Secret Maneuvers

“Paw!”

Tak!

“Foot!”

Tak!

“Head!”
[Woof!]

The spirit offered his paw and foot as Joo Hee-jun commanded, then even placed his head on Joo Hee-jun’s palm.
The small puppy-shaped spirit, who looked like he had only just been weaned, pressed his face against Joo Hee-jun’s palm and wagged his tail as if pleased.
Cheon Su-ho and Joo Hee-jun, who had planted themselves in Lee Ro-un’s room instead of returning to their own, were completely bewitched by the cute spirit’s appearance and behavior.

“To think there is such a dignified spirit. I envy you, Lee Ro-un.”

I know.
Hyung was cute when he was young, and he became incredibly cool once he grew up.
Having seen Hyung’s childhood himself in the album his parents left behind, Ro-un’s shoulders soared sky-high at the sight of Cheon Su-ho’s envy.

“Lee Ro-un. Look at this! He’s really smart.”
“Because he’s my Hyung.”

Unlike the calm words he spoke, unconcealable pride showed on Ro-un’s face.
His face was revealing far more of his inner thoughts than usual, but the two, completely absorbed in the spirit’s cleverness, did not notice.
Ro-un himself did not realize how he looked either.

“To think something this cute is a spirit. No, wait. Is he cute because he’s a spirit?”
“My Hyung was always cute.”
[Woof!]

The spirit barked loudly, as if answering Ro-un’s words.
Hyung was incredibly cute and smart.
Our family had our lives saved by Hyung several times.
And if not for Hyung, I would’ve….

[Woof!]
“Ah. Hyung.”
[Pant pant pant pant.]

Ro-un, who had been recalling memories with his Hyung, came back to himself at the sound of barking.
Ro-un lifted his Hyung into his arms as his Hyung came up to him before he knew it and looked up with his tongue out.

Lick, lick.

“Ahaha.”

Ro-un burst into laughter like a child.
Being with his Hyung made him feel like he had become a child again.
Ever since he returned, he had felt like he had been dropped on a deserted island, but now that he thought he was with his Hyung, somehow it felt as though his feet had finally touched solid ground.
At the feeling of firm ground supporting him, the nerves that had been sharply on edge softened a little.
Cheon Su-ho and Joo Hee-jun were a little surprised by how relaxed Lee Ro-un looked.

“Lee Ro-un. It’s been a long time since I saw him laugh that comfortably, no. I’ve never seen it before. He really must be his Hyung.”
“Who could doubt it after seeing that?”

After watching the warm scene blankly, Cheon Su-ho opened his mouth.

“But if he’s a spirit, he should have an attribute. What attribute does Lee Ro-un’s Hyung-nim have?”
“That’s right. Since he’s a spirit, he should have an attribute. Looking at him, maybe he’s something like a puppy spirit?”
“He may be a spirit of warmth.”

At the conversation between the two, Ro-un lifted his head while stroking Hyung.
Attribute.
All spirits had attributes.
The most famous were the four natural attributes of wind, water, earth, and fire, but there were also spirits with mental or non-natural attributes such as space, love, and sound, not only natural attributes.

“His attribute.”

What attribute did Hyung have?
As Ro-un thought about it, he recalled the brilliant protective barrier that had blocked the way in front of him yesterday.
At the same time, Gu So-ye’s actions when she had helped the spirit egg hatch replayed in his mind.

‘I received the heart that desperately wanted to protect you.’

If he thought about that, then Hyung’s attribute was probably….

“Hyung is probably… a spirit of guardianship or protection.”
“Him? He’s this small, so who is he supposed to protect?”
“When you blocked the civilian with your body, Lee Ro-un, another power besides your own wrapped around you and that person. What Lee Ro-un says has merit.”
“You’re saying a newborn used its power right after being born?”

Joo Hee-jun poked the spirit, who looked like a tiny puppy that had not even been weaned yet.
What do you know about my Hyung?
At Joo Hee-jun’s words dismissing his Hyung while he kept poking him, Ro-un’s face went serious as he spoke.

“Hyung, bite him.”
[Woof!]

Chomp!

“Argh! Someone’s being bitten by a dog!”

Joo Hee-jun grabbed the hand the spirit had bitten and jumped up and down.

A dark space where light shone only on the place where a round table stood.
Only holograms were floating where the chairs were, and within those holograms, only the shadows of people hiding their bodies in darkness were visible.
Dyed in shadow until even their forms were unclear, they had a video playing at the center of the round table.

[Today at 12 p.m., a passage collapse occurred near ○○ Bank in Seocho-dong. This passage, which was not detected even by the passage detection radar, was safely handled by an A-rank Awakener who happened to be passing by. The authorities stated that they will summon those involved for questioning in order to determine whether the failure to observe it on radar was due to a problem with the radar or a mistake by the managing authorities. Meanwhile, it has been revealed that the A-rank Awakener who happened to be passing by was Awakener Lee Ro-un, holder of an SSS-rank trait, drawing public attention. Citizens said that if not for Awakener Lee Ro-un….]

The video was about the passage collapse incident that had occurred in Seocho-dong.
When it said the incident had been safely stopped, those stained by darkness opened their mouths.

[F. Is that not the area you were in charge of?]
[I heard the purpose of this operation was to open a passage there and fill the quota.]
[What happened here! F! Was that really your doing?]
[I heard it! A few days ago, that person told F to direct the Seocho-dong incident!]
[My goodness. To think you cannot even do what you were told properly. You have no face to show that person. I truly cannot believe you are in the same position as us.]

Voices mocking the one called F filled the space gloomily.
Voices of all kinds filled the space, elders, children, men, and women, but they had one thing in common.
Their voices were full of malice.
As servants who served the same person, rather than comrades, and as rivals competing over the favor of the one they served, they couldn’t hide their delight at a competitor’s mistake.

[Hey, F! If you have a mouth, say something!]
[Calm down, A. If you rush F like that, F will be too frightened to say anything.]
[No excuse will work! F should be expelled!]

Amid everyone’s condemnation, the one called F finally opened their mouth.

[I did not fail.]
[Oh my, look how shameless.]
[Liar! F is a liar!]
[There is no point saying anything more! F! You are no longer qualified to serve that person!]
[What do you mean, F? Anyone can see you failed to fill the quota, so what excuse are you trying to make?]

The others condemned the one called F.
But F stood firm.

[I did not fail. I properly carried out the order that person gave me!]
[What a disgrace, F.]
[T will not become like F!]
[I properly carried out that person’s order! That person told me to cause a disturbance,]
[Enough.]

Thud!

The one who had not opened their mouth even once until now struck the table hard.
When a voice of unknown gender and age rang out, all those who had been mocking F snapped their mouths shut.

[This is a message from that person.]

At the words of the unknown being, the others rose from their seats, placed their hands over their chests, and lowered their bodies.
As they waited for the order to be delivered, the unidentified man opened his mouth.

[F. You performed your role properly. That person is well aware of your hard work.]
[Thank you.]
[All of you are to continue properly carrying out the orders that person has given you. You must fill every quota before winter passes.]
[Understood.]

When the proxy who delivered that person’s orders reminded them of the deadline, those who had not yet filled their quotas hurriedly lowered their bodies and answered.
Those who had little of their quota left and those still lacking in their quotas alike knew they had to move busily so they would not offend that person.

[All for our god!]
[For our god!]
[For our god!]

At the proxy’s words, they all repeated after him and trembled with ecstasy.

After Cheon Su-ho and Joo Hee-jun, who had made a huge fuss, finally left, Ro-un was at last left alone in his room.

“I’m finally alone.”
[Whine?]
“Hyung. Right. I’m not alone.”
[Woof!]
“Aren’t you tired? You can sleep if you’re tired, Hyung.”

When he said that and stroked his head, the spirit rested his chin down and closed his eyes.
Perhaps because he was a spirit, he definitely felt much softer than the Hyung in Ro-un’s memories.
He had never thought he would meet his Hyung again like this.
As Ro-un recalled what Proprietress Gu had taken to hatch the spirit egg, his eyes grew distant.

“Hyung, you were beside me all along.”

He had thought Hyung was resting peacefully in dog heaven.
Truly, Hyung was the same now as he had been back then.
Ro-un stroked the soft fur and reviewed everything that had happened over the weekend.

“A sudden passage. I never expected to see that at this point.”

He realized it through this incident.
The future I knew had changed.
He had already prevented several incidents, but the fact that had not truly felt real until now was driven home by the sudden passage.

“The sudden passage was something I truly never imagined. On top of that, the erosion levels of the other passages nearby too. There must be some connection between the sudden passage and the rise in the erosion levels of the other passages. Is it because I changed the past? This incident is too artificial.”

That feeling became even more certain when the Association’s support was blocked.
Ro-un turned on a hologram.
He pulled up the list where he had organized the future he knew and the incidents he had to prevent.
He examined the list.

“As expected, there was never a sudden passage in Seocho-dong. If something like that had happened, there’s no way I wouldn’t have known. The erosion levels of other passages nearby rising at the same time also never happened before my regression.”

What was it?
At the feeling of something poking at his head, Ro-un pressed his fingers firmly against it.

“First, let’s cross-check.”

Ro-un once again checked the incidents that should already have happened and the incidents that had happened.
A short while later, a list with items crossed out and a list with items colored in were organized in an easy-to-read way.

“Other than the Seocho-dong passage, they’re all incidents I interfered with. Then that means only the Seocho-dong incident is a variable.”

Another variable.
A variable other than himself had appeared.

“Is it a reaction to changing the past? Ugh. Where do I even start looking into this?”

At times like this, he had to find someone who handled information well.
Gu So-ye, who had exchanged personal contact codes with him, came to Ro-un’s mind.
Unlike Ro-un, whose access to information was limited, the proprietress was someone who handled ‘information,’ so she might be able to find out more than he could.

“Would it be a little rude to ask her right away? What should I do?”

After weighing it for a moment, Ro-un came to a conclusion.

“Let’s put off contacting Proprietress Gu for a little while.”

As expected, getting her contact information and immediately asking for a favor seemed a little rude.
Proprietress Gu seemed determined to beat the Association down so thoroughly that she had told him not to come to Seoul for a while, so he couldn’t bother someone busy even further.
Before parting with Proprietress Gu, he had told her that it would be best for the Association’s functions to remain intact, so she would probably finish handling it soon.
He would wait until then before contacting her.

“For now, I’ll keep checking follow-up articles about the Seocho-dong incident, and what matters is something else.”

The four Calamities that would occur over the next three years.
Of them, the first Calamity was now not far away.

“Before winter comes, I need to prepare everything necessary to stop the first Calamity.”

Lee Ro-un did not forget the order of priorities.
He decided to put off confirming the variable for a little while and prepare for the first Calamity.
Several plans passed through Ro-un’s mind.
There was a mountain of work to do, but not a single thing could be done carelessly.
Ro-un slowly closed and opened his eyes, then glared into empty air with a gaze that looked ready to devour something.

“This time, I will stop it.”

His jaw tightened.

The Seocho-dong incident was carried all over the world.
This was because it became known that the passage that appeared in Seocho-dong was an incident of the sort only seen in the early days of the Upheaval, and that there had been an anomaly where the erosion levels of nearby passages rose sharply before its appearance.
All sorts of opinions about that passage sprang up like mushrooms after rain, and the Awakener academic world revived the obsolete term ‘sudden passage,’ causing the name for that passage to converge on ‘sudden passage.’

A passage that appeared without any warning signs and collapsed in an instant.
Foreign media began paying attention to the incident that had happened on a small patch of land in Asia, seeing it as a new type of otherworld passage thought to have been almost entirely cleared in the modern era.
People’s opinions were divided as well.

-A sudden passage? What’s that?
-It’s a term from the early days of the Upheaval. It’s gone now.
-It’s not gone. The term ‘sudden passage’ just fell out of use because passage detection radars regularly locate passages now.
-Weren’t passages stabilized? Between Alexander’s trial-type passage and Korea’s sudden passage, passages seem unusual these days.
-What if something like the early days of the Upheaval happens again at this rate?
-Much about otherworld passages has been revealed, and humanity will safely stop the invasion of the otherworld.
-America has Eden, who was chosen by the gods!
-I love you, Eden! I love you, Eden! I love you, Eden!

The more people clamored over the ‘sudden passage,’ the more attention also focused on Lee Ro-un, who had played a major role in this incident.

-I wish we had a student council president like the Saint too.
-This is the dignity of a nation that possesses a Saint!
-On this land. We have. An Awakener. Like Lee Ro-un. So I feel safe. Thank you.
-I survived thanks to Lee Ro-un! I was there the day the sudden passage happened lol.

Koreans went wild over Lee Ro-un’s performance as if intoxicated with national pride.
In the face of the sudden disaster, people looked for Lee Ro-un and suppressed the anxiety trying to raise its head in a corner of their hearts.

-But I heard Lee Ro-un hasn’t been going to class much lately?

Reactions mentioning Lee Ro-un’s recent situation appeared here and there, but they were swept away by Ro-un’s upright image and disappeared.