Chapter 35
Chapter 35
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 35
Chapter Title: First Resolution #3
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Of course I survived by dying a shit-ton of times.
The words bubbled up to the back of my throat, but there was no way I was saying that out loud.
"I got lucky. I just decided to ignore a few of the contradictory rules and acted on it, and by some coincidence, it worked out and I survived. You could call it survivorship bias."
"Even so... that's really impressive. No matter how you slice it, not just anyone could pull that off."
"Heh heh, yeah, you're right."
She seemed to think I was something special.
Truth was, it was all because of my regressions.
This had felt off since last time.
"So. What happened next?"
How should I explain this one?
The most valuable piece of intel from the major incident at the hospital was the fake Management Bureau storming in. Jaaldi had said that the entity known as Section Chief Lee Do-hyung getting killed was a huge deal.
Time to lay it out for the real Management Bureau.
"Oh, there was one silver lining in the middle, unfortunately."
"Hm? What do you mean?"
"In the middle there, didn't the Management Bureau come charging in? They stormed the hospital, guns blazing and all that."
I played it cool, like I knew nothing, and Jamtree's expression grew more and more grave.
"Care to elaborate?"
"You know, these black vans suddenly pull up, and out pour these agents in black suits. Those agents attacked the hospital."
Jamtree tapped furiously on her pad.
"The gunfire was insane, so I hid and watched. I overheard them talking. They definitely said 'Management Bureau Section Chief Lee Do-hyung.'"
"Lee Do-hyung?!"
Yeah, she's shocked.
"Yeah. He had white hair slicked back, and he was amazing with a sword."
"So, you're saying Section Chief Lee Do-hyung fought the entities at Cheongak Mary Hospital?"
"Yeah. He sliced through the patients and nurses in seconds. But unfortunately... the doctor showed up right after, and he fell in battle."
Right now, I was playing the part of someone who didn't know the full story. Naturally, I had no clue about the fake Management Bureau, so I framed it as the real one coming to rescue the trapped people and getting wiped out.
"He went down in one hit. Such a shame. Really. They couldn't even recover the body."
"You don't need to think of it that way... This is unbelievable. For the entity known as Section Chief Lee Do-hyung to fall. This is huge intel."
"Pardon?"
"It's hard to explain right now. But you don't need to feel bad about Lee Do-hyung. Put your mind at ease."
"Even so..."
For now, since I wasn't an agent, she was keeping the fake Management Bureau angle under wraps.
"So, care to continue?"
"Got it, Jamtree. Do you know about a doctor named Kim Seonghan at the hospital?"
"An entity. Extremely dangerous."
"..."
That's all she knew?
"What if I said Hospital Director? That's the name it's suspected to go by."
The Management Bureau really didn't know much about Cheongak Mary Hospital.
It was that dangerous, so I guess it couldn't be helped.
The hospital's doctors shared names.
Like the security guards.
"I got help from him."
"What...?"
I explained how I'd received help from Dr. Kim Seonghan.
Thanks to that, I'd been admitted as a patient, and eventually gotten the Management Bureau-issued rulebook that let me survive.
"That's the full story of how I survived Cheongak Mary Hospital."
[Click Clack Click]
The frantic typing stopped.
"Seriously... I can't even fathom how you made it out alive."
"Yeah, tell me about it."
"You must've gone through hell. Congrats again on making it back."
"Thanks."
My story must've shocked her; she seemed a bit excited.
"You held up well. And it's an incredible achievement. For a civilian to act like that."
"I'm a bit of a wild one."
"Heh heh, you sure talk a good game. Anyway, thank you. Thanks to you, we can add a bunch of new rules. This'll save more lives."
Hearing that lifted my spirits.
If the info I shared boosted survival rates in that hellhole, nothing could be better.
And Dr. Kim Seonghan.
Impossible now, but someday, I wanted to rescue him.
"The rest is better explained by Agents Gorgodio and Quras."
"Yeah. They're probably reporting right now."
"By the time I got back to Seoul, I ran into that anomaly. Since I already knew about the Management Bureau and monsters from the hospital, I reported it right away after seeing the business card. Then we teamed up."
"...Brave. But reckless too. Staying put would've been the right call there."
A light scolding.
She was right in general. Civilians should stay out of it. What I did was like barging into a crime scene with the cops.
But the Management Bureau wasn't the cops, and I wasn't unrelated to anomalies. Even if I failed, I had a duty to check what was going on.
"Logically, yeah. But I couldn't just stand by. I had to do something."
"Oh my..."
Jamtree covered her mouth with her hand.
"Yeah, something like that."
Not much need to embellish this part.
It wrapped up quicker than the hospital testimony.
Once I finished, Jamtree closed her pad.
"That should do for the story."
"Yes."
"You've got two options."
She held up two fingers.
"You've learned way too much already."
"..."
"Forget it all. Civilians can't handle it. Get memory removal surgery and go back to normal life like nothing happened."
Go back.
"For this incident, your reward will be... yeah, lottery winnings. Forget the Management Bureau, anomalies, all of it, and live happily."
"Lottery?"
"Yeah. Sounds good, right? Buy one anytime; it'll be the jackpot."
What?!
"No way! You're rigging the lottery? That shit's fixed?!"
"Heh heh, not fully rigged. We just slip one in now and then? Plenty of people have won that way."
"Whoa! I had no idea!"
Insane!
The Management Bureau rigs the lottery too?
The World Politics Board was ranting about it being fixed, and it was true!
"So, like, out of ten jackpots, one gets slipped in?"
"Exactly. Forget everything and live as a lottery winner. Or the other option."
"Become an agent?"
"Yeah."
Jamtree nodded.
"It's a dangerous choice. But plenty pick it. Survivors like you tend to have the personality for it."
"Sounds just like me."
My answer was set.
"I'll do it. Agent."
She smiled at my response.
"Heh heh, great. I've got a cute, cool junior now. Call me Senior Agent Jamtree from now on."
"You got it, Senior."
No regrets here.
Sure, Jaaldi's weird attitude at the flower core bugged me, but to fight monsters, I needed the Management Bureau.
Even with infinite chances, without it, I'd be stuck.
This crisis taught me superhumans and superpowered folks existed—and even they got wrecked by anomalies in seconds.
The Management Bureau might lose too.
But with their power and my infinite regressions... even an S-rank world-ending crisis could be solved.
"If you ever want to retire, just say so. You can get the memory wipe and leave."
"Noted. So, what's next?"
"Wait a sec. After the interview, there's an aptitude test. No contract, but don't worry about pay."
Pay's gotta be fat.
"In a world like this, saving money feels pointless anyway."
"Right? Everyone thinks that. The more you agent, the stronger it gets."
"Yeah. But Senior Jamtree, I've got one request."
"Hm?"
"That vampire."
Vampire.
That crazy bitch dragged me into this mad moon world. One thing was certain: I couldn't live under the same sky as that monster.
No matter what, it had to die.
As a Management Bureau agent, I could make it happen.
"As long as that monster lives, I can't sleep with both eyes closed. I want to kill it, whatever it takes."
"Hmm... vampire. That was your first incident, right?"
"Yeah. I think it's tracking me. Better take it out before it gets me."
I clenched my fist.
"I know it sounds like delusional psychosis, but if it's alive, I can't stand it. Consider it one reason I'm becoming an agent."
"It's not a delusion."
Senior Jamtree placed her hand on mine.
"People caught in anomalies often get that kind of madness. It's a valid worry. Got it. I'll report that too. On the vampire... well, you're a newbie now, so it's fine. The Bureau's handling it."
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah. Rest easy. Vampires are extermination targets."
I knew that already.
Straight from the nun's mouth.
"Got contact... Alright, junior? Time for your interview. Big sis'll go with you."
"Yes."
I stood up.
We took the elevator up.
"Here."
"Yes."
"I'll head down. See you soon. Oh, maybe right away?"
"Yes! Good luck going in, Senior!"
"Heh heh, no need to be so formal. Later."
Jamtree got off, and I stood at the door.
Interview time.
Meeting the Management Bureau's big boss?
[Knock Knock]
I rapped on the door, and there was a click as the lock released.
Come in, I guess.
"Hello. Here for the inter—huh?"
The moment I entered, I saw a woman in a suit with long black hair cascading down, red eyes staring back.
Jaaldi.
It was her.
"Come in."
"Yes."
"Sit."
Joy surged up.
Sal-hyung was who I wanted to see most, but seeing Jaaldi intact brought relief and gratitude.
Never thought I'd see her again like this.
Her final reaction flashed in my mind, but I shelved it. No point digging now.
"I'm Jaaldi of the Management Bureau Comprehensive Response Team. Rank: Section Chief."
Section Chief?
What's the hierarchy? Didn't know, but it was high up for sure.
Jaaldi had fought to the end and survived—she was that strong.
"You've been through a lot. Decided to become an agent."
Her red eyes fixed on me.
"Yes."
"The Suppression Team said you manifested a superpower. True?"
"I'd say half-true. I can sense danger, sort of. Felt it strong at the hospital, and again when the monster showed up in that building."
"Hmm... yeah. Useful ability."
"I think so too. So, now we do some X-Men superpower test?"
"Nope."
No?
"Superpowers aren't standardized anyway. Most can't fully control theirs. Physical ones, maybe testable, but sensory stuff? Pointless."
"Got it."
"Interview starting."
Here we go.
"As you know, this world's full of anomalies and dangers. The Management Bureau stops them."
"Yes."
"It's dangerous. Agents are dying right now. Can you handle it?"
"Of course."
"Good. Why become an agent? Scared of the vampire?"
"That's part of it."
I'd already told Gorgodio and Quras.
Not some bullshit on the spot.
It was what I truly felt.
My parents. Others. Specifically, guys like Jinseop who'd fought with me in the apocalypse.
I couldn't stand watching people get crushed helplessly, dying gruesome deaths.
"What I went through was horrific and painful. I can't let... others go through that. No. I can't tolerate people—anyone—getting taken by those absurd monsters."
"Always like that? Can't stand injustice?"
"Not really. Recent development."
"So, becoming an agent because you can't watch people die to anomalies."
"Yes."
Jaaldi stared at me.
Locking eyes, peering deep like she was reading me.
Having a sharp-featured beauty stare like this was embarrassing. Like a staring contest.
"I see darkness in your heart."
"Pardon?"
"Did you sacrifice someone to survive the hospital?"
"That."
Her words brought back my time as a security guard.
I'd begged for mercy... but per the rulebook, shoved him into the black room.
The rulebook called security guards anomalies, and the Management Bureau thought so too. In a way, I'd harmed an innocent as an anomaly.
I wanted to believe otherwise... but no, he was human. I'd sacrificed him.
"...Not blaming you."
Jaaldi continued.
"Extreme situations. Say, climbing a snowy peak, teammate falls but hangs on the rope. You're exhausted, can't pull him up. He's stuck too. Hold on, and you both fall. Cutting the rope? Legally fine. Morally unavoidable."
"..."
"Further... yeah. Lifeboat adrift at sea, drawing lots to eat a crewmate? Same deal. Emergency rations—Carnéades' raft thought experiment."
Jaaldi was comforting me.
"Understood."
"Good."
"Thanks. For saying that."
"Don't become an agent out of guilt. Plenty more to feel it over."
My answer stayed the same.
"I'll do it. Agent."
"Welcome to the Management Bureau."
We shook hands.
"Ready to dive deeper into this world's underbelly than anyone?"
"Absolutely."