The person who would guide us in place of Ha-Yul, as suggested by the old Commander.

The reactions of my companions upon seeing that person were mixed.

Two people are looking at him with curiosity, and Amelia is frowning.

And me, wondering who he was to make such expressions.

“Hello, kids. From now on, I’ll guide you instead of investigator Lee. Is that okay?”

“…Why are you here, Dad?”

Huh? Dad?

…Now that she mentioned it, they do look a bit alike.

I wasn’t talking about their appearance. Their distinctive features and aura were similar.

Golden silk-like hair and blue eyes, just like Amelia’s.

The face is different, and the expression is different.

But her unique aura was lingering around him as well.

Realizing that fact and looking again, to the point where anyone would think they were father and daughter.

“Why am I here, you ask. My lovely daughter came here, so who else could come but me?”

“Ugh.”

“That kind of hurts…”

…It seemed like not only their faces but also their personalities were completely different.

“Well, it’s not a joke. I came because it would be more comfortable to have someone you know to guide you.”

“Really?… Well, if that’s the case, I don’t really mind.”

Amelia had never talked to us about disliking her father or anything like that.

Then what is this?

It felt like watching a father intruding on his daughter in puberty.

“Follow me, kids. It’s not that far. Let’s talk leisurely while walking.”

“Ah, yes.”

At first, everyone was interacting with him awkwardly.

But since when?

He naturally blended into our group and started having various conversations.

About our abilities, about what’s going on in the world these days.

He skillfully started conversations by leading the topic here and there.

“Really? That’s amazing. It’s a really rare ability, isn’t it?”

“Hehe, is that so?”

“Even if you come here, you’re guaranteed to be treated well? Since it’s an ability to strengthen others, you’ll be in the rear, so it’ll be less dangerous…I can’t recommend it though.”

“Why?”

“No matter how less dangerous it is, a battlefield is a battlefield. You never know when you might die. That’s why you guys came too, isn’t it.”

“…Ah. That villain?”

“Yeah.”

Can we finally hear about the target of our search?

Even when I asked Ha-Yul, he said the details were confidential, so he didn’t know much.

I heard that they could only tell us after we arrived directly.

Just what kind of guy is he for them to do that?

“Right. You don’t know much about the target yet. Okay, since you’ve come this far, I can explain.”

“Explain?”

“Here, want to check this out?”

“…This is?”

He took something out of his pocket and handed it to Siwoo.

What on earth could this be?

In his hand that received the item, there was a small, black mechanical device.

“Everyone working here carries this. It’s a specially made expensive item, so it’s a pretty sturdy high-end product…Right. You guys take one each too.”

“Ah, thank you.”

“…But what is this?”

I asked him, who suddenly remembered and handed the items to us as well.

What is this tiny thing that he’s giving to us?

“Ah. I forgot. It’s like a small camera.”

“Camera?”

“If you touch it like this… There, can you see?”

I looked at him suspiciously as he started turning the camera here and there with his fingers, wondering where the controls were on such a small item.

But that was only for a moment. The light that came out of a small hole soon started projecting a video on the wall in front of us.

“Wow, that’s amazing…”

“Like I said before, it’s dangerous here. It’s really convenient to have something that automatically records when something happens without activating it yourself.”

“…”

When something happens.

At those words, the mouths of everyone gaping in amazement closed.

At the same time, we realized why he had handed us these items earlier.

If something happens to us, they can clearly identify the cause.

And the fact that this item, the first one he gave, with the video playing now, was something someone had been wearing.

“You seem to have guessed? That’s right. This is the record of one of the 2nd team members killed by the villain. Fortunately, it remained.”

“…It remained?”

“No matter how sturdy it is, there’s a limit since it’s small. Of course, it breaks if it’s on a part hit by a magic beast.”

Upon learning that this item was someone’s legacy, the atmosphere among my companions turned gloomy.

“Here, look. That’s our target.”

And that gloomy atmosphere vanished in an instant.

It had to vanish. Everyone was overwhelmed by the villain’s appearance in the video before our eyes.

“…What is that?”

-Hey, what are you doing there?

-What am I doing, you ask?

Crunch.

The appearance of the girl in the video was hideous beyond words.

When the person presumed to be the owner of this item was struggling to alert everyone of the abnormal situation.

The girl who quietly approached and stroked the leg of the magic beast beside her…

She was too hideous to be called human.

“Is that really a person…?”

“Who knows? We’re in a bit of a controversy about that too.”

“Whether she’s human or a monster?”

“Yeah. We’ve classified it as a villain since she takes on a human form and can speak.”

Is it really okay to call that a person?

That thought lingered in everyone’s minds.

Because the girl’s appearance was truly hideous beyond words.

Before that horrific something attached to her body, she might have been an ordinary girl.

But the girl’s appearance that we’re seeing…

Is this what an abandoned doll would look like after a child played with clay?

The appearance revealed when she took off the hoodie covering her silhouette was truly shocking.

Hideous teeth and eyes were stuck all over her arms.

Something bright red was constantly moving in the area, presumed to be her chest…Probably the heart.

Her legs had sharp thorns protruding, making it hard to see them as human.

Overall, it was difficult to see her as human.

She had the form of a horrific monster that you would only see in horror movies.

“She’s too human-like to be a monster since she can talk to humans and too monster-like to be human since she can talk to them.”

“…That seems dangerous.”

“Right?”

Everyone understood.

Why the Association only showed this to us after we arrived at the scene.

Something that can simultaneously communicate with monsters and humans. Something hard to even distinguish.

If this somehow leaked out, it was hard to even imagine what kind of incident would occur and its aftermath.

“I didn’t want to ask for your help, but… I’m really sorry.”

“…I heard the search-type ability users suddenly suffered from a manpower shortage.”

“Yeah. That’s what happened.”

Sighing, he spoke as if complaining.

“I tried to call a colleague who was on vacation, but he said he was helping out because a serial murder case broke out near him. Other search-type superhumans said their situations were similar. My luck is really bad.”

…Luck? No, that can’t be.

Everyone seems to think it’s unlucky because it’s an incident that occurred in reality, but I could tell.

That it was the Author’s doing.

I slightly raised my head and looked at the ceiling.

“I’m really sorry. Instead, we’ll make sure to provide reliable protection.”

“… It’s okay. I think of it as doing something I’d have to do someday in advance.”

“Ooh… Hey, daughter. Do you have some cool friends? Want to try catching them somehow?”

“Absolutely not! Are you crazy?!”

Whoosh.

I turned my head to look in the direction of the voice.

“…Why? Did I do something wrong…?”

“It’s nothing.”

“O-oh, really?”

He gave an awkward smile, seemingly startled by my voice.

After a brief moment of silence, we arrived at the accommodation.

He handed us the keys.

“Here it is. Rest well here today. The commander probably relayed the detailed schedule to investigator Ha-Yul.”

“Ah, thank you.”

“Daughter, you follow me for a bit.”

“…Huh? Me? Why?”

“Why, you ask?”

He was still smiling.

But as if sensing something strange, Amelia started preparing to run away.

“You see, Dad checked all the posts that went up on SNS.”

“…?!”

“Oh my, daughter. You think you can run away?”

“Since when?!”

But at the moment she was about to take off her foot to accelerate.

Lionel, already preparing to capture Amelia, instantly approached her side and grabbed her cheek, grinning confidently.

“Hey, this is cheating…!”

“Tsk tsk, you naughty thing. How dare you expose Dad’s hobby? I didn’t raise you like that.”

“Let me go…!”

“As punishment, shall we spend a fun time together today, daughter?”

“Ahh, guys…! Save me!”

There was nothing we could really do to help.

Honestly, it seemed like it was Amelia’s fault.

Spreading someone’s private matters to the whole world is a bit much, isn’t it?

As if realizing we had no intention of helping, Amelia started screaming pitifully.

“Oh my, even the scream is…”

“…Have a good time?”

“Rest well… It’s been a while since I enjoyed a fun hell racing, daughter. Remember that the moment you get caught by me, it turns into hell sparring?”

“Uh, that, Dad…?”

“You don’t have to worry. If your skills haven’t rusted, I won’t be able to catch up with you. But if you do get caught, you’ll have to fight me in that tough situation.”

“P-please go easy on me…?”

“Tsk tsk. Training is like real combat. And what was our family motto?”

“… Don’t be picky about the means and methods.”

“That’s right. Don’t be picky about the means and methods, and you’ll be fine if you run away from me, right?”

That expression says it’s impossible. Amelia’s face was filled with resignation.

She said before her father couldn’t keep up with her speed.

It’s probably not a lie, but it seems it’s only possible once she gains some speed.

Then what happens if she gets caught before gaining speed?

“Then, start!”

“Save me!”

“Hahaha, you’re slow, daughter! Run faster!”

“I don’t want to!”

“…Sigh.”

Like father, like daughter indeed.