Crunch—
Walking home, stepping on the freshly fallen white snow, Do Ihyun watched a video sent by his friends.
It showed Dana and Ban Eunhyeol eliminating monsters in front of a beautifully decorated department store for Christmas.
Only the two of them appeared in the video—no one else.
“So, they met just the two of them.”
Ban Eunhyeol took the initiative to attack the monsters bursting out of the gate, while Dana handled the ones slipping through the cracks.
Watching the two of them work in perfect harmony, his fingers moved unconsciously.
He hadn’t kept in touch much lately, and his inbox was empty, so he typed a message and sent it to Dana.
[Let’s hang out before the New Year.]
After sending it, he felt like a jealous friend annoyed that Dana was spending time with someone else.
‘Did I send that for no reason?’
He regretted it, but the message had already been sent.
There was no quick way to delete or recall it. With a long sigh, he put his phone in his pocket.
Just then, it vibrated, and he immediately pulled it out.
[It’s so boring without you ᅲ_ᅲ Are you still working? – Cheerful]
It wasn’t Dana’s reply.
His eyes, which had briefly lit up, returned to their usual blank and drowsy gaze.
Originally, he had planned to spend Christmas with his friends, but there was something he absolutely had to handle, so he couldn’t join them.
A few days ago, on the day of the regular Hunter Association meeting, Lee Hwan had called him out separately, saying he had something to ask.
Since they rarely talked, he had no idea what to expect.
But unexpectedly, the words that came out of Lee Hwan’s mouth were startling.
“We’re currently investigating the Phantom Hunter. Do you know anything about the Phantom Hunter?”
Out of the blue, he was asked if he knew about the Phantom Hunter.
It felt suspicious—why start an investigation now when the Phantom Hunter had stopped activities long ago?
So he said he didn’t know.
Lee Hwan then asked if he was sure, whether he had ever seen the Phantom Hunter, and showed him a video.
It was CCTV footage filming a familiar residential alley.
The camera clearly caught Dana’s back as she entered a gate behind a telephone pole, followed closely by his own figure a short distance behind her.
His expression after watching the video was unchanged.
He didn’t blink in surprise or look at Lee Hwan in shock.
‘Can’t let it slip.’
He was certain Lee Hwan knew more and had called him out because of it.
Though he rarely showed it, the fact that it involved Dana almost made him lose his composure for a moment.
Barely hiding it, he maintained his usual expression and lightly deflected Lee Hwan’s following questions.
“…Understood. Thank you for your cooperation.”
When repeatedly asked about Dana’s stature, he kept answering simply that she was small, until Lee Hwan gave up.
Watching Lee Hwan leave, Do Ihyun turned his head absentmindedly—and spotted Dana.
She didn’t look well.
‘Is she like this because she’s afraid the Phantom Hunter identity might be discovered?’
While worrying about Dana, Do Ihyun thought more about the Phantom Hunter.
He didn’t know why the Dungeon Administration Bureau had started investigating the Phantom Hunter so late, but he didn’t want Dana to be exposed, especially since she wanted to hide it so badly.
Moreover, after responding to Sagong Arin’s summons, he had received unexpected news.
It was highly likely that Phantom Hunter and Nada were the same person, and if they found out about Phantom Hunter, they could also uncover who Nada was.
“So, if you remember anything that could be a clue, tell me everything! Team Leader Lee Hwan came back empty-handed, but I’m not giving up.”
They’d even found out that Phantom Hunter and Nada were one and the same.
If he said anything wrong, Dana’s identity would be at risk of exposure.
So he kept pretending not to know and completely shattered Sagong Arin’s hopes.
He made it clear he had not a speck of useful information to offer.
“Really don’t know anything? Haven’t seen much? Really?”
Sagong Arin kept asking insistently, disbelief evident in her voice, but he stressed once again that all he’d seen was the back of Phantom Hunter before going in.
That was just yesterday, Christmas Eve.
She had postponed her date with Eunhasu in determination to uncover Phantom Hunter and Nada’s identities, but seemed disappointed to come away empty-handed.
But that was none of Do Ihyun’s concern.
His focus was only one thing—Dana’s safety.
Leaving a sulking Sagong Arin behind, he made a small plan.
He would check how much the Dungeon Administration Bureau had learned about Dana, share any information close to her identity with her, and find a way to erase the records—helping her however he could.
So on a quiet day when the director’s office was empty, he sneaked in using stealth.
It took a long time to sift through the towering piles of documents, and he didn’t leave until evening.
Spending Christmas alone buried in paperwork wasn’t a waste. Christmas came every year, and he could enjoy the next one happily.
Protecting Dana was far more important than the annual holiday.
His mind was filled only with Dana.
Right after leaving, the first thing he saw was a video of Dana and Ban Eunhyeol resolving the Dungeon Break incident together.
[If you’re done, come hang out with us >_< – Kang Yedam]
Checking the message he just received, Do Ihyun hesitated for a moment.
Half of him wanted to interrupt the date, the other half didn’t want to be disliked by Dana.
But no matter what, it was clear he wouldn’t get to spend time alone with her.
‘Maybe I’ll hang out a little.’
Normally, he would have told them to have fun on their own and gone home, but today, for some reason, he felt like he had to at least spend some time with his friends.
He changed direction and walked toward where his friends were gathered.
***
Unexpected information came to light.
I carefully examined every photo Do Ihyun showed me.
All were details the Dungeon Administration Bureau had gathered in their investigation of me.
His photo album was full of the maximum analyzed information they could collect about the Phantom Hunter and the hooded girl.
“No way—they even found out my shoe size and hand size?”
It seemed to be an educated guess based on how many people had filmed my videos when I first became the hooded girl after possession.
But I hadn’t expected them to measure shoe size from footage.
I was glad I had thoroughly hidden every strand of hair.
“Eunhasu’s girlfriend said the director is obsessed with uncovering Nada’s identity.”
“You met Sagong Arin too?”
“Yeah, she called me over.”
“What did you talk about?”
“Curious?”
Do Ihyun told me everything he and Sagong Arin had discussed.
The more I heard, the more I realized how much she had tried to extract even a scrap of information—and how perfectly Do Ihyun had shut her down.
“What will you do now?”
Taking my phone, Do Ihyun looked me in the eyes and asked.
“If it’s something I need to do, I’ll help however I can.”
I hesitated, lost in thought, and he added a word.
I felt an indescribable gratitude.
It was impressive enough that he had snuck into the director’s office to gather information, but to share it all with me and even offer future help was overwhelming.
I even thought it was fortunate that Do Ihyun was the one who had been discovered.
I trusted him completely to be a reliable help.
“Thanks. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have known how far the investigation had progressed. You’re the only one. Your true stealth skill is useful at times like this.”
I envied his skill a little—it wasn’t easy to sneak into the director’s office, where hunters were always bustling about, without getting caught.
To steal information and rarely get caught afterward made his skill enviable.
“What should I do about this?”
Should I just barge into the director’s office, rip out the files and computer hardware, and take everything?
Take all the information Sagong Arin found and warn them that if they investigate me, they could lose everything.
That alone might be enough to threaten them.
But I was worried I might unintentionally leave clues about my identity if I acted recklessly.
Especially since I had no idea how Sagong Arin’s skill worked to extract information, I couldn’t move carelessly.
But a few days later, that worry became unnecessary.
***
The day before I turned nineteen, December 31.
Originally, I had no special plans and was going to spend the New Year with my parents.
‘Why is the house so crowded…?’
I stared blankly at the Four Heavenly Kings and Yeon Ha-yeon sitting in the living room with my parents.
I never imagined we’d all spend the last day of the year together at our house.
I went back to check the group chat I had missed earlier.
While I wasn’t paying attention, talk of New Year’s gifts came up, and plans to meet today were made.
[Han Ji-bin: Let’s meet today! I want to do the countdown and have fun >< Yeon Ha-yeon: I’m already on my way to Dana’s Han Ji-bin: What? Are you two planning to hang out without us? ᅲᅲ
Yeon Ha-yeon: I bought a New Year’s gift
Eunhasu: Gift? Then how about we all exchange gifts together?
Ban Eunhyeol: What gift? Picking one is a hassle -_-^
Ji Ganghan: He’s already picked one]
Then the friends showed up at the house.
Yeon Ha-yeon said he wanted to give a New Year’s gift and would stop by briefly.
When the doorbell rang, I opened it—and was shocked to see even the Four Heavenly Kings there.
My parents welcomed the friends warmly and urged them inside, and the friends said they’d stay just for a bit before leaving, then streamed in.
“Since you’re here, stay for the countdown. It’s a good memory to welcome the New Year with friends.”
“Yeah, we’ll explain everything to your parents.”
We planned to spend a little time and then send them home, but my parents’ suggestion excited the friends, and they agreed to stay for the countdown.
That’s why everyone was gathered in the living room.
“Oh right, we have to open gifts!”
At that moment, Yeon Ha-yeon brought out a large paper bag—the one he had carried when coming over.
Then the Four Heavenly Kings pulled out paper bags too, as if they had hidden them somewhere.