Chapter Eighty-Six
 
It was never a good idea to stay up late for several days, even if one was a sorcerer who could always hypnotize himself or herself, their bodies would tire out eventually and physical rest was unavoidable.
 
This was Sunny’s case.
 
The sorceress had decided that she should catch a wink after skipping three days worth of sleep, but just as her mind was going to fall deeply into her slumber land, the sudden crack she felt from her barrier jolted her up from the bed and brought her conscious back into place.
 
“Sh*t!”
 
Somebody is breaking her barrier!
 
Sunny cursed and jumped out of the bed immediately, running to one of her fellow mate’s room.
 
She only had two barriers which were still working. One was the one around their base, and the other one was the one around the area which they kept the S-5 and S-6 mutants. Obviously, the one around their base was intact, which could only mean that the barrier around that abandon tomb was suffering from an attack!
 
“Unnie!” Sunny barged into Narsha’s room and was glad to find the older woman wide awake. “Someone is breaking the barrier around the tomb!”
 
“Say what?!” Narsha dropped the book in her hand and got up from the couch. She ruffled her own hair in frustration before stomping out of her door, “Must be that Kim again! I’ll get Nickhun. I will not let her run away this time!” That Kim had messed up their operation way too many times. She had to catch her no matter what.
 
“Unnie!” Sunny followed Narsha to Nickhun’s room. “I’ll come with the both of you. It will be easier if we have three against one.” The previous time they encountered that Kim Hyoyeon, Nickhun mentioned that the girl was tough and difficult to deal with. She was not only strong and fast, she also possessed magic-immunization equipment which could easily weaken the sorcerer’s power.
 
Narsha was unsure about this. “You haven’t rest––”
 
“I know. I know.” Sunny interrupted the older woman before she could finish her words. “But I can always rest later! If we allow that Kim Hyoyeon to run away again, we don’t know what will she do again. I rather sacrifice a little bit of my time and catch that annoying brat, than to let her mess things up over and over again.”
 
“You’re right.” Plus, they would never have the time to rest if Kim Hyoyeon never stopped to mess with them. “I’ll get Nickhun. You should go and inform Jonghyun about this.”
 
Sunny nodded, “I’ll wait for the both of you at the door!”
 
*
 
Sooyoung and Yoona somewhat ended inside the tomb after a few minutes of debating. While the former thought it wasn’t wise to enter the unknown premise without any further assistance, the latter thought they should search the place first before anything (if there was anything) escaped.
 
The tomb was undoubtedly dark. But fortunately, holes were formed on its ceiling due to its aging factor, and it allowed moonlight to seep into the abandoned premise, providing minimal brightness to the hunters who were exploring the tomb.
 
Still, it did not ease the discomfort which was growing rapidly within them.
 
“I really don’t feel good about this.” Sooyoung commented worriedly. The presence of the third party was getting stronger and stronger as they walked deeper and deeper into the tomb. Sooyoung did not hear anyone walking or smell the mutants’ odor, but she felt as though they were being watched by someone who was hiding somewhere which they failed to discover.
 
Goosebumps were running across Yoona’s skin even without Sooyoung’s comment. She regretted deeply for not following Sooyoung’s suggestion and insisted in exploring this place.
 
She stopped walking and pulled Sooyoung back eventually. “You’re right. I think we should head back.” Capturing mutants might be important, but they should always put their own safety before anything.
 
The hunters turned around immediately, intending to take a U-turn back to the outside when the silhouette of a human, who was standing in the middle of the path, startled them.
 
“Sh*t!” Sooyoung couldn’t maintain her composure and cursed out loud.
 
She couldn’t really see that person since he (or she) was standing behind at the darker area where moonlight couldn’t reach. However, by the look of their situation, it seemed that that person had been following them for quite a while and they did not realize it at all!
 
“Who is this?” Yoona questioned the mysterious figure before them. Her trembling hand reached for Sooyoung uncontrollably as she tried to suppress her fear.
 
But it did not do much of a help as Sooyoung was shaking as well.
 
Instead of answering them, the mysterious figure slowly made his way towards them. His worn-out boots was the first thing which came into the hunters’ visions as his feet stepped under the moonlight. Next, it was his tattered pants. The piece of garment was visibly dirty in the hunters’ eyes despite the insufficient of lightings. It was also filled with large holes which revealed the muscular and sort of rotten-like calves behind it.
 
Yoona and Sooyoung’s pupils dilated upon noticing the detail.
 
“It… can’t be…”
 
The younger of the duo heard her partner’s mutter, but her body was getting too rigid because of the critical situation that it was impossible for her to even make a small movement.
 
Dark and ripped skin on the fingers was gradually revealed as the mysterious man came closer and closer towards them. The condition of his shirt was equally bad. Rather than covering up the person who was wearing it, it only exposed his body where the skin was equally bad as his calves and hands.
 
Soon after, the mysterious figure came into light. Yoona and Sooyoung moved their gazes to his face automatically. The tension in their bodies grew tremendously upon recognizing its identity.
 
“Crap! Yoona get back!” Hissing her command at her partner, Sooyoung pulled Yoona back and brought her large axe to her front. As the older one of the duo, Sooyoung felt it was her responsibility to protect her partner.
 
Yoona stumbled upon Sooyoung’s pull, but stabled herself almost immediately when she regained her senses. She pulled out her katana and was going to position it in front of herself too when she heard footsteps behind her.
 
Surprised, she twirled around quickly and squinted at the darkness behind her.
 
“Soo… Sooyoung…”
 
She called for her partner with shaking voice.
 
“What?” Sooyoung replied in annoyance.
 
The mutant in front of them emitted nothing but danger. To think that he even managed to trail behind them for that long without their notice, Sooyoung didn’t dare to avert her gaze elsewhere.
 
She had no idea what this mutant would do to them if she looked away from it.
 
“We… We are surrounded…”
 
*
 
It had been almost an hour since Yuri stood in front of the window and did nothing, but staring mindlessly at the dark scenery outside her room. Jessica had wanted to leave her alone and give her some space, but it only made her worried even more when she saw Yuri spacing out like this.
 
Slipping her arms around the hunter’s waist, Jessica leaned against Yuri’s back and buried her face into her lover’s shoulder.
 
“Sica?” Yuri was startled by Jessica’s action, but she immediately held Jessica’s hands in hers and pulled her even closer to her. “What’s the matter?”
 
Instead of answering her, Jessica asked, “Are you thinking about Tiffany?” She felt Yuri’s body rigid in her arms. Jessica let out a soft sigh, “You don’t have to hide from me.”
 
“I’m sorry.” Yuri apologized immediately. She was guilty about it. Jessica was her girlfriend, and yet her mind was mostly filled by Tiffany ever since she left the headquarters.
 
“Don’t be.” Yuri felt Jessica shaking her head against her shoulder. “I know Tiffany is important to you. You must be thinking where she had gone to.” Apparently, Tiffany left all of her belongings behind. No one was able to contact and locate her.
 
“I’ve been thinking about this.” Yuri turned around and walked to her couch, pulling Jessica along with her. Once the both of them had settled down, Yuri wrapped her arms around Jessica’s waist and rested her head on her shoulder. “Do you think Fany is happier now?”
 
Jessica was stumped by that question. “I… don’t know.” There was no way she could answer this question.
 
A snicker could be heard coming from Yuri. “I bet she is since she doesn’t have to face me anymore.”
 
“Yuri-ah…”
 
“Sooyoung is right. I shouldn’t have hit her. But even if I did, nothing can be worse than not admitting my mistake and refusing to make an apology. If I had listened to Sooyoung and apologized to her, maybe… maybe she would still be here.”
 
“But that’s maybe. There is still a possibility that she will leave even after you apologize to her. Sooyoung mentioned that before Tiffany left, she said something about going home. What if that has always been her wish and she decides to execute it only now?” As much as Jessica hated to gossip behind Tiffany’s back, she didn’t want Yuri to put all of the blames on herself.
 
It takes two hands to clap. Even if Yuri was the reason for Tiffany’s departure, Tiffany wouldn’t have left just like that if she didn’t have such thought in the first place.
 
“I––”
 
Yuri disagreed with Jessica. She was going to rebut Jessica’s theory when the siren in the headquarters went off, followed by the announcement from the speakers.
 
“Kwon Yuri, Jang Wooyoung and Lee Junho report to the lobby now. I repeat, Kwon Yuri, Jang Wooyoung and Lee Junho report to the lobby now.”
 
Jessica jumped in her seat upon the announcement. She was surprised by it. “What’s that?”
 
“Something must have happened.” Yuri withdrew her arms from Jessica’s waist and got up. “I have to go now. You should sleep now and be careful on your own. Stay away from the kitchen, alright? You can call the cafeteria and ask for delivery if you’re hungry. Don’t cook by yourself.”
 
It was amusing to see Yuri worrying for her while changing out of her pajamas and into her leather outfit. Jessica would have giggled at her girlfriend if this was a regular patrolling rather than an urgent mission. 
 
“Don’t wait for me okay? Good night!” After checking her pockets and equipment once more (ensuring everything was in place), Yuri went to Jessica and pecked lightly on her lips before dashing out of the door hurriedly.
 
Siren only meant one thing, the mutants had appeared. The last time Yuri heard the sirens was months ago, and it was exactly the day she met Jessica.
 
Hopefully, it would not be as serious as that.
 
Right after Yuri left, Jessica got up from the couch and went to the window, standing on the spot where Yuri was standing on earlier on. A heavy sigh was released from her as she opened the window and allowed the cold breeze in.
 
“This has to end.”