“Muhae bought this for me!”Joo-o cried out, his voice surprisingly loud.“Want me to buy you some?”The thug’s hostile glare softened at the unexpected offer, but…“Yeah. But Muhae’s is still better.”“How do you know mine isn’t better without even tasting it?”That wasn’t exactly the compliment it sounded like. The thug’s cronies snickered at the low-class joke.Joo-o stared blankly until he realized they were mocking him, and his brows shot together.“He’s with me. I don’t know who you are, but if you don’t cut it out I’ll call the city watch!”The client, returning just then, rushed over and grabbed the thug, stepping between him and Joo-o.At the mention of the city watch, the thug recoiled, his expression sour.“What’s with this scrawny brat? Is this your old man? Doesn’t look like it.”“He’s just someone I know. The rest of my group will be back soon—let’s leave it at that.”“Looks like you fished him out of a cesspit. How much do you pay him per hour?”“Cesspit” was the slum. Pleasure districts overlapped the slums. The client’s face flushed at the insult, but the thug shoved him aside and once again shoved his head right up to Joo-o’s.Snap—he swallowed another steak chunk Joo-o had sliced.Without thinking, Joo-o’s knife hand clenched so tightly it made a grinding sound.His clear mind clouded by a red, dense fog. A crimson impulse swelled in his chest and his sharp canines bared between his reddening lips.“Meat…”Joo-o’s pupils dilated.He wanted to tear that head from its skinny neck and crunch it in his jaws. The bones would be soft, shattering like nothing under a few taps. There’d be a sweet rush of blood in the tender flesh, not as rich as a beast or Anomaly, but satisfying enough.‘Jin Muhae.’At the peak of that instinctual surge, his thoughts cleared at the name. If he harmed that meat here, Muhae would be in trouble—and Joo-o himself would lose the chance to follow the main story. He’d miss his ending, too.For the first time since possession, his simple mind branched out, wrestling the violent urge. His lips trembled, but outwardly he seemed only to sit dazed.Scared, maybe. The thug snickered at Joo-o’s fear.The client urgently called the watch, and the thug lunged to grab him—but the scrawny client held firm. Their scuffle tipped toward Joo-o’s side.At the moment Joo-o’s vision swam red and his breathing grew ragged—“Graaagh!”With a sudden crash, the thug’s arm twisted behind him. A massive silhouette appeared behind him: short-cropped hair for battle, sharp eyes, a cold, taciturn face.“What are you?”“Jin Muhae…”Joo-o sobbed, calling him, each breath a stuttering gasp of anger and anguish.Jin Muhae slipped out the tavern’s back alley toward the residential core.Even if someone was watching him, they’d assume he’d been drinking and shrugged it off. Still, he mapped CCTV locations as he gauged his distance.“Taxi.”Time was too short to run. He’d left Joo-o and needed to be swift. Though he’d fastened him with food, there was a child’s vulnerability about him.He doubted Joo-o would misbehave, but he felt uneasy—like he’d left a kid at the water’s edge.―Payment confirmed.That spurred him on. At Joo-o’s status, wandering long risked suspicion.Finally, he reached the fifth floor of a densely packed apartment building and couldn’t help but exhale. He was seldom rattled, but this was different.Beep.“Mr. Shin Dae-su?”―Who is this? What did you order?―No idea.“There’s a package for Mr. Shin Dae-su—needs to be picked up in person.”Hearing voices in the apartment, Jin Muhae guessed his contact was settled and well-off. The building looked in good repair—unlike most.The door swung open and a middle-aged man poked his head out.“Who is it?”“From where the sun sets.”At those words—echoing Dr. Jeong’s phrase—the man’s pleasant face turned ashen.Shin Dae-su stepped fully into the hallway, clicked the door shut behind him, and stared at Muhae, mouth moving without sound.“…You.”“Pleased to meet you. Jin Muhae.”“My goodness. I’d heard he had a child… but when—?”Shin Dae-su muttered, grabbed Muhae’s hand, then glanced around as if awakening from a dream.“Sorry, but can’t let you in. How about we talk somewhere else for a bit?”“Apologies for the sudden visit. I won’t take long—just need brief advice.”“Advice?”“I inherited ‘it’ from my father, but the records are old and incomplete. When I asked for help, someone recommended you.”“What?”Confusion filled Shin Dae-su’s eyes. He searched his memory, then froze as if struck.“I discarded those files years ago. Officially, I was never on that project.”“Then…?”“But if what you have is the same program format I remember, I can give you some tips. The index has certain conditional scripts.”“Conditional scripts… could you explain in detail?”“Wait here.”Shin Dae-su peered around again, then tapped his watch face. A signal blinked on his screen like a broken connection.In a hushed voice, he said, “Some documents in that program only decrypt into readable form when the correct keywords or codes are entered. Otherwise, they remain encrypted ghost code. I was asked to make it that way—by him.”“—!”“And I happen to have one code. Don’t know how useful it is, but here.”He rolled up his left sleeve to reveal a tattoo of a bird with outstretched wings on his forearm.“Is that program registered on your watch?”“Yes.”“Then security’s fine. Activate recognition and press your watch to this.”Ding—DONG!A familiar electronic tone rang, and Muhae’s watch bathed the tattoo in blue light. The bird design glowed faintly—it was ASCII art painted in special ink!Lines of log data scrolled as though the watch’s firmware glitched, then the display reset to the usual date and time as if nothing had happened.“Check it somewhere safe. I’d talk longer, but…”Footsteps dragged on the other side of the closed door—family coming to see who was there.“My family doesn’t know about this.”“I understand. Thank you for your help.”Muhae bowed deeply and turned. As soon as he reached the stairs, the door creaked open and murmured voices drifted after him.He clenched his watch, pressed it firmly in his ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) right hand, and dashed back to the curb.He hailed a taxi and checked his watch—only twenty minutes had passed since leaving the tavern. Perfect.He’d slip back as if nothing had happened, pretend to spend another drink, then gather Joo-o and head home. That would conclude today’s agenda.His heart knocked, adrenaline sparking through him—whether from excitement or anxiety, he couldn’t tell.‘…He’s done well. Maybe I’ll praise him a bit.’Dragging Joo-o along by force had strangely gone well. The process had been rough, but the outcome was always good. And that mysterious strength—prophetic instincts or foresight.He had no memories of himself, but Joo-o could certainly pull his weight once trained. Harsh, but maybe better unburdened by memory.An “experiment subject” with nowhere to spill secrets. Better to keep him close than let him stray.No need to pay a salary—he suited this unpaid sidekick role perfectly.‘Still, keeping him by my side seems best.’Calculating Joo-o’s value as he entered the tavern with a bright façade, he stopped short.What he saw was the thug grappling with the client—and Joo-o, face fully exposed, standing between them.Pale and stunned, Joo-o alternated between watching the client’s collar and the thug. His soft red lips trembled in fear.“What are you?”As Muhae snapped the thug’s arm behind him, his low voice silenced the room. Color rushed back into Joo-o’s face and fresh life returned to his eyes.“Jin Muhae…”Hearing his name, his expression was pitifully relieved.

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