Chapter 37

“I told the defecting Guides to play dumb. Most of them got assigned near Zero City anyway, and the ones who stayed will keep their mouths shut since they’ve benefited from us too.”

Still, Ihyun couldn’t shake his unease.

DUST knew far more about the Supernatural Bureau’s internal affairs than he had expected. There was no telling whether DUST’s high command knew that Baek Seungho had tried to use Baek Ihyun to put a leash on Han Taeyoon.

If the name Baek Ihyun—and the truth hidden behind it—were discovered here, it wouldn’t be a simple case of betrayal or an exposed identity.

It would be more than enough for them to mistake him for a spy planted inside DUST—a proxy of Baek Seungho sent to get his hands on Han Taeyoon.

The moment I’m caught, it’s over.

Once we get inside Zero City, I need to keep my head down and blend into the background for a while.

“Oh, right. I forgot to mention the most important part.”

Ho Yeonwoo added that last part while looking around.

“What is it?”

“Once we get in, you have to undergo three months of training at the Zero City Ability Center.”

“What? Training? Why are you only telling me that now?!”

“Well, whatever. Isn’t it better than rolling around in the boondocks like this?”

The Ability Center, huh?

Actually, that was for the best.

If it was a place where Espers and Guides gathered together, digging up the information he needed would be much easier.

A Spatial Movement Esper was waiting at the location where they had followed Im Geonsik.

The man’s head was deeply concealed beneath a gray robe. Without a word, he reached out a hand.

The cold hallway air distorted, and a black vortex surged into existence.

“I didn’t expect you to leave so soon. Shame to see you go. Do well out there.”

“Thank you for everything.”

“Let’s see each other again if the chance comes up.”

Im Geonsik patted Juwon’s shoulder as he spoke.

Juwon bowed his head in farewell.

It seemed the two had grown somewhat attached while taking on Gates and government forces together. Im Geonsik appeared to feel the same.

“Moving out. Stay close.”

At the gray-robed man’s dry voice, Ho Yeonwoo led the way and vanished into the black vortex.

Ihyun and Juwon stepped forward right behind him.

Beyond this darkness, Han Taeyoon would finally be waiting.

The moment the black vortex swallowed his body, a wave of motion sickness crashed over him, incomparable to any previous spatial transport.

Ugh, damn it…

Perhaps because they were leaping across such a vast distance at once, white flashes flickered before his eyes and nausea welled up in his throat.

How much time had passed?

The sensation beneath his feet changed.

At the same time, the stifling silence that had filled his ears shattered.

Leaning his unsteady body against Juwon, Ihyun managed to open his eyes.

What greeted him was a strictly controlled, ultra-advanced military facility.

The first things to catch his eye were silvery-white metal hangars towering as though they could pierce the sky, with massive mana-detection radars relentlessly spinning atop them.

[Zero City Outskirts Defense Forces 1st Headquarters]

[High-Output Spatial Transport Permitted Only at Designated Coordinates]

Fighter jets stood ready on the runway, prepared to scramble toward the outer front lines at a moment’s notice. Nearby stood multi-legged walking weapons radiating an imposing presence.

Elite Esper troops maintained a fierce watch over the perimeter with chilling eyes.

The gray-robed Esper silently disappeared into the shadows as though his mission were complete.

The door of a waiting black van slid open roughly.

“Get in, quick. We have to head to the Zero City Ability Center.”

Prompted by Ho Yeonwoo, Ihyun pushed himself inside the vehicle.

With a thud, the door shut, and the van smoothly departed the fortress.

Passing through the military facility’s heavy defensive perimeter and entering Zero City proper, a red warning sign caught his eye.

[Unauthorized Use of Supernatural Abilities in Civilian Zones Will Trigger Immediate Neutralization.]

The moment they passed through the airtight checkpoint and entered the civilian zone, Ihyun froze.

It was an unbelievable sight.

Outside the window was a stark contrast to the bleak military facility they had just left behind.

Cars glided smoothly along cleanly paved roads while people joked and chatted on the sidewalks beside them. Open storefronts bustled with life, and children ran freely through immaculate parks.

For the heart of the rebel forces, the city was impossibly peaceful and warm.

“Good grief… Hyung, does this even make sense?”

Juwon muttered, utterly dazed.

Ease and laughter rested on the faces of the passersby.

Ihyun bit his trembling lip.

To think that crazy bastard Han Taeyoon built such a flawless paradise on earth amidst a ruined world—all for his own people.

As the van bearing DUST’s flag passed in front of a department store glowing with flashy billboards, the gazes of the onlookers naturally turned toward it.

A few bowed their heads.

One child even waved.

A strange mixture of emotions swirled inside Ihyun’s chest.

He had vowed to beat the crap out of that guy the moment they met, but faced with this terrifyingly perfect peace, his thoughts only grew more tangled.

“What you see over there is the Leadership Headquarters. Approaching within a one-kilometer radius of it is forbidden. Your watch will keep tracking your location, so keep your word. Otherwise, they said you’ll be permanently expelled from Zero City.”

Where Ho Yeonwoo pointed, at the highest crest of the city, the colossal Leadership Headquarters towered into the sky.

Ihyun clenched his fists.

Now, I truly wasn’t far.

“Hey, Yeonwoo. You can use your ability to block this tracker from pinpointing my location, right?”

Ihyun threw an arm around Yeonwoo’s shoulder and whispered.

Surprised by the sudden proximity, Yeonwoo turned his head away and coughed awkwardly.

“…N-No way. I already paid back my debt for getting pulled out of that hell by unchaining the Guides and bringing you guys up here. Don’t ask me to betray the Leader.”

“It’s not betraying the Leader. It’s betraying Choi Gangjun.”

“That’s the exact same thing!”

“Wait, why look at it that way? Han Taeyoon might actually want to meet Juwon, you know?”

“Seriously, Hyung, where is your conscience? Honey traps won’t work on me! The Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman must have his reasons for opposing it.”

Ho Yeonwoo narrowed his eyes and glared.

He was just like the kid who had been trapped in the Supernatural Bureau’s Underground Detention Wing for three years while trying to make his way to DUST.

“No, no. That petty Choi Gangjun just hates Juwon. He simply can’t stand the sight of him.”

“I don’t care about any of that. I said no. And stop acting like you’re close to the Leader. Since when did you two know each other well enough for you to call him like that?”

Ihyun was temporarily at a loss for words.

Well, explaining that would take a long time, but it wasn’t something he could say out loud anyway.

Besides, in this body, he didn’t even know whether they had met before or not.

“Blame that big guy over there. If he were on better terms with the Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman, such weird conditions wouldn’t have been attached in the first place.”

While Ihyun and Ho Yeonwoo huddled together whispering, Yeonwoo’s expression flickered several times in an instant.

Then, when both their gazes landed squarely on Juwon at the same time, Juwon scratched the side of his head, utterly clueless.

The vehicle came to a stop in front of the Zero City Ability Center.

Built with dark-gray exterior walls and black metal pillars, the building bore no ornamentation other than a small DUST emblem carved into it.

Thin blue guide lights running along the walls stretched straight toward the entrance.

Inside the main gates, numerous Espers and Guides bustled to and fro, yet the overall atmosphere remained calm and orderly.

As they approached the entrance, the automatic doors parted to either side, revealing a high-ceilinged lobby.

On one side, a large holographic panel displaying mission assignments slowly rotated. One section continuously updated the battle status and active conflict zones in real time.

“Thank you for traveling all this way.”

A woman dressed in a neat suit greeted them.

“These are the newcomers who arrived today—the Guide Ihyeon and the Esper Lee Juwon.”

When Ho Yeonwoo introduced Ihyun and Juwon, she bowed her head with a faint smile.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Lee Nayeon from the Administrative Support Team at the Zero City Ability Center. I’ll be assisting you with administrative procedures and general living arrangements throughout your training period.”

“Yes. We’ll be in your care.”

Ihyun greeted her with a gentle smile, quietly reading her expression and demeanor.

“I’ve finished what I needed to do, so I’ll be taking off. My office is up on the twelfth floor in the Security Technology Department, so get in touch if you miss me.”

Ho Yeonwoo gave a light wave and disappeared deeper into the lobby.