" ꜱᴏᴍᴇᴛɪᴍᴇꜱ ᴀʟʟ ɪᴛ ᴛᴀᴋᴇꜱ ɪꜱ ᴏɴᴇ ᴘᴇʀꜱᴏɴ ᴛᴏ ᴍᴀᴋᴇ ᴏʀ ʙʀᴇᴀᴋ ʏᴏᴜ. "
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Seo-Yun sat on the edge of the rooftop, her feet dangling just off the edge. White clouds of smoke escaped her lips as she exhaled the toxins, the woman hummed a calming tune to herself as she stared at the view in front of her.
"Even as a reaper, you shouldn't have those," Joong-Gil spoke from behind her. Seo-Yun rolled her eyes and took another drag, she turned her head to the side when he sat down beside her she reached into her coat pocket and took out the rectangular packet.
"Want one?" Seo-Yun offered, Joong-Gil stared at the packet for a moment before reaching out and grabbing one. Seo-Yun silently handed him the lighter before looking back at the busy city.
"I'll never get over how much it's changed." She mumbled, she missed the countless woods, the hills and the lushes green fields but all the buildings and lights were beautiful too. Joong-Gil hummed as he took a drag of his own cigarette, the two sat in silence for a while before Seo-Yun remember something.
"Have we been able to find the missing soul? Heo Na-young?" Seo-Yun asked, Joong-Gil let out an annoyed sigh and shook his head.
"I have Jae-Hee and Soo-In looking for the soul." Seo-Yun nodded and put out her cigarette, she stood up and dusted off her clothes before looking down at Joong-Gil.
"Then let's get back to work," Seo-Yun said, Joong-Gil looked down to hide his minuscule smirk before copying her actions and standing up.
"I've just received a message from Jae-Hee. She's found a lead for the missing soul." Seo-Yun nodded firmly and turned to two members of their team.
"Have your reports to me by the end of the day." She ordered as she stood up from her chair. The two men nodded and bowed before hastily making their way out of the office, leaving Seo-Yun and Joong-Gil remaining. Seo-Yun slipped on her pristine blazer and tightened her leather gloves before peering at her partner with sharp eyes.
"Let's go then. This soul has already caused us enough trouble." She muttered. The two transported to Jae-Hee and Soo-In's current location only to see two familiar figures standing with their co-workers, Seo-Yun took a deep breath and clenched her jaw.
Why is it always them? She thought to herself, her annoyance and frustration growing. Seo-Yun ignored the pointed look Joong-Gil threw her and continued to walk towards them.
"She said she saw the runaway soul but doesn't know where she is." Jae-Hee informed her two superiors, however, Seo-Yun knew that was far from the truth. Her patience was wearing thin, she admired the two in front of her but right now they are interfering with her job. And that was pissing her off.
"She once worked in the Escort Team. She knows very well what I'll do if she doesn't hand over the soul." Joong-Gil said, he stared down at Ryeon with cold eyes.
"Surely she hasn't hidden her away. Isn't that right, Team Manager Koo?" He continued, never once taking his eyes off of her.
"As you can see, I'm in the business of saving people now and she's related to our case. We can't just hand her over." Koo Ryeon spoke. Seo-Yun clenched her jaw and took a breath, her patience was really running thin now.
"How arrogant of you." Joong-Gil snarled before pinning Ryeon to the wall by her throat. Seo-Yun turned to them but made no move to interfere.
"I seem to remember you as being quiet, but I see you've become needlessly chatty." Joong-Gil said to Ryeon who struggled against his grip.
"I only said what needed to be said." Ryeon reported and usually Seo-Yun would admire the other woman's confidence, but now all Seo-Yun wanted Ryeon to do was to shut up and just give them the soul.
"If you keep getting in the way, I won't hold back next time." He held his position for a long moment before he withdrew his hand away from Ryeon's throat. Seo-Yun turned to Jae-Hee and Soo-In.
"Get more personnel here and comb through the area. I want the soul found." Seo-Yun gritted through her teeth before walking away. Missing the way Ryung-Gu looked at her.
"Yes ma'am." Soo-In and Jae-Hee bowed as Seo-Yun and Joong-Gil walked away.
"I'm staying here." Seo-Yun said suddenly, Joongi-Gil looked at her with a raised brow but nodded silently before disappearing. Seo-Yun clenched her fists and puffed out a breath if there was anything she knew about the Risk Management Team and its members. It was that they always kept track of their cases, meaning they definitely knew where Heo Na-young is.
Seo-Yun pulled out her phone and quickly dialled a specific number.
"Lee Sang-Yeob. I need you and your partners here now."
"Of course Ma'am."
It had only taken the group seconds to appear in front of Seo-Yun, they all bowed to her in greeting. Seo-Yun gave Sang-Yeob her tablet which displayed Ryung-Gu's tracker.
"Follow him and capture Heo Na-young." She ordered Sang-Yeob who had always had a dislike for Seo-Yun bit his tongue. He may dislike her, but she is his superior.
"And for fucks sake. Do not lose Heo Na-young." Sang-Yeob and his partners bowed and disappeared from her sight. Seo-Yun pulled her phone out and pulled up the identical tracker, the reaper sighed and walked forward following the little red dot on her screen.
It had only been an hour before their hunt for the Risk Management Team and Heo Na-young had begun. Seo-Yun growing more and more pissed off with every passing minute, she knew they were just doing their job like her. But for fuck sake did they have to make her's harder?
"Would you look at that? I told you something was off right around here." Sang-Yeob's voice broke Seo-Yun out of her inner anger and she looked down to see Koo Ryeon, Jun-Woong, Ryung-Gu and Heo Na-young standing in front of her Sang-Yeob and his partners. She made no move to interfere with them just yet and watched the scene play out from above.
"Mr Lim. Can you hold them off?" Ryeon asked, Ryung-Gu nodded.
"Of course." He replied before walking forward and cracking his knuckles. Seo-Yun continued to watch Ryung-Gu as the other three ran away, she knew they wouldn't get too far. Seo-Yun watched as they began to fight and she let out a groan of annoyance because, within moments, all of them were on their asses.
"Fucking useless," Seo-Yun swore before teleporting behind the group who laid on the floor groaning in pain.
"Ms Yo." Ryung-Gu greeted casually, and Seo-Yun clenched her jaw. She stared Sang-Yobe down with dark eyes just before he and the others disappeared before looking back at Ryung-Gu.
"Were they the best you could send?" Ryung-Gu asked, Seo-Yun rolled her eyes and cracked her neck.
"You think I'd be here if they were." Seo-Yun sighed and loosened her tie with one leather-clad hand, she stared at the man in front of her.
"Are you really going to make me fight you?" She asked in annoyance, Ryung-Gu let out a breath and shook his head.
"As much as I would love to, you have to us handle Heo Na-young." Seo-Yun's anger and frustration flared and within a millisecond she had Ryung-Gu pinned against the wall. Her hands roughly gripped the collar of his jacket.
"Why should I? all You're doing is causing more trouble for me." She gritted out, Ryung-Gu clenched his jaw before roughly shoving her hands off him and turning them around, now effectively pinning Seo-Yun to the wall. One of his hands holding both of hers above her head, while Ryung-Gu's other hand laid on the concrete wall beside her head. Seo-Yun glared daggers into his eyes.
"Ms Yo. Heo Na-young is the only one who can save her husband. Our case." Ryung-Gu said, Seo-Yun pursed her lips and stared at him. His hair fell in front of his eyes, making them seem darker than usual.
"If we don't get her to him in time, he will die and the string of fate connecting them will be severed forever." He continued, Seo-Yun stayed still and silent. She remembered how distressed and sad Heo Na-young was when she first passed, Seo-Yun remember how she desperately tried to communicate with her heartbroken husband who knelt at her bedside.
Seo-Yun truly felt for the woman. But her job was to escort Heo Na-young, she had no responsibility for Na-young's living husband nor what happens to him.
Seo-Yun closed her eyes in frustration and laid her head against the wall behind her. She let out a heavy sigh and looked to Ryung-Gu, she emotionlessly blinked at him and gestured her eyes to her hands which he still had pinned above her head. Ryung-Gu slowly let go of her wrists and took a small step back, enough that he now felt the cold air causing goosebumps to appear on his arm. A part of him suddenly missed the warmth of her body.
"I better not run into you again." Seo-Yun spoke, causing Ryung-Gu's eyes to snap to her own. Seo-Yun let out a sigh of defeat and pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Once she saves him. If. she can save him. She comes with us immediately. But until then...I better not run into any of you, because if I do," Seo-Yun paused and looked at the man with a fierce gaze.
"I won't go easy on any of you." Seo-Yun finished. Ryung-Gu said nothing as he looked down at the woman, Seo-Yun sighed in annoyance and jerked her head to the side.
"Go. Before I change my mind and teach you a lesson for pinning me against the wall." Ryung-Gu couldn't help the small smirk from appearing as he leaned closer to the shorter woman.
"Teach me a lesson huh?" he asked lowly, looking at the woman. Seo-Yun rolled her eyes and gave him a hard glare.
"Go." Seo-Yun repeated and for once, Ryung-Gu listened to her and disappeared. Seo-Yun threw her head back and groaned in frustration.
"Joong-Gil's going to have my head if he ever finds out." Seo-Yun muttered to herself. Seo-Yun smoothed out her clothes before teleporting to Joong-Gil's location.
When Seo-Yun appeared Joong-Gil had already cornered Ryeon, Jun-Woong, Ryung-Gu and Na-young. Seo-Yun cursed inwardly and stood beside Joong-Gil, she turned her head to see Ryung-Gu looking at her already his eyes pleading her to buy them more time. But it seemed as though Ryeon was already a step ahead of her.
"A Reaper's Guarantee of Responsibility. Would that do?" Ryeon offered to Joong-Gil. Seo-Yun stepped forward.
"A Reaper's Guarantee of Responsibility...All to save a single suicide risk case?" Joong-Gil said, Ryeon nodded slightly.
"Under the condition that she doesn't leave the hospital for the next 12 hours." Joong-Gil shook his head he was about to speak but Seo-Yun bet him to it.
"No. You have 2 hours." Joong-Gil glanced at her and gave a single nod, with that Seo-Yun, Koo Ryeon and Joong-Gil disappeared.
The three heads stood around the table, Seo-Yun next to Joong-Gil as Ryeon was across from them.
"I hope this is worth it Ms Koo." Seo-Yun said as she slowly took off her glove and rolled up her sleeve slightly, revealing her pale scarred hand and the single red thread wrapped around her wrist. Joong-Gil slid the younger woman the tablet and she signed her name. Seo-Yun noticed both the older reapers glancing at her ungloved hand and quickly put her glove back on her hand and rolled her sleeve back down.
Without a word, Seo-Yun transported back to the hospital and found Jun-Woong, Na-young and Ryung-Gu where they had left them. Seo-Yun stared at the soul for a long moment and took a step forward, causing Na-young to step behind Jun-Woong.
"You're lucky to have 2 hours Mrs Heo Na-Young. A word of advice, I would do whatever it takes to save your husband because Ms Koo just sacrificed a lot to get you time." Seo-Yun said, she a step closer and Ryung-Gu stood in front of her and with his hand on her shoulder he held her back from taking another step.
Seo-Yun never took her eyes off Na-young who cowered back at the reaper's gaze.
"2 hours Mr Lim, that's all I offered you. Make it worth it." Ryung-Gu clenched his jaw but nodded, Seo-Yun shrugged his hand off her shoulder.
"Now go do your job, and make sure he stays alive." With that, Seo-Yun walked away.
The clock was ticking.