Slowly, I shouldered open the heavy doors and stepped into the office.
Hong Gildong sat at a large executive desk, a marble scrying pool in the center. Floor-to-ceiling bookshelves lined the room likesentinels, some shelves packed with old leather tomes and others decorated with gold trinkets—tiny dragons, old coins in frames, embossed vases, even what looked like a gilded stapler. The whole room twinkled like its own galaxy from the sheer number of gold ornaments reflecting the streetlights.
“Mina,” Hong Gildong said, rising to his feet. I had forgotten how tall he was, and it took everything in me not to step back as his head blocked the light, his shadow falling over me. “I think congratulations are in order.”
I jolted as the door swung shut behind me. “Sajangnim, are you referring to—”
“You’ve crossed the point threshold,” he said. “You’re officially eligible for a full-time agent position. So, again, my congratulations.”
My gaze darted to the golden clock on the wall. It was 10:15, which meant the timeline had refreshed while I was out with Jihoon. The points had been tallied, so of course Hong Gildong had been alerted.
I bowed quickly. “Thank you, Sajangnim,” I said. “It’s so kind of you to tell me personally. You really didn’t have to.”
“Oh, that’s not the only reason I needed to speak to you,” he said. “You are noweligiblefor a full-time position, but there’s one additional layer of screening you need to complete before you can actually be hired.”
“Screening?” I echoed, still pressed against the door. I had thought that the moment I kissed Jihoon, I’d get an automatic promotion.
Hong Gildong gestured for me to come closer. I walked stiffly across the carpet and sat in the chair across from his desk.
“All descendants must pass one final exam before they are cleared for independent travel,” Hong Gildong said. “Something more challenging than your past assignments, in order to ascertain both your skill and your devotion to our cause.”
I nodded, afraid to speak and say something wrong.
“Agent Jang Hyebin, for instance,” Hong Gildong went on, “was tasked with destroying the Seongsu Bridge in 1994. A mission that she executed perfectly, leading to her senior agent position within the year.”
Hyebin had never mentioned that, but few people probably wanted to chat about sending cars plummeting to the bottom of the river for the greater good. I had always known that the descendants were in the business of preserving truth, not saving lives, but that didn’t mean I actually wanted to cause death. What kind of morally questionable assignment would Hong Gildong give to me?
“The timeline architects have selected an assignment for you that is equally challenging, and vital to the stability of the timeline,” he said, gesturing for me to sign into the scrying pool on his desk. I wrote my signature across the cool water, trying to still my shaking hands. There was only one new mission waiting for me. I clicked on it, and the document expxanded to fill the pool.
MISSION 874675
Agent 1475C, Yang Mina
Points:N/A—pass/fail
Date:October 16, 2025
Time:19:10:00
Location:Front steps of National Assembly Proceeding Hall
Principal Objective:Shoot presidential candidate Min Sungho in left eye from distance of 10.3 meters. Disperse with crowd before apprehension.
End Objective:Initiate war with North Korea
My gaze lingered on the final line. I read it again and again, praying I’d just forgotten how to read Korean because there wasno waythat this was my assignment.
“There’s going to be a war?” I whispered. “And I’m supposed to start it?”
Hong Gildong laughed, as if any of this was funny. “There’s going to be a war whether you start it or not,” he said. “A rogue tried to prevent it, but it was always going to happen. Itneedsto happen. That’s the will of the timeline.”
I clenched my fists, staring at the scrying pool rather than meeting Hong Gildong’s gaze, afraid he would read the fire in my eyes.
The will of the timeline.What a joke. Even if this truly was the original timeline and not Timeline Beta, what made it so sacred and untouchable?
The descendants had no interest in saving lives, reducing suffering, or creating a world that was fairer even though they could have done so easily. They were so enamored with the idea that we were supposed to be neutral, that no one could make an impartial decision so no one should change the timeline at all.
But had the original timeline not already been determined by people in power? Didn’t we all shape the timeline merely by standing on it?
