Chapter 440: Lily of the Valley (15)

Chapter 440: Lily of the Valley (15)

After stopping the attack on the station, we're back to our normal routine, with only the tantalizing knowledge that the HanEun Group is up to something.

It's going to be a while before we can utilize all of Korea's advanced GPS capabilities to locate the group's home base.

Of course, in the meantime, my broadcast and the new superhumans of the HanEun Group have been in the news, but the flames haven't spread too far.

I think it's because they were defeated so easily two times in a row that people were gradually getting into the mindset of, "Eh? HanEun Group, they're not that big of a deal, are they?"

And actually, that's what we were hoping for. It's probably safer for the public not to pay much attention to them now that they're up to something.

If there are other issues.

A few days after the station attack, Seo-Eun has been quieter than usual, seemingly contemplating something in silence for a while.

One night....Finally, she approached me and said,

"Da-in... I have a confession to make."

"Yes, Seo-Eun, what is it?"

Seo-Eun hesitated before telling me, but then she managed to get the words out.

The electricity ability of the HanEun Group that she had seen on the station was also something she knew about.

"...Technically, it was my sister's ability, who was the same test subject as me..."

"Da-in. You know that I was experimented on by the HanEun Group...An experiment to create artificial superpowers."

"In that experiment, there were three other test subjects besides me..."

Seo-Eun said.

She painstakingly told me the story of her time in the HanEun Group, a story she had never told me before.

There were a total of four abilities that the group was researching at the time.

A fire ability that allows you to shoot fire from your hands.

An electrical ability that allows one to run as fast as lightning.

Body strengthening that makes the body as hard as a rock.

Super intelligence, which gives you the mind of a genius.

Four children were chosen as guinea pigs to be implanted with each of these abilities.

And Seo-eun, of course, was one of the children with super intelligence.

"...So. I'm guessing that the other one is probably a physical enhancer."

If the experiment was indeed a success.

In a dark living room at night, on the couch by the faint glow of the living room lamp, with her knees drawn together, Seo-Eun whispered to me and I nodded my head in affirmation.

"...Okay. Seo-eun, thanks for telling me."

Actually, I already knew about Seo-Eun's past through the original story.

It was only briefly recalled from the perspective of the villain, the White Witch, so it was new to hear it directly from Seo-eun's mouth.

Before I could say anything else Seo-eun first made a sad face and said.

"Da-in... You didn't ask me what happened to the other test subjects."

"...."

"That's right. They all died. We all...tried to escape but they were all caught at the end and..."

"If it wasn't for them...I could never have survived that time..."

Seo-eun, who spoke in such a sobbing manner, did not cry.

Rather than crying, she had a pained expression as if she was having a hard time just getting this out of her mouth, that's why I didn't ask for more details.

Instead, she spoke to me, her voice now slightly hushed.

"So...Da-in. I have a favor to ask you."

"...Yes, Seo-eun, what is it?"

"Dr. Kim Sun-woo of HanEun Group... the one who led the whole thing, I want to kill him with my own hands."

She says that to me with reddened eyes, her face buried in her lap, looking up.

It's been six years since Han Seo-Eun escaped from the HanEun Group but her nightmare is still not over.

Hearing that, I thought briefly.

In fact, it's quite dangerous to give Seo-Eun a chance to kill him.

It's always more efficient to catch an enemy off guard and kill them all at once.

But

'.....'

This is for Seo-Eun, after all.

And I, in the end, do everything for her.

"Okay."

I nodded, thinking that I should be more thorough behind the scenes.

"...Thank you, Da-in."

For the first time all day, Seo-Eun smiled at me with red eyes.

If only for that one smile, my resolve was worth it.

That's how the station case ended and as I said before, we went back to our daily lives.

"Come on, Seo-eun, dodge!"

"Yeah...! Ha!"

Of course, even as we returned to our daily routine, Seo-Eun and I continued to train for the next battle. You never know when a fight might happen again.

Besides that, we also prepared for various other things.

"Seo-eun, just in case, let's get a dating app."

"Yeah...? De, de, de, dating app...?"

"I heard that dating apps can track each other's location, so let's install it just in case something happens."

"....."

Seo-eun paused for a moment with a red face at my words, but then her face turned white again and she glared at me fiercely.

"Haa...Da-in. If that's the case, there's a better way than installing an app...Leave it to me."

'...I already know where you are anyway......'

I scratched my cheek as I looked at Seo-Eun who mumbled something and started making something.

I was just trying to tease her a bit, but I didn't expect such a reaction.

Anyway, the days passed like this and before I knew it, it was fall.

"Da-in. I'm going to school~"

"Okay. Goodbye."

Just like that, Seo-eun went back to school, and I saw her off.

And until then, I didn't know what would happen today.

*** ***

School.

"No, so Han Seo-eun, tell me! What happened while you weren't at school? Were you sick? Did you get cancer or something?"

"Stop it, Yeon-ji. Seo-eun said she has something she can't tell us."

"....."

"Of course, I don't know how unspeakable it is that she can't tell us, but I don't know if she can tell us either. I guess we weren't Seo-eun's true friends."

"Hah! You mean that's true? Oh, Do-yeon, we must have wasted our lives. Let's die, let's die..."

"...Oh, really!"

After a few days of her friends asking her why she hadn't been to school for weeks, Seo-Eun got annoyed....because she didn't really have anything to say.

Actually, Da-in is Egostic, and I couldn't come to school because I was wearing a suit and fighting alongside him. There was no way she could say that...

She blurted out a vague answer.

"...Ha ha. It's just, I had a little trouble with Da-in, that's all."

That's what she said to her friends who kept asking.

They gulped and exchanged glances with each other.

"...With Da-in... What... work?"

"Seo-eun, did you finally confess to him?"

"Oh, no. Of course, you're an adult, Seo-eun, but..."

"No!! What are you guys imagining...!"

...In the end, her words only caused more misunderstandings.

Anyway, the school day went by like this and on the way home.

"Goodbye, Seo-eun. See you tomorrow~"

"Have a good time with Da-in, huhu."

She waved goodbye to her friends, who weren't sure if they were greeting her or teasing her.

Han Seo-eun stumbled down the alleyway.

"....haa."

It was an ordinary alleyway on her way home from school.

From that day on, whenever she passed this alley, only one memory would come to mind.

'Let's go like this. The umbrella is small and if I'm separated from Da-in my shoulders will get wet.'

She remembered the last time she walked with Da-in, holding hands and using an umbrella.

Just walking down this alley automatically made her feel better.

'Even at this point in time, when I'm having a hard time with the HanEun Group, I feel good just thinking about Da-in...'

With such complicated thoughts in her mind, she started walking, when suddenly she felt a chill as if the temperature around her had dropped.

"...What."

The strange sensation made Seo-eun turn her head back.

"Ugh...!"

A white cloth suddenly appeared, covering her face.

Before she could take out the defense device she had prepared, she was suddenly attacked by a mysterious helmeted figure.

'Oh... ugh...'

Han Seo-Eun said.

She muttered the last word, and then fell unconscious.

"This is the Han-eun Team. Target capture is complete. We will return to the branch base immediately."

With that, they picked up Han Seo-Eun and disappeared into thin air.

"......"

Sitting in front of the living room table at home, I looked at the clock and muttered quietly.

"Seo-Eun is late."

Yes. Seo-eun is late.

She's never been late in all the years she's been in school.

Whenever she went out with her friends, she always called hours in advance.

Now she's late without calling.

"....."

With that, I looked at the clock again and quietly got up from my seat.

Once I realized the situation, I had to act.

"And..."

I'll make you pay.

As I muttered that, my reflection in the glass was as cold as ever.