On one side was Cashier of the Black Parade, an A-Rank Orca Therianthrope.

On the other was Hwang Jin-yi of the Crimson Poverty Front, an AA-Rank Nine-tailed Fox.

The battle between them had ended in a stalemate.

Cashier was a close-quarters combat specialist; Hwang Jin-yi, a master of hypnosis and mental manipulation. Their abilities were perfect counters to one another.

Landing a solid blow was difficult, but any that landed would be fatal.

Having reached the mutual conclusion of “Damn, this one’s a handful,” the two Awakened were merely testing each other, probing for an opening.

Meanwhile, the other two fights had been decided in an instant.

“Looks like your friends got stomped. What now, Nine-tails?” Ghost asked, twirling the steel pipe she’d used to beat down Iljimae and Jeon Woo-chi. “Ready to surrender?”

“…Not necessarily.”

Hwang Jin-yi smiled faintly with her elongated, vulpine snout.

“It’s only natural to be outmatched in combat by an S-Rank… but our victory condition was never about winning the fight.”

“Oh? Then what is your victory condition?”

“Why, we’re thieves. A successful escape is its own victory, wouldn’t you say?”

“Escape?” Ghost scoffed. “How the hell do you plan on escaping from here?”

The moment the words left her mouth…

Thwup-thwup-thwup-thwup-thwup!

The Black Parade’s transport plane and two helicopters from Paradise Lost appeared overhead, their rotors slicing through the night.

VROOOOOM!

Dozens of small boats cut across the sea toward them.

It was the pursuit team from Paradise Lost itself—correctional officers and Black Parade members.

«Hey! You honorless sons of bitches!»

The transport’s hatch opened as it hovered above the escort ship Milton, revealing Hae-eun.

Her voice, dripping with venom, boomed from the external speakers.

«You’re surrounded! Get on the ground, now!»

“…”

«Resistance is futile! Surrender now and I might let you live. Get down!»

Since Iljimae and Jeon Woo-chi were already unconscious on the deck, courtesy of Ghost, Hae-eun could only be addressing Hwang Jin-yi.

«I’ll have you delivered fresh to a VIP cell in my prison, you goddamn Villains…!»

“…”

Listening to Hae-eun spit out her words, Hwang Jin-yi slowly surveyed her surroundings.

A tight cordon was closing in from sea and sky. Escape seemed impossible.

“A pity.”

But these were no ordinary criminals. They were Awakened, wielding supernatural powers.

Hwang Jin-yi raised her hands above her head, chuckling.

“If you’d surrounded us just a few minutes sooner, you might have caught us.”

“…?!”

By the time Ghost sensed something was wrong, it was already too late.

Click!

Hwang Jin-yi pulled the ornamental pin from her hair. Her ash-brown locks cascaded down her back, and at that exact moment—a thick sea mist surged up from the ocean, blanketing the area.

Fwoooosh…

Ghost and Cashier shot forward in unison, as if by silent agreement, lunging for Hwang Jin-yi.

But the Nine-tailed Fox had already vanished, melting into the rapidly thickening fog.

“Holy shit, where’d she go?!”

“It’s just a trick to buy time. There’s no way off this ship. Stay calm, maintain the perimeter, and—”

Ghost’s words trailed off. An impossible sight was unfolding before her.

Beyond the billowing, cloud-like mist… the ocean was parting.

Swoooosh…!

Right beside the escort ship Milton, the sea split like the Red Sea before Moses, revealing a narrow path between the waves.

“What… is this?” Ghost muttered, dumbfounded.

From within the thick fog came Hwang Jin-yi’s helpful reply.

“It is the path to ‘the island.’”

The Nine-tailed Fox’s voice was thick with amusement.

“We call it the ‘Fox Way.’”

***

There are islands where a path opens twice a day, as if the sea itself is breathing.

Normally isolated by the ocean, these islands are briefly connected to the mainland at low tide, when the receding water reveals a narrow path.

This phenomenon is created by the ebb and flow of the tides, a product of the moon and sun’s gravitational pull.

People regarded this path with a sense of mystery, calling it a tidal causeway.

On the full and new moons of the lunar calendar, when the sun, moon, and Earth align, their combined gravitational forces create the greatest tidal differences. This period is known as a spring tide.

Some causeways, invisible during normal low tides, appear only at this time. Some islands grant passage only then.

These rarely appearing causeways were said to be impossible to cross unless one was bewitched by a fox—and so they were also called the Fox Way.

***

The sea parted, and the Fox Way opened.

And at the end of this surreal path lay an island.

Though it was the middle of the night, the island glowed with a faint luminescence, as if lit from within.

Its flora was an impossible mixture of all four seasons.

Trees sprouting new buds, fields of colorful flowers, red autumn leaves and ripe fruit, and branches heavy with snow…

The island revealed itself like a mirage, a vision that could not exist in this world.

«What… is that?» Hae-eun’s voice, coming from above, was thick with bewilderment. «There’s no island like that on any map! Is it an illusion? Or—»

“It is no illusion,” Hwang Jin-yi whispered, her form still hidden in the fog.

“The island’s name is Yuldo.”

“…?!”

“The only paradise permitted in this world.”

Cashier and Ghost strained to pinpoint Hwang Jin-yi’s exact location, but with her fully concealing her presence, they couldn’t even detect a trace of her.

“This Fox Way, too, is a power of the island.”

By then, Iljimae, Jeon Woo-chi, and even Silken Bodhisattva, who had been lying on the deck, had all vanished into the fog.

“What—” Ghost let out a frustrated breath.

While taunting the Nine-tailed Fox, she had been simultaneously moving to secure the unconscious Silken Bodhisattva, who was just within arm’s reach.

But Silken Bodhisattva, who had been clearly in her line of sight, had simply melted away into the mist.

While the bewildered Ghost searched for her, Hwang Jin-yi, having gathered her comrades, chided softly from the fog.

“The path to the island is open. Get a grip, children. It’s time to go home.”

Jeon Woo-chi was still unable to stand, but Iljimae managed to struggle to her feet.

“Hngh!”

Iljimae shot one last glare toward Ghost, who was still searching for them in the fog. Then she hoisted Silken Bodhisattva and Jeon Woo-chi under each arm.

Hwang Jin-yi led the way, and Iljimae hurried after her.

“…!”

Having finally pinpointed their location by desperately extending her senses, Ghost yelled, “Kid!”

It was a command for Jae-hee, the fastest among them, to intercept the enemy.

But Jae-hee’s stamina was already depleted. He was out cold, spread-eagled on the deck.

“Tch!”

Gritting her teeth, Ghost dashed forward. Cashier, who had been searching the other side of the deck, rushed over as well.

Hwang Jin-yi and Iljimae had already leaped from the deck, landing lightly on the Fox Way.

“Cashier!”

“I know!”

Bursting through the fog, Ghost and Cashier also leaped from the deck, aiming for the Fox Way.

But they found no footing.

“…?!”

The Fox Way was intangible, like a mirage. Though the Crimson Poverty Front members were walking on it right in front of them, Ghost and Cashier passed straight through and plunged into the sea below.

Splash…!

“Ugh?! What the—”

“No need to be in such a hurry, Ghost.”

Hwang Jin-yi, who had already reverted to her human form, glanced back over her shoulder as she walked along the path, the corners of her mouth crinkling into a smile.

“One day, you too will be invited to that island. There is a place reserved for you there.”

Hwang Jin-yi chuckled softly. “But not today.”

Ghost and Cashier tried to swim after them, but for some reason, no matter how hard they swam, they couldn’t get any closer to the Fox Way.

Ghost roared into her earpiece. “Commander!”

«You don’t have to tell me!»

Hae-eun was already making her next move.

«Hnngh…!»

As Hae-eun took a deep breath, the surface of the sea began to vibrate violently.

KSSSHHHHH!

A colossal shadow shot up from the depths.

It was the giant sea snake under Hae-eun’s command—a Sea Serpent.

BUOOOOOH…!

Letting out a whale-like cry, the Sea Serpent raised its massive body and slammed it down from above, as if to crush the Fox Way.

“So, the Sea Dragon makes its appearance.”

But Hwang Jin-yi was unconcerned.

“But even if the Dragon King of the East Sea himself were to appear, how could he defy the will of the island?”

KRA-KOOOOM…!

The massive serpent’s body crashed back into the water, throwing up an immense spray in all directions.

But by the time the dozens of house-sized waves had subsided, the Fox Way remained, serene and untouched.

As if it didn’t exist in this world, but somewhere else entirely.

None of their attacks, nor any other interference, could touch it.

“Until we meet again, Convict Unit.”

Hwang Jin-yi walked briskly toward the island, the hem of her black hanbok skirt fluttering.

“I have a feeling we’ll be seeing far too much of each other.”

Iljimae, still carrying Jeon Woo-chi and Silken Bodhisattva, shot one last glare at Ghost before running after Hwang Jin-yi.

Shaaaaaa…

Like a mirage, the Fox Way dissipated and vanished.

Along with the surreal island of Yuldo that lay at its end.

SWOOOOSH!

The only proof the phenomenon had occurred was the rough waves churned up as the parted sea rushed back to fill the void.

“Ha.”

Soaked to the bone, Ghost floated in the sea beside Cashier and watched the scene, muttering in disbelief.

“Did we really just get bewitched by a fox…?”

«GYAAAAAAAH!»

From the transport plane above came the sound of Hae-eun screaming as she tore at her hair.

«We lost them, goddammit!»

It was rare to see the commander so genuinely pissed off, and Ghost couldn’t help but let out a dry laugh.

But her expression hardened immediately afterward, and she stared out into the dark night sea.

Everything about the Villain organization known as the Crimson Poverty Front—their goals, their methods, their members—was cause for concern.

But the greatest threat, and the biggest question, was this:

What do they plan to do with Silken Bodhisattva?

Ghost let out a weary sigh.

What are you going to do to that girl, you damned Villain filth bastards…

Thwup-thwup-thwup—

Above the night sea where the enemy had vanished, the speedboats fanned out, searching for any trace, while the transport and helicopters swept the area futilely with their searchlights.

The night sea met the night sky, and both were simply dark.

***

“…Ngh.”

Silken Bodhisattva’s eyes fluttered open.

Lying on her side, she blinked blankly. Her head was still foggy from the drugs.

As she managed to sit up, she realized her hands were bound. She fought to clear her groggy consciousness, lifting her head to survey her surroundings.

“Where… am I now…?”

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