Seojin stood motionless, her breath shallow, as the image of her mother lingered on the screen. The words "We are taking the world into our hands" echoed in her mind like a nightmare that refused to end. Her heart was heavy, the weight of her past colliding with the reality she faced now.
She turned slowly, meeting Kade and Minji's eyes. They were both silent, as though still processing the bombshell that had just dropped.
"So, she's really part of this?" Kade's voice was low, a mixture of disbelief and fury.
Seojin couldn't answer right away. Every fiber of her being wanted to lash out, to destroy the system her mother had built in the shadows. But the truth was, she didn't know where to start. Her mother—her own flesh and blood—had turned against everything Seojin stood for.
"Seojin?" Minji's voice cut through the fog in her mind.
Seojin met Minji's gaze, her eyes filled with resolve. "We can't let this happen. Not after everything we've fought for."
"Then we fight," Kade said, his voice steady, but there was a fire in his eyes. "We take the fight to them. We take the fight to your mother and Zhao Wei."
Seojin felt the anger rise in her chest. The world was on the brink of falling into chaos, and the people behind it all were her own flesh and blood. She had never imagined she'd be forced to fight against the very people she was supposed to trust.
But this wasn't just about her anymore. It wasn't even about her mother's betrayal. It was about the future.
"What's the plan?" Seojin asked, her voice sharp.
"We find out everything we can about this hidden alliance," Minji replied, her voice unwavering. "We need to know who's backing them, where they're hiding, and how deep their reach really goes."
Kade nodded. "We'll need to gather intel, go under the radar. They're watching us already. We have to be careful."
Seojin clenched her fists, her mind racing. She had no choice now. There was no turning back. The only way to protect the world—and herself—was to destroy the very foundation her mother had helped build.
The next few days were a blur. Seojin, Kade, and Minji worked tirelessly, gathering intel, contacting their underground network, and tracking down every lead they could find. The alliance, they learned, was far bigger than Zhao Wei or her mother. It spanned across continents, touching every aspect of the global power structure—from governments to corporations, military to the media.
But there was a single piece of information that sent Seojin's world spinning once more: her father.
She hadn't thought about him in years—he'd disappeared when she was just a child, leaving her mother to raise her alone. The rumors about his disappearance were vague, the few people who knew anything about it too afraid to speak. But Seojin had always believed her father had left for some reason beyond her understanding. She never questioned it.
That was, until now.
As she reviewed a set of confidential files they'd managed to acquire from an anonymous source, a single document caught her eye. It was old—dated several years before her father's disappearance—and it had one name: Zhao Wei.
Her mind raced.
Had her father been involved with him? How deep did this betrayal go? Her father's disappearance… Was it really voluntary, or had he been silenced by the very organization her mother now served?
Seojin's hands shook as she read the document again, searching for answers. It seemed her father had been a key figure in a covert operation led by the very same alliance Zhao Wei was now leading. According to the report, her father had tried to pull away from the alliance when he realized their true intentions—an intention to establish a new world order.
Seojin felt the blood drain from her face as she read the final sentence: "Project Nocturne will proceed regardless of your decision, Seojin. You are the final key."
Seojin slammed the document down on the table, the truth sinking in. It wasn't just her mother who had betrayed her—it was her father too. He hadn't abandoned her; he had been silenced because he tried to stop this.
Her mind was in turmoil. She had spent her life believing her father was gone, lost to time, and now, she learned that he had been trying to protect her from the very same people she was now fighting. The implications were staggering.
"Seojin…" Kade's voice broke through her thoughts. He stood beside her, looking at the document. His face mirrored her own disbelief.
Minji, too, stood quietly at her side, her expression solemn. "We have to use this," she said quietly. "Your father's connection to them could be the leverage we need."
Seojin looked at the two of them. "We need to find out where he went," she said, her voice steely with determination. "My father's disappearance isn't just about him. It's the key to everything. If we can find him… we might be able to bring this entire system down."
The three of them spent the next few days tracking down any leads about her father's whereabouts. It wasn't easy. The alliance's influence was everywhere, and they were being watched at every turn. But Seojin couldn't stop now. The world was too close to falling into the hands of those who had no right to control it.
They made their way through underground networks, old friends of her father, and even reached out to those who might have known the truth. The trail was cold, but Seojin refused to give up.
Finally, they found a lead: a small, secluded island off the coast of South Korea, where an old safe house used to belong to her father. It was the last place he had been before he disappeared for good.
Seojin knew this was it. The final push.
She would find her father, uncover the full extent of the betrayal, and put an end to the alliance's plans once and for all.
End of Chapter 108