The multi-purpose room on the 7th floor of Hotel Resid Hillt, where even life itself seemed to have dried up.
The manager who opened the door gave a small bow.
"You can use this space. We'll take care of cleanup afterward. And…"
He handed over a small box.
"These are grooming tools the hotel used. They're old, but we've maintained them well."
"Thank you!"
After another polite bow, the manager left the room.
This level of kindness?
It almost made you want to clap like a seal.
"Wow, talk about a fortress. I thought I might get into the Oriental Suite."
Setting aside propriety between men and women—even joking about it—it wasn't happening.
By now, everyone was probably sprawled out wherever they liked.
No reason to ruin their well-earned rest.
"Cutie, want to sit here?"
"Yeah!"
Momo hopped onto the chair.
Maybe because she was finally about to fix her uneven hair, she looked excited.
'Is… is this really okay?'
Jinhyuk's eyes trembled.
What if it went beyond uneven and ended up completely ruined?
If that happened, he might have to shave his head and go monk mode for a while just to recover.
"No need to worry."
Roche gave a faint smile.
"I wasn't lying about being good at this. I've got a knack for cutting things."
She made a snipping motion with her fingers.
…Wait.
That didn't sound reassuring.
If anything, it made him more uneasy.
"Alright then, let's begin. Ready, cutie?"
"Yep!"
Roche spun the scissors in her hand with flair.
Way too flashy.
She was definitely into the theatrics.
Jinhyuk moved closer and stood nearby.
"I thought you didn't like being close. Isn't this a bit too near?"
He shifted a step.
"So this is your range, Jinhyuk?"
Their eyes met.
Everything she said had this double meaning that made it hard to read her—but one thing was clear.
She was trained.
The way she gauged distance, tracked movement—it was instinct.
Just like Camilla said. Not normal.
"Shall I really start?"
Humming to herself, Roche began cutting.
Momo, equally excited, swung her legs and sang along.
Before long, she got so into it she started shaking her head side to side.
Jinhyuk flinched, expecting disaster.
But nothing went wrong.
Roche didn't tell her to stay still.
Didn't hold her head in place.
She just adjusted naturally, matching Momo's movements with each snip.
Jinhyuk didn't know much about hair, but he was sure of one thing.
She was skilled.
Snip, snip—the crisp sound filled the room.
Mixed in was a loud slurp.
Momo was aggressively drinking something through a straw.
When did she even take that out?!
Crunch, crunch.
Moments later, she started munching on snacks too.
'Maybe it's a good thing salons are closed.'
A strange sense of relief washed over him.
No normal salon could handle someone this free-spirited.
"Ta-da!"
Less than thirty minutes later,
Roche stepped back and spread her arms.
"Woooooow!!"
Momo jumped up from the chair.
Her flaring nostrils said everything—she loved it.
Not just a little. A lot.
"Momo's perfectly symmetrical straight bob—what do you think?!"
She declared it proudly.
Jinhyuk gave a thumbs up.
Not just for show.
Even to his untrained eye, it looked great.
Clean lines, no uneven bits, and the style fit her round face perfectly.
"Well? I'm a pro, right?"
"You really are. Where did you learn?"
"I didn't."
"…What?"
"First time cutting human hair. I just knew I'd be good at it."
"…Oh."
The confidence was unsettling.
Still, the result spoke for itself.
"Here, drink this, unnie!"
Momo pulled out a tea set from her bag and laid it out.
Within a minute, a warm, earthy aroma filled the room.
"I'm gonna go show everyone!"
She jumped off the chair and ran for the door.
"Momo, your key card—…huh?"
It was gone.
Momo waved it from her hand while running.
Of course.
Her hands were faster than the eye.
With her around, even Europe's pickpockets wouldn't stand a chance.
She'd probably rob them instead.
The room fell quiet, like a storm had just passed.
Jinhyuk bowed his head.
"Thank you. I didn't know what to do about her uneven hair. You saved me."
"No problem. I had fun. Now, how about some tea? I just styled your cutie—you won't turn that down, right?"
"Of course not. Want to step outside?"
"Sounds good."
They carried the tray out to the 7th-floor terrace.
The entire city of Reykjavik stretched out before them.
Kind staff, great views—this hotel was perfect.
Jinhyuk mentally bookmarked the name.
He'd bring his parents here someday.
Yoo Jinhui… depending on how she behaved.
"Mmm. Nice."
Roche sipped her tea with a smile.
The leaves Momo had swiped from the private jet seemed to suit her taste.
"Want some? We have plenty."
"No, it's fine. Drinking alone gets boring."
She clinked her cup lightly against his.
"I'll come find you when I want some. Drink with me then."
"Anytime."
Roche leaned back, a faint smile playing on her lips.
"Beautiful city, isn't it?"
"Yeah. Though it's emptier than I expected."
"It wasn't like this a couple months ago."
"Where did everyone go?"
"They left. To survive."
"…From what?"
Roche's expression darkened slightly.
"Something changed. Something deadly—especially for a port city like Reykjavik."
She pulled up an article on her phone.
The title read: "The Sea Ran Dry."
"The city's livelihood depends on the ocean—fishing, seafood processing, marine tourism, aquaculture. But all of it vanished. Everything that made those industries possible."
The article confirmed it.
Lobsters, salmon, dolphins—gone.
All of them.
Jinhyuk frowned.
Was that even possible?
"Sounds unbelievable, right? Like magic. Iceland went into emergency mode. They investigated everything. Pollution wasn't the cause—no oil spills, and the waters were still pristine. Even the Tower had nothing to do with it this time. Their transitions are tightly controlled."
"Mass death, maybe?"
"No bodies were found."
Roche's expression grew strange.
"After eliminating everything else, Iceland reached one conclusion. This wasn't interference. It was migration. A natural response for survival."
She showed him images.
Aerial shots of the ocean.
"That's a pod of orcas. Thousands of them. Probably every orca in the surrounding waters."
"They're moving away… from here."
"Exactly. Desperately. There's only one time in recorded history when orcas behaved like this. Soon after, a massive underwater volcanic eruption wiped out the entire area."
Jinhyuk stared out at the calm sea.
It looked peaceful.
Too peaceful.
"This is just my theory," Roche said. "But I think the government found something. The cause of all this. And then… erased it. Every article, every report. Like they were hiding it."
"That's why this is on a personal blog."
"Exactly."
She handed him a business card.
United States National Marine Research Institute.
Roche Taylor.
"I came to find out what it is."
Jinhyuk looked between the card and her.
Marine research?
It didn't fit.
CIA would've made more sense.
"That's enough about me. Now—"
"Thanks for the story. I'll be going."
"????"
For the first time, Roche's calm expression cracked.
"Kidding."
Jinhyuk sat back down.
She let out a small laugh.
"So now it's your turn?"
"If there's nothing to hide."
"One question first."
"Go ahead."
"Why me?"
"You stole my Oriental Suite."
…Right.
Totally believable.
She smiled softly.
"I'm serious. Only Black Wings could've taken that room at this timing. Which means they brought someone important. And if you came here suddenly, it's not for tourism."
"…You're not just a marine researcher, are you?"
"Are you underestimating marine researchers?"
She leaned back, eyes on the sea.
"I'm looking for something. And now… I think it might be connected to what Iceland is hiding."
A black dragon like Drakan—something like that could easily disrupt marine ecosystems.
If it was involved, mass migration made sense.
Top predator.
Still… if the government was involved…
Jinhyuk reconsidered his plan.
Instead of killing it—
Maybe just steal a claw.
If someone else killed it first?
He could just sneak in and take one.
One claw wouldn't matter, right?
'Perfect.'
As he finished organizing his thoughts,
Roche leaned forward.
"So, what do you do, Jinhyuk?"
"A normal citizen of South Korea."
"Normal citizens don't have private jets."
"Just lucky enough to meet the right people."
"Hmmm."
She nodded slowly.
"You're not going to tell me what you're looking for."
"Correct."
"Fine then. How about a temporary alliance?"
"No."
She didn't look surprised.
If anything, she looked amused.
"I'll take you to Greenland."
That caught his attention.
Good thing he didn't have animal ears.
They would've perked up instantly.
Her hand slid over his.
"Temporary alliance confirmed, right?"
Jinhyuk flipped his hand and clasped hers.
"Confirmed."
First things first—
Greenland.
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T/N:
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