Chapter 56
Chapter 56
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 56
Chapter Title: Yu Eun-ha
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Early morning.
Kim I-seo and Park Min-ah began preparing for dispatch on the Branch Director's orders. The two emerged from their dorms, loaded up on gear, boarded the Management Bureau-issued vehicle, and turned the ignition.
Vroom.
The smoothly idling vehicle pulled out of the Management Bureau parking lot and onto the road. Park Min-ah stared briefly at Kim I-seo gripping the wheel, then buckled her seatbelt and gazed out the window.
Seoul's mornings were as hectic as ever. The streets teemed with commuters, and the roads were jammed solid with cars. The morning rush-hour traffic crawled so slowly that it was less a road and more a sluggish conveyor belt, tires rolling at a snail's pace.
“…….”
It was the kind of speed and scenery most Koreans despised. But Park Min-ah rather liked these slow mornings. They gave her time to think amid the chaos of daily life.
Life at the Management Bureau was harsh enough as it was, so she couldn't help but appreciate these moments of respite.
But there was always someone who didn't share the sentiment. Park Min-ah glanced at the prime example, her lips twitching.
“Hey, Seo-ah.”
“……? What.”
She had been tapping the steering wheel with her fingers amid the gridlock and now glanced at Park Min-ah. Min-ah met her eyes and spoke.
“That mage. Why'd you say we should persuade him?”
It had been days since that conversation.
They'd already reached a decision in the Branch Director's office, and now they were en route to carry it out. It wasn't an inappropriate question given the situation, but it still felt a bit out of left field.
“Out of nowhere?”
“No, just…… I figured you'd go for assassination. You don't like anomalies much, right?”
Kim I-seo's past wasn't all that famous within the Management Bureau. Tales of sole survivors from brutal fairy tales like Hansel and Gretel were a dime a dozen there.
People like her hated anomalies and wanted them exterminated.
Kim I-seo harbored a bit more hatred than most. Not quite burning with revenge, but the rumor that she hunted down those brutal fairy tales on her own was well-known even in the Bureau. It wasn't for nothing that the Branch Director had personally scolded her before.
So Park Min-ah, who thought she knew her colleague pretty well, had never expected her to advocate persuading a mage who wielded anomalies directly. This one had caught her completely off guard.
“Oh, that.”
But to Park Min-ah's cautious question, Kim I-seo replied with a nonchalant, drowsy expression, as if it were no big deal.
“I hate anomalies, not the people who handle them. It's like hating bugs but not hating entomologists. You know.”
“……That's a weird analogy.”
“It's not wrong, though.”
Kim I-seo popped one of the candies she always bought to quit smoking into her mouth and held it between her fingers like a cigarette. A thick lemon sweetness spread across her tongue.
“Besides, that was all staged. If Yeoul had pushed for persuasion, I'd have argued for assassination.”
There always needed to be options. Even just to provide convincing reasons for the decision, or to avoid giving the impression of stubbornly forcing a solo conclusion. It was right to present opposing arguments. Unnecessary in a normal company, but was the Management Bureau some ordinary outfit?
“I was just reading the room to make it easy for the Branch Director to pick. Didn't you see us exchanging glances?”
“Oh, really? I missed it.”
“Park Hee-su seemed to catch it. The newbie? Yeah, no way she did.”
Kim I-seo rolled the candy in her mouth and lightly pressed the accelerator.
“Anyway, that's why we coordinated beforehand and presented both arguments. Honestly, both were pretty viable.”
“……Persuasion, I'm not so sure. Assassination makes sense, though.”
“The Bureau's got talent to spare. Worst case, hit the one-shot kill button. About fifty sacrifices, right?”
Kim I-seo recalled the red chunk of meat button locked in isolation and clicked her tongue.
“Personally, I don't wanna use it. Feels gross.”
“Yeah…… Even the isolation team hates it. Watching it twists your guts.”
Not figuratively—literally. Several isolation team members had died from their organs twisting into knots.
Kim I-seo slurped the candy from her mouth with a pop, licking the long silver thread it left behind.
“Whatever. Assassination's off the table anyway. Do we really need to debate if it's feasible?”
She said that while rubbing her eyes, shadowed with dark circles.
No use hiding it.
The Management Bureau had gone with Kim I-seo's proposal: persuasion.
*
Same time.
A few days after witnessing Cecilia inhale that pizza firsthand, Ian still found the no-show Management Bureau agents puzzling but didn't dwell on it much.
If they were willing to let it slide, it was a win for him. Maybe they were delayed by precautions or meetings, but for now, he had breathing room. With no requests piling up until his condition recovered, both body and mind felt refreshed.
It couldn't not be a good morning. Ian went through his usual routine: light exercise, shower, breakfast.
Then he flopped onto the bed and scrolled the community.
As always, shitposts mingled with a few info threads and rare concept posts glittering with recommendations and comments. Yawning, Ian skimmed from the top.
[Master, may this fucking bastard live forever.]
[DeletePlz]
(Photo of gleefully shaved bald head)
Joked about wanting a Koryo Jang haircut last time, and Master shaved my head clean. Said it was his baldness rubbing off, but shoving me off a cliff would be legal too.
Fuck, I need a boyfriend!
[Recommendations 156][Disrecommendations 1]
[Comments]
-Strawberry Yogurt Smoothie: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
ㄴDeletePlz: Don't make me split you. Before I do.
ㄴStrawberry Yogurt Smoothie: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
ㄴDeletePlz: Fuck off, kid.
-Deep Sea Angler: Why so many recs? More than usual.
ㄴThey're using shadow clones or some shit. Total Hokages.
ㄴDeep Sea Angler: You too, right?
ㄴㅋㅋ
ㄴ들
ㄴ켰
ㄴ노
ㄴDeep Sea Angler: My gills are shaking, I'm scared.
ㄴOh…….
-Ear Bug: Boyfriend? You gay, bitch?
ㄴDeletePlz: I'm a girl, asshole.
ㄴEar Bug: Number. Pic. Name.
ㄴEar Bug: Ah, buzzcut girls are a no-go. Tricky.
ㄴDeletePlz: Fucking psycho for real.
-Sweet Grandpa: Disciple. My. Waist. Hurts. Massage. It.
ㄴDeletePlz: Ah. Really wanna go Koryo Jang now.
“Nothing special.”
Ian left an emoji in the comments and, after a moment's thought, posted his own thread.
[Thinking of buying a bike. Anyone know a good one?]
[ㅇㅇ]
Proceeding
He posted it and set his phone down for a bit.
He'd long planned to get some personal transport. He'd waffled between bike and car, ending up with neither. But now he'd made up his mind.
‘Bike it is.’
The tipping point was the replica bike from the hospital escape.
Far better visibility than a car. Precise control, all-around shooting while driving. And superior convenience.
Minus the danger, it was way better than expected. He'd gotten his license but never ridden one himself, so he hadn't known. Driving it during the escape proved it was solid as a main ride.
Sure, the risk wasn't negligible, but magic could handle that. The coat hanging nearby alone absorbed impacts like water—no need to worry about major injuries.
That didn't mean he'd get careless. He'd drive safely, precautions and all. Skip that, and car or bike, you'd end up just as dead.
Ian went up to the roof for a smoke, came back, and checked the posts from bed.
Plenty of comments already. He replied casually, chatting with them.
-Bikes are great. What for?
ㄴㅇㅇ: Just transport. Requests, probably?
ㄴ면허 있음? Beginner, stick to 500cc or less.
ㄴㅇㅇ: Got license. OK for now.
-Strawberry Yogurt Smoothie: Bikes are dangerous. Take a car instead. And drive me around.
ㄴㅇㅇ: Nah.
ㄴStrawberry Yogurt Smoothie: (Even the kind mage is mad now con)
“She never changes……”
Ian muttered to himself just as a new comment popped up.
-★Grandmother: For transport and requests, Replica's best. The one you mean. I posted a full recommended bike list—check it out.
Totally unexpected commenter. Ian replied with mild surprise.
ㄴㅇㅇ: You into bikes?
ㄴ★Grandmother: Yeah, been riding for requests since learning the 'absolutely no accidents' magic.
ㄴㅇㅇ: Surprising. Didn't peg you for it.
ㄴ★Grandmother: You don't know my face. Anyway, check and DM me.
Grandmother replied, paused, then added.
ㄴ★Grandmother: I can even enchant yours if you want.