Fixer (1)
There's a common saying that time flies when you're having fun.
When you're comfortably resting and playing, hours fly by in a flash, but when it's a tough and agonizing time, even if it feels like an eternity has passed, if you actually check the clock, it's often only been a few minutes.
This is a phenomenon that modern brain science explains with the concept of "cognitive time," but that part isn't really important right now.
What's important is that my enjoyable time has come to an end now.
"I want to bury professor-nim."
The enjoyable time spent at the luxury resort has already flown by. The first semester, which felt like it had just started, had suddenly reached its midway point.
I had dug a hole deep enough for a coffin in the meadow of my Mindscape, and it meant the time had come when I'd be thinking, "I'll put professor-nim in here someday."
'Maybe I should just drop out.'
Come to think of it, there was no need for me to cling to university studies anymore.
When you get down to it, the reason for studying in university is to build up your specs and get a job at a good company, isn't it? And even that job, if you look closely, is ultimately to earn a lot of money, eat well, and live well.
But I had earned in a single day money that most people couldn't save in their entire lives. I now had 5.6 billion won in cash that I could use immediately, to the point where there wasn't even a reason to invest or start a business.
'Isn't this more than winning the first prize in the lottery?'
Suddenly curious, I turned on my phone and searched the internet for the first prize lottery winnings.
Looking at the search results, there was a record of someone receiving a huge sum of nearly 40 billion won, but these days, the first prize winnings were mostly around 2 billion won.
Even that was pre-tax, so after various taxes were deducted, the actual amount received was said to be around 1.4 billion won.
'Looking at it this way, it really hits home.'
The 5.6 billion won that the Management Bureau paid me was already my money, with taxes neatly taken care of. I remembered being told that the HR department had handled all the complicated issues like gift tax and income tax.
In other words, compared to the after-tax first prize in the lottery, I ended up with more money than if I had won first prize three times in a row.
'And besides, from now on, I'll be making Solver my profession.'
When you're deeply entangled with mysteries, it's not easy to find an ordinary job. And considering the advantages of being a Solver in the first place, there's no reason to bother with an ordinary job.
'Frankly speaking, I could drop out right now without a problem, but...'
After a moment of deliberation, I shook my head. I changed the direction of my thoughts and steadied my mind.
'Actually, now that I don't have to worry about money, there's even less reason to quit.'
Mugong fundamentally places great importance on experience. Though there's a saying by some general that heroes don't bother with studying, that also becomes wrong as you reach higher levels.
The profound principles of advanced martial arts not only demand knowledge in various fields, but also because the unique form of enlightenment that comes to each individual often stems from the martial artist's personal experiences.
'And I like the vibe of university life.'
Actually, my initial purpose for entering university was half about wanting to enjoy this kind of campus life. Additionally, the fact that experiences like these are hard to accumulate after your twenties played a role.
The remaining time, including this year, is three years, and if I subtract that, it's only about two years—short. Now that I no longer worry about making a living, it's not a waste to invest that time in gaining experiences and achieving romance.
'Come to think of it, didn't they ask me to come to the Management Bureau tomorrow for something related to being a Solver?'
Now it's midterm exam season. It's a period where a storm of assignments—so heavy it'd make even a swag storm weep—hits you, forcing you to digest a brutal schedule of test preparation.
It was a time when most students, myself included, were racking their brains and half losing their minds, but I suddenly remembered the appointment I had set with Kang Yuna for tomorrow.
'She said all the administrative procedures on paper were done.'
I received a message that Kang Yuna had already completed the official procedures to register me as a Solver using her authority from the Management Bureau side.
But since being a Solver is ultimately a profession entangled with mysteries, it seemed I had to at least prove in person that the contents of the documents were true.
'In my case, it'd be combat power.'
After exchanging contact information at the resort, Kang Yuna and I had communicated a few times. It wasn't personal contact; it was solely because of the power of my mugong.
In her words, mugong is a mystery that has already been lost in the present era. Therefore, I am someone who has achieved the feat of reviving a mystery that had vanished into the annals of history.
She put it as being on par with actually excavating an artifact that had only existed in legends, if compared to archaeology.
Kang Yuna said that if this fact reached the ears of other countries like China or the United States, a considerably troublesome situation would arise.
'She said it was especially highly likely that China would react fiercely.'
China was once the region where mugong flourished the most on Earth. Naturally, their pride in mugong is extremely high.
I don't think there's a field that country doesn't act that way about, but they still claim that all mugong belongs to China and originated there, or something like that.
Anyway, if a China like that finds out that I've restored mugong, would they really stay still? Would they just toss out a few words of congratulation for restoring mugong and let it end cleanly?
'Absolutely not.'
According to Kang Yuna, they'd likely react similarly to when Excalibur was discovered in England in the past.
Meaning, however badly diplomatic relations might deteriorate, they'd do anything to get their hands on it.
'I was more surprised that Excalibur was actually a real sword, though.'
I let out a smirk, finished the assignment I was doing, and exhaled a short breath. Unlike usual, my breath was unstable and ragged, making me feel quite stifled.
'I can't keep doing this for long.'
Normally, my Breathing Technique is greatly influenced by the qi circulation method of the First Self Mental Art, a unique mental technique. It was at a level where, in fact, I was constantly operating the First Self Mental Art and breathing according to its formula even unconsciously.
But now it was different. I was essentially using a breathing technique that forcibly scrambled and distorted the formula, lowering its level to the utmost inferior degree.
'Disguising myself with a Secret Martial Arts technique and breathing method that's infinitely close to mugong...'
Just like news about a serious brain drain in the STEM fields, talent drain also happens frequently in the mysteries-related industry. There are often cases where different factions fight over individuals who have innate special talents or have obtained fortunate encounters.
However, unlike STEM talents who deal with public science, those with concealed mysteries are often treated poorly.
'They call it a war for talent, but they said it's more accurate to call it capturing and researching them.'
If you're merely special without a faction backing you, various factions will soon tear you apart. It's not uncommon to hear of cases where they end up losing their lives, or fall to a fate worse than death, becoming lab rats.
In my case, the Management Bureau will have my back, but it's still not suitable to openly reveal my mugong. At the very least, I need to either build my own faction or grow to a level where I can take on an entire faction alone.
'So, for the time being, even if it's a bit uncomfortable, I'll have to act as a fake martial artist as a Solver.'
There's a saying: "Knock on even a stone bridge before crossing." It's a proverb meaning that even if something looks sturdy and safe, you never know what might happen, so you must check thoroughly before making a judgment.
'There's no harm in being careful.'
In the first place, I don't always have to use this degraded mugong. If I just don't use it publicly, that's fine; I can use my original mugong as much as I want when training in secret or carrying out requests on my own.
So, rather, what I'm currently interested in is not that, but...
'What grade Solver will I start off as, I wonder?'
That was the grade I would receive as a Solver from now on.
I've honestly been curious for a while now.
The Mystic Management Bureau and the Solver Association are also international organizations with global influence like the UN, so how on earth do they manage their headquarters and branches that there's not a single rumor about them?
If they're at the level of concealing national mysteries and collaborating with governments, there's no way they could operate the organization remotely like a startup. It means that for smooth and efficient work, they inevitably have to gather in physically existing places.
But until now, I only knew that the Management Bureau and Solver Association had branches in various countries around the world; I had no idea where those branches were or anything else.
"......So it was a place you could enter and exit this way."
On the agreed date, I met with Kang Yuna and, guided by her, set foot in the Korean branch of the Mystic Management Bureau.
I didn't call it the Seoul branch or Busan branch because, in the first place, the Management Bureau's branch was in a place that couldn't be referred to as a real space.
After all, the interior of a multi-story building that appeared when I opened the machinery room door of a subway station was hard to see as a realistic space.
"Building a structure in an existing real-world space would not only involve huge costs, but also cause discrepancies in response speed and support levels depending on the region."
"So that's why you established branches in places like this?"
Fundamentally, this place is close to an Otherworld that's detached from reality, like the Mount Geumjeong Forked Path and Yeongshin Elementary School. It feels like an Otherworld where strange phenomena linger, but the bizarreness and danger have been stripped away and emptied out.
If the Otherworld of strange phenomena is a picture, this place seems like a space that's been refined to a state akin to a blank canvas, by pouring white paint over the picture or scraping the paint off thoroughly with a palette knife or similar tool.
"The Management Bureau and most factions adopt a similar approach. If they're on friendly terms, they'll open paths to each other's Otherworlds."
It's the same for the Adventurers' Association and the Mystic Management Bureau.
As she said that, Kang Yuna suddenly tapped the air with her fingers. She waved her hands around in the empty space as if operating a hologram panel, manipulating something.
'What's this?'
There was something invisible to me. I don't know if it's only visible to Management Bureau agents, but at least right now, Kang Yuna was manipulating something I couldn't see.
Suddenly curious, I activated an eye technique. I focused True Qi in my eyes and closely observed the vicinity of Kang Yuna's fingertips. Then, like a heat haze, the space wavered, and the invisible something seemed about to reveal its identity.
But.
—Pajijik!
Just like computer graphics producing a blocky error effect, the air crackled, and with a chilling sound, an unpleasant sensation stabbed my eyes.
'Is it telling me not to look at it?'
The entity near Kang Yuna's fingertips finds me unpleasant. It hides its appearance and fiercely shouts at me to avert my gaze.
We couldn't communicate, but I could feel its intent conveyed through my Mindscape. I stared at the thing for a moment, then let out a short sigh and withdrew my eye technique.
"Just now, you were tapping the air with your hands. What were you doing?"
Instead, I chose to ask Kang Yuna directly. I didn't necessarily need to know, but after seeing it resist my eye technique, I got curious and couldn't just let it slide.
Fortunately, at my sudden question, Kang Yuna casually answered me as if it were nothing.
"It's the System. All Management Bureau agents are granted a system similar to a game system."
"Like the kind that appear in web novels, webtoons, or otherworld anime?"
"Similar. Though access to functions is divided by rank."
You can't actually raise stats like in a game.
However, even at the apprentice agent level, you can use a Profile to check information about yourself and objects, and a Map function that analyzes the structure of the surrounding area.
Moreover, once you advance from apprentice to a regular agent, you can even use an Inventory as a personal storage, they say.
"Someone of my rank, a section chief, also has the authority to arbitrarily connect to the pathways of other organizations in my system."
Kang Yuna, who had been leading me down the Management Bureau corridor, stopped in front of a door.
"This is it. I've already notified them of your visit and its purpose just a moment ago, so you can just open it and go inside."
Sidestepping aside, Kang Yuna suggested I open the door. Without refusing her suggestion, I forcefully flung open the ordinary-looking door.
"......This... is certainly amazing."
And beyond the opened door was a huge plaza.
A plaza decorated in an overall white and silver, neat and clean atmosphere, and even the uniquely attired people visible here and there in the plaza.
Just like when I entered the Management Bureau from the real-world subway station, a strange sensation fanned my heart. A sense of excitement, similar to when I saw a large playground as a child while walking down the street, tugged at the corners of my mouth.
"If you wait a moment, the person who will serve as today's examiner for Kim Sihyeon-ssi will come... ah, she's just arriving."
Kang Yuna, perhaps finding my reaction amusing, smiled slightly and turned her head, extending her hand in a certain direction.
I followed the tip of her finger with my gaze. From that direction, a small-statured woman wearing a fluffy fur-like coat approached me.
"Are you Kim Sihyeon?"
"Yes, are you—"
Before I could finish my question, the fur-coat girl placed both hands on her hips. Like a child proudly puffing up, she thrust out her small chest and looked up at me, introducing herself.
"I am Cheonguseong (Heavenly Investigation Star) Mok Hong, a 1st-grade Solver of Liangshan Marsh. I have been assigned to be your test examiner today. I look forward to working with you."
Despite her confident gesture, the emotionless expression and her uniquely peculiar way of speaking made her a truly strange person.
"......She's so obsessed with Secret Martial Arts that her translation magic is still clumsy. She says her original way of speaking is different, so don't misunderstand."
Her way of speaking was truly peculiar.