Chapter 38
The day passed like that. I spent the whole day on a few other little rules, touring the Bureau, and eating.
Even if it was the Bureau, lurking in the shadows of the world, a rookie agent had nothing much to do. That's just how the world works.
Anyway, let's go home and get some car quotes. Since it'll be the first car of my life, I'll choose carefully. What kind of car would I have to buy to hear the "for that money, you could've gotten something better" line? I was taught that if a man is born once, he ought to at least hear that kind of complaint when he buys a car. I will act according to what I was taught.
"Ah, before that."
I took Dr. Kim Sung-han's ring out of my pocket.
"Let's secure the black stone first."
Meeting Sal-hyung might be dangerous, but there was no harm in getting it first.
The Bureau was extremely wary of the Islamic faction, but if I showed them the black stone, who knew? Besides, if Sal-hyung really was that dangerous, then if we ever ran into each other by chance, having the black stone would be a hundred times better than not having it.
"I had no idea Sal-hyung was the great hero of the Islamic world... Then again, he was a man of that caliber."
Then if he was the great hero of the Islamic world, was he basically like al-Qaeda or Osama bin Laden? Thinking about it that way, Sal-hyung definitely seemed like a dangerous man. So that was why kids admired Osama bin Laden the most. That must have been why he kept trying to get up the 63 Building.
Anyway.
It was a little late, but I headed to the hospital. Fortunately they were still taking registrations, so I told the nurse I was there at Dr. Kim Sung-han's request.
From there, everything went smoothly.
"Excuse me. Are you the one who received Dr. Kim Sung-han's request?"
"Yes. That's me."
Secretary Kim came to fetch me right away, and I boarded the limousine just like last time.
On the way, I took in the scenery of Seoul.
"..."
A very peaceful world where no giants ever appeared.
A peaceful scene where the question of what would happen if a giant suddenly appeared and trampled everyone would remain nothing more than imagination.
This is what Seoul should be.
I was the one who protected it.
Those monster bastards should just disappear forever.
Descendants of the Singing Star and whatever bullshit they are, if you catch them early, they can't do a damn thing.
"We've arrived. Please get out."
"Yes."
Once I entered the mansion, sure enough.
"Welcome."
The Arab lady of the house greeted me. After exchanging ordinary greetings, I briefly explained the situation and took out the ring.
"Aah! This is his...! Sob!"
I don't even know how many times I've seen this scene by now.
After crying for quite a while and thanking me, the madam brought out a box.
"This looks incredibly valuable. What relic is it?"
"You can tell? It's a necklace made of black stone. It's an extremely precious item, so please treasure it."
"Where did you get something like this?"
This was a top-grade relic, enough that even Sal-hyung—the so-called great hero of the Islamic world—would instantly regard me as his benefactor. In fact, Sal-hyung had even chosen sacrifice to protect me in his final moment.
Having a relic like that meant...
this Arab lady must also be from a family of that caliber.
An important figure in Islam?
Some sort of royalty, maybe?
"I can't say that much."
The madam shook her head.
I still remembered that the madam had teleported, but asking about it would probably make things weird, so I decided to let it go.
"Understood."
With that, I finished my farewells and went back outside.
"Good."
Once I put on the black-stone pendant, I felt a little more at ease.
As long as I had this, I should be fine even if I ran into the Islamic faction... though then I might end up causing problems with the Vatican, too.
Sal-hyung and Sister Blaret were itching to attack each other even in situations like that. Much less now, in peacetime, it wouldn't be strange if they suddenly started swinging swords at each other.
Anyway, let's be careful.
"..."
But...
Walking around the streets like this makes me feel like vampires are going to attack. A kind of PTSD, I guess.
Still, seeing as they didn't even show up during the giant apocalypse, purebloods—whatever bullshit they are—are just ordinary schmucks cut down at the level of the descendants of the Singing Star.
Those bastard vampires only ever go around bullying ordinary people.
Whatever happens, it would be good to get help from the Vatican when taking down vampires. Sister Blaret said she came to track down the purebloods, too, so maybe I could work something out somehow if I played my cards right.
Come to think of it, at this point in time I was already acquainted with Sister Blaret. I bought a cross at that Christian shop and went to Seoul.
Besides, I also knew about the existence of the "vampire hunter," so I could casually feel her out while buying the cross.
They classify them as a hostile organization at the Bureau, but information matters more to me.
But thinking like this also makes me think of the fake Bureau.
Should I start browsing the Sejeong board on my phone?
Would it appear then?
No, but if it just appeared because someone looked at the board, what the hell happens to the people who use that site? They can't be tracking every single user.
With those thoughts in mind, I headed back home and looked up cars to get some quotes.
"For that money!"
* * *
The next day.
Unfortunately, today's instructor was Mr. Spandall. Mr. Jamtree is kind, which is nice... but Spandall is way too sinister and strange.
"What's that expression? It's not a face you should be showing a senior who sacrificed his own time to teach a rookie. It won't do you any good to ignore a senior's words, you know? Especially in a line of work where your life is on the line. Ufufu."
Starting off by nagging me already...!
And I was keeping my expression under control properly, too!
"I think I was so nervous that it showed on my face, Senior Spandall."
But I am an indomitable working adult. Even the descendants of the Singing Star couldn't make me bow. Could a mere agent possibly overwhelm someone like me? Remembering that, I answered as textbook-perfect as I could.
"I'll make sure to listen carefully no matter what happens, so please forgive me. I'll learn very well today."
"Mm, if you say it like that, it's no fun."
The way her head slowly tipped to the side is a little scary.
Is having no light in your eyes your default setting?
"Anyway. Be grateful that a senior like me is teaching you. A senior's every word could save the life of a lowly junior like you."
"You're absolutely right. I'll keep that in mind."
"Then follow me."
"Yes."
I followed Senior Spandall.
"..."
Truly, it was a suffocating time.
"Do you have any questions?"
"I'm curious what you'll be teaching me, Senior Spandall!"
"Ah, I like that kind of question. It gets me motivated."
Motivated?
That makes me uneasy for no reason.
Spandall looked back at me and grinned.
It was a ghostlike smile, and it scared me.
"What I really want to teach you is how agents die."
"Pardon?"
"A lot of them die. Agents, I mean. Even guys confident in their skills get killed in an instant. Have you ever seen someone get ripped in half and die?"
"Why are you saying something so terrifying!"
Actually, I've seen it plenty. Just recently, Gorgodio died that way, and I died that way too after my waist was cut in half.
But hearing that is scary!
"Hmm? Didn't you ask me to teach you? I'm teaching you because you said that. Why are you suddenly changing your tune? Hmm?"
"I-I meant professionally!"
"Oh, workplace fatalities? Those happen often too. That's one of my favorite topics."
Spandall's evil smile overwhelmed me.
"Something else! Please teach me something else!"
I couldn't tell how far this crazy senior intended to go in tormenting her junior. Should I complain to Jamtree?
"Haa... you keep interrupting me."
Spandall bent at the waist and sighed. Because of that, her chest looked as if it were spilling downward under gravity.
"Why don't juniors ever understand a senior's heart? Groong. In truth, there were always rookies besides you. But can you imagine what it means that now there's only you?"
"What...? There were other rookies besides me?"
"Of course. It's a company, a team. New recruits come in. What do you think happened to all of them?"
Right.
Where are they all now?
"What happened to them...?"
"Well..."
Before I knew it, Spandall had pressed herself close to me, put her mouth right by my ear, and started whispering. I couldn't break free from that hold.
"Some died... and some were sent to other departments. There are even a few who went back to being ordinary people."
"Oh."
"Our General Response Team chief, Jaaldi, is a very strong guy. So a lot of the hard work gets dumped on this department. People can't take it and die. Or change departments. Or give up. That's how it goes."
No way.
"Really? So you've been telling me all those scary stories because you're warning me that this is such a dangerous place?"
"Ahh, so sincerity really does reach sincerity? You're finally understanding your senior's heart...?"
I slipped out of Spandall's embrace.
If I stayed like this, it felt like Spandall's tongue would slide into my ear.
"Thank you for looking out for me!"
"Hmm?"
"But it's welcome! That's exactly the kind of danger I want!"
"Ah, honestly. What did you take me for? You're going to die soon."
Seeing her sigh makes her seem a little more human.
"Jamtree would be heartbroken."
"Don't worry, I won't die. If I learn well from the Bureau's ace, Senior Spandall, won't I be able to stay alive even if I want to die? Right?"
"..."
She flashed me a grin, praising my resolve all the while. Looking at her closely, Spandall did seem like a somewhat odd woman, but it all came from her desire to look after her junior.
Then we should get along just fine.
Even when people have good intentions, many of them struggle to convey them properly. As a group leader in an apocalypse, I gave a lot of advice on relationships, and there were plenty of people like this.
The solution is to properly interpret what's in their hearts.
"Mm... well, all right."
After standing still for a moment, Spandall nodded.
"As long as you're willing to learn, I have no reason to dislike it. Now then, shall we head off to the Bureau's underground section today?"
"The underground section?"
"There are tasks we usually give to rookies. They're easy assignments to help them get used to things, since it's troublesome if a rookie dies right away. Of course, some of them are dangerous."
This is nerve-racking.
"If you can't even handle this much, you're disqualified as an agent."
"Hearing that makes me competitive. I'm looking forward to it."
What on earth is down in the Bureau's underground section?
Yesterday I only looked around the upper floors, so I didn't get to see the basement. Anyway, I never expected to learn information like this. Coming to the Bureau was the right choice after all.
"You're overflowing with enthusiasm... groong. What do you think the Bureau's job is?"
"Things that go beyond common sense. Aren't we supposed to deal with them?"
"Add capture, containment, management, and surveillance to that."
"Oh."
"In the Bureau's basement, there are quarantined aberrations."
"What...!"
What the hell!
"Are you saying you've made some kind of aberration zoo in the basement?"
"Ufufu, that's right. It's a very amusing zoo. A zoo where the animals try to kill the zookeepers. Fun, right? It would be lovely if cute children came on a group field trip or something. It would definitely be a fun time. I'd want to stand at the front with a flag and guide them myself."
What insane nonsense!
As expected, she's not normal...!