* * *

“Hmm.”

Haeryeon hesitated for a moment. How should she explain this? Returning to her seat first, she toyed with her permed hair.

“For starters, it won't come straight to us. Not unless it's an extremely urgent mission. The mission failed, and there must have been a reason. What Team Leader would send their people straight back in there?”

“There must be a cause for the failure. Couldn't we investigate that?”

“They'll be sharing that information now, won't they? Even Team Leaders don't know every mission inside out. We don't have the time, for one thing.”

“Then I'll go.”

At Hyeonyul's offer, Haeryeon's expression went blank. She looked as though she might turn deathly pale at any moment.

Her reaction was different from usual, so Hyeonyul reconsidered his words, wondering if he had said something wrong. But his argument wasn't mistaken.

“I don't believe there's any team available to take that mission right now anyway.”

“Probably not. But is there a reason it has to be you?”

“No.”

“... No? There isn't?”

“No. What reason do I need to kill villains? I simply can't stand the sight of those bastards gloating over the Black Eagles' failure.”

It didn't simply end with a failed mission. The impact of that failure was immense. It changed so much.

“The mission didn't merely fail. A Black Eagle died. That faction will feed on that fact and grow very rapidly. It's something for them to boast about.”

He was using the Poison King's faction to destroy other villain factions, but there were many of them, spread over a vast area.

“Even just comparing our numbers, aren't the Black Eagles woefully short-handed?”

“We are. Terribly so.”

“Fear of the Black Eagles is what's making the villains hesitate.”

But how long would that fear last? Wasn't it obvious just from the fact that the Nest, the Black Eagles' headquarters, stood at the entrance to the capital region? It meant they had to hold this place at all costs.

If the Black Eagles couldn't stop the villains, war could break out. And if war broke out, everything the villains had been holding back would spill out. The Black Eagles were the last bulwark against all manner of misery.

“Then as now, there is only one way to crush villains. Overwhelming force.”

That was all. Haeryeon surely knew it was the only way, too.

“Just send me. I will never lose until the villains have been wiped from this land. I'll slaughter them.”

Hyeonyul gave a faint smile.

His wish was the same now as it had been in the past: to kill every last one of the bastards who had made him this way. If it was a mission dangerous enough to kill a Black Eagle, perhaps he could pick up their trail. He couldn't help thinking that.

“You're still on probation, Hyeonyul. I have to send someone with you.”

“Team Leader, I know you treat me as a new recruit. I'm not trying to deny that. But you know I'm practically an experienced hire, don't you?”

He was a former villain. With a Black Eagle dead, what was there to consider? They had to be wiped out either way.

“I know that too. You're remarkable. And honestly, that's why I'm tempted. But how can I assign you to the mission when we don't even have the investigation results yet?”

She would have to clear his existing assignment and send him out on another mission. Surely reason would reassert itself in the process.

“Sending you alone doesn't make sense in the first place. It goes against common sense.”

'Common sense...'

Hyeonyul let out a long breath. He almost wondered whether her view of villains was too wholesome. Or did she not understand how to make use of him?

'What should I do?'

After a brief moment's thought, Hyeonyul dropped a bombshell to sway Haeryeon. It was something that should have been utterly impossible.

“A noble is involved with the villains.”

“... What?”

“The Bomber is a noble.”

“...”

Haeryeon felt more than confusion. She felt sick. How? How could this happen? It felt as though something had shattered—a truth that should never have been broken.

“Do you feel your common sense being turned upside down now?”

“... How did you confirm that?”

“I went there myself and confirmed it. To be honest, I gave a great deal of thought to whether I should tell you. I thought you would stop me.”

At Hyeonyul's answer, all sorts of words swirled through Haeryeon's mind. How? That word circled insistently. She looked at Hyeonyul. He was looking at her too. There was so much she wanted to know, but she had to keep her promise not to ask how he had done it.

“How close did you get?”

“Are you going to stop me?”

“It's hard to stop something you've already begun, isn't it? You're surprisingly stubborn, Hyeonyul.”

Haeryeon smiled gently.

“Am I?”

“More than anything, this is... such a shock to me personally that part of me doesn't want you to stop. In fact, we absolutely have to get to the bottom of it.”

A noble. How could that word possibly come up here?

“I didn't kill anyone in the process of finding out.”

Hyeonyul told her the truth. He had merely talked to the Bomber and gotten injured himself. Even today, he had patiently endured all that bullshit about life being dull before leaving.

“I've told you, Team Leader, but the Black Eagles must not act on this.”

“I know. We can't act on this.”

Haeryeon couldn't help immediately thinking of the interests involved. This was tied to the power the Empire wielded. Even if nobility was only a rank, a noble was still a noble. They were indeed a privileged class.

“The Black Eagles were founded with the nobles' fervent support. They had no reason to oppose driving out villains.”

“What happens if the situation changes?”

“Do you know what makes nobles nobles, Hyeonyul?”

“They're a privileged class to begin with. Isn't it because of money?”

“That's part of it, but there's something more special.”

“What is it?”

“Nobility is a rank bestowed on people recognized for exceptional service to this Empire in past wars. What makes nobles special is a special law that allows them to depose even the emperor if they unanimously agree. It's a check on imperial power, and a gift the first emperor gave the nobles.”

“So you're saying that if someone lays a hand on a noble, the Empire attacks?”

“That's right. If the Empire doesn't act, the nobles will threaten it with the means they hold to force its hand. The Empire itself has no choice but to act. Whatever else a faction might tolerate, it can't tolerate attacks on its own people, can it?”

Hyeonyul nodded in response. In the end, they were bound to protect their own.

“... It's a world I simply can't understand.”

Haeryeon spoke quietly.

Hyeonyul himself knew little about nobles, so he had nothing to say. He changed the subject back.

“What mission was Team Four assigned?”

“Hmm...”

Haeryeon still hesitated. Honestly, the details of the mission didn't seem important to Hyeonyul. All that seemed to matter was that they were villains.

“Wait a moment. I'll find out first.”

“Yes, understood.”

Haeryeon rose and entered the room where she'd left her phone. It was three minutes before the start of work. She gave a small laugh at the fact that no one but Hyeonyul had arrived yet. They had always been like that, but with Hyeonyul invariably arriving fifteen to thirty minutes early, perhaps she had already grown used to it.

Just as she was about to call the White Sparrows to ask, Haeryeon stopped and checked the messages Juhyeon had sent.

[Juhyeon: Unni. Look at this.]

[Juhyeon: Are they fucking insane?]

[Juhyeon: I took it down, but this is still unacceptable.]

Narrowing her eyes slightly, Haeryeon watched the video Juhyeon had forwarded. The camera shook, but it was filming the Black Eagles from above. White Sparrows were desperately carrying away a limp Black Eagle while the other Black Eagles covered their retreat.

<“You dumb fucks! Running away?”>

<“Didn't you come to catch us? But we killed you!”>

<“This is our turf now! Just try coming back, you chicken-shit bastards! You'll all fucking die!”>

The abuse and mockery directed at the Black Eagles continued.

“... Crazy bastards.”

Looking at her phone, Haeryeon seemed ready to smash it at any moment.

She exhaled a long breath, then called Juhyeon.

“That video is from Team Four's latest mission, right?”

<“It is, but Unni, you're not thinking of taking it on, are you? We still don't know why they failed. You know things change when a Black Eagle dies, no matter how urgent the mission is.”>

“I know.”

<“Unni, you sound a little... worrying right now.”>

“Juhyeon, do you happen to know what the case is?”

<“I do, but you're not going to take it on, are you?”>

“Juhyeon.”

<“... Ha. It's an attack on a hospital. The patients have been taken hostage, and they have one demand.”>

“What's that?”

<“The Black Eagles' surrender. They say they'll release the hostages if we just say we surrender.”>

Haeryeon's face twisted at that bullshit. Surrender? What kind of absurd sophistry was that? Were they trying to turn it into something to mock?

“Are the hostages even alive?”

<“They say they are.”>

“All right. Thanks for telling me, Juhyeon.”

Haeryeon ended the call and came back out.

“What's wrong?”

Seeing Haeryeon's grim expression, Hyeonyul couldn't help asking.

'... What do I do about this?'

It was a hospital. Having already killed a Black Eagle, they were certain to be viciously emboldened. It was difficult to expect the patients to resist. Even delaying would cause considerable harm.

'What about bombs... Are there any?'

Bombs and drugs. Those two were common. She always had to consider them. It wouldn't be strange to assume both were present from the outset.

As Hyeonyul turned his gaze toward the door, Sinu came in.

“... What's with the atmosphere? Things seemed unsettled on my way here.”

Sinu sauntered over, his expression making it clear he knew nothing.

“A member of Team Four died.”

Sinu froze at Haeryeon's words, halfway through pulling out a chair to sit down.

“... Why did they die?”

Sinu's expression contorted at once, drawing Hyeonyul's gaze.

“Beyond the fact that they died on a mission, the reason hasn't been established.”

At Haeryeon's answer, Sinu let out a long sigh. Hyeonyul found it difficult to tell what that sigh meant. If he had to guess, it seemed closer to relief.

“So that's why everything felt like this.”

Sinu nodded several times. Unlike when he had arrived, his expression was dark.

“What kind of mission was it?”

“Interested?”

Haeryeon subtly sounded him out. Sinu's eyes immediately narrowed.

“Team Leader, you can't do that. Even if they weren't on our team, the standing rule was that when a Black Eagle dies, we don't participate in the mission until the cause of the failure is established—”

“Hyeonyul says he wants to take that mission. His original assignment was a search mission, though.”

Not content with singling Hyeonyul out by name, Haeryeon openly pointed at him.

“... What?”

Sinu looked at Hyeonyul in surprise. When Hyeonyul nodded, he immediately spoke.

“... Wait, why do you want to take a dangerous mission?”

“We can find out whether it's dangerous when we get there.”

“Even if the Black Eagles have a high mortality rate, we still don't die that easily. There's a reason for every death. I'm not trying to stop you for nothing!”

Sinu looked frustrated enough to pound his chest.

“From what I heard of the two Team Four members' conversation, they seem to have a power that suppresses abilities.”

[“I definitely, definitely used my power! I did! I pinned the villains' feet down! I did!”]

They had said this outcome occurred because the power had been used but hadn't worked.

“Suppresses... abilities?”

Haeryeon asked, raising her eyebrows.

“Yes. I believe 'misfire' might fit the situation. It means things went differently from what they expected because they couldn't use their powers as they wished.”

'... A villain who suppresses powers.'

Haeryeon sank into thought. Something hovered just beyond the reach of her memory.

“My power is difficult to suppress under most circumstances.”

It was a power created through countless drugs. He had been told that the powers people used now were the result of experiments carried out by the Empire. Since they wouldn't have used the same experiments, the foundations were different from the start. It meant that even if someone used that power against him, it wouldn't work, because his own power was different at its roots. His damaged mind played a part too, but this factor couldn't be ignored.

“Team Leader, won't things like today keep happening?”

Why had Bong Hyeonho, Team Four's leader, come to see him, even going so far as to behave rudely? Because Hyeonyul was a villain.

“If I don't do this, they won't believe I'm a Black Eagle. So I'll do my best in my own way.”

In truth, he didn't care about that part. Jeongmin kept worrying about it too, but all Hyeonyul wanted was to prevent yet another new villain faction from growing. He had to cut it off at the bud.

“Then I'll go with him. Hyeonyul is still on probation.”

As Sinu raised his hand, Haeryeon exhaled.

“Oh, Team Leader. How many people can we send on this mission?”

“... Two. I can spare two at most. The other missions are urgent too, so no more than that.”

That situation was urgent, but so were the others. Losing even two people was already an enormous blow.

“It's fine. Chu Nayun and Jihwan can work twice as hard. Isn't that what teammates are for?”

Sinu smiled brightly, answering as though it were someone else's problem.

For a moment, Hyeonyul stared at him as though he were looking at something evil.

“I-I'm kidding! Just kidding!”

Belatedly startled by Hyeonyul's gaze, Sinu recoiled. It looked as though Hyeonyul might kill him at any moment.