It had been a year.

After running away like that, this was their first proper reunion in about a year. Last time didn’t count as a reunion since only Sa-yoon had seen him one-sidedly. Even then, he hadn’t seen his face for long before being dragged away for questioning. When he’d awakened, Han Geon-joo had disappeared, leaving Sa-yoon to ponder his traces, wondering if he felt somewhat disappointed. But now, face to face, he knew.

Disappointed? Hardly.

If Geon-joo had awakened that day and spoken like this, if he had looked at him with such eyes, Sa-yoon wouldn’t have let him off so easily. He would have killed him, preventing any future reunion like this, and only after his sanity returned would he have regretted his impulse, thinking he should have just taken his eyes, or cut out his tongue.

Sa-yoon’s hands released the collar and moved down to grip Geon-joo’s throat. The black eyes lost focus.

“You seem to be misreading the situation, my pretty…”

Sa-yoon whispered, trailing off as he stared intently at Geon-joo’s mouth. An overwhelming urge to pry open those lips and tear out the red flesh inside was rising within him, threatening to consume him. After turning his life inside out for a whole year, after controlling and manipulating his entire existence, he shows up like this? And with that displeased look?

Who has the right to be displeased here?

“Ha.”

Self-mockery escaped him. He couldn’t tell what had been trampled the moment he appeared—whether it was his pride as the leader of a criminal guild who, as someone had said, had “busted his ass” searching for him without finding a trace, or perhaps it was his own life, spent the past year being manipulated while ruminating over the last words Geon-joo had spoken.

Something had been shamefully trampled to the point of disgust, but he wasn’t sure what. His grip tightened. Geon-joo let out a groan as the strong pressure bore down on him. The pulsing veins beneath Sa-yoon’s tight grip on his neck made him realize once again that this was neither fantasy nor hallucination.

Warmth could be felt beneath his palm. The warmth of a living person.

“Try to understand.”

“We need to be equals.”

With unfocused eyes, as if he’d lost his mind, Sa-yoon reflected on what had happened. It was laughable. He had never once stood above him, yet he was the one who had been desperate, but on that day, Geon-joo had spoken as if he himself were the one infinitely above. That bothered him. He couldn’t understand what Geon-joo meant by “equals” despite days of contemplation, struggling hundreds of times between “try to understand” and “equals.”

And now.

“Seems like they’ve found someone new.”

That accusatory tone with eyes filled with emptiness. It shook the thin thread of Sa-yoon’s sanity.

Why are you making that expression? Fuck, I’m the one who should be dumbfounded.

Crackle.

Frost energy, unconsciously unleashed by Sa-yoon, froze the conference room. The hunters present jumped to their feet at the bone-chilling cold. The icy energy thinly covered the floor before slowly creeping up the walls. Sa-yoon, unaware of this, only glared obsessively at Geon-joo. His black eyes, tinged with blue, were filled only with the image of the matured man.

“Han Geon-joo.”

The gaze that accompanied those three syllables was domineering, yet not the gaze of someone who had seized the upper hand. As if recognizing him, Geon-joo frowned under Sa-yoon’s hand but showed no fear. His hand gripped Sa-yoon’s wrist. Then, as if daring him, he pressed down on Sa-yoon’s hand. Sa-yoon’s fingertips twitched under the overlapping hands.

“Can you do it?”

“…”

“You can’t.”

Sa-yoon let out a hollow laugh at the assertive tone.

“You think I can’t?”

When Sa-yoon asked, Geon-joo again narrowed his eyes and closed his mouth, something evidently displeasing him. His sullen gaze touched Sa-yoon. It was at that moment, when the frost energy had completely enveloped the conference room.

“That’s enough.”

A calm voice resonated through the frozen conference room. Dongju, who had approached, gripped Sa-yoon’s shoulder to restrain him. He wasn’t alone. Mijeong followed, soothingly brushing Sa-yoon’s black hair, and Hocheol grabbed his other shoulder. Even Lee Han, while sighing, wasn’t sitting quietly in his seat but standing behind Sa-yoon. As if ready to take action if necessary.

“Whatever the circumstances, finish this after the introduction. You have at least that much judgment, don’t you?”

Dongju spoke reprovingly. Surrounded instantly by several S-rank awakeners, Sa-yoon blinked as he felt his reason gradually returning. Geon-joo stared persistently at the man who, moments ago, had been glaring at him as if he wanted to kill him, but was now slowly regaining his composure like a gentle lamb under Mijeong’s touch. Mijeong’s gaze fell on him.

Wink.

With a slight movement of her eye like a wink, Mijeong soothed Sa-yoon and slowly separated him from Geon-joo. Though Sa-yoon frowned as if displeased by her touch, he neither reacted violently nor pushed her away. Mijeong smiled slightly. She was a merchant wise to the bone, who knew better than anyone that among those gathered here, Sa-yoon was weakest against her, and she used that knowledge.

“Dongju is right. Let’s remember that this is Noah’s first face-to-face meeting. It would be a headache if this made the news, wouldn’t it?”

Mijeong spoke in a light tone. Having regained his senses, Sa-yoon let her lead him back to his chair, then watched Geon-joo calmly rise from his seat and dust himself off.

Right.

This wasn’t the time to grab him by the collar and confront him. If confrontation was necessary, it required more patience and time investment. Since this wasn’t something to be done in someone else’s conference room, Sa-yoon swallowed his breath to curb his anger, sat down, and looked at Lee Han.

“I’m calm now, so proceed or do whatever. You must have received instructions from the Association Director.”

Being someone who wagged his tail at the Association and government, he surely had received separate instructions. Since he was Korea’s official number one, he would definitely be Noah’s team leader, so Sa-yoon helped him take control by urging him to proceed quickly. Not out of goodwill, but to finish the business and return to the guild.

Lee Han didn’t reject the gesture. The man who answered that he understood explained the background of Noah’s establishment, the countermeasure team for the gate disaster, without anyone asking. Sa-yoon looked indifferently at him as he mentioned the Festival of Unity. Wondering if Geon-joo might remember what happened then, Sa-yoon furtively rolled his eyes, and their gazes immediately met. It seemed Geon-joo had been staring at him continuously.

It seems he doesn’t remember.

Sa-yoon made this judgment watching Geon-joo, who appeared uninterested in Lee Han’s story. It seemed Han Geon-joo had no memory of that day. Well, if he did, he wouldn’t be acting like this. After Sa-yoon had endured his anger and saved him, how could he…

Ah.

Thinking about it made him angry again. But this time, Sa-yoon avoided making the mistake of releasing frost energy as he faced Geon-joo while feigning an expressionless face.

Looking at him again after calming down, Sa-yoon noticed how much his face had changed. They say children grow day by day, and his once boyish face had completely lost its baby fat, now appearing like a proper adult. That transformation twisted Sa-yoon’s mood. He resented every bit of growth Geon-joo had achieved away from his side.

Tsk.

Lee Han, who had been continuing his explanation earnestly, turned to look at Sa-yoon when he clicked his tongue. His eyes seemed to ask if there was a problem. Sa-yoon waved his hand as if to say “don’t mind me and continue.” Come to think of it, he had planned to brag about finding a “half-hearted belief” when meeting Lee Han and then tease him, but because of encountering Geon-joo, he couldn’t execute that plan.

It was always like this.

Once connected to him, always like this.

Sa-yoon, swallowing a sigh, opened his quest window. Despite meeting Han Geon-joo, the quest for activation showed no response. Did he need to do something more?

While pondering alone, the hunters took time to introduce themselves. When it was finally his turn, Sa-yoon glanced at Geon-joo and opened his mouth.

“Kwon Sa-yoon of the Swallow Guild.”

Half of the hunters present laughed at the simple introduction. They all knew Sa-yoon was the leader of the Bat Guild, so they felt his smoke screen wasn’t even funny.

“The Swallow Guild? That certainly suits you well.”

Mijeong teased. Sa-yoon shrugged once, then noticed Geon-joo staring at him with incredulous eyes.

What now?

His gaze somehow reminded Sa-yoon of Lee Jaehee looking at him with contempt, making him frown, but shortly after, the man composed his expression.

And ten minutes later, Noah’s first face-to-face meeting ended.

Sa-yoon watched Lee Han, who was concluding the meeting by explaining the name of Team Noah.

“Our name is Noah, but we don’t symbolize Noah himself. In the great flood, Noah represents the citizens, and we are the ark—the means for citizens to survive.”

As he spoke, Sa-yoon’s gaze lowered. Geon-joo’s eyes also seemed to roll downward, lost in thought, as if he had similar thoughts.

So it seems he didn’t make that up too.

After Han Geon-joo left like that, there were times when Sa-yoon doubted whether all the attitudes he had shown him were false. But judging by that reaction, at least his response after Noah’s death seemed genuine.

“I thought you might have your own circumstances too.”

Ah.

Sa-yoon groaned as a headache hit him and pressed his temples firmly. When Lee Han announced the end of the meeting, the hunters rose from their seats. Seeing that Geon-joo had already disappeared, Sa-yoon moved quickly, boarded the guild vehicle that Jongsik had kept waiting, and jerked his chin toward Geon-joo.

Recognizing the signal immediately, the guild member started the car. The car rolled quickly and stopped next to Geon-joo. As the man wearing the ridiculous mask looked curiously at the black car, Sa-yoon flung the door open and pulled him in.

The car door closed after swallowing a person in an instant.

No one witnessed the abduction that occurred in broad daylight.