The first steps of revenge...
Song Hae-Won was packing his things to get ready for school... In his normal daily routine.
In his small, modest apartment, which had enough space for his personal space, and a small garden in the back.
he washed his face and brushed his teeth. As he took his bag from the desk, he saw a picture of him and his family when he was a child... Smiles filling their faces. And the city that was bright and luminous around them, people walking and moving everywhere, exchanging laughter and conversations. This photo was taken the day before the day that changed everything in Song's life...
He looks at the picture, holds it in his right hand, brings it close to his gaze, and wipes the light dust off it.
Song: That was the last time I smiled in my life... I wish those people could come back in my life...
Song: Why did I lose them? Am I a bad person? Do I not deserve them?
Song felt a little pain after remembering everything... He started to feel nervous and hesitant as if the world was shaking and trembling around him.
He stands in front of the door, asking himself:
Should I go to school? Or not today, no. This is my future... and it's what will make my life more stable until I die...
I don't want to make the burden of losing my family heavier on me... by failing in life.
Song left his house, closed the door... and headed to his high school.
While walking to school, he noticed something unsual.
Confronting Fear
The streets were packed with the usual morning rush—students heading to school, workers rushing to their jobs, and street vendors setting up their stalls. For a moment, it felt like things were almost normal, like the old days when he walked to school with Park, listening to her talk about her dreams and plans.
But that illusion shattered in an instant.
Three streets away from his apartment, Song heard the loud, unmistakable sound of heavy boots marching in formation. His body froze; every muscle tensed as if preparing to run. Around the corner came a group of Crimson Army soldiers—five of them in their red and black uniforms, their faces hidden behind tactical masks.
Song's heart raced. He could hear it pounding in his ear. He began to sweat, even in the cold morning air. His breathing turned shallow and fast.
*The same uniform. The same masks. Just like today... Just like today...*
Without thinking, Song ducked behind a parked car, hands shaking as he crouched low. Other pedestrians hurried past, their eyes averted, pretending not to notice the patrol. This was the reality they all faced—the army that claimed to protect them while everyone feared them.
But this time felt different. Instead of running away as his instincts urged him, Song found himself watching them carefully.
What are they doing here? This is a civilian area. There is no reason for a patrol unless... There is no reason for a patrol unless...
The soldiers stopped in front of Jindo High School—his school. The squad leader pulled out a tablet and began taking notes, pointing at the various entrances and windows. They were surveying the building and mapping it out.
Song's blood ran cold. Were they planning something? Were they watching specific students? Was this related to what Mr. Ji-Hoon told him yesterday?
One of the soldiers turned and looked directly at Song. In a terrifying moment, their eyes met through the car window. Song held his breath, sure he had been spotted.
But the soldier returned to his unit and continued their work.
After what felt like hours, but was probably only ten minutes, the patrol moved on and turned a corner. Song stayed behind the car, his legs too weak to stand up right away.
They were in my school. They were studying it. Why?
Slowly, Song stood up and continued to school. His mind was racing. All his thoughts about living quietly and safely suddenly seemed naive. The Crimson Army was not a distant threat—they were here, watching, planning.
As he approached the school gate, Song saw Mr. Ji-Hoon arriving at the same time. Their eyes met; the teacher had noticed the patrol too.
"Exciting morning, isn't it, Hae-Won?" Mr. Ji-Hoon said calmly as they walked through the gates together.
Song looked back at the spot where the soldiers had been. "They were drawing a map of the school."
"Indeed, they were." The teacher's voice held a grim sense of satisfaction. "Do you still think you can stay safe by keeping your head down?"
Song didn't reply right away. But as they entered the building, he began thinking not about hiding from the Crimson Army but about how to fight them.
Fear lingered, but underneath, something else was growing.
Anger.
A different school day...
The school day started... but not as quietly as usual... but with tension and excitement... all the students were talking about what happened today... the Crimson Army patrols around their school... their voices were loud and full of curiosity, anxiety and surprise
Even during lunch break... everyone was so busy talking about the subject that they forgot most of their food without eating it.
Song was watching everything that was happening... listening to all the sayings... A thought came to his mind: Why don't I participate with these people?
This is what actually happened.... Song began participating in the students' discussions and debates about the Crimson Army... listening to theories... making hypotheses... making predictions... possibilities: How will that deceptive terrorist army fall?
All these discussions and dialogues were happening in complete secrecy... without anyone knowing... or anyone else hearing...
Shhhhhhh....
The Crimson Army is following everything... and suspecting the opposition... Bye Bye
The day was long, busy and eventful... I felt a spark of excitement or some light, encouraging happiness that I had never felt before.
Finally! Everyone is now revolting against the Crimson Army... If we all unite, that terrorist army will never be able to control us again.
The End of a Long Day
As the afternoon sun began to cast long shadows through the classroom windows, Song found himself barely able to focus on the chemistry equations Mr. Ji-hoon was writing on the board. The excitement from lunch break still buzzed in his chest—the first time in years he had felt truly connected to something larger than his own pain.
The final bell rang, and students began packing their bags with the usual end-of-day chatter. But today was different. Small groups lingered, whispering in hushed tones, glancing around nervously before continuing their conversations about the morning patrol.
Song took his time organizing his books, waiting for the classroom to empty. When only a few students remained, he approached Mr. Ji-hoon's desk.
"Teacher," Song said quietly, his voice steadier than he expected. "About what you told me yesterday..."
Mr. Ji-hoon looked up from the papers he was grading, his eyes sharp and attentive. "Yes?"
"I've made my decision." Song glanced toward the door, then back at the teacher. "I want to join. I want to fight back."
A small smile crossed Mr. Ji-hoon's face—the first genuine smile Song had seen from him. "I hoped you would say that. But you should know, you're not the only one."
"What do you mean?"
Before Mr. Ji-hoon could answer, footsteps echoed in the hallway. Three students entered the classroom: Kim Min-jun, the quiet boy who sat in the back row; Lee So-young, one of the top students in their grade; and Park Jae-wook, a transfer student who had arrived just last month.
"Teacher," Min-jun said, his usual timid voice now carrying determination. "We've been thinking about what happened today. About the patrol. About everything that's been happening in our city."
So-young stepped forward. "We want to do something about it. We can't just sit here and pretend everything is normal when they're planning something against us."
Mr. Ji-hoon nodded slowly. "And you, Jae-wook?"
The transfer student's hands clenched into fists. "They destroyed my previous school last year. Called it a 'security restructuring.' My best friend... he didn't make it out." His voice cracked slightly. "I can't let them do it again."
Song looked at his classmates with new eyes. All this time, he thought he was alone in his pain. But they had all been suffering in silence, just as he had.
"How many others?" Song asked.
Mr. Ji-hoon pulled out his phone and showed them a group chat. The member count read: 47.
"Just from our school?" So-young asked in amazement.
"From several schools in the district. The resistance is growing faster than we ever imagined. What happened today—the patrols, the surveillance—it's pushed more people over the edge."
The Electronic Fragment
Jae-wook reached into his backpack and pulled out a small, metallic device about the size of a smartphone. Its surface was scratched and partially damaged, with strange symbols and lights that flickered weakly.
"I managed to grab this during the chaos when my old school was attacked," he said, placing it carefully on Mr. Ji-hoon's desk. "It fell from one of their combat units. I've been carrying it around for months, too scared to do anything with it."
Song's eyes widened. The device looked like nothing he'd ever seen—advanced technology that seemed decades ahead of anything civilians had access to. The symbols on its surface weren't Korean, English, or any language he recognized.
"This could contain valuable information," Mr. Ji-hoon said, his voice filled with excitement and caution. "Communication protocols, tactical data, maybe even weaknesses in their systems."
"I know some programming," Song said, surprising himself with his eagerness. "I could try to access it."
Mr. Ji-hoon handed him the device. It was heavier than it looked, and warm to the touch. The moment Song's fingers made contact with the surface, the flickering lights began to pulse more rapidly.
"It's responding to you," Min-jun whispered.
Song turned the device over in his hands, looking for some kind of port or interface. There—a small slot that looked like it might accept a standard data cable. He pulled out his laptop from his backpack and connected the device.
His screen immediately filled with streams of incomprehensible code, scrolling too fast to read. Then, suddenly, everything stopped. A single window appeared, showing what looked like a login screen, but instead of a password prompt, there was something else entirely.
**[BIOMETRIC SCAN REQUIRED]**
**[PLACE HAND ON DEVICE SURFACE]**
**[WARNING: UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS WILL TRIGGER SECURITY PROTOCOLS]**
"It wants a handprint," Song said, his heart racing.
"Don't," So-young said quickly. "What if it's a trap? What if it alerts them to our location?"
But Song was already placing his palm flat against the device's surface. The warm metal suddenly became hot, then cold, as lights raced across its surface in complex patterns.
**[SCANNING...]**
**[GENETIC MARKERS DETECTED...]**
**[ANALYZING...]**
**[ERROR: SUBJECT NOT IN DATABASE]**
**[ERROR: ANOMALOUS READINGS DETECTED]**
**[INITIATING DEEP SCAN...]**
The device began to vibrate in Song's hand. The vibration grew stronger, spreading up his arm. For a moment, he felt something surge through him—a power he'd never experienced before. His vision sharpened, colors became more vivid, and he could hear everyone's heartbeats in the room.
Then everything went black.
The Discovery
Song came to on the classroom floor, his classmates and Mr. Ji-hoon gathered around him with worried faces.
"What happened?" he asked, struggling to sit up.
"You collapsed," Mr. Ji-hoon said, helping him to his feet. "The device went completely dark after scanning you. We thought... we thought something terrible had happened."
Song looked at the device on the desk. It appeared completely dead now—no lights, no warmth, nothing.
"Did it work? Did we get any information?"
Jae-wook pointed at Song's laptop screen. "Look."
The screen displayed a single message in clear Korean:
**[SUBJECT IDENTIFIED: GENETIC ANOMALY CONFIRMED]**
**[CRIMSON PREDATOR UNIT 7734 - TARGET ELIMINATION: SONG HAE-IN]**
**[MISSION STATUS: INCOMPLETE - PRIMARY TARGET SURVIVED]**
**[SUBJECT POSSESSES LATENT ENHANCEMENT CAPABILITIES]**
**[RECOMMEND IMMEDIATE CAPTURE FOR RESEARCH DIVISION]**
[AUTO-TRANSMITTING LOCATION DATA...]
"They were targeting you specifically," Mr. Ji-hoon said, his voice barely above a whisper. "Your sister wasn't random collateral damage. They were after your family."
Song stared at the screen, emotions warring within him. Rage at learning his family's death was planned. Confusion about what "genetic anomaly" and "enhancement capabilities" meant. But underneath it all, a cold clarity was forming.
"The auto-transmission," So-young said urgently. "If it's sending our location—"
An explosion of sound and light erupted outside the school. Through the windows, they could see the familiar red glow of Crimson Army vehicles surrounding the building.
Mr. Ji-hoon moved to the window and peered through the blinds. "They're here. All of them."
In the distance, a mechanical figure emerged from one of the vehicles. Even from their third-floor classroom, they could see its distinctive silhouette—half-human, half-machine, weapons gleaming in the afternoon sun.
A Crimson Solider but very strong.
Song's hands began to tremble, but this time it wasn't from fear. Energy coursed through his veins, the same power he'd felt when touching the device. The same power from his dreams.
"Everyone needs to get out of here," he said, his voice strange to his own ears—deeper, more controlled. "Now."
"Song, what are you—" Mr. Ji-hoon began.
But Song was already moving toward the window, and the light in his eyes was no longer entirely human.
To be continued...
The path to Hae-Won's revenge has taken an unexpected turn. What are these "enhancement capabilities" the Crimson Army detected? Why was his family specifically targeted? And can Song control whatever power is awakening within him before the Predator reaches their classroom?
Find out in Chapter 3: "The Awakening"