It was around noon when, having tidied his appearance, Muhae left the Jaegang Zone. He calculated the modest activity stipend that Cloud had provided and hailed a taxi.Taking the train like this would draw too much attention to Joo-o. They weren’t off on some espionage mission, but leaving a strong impression on people wouldn’t do them any good. Fewer passersby meant less risk.“Siiiiiing—watch out.”Before long, a massive sign loomed at the roadside’s edge.“[WELCOME 《《 From here: Garam]”Far ahead, a faint skyline stretched along the long, straight road. It was obviously more splendid than the slums they’d left and even a bit flashier than the Jaegang Zone.Garam Zone was the busiest of Goryeo City’s four residential districts—its adjacent production areas produced better-paid jobs than elsewhere.Residents tended to spend their extra dil on hobbies and cultural pursuits. Not everyone was wealthy, but the average income ran high—mostly middle-class.“I doubt anyone here would post a 310-dil request.”“You never know.”Lower-class laborers existed everywhere. Outside Central, most households barely made ends meet on food, clothing, and shelter alone.Even if you glimpse the glamour, it isn’t for everyone. Muhae had realized that long ago.“We’ll be there soon. Get ready to get off.”“Heading for a cafe?”“Yeah. Going straight home would raise suspicion.”The intel Cloud provided included today’s routine for the person they were meeting. It warned against barging in at her home right away.Muhae had no intention of knocking on her door in a black suit, either. To gather information, one mustn’t act threateningly.Siiiiiing—When the taxi stopped, Joo-o popped the door open and sprang out. Muhae caught his wrist and tugged him toward their destination.The antique-style cafe smelled of freshly ground beans from the entrance onward. By the sunlit window sat a woman with pale hair pinned up just as in the photos.“Ms. Olga Belova.”Muhae used as gentle a tone as he could. The woman paused her music and slowly opened her eyes.She spotted the two in black suits approaching and took in their appearance from head to toe.“Where did you come from?”At her question, Joo-o tensed his eyebrows and fell silent. His jaw tightened into walnut-like bumps all in an instant.I didn’t mean for him to look so heavyhanded. With that smooth face, he sure knew how to look intimidating.Without a word, Muhae summoned a holographic display before her. The official Goryeo City emblem filled her view.“…I thought I told you everything I knew. It’s uncomfortable and disruptive to have you show up like this every year.”“I don’t exactly intend to harshly interrogate you, but confronting the new arrivals of ‘that place’ every year is part of our job.”Her practiced reply made Olga’s brow flicker.“And you never know—something might occur to me later on.”Though he’d phrased it indirectly, the meaning was clear: “Quietly prod me in case I remember more.” Her expression froze cold.For a moment, something like suspicion flitted across her blue eyes—“Would I even tell you if I knew?”—sharp enough to hurt.“Here.”At that, Joo-o interjected and held out his hand. Resting on his white, delicate palm was a green figurine.Was that Somumu? Why was he offering it now and making a fuss?Perhaps sharing my thought, Olga glanced at his hand and gave him a look asking, “What’s that for?”Faced with her cool dismissal, Joo-o’s hand slowly retracted. His lips twitched as if he were swallowing some useless explanation about Somumu.Muhae nudged his side to signal him to step back.“There really isn’t anything more I can tell you. I’m not hiding anything on purpose. Is there a problem with what I testified before?”“It’s not that.”“Then you must have found something to compare against?”“I’m not obliged to show you that.”She fixed Muhae with a knowing look.“Sorry, but I’m a bit busy right now. Could you come back later?”Without waiting for an answer, she replayed her music. Muhae watched her for a moment, shrugged, and turned away.Damn. We’d just started talking, but for now, we had to retreat. I didn’t expect such uncooperativeness—even with a fake ID on the table.I thought about pressing her since we were with the intel division, but Joo-o seemed to sense it and shook his head—no use.If he made a misstep, he’d only look ridiculous. Better to hold off.“Let’s try over there.”Oblivious to their predicament, Joo-o pointed to another cafe down the block. It had a similar vibe.Wasting time wandering the streets wasn’t ideal, so it wasn’t a bad choice—but somehow Muhae felt Joo-o was more interested in the chance of scoring a sweet treat than in the intel.“Hmm… heh heh, lala, yum.”Muhae sat on the terrace and stared at his pad for a long while.He read and reread Olga Belova’s profile and all the information Cloud had provided about her.He’d studied it so thoroughly he could have memorized it before leaving home. Still, he had no clue what Cloud wanted him to find—it was a little vexing.Meanwhile, Joo-o, as if having forgotten his earlier sulk, had ordered dessert and was slicing large forks of tart piled high with whipped cream.He looked blissful, licking his lips clean. When his eyes met Muhae’s, he made a solemn face and offered him a huge piece.“Put it away.”Already irritated, Muhae snapped it down. Joo-o seemed to think Muhae approved of his actions.“I told you to keep watch.”“I did.”“Stop scattering that tornado toy around. Why do you hand it out to everyone?”“It’s Tinkle Friends. And I’m not handing it out to everyone.”He replied, looking aggrieved—almost begging for a punch. No matter how many times I warned him not to interfere, he does something odd and gets suspicious stares.“If you can’t even do that right, there’s no reason I should keep bringing you. I’ll give you fare—go home.”“I won’t. ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ I’ll do it properly.”“You’re just going to mess it up there, aren’t you?”“Whether I give Somumu or not, Olga wouldn’t have told us anything. It’s not my fault.”Annoying but true. Even if Joo-o had kept quiet, they wouldn’t have gotten any different result.Muhae exhaled and swallowed the flavorless coffee. It smelled nice, but he couldn’t see why it cost 15 dil.Luxury goods were always overpriced, but if so, that sweet smoothie Joo-o was sipping should be just as expensive.“Try some emotional appeal.”Having devoured the tart, Joo-o magnanimously tossed out a suggestion.“Where did you pick that up?”“I saw Olga wearing a ring.”When had he noticed that? Joo-o’s eyes shone with certainty as he told him.Muhae endured the bitter aftertaste and examined the pad again. Cloud’s intel mentioned no acquaintances Olga might meet.She hadn’t had anyone—romantically or otherwise—since Solar City fell over ten years ago.She lived alone, followed the same daily routine with no one to interrupt. Morning exercise, breakfast, time at her favorite cafe…Then home for five or six hours of outsourced programming work, followed by a walk in the park. She spoke to no one and cut off even incoming small talk.Her earnings weren’t great, but she must have had plenty of money. Rumor was she inherited a fortune from her deceased partner, so she didn’t need to work.So was that ring also her partner’s?“They weren’t that lovey-dovey, I don’t think.”The data from Goryeo City’s archives remained intact. Before the Solar City disaster, she’d postponed their wedding, a sign their relationship was on the rocks.Her partner, a key city engineer, was, in her words, a total workaholic—even simple dinner plans went unkept.She’d abruptly advanced a planned trip six months later and fled to a nearby city. Their relationship had been on the brink of collapse.Yet she still wore the ring—perhaps out of pity for her partner’s death.Just as Muhae didn’t bear ill will recalling his own father, maybe she felt gratitude for the life of plenty she’d inherited.“If Olga just glanced at us a moment ago.”Joo-o’s remark made Muhae look up sharply. She was walking away in the distance on her precise schedule.Once she got home, Olga would likely stay in until the evening before heading back to the park.“You seem rather unoccupied right now.”Her sudden greeting made the woman’s brow twitch slightly. A cool breeze swept around the park bench.Muhae sat across from her, then glanced down at his hand. As Joo-o had said, a silver ring adorned her wrinkled ring finger.“Are you open to conversation now?”She drew a slow breath—whether annoyance or tension, it was hard to tell.“You’re the rookie, right?”Out of nowhere, she asked. Muhae hid his surprise behind a neutral expression and shrugged as if he didn’t understand.“Or maybe you’re not even from that department.”But her tone held certainty. Somehow he must have looked out of place.Damn. If only Joo-o hadn’t offered that stupid Somumu… before Muhae could curse him internally, Olga spoke again.“You said it was your job to ‘confront’ transferees from Solar. I know that, too. Having you show up unannounced every year meant I had to cancel plans and go through the motions of Q&A.”“…”“Didn’t anyone tell you? You don’t have to just hover around like this. If you’d said so, I’d have gone anywhere with you.”Damn. It was Muhae himself, not Joo-o, who aroused her suspicion. Realizing that, she added:“And usually you don’t come in such odd pairings. A demon lord and a princess? Even if I only glimpsed you passing by, I’d remember for at least ten years.”

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