The return to the base was silently tense. The satisfaction of having obtained the complete coordinates was tempered by this furtive energetic presence that had vanished too quickly. Do-hyun felt the weight of the unknown gaze like a burn in the back of his skull.
[ANALYSIS OF THE UNKNOWN SIGNATURE - CURRENT...]
[COMPARATION WITH THE ARCHIVES OF THE SYSTEM...]
[RESULT: NO CORRESPONDANCE.]
[Hypothesis: NEW ENTITY OR STRONGLY CAMOUFLED.]
"Are you sure how you felt?" asked Soo-ah for the third time, as they sat around the central table of the HQ. His gaze was that of a falcon, both worried and determined.
"As sure as one can be with senses that are not infallible," Do-hyun replied, his fingers pressing his temples. "He was not a vampire. He wasn't a Bloodline user. It was... something else. Cold. Methodical. Like a scanner."
Min-ho, impassive, was scrolling through data streams on his terminal." No anomalies spotted on the area's public surveillance cameras. No massive energy signal either. If this entity exists, it is extremely discreet."
"Or she knows exactly how to avoid our detection methods," grumbled Soo-ah. She turned to Do-hyun. "Do you think it's related to the Heart?"
"Everything is connected to the Heart now," Do-hyun sighed. "Kael was right. I shine like a lighthouse. But apparently, I don't just attract vampires."
The revelation was a game-changer. They were no longer just competing with the weakened but still dangerous Purple Dawn Clan, or with the minor clans in search of power. A third actor, unknown and unpredictable, had entered the dance.
"We need to speed up our preparations," said Min-ho, closing his terminal with a sharp click. "Twenty days is short. And now we must anticipate a threat we don't understand."
He deployed the plans for the abandoned Gwanghui-dong metro station that the System had generated from the full coordinates.
[LOCALISATION: GWANGHUI-DONG STATION, LEVEL -4.]
[STATUS: Officially closed since 1997.] BARRIAD ACCESS.
[ARCHITECTURE: DEEP TUNNELS, CENTRAL QUAI, ANCENT TECHNICAL ROOMS.]
[Environment: High humidity, low light, moderate structural collapse risk.]
[ENERGY ANOMALY DETECTED: STRONG, CYCLIC, IN PHASE WITH THE LUNARY CYCLE.]
The station was an underground labyrinth, a perfect place to hide an artifact of immense power. But it was also a potential trap. Narrow, confined, with few emergency exits.
"We have to recognize it," Do-hyun announced. "I can't wait for the full moon to discover the terrain."
"Too risky," Min-ho immediately objected. "If the Heart is active in a cycle, entering it out of the window could trigger security mechanisms that we don't know about, or worse, alter its condition."
"Min-ho is right," Soo-ah said. "But we can recognize the higher levels. Mapping accesses, choke points, retreat pathways. And most importantly, establish permanent monitoring of entrances. If our "observer" or others are interested, we will know."
The plan was drawn up: Min-ho would infiltrate levels -1 to -3 within 48 hours, laying down motion, energetic and acoustic sensors. Soo-ah and Do-hyun would mount a remote monitoring rotation from a safe observation point nearby.
Meanwhile, Do-hyun had to focus on his training. Twenty days to prepare to face not only the physical defenses of the place, but also the moral and mental "trial" that his father had spoken of.
The following days fell into an intense and methodical rhythm. The base became a hive of silent activity.
Do-hyun would do a series of sessions in the combat simulator, pushing his abilities to the maximum. He no longer trained only against vampires, but against opponents with unpredictable patterns, against illusions, against scenarios where he had to make impossible choices: save a civilian or neutralize a priority target, use a corrosive power to win quickly or stay within ethical limits at the risk of his life.
[COMPETENCE: COMBAT INSTINT - LEVEL 3]
[COMPETENCE: LIGHT LAME - 95% MASTERY]
[New Unlocked Capacity: Mobile Light Shield - Can be deployed over short distances to protect an ally.]
Min-ho returned from his reconnaissance mission with valuable data. The upper levels of the station were relatively safe, though dilapidated. He had spotted two main accesses to level -4: a service elevator with a rusty cable and an emergency staircase obstructed by rubble but passable. He had also laid down his network of sensors. No trace of the unknown observer.
Soo-ah, on the other hand, exploited his contacts in the world of Bloodline users. Rumors were circulating. The Purple Dawn Clan was recomposed, not around a new single master, but with a more prudent, more methodical council of five elders. They had not forgotten Do-hyun, but they were preparing for their revenge with disturbing coldness. No information on a third faction.
Yet the sensation of being watched did not leave Do-hyun. Sometimes, when he was in the middle of training, he had the fleeting impression of a presence at the edge of his perception, which disappeared as soon as he concentrated to locate it. It was fun.
A week after their visit to the Comforting Bowl, as Do-hyun was practicing fine-tuning his energy, a discreet alert sounded in the base.
[CAPTOR N°7 - LEVEL -2 - TITLE.]
[TYPE: MOVEMENT.]
[ANALYSIS: NOT HUMAN.] Estimated weight: 70-80 kg. FAST AND SILENCED MOVEMENT.
[NO ASSOCIATED ENERGY SIGNATURE.]
They looked at each other. He wasn't a vampire. Vampires had a signature. It was no ordinary animal - too heavy, too focused.
"The observer," murmured Soo-ah.
Min-ho had already grabbed his equipment. "I'll check."
"No," said Do-hyun, standing up. "He's looking at me. It's up to me to go."
"This is a potential trap," warns Min-ho, pragmatically.
Maybe, "Maybe. But it's also an opportunity. We can't fight an enemy we don't know. I have to see it. Confront him."
Soo-ah wanted to protest, but she saw the determination in her eyes. She knew he was right. "We'll be on the cover. At the slightest alarm..."
"I am disengaging," Do-hyun ended. "Promised."
Twenty minutes later, he silently descended the rusty staircase of a technical building that gave access to the abandoned subway station. Min-ho gave him instructions through the earpiece, guiding his steps to avoid the sensors he had put down himself.
The air was cold and humid, loaded with a musty and rusty smell. The light from his headlamp cut out moving shadows in the dark tunnels. His [Vampire Sense] was activated, but detected nothing but the faint, distant pulsation of the Heart, still veiled, waiting.
[Capture No. 7: 50 meters in front, on the left.]
He turned off his lamp and walked in the dark, his hushed steps over the damp concrete. His eyes quickly became accustomed to the darkness, aided by the system's improved vision.
He reached the area where the sensor had gone off. It was an old control room, filled with consoles covered with tarps and hanging wires. Nothing. No noise, no presence.
"Nothing to report," he whispered into his microphone.
Suddenly, a calm, neutral voice, devoid of any intonation, resounded in the room, coming from everywhere and nowhere at once.
"You're making rapid progress, Kim Do-hyun. Faster than the models predicted."
Do-hyun froze, his heart suddenly beating. He made his Blade of Light appear, whose golden glow brightened the empty room.
"Who are you?" Show up!"
"Direct confrontation is not necessary. I'm not your enemy. Not yet."
The voice was strange, almost synthetic, but with a tinge of living curiosity.
"Why are you following me?"
" Observation. Evaluation. The Phoenix is a new variable in the equation. Its appearance disturbs projections."
"What projections?" asked Do-hyun, turning on himself, trying to locate the source.
"The future. Probability. The coming war."
The coming war? The words chilled Do-hyun's blood.
"Are you with the Purple Dawn Clan?"
A slight laugh, dry and mechanical. "Their concerns are... local. Limited. The conflict between them and humanity is only a prelude."
"So who are you?" insisted Do-hyun, with frustration rising in him.
"I'm a Guardian. An observer. My role is to ensure that the balance is not irretrievably upset. And your existence, Kim Do-hyun, and the artifact you're looking for, represents the greatest threat of instability in centuries."
Do-hyun heard Soo-ah sizzle in his earpiece. "Do-hyun! A massive energy signature appears and disappears, I can't locate it! Get out of here!"
"I'm not looking for war," said Do-hyun, ignoring the warning for now. "I'm trying to protect my family.
"Intentions are often noble. The consequences, rarely. The Heart of the Phoenix is not just a weapon. It's a key. And some doors, once opened, can no longer be closed. Think about it. Is it really worth risking the balance of the world to satiate personal revenge or even to protect a city?"
The voice began to weaken, as if it was moving away.
"We'll meet again. When you have made your choice. Or when fate will force you to do it."
The presence disappeared completely. The room became silent again, inhabited only by the distant drip of water and the panicked heartbeat of Do-hyun.
He stood there for a long time, motionless, the Blade of Light trembling slightly in his hand.
A Guardian. A threat to the balance of the world. The coming war.
The observer's words swirled in his mind, sowing doubt where he had found certainty. Had his parents left him a hope...or a curse far greater than he had imagined?
"Do-hyun! Answer! "Soo-ah's voice was panicked in his earpiece.
"I... I'm coming out," he managed to say, his voice white.
He returned to the surface, his mind boiling. He had gotten answers, but they had only opened up abysses of deeper questions. The race for the Heart was no longer just a personal quest or a fight against vampires.
It was a cosmic chess game. And he had just learned that he was perhaps just a pawn, whose next move could be a game-changer for all of humanity.