Even a Middle School Dropout Orphanage Director Has Pure Feelings
The Council Chairman's office.
Inside the warm, wood-paneled room, a holographic projection flickered to life.
"Monitoring in progress. No irregularities."
"No anomalous manifestations. Status normal."
Reports laced with mechanical voices streamed in one after another.
The Council Chairman took a sip of black tea and studied the screen.
"Good. Keep tailing them. Report to me immediately if anything happens."
"Understood, Chairman."
Two operatives from the Council's direct Containment Special Task Force Incinerator were tailing Lee Shin and Yu Seoa. With active camouflage engaged, there was no chance of being noticed.
"I didn't exactly get his permission… but it can't be helped."
An anomalous entity was essentially strolling through a civilian district. Surveillance was only natural.
There was no telling what kind of incident might break out.
And that tail was also an unofficial test of Lee Shin himself.
If he passed, the Containment Special Task Force Yshin-ching-ui would receive its first mission. If he failed…
"Hmm."
The Chairman propped her chin on her hand and smiled faintly.
After all, she was the only one who knew the evaluation criteria.
D-does this look okay? It's not weird, right?
Yu Seoa glanced down at herself.
Was the outfit too bold? The skirt might be a little short…
Truth be told, Yu Seoa had almost no awareness of her own looks. Someone had called it a girlfriend look, so she'd just worn something similar.
Guys keep sneaking glances. Is that a good sign?
Her confidence ticked up a notch—then wilted the moment she caught the women's pointed stares.
Hiiiing… why are you glaring at meee…
Slightly cowed, Yu Seoa turned to Lee Shin walking right beside her.
"Oppa. How do I look today? …Is it weird?"
"No. You're pretty."
"Yeah! …W-w-w-wait!? What!!?"
Lee Shin's expression didn't change in the slightest.
"P-pretty?"
"You've never not been pretty."
"Uh, u-um. Thaaat… thanks?"
At the completely unexpected answer, her face flushed hot. Yu Seoa frantically fanned herself with her hands.
I already run hot as it is! What do I do, I'm gonna start sweating!
Thump-thump-thump-thump.
Why is my heart racing for no reason again!!
Yu Seoa short-circuited, sputtering and sputtering.
Lee Shin held out a handheld fan.
"Huh…?"
"Figured this would happen, so I brought one. You get overheated easy. You're already sweating."
"…Mm. Thanks. Hehe."
The breeze from the fan felt nice and cool.
Yu Seoa snuck a sidelong glance at Lee Shin.
He's so thoughtful. He's even matching his stride to mine.
Well, of course. Oppa was a good person. He took in kids who had nowhere else to go. And he was a little ridiculous in a cute way, too.
Without realizing it, Yu Seoa's lips curved upward.
She'd liked Lee Shin from the day they first met. It had been about fifteen years now, if you counted by the calendar.
So it'd be nice if Oppa was interested in me too.
A vague sense of longing made her fidget with her fingers.
And lately, it felt like the number of women around Lee Shin was growing.
Senior Researcher Tatiana. The way she looks at Oppa is… complicated.
Someone who barely ever smiled had started slipping into these quiet little smiles lately.
And then there was SIN-077, Lael.
A woman whose pure looks came up constantly on the Management Bureau intranet. Being a Beta-class anomaly meant no one was stupid enough to approach her casually—but still.
She seemed to take a liking to Oppa and was straight-up seducing him in the Backrooms. Uuuugh…
In short, Yu Seoa had started feeling a sense of crisis. The competition was an elite among elites—a senior researcher and special task force captain—and a Beta-class anomaly.
As an ordinary assistant researcher, Yu Seoa couldn't help shrinking into herself.
Today, I have to get even a little closer to Oppa.
She steeled her resolve.
His hand. …Should I try holding it?
Yeah. I have to do it now. While I've got the nerve!
Hup!
Yu Seoa drew a deep breath and barely managed to extend her arm.
Her slender fingers, trembling hard, tapped lightly against the back of Lee Shin's hand.
"Uh, uwaaah… so, um, that is…!"
"Oh. You wanna hold hands?"
Clamp.
Lee Shin's large hand closed around Yu Seoa's.
Hwaaaaaah…!
Twenty-year-old Yu Seoa felt like her heart might burst. Steam practically puffed up from the top of her head.
I, Lee Shin.
Was currently locked in single combat with my lower half, which was trying to seize control of my body.
Woof woof! Grr-bark-bark!!
Calm down, Magnum! Seoa's right next to us—you can't go wild!
Whine whine…
Good. Bodily control successfully restored.
Every time I made physical contact with Seoa, the reaction was instant. Truly befitting a healthy son of Korea.
We'd just finished eating together. Some Italian restaurant. For a guy who preferred pork-bone soup and soju, a lot of the food was unfamiliar.
Olio aglio, was it?
Allahu akbar?
Whatever. It was good.
Now we were sitting in a movie theater. I took off my jacket and handed it to Seoa in the seat beside me.
"You looked cold."
"Ah, thanks! I guess the skirt is a little short. Hehe."
Seoa grinned as she draped the jacket over her thighs. A faint whiff of perfume tickled my nose.
But why a horror movie of all things.
I was pretty sure she hated scary stuff. Wasn't she kind of a coward?
Just in case, I gave her a heads-up.
"Seoa. If you can't handle it, we can leave midway."
"Wh-what! I'm not a little kid. There's no problem at all!"
Seoa puffed out her chest with confidence.
Damn, those are big.
Alright then. Let's see how long that confidence lasts.
An hour passed.
"Seoa."
"I-is it over? Did it end?"
"No. They're still being chased by the ghost."
"Hweeeng…"
For about the last forty minutes, Seoa had been clamped onto my arm. For the last twenty, she'd basically been half in my lap.
I patted her while watching the screen.
Something's about to jump out again.
KRAAAASH!!
Right on cue.
"Hyaaak!?"
Seoa jolted and started trembling in my arms. When I wrapped an arm around her shoulders, she buried her face straight into my chest.
"Huff… uweeeng…"
"Huh."
Had she hit her limit? No—she actually seemed to be crying.
Hey, you crying?
I couldn't exactly say that out loud, so I grabbed our stuff and hustled her outside.
I sat her on a lobby chair and soothed her for a bit until Seoa peeked her head up.
Her eyes, already reddish, were even more bloodshot now.
"…Oppa. Hic— I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"It's been so long since we hung out just the two of us, and I ruined everything."
A girl with big round eyes sniffling like that really did look like some kind of rabbit.
She was so cute and soft I almost hugged her on the spot.
I stroked Yu Seoa's hair.
"Don't worry about it. I'm having a pretty good time right now."
"A good time?"
"Yeah. I got a front-row seat to a twenty-year-old woman bawling her eyes out because she was scared."
"Th-that's not true! I handle scary stuff just fine, okay?"
Hmph.
Seoa puffed her cheeks out like balloons and turned her head away. The corners of her eyes were still damp.
When I crouched down to her eye level, she finally cracked and burst out laughing.
"…Heehee. I'm glad you had fun, Oppa."
"Yeah. Want to grab something to eat?"
For dinner we had something called wood-fired pizza.
What the hell is a wood-fire.
Fire-duck, maybe?
Had a cheap, Marine Corps kind of energy to it. I liked it.
Before I knew it, the sun had set.
Seoa and I were standing at a small intersection.
"Oppa. Today was fun!"
"I had fun too. I'll walk you home."
"Huh? No need! My place is right across the street."
Seoa pointed at an ordinary house on the other side of the road. Nothing distinctive about it—just a common exterior.
"Still living in the old place?"
"Yep! It's right by Oppa's dorm, so it's nice. We could even commute together. …Hehehe."
Yu Seoa grinned like a steamed bun. Seemed like she didn't mind me living nearby.
"Alright. I'll head in first, then. Ju Eunseong's still watching the kids for me."
"Okay. …I'm really grateful to Eunseong-oppa."
We were just exchanging goodbyes before heading home.
Step. Step.
Crisp, measured footsteps approached over my shoulder. They stopped behind Seoa and me.
"…998?"
A familiar voice calling a familiar number.
Tatiana took a step closer. Crop top and jeans. Pretty… damn pretty.
But did she come to work like that? Her navel and abs were fully on display. At least she had a coat on over it.
Does she have someone she likes or something?
Anyone could tell this was an outfit meant to reel someone in.
And damn, those abs and that lower body were insane. How much does she work out.
"I was wondering where you'd gone. 998, I heard the Council ordered your release from containment. …I came into work for nothing, worrying about you."
"So you do have someone you like, huh?"
"Th-that's— ahem! Moving on!"
Sssk.
Tatiana stared straight at me, then casually slipped off her coat.
"…From now on, if anything happens to you, I want you to tell me."
Holy shit.
It wasn't even a crop top. It was a cropped spaghetti-strap top.
Whoever the guy Tatiana likes is, I am genuinely jealous as hell.
Meanwhile, Seoa had frozen solid, fidgeting awkwardly.
"Uh, uhh…"
"Assistant Researcher Yu Seoa. You took the afternoon off, didn't you?"
"Huh? Y-yes. That's right."
Tatiana looked back and forth between Seoa and me a few times.
"…Aha. So that's how it is."
I had no idea what she meant, but a shadow suddenly fell over her face.
What the hell. That damp, clammy, humidifier-of-a-look.
Was taking leave without proper approval a workplace no-no? Like you needed permission instead of just filing notice?
Maybe this attraction was more of a shitshow than I thought.
"…Right. What you do on leave is your own business."
"Senior? Are you angry…?"
"Angry? Why would I be angry."
She said that, but Tatiana's expression crumpled ever so slightly.
And why did she keep shooting looks at me.
I genuinely had no clue.
The atmosphere went cold. Figuring I should try something, I asked casually,
"Tatiana. You live around here?"
"I do. It's the dorm. Assistant Researcher Yu Seoa lives across the street, doesn't she?"
"Th-that's right."
Something about the vibe was weird. Like they were sparring, and also like they weren't…
But self-importance was a trap. There was no way this had anything to do with me.
Those two were senior and junior at the attraction, so they probably had some history I didn't know about.
Uncomfortable silence settled in again. Eventually Seoa forced an awkward smile and dipped her head.
"Oppa. I'll head off from here, then. Senior, I'll see you tomorrow."
"Yeah. Get home safe."
"See you tomorrow."
Click. Click.
The sound of her turning footsteps was somehow pitiful.
I was still debating whether to stop her when Tatiana suddenly asked,
"998. Which unit do you live in, by any chance?"
"701."
In that instant, the corner of Tatiana's mouth twitched—just barely.
"…702. So we're neighbors. Looking forward to it."
And Seoa's footsteps stopped.
"………Oppa."
"Huh?"
Yu Seoa suddenly spun around and came back toward us.
"That movie earlier was way too scary. I don't think I can go into the house alone."
"Mm. Fair enough."
"Can I stay over? I want to see Yulha and Arin again too. It's been a while."
?
???
What is this situation.
"…Hmm."
Tatiana made a nasal sound without changing her expression. No—more precisely, the light just drained out of her eyes.
And Magnum, acting on his own, was trying to enter siege mode.
I swallowed dryly.
I can't read this situation. Is it because I'm a middle school dropout?
Was this an education thing?
Something, something—there had to be a way to break this stalemate…
Bzzzt—
My phone buzzed. A text, apparently.
You have been accepted
Goddamn spam piece of shit!
Blocked immediately.
The second I pocketed my phone, a notification popped up on the work terminal issued by the Management Bureau attraction.
Containment Special Task Force <Yshin-ching-ui> — Summons
Mission briefing scheduled for tomorrow morning
These absolute shitheads were sending work messages in the evening.