#39
“If you ever meet Stardust… under no circumstances should you ever think of confronting them. Just run.”
“Yes, the Chief is absolutely right about this. They’ll stop at nothing to prevent a Gate raid.”
As if he knew exactly how, Jinho added that Stardust had once tried to kidnap and lock up the Espers scheduled to be dispatched to stop a Gate raid.
“E-Espers get kidnapped too?”
“Yes. That… Stardust is fundamentally a group of Espers….”
“That’s not all, Guide. Bomb threats on Gate raid camps are a given… Ah, I recently heard they’re focusing on research to create a Gate themselves.”
“Create… a Gate? Why, of all things…?”
No one knew for sure what the Gates that suddenly appeared were, or for what reason they came to be. Other than the information that they were passages connecting to another dimension and that they spewed out a horde of monstrous beings not of this world, Wonwoo didn't know much either.
The best they could do was detect Gate energy and accumulate vast amounts of observational data for research.
But to think they could create such a Gate at will. It was a horrifying thought just to imagine. The image of them creating Gates as they pleased and unleashing monsters sent a chilling sensation to the tips of his hair.
So, the final boss… is the scariest thing of all a person?
Wonwoo shuddered, imagining a faceless, shadowy figure smirking viciously as they created Gates indiscriminately.
It felt like he had a lot more to worry about now. Wonwoo swallowed nervously and looked at Hyeonil. But despite the serious words, Hyeonil wore a relaxed expression.
“…Where did you hear such news?”
“That’s obviously a trade secret… Hey, could you not look at me like I’m a spy?”
“Perhaps Esper Kim Hyeonil, you’re from Stardust….”
“Aah, my guys found out! From the intel team!”
“……”
Despite Hyeonil’s jest, Yonghyun just stared at him silently. Hyeonil avoided his gaze, humming a tune.
“Aigoo, I can’t even make a joke in front of our Chief Shin.”
“Is that really true?”
“Hmm, that question makes it sound like you want me to be from Stardust. Unfortunately, I’m not. Is there a rule that only Stardust can have spies? My guys can do it too.”
Hyeonil boasted playfully in front of the three. Yonghyun, who had been staring at Hyeonil silently for a long while, turned his gaze to Wonwoo and continued.
“They are fundamentally discriminators. They don’t even treat non-Espers as human. They believe the Gates appeared to pass judgment on non-Espers.”
“Heol, that really sounds like some kind of cult….”
“They’re worse than a cult. They are people who do not hesitate to kill.”
“So, our Chief Shin is worried, is he?”
“…Worried?”
Yonghyun’s gaze seemed to tremble. But perhaps it was just a trick of the eye. When Wonwoo looked again, Yonghyun’s gaze was firm.
“…About what will happen after officially acknowledging the existence of guides and providing Wonwoo-ssi with a position befitting that role."
“What happens after?”
“Yes. I have no doubt that you, Wonwoo-ssi, will play the biggest role in resolving the Gate issue. But if Stardust were to find out about your existence….”
“Hmm, they might already know. I found out, so there’s no reason they couldn’t have, right?”
As Hyeonil shrugged, Jinho looked at him with a strange expression.
“Did you, by any chance, bug us?”
“…Trade secret, Jinho. Don’t try to find out.”
Yonghyun continued speaking.
“They might kidnap or threaten you, Wonwoo-ssi. It would be better for you to have an affiliation to be protected. Although we’ve shown you a shameful side of us… I would still like to propose it again. How about joining the Bureau?”
“Whoa, whoa, stop. Stop! Is this how you scout talent? In this chaotic atmosphere without setting a proper mood? Since when did the Bureau stop following FM (Field Manual/proper procedure)?”
Just as Wonwoo was about to answer, Hyeonil cut in between Yonghyun and him.
“You proposed he join while inside a Gate too, Hyeonil-ssi?”
“No, mine was more of an intern proposal than a job offer! Jinho, I didn’t think you were the type to tattle…?”
“Esper Kim Hyeonil, isn’t the offer I made and the offer you made the same thing?”
“It’s different!”
Just when the mood seemed to be getting a little serious, the three of them started bickering. Listening to the words freelancer, the national government’s Agency, and the nation’s #1 conglomerate Black Star all tangled up together, Wonwoo let out a hollow laugh.
‘I haven’t said a single word… but my future plans are being laid out so neatly.’
He was, in terms of social life experience compared to Gate raid experience, an intern who had just joined the company.
And a sudden internship at that, one he got through a professor's introduction while still in school without even a college diploma. Hmm, in this case, is my professor the System? Wonwoo continued his thoughts.
All an intern could do was smile pleasantly and shout ‘I’ll do my best!’ to any instruction.
‘I might not trust others, but for some reason, Chief Shin Yonghyun seems reliable. Hmm… Should I just go for it and join the Bureau?’
If his existence as a Guide was acknowledged, he could at least be free from hiring corruption.
Is this why a public image is so important? Wonwoo recalled Yonghyun on a public service announcement, declaring with a firm expression, ‘Reporting a Gate is a step towards national security,’ and nodded.
However, the System watching this seemed to disagree.
-Bbirong bbirong!
[User ‘Wonwoo’ trusts people too much! ┑(￣Д ￣)┍]
[The only one who can treat user ‘Wonwoo’ like a pushover is m—….]
[…□■□■□■]
[An error has occurred. Please wait a moment.]
[Oops, my bad! o(*≧▽≦)ツ Please forget what I just said!]
I think a rather unpleasant word just popped up. Wonwoo frowned and glared at his phone screen. He let out a sigh of "Ha," for good measure.
[Ehem. ◐﹏◐]
[Anyway! At this rate, user ‘Wonwoo’s’ residence or affiliation will be decided for him!]
-Bbirong bbirong!
[<QUEST> Re-generated!]
[‘I hate companies, but freelancing isn’t great either. So what’s the answer…?! It’s starting your own business…!’]
[The SYSTEM’s <QUEST> function will be on HOLD until this <QUEST> is completed.]
“Hold…? What, are you saying you won’t give me a reward?”
[That’s right! （︶^︶）]
[User ‘Wonwoo’ cannot proceed with any other quests until this <QUEST> is completed! （︶^︶）]
“…Hey, why are you being like this? Why are you so insistent on me starting a business?”
[Because I can’t trust any of them. (╯︿╰ ]
“Can’t… trust them?”
Wonwoo tore his gaze from his phone to look at the three men. They were still bickering.
“Since when did Black Star Guild become a place one could just join like that?”
“Hey, are you saying that Wonwoo isn’t good enough to join Black Star?”
“That’s not what I….”
“How can you say that, Chief Shin, after receiving Wonwoo's amazing guiding? No, why are you looking at me like I’m some shameless pervert? Who was it that told me to actively receive guiding!”
Even as Hyeonil said that, Yonghyun merely replied nonchalantly.
“I told you to receive guiding, not to hit on Wonwoo-ssi and bother him. It was quite a spectacle. You even took the guiding that was meant for Jinho.”
“Hehe you saw all of that too?”
In the midst of the strange atmosphere between the two, Jinho blushed shyly and opened his mouth.
“I-I didn’t get my guiding taken… Wonwoo-hyung held my hand first and gave me guiding… it felt so good….”
Deciding it was better for his own sake not to hear the details, Wonwoo ignored the three men's conversation.
Right, let’s just let them talk and I’ll have a conversation with the System. Haha. Feeling his ears burn, Wonwoo fiddled with his earlobe for no reason. Then he turned his gaze back to the System.
“Who is it you can’t trust?”
[Esper Shin Yonghyun, Esper Han Jinho, Esper Kim Hyeonil, and Esper Baek Juwon, whom you will meet later, are all extremely outstanding Espers. They’re S-Class Espers, after all!]
[But the places they belong to are full of incompetent, bad people who only care about their own profits, making the situation complicated. (σ｀д′)σ]
[And user ‘Wonwoo’ is going to throw himself into a place like that?!]
[It’s only a matter of time before you become shark bait, no, Gate-bait.（︶^︶）]
[That’s why user ‘Wonwoo’ needs a space where he can stand entirely on his own!]
[In other words, let’s build our own fence! ( •̀ ω •́ )✧]
And then the System sent another message.
[Esper Shin Yonghyun: The Bureau]
[Esper Han Jinho: The Bureau & European Union Esper Association]
[Esper Kim Hyeonil: Black Star Group & Black Star Electronics & Black Star Guild]
[Esper Baek Juwon: Geonyeong Guild]
[Even S-Class Espers cannot be free from the places they belong to. (.╯︿╰.)]
[Just look at Esper Shin Yonghyun! He was so harassed by the Bureau’s Director that he brought user ‘Wonwoo’ here!]
[In a situation where even an S-Class Esper is being harassed, there’s no guarantee that user ‘Wonwoo’ won’t be harassed as well!]
As he continued to look at the system's messages, he felt like he could hear a sigh of despair from somewhere.
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