"If it really feels too difficult…"
Seoryeong trailed off, looking at Channa, who was only in her early twenties.
Just because she herself had been used to doing things like this since she was young didn't mean she was proficient in everything. Even if Channa had the skills, *carrying them out* was another matter.
With a bitter expression, Seoryeong bit her lip and gently patted the round head in front of her.
But at that moment, Channa's eyes narrowed—revealing wounded pride.
"The only thing I can't penetrate is… **constipation!**"
She bared her teeth like a small animal and wrinkled her nose.
"And South Korea often doesn't even *realize* they've been attacked!"
She pulled at her collar, enraged, and began to fan herself.
"The leak of internal documents from Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, the hacking of Nonghyup's computer network, the theft of personal data from Seoul National University Hospital—all were the work of the North Korean People's Army General Reconnaissance Bureau…!" Her voice rose. "But South Korea wasn't able to respond properly!"
"…"
"But I heard lately they're starting to have some pretty tough people, and their firewalls are getting stronger." Channa crossed her arms. "Don't underestimate me, unnie. I'll play with that guy day and night!"
Her young face shone with determination and pride.
Seeing that pure fighting spirit, Seoryeong began to understand why the North Korean government had failed to completely brainwash her—and why they still wanted to eliminate her even now.
*There was nothing more threatening than a young beast lost in its own world.*
"Why should I stop Channa from doing something that could benefit both of us?" Seoryeong smiled faintly. "I'm not saying you have to stop if it feels difficult. Just make sure you leave a clear mark."
"A signature?"
Finally, Channa's aggressive attitude softened. She blinked.
"North Korea often uses the name *Kim Sukhyang* in phishing emails, right?"
"Yes, they do…"
It was common knowledge that North Korean hacker groups often used the name Kim Sukhyang to insert malicious code into emails and steal personal data.
"I want to leave a mark like that too."
"What name will you use?"
Seoryeong took a long breath—almost overwhelmed—then replied:
"Kim Hyeon."
Everything would be done in that man's name.
---
## — NIS Cyber Security Team —
Na Wonchang, a hacker from the unofficial Team 1 of the NIS's Foreign Affairs Information Department, yawned as he came out of the guard room.
Dragging his slippers, scratching his disheveled hair, rubbing his eyelids (one more creased than the other), he returned to his office and sat down in front of the monitor stamped with the NIS logo.
"Haa…"
His body slumped into the chair like dirty laundry. He rolled the chair back and forth aimlessly.
Na Wonchang worked in a secret department under black ops agents, so he disguised himself as a regular staff member in the Cyber Security Team.
*Whirr—*
The only sound in the room was the hum of machines.
The office was dark, filled with large screens and monitors of various sizes. On the glass boards and whiteboards, hasty scribbles covered the surfaces: domain addresses, reverse DNS data, related IPs.
"Ah… Team Leader…"
Na Wonchang leaned back, complaining silently.
Reinvestigating the *"Owl"* case—a secret mission assigned by Lee Wooshin—felt like holding a bomb every day.
First, he was afraid that the deputy director might find out at any moment.
Second, the deeper he delved into the case, the stranger everything felt.
Naturally, he was more skilled at *defense* than offense. He preferred building layers of protection and fixing breached points, rather than penetrating an opponent's system. Reassembling what was broken, sewing torn data to find the original form and starting point—that was his expertise.
So—
Recovering the psychological counseling records and recordings of "Owl" wasn't difficult, even though the data was almost **one terabyte.**
The counseling started from the age of ten until just before Operation Bird Box.
*But wait…*
*Didn't that operation only last two and a half years?*
*Why was the data so large?*
"…"
Could "Owl" have been under surveillance *much earlier?*
Just imagining it made Wonchang's hairs stand on end. Soon, regret for being too curious and fear of violating NIS protocol washed over him like a wave.
He sighed again, unable to restrain himself.
"Curiosity killed the cat, you know…"
Just then—
**Bang!**
Someone slammed the glass door open!
Na Wonchang frowned and turned toward the sound, where a man in a fluttering tie burst in, gasping for breath.
"Hey, hey! Wake up! Come here for a second!"
That familiar face belonged to a staff member from the Financial Crimes Team under the deputy director. Even though he had barged in, the man stood in a position ready to run at any moment.
However, Na Wonchang just swiveled his chair and balanced a pencil on his lip.
The staff member was annoyed and shouted:
"It's an emergency! Five billion won was stolen from Park Kwangdu's account!"
"What?"
Only then did Wonchang's apathetic expression change. He turned his head quickly.
"Similar to the Nonghyup system hacking case in 2011. It started with a phishing email, then the system was infected with malware. The system froze for a moment, then recovered—but the money in Park Kwangdu's account was **all gone.**"
Na Wonchang's eyebrows twitched.
Although surprised, his reaction wasn't enough to make him rise from his lazy posture. His voice remained flat.
"North Korea again?"
"Not confirmed yet, but doesn't this look similar?"
North Korea's cyberattack capabilities ranked in the top two globally, on par with Russia.
*How hard did they train their hackers to produce such crazy individuals, even though the country lacked basic IT infrastructure?*
They once hacked Sony Pictures for making a movie that mocked their regime, and crazily stole 2.9 trillion won from cryptocurrency exchanges. Not to mention the hacking of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, Korea Aerospace Industries, and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering—they stole internal information while raking in as much technology and money as possible.
Every time the public started to forget, North Korean hacker groups always resurfaced.
Just a few days ago, they hacked 207 computers with malware, exploiting a vulnerability in the financial security certification system.
"Was the email address Kim Sukhyang?"
"No, it's not Kim Sukhyang this time. That name appeared during the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power hack, but not now." The man shifted on his feet. "We're even considering the possibility that this *isn't* North Korea's doing. The scope is too broad. Honestly, aren't there plenty of citizens who'd be annoyed seeing that 5 billion won severance pay?"
Wonchang's expression remained flat.
All he could think about was "Owl," his cyber-world sister-in-law, and the headache that came with her.
*Why should I care about stolen money?*
He rubbed his tired eyes with his fingers.
"The problem is, that person has family ties to a VIP. If this money isn't found, the heads of the entire team could roll. So *please* help us! That much money vanished without a trace!"
"…"
"Anyway, it's from an account we've never seen before. But every time we trace it, the name *'Kim Hyeon'* keeps popping up. So now our team is investigating whether 'Kim Hyeon' is a codename or—"
**Tik.**
The pencil that had been perched on his upper lip fell to the floor.
"What did you just say?"
Wonchang, who had been sitting limply, suddenly stood up straight. His chair fell backward with a loud **thud.**
"What did you say the email name was?"
His voice broke with urgency.
---
## — Seoryeong's Apartment —
The nightmare actually made that morning feel pleasant.
This fresh day carried a premonition—as if something was about to happen.
Waking up on a soft mattress, not the hard floor of the training camp, felt indescribable. The cheerful voices that laughed day and night were no longer heard.
Channa said she had kept the stolen 5 billion won in a bank in Manila, Philippines. She used an intermediary to withdraw the money in four parts and transfer it to a casino account.
Just in case, Seoryeong sent Channa to Blast SA.
Now alone again, she unpacked the items piled in her duffel bag and began to tidy up the house one by one.
Every time the sunlight warmed the tips of her toes on the balcony, memories of napping with her husband crept back—painfully.
"…"
She also remembered the warmth she had once shared with Lee Wooshin…
*Wait.*
*What?*
The hand that was folding clothes suddenly stopped.
*What was I just thinking…*
*Am I crazy?*
Seoryeong shivered as if just waking up from a trance.
Going straight from the hustle and bustle of the camp to home did feel like experiencing side effects. It felt so strange that she now felt awkward—even though it was only because the instructor she used to see every day was no longer there.
The last time she saw Lee Wooshin was that day—on the cliff.
Despite meeting him constantly for two and a half months, as soon as the training ended, the man completely disappeared from the team's sight.
His ability to cut off ties without a trace was exactly as Seoryeong had expected.
Suddenly, she felt a tension in her fingertips that were folding a towel.
At that moment, her phone rang softly—an incoming message.
She glanced at the screen and saw an unknown number.
> **Welcome dinner invitation for new Special Security Team members and the team.**
>
> We will be holding a dinner to build team cooperation. We hope many will attend.
>
> **February 14, 20XX (Thursday), 7:00 PM**
> **Jureemgwan (2249, XX-daero, XX-dong, Seoul)**