Chapter 28

It was just as he turned his body and came out into the hallway. His wrist pager made a different sound than usual - beep, beep, beep. This was a call from the Reconnaissance Bureau.

"This is Han Tae-un."

"Ah, Chief Han? There's been a mix-up with the dispatch location again."

"... I see."

"If you're going to change the person being dispatched, you should let us know."

"I'm sorry."

After apologizing obediently, a sound similar to laughter was heard from the other end of the receiver. Then he made a joke.

"Ah, well, it's fine. Actually, everyone knows that it's not you, but Jin Soram who's causing a ruckus again."

"Pardon?"

"That guy doesn't even deserve his grade, you know?"

It was the same voice that had given him various instructions through the pager after Tae-un came to the headquarters. Feeling something was off, Tae-un furrowed his brows. The person's tone was completely different from when Ayoung said Soram was lazing around, or when Ga-eul called him a lunatic.

"Are you close with Chief Jin?"

"Huh? No, why would I be."

"You called him by name, Jin Soram, to someone with the title of chief."

"... Chief Han."

"I'll hang up first. I have no reason to converse with you in that manner about my superior."

"..."

No matter what Soram was doing, there was no reason to hear such words. Tae-un, who had cut off the call, searched for Soram's whereabouts again. Was he already at the next dispatch site? He first stood in front of the elevator.

The elevator that had just arrived opened. Director Park Jae-seon was inside.

"Ah, Tae-un, it's been a while. Going on a dispatch?"

And at that moment, Tae-un remembered something.

"Director nim."

"Hmm?"

"Is there a way for me to know the dispatch location in advance, before the dispatch signal comes?"

"Ah, well... The list of reported locations is displayed for team leader-level and above before the dispatch assignment."

"... Could you please let me know my next dispatch location in advance?"

"That's not too difficult, but, could it be that Soram is playing some kind of trick on you?"

"..."

"Ugh, that kid really..."

The director rubbed his forehead as if it was aching, then looked at Tae-un's face. And he chuckled inwardly. He always thought he was gloomy, but this one can't handle being played either. Of course, Soram would slack off shamelessly, making a nuisance of himself, even if one brought a sage next to him.

Since the troublemaker was obvious, there was no reason not to take Tae-un's side. Director Park Jae-seon provided Tae-un with director-level information that was faster than what was appearing for Soram.

Tae-un gave a slight bow and immediately got on the elevator. Seeing the elevator going up to the rooftop instead of down to the 1st floor, the director burst out laughing.

He had been the team leader of the Flight Team until five years ago, when Soram became a legal adult, and then handed over the team leader position. During that time, Soram spent a considerable amount of time in the team alone until Ayoung came. He suddenly thought it would have been better if Han Tae-un had joined a little earlier.

It took Tae-un less than 15 minutes to fly to the standby dispatch location.

The location was a cafe that had been expanded to the 2nd floor of the lobby, made high and luxurious, and the exact location was right next to the chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

When Tae-un arrived at the cafe where the customers had evacuated, he was panting lightly. The cafe owner who had been waiting for the hunter outside thought the situation was that urgent.

Thanks to rushing here, this time there was a rift about two feet long that had not been eliminated, instead of the annoying post-it. The problem was that it extended all the way into the gaps between the glass decorations on the chandelier.

"Wait! Hunter, please be very careful. That, ugh. I borrowed it from Europe after taking out a lot of loans, you see. Each of those lines is like my lifeline. So, very gently and carefully, just remove the rift."

"I'll do my best. Please step outside."

"No, no, no. Why are you telling me to go out? I'll watch from here. Whether the glass breaks and I die, or a mutant appears and I die, it's the same."

It was good that he arrived before Soram, but it still didn't seem like an easy problem to solve. Tae-un floated his body to approach the rift.

That's when the owner's "Ah, that, could that be..." exclamation was heard, and the 2nd floor window of the cafe opened.

"Itsuchachachacha."

"..."

"..."

Soram's eyes rolled under the cap.

"... The snail is retreating again..."

He quietly closed the window without making a sound. Phew. Tae-un let out a short sigh and went to the window. He stood with his arms crossed, looking down at Soram.

"Come in."

"What? How did you get here first? The dispatch signal hasn't even gone off yet!"

"The director helped me."

"As expected, a cowardly lackey of power..."

"The one who used the team leader's power first is someone else."

Tae-un stared heavily at Soram. With his large build, he exuded an intimidating presence, but Soram puffed out his chest brazenly like a squirrel occupying the highest branch.

"I used my own power, and Han Tae-un ssi did the trick of being carried on a tiger's back!"

"How can a tiger carry a bear? It would be a fox that put the tiger behind it."

"It's all the same."

Hmph. Soram grumbled, but since he had been caught at the scene, he didn't do anything more. Instead, he sat down obediently on the window frame. Tae-un left Soram and approached the rift.

It was a small rift, and the chandelier was next to it, making it difficult to handle. Moreover, the cafe owner was down below with fiery eyes.

After observing, Tae-un drew his sword and tapped the end of it on the rift. The rift didn't even vibrate, but the glass decorations of the chandelier rattled loudly.

"I told you to be careful, you idiot!"

A roar immediately burst out from below. Tae-un narrowed one eye and then opened it again. Honestly, it was uncertain whether he could remove this without breaking the chandelier.

Clang!

At that moment, a sword flew in front of Tae-un's eyes and was stuck in the rift. The rift trembled with a rumbling sound, and then narrowed slightly. On the handle of the dagger, which was the length of a palm were two cute wing post-it notes.

"Aaaaaah! What are you doing!!!"

As a few pieces of glass fell from the chandelier, the cafe owner screamed. When Tae-un quickly turned around, Soram shrugged his shoulders.

"No one can remove this without damage. Even the strong Han Tae-un ssi would be too much."

Soram moved his hand from where he was. The embedded sword scraped down the rift. A few more glass decorations broke along with it.

"Anyway, if the business suffers damage from the rift, some compensation will come out. I understand the story, but I can't accept the impossible stubbornness."

The sword made another long scratch on the rift. Although it looked like a mess, the sword moved much more delicately than Tae-un's movements. However, the damage to the chandelier was unavoidable.

The rift closed, and the sword that had been stuck there returned to Soram's hand.

"Since the snail has taken care of this rift too, let's go back quickly."

Soram jumped down to the 1st floor with a thud. The cafe owner, standing in front of the fallen shards, glared at Soram like an enemy.

"What are you? Throwing a sword around like that, what if..."

"I didn't throw it. I aimed it precisely."

"Without even apologizing, what are you trying to do? Playing a prank?"

"It's not a situation that requires an apology. If I didn't do that, I couldn't have removed the rift."

"Why the hell did you do it that way? No, fuck, I was crazy to call the hunters. From now on, just watch me report this."

"Then if a dungeon breaks out, it'll be the cafe that disappears without a trace, not the chandelier..."

"Who are you cursing? Pay up. You have a lot of money, right? Take responsibility and handle it properly. I'm recording our conversation right now."

"You can apply for rift damage compensation online. Then we'll be on our way."

Soram calmly led Tae-un out of the cafe. As the two of them walked away, the cafe owner's curses became increasingly severe. Soram didn't even blink an eye.

Normally, those curses should have been directed at Tae-un. If Tae-un had handled it, he would have probably broken the chandelier even more, as Soram said. But Tae-un had a much heavier expression than just being cursed at in front of his face.

On the way back to the headquarters, they stopped by a cafe next to the Rift Phenomenon Management Headquarters. He wanted to buy coffee as a thank-you for the snail's help on several occasions, but Soram had already paid the bill for two.

When they arrived at the office, Soram rushed inside, pulled out the chair for Tae-un to sit, and sat down in his own seat. Tae-un put down the coffee he had bought and sat down with narrowed eyes.

In the meantime, Soram had pushed all the snacks on the table to Tae-un's desk. A small mountain of snacks had formed on Tae-un's desk.

"Stop that."

"Huh? What?"

Soram blinked his eyes, pretending not to know.

"I don't know why you're suddenly doing this, but you don't have to take care of me."

"Why? Isn't it helpful?"

"No, it's not that. But I can't always be the one receiving your help."

The help was appreciated, but even if it resulted in the cafe owner's curses and complaints for breaking the chandelier, that was Tae-un's own responsibility.

However, looking at Tae-un, Soram's face showed that his taciturn persuasion didn't resonate with him at all.

"Are you grateful when I help you?"

"Of course."

"Then I haven't helped you enough yet. It should be to the point where you're disgusted and tell me to stop."

"... Have I made some kind of mistake?"

Tae-un asked in a cautious voice.

"No, you haven't made any mistakes."

He wouldn't even think of it as a mistake. Soram smiled brightly again.