EPISODE 57 – The Echo of Truth
The water purification plant, once a site of imminent catastrophe, now hummed with the quiet drone of its machinery, the bio-bomb a inert collection of metal and frozen chemicals. Minjae stood amidst the neutralized threat, his chest heaving, the adrenaline slowly receding, leaving behind a bitter taste of unfulfilled vengeance. Kevin and Dohee secured the area, while Alex, remote as ever, began scouring every digital corner for a trace of Kang Jun-ho.
"He played us," Minjae muttered, his voice raw, devoid of its usual sharp edge. He stared at the blank screen where Kang Jun-ho's face had been. "Every step. Every move. He planned it all." His unacknowledged cut arm throbbed, mirroring the dull ache in his chest.
"He's good, Minjae," Kevin conceded, placing a hand on Minjae's shoulder. "Better than we anticipated. He used his subordinate, Miran's brother, as a very effective shield. It's a level of deception we haven't encountered."
"And his motive," Dohee added, reviewing the chilling philosophical monologue Kang Jun-ho had delivered. "He's not just a terrorist for chaos. He genuinely believes he's 'curing' society by exposing its 'sickness.'"
The Plaza's Quiet Victory
Miles away, at the North Seoul Plaza, the immediate crisis had significantly abated. Micha, exhausted but beaming, had finished distributing the last of the concentrated antidote vials. Paramedics and emergency doctors, their faces stained with grime and relief, watched as the last of the severely affected citizens were stabilized and loaded into ambulances, their vitals steadily improving.
"This 'experimental stabilizer' of yours," a weary but grateful paramedic said to Micha, "it's a miracle. We haven't seen anything like it. Are there more doses? Can it be mass-produced?"
Micha pushed her glasses up her nose, a tired but triumphant glint in her eyes. "The raw materials for mass production are being prepared at our primary lab. It's a complex process, but yes, it can be scaled. Just give us a few hours." She knew the public narrative would credit the city's heroic emergency services, and perhaps a lucky break in medical research. CHIPER's involvement would remain a ghost in the machine, just as always.
Guen approached, a rare smile on her lips. "Well done, Micha. You saved them. All of them."
"We saved them, Guen," Micha corrected, then yawned widely. "My brain feels like it's been through a centrifuge. I need a nap, some ramyeon, and probably a new lollipop. This one's all mush." She held up the now-sticky stick of her beloved "oral sensory aid."
The Echo of Truth
Back in the SUV, parked discreetly near the water plant, Alex's voice broke through the comms, his tone grim. "Kang Jun-ho. I've cross-referenced his face against every intelligence database, every dark web forum, every corporate and government blacklist. He's a ghost, Minjae. No official records. But there are whispers. Rumors of a brilliant, highly disillusioned former government bio-engineer who vanished years ago after a scandal involving a proposed 'social purification' project that was deemed too extreme, even for black ops."
"Social purification?" Minjae scoffed, running a hand through his hair. "He thinks he's cleaning society by poisoning it?"
"It fits his rhetoric," Kevin said, his mind already spinning scenarios. "He believes the system is inherently corrupt, and needs to be purged to be reborn. He's not after money or power, not in the conventional sense. He wants to tear down the existing order. And he has the means to do it."
Dohee pulled up a map of Seoul, highlighting key infrastructure. "His strategy is clear. Phase one: chaos. Phase two: targeting essential services, threatening mass casualties to expose governmental 'incompetence.' If he thinks he's a cure, he'll likely aim for a more pervasive, systemic 'purification' next."
Micha and Guen's voices then cut in, Micha's still buzzing with a mix of exhaustion and satisfaction. "Plaza stabilized, team. All critical patients are being transferred. Antidote distributed. The doctors were... very impressed."
"Good job, Micha," Kevin said, genuinely.
"Right," Minjae mumbled, still glaring at the blank screen. "Good job, 'sugar factory.' You kept Seoul from becoming a toxic pond. Now what? He just disappeared. How do we find a ghost?"
"He didn't just disappear, Minjae," Alex interjected, his voice gaining a strained urgency. "He left a digital signature. A breadcrumb. It's subtle, designed to be found only by someone looking specifically for him. It's a challenge. A link to an encrypted manifesto. And it mentions… 'The Grand Cleansing'. He's taunting us. He wants us to follow."
Minjae's eyes, previously burning with unfocused rage, now sharpened with a new, dangerous glint. Kang Jun-ho. The true ZEROFACE. The one who had humiliated him, used his grief as a weapon. He had a face now. And a name.
"Then we follow," Minjae stated, his voice cold and steady. "Alex, decrypt that manifesto. Guen, analyze every fragment of data from the water plant bomb. Dohee, start building a profile on Kang Jun-ho, every rumor, every whisper. Kevin, coordinate with our silent contacts. We find him. And this time, we don't let him get away."
A beat of silence. Then Micha's voice, surprisingly chipper despite her earlier exhaustion, cut through. "Oh, Minjae, don't forget to clean that cut on your arm. Looks nasty. Wouldn't want you getting infected with anything, especially after all that talk about 'purification' from our new friend, ZEROFACE."
Minjae glanced down at his arm, the dried blood stark against his sleeve. He scoffed, a familiar surge of irritation bubbling up. "Mind your own business, Lollipop. I've had worse. Just focus on your sugar cubes or whatever it is you do." But a faint, almost imperceptible tremor of a smile touched his lips.
The war was far from over, and Kang Jun-ho was a terrifying adversary. But at least, this time, they knew who they were fighting. And they had Micha.
What revelation does Kang Jun-ho's manifesto contain? What is "The Grand Cleansing"? And how does CHIPER prepare for the final confrontation?