I’ve Got It!
(2) 20: Chapter 20.
I’ve Got It!
(2) * * * * * * “…So you’re saying it was a coincidence that the villain attacked your bus?” Haeryeon reached that conclusion after hearing the entire account.
“That’s correct.
What’s important about this incident is the villain’s behavior.
He was trying to build his career record.” At Hyeon-yul’s calm explanation, a question mark practically appeared over Haeryeon’s face.
“Career record…?
The kind of career record I’m thinking of?” “Yes.
Villains need experience to move to other companies, just as people do here.
As you know, companies run by villains don’t look any different from ordinary businesses on the surface.
Some of their actual employees believe they work at legitimate companies.” Not everyone hated the Empire, so this was the disguise villains had chosen.
They created numerous subsidiaries and gradually absorbed ordinary people into their organizations, putting them through a process that naturally turned them into villains.
If necessary, they used brainwashing, drugs, or any other method available.
Just as an experimental subject passed through different stages, the employees moved from one subsidiary to another.
When an ordinary person had been completely transformed into a villain, they could finally be transferred to the main company.
“A recruitment notice has gone out seeking experienced villains.
More incidents like today’s might happen as they try to meet its requirements.” As Hyeon-yul explained all this without a moment’s hesitation, Jihwan’s eyes darted around.
He could only smile.
‘How does he know all these details?’ Hyeon-yul was describing the inner workings of villainous companies as though he’d been a villain himself.
‘But he’s a rookie…?’ Jihwan still knew very little about him.
He’d heard things from Shinwoo and Nayun, but, to be honest, their messages had been less about sharing information and more about how to approach Hyeon-yul naturally.
Judging from those messages, Hyeon-yul was precisely the sort of person one shouldn’t immediately try to befriend, so Jihwan hadn’t spoken to him much on the bus.
Seeing how pleased Hyeon-yul had been with the silence, he’d thought he’d found the right approach.
Now, however, the rookie seemed even harder to understand.
“Team Leader, I told you before that the Poison King was planning a major incident, didn’t I?” Haeryeon nodded without taking her eyes off the rookie.
“Yes, you did.” “Since a recruitment notice has actually gone out, we can be sure that information was accurate.
The villains trying to enter that company may turn the target location into a slaughterhouse.” “The target location?
Do you know where it is?” He’d spoken as though he already knew.
Haeryeon’s mouth went dry at his unfamiliar way of approaching the problem.
It was almost as if he were analyzing villains from a villain’s point of view.
“A festival.” Jihwan tilted his head at the answer.
“Big brother, how can you be so certain?” “Because I used to work for villains.” “…!” Jihwan’s eyes went wide at that short and simple response.
‘Jihwan hasn’t even heard the rumors.’ Seeing Jihwan silently asking for an explanation, Haeryeon gave an awkward smile.
“He came in through special recruitment.
Mr.
Hyeon-yul was the one who caught Shin Daeho.” “…Big brother!” Jihwan called out to Hyeon-yul forcefully again.
His deeply moved expression made Hyeon-yul frown.
“That’s incredibly difficult!
I only barely passed the entrance requirements.
Nayun also joined through special recruitment, you know.
Did you know that?” “…Yes, I did.” “That means we already have two people on Team 3 who came in through special recruitment.
…Ah, to think I’m a member of a team like this.
It’s wonderful!” Jihwan looked as though he might float into the sky from sheer happiness.
He had always liked strong people.
‘…So he isn’t quiet after all.’ Hyeon-yul looked at him warily.
So he’d merely been pretending to be quiet.
“Anyway, Mr.
Hyeon-yul, you’re saying some villain placed a recruitment advertisement, and the others are causing incidents like today’s to meet the requirements, correct?” “Yes.” “And if the festival is going to be the site where they fulfill those requirements, a security company would give them the easiest access?” “That’s correct.
Or at least that’s what I believe.” Haeryeon drew in a breath at the certainty in his reply.
“Who’s the villain behind it?” “The Poison King.” “Hah.” Haeryeon let out a laugh.
The Poison King was a major villain, just as Shin Daeho had been.
How many people had ever gotten this close to a villain of that caliber in so little time?
“You really are incredible, Mr.
Hyeon-yul.” Her admiration was sincere.
How had someone like him ended up on her team?
He’d already given them the location of one of the Poison King’s companies.
If they could find a link to the festival’s security contractor, they could sweep the whole operation away.
Haeryeon looked at him.
Perhaps because he’d shared all the information, he appeared especially relieved.
“Team Leader.” Judging from Hyeon-yul’s expression, Haeryeon could guess what he was about to request.
“…Yes?” “May I be the one to capture the Poison King?” Just as she’d expected, Haeryeon hesitated.
It wasn’t a question she could answer lightly.
“But aren’t you still in your probationary period, big brother?” Jihwan asked cautiously.
Hyeon-yul nodded to confirm what his teammate had said.
“I am still on probation.” “Then…
you shouldn’t have to go out into the field yet, should you?
Isn’t it still a bit dangerous?” Jihwan tried to persuade him gently.
A probationary or training period might mean various things at other workplaces, but here it genuinely meant that rookies should take their time adjusting.
Being thrown into combat too quickly dramatically increased their chances of dying, so this policy was designed to protect new Black Eagles.
As proof, their salaries weren’t even reduced during probation.
“The Poison King made me work after clocking out and before clocking in.” Every word Hyeon-yul spoke carried the fury of someone chewing it over.
The Poison King had claimed he would meet all of Hyeon-yul’s demands, but in the end he’d shown no consideration whatsoever.
He was exactly like all the others.
At the very least, he shouldn’t have sent people in the evening.
If Hyeon-yul hadn’t joined the Black Eagles and had accepted the Poison King’s offer instead, he knew he’d eventually cut off the man’s head anyway.
He was simply going to do it now.
“I believe that’s more than enough reason to kill the Poison King.” His words sounded so vicious that Jihwan shut his mouth.
‘Wow.
That’s…
a lot of resentment.
It’s like he’s spent years being worked to death by awful companies.’ Jihwan discreetly rolled his eyes.
Whatever else he might do, he now knew this subject was best left alone.
“I support him.” Jihwan immediately voiced his approval.
He’d already seen Hyeon-yul’s powers.
The man might technically be a rookie, but he was as capable as a veteran, and he had the boldness to take on villains head-on.
Opposing him almost seemed ridiculous.
“It’s nice that you’re supporting him, but it’s a little difficult for me.” Haeryeon still hesitated.
Never before had someone on probation been sent to kill a major villain.
As a team leader, she had to consider many different factors.
“This isn’t something I can decide right now.
I have to think about Mr.
Hyeon-yul’s safety.” Haeryeon rose from her seat, and Hyeon-yul followed her with his eyes.
There were no theory classes today.
Training had been temporarily suspended because of the incident involving him.
Supposedly the organization was worried that the matter might escalate into a dispute between the Managers and the Black Eagles, but that wasn’t how Hyeon-yul saw it.
It almost seemed as though they were trying to hide something.
“I’d love to tell you to go home now, Mr.
Hyeon-yul, but unfortunately there’s another mission.” Hyeon-yul reacted strongly at first, then rapidly lost interest.
Until now, the missions he’d received had been emergency assignments.
Those were merely one common type, and theory training had taught him there were many others: searches, protection details, patrols, and so on.
“Where should I go?” “It’s a very important assignment, but it might be over quickly.” As she spoke, Haeryeon glanced meaningfully at Jihwan.
He was sitting there with a vacant expression, seemingly lost in space.
Tap, tap.
Haeryeon knocked on the desk, and Jihwan finally looked up at her.
“Yes, Team Leader?” “Someone on probation can’t go alone.
I’m entrusting Mr.
Hyeon-yul to you.” Jihwan made a circle with his thumb and index finger.
“Of course.
He’s still on probation.” “And Mr.
Hyeon-yul.” Haeryeon spoke cheerfully, as though she’d been waiting for this moment.
“Yes?” “Everyone involved in this incident is getting fired, whoever they are.” She appeared to be referring to the collaborators.
The internal traitor problem had become tangled up with the mistreatment of Hyeon-yul.
“They’ll never set foot in this place again.
The main figures are all headed to prison.
If anyone comes to blame you or try to retaliate over this, we’ll fire them immediately too, so feel free to give them the middle finger.” Haeryeon intended to put pressure on the culprits personally as well.
How dare they harass someone on her team?
Did they really think she’d stand by and watch?
“I hope this decision gives you at least some comfort.” Hyeon-yul smiled faintly at her words.
Perhaps the measures had pleased him.
But his thoughts were quite different.
‘Who said I’d let them leave peacefully?’ The proper way to deal with traitors was to kill them.
That would make the matter nice and clean.
* * * ‘…It’s a major development.
I wonder how the people at the top will react.’ Haeryeon was lost in thought as she walked outside the building.
Calling the people in charge old-fashioned wouldn’t be entirely fair, but calling them open-minded wouldn’t be entirely accurate either.
‘No.
Why am I worrying?
I just need to push it through.’ She smiled, then looked behind her.
“You and Juhyeon have been planning something pretty interesting together.” Dojin had approached from behind her and was standing there smiling.
“There are lots of interesting things going on.
It’s been noisy everywhere lately.” “Quite a headache, isn’t it?
If you’ve got a headache, come to me and…” “Team Leader Dojin.” Haeryeon looked straight at him.
Her eyes were sharp enough that she could almost have been called angry.
“I appreciate the advice, but that won’t be necessary.” “At the very least, there won’t be anyone on Team 2 speaking badly about Seo Hyeon-yul.” “Thank you for that.” “Don’t be silly.” “He’s my teammate.” At the pointed reminder, Dojin muttered an irritated curse under his breath.
“By the way, why do you like Mr.
Hyeon-yul so much, Team Leader Dojin?” Haeryeon had been curious for some time.
The older man had liked Hyeon-yul from the beginning.
“One look in that boy’s eyes told me he’ll go far.
You start noticing certain things when you’ve been around long enough.” Perhaps it was something that came with age.
Dojin found it difficult to explain and scratched his arm for no reason.
His eyes had seen too many different things over the years.
“Anyway, can you see how much the organization’s been shaken up since he arrived?
He’s bursting open the festering problems without anyone even asking him.
It makes me look forward to coming to work every day.” Dojin laughed heartily.
Any organization became more troubled the longer it operated.
It almost seemed as though Hyeon-yul had arrived at exactly the right moment to save the Black Eagles.
“…There’s something I want to ask, Team Leader Dojin.” “What is it this time?” At Haeryeon’s suddenly serious tone, Dojin stopped laughing and looked at her.
Nothing but earnestness filled her dark brown eyes.
“Do you trust me?” Although he rarely showed it, Dojin was the oldest of the team leaders and cared about the Black Eagles more than anyone else.
“You should be asking that the other way around.
You should ask whether you can trust me.” Dojin looked down at her, but there was a profound steadiness in his gaze.
Haeryeon smiled softly at his familiar expression.
“You were right, Team Leader Dojin.” Dojin didn’t answer.
He seemed to accept it naturally, as though he’d expected no less.
Only after a moment did a short, troubled breath escape him.
There was a traitor.
It was actually true.
“They say age makes a person hold on to regrets, but hearing that still makes me angry.” “Even so, I think we’ll catch them soon.” Haeryeon tapped her own head twice.
In this context, referring to the *head* meant the major figure at the top of the organization.
Startled, Dojin glanced around quickly.
Even though he knew they were alone, he lowered his voice with difficulty.
“…What did you say?” “It looks as though you were right.
A real blessing rolled into our laps.” Haeryeon spoke lightly and started walking forward.
Hearing that Hyeon-yul had accomplished this made Dojin almost painfully regretful.
He should have recruited the boy himself.
He really should have.
“So I’d appreciate your support at today’s meeting too, Team Leader Dojin.” Haeryeon knew how much influence his words carried, especially since he’d survived so long as a Black Eagle.
“Y-You…” Dojin started to speak but stopped himself.
These youngsters would inherit the next generation, so shouldn’t he look on them fondly?
“Yes?” “You’re just so full of yourself.” “Of course I am.
I learned from you, Team Leader Dojin.” Haeryeon laughed mischievously as she walked away from him.
* * * Hyeon-yul glanced at Jihwan.
He’d thought the young man was noisy, but that didn’t seem to be the case either.
Jihwan was simply walking in a daze, as though his soul had left his body.
Other people might find it strange, but Hyeon-yul was familiar with that sort of behavior and didn’t feel any need to ask about it.
“…Ah!” As if he’d suddenly recharged, Jihwan stopped in his tracks when something occurred to him and looked at Hyeon-yul.
“?” Hyeon-yul shifted his gaze toward him.
“Come to think of it, you looked a little pale when we came here on the Eagle.
Aren’t you feeling well?” Jihwan had noticed how pale his teammate looked as soon as they arrived.
Hyeon-yul had even given himself some kind of injection.
‘That was already ten minutes ago.’ Hyeon-yul didn’t bother saying it aloud.
“I’m an experimental subject, so traveling on the Eagle doesn’t agree with me.
But I’m fine.
It won’t interfere with the mission.” They’d adjusted the Eagle as precisely as possible to suit his body, but there were limits.
—Hyeon-yul, I’ve explained the condition of your body over and over, haven’t I?
The Eagle uses magic, and…
I don’t know exactly how it works myself, but it keeps disturbing your body.
It’s like motion sickness while you’re alive, if that makes sense.
Anyway, I’ll prescribe a new medication, so bear with it until then.
According to Jeongmin, all they could do from now on was control the reaction with medication.
It might have been because he hadn’t used the Eagle in a while, but the experience had been even more painful than usual.
Hyeon-yul turned his head as he walked ahead.
He could no longer hear Jihwan’s footsteps.
“…You were an experimental subject?” Jihwan stood frozen in shock, staring at his teammate.
“Yes.” “Really?” For some reason, Jihwan looked strangely happy.
“Does that make you happy?
You must have been an experimental subject too.” Jihwan flinched at his words, and Hyeon-yul continued.
“Strictly speaking, you probably didn’t quite become an experimental subject.
Did you make it as far as the third…
no, fourth location?” “…Can you tell?
Nobody else seemed to notice.” Jihwan played awkwardly with his hair, suddenly embarrassed.
“Other people probably don’t realize your absentmindedness is a side effect of the drugs.
If you need help, go see Dr.
Lee Jeongmin.
He’ll help you.” “…Big brother.” Although the nickname still felt unfamiliar, Hyeon-yul answered.
“Yes?” “Can I say…
I’m glad to meet you?” He knew his experience wasn’t the same as Hyeon-yul’s, but he still felt a sense of kinship with him.
“Of course.
I’m somewhat glad to have met you too.” Whenever Hyeon-yul searched the sites where experiments had been carried out and brought people to Jeongmin, they always ended up dying.
So the feeling of happiness wasn’t a lie.
A gaze bore down on Hyeon-yul so intensely it was almost uncomfortable, and he operated his smartwatch to check the assignment.
A rough mission summary appeared on the screen.
“…?” The moment Hyeon-yul read it, he doubted his own eyes.
No matter how many times he checked, the details remained the same.
He turned to Jihwan.
“Is this…
really our assignment?” “Surprised?
You’ll be even more surprised when we get there.” Jihwan seemed accustomed to it.
He was even smiling calmly.
“Do we…
really have to go?” “Of course.
We don’t have spare personnel, so once we receive a mission, we have to carry it out.
Let’s go!” Jihwan raised his voice even more enthusiastically.
* * * “Now, everyone, we have some new friends visiting our kindergarten today.
Shall we say hello?” As the teacher’s bright, cheerful voice rang out, Jihwan and Hyeon-yul appeared before the class.
Jihwan walked in naturally, but Hyeon-yul couldn’t seem to relax his rigid expression.
‘…This is a mission?’ The assignment itself was straightforward: protect this place from villains.
There was just one problem.
“Helloooo!” A chorus of greetings, almost loud enough to be screams, rang out with tremendous energy.
Looking into the children’s shining eyes, Hyeon-yul felt cold sweat breaking out all over him.
Never in his life had anyone looked at him with such pure, innocent eyes.