Chapter 19: I Got It! (1)
“…I feel strange.”
Hae-ryeon vigorously rubbed her face with both hands as if washing it.
The conversation had ended quickly.
They only discussed the key points without any small talk.
However, Hyeon-yul’s comment about having nothing at home stuck with her, so without even a chance to ask what he liked, she just stopped by a nearby mart, swept up everything, and handed it all over.
They practically fled after seeing Hyeon-yul's utterly bewildered expression as the final image.
“…Respected Team Leader, it’s the same for me.”
Shin-woo drove as if possessed by something.
“It definitely… seemed like it was the first time he received things like food, right?”
“It certainly looked that way.”
“This is bad……. I have a weak spot for things like this.”
“It’s the same for me.”
Hae-ryeon and Shin-woo sighed almost simultaneously.
They couldn't even begin to fathom what kind of life Hyeon-yul had lived.
“Villains keep getting drawn to him, he needs to move out quickly, but will Mr. Hyeon-yul go?”
“Honestly, I don’t think he’ll leave without a special reason.
There were signs he lived there for quite a long time.”
“Right…? Our benefits are good, but we don’t operate separate dorms due to security.
If we did, I would’ve put in an application right away.”
What a waste.
Hae-ryeon fiddled with her seatbelt, wearing exactly that expression.
“I’ll try to gently persuade him.
Let’s resolve the other issues first.”
“That’s right.
Do you see what Mr. Hyeon-yul brought us?”
They found the insider, and also learned the location of the building owned by the Poison King.
Especially today’s events could be considered, without exaggeration, the success of one huge mission.
“It makes no sense to kick out someone this competent.”
Hae-ryeon crossed her arms, and Shin-woo smoothly turned the steering wheel, nodding repeatedly.
“Of course. It’s hard to find someone like this.”
“How can someone this capable not get recognized for their abilities?”
“Absolutely not. Hyeon-yul has already proven himself with his skills.
In just one week, he’s been haphazardly achieving things we couldn’t.”
“Exactly! You can tell by how heavyweight villains covet Mr. Hyeon-yul.
Team Leader Do-jin too.”
“Team Leader Do-jin too?”
“Yes. It makes me dizzy just thinking about it.
Team Leader Ju-hyeon… I’m still not sure, but who knows, right?”
“Respected Team Leader. Honestly, I liked Hyeon-yul because I got this conviction: ‘He won’t die during a mission.’ I don’t want any more team members dying.”
“…Right. That’s, well… something I hate too.”
Hae-ryeon looked out the window.
No matter how good the conditions were for Black Eagles, the high mortality rate meant they inevitably had to experience the death of a team member someday.
Weren't they desperately managing things now precisely to prevent that?
“So, Respected Team Leader. When would be a good time for Hyeon-yul's welcome party?”
Shin-woo asked, as if tossing aside the previous mood.
Wouldn't a welcome party finally make it feel like Hyeon-yul had joined Team 3?
“Shin-woo. Do you think Mr. Hyeon-yul can handle it?
Us?
The energy we unleash?
It’ll get worse with alcohol, will he be okay?”
Hae-ryeon was genuinely worried.
There had been team members who ran away after just one welcome party.
“…It certainly is scary. We can’t have him run away because of this.”
“Mr. Hyeon-yul hasn’t even met Mr. Ji-hwan yet, right?
Their paths have been crossing strangely lately.”
“Don’t you think they’ll get along well?”
“Hmm? Will they get along well?”
“If they’re fated to be teammates, won’t they meet eventually?”
Shin-woo tossed out the words and laughed heartily alone, while Hae-ryeon shook her head as if used to it.
‘……Hmm.’
Hyeon-yul rested his chin on his hand and looked out the bus window.
According to ‘101 Ways for a Smooth Office Life’, if you receive something, you should give something in return.
Yesterday, he had received so much from Hae-ryeon and Shin-woo that his empty refrigerator was now completely full.
‘A return gift… how do you do that?’
Hyeon-yul was thinking seriously when he abruptly stood up.
“Mr. Driver, turn the wheel left immediately.”
Hyeon-yul approached the driver's side and spoke firmly.
Something was coming right now.
The feeling wasn't good.
‘This is a different power.’
It was also a power that wouldn't be good to clash with.
Hyeon-yul looked beyond the front windshield, then braced himself by grabbing a pole as the bus swerved sharply.
Screeeeeech.
The sound, like grinding the road itself, pierced his ears.
“Uaaargh!”
Screams filled the interior.
‘It seems I’m the only Black Eagle here.’
Just before Hyeon-yul could go outside to block the approaching entity, an unknown power enveloped the bus he was in, protecting it.
Seeing the transparent barrier-like force, Hyeon-yul raised an eyebrow.
‘…Magic?’
From beyond, someone walked leisurely and stopped in front of the bus.
The yawning man grinned at Hyeon-yul and held up three fingers.
What could that mean?
‘…Team 3?’
Only then did Hyeon-yul recognize him as a teammate.
He had heard from Hae-ryeon that there was one more team member.
She said their paths kept crossing strangely.
‘Don’t tell me he’s a magician.’
Hyeon-yul’s head moved.
Something shot out from behind the bus and collided with the car following behind.
Craaaash!
Watching the car fly through the air, Hyeon-yul let out a long breath.
‘What kind of power is that?’
A person stood where the car had been.
Were they targeting the morning commute?
“Please open the door.”
Hyeon-yul told the driver, opened the door, and stepped outside.
The moment his feet touched the ground, his mood sank.
As an aftereffect of the car that just flew, other cars were damaged, and loud horns pierced his ears.
Come to think of it, it wasn't even work time yet.
Who in the world would want to work before the commute even started?
“Kyakakaka!”
Hearing the strange laughter, Hyeon-yul turned his head.
A man, bearing bulging muscles as if he'd been pumping iron, was slowly turning his body.
Hyeon-yul wasn't curious about who that guy was.
Seeing him smash someone else's car so nonchalantly, he could declare him a villain.
Hyeon-yul drew his dagger.
He carefully surveyed the surroundings.
There were suspicious footsteps, but no accompanying accomplices.
For now, he was alone.
“You gonna fight with that?”
The guy also looked Hyeon-yul up and down and laughed.
He looked scrawny compared to his bulk, but how satisfying would it be to beat him up?
He licked his lips, lost in the fantasy.
“Good, good. Just perfect to become part of my glorious career.”
At the word ‘career’, Hyeon-yul approached without hesitation.
He was definitely a villain.
Just as he was about to melt into the darkness, Hyeon-yul stopped walking powerlessly.
A wall suddenly popped up, making Hyeon-yul look behind him.
Curly blonde perm hair was the first thing that caught his eye.
He looked quite young at first glance.
“…What are you doing right now?”
The teammate asked, startled.
He didn't seem to be in his right mind.
The guy who just appeared wasn't just big.
He was as tall as the bus roof.
The car that collided with him wouldn't look out of place thrown into a junkyard immediately.
It was the most common form seen among villains with enhancement powers.
One of the typical types that enhanced their own power by forcibly enlarging their body internally.
“That’s what I’d like to ask. What are you doing?”
Hyeon-yul asked back, his voice laced with displeasure instead.
What kind of act was this in a real battle, not training?
Didn't he know one could die by a hair's breadth?
“What do you mean, engaging that giant head-on?
You could get seriously hurt!”
“I won’t get seriously hurt.”
Hyeon-yul stated firmly and looked ahead.
That musclehead openly showed he primarily used striking attacks.
So what?
A vibration was felt, and the wall his teammate had magically erected shattered into pieces, fragments scattering everywhere.
Thwack!
Along with the heavy fist, the villain’s broad smile emerged.
The fist approached, but Hyeon-yul was certain.
That fist would absolutely never reach him.
Letting the approaching fist and fragments flow past, he raised his dagger.
“Puhat!”
The villain burst out laughing.
It was too small and dainty to even cut his muscles.
What could he possibly do with that?
The moment his feet touched the ground, the villain immediately spun around.
He swung his fist again with the force to crush that head.
Seeing the villain’s rock-like fist, Hyeon-yul also laughed along.
Black energy spread around the dagger.
It looked just like a demon spreading its wings.
The villain panicked as the spread energy instantly gathered into the dagger, forming a longsword.
Following the black trajectory, he relentlessly cut off the villain’s arm.
Clean and light.
As Hyeon-yul stepped back to avoid the splashing blood, the villain's scream erupted.
“Aaaaaaaaargh!”
After watching him roll on the ground clutching his severed arm, Hyeon-yul turned his gaze towards his teammate.
Even witnessing this spectacle, the sound of a car moving could be heard.
The direction was towards them.
‘As expected, there are more.’
Was this the source of the suspicious footsteps?
“I’ll do it.”
The teammate, who was approaching as if ready to join in any second, quickly spoke up.
He thrust the staff he was holding towards where Hyeon-yul was looking.
Wind blew around the teammate, and a magic circle appeared in front of the staff.
Just as a sparkling light appeared and vanished, a fierce snowstorm raged from somewhere.
Hyeon-yul narrowed his eyes.
Even from afar, breath turned white.
Watching the instantly frozen car, Hyeon-yul looked at his teammate.
How would he have dealt with that power?
It was a power that made one think such thoughts.
‘If it were me, I would have killed him the moment the staff was extended.’
Because that was the easiest way to deal with magicians.
“Wow! There was magic cast on that car, how did you know and react?”
The teammate asked, fascinated.
Detecting magic was difficult.
Why else would magic always rank within the Top 5 most formidable powers?
‘There was magic cast on it…?’
Hyeon-yul looked at the frozen car.
It wasn't visible to the eye.
“I heard a sound.”
“It’s silencing magic, but you heard that?
Your hearing must be really sensitive, huh?”
“Various senses are sensitive.”
Hyeon-yul briefly lowered his gaze.
Wherever there was shadow, he felt vibrations.
“Anyway, you really didn’t get seriously hurt, huh?
I’ll definitely keep that in mind next time.”
The teammate grinned and approached Hyeon-yul.
Was he just naturally friendly?
“Things like this don’t lead to serious injuries.”
Because incompetence would lead to being fired.
Hyeon-yul replied and walked towards the villain.
Fear was already clouding the villain’s eyes.
“Why are you making such a fuss?
If you attack, isn’t it natural to be prepared to lose a limb somewhere?”
The villain recoiled at Hyeon-yul's blunt words.
“That’s not natural……”
“I’ll ask simply. Where are they recruiting that you were trying to build up your career?”
Hyeon-yul didn't just let the word ‘career’ he heard earlier slide.
Companies run by villains could be entered without experience.
The bar was that low.
But changing jobs was different.
He himself had changed jobs after receiving a scouting offer for taking his boss’ head, but normally, changing jobs required experience, how much villainy one had committed.
Calling this a career was the same here too.
“…Ah, you must have seen the job posting put out by the Poison King.”
Around here, the only one currently trying to extend their influence was the Poison King.
The villain’s shoulder twitched ever so slightly.
‘It is the Poison King.’
Hyeon-yul gained certainty from that action.
Trying to monopolize everything in one place like this always attracted vigilance from other factions.
The Poison King didn't seem to care.
‘Well, he is a heavyweight……’
Wrinkles formed around Hyeon-yul’s eyes.
‘Wait a minute.’
—…He, he said he was preparing something big.
The phrase ‘something big’, heard yesterday while killing seven out of the eight people, came to mind.
Hyeon-yul took out his phone and searched for something.
Festival.
When working under Shin Dae-ho, he had mentioned something offhandedly.
—Wouldn't a guy who boldly kills someone in a crowded place and then makes a clean getaway be quite useful? Of course, he has to take a proof shot of the killing. If it overlaps with another guy, well, just tell them to kill each other. How about it? Isn't that a pretty good job posting?
He hadn't responded, thinking it was utter nonsense.
His work mainly involved competitors, that is, killing other villains.
‘I can’t believe there’s a crazy bastard who’d actually do this.’
“…Excuse me?”
The teammate called out to Hyeon-yul.
He didn't know his name yet.
“Is it okay to apply first aid to the villain?”
“Do as you please.”
Having no further business, Hyeon-yul lowered his phone.
There was a festival opening near here soon.
He never had time to see festivals, so he didn't even know this existed.
‘Timing-wise, this fits.’
He had a hunch.
What better moment for a terror attack than a festival?
‘Since they need to interfere with the festival, they must have already met with the festival officials, right?’
Usually, the first point of contact was the festival security side.
‘A security company……’
As Hyeon-yul’s thoughts deepened, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.
Companies run by villains were quite widespread.
Naturally, quite a few companies dealing with the general public were also run by villains.
Weren't the Black Eagles also searching for large corporations run by villains?
The villains' goal was always the Empire, and as much as they desired the Empire, they wanted to be deeply involved in its economy.
Therefore, a security company could also be run by a villain.
‘The day before the festival, an incident will occur to draw the Black Eagles’ attention.’
Considering the chatroom content from the phone given to Ju-hyeon, there were also instances of luring Black Eagles away to prevent them from going to certain locations.
Wouldn't it be the same this time?
Lost in various thoughts, Hyeon-yul finally clenched his fist tightly.
‘…It’s before work, why do I have to be thinking about this?’
Reality sunk in.
He turned his head to see several cars tangled together.
Among them was the bus.
Irritation arose at the thought of how to get to the Nest.
This was why he hated villains.
His life after getting entangled with villains was a complete mess.
“…Excuse me.”
The teammate called Hyeon-yul.
His cautiousness stemmed from Hyeon-yul’s expression, which looked serious from any angle.
“What is it?”
But when the answer came, his expression changed as if nothing had happened.
It felt like the sharpness had vanished.
“First off, I’m Ye Ji-hwan, a fellow teammate. Nice to meet you.”
Ji-hwan introduced himself first.
A curious gaze was directed at Hyeon-yul.
“I’m Seo Hyeon-yul.”
“It’s nice seeing you like this! I didn’t know you were this strong!”
Ji-hwan revealed a happy face.
He heard a newbie had arrived, but he was no different from a veteran.
He even wondered for a moment if he mistook him for a newbie.
“I know that any Black Eagle can easily handle this level.”
Hyeon-yul stated the facts.
Without at least this much power, one couldn't become a Black Eagle in the first place.
“You’re humble, aren’t you?”
Ji-hwan smiled and praised him.
Who would dislike compliments?
But Hyeon-yul denied it.
“It’s not humility, it’s a fact.”
‘Does he dislike lip service?’
Ji-hwan was momentarily flustered but soon smiled.
Curiosity sparked about what type of person he was.
“Ye Mr. Ji-hwan. There’s something I want to ask.”
“Go ahead. Ah, just a moment.”
Ji-hwan pressed the forehead of the continuously screaming villain.
Light seemed to gather at his fingertips, and the villain went limp.
“He’s asleep. Not dead.”
“It doesn’t matter whether you kill him or not.”
“…Really?”
Ji-hwan felt relieved.
Magic often had inherently strong power, leading to unintentional killings frequently.
“I want to call a bus again now, how should I do that?”
Ji-hwan blinked at the question.
‘Bus…?’
For a moment, he wondered what that meant, but then he smiled brightly.
‘He’s surprisingly clueless in some ways.’
Why worry about a bus?
The name Black Eagle wasn't just given out freely.
They were very high-level personnel.
Even without asking, a rescue team along with another vehicle should be rushing over by now.
But somehow, he didn't feel like saying it.
‘He really is a newbie.’
Hyeon-yul glanced sideways at Ji-hwan.
Seeing him approach naturally like Na-yoon, he expected him to be talkative like her.
But Ji-hwan didn't say anything else besides mentioning he called the bus until they arrived.
He just seemed spaced out.
The managers came out and quickly took away the captured villain, just like last time.
Since Ji-hwan was quiet, being with him was surprisingly comfortable.
He even felt the stress from before work dissipating.
When he opened the door, Hae-ryeon greeted the two.
“Welcome.”
Seeing the usually dazed Ji-hwan and the somehow comfortable-looking Hyeon-yul, Hae-ryeon swallowed the laugh that almost escaped.
She knew they would get along well.
“Don’t the two of you get along well?”
“I was really moved by hyung.”
Ji-hwan pressed his brow firmly, and Hyeon-yul was about to nod silently but asked instead.
“Why am I hyung?”
“Then, am I hyung?”
Ji-hwan looked on expectantly.
“……”
Hyeon-yul was at a loss for words.
What did that matter?
“Well, you two are the same age.”
As Hae-ryeon interjected, Ji-hwan grinned slyly.
“I’ll still call you hyung. You were incredibly strong.”
‘Looks like that part captured Mr. Ji-hwan’s heart.’
Ji-hwan liked strong people.
Hae-ryeon felt proud that Hyeon-yul seemed to be adapting well.
As Ji-hwan and Hae-ryeon laughed, Hyeon-yul forced his lips into a smile out of social awareness.
He didn't know why they were laughing.
But wasn't this social life?