The next day, Jihyeon went near the school once again. He told his mother he was going out for an errand, but she seemed a little worried. Since his visits to the police station were increasing, perhaps that was natural.

  But he couldn't help it.

  Although it had become a troublesome matter, it was something he absolutely had to do to protect his family.

  The eradication of the cult.

  Perhaps it was something an individual couldn't do. It was never easy to confront a group alone in the first place.

  In a way, it was no different from hitting a rock with an egg. It was sheer recklessness.

  Because there wasn't much an individual could accomplish alone.

  People say that one person can achieve many things, but the opposite is also true.

  But that wasn't very important. At least for Jihyeon, the limitations of what he could do alone meant nothing.

  The important thing was whether he had the will to do it or not.

  Naturally, Jihyeon thought he could do it.

  It didn't matter if an idea didn't come to him immediately. Pests that must be eradicated for his safety must be completely destroyed one way or another.

  He already had a friend who had been caught in a multi-level marketing scheme and was out of contact.

  There was also a guy who had become a member of another cult and tried to drag Jihyeon and his friends into it.

  Now, he wanted to break that cycle of nightmares. He no longer wanted to see people around him suffer and have their relationships severed because of weirdos.

  Moreover, it was connected to his sister's safety.

  So, Jihyeon left the house with determined eyes. The future might be unpredictable, but conversely, isn't that why it can be shaped however one wants?

  Jihyeon knew the past better than anyone else. So, creating a new future based on that was something he could absolutely do.

  And shouldn't a real man be able to protect his family?

  Jihyeon was already resolved. No one would be able to stop his will and determination.

  But for that very reason, he had to be cautious. Jihyeon was not a warrior who led his opponents to ruin based on overwhelming brute force.

  Jihyeon's greatest tool was securing information and using it to bring down his opponent.

  That was far from a frontal assault. Rather, it was a battle of patience and persistence.

  Waiting indefinitely until he found the opponent's weakness was never easy. However, he also knew well that it was the surest way to uproot them completely.

  Of course, if he had the physical capability, a frontal charge like the heroes on TV might be good. At least that would be satisfying.

  But Jihyeon's ability was, at best, only slightly advantageous in a one-on-one fight. So, he had to suppress his emotions a little.

  There would be times when he had to take risks, but that was only a last resort.

  Wasn't solving the problem without entering a dangerous place the best and highest priority anyway?

  Moreover, continuously mobilizing the police was risky. Of course, he would use them if necessary, but Jihyeon thought it was better to be a bit more careful now.

  If a tail is too long, it gets caught.

  There was no harm in being careful in the world. As always, moving while hiding himself was the first step toward safety.

  Thinking that, Jihyeon circled the school area again today. But now, he no longer saw any cult members.

  Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

  "They're not showing up now..."

  Jihyeon was relieved on one hand that they were more careful than he thought, but on the other hand, he felt disappointed.

  If even one person came into view right now, he could gain a lot just by observing them.

  Information was always precious, and Jihyeon was now more desperate than anyone else for even the smallest scraps.

  But in a situation where the police were involved, no one was brazen enough to show up. Jihyeon thought it couldn't be helped and turned his body. He even considered visiting the cult's main building if there was no other option.

  "Ah, over there..."

  It was then. Jihyeon turned his head toward the voice calling him. There stood Park Mina, the female student he had rescued last time.

  Mina expressed her gratitude once again to Jihyeon, whom she had run into by chance. And she brought up that she would like to reward him if possible.

  Jihyeon naturally refused. He didn't think it was that big of a deal.

  Mina then said she would at least buy him a cup of coffee. At her invitation, Jihyeon reluctantly headed to a café with her.

  Mina was quite shocked by this incident, but she had no one to complain to.

  For Mina, Jihyeon was one of the few people who would listen to her story. For her, who had no close friends, Jihyeon was someone she feared a little, but could still rely on.

  Therefore, after ordering an appropriate beverage, Jihyeon quietly listened to Mina's words.

  "The cult whose members tried to kidnap me, right? It turns out their leader is someone my parents knew. My parents said she suddenly changed one day... It's scary. I wonder why she did that."

  Jihyeon didn't know how to react to that statement. The fact that the cult leader was her parents' acquaintance and was targeting her was shocking in itself.

  However, Mina said she didn't know the reason.

  It was natural.

  The cult leader was probably not doing this for a convincing reason.

  In the first place, if it's a cult and not just a scam, they'd be closer to being insane. Given the information Jihyeon had secured, understanding the reason would be impossible.

  People are always afraid of the unknown. This was the case again. Mina was afraid because she didn't know the reason for being targeted.

  Moreover, her fear was compounded because it was someone Mina also knew by face.

  Perhaps no one would fail to feel fear in the same situation, even if they weren't Mina. Jihyeon drank his ordered beverage and felt that the situation was serious.

  An old acquaintance tried to kidnap her for an unknown reason. That in itself is scary, but it would be even more frightening if that person was the leader of a cult.

  And even more so if that cult leader was someone who had become a slave to a power that shouldn't originally exist.

  A tool given by someone else twisted one woman's life and made her the leader of a cult. The culprit is likely the same force that sells the tool to neutralize CCTVs that Jihyeon is looking for.

  However, there was no need to talk about this. Instead, Jihyeon listened more carefully to Mina.

  And he could confirm that the cult leader was originally an ordinary person.

  Since she was Mina's long-time neighbor, that was natural. Jihyeon didn't know why a seemingly ordinary person living an ordinary life became like this.

  All he could do was give a wry smile.

  Still, thanks to Mina, Jihyeon was able to learn a lot.

  And he could confirm one fact once again. It was that those who possess tools from the other world have a 'blank space' that even Jihyeon can't know.

  That was an unpleasant matter.

  The fact that there was something unknown to him, who was connected to all the world's knowledge, bothered Jihyeon just by its existence.

  However, this was his job. Jihyeon hid his emotions like putting on a mask and comforted Mina.

  "You must have suffered a lot. Your parents, too..."

  Jihyeon asked, observing Mina's reaction. She nodded and replied.

  "Yes. I wonder how it happened. They said they used to get along so well... It's already five years ago."

  Five years ago.

  Jihyeon sighed at those words.

  It seemed that whatever the other side did to this world might have started five years ago or even earlier. The roots of the darkness seemed deeper than expected.

  "Now that I think about it, they said the person changed after an accident..."

  Mina recalled an old memory. Jihyeon concentrated because the story she heard from her parents might contain an unexpected clue.

  "It was an accident where lightning struck. And all of her family died, and she survived alone, and then a passing doctor saved her or something like that, and after that, the person changed."

  At the mention of a passing doctor, Jihyeon sighed. He felt like he had finally found one of the root causes of the problem.

  Of course, this was not enough.

  This was merely obtaining one keyword to find the true knowledge.

  This much was still insufficient. Now he had to find many more things and make them his own.

  And Jihyeon realized one more fact.

  He still didn't know his opponent very well. There were countless things he couldn't know just from what Mina had told him.

  This was a new research topic he had to look into. Jihyeon thought he must check on this.

  "Now that I think about it, why are they so obsessed with me? Oh, I shouldn't be talking about this..."

  Mina regretted a little late whether she was saying too much. But once she started talking, it was also true that she couldn't stop.

  "It's okay. Since something like that happened, it's natural that you want to talk about it."

  Jihyeon said to her gently. Sometimes people just need to talk. In such times, merely listening is enough.

  "Thank you. I feel a little lighter now, thanks to you."

  Mina expressed her gratitude after getting some of her thoughts off her chest. Jihyeon only nodded.

  "You've been through a lot. But you still have to be careful. Just in case."

  Jihyeon said that and told her to contact him again if anything happened. Mina nodded at his words.

  "Yes. Thank you."

  Mina expressed her thanks for Jihyeon's words. Of course, Jihyeon had told her that not contacting him would be the best thing, but she still blushed slightly.

  "I enjoyed the drink. I'll see you next time."

  Jihyeon said that and parted ways at the café. Mina watched Jihyeon's retreating figure for a while.

  However, she still didn't know that there were other eyes watching her.