The Trash Wants to Live

PR: Naa_chi

"Oh… it looks like a jewel."

When I looked at it up close, it really was like a jewel that was shining brightly. Tanisha, who placed the case on the table, pointed to the machine beside the case and pulled the lever.

The elongated light pulsated from top to bottom. The number ‘-37' appeared on the monitor.

“The smaller the size, the bigger the difference in wavelength. So after we got this, we explored the place where we found this animal. Just in case there was a gate."

"And then?"

"We didn't get any results. America has a friggin vast amount of land, and what's more, we found it in the desert… It’s not good to use radars because it’s jamming the radio waves."

Tanisha's face contorted as if she was remembering what happened that time. Obviously, she hadn’t figured out where the gate would appear, but she also wouldn't be able to find it even if she threw herself into the sea.

She closed the case and put it in her pocket before opening her mouth again.

"That's when I got the idea. Can't we use this wavelength?”

Tanisha pointed to a machine with her finger. It was a machine that drew circular lines on a slightly flat plate at regular intervals. I thought it was similar to a radar, but Tanisha explained that it was a radar that detected the wavelengths of mana stones.

“Our lab engineers built it. It saved us a lot of trouble, and we finally found it.”

On the screen that moved to the next page, there was a crack floating in the air, similar to what I had seen in  Sungwoon High School's old school building. It was a gate.

Oh, my…

The second gate had already appeared, and it was before the first gate’s break-out incident  that was written in the original work. It was the second butterfly effect that occurred because I didn't act according to the original work.

As Tanisha said, the goat, which was occasionally seen by people passing through the desert, would’ve only become a desert myth if the bull hadn’t appeared from the gate.

There was a goat with strange horns in the vast Mojave desert. Peter saw it a few days ago when he was passing by… 

Oh, please… it would’ve been a myth if it was put into words like this.

However, the story that should’ve ended up as a ghost story became suspicious after seeing the bull, and the original work became twisted when the goat was caught by agents sent to investigate these suspicions.

The goat's existence turned speculations into beliefs when they finally discovered that there was a gate. In the original work, it was a gate that no one found because it had appeared in a deserted place.

I thought it would have been fine if I didn't get along with Go In hyuk, but this had caused an entire series of incidents.

Wow… Go In hyuk, you really are amazing.

Even now, he probably couldn't fix his habits and still acted like a bully again among the Korean students in California, right? That was obvious. However, unlike in Korea, guns were legal here, so if he behaved as he had in Korea, he would get shot. I hoped he was aware of that.

Tanisha spoke while I was lost in thought about Go In hyuk.

“So we're going to explore inside, and we want Sungwoon to join us.”

“…Yes?”

Did I hear that wrong? Let's conquer the gate together? Even allies would not join forces to conquer a gate together. Since the resources inside were limited, the gates found on their own land had to be unconditionally guarded. They would seek help from other countries only when the gate’s rating was too high or their own national strength was insufficient.

This was the case in the original story but I was dumbfounded that America, a powerhouse, would request a joint attack with Sungwoon that wasn’t a country.

Ah…

Then I saw Tanisha's gaze alternate between Kwon Jae Hyuk's and mine. There was a rumour among the gifted people that Kwon Jae Hyuk had closed the gate, so it was impossible for the researchers not to have heard the rumours while sharing the same base. It was only natural that they wanted him, who had conquered a gate alone.

It was only then that I realized that SNT's invitation was not because they wanted to learn more about the bull. Rather, SNT invited us—specifically Kwon Jae Hyuk—for safety reasons.

Well… These gifted people are an irreplaceable resource… They probably want to minimise the sacrifices of their own people.

The people who were in SNT were not criminals and very patriotic, and they might later be in charge of the country's defence against the otherworld invaders. Therefore, they had hoped that their gifted people would not get hurt or killed, and that their powers wouldn't diminish. Well, they also had their own reasons why they didn't want their comrades in danger.

"Of course, We're not asking you to do it for free. We'll give you a share of the conquest."

Tanisha didn't hesitate to say that and wasn't afraid she would regret it later. Rachel took a step forward, surprised at her words, but Tanisha didn't even glance at her. It seemed that they hadn't discussed it beforehand.

"Our researchers will also be joining in. It's not that I don't believe in your team if Gifted. But I, as the person in charge, hope that everyone can return safely."

That's why they needed Kwon Jae Hyuk. Whatever secrets he held, he was true to his allies, and he was strong.

This was a good opportunity. We could share the stakes by accompanying them, and SNT would take care of the development inside the gate. So we just had to wait for our share of the distribution.

But…

But I couldn't just casually set out. I didn't know anything about this gate since it hadn’t been mentioned in the original work.

It wouldn't be a difficult dungeon since  only a goat came out from within. Nevertheless, I didn't know what the topography was like inside.

Inside the gate was not a favourable place for humans. So no one knew whether the area within was a rainforest, a snowy mountain, a vast plain, or a deep sea.

It might be a cliffside topography since I have seen goats going up and down cliffs on TV before.

It could be dangerous, but I couldn't put everyone in danger by making my own decisions. Even if it was Kwon Jae Hyuk.

When I fell silent in my distress, Kwon Jae Hyuk noticed my hesitation and gently tapped on me. When I turned around, he spoke with his usual smile.

"It's fine. Do whatever you want."

As soon as I heard what he had said, the burden that was weighing on my heart disappeared. If someone else had told me to do what I wanted and said that he would sort things out later, I would have laughed at this kind of bluff. Yet oddly enough, I was relieved by Kwon Jae Hyuk's words.

But why? It was strange to me that I couldn't trust other people easily. Was it because he had made a pledge to me? Or… I woke up from my thoughts.

"Alright, let's do it together."

"What? Hey, you…"

"And if any of you don't want to enter, just say so. I make decisions for myself, so I won't say anything even if you don't want to go."

The person SNT wanted was probably Kwon Jae Hyuk alone. There was no need for the others to suffer, so I had no intention of saying anything if they didn't want to join.  

Everyone fell silent, while Jung Yi Joon closed his mouth when he tried to say something to me. It was Jang Eui Yeol who broke the silence.

"I'm going."

He raised his hand and said that. He had nearly died in the gate, so I asked him if he would be okay. He smiled.

"But Yoon Jae, you're going in."

"Oh…"

"What? You bastard!"

How did he know? When I became shocked, Jang Eui Yeol burst out laughing with a face that said he knew it. Jung Yi Joon tried to calm himself down. He bit his lip as he calmed his anger. I could understand it if he didn't want to enter because Jung Yi Joon used his strength the most, and his situation was the most dangerous when we were in the Sungwoon High School gate. Jung Yi Joon gritted his teeth and sighed.

“You idiot, where are you going? Then I have to go too!”

“Uh… you don’t have to…”

"If I don't go, who will protect you?"

Jung Yi Joon got angry and grabbed me as if he didn't want me to go in alone.

“If you go in, don't leave my side! Okay?"

"O–okay."

When Ha Hyun Seo said he also wanted to come along, Ha Eun Seo tried to stop him. However, she ultimately failed and decided to come along. Finally, the only one who was left was Ki Hyun Joo…

"Then I'll come along too."

"Are you going to be okay?"

"Our precious young master shouldn't get hurt. So I'm going in too."

She came over to me and whispered into my ear.

"I mean, I can't just not use my power and let you go in right?"

While saying this, Ki Hyun Joo smiled with a playful expression. It was a joke that only people who knew my secret could share. As I laughed softly at her words, Rachel revived the atmosphere by clapping her hands once.

"Now that we've decided the number of people to enter, shall we talk about the share?"

As Rachel looked at me, I pushed Ki Hyun Joo in front of me. Rachel's face lit up because it meant that Ki Hyun Joo would be discussing the share with her. Maybe it was because that meant she didn't have to discuss it with me…

I shouldn't have admired her…

As my personal secretary, Ki Hyun Joo was never an easy opponent. She had done everything that I was supposed to do until I had stepped forward. In the original story, Ki Yoon Jae was almost like a nominal boss with only his name listed as a representative.

So, she was a professional compared to me, who only had a high mental age and had just become Ki Yoon Jae and taken up his duties for only one year.

“Then shall we go somewhere quiet and talk?”

"Hoho, sounds good."