Humanity Protection Company

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The day after submitting his report on the incident, Lee Yeonwoo found himself in a hotel room. Despite having nothing left to do but relax, he wore an irritated expression as he clutched his phone.

"Yeonwoo, investigator? This is the director of the Logistics Innovation Center. I was wondering if we could borrow the spatial expansion bag for research purposes-"

"No!" Yeonwoo snapped, hanging up abruptly.

No sooner had he done so than the phone vibrated again. He answered with an expression that suggested he was about to lose his composure entirely.

"Yes, Lee Yeon-"

"This is the Admiral Research Team that contacted you earlier! Please don\'t hang up. Just reconsider once more! If the dice roll turns out well-"

"Look, I have to start work again tomorrow," Yeonwoo interrupted. "Leave my break alone, will you?"

The other party tried to say more, but Yeonwoo hung up with a shudder and turned off his phone entirely.

\'What\'s with all these calls?\'

Throughout his break, calls had poured in non-stop from various research institutes and departments. The requests were so fervent that he was grateful the rainwater hadn\'t been discovered.

He tossed the hot phone aside, landing it on the soft bed.

Yeonwoo paced around the spacious room to cool off before flopping onto the bed. His phone was useless, he didn\'t feel like watching TV, and he had no desire to use the computer.

The TV kept broadcasting news about the Reptilian incident, even claiming the Blue House terror attack and the blue flowers and lightning snake were Reptilian attacks.

The computer situation was similar. The internet was ablaze, and the company messenger was flooded with endless requests for experiment cooperation.

\'What should I do? It\'s too early for a nap.\'

Yeonwoo lay still, blankly staring at the ceiling.

\'With no phone or computer, there\'s nothing to do. Have I always had so few hobbies?\'

But he didn\'t feel like doing anything - it was cold outside, and he didn\'t want to lift a finger.

\'Isn\'t there a decent hobby?\'

As Yeonwoo closed his eyes and pondered what to do, time passed.

A visitor arrived. It was Mark Jung.

"Why did you turn off your phone?" Mark Jung grumbled as he entered through the door Yeonwoo opened.

Yeonwoo wore a sullen expression.

"Because calls kept coming asking to borrow the bag and dice."

"Ah. The researchers."

Mark Jung\'s expression turned awkward as he took off his padding. Apparently, information about the bag and dice had spread to researchers in related fields.

Even if each person called just once, adding them all up....

"I\'ll block contact for now, saying you\'re on a mission," Mark Jung offered.

"That would be great. Right now I literally can\'t use my phone."

Yeonwoo\'s expression brightened. He\'d almost started hearing phantom phone rings.

Mark Jung rolled his eyes. Several thoughts flashed through his mind.

\'It would be good if he participated in experiments. No, we might just blow up research institutes or departments. That won\'t do.\'

He reached a conclusion.

"You don\'t plan on participating in experiments, right? I\'ll block all experiment requests too. Permanently."

"Yes, yes. But why did you come to see me?" Yeonwoo asked.

It was good enough to stop the annoying calls, but more important was why Mark Jung had come.

While Yeonwoo perched on the bed, Mark Jung took out a laptop from his bag. Rubbing his hands together to warm them from the cold, he said, "Your next assignment has been decided, so I came to give you the basic information."

"Is it dangerous?"

Yeonwoo wore a serious expression as he subtly moved to where he could see the laptop.

Click, click, the sound of mouse clicks continued before a document opened. Under a green emblem of a tree extending its branches upward, it read "Green Association Introduction."

"Green Association? Never heard of it," Yeonwoo commented.

"It\'s not dangerous. They\'re a friendly group, and not ones to cause big trouble," Mark Jung assured him.

Mark Jung scrolled through the document. "Before I explain the assignment, I\'ll first explain what kind of group they are."

A picture of three slightly overlapping circles appeared on the screen.

Yeonwoo silently waited for Mark Jung\'s explanation. Whatever the job, every piece of information was important.

"The Green Association is a group haphazardly mixing three types of people. Environmentalists, plant alchemists, and the Green Sect," Mark Jung explained calmly.

He continued, detailing each group:

Environmentalists: Environmental activists working to protect the environment and prevent destruction using anomalies.

Plant alchemists: Alchemists who research plant-type anomalies, claiming plants that bloom and bear fruit with only water, sunlight and soil are the essence of alchemy.

Green Sect: Religious people who claim plants are gods, and animals who would all die without plants should serve and be slaves to plants.

\'Wow. Every single one of them is someone I\'d hate to get involved with,\' Yeonwoo thought, clicking his tongue.

One wrong move and he\'d end up dead, a lab rat, or fertilizer.

His expression hardened. He was being deployed to deal with people like this.

"Are you sure it\'s not dangerous?" he asked again.

"Very likely. You just need to go as a company representative, say a few words, do a bit of investigation, and come back," Mark Jung replied.

Could it really be that simple? Yeonwoo\'s eyes wavered.

"What exactly is the job? You said they\'re a friendly group? Why do I need to go?"

"They\'ve apparently had a change of heart." Mark Jung pulled up a photo of a person with green-dyed hair wearing a devout expression while watering a weed patch.

"The leader of the Green Sect reported it. He said the alchemist faction and environmentalist faction have hatched a wicked plan."

"What kind of plan?"

Mark Jung furrowed his brow as if it was a headache.

He turned to face Yeonwoo directly. "The alchemist faction says they\'ll use war as fertilizer to sprout high-risk level trees, and the environmentalists say they\'ll kill more humans."

Whether it was the alchemists trying to grow dangerous trees or the environmentalists claiming population reduction was the path to environmental protection, both actions went against the company\'s intentions.

A war to reduce pollution, a war for humanity\'s sake nonetheless.

Having grasped the situation, Yeonwoo stroked his chin. "Then my job is..."

"Meet a few people from the Green Association and tell them not to do anything foolish. While you\'re at it, investigate what this tree is," Mark Jung explained.

Yeonwoo frowned. "How can that be an investigation? They\'ll have hidden it thoroughly."

Even the company and the Green Sect leader himself didn\'t seem to have accurate information. Yeonwoo wasn\'t confident he could find it either.

But Mark Jung nodded nonchalantly. "It\'s enough if you find even a clue or trace."

With that, Mark Jung closed the laptop. He had conveyed almost everything he needed to. Time to leave.

Mark Jung packed up his laptop and put on his padding. Lastly, he handed over a note and said, "The company will provide transportation. Just come down to the parking lot at this time on this day."

"Understood."

"Then I\'ll be going now. Rest up."

Mark Jung left. Alone in the quiet hotel room, Yeonwoo silently looked down at the note.

---

---

Mark Jung had left, but Yeonwoo\'s thoughts didn\'t stop. Rather, he lay on the bed, lost in contemplation.

This assignment and his own plans.

\'This job needs to fail. But how much should it fail?\'

The company\'s trust and assigned tasks were burdensome. So he planned to fail the task to gradually chip away at their expectations.

\'But I can\'t mess up too grandly.\'

His thoughts deepened. On the dark curtain of his closed eyes, various memories surfaced.

From the Human Qualification Exam to now.

He didn\'t want a big incident like the Reptilian boss. That would put himself in danger too. And Yeonwoo did have some loyalty to the company.

Thanks to being scouted by the company, hadn\'t he abandoned his civil service exam life and become a proper company employee? He didn\'t want to deliberately harm the company.

Yeonwoo stuck his hands in his pockets, pointlessly crumpling the note as he continued his train of thought, then soon opened his eyes.

"Let\'s do it moderately," he decided.

He didn\'t even need anything you could call a plan.

As Mark Jung said, he\'d go convey the company\'s intentions, half-ass the tree investigation, and fail. Simple.

Yeonwoo forgot his boredom and rested comfortably while preparing for the mission.

---

---

The day of work arrived.

After boarding the company-prepared car, Yeonwoo glanced at the driver. A burly agent-like figure in a suit and sunglasses.

\'Is this person from headquarters too? Or from the Korean branch?\'

As he looked on with mild curiosity, the agent spoke in a low voice. "I\'ll take you to the destination."

"Yes. Where is it exactly?"

"The Korean branch of the Green Association. Three leaders are waiting."

At those words, Yeonwoo let out a sigh of relief.

\'If it\'s the Korean branch, I can relax.\'

There was no way the tree the alchemist faction was hiding would be openly kept in a place like this. They must have hidden it in some secret location.

It was an easy job in many ways. Easy to both carry out and fail the assignment.

The car drove for quite a while before arriving at the Korean branch of the Green Association.

A parking lot with only dirt, no asphalt.

"I\'ll wait in the parking lot. Please go ahead," the driver said.

"Alright."

Yeonwoo got out of the car and took a deep breath.

It was a wide plain. Fields and paddies stretched out in all directions, and farmers were busily tending to strange crops inside randomly scattered greenhouses.

A pastoral, peaceful atmosphere.

The people who came out to greet Yeonwoo also had a gentle air about them.

"Welcome. This is the Korean branch of the Green Association. I\'m Kim Podo of the Green Sect," said a person with green-dyed permed hair wearing work pants as he extended a hand. It was covered in dirt, likely from working just moments ago.

"Yeonwoo, special investigator from the Humanity Protection Company. And the others...?" Yeonwoo shook hands while looking at the other two people.

A researcher-like person covered in dirt smiled. "James Park, plant alchemist. See that tree with cats growing on it? That\'s a cat tree I modified."

"Uh... yes." Following James Park\'s finger, Yeonwoo saw a tree that really did have cats growing on it.

There was something grotesque about it.

Lastly, a college student-like woman spoke with a slightly trembling voice, avoiding eye contact. "I\'m Lee Chaerin, environmentalist."

"Yes. So all three of you represent the Green Association-" Yeonwoo began.

"No. We each represent one of the three factions," Kim Podo corrected.

Yeonwoo was about to gape, but mindful of being in front of people, he forced his mouth shut.

\'Is this a normal group? Something, something seems very off.\'

A dizzying feeling from the first meeting.

Just then, Kim Podo clapped his hands. "Welcome! We\'ve all been hoping to talk with the company. Come, let\'s go inside."

Yeonwoo gathered his wits and followed them into a thatched-roof house.

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