I’m a New Recruit (3) 6: Chapter 6.
I’m a New Recruit (3) * * * The man stared at Hyeon-yul.
His eyes were so flat and lifeless that they seemed to contain no light at all.
Eyes like that were dangerous.
One glance was enough to tell him that he had encountered someone truly dangerous.
Sweat beaded across the man’s face as he looked at Hyeon-yul.
“If I tell you, will you let me…
live?” “Are you trying to bargain with me?
You still haven’t understood your position, so it seems you need something else.” “W-w-wait!” The man met Hyeon-yul’s eyes, then quickly lowered his gaze.
His pupils shook violently.
He drew in a breath and felt his own heart pounding hard enough to shake his chest.
Fear seeped into every part of him.
“All you have to do is calmly tell me what you know.” As Hyeon-yul urged him on, the cold pressure against his throat sank deeper.
“…Th-they took them away to use as test subjects!” The words that came out were simple: test subjects.
The moment those words came out, Hyeon-yul’s gaze sank.
Silence followed, and the atmosphere became so cold it almost hurt.
‘Can I really…
reach them this easily?’ The villain-run companies Hyeon-yul had worked for always had secret departments connected to human experimentation.
Nobody had ever allowed Hyeon-yul, himself a former test subject, anywhere near those departments.
Experimenting on people was apparently fine, but being exposed to retaliation from a survivor was not.
It felt as though he were looking directly into the villains’ true nature.
‘This easily?’ Hyeon-yul had spent years secretly searching for the facilities where they created test subjects.
He had done it with only one wish in mind.
‘…Does this mean I can kill those bastards?’ A cold smile spread across Hyeon-yul’s lips.
Killing every last one of the people who had experimented on him was what he wanted most.
Unfortunately, he did not know who had personally handled his experiments.
They had all worn identical clothing, covered their faces, distorted their voices, and even adjusted their builds to look roughly alike.
Ever since the day he survived, Hyeon-yul had continued searching for the people who had experimented on him.
“Where are they?” Hyeon-yul asked without lowering his gaze.
“I-I only know the first…
location.” “Then where is it?” Hyeon-yul already knew that experimental subjects were moved through many locations before reaching the final facility.
At minimum, there were usually four stages.
In longer operations, there could be even more.
“If you keep going uphill from here, there’s a campground.
We were supposed to gather there for the first stage.
They m-might be moving them to the second location soon.” “A campground?” “Y-yes!
A campground.” “Understood.” Hyeon-yul slowly lowered the scissors in his hand.
“…C-can I go now?” The man asked like an idiot.
“Do you honestly think you can?” At Hyeon-yul’s response, the man looked ready to cry.
“I-I really don’t know your face!
Even if I wanted to do something to you, I couldn’t!
I swear!” “What are you talking about?” Hyeon-yul reacted as though the argument were ridiculous and raised the scissors he had just lowered.
“You know I’m a Black Eagle.” He was wearing a Black Eagle uniform.
The eagle emblem stamped onto his left arm was impossible to miss.
Claiming not to know who Hyeon-yul represented made no sense.
“I swear I’ll never look for you for the rest of my life!
I’ll tell you my name, what I do, anything you want…” “Why would I believe you?” Hyeon-yul sneered and moved his hand.
A dark arc flashed across the air, and the man’s head fell as blood poured from his neck.
His eyes stabbed toward Hyeon-yul with bitter resentment.
Hyeon-yul removed his helmet and smiled broadly.
“What are you going to do by glaring at me?” There was no need to show mercy to villains.
Why should he sympathize with people connected to those who had torn his own body apart countless times?
Hyeon-yul looked at the blood splashed across him and touched the stains.
Every spot his hand passed over became perfectly clean.
After wiping the blood from the scissors, he placed them neatly on the table beside his helmet.
He took out his phone and searched for the campground.
It seemed to be roughly ten kilometers away.
He could simply head there himself, but he was still on probation.
‘If I act on my own, I’ll get marked again.’ At his first company, he had been singled out for punishment simply because he acted without permission.
Once the harassment started, he had tracked down where the people responsible lived and killed them, so it had not mattered then.
This time was different.
He was a special civil servant now, and if he did not want to be fired, he needed to do things properly.
‘…This is inconvenient.’ Hyeon-yul let out a short breath.
After changing jobs again and again, he had climbed high enough in rank that he eventually became the one giving orders to subordinates.
Going from issuing instructions back to receiving them felt inconvenient and strangely unfamiliar.
‘Still, I need to ask.
His contact information is…’ Hyeon-yul opened the contacts on his phone.
There was nothing to scroll through because only one number was registered.
It belonged to his doctor, the only contact he had.
Hyeon-yul started to operate his smartwatch, then simply put his phone away and covered one eye.
* * * CLANG!
The swords floating around Shinwoo like a legion moved on their own and knocked aside the blades of the approaching enemies.
Shinwoo charged forward while swinging his sword with the flat of the blade rather than the edge, using it like a club.
His hands did not look particularly fast, yet if he had used the edge, his enemies would already have been covered in dozens of wounds.
Shinwoo moved like he was dancing, and enemies toppled one after another.
His hands never stopped.
Just as his forward-facing eyes shifted to the right, one of the swords moved.
When Shinwoo recognized the familiar face, he jerked backward and clutched his chest.
“…Y-you scared the hell out of me!” He had nearly attacked Hyeon-yul by mistake.
“How did you know I was here?
No, forget that.
I told you to stay put!” “I assumed you would be too focused on combat to answer a call.” “I can handle that much.
I always expect communications to come in while I’m…” Shinwoo stopped mid-explanation and smacked himself on the forehead.
He had been an idiot, because he had never explained that to Hyeon-yul.
Even if Hyeon-yul had gone on one mission with Haeryeon already, this was only his second mission ever.
Imagining the rookie desperately running all the way here made Shinwoo feel guilty.
“You didn’t get hurt on the way, did you?” “I didn’t.” “Then that’s a relief.” Shinwoo smiled brightly at the reassurance.
‘Did the Team Leader not tell him?’ Hyeon-yul was puzzled.
That smile was not something a person should have been able to wear after learning his past.
He had assumed Haeryeon had told Shinwoo everything.
‘Should I tell him myself?’ BZZZZT.
Hyeon-yul glanced at his phone when it vibrated.
“Ah, excuse me for a moment.” It was time to take his medication.
When Hyeon-yul extended his hand, a medicine packet and a bottle of water emerged from the shadow.
“…?” Shinwoo’s eyes widened.
Even seeing it with his own eyes, he could barely believe what had happened.
He had no idea what kind of power that was.
Was it magic?
“It’s time for my medication.
Excuse me.” “Medication…?” “I’m a former test subject.” Hyeon-yul answered as though it were nothing.
He wondered whether that part would become a rumor too.
Looking around, Hyeon-yul walked to a nearby table and began laying several pills from the packet across his palm.
Shinwoo stared stupidly at the medicine until he noticed a syringe and finally reacted in shock.
“…Y-you were a test subject?” “I understand.
It’s difficult to believe a test subject could still be alive.” Hyeon-yul lifted his shirt and injected the syringe into his abdomen with practiced ease.
Shinwoo narrowed his eyes.
He had only glimpsed Hyeon-yul’s body, but there were far too many deep scars.
To be marked by that many scars, the man must have been cut open again and again.
“Mr.
Baek Shinwoo…
no, big brother.
After you left, I followed the trail to see where the hostages were taken.” “I told you that you could stay put.” Shinwoo’s eyebrows rose.
Was this guy addicted to work?
“I found out the hostages were taken to a campground.
I searched on my phone and confirmed there’s one roughly ten kilometers away.” Hyeon-yul spoke while tearing open a packet and pouring medicine into his palm.
Even at a glance, there were more than ten brightly colored pills.
“I considered going alone, but decided that wasn’t appropriate, so I came looking for you.” After finishing, he swallowed the pills with practiced ease.
But he did not stop there.
He opened another packet, poured even more pills into his palm, and swallowed those as well.
“What should I do in a situation like this?
Should I chase them without saying anything?” “…” Deep wrinkles formed between Shinwoo’s brows.
He closed his eyes and let out a long breath.
Asking whether Hyeon-yul was sick would be little more than mockery.
He had been a test subject, one of those people for whom simply remaining alive was considered a miracle.
To think he needed that much medication just to keep living.
But this was not the time to be swept away by emotion.
‘He said the hostages are still alive.’ For Black Eagles, saving hostages had to come before anything else.
“Do you know why they took them there?” “They’re going to turn them into test subjects.” At Hyeon-yul’s answer, Shinwoo held up one palm.
“Wait.” Shinwoo operated his smartwatch with practiced movements.
“Team Leader.” <What happened?> “The hostages are alive.
Hyeon-yul figured out where they were taken.” <Really?
Where are they?> “At a nearby campground.
They were abducted to be made into test subjects.” For a moment, there was no answer from Haeryeon.
<…How is Hyeon-yul?> At the question, Shinwoo looked toward him.
Hyeon-yul appeared completely unaffected.
That was what felt so strange.
How could he react this calmly?
Normally, something like this should have left deep trauma, yet he showed no reaction at all.
The only odd thing was that Shinwoo did not know why Hyeon-yul was covering one eye.
“…He seems all right.” “Sorry for interrupting, but we need to hurry.
Screening begins at the first location.
They’ll inject drugs to test whether the captives have resistance.” Only people who survived the first round of drugs were moved to the second stage.
The second stage was the same.
Different drugs were injected, and only those with resistance were taken onward.
From the villains’ perspective, that made sense because the subjects would need to endure repeated drug injections for a very long time.
“So if they don’t have resistance, they kill them on the spot?” Shinwoo asked, hoping he had misunderstood.
“Yes.
You understand it well.
They’ll inject them with the same sort of syringes I just used on my stomach, so they won’t remain there very long.” At the very least, Hyeon-yul needed to learn where the second location was.
If he could get that much, he could begin narrowing down the final experimental site.
Experiment facilities held too much equipment to relocate easily.
Even destroying one would create such an enormous disturbance that it could not be handled secretly.
“You heard that, Team Leader?” Shinwoo urged Haeryeon to respond quickly.
<Leave immediately.
I’ll send other agents to your current location.> Haeryeon gave the order.
No matter the circumstances, the hostages came first.
<An eagle will be there soon.> At Haeryeon’s words, Shinwoo’s lips curled upward.
“Let’s go.” “What?” “The eagle is coming.” Shinwoo looked toward the black shadow visible beyond the window and opened it.
“…You mean the same magic we rode here?” Hyeon-yul asked with obvious alarm in his voice.
“That’s right.” Shinwoo climbed onto the window frame.
“Follow me, rookie.” “If it’s that thing, then…” Before Hyeon-yul could finish, Shinwoo dropped from the window.
Without making a sound, a Black Eagle swept in, caught him, and carried him upward.
‘…Damn it.’ Hyeon-yul climbed onto the window ledge.
He could travel long distances using his own power.
That would have been much more comfortable.
With an exhausted expression, he dropped from the window.
The instant the Black Eagle caught him, Hyeon-yul clamped a hand over his mouth.
‘Damn it…’ * * * “…Breathe.” At Shinwoo’s reminder, Hyeon-yul released the breath he had been holding in one long exhale.
His face had gone pale again.
“You okay?” “…Yes.
I only need a moment.” “Right.
Take a moment.” Shinwoo began moving carefully through the trees.
“…Over there.” “Ah.
Good, over there.” Shinwoo turned toward the direction Hyeon-yul indicated.
A forest stretched around them, fitting for a campground.
Through the trees, people could be seen moving busily.
There were victims of all ages, from children to adults.
It was nearly the first time Shinwoo had seen this many people still alive during a case connected to human experimentation.
The surge of relief lasted only a moment before he glanced sideways at Hyeon-yul.
He had been a test subject himself.
‘…Is it really okay for his first mission to be like this?’ Hyeon-yul simply was not showing it, but how badly must this be tearing him apart inside?
Of all situations, why did he have to encounter something like this?
“…They won’t notice us even though we rode an eagle here?” “Ah, the eagle?
They can’t see it.” “You’re saying they can’t see something that enormous?” “It works on a principle similar to the map and mission information shown on the smartwatch.
I’m not a mage, so I can’t explain it properly, but neither you nor the eagle can be seen.
If we could, villains would have spotted us plenty of times while we were approaching mission sites.” Shinwoo chuckled.
Hyeon-yul really was a complete rookie.
It would indeed be strange if a giant eagle arrived and the villains somehow failed to notice.
“Who created this magic?” “For security reasons, only people above the team-leader level, like department heads or the director, know that.
Which means I have no idea.” “Understood.” Hyeon-yul accepted the explanation.
If he were a villain, the person who created magic like this would be one of the first targets he eliminated.
“Big brother Baek Shinwoo, I’ve never rescued hostages before, so I’d rather handle the part I’m good at.
Can you take care of the hostages?” “What are you good at?” “Eliminating villains.” “I feel a little bad assigning that to you, but we need to split the work right now.
I’m counting on you.” Shinwoo spoke with an apologetic expression.
“Could you make me a dagger?” At Hyeon-yul’s request, Shinwoo immediately created one and handed it over.
“Use it carefully.” The edge was extremely sharp and needed to be handled with care.
Hyeon-yul stared at the dagger after hearing the firmness in Shinwoo’s voice.
Apparently this was a valuable weapon.
He would have to make sure not to damage it.
“Yes.” Hyeon-yul answered briefly, then surveyed the surroundings while listening to Shinwoo run off.
Only the leader among the enemies needed to remain capable of talking.
After identifying the likely target, Hyeon-yul examined the others.
Some patrolled the area, several guarded the hostages, and a few remained in the vehicles.
‘First, take away their escape route.’ Hyeon-yul focused on the vehicles.
Once he memorized their positions, he melted into shadow.
The instant he emerged in the back seat of one car, he covered the occupant’s mouth and rapidly stabbed through the man’s neck and heart.
Not a sound escaped from the dying man.
There were four vehicles in total.
Hyeon-yul moved from one to the next, and each silent stab turned another interior red until every person stationed in the cars was dead.
While finishing the last one, Hyeon-yul lowered his gaze and spotted a phone with a game running on its screen.
‘Playing a game at a time like this.’ Hyeon-yul clicked his tongue and covered one eye.
He mapped the patrols’ positions and numbers, then moved his vision toward Shinwoo.
The patrols were concentrated around the hostages, making it difficult for Shinwoo to approach.
What should he do in a situation like this?
Hyeon-yul simply appeared openly in front of the patrol.
“…W-who are you?!” After hearing the obvious question, Hyeon-yul walked forward naturally and began by killing the nearest man.
The sudden attack created instant chaos.
Noise could be useful in many ways, so Hyeon-yul covered one eye slightly.
Shinwoo was already moving toward the hostages.
‘Good.’ Only then did Hyeon-yul lower his hand and face the villains.
“What are dead men going to do with my name?” Hyeon-yul took one step and vanished without even the sound of a footfall.
“…!” Every enemy froze.
Where had he gone?
“I’m right here.” Hyeon-yul grabbed the hair of the closest man and whipped the dagger hard across his throat.
‘This blade is excellent.’ It was worthy of being called a masterpiece.
Now he understood why Shinwoo had told him to be careful with it.
Hyeon-yul tossed the severed head aside, and a nearby enemy screamed.
‘Noisy.’ Hyeon-yul turned his gaze.
The moment he stretched one hand forward, he moved directly in front of the enemy.
Darkness rippled around Hyeon-yul as he stepped once more and drove the dagger through the man’s neck.
STAB!
The sound of the deep thrust rang out while Hyeon-yul was already looking elsewhere.
One enemy finally came to his senses and drew a weapon.
It was a short baton wrapped in crackling electricity.
“Die!” The man rushed forward and swung at Hyeon-yul.
Hyeon-yul shifted his body slightly to avoid the strike, caught the man’s arm, and slammed him into the ground.
THUD!
The instant the enemy hit the ground, Hyeon-yul pulled the dagger from the throat of the corpse beside him and looked down.
The enemy’s terrified eyes reflected Hyeon-yul’s helmet.
“S-spare…” The man blinked, but by the time his eyes opened again, the dagger had already cut deeply across his throat.
Hyeon-yul picked up the electric baton and waved it with obvious delight.
Crackle, crackle.
‘Nice.’ Hyeon-yul looked toward his target and felt the corners of his mouth rise.
The target’s hair was fluttering on its own.
‘A mage?
Or a supernatural ability user?’ Perhaps the man was simply holding an item enchanted with magic.
Either way, what difference did it make?
“You have a lot of nerve appearing before me.
So you really are a Black Eagle.” The target raised the corners of his mouth and reached toward his side.
He immediately drew something and aimed it at Hyeon-yul.
The weapon in his hand was a gun.
‘There it is.’ Hyeon-yul barely held back a laugh.
The arrogance of assuming a gun would work on him was almost funny.
The outline of Hyeon-yul’s body rippled, and the gun fired.
BANG!
“…!” The target’s eyes widened because Hyeon-yul had disappeared.
“I’m right here.” Hyeon-yul stood behind the target and pressed the electric baton against his back.
BZZZZT!
The target thrashed like a freshly caught fish.
‘I’ll take him back like this.’ Hyeon-yul kept the baton pressed firmly against him.
There was no reason to ask every question here.
The man would eventually confess plenty once he was taken in.
Hyeon-yul turned his gaze toward Shinwoo.
No enemies seemed to be wandering near the hostages anymore, which meant Shinwoo had dealt with them.
“Have you finished over there?” Hyeon-yul approached Shinwoo calmly, and Shinwoo looked past him.
Every enemy behind Hyeon-yul was dead.
His face was hidden by the helmet, but the sight of his blood-soaked body was still strangely alien.
‘…That’s a rookie?’ Shinwoo almost laughed at his own thought.
‘He’s incredible.
Seriously.’ A monster rookie.
What else could he possibly call him?
“The hostages are safe, and I captured the man I believe is their leader.
Is the mission finished now, or is there an additional assignment?” “It ends here.
We can’t go any further until someone talks.” Hyeon-yul hurriedly checked his watch at those words.
It was 2:24 p.m.
Even looking at the time, he could hardly believe it.
“…Do we go home now?” Hyeon-yul asked the question in a careful voice.
“After we file the report.” “Then after the report, we go home?” “That’s right.
It won’t take long.” The certainty in Shinwoo’s voice made Hyeon-yul’s entire body tremble.
“Are you hurt?” “…No.
I just wondered whether this was a dream.” Hyeon-yul removed his helmet, revealing an extraordinarily bright smile.