Uijae tried contacting Honeybee, but the answer ca back that Romantic Opener was still lost in his dreams. Unable to delay further, they decided to return using Mackerel's old car—one that Uijae had ridden in before, belonging to Jang Mi-sook. Though the car was heavily worn, it would have to do. Before they left, Mackerel gathered the remaining food left by his door and placed it in front of a nearby house.
"It’s for the elderly woman living alone."
"What about the others?"
"They all returned to the sea."
"…"
"She'll be gone soon too. She's already mutating."
How many more people, villages, cities, or even countries were disappearing like this? There was no way to know. The apocalypse was quietly covering everything in ashes.
A few goldfish swam in circles near the steering wheel. Mackerel sat in the driver’s seat, and with Sa-young squeezed into the passenger side, Uijae stretched out comfortably in the back. Most roads had turned to wasteland, and they had no choice but to rely on the few crooked signs that the whitening hadn't swallowed yet to find their way. Every bump in the road made Uijae feel nauseous. He closed his eyes, struggling to suppress the queasiness.
When he opened them again, he found himself in a hospital room filled with soft, warm things.
"When will I finally get out of here?"
Uijae smacked his lips as he looked at the white ceiling. The countdown kept ticking away, unrelentingly.
---
**Present Day, Seowon Guild**
Nam Woo-jin pressed a panel beside the door, and the solid tal doors slid open. A blast of hot air rushed out from the room. Inside the dark chamber, a man sat with his head down, bound by black chains, his body covered with small protruding spikes. Black scorch marks stained the room. Ga-yeong grinned.
"Ah… So this is Mr. Matthew?"
Nam Woo-jin’s response was cold.
"Don’t get any ideas."
"Oh, co now. Didn’t you make it yourself just to be safe? I didn’t lay a finger on it. And you confird it works—still so suspicious."
Ga-yeong had been cooperative enough, giving him step-by-step instructions on how to make the redy and then stepping aside, knowing he wouldn’t trust anything she made herself. Nam Woo-jin had injected the redy he crafted into a specin brought by the Awakener Managent Bureau. …It had worked.
Ga-yeong chattered away.
"But really, the redy you made was impressive. If you had researched just a bit more, you might have perfected it. Perhaps because you used to be a doctor…?"
"I don’t need flattery. I’m late, and that’s a fact."
Ignoring her smile, Nam Woo-jin entered the sweltering room. Bound by Jeong Bin’s chains, the man’s body was covered in wounds from his continued struggle. Nam Woo-jin closed his eyes.
"Sorry for the delay."
In a low voice, the doctor muttered. He inserted the needle of the syringe into Matthew’s vein and pressed down on the plunger, closely watching his face.
Monts later, the hands and arms bound by the chains twitched, his eyelids flickered, and slowly lifted. Dazed eyes t Nam Woo-jin’s.
"…"
"Are you with , Matthew?"
"…Doctor?"
"Impressive progress, recognizing . How does it feel?"
"Mm… awful."
Matthew blinked and managed a faint smile, and Nam Woo-jin exhaled in relief. As Matthew’s voice cracked, he struggled to ask, then gave up.
"How… long… was I out?"
"More than three months."
"…"
"Honeybee’s been searching for you, almost to the point of driving mad."
"…That sounds like her. Is she… all right?"
"She hasn’t co by in the last few days, but she’s probably fine. Things have been busy lately. For now, let's call Jeong Bin—only he can remove these chains. Bring water and set up an IV."
"Yes, Master."
A young boy scurried in with a water bottle, placed a straw in it, and brought it to Matthew's mouth. After a few sips, Matthew sighed. Nam Woo-jin took out his phone and called Jeong Bin. As soon as he picked up, Nam Woo-jin spoke without waiting for a greeting.
"Co to Seowon Guild and release the chains. Matthew’s awake. For real this ti."
―"What? Ah, Mr. Nam Woo-jin, yes. I see… Please wait a mont, Director…."
Sothing in Jeong Bin’s voice sounded off. Why? Jeong Bin was one of the people who had been waiting for Matthew to wake up. Nam Woo-jin dragged his feet across the room, feeling Ga-yeong’s gaze on him. He lowered his voice to ask.
"What’s wrong? Another problem?"
―"Apologies, I'm in a eting. So Matthew has finally awoken? That’s a relief."
"What kind of eting requires the director and everyone else?"
A small sigh sounded through the phone.
―"You’ve been inford about humans mutating into monsters. Hunters sent into erosion dungeons to compare them with mutated monsters haven’t returned. Neither J, Lee Sa-young, Honeybee, nor the Hunter Bureau’s team mbers."
"…"
―"It was a simple capture mission, but it’s strange that it’s taking this long, don’t you think?"
They were probably thinking the sa thing. The West Sea Rift. The Hunters who never ca back. Nam Woo-jin glanced behind him. Matthew, eyes closed, looked exhausted.
―"I'll head to Seowon Guild right away."
The call ended. Nam Woo-jin slipped his phone back into his coat pocket, glancing at Ga-yeong, who was still standing by the door with a mischievous smile. She waved as their eyes t.
"The next apocalypse will be disease, a plague."
"You know? Disease doesn't discriminate… regardless of age, gender, Awakened, or civilian."
It’s already begun, hasn’t it? Nam Woo-jin removed his glasses and ran a hand over his face. He approached Ga-yeong.
"We… need to have a different conversation."
"Ah~ Haha…."
A sly smile crept over Ga-yeong’s lips.
"I thought you might say that."
---
**141 Hours Until Uijae’s Death**
"It’s just a cold."
Nam Woo-jin took the thermoter and muttered nonchalantly. Uijae nodded ekly, but Sa-young looked like he had a lot on his mind.
"Any chance it could develop into the flu or pneumonia?"
"No. Just eat well and rest, and you’ll be fine. If your abilities recover, you’ll get better faster. Don’t make a fuss. Just turn up the heat on the warming mat."
"But he went into the whitened sea. Couldn’t there be other complications?"
Mutation. Uijae was curious about that too, so he joined in.
"Has it been determined what conditions cause humans to mutate?"
"Not yet. Overseas, they suspect that exposure to whitened objects or land increases mutation chances. Civilians are more likely to mutate than Awakened individuals. That’s based on data, not just speculation."
"Is it because of physical resilience?"
"Unclear. Anyway, J’s tests are already done. No major issues."
"…"
Despite the explanation, Sa-young still looked unconvinced. Nam Woo-jin ignored him and gestured.
"Jeong Bin was asking for you. He wants to talk. Head to the office on the second floor."
"?"
"J can't move right now, so you’ll have to go. Or would you rather have J do it himself?"
Sa-young clicked his tongue in irritation and left the room. Even after his footsteps faded, Nam Woo-jin remained silent, simply observing Uijae. The prolonged gaze felt a bit burdenso. Although Uijae had gotten used to Sa-young’s intense stares, he felt self-conscious and finally broke the silence.
"How’s Mackerel doing? He’s in the middle of a mutation, isn’t he?"
"It’s a condition I’ve never seen before. Usually, people mutate suddenly without any warning, but he… still retains his human form and consciousness. Other than a few scales on his arm, he’s fine."
"…"
"So I’m going to work with him to develop a cure. Mackerel agreed to this."
"Really…."
Silence fell again. Nam Woo-jin looked at Uijae with a heavy gaze, as though he had sothing to say but was hesitating. Uijae smiled.
"If you’ve got sothing to say, go ahead."
After a long pause, Nam Woo-jin sighed and finally spoke.
"I’m only telling you this."
What kind of news would make him hesitate like this? It seed he had waited until Sa-young was completely out of earshot. Uijae nodded, and Nam Woo-jin pressed a weary hand to his forehead before slowly opening his eyes.
"No point in drawing it out with fancy words… Let get straight to it. Your body."
His voice was grave.
"I don’t know exactly what you've been doing, but… you’re weaker than usual. More than before."
Right. If even a simple cold left him so feeble… and unlike before, he wasn’t recovering after a few hours. Uijae nodded, accepting the reality. Nam Woo-jin stared at the floor, muttering in a low, gloomy tone.
"If this continues… you’ll…"
"…"
"You’ll die in the near future."
Uijae’s eyes widened.
Finally, soone who understood his ticking clock of impending death!
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