The moment the black smoke cleared, a brutal cold stabbed at Jin's skin. The warmth of the city was gone—replaced by an endless expanse of white. Ice and snow stretched as far as the eye could see, the freezing wind howling like a beast. The sky above was a dull gray, heavy with the weight of an approaching storm.
Jin exhaled, his breath instantly turning to mist. He adjusted his long coat, glancing around. "Antarctica, huh? So, what exactly are we here to see?" he asked gently.
Shun took another bite of his chocolate, his tone relaxed. "No idea. Someone sent me a message saying, 'If you want to know more, come here at this time.'"
Jin raised an eyebrow. "And you just decided to come?"
Shun shrugged. "Why not?" Then, as if remembering something, he added, "You did send our shopping bags home, right?"
"Yeah, I did," Jin replied. He shifted his gaze back to Shun. "But about this 'wanna know more' message—mind explaining?"
"It's something connected to what disturbed me," Shun said softly as he walked forward.
They walked for a few minutes in silence before stopping in front of something massive lying on the ice. The creature was at least 20 feet tall, its body motionless against the frozen ground.
Jin narrowed his eyes. "And what is that thing that disturbed you?" he asked gently, stepping closer. Without hesitation, he jumped on top of it, examining the body.
"Killing a beast is one thing," Jin muttered, his voice calm, "but what exactly is this supposed to mean?"
The creature was an Evolved Penguin, its body easily cut open from its stomach to its head—a precise, clean dissection, almost like a postmortem. Yet, whoever had done this had left the body behind, exposed to the cold.
"So, it was true," Shun muttered, standing beside Jin as they examined the dead beast.
"You noticed it too, didn't you?" Shun asked, his tone calm but serious.
Jin's brown eyes scanned the creature's open body. "Yeah, its heart and brain are missing," he said gently. "But there's nothing valuable to gain from them, so what's the point?" He jumped down from the creature, landing lightly on the ice.
Shun followed, his expression unreadable. "Yesterday, someone sent a message to my old contact number," he said as they walked. "It was a video. In it, someone used their Evolve powers to turn the brain into liquid, then did the same with the heart… and mixed them before drinking it."
Jin's steps slowed slightly. "Your old number?" he repeated, a hint of surprise in his voice before shifting focus. "Turning a brain and heart into liquid and drinking it… that's disgusting. What happened after that?"
Shun's gaze remained fixed ahead. "His aura changed," he said softly. "He got stronger. Not just a little—his power visibly increased right after drinking it."
Jin stopped walking, his brows furrowing as he turned to Shun. "You know that's impossible," he said gently but firmly. "No one grows stronger without training."
"I thought the same thing," Shun admitted. "It shouldn't be possible. But then, I considered it… Hunted beasts are usually wasted anyway, so if this method lets even the weak get stronger, it could be useful." He exhaled, his voice dropping slightly.
"But when I saw the message under that video… I realized something was very wrong."
"And what did that message say?" Jin asked gently as they walked.
Shun's footsteps slowed slightly. "It said… it was a human's organs. A normal human," he replied softly, coming to a stop.
Jin's brows furrowed. "What's that supposed to mean? If it were an Evolved human or a beast, it would make some sense. But what do normal humans have to do with this?" he asked, his voice calm but questioning.
"I don't know," Shun admitted. "But the message was short. It said:
'Normal human organs give 10 times more boost than Evolved beast organs. If you want to know more, come to Antarctica tomorrow.'
That's all it said."
Jin exhaled, his breath turning to mist in the freezing air. "Then we wait here. This isn't something we can ignore."
His gaze shifted to Shun. "Any information about the sender?"
Shun shook his head. "Nothing yet."
The two of them stood in silence, the icy wind whipping against their faces, carrying the bitter sting of Antarctica's unforgiving cold.
"You said you received that message on your old contact number," Jin said gently, his eyes fixed on Shun. "So, the one who sent it must be one of our past clients. Did you check the list? We'll visit each of them after this."
Shun nodded but hesitated. "You're right, but the thing is…" He paused, then sighed. "My wife broke the PC where I had all our old data saved."
Jin blinked, then exhaled slowly. "Seriously, Shun?" he said gently, though there was a hint of amusement in his tone. "You must've done something to deserve that."
"It's not like I did anything on purpose," Shun muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. "I was just playing games, that's all."
Jin gave him a knowing look. "Yeah… and I bet you played all night."
Shun avoided his gaze. "Not all night. I mean… I did sleep. At 6 a.m."
Jin sighed, shaking his head. "And that is all night. Honestly, I'm surprised she didn't beat you."
Shun opened his mouth to argue, but then—he stopped.
His expression shifted, his relaxed demeanor fading as his gaze fixed ahead.
Jin followed his line of sight.
Through the howling wind and thick snowfall, five figures were approaching. At first, they were nothing more than dark silhouettes against the white landscape, but as they got closer, their forms became clear.
Three men. Two women.
And they were walking straight toward them.
"Looks like we'll get our answers from them," Jin said gently as he stretched his arms, his tone calm as ever.
Shun let out a small yawn, lazily rolling his shoulders. "But do you really think anyone will just tell us because we ask?" he said softly, stretching his neck.
Jin exhaled, watching as the figures moved closer. The snowstorm howled around them, but it wasn't the cold that made the air feel heavier.
"Guess we're about to find out."
[Chapter 5 end]