Novel En
Chapter 69
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
w
Chapter 69: Choice (1)
Back in the office.
Seung poured the freshly steeped tea with meticulous precision.
[Mmm, it smells wonderful.]
Harona, savoring the aroma, murmured with satisfaction.
Perhaps it was because they had successfully completed a difficult briefing.
Her every gesture—lifting the teacup with her pinky raised, blowing gently to cool it, and taking a delicate sip—reflected a sense of relief.
[Want to have some together?]
[...I’m fine, thank you.]
In contrast, Seung, holding the teapot, didn’t look particularly cheerful.
[Is something bothering you?]
Harona noticed Seung’s stiff expression only belatedly.
Now that she thought about it, ever since they had completed the briefing and received special instructions from the Director, he had been in this state.
It was a belated realization, but she couldn’t help it.
Harona wasn’t the type to always pay attention to her subordinates’ emotions, and Seung wasn’t one to reveal his feelings easily.
[It’s not that something’s bothering me, it’s just…]
Seung trailed off.
He thought he knew what he wanted to say before he opened his mouth, but it turned out he didn’t.
The difficult briefing was over.
So why was he so anxious, so weighed down?
Could it be…?
Was he worried?
Worried that “that person” might be traumatized?
No, that couldn’t be it.
Absolutely not.
As a manager, it would be improper to be affected by someone who was no more than a distant participant on Earth with no personal connection to him.
Shaking his head, Seung finally responded, albeit hesitantly.
[I just... feel a bit uneasy.]
[Isn’t that the same thing?]
[It’s not that I’m concerned about them. It’s just… Isn’t this mission too cruel?]
His words didn’t make much sense, but Harona seemed to accept them.
The “Choice” mission that the Director had personally ordered to be added.
The cruelest of all missions.
[I heard that everyone who’s faced a ‘Choice’ mission has ended up mentally broken.]
[True. Whether they succeed or fail, it doesn’t matter.]
[I can see why.]
Seung spoke with a face that looked utterly drained.
Even he, often described by his peers as “robotic” due to his lack of emotion, couldn’t shake the feeling that this mission went too far.
The reason was simple.
[They have to kill their comrades with their own hands…]
[And they have to choose who to save and who to sacrifice.]
Because the “Choice” mission required the participant to decide which of their comrades—those they had just fought alongside—would live and die.
[It’s too…]
[Too efficient, don’t you think?]
[...Excuse me?]
Seung froze as Harona clapped her hands together with a grin.
To him, the idea of weighing his comrades’ lives and making a choice was horrifying.
But clearly, his superior didn’t feel the same way.
[It shows their determination to achieve their goal. By seeing who they decide to save, you can tell if they have good judgment or not.]
[Good judgment…?]
The phrase didn’t seem fitting in this context, so Seung repeated it, puzzled.
Harona shrugged.
[They’ll calculate who’s more beneficial and useful to them, right? If they can do that, they’ll function properly when they join the company.]
Seung felt an urge to argue but swallowed it down.
He wasn’t foolish enough to directly challenge his superior, especially when he couldn’t even explain his own feelings.
Instead, he redirected the conversation.
[Who do you think the sacrifice will be?]
The potential victims of the “Choice.”
Usually, the targets were those the participant was most closely bonded with.
[It’ll likely be Kim Jieun, Choi Jaehyuk, Yoon Sola, or Kim Yura, the ones he’s always with.]
Seung made a logical prediction based on his observations so far.
But Harona immediately shut it down.
[It’s all of them.]
[What?]
[The entire group. They’re all sacrifices.]
[A-all of them?!]
Startled, Seung almost dropped the teapot but quickly caught it.
[Hey! Be careful!]
[I-I’m sorry, Harona!]
The lives of everyone were at stake?
He had thought the mission would involve putting a child on one side of the scale and a few others on the other, forcing a choice.
[No matter how cold-hearted he is, he’s just human. His mind will undoubtedly snap!]
[Well, you never know.]
[What do you mean, ‘you never know’?! And Harona! Didn’t you say the previous ‘Choice’ missions only involved three or four comrades at most?]
[The weight of the choice depends on the size of the reward. And the reward for this mission is already set, isn’t it?]
[Ah…]
The size of the reward.
Now it made sense.
This mission’s reward was twice the usual.
Moreover...
[The original evaluation for the participant, Lee Eunho, is S+. That’s already impressive, and if we’re doubling the reward, then the stakes have to be equally high, don’t they?]
[That may be true, but still…]
If you wanted something valuable, you had to pay the price.
Reluctantly, Seung nodded in agreement.
Harona, energized by his response, crossed her arms and asked excitedly:
[I’m so curious! Who do you think he’ll save? What’s your guess?]
[Probably the child, Kim Yura.]
[Hmm—really?]
After a moment of thought, Harona raised her chin in a challenging manner and spoke.
[Want to make a bet? I'll bet on Kim Jieun.]
Fair enough.
That was a plausible scenario as well.
After all, Kim Jieun and the target seemed to share something unique right from the start.
With that reasoning, Seung nodded in agreement.
[That's possible. The atmosphere between them was good.]
[The atmosphere? What nonsense is that?]
Harona snorted derisively.
Seung was taken aback.
Why was she calling his agreement nonsense?
[You think he'd move for something like that?]
[Excuse me? Then why did you pick Kim Jieun?]
[You fool! Obviously because she's more useful!]
Harona replied with irritation, as if the answer were glaringly obvious.
[She’s got potential. And after this, Eunho must have noticed it too.]
[She does have high growth potential, but still…]
[That little girl was unexpectedly useful too, but hiding and avoiding things? That’s not Eunho’s style.]
She wasn’t wrong.
It made sense, but...
[I still don’t know. He’s too unpredictable…]
[That’s part of his charm.]
He’d never once acted according to anyone's expectations.
[Anyway! Are you in or not?]
[...I’m in.]
[How about 5,000 welfare points? I’ve got Kim Jieun, and you take Kim Yura.]
[Understood, Harona.]
Who knows?
He might surprise them again with another unexpected choice.
[But why hasn’t he accepted the mission yet?]
[Uh… That’s a good question?]
* * *
"Eunho, have some more pasta!"
"Oh... No, thank you. I’m full."
"If you need more, just let me know. You’re our lifesaver, after all!"
"Haha..."
The survivors who’d successfully completed the day’s mission gathered in small groups.
As the tension eased, it was only natural for their thoughts to turn to food.
It took less than two hours for the hotel's chef to whip up meals using the remaining ingredients scavenged nearby.
And on top of that—
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
w
"That person seems to be really focused on Eunho."
"They probably feel bad for siding with X yesterday!"
The way they kept bringing over one dish after another—first pasta, then steak—was honestly overwhelming.
It was a relief he'd politely declined more food.
If he hadn’t, they might have brought their own plate to share as well.
"So..."
Jieun swallowed the food in her mouth and continued.
"When is it starting?"n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om
"Excuse me?"
"The extra mission. It’s almost 1 o’clock, so it should start soon, right?"
"That’s true, boss! Shouldn’t we start preparing?"
Well, about that...
The extra mission selection window had popped up, but...
"I haven’t accepted it yet."
"What? Can you even do that?"
I’ve been putting it off.
Neither closing the selection screen nor pressing accept to proceed.
──────◆──────
An extra mission has been assigned for target "Eunho’s" rank evaluation. Would you like to accept?
[Yes] │ [No]
──────◆──────
As a result, the system window had been floating in front of me this whole time.
I could see their faces faintly through the translucent screen.
"You did well, Eunho. Better to eat first and then go."
Her tone was calm, her gaze steady.
She seemed certain I would accept the mission.
Even though I had already warned them they might get caught up in it.
"Are you sure about this?"
"Hmm? About what?"
"You don’t have to participate. I only need to claim the rewards I’m owed."
That’s why I asked.
But Jieun simply smiled softly and shook her head.
"You wouldn’t be satisfied with just that, would you?"
"......"
"I thought we’d reached the point where we wouldn’t hold you back anymore. Are we still not enough?"
Her words, tinged with a smile, hit me like a slap to the back of the head.
I opened my mouth to argue but closed it again.
I had nothing to say.
"You’re not lacking... Both of you."
Truthfully, I’d wanted to accept the mission the moment I saw it.
If I said it myself, it might sound conceited, but I was confident I’d score well on the evaluation.
Plus, with the doubled rewards effect, the gains would be massive.
On top of that—
‘The others are catching up.’
Just look at Yurina, who had used poison, or that blonde tattooist creating bizarre creatures.
The survivors’ abilities were steadily improving.
And the monsters were growing stronger too.
‘I need to get stronger, faster.’
I want to get ahead.
I don't want to be caught.
I hate the precarious feeling of someone always being on my heels, ready to grab me at any moment.
Whether it's a person or a monster.
If I don't—
‘I'll never even get a chance to fight those guys up there.’
That's the kind of person I am.
The kind of person willing to risk my comrades' safety for the sake of my own growth.
Instead of taking a safe path together with everyone else, I'd rather bleed on a thorny path if it means protecting everyone with my own strength.
In that case—
If this is the kind of person I am anyway...
"We can't keep hiding behind you forever, hyung."
"That's right, Eunho! No matter what kind of mission it is..."
Let's bleed for real.
Let's get stronger for real.
Let's protect for real.
"I understand."
"Huh?"
"I know what kind of mission it is."
"?!"
Instead, let's do it in a way that minimizes injuries and maximizes gains.
Using everything I've got.
「...Thus, we propose the following advanced mission to assess the extent to which the individual aligns with the company's ideal candidate.」
The words "advanced mission" were written clearly on the proposal I took from the demon.
If it weren't for this, I might have rashly agreed and thrown everyone into the lion's den without knowing a thing.
Or, I might have abandoned an uncertain benefit altogether.
"I'll have to give those guys some candy the next time I see them."
Anyway, since I've made up my mind, I need to prepare.
In that case, first up is assessing the strength of my allies.
"Jieun."
"Yes!"
"Your telekinesis skill—what level is it?"
"Oh, it just hit level 10!"
Level 10 for her skill, huh.
Looks like she poured almost all the rewards she received into it since unlocking it.
Including the ones she just got from the aptitude test.
"That means you can control 10 objects at the same time, right?"
"Technically, yes... but it's not precise. If they're too heavy or I lose focus, it doesn't work well."
Because the skill is tied to mental power, I guess there are exceptions.
Either way, I’m not too worried about Jieun. I already have something in mind.
"Jaehyuk, what were your stamina and strength stats again?"
"18 and 23, hyung!"
"And your regeneration skill?"
"Uh... it’s level 2 now."
Jaehyuk’s skill levels are still pretty modest.
That’s understandable.
The enemies we've faced so far weren't life-threatening enough for him to need his regeneration ability.
But that's going to change. So...
"Put all your new rewards into it."
"Yes, hyung!"
The problem is, preparing just these two might not be enough.
「...Select the two people closest to you in the area. One must be sacrificed. This will assess not only the candidate's goal-oriented mindset but also their rationality based on an irreversible choice.」
I don’t know how the system determines "the two people closest to you."
I could interpret "one of two" as meaning just two specific individuals, but...
'Better to prepare for every possibility.'
With that in mind, I stood up.
That’s when the loudmouth and Lee Yeji came up to me, as if they’d been waiting.
"Hey! What’s with the serious faces? The three of you all huddled up, whispering."
"Exactly! Why are we being left out?"
Including them in this might not be the best idea right now...
Unaware of the situation, the two of them pouted and kept pushing.
"Haha... It's just, there's a bit of a problem."
"A problem? What problem? Everything was fine while we were eating."
"What is it, Eunho? You're making us nervous!"
"Wait, don’t tell me you heard something from up above? Like a divine revelation or something?!"
"Ahhh! Really?! What did it say? Are we all going to die?"
...What an overreaction.
"Huh? Young man! What's this about us all dying?"
"Sir! Is it true?!"
Surrounded by the group in no time, I suppressed a sigh rising from the depths of my chest and finally spoke.
"That's not it, you two... Actually, everyone..."
"What?! What?!"
"Just tell us! We’re ready for anything!"
"Yes, we can handle it!"
"So, um..."
Putting on the kindest, most innocent expression I could muster.
"Do you guys... have any money?"
"...Huh?"
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
w