#071
Bang-!
A gunshot rang out. Moon Bora and Shin Jeongho, who were escorting a survivor they had found trembling in a bathroom stall, simultaneously turned their heads towards the direction of the gunshot.
“Isn’t that Eunseok?”
“If a soldier fired, they wouldn’t have shot just once.”
Shin Jeongho replied grimly to Moon Bora’s muttering.
“I’ll take care of this, noona. You go check it out.”
Shin Jeongho urged. Moon Bora nodded and leaped out of a broken second-floor window without hesitation.
As Moon Bora ran towards the animal enclosures, someone joined her at lightning speed. It was Oh Seongeun.
“Did you hear the gunshot?”
Oh Seongeun asked as they ran. Moon Bora nodded with a grim face.
The two quickly reached the enclosures. As they passed through the entrance of the small animal farm with its cute signboards, they saw Ji Taeuk in a state of panic.
“Taeuk!”
“Noona! I didn’t fire the gun! It was Eunseok! He’s further inside!”
Ji Taeuk blurted out without pausing for breath.
“You stay here.”
Moon Bora told Ji Taeuk as she and Oh Seongeun ran towards the inner area.
They arrived quickly.
Moon Bora and Oh Seongeun scanned the enclosure with sharp eyes. The floor, which smelled faintly of gunpowder, was covered in chaotic footprints. Moon Bora approached the central tree and examined the ground. There were clear marks of someone standing and then sliding down to sit. Right next to it lay a broken smartwatch, probably Eunseok’s.
“This is a kidnapping, right?”
Moon Bora asked, looking at the consistent trail of footprints leading from the tree in one direction.
“It seems so.”
Oh Seongeun answered, looking towards a large hole in the fence.
“You call for emergency backup. …And contact the guild leader. I’ll chase after them.”
Moon Bora told Oh Seongeun as she darted through the hole in the fence.
Beyond the enclosure, a high school wall appeared immediately. Moon Bora easily leaped over the wall and surveyed the surroundings. She saw two black vans speeding away in opposite directions down the dark alley.
“Damn it.”
Moon Bora cursed, looking back and forth between the two rapidly departing vans. She had to choose one to follow. In the end, she decided to chase the one heading right.
The roads were empty due to the news of mutant appearances. The black van was speeding away as if on a highway. However, this wasn’t a big problem for Moon Bora. She chased the van at full speed, closing the distance, and took out her phone to call Oh Seongeun.
“It’s me! Chase the black van that went left from the alley behind the school! I’m chasing the one that went right!”
Honk! Honk!
As they entered a wider road, other vehicles, startled by the speeding van, blared their horns. Moon Bora narrowly avoided or leaped over oncoming cars while continuously closing the distance to the van.
The black van, noticing the pursuit, increased its speed even more. When the lanes became blocked, it crossed into oncoming traffic and started driving recklessly against the flow. Cars in front of Moon Bora screeched to a sudden stop. The van was widening the gap again, weaving between cars as if in a racing competition.
“Shit. The guild leader will pay for this.”
Moon Bora bit her lip hard and made a big leap. She landed with a thud on a car that had just screeched to a halt in front of her, then used the rebound to fly directly onto the black van.
Bam-!
She finally landed on top of the black van. Moon Bora reached for the greatsword on her back but hesitated. Piercing the vehicle might harm Eunseok. Instead, she started pounding on the van’s body with her bare fists. Each time her fist struck the roof, the metal caved in.
Bang-! Bang-! Bang-!
The gang inside the van shot at the ceiling. A bullet grazed Moon Bora’s forehead. Ignoring this, she continued to strike the van’s roof with all her might. Under her tremendous strength, the roof completely crumpled, and small cracks appeared. Moon Bora pushed her hands into the cracks and tore off the van’s roof.
Screech-.
The van’s roof opened with a chilling sound.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
A man in a black ski mask in the back of the van repeatedly fired at Moon Bora. Bullets grazed her cheek, and one lodged in her left shoulder. Regardless, Moon Bora punched the masked man.
With a thud, the man went limp. The startled driver slammed on the brakes.
Screech-!!
The van left long skid marks on the street as it slid. Soon after, it collided head-on with an oncoming car.
Crash-!
Moon Bora’s body slammed hard against the vehicle’s frame. But regardless of her injuries, she pulled back the blanket bulging next to the fallen man.
“Damn it all.”
What she found under the blanket, which she thought was covering Eunseok, was just a dummy made by wrapping a human-sized mannequin in a quilt.
Moon Bora knocked out the driver, whose head was pressed against the steering wheel from the impact, then leaped out of the car. She started running back in the opposite direction.
When Moon Bora arrived at full speed back at the alley behind the school, she hesitated. Oh Seongeun, whom she had sent to chase the left van, was standing there with a grim face. And next to him, Choi Hanseo was standing tall, having arrived at some point.
“The right one was a fake. What about the left van?”
Moon Bora asked Oh Seongeun, unable to bring herself to look at Choi Hanseo’s face.
“The left one was a fake too.”
Oh Seongeun answered with a somber expression.
A brief silence fell between the three. Moon Bora saw Eunseok’s broken smartwatch clutched in Choi Hanseo’s hand. His grip was so tight that his knuckles were white.
“…They can’t have gone far yet.”
Moon Bora finally raised her eyes and spoke to Choi Hanseo. Choi Hanseo’s face was a perfect mask of emotionlessness.
“Let’s report this before they leave Seoul and block all possible routes. Eunseok is an S-class guide, so they absolutely won’t harm him.”
Moon Bora chose to say “won’t harm” instead of “won’t kill.”
Boom-!
The ground beneath Choi Hanseo’s feet cracked with a thunderous noise. Simultaneously, an invisible shockwave spread out from around him.
“Ugh!”
“Urk!”
Oh Seongeun and Moon Bora simultaneously flinched and took defensive postures. The shockwave passed through their bodies, shaking their internal organs.
‘We’re screwed.’
Moon Bora muttered inwardly. The monster who usually pretended to be human had finally revealed its true nature.
Did Eunseok know about this nature when he got involved with this monster?
Moon Bora clicked her tongue internally and straightened her posture.
The sound of several people running quickly approached. Turning her head, she saw Han Cheolyong and the others running towards them.
“Where’s Eunseok?!”
Ji Taeuk asked in an urgent voice. Moon Bora quietly shook her head.
Everyone’s gaze slowly turned to Choi Hanseo. Whether they showed it or not, everyone present had more or less figured out the relationship between Choi Hanseo and Eunseok. A hunter who loses their guide is extremely dangerous. And if an S-class hunter like Choi Hanseo loses his guide…
“Hunter Han Cheolyong.”
Choi Hanseo, standing with an expressionless face devoid of any emotion, called out softly.
“Y-Yes!”
Han Cheolyong answered, his body stiffening.
“If the disappearance becomes public knowledge, there will be no small number of people trying to take advantage of the situation to abduct an S-class guide. Treat this as confidential within the guild and limit access to this confidential matter to the 2nd Combat Team. From now on, all guild functions will be devoted to finding Guide Lee Eunseok.”
“Yes, understood!”
After hearing Han Cheolyong’s response, Choi Hanseo turned around.
“Where are you going, Guild Leader?”
“I’m going to request cooperation from the Ability Management Bureau.”
“I see.”
As Choi Hanseo disappeared from view, a heavy silence fell over the group.
“I… I should have stayed with him instead of separating.”
Ji Taeuk muttered with a guilt-ridden face.
“Hey, if we’re going to think like that, we’re all at fault! Bringing an S-class guide out and letting him wander alone in the first place… Hah…”
Moon Bora sighed shakily, unable to contain her frustration, and rubbed her face with her hand.
“Let’s quickly return to the guild. Our best course of action is to mobilize the guild’s information network and find him as soon as possible.”
Han Cheolyong said in a calm voice. The others, agreeing with his words, turned to follow Han Cheolyong towards the playground where the limousine van was waiting.
