“Ugh. My stomach burns.”
It had been so long since he’d put alcohol on his tongue that his body must have turned pure, because it was rejecting it outright.
“This is driving me crazy.”
Shaking out his head, he got up and put on his uniform. Sinhyeok came out into the living room and knocked on I Chan’s door.
“You’re not going? Not heading to work?”
“Haaam.”
I Chan, dressed in his uniform, barely managed to open the door.
“I’m sleepy.”
“Open your eyes. It’s your first day.”
At those words, I Chan’s eyes flew open.
“At least there’s no morning roll call. That’s nice.”
“That’s the sweet part.”
After finishing breakfast at the mess hall, Sinhyeok headed straight for the Logistics Department.
“Then work hard.”
“Yeah~ You too, hyung.”
When he turned the Logistics Department doorknob to the left, the familiar workshop appeared.
“Good~ Shall I finish this up? I might be able to get it done before the chief gets here.”
He had already passed, but he still wanted to show it off properly.
‘Let’s get this done.’
He quickly focused and began the mapping.
[Mapping will now begin.]
[Precision Search Mode has been activated.]
[An unidentified mineral has been discovered.]
‘Good. It’s going smoothly.’
Two or three hours passed in concentration, and he stretched.
“Ugh. Ah, I’m sore.”
“You done?”
He sensed an unfamiliar presence behind him.
He immediately spun around.
The logistics chief was looking around the neatly arranged interior of the workshop.
Sinhyeok grinned and answered confidently.
“Yes, sir!”
“I heard. The battalion commander told me you passed.”
Captain Ryu Jihyeon’s lips twitched.
“Congratulations. Or should I be the one getting congratulated? I have a junior for the first time in my life.”
Sinhyeok smiled and said,
“I look forward to working with you.”
“If anything, I’m the one asking. Please, don’t disappear on me. Stay for a long, long time.”
Captain Ryu Jihyeon pleaded with him earnestly.
“It’s seriously hard to find people for this place.”
“Haha.”
‘I can relate. Who could pass this?’
The logistics chief asked to confirm.
“You’ve definitely grasped how to use waves?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good. Remember that well and train it. It’s the first fragment toward obtaining my eyes.”
“Pardon?”
Sinhyeok, flustered by his words, asked again.
“That’s the condition for working here. Without my eyes—these Eyes of Insight—it’s hard to work here, given the nature of our unit.”
“Ah……”
He had once heard rumors. That the man possessed one of the rarest abilities.
That he had eyes which, with a single look, could see, analyze, and understand the source of things.
“Then I’ll teach you the basics first. Let’s go to the Logistics Department. Not the workshop.”
Sinhyeok nodded.
Creak.
A small door creaked.
When Sinhyeok quietly turned his head, the dwarf had cracked the door open and was peering out.
“Ahem. Ahehem.”
At the unusually forceful coughing, the logistics chief ignored him, as if wondering what was wrong with that dwarf.
“Ahehup! Cough, cough!”
At the cough that sounded like it was about to bring up phlegm, the logistics chief said coldly,
“We’ll talk in an hour. And have you finished all the repair requests? The ones for 1st Company, 3rd Platoon are urgent. They have an operation the day after tomorrow.”
“Ahem! My, aren’t you in a rush! That’ll be done in an hour!”
“Then hurry up and hand it over.”
“Hmph!”
The dwarf kept his gaze fixed on Sinhyeok until the very end, then closed the door.
Captain Ryu Jihyeon opened the door with a faint laugh.
“Looks like that old man got excited for the first time in a while. Maybe because you’re in a similar field to him, unlike me.”
“Was that it?”
Sinhyeok left the workshop and headed to the administrative office of the Logistics Department.
The logistics chief placed his finger on the fingerprint scanner beside the door.
Beep.
A notification sound rang out.
“Use this to clock in, and scan it when you leave too. I’ll register you now.”
As the logistics chief registered Sinhyeok’s fingerprint, he said,
“That dwarf was really excited when I first classified minerals with waves. But when he found out I couldn’t do alchemy, handle minerals, or make alloys at all, he was seriously disappointed.”
“Ah.”
“Well, it can’t be helped. That’s not the direction my awakening took. And it’s not exactly easy to learn over decades either.”
Captain Ryu Jihyeon pointed to an empty desk.
“You can handle your work there. You know our basic duties, right?”
“Yes. Managing supplies, filing requests, receiving materials.”
“Right. Something like that, with one more thing added. That workshop over there. You’ve used it too, so you probably have an idea. I’ll teach you the details slowly. You have a one-month adjustment period anyway.”
The chief opened a work laptop for him and said,
“There’s a manual, so familiarize yourself with it. Tonight, you have a handover for night duty. Don’t forget to come to the duty office over there.”
“Yes, sir.”
Sinhyeok sat down and began calmly reading through the manual.
“Ugh. Does this mean I’m finally escaping night duty too~?”
The logistics chief turned on his computer with a delighted expression.
“Chief, what do I do today?”
While reading the manual, Sinhyeok asked him.
The logistics chief thought for a moment.
“Perishables are received every Friday, and there’s nothing in particular today. Unless field support comes up, I don’t think there’s anything. Just check the requests sent to the workshop.”
“Ah.”
Ryu Jihyeon tapped his chin, then remembered something urgent.
“Right. Two new recruits joined 1st Company, 3rd Platoon, so we need to issue additional supplies. The rest doesn’t matter, but for their weapons, go to the dwarf and put in a request.”
“Mm, is that so?”
The chief looked at Sinhyeok over the monitor and recalled his old equipment.
“Right. You still haven’t seen your sweetheart, have you?”
“Oh~ Is she alive? I treated her too roughly at the end.”
Captain Ryu Jihyeon only smiled.
“That thing split in half. The dwarf probably framed it and hung it up. He was raging, asking what kind of ignorant bastard could split that. Be careful, just in case.”
“Ah.”
The logistics chief checked the reports and documents to be processed in the system, then stretched.
“Ugh. Sinhyeok, did you get a rough look at it?”
“I did. But do you handle all of this alone? From the unit budget to rations, armory management, supply management, and even the workshop? And there are also materials purchased from outside, which have to be inspected separately, right?”
At the endless list of duties, Captain Ryu Jihyeon simply smiled as though he were crying.
“Thank you for at least understanding my heart. This is how I live. Fucking I Gangyeol.”
At the blatant insult toward his superior, Sinhyeok just smiled.
“Why did the battalion commander have to set such an absurd test, seriously?”
“Pfft. But didn’t you agree to it too, Chief?”
“Me? Why would I? I’m a victim too. Originally, about eight years ago, he said he’d assign people. He said he’d pick anyone and send them in! Haah. Then he suddenly canceled it. He said after thinking it over again, no. I’ve been living like this ever since.”
He stood up, opened the door, and gestured to Sinhyeok.
Sinhyeok also stood and followed him.
“That damn security, security, security. I know it’s important, but let me rest a little too. Shiiit! The operations chief next door is always busting his ass, and I want to take it easy too!”
He exploded in anger, mentioning Major Baek Seokhun, who was from the same class as him.
At the sight, Sinhyeok offered a modest cheer.
“I’ll contribute whatever little I can.”
“Thanks, even if it’s just words. It really will help. I’m getting freed from night duty right away~! I do feel bad for you, though.”
He turned the doorknob and opened the workshop.
As the chief entered the workshop, he asked Sinhyeok,
“But will you really be okay here? I and the other company commanders thought that if you passed the test, you’d go into a combat company.”
Thinking of the goal he needed to pursue, Sinhyeok said,
“I don’t think charging into Gates, clearing them, and fighting is what matters most right now. I’m aiming higher.”
“Higher, huh. For example, demons?”
“……”
Seeing that Sinhyeok said nothing, the logistics chief wore a bitter expression.
“You really do buy your own hardship. Looking at it that way, this place suits you perfectly. You might be able to make your mark through alchemy. Assuming you can learn it, of course.”
Captain Ryu Jihyeon pointed to the leftmost door.
“This is the dwarf’s workshop. From left to right after that are the elf, the catfolk, and the mage. You’ll have reason to go inside later. Today, we’ll only go here.”
He knocked on the door, then opened it without waiting.
The moment the door opened, hot air washed over his entire body.
“Hup.”
The heat swept over him, and its color was unique.
A clear yellow—at a glance, flames like gold filled the space.
“Master Aurumstone, are you working hard?”
Captain Ryu Jihyeon strode inside.
Sinhyeok followed him in as well, and a magnificent scene unfolded.
‘This isn’t just a workshop, is it?’
Massive furnaces stood in rows, and there were hardly any fantasy-like tools; instead, the place was filled with modern equipment.
Huge powered hammers and tempering machines.
At a glance, it looked like a steelworks.
“Hooah. Is this no good?”
Aurumstone was holding a glowing red iron ingot in a hand covered in golden flame.
“I’m not getting that surging feeling. As expected, infusing a potion into iron might be difficult.”
The logistics chief shouted at him, since he was too focused to hear anything.
“Beeeer!”
“What! Where?! Where, where?!”
Startled, Aurumstone hurriedly looked around.
Then, upon spotting the fool, his excitement cooled.
“You bastard. Bring actual beer before you say that. Huh!”
“I’ll bring some later. So please stop deserting from here all the time.”
“Hmph! That’s because you keep bringing just enough to tease me!”
“Honestly, I brought you several crates. Isn’t the problem the dwarf who drinks like a hippo?”
“Hmph! That’s average for us, you bastard!”
“Ooh~ Yes. I’m sorry for imposing human averages on you~”
When he saw Sinhyeok standing behind the chief, the corners of his mouth twitched.
“You came.”
“Yes, yes. That’s not why we’re here. Put away your interest and curiosity.”
Aurumstone flopped down on a chair, opened a water bottle, and drank.
“So what is it?”
“One urgent addition.”
“Haah. What a pain.”
“We’ve got new recruits this time, so please make them beginner equipment sets. One sword and two daggers.”
“No functions?”
“No. They’re rookies, so no functions.”
“Fine. Then one week.”
At the increased time, the logistics chief narrowed his eyes into triangles.
“Look at those sharp eyes. Lower them.”
“Why is the timeframe increasing?”
“What, there are two sets. You think I can just whip them up like that?!”
“Don’t make excuses. I know perfectly well what you’re capable of, Master Aurumstone! Something you can finish in two hours, and you’re trying to con me again?!”
“Hey! Let me rest a bit too!”
“You’re resting right now! It’s not like you have much work at the moment anyway!”
“Let me enjoy myself! What about my research, huh?!”
“Blah blah. I don’t know. If you don’t do it, I’ll report it to the battalion commander.”
At that powerful final move, the dwarf flinched.
“Hah! Dimwit One, that’s not right! Then three days!”
“Nope. By the end of the workday today.”
“You wretch, respect your elders. I’ve got no cartilage left in my knees!”
“As far as I know, your lifespan exceeds a thousand years, and you’re only a little over two hundred now, aren’t you?”
“……”
“You’re not exactly at the age where your whole body should be aching.”
“Hmph! I don’t care. Two days!”
The chief’s eyebrows bristled.
“No. Cut me some slack too! The 1st Company commander will personally raise hell at me!”
“I don’t care.”
“Come ooon!”
At the logistics chief’s fit, the dwarf looked as if his bait had been taken perfectly.
He glanced slyly at Sinhyeok with a sinister gaze.
“Then lend me him, at least. Then maybe it’ll be possible.”
The logistics chief looked back and forth between Sinhyeok and the dwarf.
“This old man is scheming again.”
“Hah! What are you going to do about it? I’m the one with the leverage!”
“Damn dwarf.”
The chief placed a hand on Sinhyeok’s shoulder and asked,
“Please handle that damn dwarf for me.”
“Pardon?”
“Then I’ll come back at quitting time. Stay here.”
“What?! Chief! My handover! No, aren’t you supposed to teach me the work?!”
“It’s fine. I can do that alone.”
The chief readily entrusted Sinhyeok to the dwarf and fled.
“Hah! This worked out well. Shall we enjoy ourselves together for a bit!?”
Sinhyeok stared at the excited dwarf with cold, unimpressed eyes.
“Tsk. Rank really is a gangster.”