Chapter 44, Why Make Civil Servants Do Night Patrols.
Chapter 44, Why Make Civil Servants Do Night Patrols.
Lunchtime.
I wolfed down the rice on my tray faster than usual.
Today's menu was Sundae Vegetable Stir-fry.
It was a personal favorite, but I didn't eat much to match Ji-hye, who has a picky palate.
'Maybe order some delivery for dinner...'
Who knew Sundae Vegetable Stir-fry was this damn good.
Personally, I don't like glass noodle sundae, but like this? Not bad at all.
"Oppa, let's go quick."
"Got it. One sec."
At Ji-hye's urging, I got up from my seat.
I shoved my tray into the return slot, chugged a glass of water, and headed out to the Headquarters entrance.
"Kang Hyuk hyung. Hurry up."
"Hold on."
Kang Hyuk hyung, who was smoking at the smoking area, stubbed out his cigarette and came over to us.
Ji-hye grabbed her nose at the wafting cigarette smell.
"Kang Hyuk oppa. How about quitting those? They're all harm and no benefit."
"Not true. They relieve built-up stress."
Ji-hye looked like she couldn't comprehend it.
Same here, honestly.
"Ugh... Does that really relieve stress? No thoughts on other ways?"
"Nope. Got any recommendations?"
Ways to relieve stress...
Sex is a great one, but Kang Hyuk hyung doesn't have a partner.
So I kept my mouth shut.
Ji-hye just glanced at me but didn't say anything either.
We left Headquarters and headed to the Star Cafe.
Ji-hye had some good news and was treating us to coffee there.
I always stick to cheap coffee, so thanks to Ji-hye, it'd been ages since I had something fancy.
"Star Cafe... it's been forever."
"Yeah. How much was their Americano again?"
"Tall size was 4,700 won?"
"That's like two cheap coffees with an extra shot..."
Funny thing is, it was about the same price 15 years ago...
Considering prices back then, I kinda get why people called Starbucks drinkers spoiled brats.
Everyone's free to spend their money how they want, though.
"Thanks, Ji-hye."
"No biggie. I'm the one who should be thankful!"
Ji-hye was genuinely grateful to both of us.
We'd just listened to her vent a bit.
The embezzlement issue in the General Affairs Department from not long ago.
Luckily, it wrapped up without any fallout hitting Ji-hye.
It was the obvious outcome, but she must've been relieved since it was weighing on her.
People can twist anything if they dig deep enough, so yeah, plenty of worry there.
"Most of all, I don't have to ask unnie for help anymore. Feels way better."
"Yeah, looked that way."
Did she say she even warned them on her personal NerTube channel?
Something like, if they mess with her little sister, she'll team up with connected mega law firms and go to war with the prosecutors, no holds barred.
It spread like wildfire, leading to a few chief prosecutors resigning...
Felt the power of top law firm alumni all over again.
We chatted back and forth about the embezzlement case.
That's when we nearly bumped into some hunters walking toward us.
They were too busy giggling and streaming to watch where they were going.
"Whoops. Sorry about that."
The hunters deftly dodged, bowed their heads with apologies, and passed by.
Apologies were quick, but zero sincerity.
Pretty sure their camera lens caught us a bit too...
Once they were a bit away, Kang Hyuk hyung sighed.
"What's up?"
"Gyeong-ho, you've heard the buzz about hunters streaming inside dungeons lately, right? How's it in Civil Affairs?"
"Oh. Chaos on our end too. Complaints pouring in."
Hunters don't just stream for fun.
It's causing all sorts of complaints.
They stream R-rated stuff straight-up, like monster hunts unfiltered.
I peeked once—blood spraying, guts spilling, all broadcast raw.
They even stage crises on purpose to rake in donations.
"What the hell's fun about that?"
"Dunno... But apparently, it makes bank."
"For real?"
Kang Hyuk hyung nodded at my question.
Even D-rank hunters get around 200,000 won just from leaving streams on.
"...Kinda jealous."
Slipped out honestly.
Man, if I could do civil servant vlogs for side cash, that'd be sweet.
For the record, hunters streaming in dungeons is personal freedom—can't regulate it legally.
Management Bureau even encourages bodycams for footage inside.
"Handing out action cams for free and all..."
The so-called bodycam.
Handy for sorting disputes if shit hits the fan.
Boosts newbie survival rates for sure.
And dungeon murders or rapes have dropped big time.
'Pros outweigh the cons, so nothing we can do.'
Benefits way bigger than drawbacks.
Unless they start live human slaughter shows, probably no banning dungeon streams.
"Hyung, let's not overthink it. It's just a transition phase."
"Yeah? We'll get used to it eventually."
Kang Hyuk hyung nodded too.
Looks like Ji-hye already went inside the Star Cafe alone.
*
Grabbed an iced Americano and headed back to the Civil Complaint Office.
Felt the caffeine surging through my veins.
"Haa. Good stuff."
Sat down.
Maybe the coffee, or my rising mana sensitivity—either way, feeling healthier.
Normally, post-meal drowsiness would've hit by now.
Mind's weirdly sharp.
I clenched and unclenched my fist a few times, then booted up the monitor.
Time to browse Hunter Gallery.
That's when a coworker at window 5 yelled into the phone.
Jumped up so fast, stuff fell off his desk.
"What?!"
Panicked voice.
All eyes in the Civil Complaint Office turned to window 5.
What the hell? I went over.
Coworker was hammering the keyboard while on the call.
Late-arriving colleagues crowded the monitor with me.
"Gangbuk side... Hunters fighting while streaming...?"
"So what?"
Eh, hunters scrapping is everyday shit.
No clue why freak out over that.
Turf wars, loot splits.
Or just bad vibes.
Reasons galore.
Is this really shocking?
Coworker slammed the phone down.
Turned to us, dead serious.
"Not just a fight—one side's dead."
"...What?"
"Dead. Instant kill."
Both sides were streaming live, too.
Not just video—eerie sounds, something spilling, all recorded.
"Fuck... Over 20,000 viewers."
"Haa. Gonna lose my mind."
"At least Enforcement Unit's on it... They'll handle it."
We Civil Complaint Office staff just sighed.
When hunters brawl like idiots, we get screwed.
How many complaints incoming now?
Headache already brewing.
Sure enough, Team Leader was clutching his head in agony from behind.
"Wonder how the gallery's doing..."
Lunch break still had time left.
Dived into Hunter Gallery to see the chatter.
It was flooded with posts about a on-stream brawl killing someone.
Refreshing brought dozens more.
[Title: Hey, anyone catch that broadcast just now? lolololol]
[Whoa, head straight-up flew off?]
[CG or what?]
ㄴ Dumbass, CG my ass. Didn't see the blood spray? Arterial burst looked real as fuck.
ㄴ For real dead? Not staged?
ㄴㄴ Staged? Deserves an Oscar, idiot. If that's acting, ditch hunting for Hollywood.
ㄴㄴㄴ Whoa fuck... Trauma incoming.
[Title: Breaking) Gangbuk brawl murder summary.txt]
[1. A (victim, low-rank) crashes B's (mid-tier perp) stream.]
[2. A starts shit first. Old grudge probably.]
[3. B ignores, A pulls knife first to threaten.]
[4. B snaps, uses skill. Elemental type?]
[5. A can't even block—head gone. End.]
ㄴ Clean summary. Updooting.
ㄴ A was a moron. Deserved it. First to draw knife is at fault.
ㄴㄴ Still, killing's too much? Coulda just subdued.
ㄴㄴㄴ Threatening with knife first? Subdue how? A basically offered his neck.
ㄴ B gets self-defense? Hunter Law's iffy.
ㄴㄴ Good lawyer, probably suspended sentence.
[Title: Popcorn ready lololol]
[Evening news gonna be flooded lololol]
[Management Bureau staff on high alert, right?]
[Overtime confirmed?]
[lololol busted.]
[Peak entertainment lololol Watching news after work.]
ㄴ Look at this prick. Popcorn over a death? Psychopath?
ㄴㄴ Moral knight here. Go to temple. This is gallery.
ㄴㄴ Jealous? Revive him yourself. Dead guy's the idiot.
ㄴㄴㄴ Edgelord stench overpowering.
[Title: Anyone got the recorded clip? Share plz]
[Fucked, missed it. Send it over.]
[Curious as hell.]
[Email here.]
[First one gets 5k condolence.]
ㄴ Gore tab on Singbung Gallery
ㄴ Don't hunt that shit here, dumb fuck. Wanna die?
ㄴ Argh, water's murky af. Loach bastards.
[Title: Management Bureau doing jack shit?]
[What, no managing those fucks?]
[Shoulda sanctioned preemptively.]
[Tax-fed pigs just sipping coffee?]
[Sitting on asses eating freebies, that's why this shit.]
ㄴ Fact) Bureau has zero power. Congress won't change laws.
ㄴㄴ Sure~ Excuses~ Don't flaunt incompetence~
ㄴㄴ Hunters fuck up, blame civil servants lololol Try it yourselves.
ㄴㄴㄴ Why's this dude so pressed? lol
[Title: Perp B doxxed]
[This fucker had school bully scandals before.]
[Knew he was trash. Saw accident coming.]
ㄴ Link dead. Repost.
ㄴ Archived? Share.
Luckily, mods were deleting recordings and pics.
Posts and comments shitting on part-timers everywhere.
Original vid deleted quick too.
Downloaded ones? Unavoidable.
Gotta say, their speed's on point.
If only they embezzled that fast.
What even is a civil servant?
Sighed deeply.
Current time: 7 PM.
Way past quitting time.
No sign of leaving, though.
"Ah, wanna go hooome..."
Groaned as I suited up in the Bulletproof and Stab-proof Vest, topped with a fluorescent vest.
'Hunter Management Bureau' glowed in reflective letters.
Now to grab a glow stick and patrol the streets.
Not some traffic-directing green moms—what's this bullshit?
"Heavy..."
Waist pack had the Expandable Baton and Smith & Wesson Revolver too.
Not even a cop.
Why get us gun permits for this?
'Cause opponents are hunters?
Not for shooting, obviously.
Intimidation or absolute last resort if dying.
Actually fire? Paperwork hell.
"Hunters are all fucking useless..."
Reason I'm doing this.
That hunter stream brawl at lunch a few days back.
Orders from above.
Special patrols in hunter-dense areas.
'Anyone'd think it was a disaster.'
Showboat admin by grinding civil servants.
Management Bureau staff patrolling near HQ now.
We griped: Why us, not cops or Enforcement Unit?
Answer: They're already patrolling. No choice.
All hands on deck.
Rotating shifts.
'Treats civil servants like 5-min ready strike team?'
Sighed heavily, glow stick in hand, approached street streamers.
Plenty of hunters broadcasting in alleys or parks.
"No streaming here."
Go home, basically.
Normally, might've gotten 'Who the fuck you?' and fists.
But one look at my Management Bureau civil servant badge around my neck—deep sigh.
"Ah, Bureau. What a pain."
Grumbled, but killed the stream.
Vanished without a word.
Hunters fear Bureau more than cops.
Cops fine you; we cut your livelihood.
We slap 10, 20, 30 penalty points for defiance.
No hunter license? Just strong unemployed.
'No real danger, seems.'
Was a bit scared, tbh.
Gun or not, vs. awakener? I lose.
Even B-rank mana sensitivity—can't beat dungeon/gate fighters.
'Just band-chief around, get paid.'
Night duty plus mobilization pay.
Rethinking: Sweet gig.
"Right, it's Friday."
Patrolling hard, entered bustling bar street.
Gold Friday lived up—streets lit up flashy.
Prime spot for rowdy hunters.
Some earn daily, blow it daily, haunt these places.
Yawned, scanned around.
Fall already, but tons in thin clothes.
"...Hot."
Tough crowd.
Hunters' physiques shrug off cold?
"Hm?"
Then, familiar face at a chicken joint.
Noona.
Thought I mis-saw.
Nope, definitely my older sister.
Drinking with friends.
The ones she mentioned, I guess.
'Hmm... What now.'
Say hi?
Might cockblock her fun.
Fate's prank—eye contact.
Eyes wide, then grin, came out.
Boozy flush on cheeks.
Noona hugged my arm.
"My lil bro~ Here to pick up noona?"
Booze breath hit hard.
Hugged tight, but felt the rigid gear—pulled back a bit.
"Nah, on duty. What're you doing here?"
"Drinking with friends~"
Noona giggled hehe.
Up close, yeah, she's cute as hell.
"Don't overdo it. Hate seeing you blackout trashed like before."
"Got it, got it~"
Grinned wide; I chuckled.
Pulled wallet from pocket, two 50k bills.
Don't drink too much.
"Get something tasty with this on the way home."
"Isn't that too much?"
Noona looked guilty.
Nah, patted her head.
"Got allowances. Take it."
"Thanks... You're all I got."
Pocketed the cash.
I turned with glow stick.
Heading off first—footsteps behind.
Noona suddenly ran up.
On tiptoes, whispered in my ear.
"Gyeong-ho."
"Yeah?"
"Don't sleep tonight. Wait up. Coming soon."
Smacked my ass, dashed back to friends.
Marched ahead without looking back.
...Noona's period over?
Grab condoms before heading home.