Suddenly, a book came into the corner of her vision.

Reaching out slowly toward the casually scattered book on the sofa, Eunha touched its stiff cover with her fingers and gently pursed her lips.

“A dog.”

“Yes?”

Flip─

As Eunha opened the book, she added in a whisper.

“I like dogs.”

Korea Hunter Association.

As the midnight approached, Chairman Daeyun gazed at Seoul’s sleeping nightscape through the glass window.

Tap, tap…
The fingers, tapping on the chilled glass, suddenly stopped. He recalled the white bird that visited him last night.

Jeon Seogu. A special bird tamed by a specific Awakener, delivering messages.

“Within the next month, a massive gate will appear somewhere on the southern coast.”

Jeon Seogu flapped its wings and spoke. Chairman Daeyun paid more attention to the pendant around the bird’s neck than the content of the message.

A round pendant with wing patterns engraved. For anyone involved in the world of hunters, it was unmistakable. The talking white bird and the pendant shining in brilliant silver were symbols of the GIA.

Rumors had circulated that they had visited Korea, but was it true? If so, perhaps they had also attended the party hosted by the Korean Association a few days ago…

“……”

Daeyun approached the desk and examined the guest list from the recent party.

A total of 121 people. All of them had ‘genuine’ invitations. Of course, the invitations were made in a way that couldn’t be easily forged.

‘If only I weren’t wearing a mask.’ Even if she had to fumble through her memories, she could recall the faces of the guests one by one. But why did GIA happen to visit Korea this year, precisely when the party was held?

“……Kkeung.”

Dropping the guest list, Daeyun sighed deeply and leaned back in his chair.

“What will you do?”

Someone suddenly spoke from a corner of the conference room.

It was Kim Gwanghyun, the team leader who had been waiting silently for Daeyun’s instructions.

Daeyun pressed his back against the chair, placing his hand on his forehead. Then, he reconsidered the ‘warning’ from last night.

“I see a big tree.”

“A white and pure tree. It cannot be felled even with a sturdy axe, nor can it be burned with blazing flames.”

“The attributes are probably Holy (聖) and Wood (木).”

As is customary with prophecies, what he said was cryptic, like a riddle. The only hint he gave was one.

“Dark (暗) and Fire (火) attributes will be effective.”

Remember. Dark and Fire, darkness and fire.

With those words, Jeon Seogu flapped its wings, then quickly disintegrated into pixel fragments, scattering into the air without leaving a trace, as if saying, “Believe it or not, it’s up to you.”

“……There are over 2,000 islands just along the southern coast. In the current situation where we don’t know the exact date or coordinates, how are we supposed to prepare?”

Gwanghyun sighed deeply.

Already short on agents to deploy to the Burst Gate, the upper echelon of the Korean Hunter Association was in disarray due to Trickster’s injury.

After a period of silence, Daeyun took out a thick cigarette from the nearby cigarette case. Gwanghyun rushed over, lit the cigarette for him, and spoke.
“First, I did entrust the Hammer Guild with a massive order for the production of equipment imbued with Dark and Fire attributes… However, if their prophecy turns out to be wrong, we’ll be left with a warehouse full of goods with no use.”

Gwanghyun seemed concerned about the enormous budget allocated for the request. Putting the lighter back into his pocket, he opened his mouth with a skeptical expression.

“Is this ‘GIA’ really an existing organization in the first place?”

Even with millions of fans worldwide shouting about faceless heroes, living Avengers, how many of them have actually witnessed a member of GIA?

With only rumors of them appearing like comets at disaster sites and disappearing like the wind, no one had ever seen the true identity of GIA members.

“Someone might be playing a prank, don’t you think?”

In his dubious attitude, Gwanghyun’s mistrustful expression prompted Daeyun to take his cigarette out and slowly speak after detaching it.

“…Do you remember the large-scale rift that occurred in Santorini, Greece, 11 years ago?”

“That would be the world’s first SSS-grade gate. Of course, I remember.”

The aftermath of that tremendous disaster was so severe that Santorini Island had been off-limits to the general public for the past 11 years.

“If GIA hadn’t delivered the ‘prophecy’ back then, Santorini, no, Greece would have disappeared from the world map.”

“Huh?”

Gwanghyun blinked in confusion.

“Are you saying that GIA went to Santorini back then?”

“I don’t know if they went or not. However, precisely three weeks before the occurrence of the massive rift, a white bird with a silver pendant visited the association there.”

“…”

“I heard the story directly when I visited Santorini due to the agreement two years ago.”

Since then, European hunters referred to GIA’s white bird delivering prophecies as ‘Holy Words.’

“Perhaps, among GIA members, there is someone with the ability of foresight (豫知).”

How concrete or fragmentary the future could be seen with that ability was unknown. As Daeyun tapped the ashtray and expelled the tobacco residue, he spoke heavily.

“Team Leader Kim.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

“Some time ago, I received a similar warning. You’re aware of it, too, right?”

“…”

Gwanghyun remained silent.

With a cigarette in his mouth, Daeyun turned his gaze out the window with a profound look.

‘Chairman, an unknown gate will appear in Pohang.’

Doctor Plant. She warned him.

Daeyun knew well how capable she was and how long she had been researching unknown gates.

However, from Daeyun’s perspective, Rose’s assertion was more like speculation than a prophecy. After all, the study of unknown gates was not originally within the realm of research. In fact, there were countless precedents where Rose’s conjectures went wrong.

The kind ruler of roses. The Nightingale of the hunter world. Also,

‘A pitiful woman who has been repeating meaningless research in the grief of losing her daughter.’
Many in the Korean hunter community evaluated Rose, and honestly, Daeyun was one of them.

“I understand your intentions, but… Hm.”

“No, Chairman. This time it’s genuine.”

“…”

As someone at the top of the association, Daeyun couldn’t hastily invest dozens or hundreds of high-ranking personnel in uncertain speculations.

Already, the number of agents in the association was insufficient, and at this moment, rifts, both large and small, were forming all over the country.

“But.”

Gazing at the glass window and puffing cigarette smoke intermittently, Daeyun flicked the completely burnt cigarette into the ashtray. The cigarette went out only after scorching the white surface of the ashtray.

“As a result of ignoring Dr. Plant’s warning, Trickster got injured. He’s the only S-rank we have in Korea, and…”

Daeyun mumbled softly while staring at the extinguished cigarette.

“Originally, he’s just a middle school boy.”

“Chairman…”

Gwanghyun let his words linger for a while.

Clouds slowly covered the moon. In the silent conference room with only the two of them, darkness arrived with stillness. In that quietness, Daeyun spoke heavily.

“I feel a great responsibility there. Would I repeat foolish actions twice after becoming chairman? Isn’t that right, Team Leader Kim?”

“…Yes.”

Gwanghyun nodded briefly. A faint smile crept into Daeyun’s wrinkled eyes.

“Good. Call Maestro… no, Dr. Plant. Inform her that we need Trickester’s care, but we also require her research data. And provide the list of hunters with Dark and Fire attributes.”

As the moon reappeared brightly in the place where the clouds had passed, Daeyun issued instructions with an unwavering voice.

“Get ready as soon as possible.”