I’ve Got It!
19: Chapter 19.
I’ve Got It!
* * * * * * “…I feel strange.” Haeryeon rubbed her face vigorously with both hands, as though washing it.
Their conversation with Hyeon-yul had been brief, covering only the important points without any idle chatter.
But the remark about having nothing to eat at home had stuck with her.
Without even thinking to ask what he liked, she’d stopped at a nearby supermarket with Shinwoo, bought everything she could carry, and left it all with him.
They’d practically fled afterward, leaving a thoroughly bewildered Hyeon-yul behind.
“…I feel the same way, Team Leader.” Shinwoo drove as though he were in a trance.
“He really looked as if…
it was the first time anyone had given him food like that, didn’t he?” “He certainly did.” “Oh, this is bad…
I’m really weak when it comes to things like that.” “So am I.” Haeryeon and Shinwoo sighed almost simultaneously.
They couldn’t even begin to imagine what sort of life Hyeon-yul had led.
“Villains keep coming after him.
We should get him to move as soon as possible, but do you think he’d agree?” “Honestly, I don’t think he’ll move without a particular reason.
The place looked as though he’d been living there quite a long time.” “Right…?
Our benefits are good, but we don’t operate a dormitory because of security concerns.
If we did, I’d submit an application for him immediately.” What a shame.
Haeryeon wore exactly that expression as she fidgeted with her seat belt.
“I’ll try to persuade him gently.
For now, let’s resolve the other matters first.” “That’s right.
You saw what Mr.
Hyeon-yul handed us today, didn’t you?” He’d helped them uncover a traitor and revealed the location of a building owned by the Poison King.
Today alone could reasonably be considered the successful completion of a major mission.
“Getting rid of someone so capable would be absurd.” Haeryeon folded her arms while Shinwoo smoothly turned the steering wheel and nodded repeatedly.
“Of course.
It’s hard enough to find someone like him.” “Are we really going to let someone this capable go without having his abilities recognized?” “Absolutely not.
Hyeon-yul has already proved himself through his work.
In barely a week, he’s accomplished things we’ve been unable to do for ages.” “Exactly!
You can tell just by how the big-name villains are after Mr.
Hyeon-yul.
Team Leader Dojin is interested in him too.” “Team Leader Dojin as well?” “Yes.
It makes my head spin just thinking about it.
As for Team Leader Juhyeon…
I’m still not sure, but you never know.” “Team Leader, to be frank, I liked Hyeon-yul because I had this absolute conviction that he wouldn’t die during a mission.
I don’t want any more teammates to die.” “…Yes.
That’s something I really…
don’t want either.” Haeryeon looked out the window.
No matter how good the Black Eagles’ employment conditions were, the death rate was high.
Sooner or later, everyone experienced the loss of a teammate.
Wasn’t preventing that very outcome why she was managing the team so desperately?
“So, Team Leader, when do you think we should hold Hyeon-yul’s welcome party?” Shinwoo abruptly tossed aside the somber mood.
Surely holding a welcome party would make it feel as though Hyeon-yul had truly joined Team 3.
“Shinwoo, do you think Mr.
Hyeon-yul could handle us?
All of us?
All that energy we let loose?
We’ll be even worse once there’s alcohol.
Will he be okay?” Haeryeon’s concern was genuine.
One teammate had actually run away after attending a single welcome party.
“…That is a bit frightening.
We can’t let him run away over something like that.” “Mr.
Hyeon-yul hasn’t even met Mr.
Jihwan yet.
Their schedules have just kept missing each other lately.” “Don’t you think they’d get along?” “Who knows?
Maybe they would.” “If they’re destined to be teammates, they’ll run into each other sooner or later, won’t they?” Shinwoo laughed loudly at his own remark.
Haeryeon shook her head, as though accustomed to his behavior.
* * * ‘…Hmm.’ Hyeon-yul rested his chin on his hand and gazed out the bus window.
According to *101 Ways to Succeed in the Workplace*, when someone gave you something, you were supposed to offer something in return.
Haeryeon and Shinwoo had brought over so much food yesterday that they’d filled his previously empty refrigerator.
‘How…
am I supposed to repay them?’ He was seriously pondering the question when he abruptly stood up.
“Driver, turn the steering wheel left, right now.” Hyeon-yul approached the driver and gave the order firmly.
Something was coming toward them, and the signs were ominous.
‘This is a different kind of power.’ It was also the kind of force that would be dangerous to collide with.
Hyeon-yul looked through the front windshield and braced himself against a pole as the bus swerved sharply.
SCREEEEEECH.
A sound like the road itself being scraped apart pierced his ears.
“Uwaaaagh!” Screams filled the interior as passengers were thrown from their seats.
‘Looks like I’m the only Black Eagle on this bus.’ Before Hyeon-yul could get off to stop whatever was approaching, an unfamiliar power enveloped the bus and protected it.
He raised an eyebrow at the transparent, membrane-like barrier.
‘…Magic?’ Someone approached leisurely from beyond the barrier and stopped in front of the bus.
The man yawned, grinned at Hyeon-yul, and held up three fingers.
There was only one obvious meaning behind the gesture.
‘…Team 3?’ Only then did Hyeon-yul realize they were teammates.
Haeryeon had mentioned there was another member of his team, but their paths had never crossed.
‘Who would’ve thought he’d be a mage?’ Hyeon-yul turned his head.
Something shot out behind the bus and collided with a car that had been following them.
BOOOOM!
As the car flew through the air, Hyeon-yul let out a long breath.
‘What kind of power was that?’ A person stood where the car had been.
Had this been an attack timed to coincide with the morning commute?
“Please open the door.” Hyeon-yul asked the driver to let him out.
The moment his feet touched the ground, his mood sank.
The flying car had damaged several other vehicles, and their blaring horns pierced his ears.
Come to think of it, he hadn’t even arrived at work yet.
Who in the world wanted to start working before their shift?
“Kya-ha-ha-ha!” At the strange laughter, Hyeon-yul turned his head.
A man with bulging muscles, as though he’d been pumped full of air, slowly turned toward him.
Hyeon-yul had no interest in learning who the man was.
Anyone who destroyed other people’s cars without a thought could safely be called a villain.
He drew his dagger and surveyed the surroundings carefully.
He could hear suspicious footsteps, but no one else had appeared alongside the man.
For the moment, he was alone.
“You’re going to take me on with that?” The villain looked Hyeon-yul up and down and laughed.
His opponent seemed frail compared to his own enormous body.
How satisfying would it be to beat someone like that?
He licked his lips and indulged in the fantasy.
“Good, good.
You’ll be just perfect for building my illustrious record.” At the word *record*, Hyeon-yul approached without hesitation.
The man really was a villain.
Just as he was about to melt into the darkness, Hyeon-yul stopped walking.
A wall had suddenly sprung up in front of him, and he glanced behind him.
The first thing he noticed was a mass of tightly curled blond hair.
Its owner looked quite young at a glance.
“…What are you doing?” His teammate sounded horrified.
Did the rookie have no sense at all?
The man who had appeared wasn’t just unusually big.
He was now as tall as the roof of the bus.
The car he’d collided with looked ready to be sent straight to the scrapyard.
This was one of the most common forms of villainous enhancement ability, the kind that enlarged the body from the inside to amplify its owner’s strength.
“That’s what I’d like to ask you.
What are you doing?” Hyeon-yul sounded annoyed.
What was this supposed to be, training?
This was a real battle.
Didn’t his teammate know the slightest mistake could get someone killed?
“How can you rush at a brute that size?
You’re going to get yourself seriously hurt!” “Nothing serious will happen.” Hyeon-yul spoke decisively and faced forward.
The hulking villain was making it painfully obvious he relied on physical blows.
So what?
A tremor ran through the ground, and the magical wall his teammate had raised shattered into fragments that flew everywhere.
CRASH!
A heavy fist lunged toward him, accompanied by the villain’s broad smile.
But Hyeon-yul was certain that fist would never touch him.
He let the incoming fist and flying debris pass him by and raised his dagger.
“Pwahaha!” The villain burst out laughing.
The little blade was so short and small that it couldn’t possibly cut through his muscles.
What was the boy going to do with that?
As soon as his feet touched the ground, he turned and threw another punch, intending to smash Hyeon-yul’s head.
Looking at the villain’s rocklike fist, Hyeon-yul smiled too.
Black power spread around the dagger like a demon unfolding its wings.
In an instant, that power gathered along the blade and extended it into a longsword.
The villain faltered in shock.
Following the sword’s black trajectory, Hyeon-yul severed his arm without the slightest hesitation.
The cut was clean and effortless.
Hyeon-yul stepped backward to avoid the spraying blood as the villain’s scream ripped through the street.
“Aaaaaaagh!” After watching him roll on the ground clutching his severed arm, Hyeon-yul glanced toward his teammate.
He could still hear a car moving, despite the scene in front of them.
It was heading straight toward them.
‘So there are more of them after all.’ Was that the source of the suspicious footsteps?
“I’ll handle this!” The teammate, who had been about to rush in and join him, called out urgently.
He pointed his staff toward the direction Hyeon-yul was watching.
Wind swirled around the young man, and a magic circle appeared in front of the staff.
A flickering light flashed and vanished, then a violent blizzard swept out of nowhere.
Hyeon-yul frowned.
Even from a distance, their breaths turned into white clouds.
The oncoming car froze solid in an instant.
He turned to his teammate.
How would he have countered such power himself?
It was impressive enough to make him consider the question.
‘If it were me, I’d have killed him the moment he raised that staff.’ That was the simplest way to deal with a mage.
“Wow!
That car had a spell on it.
How did you know to react?” His teammate sounded amazed.
Detecting magic was difficult, which was why it consistently ranked among the five most terrifying kinds of power.
‘That car was enchanted…?’ Hyeon-yul looked at the frozen vehicle.
He hadn’t been able to see the spell.
“I heard a sound.” “But it was a sound-suppression spell.
You could hear it?
Your hearing must be incredibly sharp!” “Several of my senses are sharp.” Hyeon-yul lowered his gaze briefly.
Wherever there were shadows, he could feel vibrations.
“Anyway, you were right.
Nothing serious happened!
I’ll remember that next time.” His teammate grinned and came closer.
Perhaps he was just naturally easygoing.
“Something like this isn’t a serious problem.” If he were so incompetent that it caused a serious problem, he’d be fired.
With that answer, Hyeon-yul walked over to the villain.
Fear was already visible in the man’s eyes.
“Why are you making such a fuss?
If you attack someone, isn’t it natural to be prepared to lose a limb?” The villain recoiled at his matter-of-fact words.
“That’s not natural at a…” “I’ll ask a simple question.
Which company was advertising positions that made you want to improve your record?” Hyeon-yul hadn’t forgotten the word *record* he’d heard earlier.
Anyone could join a villain-run company without qualifications.
The barrier to entry was that low.
Changing jobs, however, was different.
Hyeon-yul himself had been recruited after cutting off his bosses’ heads, but ordinary villains needed a record of how much villainy they’d committed before switching employers.
They called it a career record, just as people did elsewhere.
“…Ah, you must have seen the Poison King’s recruitment advertisement.” For now, the Poison King was the only figure trying to expand his influence into this district.
The villain’s shoulder twitched almost imperceptibly.
‘So it really is the Poison King.’ That movement confirmed Hyeon-yul’s suspicion.
Whenever someone tried to monopolize an entire area, rival factions naturally grew wary.
Apparently the Poison King was too powerful to care about stepping on anyone else’s toes.
‘Well, given the size of his organization…’ Hyeon-yul’s brow creased as he considered another possibility.
‘Wait a minute.’ —…He said they were preparing something big.
He remembered hearing those words yesterday while killing seven of the eight people at the restaurant.
Hyeon-yul took out his phone and searched for a nearby festival.
Back when he’d worked under Shin Daeho, the man had casually mentioned an idea.
—Wouldn’t someone be pretty useful if they had the guts to kill in a crowded place and then get away clean?
Of course, they’d have to take a photo proving they did it.
If two people picked the same target, I’d tell them to kill each other.
What do you think?
Not a bad job advertisement, right?
At the time, Hyeon-yul had ignored the nonsense.
His work had mostly involved killing competitors, which meant other villains.
‘To think there’s actually a lunatic willing to do it.’ “…Excuse me?” His teammate called to him.
Hyeon-yul still didn’t know the young man’s name.
“May I stop the villain’s bleeding?” “Do as you please.” Hyeon-yul no longer had any business with the villain, so he lowered his phone.
A festival was scheduled to take place nearby soon.
He’d been too busy to attend festivals and hadn’t even known about this one.
‘The timing fits.
This must be it.’ It made sense.
What better opportunity for terrorism than a festival?
‘They’d need access to the festival, so they’ve probably already contacted the organizers.’ The most common point of interference would be festival security.
‘A security company…’ The more he thought about it, the more the corners of his mouth rose.
Villain-run companies operated in an enormous range of industries, and many dealt directly with ordinary civilians.
Wasn’t the Black Eagle organization itself hunting for major corporations secretly run by villains?
The villains’ ultimate target was always the Empire.
Since they wanted control over it, they also wanted to entrench themselves in its economy.
A security company could easily be owned by villains too.
‘The day before the festival, something will probably happen to draw the Black Eagles’ attention away.’ He remembered the conversations on the phone he’d given Juhyeon.
Those messages had included orders to lure Black Eagles somewhere else so they couldn’t reach a particular location.
Why wouldn’t they try the same thing this time?
After turning several possibilities over in his mind, Hyeon-yul suddenly clenched his fist.
‘…Why am I thinking about all this when I haven’t even started work?’ Reality came crashing back.
He turned around and saw several cars tangled together in a wreck, including the bus.
The thought of how he was supposed to reach the Nest irritated him.
This was why he hated villains.
Ever since he’d gotten involved with them, his life had been one enormous mess.
“…Excuse me.” His teammate called again, somewhat cautiously because of the grim expression on Hyeon-yul’s face.
“What is it?” Yet when Hyeon-yul answered, his expression changed so completely that his earlier sharpness seemed to vanish.
“First, let me introduce myself.
I’m Ye Jihwan, and we’re on the same team.
Nice to meet you.” Jihwan introduced himself and looked at Hyeon-yul with open curiosity.
“My name is Seo Hyeon-yul.” “It’s great to finally meet you!
I had no idea you were so strong!” Jihwan looked delighted.
He’d heard there was a new recruit, but this man had fought like a seasoned veteran.
For a moment, Jihwan had almost wondered whether he’d mistaken him for the rookie.
“I know any Black Eagle could easily deal with someone of that level,” Hyeon-yul said matter-of-factly.
If someone lacked that much strength, they couldn’t have become a Black Eagle in the first place.
“How modest of you!” Jihwan praised him with a laugh.
Who didn’t enjoy receiving praise?
But Hyeon-yul disagreed.
“I’m not being modest.
It’s simply the truth.” ‘Does he dislike empty compliments?’ Jihwan was momentarily taken aback, then smiled again, curious about what sort of person his new teammate might be.
“Mr.
Ye Jihwan, there’s something I’d like to ask you.” “Go ahead.
Oh, one second.” Jihwan pressed a hand against the forehead of the villain, who was still screaming.
Light gathered around his fingertips, and the villain slumped limply.
“I put him to sleep.
I didn’t kill him.” “Whether you kill him or not doesn’t matter to me.” “…Really?” Jihwan was relieved.
Magic was innately powerful, and mages sometimes killed people unintentionally.
“I want to call another bus now.
How do I do that?” Jihwan blinked at the unexpected question for a moment.
‘A bus…?’ For an instant, he didn’t understand what Hyeon-yul meant.
Then he broke into a bright smile.
‘He’s unexpectedly clueless about some things.’ Why was he worrying about a bus?
Black Eagle was not a title handed out to just anyone.
These were highly valued specialists.
By now, a rescue team and another vehicle would surely be on their way without anyone having to request them.
Yet Jihwan somehow didn’t feel like explaining that.
‘He’s a rookie after all.’ * * * Hyeon-yul stole a glance at Jihwan.
Since he’d approached as naturally as Nayun, Hyeon-yul had expected him to be just as talkative as she was.
But other than saying he’d called a bus, Jihwan hadn’t spoken at all until they arrived.
He’d simply sat there with a vacant expression.
Being with him was surprisingly comfortable.
Hyeon-yul almost felt the frustration of his interrupted commute slipping away.
The Managers came out and swiftly collected the villain they’d brought back, just as they had on a previous occasion.
Because Jihwan had been so quiet, the journey had been easier than expected.
When they opened the door, Haeryeon was there to greet them.
“Welcome back.” Seeing Jihwan looking absentminded as usual and Hyeon-yul looking strangely relaxed, Haeryeon had to suppress a laugh.
She’d known they’d get along.
“Don’t you two make a good pair?” “I was seriously moved by you, big brother.” Jihwan pressed his fingers against the space between his eyebrows.
Hyeon-yul was about to nod politely, but then asked, “Why are you calling me your big brother?” “Would you rather I be the older brother?” Jihwan looked at his teammate with an expectant smile.
“…” Hyeon-yul was at a loss for words.
What difference did it make?
“Actually, you two are the same age,” Haeryeon interjected.
Jihwan grinned widely at the news as he answered.
“I’m still going to call you big brother.
You’re incredibly strong.” ‘So that’s the part that won Jihwan over.’ Jihwan liked strong people.
Haeryeon was pleased that Hyeon-yul seemed to be fitting in so well.
When Jihwan and Haeryeon smiled, Hyeon-yul forced the corners of his mouth upward, taking his cue from them.
He didn’t know why they were laughing, but wasn’t this what it meant to get along in the workplace?