The 11-C gate had closed.
But the city didn't feel safer.
Concrete remained scorched. Asphalt had cracked under magical pressure. The stench of sulfur and spent mana crystals lingered in the air. Citizens peeked from behind barricades and window blinds, waiting for a Hunter Association drone to officially declare the zone secure.
But that wasn't Suho's job.
He stood quietly in the shadow of his skeletal wyvern, brushing soot from his jacket. Around him, armored hunters laughed and chatted, some taking selfies beside the dead Gate Boss's remains—a grotesque mantis chimera now reduced to black ichor and bone.
His undead forces had already dissolved into dust.
"Your summons disintegrates too quickly," Han Yura murmured, approaching from behind.
"Don't they leave cores?"
"Only sometimes," Suho replied, not looking at her. "Depends if their death had meaning."
She blinked. "Is that… poetic or system mechanics?"
Suho gave a small, humorless smile. "Both."
The Cameras Roll
A Hunter Association van pulled up, sleek and armored, with satellite dishes and triple-insignia logos. Media crews leaped out first, followed by a rank inspector and two civil reps in navy blue uniforms. All pristine. All untouched by the fight.
"Suho, they're rolling news coverage," Yura said. "You should probably fade out now."
He nodded.
That was his rhythm now: fight, clean, disappear.
Scene Change – Association HQ Broadcast
Across Korea, the top channel—HunterNet KR1—flashed red with a live report.
[BREAKING] – S-RANK HUNTERS ARRIVE IN SEOUL AFTER STRING OF UNREGISTERED GATE INCIDENTS]
"We're receiving confirmation that multiple S-Rankers have been called in by the Korean Hunter Association," the anchor said.
"In light of the 11-C Overload, the unregulated gate in Incheon, and the unexplained soul interference signature in Sector 8, Chairman Choi has ordered full mobilization of the upper guild tiers."
The screen split.
Ji Woon of the Iron Dome Guild stepped off a black hover transport, surrounded by A-rank guards.
Shin Yeji, the Pyrewitch, whose flames could melt mana stone, walked behind him, already in her scarlet armor.
And then came the enigma—Min Jaehwan, the "Silent Hunter," whose kill record was sealed and whose guild was unaffiliated.
"Sources say these three will spearhead a joint task force to investigate gate anomalies linked to soul-bound awakening types," the news anchor continued.
"The Association has also launched an inquiry into reported necro-system activity around unauthorized awakenings…"
Scene – Suho's Apartment
Suho watched the news from a small screen bolted to the corner of his dingy rooftop apartment.
One room. Rice cooker. Books. Bones.
And a soul pendant—Areum's—hanging beside his bed.
He muted the broadcast and fed a cube of compressed meat to a cat-shaped wraith familiar that had curled on his counter. It purred without breath.
[Necrosystem: Ambient Grief Stabilized]
Current Sync: 36%
Anchor #1: Incomplete (Emotional Residue Only)
The system was slow. Purposefully, painfully slow.
Each day, he worked low-level gates for minimal pay, avoiding public contracts, and only taking solo missions or under-the-table dispatches. Sometimes Yura vouched for him, but even she didn't know what he was doing.
Suho wasn't trying to climb the ranks.
He was trying to remember someone who had been erased.
Knock at the Door
A coded knock broke the silence.
Yura.
She looked serious. She always did when the Association was involved.
"They're asking questions," she said. "About necromancy. Soul-bound awakenings. They might suspect."
"I don't care," Suho said flatly.
"I do," she snapped. "You think the S-Ranks are noble? If they find out what you are, they won't help you bring Areum back. They'll erase her all over again."
He stared at her, then turned to the pendant.
"I'm not trying to bring her back," he said softly.
"I'm trying to stop myself from forgetting her."
Back to the City
Later that night, Suho walked alone down the ruins of Sector 11-C, brushing ash from a shattered street sign.
Beneath the concrete, his wyvern's skull emerged, forming slowly from the necrotic ether.
He mounted it in silence.
[New Objective: Trace Emotional Resonance Trail – Anchor Candidate: "Last Phone Call"]
Location: Sector 3 – Areum's Old Dormitory.
Another fragment. Another echo.
Far beneath the surface of Seoul, something ancient watched.
The memory of a girl. The whisper of her name.
A gate pulsing with grief.
[System Notice: Unregistered Gate Activity Rising – 2km from Anchor Zone]
Caution: "They remember her too."