Jang-mi's car moved through the streets.
Judging by the direction, it was probably heading toward… Hongryeon's headquarters.
The place I used to grumble about every single morning on my way in.
But today, my position was a little different.
Just a kid tagging along with the guild master.
I watched Jang-mi and thought to myself.
Back to work this fast — guild masters really don't get a break, do they…
Before long, the car came to a stop.
"Shin-a, we're here."
I reached for the door handle to get out.
But in that instant, Jang-mi moved at incredible speed, hopped out, and yanked my door open.
"……?"
"Shin-a. Here, take Auntie's hand. Watch your step and come down slowly, okay?"
Her eyes were brimming with worry and affection.
"……"
I looked back and forth between her outstretched hand and her face.
This overprotective brand of kindness still felt strange to me.
My body had gotten younger, but my mind was fully adult. And honestly, even eleven wasn't really an age for being coddled.
I wish she'd treat me a little less like a toddler…
Swallowing a silent sigh, I finally placed my hand in her soft palm.
"Good girl."
Only once she had my hand firmly in hers did Jang-mi seem to relax, a faint smile crossing her face.
And so, led by Jang-mi's hand, I stepped through the doors of the guild building.
***
Stepping into the lobby, I took in the sight of employees and hunters moving briskly about.
Some of them couldn't quite hide the shadow on their faces as they walked with heavy steps.
Seeing their troubled expressions, something in my chest grew heavy.
Could it be because of me…?
My death.
I'd complained endlessly about being a hunter and had retirement on my lips constantly — but that didn't mean I'd had no sense of belonging to the guild.
These were comrades I'd crossed the line of death with. Of course I'd feel something.
As we passed through the lobby, familiar faces drifted by.
But none of them had any idea who I really was. They only spared a brief, puzzled glance at the small child standing beside the guild master.
"……"
Led by Jang-mi's hand, I arrived in front of her office door.
When it opened, a woman inside who had been reviewing documents looked up.
Sharp, cool features, office attire, glasses — she offered a greeting.
"Ah, Guild Master. You're back already?"
"Yeah… I was nearby."
"Pardon? I thought you went to Hunter Kim Shin-woo's apartment?"
Jang-mi gave a bitter nod at the question.
While the two of them talked, the woman's gaze stayed fixed entirely on Jang-mi.
It was as if I didn't exist.
Well, I'm so small she probably just couldn't see me…
That's a little sad…
"Guild Master… if it's too hard, you're allowed to rest."
"No. If not me, who else would do it. More importantly — Shin-a, come on. Say hello."
"Pardon…?"
The woman's expression shifted to confusion.
Jang-mi stepped slightly to the side, and the woman's gaze slowly traveled downward.
The moment her eyes finally met mine, I gave a polite bow.
"Hello."
"Oh…? Oh, yes…"
Her flustered, stumbling response was entirely at odds with the cool impression she'd given a moment ago.
"Guild Master…? Who exactly is this child…?"
While the woman was still trying to make sense of things, Jang-mi took my hand and guided me to the sofa inside the office.
Then she gently stroked my hair and said,
"Auntie has to step out for just a moment, so can you stay here and keep this unnie company? Okay?"
"Yes."
Hearing my answer, Jang-mi leaned close to the woman and murmured something in a low, urgent voice.
The woman's eyes grew wider and wider, filling with shock — and then Jang-mi hurried out of the office, leaving that expression behind.
Silence settled over the room.
The woman approached me with stiff, robotic movements.
"Um… excuse me… Shin-a-yang…?"
"Yes?"
Her sharp, composed demeanor had completely crumbled. Her eyes were trembling, adrift.
That flimsy reaction, so utterly out of place on that polished, elite face — it was, for some reason, a little funny.
I sat on the sofa with my back straight and blinked at her, expression blank.
What on earth did Jang-mi tell her… to get a reaction like that.
***
The name of the sharp-featured woman was Kim Min-ji.
She was Jang-mi's secretary.
It had been six days since Hunter Kim Shin-woo's death.
But Min-ji's life had remained calm.
The same routine as always — fingers on a keyboard.
Someone's death.
In the hunter industry, it wasn't exactly rare.
Things had changed a great deal from the early days of the Gate crisis, but hunter casualties still occurred at a steady pace.
That didn't make a colleague's death feel light. Not at all.
There was a heaviness in her chest, but she had work to do.
That was the nature of this industry.
Min-ji paused, lifted her stiff fingers from the keyboard, and stretched.
"Ugh…!"
The tension in her muscles released, followed by a long, deep exhale.
"Haah……"
Min-ji stared blankly, lost in thought.
'……Should I quit.'
But she shook her head almost immediately, brushing the thought away.
Because she remembered the words she had said to him, day after day.
He was always talking about retirement.
Hunter Kim Shin-woo.
He never seemed to understand what position he occupied.
How enormous an influence he had on this guild — on this country.
That if he actually retired, the losses would be catastrophic.
That was why Min-ji had always told him.
Don't treat retirement so lightly. Know how much weight your position carries. She'd said it bluntly, without softening it.
"……"
Min-ji pressed a hand to her forehead and stared up at the ceiling, trying to quiet the burning in her head.
"God… what an idiot…"
The quiet self-reproach, laced with regret, slipped out.
It was then.
The closed door opened, and Guild Master Jang-mi walked in.
Visibly gaunt, dark circles under her eyes.
If you had to name the person suffering most in this guild — in this world — it would undoubtedly be her.
And yet Jang-mi was quietly carrying out her duties.
Min-ji was watching her, steeling herself against any weak thoughts, when —
"……?"
Jang-mi stepped to the side, and a small figure that had been hidden behind her came into view.
A young girl.
The girl gazed steadily at Min-ji with clear, bright eyes.
'What… is this child? No, wait — something about her feels… familiar…?'
While confusion was taking over her mind, Jang-mi moved past her and carefully settled the girl onto the sofa.
Then she turned and approached Min-ji, who was still standing there in a daze.
"Guild Master…? That child is…"
"Her name is Shin-a. She's Shin-woo's daughter."
"……?"
Min-ji's thought process ground to a halt.
"Pardon?!"
"I'll leave her with you for a moment. Take good care of her."
Jang-mi left those words behind and hurried out of the office.
Min-ji's gaze creaked stiffly toward the girl on the sofa.
The girl was still dangling her short legs, tilting her head slightly, watching Min-ji.
"Um… excuse me… Shin-a-yang…?"
"Yes?"
An innocent reply came back.
Min-ji had no idea what kind of expression was on her own face right now.
She tried her best to look gentle and approached the girl with an awkward gait.
"Do you… like snacks?"
Min-ji mentally pictured the imported chocolates she kept tucked deep in her desk drawer, saved for special occasions.
Her mind began turning at its usual work-processing speed, trying to figure out how to handle this child.
The girl was still watching Min-ji with a blank expression.
Meeting those pitch-black eyes, Min-ji swallowed dryly under a pressure she couldn't quite name.
"I have chocolate… want some?"
Min-ji opened the drawer with a trembling hand, gripped by a kind of tension she had never experienced before.
And beyond that tension, a question kept pulling at her thoughts, stealing her attention.
'How… can she look so much like him…?'
***
I accepted the chocolate from her.
"Thank you."
Her name was Kim Min-ji. A familiar face.
Jang-mi's capable secretary.
I carefully opened the chocolate box she'd handed me.
I unwrapped one piece and popped it into my mouth.
Nom… nom…
"Oh……"
The moment it touched my tongue, it melted softly — a sweet, gentle dissolution.
Followed by a rich, slightly bitter, unmistakably expensive flavor.
One bite was all it took to know. This was very good chocolate.
Though… it could've been a little sweeter, honestly.
Has my palate changed…
I turned and looked at her.
She was still staring at me intently.
Jang-mi did it too — why did everyone insist on looking at me like this, like I was something to be studied.
I held her gaze without looking away.
That seemed to make her realize she'd been staring, because she quickly averted her eyes and apologized.
"Ah… sorry. Was I staring too much…?"
Her voice was clearly flustered.
"It's fine."
I kept my tone as flat as I could manage.
Speaking with this small body still felt awkward, even now.
If I slipped into my old casual manner, I had a feeling they'd catch on to me quickly.
A way to have a natural conversation without giving myself away…
In the end, what I settled on was a blunt, reserved attitude.
Slightly sullen-looking.
While I was turning over that pointless dilemma, Min-ji asked me carefully,
"Hey, Shin-a… you really… look a lot like your father."
It was the kind of thing that should have made my heart drop — but I kept my expression steady and answered.
"I think so too."
"Is that so…? Ha…"
The air went cold in an instant, and an awkward silence settled in.
Maybe my answer had been too flat.
Min-ji, who always kept a perfect poker face, was now visibly sweating, watching me nervously.
I added one more line in her direction.
"I'm okay, really."
"Mm……"
I'd meant it to be reassuring, but she still looked at me like she was walking on thin ice.
A heavy silence stretched on for a while — and then, as if trying to shift the mood, she made me an offer.
"Hey, Shin-a. Are you bored?"
"Hmm…"
I didn't have anything particular to do, and sitting in this small office was starting to make me a little restless.
"Yes."
"Then would you like to take a little tour of the guild with me?"
"A tour… ?"
"Yeah. There's actually quite a bit to see."
Min-ji stood up from her seat with a small smile.
"Yes, I'd like that."
"Shall we go, then?"
And so I followed her out of the office.