At that moment, the door slammed open, and Nayun entered.
"Hanguru! Were you alright by yourself? You must have missed me. I'm sorry! I wanted to come back quickly, but they insisted I listen to the test results first, seriously!"
She pulled Hanguru into a tight hug, rubbing his cheek against hers while complaining.
"Unnni~ Hanguru missed you, but I waited patiently and was okay by myself..."
Hanguru also hugged Nayun back, rubbing his face against hers, making soft noises of joy.
For a while, it felt like a tearful reunion between sisters who hadn’t seen each other in years, but then Nayun suddenly turned her gaze.
"By the way, who is this?"
"Shin Nayun Hunter-nim. Team Leader of Special Investigations Team 1 at the Management Bureau, Jin Siwon. I truly apologize for today’s events."
He briefly hesitated before speaking.
Nayun, impressed by his fluent Korean, shook her head.
"No, I didn’t even see the monster’s tail. They said a great team leader handled it... Is that you?"
"Ah, yes. That would be me," Jin Siwon said, laughing lightly, his face turning red.
"Then, Hunter-nim, did you come here for re-testing?"
Nayun gestured toward Hanguru, who was sucking on /N_o_v_e_l_i_g_h_t/ the ginseng-flavored candy.
Hanguru blinked, his cheeks puffed out with the candy inside.
‘Ginseng flavor... It’s strange, but oddly addictive.’
"Ah, so... is this cute little one an Awakener?"
"Yes. That’s why we’re here to register."
Through his glasses, a faint ashen glow flickered in Jin Siwon’s eyes.
"How does it taste... it's kind of... mysterious."
...It must be mysterious.
"You shouldn’t just accept candy from strangers. Tsk."
Jurim placed his hand near the child's mouth.
Hanguru immediately covered his mouth with both hands and shook his head.
Reluctantly, Hanguru spat out the candy, and Jurim clenched and unclenched his fist. The ginseng candy turned into powder and vanished.
Hanguru, with a pout, wiped his hands on his sleeve.
Jurim smiled faintly, and with that same hand, he patted Hanguru’s head. The child recoiled in horror and backed away.
As Jurim stood up, Nayun subtly approached him from the side.
"Guild Master-nim, it seems there’s another commotion at the center."
He responded indifferently as he moved. Hanguru reached out his arm to grab his hand, and Jurim extended his left hand to hold it.
Hanguru alternated his gaze between the warmth of the hand he was holding and Jurim’s two hands.
Flustered, Hanguru met Jurim’s gaze, and he gave a soft “shh,” using his finger to motion for silence.
Shh! Hanguru mimicked zipping his mouth shut.
He felt like a secret agent on a covert mission.
‘Guild Master-nim... he’s up to something.’
Hanguru, pretending to be calm, gripped Jurim’s hand even tighter.
Tick-tock. Time passed, and the noise only increased as the commotion continued. A cold sweat began to drip from Jurim’s temples.
When Hanguru arrived home, he stared in surprise as Jurim confidently walked to the center of the living room.
His shirt was already soaked with sweat.
"Guild Master-nim...?"
Was something wrong? Hanguru quickly approached him with hurried steps.
Jurim's face was pale, and his ragged breathing sounded harsh and uneven.
Something was terribly wrong, and Hanguru’s heart began to race.
This was not the time for secrets.
He needed to ask for help. But from who?
Shaking with fear, Hanguru took out his Kids' Phone.
He pressed the numbers frantically, but Jurim grabbed the phone away from him.
Jurim staggered and leaned against the back of the sofa.
"Hanguru, go to your room—"
Before he could finish, his body tilted dangerously.
"—Stay in your room."
As Jurim collapsed to the floor, Hanguru froze, panic-stricken. His heart dropped.
At the same time, beep, the door lock released, and the door opened.
"Don’t worry, Guild Master is just sleeping, Hanguru-ya."
Hanguru, kneeling by the bed where Jurim was lying, looked up. The child kept his mouth tightly shut, tears streaming down his large eyes.
Oh dear. Yoon Seojun, with an awkward expression, wiped away the tears.
"Sniff, sleeping? Sniff, sniff!"
"Hanguru-ya, you know there used to be a 'Tower,' right?"