# Chapter 219
The place where Taejin, temporarily freed, called Iyeon to was an office in the downtown area.
The office with white walls had an extraordinary amount of empty space disproportionate to its large square footage. There were only an office desk, a laptop, a few bundles of documents, and machinery equipment for gi-ryeok extraction. The atmosphere screamed that it had been rented temporarily.
“This time, I won’t extract too much. Since it’s been a while, just enough for emergency treatment.”
Taejin spoke like a rather caring adult. It was a completely different attitude from the Jin family’s underground basement where he had tried to forcibly extract gi-ryeok. This probably meant his strategy had changed. From coercion to persuasion.
But instead of making a sarcastic remark, Iyeon simply nodded obediently.
“Sure. There’s no benefit in showing others that I’m lacking gi-ryeok anyway.”
The chair placed in front of Iyeon was somewhat different from the bed-type experiment table where gi-ryeok had been extracted before. The soft fabric cover looked plush, and there were no belts to restrain his limbs. It was like a chair advertising with its entire body: “I won’t harm you, so don’t worry.”
Since Taejin had been officially in custody, he couldn’t freely leave his hospital room. To set up these facilities in such a short time, he must have received help from outside. Considering that the extraction process itself needed to be conducted without the Superpower Management Office’s knowledge, Taejin’s method was actually quite obvious.
Iyeon could only hope that Heesu would pick up on this lead.
“Sit down.”
Iyeon lowered himself onto the chair that gently wrapped around his body. Even after telling himself repeatedly that he hadn’t come to simply comply, he was still nervous. He desperately tried to think of something else to drive away negative thoughts, but Taejin seemed to notice.
“It’s okay. No need to be nervous.”
“Do I look that bad?”
Iyeon retorted grumpily without realizing it. Taejin laughed it off as if finding him cute.
But as Taejin had assured, the process was much more ordinary than Iyeon had imagined. No, beyond ordinary, it was almost like nothing was happening. There was a sensation of gi-ryeok flowing out during extraction, but it was only to the extent of when Iyeon used his ability. However, it did continuously drain, so it felt somewhat like donating blood…
The extraction ended quickly. After about 30 minutes, Taejin stopped the machine.
“As I said before, I’ve secured just enough for emergency treatment for now. The Superpower Management Office wants immediate visible results.”
Taejin explained while removing the electrodes from his arm one by one. Iyeon rubbed his slightly numb arm and asked.
“Will this amount be enough in the future as well?”
“Hmm, probably? If I have to leave the city for a long time or something comes up, we might need to extract a bit more, but let’s try to achieve maximum efficiency with minimum gi-ryeok whenever possible.”
Taejin smiled gently. It was the relaxed smile he always wore.
“We need to rebuild trust with our Jeongyeon, after all.”
Taejin acted like a caring uncle as if nothing had ever happened between them. He was kind while preparing for the extraction, during the process, and afterward, explaining various things and even serving tea. It was almost like returning to that summer vacation ten years ago.
“You worked hard today. Take care on your way back.”
“Yes.”
Feeling awkward as Taejin followed him all the way to the door despite it not being far, Iyeon bowed his head sheepishly. Taejin, with a kind smile on his face, opened the door for him. Along with the clicking sound, he added:
“I’ll contact you about the next date…”
Suddenly his voice broke off unnaturally. Huh? Iyeon looked at Taejin with a puzzled face, wondering why he wasn’t continuing.
Taejin’s eyes were wide open, almost to the point of tearing, as he stared beyond the door. Seeing his face that looked like he’d seen a ghost, Iyeon turned his head following Taejin’s gaze.
And then.
“So this is where you’ve been conspiring.”
A man with a crooked face like a villain was looking at them. The moment Iyeon met those vivid green eyes, he hurriedly opened his mouth.
“Jesan, wai—”
But before he could finish, a subtle vibration resonated from the floor. Instinctively, Iyeon gathered his gi-ryeok. White sand gathered like a thin mist, barely blocking spikes that were emerging through the cement floor, aimed at Taejin.
Clang!
A sharp sound echoed in the hallway, but fortunately, no one came out to see. Iyeon urgently turned to look at Taejin. He was frozen in place, unable to move in front of the shield that had blocked the attack just a span away from his face.
The shield, slightly dented in the shape of the spikes, would have failed to block the spikes rushing toward Taejin’s head if it had been created even a little later, resulting in a catastrophe. Iyeon’s expression contorted as he shouted at Sano.
“Are you crazy? He almost died!”
“That’s the intention.”
The response was chillingly cold enough to give goosebumps. The faintly glowing green eyes were so dry they were unreadable. Even Iyeon was startled enough to flinch.
“I-I told you! Only uncle can restore the system…!”
The voice that had momentarily shrunk grew louder as it asserted a rational argument. Not stopping there, as Iyeon stood protectively in front of Taejin, Sano’s face hardened.
“Are you the one who’s lost your mind? That bastard tried to kill you.”
A growling voice echoed through the corridor. Not stopping there, the threatening aura as he stepped half a pace forward was so intimidating that Iyeon unconsciously raised his voice.
“I didn’t die.”
“What?”
“I didn’t die then, and I’m not dead now.”
After a moment’s hesitation, the words continued.
“…And it’s none of your business anyway.”
Sano looked genuinely dumbfounded. Evident annoyance seeped between his furrowed brows.
Iyeon deliberately glanced at Taejin nervously, pretending to be anxious.
“Are you done talking?”
“How I use my gi-ryeok is my choice. You’re being nosy.”
Sano didn’t respond. However, Iyeon noticed the ominous energy surrounding his entire body. Gathering gi-ryeok again was an action based on instinct. As soon as he discovered the pitch-black shadow-like iron filings swirling around Sano’s feet, Iyeon’s gi-ryeok spread out widely like a net.
Bang! Pure white sand rushed in, pushing Sano’s body to the wall. The iron filings that had tried to shoot out scattered again. A dull sound came from Sano as his back hit the wall in an instant. Iyeon approached the large body wrapped in what looked like a white cocoon.
“I don’t even expect you to help, so at least don’t interfere.”
“…Did you just attack me?”
The eyes slightly above were a bit unfocused as if in shock.
“Because of that bastard?”
Iyeon stood close in front of Sano, as if blocking his gaze directed at Taejin behind him. It was partly an extension of his act, but seeing Sano’s expression, it seemed like he might really kill Taejin in a fit of anger.
“I won’t let you get away with killing my uncle.”
A hostile and wary voice. Sano was clearly shaken by this tone he was hearing for the first time. Veins popped out on his clenched jaw from the tension. Iyeon pretended not to notice and continued.
“No, you should just go back to Jesan.”
“…”
“This all started because of your stubbornness anyway. Haven’t we had enough of this childhood friend reunion? Stop wasting time in this pointless place. Let’s go back to how things were. Everyone would prefer that.”
Iyeon spoke distinctly, as if engraving the words.
“Just go live your life now.”
Silence fell. The temperature of the silence, where not even breathing could be heard, was dangerously low.
But the intensity of the gaze staring at Iyeon gradually weakened. The deeply contorted, upturned eyebrows returned to their original position, and the brilliantly blue eyes grew darker and darker. It was like watching a fierce flame slowly dying out. Iyeon stared at Sano the entire time.
“There’s a limit to how stupid one can be.”
After a while, what emerged was a mutter as if disgusted.
“Do whatever you want. Die somewhere for all I care.”
With those words, Sano lightly swung his arm. The white sand that had been restraining him vanished as if it had never been there.
And in the moment after blinking once, Sano’s figure had disappeared without a trace. The corridor remained empty, exuding only a chilling coldness.
