Axel never understood why. But even as a kid, he could tell—they weren’t after him. They were after his work.

  For three years after his mother disappeared, Ronan had drowned himself in research. Locked away in his study, writing all night, muttering about infected subjects.

  Axel never understood what he was working on. And then one day—he was gone.

  Even though Axel was his direct blood retive, he never received a single thing that belonged to his father. No belongings, no pension. Nothing.

  On paper, he wasn’t even listed as Ronan’s son anymore. He was just an orphan.

  At the time, Axel had been too naive. He thought some corrupt official had pocketed the money, screwing him over because he was weak.

  But now… What if it was worse than that? What if someone had wanted his research? What if Ronan had refused? What if they silenced him and took everything he worked on?

  Three years ago, Axel never would’ve thought that way. But the boy he used to be was long gone.

  He had to find out the truth. But for now—he wasn’t strong enough.

  “Brother, hurry up! The food’s getting cold.” Annabelle’s cheerful voice pulled him back.

  Axel took a deep breath and shoved the thoughts aside. For now, it was just a theory. But he’d never let it go.

  After a full meal, Annabelle was about to turn on the TV when—

  Knock. Knock. A light tap on the door.

  "Excuse me, is this Axel’s house?"

  Axel and Annabelle exchanged gnces. Annabelle headed to the yard and cracked the door open. A handsome, easygoing man stepped inside with a grin.

  “Damn, whose cooking is that? I could smell it from the street.”

  Axel’s eyes narrowed. He recognized him immediately—Vince. The man who had saved them that night. Axel wasn’t surprised that he had found him. But why was he here?

  "Annabelle, get our guest some water."

  Vince chuckled. "This is your sister? She’s adorable." Taking the cup of tea, he nodded in thanks before turning back to Axel, giving him a slow once-over. Then his brows furrowed.

  “…How the hell did you recover so fast?”

  Vince had seen the state Axel was in that night. Even for an Awakener, his recovery was too fast.

  Axel had been prepared for this. "Oh, Mr. Skye gave me a Blood Activating Pill," he said casually. "That thing works wonders. And my body’s always been pretty durable."

  Vince studied him for a moment, then nodded. He could see that Axel was wary of most people, so he wasn’t pushing, either.

  "Alright," Vince said, setting down the cup. "I’ll get to the point." He leaned forward, a knowing smile on his face. "Axel—are you interested in joining the Whisper Syndicate?"

  For a moment, the house fell into silence.

  Vince didn’t rush Axel for an answer. Instead, he took another sip of tea, his posture rexed and unbothered.

  Axel, on the other hand, was caught off guard. Vince was, without a doubt, the strongest Awakener he had ever seen. He had sliced through Wolfe’s high-strength alloy ptes like they were nothing but damp paper.

  And the look of sheer desperation on Deputy Director Cross’s face that day? That alone said everything. This wasn’t just some underground group. It was bigger. Stronger. Maybe even more powerful than the Law Enforcement Bureau itself.

  That part didn’t surprise Axel. But what did was the fact that they wanted him.

  “With my strength… can I even qualify to join the Whisper Syndicate?”

  Vince’s lips curled into a faint smirk. He leaned in slightly and lowered his voice.

  “If I’m not mistaken… you’ve awakened.”

  Axel’s fingers tightened against his knee. Of course. Axel had already guessed that he wouldn’t be able to hide it from him—he didn’t even bother trying that night. But Skye had chosen not to say anything, so Axel had pyed along.

  “…Yeah,” Axel admitted.

  Vince’s eyes lit up. “I thought so,” he said. “And if I had to guess, your ability falls under Sequence 47—Undead Guide.”

  Sequence? That was a term Axel had never heard before. And as for Undead Guide… what the hell was that?

  At school, Awakener cssifications were kept simple—Combat, Support, and Utility. For example, Skye’s body hardening and the Ironfang Syndicate leader’s muscle multiplication both fell under the Combat category. Axel’s two abilities? Support. But now Vince was talking about something else entirely.

  “There are many kinds of Awakeners,” Vince continued. “But some abilities are far more rare. High-level Awakeners know about them—but the general public? Not a clue.”

  “We’ve ranked them. A rough hierarchy, about a hundred in total. And your Undead Guide… ranks 47th.”

  Undead Guide… Axel sat back, waiting for an expnation.

  “At its most basic level,” Vince said, “an Undead Guide can communicate with the dead. They can access their memories, and in some cases, even borrow their abilities.”

  He set the empty cup down and leaned back. “The strongest Undead Guide ever recorded? A Level 6 Awakener. That guy could resurrect dead souls, inject them into corpses, and make them fight.”

  Axel raised an eyebrow. So… basically, a necromancer? He tossed the thought aside. No—his ability wasn’t about summoning the dead. He was learning them.

  Vince studied him. “You’re not surprised.” Axel didn’t answer. Vince chuckled. “Alright. Anything else you wanna ask?”

  Axel thought for a moment. Then, with a straight face, he asked: “How’s the sary?”

  Vince almost spit out his tea. For a second, he just stared. Then he burst into ughter.

  “You guy…” Vince shook his head, still grinning. Of all the questions Axel could have asked— Not about the organization. Not about Awakened Sequences. This guy went straight for the paycheck.

  Axel frowned. “What? Isn’t that normal? If I’m gonna work for you, I need to know how much I’m getting paid.”

  Vince snorted, shaking his head. “Alright, alright. Whisper Syndicate offers 100,000 starting sary for full members. You also get ten days of paid leave per year.”

  "If the team calls him up, he must come back immediately even if he is on leave."

  Axel nodded. That made sense—this was an emergency-response group. Being on-call at all times was expected.

  “But,” Vince added, “once you join, your entire record gets locked down. Your file becomes cssified.”

  “Law enforcement? Can’t touch you. Government agencies? No access. And if you ever need backup?” Vince smirked. “You can order the local police, the Law Enforcement Bureau, or even the military garrison to assist you.”

  Axel’s fingers twitched slightly. That… That was huge. He had always known the Whisper Syndicate was powerful. But this? This was above the w. And that—that was the most tempting thing of all.

  Annabelle sat quietly next to Axel, her wide eyes flicking between the two men.

  Vince didn’t pay her much attention—just another curious little sister tagging along.

  But Axel’s mind was already racing. Joining the Whisper Syndicate wasn’t just about money or power.

  With their protection, both he and Annabelle could avoid the kind of thorough background checks that would expose her… condition.

  Even Awakeners weren’t exempt from mass screenings when infected outbreaks happened. That was why Axel had always kept Annabelle far away from crowded pces.

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