This World is too Cruel to Men

By the time Dokgun and Yun-Seo, belatedly checking the time, started their frantic dash towards the school to avoid the infamous shame of being late to their graduation ceremony, there was someone else moving just as frantically: Dokgun’s mom.

In a room that looked like a laboratory, she stood amidst scattered important-looking documents and various experimental equipment.

She gathered them one by one, placing them into a nearby box, looking as if she were preparing for a midnight escape.

While the documents were manageable, some of the equipment was quite heavy, making the task of transferring everything into boxes rather strenuous.

“Haa…”

A sigh escaped her lips as she paused momentarily.

The thought, ‘How much is left?’ didn’t even cross her mind.

The sheer volume of what remained was too overwhelming.

Just as she was about to resume her work after catching her breath, the door opened.

“Hey, Lee. Still at it?”

“…As you can see.”

“That’s why I told you to delegate some of this. Why bother moving all this yourself? It’s exhausting.”

“And if even one piece of data here leaks out, who’s going to take responsibility? I’d rather just tough it out.”

“…Hmm, I guess you’re right.”

Perhaps she hadn’t come just to nag.

The woman who entered the room also began helping pack.

The saying about two heads being better than one wasn’t for nothing.

Even with just one extra person, the room-clearing process seemed to accelerate several times over.

“Now only the heavy stuff is left. You’re not going to collapse from exhaustion after moving all this, are you?”

“Don’t be dramatic…”

“Dramatic? Highly skilled personnel like me aren’t used to this kind of manual labor.”

The moment those almost-flippant words left the woman’s mouth, both their faces hardened as if on cue.

Such remarks were practically taboo within these walls.

Perhaps wanting to diffuse the awkwardness she had inadvertently created, the woman quickly changed the subject.

“By the way, Lee. Are you really okay with this?”

“With what?”

“Well, you know… your son’s graduation ceremony is today.”

The moment those words reached her ears, she faltered, despite knowing the urgency of the situation.

This had been weighing on her mind as well.

And as if reading her thoughts, a voice spoke, echoing her inner turmoil.

“Shouldn’t you at least try to go…?”

Ironically, the very words that had been circling her mind, now voiced by someone else, helped solidify her wavering resolve.

“Didn’t I tell you before how far my country is from here? It’s too late even if I leave right now.”

“But still…”

“But still nothing. It’s been years since I’ve seen him. I don’t want him to see his mom being dragged away by strangers after all this time.”

She couldn’t easily refute that.

A clicking sound came from beside her, someone tsking.

Of course, being “arrested” wouldn’t mean prison.

More likely, it would mean confinement in an isolated research facility, forced to divulge every single research finding.

That couldn’t happen.

Not after coming this far.

Not after everything she had sacrificed.

She couldn’t hand over her hard-earned discoveries to the self-serving agency.

It was obvious what they would do with it: further solidify their already firm foundation.

‘This’ wasn’t meant for something so trivial.

“You know what? This is infuriating… It’s not like we’re doing this just for our own benefit. Instead of helping, they label us as persons of interest… Those agency folks are completely insane!”

She gave a wry smile, watching her colleague fume, having apparently reached a similar conclusion.

The colleague’s initially pointed, angry shoulders slumped in dejection.

Had the anger given way to disillusionment?

Curious, she asked, and received a wry smile similar to her own earlier.

“It’s just… I’m suddenly feeling disillusioned.”

“Suddenly?”

“Well, think about it. Has there been any significant Another activity in the past few years, besides minor skirmishes?”

“Do you really think so?”

“No, I mean… It’s not that our research is meaningless, it’s just…”

“Perfect timing. Can you pull out the document on top of the stack in that box?”

“Hmm?”

Many people, not just her colleague, claimed that the cessation of Another activity meant humanity was finally free from their threat.

That our only enemies now were Villains, humans who turned against their own kind out of greed.

That wasn’t entirely wrong.

Unlike the dormant Anothers, Villains were constantly active, causing harm.

But that was only if you limited your observation to what was immediately visible.

If you broadened your perspective… could you still confidently declare humanity safe from the Another threat?

“What is this?”

“A record of the number of people who have disappeared without a trace in the past five years.”

“Why would you…?”

“Notice how the number of missing people has been steadily increasing each year?”

“Well, that’s true, but…”

“When was the last time the agency announced an Another attack?”

“Uh, about five years ago, wasn’t it…?”

Her colleague’s expression shifted, and she suppressed a smile.

Others might find it morbid, but she found this moment exhilarating: witnessing the realization that the peace they believed in was nothing but an illusion.

She wished she could see the same expressions on the faces of the agency’s top brass.

Though she doubted they would change, even if they knew the truth.

Their only concern was preserving their own positions.

“So, you’re saying… the Anothers are pretending to be dormant while secretly abducting people…?”

“Why? Does that seem impossible?”

“Of course! Considering the Anothers’ hatred for humanity… No, even aside from that, they have no reason to.”

She placed the item she was holding back on the table and pushed up her slightly slipped glasses.

Then she asked, “Why?”

“…What?”

“Why do you think there’s no reason?”

Why did she think that? What was the basis for such a belief?

The answer she received was a pathetically human-centric one.

“Because… they could just kill them. Why bother with the trouble of abduction…?”

“What if it’s to learn?”

“…”

“There’s no rule saying only we can study them. Besides, it’s already a proven fact that higher-level Anothers possess intelligence comparable to humans.”

“They’re… studying humans…?”

It was still just a hypothesis, nothing concretely proven. But what if it were true?

There would be only one reason for the Anothers to study humans: to kill them more efficiently, in greater numbers.

That must be why they’ve been lying low beyond the Gate for years.

That’s what they were, after all.

“No… That doesn’t make sense… If the Anothers were abducting people, someone would have seen something…”

“Someone might have. But what if their testimony was dismissed as nonsense and buried?”

“What?”

“Have you ever heard the rumors? About Anothers appearing in the slums and then vanishing without a trace?”

Of course, she had.

The research facility had occasionally been located in slum areas.

She must have heard the rumors, but dismissed them as urban legends concocted by drug-addled slum dwellers.

Even she, a researcher studying the Anothers that appeared alongside the emergence of Talents, had done so.

What about those who treated slum dwellers as unnecessary filth?

Even if someone from the slums came crying, claiming an Another had taken their friend or family, they would have been shooed away.

And the Anothers would have exploited that blind spot, learning about humans.

She had no way of knowing how far that learning had progressed. But what if… what if they had learned enough?

The third Great Raid that may happen someday will cause far greater damage than the first one that happened before I was even born, or the second one that happened about 15 years ago.

To prevent that, to prevent children from becoming victims, she had to complete her research. Even if it meant sacrificing precious time with her only son.

‘So…’

I’ll do my best…

I’ll find a way to get revenge on them…

I don’t know if you’re watching, but if you are, could you please congratulate Dokgun for me?

‘It must have…’

Started by now…?