Prove and Show (3): Kang A-ram Hunter – The Cotton Candy Friend I Personally Planted in the Secretary's Office☆, But...
A few days later, as I arrived at the secretary's office, I spotted a visitor already there. I'd been using the place all by myself for a while, so seeing anyone else felt downright weird. But those lonely days are over now. An angel so radiant she'd make the real ones jealous! ...Well, not that much! Anyway, the sweet Kang A-ram had finally reported for her first day in the secretary's office. At last, an oasis had bloomed amid the barren Nebula secretary life. Let's enjoy this blissful salary life together!
I pressed down my rising smile and approached the familiar back.
"Kang A-ram Hunter. Good morning."
"G-good morning, Senior Secretary Seo Han-gyeol!"
Huh? Kang A-ram Hunter? She whipped around in surprise. I'd meant to greet her with a friendly smile, but my face froze against my will. The face was definitely my A-ram, but her outfit and style were completely different...
Has there been a change of heart?)
I hadn't noticed when she wore comfy gym clothes or patchwork carbon armor for mobility. She was just a sweet, girl-next-door beauty... She's scary as hell.
In a sharp suit, clutching a binder, she outdid any corporate ice queen. Now that I looked closer, her eyes had a fierce edge. I'd missed it because she was always beaming.
Whoa... Is this what cover fraud is?)
Good thing she recognized me instantly when she turned; if she'd stared blankly, I might've bolted with my tail between my legs.
Grandma was right—clothes make the man.
For a moment, I felt wronged. I'd ordered a sweet conversational partner, but got a judge who made my knees buckle just looking at her. No refunds? Figures...
A-ram quickly softened her expression and bowed in a fluster. She must be the type whose face stiffens when tense.
Me too.
Somehow, the secretary's office only attracted total chickens. At least she seemed composed on the surface—thank goodness. The nitrogen-packed 100% secretary's office was complete...
Swallowing my shock at this unexpected ice beauty vibe, I briefed her on the day's schedule.
"...The suit suits you well. We were supposed to do handover training, but I'll change it to field practice."
"F-field practice?"
She bit her tongue, embarrassed by the sudden fieldwork on her first day reassignment. I politely turned away, pretending not to notice. I get it. I freeze up in front of the Chairwoman too. But I can't afford mistakes...
Of course, she seemed in a good mood yesterday. Surprisingly compliant with my words too.
The tea must've hit the spot.
I'd make sure to bring her a cup every day. I etched the fairy tale moral of the sun-and-moon siblings deep in my heart. If their mom had carried 100kg of compressed rice cakes for restaurant bulk orders, they could've all enjoyed a happy dinner together. The wicked tiger would've fled at the sight of endless rice cakes that wouldn't diminish no matter how much it gorged.
Come to think of it, do I even need to stick to just tea?
Yeah. Testing the [Magic Secretary Bag] in spare moments had taught me a few things. It held a ton of stuff, and items stayed in their state from insertion.
Maybe pack 100 servings of meal kits...
...... Why? What? Sue me.
I was the type to hoard resources obsessively in mobile games, only for gacha fails to leave them unused. Better unused than skipping daily quests...
Do your best, and leave the rest to heaven.
Finish your human duties first, then beg for divine mercy. Or put another way, prep enough to weather heaven's BS. Right? Who knows...
I had the mindset of stocking for post-soft pity hard pity pulls.
Ugh, my mind's wandering again.
I flashed a crisp smile at A-ram, who was listening intently.
"For now,"
"Yes."
"Let's go."
? Go where?
A-ram wore an expression that conveyed perfect understanding without a word. I could only muster an awkward grin at her confusion. Haha. You'll see when we get there.
A few minutes later. Nebula rooftop helipad.
-Thudda-thudda-thudda!
-Whiiiirrr!
"A-ah. Mic test, mic test. Hello. This is Yu Seo-yeong handling this flight. Engines green, weather green. We'll be taking off shortly. Passengers, please confirm your seatbelts are fastened."
? No wonder her heli-suit and cockpit pose looked so natural.
"Team Leader Yu Seo-yeong?"
"Yes. Feels like ages since just a week ago. How have you been?"
I learned later that Team Leader Yu was incredible. Korea's youngest major, aced the brutal trials no combat Awakened could easily pass to join the Super Strike Force, then left the military to turn down megacorp offers and join Nebula solo.
And she flies helicopters too?
That felt more unreal than shooting fire or ice from her hands. Yu donned her helmet, flipped down the visor, and gave a cool thumbs-up.
"Taking off soon. Debrief over dinner later."
"Dinner?"
"Yeah. Great spot I hit up in Busan often."
"Looking forward to it."
"Good. It's an absolute killer pork soup joint."
Aha. Team Leader's a soup fan. With her vibe, I'd pegged her for Italian steak...
I just buckled up quietly. Then, like Yu, I slipped on the headphones in the copilot seat.
"Seo Han-gyeol seatbelt secured."
"Checked. Kang A-ram Hunter? Kang A-ram Hunter?"
"U-uaah, urk..."
Hmm. Flight phobia, noted. Gotta put her desk deepest inside the secretary's office. She later confessed, 'Sandwiched between 3rd-rank Super Strike Force alum Yu Seo-yeong and the Chairwoman's handpicked chief secretary, I thought I'd die... One wrong word and my career's toast...' But right now, I just figured that was that.
I helped A-ram with her helmet and belt, then briefed Yu.
"Kang A-ram Hunter seatbelt secured. All crew safety check green."
"Roger. Tower, tower. This is NeB-1747. Takeoff prep complete, request takeoff clearance. This is NeB-1747. Ready for departure. Request take-off clearance."
"Northwest 4 knots, roger. Helicopter taking off."
-Thudda-thudda-thudda-thudda!!!
"Guhhhh..."
Moments later, the chopper lifted off with that floating sensation. A-ram, new to flying, looked half-dead even strapped in tight.
Doesn't feel like someone else's problem.
If I hadn't done parachute drills in the army, I'd be right there with her doing a long-faced routine. Puffing my cheeks or whatever. Anyway, time to show you something!
-Whiiiirrr.
"......"
Gazing at Seoul blurring below, I sank into thought. The long-neglected Busan Oncheon Gate. Knowing full well restoring its productivity was a tall order, the Chairwoman promised total support—and anything I wanted if I pulled it off.
Safe resignation...
I steeled myself. Go big or go home. Time to craft a masterpiece and exit clean.
With a fat severance if possible.
That'd make trendy FIRE life a reality. Financial Independence, Retire Early. Early retirement—pure dream. Anyway...
"Team Leader Yu? What's our ETA?"
"About 1 hour 40."
"Thanks."
"No prob. Heard the Chairwoman's special orders. Tough road ahead, but she's generous with rewards. Nail it, and she'll treat you right."
Don't need it.
"I'll do my best."
"Your best? That's gold."
She nodded. Her round helmet bobbed up and down.
......
I dunno anymore. This inexplicable trust was starting to scare me.
Short flight.
Seoul to Busan in 1:40. I'd just muttered about weekday traffic, and suddenly I'm in a chopper taxi I never asked for. Classic Nebula. Ruthless evil org for the win.
Staring at the fierce wind outside, I muttered weakly.
"Support's loaded, huh..."
Gonna burst at this rate.
Nebula was Korea's undisputed top Super corp. But that didn't mean handling everything solo.
Pre-gate corps did the same. Even giants subcontracted plenty. No point in micromanaging trivia for peanuts—peanuts to them, eye-popping to normals, sure. So Nebula outsourced to select groups and firms. More efficient that way.
Our meetup target was one: the Order of Heavy Equipment.
Early gate days. Ultra-early. One of the orgs born in that nascent Super society you can only find in relic TV news.
Seoul skies: 1km-diameter gate. ID: SEO-N-000. Nickname: [The First Nightmare].
Belched monsters for 10 months straight. Trillion-won economic hit, 100k casualties. Finally sealed.
And right below, always first to the fray: those men.
Army lost command, chaos everywhere. First to roll up sleeves? Not warriors, mages, or priests.
-Ptooey.
Local day-labor grunts. Boozy site rats. Debt-ridden forklift jockeys. Sole-breadwinner dump-truck haulers. Goose-dad crane ops.
Mere worker bees living day-to-day.
Family-first desperation sparked mass Awakenings. They formed a chunk of 1st-gen Awakened, coalescing under Chief Kang into a force.
Thus, the Order of Heavy Equipment. A bizarre outfit persisting to modern day. As others dissolved or corporatized,
Obsessed solely with monster hunts and rebuilds, zero else. Psychos.
Steadfast spirit.
Still the same. And Seo Han-gyeol had to meet Korea's top psycho squad.