Black Badger

Knocking him out wouldn’t be a problem, right?

I turned to Seunghyun, who was standing there speechless.

“It’s fine if I knock him out, right?”

Seunghyun seemed to snap back to his senses at my voice.

“In the end, it won’t threaten his life.”

“That means there are side effects.”

I froze mid-motion, my hand raised to strike the back of Yehyeon’s neck, and stared at him.

Seunghyun answered flatly.

“For some reason, if you knock him out midway, he’ll show symptoms similar to Ménière’s disease for a week.”

“Then what do we do?”

“Either stop the crying or get far enough away that we can’t hear it.”

“Black.”

Yehyeon called Kairos by his other name.

“Why are you carrying me?”

“You injured your leg.”

Kairos answered gently.

“You’re not heavy at all, so there’s no need to worry.”

“No. You need to maintain your summons....”

Yehyeon twisted his body as if trying to get down.

“There’s no one as capable as you....”

Kairos quickly adjusted his posture, and I grabbed one of his shoulders, about to stop him—

But Seunghyun spoke first, his voice rigid.

“Stay still.”

Yehyeon blinked and looked at him.

Under that steady gaze, Seunghyun flinched slightly.

“...Hm?”

Yehyeon murmured, puzzled.

“Wasn’t my dad carrying me?”

For three seconds, I seriously considered whether it might be better to just knock him out, Ménière’s symptoms or not.

When he comes back to his senses... will he remember this?

If he does, he might avoid all of us for a while.

As I hesitated, a solution flashed through my mind.

“Korean!”

I shouted, and both Yehyeon and Seunghyun looked at me in confusion.

“Speak Korean. Then neither of us will understand, so it’ll be a bit better.”

“Not a bad idea.”

Kairos supported my decision with a bright tone.

Before Seunghyun could protest, I urged him on.

“Hurry.”

“...Why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”

Seunghyun spoke in an unfamiliar language.

I had no idea what he was saying, but in any case, Yehyeon, who had been fidgeting slightly on Kairos’s back, opened his eyes in confusion.

“Me?”

He looked like he was thinking about something, then lowered his gaze.

“Ah... right.”

It was almost a mutter to himself.

“It seemed like he found it bothersome, so I refused in advance. It’s easier to just refuse than get carried around and treated like baggage....”

“You should tell him to speak in his native language.”

“Seunghyun.”

“Don’t do that.”

“Why would you do that?”

Yehyeon asked back, puzzled.

The moment his attention was diverted, I gave the order.

“Move out.”

“Milk.”

Without asking anything, Kairos called his familiar’s name.

Milk leapt lightly onto Yehyeon.

“Piik.”

Yehyeon turned invisible.

Kairos, who was in contact with him, became invisible at the same time. I regretted once again not masking Kairos’s presence.

Releasing my grip, I walked toward the door and muttered,

“As soon as we get out, drop the concealment.”

“Alright.”

Kairos replied.

“This is inconvenient in many ways.”

“You being invisible makes it hard to protect you, so stay right behind me. Got it?”

“Don’t worry. I’ll stick close to your back.”

“Dad.”

Yehyeon’s voice came through.

Anyone could tell he was calling Seunghyun. It clearly sounded like the Korean word for “dad.”

I held back a sigh and prepared to strike.

We go back through the rear door.

“I’ll count to three and we move.”

“㉧㉢㉠㉧?”

“Three.”

I didn’t look back at Seunghyun.

For all our sakes, we needed to get out of here quickly.

“Two, one.”

BOOOOM!

My strike blew away the door and the gas behind it.

I stepped on the split, collapsing door and burst through.

CLANG! CLANG!

Gas scattered along the path of the strike.

Only parts of the hazy scene became clear. A visible path had formed where the sleeping gas had been pushed aside.

Still, it wasn’t completely ineffective. The moment I inhaled, my senses dulled slightly.

Frowning, I swung again.

RATATATAT!

Gunfire poured in.

Bang!

At the same time, Seunghyun, who had started a beat later, began covering fire.

Bang! Bang!

They cleared out anything that could serve as cover.

Getting shot at any moment wouldn’t be strange. We couldn’t keep relying on luck forever.

While sprinting, I slowed slightly and changed the direction of my blade.

“Kai.”

“Mm.”

“Let’s clear them out.”

I drove my sword into the ground.

BOOOOM!

“...Huh.”

Kairos’s quiet voice came from behind me.

“I’d forgotten how capable you are.”

The shockwave split outward in all directions, striking everything nearby.

The surroundings flashed white, then slowly returned to normal—except now there was red mixed into the scene. The smell of blood thickened.

The curved arcs of the strike had hit everything in range in one way or another.

The gunfire stopped.

I heard Yehyeon mutter.

“Wings....”

“Both of you, keep your mouths shut as much as possible.”

I gave the order, watching the gas slowly roll back in.

“We’re moving again.”

“Dad, huh?”

“He’ll come.”

Kairos said soothingly.

“Let’s get out first and wait.”

Drowsiness crept in.

I lightly cut my arm with my sword to shake it off.

Focusing on the sharp pain, I scanned the situation.

Everything nearby was down—either unmoving or groaning.

But I could hear movement further in.

Reinforcements through the front entrance.

I moved my arm again.

BOOOOM!

Bang!

As the strike carved a path, someone in the corner coughed up blood and collapsed.

Seunghyun’s still holding up well.

Bang! Bang!

I surged forward.

It was easier than before crossing the sample zone. There were bodies scattered here and there, but none in a condition to fight back.

I ran straight into the room connected to the rear exit.

The advantage here was that we were underground—no enemies waiting above.

One sweep of the blade cleared the surroundings. Only the sleeping gas remained an immediate issue.

As I ran down the blood-slick corridor, the room we had come from came into view.

The blue bird must be asleep.

I swung my sword and shattered the wall beside the door.

“Reinforcements are coming.”

Bang!

The room where the blue bird had been was a mess.

It lay collapsed in the corner of a crushed cage, unmoving. I couldn’t tell if it was dead or asleep.

The rear door was half-buried under the collapsed ceiling I’d just brought down, and a human arm jutted out from the rubble.

Between the debris and the open door, a gun barrel protruded.

Before I could cut it off, Seunghyun shot it apart.

After repeating that a few times, the presence from the underground passage vanished.

Seeing Seunghyun step through the rubble, I let out a relieved breath.

“They’re pushing in through the rear entrance.”

“Shashinsky?”

“Yes.”

“Ah. That’s why there were so few waiting in ambush.”

I had expected more personnel to be stationed here.

Muttering, I looked at Seunghyun.

At some point, he had put on a gas mask.

He must’ve taken it off one of the bodies I cut down.

He was even holding three more in his left hand.

Truly capable.

“Thanks.”

I accepted the mask he held out and put it on immediately.

Then, through the narrowed field of view, I saw Seunghyun scanning the area with a displeased expression.

Kairos and Yehyeon weren’t visible...

“Thank you.”

Kairos’s voice came from the air.

One of the masks in Seunghyun’s hand was pulled slightly to the side. Judging by the angle of the strap and the direction of the voice, I could roughly tell where Kairos was standing.

Seunghyun must’ve figured it out too. He handed only one mask over.

He kept the last one in his own hand and walked behind Kairos.

“Mmph.”

Yehyeon’s muffled voice followed.

I watched Seunghyun grab Yehyeon’s invisible head and force a mask onto him.

I couldn’t see his face through the mask, but judging by his movements, he seemed irritated.

I held back the urge to scold him.

It might’ve been better to just let Yehyeon put it on himself...

“Dad.”

Footsteps began echoing down the rear passage.

The moment Seunghyun and I reacted, Yehyeon muttered again.

“You really hate that, don’t you?”

Seunghyun’s hand froze.

What did he say?

One was invisible, the other masked—I couldn’t read the situation.

I just hoped Seunghyun hadn’t stopped because he was angry.

At the same time, I could hear enemies pushing in from deeper inside.

I moved behind them and blocked the path.

“Kai. Get out through the rear.”

“It’d be better if I stayed behind.”

“Let’s go.”

I heard Kairos speak to Seunghyun.

They still hadn’t moved?

I found it strange, but didn’t look back.

“Seunghyun?”

“I’ll stay behind. You go first.”

What on earth is Yehyeon saying?

For a moment, I regretted telling them to switch to Korean.

I couldn’t understand anything, and I couldn’t see their faces either.

At this rate, Seunghyun might suddenly throw a punch.

Even if it’s Ménière’s symptoms, it won’t kill him...

Should I just knock him out now?

I hesitated as the footsteps drew closer.

Unable to watch any longer, Kairos grabbed Seunghyun’s arm and pulled.

“You can talk once we’re outside. This way....”

“If that’s the case, of course you should let him go.”

Yehyeon kept muttering incomprehensibly.

“Then why are you acting like this now?”

“Lee Seunghyun.”

Kairos called his name in a low voice.

There was a clear warning in his tone.

It was rare to hear that from Kairos—something he’d only use when dealing with an unruly familiar.

BOOOOM!

I unleashed a massive strike forward.

Forcing the enemy back for the moment, I turned sharply to look behind me.

Seunghyun, his fist clenched so tightly his veins stood out.

And Kairos, now visible again.

Kairos had one hand gripping Seunghyun’s shoulder.

Seunghyun hadn’t swung, but still—

“Why is he shaking like ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) that?”

I rushed over and grabbed Seunghyun.

Then I lifted him and ran for the rear exit.

“I should’ve just knocked him out.”

“Did backup arrive?”

Kairos followed behind me, carrying Yehyeon.

“At this rate, these two are the bigger problem.”

Seriously, they’re worse than the enemies pouring in—

BOOOOM!

A deafening explosion cut through my thoughts.

At the same time, everything brightened. A rush of outside air flooded in.

From above the collapsed ceiling, I heard a familiar voice.

“Ah! To think I missed witnessing such an opera in person!”

A voice full of genuine regret.

“It would’ve been far more worthwhile than some pointless meeting!”

That pervert hasn’t changed at all.