The Wise Cleaning Life Of A Returning Genius Hunter [EN]: Chapter 303

302

Item Crafting Research Lab, located within the WDSO Seoul Headquarters, Republic of Korea.

Commonly known as Eclipse.

It had been a day since Kim Jun-woo and the team returned to headquarters.

Everyone had taken a short break, trying to decompress after the intense battle, but Team Leader Lee Ah-young and Chloe couldn’t afford to.

They had stayed up all night at Eclipse, managing the recovered Bank Items.

“I can’t believe I’m seeing them all gathered here. And in our country, of all places…”

Right after completing the storage of the Bank Items in their respective chambers, Team Leader Lee Ah-young murmured, her voice barely audible.

The Time Stone, the Dimension Stone, the Anti-Magic Stone, the Otherworld Stone.

The four Bank Items that could control each field of the Otherworld Dimension had finally gathered in one place.

As Team Leader Lee Ah-young stared, mesmerized, at the glass case containing the Bank Items, Chloe chuckled.

“It’s not like you to get so excited over a few stones…”

“I don’t think you’re one to talk, Ms. Stone Expert.”

“…”

The arrow immediately returned to the sender.

Chloe seemed speechless and quickly changed the subject.

“You do realize that the fact that Bank Items, which are supposed to be non-transferable, have changed hands so many times means the situation is seriously messed up, right?”

“I know.”

“And you’re still so moved?”

“I don’t know if I should say I’m moved, or the opposite… I feel strange either way.”

Team Leader Lee Ah-young answered, a hint of frustration in her voice, her gaze still fixed forward.

As Chloe said, the presence of the Bank Items here had more negative implications than positive ones.

It signified a collapse of order and rules.

So, she couldn’t purely rejoice in this situation.

It was then, as Team Leader Lee Ah-young was silently grappling with complex emotions, that she spoke.

“I’m sorry about what happened at the branch.”

She managed to say the words to Chloe with difficulty.

“Jun-woo isn’t usually like that, but the situation was so…”

“You don’t need to apologize to me.”

Chloe cut her off.

“Losing colleagues was commonplace there. Everyone, not just me, has had similar experiences at least once.”

“…”

“So, Dave probably expected it to some extent.”

She continued calmly.

“And… I would have done the same as Kim Jun-woo in that situation anyway.”

“…Is that so.”

“If he had said he was going back, I would have stopped him.”

Team Leader Lee Ah-young nodded slightly.

A calm reaction even though her juniors and colleagues had lost their lives helping her.

Team Leader Lee Ah-young felt pity and even sympathy for her.

Seeing a colleague’s death and not being affected doesn’t mean she’s inhuman, but that so much has happened that even sad emotions have disappeared.

As she was cautiously glancing at Chloe, Chloe spoke.

“By the way… where’s Kim Jun-woo? I haven’t seen him since we got back.”

Chloe seemed to notice her gaze and suddenly changed the subject.

“Oh, he’s in the cleaning team’s office.”

“…? What’s he doing there?”

“I don’t know.”

Chloe didn’t seem to understand either and narrowed her eyes.

“He’s just there. He’s not working, and he’s not going out for cleaning jobs. I get worried and go to find him, but he doesn’t say anything…”

“Is it because of what happened in Paris…?”

“Jun-woo must be dealing with a lot, I guess.”

“Hmm… he didn’t seem like that kind of person.”

Chloe crossed her arms and tilted her head.

Team Leader Lee Ah-young knew what she meant by ‘he didn’t seem like that kind of person.’

A person who always makes rational and cool-headed judgments and choices.

A person who never shows his emotions in any situation.

A person who is so perfect without a single flaw that sometimes she wonders if he’s even human.

Chloe had always met Kim Jun-woo as an enemy, so she might think that way, but Team Leader Lee Ah-young’s thoughts were a bit different.

Having watched him for the past three years, she knew he was more afraid than anyone else.

A person who is afraid not of his own death, but of the death of those around him.

So, he always tries to be at the forefront.

A person whose fear is so great that he doesn’t even feel it himself.

‘There’s no way someone like that would be okay after what happened in Paris,’ Team Leader Lee Ah-young thought to herself.

And then.

“You were here.”

The door to Eclipse’s Bank Item management room burst open, and he walked in.

“…Jun-woo?”

“What, we were just talking about you.”

Kim Jun-woo.

He, who had been holed up in the office for a whole day, had come here himself.

“What brings you here? If you’re done with work, you should go home and get some rest.”

“Well, it’s not really anything…”

Kim Jun-woo trailed off and looked around.

And then.

“By any chance… can we also create dungeons with the Dimension Stone?”

He asked out of the blue.

At the same time, Team Leader Lee Ah-young asked back with a puzzled expression.

“…Why are you asking that all of a sudden?”

“There’s something I need to check personally… and I think I need to do some training in advance.”

“Pardon…?”

Team Leader Lee Ah-young’s eyebrows narrowed.

She couldn’t understand what he was talking about at all.

“Anyway, is it possible?”

“It is… possible.”

“Then open one for me. Red grade.”

Still with a nonchalant tone.

Team Leader Lee Ah-young stared at him and asked with a worried voice.

“You’re not thinking of going in alone, are you?”

“…”

As expected.

“I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but you absolutely can’t go alone!”

“Do you think I’m going to die that easily?”

“Is that something you can say so lightly?! Artificially created dungeons have unstable Otherworld energy, so anything can happen, and if you’re unlucky, an out-of-規格 [out-of-specifications] monster might appear!”

“…”

“If it’s training, you can do it here, so dungeon creation is absolutely…!

The moment Team Leader Lee Ah-young was raising her voice and trying to persuade Kim Jun-woo.

“…”

She suddenly met Kim Jun-woo’s eyes.

And soon.

“…Okay. I’ll do it.”

She suddenly gave up persuading him and changed her attitude.

At the same time, Kim Jun-woo didn’t add any words, thanked her, and immediately left Eclipse.

As soon as Kim Jun-woo disappeared.

“Are you crazy? Why did you allow that? We don’t even have Otherworld energy adjustment equipment here, so the dungeon could collapse!”

Chloe immediately rebuked Team Leader Lee Ah-young as if she was dumbfounded.

“I know you’re head over heels for him, but how can you allow something like this? This is basically telling him to die…”

“…”

But something was strange.

She, who would have retorted immediately, was somehow keeping her mouth shut.

Feeling an unusual sign, Chloe slightly lowered her head and looked at her face…

Team Leader Lee Ah-young’s face was stiff as if she had seen a monster.

“…What. What’s wrong?”

“…I’ve never seen it before.”

Team Leader Lee Ah-young finally opened her mouth with difficulty.

“Jun-woo being that angry.”

***

WDSO Seoul Headquarters.

Operations Headquarters.

“…”

“…”

Kim Min-joo and Han Yu-bin were sitting face to face, silently sipping their tea.

Both of them seemed unable to shake off the events in Paris, and they were staring at the floor with rather dark expressions.

As the silence continued for a long time.

“…It’s quiet.”

Kim Min-joo broke the silence and opened her mouth first.

“It’s quiet because we’re not talking.”

“No, not us.”

Kim Min-joo moved her gaze to the ceiling and continued.

“Until yesterday, there was constant noise… it’s too quiet here. It’s as if nothing happened.”

“…”

Han Yu-bin also followed Kim Min-joo and moved her gaze to the air.

“The calm before the storm… or something?”

After muttering that once, she cautiously asked Kim Min-joo.

“What do you think will happen in the future?”

“Well, we got the Bank Items, and we stopped Eden from entering the International Association, so in some ways, it’s a good thing…”

“It’s not a good thing for Eden to go to a third party.”

When Han Yu-bin said that, Kim Min-joo nodded slightly.

“That’s right. It’s only meaningful if we have it.”

“The International Association won’t stay still, will they?”

“Well, that’s…”

Kim Min-joo trailed off.

It was obvious without having to answer.

Soon, Kim Min-joo continued.

“They’ll probably try to do something about Russia first. Attack them, or make a deal with them. Eden is the last remaining stronghold now that they’ve lost the Bank Items.”

“Then shouldn’t we be taking measures instead of just sitting here?”

“The board of directors is trying to talk to Russia in many ways. Director Lee Doo-shik and the Secretary-General are too. But well…”

Kim Min-joo let out a faint sigh.

Judging from her reaction, it seemed like it wasn’t going well.

“Anyway, they have nothing to lose, so they might come out even more extreme.”

“Then wouldn’t it be better for us to attack first? Their forces must have been greatly depleted in the German battle, so if we attack before they prepare…”

“It’s difficult right now.”

Kim Min-joo cut off Han Yu-bin’s words and answered immediately.

“Our troops have also suffered a lot of damage, though not as much as the International Association. We don’t have the capacity to go into battle right now.”

“Then at least we…”

“Would that be possible?”

When Kim Min-joo asked, Han Yu-bin unusually closed her mouth.

Even she thought it was impossible to face the International Association with just a few people.

Kim Jun-woo was the only one who could face Secretary-General Wesley, let alone the small fries [lesser opponents].

But the problem is…

“The Captain is also absent, saying he has something to prepare.”

“…Haa.”

She had no idea what he was doing since he returned to headquarters, and she couldn’t get in touch with him at all.

“What is he preparing for?”

“I don’t know… he only said it was training.”

“Training?”

Han Yu-bin’s eyebrows twitched at those words.

“Does that guy need training…?”

“I know, right.”

Kim Min-joo also reacted with doubt.

“Anyway, until the Captain is ready, there’s not much we can do either.”

“Tsk… it just makes me more anxious to stay still.”

“Tell me about it.”

With those words, silence returned to the office once again.

The two team leaders picked up their teacups in that silence that they couldn’t get used to.

And then.

“Team Leaders.”

Suddenly, Team Leader Pyeon Chang-hyeon of the Control Team entered the office.

“Did something happen?”

“Well, a dungeon appearance has been detected in Gangwon-do…”

He managed to continue.

“The detected Otherworld energy far exceeds the Red grade.”

“Yes, yes…?”

“What?!”

Kim Min-joo and Han Yu-bin’s eyes widened at the report.

But that was only for a moment, as Kim Min-joo immediately jumped up and gave instructions.

“Issue a lockdown order right now, and put the operation team on standby!”

“Well, that’s…”

But Team Leader Pyeon was still standing still, fidgeting.

After hesitating for a long time, he continued.

“After checking, Team Leader Kim has already entered.”

“…!”

“…!”

The two’s faces instantly stiffened.