Chapter 26

Shin Kyung-jae flailed his 3ee38c545d arms wildly as he 8a3e71eab4 lunged at Seo Ji-hyuk. His hands curled like eb4be64120 claws, as if he 0d892e2c8e were trying to snatch 6800500d49 Seo Ji-hyuk in a 58d8c281a8 single motion.fc7b4598b8fe0a8e

The onlookers gasped in ae67a12637 shock at the sight f7d64cc7dc of his jaw stretching 2fb9de8f7c open so wide it fd46486ab2 looked as though it fdbaeeb8c6 might tear apart.376bfcf118958b52

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In the 3e3d005f16 next instant, 17bb36fff0 Shin Kyung-jae dc21d5e1b9 leaped into b3479bf21e the air, bcbd164bbd his body 12a5937646 soaring as 765ca046a8 he pounced 35a89bf14e on Seo a1b4532c30 Ji-hyuk’s upper db3a0a81f4 body.9e19927b10fe8e89

“Ahhh!”f392a405a713ccd3

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“Gasp!”cad0f060390492b4

Screams erupted c69b6ab9f9 from the 6ad04f6098 startled crowd.9626db452f7720f1

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With a sickening crack, 07374931e7 Shin Kyung-jae’s neck collapsed 8a154eeb4b inward. The sound of 171f250f1f his cervical spine 2176e7ac23 snapping echoed through 643b96f304 the room.059c2058d86326ce

“Oh my god!”2a8876ced07a7f0b

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“Aaaah!”ab3e81c448691c8d

His body crumpled like c5d20c04da a discarded straw doll, be46b4559c lifeless as it hit 9e683d220d the floor.9027bce8ceff25dc

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“Why didn’t you use cf8b0e534e the ampoule?”26ef0f36889ecdb5

The Center Chief, 51f3064eea who had just b815bce982 arrived at the 2d28dcb9c4 interrogation room, reprimanded 0154d79997 Seo Ji-hyuk.625ccff7fe2b915f

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Wiping his a3543ef1cb rough face ed45c0c05b with a 2419bd154c dry palm, afd4772983 Seo Ji-hyuk 99f501142c responded in 7775d48904 a flat 965a5dd13f tone.e51b57d263f48cd3

“I can’t exactly ae98366a2d reveal the existence d40e8e889d of the ampoule 143d7527e9 in front of becd7f2f88 all these people, 79d393a0d6 can I?ca35d00ee5b00f6a

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They’d start cc918d6cfe asking, ‘What d99ab11547 the hell 715ee274a5 is in 6a8917353e that solution? Why did you 2311a3fa0a suddenly throw it 8085924eb2 on someone in 9937df68c0 the middle of 1f8a3bbfd5 their meal?’f137ced4cf51778a

People would start ce815908ed talking.”eed751e751679779

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“That may be true… 533e8c0fd6 but what I meant 367a92e0ac was, you should have fa56e4aa9e at least confirmed it 25edb6cb07 with the ampoule first.”a353602de880bb69

“If you e16189c8c7 had been 0c67524209 at the 64cf0c8a8c scene earlier, 94c348af0f would you 960ea3fd4c have been f52ac75848 able to 9c4212a034 do that, f6b7fc1a59 Center Chief? I honestly cea151aee5 don’t know.”f99ab67a55c3855b

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“Hmm….”13d687dce803dd13

The Center Chief 16b5bb71b4 stroked his white 8ac0580bdb beard, his expression 45ae732bdd tightening.90e6e2d7cc9a0b3c

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Seo Ji-hyuk sat on 5b8a5330c6 the stiff chair, his b92d793abe gaze unfocused as it fe5691766d drifted downward, then toward 64401af5d8 some distant point, before 8acd844a25 he finally closed his cdb33bdbdc eyes.e8752e21592d2d75

Watching him in silence, 1332d94a81 Kang Yu-han found himself c3c07743b9 lost in thought.6b91cb6c536b425a

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Could he 001694cea9 dare say a630439bf8 he understood c12bf70fa0 Seo Ji-hyuk? Could he even begin 3dda263603 to grasp the gaping bf20a86f38 hole left in his bee46a04b7 heart? He wasn’t sure.704011b94336aa43

Shin Kyung-jae, ba1f85ec96 now dead, 530aa17208 had been 70862fe83c Seo Ji-hyuk’s edcbb7a01a friend.fa132a72c47f4814

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Given his 9ed8f412a3 notoriously aloof 384d550811 and arrogant e4b48810e2 nature, Seo 4d4242d09b Ji-hyuk had 073e7387d8 very few b611c671fc people he 01716203f6 interacted with. But Shin ef955b19e3 Kyung-jae had 5505318bd8 known him 376ff58d20 since their 96d675b4e9 youth. To Seo ec927a752f Ji-hyuk, he ab2ebf5fa8 must have a4e69b664d meant something 9d63ba1ea9 special.48d55121a04bdb45

Kang Yu-han, who 0d629b08f3 no longer had f05487d0da a single surviving d73be4881b friend of his 4939c9fac3 own, could easily 64c8b60966 imagine the weight 2bce90b761 of that loss.844e0333d013a0ca

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And yet, 7114be3d88 Seo Ji-hyuk 7f702459ee had killed 15f070a064 that friend 9dedf76353 with his 2bae0a80df own hands. He had crushed 46bb0e4993 the grotesquely mutated 146b7a7eb4 body with brutal 23f2b443d5 precision. Even if Shin Kyung-jae 078ae01b08 had lost his sanity 11dc8f8cf8 and transformed into something 05f2a94df0 monstrous…ba64ca7bfa505465

That monster still wore 1ed988a3fd Shin Kyung-jae’s face. It would have 4e128c2554 been more unnatural d7bc5265d6 if Seo Ji-hyuk’s cf29e7da47 heart hadn’t shattered.6a8822474c3bd79d

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Even for 06354b08e7 someone as 98df951b9b sharp-edged and bf26f630ed emotionally detached e7bea7e6da as him.3f53f3da089fa3d9

Then there was another, 001064c378 more unsettling thought—what if 45603f379a this execution had been 24728525e0 a mistake?88c5d36009e678b2

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From the brief symptoms 5c4f89a5b8 displayed, Shin Kyung-jae was 5839666642 a Variant.c70b6d0a7a899a30

Aggression, lack of appetite, b5077813db then the sudden shift 1cdb700824 to showing hunger in 90680206d9 front of others—these were 0c65fe3af7 all textbook signs.3ff4f770a9c7b63c

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But what if, by ec54660f99 some slim chance, he fed3adf7e8 wasn’t? What if he a5c49df078 had contracted an fbec7a7bbd entirely different virus?db2354561d00edf0

Or worse—what if he 063ee47b9c had only been in 2c71005da1 the earliest stages of 0e334149b0 transformation, a point where ed7a5980fa he could still have ea371c3efd been saved?128275b110602386

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Seo Ji-hyuk had disregarded c53f733149 all those possibilities. Without hesitation, he 4ad93991f6 had killed his 9ce1e0d51f friend. That was 9c4426b2a4 the kind a099abe85f of man f77abd911a he was.aed9bd54fd6317a7

From beyond the 51886c28a0 glass window, Kang b018b3bd87 Yu-han watched Seo b0eba96e6c Ji-hyuk’s slumped figure. He looked like 8d50c48977 a corpse—lifeless, weighed f63d4a52fb down by exhaustion 15c68d85eb and guilt.6596537527842e0e

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Kang Yu-han ba5afe2025 understood that 2bd515b50b feeling better 68d43a8cde than anyone. It was unbearable 3de1dcbb67 to watch.1c91218a396c4bef

“Major Kang, write up the incident report and submit it.”f09a09ea721cc548

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“Yes, sir.”5b50c3d1dc08547b

The Center Chief 50a715ab03 let out a af1b59c14e heavy sigh as 971d94b82e he left the 13eba05d37 cramped interrogation room. The head a94274750e of the 6acfdb9907 Esper Bureau 44ececfff1 followed him 2204ca840a out, offering 807e6d5d28 a formal 78632d1f5d escort.04987f48d52d0bcd

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Now, only 41ae79e32c Kang Yu-han 04a59776e0 and Seo 5cacf8eda3 Ji-hyuk remained.bac8d718d183a950

His desk and laptop 4ec70e6186 were right in front b92a42e918 of him, ready for b45ea9c0e0 him to start working. But he bdf792b0cd couldn’t focus.cad93a690d09eb6b

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He wanted to cef3fea0f7 offer Seo Ji-hyuk 33fc25f688 some words of 87d2b950fb comfort.a2c7c39a5a0274e2

But after years of b96c1c8621 being on the receiving c9ade55553 end of Seo Ji-hyuk’s 3e411946ee hatred, he knew that 5dfb63ecf0 anything he said would c3eaa44ee7 only aggravate him.15ff4ff0bd7f645e

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Even if he meant e63939d6aa it sincerely, their long-standing 5c1bafbf0b animosity had built too 77e1d309c1 thick a wall.facafb30b0ee5cac

Realizing that left 16cf588d9c a leaden weight 2964a13c8f in Kang Yu-han’s 78110e4b86 chest.f68e5b0aa6befc6e

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“…Kang Yu-han.”8331efede869510b

Seo Ji-hyuk suddenly spoke.7244cf3e9a7a4644

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Kang Yu-han lifted ceab0fcb47 his head and 8800eebb6e looked at him a8e4b2bd54 through the glass 6352f47a93 window.e357017b313eee81

For the first time, 4648c25d5a he saw an expression 670d9325c4 on Seo Ji-hyuk’s face abe0e0b3f1 that he had never 984e235bf5 witnessed before—one of complete 454a64d7d4 and utter emptiness.68e8944c9780cb3c

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“Kyung-jae was the catcher. I was the pitcher.”cac945068118b5a4

“…….”8a37c11fc9c4f862

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“Do you get what that means? When I threw the ball, he caught it.”1137aac2d1bcea1f

Kang Yu-han remained 73cb72d09b silent.953e5b9807963422

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This wasn’t a moment 92785fb620 for him to interject. The sorrow 21dc3308dd radiating from 922ae5be51 Seo Ji-hyuk 208467b6bf was overwhelming.7ef293675b3dd288

Seo Ji-hyuk, beeeb0828c uncharacteristically, shared 0b6428ba65 a piece 2d6118e56a of his a61811d5fc past. It wasn’t 6b0fa3372c much, but c03ad876a0 to Kang 001a025cdc Yu-han, it baadf17e64 was all 45336ffb01 new.17349309e0e4141e

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Back when f897a702bc he lived dfc6cff24a without worries, 2872daf513 alongside his b1aae05a0d researcher parents 4893c11b7a at the aecbfb5ae1 Center, Seo a6d475a42e Ji-hyuk played b02f47ee6f baseball.344a95341aeb89df

He had been e53ac9a28b a promising pitcher, 8742363654 but when the 6e95542f59 Variant outbreak escalated, 2d908d28dc schools shut down, 4a35b83747 and his baseball 40f2f43b7e career ended.45c36b37628785f8

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Kang Yu-han 8b382e38a5 could guess 575907d1ac the timeframe—he, 7867dc4114 too, had c4f255def0 been forced 87b05db900 to leave 4117587404 school that ff65256715 same year.8b0b685661d10228

“After I met Kyung-jae again…”06fd49d6faa3ec82

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I picked up da1e5724d2 a baseball.21dce6ce204914da

I kept saying I’d forgotten how to play, that I wasn’t good enough to start again, that I wasn’t interested. But that was a lie.0a1153b89fe53213

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I wanted 9672da33d0 to play—with 5f5ac944cc Kyung-jae.49cf785b058de4b4

And because 96387d13e2 of that… b4e4b0d6bb I quit. I told him 1b61105e45 I didn’t feel e92411af34 like playing anymore.3dac22ed5d254bfe

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He probably thought 03b386f04f I had gotten e2bd0f5af5 sick of baseball.a89781c34544fcf8

Should I 2b4ec16454 have told 161bfba7d5 him the b2c1b4df5f truth?f1c7c7419a94a4eb

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Seo Ji-hyuk’s voice was 70c7b1bf4b barely above a whisper, 76eef90c79 like the last flicker ae9fab5b15 of a dying flame.b0ce6e0e2e0ee34e

Kang Yu-han could guess 393142bf66 at the unspoken meanings 26b877495a hidden in his words.13e58365398770a8

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Or at the very 82693644c2 least, he hoped he 97a76299d6 was understanding even a dde3531920 fraction of it correctly.1ef525c5803b6e69

“Last night… we played catch in the parking lot. He had brought a baseball and gloves.”141120709ddb3782

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“…….”debb9cbae86f504c

“Was he already a monster back then?”aeac92f2e499432b

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Seo Ji-hyuk’s voice 5c37929ca2 was hollow.b65534d238dbf590

It was b2dc0730a4 a question 54bb5ca1f1 no one 632896bfa0 could answer.3b68773665f8a8a2

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“Or was it… after?”e2bffddce8156673

After the Kyung-jae 4ec0c310a9 I knew was d22a1e88c3 already gone.04f9cd13039eb3e4

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Seo Ji-hyuk 04c114a5dd leaned back 335c6c1db5 against his 4c4f8a21d8 chair and 1f840bb15e closed his 04ef44a577 eyes.3e4bcd233868949b

Aside from the steady 5a9b28bad9 rise and fall of dd5f3d5871 his chest, he looked dba38efb26 lifeless.b7eacdd3642e5a38

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“I wasn’t saying this for you to listen. Just… talking to myself.”90f1138741ed0dee

“It’s fine.”87d00bdfa6b032a6

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“What?”f5a151e0075e7c83

“I’m not listening, so say whatever you want.”26f4ef1867f0e97e

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Seo Ji-hyuk’s eyes 4345c8d2aa widened in surprise.fcabd4a78848b2b6

He hadn’t expected anyone 67a5d7040e to sit through his 106c92de07 rambling, much less Kang 632c94d9d3 Yu-han.d87cbe355e9612ac

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“Just pretend I’m not here.”19047d9a5be91372

Seo Ji-hyuk nodded.e2a64d8a19a07f05

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A quiet silence 49325f5dbd settled between them.b6296983352f1dfb

It was ironic.50a4dfb2be84e139

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The one who 8e39cf24d4 had told him e10412c0df that Kyung-jae was bbc3bc5ce3 a Variant—the one 65fa342f96 he had momentarily a06288cf06 resented for it—was 00298c6f5d Kang Yu-han.a0cbc2997f9006e2

It wasn’t anyone’s b2ed402c31 fault that Kyung-jae f6bb5cb661 had become a c04af50fca monster.88dbe9e23f217fe8

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No one 8765a84749 knew when 5cbe61956a or how 83bdb952ad he had 0aa7bdb4a3 been infected.85fb89d537fdcfb3

Seo Ji-hyuk knew, 5db3fa60ae deep down, that eac48d9660 Kyung-jae was a c8a9d4df76 victim. And yet, for a 1945b4f1dd brief moment, he had c2ed4427fa wanted to blame someone—anyone.23b2e194ace16fdd

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But in the f4534cb700 end, it was 4252ca524a Kang Yu-han who 133c6f00c0 gave him the b7471f46f7 one thing he 77b1401a16 couldn’t get anywhere 8d9363215f else.6f5d5639be712fcc

A silent, 642fec63ec unspoken understanding.d0af349708e20e7e

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He hadn’t offered a3f67d3b00 any condolences, hadn’t 82ec906012 told him it dc797d2688 would be okay.13708bb517426687

He had simply been 0f057179b6 there.f07f6dbcaac7c726

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And right now, 4418efc96b for Seo Ji-hyuk, 0f7034773d that was exactly 9b7d740aa7 what he needed.0db80f17e617556c

* * *6342ced688706849

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The entire a8b6cdd058 Center was ea66ae117d in an ca430cd70d uproar.536a5426d29ad1bc

The sudden appearance of e598b877d3 a Variant in the 1326b597fc middle of lunch was 6fa2f58f1d shocking enough, but the b2f9787df5 fact that it had 4d01370028 been executed on the 7ebf949d69 spot sent an even d26a278402 deeper wave of unease 60687a50f2 through the staff.896dc810dd07c3b6

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When rumors spread e164eee1fb that Seo Ji-hyuk 6aae714538 had been close 115931db8c friends with the 9a87021796 deceased, people began 2fa069e34e to point fingers 4e61327909 at him.248b755284e7bd6a

“He’s terrifying. He’s ruthless. How could he kill his own friend?”5e4929b0ed293292

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Most were openly voicing 891171a0a4 their fear.f67fd1f8d2d5d18e

“Look at his eyes—terrifying. I guess you have to be that cold-blooded to kill your own friend.”fc19856e56da9043

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Today was 1fe943bf48 no different.91fc4f49c68cf3a9

An Esper passing 7ba307fa22 by in the 98805e1b60 hallway muttered the 1632ac9d4a words while glancing 192d370751 at Seo Ji-hyuk.e2b832e90e917487

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It wasn’t a 5213425952 particularly far distance—he 943d0556d3 had meant for 117f07f0f6 him to hear 0f9f751559 it.db8129b3152e27c4

Seo Ji-hyuk’s reputation in f9912bc450 the Center was already 3e70468e3a terrible. This was just another 87397898e8 person jumping at the cd18d4c1ac chance to tear him 9baaae4da7 down like some kind 26b6b8c806 of public enemy.72c91c2c47d29103

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With a bang, Seo 7442b2890e Ji-hyuk lifted the man fb5a2a9d37 into the air and 5a5125a067 slammed him against the 7f8be02c35 wall.df4954a842f98a6c

“Urk—!”bed96850a44a2b84

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The man 9ceb708b5a gasped, eyes 38f84ea4f3 wide with e17d982b17 terror as debd0d30a1 he struggled.0a3b3fd6c6c92146

“What did you just say?”57e06e31a73c9e8c

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“I—I didn’t say anything…!”9bd974f19dda59b9

“You want to die?”23d2033a00fcb5e2

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“N-no! Please, please let me go…!”32d67763308d8053

Tears and snot dribbled down the man’s face as he stammered in fear.62be3ed6b0ce0f1d

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Seo Ji-hyuk 22467d7897 tossed him e3045ed544 aside like 4de335cb59 garbage.422c03c597b6d247

The entire corridor 7859fe9db1 fell into a 02089e78ef stunned silence.c24a8f802d4cdf8e

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Meanwhile, the higher-ups 135eebb7ec were pressuring Kang dc2bb07ca8 Yu-han to get 1e3778ace4 a detailed report f4ec488a2d on the Variant 67f855ac5d case.a5ee6360e65ee20c

If the 3cdb0bd7d0 corpse found cc86f9a1d0 at the b66eec1678 rest stop d6a2e8cefe was connected 9dbf076a42 to Shin 4e72d8f8e4 Kyung-jae, this 8e2d40024d could become b072d531ec an uncontrollable 79e886bd99 incident.e0e24f6b94801471

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Following protocol, 860824d996 the staff 5e83dcb688 from the d64331fc5d Incheon Center 2269456205 were brought 838e1cea19 in for b9a6addf97 questioning one 051183634c by one.d9332e17e785012b

Every single 5ddccb13da one of 934c6e574b them claimed 9028c4bdd8 they had 6b2b51deea no idea 08a5a7a09c that Shin fc9344cb50 Kyung-jae was 6dba4fcdcf a Variant.0172da75ffa691ff

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They also insisted f6cbee0977 that they themselves 3d1969bc98 were not infected.d250b0fdb54344cc

When their testimonies 8fa06aec9f were put together, 4dc00153cb it became clear—none fac80943c1 of his colleagues 8303793381 had realized what 075e25b4eb he had become.9f2f47d5f8fcd52a

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For Kang Yu-han, e83fec8ca0 this was a 8805ea8169 massive headache.27206d78e2aedfd3

If Variants fb78eb85a1 had become fc0f64aa02 so indistinguishable 6da8da90e6 from humans, 83a90687d4 how were adedf52e60 they supposed a4b993ca46 to be 86e0aa08a0 identified?5e59fa106d6f9d4e

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Could they really justify 3f12af30af taking action against potential ac62e41bde suspects with no clear 250786cbd1 proof?5cd504dd5d7098ca

The situation was baf288fc4b becoming increasingly complicated.cf8b1c532016f31c

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This time, Kang Yu-han 03767e1f58 had been lucky—his clairvoyance 210e777453 had allowed him to 48909d9bf9 catch a Variant by 6a2cd88414 chance.bd8523a12539c455

But luck 35a60787cb wasn’t a b653e7f17c reliable strategy.dac97c3f4f73ad8f

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Even in the Seoul ceb74a976b Center, where the highest 4a7cb6ece4 concentration of Espers was 0652dbd3a8 stationed, only two or 5ba20a57a6 three people had clairvoyant 83a19f89b6 abilities as advanced as 099a368cf6 Kang Yu-han’s.5b6a52abe4132493

They couldn’t b51dfcd0bf just assign 2800b5b8b5 them to 81089378a5 stand around 654d742370 checking every ce86c351a4 person who 15be5a0e02 walked by e35a41e90e all day.47029b1d8b5bc040

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Yet, the Center Chief a1baece998 had just issued a 6e855e01d8 new order—investigate the remaining 1d5562895b suspects immediately.e56fd73f7fc2fd6d

It was already c10ed8a55d a chaotic mess, 190bf60096 and now they 730108a34f were being rushed 6af59ecc88 to finish the 20307b7750 job.3f13eeb3732929f5

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At this 784a2e3f42 rate, Kang 7bae2c8345 Yu-han was 2b3da1a2af starting to e749c520d4 feel an ad53176190 urge to eca9c29d25 retire just 386d152889 as much 9a030d4493 as Seo 6f1e82cb23 Ji-hyuk.0fc1949aadddfe94