The food was brought up faster than Kim Dokja expected, almost immediately after he finished his call.

The first thing that caught his eye was how muscular the arm that held the dishes was. It wasn't too buff like the gym guy he met at the Ogygia Villa party, but definitely better than Demon. Scars could be seen on his hands, extending up past the wrist to the arm covered by the white long sleeves. The white uniform he was wearing was different from the black-and-white one the young waitress girl wore before, indicating he was not a waiter, but the chef.

Come to think of it, has she even graduated high school yet? This place isn't exploiting minor's labor, right?

Kim Dokja was about to dig in, but the chef didn't seem to have any intention to leave. He looked up, barely making anything out of the basic frame of the man. He focused hard on studying the chef's facial structure, in case it was someone he knew. But aside from the sharp jawline and high nose - indicating that this chef is definitely handsome, he couldn't fit him to any person he knew of.

Yet the feeling from his gaze made Kim Dokja feel like they had known each other for a very long time. This uncertain feeling made him somewhat uncomfortable. Its burning sensation was on pair with Cabernet every time she asked to taste his soul, yet couldn't be more different. It was like... longing?

The thought sent shivers down his spine. The waitress, and now the chef? This restaurant sure was strange.

Plastered a service smile on his face, he asked:

"Is there something wrong?"

The chef stood still, didn't answer. If Kim Dokja was in a better state, he might realize his hands were shaking very slightly. Unfortunately, everything in front of him now was no different than a jar of smoothie, so he could only say:

"...If there is nothing else, then, thank you for the food."

Right from the first bite, all the uneasiness he got from this restaurant was all thrown to the back of his head.

Their staff might be rather unprofessional, but their food was no doubt top-notch, perhaps the fact that Kim Dokja was famished also played a part. Before realizing it, he had already finished everything from the main dish to the cool mixed drink. Even though his mind was still craving for more, he knew full well this was his limit, so he fought his instinct and put the fork down. The strange chef had returned to the kitchen long ago, the time on his phone had also changed to p.m. With a double tap, he opened the map and started to search for a nice hotel while waiting for the energy to kick in.

However, that burning gaze still persisted.

As someone whose job involved mostly dealing with mentally unstable Sinners and usually (unconsciously) had to act as their moral compass, Kim Dokja couldn't be more familiar with the intensity behind those gazes. Were they someone he knew before his memory was erased?

He unconsciously pinched his glabella, while walking towards the cashier counter. As he waited for the cashier to print out the bill, his thoughts aimlessly wandered. There was a pretty good hotel just one block away. Its rating was high, had a nice view of the park nearby and was close to a supermarket, an ideal accommodation.

Based on Yoo Sang-Ah and the other's reactions, they hadn't found out about how he left, which means there was no trace. NeoHive was not far from DisCity and the MBCC headquarters, but Paradeiso's influence here wasn't strong. It might take a few days for them to retrieve him, but that duration was enough. He could return to this restaurant later when he had recovered and take this chance to investigate his past, out of Paradeiso's eye...

As he was deep in thought, his vision tilted abnormally. Before completely blacking out, Kim Dokja thought he heard someone screaming his name.

*****

Even after leading the unexpected guest to the dining table and back to the kitchen, Shin Yoosung was still very much in shock. Her ahjussi, her family, who were taken away by those bastards so many years ago suddenly reappeared, completely unexpectedly at their door, on her shift no less. Even though he didn't seem to remember her, she expected that much.

The others didn't allow her and other teens to work for them until they finished college, it was also her ahjussi wish. Shin Yoosung wanted to join sooner, to take part in the quest to rescue him, but she was only 11 at that time, so she could only work part-time for The Garden.

Who could have thoughts...

Her eyes sneakily directed at the slender figure in the best spot in the restaurant, talking to someone on his phone. He was thinner and more tired than in her memory...

Her eyes then followed their chef - her Mentor's back. The same was true for every other staff member in the kitchen, waiting for his signal. After sending the task to investigate how Kim Dokja came, Yoo Joonghyuk's gaze had never left that figure.

Many of The Garden's members here joined after Kim Dokja was gone, while most of them weren't even aware of what they were doing. Only Lee Jihye and Shin Yoosung knew how agitated their Mentor was right now. As Kim Dokja stood up, Shin Yoosung poked Lee Jihye's arm:

"Should we buy some time? He is about to leave."

"I don't know, Han Sooyoung said we must not do anything reckless and wait for her, in case this's a trap."

The Garden hadn't openly opposed Paradeiso - as the gap between their power was still too large, while secretly investigating Kim Dokja's related matters. It was their top secret, hidden even from their own members. Contents of their investigation's results still filled Lee Jihye's heart with anger every time she thought about it.

While the two girls were still fidgeting, didn't know what to do, the unexpected had already happened.

Almost like teleported, Yoo Joonghyuk materialized next to Kim Dokja, caught his limp body before he touched the ground. Only then did the girls' voice come:

"Ahjussi!"

"Kim Dokja!"

Yoo Joonghyuk quickly checked his vital, while quickly giving out orders. He lifted Kim Dokja up in his arms, held him closely:

"Call Seolhwa and prepare a room, now!"

They speedily moved Kim Dokja to the best room they could prepare. Needless to say, the restaurant was closed. During the time Lee Seolhwa examined Kim Dokja, Yoo Joonghyuk sat next to his bed like an emperor, his arms crossed tightly, as if the doctors could not diagnose the problem, he would immediately order "Off with their head!".

The thought made Jihye almost chuckle a little, but she couldn't, nor dare to. Downstairs, a loud bang and a shout "Where is he !?" could be heard faintly, signaling Han Sooyoung arrival.

During the entire time examining Kim Dokja, Lee Seolhwa's eyebrows never relaxed, making Shin Yoosung look as if she was about to cry. Luckily, all unrelated people were left downstairs, so no one saw this frail and feeble appearance of their Beast Master.

As Lee Seolhwa's hand left Kim Dokja, she looked more confused than ever:

"He's just sleep-deprived and exhausted, so a full rest for a few days should be enough. However, power-wise..."

She glanced at her sleeping patient, before continue speaking:

"There is an unknown energy residing in him. Right now, his body is already fighting it. This is out of my expertise, so I'm afraid we can only wait until he's done."

Han Sooyoung - who stomped into the room just a moment ago, immediately asked:

"How about his memory, can you restore it?"

Lee Seolhwa shakes her head:

"I already tried, but his Mirage is a literal tornado right now, I couldn't process any further than the shallow layer. Whatever that unknown energy is, it's deeply connected to the mind realm."

"So we can't only wait, huh?"

Han Sooyoung plopped back down on the chair, clearly pissed. It wasn't until now that Yoo Joonghyuk spoke:

"Have you investigated why he came here?"

Han Sooyoung pulled her phone out and played a footage - their undercover agent in MBCC sent her this just a minute ago. She shared it via their closed channel, while explaining:

"That's the weird part, even the MBCC didn't know either. His assistant was busy covering his disappearance this morning and only gave out an official statement 40 minutes ago."

40 minutes, that was the time Kim Dokja was talking on his phone.

"Anyway, I don't think this is related to Paradeiso or FAC. Of course, that doesn't mean this is a coincidence either. So we better take this chance to get him back. As long as he is in NeoHive, Paradeiso won't be able to do as they please."

Han Sooyoung concluded. In fact, she already got people to erase all of Kim Dokja's traces in the city. It was their first chance in a whole 7 years to get this close to him, there was no way she was gonna let it slip.

Shin Yoosung raised one of her hands out of habit, asking her:

"But MBCC already knew about his location, what should we do about them?"

While FAC was on bad terms with The Garden, the MBCC was not, and based on her understanding of Kim Dokja, there was no way he was going to leave all those Sinners, no matter with his old memory or not.

Han Sooyoung also thought about this. At this moment, Yoo Joonghyuk was the first to offer a solution:

"I will contact Langley, the others stay here and protect him."

Han Sooyoung couldn't hold her laugh.

"Hah! She would blow your head off instead. Have you forgotten the last time you faced that woman?"

At this moment, a message appeared on her phone screen. Upon checking them, a smirk arose on her face.

"Guys, I have a better idea."