Still peeking around the corner with her head sticking out was Chae So-yeon. Kwon Chang-uk shook his head as he watched her.
"It's been about half a month already, huh? That girl's got some real dedication. Probably on Min Team Leader's orders, though."
Her surveillance target was me. But since Kwon Chang-uk was assigned to the same post as me, he couldn't help but pay attention.
"I was thinking how nice it was to finally get a fresh-faced newbie, and now it looks like the Special Countermeasures Division's gonna snatch you away."
He said it with a face that looked half-resigned already.
Academy Security Force Special Countermeasures Division.
Unlike the General Division, which was made up of superhumans who fell short of the mark, this was the Security Force's real combat unit, composed entirely of top-tier superhumans.
Their strength and reputation weren't inferior to even mid-tier guilds. Unlike the General Division, which Academy graduates wouldn't even glance at, the Special Countermeasures Division drew a ton of applicants every year during public recruitment.
'That's why the General Division chief couldn't stand up to Min Chae-ryeong, who's just a team leader, during the interview.'
Even though the chief outranked her on paper, there seemed to be this subtle hierarchy between departments. Like the difference between Marine Headquarters and a branch office in One Piece.
"If you're gonna transfer over, let me know ahead of time. We gotta fill spots right away if someone bails."
Including Kwon Chang-uk, everyone in the General Division seemed convinced I'd end up in Special Countermeasures. They figured since Min Chae-ryeong had her subordinate watching me, she must have her eye on me.
Min Chae-ryeong. She was infamous even within the Security Force for her insatiable hunger for talent. If she spotted someone she deemed worthwhile—using her own words, someone she "wanted"—she'd pull out all the stops to bring them under her wing. Hunter on the front lines, criminal, or even someone from another Security Force division—it didn't matter.
The official roster for Special Countermeasures Team 2, led by Min Chae-ryeong, was seven members.
But beyond that, she had a bunch of unofficial underlings she'd gathered from all over. No one but her knew the exact number. What was clear, though, was that they were all exceptional talents.
If Min Chae-ryeong had her eye on me, it was probably my information-gathering skills she was after.
The intel prowess that had uncovered Academy crimes even the Security Force hadn't detected.
Whether it was personal investigative skill, a vast network of contacts, or some wildly ingenious method no one would guess. Min Chae-ryeong must be coveting that ability of mine and wanting to claim me for herself.
That was the general thinking among the General Division folks. But as a total newbie to the Security Force, there was something I just couldn't wrap my head around.
"But can a single team leader just take someone from here to Special Countermeasures on her own whim?"
"You don't get how things work around here yet. A Special Countermeasures team leader carries real weight in the Security Force. And Min Team Leader? She gets shit done."
"Even with all that pull, a team leader shouldn't have the authority for personnel transfers, right?"
"Not if that team leader has connections reaching the Security Force commander and even the Academy board chairman. Officially, no, but nobody wants to piss off the higher-ups, so everyone just lets it slide."
Only then did their reactions start making sense. Yeah, with connections like that, shuffling around a fresh newbie's assignment would be a piece of cake.
"Su-ho. If they tell you to come over, you gonna go?"
"Not sure yet."
Transferring to Special Countermeasures wouldn't be a bad move. I'd probably make some useful connections there down the line.
But once again, my pathetic stats were the roadblock.
Special Countermeasures was a den of all sorts of weirdos. At best, I'd just be dead weight if I went there now.
Damn it, everything I tried to do got screwed by this worthless body.
That goddamn Blissful Heavenly Demon.
"Why the long face?"
"Life's been rough."
"If it's this bad already, how you gonna survive when new semester starts next month? That's when it really gets brutal."
Yeah. It'd be brutal, alright. Though the kind of brutal I had in mind was worlds apart from what Kwon Chang-uk meant.
"Go take a breather. Must've been boring as hell guarding the booth. Smoke one if you want."
"Thanks."
Taking him up on his kindness, I left the security booth and headed to the smoking area. Even during break, plenty of people used the training grounds, so a few students were gathered in clusters, puffing away.
A few shot me sidelong glances. Ignoring them, I lit up.
'Gotta cut back on these.'
Ever since crossing into this world, my smoking had nearly doubled. All thanks to this shitty life.
"Fuuu... "
I stared blankly at the white smoke curling up. My cluttered mind felt like it was washing clean.
-Ding!
Right then, with zero warning, a system message popped up.
📜 NEW QUEST 📜
[Scenario Quest Activated!]
Finally, your moment to shine has arrived! The main villain organization 'Dawn Corps,' which appears endlessly in [Era of Superhumans], has sent an assassin after Ji Ye-won—the organization's traitor and a current Academy student! Defeat the assassin and protect her life!
Ji Ye-won is a Green House student and a 'key character' in the system settings! If she dies, you'll suffer the penalty of death as well!
Location data for the expected incident site is now displayed in your field of view!
Time remaining until incident: 2 days, 10 hours, 43 minutes, 15 seconds.
Guard Rate +3% (Current: 2%)Intermediate Recovery Potion
"...Huh?"
I stubbed out the cigarette and double-checked the message from top to bottom, wondering if I'd misread.
Fight a villain organization's assassin out of nowhere. And if I fail the quest, I die too.
I could wrap my head around that much. High difficulty for a first main quest, but that was par for the course with the Blissful Heavenly Demon.
'Ji Ye-won?'
Still, what threw me was...
'...Who the hell is that?'
The supposedly key character was someone I'd never even heard of.
A bead of cold sweat trickled down my spine.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
White ash crumbled from the burned-out cigarette butt.
I immediately pulled out another one. The ground was already littered with my stubs.
'Let's sort this out calmly.'
I organized my thoughts while staring at the floating message.
'The original story starts after the protagonist's entrance ceremony.'
'Dawn Corps, the main villain group, doesn't show up until the dungeon exploration arc. That's at least episode 30. Not at this point.'
'Ji Ye-won? Never heard the name. But if she's a key character, it means one of two things: She existed only in the settings and never appeared, or she appeared but unnamed.'
'The second's unlikely.'
'Name suggests female, and dying now means she's already dead in the original timeline. A Dawn Corps member and Academy student who dies early? Her appearance would've been super limited.'
'Direct in a flashback episode, or indirect via another character's mention.'
'Either way, a character this distinctive? I'd remember.'
'So, Ji Ye-won must be a settings-only character. Meant to appear later or as a MacGuffin—didn't show in the original I read.'
The more I pieced it together, the angrier I got.
'That fucking Blissful Heavenly Demon.'
Now he was pulling events that didn't even exist in the original. His pettiness made my teeth grind.
'Complaining won't change shit. Focus on clearing this quest.'
Good news: Two days left. Not forever, but enough to plan.
'Defeat the assassin and protect her life.'
An assassin sent for a traitor would be top-notch. No way I could take them head-on alone.
'Security Force help...? Yeah, no.'
Dawn Corps was the story's premier villain group. Ji Ye-won was a traitor, but still one of theirs.
Academy student or not, she was a criminal. Asking the Security Force to help save her? I'd be lucky not to get suspected as a Dawn Corps member myself.
Even if I claimed innocence, without revealing my info source, no one would buy it.
Of course, if push came to shove, I'd beg anyway. Cleanup later—survive first.
'Wait, cleanup?'
Min Chae-ryeong popped into my head.
'Anyone else, maybe not. But her? Could work.'
She wanted to recruit me. Had the authority to cover most messes. Perfect for this.
Of course, roping her in meant explaining how I knew about Ji Ye-won and Dawn Corps.
After glossing over the Shin Jin-woo incident once, I doubted she'd buy any excuses this time.
'Gotta risk it. Better than explaining to the whole Force—just deal with her one-on-one.'
Even if she had doubts, Min Chae-ryeong would be safe-ish.
What she wanted was my intel skills. As long as I delivered solid info, she'd probably hold off grilling me for now, shady backstory or not.
'...Alright. Decided.'
I mulled it over more, but no better option than getting Min Chae-ryeong's help emerged.
I immediately called the Special Countermeasures internal line to reach her.
I tried, anyway—
"...On dispatch?"
-Yes. Team Leader left for external duty this past Wednesday. Probably back next Monday.
The news hit like a thunderbolt. My stomach dropped.
Talk about bad luck. Quest timer ended Sunday-to-Monday at 2 a.m. By the time she returned, it'd be way too late.
"...Got it. Could you give me Min Chae-ryeong's personal number, then?"
-Uh, well...
The voice on the other end trailed off awkwardly.
-Team Leader's super sensitive about personal info. Can't hand out her number.
"No way around it?"
-Sorry. If it's urgent, I can pass a message.
Not the kind of thing for a middleman. I sighed and hung up.
'What now.'
Think. There had to be a way. Some way to contact Min Chae-ryeong personally without other staff knowing—
"Ah."
Then, in the corner of my vision, a blonde head peeked out.
-Peek peek.
Eye contact with my watcher, Chae So-yeon. Her eyes widened in shock, and she scampered off behind the building with pattering footsteps.
A breakthrough hit me at the same time.
'...No choice. All or nothing.'
I clenched my fist, staring the way Chae So-yeon had fled.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
That night.
I stopped at a convenience store for some snacks and headed home. Glancing back, Chae So-yeon—waiting nearby—trailed after me with sneaky steps.
The second I rounded the corner, I plastered myself to the wall. Holding my breath, I waited. Footsteps—tap tap tap tap—grew louder from afar.
And when Chae So-yeon appeared around the corner—
-Grab!
I yanked her into a tight hug with all my strength.
"Eek?"
No impure motives. Purely to restrain her on instinct.
With our height difference nearing 30 cm, Chae So-yeon ended up dangling half-off the ground in my arms, feet kicking air.
I hoisted her up fully and pinned her against the wall. Once more: no funny business.
Confusion spread across her face at my actions. Her eyes spun wildly.
"Whaaaat?! Wait, wait! Let go! Let me gooo! Why're you hugging me outta nowhere?!"
"Chae So-yeon."
I desperately held the flailing, childish girl and spoke.
"What?! What's up?! Why the serious face? Why you doing this to me!? Don't tell me you—"
"Can you hear me out for a sec? I have something to tell Min Chae-ryeong Team Leader."
"Huh?"
She froze at that.
"Our team leader...?"
She looked up at me with huge, round eyes.
[Time remaining until incident: 2 days, 1 hour, 15 minutes, 7 seconds.]