Chapter 17
Chapter 17
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: Behind-the-Scenes Work
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"I'm Kim Woojin, but... who might you be...?"
He'd thought it was Jihyun Yoo, but when a completely different person stood before him, Woojin was a bit flustered.
The short-haired woman handed him her business card.
"I'm from the government."
"Awakener... Management Bureau... Chief Officer Jo Ayoung?"
The first thought that crossed Woojin's mind upon seeing it was, How the hell do you hold back a drip on this name?
"That's not good..."
Even at the shitty drip, Jo Ayoung didn't lose her smile.
"From now on, I'll be your dedicated handler, Mr. Kim Woojin."
"Ah... I see... Got it. Well, take care then. I'm kinda busy right now."
Woojin gave a quick bow and tried to close the door.
"???"
That was when it happened.
Grab—
Jo Ayoung hurriedly caught the front door Woojin was trying to shut.
"Um, excuse me. Just a moment, Mr. Kim Woojin. Don't you have any questions? Like why the government suddenly assigned you a handler..."
Jo Ayoung panicked.
She'd done exactly as her senior had said, but the reaction from the Awakener she was assigned to was nothing like what her senior described.
Damn it... He said they'd let me in just by handing over the card!
She was inwardly cursing her team leader.
And Woojin went even further.
"Me? Why? I don't have anything I'm curious about."
Jo Ayoung fell into confusion.
Wh-what do I do? How should I handle this?
She had just escaped basic clerical work and was finally taking on the core duty of the Awakener Management Bureau: handling Awakeners.
Her ambitions were grand.
For the Awakener she managed to contribute to national development, allowing her to climb the ranks steadily.
And her goal was to drive the gates out of this world.
In short, she was overflowing with motivation right now.
I have to produce results, no matter what!
So she made a reckless move.
"I-I'm curious about you, Woojin. So, how about we spend some time getting to know each other?"
"...? You and me?"
That was when Woojin stared at Jo Ayoung with a dumbstruck expression.
Whistle—
A whistle came from somewhere.
"Whoa... Hyung's super popular. Women just keep showing up out of nowhere."
At Sangjin's teasing remark, Jo Ayoung's face flushed red.
She'd just realized how her line could be interpreted that way.
"N-no, that's not it! I-it's for work! I have some work-related questions! You seem to be a Player! There are tons of government support programs—plenty of benefits if you listen!"
Woojin and Sangjin had already discussed situations like this.
Someone from the government would definitely come looking.
Ever since the gates appeared, the government had been pouring everything into managing Awakeners.
It was something they'd have to face eventually.
Putting it off wasn't the best strategy.
"Hyung, why not hear her out? She's a government worker, after all. We can spare a few minutes, right?"
After pondering for a moment, Woojin finally spoke.
"Jo Ayoung, come on in."
"Yes, yep!?"
Thinking he'd called her name, Jo Ayoung reflexively answered in surprise, and Woojin chuckled.
"Not calling you. I said sure, come in for a bit."
"Ah... Yes, yep. Th-thank you!"
Jo Ayoung had a feeling these two brothers weren't pushovers.
"Hmm... so, if you become a government-affiliated Awakener, you get various benefits?"
"Yes! Exactly. Tax reductions, item priority access, gate raid cost support. Those are the big ones. And there are plenty of smaller perks too."
"Miss Jo Ayoung."
Jo Ayoung flinched.
"Yes...?"
"Doesn't seem like much benefit for me. I'm not in a combat class anyway, so I can't help with blocking gates. Tax breaks are obviously just for gate-related taxes... I don't fight, so no need for items... I don't raid, so no costs to cover... No benefits at all?"
"Th-that's..."
Only then did Woojin become certain.
She's a total newbie!
I can work with this.
So Woojin took the initiative.
"Miss Jo Ayoung, did you come knowing what my ability is?"
"Ah, yes. The report said Enhancement..."
"You know I can't properly Enhance things in the real world, right?"
Woojin threw out a bluff.
If other Players had shared info about him, they'd have mentioned the Enhancement system too.
"This isn't the game world—materials for Enhancement are scarce here. All I can Enhance without materials are things like this."
Woojin held out a pair of chopsticks to Jo Ayoung.
"This is...?"
"As you see, chopsticks. Only everyday items like this can be Enhanced without materials. And even then, not everything works. Some do, some don't. You know."
As Woojin spoke, Jo Ayoung looked a bit disappointed.
Could Enhanced chopsticks help block gates?
No way.
"Ah... I see."
It matched the report she'd seen at the bureau exactly.
Kim Woojin, the only support-class Player in Korea.
Ability: Enhancement.
But he couldn't Enhance in the real world like in the game.
Still, she mustered her spirits and said,
"W-well, even so, as an Awakener, I'll be managing you. Since you don't raid gates, we might not see each other often... but please take care of me."
Hmm... what to do...
Woojin was racking his brains.
His ability to Enhance anything would eventually come out once Woosang Shop grew big.
He hadn't planned it, but he'd already secured a connection in Jihyun Yoo.
But the government?
Corporations chased profit; the government chased survival and public good.
Different values.
Wouldn't it be good to have a reliable government contact too?
Woojin had heard and seen plenty over his 10 years in Unriworld.
Who to connect with, who to ally with.
Even within the same organization, who you teamed up with mattered—that was the lesson Woojin learned in Unriworld.
From their brief chat, the woman before him, Jo Ayoung, perfectly fit his criteria.
Woojin's standard was simple.
Unstained.
The higher the position and more they knew, the more likely they were to scheme.
Though it was just a short exchange, Woojin could tell Jo Ayoung was pure and untainted.
Call it 10 years of experience.
So as the dejected Jo Ayoung rose to leave, he tossed her a line.
"You said you wanted to get close to me, right? Who knows. If you do, I might be pretty cooperative."
"I-I do want to get close!"
Jo Ayoung hadn't given up yet.
Gates kept appearing, and items pouring from them kept diversifying.
Surely a day would come when Kim Woojin's Enhancement ability could be useful?
That was her thinking.
"There's a way we could get really close. Interested?"
"Wh-what is it?"
Woojin grinned.
"You busy right now?"
"No... Today I just had to meet you and then head home from the field..."
"Oh ho? Is that so?"
"Um... so... I have to package these...? Me?"
"Yeah, you're my handler, right? Help out a bit. Then I'll be so touched we'll get closer."
Jo Ayoung sat demurely, staring at the chopsticks and boxes in front of her.
"But this many...?"
"Not that many. Just 200 sets. I'll do 60, Sangjin 60, you 80! Takes 3 minutes per set, so 240 minutes! 4 hours, done!"
Jo Ayoung made an incredulous face.
"Wait, why do I get 80...?"
"I'll buy you something tasty after!"
And so, the ever-compliant Jo Ayoung started packaging chopsticks with the Woojin and Sangjin brothers.
Why am I doing this here right now...?
Woojin and Sangjin worked Jo Ayoung to the bone, then midway bought her some jjajangmyeon and sent her home.
As she stepped out the door with a hollow sigh, Woojin pretended not to notice.
"Nice person. Gotta cultivate her well."
At Woojin's words, Sangjin asked back.
"Cultivate what?"
"Our double agent in the government, I guess."
"Think that'll work?"
"Why not? Toss her a few Enhanced items and she'll be on our side."
"What items? Gonna give her +9 chopsticks?"
"Nah, that won't cut it. Like with Jihyun—have her bring good items and Enhance them. She's an Awakener, after all."
Sangjin was shocked at that.
"Huh? For real?"
"Yeah, and pretty strong too, I bet. No idea why someone's like that is stuck managing Awakeners. She'd be better off in the field."
Players like Woojin had a Player's "eyes."
Those eyes didn't just appraise items; with training, they could sense others' mana, like Woojin was doing now.
Plus, Woojin's Advanced Mana Manipulation had reached level 2 from all his practice, sharpening his senses.
It influenced his abilities, letting him quickly spot Jo Ayoung as an Awakener.
"She's got her reasons. Scared of monsters or something?"
Woojin nodded, agreeing it made sense.
"Yeah, not easy. I tried once—it's no sane person's job."
"But she's government. Can we really recruit her?"
As Sangjin worried, Woojin chuckled.
"Why not? Not betraying the government. Just follow their lead but favor us when possible."
"How's that 'our side'? What if her and the government's views clash?"
"Do good groundwork to make it happen. Kid, you're book-smart but clueless with people. Who else but me would hang with a weirdo like you? No friends... tsk tsk."
Sangjin's face reddened a bit.
He really didn't have many close friends, just like Woojin said.
"Wh-what! I-I have friends too!"
"Tsk tsk tsk, Jaehwan? You think I don't know that's your one friend? Anyway, we should gradually make Jo Ayoung ours."
"Jo Ayoung on the left, Jihyun on the right. Total playboy, huh? Jo Ayoung's more your type?"
As Sangjin teased, Woojin giggled.
"Honestly, Jihyun's intimidating... I like simple and cute types. Jealous? No point talking to a guy who's never even held a girl's hand."
Sangjin snorted at that.
"Hey, 35-year-old virgin uncle. Get a grip. Oh! Speaking of, maybe that's why you've got magic after 35 years as a virgin?"
Crackle—
Woojin, who'd been leisurely teasing Sangjin, got a vein popping on his forehead.
One line had scratched him perfectly.
Woojin lunged at Sangjin.
"You little punk... You crossed the line big time!"
Sangjin yelled as Woojin grabbed his head in a headlock.
"Ow! Ow! That really hurts! Super hurts!! Aaaah! Got it! My bad!!"
The eagerly awaited delivery guy arrived.
"Whoa... tons today. Business booming, huh?"
"Thanks to you. Here, have one at least."
"Whoa, thanks!"
What Woojin handed the delivery guy was none other than an energy drink.
The delivery guy chugged the energy drink Woojin handed him right there.
"Ahh, already feels like I've got energy? Thanks for the drink."
Not just feels like— it was real.
"Yeah, thanks for your hard work!"
"Sure thing! Take care! Business booming!"
Woojin smiled warmly, watching the delivery guy walk away.
As he loaded packages, the delivery guy tilted his head.
What? I was dragging earlier... now overflowing with energy?
The guy would fly through his rounds today.
After shipping all the packages, Woojin and Sangjin started their meeting.
Sangjin spoke gravely.
"If business keeps booming like this, home-based handicrafts won't cut it anymore. We need an office."
Woojin picked up.
"Gotta escape this shithole slum and move too."
The brothers spoke in unison.
"Time to hit the real estate office. Right now."