2-2. Into the Abyss

Several days had passed, and the commotion with the Unchained in the "Nag-Won" Metaverse had become a past event for Maya and Kent. One day, they visited the neighborhood convenience store run by Haraboji to express their gratitude for his help during the disturbance. At that time, the brothers Chen Chunyan and Chen Yichen, their childhood friends, happened to be in the store. These brothers had been living with Haraboji since the widely reported "Chen couple disappearance case" three years ago. The brothers had differing views about the disappearance case and weren't on the best of terms. Chunyan asserted that the Unchained were involved in their parents' disappearance, while Yichen believed their parents had abandoned them.

As Maya and Chunyan talked, it turned out that Chunyan also had recently had a dispute with the Unchained in the "Nag-Won" Metaverse. She had been temporarily detained by Unchained members when she was searching for their hideout. However, she successfully hacked the Metaverse system and escaped.

At the hideout, Chunyan had found a photograph of the Chen couple and the strings of characters "b-110" and "645725". Later, she researched past newspaper articles at the National Library and, using the string "b-110" as a clue, she stumbled upon the existence of a secret society named "BIIO". Although the connection between this string and the secret society was not yet clear, she was determined to continue her investigation.

Maya was interested in this story and decided to help Chunyan with her investigation. At first, Kent, who was listening with concern, eventually agreed with this decision. However, the moment Maya and Chunyan pledged to cooperate in the investigation, Haraboji appeared from the back of the store. He firmly forbade them from undertaking such a dangerous investigation, warning them it could put them and their families at risk.