The car left Seoul and was speeding down the wide highway without any hindrance. It was a weekday morning, and the highway was deserted after rush hour, with the scenery changing every moment. However, my gaze was fixed on the documents in my hand.
“Other branches are training nearby, aren’t they?”
I had only gathered information about the accommodation but hadn’t checked the current situation. From the data organized by Esmeralda, I realized that another branch was conducting training near our current accommodation.
“Yeah, they said it will end within this week. No need to worry.”
“Then that’s good news.”
The key was to ensure that we did not interfere with their training during our preliminary inspection.
With a rough schedule table, it would be easy to avoid overlapping routes.
“Was the reservation for the accommodation okay?”
“Yeah, there were only two rooms left, so I booked those.”
I had checked all potential issues and confirmed with Esmeralda that everything was fine, which allowed me to feel relieved.
Only after reviewing the documents did I have the leisure to look at the scenery outside.
The winter sky was high and clear, offering a panoramic view of distant landscapes.
Even though it was a perfect day for a preliminary inspection, I didn’t feel particularly bad.
“How have things been lately?”
“Huh?”
Esmeralda spoke to me while I was staring blankly out the window.
“What do you mean?”
I looked at her as she was focusing on the road ahead.
“I mean… You’ve been spending time with your girlfriends, right? I was just wondering if everything is alright.”
“Aaah.”
As expected, Esmeralda seemed concerned about the fact that one of her former subordinates is now in a romantic relationship with an enemy. She appeared to be paying close attention, and I nodded in understanding of her question.
“It’s fine. Things have been a bit hectic since the last mission.”
“Really? Are you getting along well?”
“The relationship…”
Suddenly, I remembered telling the girls about Luche and Siera. The girlfriends were aware of the situation, and I hadn’t yet figured out how to handle it.
It was too late to say “Just let me do what I want.” The girlfriends already knew a lot about me, and I was learning more about them each day. So, rather than deciding everything myself, I wanted to reflect more on their thoughts.
There wasn’t a problem with my relationship with the girlfriends. In fact, I felt it was improving over time.
But when it came to discussing others, I still wasn’t sure which direction to take.
“There are many things to consider, but our relationship is good.”
“Because of Luche and Siera?”
She immediately understood my dilemma.
I couldn’t hide my surprise, and my eyes darted to the window before returning to her. Esmeralda tried to hold back a smile.
“Is it that surprising?”
“No, no. I was just wondering how you knew.”
“Of course, I know. How long has it been?”
Esmeralda already knew. And it wasn’t just her.
It was likely that Angelique, who shares the same position as Team Leader, also knew. Whether they knew or not, it’s possible they had discussed a lot about each other.
The thought of everyone talking about me in my absence made me blush.
The most embarrassing part was realizing recently that I had missed the true intentions of Luche and Siera.
“Esmeralda, you…”
“Yes?”
Thinking about how she already knew made me recall the time we spent together, and without realizing it, I blurted out.
Esmeralda tilted her head, not understanding what I meant. I quickly retracted my words.
“No, I was just wondering how you are these days.”
“These days? I’m busy. Every day, I’m worried about what orders might come from above.”
I assumed she was referring to something related to me.
Though they didn’t express it openly, everyone was paying close attention to my relationship with the HunterKiller Team.
While I saw Luche and Siera as lovers, I considered it a minor part of their thoughts.
We had maintained an adversarial relationship for a long time, and even though we were in a romantic relationship, it wouldn’t be easy to change their perspective instantly. Even if we had worked together on missions, it was because of mutual interests, not because of the bond formed through missions.
“Sorry, it’s my fault.”
“Do you understand your position well?”
“Yes, very well.”
It was a statement asking me to take responsibility for the current situation, but the tone wasn’t harsh. Instead, it seemed like she was trying to encourage me to do better in the future.
“Worried about the training?”
“Are you?”
“Yes. Because I designed it, and now 3rd Team is involved.”
Once I took on the role of designer, I needed to ensure fair training conditions for all teams. But since I belonged to 3rd Team, I couldn’t ignore the current environment of 3rd Team.
Esmeralda understood, and she didn’t comment on my concern for 3rd Team.
“I suggested assigning A as the designer first.”
“You did?”
“Yes, I proposed it first, and Angelique agreed.”
It surprised me that Luche and Siera hadn’t brought it up first, and it was even more surprising that the two senior officers supported it.
“Why me?”
“Because I believed you could handle it.”
“Me?”
“Yes.”
Her response was firm and unwavering. She clearly trusted me completely.
The words of support from Angelique, who always believed in me, echoed in my mind, making me feel a heavy sense of trust from both of them.
“Doesn’t that weigh on you?”
“A little.”
“That’s good then.”
“Huh?”
Surprised by her playful tone, which was unlike her usual self, I asked again. Esmeralda tried to hold back a smile once more.
“Sorry, sorry. Just reminiscing. Don’t stare so intensely.”
As she said, in the past, such moments often occurred.
Before getting closer to her, Esmeralda seemed to me like an unwavering, charismatic figure.
Although perfection doesn’t exist, she seemed like the personification of a perfect soldier.
That’s why I felt a barrier around her. Even though I didn’t think it necessary to make friends with many people at the time, I felt it would be hard to get close to her.
However, we became close due to a trivial incident, and I realized she was different from what I had imagined.
Our relationship changed, and I began to feel more uncomfortable with her. Eventually, I forgot about it.
In reality, she has a playful side, and she looks more beautiful when she smiles faintly rather than showing her commanding presence.
But once the topic of the past came up, I couldn’t continue the conversation. It felt like a drain had been blocked, preventing the flow of water.
Throughout the journey to the training ground, this pattern of conversation and silence continued.
Talking with Esmeralda wasn’t burdensome, but when old stories came up, there was a slight tension.
To avoid awkwardness, I kept bringing up topics, leading to more discussions about the past. The more I tried not to remember, the clearer those memories became.
Even now, thinking about it, it might have just been my imagination, but if I hadn’t turned away from reality at that moment and had kept looking at Esmeralda, the outcome might have been different.
No, I hadn’t turned away. I simply hadn’t noticed.
Every time old stories came up, I wondered what Esmeralda was thinking.
It was impossible to tell what she was thinking as she drove, her face expressionless.
This cycle of conversation and silence continued until we arrived at the training ground.
After getting out of the car with the documents, we met the members of Team 1 who had arrived in a minivan.
They had already inspected the training ground, gathering information about the surroundings and facilities, and showed me a brief summary.
“The facilities at point A-1 are similar to the report. I also checked the functions, and everything is working normally.”
“At point C-3, the facilities differ slightly from the report. It seems the training units have modified them somewhat.”
“What about the functions?”
“There are no issues with the functions.”
“In that case, compile a list of changes for later use. If the functions are normal, there shouldn’t be any problems with the training design.”
“Got it.”
Immediately upon arrival, I went around checking the facilities at each point the team had inspected to ensure there were no issues. Seeing them firsthand, I could visualize the scenarios that could be created during training and how the personnel would move based on the situation.
While I was discussing the training design with the members of Team 1, Esmeralda followed from afar, inspecting the facilities without saying anything.
She was letting me handle everything, giving me free rein.
“Is the training underway?”
“Yeah. Today is the training day, so they’ll probably continue until sunset.”
“They must be working hard.”
If we had planned our schedule more flexibly, we could have waited until other teams weren’t training to check things more calmly, but unfortunately, I didn’t have the luxury of time.
From a distance, I could hear the noisy sounds indicating that the training was quite intense. The Seoul branch’s training isn’t usually this intense, so perhaps pushing it harder wouldn’t be a bad idea.
“Let’s keep checking. We shouldn’t interfere with their training.”
Since we had entered an already scheduled area, we couldn’t afford to cause any disruption. Moving hurriedly, the sun set quickly.
Perhaps because it was winter. The daylight was short, and despite the rush, I managed to check everything I needed to.
“Hello?”
When we finished tidying up at the training ground, one member of Team 1 stepped aside to take a call, and the remaining members collected the documents separately.
Similarly, I gathered the necessary documents from Esmeralda’s car and sorted them separately. Esmeralda was organizing the mock training equipment she had tested.
“Esmeralda, shall we go?”
“Sure.”
We got ready to move to our accommodation and boarded the car. The accommodation was about 30 minutes away by car, so it wasn’t exactly close.
The minivan members also planned to head to the accommodation once they were done, and Esmeralda and I left first.
“Hmm?”
While we were moving, Esmeralda’s smartphone rang. The name on the screen was one of the members of Team 1 who had come with us, and I looked at her to see how she would handle the call.
“Can you hold it to your ear?”
“Sure.”
Unable to stop driving, she handed me the phone, and I placed it next to her ear.
“Uh? What’s going on?”
I could hear her voice faintly through the phone.
Esmeralda’s expression wasn’t great as she answered the call.
“Yeah, so tomorrow? In the morning? Alright. Thanks for the hard work.”
The call ended, and Esmeralda removed the phone from her ear and put it down.
“What happened?”
“One of the mock training devices is malfunctioning. It was fine until we left. Also, some documents are missing.”
“What did you do about it?”
“There’s only one day left for inspection. We’re returning to headquarters today and will bring the documents tomorrow morning.”
“That must be tiring.”
“They decided to do it themselves, so I agreed.”
It wasn’t a problem to ask someone at headquarters to relay the message.
From our interactions, it was clear that they had a strong sense of responsibility for their work.
“The room is a big one. You’ll have a spacious room to yourself.”
“Indeed.”
Since we were checking a place for the entire branch, we had booked a large room, as I heard.
It seemed fortunate that there wouldn’t be any awkward moments with the male members of Team 1 in the same room.
Thus, we moved to the accommodation in Esmeralda’s car.
“Yes, Esmeralda. Room 308, correct?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
After receiving the room card, I stood in front of the counter to get my own card, and the staff looked puzzled.
“Hmm… The reservation for Esmeralda is only for room 308.”
“Huh?”
Curious, I looked at Esmeralda. She also looked surprised, widening her eyes, and immediately asked the staff to confirm the booking.
“The reservation was for rooms 308 and 408, two rooms.”
“Yes, but room 408 was canceled a little while ago.”
…… Esmeralda and I looked at each other, stunned by the staff’s words.
