The news continued to report on Cheol-min. It was a sensational story, so it was bound to be noisy. However, the Boss focused on a piece of news that was far more important to him.

  The downfall of a gang involved in a pyramid scheme.

  The Boss knew better than anyone what that meant. It meant that the organization that had been getting on his nerves recently was collapsing.

  For the Boss, the fall of a rival organization was never a bad thing. As always, when the size of the pie is fixed, the fewer the competitors, the more there is to eat.

  Of course, now that he was trying to move away from purely illegal activities and expand his business by walking the line between legal and illegal, he still needed those guys to offload the "dirty" work.

  Holding onto dirty business while transitioning to legal enterprises often turned into a blade that pointed back at you. And once that blade struck, the entire business could crumble in an instant.

  Therefore, those who handled the dirty work were necessary for cleaning up the books. In that sense, the pyramid scheme gang were rivals, but they were kept around for a reason.

  Yet, there was a limit to everything.

  Expanding business and making money was all well and good. But if they crossed the line, the police would shake up every business the gangs had built.

  That had to be avoided at all costs. Despite this, those fools couldn't even manage their own leader's son properly.

  The Boss was well aware that they had already become a company of interest due to excessive expansion, even though they knew attracting police attention was a nuisance.

  It just so happened that their building was near the Boss’s place of business, so he couldn't help but be concerned.

  When he heard that they had touched Jihyeon’s acquaintance, the Boss felt a sense of frustration. Fortunately, it was over now, but it had been a source of indigestion for a while.

  Still, thanks to that, competition had decreased, so he could see more profit in the legal sector. He wouldn't have thought this way before, but as he aged, he couldn't help but think of things that would last longer.

  Knock, knock-knock-knock.

  It was then.

  An unexpected guest had arrived. Judging by the pattern of the knock, it seemed to be business-related.

  "Come in," the Boss said, turning around and straightening his posture.

  The door opened, and a subordinate entered with a woman.

  "Nice to meet you. I am Ha So-young."

  The woman, dressed in a suit, introduced herself as she stepped inside. At a glance, she looked like an ordinary insurance salesperson.

  But the fact that his subordinates had let her in meant there was definitely something about her. The Boss greeted her with interest and began to listen to her story.

  A moment later, the Boss reacted.

  "Interesting. So this is that thing? The thing those idiots over there used before they went on a rampage. Is that it?"

  The Boss spoke as if he had grasped why she was there. So-young nodded.

  "You know about it. That should make this conversation much faster."

  So-young said, waiting for the Boss’s response.

  "Let's talk more. I'll have to see if this is a viable business or not."

  The Boss smiled. Feeling a sense of intrigue at the fact that it was now their turn, he continued his conversation with So-young.

  Overtime again.

  Investigator Han Seok-young sighed as he tapped on his keyboard. There was a mountain of work to do following the recent pyramid scheme investigation.

  The prosecution would eventually re-examine the finer details, but the basic groundwork was the responsibility of the police.

  The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

  Still, he couldn't help but be exhausted. There was no shortage of troublemakers, and organizing the initial data was all on the police.

  Thanks to that, Seok-young had spent the entire day investigating those involved with the pyramid scheme. Documents created from his labor now covered his desk.

  Even though his shift had ended long ago, Seok-young had to continue reviewing and verifying the materials.

  "It's incredible. How did they get this much data..."

  Seok-young sighed. Looking at the testimonies that matched the data on his computer, he felt a chill.

  He didn't know who had sent it. But the content within the folder and txt files that had appeared on his desktop was beyond shocking.

  Perfectly organized data.

  It contained every corruption within that pyramid scheme company. It even included fatal details that people who had investigated for years wouldn't know.

  But that wasn't all.

  The additional data that arrived included information on something called "tools."

  Tools.

  Items made with technology from another world that allowed users to wield supernatural powers.

  Of course, it wasn't an official name—the creator of the information noted, "I call them tools"—but regardless of the name, the material was filled with incredibly valuable content.

  The police weren't ignorant.

  The recent series of incidents that defied all laws of physics were impossible to understand.

  But if this were true, everything was clearly explained. Of course, the person who sent the data stated they did not know the purpose of the creators.

  The information was likely all true.

  Breaking through the police security network to send such content was an amazing feat in itself. Seok-young knew that after the incident with the man named Cheol-min, no one in the high police command would deny this information.

  But that was exactly why it was a problem.

  Even if they knew this, there was no way to counter it. If asked what should be done, no one could provide an answer.

  Cheol-min was a prime example.

  Just thinking about the number of police cars destroyed made his neck stiff. Throwing passenger cars and flipping buses with bare hands.

  No one would believe such a thing was possible. Even within the police, the vast majority reacted with disbelief even after seeing the CCTV footage.

  But the repair estimates didn't lie.

  Was that all?

  The use of firearms was authorized, and the number of bullets used was not small. The officers' marksmanship also proved that their training was not in vain.

  Yet, the result was disastrous.

  No one would be able to answer how such a thing could happen.

  In a sense, nothing could be more stifling. Seok-young didn't know what they could possibly do in this reality.

  However, it wasn't completely bleak. At least they had obtained one small hint this time.

  "It's just a hunch, but..."

  Seok-young muttered, opening another document file. On it was written a three-syllable name: Jeong Ji-hyeon.

  Class was over. Now it was time to go home. Jihyeon walked out of the classroom, relishing a sense of liberation.

  Nothing had happened for a few days.

  Jihyeon considered that a relief. Thanks to the quiet, he felt a bit closer to his daily routine. Since Min-ah and Sang-il were recovering, there was nothing to worry about for the moment.

  At least for now.

  But he knew well that his daily life was a precarious thing that could collapse at any time.

  Especially when he learned about a woman visiting the Boss’s office, Jihyeon had prepared himself for anything.

  That woman was dangerous.

  The woman he had discovered while looking into the Big Boss's information was someone who sold tools. Someone who distributed tools in various forms across different places was bound to know the truth or be close to it.

  So, he had searched for her just in case, but all he got was a headache.

  The pain from that time still nagged at Jihyeon’s pride. No one had been able to block Jihyeon before, yet that woman's information was perfectly protected.

  But that fact also told Jihyeon how frightening the opponent was. The inability to search with his abilities meant the opponent was clearly someone related to that other world.

  "Hmm... I wonder what that man is thinking."

  Jihyeon felt a bit of fear at the thought of what the meeting between the Boss and the Salesperson might bring about.

  Sipping a canned coffee from a vending machine, Jihyeon felt his mind becoming complicated.

  Of course, he knew he might be overthinking it. If they also found Jihyeon troublesome and reached a silent agreement not to touch each other, they wouldn't harm one another.

  For now, Jihyeon had no intention of moving unless he or those around him were threatened, simply because it was a hassle. He also didn't have the confidence to live a life like a movie hero, given the limits of what one person could do.

  Moreover, the existence of the object that controlled tool-wielders terrified Jihyeon. If the person holding it tried to dominate him, there would surely be no way to respond.

  "This has become a nuisance..."

  Jihyeon thought, wearing a bitter smile. There was still a mountain of unfinished business. But the feeling that things were becoming more tangled irritated him.

  Perhaps he was overthinking. But Jihyeon felt it couldn't be helped.

  His siblings almost got hurt, his parents almost got hurt. It was also true that people he knew were in danger.

  Even if none of it was his fault, he couldn't help but be concerned. Jihyeon was mindful of his surroundings to the point of obsession.

  "Sigh... Well... I should practice before I go."

  Jihyeon paused his plan to go straight home. Instead, he changed his plan to practice using his abilities more proficiently today.

  There was still time before evening. It wouldn't be bad to break a sweat in the meantime.

  "Thinking about it, I've got a general idea of how to use it... though I still have a long way to go."

  Jihyeon muttered, heading toward his usual spot. It was a perfect place to practice away from others' eyes. He could probably practice without being disturbed.

  However, Jihyeon soon realized he wouldn't be able to practice in peace today. As was his habit, when he turned his head to scan his surroundings, he felt a sense of incongruity.

  Unlike other people, their information wasn't visible. That meant only one thing.

  "Tailing me... how ridiculous."

  Amused yet annoyed by the presence unique to tool-wielders, Jihyeon made up his mind to prepare for guests. Regardless of what they thought, uninvited guests were not welcome.

  With that thought, Jihyeon began to walk slowly up the mountain path. And the uninvited guests followed him at a moderate distance.