Chapter 192
Chapter 192
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 192
Chapter Title: #192. If You're Going to Hand It Over
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Jonathan Kudo headed straight for the drawer.
He yanked open the first drawer and checked the revolver inside. This guy was a repeat offender. I was convinced as I watched the senior inspect the revolver's rounds.
I couldn't just toss away my father's keepsake.
Though if my heart had its way, I'd chuck it out.
I turned off the game console and stood up with a faint smile.
"Kudo Senior."
Kudo, who had been rummaging through the drawers, looked up.
"I've checked all the rounds, so no need to worry."
"Jonathan."
Hm?
I didn't immediately grasp Kudo's curt response.
A beat later, I realized he was telling me to call him Jonathan instead of Kudo Senior.
...This feels awkward.
"...Kudo?"
"Jonathan."
"...Jonathan Senior."
"Jonathan."
...He's stubborn.
Ricardo buried his face in one hand, his body shaking. He was clearly relishing this brief exchange to the fullest.
I wondered every time—what on earth had changed him like this?
After hesitating, I barely pried open my reluctant mouth.
"...Jonathan."
Kudo gave a short nod.
He then approached the table with the game console, picked up Ricardo's phone, and started swiping through the screen as if it were his own.
Ricardo straightened up and lounged back on the sofa.
"Stop calling me, you crazy bastard~.... Hand over my phone too."
"You're heading out of the Core tomorrow?"
He was checking the mission schedule saved on the phone.
"I'll have to tell the HR Director to reassign personnel."
Instead of answering, Ricardo snatched the phone away.
Then he kicked Kudo's leg.
Crack!
The sound was tremendous, but Kudo didn't dodge.
His expression didn't change either. It must have hurt quite a bit.
Anyway, now Kudo would take good care of him.
I quietly prepared to leave while Ricardo vented his genuine irritation and Kudo calmly took it in stride. I finished the game and removed the game chip.
Time to go home.
I need to think things over once I'm back.
I'd been trying not to show it, but I was wrapped in confusion right now.
Something was on the verge of surfacing in my memory.
Something crucially important that I'd forgotten. Probably the reason I hated Colton.
The Jade Throne seemed to symbolize Colton. Considering Jaeyeon had said this game was her favorite.
But I couldn't pinpoint the source of the hatred. It felt like it was right there on the tip of my mind, yet not quite.
If I could just recall this, I'd remember everything.
Maybe things would be different when I wake up.
Crash!
Whoa.
Scary. The atmosphere was turning downright hostile.
I cleaned up the shattered espresso cup while glancing at the seniors.
"Just try passing a message to the HR Director.... I'll smash every antique in your house...."
"Missions exiting B Zone into A Zone are among the highest-risk assignments."
Kudo stared squarely at Ricardo, whose anger was boiling over.
"Isn't going out in this mental state a burden on the team too?"
Kudo Senior.... no, Jonathan. Could you soften your words a bit?
I swallowed my urge to speak, pocketed the game chip. The living room's mood rapidly soured.
I'd forgotten that this stone-faced man had even less social grace than Yoon.
Should I intervene?
Can I even intervene?
As I pondered, Jonathan spoke.
"I've heard humanoid Creatures have been appearing frequently in A Zone lately."
My hand stopped while wrapping the shards in tissue.
"Requesting a mission swap or postponement seems appropriate."
Come to think of it, Jonathan Kudo doesn't know what I am.
Being surrounded by people who did know had made me momentarily forget reality. The feeling of being fully accepted down to my core was truly pleasant.
I tossed the wrapped tissue with the glass shards and stood up.
"That's for the higher-ups to decide~."
I need to keep a proper distance from Kudo.
"Who the hell are you to tell me whether to go on a mission or not~?"
"It's not an order. It's advice."
Kudo turned his head sharply toward me after responding.
"Hilde."
"Yes?"
"Are you on the same mission tomorrow?"
"Yes. I am."
"Go home and rest."
His voice was steady and resolute.
"It's tough even in top condition."
I wonder how he'd react if he knew I brought my kin to Earth?
He was the type who couldn't let go of those who'd left, clutching even their clones. The type who'd rush over the moment a mission ended, smashing the front door just in case he missed those who hadn't left.
If it weren't for me, he might have lived with everything in his grasp.
Isn't it absurd for me to step into that line of his?
Part of me didn't want to see his face stained with betrayal anymore.
"Thank you."
I smiled faintly.
"Then I'll be going now."
I need to maintain boundaries as much as possible.
I bowed my head and walked toward the broken front door. Autumn morning sunlight poured over the splintered door.
I fled urgently into the bright sunlight.
Ricardo seemed about to say something, but I pretended not to notice.
***
Yoon's call woke me from sleep.
[Godfather?]
He got straight to the point.
Still lying in bed, I rubbed my face.
"...Yeah, something like that."
[How far are you planning to expand the family tree?]
"It was already tangled up from the start."
Even after waking, the source of my hatred didn't come to mind.
I stared blankly at the ceiling and replied. It felt like something was stuck in my brain. Far from pleasant.
And I have a mission tomorrow.
I switched to speakerphone and covered my face with both hands.
No desire to move from the bed.
"Ye-hyeon said it—how could I refuse?"
[If you didn't want to, you should've refused.]
"I did want to. I just didn't have the nerve to say it outright."
[Is that so?]
Yeah, that's right.
[Well, since things turned out this way, I'll have to use formal speech with you in private too.]
"No, come on."
I sat up abruptly, dead serious.
"Please don't do that."
Just imagining it gave me chills.
But Yoon ignored my plea. The man immediately started using formal speech with me. Only after I begged over the phone did he revert to his usual tone.
But seriously, did he call just to talk about this?
[I'll be joining tomorrow's mission instead of Ami.]
Ah, as expected.
He wouldn't call for something so trivial.
I quietly despaired at the fact that a high-functioning sociopath was joining the mission instead of the light and salt of my life.
[Your dislike is way too obvious.]
"I didn't say anything, Senior."
[I can feel it in the silence.]
Busted.
I clicked my tongue and sighed.
"No other personnel changes?"
[Probably not. No other notices.]
So Ricardo's coming as scheduled too.
I don't know what triggered him, but either the HR Director didn't see it as a mission issue, or Kudo didn't pass the word.
I glanced at the paper cup on the bedside table. It was filled with rounds taken from the revolver.
Not sure if that'll be okay.
But wait, then the mission team is Ricardo Sordi, Karl Dow, Sophia Kallak, and Choi Yoon.
"Can you get along with Sophia Kallak Senior?"
[As long as I don't talk nonsense. How many people want to kill Ye-hyeon?]
"...Besides Jaeyeon and Kallak Senior, anyone else? Will we even be able to communicate properly throughout the mission?"
[That's probably why the HR Director made you squad leader.]
For a moment, I couldn't process Yoon's words.
I didn't get it for a long while.
As I sat speechless, Yoon broke the silence with a "Hey."
[Get a grip.]
"I must have misheard, Senior."
[A Zone is full of Creatures without official classifications. Don't you, with the most knowledge on the enemy, need to be squad leader?]
"I'm a rookie though?"
The generation gap is huge right now.
This was insubordination on a whole other level. It was an utterly absurd decision. I had no idea who made it.
But Yoon brushed off my protests with the invincible line that upper decisions are absolute.
After throwing a fit, I gave up and flopped back onto the bed.
I'd slept a long nap, and it was already evening.
"Oh, I cracked K's Easter egg. Got I and R too, so look up the names for me."
[What was the content?]
I relayed the contents of Kairos's letter.
My stomach churned again. A mix of emotions. Overwhelming hope and joy that my kin might be alive inside the Core, and an unfathomable fear that it might all fall apart.
Hatred toward Colton.
A hazy silhouette from the past, teasingly on the verge of clarity.
It felt like it would burst with just the right trigger.
"I'm feeling like I'm stuck in that snowflake phenomenon continuously."
[Don't waste energy on nothing. Prepare for tomorrow's mission.]
I already miss Ami.
Even after the call ended, I lay in bed for a long time. Thinking I should stop by Ami's hospital room before heading to the mission site tomorrow.
***
Heading to the assembly point with my sword, I found Sophia already there.
I'd thought I was first. Sophia, sitting on a metal chair cleaning her gun, glanced up briefly.
I bowed my head politely.
"Good day."
She didn't return the greeting.
The senior returned indifferently to her gun maintenance.
I hadn't expected one anyway, so I wasn't surprised.
I just walked in casually and sat on the farthest metal chair.
We were gathering in HQ's conference room. Researchers were preparing the portal to transport us from the portal zone. We'd meet in the conference room for a briefing before the portal activated.
But seriously, me as squad leader?
I barely knew how the highest-difficulty 'scouting' op among reconnaissance tasks worked, or what gear was needed.
Who made me squad leader?
Lost in gloom, I missed Ami.
Ami was... still not allowed Frappuccinos.
[Oppa buys Frappuccinos every day to tease me!]
Just minutes ago, she'd vented her raw fury.
[He hates sweet drinks so much, but he keeps buying Frappuccinos and slurping them right in front of me!]
Choi Yoon was dead serious about teasing his sister.
At least her wound was healing smoothly. Yoon said she was recovering well enough for him to go on missions worry-free.
Still, a heavy guilt weighed on me every time I saw Ami. I tried not to show it in front of her.
Gotta catch the culprit no matter what.
Gripping my sword, I sank deep into thought.
Only when the three seniors entered together did I snap out.
"Squad leader~."
Ricardo stood in the doorway, grinning crookedly at me.
"Take good care of us this mission~."
"Just kill me already."
"I heard you were a Knight Commander. You'll do great. Skills are top-notch."
"We'll listen well, so no worries, Captain."
Seeing my despair, Karl spoke flatly, while Yoon grinned and used formal speech.
I clutched my head in defeat.
We hadn't even started the meeting or anything.
Until Sophia Kallak spoke coldly.
"I'm pulling out of the Task Force after this mission."
Heads turned.
"I don't trust myself not to point my gun at that thing."
"Sophia."
"You heard too, right? That it's the ringleader."
The senior replied coldly, staring straight into Karl's blue eyes.
Her straight black hair swayed.
"I can't endure having a Creature boss right in front of me. That's what I realized in this conference room just now. After this mission, I'm out."
"The moment you fail to endure, your head flies."
Yoon said flatly without even looking at Sophia.
But she wasn't fazed. She just rolled her eyes coldly toward me, her gaze filled with justified, longstanding hatred. I met the senior's eyes.
The sorrow of losing a loved one never dilutes.
"Doesn't matter."
Her burning emotions were probably the sole driving force in her life.
"I want to kill them even if it costs me everything. Co-destroying with the enemy is sweeter than a pathetic life."
Those words.
Her words brimming with sincerity.
The words she spoke to me alone, suppressing the impulse to aim her gun at me, her last pride as a Black Badger.
That cold sentence flipped the switch inside me.
The switch that illuminated my fog-shrouded memories.
I remembered the source of my emotions.
"Colton."
My old connection.
My friend.
My nemesis.
The one I'd poured all my strength into killing but ultimately failed to slay.
The one who had to place the entire world at his feet.