# 17
* * *
The psychological battle continued for several days. The deputy director visited Jin-ha’s office multiple times, making statements that were difficult to distinguish between threats and recommendations, while Jin-ha consistently ignored him.
However, the anger that welled up whenever he thought of that man couldn’t last forever. While focusing on his assigned duties, Jin-ha gradually cooled down and became more rational.
And just when he began to feel that wasting emotions on such an insignificant man was pointless, a new message arrived from Section Chief Nam:
“Jin-ha, this new riddle asks ‘What is something fun?’ What’s the answer?”
Jin-ha couldn’t send a reply. After all, he didn’t know the answer either.
Beyond the portal, Jin-ha had told the man to enjoy himself by basking in sunlight, listening to music, singing, and pursuing hobbies. The man had then asked Jin-ha to teach him directly. His words at that time were, “I look forward to seeing what fun things you’ll teach me.”
To get the answer to this riddle, Jin-ha would need to meet the man and teach him something fun.
So this riddle was essentially an invitation from the man, saying it was time to stop playing games and come meet him.
“Haah…”
Of course, Jin-ha still felt uncomfortable and disliked the man who had toyed with him. But the thought that he no longer wanted to expend energy hating such a man was stronger.
It had been a long time since he’d felt such deep goodwill toward an adult man. Jin-ha had genuinely wanted to save him, which made the betrayal all the more painful when he learned it was all a lie.
Thinking this far, Jin-ha was dismayed to realize that the emotion heating his insides wasn’t simple anger, but a mixture of feelings like betrayal and disappointment.
That was it. Jin-ha had unwittingly given his heart to the man he met in the portal, and he had become overly excited due to the humiliation of having his feelings treated like a toy.
Unlike his usual self.
“…That bastard…”
I can’t leave things like this.
Having regained his cool rationality, that’s what Jin-ha thought.
The Mount Yonghwa portal project, which had begun the day Jin-ha returned from the portal, had remained stagnant throughout. Of course, this was because of the riddle.
Nevertheless, neither Section Chief Nam nor Guild Master Seo Ji-seop pressured Jin-ha.
Perhaps it was because Jin-ha had returned from the otherworld portal cursing and then fainting. They were giving him time to collect his thoughts.
Considering them, he couldn’t avoid this situation forever.
Yes. It’s time to stop being stubborn.
Jin-ha made his decision.
“One hot Americano, please.”
After ordering coffee from the in-house café on the first floor of the Anomaly Management Agency, Jin-ha took the takeout cup and headed toward the elevator.
Just as he was about to enter the elevator that had opened, his phone vibrated in his pocket. It was Cha Ki-young. Normally, he would have ignored it and continued to work, but today he felt concerned for some reason.
Jin-ha checked the time and turned back toward the lobby, bringing the phone to his ear.
“What?”
“Ah, well… Jin-ha.”
“Did you cause trouble?”
“Do you think I’m always causing trouble?”
“So you’re saying you didn’t?”
“…There was an incident, but I didn’t cause it.”
“Speak.”
“Seok-ho got caught.”
“…What?”
Seok-ho was one of the servers at Cha Ki-young’s bar. Jin-ha had always wondered why someone so friendly and diligent had worked under Cha Ki-young for so long.
What kind of trouble could he have caused, and where was he caught that warranted a phone call? An ominous feeling brushed through Jin-ha’s mind.
“Actually…”
The story Cha Ki-young told was outrageous.
In fact, Seok-ho was one of Cha Ki-young’s informants. He had been personally investigating Jin-ha’s father’s past at Jin-ha’s request.
“Cha Ki-young!”
“Ah, what? You asked me to investigate… Seok-ho is really good at that kind of thing.”
Cha Ki-young whined and complained.
Jin-ha let out a deep sigh. It was true that he had asked Cha Ki-young to investigate his father, but he meant to use a private investigation firm, not become a private investigator himself.
To think that the bar was actually a detective agency in disguise. Although not illegal, it seemed too dangerous and fraudulent. Jin-ha’s head began to ache as he learned the truth about his friend, whom he had thought was living a relatively honest life.
“Anyway, Seok-ho was caught at the police station, and they won’t release him. It’s strange since he didn’t do anything that illegal.”
Which implied he had done something slightly illegal.
Jin-ha recalled how a few days ago, Cha Ki-young had used a signal jammer to prevent work communications from reaching him. He had wondered where he got it, how he made it, and how he thought to use it, but it was clear he had been using it professionally all along.
“Hyun-soo also said the police’s reaction was strange. They detained him but didn’t treat him roughly. Didn’t even kick him anywhere.”
“Be brief.”
“Right. Anyway, it seemed suspicious, so I looked into it, and it appears to be connected to the Anomaly Management Agency.”
“…What did you say?”
Jin-ha froze with the coffee cup halfway to his lips. Why would the Anomaly Management Agency be mentioned in this context?
As Jin-ha searched his mind for a connection between the two, a man entered the building through the main doors. Deputy Director Kim Seok-jin. He was walking toward the executive elevator with a bright smile and light steps.
It was completely different from his behavior during the past few days when he’d been full of frustration over his conflict with Jin-ha.
As Jin-ha narrowed his eyes, staring intently at the deputy director’s retreating figure, Cha Ki-young’s voice continued in his ear:
“I found out that the police chief and the deputy director of the Anomaly Management Agency are hometown friends.”
* * *
“Welcome.”
When Jin-ha entered the office, the deputy director rose from his seat. He moved to the sofa, gesturing for Jin-ha to take a seat as well.
Jin-ha raised an eyebrow at the sight of two cups of strong green tea on the coffee table in front of the sofa. Just earlier, the secretary at the door had also motioned for Jin-ha to go right in as soon as she saw his face. This meant they already knew Jin-ha was coming.
“Have you thought enough?”
“Did you have to go this far?”
“There was no other way.”
The deputy director’s eyes gleamed sharply and quietly.
Jin-ha sighed softly. He had planned to meet with Section Chief Nam today to say he would enter the portal anyway, but he didn’t want to be dragged along in this manner.
“And I don’t intend to simply pressure you.”
The deputy director straightened his shoulders, smirked, and casually tossed the documents he was holding onto the coffee table.
It was rare for government agencies to not use holograms these days. Using paper documents meant either the content was not related to official duties or it contained confidential information that needed to be destroyed.
Jin-ha’s face hardened as he confirmed the contents.
“This is…”
“You seem to be quite curious about your father.”
There were neatly stacked documents about his father: a resume with an ID photo, traces of moving around the country after leaving the orphanage, marriage papers with Jin-ha’s mother, and more.
Most of the information was what Cha Ki-young had already gathered, but there was one unfamiliar document. It was completely blacked out with ink, making the contents unreadable, but it bore both a government agency printing stamp and a “No Removal” stamp.
Jin-ha stared intently at the blacked-out section, lost in thought, until a throat-clearing sound made him look up.
“If you change your mind, I’ll give you the document without the redactions.”
It was a highly suspicious document. But it might contain the information Jin-ha wanted.
“…All I need to do is go in and establish trade?”
The deputy director grinned at Jin-ha’s response, which was essentially acceptance.
“No. The primary benefit we need to obtain from the otherworld portal isn’t goods. It’s knowledge.”
This time, the deputy director showed a hologram of a massive tower.
“This is a tower beyond the portal. It’s called the Magician’s Tower, and I’m told it’s an institution that teaches talented magicians and trains them to become high-level magicians. The man you mentioned was the Master of this tower, the highest-ranking person there.”
“Then what you desire is…”
“I’ve selected five magicians affiliated with our Office. I want you to persuade him to teach them real magic.”
On Earth, magic was still an unknown discipline. Hunters who awakened as magicians could use specific magic registered in their skill window by utilizing their magical power values. However, because they didn’t understand the operating principles of magic, it was difficult to display abilities beyond that.
In the case of abilities using swords or physical prowess, skills could be improved through training. But magic was a field with extremely low development potential, where one could only use abilities permitted by the system.
That is, until now.
If he could teach them real magic and enable magic research in Korea, it would open a new horizon in the field of magic.
This would be an achievement that would shake the entire world. The deputy director clearly wanted to be credited with playing a decisive role in bringing magic to Korea.
Yes, for the position of Office Director.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
