Sihyun enlarged the image of the boy in the photo. Despite the poor resolution, it was still possible to make out the red eyes flashing between the black strands of hair.
Haru.
Noticing this fact, Sihyun moved on to the next photo. His expression hardened upon seeing small scars on the boy's body. These were injuries he hadn't noticed when he saw Haru changing clothes before the vacation. Were these signs of abuse? Sihyun furrowed his brow at the thought and took the phone away from his ear after disabling the speaker mode.
"What's this?"
[Is it Ban Haru after all?]
"Answer my question first."
[It was on my brother's desk. Upon checking, it seems that illegal human experiments were uncovered at the lab. It looks like Redlem was commissioned by the Association....]
"Commissioned?"
[Yeah, it seems like they entrusted the lab's handling to Redlem.]
At the following voice of Hamin, Sihyun's brow furrowed. As he listened to Hamin, who paused as if sensing Sihyun's expression, he inquired about the situation, wondering if it was related to Suhwoo, who had called him. Sihyun, who had frozen his expression upon receiving the call, lifted his head when Seowoo approached, curious about the situation.
His mind, preoccupied with battles, started spinning quickly.
It seemed that Haru had failed to persuade the people at the lab. Though Sihyun was anxious, he sent him off knowing that Haru was very stubborn. Sihyun, who regretted that choice now, sighed, thinking about Haru being trapped in the lab.
He had to save him.
Sihyun made a firm decision as he clenched his phone tightly.
"Where are you?"
[What?]
"Where is the lab?"
[You're not thinking of going, are you?]
"Didn't you tell me to do that? So, was there anything else on my brother's desk besides that? I didn't see any data about the lab or anything like that."
Impatience could be sensed in his voice. If the Association knew detailed information about the lab, it would complicate things for Haru. In his anxiety, Sihyun asked about the possibilities, one by one, and Hamin, who scolded him to talk one by one, paused. The sound of shuffling papers came through the phone.
[... I found the location of the lab. It's towards the mountains.]
"Send me the address."
[Are you really going alone?]
"......"
Sihyun remained silent at Hamin's question. Only now did he recall the things he had forgotten in his excitement. The entity possessing Kang Sihyun's body was still a minor, and today's events were not planned. There were many issues. How would he get to the lab, and to save Haru, he had to use his ability. If asked by the school why he used his ability, what should he say? Just thinking about it made his head throb.
The most troublesome thing was the report on using abilities.
Sihyun looked down at his hands. The pairing on his ring finger was bothering him. He wanted to take it off and go save Haru right away, but according to the regulations, once it was worn, it couldn't be easily removed. Even if he didn't wear the pairing, the report would be sent as long as he used the ability.
Could he heal his fingers by cutting and reattaching them with his ability?
While lost in thought, the phone became noisy.
Hamin, who had been silent along with Sihyun, suddenly shouted something. Whether the phone rolled on the floor or made a clattering noise, Sihyun couldn't tell. Worriedly calling out Hamin's name again, the noise continued.
"Hamin? What's going on?"
It was when he asked again about the situation.
[Mr. Kang Sihyun, are you in trouble right now?]
After a brief pause, Hamin and Pandi's voices pierced through Sihyun's eardrums via the phone. It was a voice he had heard before. Sihyun looked at the phone screen after temporarily removing it from his ear.
"...Ihahyuk?"
[Oh, well, where did the honorifics go?]
"Ah...."
[It's been a while. Shall we meet once?]
Lacking confidence in his spontaneous revelation of the name, Haehyuk, who smiled lowly after noticing the belated awkwardness on Yoo Sihyun's face, gestured for him to talk while looking at his face. Sihyun let out a short sigh. Haehyuk was a meticulous person. Sihyun wondered why such a person would leave an important document on his desk for Hamin to see, but it seemed that he had a purpose in mind.
After checking the information, Hamin contacted me, suggesting we establish a connection.
He was not defenseless but a cunning person. Sihyun, thinking he was a troublesome type when hostile, checked the time. It was evening. It wasn't the most appropriate time to meet people, but time was of the essence now.
"Let's see it right away."
[I'll send you the address; come over. Feel free to bring your friend with you or leave them behind.]
Despite my urgency, Haehyuk's voice remained calm. After the call ended, Sihyun urgently left Seowoo's house, having confirmed the address from the message. As he was about to leave alone after finishing the call, Seowoo grabbed his wrist.
"What's going on?"
"It's not related to you."
"Why do you get to decide that?"
He said, narrowing his eyes. Sihyun, judging that he didn't have time to argue with him, checked the time. It was evening. It wasn't the most appropriate time to meet people, but time was of the essence now.
"I heard Haru hyung is in danger. If you want to save him, come with me."
Yooseowoo didn't particularly like Haru, so Sihyun thought he wouldn't come. Breaking my expectation, he agreed to come with me. While calling a taxi, Sihyun couldn't shake off the doubt about him. It was because he couldn't understand.
A little hesitant. After getting in the taxi, when he looked at him, Seowoo, who felt a persistent gaze, opened his mouth.
"Why?"
"You saying you're coming is strange."
"It's not like I shouldn't come. I'm worried about your partner."
"Spit and talk properly."
It would still be quite worrying to call him your partner. Sihyun, who pointed out his obvious lie, signaled to him. Even though he still called him his partner, he must be quite worried. Seowoo, who lied blatantly, was pointed out by Sihyun, and as they arrived, he paid the taxi fare and got out of the car. The sky spread above his head was dim. After briefly capturing it with his eyes, he turned his gaze to confirm the giant apartment building.
As he approached the apartment in a hurry, a subordinate of Haehyuk, who seemed to be guiding him, led Sihyun and Seowoo to Haehyuk's house. The luxurious elevator went up and stopped at a high floor. Following the guidance of the employee, Sihyun arrived at the place Haehyuk had lived in. Seowoo, who entered the room with Sihyun, greeted Haehyuk, who was already there, with a smile, urging them to sit.
"Have you come?"
Even though they entered the house, Seowoo and Sihyun were guided to the room where Haehyuk was. Then, when they entered the room together, Haehyuk, who welcomed Sihyun with a smile, urged them to have tea. Hamin, who looked uncomfortable somewhere, was with him.
"I didn't come here for a leisurely tea."
Although they sat down, Sihyun refused the tea Haehyuk was offering while talking, and Hamin let out a mocking laugh. Hamin ridiculed him, saying it wasn't something to worry about, even though Sihyun had informed him before dealing with it. Sihyun, who could not dismiss the question about it, opened his mouth.
"What's the price for your help?"
"Oh, I believe you already trust that I'll help."
"Intentionally putting the documents on the desk, making Hamin contact me. It seemed like you wanted him to be able to contact me. It seemed like you informed me before dealing with the work as a sign of willingness to help. Isn't that right?"
"Do you think so?"
"Yes."
Looking at the man who stared at him with slow eyes, Sihyun answered. He didn't want to drag on with an unnecessary conversation. Haehyuk, who wanted to conclude the vague conversation and inquire about the business, smiled and put down the coffee cup he was holding. The sound, 'thud,' felt particularly clear. By the time he looked at Sihyun after lowering his gaze, Haehyuk had crossed his legs and looked at him.
"It's good that the conversation is fast. It seems that the boy in the picture is quite important to Sihyun-gun. If you want to save him, I'll help. Of course, there will be a price."
As expected. Sihyun, who looked at the documents laid out on the table, raised his head and swallowed his breath. S-class, the son of the chairman of an S-grade company, and the guild leader of the number one guild in Korea, Redem. A person who lacked nothing. There was only one thing he wanted from me that was more valuable than the price I would give. Sihyun, lifting his gaze with that thought, nodded silently.
"...Do you want me to go to Redem?"
After swallowing and spitting out his breath, he asked. Haehyuk's mouth went up at the answer he had just heard. As if he had given the correct answer.
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