Chapter 46

Ku-gu-gu-gu……

The floor trembled faintly.

The index finger that had been gently stroking the snake's head, which was shaped like an inverted triangle, paused.

An earthquake? No.

The silver-gray eyes gazed intently at some distant place beyond the gate passage.

"Why is that?"

The agent standing beside him glanced at Lee Jun. From the look of it, he seemed not to have noticed the faint tremor.

Lee Jun silently placed his palm on the ground. Seeing the grains of sand on the floor tremble ever so slightly, he narrowed his eyes.

'Lee Jun.'

About 20 minutes ago, a telepathic message had come.

A telepathic message that only he could hear, inaudible to anyone else here.

Lee Jun knew who the voice belonged to and what situation they were in.

'An accident happened. Send reinforcements.'

Suddenly, Lee Jun let out a dry laugh. The agent standing beside him tilted his head.

"Hunter Baek? Is there a problem?"

"No, nothing's wrong."

He smiled and began to stroke the snake again.

"It's almost been an hour, and three people haven't returned yet."

The agent, scanning the main group, began to worry.

Although the first search was clearly announced to last one hour, the figures of Trickster, Black Flame Princess, and Möbius were nowhere to be seen.

"Ah, there's Hunter Möbius returning!"

Someone shouted. Möbius could be seen walking from a distance. His clean appearance, without a single scratch, suggested that nothing serious had happened.

Lee Jun, who had been stroking the snake, spoke softly.

"You're late."

"I'm sorry. I got lost on the way."

"Is that so? It's fortunate you're not hurt."

"Thanks to Maestro, who put all the monsters to sleep."

Möbius smiled and turned around. Lee Jun, who had been watching his unusually light steps, suddenly moved his lips.

"By the way."

The finger that had been stroking the snake had now stopped.

"Did you see anyone on your way back?"

At the low, chilling voice, Möbius suddenly gulped. But only for a moment. Möbius quickly composed his expression and forced a smile.

"See anyone?"

Lee Jun's eyes pierced through him.

Sssss……

It felt as if the hairs on his body were standing on end. As if tiny insects were crawling over his skin, Möbius swallowed hard.

After a brief silence, Lee Jun smiled.

"It seems you didn't."

The agent, who had been standing beside Lee Jun, spoke up.

"Black Flame Princess and Trickster haven't returned yet."

"Ah……"

Möbius shrugged, trailing off.

"With all the monsters under a sleeping spell, what could possibly happen?"

"But still……"

The agent glanced at Lee Jun. Even if Trickster was one thing, Black Flame Princess was a person of interest to the Association. They needed to know not only if she was alive but also what she was doing and where.

For that, Lee Jun's ability was indispensable. The agents knew that the snakes he controlled acted like a GPS. They didn't know that he could even share auditory and visual senses with the snakes.

"Hunter Baek, can you determine her location?"

At the agent's question, Lee Jun shook his head with a slightly troubled smile.

"I don't know what's going on, but the signal has been cut off. It's as if the gate has collapsed."

Möbius shuddered. No one must have noticed, right? He quickly composed his expression.

Lee Jun stood up.

"I'll have to go and check it out myself."

"Excuse me? Go yourself?"

It wasn't the agent but Möbius who was startled.

No, that can't happen.

"Is there a problem?"

Lee Jun turned his head smoothly. Möbius, ignoring the cold sweat running down his back, managed to speak.

"Isn't it better for Hunter Baek, the leader, to avoid leaving the main group?"

"It's fine. It won't take long."

"But they might return in the meantime……"

Möbius, stammering, suddenly had a thought.

"Ah, then I'll go and search myself."

"You?"

"Yes. The Hwarang Guild regularly conducts search training. Moreover, my unique ability is specialized for search operations. I'm sure I can conduct an efficient search. Especially if the gate has collapsed."

Lee Jun stared intently at Möbius. His ash-gray eyes scanned Möbius from head to toe, then narrowed.

"……If you insist."

At his permission, Möbius nodded vigorously. This was the only way.

"I'll be back soon."

Möbius turned around. Or tried to.

"Leave the snake behind. It's useless now."

Swish.

Lee Jun gestured.

Was it a signal? The white snake that had been wrapped around Möbius's shoulder slid toward Lee Jun as if drawn by a magnet.

Möbius watched the white snake leave him, then quickly turned his head. Perhaps it was fortunate that the snake was no longer useful. At least he wouldn't be able to know everything.

Möbius firmly believed that this was his chance.

But,

"Good luck."

Lee Jun felt the same.

＊＊＊

Yunha returned about 30 minutes later.

Everyone's gaze turned to her, who had finally appeared after almost two hours.

Yunha, ignoring all the looks, scanned her surroundings.

Möbius was nowhere to be seen. Had he not returned yet?

The divine beast 'The Cat Who Wanders in Darkness' growled, "Where did that brat run off to? I won't let him off if I see him!" and bared its claws.