At the very moment Lee Sa-young failed, in the real world.
"It's the police! Everyone, get down! Don't resist! Stop praying!"
Personnel in police uniforms swarmed in. They pinned down the followers of Prometheus, who were praying in white robes, and handcuffed them. Click, click, sounds of struggling and shouts erupted from all directions. Taking advantage of the chaos, Honeybee and Gyu-Gyu secretly headed down a back path. She carefully closed the door, looking at Gyu-Gyu with suspicious eyes.
"How did you know the police were going to raid?"
"Huh~? It's obvious. If an awakened subdues civilians, they'll get beaten up by the media later. The Director and Jung Bin-nari would definitely launch a joint operation with the police. They're former police officers, after all."
Gyu-Gyu smiled as he swept his messy hair back. They stood in a long corridor. Gyu-Gyu tossed a caramel into his mouth.
"Alright… shall we part ways here~? You're going to meet Matthew, right? He's probably on the top floor. I recommend you finish this before Jung Bin-nari arrives."
"Where are you going?"
"Well~ just to see if there's anything worth looking for."
He shrugged his shoulders. He was smiling, but there was no hint of playfulness in his expression.
"Among my mercenary comrades, there are some who are addicted to drugs~ There must be a cure for them. Seeing how old man Song Jo-heon is fine even after taking the drug."
Gyu-Gyu rubbed his chin and muttered.
"J brought a kid out last time. That means there must be a research facility somewhere around here…"
"If we just wait, won't the Doctor research it and commercialize it?"
"My dear lady, the thoughts of bad guys are beyond imagination~"
Gyu-Gyu shook his head. He tossed the dice into the air and caught them as he spoke.
"What if they take a grudge and burn all the research records? What if they destroy all the cures? There won't be time to wait to develop them again. We might die before then."
"…"
"That's why I have to step in~ to prevent those bad guys from destroying the evidence."
"Are you thinking of asking that guy? Miracle or whatever his name is?"
"He's under the Director's thumb. He'll be exploited by the Awakened Management Bureau for a while. Poor thing."
Gyu-Gyu headed toward the right door. Then, he pointed his finger toward the stairs for Honeybee.
"Now, go up without getting caught. Deposit the guide fee into my account separately~"
Waving his hand flailingly, he stepped into the darkness. Honeybee watched his retreating figure for a moment before beginning to climb the stairs. She had so much she wanted to say and so many questions she wanted to ask Matthew. Things she wanted to argue about, things she wanted to get angry at, things she wanted to be grateful for. All sorts of thoughts jumbled in her mind.
Until she reached the top floor, no one stood in her way. She strode purposefully toward the large, firmly closed door. There was no time to hesitate. Honeybee threw the door open. The heavy door swung open smoothly, as if it had been waiting.
"…"
A man in a silver suit stood before the floor-to-ceiling window. It was the back of the man she had once considered reliable, the one she thought would make life as a hunter bearable with him by her side. Honeybee spoke in a low, husky voice.
"Mok Tae-oh."
"You've come."
Mok Tae-oh, Matthew, turned to face her. Honeybee aimed her rapier without hesitation.
"Since when?"
"…"
"Since when have you been doing this kind of thing?"
"…"
"Answer me, Mok Tae-oh!"
Her furious shout echoed through the room. Matthew looked down at her with an indifferent expression. A cold voice asked.
"What is the meaning behind that question?"
"…What?"
"Just as you and I were of the same mind, Prometheus and I were simply of the same mind. Honeybee."
He walked slowly toward her. Tap, tap, the sound of his footsteps echoed loudly.
"Do you think I betrayed you?"
His face was the same as usual. It was the indifferent yet slightly troubled look he wore whenever Honeybee barged into the Guild Leader's office without warning.
"Two people who hated awakeners came together to form a guild, and we stayed together. I helped you learn to love yourself as an awakener. I have never betrayed you."
"But…!"
"You changed your mind. You came to love Honeybee, the hunter. I couldn't change. I still despise myself. That is the only difference."
He walked slowly. His steps were quiet, unbefitting of his large frame.
"Awakeners must disappear from this world. The world's order was shattered with the emergence of the awakened. Those without abilities are weeded out, while those with abilities are treated well."
"…That was the case even before the awakened appeared."
"Yes. But that was an invisible hierarchy. Now, everyone is assigned a rank by the alphabet. Those who are not awakened are pushed further back and alienated."
"…"
"Do you know how many services recently are exclusively for the awakened, preferential for the awakened, or priority for the awakened? What about the difference in the amount of information accessible to the awakened and non-awakened? Non-awakeners are not even fair in terms of information."
"It's all sophistry."
Matthew stopped walking. He answered indifferently.
"Yes, everything I've said so far is just sweet talk Prometheus used to entice people. There are quite a few people who are drawn to such simple words."
Matthew slowly approached Honeybee. His shadow enveloped Honeybee. His eyes behind his glasses were empty.
"Prometheus hates the awakened. They want to eliminate all of them. And after countless studies, they reached a conclusion. It is impossible to eliminate all awakeners. Unless the world is destroyed. In that case, let's destroy the world."
"…"
"That's where we agreed. I had a diary written by my sister. Her son remembered the destroyed world. I don't know if he had a special ability or if he just remembered it by bad luck. Every night, in a feverish state, he would talk about the scenery of that world."
Matthew's eyes grew dark.
"My sister thought it was a form of mental illness, so she wrote down everything her son said in the diary to show a doctor. And on the day I awakened, she called me in for counseling."
Honeybee bit his lip. On the day he awakened, he couldn't control his powers and set his sister's apartment on fire. The only survivor was the very person who started the fire, Mok Tae-oh. That fact was quietly buried.
"All I had left was the diary. And Prometheus desperately wanted the diary. That record contains information about the apocalypse. I made a deal. That record was used to create a false seer."
"Why…"
Blood pooled in her bitten lip. Honeybee muttered through her torn lips.
"Why are you telling me this?"
"Because you are the only one who can do this."
A faint smile appeared on his face. Matthew gripped the tip of her rapier and brought it to his neck. A stream of blood flowed from the neck pierced by the sharp blade.
Mok Tae-oh whispered softly.
"Kill me, Yoo Chae-hyun."
Honeybee's shoulders twitched at being called by her real name. Empty eyes reflected Honeybee.
"My intentions, my purpose, and all the information. You will tell Jung Bin. Because that is what I told you to do."
The hand holding the rapier trembled. She asked in a trembling voice.
"Why… did you speak to me that day?"
"…"
"Why didn't you let me be broken and instead speak to me? Why did you ask me to be a hunter with you?"
Honeybee cried out like a scream.
"Why?!"
Mok Tae-oh closed his eyes. A low voice answered.
"It was just a whim. It had no great significance."
"…"
"A meaningless act. That is all."
Honeybee pulled the rapier out of his grip. Her vision kept blurring. She composed her rapid breathing and tightened her grip on the rapier. In fencing, composure and reaction speed are crucial. She hadn't forgotten. She had never forgotten.
The thin sword sliced sharply through the air.
Tap, tap, tap, hurried footsteps echoed. Jung Bin rushed through the open door. The first thing he saw was a figure slumped on the floor from behind. With disheveled blonde hair and a leather jacket, it was Honeybee. A pool of red blood was visible around her. Jung Bin signaled his subordinates following behind to stop, then approached her.
"Honeybee-nim…"
"…"
In front of her lay Matthew, arms outstretched. His glasses were crooked, and a deep stab wound remained on his right chest. The pool of blood was his.
Honeybee staggered to her feet. She muttered in a hoarse voice.
"I avoided the vital spot. I sprayed some potion as well."
Thump, a strong grip tightened around Jung Bin's shoulder. Honeybee's eyes gleamed sharply.
"Don't you dare kill that bastard. Make him survive to the very end, tenaciously, and pathetically."
"…"
"Promise me."
When Jung Bin fell silent, Honeybee pushed his shoulder and shouted.
"Promise me!"
"…Understood, Honeybee-nim."
Thwack, she let go of Jung Bin's shoulder. Then, staggering past the hunters. An agent signaled to Jung Bin, but Jung Bin shook his head, meaning no need to follow.
Jung Bin knelt on one knee and adjusted Matthew's glasses.
"…That is what she said, Matthew-nim."
His chest heaved slightly. Jung Bin smiled with a look of pity.
"Since I've already made the promise… I will follow Honeybee-nim's orders."
Black chains bound Matthew's wrists. Matthew did not resist. He simply closed his eyes and accepted it all.