayun and Jihwan kindly, Myeongja looked toward the man who had brought them.

“You worked hard.”

“Not at all.”

“I’ll head in first, so I’ll see you later.”

“Yes. Take care.”

The man also bowed toward the White Sparrow standing beside Myeongja.

“Follow me.”

The White Sparrow took the lead, and his steps looked remarkably familiar with the route.

‘Is it really true that he isn’t being brainwashed?’

That practiced behavior made Hyeon-yul suspicious. Even someone with a power related to the mind might struggle to remain completely sane after spending so much time in a place like this. Hyeon-yul possessed no such ability himself, so it was difficult to trust the claim completely.

Myeongja chatted the entire way, explaining what was here and what was over there, but Hyeon-yul kept his attention on the White Sparrow instead.

After boarding the bus, Hyeon-yul pretended to look outside while drawing in a breath. The stench of hallucinogens was everywhere.

‘With it this concentrated, does rescuing the people here even mean anything?’

Once again, Hyeon-yul found parts of the mission difficult to understand.

“What are you looking at?”

At Shinwoo’s question, Hyeon-yul held his phone and moved his thumb across the screen.

[Nothing.]

[It smells bad.]

[Feels like the countryside.]

Shinwoo looked surprised by the messages and quietly admonished him.

“I told you not to say things like that, didn’t I?”

Despite his words, Shinwoo also turned to look outside.

‘Does he mean he can smell hallucinogens?’

Shinwoo himself could not detect anything unusual. It made him wonder just how sensitive Hyeon-yul’s senses were and what other strange things he might notice.

Shinwoo had many questions because it felt as though the two of them were looking at the same scene yet seeing entirely different things.

[I want to go home.]

Hyeon-yul wanted to clock out as soon as possible. When Shinwoo saw the message, he had to force down the laughter rising inside him.

‘That might be a little difficult.’

No matter how he looked at it, this was a mission that had to be approached over the long term. How could they identify every villain hidden among so many people all at once? To investigate properly, they would need as many operatives as there were people inside the compound, and they simply did not have that kind of manpower.

“I know how you feel, but that might be difficult.”

At Shinwoo’s answer, Hyeon-yul turned his head away. Nothing was impossible when it came to getting off work. The mission could take as long as five days, and if he reduced that to one, he would get to go home that much sooner. What wouldn’t he do for that?

He also had unfinished knitting waiting for him. Once he stopped midway through a project, an odd urge to finish it lingered in his hands, and this time he cared more than usual because he was not simply knitting whatever came to mind.

Jeongmin spent most of the salary earned so far buying Hyeon-yul’s medicine. It was extremely expensive because insurance did not cover it, and Hyeon-yul had started making the garment after realizing that Jeongmin had worn the same coat for years.

‘Buying one would be easier. I still don’t understand why Doctor won’t accept it.’

Hyeon-yul still could not understand that part. Knitting was one thing, but there was little else he knew how to make.

He rubbed one eyebrow as another thought occurred to him.

‘...Should I learn how to make something else?’

* * *

The bus seemed to take an intentionally winding route so they could see the compound’s supposed grandeur. There were spaces as large as ordinary parks, spotless buildings, and immaculate streets, and the fact that everything looked so clean only made it more suspicious. It felt staged for display.

The bus eventually stopped in front of one building. Like the others, it was marked only with a number, and this one was Building 24.

“You must be exhausted after coming all this way, right?”

Myeongja’s next words were unexpected, since everyone had assumed they would be taken somewhere else first.

“I’ll show you the rooms where you’ll be staying. Rest comfortably for a while, and I’ll come back around dinnertime. We prepared a welcome gathering for our New Stars, so let’s have a nice meal together.”

Every member of Team 3 recognized the attempt to lower their guard, but none of their expressions changed. They simply looked at the building.

It was clearly four stories tall, yet there was no sign of anyone inside. Some people might not have found that suspicious, while others would naturally wonder why it was so empty.

“It’s a new building, and the people who were staying here all happened to go out for a while.”

Myeongja smiled as though anticipating and soothing the obvious suspicion before it could be voiced. The others nodded as if her explanation made sense, but no member of Team 3 was fooled.

Curtains covered the first, second, and third floors, but nothing about them suggested that anyone actually lived there. The building was unnaturally silent and still.

“All the rooms are the same size and only differ by location. Talk among yourselves about where you’d like to stay for now, then tell this gentleman.”

Myeongja pointed toward the White Sparrow.

“I’ll explain the details.”

The White Sparrow smiled gently before looking at Myeongja and waving.

“I’ll see you later.”

“See you later. I’ll see all of you New Stars later too.”

Myeongja said goodbye to the White Sparrow and Team 3, then turned away.

* * *

They naturally took the elevator to the fourth floor.

“Is this really a new building?”

When Nayun asked, the White Sparrow walked ahead and tapped the wall twice.

“It was built very sturdily.”

CCTV present.

He had given them a prearranged signal. A moment later, the White Sparrow fiddled with one ear.

Listening devices present.

Team 3 reacted to the next signal as though they had already expected it.

Jihwan asked, “...We can really choose any room we want, right?”

“Of course.”

“Then I’ll go first.”

Jihwan started walking quickly, and Nayun hurried after him in apparent surprise.

“Mr. Kim Donghoon! We should decide after checking with each other.”

“Who knows if those people will choose first?”

Jihwan left only that reply before continuing ahead. Every so often, he placed a hand against the wall.

Hyeon-yul saw formulas being written and realized Jihwan was using magic, apparently to block the listening devices.

Nayun bowed apologetically and said, “...I’m sorry on behalf of my coworker. He isn’t normally like this.”

“Hmm, it is a little surprising, but it’s fine.”

Shinwoo answered with an awkward expression and discreetly glanced at Hyeon-yul. Hyeon-yul’s face had not changed at all.

“My little brother doesn’t look surprised either, so it’s fine.”

“New Stars, there’s no need to be so hasty. The rooms all look the same anyway.”

The White Sparrow laughed lightly, reacting as though he were accustomed to situations like this.

As he walked ahead, he gave them a simple explanation. There was one private room per person, but every bedroom could only be reached through an enormous shared living room. In other words, anyone leaving their room had no choice but to enter the communal space. The layout was clearly intentional.

“The television works, and each room has a computer too... Ah, actually, the computers won’t work right now.”

In the middle of his explanation, the White Sparrow spoke as though he had suddenly remembered something.

“The internet hasn’t been connected yet, so the television is the only thing working for now. I’ll ask them to have it installed as soon as possible. Go ahead and choose your rooms.”

At the White Sparrow’s words, Shinwoo looked at Hyeon-yul.

“Want to choose together?”

[I’ll choose one myself.]

[I’m not a child.]

Even under Shinwoo’s gaze, Hyeon-yul abruptly entered a room. It was larger than the place where he normally lived, with a bed, bathroom, small refrigerator, and virtually everything else he might need.

He tried the window, but it would not open. It had been built so that nobody inside could unlock it.

Looking down from the window, Hyeon-yul noticed that part of the area below was hidden from view. Suspicious, he listened carefully and heard machinery operating nearby.

‘There’s CCTV in here too?’

This was supposed to be a private room, which meant privacy was not respected in the slightest.

Keeping his back toward the camera’s location, Hyeon-yul covered his eyes. The eyes that melted into his shadow rapidly traveled outside.

He did not know when they had gathered, but many people were clustered in an area impossible to see from the window. They waved objects resembling feather dusters while muttering under their breath, creating an extremely grotesque sight.

Hyeon-yul quickly concluded that they were brainwashed victims and moved his shadow-bound sight toward the building across from them.

There were people on its rooftop, all staring directly at this building. Myeongja was among them, while several others bowed toward three particular people.

‘So it’s you.’

Hyeon-yul had identified three villains for now. He memorized their faces and lowered his hand.

When he stepped back outside, his eyes met Nayun’s. Her gaze clearly asked whether he had seen it too, but Hyeon-yul gave no answer. The CCTV was still present, so he simply acted naturally and turned on the television.

The moment sound came from the television, Shinwoo and Jihwan also emerged from their rooms. Everyone looked toward Hyeon-yul, wondering what he was doing.

“What is it? Do you want to watch television?”

Shinwoo asked about Hyeon-yul’s seemingly abrupt behavior.

Hyeon-yul pointed toward the television and subtly glanced at Jihwan. Jihwan instantly activated his magic, preventing the sound inside the room from reaching the outside.

Nayun noticed the change and moved toward the CCTV, deliberately placing her body between it and the others.

‘So the CCTV over there is watching us from this angle.’

Shinwoo immediately understood and moved as though he were approaching the television, subtly hiding Jihwan from view.

With the television still making noise, Jihwan spoke quietly.

“You can talk for a moment.”

He kept Nayun’s position in mind as he spoke.

“Okay. What’s going on?”

Shinwoo urged them on. Hyeon-yul’s move had been highly spontaneous.

Hyeon-yul looked at the others and pulled out his phone.

[I just wanted to see if the television worked.]

His message drew the camera’s attention toward his phone while Nayun supplied the actual words.

“There are three villains in the building across from us.” October 12, 2026