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After finishing my conversation with the Branch Chief, I locked eyes with Jang Chae Yeon and Yu Da On, who were standing behind me.

“Shall we go then?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay.”

The two nodded, and just as they were about to follow me, the Branch Chief reached out and stopped them.

“You two can’t come.”

“Huh…?”

“It’s dangerous, and you probably won’t be able to endure it.”

At the Branch Chief’s words, Jang Chae Yeon opened her mouth to say something but ended up closing it again.

“…Understood.”

Did Jang Chae Yeon just speak formally?

She nodded, and Yu Da On glanced at the Branch Chief before focusing her gaze back on me, as if only my intentions mattered to her.

“…Da On, then please stay here with Chae Yeon. Song A Rin will probably be here too, so either join up or at least check if she has arrived.”

“…Okay.”

Yu Da On also nodded and left a message for Song A Rin.

<Situation confirmed. Please join Jang Chae Yeon and Yu Da On after checking the location.>

<Arriving soon.>

After receiving her brief reply, I tucked my smartphone into my pocket.

Since I told them to join us, they should arrive safely.

“Are you ready?”

The Branch Chief looked at me, and I nodded in response.

“Yes, all set.”

“Great, then let’s go.”

The Branch Chief started walking in front.

“I’ll be back. If anything happens…”

“I’ll go before anything happens.”

Yu Da On replied before I could finish and waved her hand.

“Take care.”

With that, I began to follow the Branch Chief, leaving the two behind.

“Seems like you get along well?”

“We’re just colleagues.”

“Oh, then let’s go with that.”

The Branch Chief said playfully, smiling.

“Branch Chief, where are we heading?”

“Oh, did I forget to mention that?”

Muttering that she often forgets lately, the Branch Chief pressed the elevator button.

“Don’t you ever think it’s strange?”

“What do you mean?”

“Honestly, isn’t there an unusually high number of containment objects?”

“…”

With a cheerful ding, the elevator stopped, and the Branch Chief stepped inside.

“Get in.”

“…”

I followed her into the elevator.

She muttered something, then pressed the emergency button with her thumb.

Soon, the elevator began to ascend.

“When I see Kim Jae Heon, it reminds me of my younger days.”

“…”

Even if one tried to view her positively, she appeared to be in her late twenties, making such statements inevitably raise suspicions about her.

“I met containment objects almost daily, just like the current Jae Heon.”

“You too, Branch Chief?”

“Of course. It’s just like the weight of a crown.”

“I never particularly wished for such a crown, though.”

“That’s true.”

“Were you part of the Isolation Team, Branch Chief?”

“Oh my, didn’t I mention? I was in the General Affairs Team.”

She nodded gently while smiling sweetly.

“Anyway, that’s all like a formal introduction.”

“A formal introduction?”

“Yes.”

She nodded again, the cheerful chime ringing out as the elevator stopped.

A small room appeared before us.

It was hard to believe it was the view upon stepping out of the elevator; such a small room.

Inside the room, a single twig was respectfully housed within a glass case.

There didn’t seem to be anything particularly special about it.

“Kim Jae Heon.”

“Yes?”

“You might have heard something about this.”

The Branch Chief turned to look at me.

“The Management Agency never loses.”

“…I’ve heard that.”

It was something a man wearing sunglasses had told me long ago.

“The reason is that the Management Agency is stronger than all containment objects.”

Saying this, the Branch Chief placed her hand on the glass case.

With a creak, the glass case opened.

“The Management Agency has never lost.”

Simultaneously, information about the twig appeared before my eyes.

[Name: A Singular Rule]

[Age: -]

[Specialty: One-time Use]

[Talent: Proof of Nothingness]

[Background: Ancient people pointed to the olive twig that fell from the sky and said, ‘A miracle once.’]

[Weakness: Breaks upon use.]

Proof of Nothingness. And a miracle once.

But it’s a one-time thing, isn’t it?

“This is it.”

“…But it can only be used once, right?”

“Oh? You can see that far?”

The Branch Chief looked at me with one eye opened, shrugged her shoulders, and spoke.

“There are numerous means within the Management Agency. Otherwise, humanity would have perished long ago, facing countless disasters.”

“…”

“By the way, I’m one of those means.”

She chuckled leisurely.

Means. Does that mean that the open underground door Yu Da On and I saw was one of those means?

It probably is. Just how many means does the Management Agency have?

I gazed at the twig.

I had a rough idea of what kind of object it was. However,

“I don’t think you’ll need my assistance carrying this twig.”

Where exactly would my help be needed to solve a problem while carrying this twig?

“Oh, you will need it.”

“I will?”

“There are things that can only be done with you, Kim Jae Heon.”

Holding the twig in one hand, the Branch Chief pressed the elevator button once more.

“Get in.”

“…”

I stepped into the elevator after her, and once again, it began to descend slowly.

We reached the first floor again.

It was still a chaotic scene, like a veritable hell. No, it was more raucous than before.

“Branch Chief! The electric line has been compromised!”

A man with a strange machine attached to his leg rolled over and looked at the Branch Chief.

Without a word, she took out the twig, and the man nodded after seeing it before rolling away again.

Where are the Human Resources Team members?

I scanned the surroundings but couldn’t spot Yu Da On, Jang Chae Yeon, and Song A Rin.

They might be somewhere else—

“Hey!”

At the sound of a booming voice, I turned to find Song A Rin hurriedly walking towards me.

“You, where have you been…”

“Hello, Song A Rin.”

“…”

Song A Rin’s steps halted in response to the Branch Chief’s words as she was approaching me.

“…Hello, Branch Chief.”

“Indeed. Have you been well?”

“…Yes, thanks to you.”

Then she continued speaking, looking at me.

“The white-haired and black-haired ones rushed out front in a hurry. They said the workforce was running short.”

“And what about you, Song A Rin?”

“I was going to go too, but then I ran into you.”

Song A Rin’s gaze shifted to the twig held by the Branch Chief.

She slightly furrowed her brows and opened her mouth.

“…I’ll go with you.”

“Hmm…”

The Branch Chief seemed to ponder for a moment with her chin resting on her hand before shaking her head.

“No, you can’t.”

“…”

“As you know well… this won’t do you any good.”

“…”

Song A Rin bit her lip while looking at me, then lowered her gaze before nodding again.

“Understood. If the Branch Chief says so, then I suppose that settles it.”

“Good thinking.”

“…”

The Branch Chief smiled, and as Song A Rin gazed at her smile, she turned her head away from us.

“When this is over, let’s gather at the office.”

“Sure.”

Song A Rin stared at me, her lips moving as if she wanted to say something.

But without saying anything, she simply sighed and turned toward the main entrance.

“…Where are we supposed to go now?”

“Right here.”

The Branch Chief turned to look at me as she responded, glancing toward the loud noise coming from the front.

“From now on, you need to help me.”

“…”

Smiling sweetly, she walked past the people and began to move forward.

Her footsteps headed toward the corridor where the Security Team was located on the first floor.

That was completely the opposite direction of the main entrance.

“Where are we headed right now?”

“To the back door.”

The Branch Chief answered lightly as she walked toward the back door.

It didn’t take long to reach the back door.

There were still people by the back door, and as soon as they saw her, they bowed their heads and cleared a path.

Among them was a man whose face had been half burned.

Isolation Team members, I see.

“Kim Jae Heon.”

“Yes?”

-SWooosh!

Outside the transparent door, the rain continued to fall relentlessly.

Gazing outside, the Branch Chief called me.

“What do you see in the sky?”

At her words, I casually looked up at the sky.

It was a massive eye.

An eye resembling a human’s, or perhaps a camera lens.

Water was streaming down from that eye.

It looked like tears.

A translucent window floated before my eyes.

[Name: -]

[Age: -]

[Specialty: -]

[Talent: Rain]

[Background: Nature hasn’t always been friendly to mankind. Even now, it isn’t.]

[Weakness: It’s time to recall the source of this matter.]

Each aspect was shrouded in mystery.

And at the same time, a throbbing pain began in my temples.

“That’s… what…”

“It seems you can see it.”

Muttering in a calm voice, the Branch Chief stepped outside.

Her body began to soak in the water.

“No, Branch Chief…!”

Before I could reach out to stop her, she was already fully drenched, and,

“Now, from this moment onward, Kim Jae Heon, you must keep your eyes on that eye.”

As if it were nothing, she continued speaking to me.

“…How is that even…”

Could it be that it’s okay to touch the water?

And as if reading my thoughts, she smiled and shook her head.

“No. It’s only possible because it’s me.”

-Bang!

Was it because I noticed the door breaking down? A rush of people came running from behind her.

“Branch Chief! Behind!”

“Oh my.”

Upon hearing my words, she turned around, smiled, then clenched her fists and pulled her arms back.

“Be careful!”

Even Jang Chae Yeon could barely hold her ground against these monsters in a head-on confrontation.

“Hello!”

“Hello!”

“HEEELLOOO!!!”

“Yes, hello.”

As the three monsters charged toward her, she breezily pulled her fists back and then swung them forward.

-KABLOOM!

With the sound of the air being ripped apart, the three monsters literally ‘exploded.’

A translucent window rose above her head.

[Name: Lee Ha Neul]

[Age: -]

[Specialty: Indestructible]

[Talent: Indestructible]

[Background: If asked who is the strongest ‘human’ among countless candidates in the domestic branch of the Management Agency, everyone would name just one person.]

[Weakness: -]

-SWooosh…

Blood mixes with the rain as it falls.

“Thanks for your concern, but…”

As the falling blood dyed her brown hair a bright red, the Branch Chief smiled and looked at me.

“I told you it wouldn’t be a good idea to look recklessly.”