Waking up under an unfamiliar ceiling was not a pleasant experience for Ha-hyeon. He had fought a life-and-death battle against his older brother, Ha-eun, who had abandoned the family and left.

  However, he had been subdued before even seeing the end of the fight. Ha-hyeon couldn't recall at all what had taken him down. The only thing he could remember was that the fight had been brutal. His rage toward his brother had made him swing his fists without a moment's hesitation.

  It was a natural reaction. At the very least, Ha-hyeon believed he had the right to feel that way. Probably any ordinary person wouldn't deny that.

  Ever since his brother fell into that pseudo-cult, their family had been torn apart. His parents collapsed from the shock, and because of that, he could no longer live the life he once had. It was not unrelated to the fact that he ended up doing things he shouldn't have just to earn money for hospital bills. Ha-hyeon never once thought his life would turn out like this because of a single family member, but fate flowed that way regardless of his will.

  Purchasing a Tool was an extension of that. As organizations collapsed recently, all the local punks swarmed in to fill the void, claiming they would make something of themselves. Ha-hyeon also wanted to grab a piece of the action. Since he hadn't been good at studying anyway, doing something shady was just one of the available options.

  Of course, he knew it was wrong. But what was he supposed to do? No one was paying for his parents' medicine. Even if things went wrong, it couldn't be helped. To make money, people sometimes have to cross the line. And if you get what you want by crossing that line, it's not a bad thing. At least looking back at Ha-hyeon's life, that wasn't particularly strange.

  So what if he did a little stealing or mugging? If he got the money and solved his immediate problems, that was that. Had any of those people who preached about such a life being wrong ever helped him with his hardships? Self-righteous talk meant nothing to Ha-hyeon. Thus, he wasn't surprised when his friends suggested they do something big. It was dangerous, but they could make a lot of money.

  So buying the Tools this time was fine, but Ha-hyeon never imagined that the bastards he went in with would all go berserk. It was great when they were laughing and cheering after the implantation. But no one expected them all to go berserk while messing around during a simple test to get used to the power.

  It was unfair. They hadn't even used them properly yet. No one expected them to get angry and start a fight just from bumping into each other. Of course, thinking back, it wasn't surprising since they all had short tempers. They were guys who would pick a fight and beat someone up for the slightest contact; once they were in an exalted state from the Tools, there was no stopping them.

  The problem started there. Ha-hyeon knew well enough that things got messy when one was consumed by the power of a Tool. How many times had the city been thrown into chaos because of that? Ha-hyeon never expected he would ever have a connection with such items that caused those problems.

  But the incident happened, and people swarmed in. The only difference was that they weren't the police. What followed was one-sided violence. Ha-hyeon’s friends were completely crushed by it.

  If Ha-hyeon had received the same thing as his friends, his fate might have been the same. However, he had received something a bit special when he bought the Tools with them. It was something the seller had picked out for a different reason. He didn't know what it was, but they said it had lower performance than his friends' Tools but higher stability. Ha-hyeon didn't know what that meant at the time.

  True to the claim of high stability, he didn't lose his reason even when using the Tool. Considering that his friends, who had lost their minds, were all unilaterally beaten by his brother—who had shown up instead of the police—there clearly was a big difference.

  But what did it matter? In the end, he had been captured and brought here. Everything would end with him taking responsibility in one way or another. Ha-hyeon let out a small sigh. Perhaps it was because of the many emotions flooding back as the events so far slowly returned to him.

  Still, it wasn't all bad. Seeing his brother alive after so long was, in a sense, a relief. Although, more than relief, a surge of anger welled up inside him. Moreover, his friends had all ended up in a state where it was unknown whether they were dead or alive at his brother's hands. Ha-hyeon couldn't understand how a human body could make such sounds.

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  But until Ha-hyeon moved, those who had gone berserk were beaten into a pulp, just barely short of death. And only Ha-hyeon remained. Thanks to that, they traded blows. His head was filled only with the thought that he would die if he didn't kill, and Ha-hyeon fought accordingly. Even so, the punch he threw at his brother had provided him with a thrill of pleasure.

  Getting hit hurts, but hitting feels good. Amidst those conflicting emotions, Ha-hyeon fought mindlessly. Between hitting and getting hit, a moment came when he couldn't think of anything else. Then he only remembered that the ground suddenly collapsed, he couldn't move, and he lost consciousness following a powerful impact.

  "Ugh..."

  His head throbbed. He didn't know exactly what had happened, but he felt as if his head were splitting open. He didn't know if it was an aftereffect from when he lost consciousness. Yet, on the other hand, Ha-hyeon thought about the fact that all the destruction he had caused was real.

  Of course, he hadn't cared at all while fighting. He hadn't had the luxury to worry about such details then. But now that the pain brought the reality of it all home, Ha-hyeon began to feel fear.

  Compensation.

  How was he going to compensate for everything he and his brother had destroyed during their brawl? It wasn't just one or two things he had broken. Cars, roads, streetlights, windows... the more he thought about it, the more overwhelmed he felt. It would be one thing if there were no CCTV. Or if the police hadn't come, he might have been able to let it slide.

  But this place was clearly related to the police. If not, he wouldn't have received treatment at all, especially considering he was a dangerous entity. Thinking that way actually made him lose heart. He couldn't escape anyway. If so, just staying like this wouldn't be bad. He was worried about his parents, but what could he do?

  "Ha..."

  Sighing, Ha-hyeon just stared blankly at the ceiling. Just then, the door opened and someone walked in. When he turned his head, there wasn't just one person, but two. One was an ordinary human, and the other was the man in the hood, known as the city's hero.

  "Kim Ha-hyeon. Suspect in this incident."

  The man who looked like an ordinary human spoke while looking at Ha-hyeon. Ha-hyeon quickly realized he had to take back the thought of him being an ordinary man. This man was no ordinary man. If he were wearing a suit, one might think of him as just an office worker or an annoying cop, but you could tell by his eyes. That man had clearly been through several bloodbaths—the most terrible ones at that.

  Ha-hyeon decided it might be dangerous to talk nonsense to such a man. He made up his mind not to provoke him on purpose. Of course, if it were a one-on-one fight, Ha-hyeon would definitely win. But it was also clear that there would be no "afterwards." And he couldn't even fight one-on-one. The man in the hood was already a famous hero.

  Through some unknown power, he had resolved numerous rampage incidents caused by Tools. His power was bottomless, and even the friends who bought the Tools acknowledged it: if you get caught by him, it's over. If that man was there, nothing would work. Rather than suffering for resisting, his only hope was to survive safely.

  "Do you remember? What you did?"

  The man in the suit—likely an investigator—asked. His voice was cold. Ha-hyeon couldn't decide what to say to that yet.

  "Not to mention the destruction of the city, many people were injured. Including the issue of compensation, you have more than one or two things to take responsibility for," the man in the suit said.

  Ha-hyeon felt as if his mind were going distant at those words. "I have no money. I have no way to solve this other than going to prison. You know, don't you? There's nothing a person like me can do."

  Ha-hyeon's words contained some truth. However, the two men seemed to already know that and showed little reaction.

  "Then you can just pay it off with your body, can't you?"

  The man in the hood, who had been silent until then, spoke. Ha-hyeon wore an expression that showed he couldn't understand what that meant. But the man in the hood continued.

  "With the mess you've made, you're stuck no matter what you do, right? So try working under the police. It wouldn't be bad to pay back the debt for the trouble you caused."

  At the suggestion of working under the police to pay off his debt, Ha-hyeon's expression showed he didn't know how to respond. To him, the police had only been a place he ended up after getting into trouble. Working under the police was something he never expected.

  "You'll want to beat up your brother again anyway, right? I think it's a pretty good offer."

  Brother.

  The moment he heard that word, Ha-hyeon's expression changed. There was a sense of despair in his eyes as if he had given up everything, but with that single word, it was all erased.

  "Did you say my brother?"

  The men nodded at Ha-hyeon's question. At that, Ha-hyeon couldn't control his emotions and bent the iron part of the bed.

  "Calm down. The moment you can't control yourself, I'll rip out the implanted Tool."

  Rip out the Tool. He didn't fully understand what that meant, but Ha-hyeon felt a chill nonetheless. He could tell that the hooded man's words weren't just a simple threat. Ha-hyeon knew well that he had nothing to gain by being aggressive here. He could tell they wanted to use him as their tool for various reasons.

  Then he had to make a choice.

  "Then tell me the conditions. Since things have turned out this way..."

  Ha-hyeon sighed as he spoke. Then the two smiled and told him what he had to do from now on and what the state would provide.

  "Then I'll do that."

  Ha-hyeon spoke and chose his new job. Expecting it to be much better than before, he chose his path with a half-resigned attitude.

  "Welcome. We'll tell you what you need from now on, so focus on your treatment for now," the man in the suit said, welcoming him.

  Thus, Ha-hyeon's life changed once again.