* * *

"... Did you sleep well?"

As a cold blade pressed against their throat, the person sleeping with an eye mask stopped breathing. A familiar voice reached their ears.

"You live somewhere rather nice, I see."

Hyeonyul looked around the bedroom. By any measure, this one room was larger than an ordinary apartment. It was practically a magnificent palace.

"To think the Bomber was a noble. How surprising."

Hyeonyul deliberately let out a chuckle.

Upon waking that morning, before work, he had remembered his weekend shift, then thought of the Bomber. He figured he ought to at least say hello, so after washing up, he went to find them.

It was a house, not an apartment. Even the wall protecting it made it obvious that an enormous amount of money had been spent. Looking inside revealed grounds of the sort he had only seen in movies.

The sight of people tending the lawn and flowers, cleaning, and hurrying to prepare breakfast from dawn felt distinctly foreign. Between those people, the guards protecting the place, and its security installations, Hyeonyul was certain the owner was a noble.

"..."

The Bomber's mouth parted slightly. They seemed genuinely surprised.

"I never thought I'd see a noble in my lifetime."

In modern society, nobility was closer to an honorary status. Yet the privileges it carried certainly existed. For a start, didn't nobles possess a different level of wealth from ordinary people?

Nobility was hereditary. So was wealth. In an age when wealth itself became power, nobles were people of power.

"I didn't expect a noble to engage in villainy, either."

Only now did Hyeonyul understand why the Bomber operated alone, and why they hadn't been caught despite working alone. Now he understood it all.

A noble. That one word was enough to explain everything.

"... How did you get here?"

The Bomber moved only their lips. The feel of metal against their throat was real. They knew which would be faster.

"We agreed to play a game, remember? I told you then that I would come to kill you whenever I wanted."

"You... what are you?"

Even the Bomber trotted out that tired old question. Hyeonyul had thought they might be a little different.

"Why do you keep asking when you already know?"

"How did you get here? How did you get here, I'm asking!"

Something about the way they raised their voice felt off to Hyeonyul.

"There's no need to force yourself to shout. I've destroyed all the security equipment."

"Oh, really? You broke it? No one can see in here?"

"That's right."

At Hyeonyul's answer, a smile formed on the Bomber's lips. He could see the exhilaration.

"This is insane. Absolutely insane! I've never had such an ecstatic thrill in my life!"

Something about them was unhinged. Since one couldn't be a villain without being in one's right mind, Hyeonyul instead accepted it as only natural.

"You have everything. Why go out of your way to be a villain?"

"If I answer that, will you let me live today?"

The Bomber grinned foolishly.

"Yes. I'm going to leave it at this for today. I'm busy, too."

"Give me more."

"I will."

"Really? You mean it? It's been so long since I had a dopamine rush like this."

"Oh, I haven't told you how this ends."

"Hm?"

"I'm going to kill you."

There was merely a reprieve; the outcome hadn't changed. At Hyeonyul's words, the corners of the Bomber's mouth rose high. They looked ready to drool.

"That's more like it. I thought you were going easy on me once you found out I was a noble."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I like that confidence. I'm so glad I met you. Did you disarm yesterday's bombs?"

"Thanks to you, I had more work to do."

"You know, I want to decide when I die. In return, I'll make sure my death doesn't cause you any trouble. Do you know how tenacious nobles are?"

"No."

At Hyeonyul's answer, the Bomber moved a hand. Even as the dagger bit slightly into their throat, they lifted their eye mask, still smiling. Their eyes were deranged.

"Even villains avoid them."

"Do they?"

The Bomber laughed loudly at his indifferent response. Even villains avoided them. That should have explained everything. But it seemed the point didn't get through to this Eagle.

"Life is so boring, you know. Do you know the emptiness that comes from having everything?"

"No."

"When you have everything, you don't get that thrill from acquiring something. Whether I buy the latest release or some rare collectible, I don't feel a thing."

The Bomber sat up. Blood ran down from the cut the dagger had made in their throat.

"It's dull. Everything, every last thing is so dull I could die."

The light in their eyes abruptly died, like a candle snuffed out by the wind. Only emptiness lingered in them.

"At first, I fucked with the villains, you know? But they didn't react at all. Just, 'Oh, a new villain's arrived.' That was it. So I fucked with the Black Eagles instead."

Slowly, light returned to the Bomber's eyes.

"They tremble. They're scared. When they can't disarm a bomb, anxiety takes over. ... It drove me wild. Seriously."

As the Bomber's eyes narrowed, saliva trickled from the corner of their mouth. They wiped it away with a hand.

"... Ah, it's just so much fun."

"Is it?"

Hyeonyul lowered his dagger. Irritation colored his gaze as he looked at the Bomber.

"What a pathetic reason."

"Pathetic? Me?"

"Yes. Why do you need to be a villain? Just give away everything you own and leave yourself empty-handed. Then you can feel all of that."

If they lost everything, they could so easily obtain the emotions they were desperate to feel.

"You're doing this because you don't want to relinquish your privileges or lose everything you have."

Hyeonyul stopped there. He didn't want to waste his energy first thing in the morning.

"That was the wrong question. Next time, I'll ask a proper one."

Hyeonyul walked steadily to the door and out. The Bomber smiled as they watched him leave.

'... Ah, how entertaining.'

They had discovered that man. They had to make sure no one else snatched him away. The Bomber stretched luxuriously.

'That one's mine. No one gets to touch him. I'll kill anyone who lays a hand on him without my permission.'

* * *

'... How much should I tell her?'

Hyeonyul got off the bus, deep in thought. For now, he had decided to tell Haeryeon several things.

'Taking over the Poison King's faction... I haven't even told the Doctor about that.'

If he told Jeongmin, the doctor would certainly be shocked, and might give him a severe scolding. It could be called impulsive, but it had been necessary.

'Then perhaps I can tell her about Yujong, at least. As for the Bomber's location...'

Hyeonyul blinked. Telling her everything did seem difficult.

'Trust really is difficult.'

He had no idea where to begin. Did he really need to tell her about factions he would discard anyway?

Hyeonyul broke off his thoughts and shifted his gaze. People had gathered. Such energy, considering they were working on a weekend.

"... It's your fault, your fault they're dead! Say something!"

"How is that my fault? ... Did I kill them? I'm struggling too! I'm hurting too...!"

Hyeonyul ignored the words and kept walking. He didn't know whether they were White Sparrows or Black Eagles. Frankly, he didn't care who had died. Wasn't that simply how this line of work was? Death came sooner or later.

As the voices grew louder, people gathered around them. Hyeonyul felt a chill. Sensing power, he narrowed his eyes.

He didn't think it impossible. With powers in the picture, what people called a rampage was more common than one might expect.

Hyeonyul quickened his pace. He didn't want to get caught up in that power.

WHOOOOSH.

With the sound of wind, Hyeonyul saw a pattern form beneath his feet. Whatever the power was, it pinned him in place. Even moving a single finger proved quite difficult.

'I need to get to work.'

Hyeonyul let out a short breath and looked toward the person using the power. This was a problem. He wasn't late yet, but interfering with his commute was a problem.

"You, what are you doing? Stop! Using your power now is against regulations!"

"Shut up! I said shut up!"

Amid the noisy commotion, Hyeonyul appeared behind the person using the power.

"That's enough."

Hyeonyul gripped the man's shoulder hard. He didn't know who the man was, but the words Team Four on his black uniform identified him as a Black Eagle.

"...?"

The man turned his head and stared at Hyeonyul. He had no idea when Hyeonyul had arrived.

"You mustn't use your power here."

"You... how..."

Tears were running down the man's face.

"Were you trying to kill everyone?"

Hyeonyul looked at him coldly. Why was he making a scene and getting in the way of his commute?

"Withdraw your power now."

Hyeonyul made the request quite politely.

"... Do you think I killed them, too?"

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"I definitely, definitely used my power! I did! I pinned the villains down! I did!"

The man babbled incomprehensibly. Hyeonyul didn't listen any further. He drew his dagger, positioned the handle to strike, and hit the back of the man's neck in a single blow.

CRACK!

The moment the man lost consciousness, all his power dissipated. Putting away his dagger, Hyeonyul looked at the Team Four member before him. The other Black Eagle's eyes were wide with surprise, and the skin around them was red, as though they, too, had been crying.

Hyeonyul turned away without a word. He assumed they would take the man away themselves.

* * *

Hyeonyul sat facing Bong Hyeonho, Team Four's Team Leader. When he glanced to the side, Haeryeon was sitting beside him.

A little earlier, after stopping the Team Four Black Eagle, he had taken his seat, relieved to have arrived early once again. He needed to keep cultivating an image of diligence in everything he did.

Haeryeon would need to give him a mission, but she seemed busy with something. He had wondered whether it was another emergency, but listening closely revealed that it concerned Team Four. Not understanding why there was such a fuss when no one had died, he had simply sat blinking. Then Bong Hyeonho arrived.

As soon as Hyeonho saw him, he abruptly moved as though to take him away. Haeryeon immediately came out to stop him, leading to their present standoff.

"If you have something to say, say it, Team Leader Bong Hyeonho."

Haeryeon made her displeasure clear. What sort of utterly improper behavior was this?

"I apologize for arriving unannounced. But I was told that Team Three attacked one of our Team Four members."

"Did you attack someone?"

Haeryeon looked at Hyeonyul as she asked.

"What do you want to hear? Even if I tell you the truth, are you willing to listen?"

Instead, Hyeonyul directed a question at Hyeonho.

As a Team Leader, he could care about his team members. But the fact that he had come charging in like this suggested he had no intention of listening to Hyeonyul.

"I'd like you to watch your words and behavior."

"Shouldn't you be more careful about coming here without even checking what happened?"

Hyeonyul needled Hyeonho. Haeryeon was surprised. Even she had never seen him be this aggressive. But she quickly composed her expression.

"I apologize for that."

Hyeonho nodded as he apologized.

Having expected a prolonged confrontation, Hyeonyul merely blinked.

"What I want to know is the truth. Just tell me what happened."

'This isn't what I expected.'

He had expected absurd fault-finding. Hyeonyul dulled the edge he had so sharply honed.

"To give you the conclusion first, yes, I did attack him."

He had struck the back of the man's head. That was an attack, wasn't it?

Haeryeon controlled her expression at those words.

'Did he... cause trouble?'

She was itching to speak.

"But it's too early to focus on that alone. First, I was on my way to work when a disturbance broke out. Two members of Team Four were arguing, and a large crowd gathered around them."

Hyeonho nodded at Hyeonyul's account.

"I don't know who it was, but apparently a colleague in Team Four died. Because of that, one of them entered what I believe was a rampage state."

"...?"

Haeryeon looked at Hyeonho in surprise. He only let out a long sigh. Her gaze deepened as she watched him.

"... Is that why you barged in unannounced?"

"Yes. I... lost my reason for a moment."

Hyeonho answered Haeryeon's question slowly, then looked at Hyeonyul.

"I'd like you to continue."

"He used his power on everyone there. It seemed to immobilize the body. I told him to come to his senses, but he wasn't in his right mind, so I struck the back of his head and knocked him unconscious."

"Is that all?"

"That's all."

"Understood."

Hyeonho let out another long sigh. For a moment, he looked utterly exhausted.

"First, I apologize for our Team Four's inappropriate behavior. And for what I did earlier, too."

Hyeonyul didn't appear to be lying. Years as a Team Leader gave one an eye for such things.

Hyeonho stood up.

"I'm sorry for arriving so suddenly."

He finished apologizing to Haeryeon as well.

This was his first time seeing Team Three's new recruit in person, but the man's eyes were different. They were the eyes of a killer. Anyone could see he didn't belong here. Hyeonho felt he had no choice but to be concerned, yet for now, he acknowledged Team Three's recruit.

"... And thank you for stopping him."

He had stopped a team member who had lost his reason from making an even worse choice. Despite the crowd, it was Team Three's new recruit who had stepped forward. That fact meant a great deal to Hyeonho.

"You don't need to see me out. Just buy me a drink sometime."

After saying goodbye to Haeryeon, Hyeonho left the room.

Even after Hyeonho had left, Haeryeon couldn't tear her gaze away for a long while.

"Does this sort of thing happen often?"

"Very often."

"Are you sad when a team member dies?"

"Extremely... terribly sad."

"Don't you replace them?"

"That doesn't bring them back, does it?"

Haeryeon spoke matter-of-factly.

Since they were coworkers, Hyeonyul didn't understand the rest, but he understood that last point. The dead did not return. That was the same for everyone.

"Team Leader. Then will the mission they failed be passed to Team Three?"

With a mission immediately ahead of him, Hyeonyul felt he needed to know.