One of many ancient fortresses in Lion’s Castle, the headquarters of the five attack squads was surrounded by thick walls and equipped with all sorts of facilities. “Look at all the equipment on the training ground! They’re all the latest models from Rothschild!” “Wow, look at that... Mana is pouring down like a waterfall. Jae-Hyeok, let’s go check out what it’s used for later!” Someone muttered, “Doesn’t this guy realize his situation?” The attack squad members were terse and stone-faced, but Do-Jin chattered ceaselessly, oohing and awing as if he were on a tour. Jae-Hyeok’s expression was dark as he took one step away from Do-Jin. Do-Jin had been trying his best to be cheerful since learning that the attack squad had captured Loren and two zombies. It seemed to be his way of denying the situation; after all, those two zombies were likely the same ones they had met before: Jae-Hyeok thought, I would be the same if I were in his position. How would he feel facing the humiliated bodies of his dead parents? Wouldn’t it be better to believe it was a nightmare and ignore it? Jae-Hyeok fully understood Do-Jin’s feelings. Still, he knew it wasn’t right to stand by and do nothing, even if it was hard. Jae-Hyeok said, “Do-Jin, it might be best to see them, even if you’re scared. If they’re really your parents... You should bury them properly.” Do-Jin froze in place, and Jae-Hyeok placed a hand on his shoulder. “We can go together.” At those words, Do-Jin’s expression flooded with emotion. The attack squad members stopped a few paces ahead, and one said, “Hey, are you going to follow peacefully or not? The interrogation room is right in front of us. Why did you suddenly stop... Huh?” The members of the attack squad froze and shared uncomfortable glances. At some point, Do-Jin had burst into tears like a lost child. “W-what? What’s wrong with you?” “My mother and father...” “Take... take me to them.” Kwon Sa-Cheol’s arms were crossed as he remained lost in thought. He couldn’t easily relax. To Kwon Sa-Cheol, Kang Jae-Hyeok looked more like Kang Dae-Seong’s younger brother than the son of the Yaksha. Kang Jae-Hyeok’s arrogant eyes were the same as Kang Dae-Seong’s when Kang Dae-Seong had beaten the president of the Association like a stray dog. It was a look he could never forget. “Dammit! I should’ve just died with honor.” Recalling how he’d pretended to faint out of fear, Kwon Sa-Cheol blushed and kicked the table. “Why aren’t those bastards here yet? Did they die on the way? Huh?” From Loren’s reasoning for kidnapping Baek Do-Jin to the identity of the guy who’d escaped from the tunnel, Kwon Sa-Cheol needed to uncover every truth, and fast. If he delayed too long, Seol Su-Ah would surely interfere. Tut, tut. White Night, the walls are closing in—soon I’ll know exactly what your intentions were in accepting the successor of the Baus family as an exchange student, and what type of deal you struck with the Baus family in the process. This was the best opportunity to weaken Seol Su-Ah’s position, but the key was securing clues based on the testimonies of the children who were there at the time. Of course, interrogating Loren directly was the easiest method, but there was a limit to what he could and could not do when interrogating a National Treasure candidate from a foreign country. If the candidate were treated carelessly, there would surely be repercussions. From the beginning, Kwon Sa-Cheol hadn’t locked Loren up to punish him. Rather, it was a means to prevent Seol Su-Ah from easily taking him away. Kwon Sa-Cheol checked the time and impatiently ordered. “Go! Go find out why they are late!” “Yes.” The attack squad members lowered their eyes. They really couldn’t understand their captain’s attitude. Why are we still looking for the victims when we’ve already caught the criminal? Despite the squad members’ inner thoughts, none of them was so foolish as to speak up. They swiftly left the interrogation room in search of Kang Jae-Hyeok and Baek Do-Jin. A short time later, a squad member returned. “Captain.” Kwon Sa-Cheol waved his hand before the member could speak and said, “Get to the point. What’s the news on the kids?” “Yes. Well, regarding those zombies we found with Loren, apparently... apparently, they are Baek Do-Jin’s parents.” Kwon Sa-Cheol tilted his head. What was this person saying? After a moment, Kwon Sa-Cheol questioned, “And who told you this nonsense?” “That’s just it, Sir... it was Baek Do-Jin himself.” Surprise flashed across Kwon Sa-Cheol’s face. He muttered. “Is this true...?” He thumped the desk and stood up. “Bring the kids to the evidence room.” A man and woman wrapped in mana-suppressing straitjackets and chains screamed. They rocked and struggled. The more they strained, the deeper the chains dug into their flesh, yet they struggled all the more. Do-Jin pressed his hand against the viewing glass. The shape of their eyes, nose, and mouth; their flame-red hair, and the small mole on their necks—all of it was the same. Although they were no longer human, how could he not recognize them? He was forced to admit it. Do-Jin fell to his knees, eyes blank. “Mother.... Father... ” As Jae-Hyeok helped Do-Jin to his feet, Kwon Sa-Cheol stared at the two of them and let out a breath. Kwon Sa-Cheol looked down at the photos paperclipped to Do-Jin’s background report. As the leader of an attack squad, his clearance access was equal to that of the director of National Intelligence; finding a few pictures of Do-Jin’s parents in life was not hard. Not only do the zombies look exactly alike, but that boy’s reaction... it isn’t something that can be faked. Loren had turned his friend’s parents into zombies, and Seol Su-Ah had knowingly brought these two together... Kwon Sa-Cheol sneered. How low. One is mad, while the other is insidious. It was so disgusting that he felt nauseous. Especially Seol Su-Ah. She acts noble on the surface, earning respect from everyone, but she’s actually behind the scenes. Seol Su-Ah, you are worse than a dog. Kwon Sa-Cheol was furious, not because he pitied Do-Jin or was a just man himself, but because he couldn’t stand Seol Su-Ah’s hypocrisy. As soon as Do-Jin regained his senses, Kwon Sa-Cheol began his questioning, “Hey, kid. What exactly happened between your family and Loren? Tell me in detail from beginning to end. I’ll record everything and use it as evidence when it’s time to take down the insidious person who set up today's events.” “Who is the insidious person? Don’t you already have Loren?” “I’m talking about the one who helped Loren. Do you think he could cause such a big incident without inside help? The candidate for Austria’s National Treasure is still only seventeen years old. If there weren’t someone else pulling strings behind the scenes, he would’ve been overpowered before he could do anything.” Do-Jin said, “My story isn’t anything special. My parents were orphans who were accepted into Germany when they were young. By chance, they awakened as players and formed a connection with the Baus family of Austria.” Do-Jin calmly shared what he knew about his parents’ youth. Kwon Sa-Cheol listened patiently, but it was nothing particularly special. “In the end, I think they owed a lot to the head of the Baus family, so they accepted the family head’s request to take Loren to South Korea...” Kwon Sa-Cheol immediately understood: Every new necromancer was a calamity for Austria’s enemies; naturally, the descendants of the Baus family were under constant threat of assassination and seldom lived long. Only once they safely awakened their Bloodline Skill and obtained the Bone Armor could the Baus family descendants protect themselves and survive. This was why Loren was sent to South Korea as a child. Do-Jin said, “Loren and I are the same age and have a lot of similarities, so we got along well like brothers, but that all ended the day the department store in Ilsan was attacked.” The Ilsan Department Store Terrorist Incident. Recognition flashed in Kwon Sa-Cheol’s eyes. It was the incident where an S-class player who had become a drug addict went on a rampage and destroyed an entire department store. There were hundreds of casualties at the time, and it turned out Do-Jin’s parents were among them. “I don’t remember much from that day. I was trapped in a collapsed building and passed out. By the time I woke up, my parents were already dead... ” Blood dripped from Do-Jin’s clenched fists. “Loren said my parents died protecting him. He said he would take them to a better place... At the time, I was out of my mind and entrusted their care to him.” Jae-Hyeok lowered his eyes. From beginning to end, Do-Jin’s explanation had been neat and clear. He didn’t mention the years he’d spent living with his parents and Loren, the bonds they had built, or the complicated relationship he had with Loren now. He simply listed the key incidents of his life as reading from a newspaper article. Truth be told, it made Jae-Hyeok sad. He wondered what it would’ve been like if he’d listened to Do-Jin’s story earlier. If it were only the two of them, maybe Do-Jin would’ve shared his true feelings. Maybe, he would’ve wanted comfort from his friend. “Hmm, so the real identity of the department store terrorist was actually an assassin targeting Loren? I roughly get it. I understand how your parents got involved with Loren and were turned into zombies.” Kwon Sa-Cheol pressed the recorder button and smoothly moved on to new questions, each one more sensitive and personal than the last. Do-Jin cooperated as best he could as he watched his parents through the glass. He just wanted his parents back. After a long question–and–answer session, Do-Jin asked, “Excuse me, if there isn’t anything else, can my parents be buried now?” Kwon Sa-Cheol was scribbling something in his notebook and didn’t look up. “The Baus family will refuse that. You said yourself, coffin-raised zombies are Loren’s original Skill. There’s no way we can take them.” “Why are you surprised? We arrested Loren and secured his zombies as evidence. This way, the Baus family can’t distort the truth later. It’s already a good result.” “What... are you trying to say?” “Just let go of your regrets. You’re parents are gone, kid. We aren’t going to escalate matters over a couple of zombies.” Do-Jin stomped over to the table where Kwon Sa-Cheol was sitting. “You heard me. Fucker, fucker, fucker!” Kwon Sa-Cheol watched Do-Jin curiously. The boy who’d meekly answered his every question had suddenly transformed into a little devil. “What’s this? Could it be that you cooperated with the investigation purely because you wanted to get them back? Dumb kid. It seems you don’t know anything about how the world works. You probably don’t do well in your studies, right?” “Get a grip. This madness makes you look like your parents.” Kwon Sa-Cheol scoffed. He wasn’t the type of person to ignore being cursed at by a kid. The moment Do-Jin tried to swing his fist, Kwon Sa-Cheol slapped him hard. Jae-Hyeok’s expression frosted over, but instead of advancing, he turned around. Facing the two zombies through the glass, Jae-Hyeok said, “How long are you going to watch? Can you really endure it?” “?” Kwon Sa-Cheol tilted his head. What was this guy saying to himself? The zombies, who had been howling like beasts, suddenly calmed down and Jae-Hyeok heard a voice. “Destroy the chains.” It was Loren’s voice. Jae-Hyeok drew his sword and swung while using Two Scythes Block a Cart. Three sword lights flew forward and shattered the viewing glass. “What are you doing!?” Startled, Kwon Sa-Cheol immediately appeared in front of Jae-Hyeok, only for Jae-Hyeok to grab Kwon Sa-Cheol’s sword hilt. “You—Eek!” Lightning struck Kwon Sa-Cheol’s head as Jae-Hyeok drew the man’s sword, unleashing another wide sword light that carved deep furrows on the zombies’ chains. “Hmph. You can’t even break something without relying on Do-Jin’s help?” The Parent Zombies grunted in disdain before inflating their muscles and snapping the damaged chains. They ripped off each other’s straitjackets with their teeth, and their eyes gradually turned red. Kwon Sa-Cheol felt a chill run up to the back of his neck, and he shouted hurriedly, “Outside! Anyone... ” Before he could finish, the Parent Zombies shot forward like a flash of light and bit at his nose and mouth. Tʜe sourcᴇ of thɪs content ɪs novelꜰire.net