"I see, this happened..."

Lee Ha-yeon, utilizing the Angel Guild's intelligence network, had been quietly gathering information through trusted sources.

The information she was collecting was centered around the disappearance of Baekho Guild's eldest son, Baek Seo-jun.

"Baek Seo-jun."

Despite having spent his childhood in the Baekho Guild until the age of ten, unlike Baek Seo-jin, information on Baek Seo-jun’s early years was incredibly difficult to find.

There were no official records, and it seemed that the Baekho Guild had intentionally erased any traces of his existence, as though they were trying to erase his past entirely.

‘Could a father really erase his son’s record like this?’

From the moment Lee Ha-yeon began this investigation, she had realized that the Baekho Guild’s actions were strange.

Why was Baek Seo-jun using the alias Kim Ho-jun and avoiding returning to the Baekho Guild? And why did he reveal his name to her and ask her to keep it a secret? The answer became clear.

‘They were trying to prevent me from getting close to the Baekho Guild.’

To be precise, they had given her a choice.

Whether to oppose him, or to distance herself from the Baekho Guild.

If it hadn’t been for Baek Seo-jun, she might have held a neutral or even positive view of the Baekho Guild for sending auxiliary forces to support her, even if it hadn’t been much.

At the very least, she might have developed a friendly relationship with them.

Especially with Baek Seo-jin, she might have even viewed him as a worthy rival, considering him a good competitor.

But to become close to the Baekho Guild meant cutting ties with Baek Seo-jun, who had saved her. And seeing the guild's past actions brought an instinctive sense of revulsion.

Just learning some of the facts uncovered through her investigation made it clear that she could never grow close to the Baekho Guild.

Especially with Baek Hyung-won, Kim Yoo-jung, and their son Baek Seo-jin—she wouldn’t want to get any closer to them if she could help it.

"Aga-ssi, I’ve gathered the information from long-time members of the Baekho Guild."

"Thank you for your hard work."

Lee Ha-yeon had carefully selected those within the Angel Guild who were tight-lipped and would never disclose such information to the outside, not just to avoid detection by the Baekho Guild.

She also wanted to gather details from those guild members who remembered Baek Seo-jun from his past.

Given the Baekho Guild’s surveillance and threats, typically, no amount of money would make these people speak easily.

No matter how tempting the offer, one’s life would always take precedence.

However, when the Angel Guild guaranteed secrecy and offered a hefty sum, things changed.

As long as they were assured that their involvement would remain hidden, they spilled the information without fear of Baekho Guild’s retaliation.

‘This is too much.’

Reading through the audio files and the neatly organized report, Lee Ha-yeon could only feel that the situation was too extreme.

According to the testimonies of the Baekho Guild members who had witnessed Baek Seo-jun's life until he turned ten, he had been subjected to severe discrimination even in the most basic aspects of daily life.

For the eldest son of the Baekho Guild to go to the guild’s common ration room for meals, and to be prohibited from eating even that because it was deemed inappropriate, while being forced to make do with meals worth less than 10,000 won—was nothing short of shocking.

Meanwhile, his younger brother Baek Seo-jin was reported to have dined on meals worth tens of thousands of won at every meal.

There had been much gossip within the Baekho Guild at the time, but Baek Hyung-won had personally threatened anyone who brought it up, warning them that they would not only suffer but their families would too, so no one dared speak out.

‘The incident where he was kidnapped by the villains nine years ago... It’s suspicious.’

However, the guild members weren’t at the scene, so they couldn’t confirm the details of that event.

Nonetheless, none of the Baekho Guild members at the time believed that Baek Hyung-won and Kim Yoo-jung were mourning the disappearance of their son.

‘Maybe they sold him to the villains.’

Lee Ha-yeon noted this possibility, even though she didn’t have concrete evidence—just a hunch.

"The goal is revenge..."

After learning more about Baek Seo-jun, Lee Ha-yeon could guess what he was after.

However, she had no intention of digging into it further.

She simply wanted to understand it for herself.

By uncovering the traces left by the truth, she had confirmed that the Baekho Guild could never be trusted, and that was sufficient for now.

One thing was clear.

The Angel Guild would never get close to the Baekho Guild.

***

A day had passed since Baek Seo-jin sustained severe injuries from Gye Un-jik.

By the following day, Baek Seo-jin's condition was surprisingly well recovered.

Even though mana awakeners typically have exceptional recovery abilities, an attack fueled by mana would usually weaken a mana awakeners' recovery rate.

However, considering the exceptional recovery abilities of mana awakeners, just the hospital’s basic treatment would have been enough to help him recover quickly.

But, because Baek Hyung-won and Kim Yoo-jung, his parents, did not want to see their beloved son lying in the hospital for too long, they spent a significant amount of money, even using rare potions for his treatment.

"Haah~"

Thanks to the love of his parents, his body healed rapidly, but Baek Seo-jin’s heart felt heavy.

Though he couldn’t remember exactly, it felt like he had dreamt a troubling dream.

No, he was afraid to think about it.

If he were to recall something... he had a strong sense that his current happiness might shatter.

"Seo-jin, how are you feeling now?"

"I feel much better."

"That's good. But just in case, you should rest a bit longer."

Baek Hyung-won and Kim Yoo-jung, relieved by Baek Seo-jin’s improved condition, continued to worry over him.

With their loving care, Baek Seo-jin tried to push away any thoughts that bothered him.

He knew that he could never think badly of the parents who loved him, and whom he also loved.

His stubborn teenage mind resisted allowing such thoughts to dig deeper into the truth.

But deep inside, the traces of truth had already been triggered, and it continued to torment him.

"Dad, Mom."

Though Baek Seo-jin would call them “father” and “mother” in public, he still called them “Dad” and “Mom” when they were alone, just like when he was younger.

This form of address was disliked by Baek Hyung-won and Kim Yoo-jung because they thought it made them sound distant.

"Yes, my son. What is it?"

"Is it possible... to seal away my brother’s memories?"

Baek Seo-jin thought that everything troubling him was because of the memories of his older brother.

What made his heart uneasy, what he felt he should not recall, was his brother’s memory.

He didn’t know what those memories contained, but his heart was guiding him.

He felt that if he didn’t seal away the memories of his brother, Baek Seo-jun... something terrible would happen to him.

He feared that this happy family might collapse.

Upon seeing their son’s anxious expression, Baek Hyung-won and Kim Yoo-jung were moved to tears. Especially Kim Yoo-jung, who hugged Baek Seo-jin tightly and cried.

"Ugh! Sob, sob, our Seo-jin must have been in so much pain! It’s alright, Seo-jin. Forget about that bad person."

Yet, this display from his mother stirred a sense of unease.

Her tears and her pleas to forget his brother, while denouncing Baek Seo-jun, seemed out of place.

But Baek Seo-jin consciously chose to ignore this discomfort.

This painful feeling would be resolved once the memories were sealed away.

Once he became an S-Class Hunter, the memories of his childhood, especially those related to his brother, could be sealed, and he wouldn't have to think of them anymore.

He wouldn’t even have to try to avoid thinking about those memories intentionally.

And so, Baek Seo-jin chose to turn away from the truth.

Had he been older, even if it was painful, he would have chosen to face the truth.

But being in his teenage years, he rejected facing it and instead chose the easier path.

"I’ll call someone right away so we can seal those memories."

"Yes, please do."

Baek Seo-jin felt a sense of relief.

‘Se-hee and Lee Ha-yeon said Kim Ho-jun was the one who rescued them. Once I feel better, I should visit them.’

He planned to check on them and see how they were doing.

The relationship with Han Se-hee had started out as one of pretense, due to the incident four years ago when Kim Woo-jae from the Baekho Guild had been arrested by the Kangin Guild.

How the evidence had come about, with a recording of Kim Woo-jae killing Se-hee’s parents in a dungeon, and Kim Woo-jae’s confession, made it impossible to deny the truth.

And it was then that Baek Seo-jin had also learned about his older brother Baek Seo-jun...

‘No.’

He forcefully stopped himself from thinking about Baek Seo-jun.

He should not think about it.

He must not recall the truth about Baek Seo-jun, about those memories.

With an instinctive fear, Baek Seo-jin desperately turned his back on the truth and chose the easier, more convenient path.

Having been pampered by his parents, he still didn’t know how to face the truth head-on.

Even if he would regret it deeply later on, for now, he could not think that far ahead.