“What? Why our Seo-ha? Are you really the police? I couldn’t even see that ID properly earlier.”

Ryu Jeong-ah was the first to react.

“Which precinct are you from?”

Choi Gang-hu also didn’t hide his displeasure. Although he didn’t unleash his magic like before, the atmosphere was so chilly that it naturally heightened the tension.

“Th-that…”

“Hey, hey! Don’t just blurt it out like that…! I’m sorry. This guy is new and doesn’t know better.”

The senior officer, who had pushed down on the back of the flustered junior officer’s head to make him bow, explained with a panicked expression.

“How did you know I was here?”

Only Ryu Seo-ha, the person in question, calmly asked.

“Well, Guild Master Choi Junwan reported it. He said Hunter Ryu Seo-ha might be in danger and asked us to search for him.”

Judging by how the senior officer glanced at Choi Gang-hu while answering, the situation was roughly understandable. He must have reported it when Choi suddenly disappeared with Seo-ha using a spatial skill. Of course, it wasn’t because he was really worried about Ryu Seo-ha. He probably didn’t think Choi Gang-hu would be punished either. It was likely just a ploy to cause some trouble.

But something was odd. The police were requesting Ryu Seo-ha to come with them, not Choi Gang-hu.

“We also happened to have a matter that required us to bring in Hunter Ryu Seo-ha.”

As expected, it seemed they had other business.

“May I ask what this is about first?”

“Ah, yes, yes. Of course. Park Gyu-in has gone missing, and we need to question you as a person of interest…”

“Who?”

“Park Gyu-in. You know, the one involved in the kidnapping case… The man who guided the stealth hunter to the VIP ward.”

Seo-ha recalled the man who had knelt down, begging to treat his brother with an unstable demeanor on the day of the kidnapping.

“Ah, that doctor.”

“Pardon? Oh, you haven’t heard. He’s not a doctor, he’s an impostor.”

“That’s right, they said he was a fraud.”

Blinking slowly at this unexpected information, Ryu Jeong-ah, who had been standing quietly, suddenly chimed in.

“It was all over the news! The accomplice in the S-class healer kidnapping, a fraud with prior convictions!”

A flood of information poured out: he had only been sentenced once, but he had actually committed many more crimes; he avoided punishment because the fraud charges couldn’t be established; our country’s laws are still lacking, and so on.

“So was it also a lie that he was the brother of the psychiatrist who survived the popup dungeon?”

“No, that part is true. His brother was the one who reported this disappearance.”

“It’s sad, but why do I need to be questioned as a person of interest?”

After hearing the explanation, it made even less sense. Ryu Seo-ha was simply a victim, and he hadn’t been involved with the fraudster since then. Perhaps they were considering the possibility of revenge based on a grudge?

“Well, it’s a bit complicated.”

The senior officer scratched his head as if it was giving him a headache and signaled to the junior officer. The junior officer ran to the police car parked nearby and returned with an envelope. He immediately took out several photos.

“Besides Park Gyu-in, there have been other missing person reports. We’re questioning all known contacts as persons of interest.”

They were all familiar faces. Several popup dungeon survivors including the VIP waiting room staff, some hunter exam applicants, and most of the YH Capital employees. Now it made sense.

All the missing persons were connected to Ryu Seo-ha in some way. Though they were beating around the bush, they were likely suspecting him deep down. If he hadn’t awakened as a healing-type healer, he might have been brought in as a suspect rather than a person of interest.

“It seems to be a serial disappearance case… But we can’t find any leads. Please cooperate with our investigation.”

“Were there no witnesses?”

“Well, that’s the strange part. When we check the CCTV, most of the victims weren’t alone at the time of their disappearance. But no one knows when or how they vanished. That’s why it’s being treated as a disappearance rather than a kidnapping.”

This suggested the use of a mental-type skill. If there were no records on CCTV, a stealth-type skill should also be considered.

If the missing persons didn’t voluntarily disappear and there was indeed a kidnapper, the perpetrator could possibly be a group. Could it be the Order?

Ryu Seo-ha’s expression turned serious. It didn’t seem likely that the Order would rashly reveal themselves, but considering what happened during the hunter exam…

“Ryu Seo-ha, you can refuse to go with them,” Choi Gang-hu, who had been listening silently, muttered in a low, expressionless voice.

“Uh, well, we’d appreciate your cooperation if possible. To execute our official duties…”

“Do you have a warrant?”

“…”

No judge would issue a warrant based on mere suspicion. Moreover, Ryu Seo-ha’s identity was clear, there was no risk of flight, and he wasn’t caught in the act with physical evidence. This meant forced accompaniment was impossible.

“We’re not trying to interrogate you as a suspect, just lightly ask about your alibi on the days the missing persons disappeared. It won’t take long…”

“Can’t a witness statement be submitted in writing?”

“Well, that…”

“In fact, according to the Special Hunter Law, there’s not even an obligation to do that.”

The police officers looked embarrassed by Choi Gang-hu’s cold, point-by-point objections. Ryu Seo-ha, who had initially intended to cooperate, found himself in an awkward position.

He didn’t want to go against Choi’s mood once more. Choi Gang-hu seemed to be in a bad mood. Besides, he needed to persuade him about the IHL issue.

“I’m sorry. I’ll submit the relevant information in writing first. If there’s anything additional that needs to be verified, I’ll come in for a face-to-face interview.”

“…Then please submit it as soon as possible.”

In the end, when Seo-ha agreed with Choi Gang-hu’s opinion, the police had no choice but to back down.

“Geez, that was scary. I almost dropped the baby.”

Ryu Jeong-ah grumbled exaggeratedly while subtly checking Ryu Seo-ha’s reaction. She swallowed all the questions she wanted to ask, like if he was okay or if he had any ideas about what was going on.

“There’s no need to worry at all,” Choi Gang-hu reassured him in a much softer tone.

“I’ll assign lawyers from the group’s legal team to you. They’ll handle all the paperwork procedures, so don’t be concerned.”

Perhaps because Ryu Seo-ha’s expression had become quite serious, both of them were looking at him as if he were a frightened child. But it wasn’t the police that had startled him. He consciously composed his expression and smiled.

“I’m fine. More importantly, Mr. Choi Gang-hu, I’d like to talk to you separately.”

“Let’s do it tomorrow. I’ll make time whenever. For now, you should rest.”

“That’s right, your face is pale now. Let’s go straight to the hotel.”

“That would be better.”

Choi Gang-hu personally escorted Ryu Seo-ha and Ryu Jeong-ah to the front of the hotel. He neither insisted on them coming to his neighboring apartment nor tried to push the house deed on them again. It made Seo-ha feel slightly embarrassed, as if he were some delicate princess.

❖ ❖ ❖

The next day, Ryu Seo-ha, who reported to the Fromhell Guild, could finally feel the satisfaction of working. He was treating guild members who had completed their dungeon conquest a day later than originally scheduled.

“Wow, even getting treated by an S-class healer. My life is complete! It’s an honor!”

“This is no joke. It heals instantly just by touching.”

“I know, right? These were injuries that would have taken ages to heal even with super expensive potions.”

The atmosphere was 180 degrees different from his previous workplace. The guild members welcomed him to an almost burdensome degree, marveling at his every small gesture. It was awkward, but not an unpleasant feeling.

“So, the reason for the low success rate of enchantment with crafting characteristics and skills is because the magical power has a property that repels certain items?”

“Wow, you really understand quickly. That’s right. That’s why synthesis is difficult too. You need to use high-grade materials from the start to get a basic grade…”

He spent his break chatting with Dr. Han Gang-seok from the Production Research Lab. It was an opportunity to gain useful knowledge from a genius guaranteed by the original work.

It couldn’t hurt to learn anything. He also had to wait until Choi Gang-hu returned from the luncheon meeting that Guild Master Baekdu had sent an invitation to.

“Are you sure you didn’t go to college? Have you ever thought about pursuing a degree even now?”

Han Gang-seok, who had been chattering excitedly, went so far as to doubt Ryu Seo-ha’s final education level and suggested graduate school. He found Seo-ha’s exceptional insight intriguing, despite his lack of academic background.

“The super-intelligence determinism? Ah, this explanation will get long again. Fundamentally, the universe doesn’t have a set direction of time, you know. I mean the mathematically provable universe. Even with simple physics equations, you can find velocity and position, but the direction of force, whether that time flows from past to future…”

Maybe he was just excited to find someone who would quietly listen to his abstruse talk. What saved Ryu Seo-ha, who had been listening to explanations about various hypotheses and phenomena for quite some time, was none other than Secretary Jang.

“Hunter Ryu Seo-ha, please go up to the guild master’s office first. The guild master will likely arrive within 30 minutes.”

The guild master’s office, which Seo-ha visited for the first time following Secretary Jang’s guidance, was a spacious area with notable modern interior design.

“The guild master asked me to tell you to look around leisurely. Take your time and explore. Over here, there are also items in the form of accessories on display.”

“Ah, yes.”

“What would you like to drink?”

“It’s okay. I had something at the Production Research Lab.”

“I see. Well, if you need anything, please don’t hesitate to call.”

As always, Secretary Jang bowed very politely and left the guild master’s office. As instructed, Ryu Seo-ha was looking around the display cabinet when he moved towards the black wooden desk with a black nameplate.

As he was examining the design, which was both classic and sophisticated, he suddenly paused. His questioning gaze turned to the floor. His toes, which had become much more sensitive than others due to his habit of walking on his tiptoes, had detected something strange beneath the large rectangular carpet.

Ryu Seo-ha’s expression stiffened slightly.

‘Could the Order have reached even here? Perhaps an item installed for surveillance?’

Since yesterday, his thoughts kept drifting in that direction. After hesitating for a moment, he decided to just take a look and lifted the carpet. Then he frowned. There was a door that anyone would find suspicious.

Could it be a hidden secret passage? Or maybe a safe? Perhaps it would be better to pretend not to have seen it and cover it back up.

As he reached that conclusion and grabbed the carpet again, he felt a tiny amount of magical power being drawn out through his fingertips that had brushed against the door.

“What…”

Zing, click. The iron door that had looked so sturdy opened with disappointing ease. Ryu Seo-ha’s eyelids trembled slightly. It was partly due to his bewilderment at the completely unintended situation, but…

‘The smell of blood.’

It was because of the thick scent of blood wafting from beyond the stairs beneath the door. It was so strong that it could be clearly smelled even from the entrance.

“Oh my.”

A quiet voice came from behind him. Startled, he slowly turned his head to see Choi Gang-hu leaning against the door. His expression was unreadable.