“So, dear government agents, I’m sure you’ve got plenty of other things to do. So why don’t you clock out and go home now~?”
At that moment, it seemed Agent Bronze’s patience snapped.
“Cut the nonsense.”
“Nonsense?”
Damn it.
“I’m just saying, it’s unclear whether these fall under the jurisdiction of the Disaster Management Bureau. And if you keep pushing… Hey, let’s ask our own staff. Hey, Assistant Manager Jin!”
Beside him, we heard Kwak Jaekang shaking awake Jin Nasol.
And then came her flat, annoyed voice.
“…What.”
“You feel unfairly treated every single day, sir.”
But Jin Nasol, seeming to grasp the situation, gave a cold and strategic response.
A damning one.
“…They’re mer-children.”
“Oho!”
Kwak Jaekang’s footsteps grew animated.
“Mer-children! What a fun—no, fascinating discovery. So in truth, they’re not innocent citizens at all. They’re something like traitors from the Darkness!”
“Just a moment.”
Agent Choi’s voice turned sharp.
“That is a matter for the bureau to decide. A private company has no authority to make that call independently. Especially—”
Even though I couldn’t see it, I could feel it.
“—you, personally.”
Pressure.
“……”
“……”
“…Haha, looks like we have a difference of opinion!”
Clap— Kwak Jaekang started to applaud.
Then took a step back.
“You’re right. Maybe I acted a bit rashly. So then… why don’t we all take a little break and talk again after we’ve cooled down?”
“……”
The two agents seemed to be calculating their next moves.
This was a precarious moment.
No.
‘This can’t escalate further.’
Getting out of here as smoothly as possible without any conflict was the best outcome.
If hostility boiled over here—especially with everyone already drained from escaping a ghost story—no one could predict what might happen.
And so…
“Oh, we’re always open to conversation~”
Phew.
“We’ll just rest here with the children. Come back when you’ve organized your thoughts.”
“Haha. Mm. Got it.”
The agents sat right where they were, making it clear they would not take their eyes off the children. And perhaps realizing he had no leverage at the moment, Kwak Jaekang finally stepped away.
But…
‘There’s no way that’s the end of it.’
I opened my eyes naturally.
At some point, agents had moved closer and now sat beside me as if we’d relocated together by chance.
They were talking, clearly for me to hear.
“How long will it take?”
“Dunno~ Maybe half a day at most.”
Agent Choi’s voice was laced with a relaxed sigh.
“Not the first time we’ve seen a guy like that. Let’s just wait here a bit until backup arrives.”
Thank god.
It seemed like we’d successfully created a window to contact the Disaster Management Bureau and get their support.
The problem was…
“Excuse us for a moment, we’ve got some procedures to handle…”
…that the Research Team would try every trick in the book until then.
I cracked one eye slightly open and watched someone approach the group.
A sleep-deprived researcher with deep eye bags and glasses was tending to the Field Exploration Team staff, getting them treated and guiding them toward the interview room.
[Lee Yeonhwa]
Assistant Manager, Research Team 1.
The name tag matched a researcher I remembered reading about in the Dark Exploration Records. Which meant one thing.
‘She’s notable enough to have her own wiki entry.’
And her ‘notable trait’ was…
She was one of the rare few in Daydream Inc. who actually cared about research ethics.
The kind of researcher whose attitude made that clear.
If this had been under different circumstances, I might’ve even felt glad to see her. But not now.
Not when she’d almost certainly been sent by Kwak Jaekang on purpose…
To lower the agents’ guard.
“Um, I think both the kids and the agents should really receive some basic first aid, especially the children. They’re suffering from severe blood loss, and a few seem to be in shock.”
“…Hmm.”
It wouldn’t be easy to refuse, right?
After the bureau agents confirmed that the researcher meant no harm, they scanned the recovery potions she offered with their equipment and gave a reluctant green light.
Of course, they didn’t drink it themselves. But since the kids had just gone through things like ripping off their own tails, the urgency of the situation forced them to allow it.
“Drink up.”
Naturally, a potion made its way to me as well.
One of the standard-issue red recovery potions stocked in their infirmary.
‘Been a while.’
I tried reached out with both hands, only to remember one of them was missing, so I just accepted it with my left hand.
Instead of drinking the potion though… I just pretended to, while secretly funneling the liquid into the tattoo on my wrist.
‘That guy might’ve recognized me and spiked it with something strange.’
Even if that wasn’t the case, the researchers could’ve tampered with it for ‘research purposes’.
…I’d definitely saw it.
While handing out potions, some of them had exchanged signals and deliberately chosen different bottles for certain children who seemed ‘unusual’.
‘It’s a real healing potion, but something’s probably mixed into it.’
Call it paranoia, but it never hurts to be cautious.
That’s when I noticed something else.
As I moved, I suddenly felt the presence of an unfamiliar object tucked into my clothes.
‘…The glass lantern!’
The dokkaebi flame, now transformed into a glass lantern, was stowed away beneath my coat.
“…!”
If someone caught me with this, it’d be obvious I was an agent.
In other words, it would be the perfect excuse for Kwak Jaekang to lock onto me.
‘That can’t happen.’
Pretending to be a scared little civilian kid, I nestled deeper among the children and tried to subtly stow the lantern into the tattoo.
But the dokkaebi fire inside rejected it violently.
“…!”
It didn’t want to go into the tattoo…?
‘Damn it!’
Left with no choice, I used my oversized jacket to cover it up as much as I could.
Then, keeping calm, I sat back down and handed the now-empty-looking potion bottle to the researcher with a scared look on my face.
That’s when I locked eyes with Baek Saheon, who had just woken up.
“……”
“……”
– Acknowledge me and you’re dead.
– Ah, yessir.
That was the gist of the unspoken exchange. Baek Saheon turned away quickly, one eyelid twitching.
Honestly, he’d probably imagined ratting me out and getting a promotion, but…
‘He won’t move recklessly. He still wants the item he was promised.’
He’s the type to calculate every gain and loss.
I remembered the conversation we’d had right before the escape, when I used Baek Saheon as a ride to read the Necronomicon.
– If you do it right, it’s yours.
And how his heartbeat had quickened with greed.
‘Good.’
I could stay quiet.
I sat still, quietly observing the dazed and traumatized children around me, letting time pass uneventfully.
But then.
“The D-squad has returned!”
A new voice rang out as someone entered the lab.
I instinctively looked up.
“Ah, you’re back.”
“Yes.”
An emotionless voice.
And… a white lizard mask.
‘S-Squad Leader…!’
It was Section Chief Lee Jaheon.
T/N: Sorry for the sudden hiatus! More chapters to come next week! Time management is difficult as usual and I also have exams soon >.> I worked on these chapters instead of studying haha >.> wish me luck