Humanity Protection Company

TL/Editor: raei

Status: 5/week mon-fri

Illustrations: posted in discord

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After finishing his request, Yeonwoo had no reason to stay at headquarters. He left in a hurry, almost like he was running away, and returned to the investigation team's office.

A few days later, when Yeonwoo opened his eyes in the morning, he let out a deep sigh of disappointment.

"They're not even going to contain me..."

His voice, filled with regret, echoed in the messy room.

It was a cramped space with only a hastily laid out blanket, and various items like water bottles and gas burners scattered about. This was the spare room in the investigation team's building, where Yeonwoo stayed.

Yeonwoo slowly got up, scratching his head as he looked around the room.

Honestly, he didn't have any complaints. He could eat and live without problems, and the team leader, who had signed the contract, could defend the place as the landowner.

But after reaching Level 6 with his survival instinct, he'd developed some ambition.

'I think it'd be okay to get a proper house now.'

No matter what accident might happen, it should be fine to move into any house in an uninhabited area, right? He didn't need to worry about the safety of the house or other factors anymore.

He only needed to consider the people who might get caught up in accidents and his own preferences.

For example, a shelter in a remote location. A company shelter that could produce its own energy and be self-sufficient in food even if disaster struck.

'Should I just ask the company? They might give me one since I'm Level 6, right?'

Lost in these idle thoughts, Yeonwoo suddenly jumped up.

Faint light from the rising sun shone through the window. It was time to quickly wash up and go to the office before the team leader arrived.

Yeonwoo rummaged through the clutter around him, found his toiletries, and moved leisurely.

And so another day began.

------

In the lit office.

Yeonwoo clicked his mouse. The screen was filled with documents related to the Human Qualification Exam. These were recently updated documents, and their number and responses were unusual.

Researchers were arguing fiercely, almost at each other's throats, and people from other departments were also chiming in, adding fuel to the fire.

Are humans certified by the Human Qualification Exam really human? This single topic had sparked a small fire that was spreading.

'It seems to be because of the document I uploaded.'

The report and proposal Yeonwoo had submitted earlier. It all started because of the contamination resistance of the Human Qualification Certificate.

Yeonwoo awkwardly moved his mouse around, then quickly read the report with the highest number of views.

To summarize, it showed experimental results that the 'human' granted by the Human Qualification Certificate continued to function as human even when contaminated by other anomalies.

The problem was whether that human was truly human.

All sorts of rebuttals were attached.

Does that mean animals that pass the test are real humans? Humans granted by anomalies aren't human. Isn't it just a transformation of existence? Aren't we creating a 'human' anomaly?

Even the Extinction Representative and departments in charge of ethics and morality joined in, turning it into a complete mess.

We should treat those who pass as contaminated. What are the criteria for being human? Are cloned humans human? And so on.

Yeonwoo's eyes spun as he read the long and confusing text.

His mind was overloaded.

"What's all this about..."

The researchers were already using complex and difficult terms, and at some point, the sentences became so long that he couldn't understand them even when he read them.

Feeling dizzy, Yeonwoo quickly closed the window. As the default desktop appeared, the confusion subsided.

'So, it has a resistance effect, right?'

That's all that mattered. It meant you could maintain your sense of self, didn't it?

Yeonwoo began counting on his fingers. He associated each finger with one of his anomalies.

Rain, survival instinct, dice, Human Qualification Certificate.

'The rain has no potential. The survival instinct is Level 6. The dice is retreating in the face of the boundary.'

Yeonwoo's expression darkened.

The moment his survival instinct reached Level 6, the dice's contamination slowly began to decrease. The sense of possibility and probability he could feel when he concentrated was gradually fading.

The survival instinct had judged the dice's contamination as a danger. It was preventing the loss of self.

It might be moving towards a future where he wouldn't face dangers in the first place, or perhaps it meant that if he became contaminated by the dice, even the survival instinct couldn't prevent the loss of self.

That's why he needed the Human Qualification Certificate.

To prevent the survival instinct from judging the dice's contamination as dangerous.

Because Yeonwoo had developed a small ambition. The desire to raise the dice to Level 6 as well.

"It's a shame to give up on the dice."

Survival was about preparation and readiness. The more tools you could handle, the better, and the dice was a versatile tool.

Even if thrown into extreme situations, he could return immediately, and he could create food and water even if there were none.

Yeonwoo's thoughts deepened.

'The Human Qualification Certificate. Does it have the potential to resist the dice's contamination?'

The company hadn't shown much interest in the Human Qualification Exam until now. Although it had the potential for mass destruction, they could handle it well enough.

The certificate, a byproduct, wasn't dangerous, so it hadn't been researched much.

In the end, Yeonwoo would have to experiment himself.

Yeonwoo took out the Human Qualification Certificate from his bag. When he turned the leather cover of the passport-like certificate, he saw his ID photo and text certifying that he was human.

Looking down at the ID photo, Yeonwoo muttered softly.

"I think I need to raise its level."

How could he do that?

Yeonwoo thought of his survival instinct. The power he had crossed the boundary with himself. If he referred to that example...

'The survival instinct was stimulated in the face of danger. The dice contaminated itself because of its chaotic nature.'

If he acted according to the essence of the anomaly, if he acted in a way that understood and became one with that anomaly, wouldn't there be some change?

Yeonwoo came up with an idea.

'Will the Human Qualification Certificate be strengthened if I act human-like?'

It was an idea worth trying. Act human-like while observing the certificate.

Of course, the standard of 'human-like' was a problem, but Yeonwoo didn't worry about it. Since he was human, he just needed to act like himself.

As Yeonwoo shook off his concerns and was about to break into a refreshed smile:

Clunk, the door opened and the team leader walked in.

"Oh. Yeonwoo."

"Hello."

Yeonwoo bowed his head in greeting, and the team leader looked around with uneasy eyes.

The team leader had heard the news too. That when Yeonwoo went, headquarters was smashed to pieces. Even the usually unflappable team leader was now anxious.

After standing at the doorway for a while, scanning the surroundings, the team leader cleared his throat when Yeonwoo gave him a strange look and said:

"Right. Ji-yoo's taking a few days off on vacation. And Jae-min will start coming to work from tomorrow."

Choi Jae-min, the parent detector. Yeonwoo asked curiously:

"He hasn't graduated yet?"

"They did it last week, apparently. He doesn't really need training either. Just show him some paperwork while Ji-yoo's resting."

Seems like they did it earlier than expected. Yeonwoo nodded. It wasn't difficult or dangerous work anyway.

"Alright."

------

"Hello! I'm Investigator Choi Jae-min!"

Choi Jae-min, who had arrived earlier than the work start time, greeted them energetically. Dressed in a new-smelling casual suit, Jae-min looked a bit awkward.

'Mom told me to leave early since it's my first official day at work, so I came early, but...'

The team leader and Yeonwoo had apparently come much earlier, already sipping from coffee cups they'd mostly emptied.

The team leader chuckled and looked Jae-min up and down.

"You bought some nice clothes. They suit you."

"I didn't want to buy them, but Mom insisted."

Jae-min scratched his cheek. Having worked as an apprentice investigator a few times during his student days, he knew. Investigators didn't wear suits and such.

They wore comfortable clothes for investigation work, and since they were field workers, it was similar even in the office.

The team leader nodded.

"Other people's weddings... No."

It seemed odd for someone who had just graduated to wear a suit to someone's wedding. Both Jae-min and Yeonwoo's faces showed questions about whether it wasn't fine to just dress neatly.

The team leader quickly corrected his words.

"You need at least one suit for funerals."

"Right? Mom said I should get a suit tailored now that I'm a working adult. ...Is Ji-yoo not here?"

"Oh, Ji-yoo's on vacation."

At that point, the team leader jerked his chin towards Yeonwoo.

"Learn the paperwork from Yeonwoo for a few days."

Yeonwoo raised his hand slightly and waved. Jae-min smiled and sat down at Yoo Ji-yoo's desk.

"What should I learn first?"

"Um..."

Yeonwoo stared into space for a moment, then recalled the first document he had written. He said:

"How to write an incident report?"

He still couldn't write reports well, and other documents were clumsy too, but he was confident about incident reports. It was probably the best official document he had written.

The team leader, who had briefly turned his attention away, turned back with an incredulous look.

"No, why are you teaching that first?"

"Well, it's okay to write reports sloppily, isn't it?"

Yeonwoo looked away and offered a reasonable excuse.

In formal reports, they don't complain as long as the information about the encountered anomaly is included. Incident reports are more important.

Yeonwoo said seriously:

"To survive, you might often need to do things that require writing incident reports."

You might need to set fire to a mountain, blow up a department, or lose a confidential weapon. To get through those situations smoothly, you need to write good incident reports.

The team leader waved his hand.

"Teach him how to write reports first. He's been to the field a few times, but he's never written a report."

"Reports are..."

He usually writes them sloppily.

Yeonwoo nodded with difficulty.

"You can write reports roughly. They don't complain as long as all the information about the encountered anomaly is included."

Jae-min took out a notebook and pencil and started taking notes as if he were in class. The team leader opened and closed his mouth a few times, his head aching, then let out a deep sigh and gave up.

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