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Illustrations: None.

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Yeonwoo stood awkwardly, unbuttoning a couple of buttons on his shirt as he looked around the lab.

A gentle breeze from the air conditioning circulated in the lab.

It looked like a storm had hit, with documents strewn all over the floor. Papers covered in complex terms, graphs, and tables were crumpled and trampled, leaving footprints behind.

The people standing there were as disheveled as the lab itself.

Thud—

Seoyeon collapsed onto the floor. She held her tie and suit jacket, crumpled in one hand, much like Yeonwoo. Her once neatly styled hair was now sticking out in all directions, indicating she had worn her clothes inside out.

It wasn’t just Seoyeon. Dr. Kim had taken off his suit jacket, Kang Yeol had removed his military jacket, and the researcher was holding his rolled-up white coat.

Seoyeon spoke in a tone of admiration.

“Wow. It’s over.”

She looked up at the containment team member with shining eyes.

“Yes, it’s over. It’s safe now.”

There was only one member of the containment team.

He wore a black helmet covered with small cameras, and the enhanced reality display on the visor flickered blue and red.

His body was completely covered in thick black protective gear, leaving no skin exposed.

In his gloved hands, he held a small diary and a taser gun, which had already been used as it no longer emitted blue sparks.

It was clear who the taser had been used on.

“Ugh! Argh! Agh!”

Park Sangjoon lay on the documents, trembling as the blue snake wrapped around him.

He had been affected by the anomaly, desperately trying to keep reading the book. He was foaming at the mouth.

“Retrieve!”

The containment team member bent down and pressed the taser gun to Park Sangjoon\'s forehead. The blue snake swiftly returned to the taser gun. Sparks flew from the taser.

“Ugh…”

Park Sangjoon went limp, staring blankly at the sparks.

He seemed to have been given a sedative, unable to move even a finger. He drooled, breathing heavily.

Two guards lifted Park Sangjoon. Wearing sunglasses, they flanked him and dragged him out of the lab.

“We’ll take him to the infirmary.”

“Go ahead.”

Swish—

Dr. Kim draped his crumpled suit jacket over his shoulders. Then, he extended his hand to the containment team member.

“Let me see that.”

“Which one?”

“The anomaly. It’s been subdued, so I want to show it to the new recruits.”

Without a word, the containment team member handed over the small diary.

Dr. Kim propped it up so the new recruits could see it. The sentence on the cover was visible to all.

“39 Reasons I Should Die…”

Seoyeon read it aloud as if entranced. Kang Yeol flinched, looked up at the ceiling, and moved towards the door. Yeonwoo instinctively closed his eyes, then opened them again.

\'They said it’s subdued.\'

But his body couldn’t help but twitch as if having a seizure.

Rustle—

The sound of a page turning was clear and distinct, causing Yeonwoo to step back involuntarily. His foot hit the cabinet. The sweat he had poured out earlier dried, sending a chill crawling up his skin.

Dr. Kim, who had turned the cover, spoke.

“Read it. It’s safe now.”

After a brief breath, he read the handwritten sentences aloud. A question mark formed in his mind.

[It was a hot summer night. Then suddenly, a ninja appeared! “Domo. Nice to meet you. Ninja desu.”]

“Ninja?”

The word, which had been circulating in his mind, slipped out of his mouth. The fear and surprise were gone. Seoyeon and Kang Yeol, with puzzled expressions, turned their gaze to Dr. Kim.

Dr. Kim continued in an explanatory tone.

“Not all anomalies are hostile to humans. Some anomalies, like this ‘And then suddenly a ninja!’ actually help the company.”

“This sentence is an anomaly?”

Kang Yeol asked, his face showing his confusion. Dr. Kim nodded slightly.

"You can think of it as an information lifeform. It moves from medium to medium—whether text, images, or videos—and alters their content. With this characteristic, it can neutralize other cultural disasters."

"That\'s fascinating."

Seoyeon\'s eyes sparkled as she read the sentences repeatedly. Yeonwoo, reading the bizarre text about the ninja, suddenly had a thought.

\'Anomalies that harm humans. Anomalies that help humans. Then what about people?\'

Would all humans agree with the company\'s ideology? Wouldn\'t there be people with opposing views? What about those whose interests conflict with the company\'s?

A possibility flashed through his mind, causing goosebumps to rise on his skin. Yeonwoo looked at Dr. Kim with trembling eyes and asked,

"Is this company the only group dealing with these anomalies?"

"You\'re sharp. I like that. I\'ve been observing you, and you\'re excellent. That keen perception and survival instinct are the most important qualities in an employee."

"...So there are others."

The implication was simple. The company wasn\'t just dealing with anomalies.

Yeonwoo\'s face hardened. As Dr. Kim continued speaking, his expression grew darker.

"The world you knew already had all sorts of people. A world with anomalies adds even more complexity. There are groups that want to show anomalies like this diary to many people...."

Dr. Kim\'s voice carried a hint of irritation. It was brief.

Dr. Kim\'s eyes returned to the new employees. He looked at Seoyeon, Kang Yeol, and Yeonwoo one by one and said,

"Humanity Protection Company. Protect humanity from anomalies. That includes threats from groups related to anomalies. Considering that, what you experienced today might be nothing. So let me ask you now."

His voice was serious and heavy. The new recruits focused and awaited Dr. Kim\'s question.

Dr. Kim asked,

"Do you want to join the company?"

"Yes, I will!"

It was Seoyeon. She responded immediately, nodding eagerly like a boy who had just seen a robot.

Kang Yeol answered briefly, like a soldier.

"I will join."

Dr. Kim\'s gaze turned to Yeonwoo. He closed his eyes, lost in thought. This was a crossroads that would determine the rest of his life.

‘I don’t really care about ideology or beliefs.’

He simply weighed the risks and benefits.

‘If I join.’

The benefits were straightforward: a job. Employment.

The risks were also simple: anomalies. Hostile groups.

‘If I don’t join.’

His livelihood was at risk. Preparing to take the civil service exam again would mean losing a significant amount of time already spent on this company. He had already forgotten some of the material.

He could live a relatively safe life, not connected to anomalies, but...

‘The dangers of anomalies and abnormal phenomena have always been there, even if I didn’t know about them. Think about the Human Qualification Exam. It’s better to know and deal with them. Besides, workplace accidents and hazards exist everywhere, not just in this company.’

Yeonwoo opened his eyes.

In front of the shattered window stood Dr. Kim and the researcher, with the containment team member waiting nearby. The diary had been returned to him, and it was closed in his hand.

‘Today’s incident was actually manageable. Even though there was an accident, everyone from the company survived.’

It\'s dangerous, but not excessively so. It\'s a doable job.

His mind was made up.

"If you\'re having trouble deciding, take your time. The training isn\'t over yet. Just let us know by the last day of training—"

"No. I will join too."

Yeonwoo said. Dr. Kim smiled.

“Good. New employees with experience in anomalies can always pull their weight. I’m glad the three of you are joining.”

Clap!

Dr. Kim clapped his hands and left the lab. The new employees followed him, listening intently to his words.

“Today\'s remaining schedule will be canceled. You’ve experienced an unexpected situation firsthand, so there’s no need to learn anything more today. I’ll guide you to your accommodations. Take the rest of the time to rest.”

---

---

The dormitory was on the second floor of a two-story building.

It resembled a military barracks, with two empty eight-person rooms. Kang Yeol and Yeonwoo shared one room, and Seoyeon had the other to herself.

"You can unpack and rest here. You can wander around near this building, and for dinner... it\'s already past lunchtime. Go downstairs to the first floor for dinner at six."

After guiding the three new recruits to their dormitory, Dr. Kim turned around. Having roughly finished the orientation, it was time to return to his main duties.

He left the two-story building and went up to the third floor of the three-story building. In the middle of the third-floor hallway was the director\'s office.

Click—

Dr. Kim entered without knocking.

The director\'s office was empty. He walked slowly and sat in the chair labeled with the director\'s nameplate. When he leaned back, the soft chair sank deeply.

"The incident report will be written by the researcher, so I\'ll just write the new employee evaluations."

He tapped the mouse. The monitor lit up as the computer woke from sleep mode.

He opened the new employee evaluation document and placed his hand absentmindedly on the keyboard.

Knock, knock—

"Come in."

"Yes, Director. About Park Sangjoon—"

"Call me Dr. Kim. I don\'t like being called Director."

The medical staff member from the infirmary gulped before continuing.

"Yes, Dr. Kim. Park Sangjoon has regained consciousness and wants to go home. We administered more sedatives, but what should we do?"

"Administer the memory-erasing drug and send him off. Forcing someone to work who doesn\'t want to will only cause accidents."

Rattle, click—

Dr. Kim coldly erased Park Sangjoon\'s entry from the new employee evaluation. He deleted two more names: Han Changseong and Song Siwoo.

After muttering the two names to himself, Dr. Kim picked up the internal phone and gestured dismissively at the medical staff.

"That will be all. You may go."

"Yes!"

The medical staff hurried out. Dr. Kim dialed a number and started a call.

"Make sure the deaths of the two new employees are handled discreetly with the cooperation of the Korean branch. Both were promising civil servants, so there should be no suspicion."

The call ended, and he made another.

"Head of Security. What\'s the status of the Free Artists\' Association? There have been a lot of suspicious approaches lately. Oh, they\'re all just misguided civilians? Does that make sense? Understood, for now."

After several calls, the work was roughly finished.

Dr. Kim turned back to the monitor. The cursor was on Seoyeon\'s entry. After a moment, he typed out her evaluation.

He also determined her future role.

Seoyeon would go to the administrative office, Kang Yeol to the security office.

His hands, which had been moving smoothly, stopped when they reached Yeonwoo\'s entry. Unlike the other two, who would work at the Baekbeom Cultural Research Center, Yeonwoo was different.

"The Korean branch\'s anomaly investigation team wants to take him…."

Recognizing Yeonwoo\'s strong survival instincts and keen perception, the Korean branch had already decided to recruit him.

Although he was a promising talent, the research center, a mere subdivision under the Korean branch, had no say.

They could only finish his orientation and send him off.

"Indeed, he\'s more suited to the anomaly investigation team than a research center."

When an incident suspected to be caused by anomalies occurred, the anomaly investigation team was the first to respond.

It was no exaggeration to say that Yeonwoo, with his exceptional survival instincts, had already adapted to the department.