# Chapter 136
“I can see him over there.”
In the distance, a man with a familiar face appeared. Unlike before, he wasn’t wearing clothes with a water bird on them, but even with his face half-hidden under a bucket hat, it was easy enough to guess who he was.
‘He’s become gaunt in just two days.’
Though Lee Hwan didn’t know his appearance, the two people walking behind seemed to gradually move away, apparently realizing from the circumstances that he was their target.
Lee Hwan deliberately made footsteps as he approached. When the man sensed his presence and turned his head, Lee Hwan smiled broadly as if to reassure him.
“You made it safely.”
“I’ve been hiding as much as possible, but I’m not sure how it’ll go… Where are your companions?”
“They’re keeping watch in the area. We thought that would be safer.”
His voice, which had been full of confidence when they first met, was now subdued. Despite Praxis’s history suggesting this wasn’t their first time in such a situation, it seemed he’d faced quite significant direct threats.
“The evidence, you still have it, right?”
“Yes, I’ve been keeping it stored elsewhere and brought it today to hand over to Number 2.”
Number 2 seemed to be referring to the replacement person. The bag slung over his shoulder looked particularly heavy.
Lee Hwan slowly looked around, carefully examining the surroundings, then took the bag from the pale-looking water bird.
“Let’s go. From now on, your task is to climb the mountain without getting tired.”
“…I’ll do my best.”
“Once we enter the mountain path, my companions will follow closely. Please don’t be too startled.”
Taesung was an S-class widely known even abroad. If the water bird saw him here, he’d be seriously surprised.
And then there was Jade. After experiencing that unfriendly expression and the sunglasses attack that made it hard to read his emotions, most people would instinctively shrink back.
“I brought the most skilled people, but they’re not the friendliest. Just take it in stride.”
“I can hear you.”
As soon as they entered the mountain path, Jade approached first and grabbed Lee Hwan’s shoulder. Normally he would have completely ignored such behavior, but the fact that he deliberately spoke suggested he was trying to ease the water bird’s tension.
‘If that’s your goal, you could at least soften your tone…’
Though he wasn’t showing it much, the water bird seemed even more rigid.
Of course, if Jade had spoken softly and kindly, Lee Hwan would have been startled instead. He would have seriously wondered if there was an ability like transformation among Awakened powers and drawn his weapon.
‘Well, then he would have definitely told me not to do something stupid with 100% certainty.’
Ever since visiting Research Wing D, it increasingly felt like Jade was managing him on the same level as Taesung, which Lee Hwan found somewhat annoying. Hadn’t he heard the expression “exactly the same type” when he received the mobile phone yesterday?
In Lee Hwan’s view, the person exactly like Taesung at this period was honestly Jade. They were even more alike in that neither would give a kind expression even when someone was clearly tense.
“We’ll go to the meeting place through the mountains as planned earlier. Everyone here has good stamina and can easily carry an adult man or two while rock climbing, so please speak up right away if you’re struggling.”
“…I’ll try my best to keep up for now.”
Lee Hwan began walking in earnest through the mountains with this person trying hard to stay relaxed following behind. At some point, Taesung also joined them, circling around as if escorting.
The mountain terrain wasn’t difficult, but as the journey lengthened, their pace slowed considerably. Fortunately, they had plenty of time. At the water bird’s pace, they would still arrive at the meeting place on time.
He had no intention of forcibly carrying someone who was already tense.
“The destination is within reach. There’s a high chance of being caught if we go down the mountain, so let’s wait here until it’s time.”
How many hours had they walked? Despite taking frequent breaks, they peacefully reached near the meeting spot with Number 2, except for the non-Awakened person who was sweating profusely as if on the verge of death.
At the news that they had almost arrived, the water bird plopped down on the ground, breathing heavily. Though they couldn’t slow down too much, Lee Hwan had offered to carry him if he was tired, but he had stubbornly refused and climbed the entire mountain on his own legs.
‘Well, it would be awkward to be carried like a package.’
But the fact that gentle words like “I’ll carry you on my back” or “I’ll hold you” didn’t come out suggested that his own personality had become quite rough after the regression.
It couldn’t be helped. This world had made him this way. This world.
Lee Hwan took out water from the bag and handed it over, glancing at Taesung. He looked fine, as expected. Good complexion, with nimble strength throughout his body.
The wound Lee Hwan had checked before departure was already almost completely healed. When the surrounding area was touched, he flinched, suggesting his sensation was normal too. Lee Hwan found it both cute and frustrating that such a big guy kept trying to avoid treatment.
Even when trying to check the wound before treatment, hadn’t he rejected it once or twice with that annoyed expression?
‘It’s a wound that would heal even if left alone. I don’t understand why you’re so fixated on this.’
That’s right. Lee Hwan silently agreed with that thought. But when he tried to turn away, the image of Taesung from before the regression, sitting down with his abdomen stained red, came to mind, sending chills down his spine.
It was much less severe now, but he still felt breathless remembering Taesung covered in blood. It felt like going back to that time—to that desperate situation where, despite being by his side all day, he couldn’t properly protect him.
Speechless, Lee Hwan would just stand still, staring at him, and eventually Taesung would lift his clothes to show the wound. Then Lee Hwan would unnecessarily check the wound that no longer needed medicine, roughly gauge in his mind how roughly Taesung could move with that body, and then step back.
‘He definitely thinks I’m a strange person.’
Even Lee Hwan felt that way about himself, so it was actually strange that Taesung complied so readily.
When he turned around, wondering if Taesung was familiar with wound treatment due to frequent gate explorations, Jade was staring at them with an expression like he was witnessing something bizarre, before averting his eyes.
‘How can he express emotions so well with those sunglasses covering his eyes completely?’
Anyway, thanks to this, he roughly knew that although Taesung’s body wasn’t perfect, it wasn’t uncomfortable enough to impede movement, and Lee Hwan’s arm, which wasn’t badly injured to begin with, was also fairly healed.
Moreover, with the addition of Jade, who had all limbs intact, he honestly felt quite relieved. After all, Jade was someone who had been around battlefields.
“You probably need to hand it over directly for them to accept it, right?”
“Whew… Yes, that’s right.”
“Then we’ll hold the bag until then and give it to you when we go down the mountain. You look tired.”
Unlike Taesung from this period, though blunt, Jade was socially competent. Looking back, even when he was with Kang Dongha, he had been properly using formal speech and functioning well in society.
The doctor who treated Lee Hwan and the person from the errand center who handed over the burner phone must all be part of his network.
‘He’s talented. Truly talented.’
If he had been around when the monster wave hit, survival for himself and Taesung might not have been hell-level difficulty.
Taesung might not have been injured so badly. They could have safely hunted monsters and, relying on his knowledge, arrived at a fairly decent shelter.
While pondering these thoughts and gazing down the mountain, that moment arrived.
‘…?’
Lee Hwan could feel the hair on the back of his neck standing up and a chill running down his spine. A premonition so certain he couldn’t dismiss it as a joke.
It felt like his throat was ringing. The sensation he’d been feeling consistently since Jade joined them became a little clearer. Though he didn’t know what the final goal was, it was as if they were getting closer to it.
‘It’s definitely related to Jade…’
Then, suddenly, someone touched his arm. When he turned his head, it was Taesung. Just as he was about to ask why Taesung had touched him, he took a deep breath.
Lee Hwan realized only then that he had been holding his breath with eyes wide open.
He felt awkward under Taesung’s gaze, which seemed to ask if something was wrong. Avoiding Taesung’s scrutinizing look from head to toe, Lee Hwan silently shook his head.
“Let’s start heading down.”
It was almost time. As he shouldered the bag again, the water bird groaned and got up.
“I’ll keep watch in the area with this guy. You stay close to this person and protect him if something happens.”
Repeating instructions they already knew was probably intended to alleviate the water bird’s anxiety, just like at the start. When Lee Hwan nodded, Taesung and Jade gradually moved away and began descending the mountain at a slight distance.
“I see someone there. Is that Number 2 as arranged?”
“…I can’t see yet. Haha…”
“Ah… A man with auburn hair and a beard. Is that right?”
“What about accessories?”
“The light’s reflecting too much to see clearly… but he’s wearing a metal necklace. And a bracelet on his left arm.”
“That seems right.”
If there were any suspicious signs around him, Jade or Taesung would have already jumped out to alert them. Lee Hwan handed over the bag and stepped back, watching the Praxis meeting from hiding.
He could see the two appearing to converse. Probably the same brief exchange as when the water bird met Lee Hwan. Soon, the water bird would hand over the bag, and their mission would be complete.
…If things had gone as planned.
The water bird, who had been talking normally, suddenly clutched the bag and turned his body. Then he urgently stretched his foot in Lee Hwan’s direction.
Simultaneously.
Bang!
With the sound of gunfire, droplets of blood splattered in all directions as his body slowly collapsed. Blood gushed from the left side of his chest, suggesting the bullet had pierced his heart.
Red blood spilled onto the precious bag he was clutching. Within seconds after the gunshot, his convulsing body slowly stopped moving.
‘!’
Lee Hwan watched the scene with a shocked face, then rushed out without time to think. His pupils glowed brightly as a shield formed around his body.
It was just compressed space with increased density, so it couldn’t block bullets like an actual shield. Still, he wouldn’t die from one or two bullets that missed due to the distorted space.
‘The bag.’
He needed to get the bag. The death unfolding before his eyes and the fact that the situation had become complicated again didn’t even have the chance to shake his mind.
Lee Hwan’s eyes were firmly fixed on the bag and the drug that would be inside it.
