Without any sound, a video played on the monitor. It was a surgical scene.

  The scene was utterly grotesque. It was not something ordinary people should watch.

  Something non-human performing surgery on a human—it was an event that could be called a bad joke.

  However, some could watch the scene without any change in expression. As if watching it was a duty despite the cruelty, they did not take their eyes off the screen.

  On the desk of the man watching the scene was a nameplate with the title of General Manager. He was a member of the triumvirate of the cult's leadership, along with the Deputy Leader and another executive.

  The General Manager's expression was serious. He understood the meaning of what was happening right now.

  "The Deputy Leader seems to have rushed things too much..."

  The General Manager muttered that. He thought this incident was very unexpected. But he minimized its significance, viewing it as the actualization of a possibility that could have occurred anyway.

  He was a person who was going to be killed to silence him anyway. For the one who saw what they shouldn't have seen, death was the inevitable conclusion.

  The General Manager thought that making him an experimental subject instead was merciful. His sacrifice would surely be a great help in growing the cult.

  What concerned him more was the reason this incident had occurred.

  "Did the appearance of the person who uses lightning really drive the Deputy Leader that much?"

  The General Manager sighed, muttering that.

  Most of the cult's leaders desperately wished to become the successor to the former Leader. Although they were oppressed by the Leader's terror, everything she had created was utterly tempting.

  But the one who performed the surgery now—the existence that might or might not be human—tested their qualifications.

  And only three people passed that test.

  The others either failed to wake up, like the former Leader's adopted daughter, or died immediately.

  The General Manager had not forgotten the sight when he woke up.

  He was lucky to have woken up, but the blood flowing from the dead bodies was soaking the floor. To the General Manager, who shuddered at the sight, the being who performed the surgery said:

  "Congratulations! You have obtained the qualification!"

  Qualification.

  The qualification to become the successor of the cult. It sounded good. Compared to being forced to undergo surgery to implant a tool.

  But obtaining the qualification did not immediately mean becoming the successor. What the three people obtained was merely the qualification to be candidates.

  "It's truly sad that it means nothing if we can't use the same power."

  The General Manager sighed, muttering that. They had to find the former Leader's tool through their own methods.

  And they had to implant it, no matter how. The General Manager didn't know if that was possible.

  But all of that was decided by them. The General Manager had no choice. He could only move according to their orders.

  "The other two don't know, so their minds must be at ease."

  The General Manager thought with a bitter smile. He knew well what kind of result awaited him if he resisted.

  Wasn't the former Leader's adopted daughter the immediate evidence? She was not talented, but merely a sacrifice chosen to be a container to store the tool from the other world.

  Of course, the other two would think she simply collapsed due to a rejection reaction. But the General Manager knew the truth.

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  "The poor girl..."

  He didn't even have the right to grieve over the fate of his adopted daughter—no, his actual daughter. It was the General Manager who had twisted his family's fate.

  Perhaps this was karma returning. And now, he was simply walking a path from which he could no longer return.

  While various thoughts dominated his mind, the screen changed.

  "The surgery is over. I should go."

  The General Manager said that and rose from his seat. To fulfill his other duty.

  When Haeun regained consciousness, he was under an unfamiliar ceiling. It was a plasterboard ceiling that reminded him of a hospital.

  Haeun had never thought such a place would exist inside the main headquarters. But he was here now. Alone in a room with no one else.

  However, the moment he regained consciousness, he couldn't help but scream from the intense pain that wracked his entire body.

  "Ugh, Aaargh!"

  It was an unspeakable pain. Haeun didn't know what kind of person in the world could endure such suffering.

  Only one thing was certain: he was alive right now.

  The non-human entity that approached him played with his body without any anesthesia. Haeun was simply amazed that he hadn't died during the process.

  It was a succession of pain that was difficult to express in words. From the sensation of a knife cutting through living flesh to the time of torture that was impossible to describe—he felt he would never be able to forget it, even if he wanted to.

  "Huh...?"

  Still, the pain slowly faded with time. When he could finally move his hands, Haeun raised them and looked with surprise.

  There were no scars from his previous injuries on his body. Under severe violence, Haeun's body had been broken. It was astonishing that he had completely recovered.

  "What is this..."

  Haeun muttered in confusion and sat up. The pain from moments ago had completely vanished, and Haeun could get up easily.

  "Ha? Is this for real..."

  Haeun mumbled in disbelief and moved his body. He soon realized that his body was in incomparably better shape than before.

  "Oh, you're awake."

  It was then. Haeun heard the Deputy Leader's voice and turned his head. The Deputy Leader was standing there with his subordinates. Haeun didn't know when they had arrived, but it was clear that they had moved at least when Haeun regained consciousness.

  "What is the matter? What do you want from me?"

  Haeun asked in a cold voice. He would never have asked like this before.

  He would have looked at the Deputy Leader only hoping that he wouldn't get hurt in his fear. That was how Haeun had survived here until now.

  But now, Haeun was filled with the confidence that no one could stop him.

  "Young people are indeed wonderful. This look of confidence when you speak is good."

  The Deputy Leader said that and smiled. Satisfaction could even be sensed in his expression.

  "I believe you are our true comrade and the new hope that will lead the cult. Having overcome the trials, you are no longer an ordinary member."

  The Deputy Leader said that and slowly approached. At that moment, Haeun felt fear.

  The energy overflowing from his body now was enough to tear the Deputy Leader apart easily. Despite that, he was now intimidated by the Deputy Leader's presence.

  However, the thought that he must not break down before his presence made Haeun hold on until the end.

  "Are you saying I can become a leader of the cult?"

  Haeun asked, hiding his fear. The past events were certainly unbearable, but if he could become a cult leader, he could move past them.

  How much glory and wealth were guaranteed in such a life? Haeun thought no one would be unmoved by such an offer.

  "That is correct. But before that, you must pass a new test."

  The Deputy Leader said that and smiled. There was a sense of power emanating from that smile, forbidding any rash action.

  "A test? What kind of test?"

  His earlier assertiveness gone, Haeun asked with a more humble attitude.

  "I need you to find someone. A person with power who has strayed from us. But he is also a person who must walk the righteous path."

  The Deputy Leader said that and stood beside Haeun. His subordinates looked momentarily confused, but fortunately, Haeun just quietly stared at the Deputy Leader.

  "You witnessed the moment of a great secret. Of course, you were persecuted because of it, but I believe it was an arrangement by the former Leader to test the talented individual who would become our new hope. At the moment of her ascension, she left many things for us. It's just that not many people know this fact."

  The Deputy Leader said so and patted Haeun's shoulder.

  "Now is your era, the era of new hope. I hope you pass the test magnificently, prove yourself worthy to lead the cult, and become the leader who succeeds us."

  Haeun wore a blank expression, listening to the Deputy Leader's words. He couldn't immediately believe that all of this was a trial prepared just for him.

  But nevertheless, Haeun couldn't hide the feeling that he had become someone great.

  "A-Are you saying I am the new hope? By passing the test?"

  Haeun stammered slightly as he asked again.

  "That is correct. The new power you possess will surely allow you to find the person who took the wrong path. You will know just by getting close to him. You just need to do what you must, by any means necessary."

  The Deputy Leader said that and patted Haeun's shoulder again. It was a gesture that seemed to encourage the future hope.

  "I-I understand. When should I start?"

  Haeun asked, seemingly no longer hesitant. The Deputy Leader laughed and replied.

  "Let's have a meal first and then talk. You need to change your clothes and there is much you need to learn."

  The Deputy Leader said that and gently led Haeun outside. His subordinates silently followed behind them.

  Haeun couldn't fully comprehend what was happening right now. He had only expected to die, so what was all this?

  But he thought it wasn't bad. If he could reconnect with his family through this, that would be a good thing.

  "Haa... I can't believe this."

  Haeun said to the Deputy Leader, expressing his current feelings. The Deputy Leader merely smiled.

  However, Haeun did not see it.

  The cold gaze looking at him from the Deputy Leader's eyes. But only Haeun did not know that perhaps not seeing it was better.