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“Heya, rookie. I’d like to exchange pleasantries, but this is really important. You think you heard Kim Soleum?”
“Yes.”
“Okay. Tell us what happened.”
By this point, Gyeol has talked to Agent Choi plenty of times. When he decided to join the bureau, Agent Bronze and Agent Choi practically took him under his wing; everyone thinks Gyeol will join Black Tortoise Team 1. Gyeol wouldn’t mind; they’re friendly, reliable, and he’s seen firsthand how they handle disasters.
He’s not sure if he wants to join Black Tortoise team or the Blue Dragon team yet, but that’s a different story.
Agent Choi is the type that Gyeol is familiar with. His highschool friends are like that— unserious and seemingly carefree troublemakers who were the most dependable when needed.
Still, he’s almost forgotten how Agent Choi gets when he’s serious. It instantly reminds him of that day in Sekwang. A reassuring smile and fierce eyes. It’s a bit scary, like going through an assessment.
It’s really reassuring, because it feels like you’ll be believed.
Of course, it feels more like an assessment now. Gyeol has had some training, after all; now, he should be able to give better explanations than he was before. Explain what happened, and concisely summarize all the main points.
…He doesn't think he’s able to explain very ‘concisely’. The two agents don’t seem to mind, though. At the end of his explanation, Agent Bronze even clasps his hand in Gyeol’s shoulder, as if telling him that he did a good job.
It’s seriously relieving.
Across the table, Choi leans back in his chair with a considering expression. “Well…it does sound like Grapes. He talks well when he’s scared, and tends to act on his own when he doesn’t need to. Should I be surprised he didn’t outright destroy the disaster?”
Choi sighs, running his hand through his hair. He looks…tired. He glances at Jaekwan—who looks back with a hard to read expression—, stares at Gyeol, and says with forced levity, “But, Grapes shouldn’t be in this world.”
“…What?”
“That’s right. Kim Soleum’s home is in another world, and he went back home. He shouldn’t be here.”
Gyeol looks at Jaekwan for confirmation, and Jaekwan simply nods. Like it’s true.
Like there’s another world.
No. It shouldn’t be so surprising. Gyeol has taken lots of calls by now and has heard of even more disasters. He’s talked to a few people from another world. He knows other worlds exist.
But, to think that transfer student would be from one of them…
“…Am I allowed to know that information?”
“Haha! Well, who’s to say? Not even the higher-ups know about this. In the Bureau, only around 5 people know? Plus one, now.”
“…”
“But you’re not one to go around blabbing information to others, are you, Gyeol-ah?”
“…No. But if it’s confidential information, why tell me?”
“‘Cause it’s need-to-know. Would you believe us if we say that ‘Kim Soleum went home, and definitely can’t be here?’ Of course not. So long as he’s in this world, he could somehow be pulled into any disaster. You need all the information available if you want to make a good choice.” Choi’s smile somehow feels bitter. “So, I’m giving you the information you need. Kim Soleum shouldn’t be in this world.”
Gyeol swallows. He’s used to knowing things he shouldn’t know, and he can trust himself to not say things he shouldn’t. Going through a long term Darkness would do that to anyone, right?
The weight of someone else’s secret feels different. He knows something that less than ten other Bureau agent knows, despite being a part-timer who only takes calls. Shouldn’t there be more qualified people who know this information? But if the agents trust him… Yeah, they must have reason to.
So. Kim Soleum isn’t in this world.
“Then, I guess the caller wasn’t him?”
Surprisingly, Choi doesn’t respond immediately. He gives Gyeol a long look.
“…No. The possibility is never zero.”
“But he shouldn’t even be in this world, right? It’s possible I heard wrong.”
“Hey, don’t brush aside your instincts that easily, rookie. Let’s think about it. You’ve been working for months now. By this point, it’s not like you pick up every call thinking it could be him, right?”
“Right.”
“So, you weren’t expecting it to be him. You haven’t heard his voice in a long time, but you’ve never heard someone and thought it was him before. With these circumstances, if your instinct thinks it sounded like Kim Soleum, then it probably had good reason to. In this line of work, you have to be able to trust your gut.”
“What if I’m wrong?”
“Then we waste some time.” Choi smiles. “It’s better than the alternative, isn’t it? Even if it’s a waste of time, it’s better to check and be wrong than to be right and regret not doing anything. Jaekwan and I have some vacation time saved up. What better moment to use them then now?”
“Wait— You’re really going to go? We don’t know how much time it would take, though. Couldn’t we end up on wild goose chase because of my wrong instinct?”
“Well~ To be honest, there’s some things that make it sound like Soleum, too. Not enough to confirm, of course, but nothing that would say it’s not him.”
“Huh? Like what?”
“For example, he talks a lot when trying to convince someone? And everything he says sounds reasonable in the moment, but later on you’ll think ‘wait, I didn’t have to do that.’ I bet you were also somewhat panicked, wondering how much info you can give to a potentially contaminated civilian?”
“…Yes. According to the handbook—and experience from the calls I’ve taken— it’s best to only tell scared civilians what to do. Too much information can overwhelm them. It’s the first time a civilian asked about the details of the disaster.”
“See? Of course, Grapes isn’t the only person who would do such a thing, but such civilians are rare, especially at the time of call. The moment they call is when they’re most desperate, after all.”
“I understand.”
“And then~ He acts scared, but his actions contradicts his words. You told him to hide, and it seems like, instead, he somehow escaped on his own? Of course, it could be influence from the disaster, but Grapes is somehow who takes the more difficult route if he thinks the benefits could be worth it. Right, Jaekwan-ie?”
“Agent Choi, you’re not the one who should say that.”
“Haha. Anyway, this is the third point. I’m not sure if you noticed, but there was some manipulation going on, too. He acted like he would do something dangerous, so you gave him more information to prevent it. But, later on, didn’t he already know about the light? He already knew what not to do, and didn’t need to ask you.”
“…That’s true.”
“You also said that the civilian-nim’s speaking style was similar to Grapes’, and I trust your judgment on that. And, that way of talking too much and giving hurried well wishes at the end— is that something an agent would do? Like trying to quickly reassure or help a civilian while on a time crunch. Of course, Grapes also had a habit of doing things like that.”
“…I see.”
“Surprised?”
“A little bit, yes. There’s more than I expected.”
“I told you to trust your gut, and it’s true. Especially in situations where you don’t have time, it’s important to trust your instinct. But it’s also important to think quickly, and, when you have time, consider all the information available. If I had reason to think it’s not Grapes, then I would let you know.” Choi raps the table with his knuckles and grins. “Don’t worry, Gyeol-ah. If we end up on a wild goose chase, it won’t because of a wrong instinct from you. I thought about it carefully and I also think there’s a possibility. Okay?”
“Yes, Agent Choi.”
Choi looks at Jaekwan and smirks. He leans back in his chair, and lightens the atmosphere. “So if we end up finding nothing, Jaekwan-ie can scold both of us for wasting his time~ It’s as scary if you’re not the only one being scolded, promise!”
“Agent Choi, I haven’t said if I’ll go, yet.”
“Oh? You won’t?”
“…You really think it’s Agent Grapes?”
“Hey, didn’t I say I can’t know for sure? But. A polite-speaking caller who acts scared but is calmer than he should be, who wheedles for as much information as he can get, who changes how he talks according to the situation, who goes and does his own thing instead of obediently waiting, and who throws out some last-minute well wishes before disappearing. Doesn’t that sound like our Grapes?”
“…Yes.” Jaekwan’s expression is tense, like he doesn’t like the answer. “But if he’s here, why is he back in our world? Didn’t you say the wish worked?”
“…Well. Who knows. I thought it did, and maybe it didn’t. The best case scenario is that it’s not Grapes at all.” Choi stands up with a sigh and stretches his back. “At any rate, the ones who sent him home should be the ones to make sure the mission was carried out all the way. It’d be remiss of our duties as agents to not check, right?
“Mm.”
“Haha! It’ll be just like old times. Just you and me of Black Tortoise Team 1, taking on disasters together and conducting unofficial investigations. Doesn’t it make you sentimental, Jaekwan-ie?”
“Wouldn’t it be Blue Dragon team, since this is a rescue mission?”
“Eyyy, semantics. What’s important are the people, yeah?” Choi looks at Gyeol and smiles. “Thanks for the info, junior. We’ll do our best to confirm the caller.”
“…Wait. I want to go, too.”
“Lee Gyeol.”
“What? I’m involved. I’m the primary witness. And I want to help the transfer student, too. Bring me along.”
Seeing the stubbornness, Jaekwan’s eyebrows furrow. “Gyeol-ssi, you haven’t gone into a disaster before. You’ve only done theoretical training.”
“So? Sunbae-nim, I’ll listen well. I survived a disaster by myself for weeks. I helped end the Sekwang High School Disaster, too. I can do it.”
“…”
“More importantly, Gyeol-ie, you haven’t interacted with those Daydream agents before, have you?”
“…What?”
“Yeah. This Disaster is known to be used by that cult of a company. Surviving a Disaster is one thing, but this time there’s a good chance that real, ‘sane’, uncontaminated humans will go after you and try to kill you.”
Gyeol swallows. Of course he’s heard a lot about Daydream and their feud with the Bureau, but “They would kill me even if I don’t do anything to them?”
“Yeah? They’re the type who thinks murder is the fastest way to deal with an obstacle. By virtue of being in the Bureau, you and I? We’re obstacles.” Choi pauses. “It’s the same if we were civilians, too. Just taking off Bureau clothing won’t do anything.”
“…”
“I know you’ve seen a lot of bad things, Gyeol-ah, but humans can be really scary, too. You might see the worst of humanity.”
Gyeol takes a deep breath. “I want to go anyway.”
“Hmm. Okay! That’s how it is! We’ll have to do some paperwork so Gyeol-ie can come with us without missing any responsibilities.”
“Agent Choi.”
“What, Jaekwan-ie? If we don’t let him, isn’t it possible that he’ll follow us, or do something on his own? It’s better to work together.”
“You…”
“It’s easier for me, too, if I can keep track of all the variables. And, hey, doesn’t this mean there’s another person to help out if my goblin fire runs out?”
“…”
“So it’s decided! You, me, Gyeol-ie, let’s go on a mission to track down an old, beloved agent of ours.”
“Agent Choi.”
“Yes, Jaekwan-ie?”
“Even if you use your vacation days for this, you should tell someone. Agent Haegeum, for example.”
“…Ah, do I have to? She’ll probably say that the odds are unlikely, and scold me for taking risks. If I’m going to tell anyone, can’t I at least tell Team Leader?”
“You should tell both of them.”
“Hahhh, I know, I know. I will. I mean, if sometimes happens to us, we need people who know enough to be back-up, right?”
“…”
“C’mon, Jaekwan-ie! I’ll always be your senior when it comes to experience, you know? This agent knows how to rely on people.” Choi pats Jaekwan’s shoulder. “Besides, even if we don’t find Grapes-ie— if I’m taking you and Gyeol on a trip, don’t I have to be cautious? I won’t let anything happen to my precious juniors!”