I’m a New Recruit 4: Chapter 4.
I’m a New Recruit * * * ‘…10:40 a.m.’ Hyeon-yul checked the time, then checked it again.
How could anyone tell a new employee to report by eleven in the morning on their very first day?
‘You can actually start work this late?’ Hyeon-yul was moved all over again by the realization.
Unlike the day he had arrived carrying Shin Daeho’s head, this time he stood in front of the building known as the Nest with an entirely different feeling.
‘This is where I’ll be working from now on.’ Hyeon-yul stood still and gazed at the building.
The Nest was located on the outskirts of the city, probably placed there deliberately because of its considerable size.
There was no subway nearby, but Black Eagle operated dedicated buses, so this time he had arrived comfortably.
Even after seeing it again, the building still looked strangely like an ordinary corporate office.
There were other buildings on both sides, though he had no idea what they were used for.
“Mr.
Seo Hyeon-yul.” At the familiar voice, Hyeon-yul turned his head.
The moment he saw the woman with long, fluffy, permed hair, he recognized Haeryeon.
“You came twenty minutes early?” “Appointment times are important.
Thank you for coming out to meet me.” Hyeon-yul bent into a rigid ninety-degree bow, and Haeryeon smiled awkwardly.
He looked as if military discipline had been drilled into his bones.
“You don’t have to bow like that.” “It’s a habit.
I’ll correct it going forward.” The clipped response made Haeryeon think for a moment.
‘…Did something bad happen whenever he failed to act like this?’ Hyeon-yul had worked for companies run by villains.
That single fact allowed her imagination to fill in plenty of unpleasant possibilities.
Perhaps beatings and similar punishments had been common there.
“Team Leader.” Haeryeon looked slightly startled when Hyeon-yul called to her, then quickly nodded.
“Was the meeting a disaster?” Hyeon-yul could not help asking after seeing the dazed look on Haeryeon’s face.
That day, he had become a Black Eagle by majority vote.
Even though the procedure had been perfectly official, there were always people dissatisfied with the result.
“Ah, it’s fine.” Haeryeon smiled, but the meeting she had just endured immediately resurfaced in her mind.
It had been very, very loud.
—No, even if we gave you the authority, this isn’t what we meant!
—You want us to accept someone who worked for companies run by villains?
He could be a spy.
How does it make sense to take him in this easily?
‘Then why did you hand us the authority in the first place?’ If they were so upset, they should have stayed that day.
‘…Now that I think about it, I’m getting annoyed again.’ Haeryeon almost let out a hollow laugh.
They had violated nothing; the entire process had been official.
It would have been stranger if a few complaints were enough to overturn the decision.
“I expected that much.” Hyeon-yul read Haeryeon’s expression.
Of course things had not gone over smoothly.
“You told me yourself that I might face unfair treatment after being hired.” The warning had simply come true.
To Hyeon-yul, there was nothing particularly remarkable about it.
“Still…
All right.
I understand.” Haeryeon started to say something else, then stopped.
Hyeon-yul looked so genuinely unconcerned that she felt as though she were the only one making a fuss.
‘Even so, wrong is still wrong.’ Even if Hyeon-yul did not care, stopping that kind of treatment was part of her responsibility as his team leader.
‘Right.
I’m the team leader.
If I don’t protect my people, who will?’ Haeryeon put strength into her steps and marched energetically into the building.
* * * “I’ll explain the simple things first.” Once they were inside, Haeryeon began speaking again.
“First, we work four rotating shifts.
One a.m.
to six a.m., six a.m.
to noon, noon to seven p.m., and seven p.m.
to one a.m.
Each team stays on one time slot for an entire week, then switches to a different shift the following week.” “Four-shift rotation systems actually exist…?” Hyeon-yul asked with genuine wonder.
Every company he had worked for had behaved as though the concept of shifts did not exist and simply kept people working endlessly.
The idea felt incredibly unfamiliar to him.
“They do.
They’re just not very common.” “Then why is the overnight shift shorter?” “Because working overnight is hard.” Haeryeon stated it as though it were obvious, but the answer struck Hyeon-yul like a blow to the back of the head.
‘Am I dreaming?’ Hyeon-yul slapped his own face and felt the sting.
‘…This isn’t a dream?’ The overnight shift was shorter because working at night was difficult.
He had actually heard her say that.
Even the corners of his mouth felt as though they were trembling.
“And if you have to work extra hours, they’re converted into paid leave.
Everything else is exactly as written in the recruitment notice.” “Why…
do you do things this way?” Hyeon-yul felt almost weightless.
None of this seemed real.
“What do you mean, why?” “You don’t make people work excessively, and if they do work extra, you even give them paid…
leave.
Can an organization really function like this?” “Of course it can.
We’re civil servants.
We’re unusual civil servants, so there are times when we feel a little more like a public corporation.” “Do you only treat people this well because you have to worry about the government watching you?” Hyeon-yul asked because he was genuinely curious.
“That’s probably part of it, but the real reason is that we exist to deal with villains who threaten the country.
The police handle ordinary crimes.
We handle crimes that are more serious and dangerous than that.” ‘Is that why the name Black Eagle always sounded so familiar?’ Hyeon-yul thought about it for a moment.
When he had worked for villain-run companies, one of the phrases he heard most often was “those damn Eagle bastards.” “We have to shoulder a lot, and the responsibility is heavy too.” In other words, the generous benefits came with equally significant burdens.
“…Of course, there are very occasional situations where extra work is unavoidable.” Haeryeon met Hyeon-yul’s eyes as she spoke, and his gaze instantly hardened.
“Even with paid leave, I want the overtime kept within reasonable limits.” At Hyeon-yul’s murderous tone, Haeryeon made an awkward expression and tossed out a joke.
“What, are you going to cut my head off if it isn’t?” “That is my intention.” “…Wow.” Haeryeon’s shoulders stiffened slightly at the unexpected response.
She had no intention of letting him do it easily, but the fact that he was partly serious was still unsettling.
“…You’re rather terrifying.” “I have no intention of denying the truth.” “You do understand emergencies are different, right?” “I understand that.” “Then we’re fine.
As long as you cooperate with me as much as possible, nothing like that should happen.” Haeryeon sounded so confident that Hyeon-yul relaxed for the moment.
He loosened the tension in his body and continued walking, only to feel the stares pouring toward him.
The sharp looks from people passing through the hallway could not be explained merely by overhearing their recent conversation.
They were not Black Eagles.
The sparrow emblems he had seen before were visible again.
‘Looks like rumors about me have already spread.’ At this speed, someone had probably circulated the story deliberately.
“That goes for me too.” Hyeon-yul quietly returned their stares and raised the corner of his mouth.
He could still put up with quite a bit more.
* * * “By the way, Team Leader, who are the people wearing sparrow emblems?” Hyeon-yul asked while looking at the plaque marked Team 3 beside a door.
“Ah!” Only then did Haeryeon seem to remember something.
She stopped turning the handle and looked back at Hyeon-yul.
“They’re the people who support us.
Their official name is the ‘White Sparrows.’ You can just call them Managers.
Before we go into the field, they investigate cases passed over by the police, handle office work, and help us with all kinds of other things.” “Then if those people dislike me, does that mean I’ll have to handle everything myself?” Hyeon-yul had to ask because personal hostility could not be allowed to interfere with work.
Haeryeon froze halfway through opening the door.
“What do you mean by that?” “The looks I got on the way here weren’t friendly.
Rumors about me have clearly spread, so I was wondering whether someone might intentionally leave information out when dealing with me…” “What bastard would do that?” A loud voice suddenly came from inside.
Hyeon-yul shifted his gaze.
A tall man walked toward them, tall enough that even Hyeon-yul had to look upward.
“Who’s bullying our new recruit?” “…What?
You were here?
What about your mission?” Haeryeon reacted as though she had only just realized he was around.
“I finished it and came back, Team Leader.” The man was impeccably respectful toward Haeryeon.
“Then go home.
Why are you still here?” “I heard the new recruit was coming today.” “You’re frighteningly fast whenever it’s something like this.” “I ran here in a hurry, and now I hear this!
Who’s withholding information from our new recruit?” A man Hyeon-yul had never even met was getting angry as though the matter concerned him personally.
The first thing that caught Hyeon-yul’s eye was the dark brown hair brushing the man’s neck.
‘…What do you call that hairstyle again?’ Hyeon-yul simply stared at the unfamiliar hairstyle.
“All right, Shinwoo.
Quiet down.
Hyeon-yul, come inside first.” Haeryeon gestured for Hyeon-yul to enter the room.
Before Hyeon-yul could enter, the man called Shinwoo leaned his head out.
“We’re Team 3.
Nice to meet you, rookie.
This big brother is Baek Shinwoo.” Shinwoo confidently held out his hand.
Hyeon-yul stared at it, then began to reach out before something about the introduction made him pause.
“Shinwoo.
Do you want another recruit to run away?” Haeryeon smiled, and Shinwoo immediately lowered his hand while grinning brightly.
“Who’s running away?” Hyeon-yul blinked a few times before asking.
“For some strange reason…
our team is always short on people.” Haeryeon let the end of the sentence trail away.
At the moment, Yang Dojin, the leader of Team 2, was already eyeing Hyeon-yul for himself.
“Why is Team 3 the only one short on people?” “Every team has its own atmosphere, right?” Shinwoo suddenly cut into the conversation.
“They do.” “Well, at our welcome parties, we usually…” “Ah, it’s nothing.
Really, it’s nothing at all, so don’t worry about it!
I mean, please don’t worry about it!” Something about Haeryeon’s stammering made Hyeon-yul suspicious.
‘Is it some kind of welcome party where people kill each other?’ He had changed companies many times, so he had been through more welcome events than he could count.
One company had a rule that exactly five new hires would be allowed to survive, forcing the recruits to fight one another.
Hyeon-yul had never understood why they did it, but watching people laugh with amusement as new hires died during a welcome party had been deeply unpleasant.
That was what the phrase “welcome party” meant to him.
“Sorry about speaking casually just now.
I got a little too…” “Team Leader, you can speak comfortably with me.
One person here already does.” Hyeon-yul glanced pointedly toward Shinwoo beside them.
“Did it bother you?” Shinwoo asked, and Hyeon-yul shook his head.
“I was only wondering why you called yourself my big brother.” “Because I’m older than you.” “…Ah.” Hyeon-yul nodded as though he finally understood.
“Right.
It would be a little strange if I kept speaking too stiffly to Hyeon-yul here.” Haeryeon readily accepted his suggestion.
If anything, she looked as though she had wanted to speak casually from the beginning.
“My name is Seo Hyeon-yul.
Did you also hear what kind of place I came from?” Hyeon-yul asked Shinwoo the question directly.
“Of course.
You came in through special recruitment, right?
Team Leader, where did you find such a great rookie?” Shinwoo spoke with obvious delight.
Only a handful of people had ever become Black Eagles through special recruitment.
Hyeon-yul was now one of them.
To think someone that exceptional would become his teammate.
Hyeon-yul did not look away from the excitement shining in Shinwoo’s eyes.
He only became more suspicious.
‘What is he trying to get out of me?’ That look and smile were exactly like those worn by villains who had once tried to recruit him.
‘I’m not getting fooled again.’ “I didn’t bring him here.
Hyeon-yul came on his own.” Haeryeon could only shrug in response to him.
“A lucky charm just rolled right into our team?
So what did he do to qualify for special recruitment?” Shinwoo looked desperate to hear the rest.
“Hyeon-yul brought us Shin Daeho’s head.
Yes, that Shin Daeho, the one we lost.” Haeryeon emphasized the point twice.
There was internal opposition to Hyeon-yul’s hiring, but she expected that to be settled soon.
After all, Hyeon-yul knew about the company Shin Daeho had operated.
Nobody could simply ignore information like that.
“His head?
You mean an actual head?” More than anything else, Shinwoo was fixated on the word “head.” “Right.
His severed head.” “…Wow.
That’s impressive.” Shinwoo looked ready to clap.
Hyeon-yul had decided not to be fooled, so instead of reacting, he voiced the question circling in his mind.
“What exactly is so important about Shin Daeho?
Why were you looking for him so desperately?” What could possibly have been so important about that alcoholic?
Shin Daeho had been drunk when Hyeon-yul killed him and had died without even managing to resist.
“We uncovered the possibility that one of the major corporations is being run by villains.
While following that lead, the name ‘Shin Daeho’ came up.
We needed him if we were going to catch the people behind that corporation.” “I remember Shin Daeho’s business contacts.
Do you need them?” “We do!
Absolutely!” Haeryeon’s expression looked as though a long-standing pressure in her chest had suddenly cleared.
Apparently they had been pursuing this case for a long time.
‘Was Shin Daeho really that important?’ Hyeon-yul remained puzzled.
Shin Daeho had known a great many people, and plenty of people had come looking for him.
Since Shin Daeho had used Hyeon-yul like a bodyguard, Hyeon-yul had been forced to see those people’s faces whether he liked it or not.
He had never imagined that would become useful.
“Ah.
I should give you this first.
Wait here.” Haeryeon walked straight into her office and returned carrying a box from her desk.
“Open it.” “Yes.” Hyeon-yul opened the box with an unreadable expression.
Inside was the same type of smartwatch he had seen Haeryeon and the other team leaders wearing.
Its design looked no different from an ordinary smartwatch.
“It doesn’t have a proper name.
People usually call it the Alert Watch.
We use it for mission assignments, destination coordinates, communications between team members, and several other functions.
It also carries magic that lowers how strongly other people recognize you, so it’s best to keep it on.” “So that kind of magic really does exist?” “That’s right.
If you want to hide your face completely, you’ll need to have a mask made.
Want one?” “You mean it’s optional?” “Surprising, right?
Some villains once tried to hack our systems to expose the identities of Black Eagle agents.
It turned into a complete disaster, but amusingly enough, during the incident we discovered a weakness in the villains’ own system and hacked them right back.
Ever since then, even the villains…” BZZZZT.
The smartwatch suddenly vibrated, and Haeryeon’s cheerful expression immediately hardened.
The timing was almost impressive in its precision.
“That means we’ve received a mission.” After the brief explanation, Haeryeon operated the watch with practiced ease.
<Thirty minutes ago, a mass murder occurred.> Haeryeon did not react strongly even to the words “mass murder.” Apparently, reports like this were familiar to her.
“What makes this case unusual?” <The Manager assigned to observe the area has also been killed.> “Understood.” Haeryeon answered and lifted her gaze.
Shinwoo happened to be there, which made the situation seem ideal for giving Hyeon-yul his first taste of a mission.
“This is sudden, but we start with fieldwork.
You’ll mostly be watching from the side, but it helps weed people out.” “…Then I haven’t been fully hired yet?” Hyeon-yul’s expression became serious.
Were they allowed to lie about something like that?
“No, you were hired.
You absolutely were.
It’s just that some recruits reach the field and immediately run away.
I know Hyeon-yul won’t do that, but you still need to understand how we work, including the fact that we teach theory after practical experience.” Haeryeon explained the system thoroughly.
Even after explaining it, the phrase “theory after practical experience” still sounded absurd.
“Anyway, are you okay with that?
It would be better if you can handle seeing brutal things.” “I handle them well.” “I really like that attitude.
Hyeon-yul already has field experience, so honestly I could probably send you out on your own.
But you’re still in your probationary period, which means someone has to accompany you.” Haeryeon pointed a finger directly toward Shinwoo.
He did not look surprised.
If anything, Shinwoo smiled as though he had expected this from the start.
“He’ll be pretty reliable.” Hyeon-yul looked at Shinwoo for a moment.
“At the very least, I’m good enough that I won’t hold you back, so relax.” Shinwoo pointed his thumb toward himself.
“I’ll go.” Hyeon-yul calmly accepted the assignment.
Honestly, it did not matter who stood beside him or what kind of villain appeared.
The mission had to be completed, and cutting off a neck was very easy work.