Chapter 11
Countless red dots covered the white straitjacket. The instant the order to fire was given, I would be riddled with holes.
This was precisely when I needed Samra’s cooperation.
Moving only my eyes, I looked at him.
Unlike ordinary Trial Response Agency uniforms, Samra’s was white.
The uniform distinguished him as a special entity, and it stood out even more now that everyone surrounding us was dressed in dark colors.
Samra placed a hand on my shoulder. As though demonstrating that touching me was safe, he even patted it a couple of times.
“Mr. Han Goyo is human.”
Samra’s declaration produced a distinct stir.
Then the wall of uniforms split in two, and a graying man stepped between them.
The moment I saw the uniform densely covered in medals, I knew who he was.
Director Jang Seokyun of the Trial Response Agency.
Despite being past sixty, he possessed a sturdy physique.
The eyes beneath his thick eyebrows radiated strength.
I swiftly greeted the most powerful person here.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Director. I’m Han Goyo.”
I wanted to bow a full ninety degrees, but moving carelessly seemed likely to get my body torn apart, so I could only greet him with my eyes.
Jang Seokyun responded with a meaningful smile.
“We’ve never met, yet you recognize my face. That information is classified, in its own way.”
Then he strode toward me.
“Director!”
People urgently tried to stop him, but Jang Seokyun paid them no heed.
“We have been told he is human. Samra is here as well.”
Once he stood directly before me, he offered a greeting.
“Good to meet you. I’m Jang Seokyun.”
Then he examined me carefully.
“A handshake is… hmm, difficult, I suppose.”
With both arms bound by the straitjacket, I couldn’t shake his hand.
To emphasize that I was a harmless human, I tried to give him an innocent smile.
“I apologize for not greeting you properly. If it’s all right with you, could you have them lower the sniper rifles?”
The red dots disappeared at a gesture from Jang Seokyun.
However, the sights trained on vital points such as my head and heart remained.
Samra had certified me as human, but that did not change the fact that I was suspicious.
Even this much was something to be grateful for.
“Thank you.”
“Hoho. I would like to remove them all, but perhaps age has made me fearful. I hope you will understand, Goyo.”
“Of course.”
I smiled, but my entire body remained tense.
Jang Seokyun appeared good-natured, but in truth, he was an extremely frightening man.
He played the virtuous role of someone devoted to the nation and the Trial Response Agency, but he believed sacrifices were unavoidable in the pursuit of justice.
One wrong move, and I might become one of those unavoidable sacrifices.
“I’m told you were a professional gamer, Goyo. Is it called esports these days?”
“…Yes.”
“You seem an impressive young man. How did you come to end up here?”
If I was going to make my decisive play, now was the time.
With probably everyone in the Trial Response Agency gathered here, I needed them to recognize that I could help.
No—not merely that I could help.
That I was indispensable.
“Director.”
“Hmm?”
“Please spare my life.”
Apparently caught entirely off guard, Jang Seokyun burst into hearty laughter.
“Hahaha!”
His voice brimming with amusement, he asked,
“And if I spare you?”
I made a declaration to the Trial Response Agency.
“Within one month, I will bring you three True Ending Clears.”
If I could have moved my hands, I would have raised three fingers too.
Please just spare me, Director.
Equipping my eyes with a passionate gleam, I looked at Jang Seokyun.
It was a deliberate wager.
I had to enter Trials to keep my limbs anyway.
If Jang Seokyun accepted me, I could enter those Trials with the Trial Response Agency’s support.
And the Jang Seokyun I knew…
Would never be able to refuse my offer.
Jang Seokyun was no longer smiling. His tiger-like eyes stared into mine.
“Are you saying that what happened this time was no mere stroke of luck?”
“That’s correct.”
“Samra.”
“Mr. Han Goyo’s statement is truthful. He possesses ample ability to fulfill his proposal.”
Samra stared directly at Jang Seokyun.
“Furthermore, Mr. Han Goyo’s identity has been verified.”
His unblinking gaze was alien.
It made no attempt to conceal the fact that although his exterior was no different from a human’s, what lay inside was a machine.
“That is my judgment as Samra Mansang of the Trial Response Agency.”
Once Samra finished speaking, a heavy silence descended over the room.
Apparently, no one had imagined Samra would step forward to defend me so actively.
“Well, now.”
Only after a long moment did Jang Seokyun speak.
“At my age, few things can surprise me anymore, yet you keep making this old man’s heart leap and sink, Goyo.”
He raised one hand. The remaining red laser sights trained on me vanished completely.
I released a long breath of relief inwardly.
I survived…….
“Let us speak somewhere quiet. Follow me. Samra, you come as well.”
Jang Seokyun turned and led the way.
But I couldn’t follow him while wearing the straitjacket.
My legs were bound too, so someone would have to move me in a wheelchair or something similar.
Samra quietly called after him.
“Director.”
“Ah. That was thoughtless of me. My apologies.”
Only then noticing my condition, Jang Seokyun permitted me to change clothes.
At last, I was freed from the straitjacket!
I was almost moved to tears when they issued me the comfortable athletic clothes worn by Trial Response Agency soldiers during training.
‘I’m going to live virtuously from now on.’
I never wanted to wear a straitjacket again.
After changing, I entered the Director’s office alongside Samra.
The office I had visited in pixel art had precisely the same layout as the room in the game.
Even the placement of a decorative orchid was identical, as though someone had copied and pasted it.
Just how much did the developer know?
It didn’t seem possible for a human to do something like this.
“Han Goyo.”
Jang Seokyun, who had been looking out the window with his hands clasped behind his back, turned toward me.
“Do you know the purpose for which the Trial Response Agency was founded?”
I knew, but pretended otherwise.
“I don’t.”
“It is a government agency that responds to national calamities and threats caused by higher-order entities.”
Jang Seokyun’s voice was calm.
“We judged you to be a higher-order entity—in other words, a national calamity. Now that you have been confirmed human, that judgment has been suspended.”
Suspended apparently meant it hadn’t been fully withdrawn.
Then again, no matter how emphatically Samra vouched for me, I was so suspicious that I understood their caution.
“In any case, it seems there is no question that you are special. I have never seen Samra take someone’s side like this.”
He wore a playful smile for a moment, then became serious.
“Can you truly achieve those True Ending Clears?”
“If you place your trust in me, I will repay it.”
Jang Seokyun looked steadily at me.
“You remind me of myself when I was young.”
That was… a compliment, right?
After a moment’s thought, I replied, “Thank you.”
Apparently amused by my answer, Jang Seokyun laughed briefly. Then he picked up a folder from his desk.
“Trials are hatching with increasing frequency, yet we have far too few Compatible to respond to them. Permanent closures go without saying.”
A hint of helplessness colored his voice.
It was the helplessness of someone trapped in a swamp that refused to yield no matter how desperately he struggled and only worsened with time.
“This is an age in need of a hero.”
Jang Seokyun tossed the words out as though they were a lighthearted joke. But they were his desperate, sincere wish.
“Whatever sort of entity you may be, if you can reduce the number of Trials on the soil of the Republic of Korea by even one….”
Jang Seokyun held the folder out to me.
“I will lend you my full support.”
“I will do my best.”
I answered respectfully as I accepted the folder.
The deal was made.
In his capacity as Director of the Trial Response Agency, Jang Seokyun issued an order.
“Effective immediately, a Special Mission Team under my direct command will be formed around Han Goyo. Its term will be one month. Its personnel will consist of Han Goyo and every Team Leader from the Field Response Teams, with Samra assigned in a support role.”
Samra gave a precise salute at Jang Seokyun’s assignment order.
I felt dazed. I hadn’t expected them to send me into Trials alone, but I never imagined they would form an entirely separate Special Mission Team.
And with the Field Response Team Leaders plus Samra as support, it was an elite team made up of the Trial Response Agency’s finest.
“As for Han Goyo’s status….”
Only then did I open the folder I had received.
“He will be a Recruit.”
Inside was a Trial Response Agency Recruit contract bearing the Director’s official seal.
“While serving as a Recruit, you will reside within the Trial Response Agency and remain under its protection.”
With a kindly smile, Jang Seokyun said,
“I look forward to working with you, Recruit Han.”
And just like that, I became a Trial Response Agency Recruit for one month.
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I stood before a mirror, awkwardly fidgeting with my sleeve.
The deep-blue uniform with silver embellishments had a sleek appearance.
The full ensemble originally included a hat and gloves, but unless they were attending an official function, everyone usually wore only the uniform itself, so I followed their example.
To think I would ever wear a Trial Response Agency uniform….
The reality where Trials existed and the fact that I had become a Trial Response Agency Recruit were equally difficult to believe.
After becoming a Recruit for one month, I had fallen asleep the previous night in the quarantine facility masquerading as my assigned quarters.
It was a studio apartment with its own bathroom, perfectly adequate for one person.
Exhaustion had plunged me into a deep sleep. When I awoke, it was morning, and after eating the meal served on a cafeteria tray, I changed into the uniform in the wardrobe.
Now I was waiting for someone to collect me.
Everything felt slightly dreamlike. I had been staring into the mirror for quite some time when a knock drew my gaze away.
The metal door opened. The moment I saw who appeared, I hurriedly bowed.
“Good morning, sir.”
“Yees, Goyo. I’m Kwak Hanmuk.”
After pulling open the door, Kwak Hanmuk followed my example and bowed a full ninety degrees. Receiving an equally formal greeting without warning flustered me.
“You can be casual with me. I’m younger than you as well, so please speak informally.”
“Really? Then you can call me Hyung too.”
This time, he made me uncomfortable in an entirely different way.
“Should I call you by a nickname so we look closer? Was it Albam?”
It’s Gunbam….
“Please just call me Goyo.”
Being called Albam or Gunbam in real life seemed embarrassing, so I made the quiet request.
“Maybe it’s because you’re tall. That uniform suits you.”
“Thank you.”
“Hmm, you look more normal than I expected. Don’t you think, Captain Mo?”
At that, Mo Haein slowly emerged from behind Kwak Hanmuk.
She had arrived with him, but Kwak Hanmuk’s large frame had blocked her from sight.
“Good morning, Captain.”
When I bowed as I had to Kwak Hanmuk, Mo Haein remained silent for a moment.
Since our last encounter had ended badly, I was a little nervous.
‘I showed her someone’s head exploding, after all.’
After looking at me with an inscrutable gaze, she gave a short nod.
“I look forward to working with you for the next month, Recruit.”
Only then did the tension I hadn’t realized had entered my shoulders ease.
I smiled faintly and replied, “Likewise.”
The two of them led me toward the Special Mission Team’s office.
It was located not far from my quarters.
Throughout the short walk, the gazes pouring in from every direction stung.
I wanted to look around the Trial Response Agency building if the opportunity arose, but it seemed I would need to stay quietly shut in my room for a while.
The Special Mission Team’s office had been prepared in a single day and was still somewhat disorganized.
Boxes they hadn’t finished sorting were stacked inside, while a large round table stood off to one side.
The lounge, however, had been stocked with every possible amenity.
A massage chair, a cot, a sofa, and even gaming systems.
Along with expensive-looking refreshments, there was also a refrigerator and an espresso machine.
Yet the things that should have been here were nowhere to be seen.
There wasn’t a meeting room, conference projector, office computer, or desk in sight.
As I tried to guess why, I saw an android emerge from the lounge carrying a tray of refreshments and coffee and understood.
Ah, Samra.
With a supercomputer handling all the administrative work, the arrangement boldly declared that field personnel would focus exclusively on operations in the field.
‘Everyone can handle their personal duties in their own Team Leader offices anyway.’
It was possible only because this extravagant team had Samra himself serving as support.
I stared at Samra with greedy eyes for a moment. Setting the tray on the round table, he greeted me.
“Welcome, Mr. Han Goyo.”
There were four cups of coffee, including one for the android. The machine built with futuristic technology remained perfectly fine even when liquid entered its body.
Kwak Hanmuk and Mo Haein looked dumbfounded at the sight of Samra bringing coffee and refreshments. Kwak Hanmuk asked gravely,
“Samra…. Are you sick? No, wait, what should I call it? Have you been hacked?”
“I am functioning normally. Furthermore, current Earth technology is incapable of hacking me.”
Drinking iced coffee like a human, Samra projected a screen into the air in place of a projector.
“The Special Mission Team meeting will now begin.”
He ignored Kwak Hanmuk rustling around as he added sugar to his coffee and began the briefing.
“The first Trial we will enter is .”
The Special Mission Team’s first mission was a zombie game.