LONG CHAPTER AHEAD

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5. Reunion

Pooo―

With the sound of a ship’s horn, numerous boats departed the dock. The noisy market filled with buyers and sellers and the dazzling white buildings together made a picturesque scene.

Yoon, puzzled by the unexpected location, asked in a curious voice,

“A harbor? Why are we here?”

“Just wait a bit. I just need to pick something up.”

He replied concisely and unbuckled his seatbelt.

“Want me to go instead?”

“No. Just stay put and behave.”

Yoon gave a half-hearted nod. As she watched Lucas walk off in a certain direction, she rolled down the window and looked out at the harbor.

The cool scent of the sea brushed past her. The crashing of waves and the bustling sounds somehow gave her a sense of calm. The ocean was always a comforting sight.

She had once had a time like that too—a time when she thought, of course, the first time she’d see the ocean would be with Noah.

‘I thought I’d see the ocean for the first time with Noah…’

Yoon gave a bitter smile. She closed her eyes to savor the peace, but a humming vibration brought her back.

Lucas’s phone was ringing.

After hesitating for a moment, Yoon picked it up and stepped out of the car.

The vibration soon stopped, but she didn’t pay much attention. If it was urgent, they’d call again.

Besides, now that she was at the harbor, she figured a short walk wouldn’t hurt.

Yoon headed in the direction Lucas had taken. Strolling leisurely and enjoying the scenery, she soon saw rows of colorful shops.

She scratched her forehead.

She hadn’t heard where exactly he was going… Was it one of these?

As she wandered, Yoon stopped in front of a shop. Through the window, she saw a large man inside, and a faint smile curved her lips.

As she opened the door, a bell rang brightly.

Just then, Lucas turned around. His pupils wavered slightly in surprise at the unexpected entrance, but he quickly masked it and spoke with a calm voice.

“How’d you know to come in here?”

“I was just walking and saw it.”

Yoon replied as if it were nothing.

“I told you to stay put.”

Lucas looked at her steadily, almost as if scolding.

“You left this behind.”

Yoon gave his phone a small shake in her hand.

Lucas raised one eyebrow slightly and patted his pockets.

“Guess I did forget it.”

Letting out a small sigh, he reached out his hand, and Yoon handed over the phone without fuss.

“Let’s go.”

Lucas glanced at the screen briefly and spoke.

“Did you get what you needed?”

“Yeah.”

Judging by the bag in his hand, he seemed to have gotten what he came for. Yoon nodded and turned to leave the shop—

But just then, she locked eyes with a man who had been looking in her direction.

His blue eyes were fixed on her, as if he’d been watching from the start.

Yoon couldn’t help but notice the intense stare, and she turned fully to face him.

Their gazes met midair.

A strange sense of déjà vu washed over her, freezing her in place.

“What’s wrong?”

Lucas, sensing the odd tension, spoke up.

Only after a moment did Yoon come back to herself, her lips parting slightly.

The man, too, flinched in surprise and quickly looked away.

“…No, it’s nothing.”

It wasn’t like she had never seen someone with blond hair and blue eyes before. There were a few among their own members, and she’d seen people like that on the street too.

But Yoon couldn’t move her feet. Even when she tried to look away, her gaze kept drifting back to the man standing before her.

“…Lucas.”

“Yeah?”

“Can you go wait in the car? I’ll follow soon.”

Though it was phrased as a question, it was more of a request. Lucas studied her face as if trying to read her thoughts. Though her expression seemed calm, Yoon was clearly unsettled.

Unsettled? Yoon was unsettled? Lucas’s brow furrowed slightly.
Who in the world could this man be, to make Yoon wear that kind of expression?

His sharp gaze swept over the man. Blond hair, blue eyes. A soft-featured, strikingly handsome man.

He was certainly attractive—but not enough to explain why Yoon would react like this. If anything, Yoon would joke or tease at the sight of a pretty face, not freeze up like this.

Then suddenly, Lucas remembered something Yoon had said a few days ago.

“But back then, there was this one boy who took care of me. He was really good-looking—blond hair and blue eyes.”

A realization dawned, and Lucas’s gaze darkened. Blond hair, blue eyes—the man standing here matched the description exactly.

And with that, the low, ugly feeling Lucas had experienced that day began to rise again.

That strange emotion he felt toward a boy he’d never even met.

Jealousy.

His nerves were suddenly on edge. Lucas’s stare turned toward the two of them.

Yoon was still looking at the man. The man, on the other hand, wore an awkward expression, deliberately averting his gaze.
Lucas’s eyes deepened as he watched them.

What were the odds that this man was the Noah Yoon had been searching for?
If Noah had vanished suddenly from 5th Avenue, it was most likely due to trafficking or abduction.

A kid from 5th Avenue surviving all that, and now running an old, established gun shop? What were the chances of that?

Even with such low odds, Lucas couldn’t shake a creeping unease.
What if… what if this man really was the person Yoon had been looking for?

That thought dug deeper into his mind, and Lucas’s gaze sank lower.

“Lucas?”

He reflexively looked up. Yoon’s dark eyes were filled with nervous urgency as she looked at him.

Right—nothing was certain yet.

He masked his face again, pretending to be unaffected.

“Alright. I’ll go wait in the car.”

As soon as she confirmed he’d left the shop, Yoon slowly approached the man.
As the distance between them shrank, the man’s posture stiffened.

Even the usual polite smile he wore out of habit had disappeared; there wasn’t a hint of it on his face.

“Are you looking for something in particular?”

He asked in a stiff voice.

Even he seemed surprised by his own tone—his blue eyes trembled slightly.

Yoon spoke carefully.

“…I want to know your name.”

The question was met with another question. Roel, clearly flustered, asked again,

“Sorry?”

“Your name.”

Yoon studied his face intensely.

No matter how many times she looked—he still looked the same.

The blurred image of Noah’s face suddenly became clear the moment Yoon looked at this man.
If Noah had grown up into an adult, he would look exactly like this.

“…Roel,” the man answered.

He just wanted this customer to state her business and leave. Roel was confident in his ability to greet any customer with a smile—
But for some reason, facing this particular one felt incredibly difficult.

He didn’t know why. He deliberately avoided her gaze.

Ah.

Yoon’s eyes wavered at the answer that didn’t match her hopes.
Her expression sank quietly, like someone who had just been let down.

Seeing it, Roel’s own face slowly stiffened.

Something churned in the pit of his chest.

Yoon calmed herself with effort and asked again,
“Have you… ever seen me before?”

Her voice sounded almost desperate, and Roel suddenly wanted to cover his ears.

His heart was pounding loud enough to make him uneasy.
When those aching, longing eyes turned to him, Roel felt his heart drop.

“…No, I haven’t.”

His shaky blue eyes gave him away. Yoon’s lips parted as if to say something—

But then the bell above the door chimed, and another customer walked into the shop.

As if snapping out of a trance, Roel collected himself and turned toward the new guest.

Yoon, who had been silently staring at him, flinched slightly.

The new customer strode in and asked about self-defense guns, firing off questions.

Roel immediately switched to his professional mode, explaining different types and giving examples with a gentle smile.

In the end, Yoon slipped out of the store without a word.

Through the window, she could still see his face—Noah’s face.

It was so strikingly similar that her memory snapped into place.
Not once in the past eight years had she met anyone who reminded her of Noah.

Sure, she’d looked twice when she saw blond hair and blue eyes,
But that was it. She wasn’t so foolish as to chase down just anyone and ask if they were Noah.

But this man—he was different.
It was uncanny how much he resembled Noah. That soft smile, that kind voice—they were identical.

And the instinct she’d sharpened over the years was screaming at her:

That man was Noah.

The certainty was so strong she couldn’t even entertain the idea that he wasn’t.

“…What the hell.”

Why was his name different?

Why didn’t he remember her?

Her red lips were pressed so hard against her teeth they turned pale.

Noah was like the string of a bow.

And what had been loosed from it was Yoon herself—her fragile past self, launched into the world.

Whenever she remembered Noah, warmth and cold despair flooded her all at once.

He was the only one who’d protected her during those powerless childhood years.
Someone she believed was family, even without shared blood.
And maybe, just maybe—he was the one who had left her behind.

Now, thinking that man really might be Noah made her chest ache even more.

Those unfamiliar eyes, as if looking at a stranger, cut deep.

* * *

Lucas, now back in the car, reclined his seat and closed his eyes. His thoughts were a tangled mess.

He had only brought her here thinking a little fresh air would be a nice touch when giving her the gift. But instead, he was faced with an unexpected situation.

If that man really was Noah, it would be the most perfect birthday present Yoon could receive.
At this absurdly timed encounter, he rubbed his face with dry hands.

If he wasn’t Noah, then he could just comfort her. If he was, then it would be cause for celebration.
But despite what his rational mind told him, he felt strangely suffocated inside.

He loosened his tie, which had started to feel like it was choking him, and finally felt like he could breathe again.
He raised a hand to check his wristwatch, then closed his eyes once more.

Time passed painfully slowly.
When he closed his eyes, the image of Yoon staring at the Noah look-alike came to mind.
An unpleasant emotion welled up inside him.

He let out a deep sigh and dragged his hand down his face.
His head hurt from the sheer number of messy thoughts swirling inside it.

“Ha… let’s not go overboard.”

“What are you not going overboard with?”

A sudden voice startled him, and his eyes flew open.
Yoon was standing at the door, looking at him.

“When did you get back? What were you thinking so hard about? Oh, wait—are you still tired? Want to nap a bit more before we go?”

She climbed into the passenger seat and casually reached out to touch his forehead.

It wasn’t to check for a fever.

Even if she tried, she wouldn’t feel it anyway.

She just wanted to cool his face with her cold hands.

Compared to most people, Yoon’s hands ran cold, and moments like this were when they came in handy.

She gently pressed her hands against different parts of his face, trying to cool him down.

Watching her flip her hand over and press it seriously against his forehead, Lucas finally let out a breath of laughter.

“Did everything go alright?”

His voice had softened.

Seeing his face looking more at ease, Yoon slowly pulled her hand back.

“Well… sort of.”

“Was it the person you were looking for?”

At his low question, Yoon slightly parted her lips.

“…You figured it out?”

He gave a small nod.

Yoon exhaled and leaned back in her seat.

Now that he knew, she felt oddly relieved.
Lucas was the only person she could talk to about this anyway.

“I don’t know. My gut says it’s him… but his name is different.”

Her tone was flat, but Lucas could sense the turmoil hiding underneath.

Thud.

He rested his large hand gently on top of her head and slowly ran his fingers through her hair.

He felt just as conflicted as she did.

“He looks that much like him? Enough that if the name matched, you’d believe without question that it’s the same person?”

“Yeah, he really did look like him.”

Lucas, who had been quietly watching Yoon, finally spoke.
“If you want, I’ll look into it for you.”

Yoon’s eyes widened at his offer. Her eyelashes trembled faintly, betraying her inner turmoil.

“…No, I don’t want that.”

She was afraid. Afraid of the possibility that he had truly forgotten her, or that he was pretending to, or maybe he had lost his memories in some kind of accident

No matter which of those turned out to be true—it would be hard to accept.

She wasn’t ready to face any of them just yet.

But more than anything, she didn’t want to learn about Noah’s life from cold, printed words on a page. She’d rather take it slow and figure things out herself.

Lucas slowly nodded at her quiet refusal.

If she didn’t want it, he wasn’t going to push.

Turning toward the back seat, he reached for a bag and handed it to her.

“Here. Take it.”

“What is it?”

“Open it.”

He gave her a subtle nod, expression unreadable.

Urged on by his tone, Yoon opened the bag, curious—and her mouth slowly fell open.

“…A revolver?”

She lifted the gun with practiced ease and looked it over carefully. It fit perfectly in her hand, and she clearly liked the feel of it.

“Happy birthday, Yoon.”

“…What?”

The hands that had been inspecting the gun froze.
Her gaze trembled like a leaf in the wind.

“Today’s your birthday. We probably drank enough yesterday to count for a celebration, so today let’s just stick to a simple congratulations.”

Yoon stared blankly at Lucas before finally mumbling a delayed response.

“Ah… oh.”

Strictly speaking, it wasn’t really her birthday—it was more the anniversary of when she’d joined the organization.
A day she hadn’t even thought to remember.
And yet, he did. He remembered it, and brought her a gift. The feeling was… strange.

A moment of silence settled between them.

Yoon slowly ran her hands over the gift.

She didn’t feel bad.

If anything…

“How’s the grip?”

Lucas asked casually, watching her.

“It’s nice. Really snug. And plenty of bullets, too.”

Yoon replied with a much softer expression than before.
She toyed with the revolver a little longer, then noticed the engraving on the handle.

“…Is this my name?”

She looked at him with an expression that asked, Did you really go that far?

Lucas replied coolly,

“If I’m giving it, I might as well do it properly.”

Yoon’s lips parted, and she gently ran her fingers across her name. Her eyes curved in a rare, genuine smile.

“I like it.”

When she slowly lifted her gaze, their eyes met as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
His reddish-brown eyes, cold but kind, looked back at her.

“You really are like something out of a book, you know. An ideal guardian. Anyone would think you walked out of a fairy tale.”

Yoon gave a breathy little laugh.

“That’s why I’ve been stuck raising you for eight years now,” he said with a smirk.

Yoon chuckled as well.

“Yeah, you’ve fed me, put me to bed, the whole deal.”

Just today, she’d eaten a meal he cooked. It wasn’t even a joke.
Their eyes met again, and both of them broke into a soft laugh.

The restlessness that had stirred inside her after seeing Noah…
It felt like it was finally starting to settle.

Yoon flashed a bright smile and declared her plan for the day.

“Well, since it’s my birthday, I’m gonna eat and play all day. Let’s go. To your place.”

“What does your birthday have to do with my house?”
Lucas gave a dry chuckle at her bold tone, as if she were heading to her own home.

“If you’re gonna celebrate, put some effort into it.”

Yoon lightly smacked his shoulder, telling him not to be stingy.

“Someone’s gonna think I’m your dad at this rate.”

He shook his head with a sigh.

“Want me to call you Dad?”

“Don’t. That’s disgusting.”

He recoiled with a grimace. His expression was so genuinely horrified that Yoon burst into laughter.

Her shoulders shook as she laughed hard, then she looked at him and said,

“I’m really looking forward to dinner tonight.”

Lucas gave her a look like you can’t be serious, then finally let out a soft laugh as he started the car.

* * *

“Ha……”

The messy state of the canvas reflected Roel’s restless mind. He let out a small sigh and set down his brush.

Thud.

Like a straw doll collapsing, Roel fell onto the bed. He stared blankly at the ceiling, then murmured quietly,

“I can’t focus at all.”

His head had been spinning all day—and it was all because of that customer.

Roel’s mind wandered back to the woman who had come in earlier.

“…Who was she?”

She’d definitely seemed like someone who knew him. But he couldn’t find her in his memories. His thoughts were tangled beyond recognition.

Maybe that woman was someone who had known him before—
Someone who knew the person he used to be.

Because otherwise… there was no reason she’d look at him like that.

Trying to calm himself, Roel began to sort through the possibilities.
She couldn’t have been family.

She was East Asian, with black hair and black eyes.

Then… a friend? But her eyes… they weren’t just friendly.

Roel’s blue eyes dimmed.

When he recalled the way she had stared at him—something in his chest ached.

With a deep sigh, he considered one last possibility.
And if it wasn’t that either…

“Could she be connected to the ones who made me this way?”

The memory of the day he was found by the sea surfaced, and his face instinctively twisted into a grimace.

He quickly rubbed his face, trying to shake off the dark thoughts.

But no—

If she were one of those people, she wouldn’t have looked at him with such eyes.

That gaze… didn’t match someone who would abandon him.

A quiet, inexplicable hope began to creep up from one corner of his heart, rising alongside the unease.

“What was my real name?”

Before he was Roel—what had he been called?

Would her reaction have changed if he had told her that name instead?

He thought of those dark eyes again.

The subtle disappointment he’d seen in them when he gave the wrong name…

It left a strange discomfort in his chest.

It felt like he’d hurt her somehow.

By the time he finished helping another customer, she had already disappeared.

He told himself it was for the best.

If she had stayed longer, he might’ve ended up snapping without realizing it.

A reflex of self-protection.

His condition back when the elderly couple found him had been horrifying—so much so that even now, if someone showed signs of knowing him, his first instinct wasn’t relief but defense.

“…Maybe I should’ve just stopped her and asked.”

His chest felt tight, like something was stuck.

Roel turned onto his side and stared at the ceiling.

She really was a strange person.

From the moment she walked into the shop, his eyes had followed her.

That pale, expressionless face had left a burning imprint in his mind.

It wasn’t love at first sight.

It was just… strangely magnetic.

From the second their eyes met—those dark, glassy eyes—he felt a strange sense of nostalgia.

He didn’t know what he was nostalgic for, exactly.

Time had felt like it stopped.

It was only a fleeting moment, yet it felt endless.

In that brief span, he had found himself completely captivated by her eyes.

And when that gaze, which had been full of hope, dimmed all at once—his mood sank with it.

By the time he snapped out of that strange spell, his eyes were stinging and red, and he didn’t even know why.

Roel buried his face in the pillow and closed his eyes.

What came to mind was her expression—the one she wore like a mask to hold back pain.

“Ha……”

It was a sigh so deep, it could’ve cracked the earth.
A dull ache bloomed in one side of his chest, and tears began to fall down his cheeks—familiar tears.

He didn’t bother wiping them away.

No matter how many times he tried, they would just keep falling.

Feeling the pillow grow damp beneath him, he thought—
Maybe now… I’m finally starting to understand why I cry every night.

* * *

As if announcing the arrival of spring, the warm weather had continued for days. The slowly reddening twilight sky was breathtakingly beautiful.

But Yoon had no time to enjoy that beauty—she was in the middle of the busiest days of her life.

“What is it now?”

Driving as usual, Yoon answered the call with a practiced motion.

—We need you here, ma’am. Something’s happened on 5th Avenue.

The voice on the other end sounded troubled. Yoon clicked her tongue low and muttered,

“Wait there.”

With a curt end to the call, she turned the car around without hesitation.

“You’ve arrived, ma’am.”

Haener and the subordinates bowed their heads as Yoon stepped out.

“Explain.”

Her tone was short and to the point, demanding only the facts.

“It’s a new group. They’re calling themselves Kamur. They’ve been creeping around our territory, claiming they’ll be taking over management from now on.”

Yoon silently swept her cold gaze across the line of gathered men. This was already the third or fourth time just this month that she’d had to deal with some fledgling gang pulling this kind of stunt.

It was like spring fever was driving all the trash out of the woodwork.

Then a man stepped forward and sneered in her direction.

“So you’re the bitch in charge of this area? You look like some weak-ass chick who can’t do a damn thing without a gun—”

BANG—!

Before he could even finish, his body crumpled to the ground. Blood and froth bubbled from his lips, splattering with a wet, sickening sound.

Everyone around stared in stunned silence at the man’s body, unable to process what just happened.

“What are you doing? Not coming?”

Yoon asked in her usual tone, unfazed.

Only then did the rest snap back to their senses, shouting in alarm.

“That crazy bitch—! Get her!”

And just like that, the fight began.

Men charged at each other across the wide open lot, and the air filled with the sound of dull, brutal impacts.

A man swung at Yoon, but she dodged with ease and landed a quick punch—Thud!

The man tumbled backward from the solid hit.

Spinning her wrist lightly, Yoon grabbed the arm of another who charged at her and flipped him to the ground in one swift motion.
She mounted him immediately, twisting his shoulder until—CRACK!

His arm bent backward with a sickening snap.

“AAAGHHHHH—!!”

Phew.

Yoon blew hair from her face and stood.

Without even glancing at the collapsed man, she turned and slugged someone else.

The newly deployed recruits were in shock.

Even as they instinctively dodged and threw punches, they couldn’t help but steal glances at Yoon.

What the hell… What even was that just now? Did she just dodge at that speed and break his shoulder like it was nothing?!

Wasn’t she supposed to be a gun specialist? Shouldn’t she just be a sharpshooter? Then what the hell is this?! How’s she fighting like that—and still landing every shot?!

Every guy who lunged at her ended up with something broken… or something bleeding.

As the screams piled up, the rookies instinctively shivered, thinking:

Mess with her and you’re dead.

If anyone got reckless, they’d all be catching the one-way bus to the underworld.

They gulped, cold sweat running down their backs.

Haener, watching the paralyzed rookies, let out a small sigh.
At least they had the sense to be scared—he’d nearly had to bury good men today.

It’s understandable if it’s their first time seeing her.

Thinking the strike team leader was just a good shot was a massive mistake.

From what Haener had seen, she used a blend of every close-quarters combat style she’d ever encountered—and used them well.

When she had no weapons, she could take down opponents with pure hand-to-hand combat.

In every way, she was not someone you picked a fight with lightly.

And the most terrifying thing about her was—

BANG! BANG!

A pair of gunshots rang out, and Haener whipped his head around in alarm.

He unconsciously held his breath.

Did that even take a full second?

She fired after being fired at—yet the other guy was the one who got hit.

If she were human—truly human—she should have flinched or at least reacted to the violence. But the strike team leader ended a man’s life without so much as blinking.

Even as blood dripped steadily from her wrist, staining the ground beneath her, she stood still, expressionless, and raised her gun again. The muzzle now pointed squarely at Haener.

Then—

Just as Haener’s pupils dilated in fear, another sharp gunshot rang out.

Thud—

The man who had been sneaking up behind Haener collapsed like a sack of meat.

Haener turned his head in a daze, looking at the strike team leader.

Those numb, black eyes were staring directly at him.

“Stay sharp.”

Her voice was eerily calm, enough to chill the blood. Haener swallowed hard.

Yoon silently continued to dispatch the attackers rushing toward her.

Phew…

Haener finally let out the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.

This—

This was exactly when she was most terrifying.