Seongji stared at his phone, his mind still turning over the same problem.
Baki's target was Kitae Kim. But Seongji's was different — he had to get the captured Kings out.
The problem was, he had absolutely no idea where to start.
'Don't know where they're being held. Don't even know who to ask. So where do I begin?'
He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.
Then his phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
He glanced at it, didn't think much of it, and set it back down. But it buzzed again.
[You're looking for the captured Kings, aren't you?]
Seongji sat up and read it again.
He typed back: [Who are you?]
The reply came fast: [Want to find out? Meet me in person. I'll send you the address.]
Seongji stared at the screen without moving.
'A trap? A setup? Or does this person actually know something?'
He thought about it for a moment, then screenshotted the address.
Either way, he had no other leads.
---
The next morning, Seongji followed the directions to the location.
He stopped in front of an iron gate and looked up at the sign.
Elite Private Middle and High School.
The front gate was left slightly open. The courtyard was empty. The hallways were silent. The whole building felt abandoned, with nothing but the wind moving through the trees.
Seongji messaged the unknown number: [I'm here.]
The reply came: [Come in. Third floor. Headmaster's office.]
Seongji pushed the gate open and went inside, climbing the stairs one floor at a time.
At the far end of the third-floor hallway, a nameplate reading "Headmaster's Office" hung on the door.
He pushed it open.
There was a kid sitting inside. In a school uniform.
White dress shirt, striped tie, orange plaid trousers, a royal blue coat over all of it. Round-framed glasses. Pale skin, a small build. Black hair — neatly cut, but with a slightly frayed, uneven texture to it. He was sitting right in the headmaster's chair like it was the most natural thing in the world, a casual smile on his face.
"You've come to the right place. Relax."
Seongji frowned. "You're a student?"
"That's right." The kid didn't stand up. He folded his hands on the desk. "Something wrong with that?"
"How do you know about the captured Kings? How do you know I'm looking for them?" Seongji stepped further in. "And who are you? Who are you with?"
The kid took off his glasses, wiped the lenses on his sleeve, and put them back on.
"My name is Eugene. President of the Workers."
Seongji stopped.
The Workers.
He remembered now. Back in Seoul, some of the kids from the house had run into the Workers a few times. Baki had ended up mixed up in it too, later on.
"The Workers…" Seongji repeated the name slowly, eyes narrowing. "What do you want?"
"What I want comes later." Eugene pushed his glasses up. "First, let me tell you what you want. You're trying to find people, but you have nothing to go on. I do."
Seongji didn't reply. He just watched him.
Eugene didn't look away. If anything, his smile got a little more relaxed. "Six King. You don't need to be this guarded. If I meant you any harm, why would I come here alone to meet you?"
Seongji paused.
Six King. That was his nickname. Not many people knew it.
'This kid… how much has he dug up?'
He pulled out the chair across from the desk and sat down, one arm resting over the back. His voice stayed even. "You know what I want. So tell me what you want."
Eugene leaned back. The corner of his mouth curled up.
"An alliance."
"With you."
Seongji looked at the kid sitting across from him in that school uniform and said nothing.
The wind was still moving outside. The hallway behind him was completely quiet.