Chapter 5
“Urgh.”
The bright morning sunlight crept through the bubble wrap-covered windows, tickling my eyes. I tossed and turned for a while in the warm, cozy sensation, then suddenly opened my eyes wide like a machine that had just been powered on.
Somehow, my body felt more refreshed than usual. It seemed to be because I had woken up naturally instead of being forced awake by an alarm. A peaceful and relaxed silence flowed through the house.
Wait. Why didn’t I hear my alarm?
Despite having had a satisfying sleep, I instinctively had an ominous feeling that something was wrong.
“…”
Hoping this foreboding was just my imagination, I picked up my phone from beside my pillow. I tapped the screen a few times, and the time appeared on the black display.
“Argh! I knew it!”
Looking at the time displayed on the screen, it had just passed 11:40 AM. The wake-up time I had set on my phone was 11:00 AM.
As soon as I confirmed the time, I rushed to the bathroom and splashed cold water on my face. According to my original plan, I should have been leisurely leaving the house by now.
After hastily washing my face with just water, I threw on whatever clothes I could grab. I had no time to care about my appearance since I was about to be late on my first day of work. I hurriedly left the house and ran toward the bus stop at the bottom of the hill.
I spotted the bus I needed to take stopped at a traffic light about 50 meters away. After a few seconds, the traffic light turned green.
“Wait, wait just a moment, mister!”
Since I would definitely be late if I missed that bus, I ran at full speed with all my might. My right ankle, which was still swollen, ached with each step, but I endured it through sheer determination.
“Huff, huff. Thank you…!”
Thanks to my desperate sprint, I was barely able to catch the bus. Slumping into a seat, I checked the time—11:51 AM. It was a close call, but I was safe.
“Haah, ha. Thank goodness.”
I sighed with relief, stroking my chest. For someone who had been hesitant about going to work, I was acting with remarkable sincerity. This was just my personality. No matter how suspicious or dubious a place might be, I didn’t want to give others any reason to criticize me. I didn’t want to be disliked and hear things like, “As expected from someone without parents.”
Hanyoung Building
After getting off the bus and walking for about five minutes along the main road, I arrived at my destination. Even on second viewing, it was not just a normal building—it was rather sleek and polished.
When I reached the office at the end of the corridor on the sixth floor, I noticed the tattered paper I had seen yesterday. I wondered why they had put up such a thing, but it seemed it was meant to serve as a nameplate. I thought they might as well take it down rather than keep such a shabby thing…
Resisting the urge to tear down that paper right now, I carefully opened the office door.
“Um, hello.”
As I entered with an awkward greeting, the office was dark with the lights turned off.
“Is nobody here?”
Looking around the dim office, I searched for Heerim, the man I had met yesterday. However, the person who appeared before me wasn’t the frivolous Heerim. A woman with shoulder-length hair walked out from the dark interior of the office.
“Who are you? A client?”
“No. I was supposed to start part-time work today…”
“Part-time? What part-time job?”
The woman asked indifferently, brushing up her hair. She stared at me with her slightly upward-slanting monolid eyes, like a predator examining its prey. Feeling an inexplicable pressure, I foolishly shrank my shoulders.
“I had an interview yesterday… and was told to start today…”
“Ah. That.”
The woman let out a light sigh as if annoyed, saying, “I didn’t think we’d actually find someone.” She wiped her mouth, turned on the office lights, and sat down on the sofa.
“Well, sit down for now.”
Under the bright light, the woman’s face looked somewhat tired. I awkwardly sat down in the seat across from her. It was the same place and similar situation as yesterday, but the atmosphere was completely different.
“I’m Jung Hanyoung, the CEO of Earth Peace Research Institute.”
“Hello, I’m Son Jaeo.”
“Yes, Mr. Jaeo. Nice to meet you.”
She abruptly extended her hand. I blinked blankly for a moment before startling and taking her hand. It was just a handshake, but I felt unnecessarily tense.
“By the way, did you know what this place was when you applied? Most people think it’s suspicious and don’t even submit resumes. You applied somehow.”
“What? Ah, that…”
Not knowing how to answer, I trailed off with a troubled expression. I had only assumed it might be some kind of detective agency, but I didn’t know for sure what kind of place it was. And strictly speaking, I had never applied for a part-time job here. I was too confused at the time to think deeply about it, but it was strange that I had automatically become an applicant.
“…”
“…”
As I lowered my head and fidgeted with my fingers in the suffocating awkwardness, a tired sigh erupted from across from me. Even though I hadn’t done anything wrong, I felt unaccountably heavy-hearted.
A silence where one minute felt like a billion years passed. Instead of pressing me for an answer, she quietly stared at me with a cool gaze. Despite trying not to be intimidated, facing that suffocating gaze directly made my mouth dry and cold sweat break out.
In contrast, she showed no signs of tension or discomfort, merely observing me intently.
“Um…”
After moving my lips for quite some time, I finally gathered the courage to speak.
“I tried searching on the internet, but there wasn’t much detailed information… So… what exactly does this place do…?”
It was extremely embarrassing to ask what kind of place this was after having already signed an employment contract. The CEO’s eyebrow twitched at my question, which must have made me look foolish. She smiled, curling the corners of her mouth like a villain from a superhero movie. It was a different appearance from moments ago when she had looked tired and indifferent.
“What does this place do, you ask.”
With a smirk, she gave an astonishing answer.
“It’s a place that contributes to the extinction of humanity.”
“…Pardon?”
I thought I had misheard her words. No, I had heard correctly, but I couldn’t understand their meaning. The CEO, exhaling a nonchalant sigh, continued in a tone tinged with slight contempt.
“Honestly, there are many things in today’s society that make human love disappear. I think it would be fine if about 80% of the current population disappeared.”
What on earth are you saying? It’s called Earth “Peace” Research Institute. Where is the peace? Was it perhaps for the peace of the Earth rather than the peace of humanity?
“Oh, are you surprised?”
She shrugged her shoulders, seeing my astonishment.
“It’s a joke.”
“What…?”
“It’s true that I lack love for humanity, but what power do I have to contribute to human extinction? This is just a place that solves problems we’re commissioned to handle. Hmm. If I had to describe it, it’s somewhere between an errand service and a detective agency.”
“You don’t do anything illegal, right?”
I asked about what needed to be clarified after steadying my dizzy mind. She nodded, with an expression that suggested I was asking something obvious.
“Of course. We don’t do bad things.”
We? Does that mean there are others who do bad things? As I narrowed my eyebrows at her somewhat ambiguous answer, I suddenly felt the door to the office opening. Reflexively turning my head in that direction, I saw a man wearing a large hoodie with the hood pulled over his head and a mask, followed by a man with a sturdy, bear-like build.
They didn’t seem to have noticed me.
“Haah.”
The man who entered the office first sighed as he removed his mask and hood. His previously hidden face was revealed.
“Oh?”
It was Heerim.
“This one was quite troublesome. Somehow they’re getting bigger too.”
Heerim frowned deeply as he messed up his bangs with his hand, complaining, perhaps to the CEO. Gone was the bright and innocent face I had seen yesterday, replaced by a rough, unrefined expression. A cold, chilly aura swirled around him that made it difficult to approach. While his face was definitely the same person I had seen yesterday, he seemed like a completely different person.
“What the hell are those bastards doing in the middle of the city… Oh?”
Heerim, who had been cursing roughly, suddenly made eye contact with me. He looked surprised for a moment, opening his eyes wide, then smiled, crinkling the corners of his eyes. It was such a refreshing smile that it made his previous appearance seem like an illusion.
I couldn’t greet him cheerfully as he brightened at the sight of me. People who easily changed their expressions often hid their true feelings. In that regard, Heerim was someone to be wary of.
“Mr. Jaeo! You came early?”
“Ah, yes…”
I nodded awkwardly as I examined Heerim. Whatever he had been doing, his shirt was all crumpled with unidentifiable stains, and his hair was disheveled like a bird’s nest.
“I-I just came back from a job, that’s why.”
Heerim flustered, his cheeks reddening as he felt my gaze. Having clearly seen the sensitive and irritable Heerim just moments ago, I could only stare at him with suspicious eyes.
“I don’t usually end up in such a mess, but today’s job was more complicated than I expected, so I made some mistakes. Ah! Don’t misunderstand. I don’t usually make mistakes.”
When I showed no reaction, he rambled like a child caught doing something wrong.
“I’ll go change clothes and come back.”
Heerim smiled awkwardly and ran to the storage room in the corner of the office as if escaping. Watching Heerim disappear with a clatter, the CEO sighed as she brushed up her hair.
“You already know Heerim from yesterday, right? Let me introduce you to the rest of the office staff. Though there’s only one more.”
She nodded toward the large man standing dumbly in place. The man, who appeared to be at least two meters tall, came forward. His large build and stern face made my shoulders instinctively shrink.
“Say hello. This is Son Jaeo, whom Heerim brought in.”
“…I’m Kim Jeongmun.”
“I’m Son Jaeo. Please take care of me.”
“Yes.”
The man named Kim Jeongmun gave me a slight bow and returned to his seat. His personality seemed as blunt as his appearance. But is this all the staff? For an office located in a high-rise building in the business district, the scale was very small.
“Mr. Jaeo, you can sit anywhere comfortable. Hmm… there’s nothing urgent to do today, so just do whatever you want until it’s time to leave.”
I sat at the cleanest desk among the cluttered ones piled with various trinkets. Feeling awkward about doing nothing alone, I rolled my eyes to observe the others.
After finishing the staff introductions, the CEO was lying on the sofa, while Mr. Kim Jeongmun was playing Go on the computer.
“…”
It could easily be mistaken for a club room rather than a company. I was the only one sitting blankly at my desk, not knowing what to do, when fortunately, Heerim came out of the storage room after changing clothes. His hair was still sticking out in all directions like a magpie’s nest, but he looked much fresher as he sat down next to me.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
My tone was somewhat brusque due to the discomfort of his staring.
“No reason.”
“…”
At Heerim’s bland answer, I discreetly shifted my gaze elsewhere. It was a tacit action indicating that I didn’t want to continue the conversation, but Heerim sat next to me, staring at me with a smiling face for quite some time. Unable to say anything to him, who was essentially my superior on my first day of work, I had to endure that gaze.
Uncomfortable. So uncomfortable.
I was extremely uncomfortable with this man who only smiled faintly while hiding his true feelings.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
