Humanity Protection Company

Illustrations: None.

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In this strange world, surviving day by day is the rule. Saving for tomorrow is a luxury.

Vroom-

First job, first commute, and first car.

Lee Yeonwoo smiled contentedly as he drove his small compact car. The compact car, which he spent all his compensation money from the company on, was second-hand but pretty decent. He couldn\'t help but hum a tune as he drove.

After a while, he was driving happily yet awkwardly on the road.

A notification sound came from the phone with the navigation app turned on.

-Turn right 500M ahead.

"Turn riiight."

Yeonwoo stretched out the words like he was singing and turned the steering wheel.

The compact car, rattling along the asphalt road, entered a quiet parking lot. The compact car entered a rectangular parking space crookedly.

Ding-dong-

-You have arrived at your destination. Ending guidance.

"Thank you for the guidance."

Yeonwoo, who turned off the navigation app, got out of the car and looked around.

A spacious and quiet public parking lot.

Except for Yeonwoo\'s compact car with a "new driver" sticker, there was only a police car and a passenger car.

Looking up, the mountain towering over him wore a green dress and a white mist hat. The scent of grass and the mountain carried on the breeze.

"It\'s been a long time since I came to the mountains…."

Yeonwoo\'s voice turned hesitant. He didn\'t come here for driving practice or hiking. A memory of a phone call with the head of the investigation team quickly flashed through his mind.

A booming voice that seemed to explode the speaker.

"Hey, newbie! I\'m the head of the department you\'ll be working in! You start tomorrow. You know Gwaebaek Mountain? Be there by 7 AM!"

Yeonwoo\'s loosely raised lips drooped.

He moved his hand slowly to fix the outfit of the hiking clothes he bought yesterday. The new clothes\' smell and the glossy shine were tiring for his nose and eyes.

A sigh mixed with a mutter came out.

"If the boss is a hiking fanatic, it\'s going to be exhausting…."

It\'s a weekday, not a weekend, and it\'s the first day for the new employee. Being called to the mountains already gave him a creeping sense of foreboding.

Yeonwoo tried to think positively as he walked toward the trail entrance.

"Maybe not. The investigation team must be in the mountains."

Climbing the mountain every time he goes to work is a problem, but having a boss obsessed with hiking is….

Or is it? Which is worse?

While he was pondering, he arrived at the trail entrance.

Yeonwoo stopped his unnecessary worrying and stood still. There was something strange at the entrance.

\'What is this?\'

The entrance was cordoned off with a "No Entry" tape.

Two police officers were controlling entry in front of the tape, and under the shade of a tree next to them, a boy in a high school uniform and a woman in a shabby tracksuit were squatting and staring blankly at their phones.

As Yeonwoo approached cautiously, a police officer reached out a hand to stop him.

"Sorry, there\'s an incident, and we\'re preventing hikers from entering."

"...Really?"

He was definitely called to Gwaebaek Mountain, and this is Gwaebaek Mountain, so it\'s strange.

\'Is this some kind of initiation? Or is there really an accident? Surely it\'s not another test?\'

He was about to call the team leader when a woman who had been watching him closely spoke up.

"Are you Lee Yeonwoo? Right?"

"Yes, that\'s me. But you are…?"

"Ahem, I’m Yoo Ji-yoo, working in the investigation team."

A colleague from the same department. He hadn\'t come to the wrong place.

Though her shabby clothes and listless eyes were a bit concerning.

Tap-tap-

As Ji-yoo stood up and dusted off her tracksuit, Yeonwoo bowed his head.

"Hello, senior. I\'m Lee Yeonwoo, the new employee. I look forward to working with you."

"Yes, really nice to meet you. The team leader couldn\'t stop talking about you. An S-grade rookie, he said. Let\'s work together for a long time."

She held out her hand for a handshake. He took it, and they shook hands a couple of times.

At that moment, the boy in the school uniform poked his head out.

“Mister, are both your parents healthy?”

“What?”

A sudden, and if taken a certain way, offensive remark. Lee Yeonwoo calmly looked at Yoo Ji-yoo.

His eyes asked if she knew the boy or if he was related to the investigation team.

Yoo Ji-yoo, avoiding Yeonwoo’s gaze, swung her palm and smacked the back of the boy’s head.

Whack-!

“Ow! Why’d you hit me?”

“How many times do I have to tell you not to act recklessly? If you don’t listen, you get hit.”

“This is violence! Officer! Arrest this woman!”

Whack-!

“Ow!”

“Sigh. Anyway, Lee Yeonwoo, this kid is Choi Jae-min, and as you can see, he’s a bit ‘strange.’”

“By ‘strange,’ do you mean…?”

Perhaps because there were unrelated police officers around, she cleverly referred to the anomaly in a way that the laughing police wouldn’t understand.

Understanding what she meant, Yeonwoo clenched his fist.

Directors who manipulated reality, Leonardos who led minds into rapture. The humanoid anomalies he had encountered were all terrifying.

His gaze towards Choi Jae-min mixed with caution and hostility. Choi Jae-min, rubbing the back of his head, raised his head defiantly. His voice was excited and angry.

“I’m human! I’m not a monster or anything!”

Even though Choi Jae-min shouted, the two members of the investigation team didn’t respond. Yeonwoo, keeping a tense eye on Jae-min, quietly asked Ji-yoo.

“What kind of anomaly? Is he dangerous?”

“No. If we rate him by level, he’s about a 1. Harmless. At worst, he just insults people’s parents—”

“Stop ignoring me with your otaku-sounding sh*t!”

The police officer who had been watching quietly chuckled. Ji-yoo hit the back of Jae-min’s head once more.

Whack-!

“Ow!”

“Anyway, it’s hard to talk here. Let’s discuss it while climbing the mountain.”

After saying a few words to the laughing police officer, Ji-yoo crossed the "No Entry" tape. Jae-min, still holding his head, grumbled as he followed her.

Yeonwoo looked at Jae-min’s back puzzledly. He was starting to understand what kind of anomaly he was.

‘Parent detector?’

It was really vague and insignificant. He might throw out some abusive language at people, but it’s not like he could kill someone….

As he pondered, Ji-yoo, who had gone ahead, turned and spoke in a trembling voice.

“Lee Yeonwoo, you’re not thinking of quitting just because you got called to the mountain on your first day, right? This is part of the job. I mean, not that hiking is our job, you know. It’s because of work. No, this makes it sound like our job is hiking. That’s not it—”

Her eyes seemed to shake violently as she looked at the newbie. Yeonwoo quickly gathered his thoughts.

“No, I’m coming.”

He crossed the "No Entry" tape. The police didn’t stop him. They lifted the tape to let him through easily.

After lightly nodding to the police, Yeonwoo started up the mountain path.

---

---

When climbing a winding mountain path, sweat pours, breath shortens, and the heart beats incessantly.

Especially for a body that hasn’t exercised once while living as a civil service exam student.

Huff- Huff- Huff- Hoo—

A few steps behind, Yeonwoo placed his hands on his knees. His arms and legs trembled, his torso bent over as if he were about to vomit.

Sweat dripped from his nose and chin, falling onto the dirt floor. Saliva dribbled as well.

Jae-min, standing midway up, looked back at Yeonwoo and screamed in shock.

“Sis! This guy looks like he’s about to die! He’s really going to die!”

“He’s not in good shape…. This is not good….”

Ji-yoo looked down at Yeonwoo with a somewhat disappointed expression. She had sweated, but didn’t look nearly as exhausted.

Barely lifting his head, Yeonwoo spoke, gasping for breath.

"Let\'s just rest for a moment. Please, really."

"There’s a resting spot just a bit further up. Let’s go that far."

"A bit, really?"

"Yes, really just a bit."

"Ugh!"

Yeonwoo groaned as he forced his bent body upright. Then he summoned all his strength to take another step forward.

Yoo Ji-yoo and Choi Jae-min walked slowly. They kept glancing at Yeonwoo, who looked like he might collapse at any moment, and offered worried comments.

"Mister, do you want some ionized water? I brought some. But your stamina is really weak."

"Don\'t... talk."

Help disguised as annoyance.

"Yeonwoo, I’m saying this as your senior, so don’t take it the wrong way."

"Yes..."

"Our investigation team does a lot of fieldwork. If your stamina is this weak, it will be a problem. You need to exercise regularly to build your strength—"

Advice disguised as a distraction.

Yeonwoo, half out of his mind, let their voices wash over him like white noise.

Suddenly, his eyes widened.

‘A rest area!’

There were two park benches on a small, flat clearing. A large tree beside them cast a cool shadow over the spot!

"As a member of the investigation team, I’m telling you, Yeonwoo? Yeonwoo, are you listening?"

"Yes! There was really only a little bit left!"

"Sis, I don’t think he heard any of that."

Summoning his remaining strength, Yeonwoo hurried his steps. He was the first to reach the rest area and claimed one of the benches. He threw himself onto it as if it were a bed.

"Ah, I feel alive again."

The hard wooden bench felt better than a bed.

Swoosh—

At that moment, a breeze blew through. Sunlight scattered through the rustling leaves. As Yeonwoo, now comfortably resting with his eyes closed, began to breathe more slowly, Ji-yoo spoke.

"Yeonwoo, do you feel better now? Can we start talking about work?"

"Yes! I’m sorry. I didn’t realize my stamina was this bad."

"Then come over here."

On the bench where Ji-yoo and Jae-min sat, there were several sheets of paper spread out between them—articles, photos, and text. Yeonwoo squatted in front of the bench, and the three of them huddled together.

Ji-yoo began to speak.

"First of all, our Anomaly Investigation Team is tasked with investigating incidents suspected to be the work of anomalies."

"So, there’s an anomaly in this mountain…?"

Yeonwoo trailed off. His face, which had brightened while resting, hardened again. His nerves were on edge. Unconsciously, he looked around.

The empty mountain felt unfamiliar.

Swoosh—

The sound of leaves rubbing against each other in the wind, the faintly rising mist.

"It’s not certain yet, but there are some suspicious aspects. Look at this."

Ji-yoo handed over a few sheets of paper. They contained photos and interview records. Yeonwoo began reading the first page seriously but soon his expression turned strange.

‘Park Sangjoon? Why is he mentioned here?’