# Chapter 66
“I think it’s a good idea. We’re the ones who’ll have to clean up later anyway, and the Center Director is too incompetent. The Origin’s Center Director isn’t qualified. I believe the Espers would do that job really well. Honestly, with four S-class Espers at the Center, it doesn’t make sense for an A-class to act as Center Director. If we think about it, S-class Espers also bear significant responsibility for the Center ending up this way.”
The reason I’m saying this is because what I realized in the dream where my sister appeared (though I’m still not sure if it was a dream or not) had a profound impact on me.
Whenever I think about that time, I clearly realize that after returning there, I wasn’t happy at all.
The feeling that I want to go back to where I lived from here is nothing more or less than longing for what I couldn’t have.
It seemed that the feelings I had here were just an extension of thoughts like wanting to become an adult quickly during high school, or thinking that everything would be resolved once I was discharged from the military.
Missing my sister didn’t make sense either.
If someone came to me now and said they could make it possible for me to return there, I think I would tell them not to.
Why would I, when I’m living well here?
If I went there, I would have to struggle in the pit of reality again.
Life here.
It’s not bad.
So I decided to do my best here.
The S-class Espers looked at each other as if they couldn’t understand why I was being so enthusiastic.
Their faces showed considerable suspicion.
I’m sure the fact that I’m making this kind of face is itself quite suspicious.
These people know me too well now after spending so much time with me.
“Think about it. Center Director, Guide Team Leader, Research Team Leader… Oh, can’t S-class Espers do the Research Team Leader job? Well, and the Special Task Force Leader too—S-class Espers can handle all the important leadership positions. The Espers would do a much better job.”
“The Research Team Leader position might be fine to keep as is. That requires specific expertise.”
Kyun In seemed pleased to have received unexpected support and was trying to keep that spark alive, while the other S-class Espers didn’t object much either.
The atmosphere was good.
‘Right. This is how to do it.’
The life of an S-class Esper surrounded by S-class Espers.
Isn’t this as lucky as winning the lottery jackpot five times in a row?
Once that thought occurred to me, I couldn’t give up or lose this life anymore.
“Do you really want that?”
Byun Tae-young asked with a serious face.
It looked like he would agree if I just answered yes.
“Yes. I don’t want to be swayed by strange directives or policies from the Center Director or leadership anymore.”
“If that’s the reason, I can’t argue against it.”
Kyun In said, nudging Shim Woo-jin with his elbow.
As if telling him to agree quickly.
Woo-jin eventually nodded.
“Then I’ll be the Special Task Force Leader.”
At Woo-jin’s words, Ha-min urgently said:
“Esper-nim. Could I be the Special Task Force Leader? I think my ability is perfect for that position. Think about it. How great would it be if I could amplify the abilities of each Special Task Force member?”
Hearing that, Ha-min really did seem perfect for the job.
“Sounds good. Then I’ll be the Center Director.”
At Tae-young’s words, Kyun In made a disappointed expression.
Was he secretly aiming for the Center Director position?
“Didn’t Esper Kyun In want to be the Center Director too? Let’s decide by majority vote.”
Thinking this would be interesting, I subtly instigated a conflict, and Kyun In smiled at me.
“…What?”
“I’m just happy. Things are only fun when Seo Eunwoo is around. So don’t get kidnapped anymore, Eunwoo. You have to maintain the dignity of an S-class Esper. If it had been Ha-min who was kidnapped, I wouldn’t have said anything.”
Ha-min nodded as if he really agreed.
The S-class Espers looked at him as if he was peculiar.
That day, why had Ha-min’s grade shown up as immeasurable?
And why did it later show as A-grade?
Was it because he was someone whose power couldn’t even be calculated, so it showed as immeasurable, then displayed as A-grade to make it comprehensible at a human level?
It might sound ridiculous, but hadn’t I already been through that?
“So now we need to stage a coup, right?”
Shim Woo-jin said expectantly, and I looked at the S-class Espers.
With qualifications like these, wouldn’t a bloodless takeover be possible?
“Fortunately, no dungeons have appeared for a while. If dungeons had continued to appear like before, we would have been busy clearing them and might not have noticed the irregularities even if they were right in front of us.”
“Ha-min is right. Since no one but us could clear them, we would have had to keep fighting monsters in dungeons while people like the Center Director would have been thinking about lining their pockets behind our backs. It might be too late to bring this up now, but the Research Team Leader and researchers would have kept hiding what they developed.”
Listening to Tae-young’s words, I thought we should expedite this matter.
Before long, a similar enthusiasm appeared on everyone’s faces.
“They’re all dead.”
Kyun In said excitedly, and finally, we headed to the Center.
***
A coup wasn’t even necessary.
As expected, the bloodless takeover happened.
When we first went to the Center Director’s office, the Director welcomed us with a bright face, not knowing what we were thinking.
“I heard the news. I was told that those who were after the stabilizers have all been dealt with. It seems that Esper Cha Yoon made a significant contribution to this matter, so I was thinking we should wrap this up here. We must remember that dungeons will continue to appear, and we need to maintain a cooperative system. It’s better to maintain cooperative relationships with Topaz and unregistered Espers, even though they’re weak right now.”
I couldn’t help but laugh at the Center Director’s words.
“Cha Yoon contributed? Sure. No one has contributed more than Cha Yoon. If that bastard hadn’t kidnapped me, Topaz wouldn’t have done what they did, so of course his contribution is significant. Cooperation? Maintaining cooperative relationships? If you’re just going to say things like that, why are you the Center Director? It seems too burdensome for you—wouldn’t stepping down be the helpful thing to do?”
I spoke without filtering when my anger suddenly flared up, and Ha-min took my hand.
It seemed like he wanted me to lower my tension a bit.
I had been holding it in well, but it would suddenly flare up once in a while, and the Center Director had just flipped the switch.
If things hadn’t worked out, I might still be in Cha Yoon’s grasp, staring blankly into space.
Until now, I hadn’t had a proper opportunity to understand what situation I had been in, but after seeing the Topaz Espers who had been attacked by Cha Yoon, I grasped it properly.
Empty eyes.
Expressions devoid of intelligence.
With faces like neither dolls nor anything else, they must have believed in the illusions Cha Yoon created and the commands he injected.
Then they might have attacked and killed Ha-min and the S-class Espers as my sister had planned.
But what?
Contribution?
I tried to hold back since Ha-min seemed concerned.
But it didn’t work well.
The Center Director seemed surprised by my sudden words and laughed awkwardly.
“It seems Esper Seo Eunwoo has been greatly affected by this incident. It’s alright. I’ll try to understand. I can understand that it’s because the shock hasn’t completely worn off.”
But why does this person keep talking so strangely?
“What do you understand? What does the Center Director understand?”
When I shouted in anger again, Kyun In stepped forward.
“Step down from your position. I think an hour should be enough to clear out your belongings. The beginning of all this was you. This happened because you showed up at that restaurant with your attendants, called us in, and made us stand as your entourage. Well, it’s not just your fault; we’re at fault too. We knew you were incompetent and unqualified, but we just overlooked it until now.”
The Center Director hadn’t expected Kyun In to say such things and looked quite shocked.
However, instead of backing down, he confronted us quite well.
“Just because I haven’t spoken doesn’t mean I don’t know what you’ve been doing, Esper Kyun In. Everyone knows that Esper Kyun In has been deeply involved since the early stages of Origin. I also know that you tried to incite and persuade some Espers to leave together. Yet I haven’t said anything all this time.”
“That’s right. I didn’t say anything. Why didn’t I? I’ve been really curious about that.”
He spoke as if he thought he no longer needed to back down, and the Center Director flinched as if he hadn’t imagined such a response.
“I don’t want to waste energy unnecessarily, but if I must, I won’t decline. What will you do, Center Director?”
Shim Woo-jin, who had always maintained the most normal position among us, seemed to have a much greater effect with his words than Kyun In.
The Center Director realized that all the S-class Espers shared the same intention and seemed to become tense from that moment.
“E-Espers… You must be greatly shocked because something happened to Esper Seo Eunwoo, whom you’ve been with all this time…”
Tae-young approached him.
“No. It’s not because of that. I think you should understand that we’ve clearly realized just how incompetent the Center Director is this time. I’m not sure how much the Center Director can contribute to dungeon clearing, but you should do that for the time being. The same will happen to other leadership positions. We’ll be seeing each other often in the field from now on, so let’s all get along.”
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
