South Korea was in an uproar. All because Sa-yoon, the hunter from Noah who was arguably receiving the most attention for conquering Adelia’s Tomb, had vanished without a trace after his reported clash with Scorpion at the Pathfinder Auction.
It was as if he had evaporated on the spot. He had disappeared, all contact lost, his location untraceable. Even the hosts of the Pathfinder Auction remained tight-lipped, leading some to speculate that he had gone missing.
Various theories circulated: Sa-yoon had been swept into a Gate that opened unexpectedly; Scorpion had taken him down with them in a blaze of glory; the American Hunter Association had abducted and imprisoned him; he had lost the fight against Scorpion and fled to another country. Having established himself as an issue-maker after his outrageous interview, the impact of his absence grew more intense by the day.
The first to run wild were the media, who loved a good story, true or not.
They published articles with headlines like ‘Sa-yoon Missing in the US’ and ‘A Result of the Korean Association’s Disrespectful Attitude? Sa-yoon, Reportedly in Contract with the American Hunter Association, Bids a Sad Farewell to Korea.’ The public, learning the news through these reports, was understandably anxious. The flames were fanned by the provocative answers Sa-yoon had given in his last interview, and the spark quickly grew into a wildfire.
The entire nation was practically holding torches, demanding the Association take responsibility, asserting their right to know, and calling for a confession regarding Sa-yoon’s disappearance. To resolve the issue, the president of the Korean Hunter Association harassed his staff and clung to the phone for a week straight, but he couldn’t get through to Sa-yoon. Attempts to contact other executives at Night Rat were also futile; the line would typically disconnect after less than three rings.
“Mr. President! Everyone at the Swallow Guild is on vacation! They’ve suspended operations for a month!”
To make matters worse, the Swallow Guild, which had been created to be the public face of the Association, had also ceased its activities. A company-wide vacation at a time like this? For a whole month? It had to be a setup. The whole situation felt like a single, well-orchestrated plot.
How could his head not ache from the betrayal?
“Kwon Sa-yoon!”
The Association President slammed his fist on the desk, his anger exploding. The little snake had bitten him on the heel. Was this his plan from the start? Just to screw him over?
No wonder the high-and-mighty Sa-yoon agreed to join Noah so meekly.
Had the Association done something to get on his bad side?
The Korean government, the Association, and the major guilds all knew the location of the Night Rat building. Yet, none of them touched it. It was a kind of unwritten rule. He was a dog that would bite if provoked, but if left alone, he would only play around within reasonable limits when he got bored. Not stimulating him was the best policy. So even when stories about Night Rat aired on the 9 o’clock news, they kept their mouths shut. Night Rat’s vast information network also played a part. What if they messed up and national secrets were leaked to another country?
They were the very definition of a chicken rib.¹ Poisonous to embrace, yet if given to others, he’d be a golden goose for them and a bomb for you. And to try and capture him, you’d have to be prepared for total annihilation. That was why no one dared to touch Night Rat. So why was that consideration being repaid like this?
And here I was, thinking he’d been quiet lately.
His insides boiled with rage. His blood pressure was so high he felt like he was about to faint.
“I can’t believe I was so happy that he listened to me just that one time…”
He was still young, but maybe his time was up. He could almost see a robed skeleton waving at him from a distance. As he was slamming his desk again, the phone rang. He wished it was from Night Rat, but sadly, it was his secretary.
—Mr. President. We’ve completed the surveillance on the Night Rat guild. It doesn’t seem like Sa-yoon is hiding within the guild. The atmosphere at Night Rat itself is tense. It’s possible he’s genuinely missing.
“…Hah.”
Anyone who knew Sa-yoon was the head of Night Rat also knew how fiercely loyal its members were. If those wolves were baring their fangs and acting this sensitively, he couldn’t rule out the possibility that Sa-yoon was, as the report suggested, truly missing.
Why now? Of all the times, why did it have to happen right after he’d been brought into Noah?
Sa-yoon still had much to do as a member of Noah. The report said Scorpion had been successfully dealt with and their artifact recovered. What on earth could have happened to him?
—Also, Mr. President. I think you need to see the link I sent you.
The Association President, Bae Min-cheol, fought back a headache and checked his messages. He clicked the link, and a post with a title that made his blood boil appeared.
[I’m a Pathfinder Auction staff member, here’s why the theory that Sa-yoon went missing because of the Korean Association is plausible (proof added)]
Okay, so to sum up the info so far, Sa-yoon showed up at the Pathfinder Auction, fought Scorpion, and then went missing, right? I’ll explain exactly what I know.
1 – He showed up at the Pathfinder Auction. This is legit. At first, four guys who were obviously in great shape and handsome walked in, and everyone’s eyes were on them. I didn’t know who they were then, but seeing the news today, I realized that was Kwon Sa-yoon. I know his face is famous, but a lot of people don’t actually know what he looks like because related photos get deleted instantly. I was one of them, but now I get why everyone made such a big deal lol. He was soooooo fucking pretty. The kind of face that could bewitch you. But he also looked dangerous.
2 – He fought Scorpion. Also legit. The auction house was in a state of emergency. The whole atmosphere in the US was tense to begin with, tbh. You’d see guys with Scorpion tattoos roaming the streets, and while there used to be Black Areas, now even those are gone, so it felt like you could get kidnapped by Scorpion just walking down the street. Anyone with money was hiring private security. And of all things, the ‘Desert’s Punishment’ came up for auction. The thing those Scorpion bastards treat like a holy relic. So everyone was on edge, and the place was crawling with security, but as soon as the Scorpion pricks failed to win the bid, they spread poison and started swinging weapons before the security could even react. The auction house turned into a total madhouse, and most people were scrambling to escape. The staff, too. The only ones left inside were Sa-yoon’s group. I was running for my life so I didn’t see everything, but I heard sounds of fighting from inside.
3- He went missing. This is the really weird part. While Sa-yoon was fighting inside, the auction house collapsed. Everyone thought they were all dead, and people were panicking, but then Sa-yoon suddenly broke through the rubble and fought Scorpion like a madman, won, and then just disappeared. Reporters and other hunters chased after him but couldn’t find him. And now he’s missing. But considering how fast Sa-yoon reacted when Scorpion appeared, it seems like he knew they were coming. So, based on the current news articles, my theory is that the Association President sent Sa-yoon there to take care of Scorpion, and when his teammates got hurt, he got pissed and went dark. When Sa-yoon’s party came out of the collapsed building, none of them looked unscathed. He got mad because they were reckless with him and his team. Makes sense, right?
(Photo of employee ID) This should be enough proof. I’ll delete this post if it gets more than ten comments, just in case.
Comments
-lmfao, you said you’d give a plausible reason but in the end it’s just your own theory? You’re no different from the clickbait reporters lol. The people writing this kind of troll post and the people reacting to it are both hilarious.
└ Aren’t you reacting right now?
└ It’s a theory, yeah, but you’re not exactly normal either, being the first one to drool and start barking. -No proof means what?
└ OP: Added.
-Are you really a Pathfinder Auction manager? The pay must be insane. Why would someone like that be on a community forum? lololol
└ Even doctors use forums, is that really what’s important here?
└ Lmao, you have to use forums to get hunter info.
-Omg, can you tell us what Sa-yoon bought at the auction?
└ OP: Can’t say, but just assume he spent over 10 billion won.
└ Holy shit
└ I wish he’d give me 10 million won to buy snacks.
└ I want 100 million. -Seriously, what is Sa-yoon? A face like that and he’s not a celebrity, then he suddenly appears, clears an uncleared Gate, spends 10 billion at an auction, and beats Scorpion in a fight? How was someone like this not famous until now unless he literally fell out of the sky? lololol
-He’s not missing, it’s okay. He’s right next to me. We’re on our honeymoon rn hehe.
└ Are you insane? -But for real, Sa-yoon is weird. Where did he even come from?
└ He came from being in a relationship with me.
└ I’m losing my mind, you’re relentless too.
-You guys are all missing the point lol. The important thing is that Sa-yoon’s disappearance is the Association’s fault, right? The rumors say the people who showed up at the auction were all new faces, so they weren’t Association personnel. They sent Sa-yoon all the way to the US without any support and overworked his team. I’d be pissed too.
-What does the Association even do?
-Raid the Korean Association to uncover their corruption. If you don’t, the nation will fall.
└ Another corruption conspiracy nut.
-But the Association is really weird. Don’t they have Lee Han and other veteran hunters? Why send Sa-yoon of all people?
└ Maybe they were afraid the others couldn’t beat Scorpion?
└ Lee Han is the top-ranked hunter in the country lol;;
└ He admitted that clearing Adelia’s Tomb was all thanks to Sa-yoon.
└ You believe that? Lee Han is just polite, he’s good at giving others credit and stepping back.
└ ^^ I agree, he’s famous for having a great personality.
└ And how long has Lee Han been number one? They haven’t re-evaluated the rankings since Sa-yoon appeared, have they?
└ That masked guy seemed like a good fighter too.
└ You crazy bastards, is who’s stronger between Lee Han and Sa-yoon the important thing right now? In other words, someone of Lee Han’s caliber has gone missing. This is a huge deal, why is the mood here like this?
└ This place is always like this. No one’s ever serious.
-So it’s the Association President’s fault?
-The President is so shameless. He acted like he cared so much about Sa-yoon in the interview but he worked him to the bone. At this point, Sa-yoon’s a saint.
└ I don’t think so.
└ Huh?
└ Go watch Sa-yoon’s interview. . . .
-Said he’d delete it after 10 comments but he’s just an attention seeker, lol. . . . (This post has been deleted.)
“This…”
The Association President, who had watched the comments pour in and the post get deleted in real-time, felt his face flush with rage. It was Sa-yoon who had wanted to go after Scorpion because their interests aligned, and the bastard had gone to the US and swiped his card non-stop. And now he was being accused of corruption? If anything was corrupt, it was letting a guy from Night Rat into Noah in the first place!
“…And I can’t even tell anyone.”
Groaning, the President rubbed his temples, put his phone down, and sighed.
“So where in the world did he go?”
He wasn’t in Night Rat, he wasn’t with Swallow, and the American Association couldn’t find him. If he was truly missing, it was a loss not just for Korea, but for the whole world. After all, Sa-yoon was the one who had stopped that Gate during the Festival of Harmony.
“I can’t tell if he’s a villain or just a guy with a rotten personality.”
His actions certainly painted him as an unparalleled monster, but lately, he wasn’t so sure. An unpredictable bastard, President Min-cheol thought, slumping in his chair with another sigh. Whatever the case, the priority was for Sa-yoon to return quickly.
And at that very moment.
Sa-yoon was still lying in the silent Gate. He didn’t know how much time had passed. He had simply stood, then sat, and then lay down, passing the time endlessly.
It was quiet.
He couldn’t tell if that was a good thing or a bad thing.
<Your Pair’s health has dropped below 30%!>
Lightning struck.
“What?”
Sa-yoon shot up from his lying position. He hoped he’d seen it wrong or that it was a system error, but the bright red warning window in front of him was neither a hallucination nor a glitch. When he touched it, it reacted like a system window. It was real.
“What the hell happened?”
He examined the alert more closely and saw Han Geon-joo’s remaining health. 28, 25, 24… Wherever he was, whatever he was doing, it was dropping by the minute.
“Hey.”
He called the System, demanding an explanation, but there was no reply. A dry laugh escaped him. Right, this is what it was always like.
“…This is driving me crazy.”
The body that had been calm, so empty it felt hollow, was instantly filled with anxiety. He gnawed on his lips until they bled, then grabbed his sword. He tried to use Ildogeyangdan again to get out, but it didn’t work. Getting Han Geon-joo out in the first place had been a miracle.
I went through all that trouble to get him out, so where the hell is he and what is he doing to lose so much health?
Where did he learn to be so reckless with his body?
He clenched and unclenched his fists several times. Han Geon-joo’s health had now dropped below 20.
Is this the System’s doing?
He didn’t know for sure, but the chances that they weren’t involved were close to zero.
“…Fucking bastards.”
His listless eyes glinted with killing intent. Seeing Geon-joo’s health finally drop to 18, Sa-yoon turned. It wasn’t that he didn’t know how to get out. It’s just that…
His wavering eyes took in the entire black space. It was a place perfectly suited to his tastes—quiet, devoid of people, a place where, if he died, not even his body would be found. A place where he could just exist without thinking. However.
Han Geon-joo isn’t here.
His heart, which had felt like it had stopped, began to beat rapidly again. Sa-yoon started walking toward a cluster of light.
What should I do now?
The answer to the question he had been pondering, the one that had remained blank, was now filled in with a three-syllable name.
Han Geon-joo.
It was an illogical answer, but at the same time, it was the correct one.