Creaaaak, scrape.The broken burger shop door made a friction sound. Even though there wasn’t a hint of wind, the door swayed slowly. It was shaking along the Metena current flowing across the floor like groundwater.— I get goosebumps every time I come here. How can it be this identical.Seo Hansu said while looking around.Across from the human-world burger shop was a Central Hunter Bureau building. It was the same here in Hinari.Sawon stared up at the towering Bureau building, sinking into thought. Same signs, same roads, same buildings, but no people anywhere. And of course, no light.Hinari felt like Earth after its extinction. Maybe a reality that could become our future.— All right, all right. Let’s move quickly. We’re starting raw-material extraction, so do your assigned jobs properly. Let’s finish fast and get out.The Central Hunter Bureau and the Research Institute crossed into Hinari once a year to extract raw Metena. They needed steady supply both for Amplifier components and for research and experimentation.So the Rescue Team hunters regularly trained in raw-material extraction. Thanks to that, even though this wasn’t a place they visited often, the hunters found their positions with familiarity.Mok Geonho signaled to Sawon. The meaning was clear: We’ll collect the raw material—so you hurry up and carry out the reason you came here. Mok Geonho took a few steps, then tapped a point on the floor.— Hey, this is a gold mine. The Metena current’s no joke. Hey rookie, get over here.— Yes, Team Leader!Jin Jeonghae approached Mok Geonho with an excited voice. The hunters had strengthened their sight with Metena, so they had no trouble moving. Just by watching their movements, it wasn’t any different from the human world.Mok Geonho crouched down on the ground.— Here. You feel the current, right? Drill here.— Yes!Drrrrrrrrrrr.The drilling sound of digging into the ground echoed. Raw Metena—basically a mineral—was usually tightly condensed underground or inside a Deater’s intact heart.Honestly, piercing through a Deater’s hide was easier for hunters than digging the ground. But there was no need to take pointless risks. For safety, hunters extracted raw material from the soil.Before long, a small hole opened in the ground. Jin Jeonghae pulled a long metal tube from the equipment bag he carried.He extended the pole-like tube—lengthening as he pulled it—and drove it hard into the underground vein. Right after, he attached a syringe-like device to the tube. Blue Metena flowed through the tube into the syringe.— Keep impurities out as much as possible.— Yes!Other Awakened also worked in pairs to extract raw material. Sawon began his own task. He approached the burger shop and took a coordinate reading for confirmation.[52SCG21416 (37.564297°, 126.977970°)]It was the same coordinates as the human-world burger shop. Sawon switched his comm-line to one only between the two of them and pointed at the shop.— Let’s go in.The burger shop windows were shattered in several places. Inside, cloth hung like makeshift curtains over the entrance and windows, messy and irregular, and a police cordon was stretched around the exterior. In short, it was almost identical to seven days ago—when the two of them were eating burgers and encountered a Heukgu.Sawon pushed aside the hanging cloth at the entrance with the edge of his hand and stepped in. Ji Hayeon followed him inside the burger shop.— They covered everything with cloth here too…— Shh.But Sawon’s arm blocked across Ji Hayeon’s chest. Ji Hayeon frowned while halfway through lifting the cloth—then his eyes opened wide.— …A Deater.There was a Deater sitting at the table by the broken window—cut cleanly in half where the glass used to be.It crouched on a relatively intact chair, legs pulled up onto the seat.Ji Hayeon leaned his upper body slightly forward, carefully observing the Deater. His chest pressed even closer against Sawon’s arm. Sawon tightened his arm to keep him from stepping in.After a brief thought, Sawon stepped one pace deeper into the burger shop. Ji Hayeon grabbed his arm.— Is it okay to go in?There was no hostility coming from the creature. And even if it tried something, he could just cut it down—so there’d be no problem. Above all, Deaters without hostility had no interest in humans.— It’ll be fine. The ones on Earth are way more aggressive. The ones here are much calmer. Let’s go.At Sawon’s words, Ji Hayeon glared «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» sharply at the creature and stepped inside. He stopped at a distance from the Deater.— Gu Sawon.— Yeah?— You see that?Ji Hayeon was pointing not at the Deater but at the air above the table it was sitting at. Sawon narrowed his eyes.— You don’t mean the Deater, right? What are you talking about.— That.Ji Hayeon pulled Sawon’s face toward his own, beside his cheek. Only when their faces were close did their fields of vision align.Sawon steadied his tilted body by wrapping an arm around Ji Hayeon’s waist. Then he looked at the spot his pale fingertip indicated.— There. The spot where the mutated fissure had settled.It was the exact point in human-world space where the fissure had grown inside the burger shop. And floating there was a single leaf.Both men sensed it instinctively: that strange leaf had something to do with the mutated fissure.Ji Hayeon took a cautious step forward. But he was immediately pulled back by Sawon’s grip on his arm.— Ever heard of “guard first”?Sawon grinned playfully and strode ahead. Dust piled on the floor drifted along the Metena current. It looked like scenery swept by wind—making it feel even more like they were on Earth.— I’ll block it. Observe from behind me.— You said it wasn’t dangerous.— It isn’t—but “just in case” always exists.Sawon squeezed Ji Hayeon’s hand tightly. Even through both their gloves, he could feel Ji Hayeon’s small reaction.— …How are you going to block anything while holding hands like this.— Something like that? I can deal with it one-handed. Don’t tell me you don’t trust me?Sawon tightened his grip even harder, as if offended by the implication. Ji Hayeon hesitated, then pulled his arm free.— It’s not that. Let go. I can’t work with one hand.— Ahh.Sawon let go obediently. The two approached the table carefully. From outside, the others collecting raw material didn’t seem to notice the Deater inside.Sawon stood in front of the table, shielding Ji Hayeon from the creature. The Deater didn’t react at all. Sawon looked down at it and muttered:— Feels like stepping into a haunted house.Ji Hayeon kept glancing worriedly at Sawon while quickly observing the leaf. He seemed aware that Sawon wouldn’t step back until he finished his task.Ji Hayeon pulled a small pair of tweezers from his chest pocket and grasped the leaf stem with the metal tips. It was stuck in the air like a bird feather embedded in fabric. With steady pressure, he pulled—and it detached with a tiny bounce.— So it wasn’t an illusion…Ji Hayeon took a transparent test tube from his equipment bag and placed the leaf inside. Blue Metena flickered at the cut end of the stem.He brought his index finger close to the glass. As it neared the leaf, a tugging force pulled faintly at his fingertip.The leaf—floating midway inside the tube—slowly drifted down toward his finger as though drawn by gravity. Ji Hayeon stared at it intensely.— It’s real. I’m pretty sure this is connected to the mutated fissure.Sawon, still keeping his wary gaze fixed on the Deater, answered:— Anything else you need to check? We’re here, so verify everything before we go.“Kkii.”Right then—almost as if responding to Sawon’s words—Nine emerged from the left leg guard.— Nine, aren’t you going back in?Through the comm-line, the voice reached Ji Hayeon’s ear, not Nine’s. But Nine didn’t need to hear it directly—he understood Sawon’s intent well enough.Even so, Nine ignored him and hopped onto the table. He stuck himself to the window, staring out.“Kkiiii.”— Nine. Come here. It’s dangerous.Sawon reached a hand out to Nine. But Nine ignored him completely and pressed himself harder against the glass.Nine made a small baby-like babbling sound. Sawon clenched his teeth, unable to move drastically for fear of provoking the Deater, and flicked his arm irritably.— Nine. Seriously, why aren’t you listening today.— Gu Sawon. Wait.But Ji Hayeon grabbed Sawon’s shoulder. Nine finally looked back and pointed toward the sky outside the window.“Kki.”Something heavy was descending from the sky. Fast and massive, like a falling boulder. Sawon instinctively threw both arms out.— Get back!He grabbed Nine by the back of the neck with one hand and pulled Ji Hayeon by the waist with the other, retreating to the entrance in an instant.Bang!A booming explosion rang through all of Hinari. The building ceiling shook as though it would collapse.Crkk.— Gu Sawon, what’s going on!Mok Geonho, who had been a bit farther away extracting raw material, urgently called through comms. Sawon switched to the full-channel line.— Everyone, don’t move carelessly.Kggggggggrrk.A metallic scraping sound echoed as a massive shadow bent its upper body. Through the window behind the seated Deater, a pair of eerie eyes peered inside.Two bright blue eyes rolled slowly, scanning the interior. Then the creature stopped its eye movement right where Sawon stood.Kggggggggrrk.Its mouth corners split wide like a clown.

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