"...If you want to become an exceptional combatant, you need to know how to work with a team, too."
YuHan had gathered the Center's handful of employees for yet another one of his lengthy lectures.
When he pulled up something resembling a bizarre string of code on the holographic display, Yi Rang frowned at it.
"What the hell is this?"
"...How do you not know this? It's MTP. Mana Team Protocol. What the hell did you even do at your old job?"
"Th-Those assholes did nothing but work me to the bone! They were Kim JeHyeon's brainwashed lackeys in the first place!"
While Yi Rang protested, Alice studied the structure and quickly figured out what it was for.
"Is this some kind of program?
Something that lets teammates pass buffs and mana between each other..."
"As expected of our Director. You're sharp. Then again, you are an AI."
Everyone had different aptitudes for magic, but anyone could at least release mana.
That simple fact had led to the development of a universal form of mana programming, with mana release represented as "1" and no release as "0".
Of course, nobody was manually flipping individual bits in the middle of combat.
All the user had to do was maintain a tiny flow of mana. A dedicated app would modulate that flow automatically and encode it into signals.
"Everyone has magic resistance. Too much, and even your allies' magic has trouble getting through. Too little, and you're wide open to enemy magic.
That's why we need something like this.
Once you're all done installing it, I'll show you how to use it..."
Alice downloaded the app from the official app store and, just to be safe, ran her own virus scan.
Nothing seemed wrong.
Alice was grateful that, for once, they had a tool she could actually trust!
"...Oh, and one more thing. People hack these things in combat all the time, so don't rely on it too much."
Alice's gratitude evaporated on the spot.
Yi Rang was already fighting to keep her increasingly heavy eyelids open through YuHan's lecture.
Kim GaEun, meanwhile...
For some reason, she was unusually quiet and subdued today.
Just then, the doorbell rang.
"Shit. Lee SangDeok isn't here to play poker again, is he?"
"No, YuHan. I've never seen this guy before."
Connected to the building's systems, Alice checked the CCTV feed.
A man with glasses and slicked-back hair stood outside alone.
Alice connected to the front-door intercom.
"Who is this?"
[Hwang YoungSeok. I'm currently a researcher with K&R.]
YuHan glanced at the screen when he heard the name.
"...I know him. Let him in."
Alice gave him a suspicious look.
"You're sure we should?"
"What, have people screwed you over that much? You don't trust me?"
"...I've got plenty to say about that, but fine. I'll trust you."
The door opened.
A moment later, Hwang YoungSeok entered the Center alone.
He slowly swept his gaze around the room before settling on one person.
"How have you been, GC-1659...?"
For a moment, Alice had no idea whom he was talking to.
Then she saw Kim GaEun's reaction and immediately understood.
GaEun had bared her fangs and was growling viciously.
"You... Why did you have to show up again...!"
Her voice was low and tightly restrained, but the fury underneath was impossible to hide.
"Who am I? Your creator."
Hwang YoungSeok continued as casually as ever.
"Though I doubt you'd ever call me that... So let's say I'm something like a father to you."
"Fuck off!!"
Whatever restraint Kim GaEun had left snapped.
She lunged straight at Hwang YoungSeok, aiming to tear his throat out.
But her fingertips never reached him.
Her body stopped dead in midair, as though her arms and torso had sunk into something invisible.
She forced herself forward with all her strength, only for the air around her to cling tighter and tighter, like a viscous swamp.
Hwang YoungSeok watched her without so much as blinking.
"I've maximized the viscosity of the air molecules around you."
He studied her for another moment.
"You're looking awfully healthy. I can't decide whether to be glad or sorry."
Kim GaEun ground her teeth and struggled for a while longer, but eventually had no choice but to back down.
Only then did Alice turn to Hwang YoungSeok.
"You said you're with K&R. What exactly are you here for?"
"Ah, my apologies. Allow me to state my business properly, Director Alice."
Hwang YoungSeok straightened slightly.
"I'm here to discuss the recapture of that vicious specimen."
YuHan stepped forward.
"Hey. We agreed I'd take responsibility for rehabilitating her.
This is pretty damn different from what you promised."
"Hardly an agreement. You forced it on us.
Still, I thought you might've changed your mind by now."
Hwang YoungSeok glanced at Kim GaEun.
"That thing was our asset to begin with."
"Asset!? You can't just call a person that!"
Alice immediately protested.
"Director, don't let its cute appearance fool you."
Hwang YoungSeok kept his eyes on Kim GaEun.
"That monster has no heart.
Back then, that thing did things to our research staff that—"
"Hey. That's enough. Don't push her any further."
YuHan cut him off.
Who exactly was YuHan warning him not to provoke?
Kim GaEun?
Or YuHan himself?
Hwang YoungSeok watched YuHan for a moment, then sighed.
"I see you still haven't changed your mind..."
He reached into his coat.
"Part of the reason I came was to warn your colleagues, since they clearly don't know what they're dealing with... And to give you this."
Hwang YoungSeok tossed YuHan a black ring-shaped device and a USB drive.
YuHan caught the ring.
"It's a suppression device. I strongly recommend putting it around her neck."
"I'll decide what to do with it."
"Yeah, right."
Hwang YoungSeok turned away as if there were nothing more to say.
"Then we're done here."
He walked out of the Center.
The instant the door shut behind him, Kim GaEun ground her teeth.
"Fuck... that piece of shit...! Showing up out of nowhere like that...!"
Her face looked ready to explode with rage.
Yi Rang hesitated before walking over to her.
"That fucking prick! GaEun's such a sweetheart, and he says you've got no heart!? What the hell does he know?!"
Kim GaEun's expression softened instantly.
Then she looked at Yi Rang, visibly moved.
"Yi Rang C... I knew my family would understand me!
So, YuHan C, let's smash that creepy device to pieces!"
"No. We're keeping it in case something happens."
YuHan's firm answer seemed to make the whole room go cold.
Kim GaEun stiffened, then forced a smile.
"YuHan C... Very funny.
Forcing something like that around someone's neck? What kind of play is that supposed to be?"
"Does this look like play to you? Go home."
Kim GaEun bit down hard on her lip and walked out of the Center without looking back.
---
About thirty minutes later.
Kim GaEun appeared in a sewer somewhere beneath Old Seoul.
Still in human form, she was slaughtering the monsters that lived there.
"Fuck! Treating me like some damn animal...! Goddammit!"
It was obviously just her taking out her anger.
Then one of the monsters she'd been beating to death spoke.
"Why are you killing us...?
We only want to live here in peace."
Kim GaEun froze, caught off guard by the fact that it could talk.
But she quickly came up with an answer.
"Because monsters are meant to die. That's how the world works!"
Just as she was about to finish it off, she heard footsteps approaching.
A young man she'd never seen before stepped into view.
He looked at her.
"Funny thing to say when you're a monster yourself."
Kim GaEun whipped her head around.
Her eyes were filled with murderous intent.
"Who the hell are you calling a monster? Are you fucking blind?
I'm human!!"
Most outsiders had no idea Kim GaEun was a chimera.
Even if they saw her monster form, they'd usually just assume it was some bizarre kind of magic.
But this young man spoke with absolute certainty.
"So Lee NamYong C was right.
He said there was a monster at Cheong-Am Center hiding its ugly, filthy nature."
"The fuck did you just say...?"
Kim GaEun crossed the distance in an instant, seized the young man by the collar, and hauled him into the air.
"Watch your mouth.
You think I won't kill you just because you're human?"
The young man didn't look the slightest bit shaken.
"So much for hiding your true nature."
In the next instant, he vanished from Kim GaEun's grasp.
And reappeared—
behind her...!
'Teleportation magic...!?'
Kim GaEun clicked her tongue.
Only a handful of people had the aptitude for teleportation magic.
The young man was holding an aluminum bat.
"There's a Korean saying."
He wrapped the bat in mana.
"The cure for a mad dog is a club."
The bat slammed into the back of Kim GaEun's head.
Even she felt her skull ring from the impact.
"You piece of shit...!"
Just as Kim GaEun's eyes widened and she lunged toward him, another set of footsteps approached.
It was YuHan.
"That's enough."
The moment she saw him, Kim GaEun lit up.
"YuHan C, perfect timing! Let's crush that fucking pest together—"
Before she could finish, YuHan slapped her across the face.
Not that a slap like that would even register on a monster like her.
"I told you to go home. When did I tell you to start picking fights?"
"I-I'm sorry."
"Take the day off. Cool your head."
YuHan turned his attention to the young man.
"Never seen you before. Who are you?"
"Kim GaRam. N.O.B.I.
I was only produced recently, so you wouldn't know me."
"What's your relationship with Lee NamYong?"
"Lee NamYong C got me out of the factory.
Then he asked if I wanted to join Thanatics. I haven't answered yet."
"Why are you living with monsters?"
Kim GaRam glanced around at the creatures nearby.
"...They have hearts too."
Then he looked at Kim GaEun.
"More than that monster does, at least."
Kim GaEun immediately turned to YuHan.
"YuHan C, see? This guy's definitely suspicious. Let's just get rid of him!"
YuHan rapped her on the head.
"You can't kill everyone who pisses you off. That's a serial killer, not a sanctioner."
"Fine..."
YuHan looked back at Kim GaRam.
"Kim GaRam, was it? Sorry for barging into your turf.
Just stay out of my way.
Otherwise, I'll have to kill you."
"..."
YuHan led Kim GaEun out of the sewer.
"How the hell am I supposed to trust you when you pull shit like this?"
"I'm sorry, YuHan C. My instincts got the better of me again..."
"There you go blaming your damn instincts again."
YuHan sighed.
"If you go off the rails on the job like you used to, I'll have no choice but to use that suppression device."
"...Okay."
Kim GaEun visibly deflated.
Seeing her like that, YuHan sighed as though giving in.
"Want to go get some barbecue? It's been a while."
Kim GaEun's wolf ears perked up.
"Sure! Alice C and Yi Rang C can come too—"
"No."
YuHan cut her off.
"This time, let's sneak off. Just the two of us."
Kim GaEun's eyes went wide.
Then her face broke into a bright smile.
"YuHan C, I love you!"
"Don't love me. That's gross."
Legend says one barbecue joint sold out of every last cut of meat that day...