It was certain now — we could exert influence over the Creatures.

It must have been that sense I called the “sixth sense,” the feeling of being connected to a distant entity. I could vaguely sense the direction where Kyle was, even now.

The problem was that I had completely forgotten how to use that sense.

What was clear was that some of these Creatures had come from the same world I once belonged to. I just couldn’t remember when they had arrived on Earth.

Would my memories return if I faced more of them?

When I explained what I knew, Yun stood with his arms crossed, silent.

Then he spoke curtly.

“Planning to play twice?”

“...After I calm down a bit. I still haven’t found all the Easter eggs.”

“Let me take a look before that.”

I handed him the game chip without hesitation.

I was curious about the developer myself now. If I left it to Yun, he’d figure something out — at the very least, maybe the date it had been made.

I wanted to know everything. The circumstances of its creation, the method, the unique features of this particular game.

The man gave a small nod to my unspoken request to find out whatever he could.

Yun accepted the game chip from me.

***

Soon it was the end of November.

The days grew colder, the sunlight shorter. The city carried a faint end-of-year mood. Until the mission day arrived, I focused entirely on training.

I liked feeling my body getting a little faster. I liked collapsing from exhaustion and falling asleep instantly afterward.

Lately, though, every time I dreamed, it was a nightmare — so I’d rather not dream at all.

Even dreams that weren’t nightmares were unpleasant. Every time I dreamed, fragments of my past world would surface again. It must have been °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° the influence of “FROM E.” After dreams where Ray and Kyle appeared, I always felt like giving up on everything.

Some memories were painfully detailed.

Kyle, laughing with confidence at those who said no one had ever returned alive from the castle.

Ray, who hadn’t blinked even when facing a grotesque false god, yet had jumped out of his skin at the sound of dripping water inside the castle.

Me, laughing at them while stealing their share of pie.

What use was there in remembering all that now?

So I was glad the mission day was coming — something that kept me grounded in reality.

I wanted to do something that helped someone. Even if not directly, I wanted to contribute in some small way to society.

Not that it would erase the wrongs I had committed.

I counted down the days until the mission.

***

The day of the mission.

I arrived at the train station at 8:30 a.m.

To reach the arena by seven or eight in the evening, I had to catch the 9 a.m. train. The Center Core was absurdly vast, and even this high-speed express was considered the fastest option.

Even so, this station was quite a distance from headquarters.

The platform was nearly empty. My breath turned white in the cold air. Even with civilian clothes over the thin combat uniform as instructed, the chill seeped through.

Still, standing in a patch of morning sunlight felt pleasant.

It wasn’t hard to spot my senior in the pale, frosty station.

There she was — shouting into her phone, in the middle of a fight.

“Get lost, you bastard!”

Bobby Winter was arguing with her boyfriend.

“Shut up! I was an idiot to take you back!” 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Maybe I should pretend I hadn’t arrived yet.

She hadn’t noticed me — her back was turned. I wasn’t clueless enough to go up and greet her in the middle of that scene.

I began tiptoeing backward, eyes darting around.

I’d hide in the restroom until she was done. Maybe check my clothes in the mirror.

“Presents? Come and get them yourself! Take them all!”

Just until the other seniors showed up—

“Those cheap pieces of junk!”

“Rookie.”

The voice behind me made me spin around.

“Let’s stay out of the way for a bit.”

The man was tall, broad-shouldered.

I took in his weary blue eyes and fine silver hair.

Asil Fiscer. Former police officer. Bobby’s junior, but senior to Aki — a Badger who had worked in another Core until last month.

He wore a rumpled gray jacket and held a steaming cup of coffee in one hand.

I bowed quietly.

“It’s an honor to meet you, sir. Hildebert Taleb.”

“Let’s just move first.”

He walked unhurriedly and stopped behind a pillar.

There was something amusing about his sluggish movements. I finally understood what Ami meant when she said he was “a bit like Leeho Chang.” Leeho was the type to laugh loudly and enjoy himself at a drinking table, while Asil was the type to smile tiredly and go home early.

He tilted his head, gesturing for me to follow. I ran to join him behind the pillar.

“Seems she’s in another rough relationship,” he muttered, sipping his coffee.

I blinked at the pale-eyed man.

“A fiery kind of romance, I suppose.”

“Her taste in men is weird.”

So she liked the difficult type, then.

The blond senior was still arguing. She sounded calmer now, but irritation still filled her voice.

Only when I heard, “Don’t ever call me again,” did I turn my head.

Asil spoke while glancing at Bobby.

“You can ask her about it yourself later.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll ask if there’s a chance.”

A perfectly sensible answer.

Then I met his eyes again.

“May I ask you a few things as well, sir?”

The faint blue eyes slid toward me.

I let him observe me in silence — this former detective who, according to Ami, “acted gruff but was actually a good person.” Yet for some reason, he had once grabbed Yun by the collar without warning.

His look said, What an odd rookie.

“What do you want to know?”

“Nothing special... I just want to get along with you, sir.”

When I said it honestly, his expression froze in disbelief.

He looked like he was in his early to mid-thirties physically, and he stayed silent for a moment.

“Ask whatever you want, whenever it’s comfortable.”

“Asil.”

Click-clack.

The sound of heels echoed closer. I turned to see the senior with sleek blond hair pinned up in an elaborate twist, heavy makeup accentuating her sharp features.

The deep-cut V-neck black jacket and crimson lipstick suited her perfectly.

“And you, weird rookie.”

That line.

I smiled faintly as I watched her light a cigarette with practiced ease.

Bobby Winter — she had been at the Safe Point when we went to D Zone. She had seen that place get surrounded by Creatures with her own eyes.

A surprisingly veteran Badger. According to Ami, she was “lively, fun-loving, honest with her emotions, but also a bit childish and careless.” She narrowed her eyes at my smile.

With the cigarette between her fingers, she looked me up and down.

“Your outfit sucks.”

“Uh.”

That was harsh.

Didn’t see that one coming.

That stung a little — I thought my baseball jacket was decent enough.

I gave a sheepish laugh and rubbed my neck.

“Sorry. I’m not much into fashion...”

“Not you. Well, yours is bad too, but Asil — are you heading to a crime scene in the financial district?”

“I’m the one talking to the police anyway, so it doesn’t matter, does it?”

Asil rolled his eyes and drank his coffee.

“It’s not like I’m going into the arena like the rest of you.”

That was true.

There was a reason our orders said to “wear civilian clothes over your combat uniform.” The seniors assigned to this mission couldn’t fully conceal their identities, but the three of us were supposed to blend in among the spectators as much as possible. Bobby, Ricardo, and I would be entering the arena tonight.

Into the crowd that came to enjoy matches between Creatures and illegal grafted humans.

The problem was that I had nothing suitable to wear for that kind of setting.

“You should buy a leather jacket,” Bobby said, cigarette perched between her red lips.

“Black. It’d look good on you.”

“Ah, yes, thank you. I’ll keep that in mind next time I go shopping.”

“If you’re done with your call, let’s go,” Asil said, pushing off the pillar.

He pointed toward the station entrance with his coffee hand.

“There’s Ricardo.”

Finally.

He’s here. I turned toward the direction Asil indicated.

And when I saw the senior walking into the white-washed station, my eyes widened.

I’d seen Ricardo often since coming to this world — almost as often as Ami — but his appearance now, stepping off the arriving train, was unfamiliar. Black mask, black jacket with too many pockets, black boots. The silver piercings stood out even more against that dark outfit.

On his hand glinted the familiar snake-shaped ring he always wore.

The look was far from his usual neat style.

The green-eyed man stopped in front of the train and waved lazily at us.

Watching that long-eyed smile, I muttered under my breath as I started walking.

“Delinquent...”

Dressed like that, he really did look like one.

***

Even the express train heading for the outer sectors was nearly empty.

We had booked the best car, so each of us had our own compartment. Until we reached our destination, we were free to rest or prepare individually. Those who wanted to eat lunch or dinner together would gather in the dining car.

By lunchtime, only Asil and I had shown up.

The dining car was quiet and pale, with only a few civilians scattered around.

Asil bought me a boxed meal.

When I thanked him, he waved it off and asked about my background over lunch.

“Oh, you were from another Core, right?”

“Yes, sir. Only a few Badgers attended the self-introduction.”

Really? The whole hall had been packed.

Didn’t they tell everyone to attend?

Maybe reading my thoughts, the silver-haired senior added bluntly,

“Those stationed in other Cores, outside the Cores, or far from headquarters didn’t come.”

“Ah, that makes sense. I wasn’t thinking.”

“So what made you become a Badger?”

I recited the fake administrative backstory Yun had prepared.

Asil’s expression darkened slightly as he listened — the registered Hildebert Taleb had apparently lived a sad life.

But it was all fake, so there was no need for him to look that grim.

I quickly added that I’d grown up happy and healthy, then changed the topic.

Asil answered most of my random questions easily. Why he became a police officer, what kind of cases he’d worked on — rough, but surprisingly detailed stories that gave me courage to ask more.

If the atmosphere stayed good after my last question, I’d ask about Yun.

“Why did you quit the police force and become a Badger?”

That was the landmine.

Asil’s face immediately darkened, silence falling sharp and unnatural.

And that ended our conversation. I apologized for the insensitive question and ate quietly while Asil grumbled that it was fine.

After that, I read one of the mystery novels provided on the train until we arrived.

It was completely dark by the time we reached our destination.

Walking from the station to the abandoned building used as the arena, Bobby told me about her love life.

She liked difficult men, apparently.

When she saw my confused look, she elaborated.

“Among the Badgers, I’d say Jason or Ricardo.”

“Ah.”

Jason Trevain and Ricardo Sordi.

I glanced at Ricardo’s back as he walked a few steps ahead, leading the way.

Jason and Ricardo, huh...

“So in other words, you only look at the hardware, not the software...”

“Hilde~...”

Before I could finish, Ricardo’s voice came from ahead.

“Looks like you’ve finally gotten used to team life, huh~?”