I’ll Retire After Saving the World

Chapter 67: Transfer Procedures (4)

TL: SHW

One wall of the playroom was a large mirror. Of course, the researchers didn’t just put up the mirror without any thought. The other side was actually a transparent glass window, allowing a clear view of the playroom.

No. 3 looked beyond the mirror. All he could see was his own reflection.

Is Mom watching me from the other side?

Since a new research director was supposed to arrive today, she might not be there due to the tour. Normally, a researcher would have come into the playroom by now, but no one was visible.

“Oppa. Oppa.”

“Huh? Why, what’s up?”

A small girl tugged at No. 3’s sleeve, holding out a block.

“Please take this out.”

“Okay. Let me see it.”

Although he separated the tightly joined blocks for her, the girl didn’t leave and continued to cling to No. 3.

She whispered as if she were sharing a grand secret.

“You know, oppa. I heard it’s your birthday today?”

“Where did you hear that?”

“The researcher said it earlier when I was getting a shot.”

“Really?”

Everyone would find out anyway when the cake was brought out during snack time… but honestly, he didn’t want them to know. He didn’t want his birthday to be celebrated. With each passing birthday, it only reminded him of how much longer he’d been stuck in this place.

Last year on his birthday, he ate a cream cake topped with lots of strawberries here too.

He would eat the same cake today.

And probably again next year.

“Yeah. So…”

But the girl, unaware of No. 3’s thoughts, spoke in an innocent voice.

“It’s a birthday present for you, oppa!”

She handed him something she had been hiding behind her back.

It wasn’t much, considering how carefully she had hidden it—just two cookies wrapped in paper. They were from yesterday’s snack time.

“I didn’t eat them yesterday because I wanted to give them to you, Oppa.”

But in a place like this, that’s about all a child could manage to give. It was rather touching that she hadn’t eaten the cookies she liked and saved them for him instead.

Seeing the look of anticipation on her face, he couldn’t bring himself to say he didn’t want to celebrate his birthday.

No. 3 looked around. There was no researcher in the playroom.

So, No. 3 whispered in the girl’s ear.

“Thank you, So-hee. I’ll enjoy them.”

No. 8, whose name hadn’t been called in a long time, smiled brightly.

No. 3 shared one of the cookies that No. 8 had brought with her on the spot. When he broke off half of the cookie and gave it to her, No. 8 quickly ate it without hesitation, as if she had secretly wanted it. When he wiped away the cookie crumbs from her mouth, No. 8 burst into laughter.

“Oppa, you can eat the other one all by yourself!”

While the other children in the research lab also tended to rely on No. 3 because he was older, No. 8 was especially attached to him. Did she mention she had an older brother before? The more memories of the outside world surfaced, the harder things got, so No. 3 deliberately avoided asking her about it in detail.

Still, watching the little girl who was so fond of him brought back memories of when he used to pester his mom for a younger sister.

Ding-dong.

A small alarm interrupted his thoughts.

“The researcher must be coming. Be good, okay? You understand?”

“Yep!”

No. 8 picked up her blocks and returned to her friend.

Since there was a sterilization room, it would take a little longer for them to enter the playroom. No. 3 glanced at the door with a worried expression.

The morning injection time had long since passed. They had already eaten lunch. If it were nap time, it would have been announced over the speaker, not by a personal visit.

If he hadn’t heard that a new research director was coming, he would have thought someone was being disposed of.

The door opened. Before the visitors even appeared, he could hear murmuring voices.

“The atmosphere here is nice. The children’s faces are bright. I like it. I really like it.”

“I just checked on Bada and it was terrible. I was worried because everything over there had to be disposed of.”

A strange man’s and woman’s voices.

“Haha. It would be disappointing if you compared us to Bada.”

And then, his mother’s voice followed.

Are those two the new arrivals? Which one of them is the research director?

The atmosphere of the research lab changes depending on the personality of the director. Naturally, everyone has to be on edge. This is far more important than a birthday.

How was the first director No. 3 met when he came here? He wasn’t well-liked, even among the researchers. And the children hated him even more, needless to say.

Especially No. 1, who was rebellious, was often called in by the director. Every time she came back, she would be crying.

Fortunately, that director didn’t stay long.

The next lab director who came was often too busy to see, but he cared a lot about the children. It was during his time that snack time and nap time were introduced. When he learned that many of the children had nightmares and woke up crying at night, he even gave them soft plush toys as gifts.

What kind of person would the new director be?

His mom, who was showing them around the facility… the face of the researcher was the first to appear. A man and woman with graying hair followed behind her.

No. 3, who was trying to figure out who the new director was, didn’t actually focus on those two people. Instead, his attention was drawn to the person trailing at the very back.

A long-necked black t-shirt. Thick black pants. Black military boots. Black leather gloves.

And a long-beaked crow mask.

The Executioner. Or the Watcher.

The man who killed the first director.

“Uuh…”

A small white hand stretched out from his embrace, grabbing onto the beak of the crow mask.

A young boy. He looked to be around the same age as So-hee, No. 8.

The boy rubbed his eyes and then yawned widely.

“Mom? Where are we?”

The woman who was inspecting the research lab patted the boy’s head.

“We’re at the research lab. Didn’t Dad explain it to you yesterday?”

“Um…”

“Did you forget already?”

The man beside her clicked his tongue in disbelief.

“We told you, you’ll be staying here for a while.”

“Um… Oh! Legos! Can I go play?”

“Aren’t you hungry? You didn’t eat lunch and just kept sleeping.”

“No, I’m fine.”

“While Mom and Dad take a look around, go play for a bit. Now… Hey.”

The woman scanned the playroom and gestured to No. 3.

No. 3 flinched and approached the woman.

“Are you the oldest here? What’s your number?”

“No. 3… Ma’am.”

“Could you watch our son for a moment? We won’t be long.”

“…Yes.”

Even if his mother wasn’t glaring at him from the side, he would have answered obediently.

Whether it was the director or a researcher, who would dare to upset someone with an Executioner at their side?

While the two new arrivals inspected the facility where the children stayed, No. 3 cautiously approached the boy. The Executioner was watching the boy from near the door. The boy didn’t seem to mind at all, as he had already made friends with the other kids and was laughing.

“Hi.”

“Huh? Hi, hyung.”

“I’m No. 3. What’s your name?”

“My name?”

The boy’s eyes widened, and then he curled his lips into a smile.

“Hyung, you know you’re not supposed to ask for names here. Should I tell Mom?”

The innocent smile struck No. 3 like a block of ice.

“Just kidding. But… Oh? Is that a cookie? I want it!”

“Huh? Wa, wait.”

“If you give it to me, I won’t tell Mom.”

Before No. 3 could respond, the boy snatched the cookie from his hand. It was the cookie that So-hee had given him.

The boy took a big bite of the cookie and said,

“Forget the name, I think… what did Dad say? I think he called me No. 12. Yeah, I’m No. 12. Or maybe not, whatever.”

“……”

No. 12 didn’t stay in the playroom.

Around the time when they had finished lunch and snack time had rolled around, No. 12 would casually stroll into the playroom, play for a bit, and then leave again around dinner time. The man in the crow mask would follow closely behind him, like a shadow.

Even when Nos. 13, 14, and 15 appeared, No. 12’s routine didn’t change. Initially, the other children were wary of No. 12, but when he started bringing in loads of toys and snacks from outside, they were more frustrated by not being able to get closer to him.

No. 3 was different.

“Hyung.”

“…Yeah?”

“Those snacks look tasty.”

No. 3 could only offer his snacks to No. 12.

Life in the research lab didn’t change much. The new director kept the existing system intact. Occasionally, there were new medications to take, but that had happened before too.

When did things start to change?

Right. It was back then.

When the new lab director died, and a bunch of children were brought in.

When the former lab director’s husband, who became the new lab director, suddenly died too.

When No. 12 started living inside rather than outside.

Everything changed from that moment.

* * *

Kang Tae-woo slowly sat up in bed.

Now there were no more morning pills to take as soon as he woke up, and no injections after he showered.

But there were still times when his left arm throbbed. The arm where he used to get the injections.

He graduated from the research lab two years ago.

There were talks of his disposal, but perhaps because he had behaved well, he was transferred to another orphanage instead. It was only much later that he thought maybe the researcher ma’am had intervened on his behalf. By then, he no longer mistook that person for his mother, even by accident.

‘Her face is fading from memory.’

Rather, So-hee felt more like family.

He was so shocked when he saw So-hee at the orphanage. He had thought he would never see her again after leaving the lab. So, he had given her all the lemon-flavored candies he had saved up without eating.

‘Tae-woo oppa!!’

She had grown too big to be easily lifted like before, but she was still his cute little sister. A beautiful little sister who smiled and handed him a paper flower she made at school. His sister.

The sister he can no longer see.

Knock, knock.

“Tae-woo?”

“Yes, Teacher.”

“Are you awake? Come out when you’re ready. We need to talk for a bit.”

Woo Hwi-jae.

The director had been so pleased when he received a registration number from the National New Heart and Spirit Association.

…That director is dead now too.

What will happen to him now? Being a minor is such a hassle for this reason. He planned to just quietly follow the rules at the orphanage until he became an adult. It would be difficult to completely distance himself from the research lab due to his deep connections, but it seemed possible to live quietly with his sister.

Or maybe, he thought, it might be better to work hard and return to the lab. That way, he could help find his other siblings who had been scattered to different orphanages.

That’s what he had thought.

“Tae-woo?”

Beside the bed was a crude white box. He had received it when he registered as an Awakened. If he had stayed at the orphanage, would he have been able to escape with So-hee? Or would he have…

“Ahem. Yes. I’ll be out soon.”

“Alright.”

Woo Hwi-jae and Kim Chae-min , who prevented him from seeing the orphanage, looked at him with pitiful expressions. He wasn’t naive enough not to understand what that look meant.

The Dungeon Break that had happened just a few days ago was already forgotten. It had long since been pushed off the front page of the news. It’s a world where no one cares if a few orphans die.

He changed clothes and left the room. It was the first time he had learned that there are hospital rooms with bedrooms attached. Woo Hwi-jae had brought him here, saying this place had the best security. He didn’t really understand why security was needed, but he nodded along because they said so.

In the hospital room’s living area, besides Woo Hwi-jae and Kim Chae-min, there was also a woman he had never seen before.

However, Kang Tae-woo’s eyes weren’t focused on the three people in the room. Instead, they were drawn to the man standing by the window, which offered a view of the city. The man, dressed in hospital pajamas, slowly turned his body.

His hair was carelessly swept back, and a patchy beard covered his face.

It was a face that had been on TV constantly since last week.

No, even if it hadn’t been, Tae-woo would have recognized him immediately.

“Kang Tae-woo, I’m Hong Seok-young. Do you happen to know who I am?”

“Just act as you normally would.”

“I am acting as I normally do.”

“You’ve lowered your voice way too much.”

“Shouldn’t you show some respect for the principal?”

“Respect usually comes from the paycheck.”

Woo Hwi-jae scoffed and approached.

“Tae-woo, I know you’re going through a tough time right now, but this is really important.”

“What?”

Woo Hwi-jae gently placed a hand on Tae-woo’s shoulder, guiding him.

“This is Hunter Hong Seok-young. But today, he’s not here as a Hunter; he’s here as a principal.”

“…A principal?”

“I told you I’m a teacher at Pilot High School, didn’t I?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know what kind of school Pilot High is?”

“…It’s a place where they train Hunters.”

“That’s right. You’re well-informed.”

Woo Hwi-jae looked him in the eye and smiled kindly.

“So, what do you think? Would you like to attend our school?”