Three days after the locker room incident, Daejin High was different.
Not visibly. Classes still ran. Teachers still lectured. Fights still broke out in stairwells between periods.
But something beneath the surface had shifted.
The Grey List was no longer a rumor or a joke.
It was a problem.
And problems attract both predators… and parasites.
---
Scene 1: Observation Room – Crimson Division HQ
Inside the Division's surveillance hub—a small room filled with monitors and data terminals—a new figure leaned back in his chair.
He wore round glasses, a pristine uniform, and a silver lapel pin shaped like a rook.
Kim Ra-on. Nicknamed "Chessmaster." A strategist—but not like Dae-hyun. His world was numbers, threats, and leverage. He didn't fight in arenas—he moved pieces on boards.
> "Shin Dae-hyun…" he murmured, watching the footage from the locker room. "So you've found the Kraken logs."
He pulled out a phone and typed a message:
> "Engage protocol. Send Bait."
---
Scene 2: AV Room – Grey List Headquarters
The AV room was cluttered now. Whiteboards filled with battle plans, paper files, and black-and-white printed records from the Kraken database. The Grey List sat in a loose circle—tired, focused.
> "We're being watched," Dae-hyun said.
Sun-woo rubbed his temples. "We're always being watched."
> "No, not just monitored. Observed. Someone's testing our behavior. Every decision we make shows up on the school forums within hours."
Min-ji flipped through a surveillance map. "So what do we do?"
> "We bait them back."
Tae-yul leaned over the desk, smiling. "How?"
> "We set up a public training demo. Make it look like we're recruiting."
> "But we're not?" Min-ji asked.
> "Exactly. It's bait. Whoever shows up first will tell us who wants in—and who wants in to tear us apart."
---
Scene 3: The Training Demo – South Courtyard
Saturday, 4:30 PM.
The Grey List stood under the cracked basketball hoop, running fake drills and sparring lightly. Curious students gathered around, whispering, filming, pointing.
And then—she appeared.
A new girl. Tall, athletic, long silver-dyed hair tied in a high ponytail. Her uniform was spotless, and her walk was confident. She wore no armband—but her eyes made people move out of her path.
> "That's… Shin Hae-rin," someone whispered. "She just transferred."
> "From Yeonhwa Institute," another murmured. "That's a top-tier private academy. Real elite."
She stepped into the circle without permission.
> "I hear you're recruiting," she said.
Dae-hyun looked her over. Calm posture. Toned arms. Minimal makeup. She didn't look fake. But he knew too much now to trust a pretty face.
> "Depends," he replied. "You looking to train? Or to prove something?"
> "Neither," Hae-rin said. "I want in."
---
Scene 4: Testing Hae-rin
Back at the AV room, Hae-rin sat across from the team, expression cool but unreadable.
> "You've been here one week," Min-ji said. "You've already found us?"
> "You made yourself easy to find," Hae-rin replied.
Sun-woo leaned forward. "What's your fighting style?"
> "Taekkyeon. Modified. But I've sparred in Brazilian jiu-jitsu tournaments too."
> "Why leave Yeonhwa?" Dae-hyun asked.
> "Got bored."
Tae-yul laughed. "No one transfers into Daejin 'cause they're bored. You're hiding something."
Hae-rin met his gaze, unfazed. "I'm not the one with a surveillance folder marked 'unstable psych-profile.'"
Tae-yul blinked. "Touché."
Dae-hyun tapped the desk. "Alright. You get one trial. Sparring. With Min-ji."
Min-ji didn't flinch. "Good. I was getting rusty."
---
Scene 5: The Trial Match – School Rooftop
Rain again. Always rain.
The rooftop had become their unofficial ring.
Min-ji stood in her usual stance—loose, patient, eyes dead calm.
Hae-rin dropped her bag and stretched casually.
> "You sure you want to test me like this?" she asked.
> "Yes," Min-ji said, expression blank.
> "Fine. No regrets."
They moved at the same moment.
Hae-rin swept in low, a spinning kick toward the legs. Fast. Fluid. But Min-ji pivoted, caught her leg mid-air, and turned it into a hip throw.
Hae-rin landed on her feet—just barely—and aimed an elbow at Min-ji's shoulder. Min-ji blocked with her forearm and rolled behind.
The crowd watching held their breath.
This was real.
The girls exchanged a dozen strikes in under a minute—clean, fast, efficient.
Then Hae-rin dropped low, faked a leg sweep, and launched into a modified scissor kick. It clipped Min-ji's head.
She stumbled back. Not hurt—but surprised.
The spar ended.
> "Enough," Dae-hyun said.
Both girls paused, breathing hard but steady.
> "She's good," Min-ji admitted.
> "You're better," Hae-rin said, wiping sweat. "But I'm not far."
---
Scene 6: New Ally, or Snake?
Later that evening, the team reviewed the footage.
Sun-woo was impressed. "She's clean. No ego. All control."
Tae-yul leaned against the window. "Too clean."
Min-ji stayed quiet, arms crossed.
Chan-mi, watching from the corner, finally spoke.
> "She's trained. But not just in fighting. In infiltration."
Dae-hyun looked up.
> "You're saying she's planted?"
> "I'm saying no one that skilled walks into a firestorm without a reason."
> "Then let her stay," Dae-hyun said. "But we don't share everything. Not yet."
> "And if she's bait?" Min-ji asked.
> "Then let's be the trap."
---
Scene 7: The First Crack
Two days later, something happened.
Their surveillance footage was gone.
Every hard drive in the AV room had been wiped. No backups. No security files. No footage from the locker room, no Division 2 data—nothing.
Only one file remained.
A note.
> "Knowledge is leverage. You moved too fast. Consider this your warning. —R."
> "R?" Tae-yul asked.
Dae-hyun stared at the note, knuckles white.
> "Ra-on."
> "Who?"
Chan-mi stepped forward.
> "Kim Ra-on. Division 1 strategist. Higher clearance than anyone else. His reach goes beyond this school."
> "Why erase everything?" Sun-woo asked.
> "Because we've started pulling the thread," Dae-hyun replied. "And someone doesn't want us seeing what unravels."
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Scene 8: Confrontation
That night, Dae-hyun confronted Hae-rin alone.
In the hallway behind the gym, where the lights always flickered.
> "We were watched. Tracked. Then erased. The only new variable in our system is you."
Hae-rin didn't react.
> "If you're a spy," he continued, "you're smart enough not to leave fingerprints."
She met his gaze. "If I wanted you broken, you'd already be broken."
> "Then prove you're with us. Give me something real."
Hae-rin reached into her pocket and pulled out
a small flash drive.
> "I stole this from the Division 1 terminal. Ra-on's personal cache."
Dae-hyun stared.
> "Why?"
> "Because he used me once. I owe him nothing."
She placed the drive in his hand.
> "You still don't trust me. That's fine. But use what's on this—and you'll see who the real enemy is."
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End of Chapter 8