Chapter 11

"Yes."

"Ah, again. You should have received a basic weapon for now, but after going to the field a few times, you'll get a sense of what weapon suits you best. When that happens, apply for it at the research lab right away. For example... I carry this length of sword because it's comfortable for me."

Soram unsheathed his sword from his back to show it. The sword was of an ambiguous length, neither quite a long sword nor a short sword.

As Tae-un was responding that he understood, the office door swung open.

"Oh."

The person who opened the door and entered was a student with her hair tied back, wearing glasses and a school uniform. Soram raised his hand in greeting.

"Hi, Ayoung. Did you leave school early?"

"I just got back. Today was the entrance ceremony, so it ended early... Hmm, ah, hello."

Ayoung awkwardly greeted Tae-un. Tae-un also nodded in response.

"Is this the new person who was coming?"

"Yeah. Come and sit."

Ayoung hung her backpack on the chair next to Soram and sat down. She showed an awkward shyness at the appearance of an unfamiliar person.

"Why did you comb your hair today, oppa? Because a new team member came?"

"On the first day of the month, the directors summon the chief hunters and nag about this and that. Ah, Han Tae-un ssi, have you seen Ayoung on TV before?"

"Yes. I've seen her active before."

Lee Ayoung. 19 years old, a third-year high school student. She was the youngest student hunter among the current 1st-grade hunters.

Not only was the youngest hunter in the country a petite female student, but she was also a famous figure thanks to her special ability that no one could help but be fond of. Like Soram, Ayoung had awakened at the age of 18 and had been active at the headquarters for a year. Beneath Ayoung's hand on the desk was a small notebook with English words written on it.

Soram, who had been looking around at the two, stood up from his seat.

"Then, to break the awkward atmosphere and since a new team member has arrived, shall we all introduce ourselves?"

"Yes!"

Ayoung happily agreed.

"I am Jin Soram, the team leader of the Flight Team and a chief hunter. I'm a slave to the Field Operations Bureau."

"If the Director, who sighs every time you sleep during work hours, hears you say that, he'll get an ulcer..."

Even as she reprimanded him, Ayoung showed a smile.

"This is Ayoung. Lee Ayoung, and as you can see, she's a high school student, so she's juggling her studies and work at the headquarters. The headquarters' policy is to minimize dispatches for minors until they become adults unless it's an urgent matter, but there are so many urgent matters... Anyway, she's working hard."

"I'm working hard. But So-, no, Chief Jin shields me well, so I work less than others."

"And Han Tae-un ssi. You're the same age as me, right? Your main feature is..."

Soram spread his palm and pointed at Tae-un's face.

"He's handsome. Various CF (Commercial Film) star hunters of the Field Operations Bureau, be on alert."

"Wow, fortunately, our images don't overlap. Applause."

The two clapped, and Tae-un still couldn't keep up with their energy like an isolated island. Soram finally clapped his palms together loudly.

"With this, the introduction of all Flight Team members is over. Please take care of us from now on."

"...?"

Tae-un's eyebrows twitched for the first time. He turned to look at Soram with a face that asked what he meant.

"Currently, the Flight Team consists of a total of three members, including Han Tae-un ssi. The only ones who meet the conditions for the Flight Team at the headquarters are me, Ayoung, the Director, and Han Tae-un ssi."

"..."

"That's why I told you earlier. If we separate from the Jump Team, the number decreases drastically."

Seeing Tae-un scanning the two with a dumbfounded expression on his stoic face, Soram laughed playfully. Ayoung also made a sympathetic expression while holding back her laughter.

An extremely rare flight ability user. Among the three team members, one was even a high school senior. This was the very reason why Soram had no choice but to be entangled with Han Tae-un in all his past lives.

"No wonder the headquarters was desperate to bring Han Tae-un ssi here."

"...Are other teams like this too?"

"No. Other teams have around 10 to 15 members? Oh no, you can't go to another team. We won't let you. Ayoung, lock the door."

"Got it."

Ayoung tore a page from her vocabulary notebook and threw it towards the door. Propelled with the strength of a 1st-grade hunter, the paper accurately pressed the lock button and fell. That was the first display of ability shown by the newly met teammate.

"..."

The Rift Phenomenon Management Headquarters was a place that made "hunter" the dream job of countless students nationwide and was still ranked first in the list of desired public institution jobs.

Tae-un began to feel like it was suddenly becoming a black company...

"Although we're grouped into the same team, most of the activities will be individual. Sending two or more 1st-grade hunters for a dispatch is a waste of manpower. You'll only move with your teammates during training or when a rift transforms into a dungeon. Even then, it's for relatively large-scale dungeons."

"I see..."

"Anyway, it will mostly be the two of us in the office. Ayoung comes from school only when there's an emergency call."

"Jumping out of the classroom window happens more often than you'd think."

"..."

Tae-un was at a loss for words again. Seeing his reaction, Soram had to suppress his laughter from bursting out. This was the first time he had seen Tae-un's expression change to this extent. Even so, only his eyebrows and bangs slightly lowered, and his eyes narrowed.

"Then, we've finished the office tour and team member introductions... We should go eat lunch now. Ayoung, what about you?"

"Oh, I want to go together too. I haven't had lunch either."

"Okay, let's go to the cafeteria. Han Tae-un ssi, have you been to the cafeteria?"

"I went there yesterday."

Tae-un stood up from his seat, following the atmosphere. Ayoung also prepared to leave, putting only her vocabulary notebook in her pocket.

As there was still an awkward air between them upon first meeting, Tae-un and Ayoung stood on either side of Soram, who was in the middle. Walking side by side, Soram deliberately slowed his pace by one step compared to the other two. Then, the appearance of his teammates, who had only been left in his last life's memories, came into view at once.

Ah.

It was sudden, but both of them were people he had seen three times.

And this was the first time they were all walking together like this.

Han Tae-un, Lee Ayoung. They were teammates to whom he couldn't even properly fulfill his role as a team leader in his past two lives. In the first life, he was swayed by his family, and in the second and third lives, he was immersed in his own arrogance, unable to look around him.

So this was what this team looked like.

It felt strange to realize that only now.

At the dining table, Ayoung sat across from Soram, who was in the middle, and Tae-un sat to his left. Ayoung chose oil pasta, Tae-un chose a seasoned galbi set, and lastly, Soram chose a spicy beef soup in a hot pot. He crumbled a whole bowl of rice into the thick red broth and ate it diligently.

"Oppa, despite your appearance, your eating habits are really like an ahjussi. Whenever I see what you eat, it's fish roe soup, chicken soup, spicy beef soup, stew."

"You'll understand when you get older too."

"You and Tae-un... This person are the same age. But look at the difference in menu choices."

Ayoung made an effort to include Tae-un in the conversation while glancing at him. However, the recipient of that consideration was the taciturn Han Tae-un, so he only glanced at their plates and said nothing. Soram inwardly shook his head and continued Ayoung's effort.

"Why? It's delicious. Han Tae-un ssi, do you not like spicy beef soup?"

Ayoung, you should ask Tae-un questions that end with a yes or no like this. And the answer to this will probably be yes...

"No. I can't eat ox blood."

"...Ah."

"Ga-eul unnie (Kim Ga-eul) also said that oppa's eating habits are strange."

It couldn't be helped. When it came to eating habits, the psychological taste played a bigger role than the physical taste. Soram, who had diligently tried pasta and burgers when he was young, had settled into the taste buds of a man in his 50s after living four lives. If he counted the repeated dates of his life, Soram's age would be around that.

But wait.

"It might be a prejudice, but Han Tae-un ssi, before coming here, you worked with older people, right? Didn't you often eat these kinds of dishes then?"

"They often took me to loach soup or hangover soup restaurants."

"See?"

"I ordered pork cutlet there."

"..."

Tae-un drew a clear line. It was as if his face had the words "Do you think everyone from the countryside likes hot pots?" written on it.

I see... Soram reflected on his thoughtlessness in his past lives while newly recording Tae-un's other information.

Jiiing—

A vibration sound was heard among the three people eating. Soram took out his cell phone from his pocket.

"It's Chief Chae. The team leader of Team 4. I'll be right back."

Soram answered, "This is Chief Jin Soram of Team 7," and stood up from his seat. Watching his back, Tae-un suddenly recalled the "It's Soram" he had said in a half-awake voice in the morning. Dressed in a suit instead of pajamas, he looked more refined.

And although it was an unavoidable situation since he was going to make a call... Only Ayoung and Tae-un, who had met for the first time today, were left at this table. A heavy silence flowed between the two.

"Han Tae-un... nim? That's right, isn't it? Uh, this is awkward."

"...Yes."

It was Ayoung who timidly spoke first. Tae-un also responded awkwardly.

"Don't be so formal. I'm like an intern in the Field Operations Bureau anyway, so you can treat me comfortably. And can I call you 'oppa' like I do with Soram oppa?"

"Yes, no, okay."

"Then... I'll do that."

Just as it was about to become quiet again, surprisingly, it was Tae-un who opened his mouth.

"You can speak casually to me too, like you do with Chief Jin."

"Hmm, then I'll mix it up and gradually become more casual. It feels a bit awkward to speak informally to an adult right after meeting them."

Ayoung answered sharply and twirled the pasta onto her fork again. She seemed unfamiliar with him because he was a new person, but she didn't appear uncomfortable dining with an older person. It was probably because it was a familiar occurrence, as no one here would be younger than Ayoung.

After taking a big bite of the pasta, Ayoung looked at Tae-un again.

"...You know, Soram oppa causes a lot of accidents. When it's just the two of you, please take good care of him."