At the Luxury Inn
After hours of waiting, the notification Glober had been anticipating finally arrived.
Soft knocks echoed against the door.
He opened it to find several parcels neatly lined up outside. Closing the door behind him, he began opening them one by one.
Advanced computers—far superior to anything he had owned before.
Rare processors.
Encrypted communication units.
Equipment accessible only to those who knew exactly what to ask for… and where to ask.
A calm smile formed on Glober's face.
— "Soon… I'll start playing with the one called Number Three."
The smile faded slightly, replaced by a thoughtful tone.
— "But before that… I want to know where my ship is being kept."
That was precisely why the Serafex had already been deployed.
Tiny creatures, almost invisible, silently tracking the leader of the men dressed in black.
Glober was certain that man had a direct connection to the ship's location—or at the very least, a thread that led to it.
Elsewhere, Out of Sight
The leader of the black-clad men made a swift call to his subordinates.
— "Has Koichi returned home?"
The reply came from one of them, inside a car parked near Koichi's family house.
He wore large headphones, listening intently to everything happening inside.
— "No, sir. I heard him tell them he's going on a mountain trip with friends."
The leader's expression hardened.
— "Where is the trip location?"
— "He didn't mention it… or at least, he didn't give them anything specific."
Another subordinate spoke up, his voice less confident.
He was the same man who had previously followed Glober's clone.
— "When I was tracking him… he wasn't carrying a bag suitable for a trip.
And he didn't meet anyone during the entire time I followed him."
The leader fell silent for a few seconds.
— "Then… he knew you were following him, and somehow managed to escape."
— "No… that's impossible."
The subordinate replied quickly.
— "I was well concealed. He never once looked back in a way that would suggest suspicion."
The leader pondered briefly, then said coldly:
— "Then perhaps… someone was following you from behind and noticed."
— "I'm a professional tracker, sir,"
the subordinate replied, confidence mixed with tension.
— "If someone had been following me, I would have noticed. But this time… I didn't."
The leader nodded slowly.
— "Understood. Continue monitoring the house."
He ended the call.
Remaining still, he stared into empty space.
— "Could it be… that he truly used one of his supernatural abilities…?"
He muttered with irritation.
— "Damn it… this mission is seriously annoying."
He pulled out his phone again and dialed a carefully saved number.
— "Number Three…"
His voice was low.
— "This mission is now beyond our capabilities. What he's doing exceeds anything we're used to."
A calm voice answered, tinged with mockery.
— "I didn't think you were the complaining type, Number Five."
At that moment, the truth became clear:
the leader of the black-clad men was not merely a field commander…
He had once been one of the Numbers.
— "I'm no longer a Number,"
Number Five said sharply.
— "Did you forget they replaced me with that damn woman?"
— "As far as I'm concerned,"
Number Three replied calmly,
— "you'll always be Number Five. We've been comrades for years."
— "Say what you want."
Number Five sighed.
— "But the rest of the team accepted it."
— "That's not true,"
Number Three cut in.
— "Even Number One still wants you back on the team. It's the higher-ups who refuse."
A brief silence followed.
— "I appreciate that… from him,"
Number Five finally said.
— "But back to the matter at hand. This mission has become complicated.
I suggest placing a bounty on his head. That way… he'll become a target for bounty hunters."
— "And why don't you do it?"
Number Three asked coolly.
Number Five exhaled deeply.
— "I no longer have that authority.
That's why I'm asking you… you're the one who still has the power."
— "Alright,"
Number Three said after a moment's thought.
— "I'll consult with Number One… and see what can be done."
The call ended.
Somewhere far from all of this…
the Serafex continued their silent crawl.
And the game… was entering a far more dangerous phase.
Back in the Quiet Room
Under the cold glow of the monitors, one of the Serafex picked up a distinct audio signal.
One word was enough.
"The Numbers."
Glober froze.
The recordings replayed automatically before him—short clips, overlapping voices—but the meaning was clear now.
They weren't just a mysterious group in black.
They were an organized team.
Five individuals.
Known as the Numbers.
And apparently… they possessed influence, authority, and resources never granted to ordinary organizations.
Then another phrase reached his ears.
Bounty hunters.
A faint smile appeared on Glober's face—but it was anything but comforting.
— "So… this is bigger than I expected."
He had already finished assembling the computers.
Three monitors stood before him, each displaying different data streams.
Thin cables spread across the desk.
Beside him sat blood-transfer equipment, carefully connected—obtained from a black market that didn't exist on any official map.
Tools no one asked questions about… if you knew who to pay.
Glober rested his chin on his hand, his eyes shifting between the screens.
— "The Numbers… five people."
— "And it seems they value each other more than they should."
A brief silence followed.
Then… his eyes lit up.
— "If I want to uncover an organization like this… observing from the outside won't be enough."
His fingers began moving across the keyboard.
Code.
Dark interfaces.
Silent intrusion attempts.
— "Direct access to their databases…"
he muttered.
— "It'll take time… but it's possible."
He suddenly stopped.
Closed one of the windows.
— "But… there's a faster way."
His gaze shifted to a frozen frame on the right screen.
The face of the black-clad leader.
Number Five.
— "He's the weakest link… not because he's weak."
A cold smile crossed Glober's face.
— "But because he's still connected to them."
From what he had heard,
the Numbers didn't see Number Five as a mere subordinate.
He was an old comrade.
Someone not easily replaced.
And that…
Was the problem.
— "If Number Five disappears… they'll move to find him."
— "And that… will cause the entire team to collapse."
Glober stood up and walked toward the window.
City lights shimmered below the hotel, calm and unaware of what was unfolding above them.
— "Abducting Number Five won't be the beginning…"
— "It will be the end of the Numbers."
A faint smile formed on his face.
— "When an entire organization moves for one person alone…"
— "That means it's far weaker than it believes."
The game had entered a new stage.
And Glober…
had chosen to be the one who sets the rules.