# Chapter 119
Now that I think about it, I belatedly recalled that Fenil had conveniently sent Melia on a different mission to coincide with the operation. I wondered why no one else had noticed, but Melia couldn’t participate in the operation from the beginning.
While I was thinking about Melia, Alex suddenly opened his mouth as if he’d just remembered something.
“But Melia can’t store all the test subjects.”
There was a limited number of cards, so it couldn’t be helped. Haylen spoke up, telling us not to worry.
“The rest will be moved by Alex’s telekinesis. If we ask Zenon to put a barrier around them while moving, it should be safe.”
Indeed, if they did it that way, it would be safe even in case of unexpected danger. So they would only move those in critical condition using Melia’s ability? Alex seemed to think this approach would be easier too, as he nodded lightly.
“I can’t fight anyway, so I’ll relay the situation from here.”
Fenil pointed to her legs. Her legs were prosthetic, so while they didn’t hinder her daily life, it was difficult for her to participate in combat.
Hackers sometimes participated in combat, but since it was impossible for Fenil, she usually assigned such missions to her subordinates. Perhaps conscious of this, Fenil tended to take on tasks that could be delegated to subordinates. Judging by her haggard appearance, she must have pushed herself too hard this time as well.
“I’ve prepared contingency plans for each person in case of failure, so read through them.”
Fenil got up and handed out thick stacks of paper in order. When I flipped through the paper with my name on it, detailed escape routes were written. This explained why she had become so thin.
To research this much and do everything else too, even ten bodies wouldn’t have been enough.
“When should we schedule the operation?”
Thanks to Fenil’s efforts, we just needed to set a date now. I asked while looking at Haylen. He carefully examined the calendar and soon pointed to a spot.
“Three days from now would be good. It happens to be a day when important figures will gather.”
When I checked the date, I saw it was the day they would be experimenting with barriers that nullify superpowers.
It seemed they were continuously improving the barrier through experiments. Before seeing it myself, I couldn’t believe that creating such a barrier was possible. I still couldn’t figure out exactly how they made it, but they must have exploited barrier ability users to create it.
“Then we’ll finalize it with everyone in position at 2 PM on the day.”
When Fenil spoke, I suddenly realized how little time was left. Will we be able to succeed this time?
A faint anxiety began to sprout again, but this time I could uproot it immediately.
Perhaps because my mind was stable now, I could dismiss it as an unnecessary thought.
Even if I was anxious, it was too late to turn back. The operation would proceed as planned, and as long as we didn’t make mistakes, it would end successfully.
I believed that without a doubt.
* * *
A day had passed since the final meeting, and the operation would be in two days. I had thought that dealing with the Director would require a lot of time.
But contrary to my expectations, all plans were set up in a short time. The progress was so smooth that rather than feeling relieved, I felt an inexplicable restlessness.
It wasn’t anxiety from having failed once before. Rather, it was closer to an unavoidable tension.
“Boss, you said the Director is immortal, right?”
I asked, sitting on the sofa about a hand’s width away from him. Haylen handed me warm tea that he had prepared on the table.
“Yes.”
“What if he has one more ability?”
After drinking the steaming tea, I felt warmth spreading throughout my body. But my fingertips remained cold as if they had been dipped in ice water.
“Like me?”
I know there’s no need to worry. I believed that even if Raymon was hiding an ability, he wouldn’t be a match for Haylen.
But carelessness invites danger. Until now, it might not have been a problem for him to be careless, but this time was different.
It’s fine for me to firmly believe in Haylen, but it could be dangerous for Haylen to believe in himself too much.
If belief turns into arrogance, the risk of making mistakes also increases. While Haylen wouldn’t do that, I wanted to avoid any possible situations.
“You could be in danger if that happens.”
“It’s okay.”
Haylen smiled gently and told me not to worry, but just in case, I added one more word.
“Still… be careful.”
“Of course.”
He began to gently stroke my head. I felt my body becoming languid under his touch. Perhaps it’s because I haven’t been able to relax lately.
I can’t help but feel reassured by his confident declaration that everything will be alright.
“Your ears are out.”
“Ah…”
The drowsiness that had been slowly creeping up disappeared in an instant. I quickly removed Haylen’s hand as he touched my ears carefully while smiling.
Frantically feeling my head, I caught my perked-up ears. Had they popped out because I let my guard down? Seeing my swishing tail, I couldn’t help but sigh.
“I’ll put them away quickly.”
“But they’re cute. Can’t you show me more?”
Before I could answer, Haylen took my hand and pulled me. Due to his sudden action, I fell into his arms. I hoped he wouldn’t notice my heart pounding so hard it felt like it would burst.
“It’s wagging. Your tail.”
Haylen said with a smile, touching my ears with his hands while his eyes were directed at my tail. I couldn’t control my tail at will.
I resented my tail, which kept wagging non-stop like a dog greeting its owner. With the burning sensation, I buried my face deeper into his arms.
“Can you show me your wolf form later too?”
“Why that…”
My shoulders involuntarily flinched. I had shown my wolf form during training or combat, but I had never revealed it in normal times. The idea of showing such a form to Haylen…
“I want to see all of Kay’s forms.”
“…Alright.”
I was going to refuse because I didn’t want to show my beast form. But after his gentle and kind words, after some internal conflict, I ended up giving my permission.
It felt like my chest was filled with feathers. The ticklish sensation wouldn’t go away.
“Thank you.”
And so, Haylen played with my tail and ears for quite a while. His touch didn’t stop until I calmed down and returned to my original form.
* * *
There exists a secret space in Peace’s headquarters. It was a section that Raymon had discreetly added, not appearing on any blueprints. He naturally stepped into it.
“Is the preparation going well?”
In the dark space filled with unknown mechanical devices, about a dozen people were moving busily. In the center was a circular glass wall, inside which three people lay with their entire bodies restrained. They were all wearing helmet-like machines.
“Yes, it’s almost complete.”
The researcher smiled brightly at the successful response and pressed the red button in front of him. Connected to the button were none other than the helmets.
The helmets began to emit a mysterious light and started to suck something out of the people. Blood tears flowed from the eyes of the people who were staring blankly like empty shells without souls.
“…If this succeeds, the next one could be perfect.”
Raymon smiled faintly with satisfaction as he watched the golden gas sucked from the people enter a rectangular golden box connected by tubes.
“The superpower manifestation experiment…”
“Still has many side effects.”
At these words, his smile disappeared instantly. Raymon remained silent for a moment, as if measuring something, then opened his mouth.
“Consider disposal as well.”
“Weren’t you thinking of using them as troops?”
The researcher’s startled words weren’t wrong. The experiments that created superpower users artificially while killing other superpower users were meant to supplement the troops.
After all, nothing was better than users with the same ability for killing superpower users.
“It was merely an illusion anyway. There’s no need to forcefully continue something that doesn’t work.”
But now there wasn’t much time left. Since there were a few successful cases, it was time to dispose of the rest.
It was a shame to end the long-running experiment without producing clear results, but it couldn’t be helped.
Using them as troops was just a means to attract researchers. In reality, he only wanted to strengthen his own superpower.
Furthermore, what could be more attractive than being able to obtain any desired superpower?
However, over the long period, no clear method for artificially creating superpower users emerged. This remained true even after dozens of people died.
And so, ultimately, his own death approached first. If he died, everything would end. There was no reason to continue this experiment any longer. Since there were no more useful humans, disposal was the wise decision for Raymon.
Raymon didn’t even consider entrusting the experiment to someone else. It was an experiment he had created. So he should be the one to end it. Could there be anything more unpleasant than handing the experiment over to someone else?
“Then what about Ben?”
Disposing of Ben would allow for perfect concealment, but he was the only S-class successful case. Though it wasn’t clear how his power had manifested, it seemed wasteful to kill him like this. And Raymon felt the same way.
“He seems to have developed bad habits lately, so lock him in the room. He’s still useful.”
The researcher’s complexion darkened rapidly, though it wasn’t something that had happened to him. The room Raymon mentioned was something the researcher had only heard about through rumors, but it had a notorious reputation.
Apparently, the moment someone enters, they should be prepared to go mad, as it breaks one’s mind. Putting Ben in such a place was essentially no different from half-killing him.
It couldn’t help but be regrettable to put a valuable successful case in there.
“Understood.”
But the researcher didn’t have the courage to refuse Raymon’s words, so he had no choice but to silently follow the order.
