episode_0020

I thought it would be quite awkward as I was reuniting with the people who attacked me, but it seems I’m the only one who feels that way.

“Nice to meet you! Oppa Han-gil! See you again!”

“Nice to meet you, newbie. You’re finally escaping from being the youngest.”

“Oh, hello!”

I hastily bowed in response to the unexpectedly lively greeting.

“Ahahahaha! What is it!? Why are you so humble?”

“Wow, this is a new recruit. I’m so impressed… But there’s no need to be so formal. Our team is a horizontal team with no relationship between superiors and subordinates.”

I felt it last time, but even though Heo Sae-ron is making a lot of noise, his presence is surprisingly faint, so I don’t even know he’s there.

Kwon Gyeong-gu, who was not dressed like a delivery man but showed his face, had a manly handsome face and a large body and bulging muscles, so he was very intimidating.

“Ah! That’s right! Oppa Gyeong-gyeong! The bet is my win! Let’s have lunch today!”

“Damn, I thought I’d last a little longer…”

As I stood awkwardly listening to the conversation between Heo Sae-ron and Kwon Gyeong-gu, Eun No-eul clapped her hands.

“Okay, stop. What are you saying in front of the new arrival today?”

“Oh! I’m sorry, Oppa Han-gil! Are you not offended? I didn’t make a strange bet, so don’t worry!”

“Uh…what was the bet?”

“Ahaha! Weren’t you supposed to talk to me last time? You can talk comfortably!”

“Really? That’s right. Hmm… So, what was the bet?”

“Wow, you’re really saying that!? There are so many new recruits these days!”

“!?”

“Hey, don’t tease me. You’ll be in trouble.”

As Kwon Gyeong-gu pressed down on his head, Heo Sae-ron laughed and waved his arms.

The tension is crazy high, but there is no real presence, so it seems like there will be cognitive dissonance.

“Ahahaha! It was a joke! Ah! Did you ask what the bet was!? It was a bet on whether Han-gil oppa would join our team within a few days! For me, within three days! For Gyeong-op oppa, I bet after a month!”

“…Are you talking as if it was decided that I would join the Management Bureau?”

As I looked at him hesitantly, Heo Sae-ron waved his hand away.

“It’s not like that! But, our branch leader, president, and team leader is someone who will never let go once she gets hooked!”

“Keuhum! Keuhum! Saeron, stop talking strangely.”

“Ugh~ I understand!”

When Heo Sae-ron laughed with a sinister expression, Eun No-eul glared at her and said one thing.

“I don’t know what you’re misunderstanding, but it’s not what you think. I just took advantage of Han-gil’s talent and recruited him.”

“Ahaha. I didn’t misunderstand anything?”

“What are you not doing? Saeron, please come to your senses. The current situation is not easy enough to live with such a tense mind. How is it that you have been at the management bureau for a year and still have no sense of crisis? Until just yesterday, He was kidnapped by Pandora of the Old World. Considering the tendencies of those bastards, it could be said that it was a good situation for him to be part of the management bureau as well, as he never knew when they would make another move. “How can you cause trouble to people with your strange imagination every day?”

“Aaaah! I’m sorry! I was wrong! I understand! I’ll know that! So please stop! I won’t do that again!”

Heo Sae-ron, frightened by the nagging noise coming out at the speed of a machine gun, covers his ears and quickly hides behind me.

…However, the moment it was out of sight, the presence disappeared.

It was so scary that even my memories became blurred, as if my ‘existence’ had been cut off.

“Noeul! You have something to explain to your brother! Let’s start with that! Huh!?”

“…Ha. I can’t help it. Mr. Han-gil. It’s all spherical, right?”

“Oh well…I see.”

I smiled awkwardly at Kwon Kyeong-gu, who was looking at me with a sad smile.

The bulging muscles are so enormous that they can be seen even through clothes, making it difficult to look straight at them.

“Hello. I didn’t even see you last time. You were rude back then.”

“Ahaha…that’s…”

For a moment, I remembered the time when he came to visit me disguised as a delivery man.

“Well, now that I think about it, that was really rude.”

“Uh, yes…?”

I looked at him with resentment as he was embarrassed.

“Thanks to you, I couldn’t eat chicken that day.”

“Oh, chicken is important. So, shall we eat it together today? I also have to buy Saeron rice at the same time.”

“Oh! Then, should we have a welcome party!? Noeul, how do you think!?”

When Heo Sae-ron suddenly made his face and his eyes sparkled, Eun No-eul looked worried for a moment.

“Hmm… not bad, Mr. Han-gil. Are you okay?”

“I don’t miss the opportunity to get it.”

“Wow! It’s alcohol! Oppa Gyeong-gyeong! I’ll enjoy it!”

“…Do I have to cover it all with my wallet?”

“Of course not! You lost the bet!”

Just as Kwon Gyeong-gu’s face became gloomy, Eun No-eul came out with a bitter smile.

“Hehe. Don’t worry. I’ll pay too.”

“That’s really fortunate…”

I looked at him sighing in relief and then glanced around the office.

It was a fairly large place, but there were not many people, so it felt empty.

“Hey, by the way, where did the others go?”

“Oh, no, that’s not it. The ‘Paranormal Response Team’ consists of all the people here.”

“yes?”

Eun No-eul, Kwon Gyeong-gu, Heo Sae-ron, and me.

“…Isn’t there too few people?”

“Ahaha. I knew you would say that. But, is this natural? Our team only accepts talented people.”

“Ah…um?”

No matter what, I couldn’t hide the impression that it was too little.

“Hehe. I guess I need a basic explanation. Shall we sit down for a moment?”

“Ah! I’ll make some coffee!”

“Thank you, Saeron. But be careful. Don’t fall like last time.”

“Ahaha! Don’t worry!”

As Heo Sae-ron ran briskly to the bathroom, Eun No-eul sat down first at the round table located in the center of the office.

As Kwon Gyeong-gu sat across from him, I also sat next to him.

“Well, first of all, we should correct the misunderstanding that Mr. Han-gil may have. He is probably imagining a picture of our team fiercely fighting against a supernatural entity, right?”

“Uh… isn’t it?”

“It’s not completely wrong. In fact, we even went to Han-gil’s house, right? But that doesn’t mean we just eat the battle. Our main mission is focused on reconnaissance, investigation, and analysis.”

“Ohh…”

“I brought you coffee!”

“Wow!?”

When Heo Sae-ron, who had no presence at all, suddenly came out from the side and shouted, he almost started a fight and jumped up.

“Ahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!”

She smiled excitedly, moved the coffee cup with quick movements, and sat down next to Eun No-eul.

…It may be surprising, but contrary to his impressions, Heo Sae-ron is quite tall, so the height of his gaze is roughly the same.

This again causes cognitive dissonance.

What a confused person.

“What were you talking about?”

“I was just explaining the basic concepts about the Bureau. So, just listen quietly.”

“Yes! I understand! Team leader!”

“Anyway…”

Eun No-eul chuckled at her fuss, patted her head, and slowly continued speaking.

“The highest percentage of paranormal phenomenon objects are objects. I saw it in the supply room last time, right?”

“Ah yes.”

I nodded, remembering the pile of items piled up like a mountain.

“Most supernatural entities are controllable and safe in that way. But sometimes, things appear that are uncontrollable, mysterious, and dangerous.”

I pricked up my ears to her soft voice.

Because it was a really interesting and fun story for me, who quite likes fantasy.

“The second highest percentage of supernatural entities are creatures. They are a mixture of the harmful and the harmless. Our job is to find out.”

“I see…what is the third one?”

“It’s the environment itself. Very occasionally, there are supernatural phenomena that occur like natural disasters. Localized time stoppage, dimensional cracks, distortion of physical laws, haunting of ghost stories, appearance of other worlds, etc… These are not things that humans can do anything about. “Most of them are horribly dangerous.”

“Hey…how do you handle something like that?”

She smiled brightly at my question.

“We use powerful supernatural entities in the Bureau to neutralize or destroy them. If necessary, we also use modern weapons.”

“Modern weapons?”

“Yes. Among the management bureau teams, there is a ‘fire support team’. That team’s main job is to project firepower. They use guns, bombs, and even missiles and nuclear bombs if necessary.”

“Wow…huh? Then, is the Bureau an organization connected to the government?”

“He’s quite perceptive, right? That’s right. He receives some support from the government.”

“The scale is big.”

“Yes?”

After thinking for a moment, she looked slightly embarrassed.

“Well, considering that, our branch doesn’t pay much.”

“That’s because it’s an ‘ordinary small business’ that is a supernatural entity, isn’t it? Moreover, they say they take extra care of it externally.”

“That’s right. It’s something that can’t be helped, but my reputation as a branch leader is a bit… hmm. Anyway, back to the main topic, that’s why our team is so small in number.”

She stopped talking and took a sip of coffee.

“It is a dangerous task to identify and investigate supernatural entities that cannot be known whether they are safe or dangerous until they are revealed. There are many things that modern science cannot do, so we have no choice but to rely on talented people.”

I drank my coffee while concentrating on what she said.

“However, the number of people with abilities is very small. The probability of a living being being born as a supernatural entity is still low, and the probability of becoming a human being is even lower. That is why the Bureau is always short of manpower. The same goes for our team. ”

“…So you scouted me?”

“Ahaha. To be honest, that’s true. However, Mr. Han-gil, you don’t have to work as written in the contract. It’s enough for you to just have some kind of insurance.”

“Um… I understand.”

When I nod as if it were obvious, Eun No-eul makes a strange expression.

“It’s really unwavering…”

“yes?”

“It’s nothing. I’ll end the explanation here. One day isn’t enough to tell you everything, so I’ll give you the manual. Oh, since there’s no work today, shall we have lunch early? It also serves as a welcome party for Mr. Han-gil.”

“Sister! Alcohol!?”

“Of course not. Drinking during ‘business hours’ is prohibited.”

“Eh… Then let’s have a party after work! Huh? I want to drink!”

“Ugh, why do you like alcohol so much? How about Han-gil?”

“I don’t mind though.”

“Really? Then I’ll give you a simple manual and show you around the building.”

She handed me a thick wad of paper detailing codes of conduct when encountering various paranormal entities and instances of neutralizing or eliminating them.

“……”

Honestly, it was a lot of fun because it felt like I was watching a fantasy setting book.

***

The work of the ‘Paranormal Phenomena Response Team’ was so loose that it was hard to even call it work.

Eun No-eul, Heo Sae-ron, and Kwon Gyeong-gu all chatted and read books, played games, etc., and at 5 o’clock, they all started preparing for work together.

Is this work life?

Actually, wasn’t it my natural calling to be an office worker?

“Wow! Drinking! It’s been a while since I’ve had a drink! Where are we going? Huh? Do you have a reservation?”

The excited Heo Sae-ron was already jumping up and down and shouting, but it was amazing that it didn’t feel intrusive or noisy because he had a surprising lack of presence.

“Of course I did. It’s a recently opened bar with a nice atmosphere. I sent it via messenger, so check it out.”

After hearing Kwon Kyeong-gu’s words, I checked my smartphone and found a link to the restaurant’s homepage in the group messenger.

When I touched it, the homepage screen appeared.

─■■ Restaurant─

“huh?”

Strangely, I couldn’t confirm the name, so just as I was tilting my head, a notice appeared in a pop-up window.

[■■ Thank you for visiting the restaurant’s website. Would you like to view detailed information about this restaurant? Yes / No]

This is another strange concept.

When I selected ‘Yes’, notices appeared one after another.

[Do you wish to visit my restaurant? Yes / No]

“…?”

I selected ‘Yes’.

[Do you pledge to observe manners and etiquette in my restaurant and follow the rules? Yes / No]

It’s a really unique store.

I selected ‘Yes’.

[welcome.]

Pot!

“uh?”

Immediately after, the homepage screen crashed.

Even if I click the link again, it does not connect to the homepage.

“…? Is it a bug? The homepage management is a mess. Hyung-gyeong. Isn’t this homepage strange?”

“Huh? Really? Well, there’s no need to look at it in advance, right? I’m leaving now.”

“I’m doing well?”

“Yes it is?”

When Eun No-eul held out her smart phone, information about a luxurious-looking bar appeared on the screen.

The store name also appears normally.

What is it, is my phone weird?

“Wow! I’m looking forward to it!”

We traveled in Kwon Gyeong-gu’s car and soon arrived at the restaurant we had reserved.

─Rescue Restaurant─

It was a store located in the basement of a commercial building.

“Ahahaha! That’s a really weird name!”

“That’s right. It’s a little old-fashioned.”

I agreed with Heo Sae-ron and Eun No-eul and went down the stairs.

Cheesy!

“Huh? What is it?”

“Did you feel it too? It felt like some kind of noise…”

“Is it because of my mood?”

We tilted our heads and opened the door made of thick flesh without paying much attention.

Slurp slurp!

As soon as you open the door, you can see the undulating floor of flesh and walls of intestines as if they were alive.

“Wow! The interior is really amazing!”

“I see. It’s really unique.”

“Oh… it was a place like this.”

The interior of the fairly large store had an overall sophisticated feel, filled with blood. The chairs and tables made of bone and flesh, as well as the fleshy floor and interior walls, looked quite luxurious and comfortable.

“There are a lot of people~ It must be a really popular place!”

The interior of the fairly large store was so crowded that there were no empty tables.

People with horns, people with scales, people who looked like pigs, people with mouths on their hands, huge people, etc… I was completely lost just by looking at them.

They were all showing their pain by sweating, shedding tears, or screaming and screaming, and the way they all looked at us was unusual.

The atmosphere of the store is really cheerful and bright.

“Come, come~ This is the reserved seat~”

The store owner was a human whose face was half goat and half disfigured by burns.

The guidance was so kind and polite that I was so happy that I couldn’t help but feel relieved.

The table we were sitting at was full of blood, chunks of flesh sticking together, and the long intestines were decorated like frills, and it looked like they had put a lot of effort into it.

“If you choose the menu, we will cook it for you.”

“Hmm. What should I order you to do first?”

“I know…”

Unique and appetizing menu items such as braised finger meat, thigh steak, teppanyaki grilled intestines, sashimi eyeballs, etc. attracted attention.

“Is there any alcohol!?”

“Alcohol, alcohol…it’s on the menu~”

“Yes…?”

When I looked closely, I saw bone-soaked liquor, soy sauce-soaked liquor, finger-soaked liquor, and tongue-soaked liquor at the bottom of the menu.

“I’d like some bone broth, please!”

“I mainly dip my fingers.”

“Then should I try the tongue soaking liquor?”

After listening to my companions’ orders and thinking about it, I chose finger-dipping liquor.

“I received your order. Then, let’s take the ingredients~ We will use the ingredients and give one drink to the entire table~ Who goes first?”

The store owner, who very politely raised the corner of his mouth and laughed at us, rolled his eyes in annoyance.

I felt like I was being treated well because it was as if I was looking at my prey.

“Oh, I’ll do it first. First of all, it’s my welcome party.”

“Wow! Thank you! Hangil oppa!”

“I’ll drink it well.”

When I took the initiative and held out my finger, the store owner took out a rusty, blood-stained Chinese kitchen knife.

“Hmm…?”

I don’t know why, but I can sense his intention to attack.

What happened all of a sudden? It doesn’t look like they’ll attack, but you should be on guard.

“Then~ Cut it, Nida~”

grasp!

Fortunately, instead of attacking me, he kindly cut off my finger.

The severed index finger is rolling around on the table, bleeding.

“Hmm…?”

Something suddenly felt uncomfortable and I frowned slightly, but I couldn’t figure out what was actually uncomfortable.

At that time, I don’t know why, but the Mirror of Resentment on the back of my right hand glowed ominously.

Papa pa pa pa paak!

“Keeek!?”

“Kyahaaa!”

“Kooo!”

“Aaaahhh!”

The next moment, the fingers of the store owner and customers were cut off and scattered in all directions.

Wow, is this a party?