Chapter 98 - Cosmetics Made from Blood (2)

* * *

Hyeon-yul raised his hand slightly. Apparently, he was the only one who did not know what the term meant.

“What does it mean to be the advance team?”

“If we want to bring down an organization, we need to concentrate our firepower. Right?”

“Yes.”

“In other words, we need one final opportunity to confirm everything before we launch the operation. If something goes wrong, Black Eagle will bear the greatest losses.”

“So we’re called the advance team because, if this turns out to be the right place, we’ll be the first to fight?”

“Exactly.”

Haeryeon lightly clapped her hands before he continued.

“And the other team members are sighing and acting like they don't want to go because that ‘responsibility’ is so enormous?”

“That’s right.”

At Haeryeon’s answer, Hyeon-yul examined the other team members’ expressions. He could see their forced smiles. A mission was something you carried out when ordered to, so he nodded a few times.

“First of all, we’ve legally obtained a court order authorizing us to search the building and use force. There’s some overlap with the police, but when it comes to villains, our authority is broader.”

Haeryeon tapped her chest a couple of times. Since they had the authority to kill villains, ‘broader’ was a fair description.

“The White Sparrows are standing by as well. Once you go in, assess the situation, and contact them, they’ll seal off the building.”

“So we have to be discreet?”

At Hyeon-yul’s question, Haeryeon formed a circle with her thumb and forefinger.

“Exactly. There may be people inside. It might be hard to distinguish between them, so you should make arrests whenever possible. According to the intelligence we’ve received, the company’s laboratory employees are working through the night to catch up on overdue work. In other words, we know there are civilians inside.”

“If they know Black Eagle is coming today, won’t they take those people hostage?”

This mission would be carried out stealthily, almost like a surprise attack. If people were inside, the villains could use them as hostages.

“Probably.”

“Are the hostages our first priority this time as well?”

“Yes. That’s always been our policy.”

Black Eagle always put people first. After all, the organization had been created to protect citizens and eradicate villains.

“That makes this kind of advance reconnaissance all the more necessary. They might have set traps or prepared an ambush. We can’t leave that to the managers. They simply don’t have enough power.”

This was the sort of operation that exceeded what the White Sparrows could handle.

“We used to leave assignments like this to the managers, but the casualty rate increased exponentially.”

Shinwoo quietly added that information. It was something Hyeon-yul needed to know, too.

“There’s something I want all of you to remember on this mission.”

Haeryeon paused and looked at each team member in turn, making sure they were listening.

“I’ve put the other Black Eagles on standby as well. If it gets dangerous, request backup and withdraw. If you get caught in a trap or an ambush, escaping comes first. Saving hostages is important, too, but don't forget that your own lives come first.”

It was a difficult assignment, but she believed they would do well. They had survived this long, and that alone proved what they were capable of.

As always, her main concern was Hyeon-yul. New recruits were ordinarily excluded from operations like this, but she believed including him was the right decision. The case might be connected to him, and more importantly, he would not want to be left out.

“Hyeon-yul.”

“Yes.”

“Normally, we don’t let new recruits take part in this kind of mission. I included you because I trust you. Still, we don't know what might happen. Would you rather sit this one out?”

“I’ll do it.”

Hyeon-yul had only one answer. The possibility of sitting out the mission had never even occurred to him.

“Good. I’ll say this again. You need to confirm whether the place you’re going to is their real base. Whether you determine that it is or it isn’t, withdraw as soon as you've confirmed it. You can submit your report afterward. Understood?”

Haeryeon went over the mission one final time.

“Understood.”

Nayun raised her hand slightly to show that she understood.

“Me too.”

“I understand as well.”

Shinwoo and Jihwan raised their hands, too.

“Understood.”

When Hyeon-yul gave the final answer, Haeryeon drew a breath. Personally, she hoped the location was not the organization's true headquarters. If it was, something terrible was bound to happen. She felt sorry for the other teams, but she wished the responsibility had not fallen to hers.

* * *

Four Eagles descended quietly onto the roof of a building.

The company was called Linda, and its name was displayed on a logo attached to the building.

As soon as they landed, everyone glanced toward Hyeon-yul. They had already seen him inject himself with sedatives many times because traveling by Eagle still disagreed with him. This time was no different.

But, as though they had made a promise, none of them said a word. Jihwan had pointed out that constantly expressing concern might only make Hyeon-yul more self-conscious. It was a fair argument. Even well-intentioned remarks could grow irritating when repeated too often.

Still, they could not help worrying, so they kept stealing glances at him.

Hyeon-yul noticed their attention. If they had something to say, why didn't they just say it? Why keep staring?

‘Is this the problem?’

He stopped with the syringe halfway out and finally spoke.

“You don't need to wait for me. Please go on ahead. I'll catch up on my own.”

He did not want his treatment to hold the others back or become some sort of ritual everyone had to wait through. No matter how far ahead they went, he could catch them.

“We can’t do that.”

Jihwan’s firm response was met with nods from Nayun and Shinwoo.

‘They can’t? Does that mean they intend to keep watching?’

Hyeon-yul instinctively hid the syringe a little. It was hard to call this bullying, but the situation felt strangely uncomfortable. He had no idea what they meant.

“We have to observe the place for a while anyway. Right, Noona?”

Jihwan smiled at Nayun, looking for her agreement.

“Right. Observation is essential. By the time you've taken your medicine and given yourself your injection, Hyeon-yul, we'll be finished.”

Nayun nodded and broke into a broad smile.

“We always wait a little at this stage. We have to check the place before going in. Jihwan!”

The moment she finished speaking to Hyeon-yul, Nayun called to Jihwan.

“I'm starting.”

Jihwan stretched a hand toward the ground. This time, he would have to create something even more precise than before.

His mana flowed down through the building, and countless coordinate points appeared before his eyes. Numbers fluttered like leaves in the wind, but Jihwan manipulated the magic with much greater precision. He raised one finger and pointed at Nayun.

For an instant, her eyes shone. Then she looked down. Although every light was off, she could see a tremendous amount.

“Whoa. Take a look at this.”

A flood of information reached her through her enhanced vision.

“They already know we're coming.”

“You mean they were waiting to stab us in the back?”

Shinwoo gazed idly at the sky. Rather than looking surprised, he seemed perfectly relaxed, as though he had expected as much.

“Right. The people on the fifth floor look like laboratory employees.”

Before they arrived, Haeryeon had told them that the laboratory staff were working through the night.

“There are bombs attached all over the room they're in, both inside and outside. They're practically announcing that they've taken hostages.”

“I’ll disarm the bombs.”

Hyeon-yul promptly claimed the task. He was the only one here who could disarm the explosives. In fact, he knew they would not go off in the first place if he handled them.

“Okay. You take care of that, Hyeon-yul. I'll keep looking.”

Nayun continued scanning the building for anything else they might have missed.

“There are ambushers on the floors above and below the laboratory workers, too.”

“I’ll take care of those.”

Jihwan raised a hand slightly, then drew lines above and below the fifth floor.

“Done. We can go in now.”

“Let's do it.”

When Shinwoo agreed, Hyeon-yul raised his hand briefly.

“Please wait a moment.”

Everyone stopped speaking and moving to look at him. Was something wrong?

“Are there only enemies above and below the fifth floor?”

“Yeah. If you're asking how many, I'd say a few dozen?”

At Nayun’s reply, Hyeon-yul considered the words ‘a few dozen.’

“Mr. Ye Jihwan, can you extend the range of what Ms. Choo Nayun can see?”

“How much farther?”

“As far as that building.”

Hyeon-yul raised a finger and pointed. Several buildings stood around their target as though surrounding it. It was a perfectly ordinary sight in a city.

“I can, but I won't be able to hold it for... very long.”

“Even a moment will do.”

After making his request of Jihwan, Hyeon-yul turned to Nayun.

“Ms. Choo Nayun, please look a little farther away.”

“Can I ask you something first?”

Shinwoo could no longer contain his curiosity. He understood the need for caution, but they also had to consider the burden on Jihwan's mana.

“Judging by the number Ms. Choo Nayun mentioned, there are far too few villains inside.”

There were ambushers above and below the fifth floor, but the total number was nowhere near what he would have expected. Having worked for countless companies, he found that strange.

“Their leader is dead. Didn't the investigation confirm that the body belonged to their real leader?”

Hyeon-yul looked toward Jihwan. Jihwan had told him as much after he collapsed, and Haeryeon had confirmed it afterward.

“That’s right. Based on the managers' intelligence, we checked the face of the corpse and confirmed it was the leader. Though there's still a chance he had a twin.”

Hyeon-yul considered the possibility of a twin entirely plausible because he had experienced something like that himself.

“That could be the case. But if he didn't have a twin, there are too few enemies. Even if he did have a twin, there are still suspiciously few.”

They knew what Black Eagle was capable of. Deploying so few people against them went beyond carelessness. It was downright stupid.

“If they've already taken hostages, that means they know Black Eagle is coming. In a situation like this, they should be mobilizing every available fighter, yet they've only deployed this many. Something isn't right.”

Everyone listened closely. His argument made sense. At this point, they had to consider every possibility.

“When villains lose their leader, they have two choices.”

Hyeon-yul laid out his reasoning for the others to consider.

“Usually, they join up with another leader, don't they?”

When Jihwan answered, Hyeon-yul nodded in agreement with him.

“Correct. In ordinary terms, they choose to ‘change jobs.’”

“What's the other choice?”

At Shinwoo’s question, Hyeon-yul looked toward the buildings in the distance.

“To kill Black Eagles by any means necessary.”

“...Huh?”

Nayun was briefly taken aback by the unexpected answer. Villains had always wanted to kill Black Eagles. What was different now?

“They won't simply try to kill them. Their organization is gone, and so is their leader. They have nothing left to protect. All they'll care about is harming Black Eagles, with no thought for what comes afterward. They'll use the worst method imaginable, the one Black Eagles hate most.”

A vision of the worst-case scenario unfolded in Hyeon-yul’s mind. Their team leader had probably experienced something like this herself, which was why she had said the attack needed to happen simultaneously. Still, he doubted she had encountered it as often as he had.

“I understand what you mean.”

Jihwan nodded. He had joined advance teams several times, as had Nayun and Shinwoo. But none of them had ever gone on such a mission after an organization's leader had been killed. It made sense to listen to Hyeon-yul, who had experience with that situation.

“I won't be in very good shape for a while.”

“That's fine. I can carry you with me.”

“Really?”

Shinwoo’s eyes lit up. That would take some of the burden off Jihwan.

“But you'll have to cover your ears, close your eyes, and hold your breath. Unless you follow all three instructions, I can't guarantee what will happen.”

“Back then, um, you said you could trap someone in darkness, and that going inside it could make their mind go strange. Is this related to that?”

Nayun raised her hand a little, and Hyeon-yul nodded.

“Yes. It's an extension of the same ability.”

“Got it. Jihwan, it'll be okay now. You can use more of your power.”

Nayun smiled at him. Whenever they worked as a team like this, Jihwan often had to stay back in a support role. Given his magical abilities, that always seemed like a waste.

“That's true. So this is only possible because Hyeon-yul-hyung is here?”

Jihwan looked at Hyeon-yul with gratitude shining in his eyes.

“You're a real blessing, Hyeon-yul. And so are you, Jihwan.”

Shinwoo hesitated just before adding Nayun’s name. Her eyes narrowed. She wanted to say something but held it in and looked at Jihwan instead.

“Let's go, Jihwan.”

“Here goes.”

Jihwan took a deep breath and closed his eyes. A magic circle appeared beneath his feet as a map of the entire surrounding area emerged in the darkness of his vision.

When he opened his eyes, the map remained visible to him alone. Countless coordinates appeared as numbers, and Jihwan opened his clenched fist.

‘Come out.’

A representation of the nearby district settled into his palm. He selected an area on the map, creating a circular boundary.

‘...Whoa, whoa.’

He could feel his mana vanishing at a frightening rate. Jihwan hurriedly reached toward Nayun.

FLASH.

Her eyes lit up. Recognizing the familiar sensation, she said nothing and slowly spun around. Every building had become transparent to her sight, allowing her to see what was inside.

Nayun drew a sharp breath at what she was seeing.

“...What is this?”

Her expression stiffened instantly as she continued to look around.

“What's wrong?”

Shinwoo asked in alarm. From Nayun’s reaction, Hyeon-yul realized that what he had feared was happening right before them.

‘The same situation will be unfolding everywhere.’

“There are... bombs.”

Nayun spoke in despair, her face twisting.

“...Every building I can see is in the same situation as this one. How is that possible?”