Humanity Protection Company

Illustrations: None.

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The sleepiness vanished from the team leader\'s eyes, replaced by irritation.

"Do you f*ckers think investigators are here as a free handout? Should I give them away just because you ask? What department are you from? Who\'s your superior?”

“Well, we\'re from the Intelligence Department…”

Sweat beaded on Agent Kim Gapdong\'s forehead.

He knew well how ill-tempered the team leader of the investigation team could be.

‘One wrong word and I\'m screwed.’

His tongue felt like a stone. He didn\'t dare mention the Intelligence Department\'s name as a threat.

The investigation team leader had authority similar to that of the Intelligence Department.

These bastards look suspicious? Let\'s investigate them. Oh? You’re resisting? You must be anomalous, right?

Are you controlled by an anomaly? Call the Special Forces!

Just recently, hadn’t he overturned several departments showing interest in Choi Jae-min, the Parent Detector, and Lee Yeonwoo?

The Intelligence Department could face the same fate if things went wrong.

“It’s absolutely not compulsory! We urgently need Yeonwoo\'s help, so we came to ask!”

Standing at attention like a soldier, Kim Gapdong shouted loudly. The team leader’s eyes softened a bit at this.

“…What’s the issue? Why does the Intelligence Department need an investigator?”

“It’s not an investigator we need, it’s Yeonwoo himself. More precisely, we need his trait of attracting accidents.”

All four pairs of eyes turned to Yeonwoo. Uncomfortable, he shrank into his cubicle.

“First, please explain what’s going on.”

“Yeonwoo, it’s nothing major, well, it is actually, but…”

Lee Seoyeon stepped forward. She tapped her prosthetic leg as if choosing her words, then glanced at Kim Gapdong, seeking permission on how much to disclose.

“Tell them everything. They’re trustworthy.”

“Alright. Here’s the situation. Lately, there have been many people distorting the company’s ideology. The distortion methods are so varied that factions have split up, leading to a near-civil war, though blood hasn’t been shed.”

She was being very detailed. However, Kim Gapdong didn\'t interrupt, intimidated by the team leader’s gaze.

“And now, one of these factions is making a move.”

“…Which faction exactly?”

Yeonwoo asked calmly.

He had an idea why the factions had split. Extreme weather and the preservation plan. Their reactions to these. After all, wasn’t he part of the Clock Repairmen faction?

Lee Seoyeon squinted as she spoke.

“The Humanity Management Company. They argue that we must go beyond protection and manage humanity.”

Yeonwoo held his breath, and the team leader and Yoo Ji-yoo’s faces twisted.

“Are you kidding me?”

“Are those people really company employees? Are they spies?”

To employees who had lived by the mission and ideology of protecting humanity, this was the utmost insult. It trampled on their passion and sacrifices.

Lee Seoyeon also shook her head with a dark expression.

“They’re not spies; they’re all diligent employees. But suddenly, these days…”

Yeonwoo understood why. Thus, he asked calmly.

“So what exactly are these people planning to do? Brainwash key government figures?”

“How did you know?”

Lee Seoyeon widened her eyes, and Kim Gapdong, who had been watching the team leader’s reactions, squinted at Yeonwoo.

Yeonwoo waved his hand dismissively.

“If they’re the Humanity Management Company, how many employees do they have to manage humanity? They must brainwash the government.”

As an investigator, such intuition was expected. However, Yeonwoo had other thoughts in his mind.

‘Are they planning to take control of legislative and administrative bodies worldwide to deal with the extreme weather?’

That was also a method.

But the team leader and Yoo Ji-yoo erupted in anger.

“Those insane bastards. How are they different from hostile groups? Why are they still company employees? They should be erased with memory erasers, no, they should be killed!”

“What is the Intelligence Department doing? Isn’t it your job to handle such people?”

“Well… the Intelligence Department is also divided into factions…”

Kim Gapdong lowered his eyes and trailed off. As a field agent, there was nothing he could do. The Intelligence Department itself was in the midst of factional infighting.

Following his superior\'s orders according to principles, Kim Gapdong was just doing his original job.

After wiping his weary face once, he looked at the team leader.

“They plan to use anomalies to brainwash everyone attending the cabinet meeting.”

The cabinet meeting.

A meeting attended by the President and the ministers of various departments. If they were brainwashed, it would not be an exaggeration to say that they had seized control of the government.

The team leader\'s expression hardened. He knew that if the company had the will, such a feat was entirely possible, even if it was just one faction of the Korean branch.

Tap, tap, tap-

He drummed his fingers on the desk before asking.

“Can you stop them? It seems like it\'s just you guys stepping in.”

“The Intelligence Department is the only one relatively intact right now. We have to step in.”

“What about the Special Forces? Aren\'t they supporting you?”

“They\'re in a similar state….”

Silence fell. After a moment, Yeonwoo raised his hand.

“I’ll help.”

Kim Gapdong and Lee Seoyeon\'s faces brightened a bit. They really needed Yeonwoo\'s help. They bowed their heads to him.

“Thank you.”

“Yeonwoo, it won\'t be dangerous! All you need to do is hang around near the Blue House!”

They briefly explained the plan to use Yeonwoo, who attracted accidents and anomalies, as bait to catch a member of the Humanity Management Company faction.

By now, Kim Gapdong had leaned against Yeonwoo\'s desk and continued to reassure him.

“No matter how fierce the factional fighting gets, we’re still family. We won\'t fight to the death.”

“Yes, so when do we head out?”

“The regular cabinet meeting is at 10 AM tomorrow at the Blue House. Please come by 6 AM just in case.”

Yeonwoo nodded silently. Internally, he contemplated what to bring and what to say if he encountered the Humanity Management Company faction.

---

---

At dawn.

With an eco bag slung loosely over his shoulder, Yeonwoo walked along the outer road of Gyeongbokgung Palace, tapping on his phone. He was on his way to meet Kim Gapdong and Lee Seoyeon.

But first, Yeonwoo was gathering information in the Clock Repairmen\'s chat room.

-TPL: The company is divided into factions… I suppose that could happen. There isn\'t just one way to deal with extreme weather.

-CHS: You don’t know?

-TPL: I’m a researcher through and through… I don\'t have many friends.

-ACTR: Same here... The Clock Tower is full of oddballs who only research time.

It wasn\'t helpful.

Yeonwoo put his phone in his pocket and looked around. He had arrived at the meeting place.

Not far away was a convenience store.

On a plastic table, an iced coffee with dew on it sat. In front of it, Kim Gapdong and Lee Seoyeon were fiddling with some small electronic devices.

Dressed in casual clothes and wearing makeup to disguise themselves, they looked like ordinary citizens, but their conversation was different.

“Is the battery fully charged?”

“Yes. I brought a few spares, too. How about you, senior?”

“Reflective vest, cooperation documents, Taser gun, got everything.”

Yeonwoo walked toward them, making loud footsteps. They tensed up for a moment, then relaxed when they saw him.

“Yeonwoo, you\'re here?”

“Came early.”

“I woke up early. What are those?”

Yeonwoo sat on a plastic chair and looked at the wireless earpieces they were handling.

“Communication equipment. Like the in-ear pieces bodyguards wear. Take it.”

Kim Gapdong pushed a small earpiece toward Yeonwoo.

“When you walk around near the Blue House, we’ll follow close by. We’ll give necessary instructions through this, and if anything happens, we’ll join you immediately.”

“That’s it? No montage or anything?”

Yeonwoo looked back and forth between Kim Gapdong and Lee Seoyeon, holding the earpiece. They gave him awkward smiles.

"To be honest, we don\'t know who\'s coming. There are too many suspicious people. That\'s why we need to wait for you to attract them."

Yeonwoo placed the earpiece down, looking bewildered.

"Then how did you get the information? Didn\'t you get it from an insider or through hacking?"

"No. The head of the Intelligence Department overheard those guys talking while smoking…."

Is this really the Intelligence Department? As Yeonwoo gaped, Lee Seoyeon hurriedly turned on her phone and handed it to him.

"Still, we have some ideas about the anomalies they might use. Here’s the list."

Instinctively, Yeonwoo looked at Lee Seoyeon\'s phone. On the company app screen was a document she had written.

The anomalies the Humanity Management Company faction was expected to use.

A pink-glowing hypnosis app, a phobia prescription you might get at a hospital, a child-made poster proclaiming “The World is Ending!”, and so on. Anomalies that manipulate human psychology.

Yeonwoo frowned.

“They don’t stand out. Even if I meet them, I wouldn’t recognize them.”

"That\'s why you\'re crucial. They will definitely be drawn to you. We’ll do the recognizing."

“Alright, I understand. It\'s not that difficult anyway.”

Just wander around as if taking a stroll. It\'s not a life-threatening task.

Yeonwoo put the earpiece in his ear. Lee Seoyeon took her phone and spoke as if on a call.

“Can you hear me?”

-Can you hear me?

The voice overlapped with the sound from the earpiece. Yeonwoo nodded.

“Yes, I can hear you well.”

“Then take this too.”

Kim Gapdong took an A4 document from his bag and handed it to Yeonwoo. He held it and quickly scanned through it.

A document certifying cooperation with the Anomaly Management Agency.

It was a document to prevent police or military checks.

“This is from the Anomaly Management Agency, a secret branch of the Korean government. As you go up, there will be a checkpoint, right? This will get you through.”

There was a checkpoint on the stone wall path up to Gyeongbokgung Palace, where police would check those heading to the Blue House.

Yeonwoo’s gaze shifted to the eco bag.

Inside it was a homemade pistol. He had stolen it from the Goldberg Club\'s firearms workshop while time was stopped.

Sliding the document next to the pistol, Yeonwoo stood up naturally.

“Then, I’ll start walking now.”

“Alright. Good luck.”

As Yeonwoo started walking along the stone wall path of Gyeongbokgung, the two intelligence agents followed him at a slight distance, taking pictures like tourists.