Whoosh…
The door to Jody's room slid shut behind her.
Syd left her there to get settled on her own. A small part of him worried she might forget how to use the touchscreen pad and get stuck inside, but then again—this was Jody Johansson, the top student of her class. That thought reassured him enough to walk away without turning back.
His plan was simple: head to the cafeteria, grab a quick bite, and leave Mickey to watch over the girls. Just a quick errand. But of course, nothing ever went according to plan.
Sera suddenly appeared between them and linked arms with both Syd and Mickey, pulling them in close.
"…"
The two guys exchanged confused glances—though their reactions differed. Mickey was merely puzzled, while Syd scowled.
"What the hell is this?"
But instead of his usual sharp tone, his voice came out soft and whiny, like a guilty kid who just broke his mom's favorite vase.
"…Help me, pretty please?"
"…What?"
"Ngh."
She dragged both of them toward her four pieces of luggage.
"…Help you with what?" Syd asked suspiciously.
"Come on, please? I can't do all this by myself."
"…"
Mickey stood silently. Syd, on the other hand, exploded.
"What the hell! They're your bags, aren't they?! Do it yourself!"
"I won't finish in two hours! Just help me out, will you? I'm begging you!"
"What the hell?! No! You bought it all—deal with it yourself!"
While Syd kept arguing, Mickey silently walked over and hoisted one of Sera's heavy black suitcases over his shoulder.
"Just help her. It'll shut her up," he said calmly.
Sera glared at him.
"…Oh wow, that look. Fine. Never mind. I'll put it back."
He pretended to lower the bag.
Sera: "teeth gritted, fists clenched I didn't glare. Not even a little…"
For reasons even he didn't understand, Syd ended up helping her too. The two guys became glorified bellboys for her four very heavy suitcases.
Thump!
Sera's room was a mirror image of Jody's. Practically identical, just flipped.
"Check your stuff. Make sure everything's here."
"…This one's your jackets... that's your bathroom kit... this one's your makeup… and this—"
"Ah! I'll unpack that one myself! Give it here!"
She snatched the last suitcase from Syd before he could open it.
One by one, Sera started inspecting her luggage—until she reached a certain item.
Her laptop.
The one she used to access the Dark Web.
Her eyes froze on it. A bead of sweat rolled down her temple.
...The laptop… made it here?
Gulp.
How? She had stashed it under her bed. She never showed it to Mickey…
"Oh, that. Yeah, your laptop," Mickey said casually, approaching from behind.
"I could sense an electrical current underneath your bed, so I dug around and found it. Thought it looked important."
"…"
"…Oh. Right. Makes sense."
"You okay?"
Sera quickly masked her expression.
"You didn't… open it, did you?"
She'd put a password on it, but for someone who could manipulate electrical currents like Mickey… that was about as secure as a locked diary made of paper mâché.
"Why? Should I have?"
"…"
"..."
"Ohhh. I get it now…"
Mickey raised an eyebrow. Sera, meanwhile, was drenched in sweat.
"…It's for personal use, huh? Gotcha. No judgment."
"?!"
"…Yeah, sure. I'm human too, okay?!"
Letting him think it was for that kind of "personal use" was better than letting him suspect the truth.
"Then why'd you keep it under the bed?"
"…?"
Sera's hands twitched.
"Weird though. I've never seen you use it. Were you worried I'd snoop?"
Trying to confirm something, she tossed the question back at him.
"Does it matter? Syd already messed with everyone's devices."
"…Right. He did say he modified our stuff…"
Wait—he doesn't know?
Mickey flashed a lopsided grin and turned back to organizing.
Oh crap… These guys are terrifying.
Sera quickly checked the laptop—it was untouched. No modifications. She immediately zipped it back up and stashed it deep in a corner of the room, hiding it from Syd Barrett's radar at all costs.
Mickey probably assumed Syd had already installed surveillance programs on everyone's devices—but Syd didn't even know this laptop existed. He'd never been to her place, and she'd never shown it to him.
That meant… the secret video was still safe.
Sera sighed with relief and went back to organizing her wardrobe. Mickey had already shown her how the smart closet worked.
Thanks to the boys, the setup process went faster than expected.
Then—
"Hey! Come look at this!"
Syd's voice called out from the bathroom.
Mickey was halfway through zipping a bag when he followed the sound.
He didn't realize Sera was hot on his heels like a ghost.
She had a feeling whatever Syd wanted to "show off" involved her somehow.
Inside the bathroom, Syd had arranged her massive collection of soaps and shampoos into perfect rows.
"I swear, I feel like I'm working retail in CHANEL's hygiene section. This stuff's insane, man…"
He'd meant to gossip behind Sera's back—only to turn around and find her glaring at him behind Mickey.
Naturally, she'd heard everything. He didn't even flinch.
"Watch it! That shampoo costs thousands, forking shiet head!" (*British accent)
Sera stormed in and snatched a bottle from his hands, placing it gently by the sink.
"What, you washing Formula 1 cars with this stuff?"
"You don't get it, Syd! If you break one, you're paying me back!"
"You're rich, aren't you? Just buy another."
"Don't act like we're so different!"
"We are. Vastly."
"No, Syd. We're the same."
Mickey: "Not picking sides, but—"
"Shut furk up! No need to defend him."
Syd jabbed a finger at Mickey, then turned back to Sera.
"You should be grateful I helped organize your room. What happened to the sweet 'please help me' from twenty minutes ago?!"
"Oh, for God's sake! Can't we go half an hour without beefing?! Why did you even help if you're just gonna complain?!"
"Yeah? Then why ask for help in the first place?!"
"But you still helped."
"…Tch."
Syd froze when Mickey chimed in.
"…Because I was hungry, damn it. I was in a rush."
Mickey walked over to the shelf where Syd had lined up the bottles.
But then she noticed it too—every item was neatly sorted. Soaps with soaps. Shampoos with shampoos. Creams grouped by use. Unopened items stacked in the back.
"…Oh."
She looked at her natural-born rival… and noticed Syd seemed unusually fidgety.
"I'm just organized under pressure!"
"Or maybe… you did it on purpose?"
"Don't start sounding like that freak in the next room."
Syd threw an arm around Mickey's neck and shoved him down, but Mickey managed to lift his chin and speak.
"Sera too."
"…H-Huh?! What do I have to do with this?!"
"Lately, your ego seems to have toned down. You used to never ask us for anything."
"…Ugh."
Her expression mirrored Syd's—quietly embarrassed.
"Geez… one wants help, the other wants to help. Why are you both so bad at admitting it?"
"…I say we dunk this guy in the toilet."
"Agreed."
With Mickey's playful mediation, the two frenemies managed to calm down and work together. In half an hour, the room was ready.
"Whew. Finally. That felt like moving house."
"You little—💢"
Sera walked out alongside them, hand raised like she was about to smack someone.
Jody leaned casually against the wall across the hall, slipping her phone into her pocket.
"All done?"
"Yep."
"Where are your rooms, anyway?"
"You're leaning on them," Mickey said, pointing behind her.
"Oh."
Just like a hotel, this floor had dozens of rooms lining both sides of the hallway. Jody and Sera's rooms were on one side; the boys were on the other. Step outside, and they'd be face-to-face.
"Where's the wheelchair?" Syd asked.
"Put it away."
"Why?"
"No need. I've got you."
Translation: she trusted his martial ability more than the chair.
"…Americans really are so American…"
He knelt down and fixed her leg posture. A red aura flowed from his body into hers.
"You never get tired of hating Americans, do you?"
Syd stood and dusted off his pants.
"Forever and always."
He tapped her forehead.
"You know, with that attitude, you'd fit right in in New York."
"That dump? Not a chance."
Syd turned and walked off. The others followed.
"…She's right, though. You'd fit right in walking around New York or L.A."
"Go cry in London, you stingy hoarder."
"Never touched American soil, huh? Figures," Sera sneered.
British girl and half-Thai boy traded jabs. Syd gave her a sharp look, but she didn't flinch.
"Sera, you've been to the U.S. before, right? I saw your pics on IG," Jody said.
"Yep~ Loved it. Can't wait to go again."
Syd: "Wait, since when are you two friends on IG?"
"Since London. I tried to find yours too but—nothing."
"I don't use it."
"Mickey?"
"Me neither. No social media. Unless you count burner accounts," Mickey replied.
Sera: "Ugh… lurkers. Creepy…"
Syd: "I use it for model scouting."
"You want another model to stalk? Here you go~"
Sera struck a pose and pulled out her phone, offering to add them.
Mickey: "I don't stalk freeloaders."
"You jerk!" She swatted at him. Mickey dodged with digital-level precision.
Syd and Mickey led the girls to another part of the floor.
It looked exactly like a luxury hotel dining area crossed with a high-end supermarket. The aesthetic was all clean whites and sleek designs.
"This is…"
"I'm getting food. If you're not hungry, scram."
Syd walked in.
"There's food from every country. Just grab what you want," Mickey added.
Despite it being just after 7 AM, the place was bustling—agents like Syd and Mickey, supervisors like Jade, and scattered doctors and researchers.
The girls didn't stray far from their escorts. People kept turning to look at them as they walked past.
Not surprising. They weren't part of the organization.
But what struck Jody more was this: almost everyone here seemed to know Syd Barrett.
People stared. Some even stepped aside as he passed—despite there being plenty of space.
It was like he was famous here.
Combine that with what Toshi and Mickey had said before… maybe he wasn't exaggerating about being one of the top agents.
Syd: "Everything's free. Help yourselves."
Jody and Sera followed behind—until Sera spotted something interesting and veered off.
Jody wandered a bit more, picking up a plate here, grabbing something there, until she stopped at a coffee station.
"…"
"What would you like?"
She stood frozen, unsure if the system worked the same as in the outside world. Then a voice spoke behind her.
"First time?"
"!"
She turned around.
It was a female agent.
"…"
"You don't look like one of us."
Wow. Just one glance and she knew?
"…Yeah. I'm… just a regular person."
"But if you made it in here, someone must've brought you."
"I came with him."
"Who?"
Jody pointed at Syd, who was now scarfing down food at a nearby table.
"…"
The agent's expression froze.
"…Him?"
"Syd Barrett. Why?"
"…Are you serious? How did you get him to bring you here?"
"I don't know… he just asked me to come."
"Asked you?"
"Yeah."
Jody nodded. And the flames of curiosity ignited in the agent's eyes.
"Then you're definitely not ordinary. He wouldn't have invited you otherwise."
"What's so unusual about him?"
"…Well, he's not a bad person, per se… but around here, nobody can handle him. Except his mother."
"…!?"
"His mother… You mean… Grandmaster Anong, or something like that?"
"She lets us call her Annie, but we use Anong out of respect for her real name."
"A lot of people here seem to revere her. What… is she to this organization?"
The woman smiled softly.
"She's a legend."
"…A legend?"
"No one in this organization doesn't know Grandmaster Anong. Once you're officially enlisted, you'll understand."
"…I see…"
"Anyway… Syd—he's really that notorious?"
The agent nodded. "Everyone here knows. Though he's calmed down a lot lately. Maybe he's growing up."
"Why was he so hard to handle before?"
"It's… hard to explain. Probably a mix of arrogance and cunning."
"Oh…"
Jody could definitely relate.
"Is it true he used to work alone?"
"It is."
The woman nodded.
"He didn't work with anyone for three years."
"Wait—what about Mickey, Toshi, and the girl?"
"They came later. I only saw them together for the first time last year."
That surprised Jody.
"Who did he work with before that?"
"I have no idea. But let's just say… his history is colorful. Want me to order coffee for you?"
"Oh—yes, please…"
Colorful past, huh…?
"Here you go. This is how it works."
With a warm cup of coffee in hand, Jody wandered toward the drinks section, lost in thought about Syd's mysterious past.
"So many secrets, this guy…"
But then she stopped.
Her eyes locked onto something unexpected in the chilled drinks aisle—
A tower of pink strawberry milk cartons.