"Yu-jin, when do you think this situation will end?"

"Huh…?"

"Is that all you've got to say after dragging someone who’s never had a drink before into this?"

"Damn it, I just want this to end so I can send this kid home. I'm just trying to discuss it a bit earlier."

Fragments of my past memories flashed through my mind.

It was the first time I drank, and I drank until I was completely out of it. Along with about fifteen others, we drank wine until our stomachs were about to burst. The wine, naturally, had been scavenged from various wineries scattered across New York.

The amount of wine we drank that night easily reached into the billions. It couldn’t have been any other way. There were no more people left to guard the wineries, and nobody to stop us from taking it. Everyone had succumbed to the virus or the winter storms of New York.

The joke my comrades made about taking a few bottles of wine being equivalent to cleaning up the trash strewn across the city still echoed in my ears.

That night marked two years since I set foot in New York, and it was also the day our squad's kill count hit exactly 5,000.

"Ugh…"

"Haha, damn it, Morrison made Yu-jin cry after all."

"Hey, take that Petrus bottle out of his mouth. Logan, don’t you agree? I respect you, and whatever choice you make from here on out, I respect that too."

"Aye aye, sir! I'll take it right away!"

"You bastards, give it back! The amount left in that glass is worth $2,000!"

Chaos.

In the hazy memory, I watched as Logan seized the bottle of Château Petrus, while Morrison, despite his fierce resistance, was no match for the bear-like strength of Logan. His thick arms, which looked like they could snap a log in half, grabbed Morrison's frail hands, rendering him helpless. It was a bizarre scene.

At some point, I think I muttered something. I can’t remember what I said now, but everyone widened their eyes in response. Logan handed the bottle back, probably thinking I was okay with it.

What followed next was a feeling of warmth as Logan, much closer now, patted my head and back, comforting me.

My memories jumped around repeatedly.

I think I cried about wanting to go home, then somehow regained my strength and walked back to the barracks, holding my bloated stomach, which was full of alcohol instead of food. I remember holding Logan’s hand and seeing glimpses of the hallway leading to the barracks. It wasn’t a memory I was particularly fond of.

At that time, I had let out every frustration that had been building up inside me. Logan, who had also been mysteriously transformed into a woman, was the one who listened. It was a time when everyone around us was barely hanging on.

Though I didn’t want to recall it, there was also a part of me that knew if I hadn’t vented that day, I wouldn’t have been able to hold on. We both relied on each other, barely managing to get through it.

Of course—

"Hey, hey! What are you doing!?"

"Pillow…"

There were other reasons I didn’t want to remember that day.

Though I slept more soundly than usual that night, it was because I had wrapped Logan up with my tail like a cocoon. That, in itself, was enough reason for me to avoid drinking. Who knows what I might do if I lost control again?

As the memory finally faded, everything turned black. Not just my senses, but even the certainty that I’d be able to remember any of this once I woke up. All that might remain was a vague sense of longing.

Nevertheless, time passed.

Everything submerged back into the sea of forgetfulness.

And then…

"…Mm, snf."

I barely stifled the sound that almost escaped my lips.

Golden hair filled my vision, and from my tail—pressed against Dice's body—I felt a softness that I shouldn’t have been feeling. Quickly unraveling the tail that had been coiled around her, I was relieved to hear her breathing return to a more natural rhythm.

I glanced up at the clock on the wall. 10 a.m. We didn’t have to leave until 3 p.m., which was when all the solo competitors in the Asia preliminaries had to vacate the venue. Time wasn’t an issue, but my head throbbed.

As I carefully sat up, I checked Dice’s body for any signs of injury. My memories of last night were foggy. Had I gripped her too tightly? More importantly, how had my habit of using my tail as a pillow escalated into this mess?

I sighed deeply, relieved to see that apart from a slight redness where my tail had wrapped around her, there were no other visible marks. If I had lost control and hurt her, I wouldn’t have been able to forgive myself.

As I shifted, Dice woke up too.

"Ugh, my body…"

"I’m sorry."

"Oh, you’re awake…."

Still half-asleep, Dice rubbed her eyes with both hands. Even while yawning, she managed to cover her mouth—quite impressive.

Even now, she was using my tail as a pillow. Still caught between sleep and wakefulness, she occasionally muttered something as she absentmindedly fiddled with my tail.

"Sleeping in the same position all night… Ugh. What time is it?"

"It's 10 a.m. Would you like a massage? I know it sounds strange, but it’s really effective for muscle recovery."

"…I’m fine. Just a glass of water, please."

With a soft rustle, my tail slid out of her grasp. I went to the fridge and pulled out a chilled bottle of water, pouring a glass for each of us. The cold water soothed my fuzzy head, and Dice, apparently quite thirsty, downed her glass and asked for another.

After a brief trip to the bathroom, we both sipped some chocolate milk from the fridge to settle our stomachs. With some sugar in her system, Dice looked much better, glancing around the now-tidy room.

"Looks like someone cleaned up while we were in the bathroom."

"Seems like it."

"Ah, you're back to your usual self, Yu-jin… It's kind of a shame."

"Hearing you say that makes me dread finding out what I did last night."

She snickered.

It seemed Dice had understood my comment in the exact opposite way I’d intended. The words that followed from her mouth… What could I say? It was like reliving the same embarrassing moments all over again. Dice found it amusing to see me in a more human light, but hearing it now was mortifying.

If there was a next drinking session, I hoped I’d handle myself better than this.

"Oh, Yu-jin, your face is red again. Is that from the alcohol?"

"No… this is from embarrassment."

"Heehee."

How embarrassing.

In any case, Dice clearly hadn’t fully recovered from last night either. Seven hours of sleep weren’t enough to completely shake off the effects. She yawned as she checked the time again, then shuffled over to the bed.

According to the schedule, we had until 3 p.m. to leave the eSports stadium. Dice knew that too, so she decided to get a little more rest.

As she flopped onto the bed, she asked:

"You’re not going to sleep, are you?"

"I’ll rest too, if there’s nothing else to do."

"Okay, I’ll set the alarm for noon… See you in a bit."

Plop.

She collapsed onto the bed, and I, too, sank back onto mine. The bed creaked slightly but didn’t cause any issues. At least, that’s what I told myself. As I stared into the now-dark room, I closed my eyes.

I let my consciousness drift into the depths.

Two hours passed in what felt like an instant.

This time, my fatigue had significantly lessened. The hangover was still there, but the chocolate milk had helped ease it a bit. If I ate something decent for lunch, I’d probably be back to normal.

The alarm rang, and I gave Dice a light smack to wake her up. I left a quick note that I’d be showering first and grabbed my shower basket. The hot water washed away the lingering effects of last night’s excess.

After about 30 minutes, I emerged feeling much fresher. Dice was waiting outside the bathroom, and we had a brief exchange.

"I packed all your things too. What do you want for lunch? There’s a famous bean sprout soup place nearby."

"You’re suggesting bean sprout soup with the vibe of someone who’d rather be eating clam chowder with bread for a hangover cure."

"Ah, that’s discrimination."

"Fine, then I suppose I’ll pretend I’m eating raw beef for breakfast."

"Heehee."

When we returned to the room, it was spotless. Apart from the two bags sitting on the bed, it looked as though no one had been there at all. As the air conditioning blew through my hair, I grabbed a drink from the fridge to quench my hunger.

Since home was close enough to Yongsan, there wasn’t much rush to leave. By the time 1 p.m. rolled around, Dice returned, looking much more refreshed.

"Oh, your hair is a mess again. Come here!"

"What’s wrong with it? As long as it looks fine, it’s fine."

"Come on, let me brush it! Stop resisting."

It felt a little strange.

Despite my protests, Dice insisted on brushing my hair. Though I got scolded a few times, it seemed we had become quite close after all. After a bit more primping, we finally prepared to leave the place we had grown attached to.

By 1:20 p.m., I cleared our names from the pad on the wall, officially checking us out. As we stepped outside, a gentle breeze and warm sunlight greeted us, caressing the park.

Unlike yesterday, it was just the two of us.

We walked through the quiet park that no longer needed to accommodate hundreds of thousands of people.

"Oh, Yu-jin, I forgot to mention something."

"What is it? If it's something weird, I’ll let it slide just this once."

"The bean sprout soup place is a kilometer away."

"Oh, come on."

That was such a Dice-like mistake.

But since it was the last day, I decided to let it slide and hurried my steps.

The Asia preliminaries, which had begun with millions of competitors, ended quietly, with just the two of us.

Silent, serene, and with only two people walking together.

"Therefore, while there are many unclear aspects about this data, there is no doubt it was encrypted using the Icarus Gear algorithm."

"Unclear?"

"I mean that we cannot be certain of its authenticity or reliability. After the encryption, it continued to update and modify itself into an unrecognizable form. I don’t know if you can even call it data anymore."

Several black vehicles sped down the highway under heavy guard.

Inside one of the most heavily secured vehicles, the U.S. Secretary of Defense was holding a real-time video conference with her team in the U.S., a noise-cancelling barrier shielding the conversation.

On the other end of the screen was Jordan Royden, a senior researcher from DARPA and one of hundreds involved in developing the Icarus Gear and its encrypted network.

This wasn’t just any meeting. It was a gathering of DARPA researchers, the Secretary of Defense, and several key figures.

"So there’s no way to resolve this for now?"

"Unfortunately, no."

That was the conclusion. Janet had already received numerous classified reports earlier, many of them through secret channels.

Some of these reports had come from Korean HUMINT and included information on Yu-jin’s recent activities, specifically how, over the past two months, much of her data had become suddenly encrypted. Even Korea’s intelligence agencies had no way of decrypting it.

It was fortunate, yet unfortunate, that the encryption had been done using the Icarus algorithm. It meant that, without proper methods, it would remain indecipherable for decades.

Setting aside the hundreds of billions of dollars spent building the Icarus networks and infrastructure, the algorithms developed by former researchers during their spare time wouldn’t stand a chance at breaking the encryption.

There was also no real need to break it.

The fact that the data was encrypted meant that if Yu-jin’s military history were ever questioned, it wouldn’t cause much trouble. Encrypted secrets tend to inspire trust, regardless of the content.

But still—

‘Regardless, the Icarus Gear is revolutionary technology.’

The U.S. had no choice but to cooperate with Yu-jin to gain access to the Icarus Gear. Its ownership was entirely in her hands, so transferring it to the U.S. was nearly impossible. Whether the data within could benefit the U.S. wasn’t the issue.

Even if it didn’t matter, the Pandora’s box had to be opened.

As the meeting ended, Janet opened another communication line.

"Proceed as planned. We’re not considering halting the operation."

"Understood."

Janet G. Harper.

She was known for her relentless drive to complete any task within her purview.

As the communication ended, a fleeting memory of Yu-jin passed through her mind.

Soon enough, Eugene would come to know that America had its eyes on her.