‘How does this guy know my code name?’
I’ve never shown him typing.
And there are only four monsters he hunted in front of me.
This was a record even for a player with the code name ‘Human.’
Yet, Ethan insists on calling me K, the one who accompanied him.
‘Did he just guess it?’
I continued the comments, holding my doubts close.
⌎(Secret Comment) Yeah, he did. But I’ve never carried you. Just traveled together. Is your body okay?
⌎(Secret Comment) You seem to be the person I was thinking of. It’s been a couple of hours since I woke up. The injuries are healing abnormally fast. Now, answer me. Are you K?
⌎(Secret Comment) Why do you think I’m K? My code name could be Human.
⌎(Secret Comment) I assumed it was you after seeing the number 36.
‘Really just a wild guess?’
I chuckled in disbelief.
⌎(Secret Comment) Narrow-minded. Someone else could have done it.
⌎(Secret Comment) So, you’re not K?
I had to furrow my brows at the following words.
‘Why so persistent?’
What would he gain by knowing that I am K?
I watched the comment section without replying for a while.
It was to be cautious. I had no clue why Ethan was behaving this way.
But within minutes, Ethan broke the silence.
⌎(Secret Comment) Sorry if it bothered you. I wasn’t trying to expose your identity. I was genuinely curious. It doesn’t matter if you’re not. I just wanted to caution you.
Caution about what?
I raised an eyebrow when a new comment appeared.
⌎(Secret Comment) The UK and US governments know about K. Judging by their talk, it seems they’re trying to find something.
My impression turned grim.
* * *
“We’ve arrived.”
Jaehyuk parked the car in front of the house. I stepped out, facing him.
“Thanks.”
“If anything happens, let me know. I’ll be waiting.”
“Yeah, and don’t mention yesterday’s events to the kids.”
“Sure.”
“See you next time.”
After confirming he left, I turned my body.
As I climbed the stairs to go home, my mind was a mess.
Because of the information Ethan shared.
He lost consciousness when the mission ended.
Due to that, his real name was registered as a code name.
Thanks to the US government’s player, ‘White Lily,’ they found out his name and tracked him down.
⌎(Secret Comment) It seems White Lily was a CIA agent. Thanks to her, they found out my real name. The US reached out, investigating the shopping center incident and contacted me first.
Ethan was in the shopping center during the first tutorial.
So, he was detected by government agencies much earlier.
Now, he’s under the surveillance of MI5, the UK’s intelligence agency.
⌎(Secret Comment) The US presented it as an information exchange. But they mentioned K and asked if I knew about you. I got questioned too, and I said I hadn’t met you in the mission area.
It was natural to attract attention to some extent.
My scores were different from other players.
⌎(Secret Comment) I’m telling you this because MI5 is monitoring me while treating me as an experiment. Honestly, my current situation is not much different from being a rat in a lab. When I discovered that my physical abilities were different from the culprit, I experimented to see if a bullet would penetrate.
When I heard that he deliberately inflicted wounds to test his regenerative ability, my anxiety escalated.
⌎(Secret Comment) I understand. If there was a significant change to the level of neutralizing modern firearms, it could be seen as a threat. But you can’t call it ethical.
⌎(Secret Comment) That’s why I wanted to tell you to keep hiding if you haven’t contacted government agencies yet. We don’t know much about this game either. It’s worse for those who haven’t experienced missions. The caution about me is high. People with guns always follow me. At least until we know why this game started, stay hidden. Don’t underestimate the caution against the unknown.
I thought he was emotionally fragile when he sobbed earlier.
Unexpectedly, Ethan was deep and sharp.
‘Well, it makes sense that he could clear the whole game.’
Taking down a lion and a polar bear was no easy feat.
In fact, only seven out of a hundred players achieved an all-clear grade.
Ethan was one of those top performers.
‘Judging by the way he stuck around me, he’s definitely not stupid.’
He was keenly observing how the world perceived the 100 players.
And I agreed with his judgment.
There were too many uncertainties at the moment.
Mana, monsters, holes, protective barriers.
Even us, who were actively playing the game, didn’t know much about the situation.
And the number of players.
While it wasn’t a small number—around a hundred—it was extremely small compared to the world population.
‘Even in an era where human rights are crucial, minorities always face unfavorable circumstances.’
History had proven that.
In this situation, taking a front-and-center position was not wise.
Ethan might end up like being confined by government agencies, undergoing experiments under the guise of experiments.
‘He might show surprisingly moderate reactions, though.’
I recalled seeing a scenario outline for dealing with potential crises by government agencies.
Among them are unrealistic scenarios such as alien invasions or the collapse of the world economy.
Whether it’s true or a plausible lie, I don’t know.
I didn’t want to step forward to experience it.
I have a family to take care of. My safety is directly linked to the safety of the twins.
Ultimately, I accepted Ethan’s warning and planned to be cautious not to reveal my existence if possible.
‘The problem is medical records…’
I might need to talk to Jonghun about it soon.
“Sigh… It’s going to be busy from now on.”
Of course, saying I’ll be careful doesn’t mean I’ll blindly hide and lower my body.
‘When the main server activates, the game will start again.’
Before that happens, I need to be as prepared as possible.
Ethan mentioned that he’s already undergoing specialized military training under the surveillance of the institution.
I envied that part a little.
But I had no intention of stepping forward and seeking help from the government.
‘Caution against the unknown.’
Just as Ethan said, I shouldn’t underestimate that.
‘Should I at least go to a dojo?’
These days, there are places that teach dagger skills or combat techniques used by real soldiers. I should look into that.
While I was contemplating my future, the stairs ended.
As I stood in front of the entrance, about to press the door lock, my phone rang.
Without much thought, I answered the call.
“Yes, this is Kang Hyunwoo.”
As I was about to press the password on the outdated door lock with my other hand, it made a creaking sound.
Then, a voice of an unfamiliar woman came through the phone.
“Who is this?”
I froze, not pressing the password on the door lock.
[I’m Police Sergeant Han Jihye from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency.]
My heart rate slowly began to rise.
‘Why would the police call me…?’
My thoughts naturally connected to the game.
It hadn’t been long since I had a conversation with Ethan.
‘Surely not.’
Could my identity have been exposed already? Trembling with a chill, I felt my cheek shiver.
* * *
Three weeks had passed since the system interfered in my life, and it was now March.
Today, after the high school entrance ceremony for the twins, I stood in front of flashing cameras.
Due to the incessant flashes, my eyes were on the verge of tearing.
“Commendation.”
Unlike my stiffened self, the voice of the person standing behind the Chief of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency was calm.
“…For suppressing and apprehending the suspect, contributing to the safety of the local community, I commend you.”
As he finished speaking, the Chief handed me the commendation.
Two days ago, the police called me.
They wanted to hold a commendation ceremony related to the attempted kidnapping case.
I had originally planned to refuse this proposal.
It was troublesome, and things were complicated because of the system.
I didn’t want to be mentioned in the media.
However, I was standing here now for a simple reason.
– Hyung! The police called!
With Jinwoo answering another call from the police, the situation had changed.
Jinwoo had noticeably brightened up when he learned about the commendation ceremony.
Even Yeonwoo, who usually scolded me for doing something dangerous, wasn’t much different.
Despite the worried words, there was a part of her that seemed proud of what I had done.
So, I changed my mind.
If having such a ceremony made these two happy, if it could become a good memory for them during their school years, I could endure the inconvenience.
Fortunately, the commendation ceremony ended sooner than expected.
The twins approached, each holding a commendation certificate and a plaque.
Their faces were full of smiles.
‘Looks like I made the right decision.’
The satisfaction of enduring the trouble was worthwhile.
Now, I was about to turn around, thinking I could go back.
“Hyung!”
A young child and a young couple approached me.
‘Kim Yumin, was it?’
It was the child and his parents who had almost fallen victim to the kidnapping a while back.
Expressing their gratitude, shedding tears, they poured out their thanks while the police were present.
It felt burdensome, so I casually gave a light greeting.
But just before they spoke, I looked down at Yumin, who was hesitating to come up to my thigh.
“Long time no see, little one.”
“Take this!”
Yumin held out a bouquet of flowers he had brought.
I accepted it without hesitation. As I did, Yumin put both hands on his belly and bowed.
“Thank you for saving me.”
Watching that scene, a smile naturally formed on my lips.
I responded while gently patting the child’s head, “Sure.”
I could have left right then, and it wouldn’t have mattered.
But for some reason, my steps didn’t seem to move, so I lowered myself and sat down.
After getting involved with Yumin, I learned that child abductions often involve acquaintances.
In fact, the suspect caught that time was someone who operated a small convenience store nearby.
It turned out they targeted the child because of gambling debts.
So, I decided to add a few more words.
“Next time, don’t follow any other adults when your mom and dad aren’t around, even if they say they know you.”
“Yes!”
Yumin responded with enthusiasm, smiling brightly.
As I watched the child leave, a sudden thought crossed my mind.
If I were an ordinary person without any superbatural abilities that day.
If I couldn’t hear the conversation between the two who had moved away.
If I had simply turned a blind eye to the discomfort.
If I hadn’t been able to stop the abductor from escaping with a knife.
Would this little one be able to smile like this now?
It was a complicated feeling.
‘Fortunately, maybe?’
Everything I experienced after the first tutorial was horrific.
If I had a choice, I would never have gotten involved in such incidents.
But strangely, I now found myself thinking that I was fortunate.
Maybe because I had Mana, I could prevent the worst from happening.
While exchanging greetings with Yumin and the child’s parents and heading home, I found myself asking a question.
‘Why is the system giving me this power?’
Of course, there was no answer to my question.
The only change was a slightly increased number at the bottom of my field of vision.
[Main Server (Earth) Stabilization 9.157%]
Would that number ever provide an answer to the accumulating mysteries when it reached its full capacity?
***
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