“So many of you on the ground, and no one is able to find one measly girl?”

The tone was acid, and the group of already pale-faced operatives blanched further at the tirade. Not all of them were present -- the room wasn’t big enough to fit them all -- but the ones there were all nominally leaders of their own teams. It was a mixed group, male and female both, but there was one constant: all of them were young. The oldest was no more than eighteen, and the youngest looked to be a fresh fifteen.

Despite the lecture, none of them twitched a muscle, stoically facing forward in military fashion. There was a peculiar sameness in their empty expressions and listless eyes, slaved in obedience to their commanding officer. Said commander slapped a report on the table, the photographs of their target’s latest caper scattering from the impact. The topmost one whisked off the desk, floating gently to the ground, and was scooped up by someone with very nice leather shoes.

“Now now, Ms. Han, no need to take things out on the kids.” The owner of the shoes stepped into the light, waving the photograph with the inverted pentagram. “I see our prodigal child has been busy.”

“I did not ask for you, Kim.” The young woman at the table hissed, but the man only shrugged.

“You have no authority over me anyway, young lady. Now, if it had been your father…”

“My father put me in charge of the program!” The woman slammed a fist on the table, rising to her feet. The older man seemed completely nonplussed by her outburst.

“And a fine job you’ve done, churning out all these new... recruits of yours.” He paced past the double line of young operatives, walking down the row with a critical eye. None of them even so much as flinched under his scrutiny, impassive to the last. He shook his head.

“They’re obedient, if nothing else. You expect these little toy soldiers of yours to find one of the veterans of the old program?”

“Their combat potential has been increased by a third. The old program has nothing on the new curriculum.” Han appeared to have calmed down, fixing her unwelcome guest with a cold stare.

“Perhaps. They certainly turn out to be good footsoldiers. But you forget something, Ms. Han.” The man turned to face her. 

“Jung Yerin was the best spy and assassin that we’ve produced in the last decade. Sending these automatons after her isn’t going to work. They lack the imagination to react to new situations. She’ll run circles around them all day.”

“And you have a better plan?” Despite the challenge to her authority, it was clear that Han had more control over herself than she let on. Not a fool then, the man thought. 

“You label her a fugitive and traitor, but have you seen what she has been doing in the last few weeks? Certainly nothing to harm our interests.” 

“Your point being?” Han eyed the self-assured man before her, hating how confident he was.

“She’s still one of us. We made her. Where else will she go?” He paused, studying her changing expressions. “She will come home eventually, you know, if you let her.” He sounded almost like a kind uncle as he gave her a studied once over. “Don’t let it get personal, Seo Hee. Your father trusted you with this position, don’t let him regret that decision.”

“You’re up to something, Heechul. And don’t think to threaten me with my father. I know you’ve been looking to move up the ladder, haven’t you? Don’t think I know nothing just because I’m younger than you are, old man.” 

“Up to something or not, I’ve always been loyal. Director Han knows it, and deep down, you do too.” Heechul shoved a hand into his pocket.

“Don’t push too much, Seo Hee. I know you have your own reasons to bring her in, but Yerin won’t be caught so easily. Let her finish what she needs to do, and then I’ll bring her home.”

Their gazes clashed in a battle of wills, and it was Seo Hee who looked away first, hands balling into clenched fists on the desk. 

“I’ll hold you to that, old man. If you can bring her in. Otherwise…” The threat was clear in her tone. Heechul smiled, showing even white teeth, though his eyes remained mirthless.

“Watch and learn, little one. A leopard can never change its spots, I just need to remind her where she really belongs.”

They shared a knowing look. Behind them, the teen soldiers remained standing at ease, no more intrusive than furniture in the background. The overhead light was stark around them, drawing contrasting shadows that divided light and dark in knife-like slashes, splashing out like ink on a blank canvas. 

This was the life Yerin had sought to escape. Heechul shook his head. She really should have known better. What else could she do apart from the things they had taught her? This was her only home, and she would learn that soon enough.

“So, just the two of us tonight?” 

SinB sounded skeptical as she jogged to keep up with Sowon’s long strides. The tall mercenary seemed amused as she looked down, reaching out to bop SinB on the nose.

“Who was the one who was whining about having to stay home all the time? I thought you would appreciate the exercise.” Sowon cuffed one arm around SinB’s neck, pulling the girl close and ruffling her hair before letting go. The gunslinger scowled, but there was a pleased gleam in her eye at Sowon’s response.

“Besides, it’s good to see if you got rusty from lying around playing video games all day.” Sowon commented offhandedly, and SinB wrinkled her nose.

“Hey! I train every day too!”

“It’s not the same as being out on the field, and you know it.” Sowon had felt the same constraint when she had been confined to base, though she had taken some of the edge off by running through simulations to keep her instincts sharp. This wasn’t a big operation in any case, and just the two of them would be enough to an executive across the city for his “appointment”. Despite advances in technology where remote conferences could be easily held online, there were some things that still had to be handled face to face, and the city was not always safe for lone travellers these days. 

This was where they came in. Bodyguard duty was not always the easiest job, but escorting someone from point A to point B during a turf war was familiar enough. Umji had mapped out several routes for them in case of unexpected issues along the way, and the hacker was still available remotely to give them warning for hotspots brewing with gang violence so they could avoid them in real time. It was also easier to move around in a small group, and Eunha wasn’t all that far away if they needed to call her in for backup. The fire mage was also out in the city, taking a much needed breather for her own sake. Sowon couldn’t blame her. Even if Yerin and Yuju kept things quiet, it was obvious how much more intimate they were these days, and Sowon understood that Eunha needed to get away sometimes.

It was good being back on the streets. Finding their way to the small office building on the suburbs where their mark awaited them took a little time, since the weaselly little fellow was nervous and didn’t show until after they had given the correct code words. Sowon had seen more paranoid clients, but people who hired mercenary bodyguards as escorts usually had some problems with the local gangs, and it was an accepted risk when they took the job. The man hugged the briefcase that was cuffed to his wrist protectively as they got in the rented vehicle they had taken for this job, Sowon driving while SinB rode shotgun, keeping a careful eye out. 

Driving back into the city was easy enough, though traffic kept them stuck for an hour longer than expected. The inner district was a no-drive zone for non-citizen employees in any case, and Sowon was acutely aware that there were definitely watchers observing them as they pulled over just a ways out from beyond the nearest checkpoint. Their client wanted to avoid the official gateways, which meant that they couldn’t take the usual routes in. There were other ways, but it meant cutting through gang territory through the local section of the Underground, and that was the most dangerous part of their mission.

Sowon and SinB worked in perfect harmony, with the gunslinger scouting ahead like a shadow in the dark, while Sowon hung back with their nervous client. Her nerves were slightly on edge, ready for action at any time, and it was not helped by the darting glances of their client, who seemed to be clinging on to his briefcase like a security blanket. Sowon noticed the datajack well hidden just above his ear and partially covered by his hairline, but she didn’t comment on it. Most high level executives had headware installed for their work anyway, and it wasn’t her place to question the client’s job. They only had one objective: get him to his destination alive. Payment would only be received in full when they arrived. Most of the time her reputation was enough to keep low level gangers from approaching, and only the very brave or very foolish would pick a fight with her on such terms. 

Sowon glared down a few of the local thugs as they made their way through, and they were wise enough to disappear once they saw the amount of chrome and firepower she was packing. SinB flitted in and out of sight, making sure their chosen route was clear of ambushes, and they communicated quietly over the headsets Umji had configured for them. 

The last stretch was seemingly clear, and the moment they went back aboveground it would be less of a problem, since corporate drones ensured that any overt violence would trigger CorpSec squads, the equivalent of police in corporate land. No one wanted to be marked by those folks, since on corp territory they were the law, and could be judge, jury and executioner all at once. 

Sowon was not deceived by the seeming peace however. While a quiet run was appreciated, being appropriately pessimistic about those odds had kept her alive thus far. Thus she wasn’t surprised at all when a subsonic ping came out of nowhere, with her tackling their client to one side almost on instinct to avoid the bullet aimed at his chest. It pinged off her armor harmlessly, sparks flying in the dim light of the tunnel, and Sowon heard SinB swear under her breath through the commslink, the gunslinger cutting back around to find the hidden shooter. 

“Stay close and keep up.” Sowon ordered the client, who nodded fearfully. His safety was dependent on following the orders of his , and he knew it. Sowon drew her rifle, her mechanical eye exposed to scan the darkness that her biological eye couldn’t penetrate. She didn’t think the shooter would be alone, and SinB’s voice crackled over the link a second later.

“Damn, I almost had him. Gunman got away.” SinB sounded annoyed. Sowon snorted.

“Gotten slow have you?”

“He had backup, I wasn’t going to chase him into an ambush.” SinB snarked back, reappearing back in sight as she shimmied down from a blind spot further down the tunnel. 

“How many?” Sowon gave SinB a quick once over to make sure she wasn’t injured. The younger girl shrugged.

“I saw one other, but I think there were more. They might try again before we get topside.”

“We’re almost out. Unless they follow us up there…” Sowon picked up the pace, and their client huffed as he tried to keep up. The two runners kept a close eye out, but other than the wild shot that seemed more like a test than anything else, the rest of the tunnel went by smoothly with no further hiccups. SinB seemed almost annoyed by the fact that their mystery attackers didn’t come back, but Sowon wasn’t too bothered. As long as they got the job done, she wasn’t going to worry about taking people out. It was best when she didn’t have to bother with killing people, unless they really deserved it.

Getting back above ground was both a relief and a threat. Relief, because they could see any incoming danger more clearly, but as less than legal existences, their presence on corp land was illegal by definition. Sowon had forged passes that would pass casual scrutiny, but it was best to not put them to the test if she could help it. 

“Three more streets if we don’t have to take any more detours,” SinB observed, pulling up the map Umji had uploaded for them earlier. Sowon grunted, scanning the area for danger.

On corp territory, there were citizen-employees wandering around even though it was late in the evening. There were bars and stores still open at this time, though only those with corp identification could patronize them without fear. Non citizens could frequent them, but the price was always higher. And as for runners like themselves, they didn’t legally exist in any identification registry, but any self respecting professional would have any number of forged identities that would pass a casual scan. That said, none of them would risk confronting a corp patrol or risk the heavier scrutiny at guarded checkpoints. Good fake identities were expensive to procure, and while the better ones could probably pass heavier probing, they cost an arm and a leg to create. It was just easier to avoid security whenever possible.

“This is almost too easy. I don’t like it.” SinB said exactly what Sowon was thinking. Other than the potshot earlier, things had gone almost too smoothly. Sowon didn’t think whoever had tried ambushing them would give up this easily, but their destination was only one street away, and still there were no surprises. Granted, this deep in corp territory, most gangs wouldn’t dare to stir up trouble, unless someone had hired a rival group of runners to kill their mark. But that wouldn’t explain the lousy ambush attempt, unless those people were really that green.

“Stay sharp, it’s not over until he gets there alive.” Sowon indicated their nervous charge who was still trembling between them. SinB rolled her shoulders, loosening her guns in their holsters as she scanned the higher points around them. They had chosen a more discreet route to avoid the threat of snipers from distant lookouts, but the alleyway they were currently in was also easy for any attackers to box them in. SinB wasn’t too worried about fighting her way out if it came down to it, but having to take care of their client in the middle of a firefight was not something she would enjoy doing. 

They were almost to the end of the alley when a distant creak behind them made Sowon whip around sharply. She shoved the client at SinB, drawing her heavy assault rifle and locking in on the dark patch hanging off a fire escape, firing at the nearest threat even as SinB rushed the client out of the alley. Their destination was just across the street, and SinB knew what Sowon intended. To save herself the trouble, the gunslinger picked up their scrawny client and threw him over her shoulder, her eyes starting to glow dimly in the dark as she pushed her limits, blurring in zigzag lines across the open area to throw off anyone attempting to shoot her. She couldn’t sustain such high speeds for long, but she didn’t have to; the street wasn’t that wide, and she vaulted right over the low outer wall with client in tow, not bothering with the gate further down the road.

Bullets struck the asphalt where she was seconds ago, but they were too slow and she was already at the entrance of the building, sliding her burden off with some disdain as her client staggered, looking a little green in the face after being moved around at speed. She pulled him down into a crouch to present less of a target, and the shaky client nodded his thanks, cautiously edging his way to the security panel in order to gain access into the building where he would be safe. Meanwhile, SinB drew her guns, cautiously scanning the area to prevent anyone from getting the jump on her. The shots had come from a low angle, so at least they weren’t too high up, but she wasn’t going to let her guard down. She was wearing light body armor at Sowon’s insistence, but getting shot still hurt. And a shot to the head would still be fatal regardless. 

The client huffed out a soft prayer when the security panel flashed green, the heavy doors sliding open with a pneumatic hiss. SinB grabbed him by the wrist just before he entered, and he muttered a quick thank you before sliding the payment over in an unmarked credchip, which SinB quickly verified by tapping it on the watch Umji had modified for her. The correct amount, with a little bonus even. She nodded sharply, letting him enter the building as the doors closed behind him. With luck, she would never see him again.

Now to rendezvous with Sowon. The street had gone silent after the initial wave of gunfire, but the shots had all been suppressed. Even so, it was still fairly loud in the crisp night air, and SinB’s breath clouded in front of her as she crept along the wall, buzzing Sowon over the comms to check in on her.

This was a fairly deserted stretch of territory, with more warehouses and shuttered buildings that would undoubtedly be more lively in the day. They were lucky, in a way. This meant that there were fewer security drones and patrols around at this time, which meant that their scuffle would not draw unwanted attention. Conversely, this also meant their opposition had the same lack of restriction. 

Sowon’s voice came clearly over the link, to SinB’s relief. The mercenary didn’t even sound winded, and there were a few distinct cracks that sounded like something breaking, along with muffled grunts on the other side that most definitely wasn’t Sowon.

“You done? This little won’t stay still.”

SinB bit back a chuckle as she cautiously swung herself over the wall, putting on another quick burst of speed to zip across the open ground in case she was still being tracked. There were no gunshots this time, and she was able to witness the tail end of Sowon laying the smackdown on a black clad figure who had been making a pathetic attempt to run. 

“Only one?” SinB looked around warily even as she drew near. Sowon stomped down on the small of their assailant’s back, and something definitely cracked quite loudly in the confines of the alley. SinB raised an eyebrow at Sowon, who grunted.

“Don’t look at me like that, this one was pretty hard to take down, I’m not taking any chances.” For good measure, Sowon reached down and roughly hauled back on the figure’s arm, pulling the joint out of their shoulder entirely and leaving the arm hanging useless. Disarming had never been taken quite so literally, and SinB winced in unintended sympathy, her own shoulder recalling the trauma it had been put through scant months ago.

“The rest left this one behind after I shot another one of them. This one was a bit slow.” Sowon kicked the disabled attacker, who didn’t make a sound despite Sowon literally breaking their ribs and dislocating their shoulder only seconds ago. SinB flipped them over, yanking the mask concealing their face off roughly. What they saw made them both pause in their tracks.

“It’s just a kid?” SinB blinked, looking over at Sowon, who was frowning as well. The subdued girl, and it was just a girl, stared up at them impassively, as if her own fate didn’t matter to her in the least. She couldn’t have been more than fourteen, but then again, SinB had been out doing dangerous crap like this at that age too, so in a way she did sort of understand the pressures that forced children their age, born out of the system, to live this way.

“Didn’t fight like one, I wager she could probably mess you up pretty bad one on one.” Sowon commented, rubbing at her side where this “little girl” had hit her earlier. Even armored, she had felt that. There was something professional, even familiar, in the way the girl moved, and Sowon wouldn’t be surprised if the kid had been enhanced in certain ways as well. 

Something flashed in the kid’s eyes, and Sowon immediately pulled SinB back, even as the wounded girl suddenly kicked upwards, narrowly missing SinB’s face. Sowon reacted instantly to the threat, pulling out her shotgun and capping the kid in the knees. This time the girl finally made a small sound of pain, before decisively biting down hard on something. Before Sowon could even intervene, the girl was dead, lips turning purple from the poison hidden in her teeth.

“What the hell?” SinB stared in shock, unable to believe what had just transpired. Even at her lowest, SinB had always fought to live, and couldn’t imagine killing herself like that for whatever reason. There was something intensely unnerving about the complete lack of hesitation in that move, as if the girl had been conditioned to kill herself upon failure. It wasn’t normal, and they both knew it.

Sowon’s eyes narrowed as she knelt carefully to ascertain the girl was actually dead. A quick search gave away nothing to identify her allegiances, though there was a near-invisible commslink disguised as an ear stud embedded in the kid’s left ear. Sowon held the watch Umji had given her over the link, enhancing the volume in case the link was still active despite the girl’s sudden demise. 

“...all units pull back...Zero Alpha...target retrieved…”

“Umji are you getting this?” Sowon tapped her own comms, knowing from experience that Umji would always be watching over their progress. She was not disappointed.

“They cut the signal just now, but I have a direction. Are you going after them?” Umji sounded concerned. Sowon grunted, kicking the corpse to the side and pulling trash over it to hide the body. It would be found eventually, but they would be gone by then.

“Call Eunha, we might need that backup. Give me the coordinates.” Umji acceded, and the holographic display on the map recalibrated to show their new direction. 

“The job’s done, why are we doing this?” SinB was still shaken by what happened earlier, but she hadn’t lost sight of their goal. The job for the evening was done, their client had been delivered to his destination safely, and payment had been received. What happened with the girl was unnerving, but SinB knew all about keeping her nose out of things when it would lead to actual danger. She might be reckless at times, but she wasn’t stupid. Her parents had died prematurely thanks to getting involved with stuff way out of their league, and after the whole imugi incident, SinB was a tad more cautious with her own mortality now. She was still very human and very fragile, and now that Sowon had sort of agreed to date her, she valued her life very greatly. It just wouldn’t do to die before anything happened.

“I met someone like this a few days ago. Someone is after me, and I don’t like it. I haven’t been able to find them before, but now that they’ve shown themselves…” Sowon bared her teeth dangerously.

“I won’t let go until I get some answers.”

Yerin kissed Yuju’s forehead gently before sliding out of her puppy’s embrace, careful to not wake the sleeping girl. It was early evening, but they had gotten a little enthusiastic earlier since they had the house to themselves. Umji was locked up in her own room anyway, so there wasn’t anyone to bother in any case. 

Eunha had left the house around noon for a walk, while SinB and Sowon had gone out in the late afternoon, no more than an hour or so ago. Yerin had stayed home with Yuju for the past week, enjoying the intimacy they shared both in bed and out of it. 

But she couldn’t stay hidden forever, and already Heechul’s messages were becoming insistent. She could only put him off for so long, and it was time to continue her work. She didn’t want to leave Yuju alone like this, but after their activities she was confident the shaman would stay asleep for a good few hours at least. Enough time for her to get that little job done. 

Data retrieval was her specialty in any case, and a little breaking in and entering would be a nice change of pace. Yerin reviewed the files Heechul had sent her days ago, quickly plotting out a plan of action while equipping herself with the things she needed. It was a good thing she was already well prepared for such eventualities, and didn’t require much time to kit up and go. 

Leaving things to the last minute wasn’t her usual MO, but Yerin had been reluctant to dip back into the shadows so soon after confirming her relationship with Yuju. Besides, it would teach her old handler some patience if she let him wait. Yerin enjoyed this reversal in power dynamics, however small. She still had some agency in how to handle things here, and she cherished that a great deal.

Before leaving though, she padded silently back to bed, gazing fondly at her slumbering puppy. Yerin pulled off her glove and ran her bare fingers through Yuju’s hair, pulling back only when Yuju’s eyelashes fluttered, not wanting to wake her. Despite herself, she leaned down and planted a soft kiss on Yuju’s cheek. Her lips ghosted past Yuju’s ear, whispering even though the younger girl was asleep.

“Wait for me, I’ll be home soon.”

With that, Yerin left without looking back, closing the door silently behind her. Underneath the blankets, a finger twitched, and dark eyes opened in the gloom. Yuju said nothing, pulling the covers closer to herself as she huddled into a smaller ball. It was cold without Yerin, and she had known the second the assassin pulled away. She would never not know.

“I’m waiting…” Her voice was very small, almost inaudible. 

Come home soon...

Eunha watched the scenery flash by outside the window as the light rail took her around the city. There was something peaceful in being anonymous in a crowd, and the constant low hum of chatter numbed her enough to keep her from overthinking too much. 

She had moved from place to place in the city all day, stopping at different restaurants and cafes to try out their signature dishes and give herself a treat in the process. She would have asked SinB along, but her best friend had been busy with Sowon, and she didn’t want to interrupt. Yuju and Yerin were obviously out of the question, and Umji had been deeply immersed in something when she went to check in on the hacker in the morning. 

It wasn’t a big deal. She could most definitely go out on her own. There was something healing in it too, away from anyone who knew her. She didn’t want to deal with the sympathetic looks from her team, or the vaguely guilty glances Yuju kept giving her when she thought Eunha wasn’t looking. She just needed to have some time alone to herself. It wasn’t that complicated.

Her watch buzzed with an incoming message from Umji, and Eunha frowned quietly as she skimmed the contents. All of them had gotten that special watch from their youngest member, who made them promise to wear it whenever they left base. It doubled as a communications device and GPS among other functions, which was rather useful all things considered. Eunha knew that Sowon and SinB had been headed out for a small job, and Sowon did extend the invitation to her earlier, but Eunha had declined, wanting to give the pair some space instead of playing the third wheel. It wasn’t like any of them were short on cash, and she was perfectly fine letting those two have their “date”.

But Umji was calling her in now, stating that they needed backup. Eunha didn’t even have to think about it. If Sowon was asking her for help, it meant that they actually needed it. A flash of flame glimmered in the depths of her eyes as she got up. If there was going to be some action, she would welcome it. It had been far too long since she had gotten to burn anything properly.

The mage faded into the crowd as it swallowed her, moving with purpose towards her intended destination.

It was not going to be a quiet night.

A gloved hand moved a holographic chesspiece on a 3D board hanging in midair, sacrificing a pawn as White allowed Black deep into the center. A necessary move, if risky, for his eventual gambit.

"Did they take the bait?" 

The comms buzzed with a monotonous status report, and the man frowned at his seat. It was so difficult to deal with children who took his words so literally. An unfortunate consequence of the new program. He did always prefer dealing with the smarter kids from before. Even if they were always a more unruly bunch. 

"Has the data been extracted by Delta-0819?" 

An affirmative sound from the other end. A pleased smile crossed his lips. Of course she would have done it already. He had always known that she would have waited for the mark to be alone in a place assumed to be secure, before making her move. There were fewer variables to take care of in that scenario, and she was nothing if not efficient. His protégé might not have been the best fighter in her class, but she always got the job done. He was proud of her, unlike any other. Who else had survived? None, except her. She was living proof of the strengths of the Delta series. 

The current Epsilon program had its merits, namely in the marketability of the trainees that came out of it. Obedience meant a lot to their potential customers, and he could not deny that profit was the driving force behind every new training program developed. Delta created excellent independent operatives, but that same independence was also their greatest flaw. It made them too prone to developing their own quirks and likely to buck the rules despite classical conditioning. Ironically, it made them more human, and if he were honest with himself, he still preferred them over the blindly obedient Epsilon trainees. They, at the very least, were far more interesting to deal with. 

It was time to bring the last surviving Delta operative back home. The Epsilon kids might be combat-ready, but they needed a field commander with brains. The board of directors had abolished the Delta program due to low projected margins when contrasted against customer demand, but he would prove to them that the Delta series were still viable. His position had been deeply shaken by the abandonment of the Delta program, and the discovery that one of them had beaten the odds to survive this far was an unexpected blessing. 

It had been deeply unfair to the Delta kids to be sent into situations beyond their expected roles and training, but his hands had been tied. It wasn’t quite a purge, but when the more unruly ones had been sent in blind to missions that were most definitely not suited for them, he had his suspicions. He had done what he could, but he could not overrule his superiors, who treated the trainees as interchangeable resources to be moved around and liquidated at their pleasure. They were still people, not mindless automatons. Even the Epsilon kids had some individuality, though it was mostly subsumed under the geas implanted directly into their subconscious. 

He would do everything he could to prevent that from happening to her. It just wouldn’t do to retrieve an asset only to lose it to those short-sighted fools with their eyes fixated only on the next quarter’s profits. Loyalty couldn’t be enforced the way they seemed to think it could. What was the point of using human soldiers if the end goal was to create something like the cyberzombies their rival specialized in? Destroying individuality was never his goal. They were his kids, and he cherished every last one of them. His superiors would never understand.

“Mark the drop-off and keep the signal steady. I will be there in fifteen.”

His orders were crisp and unambiguous. They had to be. The new kids wouldn’t understand otherwise. He was lucky he still had access to their command rights, though he no longer had much say in how the program was run. The shuttering of the Delta program had marginalized him, but he was never one to give up so easily.

Not unlike his reluctant protégé, still so resistant about coming home. He understood, truly. The allure of freedom was tempting indeed, but the fact that she hadn’t been able to bring herself to truly escape the shackles of her training was testament to how effective the program had been. She was the weapon they had intended her to become, and where else could she truly shine? Knowing that she had been involved in the operation to take down the imugi in Ulsan was just icing on the cake. Detailed analysis of the aftermath had her distinct fingerprints all over it. He couldn’t help but feel proud of the girl. So long away, and still serving their purposes. It would be part of the spin he was intending to sell to his superiors. With luck, they might even buy it.

Kim Heechul stood, the chess simulation winking off with the motion. He was casually dressed by business standards, certainly too sloppy if he had been intended for any official meetings, but comfort was more important than snappiness when he was bound for the field. He didn’t often take to the streets, but this was important enough for him to do so. 

Like it or not, Yerin was going to come home tonight. He had waited long enough, given her the time she needed to settle her affairs. He was on a tight schedule, and the yearly assessment was coming up soon. He needed her back, if he wanted to change things. 

And no one was going to get in his way.