Chapter 86. Training or Tempering (6)

The cleanup was over quickly thanks to the cleaning lady’s spear. It had sucked up every last egg the Emperor Cockroach left behind.

Swooosh!

“Cleaning?”

“No way! Her skill is actually called Cleaning?”

It had been half a joke before, but even the system itself had named her skill Cleaning.

“

Heh

. I thought I’d escaped chores after the world went to hell, but nope... I’m back to cleaning,

haha.

”

Despite her grumbling, her spear moved faster than anyone’s hands. One sweep after another, the little island was tidied spotless.

“You don’t have to do all of it...”

“Young Man, you should rest. My head’s too full to sit still.”

“... Then we’ll work together.”

While Eun-Ho and the others finished off the remaining giant insects, the cleaning lady swept up every last dying bug. No matter how small, no matter how well tucked into the corners.

When the island’s greenery had returned, there came an announcement.

[The special zone, Giant Insects Colony, has been eradicated!]

[The ecosystem has been restored.]

Rustle—

A breeze stirred, and the temperature rose slightly, subtle convection rolling through the air. The atmosphere around them felt lighter and less oppressive.

Pop!

Then, invisible droplets burst in the air, just like when they had first entered this place.

“

Huh?

”

“W-wait... I can’t breathe properly!”

“Me neither! Something’s off!” Jae-Hyuk shouted.

Eun-Ho inhaled slowly, testing it. Jae-Hyuk wasn’t completely wrong, but not entirely right either.

The amount of air is about the same, but the quality has changed. We’re in a space cut off from Seoul, with enormous insects. Air quality suddenly dropped, why?

Eun-Ho thought.

“It seems like the oxygen level just dropped,” Eun-Ho explained.

“What?”

“Well, to be more accurate, the earlier air was unnaturally rich. It was a side effect of being in the special zone.”

It was just like the Mesozoic era, when dinosaurs thrived, and massive insects ruled the earth.

“Oh, so then is it back to normal?”

“Either way, I’m glad it’s over. Imagine living with those bugs,

ugh

. Just the thought of it gives me chills.”

Ji-Eun and Ye-Ji shivered, brushing their arms as relief spread through the group.

However, Eun-Ho’s thoughts lingered elsewhere.

But what if it hadn’t just been the Night Island? What if the entire city had changed? What if not just Seoul, but the whole planet’s climate shifted? And what if the system decided this world was no longer Earth as they knew it?

Compared to that, even the earthquake that swallowed Yongsan would be nothing.

Would we be able to survive something like that?

Eun-Ho wondered.

He was still sunk in those uneasy thoughts when Ji-Eun’s voice snapped him back. “Eun-Ho!”

“...

Ah

, yes.”

“Should we head back to Hongdae now?”

“No. It’s too late. The roads will be more dangerous than staying put.”

“Yeah, you’re right. It’s already pitch-black.”

It was past ten o’clock. The faint city glow and a few phone lights wouldn’t be enough to guide them safely. Besides, the wind could shift again like before. That left only one option.

“We’ll spend the night here.”

“Here?”

“Yes. The insects are gone, so it’ll be safe enough,” Jae-Hyuk answered cheerfully as if he was used to this sort of thing.

The security guard nodded in agreement. “That works, Hyungnim!”

“Alright. I can manage if the young folks are staying here too. I nearly died yesterday...”

“We should light a fire and make camp,” Eun-Ho said.

Even before Eun-Ho finished, Jae-Hyuk was already hauling back an armful of willow branches and brush. He piled them high and touched the torch head to the stack.

“Beacon Fire,” Jae-Hyuk said.

Fwoosh.

Crackle, crackle.

The chill river breeze met the warmth of the blaze, softening it into comfort. Gathered around the campfire, they slowly let their worries spill out.

“What do you think will happen to us now? I mean, the Entrance Exam is over.”

“Doesn’t that mean we’ve passed? We’ll all get hired because we passed the Entrance Exam.”

“Hired...” Eun-Ho muttered, the word heavy with uncertainty.

“You don’t need to be afraid. We’ve made it this far,” Eun-Ho said to the group.

“Whatever happens, you’ll adapt just fine, Mister,” Ye-Ji said with quiet conviction, nodding.

Adapt. That word again... The message said something about adapting earlier,

Eun-Ho thought.

[You have absorbed part of the cockroach’s formidable adaptability!]

[Would you like to check it?]

He stepped away from the group, pulling up the message he hadn’t fully checked before, not that he expected much.

[Your enhanced adaptability allows you to endure physical strain!]

[Your resistance to cold has slightly increased!]

[Your resistance to heat has slightly increased!]

“

Huh?

”

A permanent increase to both cold and heat resistance was no small thing. He couldn’t picture exactly what enduring physical strain meant yet, but he could test it later.

I was lucky,

Eun-Ho thought.

Any unexpected reward was great, especially when they didn’t know what extremes they’d face next. He was about to turn back toward the group, satisfied.

“Young Man!” the cleaning lady suddenly called him. She approached quietly, offering him a berry. “Here, take a bite...

Ouch!

”

She stumbled on a rock, but Eun-Ho caught her. However, she kept her head down, frowning. “

Huh?

”

“You okay?” Eun-Ho asked.

She made a curious noise, staring at the stone like she hadn’t noticed it before. Then her eyes widened.

“Hold on! This isn’t a rock!” she exclaimed.

“

Eh?

It looks like a rock to me.”

“No, it’s not a rock. It’s a mushroom. See?”

A mushroom? It looks like a gray lump of stone to me,

Eun-Ho thought.

𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

“This one’s used in remedies! It’s great for staunching blood if you eat it or apply it.”

“Oh really?”

“It’s precious. Let me see.” Fascinated by the strange growth, the cleaning lady squatted and began rummaging through the brush, muttering to herself, “Oh wow! Look at that! Even the Flemingia root grows here!”

“The Flemingia root?”

“It’s herbal medicine, Young Man. Herbal medicine!” She dug, as if intending on pulling it up by the roots. “Young Man! Come sit here and help me dig this up!”

“You mean this is an herb?” Eun-Ho asked.

“Yes, yes. I’ve learned a little from the neighborhood clinic.”

Half skeptical, Eun-Ho took hold of the tuft she indicated. The moment he touched it, a crisp item description popped into his view.

Ding!

[You have acquired the Young Flemingia Root.]

“What?!”

[Young Flemingia Root]

- A root of Flemingia that sprouted within a high-density energy field.

- Brew it into a tea and it could strengthen muscles.

Eun-Ho hadn’t expected to dig herbs out of the soil like that. Perhaps, it was another quirk left behind by the colony’s influence.

Whatever the cause is, I’ll take it,

Eun-Ho thought.

“It’s a shame it’s so dark. If only morning had come, we could’ve found more...” the cleaning lady lamented.

Eun-Ho promptly handed her a torch. “Here you go.”

“

Huh?

”

There was no need to feel regret. With that torch, they could comb the island properly.

“How are you feeling?” he asked.

“Me?

Oh,

good. Good!”

He meant to help finish the search right then. Just to make sure she left with no regrets.

“Let’s comb the whole island tonight,” Eun-Ho said with a smile.

***

Among the staff at the Bureau of Investigation, there was a rumor everyone knew but no one spoke aloud. In a bureau where everyone was known for fiercely being out for themselves, there was one fool who took on all the thankless grunt work that no one else wanted to do.

“It’s true! Tell Manager Cho about it and he’ll take it on himself!”

“Come on, no way. You’re saying a department manager handles grunt work for you?”

Those in the know took it for granted. They even gossiped about it openly in the halls, enough for green rookies to overhear.

“If you don’t want to, then forget it. We’ll go without you.”

“W-wait, just give me a second to think—”

Then, a sharp cough cut them off from behind. “

Khmm!

”

“Oh, Manager Cho!”

It was Cho Bok, the bureau’s perennial department manager. He was the one who people said was “too nice,” which was never a compliment in a corporate setting.

“What’s this about?”

This was bad. Of all people to show up now, it had to be Manager Cho Bok. Now that he’d heard a rookie talking about him like that, there was no doubt they would get scolded.

“N-no, sir, this isn’t what it looks like!”

A frantic glance passed between the two.

We’re screwed. Just pray.

After the silent exchange of unspoken suggestions, they both bowed deeply in perfect sync.

“Forgive us, sir! We’ve committed a grave sin!”

“So? What’s this task you were saying you’d dump on me?”

“I-it’s just that... We’ve got to go on a field survey for the preliminary report, but it clashes with the new staff training, so...”

What now? Would he punish us? Even Manager Cho wouldn’t be so much of a pushover that he’d let this slide, right?

“If it’s a field survey, do you have to go in person? Which sector is it?”

“P-please don’t worry about it! It was just idle talk!”

Cold sweat dripped from their foreheads onto the floor.

“Don’t worry about it. Just go to your training. I’ll handle it.”

However, instead of anger, Manager Cho Bok was far more magnanimous than they’d imagined.

“R-really, sir?!”

He was a pushover, but a big-hearted one.

“Training is essential. That’s how the company cultivates talent for the future, isn’t it?”

“Thank you, sir! Thank you so much!”

With that, Manager Cho Bok turned on his heel. He left behind their awestruck admiration, taking on another armful of thankless tasks with nothing but a faint smile.

Click.

Back in his office, however, he wasn’t alone.

“You have a visitor.”

An unexpected guest awaited him. He was a tall, disheveled man with wild hair and stained lab coat.

“He says he’s from the Future Research Center.”

Cho Bok had never seen him before. After all, the Center had no reason to seek him out, professionally or personally. Truth be told, Cho Bok wasn’t even close even with his fellow bureau staff.

“

Hmm...

Very nice interior. Very consistent theme...” The white-haired man barely glanced at Cho Bok, instead sweeping his eyes around the office. “Maybe I should style my lab the same way.”

Lanky and tall, he stood in the center of the office like a lamp awkwardly stuck into place. Cho Bok almost smirked at the thought, then shook his head, chasing off the stray notion.

“You’ll need to book an appointment,” Cho Bok said politely. “I will have to head out immediately.”

It was a courteous dismissal.

However, the man dispensed with all pretense of manners. “Investigation Bureau’s pushover, Manager Cho Bok. I know that. They say you’re fanatical about preliminary surveys. Those are work you could delegate, yet you insist on doing yourself.”

“What exactly are you implying?” Cho Bok asked, his tone stiffening.

Even if he was used to being called a pushover, this was different. He felt irritation rise.

“I hear you’ve got unusual tastes.”

“What are you talking—”

“You seem to like things that all look the same. Your office, for instance.”

Cho Bok flinched and snapped his mouth shut. The researcher’s expression didn’t change as he pressed on casually.

“The twin brothers from sector 17.”

Cold sweat trickled down Cho Bok’s forehead. He tried to feign composure, but the tremor in his hands betrayed him.

“And in sector 8, you smuggled out the legendary beauty, and her mother.“

Cho Bok froze, then exploded. “W-what nonsense is this?! I don’t know anything about that!”

“

Aah

, just as I thought.” The researcher nodded as if he’d expected that very reaction. “I’ve worked hard to get this.”

Snap.

Then, with a flick of his fingers, a massive screen materialized before them.

“H-how did you?!”

On the screen, the strikingly similar looking beauties were tied up naked, and Cho Bok was leering at them. The hidden secret of the Investigation Bureau’s fool was finally exposed.

Thud.

Cho Bok collapsed onto his knees.

“You pulled them out before the restructuring process began, right? So that the company wouldn’t notice.”

“How did you know that?”

It was exactly as the man had said. The reason someone as high-ranking as a manager took on rookie-level preliminary investigations was simple. It was his one true, most thrilling hobby. His dirtiest pleasure.

“I can’t believe I didn’t think of it sooner. It would’ve saved me a lot of trouble.”

Cho Bok had kidnapped those slated for deletion and defiled them.

“They were going to disappear anyway! They were useless! They had nothing but pretty faces!”

“That’s not for you to decide.”

“B-but I saved them! That’s better than deletion, isn’t it?!” Cho Bok spat out vile excuses, but the researcher waved them off.

“Enough. Whether you carve their flesh or snap their bones, I don’t care.”

That was because morality wasn’t the point, at least not here.

“Should I forward this footage to the Bureau Director? Or maybe upload it to the company board and let everyone watch you burn?”

“N-no! Please! Anything but that! What do you want?!”

That was why he’d come, why he’d hacked his way in, and why he’d cornered Cho Bok.

“Sector 13’s results survey is about to begin, isn’t it?”

“

Huh?

”

“Make me the designated inspector for the physical examination.”

The results survey was an analysis of how much stronger the subjects had grown compared to their preliminary assessments. Therefore, the physical examination was a key part of it.

“You can’t be serious. The inspectors must be Bureau personnel. You’re not even—”

“You talk too much.”

Thump. Thump.

The researcher walked towards Cho Bok, eyes gleaming unnaturally. “Should I rip out your tongue? Slice it thin and feed it to those lookalikes you’ve got locked up? They’d chew it to pieces with glee.”

Thump. Thump.

“Or maybe they’ll shave it into strips, grill it on a pan and serve it hot. Do you want me to do that?

“

Eeeeek!

F-fine! I’ll do it! Just stop!” Cho Bok shrieked, scrambling back.

“

Hmm

. That’s better. You should’ve said so sooner.”

You insane bastard...

Cho Bok swallowed back bile that clawed at his throat. “W-Why are you doing this to me though? What’s so important about being an inspector?”

“

Aaah,

that.” Satisfied at last, the researcher waved away the screen and leaned in close. “That’s because there’s a subject I’ve got my eye on but the Management Bureau won’t hand it over. So I’ll take it myself.”

“So you’re saying that you’re doing all of this to steal just one? That’s insane! Who the hell could be worth—”

Then, the man gave an answer that didn’t answer anything at all.

“Well, there’s this one. A damn system exploit.“