White Burn (3)
Long-unsolved case literally meant, as the words implied, a case that had remained unresolved for a long period of time.
The same was true for long-unsolved dungeons.
And such dungeons usually carried a high risk of a break occurring, so the government typically reclaimed them.
Large guilds would then buy the management rights at a bargain price.
It was essentially acquiring byproducts at a cheap price if the quest was solved. It could make for a decent investment.
However, because the success rate wasn't particularly good, they rarely assigned dedicated teams to them.
It was usually at the level of occasionally hinting to the strategy teams, Want to give it a try as a way to rest your head?
If not that, then...
Throwing them into a team composed only of pieces that were awkward to discard or too troublesome to utilize properly.
The long-unsolved dungeon exploration team that Jang Lee-hyun had hoped to join, the CCDU (Cold Case Dungeon Unit), was treated exactly that way in White Burn.
"Call it the Rose Team."
"......?"
On his first day of work.
Jang Lee-hyun was able to meet his old junior, who had been waiting for him since the crack of dawn in front of the headquarters building's main entrance.
"The team senior will be joining. Although it belongs to the guild's core department, the Dungeon Strategy Headquarters, it has no real substance and is purely for show. Just like a flower, right?"
"......"
"It's meant sarcastically."
Although they had met briefly yesterday as well, the junior still had the same cold personality.
No, in some ways she seemed even more cynical.
"The team leader had an urgent meeting scheduled for the morning, so I had to come in her place. Is it all right if I guide you?"
Jang Lee-hyun nodded with an awkward smile.
"Sure."
"Then please follow me."
Kim Min-jung turned her body sharply without even properly listening to Jang Lee-hyun's response and entered the building.
Jang Lee-hyun let out a short sigh, feeling awkward.
I didn't know Min-jung would be in a place like this......
Sun Wukong, sitting atop Jang Lee-hyun's head and nibbling on snacks, grinned.
Today's snack was egg bread.
I may have grown up poor, but I never did anything like that.
"She was one of my closest colleagues when I was in Cheongroe."
......It seems she's disappointed in me.
I unilaterally cut off contact.
A bitter taste spread across Jang Lee-hyun's lips.
"Aren't you coming?"
"No. Let's go."
Jang Lee-hyun followed behind Kim Min-jung, passing through several checkpoints.
"Since this is a company, I'll address you as Mr. Sa instead of senior."
"Yes, I understand. Deputy Kim."
Jang Lee-hyun didn't miss the department and title written on the employee ID card hanging around Kim Min-jung's neck.
However,
"......"
"......Since this is a company, I thought we should use formal speech instead of personal relationships. Did I make some kind of mistake?"
Kim Min-jung shook her head.
"No. You did well. We can't bring personal relationships into the company. It's just that drawing such a clear line is very much like you, senior."
"......"
"Please follow me. The long-unsolved dungeon exploration team is on the eleventh floor, but I'll explain the Dungeon Strategy Headquarters first in order."
Jang Lee-hyun scratched his cheek and followed Kim Min-jung into the elevator.
Beep.
Kim Min-jung held her ID card to the sensor and pressed the 10F button.
"An ID card will be issued to you today, Mr. Sa. The accessible floors differ by department or position, and for you, Mr. Sa......"
Kim Min-jung's tone as she explained the points Jang Lee-hyun must remember was very calm and businesslike.
Yet for some reason, Jang Lee-hyun felt even more distance from it.
Sun Wukong watched Jang Lee-hyun's reaction with amusement, giggling.
Since Jang Lee-hyun had his own sins, he couldn't make any excuses.
Jang Lee-hyun felt a strong impulse to smack the head of Sun Wukong, who kept teasing him from the side.
"The tenth and eleventh floors are all used by our headquarters. We also use part of the twelfth floor, but since there are many executives there, you probably won't need to go. First, let's meet our team members."
Since Team A was located in the innermost part, Jang Lee-hyun was able to see every corner of the tenth floor.
As the Dungeon Strategy Headquarters formed the mainstay of White Burn, its scale was enormous, including up to Z-Team.
"Who is that person? It's a face I haven't seen before."
"I don't know."
"Seeing that Deputy Kim from Team A is personally guiding him, he must be someone important... Is he a new experienced hire for Team A?"
"Was there an announcement for recruitment?"
"No, not yet. But that person is really handsome. Wow."
Voices whispering while looking at Jang Lee-hyun with curious eyes could be heard from various places.
"No way, who is this! It's Hunter Jang! I heard you were discharged, but you really came to our company!"
At that moment, Section Chief So Seong-hae, who spotted Jang Lee-hyun first in Team A, ran out barefoot and grabbed Jang Lee-hyun's hand.
His face, full of fatigue, was full of goodwill.
"Yes, it's been a while, Section Chief."
"Why are you calling me so stiffly! Now we're eating from the same pot!"
"What? It's really Hunter Jang Lee-hyun?"
"Is your body okay, Hunter?"
The other Team A members also poked their heads above the partitions like moles and greeted him warmly.
"The injury... are you okay?"
Even his school classmate, Deputy Min, approached hesitantly and asked about his well-being.
Thanks to that, question marks appeared above the heads of other team members in the department.
Who the hell is that person?
That rude Team A is acting so friendly?
Team A requested support a while ago, right? Maybe he's related to that?
All sorts of speculations ran wild, but no one could get close to the truth.
This was because Lim Won-young had already instructed them in advance to keep silent about the incident at the Monkey's Den.
It was impossible to prevent rumors from spreading, but she thought it wouldn't be good if Jang Lee-hyun's personal information spread indiscriminately.
Thanks to that, the employees' curiosity about Jang Lee-hyun only grew,
"Yeah. There are no major injuries. Thank you all for your concern."
"Oh dear, it's really a relief that things worked out well. Do you know how shocked we were at the time? Don't ever overdo it like that in the future. The most important thing in the world is your own safety. Got it?"
Section Chief So Seong-hae said in a voice full of concern.
"Yes. I'll keep it in mind."
"Even though he says that, I wonder if he'll do the same thing again once he goes to his department. They say too nice a person is also a problem."
"Section Chief, can't we just bring Hunter Jang to our team?"
"That's right. His skills are really good. That place is a bit..."
"Shut up, you guys. Do you think I want to send Hunter Jang away? You guys who couldn't even make a peep in front of the team leader."
"That's because the team leader holds our personnel rights, but you don't, Section Chief?"
"You bastards?"
When So Seong-hae glared at them with axe-like eyes, the team members quickly hid their heads under the partitions.
What kind of people are these.
So Seong-hae inwardly resolved to regain his dignity as a section chief soon and spoke to Jang Lee-hyun again.
"I heard where Hunter Jang will be assigned, but don't you have any thoughts of changing your mind?"
"I'm sorry."
"Really not? It's because Hunter Jang's talent is too precious."
Jang Lee-hyun was grateful for the feelings of So Seong-hae and the Team A members.
Usually, other guilds or strategy teams, even if they received help, didn't feel grateful but took it for granted.
He could feel that they were sincerely accepting and worrying about him.
"I'm grateful for your feelings alone. But my skills are too lacking, so I think I'd only be a hindrance to Team A."
"No, if Hunter Jang's skills are lacking, then we are just... Sigh, I feel bad for keep pressuring you. Anyway, if you change your mind later, you must tell me or the team leader. Understood?"
"Yes. I understand."
Jang Lee-hyun nodded and thought.
Perhaps company life might not be as bad as he thought.
"The elevator seems slow, so let's take the stairs to the eleventh floor."
Kim Min-jung took the lead again and climbed the emergency exit stairs. Jang Lee-hyun quietly followed behind her.
"What do you think of the headquarters? Do you like it?"
"It seems like I can settle in more comfortably than I thought."
"All the team members have the same heart in worrying about you, Mr. Sa. Just like in Cheongroe."
For a moment, a slight silence flowed.
Jang Lee-hyun instinctively realized at that moment.
The moment he had thought would come someday had arrived now.
"May I ask the reason why you cut off all contact back then?"
Jang Lee-hyun realized that the end of her words trembled slightly.
Even though she was showing a cold attitude on the surface, in reality, she was mustering courage to say this.
"Leaving just the discharge application and packing up like you were running away. You didn't think that we blamed you for what happened back then, did you?"
Not Sa, but senior.
"No. I never thought that."
Jang Lee-hyun also returned from formal to casual speech.
What to say, and how to bring it up.
Many thoughts crossed his mind.
But the words that actually came out of his mouth were completely unrelated to that.
"Then......"
"It was because I didn't have the face to see you guys. Rather, that was it."
"......"
"And that's still the case now."
Jang Lee-hyun continued speaking calmly.
"I was the leader. The one responsible for your safety and lives. But my wrong judgment made the damage even greater, and in the end, it created more sacrifices that didn't need to happen."
"......"
"Yet there I was, whining about my injury... The position of receiving comfort from you guys saying it's okay, it was too displeasing to me. That's why I left."
"......"
"I didn't have the face to see you all again. So... I ran away like that."
No matter what excuses he made, Jang Lee-hyun thought the choice he made at the time was running away.
Using the excuse of focusing on chasing the enemies who harmed his brother, he didn't want to acknowledge the mistakes and failures he faced for the first time.
"I'm sorry. At that time."
"......"
"I should have said those words first, but it's late."
Drop.
Kim Min-jung's steps, which were climbing the stairs, stopped for a moment.
"......"
"......"
A deep silence flowed for a while.
Jang Lee-hyun still couldn't know what expression she was making.
He didn't think she would forgive him.
He only hoped that the disappointment and anger she had held for the past four years would be diluted even a little.
And then,
Clack!
She climbed the stairs again.
"There are far more friends who resent you but still miss you a lot."
"......"
"Please know at least that much."
From below, Jang Lee-hyun could see slightly. Kim Min-jung's lips were tightly closed.
As if holding something back.
"I will. And although it's difficult right now, I'll meet them one by one soon and apologize like this. Thank you for worrying."
It wouldn't be possible to return to how it was back then, but he had realized that now he shouldn't run away anymore and had to face reality.
And then, they might be able to meet smiling again. They could share old memories.
Did that answer help?
Kim Min-jung's footsteps seemed much lighter.
And,
He thought he saw her faint smile for a moment.
"This is where the long-unsolved dungeon exploration team is located. For clear distinction, the official external name attached is Z-Team."
From what he heard, the Dungeon Strategy Headquarters was classified into large categories like A~F for domestic, G~W for overseas. And within them, there were also detailed characteristics by team.
Among them, X, Y, Z Teams had completely separate categories. And among them, the Rose Team was the Z-Team.
Z... The pronunciation is similar. Interesting for a coincidence.
Jang Lee-hyun thought while recalling his codename, looking for the most inconspicuous corner on the eleventh floor.
He thought it might become a decent life.
But......
Yes. It's a mess.
The Z-Team area was in complete disarray.
Whether they had an after-party here, there were liquor bottles strewn across the floor, abandoned sashimi plates and snack bags thrown anywhere, and it even smelled bad.
Some team members were even lying on the sofa, snoring.
Jang Lee-hyun let out a hollow laugh.
The living structure that inevitably differed from regular office workers was this industry, but.
Still, there should be some level of 'line'...
As expected.
She's really pissed.
One of Kim Min-jung's eyebrows, who had been a strict FM even during Cheongroe days, was twitching.
A face barely holding back the boiling inside.
"Team Leader Jeong."
Kim Min-jung approached the person who was leaning back in his chair with a newspaper covering his face.
"Team Leader Jeong!"
"Ugh, huh? Why is it so noisy... Oh, who is this? Isn't it Deputy Kim Min-jung? Been a while."
The person called Team Leader Jeong nervously put down the newspaper, found Kim Min-jung, and smiled brightly.
But Kim Min-jung frowned and took a step back.
"The smell of alcohol...! What exactly were you doing here?"
"Ah, this? Heh. We had a team dinner yesterday. But there was no good place for the third round, so we came to the company."
"Do you think this place is a playground?"
"Aigoo, why are you like this again. We're not even on the same team anymore anyway."
Team Leader Jeong acted friendly and tried to put his arm around Kim Min-jung's shoulder.
His intention to stick his body to her was too blatant.
As Kim Min-jung tried to shake off his hand in displeasure, before that, Jang Lee-hyun's hand grabbed Team Leader Jeong's wrist.
Clap!
Kim Min-jung looked up at Jang Lee-hyun, who was a head taller than her, with slightly surprised eyes.
Jang Lee-hyun said with a stiff face.
"It seems the alcohol hasn't worn off yet. Wouldn't it be better to go wash your face?"
"Hmm? It's my first time seeing you?"
"I'm Jang Lee-hyun, newly assigned to the long-unsolved dungeon exploration team."
"Ah, so you're the experienced hire who's newly joining our team? But......"
At that moment, the corner of Team Leader Jeong's mouth twisted coldly.
"Would you let go of this hand?"
Magic power surged out.
Blatant killing intent.
Kim Min-jung's expression hardened.
Team leader levels were all acknowledged experts in the industry.
The same for Team Leader Jeong.
He was demoted for causing an accident in his previous team, but originally his skills were good enough to be A-rank.
No, it was closer to the fact that he remained because his skills were good.
In the past, there were many problems like using violence against subordinates at will or being caught embezzling team reward money alone.
To the point where even internal bullying or sexual harassment issues were covered up.
There was also a big rumor that he was receiving sponsorship from China. Executive Jeong blocked it all.
Thinking that Jang Lee-hyun, who had just escaped from the curse, would have a hard time dealing with him, she tried to stop it, but
Squeeze.
"What if I don't want to?"
Jang Lee-hyun instead added more strength to the hand holding Team Leader Jeong's wrist and smiled coldly.