WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Dionysus
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Newbie Civil Servant Hunts Villains Before Going Home ◈
Chapter 1: Do You Have Four Major Insurances?
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Damn it, I died from overwork.
All that struggle for a pittance of a salary, only for it to end in death.
It was unfair. I swore that if I was reborn, I would never overwork myself again.
And then I was reborn in another world.
* * *
“...”
The man let out a long breath.
His face was covered in scars. Even the hand pushing up the long black bangs that nearly stabbed into his eyes was scarred.
His gray eyes, revealed as his hair lifted, were glaring fiercely at someone.
“Hey, Seo Hyeonyul. What are you going to do by glaring at me?”
The man reclining deeply in his chair looked up at him and sneered.
“I clearly applied for sick leave yesterday.”
Hyeonyul spoke to his superior.
He looked thoroughly exhausted.
“You applied, sure. But I clearly told you that you couldn't take it. What are you doing? Go back to work.”
His superior jerked his chin.
“It was clearly written in the employment contract I signed when I joined.”
“What?”
“That I would leave work on time, receive legally mandated annual leave, and be granted reasonable paid sick leave.”
“Pfft.”
His superior burst out laughing.
Apparently, he found the situation immensely amusing.
“Hey. Do you think this is some ordinary company? Do you even know where you are?”
“I do.”
Hyeonyul answered calmly.
This was the modern world, but not the modern world he knew.
The Taesen Empire.
There was an empire, and there was an emperor.
There was also a prime minister, but the emperor held far greater power here.
Other than a few small nations, the Taesen Empire had swallowed every country and ruled the world, enjoying an age of peace.
But throughout history, there had always been those who shattered peace.
Those dissatisfied with the Empire, those coveting its throne, and others carried out indiscriminate terrorist attacks.
The Empire officially designated them as “villains” and took the lead in exterminating them.
The person before him was a villain, and this was a company founded by one.
“If you know, then get lost. What do you expect from a villain like me? Would I be a villain if I followed the rules? Have some villainous dignity yourself.”
“I don't care whether you're a villain or not, Manager. I will apply for the sick leave I am entitled to under my employment contract.”
Hyeonyul spoke as though issuing a warning.
The terms he had agreed to before joining had been good.
The wages had suited him too.
Since he had nothing to put on a résumé, it did not matter whether the company owner was a villain.
Any workplace where he would not be overworked was fine.
“You've got to be kidding me. Stop spouting bullshit and get back to work if you don't want to die, Seo Hyeonyul.”
Though his superior threatened him, Hyeonyul did not even blink.
If villains could not keep their contracts just because they were villains, who would work under them?
“Fine. I'll ask the boss.”
“Hey. Does it sound like I'm...?”
His superior stopped speaking.
Hyeonyul had vanished.
As he looked around for where Hyeonyul had gone, his shadow writhed, and Hyeonyul emerged from within it.
Silence fell.
Standing behind his superior, Hyeonyul held a ballpoint pen to his neck.
“You don't even keep your promises. Why should I consider the sounds you make to be words?”
“Y-you... What are you doing?”
His superior's breathing quickened.
Hadn't Hyeonyul been hired as an ordinary person?
What the hell was this?
“Come to think of it, I suppose I'm a villain too. I'll just do this the villain's way.”
If necessary, take what you wanted by force.
If you were dissatisfied, kill them.
Stab.
Hyeonyul drove the ballpoint pen into his superior's carotid artery.
As blood sprayed out, Hyeonyul felt liberated.
I should have done this sooner.
“Even villains need trust, Manager.”
“...Kgh, hhk.”
“They claimed you offered the Four Major Social Insurances, yet not one of them is actually provided.”
Hyeonyul let go.
The pen fell to the floor.
“I'll ask the boss. And if the answer is no, I'll kill them.”
When Hyeonyul wiped the blood from his face, it disappeared as cleanly as if it had never been there.
He could not understand why anyone would establish a company that could not even provide the Four Major Social Insurances.
His overtime had been steadily increasing since he joined, and he had been getting irritated.
He hated death by overwork.
* * *
Hyeonyul checked his wristwatch.
He took a bottle of medicine from his pocket and walked toward the water dispenser.
Thick blood had pooled on the floor, and corpses lay in rows.
Every one of them had been pierced only through the throat.
Even amid the pile of bodies, Hyeonyul calmly filled a cup of water and took out his pills one by one.
Someone was sick and wanted to take sick leave. Why would they stop him?
Why did everyone risk their lives over something so minor, as though the world would collapse if he went to the hospital?
I don't understand.
Dark shadows hung beneath Hyeonyul's eyes, and he looked exhausted.
“Are you going to come at me too?”
Hyeonyul asked after swallowing his medicine.
“No. We're partner organizations, so I tried to contact them, but fuck, I couldn't get through for two hours.”
“Ah, sorry. I made it impossible for anyone to answer the phone.”
Hyeonyul recalled the calls that had rung a little earlier.
There had been quite a few.
“Yeah. You must've been busy.”
The man looked around and pulled out a cigarette.
“Yes. I'll be a little late for the hospital because of this bothersome matter. The doctor will scold me.”
“Oh dear. Are you unwell?”
Hyeonyul looked at the man as he heard the question.
He was ready to kill him at any moment.
A chilling tension formed between them.
“I was born a test subject at some villain company's facility, and they dissected me from head to toe. They injected me with every kind of drug, took my organs out, and put them back in. Do you think my body could be fine?”
“Damn! A test subject? You?”
The man tossed aside the cigarette he had been about to light.
His voice was filled with delight.
To stand against the Empire, they needed powerful test subjects.
The survival rate must have been abysmal, yet Hyeonyul had survived.
Whatever experiments he had endured, his strength had already been proven.
They were on the third floor, and aside from the man before him, no one else had survived.
“Yes. Does that make you happy?”
“Yeah. Fucking ecstatic.”
Hyeonyul turned toward him.
As he faced Hyeonyul, the man felt a shiver run down his spine, yet he grinned.
Hyeonyul took the ballpoint pen from his pocket and clicked it.
His eyes slowly narrowed.
“I'm busy. Do you want to try me?”
“Want to join my company? I'm Kim Daean!”
Daean made his offer as he looked at Hyeonyul.
Strength was everything in this world.
With such talent right in front of him, what else could he do?
“Do you offer the Four Major Social Insurances?”
Hyeonyul stopped clicking the pen.
“Of course! Use sick leave whenever you want! In return, can you kill anyone I tell you to?”
“I'll only kill villains. I don't want to kill innocent people.”
“Sure, do that!”
“Honestly, I prefer paperwork, but I'll accept if I get to leave work on time. I'll tolerate overtime two or three times a month.”
“Good, good! Then let's go.”
Daean smiled amicably.
* * *
Stab!
Hyeonyul drove a ballpoint pen into someone's throat.
It had been a pen he liked, but it could not be helped.
“...Are you idiots? Why do you keep breaking your promises?”
He looked annoyed.
When he wiped the blood from his clothes with his hand, it vanished completely.
“Tell me, President Daean.”
“...Kghhh.”
Blood streamed from Daean's throat and mouth.
Why was office life so difficult?
“I said I'd tolerate overtime up to three times. How many times has it been now? Twenty times a month? And I was only paid for ten days. Should I be angry about this, or not?”
Daean flailed as he looked ahead with fading vision.
At the end of the black power extending from Hyeonyul's shadow stood Daean's subordinates.
All of their necks had been broken.
Looking at Hyeonyul, Daean became certain.
That was a monster.
“I've been very patient. Give me paid leave and my overdue wages.”
Hyeonyul's demand had been simple.
But Daean had refused.
From that moment, the shadows began moving on their own.
Even blasts of light had been useless.
Everyone had died to those shadows.
“...Cough.”
Hyeonyul coughed and checked his wristwatch.
He let out a long breath.
“I'm late for the hospital again. Do you know how difficult it is to get an appointment at a university hospital?”
The doctor would surely hate him.
Why did they keep making him seem like someone who could not keep appointments?
Hyeonyul took Daean's phone from his pocket.
“I'll only take the unpaid overtime pay and the wages you quietly withheld.”
He moved Daean's hand and scanned his fingerprint.
“Don't worry about the password. You told me when you were drunk, you idiot. Ah, you used me as a designated driver a few times too, so I'll deduct that as well.”
This was a burner account, and his own bank account was virtual too.
The company had paid a small nation to disguise itself as an overseas corporation, and that applied to its employees, including Hyeonyul.
Officially, he did not exist. It was as though he had never held a job.
This was not to protect the employees, but to protect themselves from the Empire's grasp.
Some villains openly established companies, but others did not.
“Clutch whatever money you have left and pray to that precious god of yours. See whether they come or not.”
Hah.
Hyeonyul let out a light breath.
Now that he had been completely fired, he needed to look for a job again.
I haven't even paid off my hospital bills yet. How did it come to this?
His medical expenses were considerable.
He had accumulated considerable debt because of them.
He had considered working freelance jobs, but they did not suit him.
He might rush into work just for the money and end up overworked. Yet if he worried about overwork, he could not earn enough.
The only places that could accommodate this were villain-run companies like this one.
“Have you finished watching?”
Hyeonyul looked ahead.
The situation felt familiar.
It had been like this when he met Daean too.
“Daean asked for help, so I came to laugh at him. But something interesting happened instead.”
This was the work of one person.
It was impossible to believe.
The corpses and bloody stench he had encountered on the way here had been enough to make his spine tingle.
A smile played on his lips.
Why had someone with such talent been wasting away under Kim Daean? Why had he not known until now?
It was nothing but regrettable.
“Come work for me. I'll raise you to greater heights.”
Hyeonyul was the very model of a villain.
How magnificent could Hyeonyul become if properly nurtured?
Take what you wanted.
Kill what annoyed you.
Someone like this was exactly the talent needed to bring down that enormous Empire.
“I don't need anyone to raise me. I've already grown up on my own.”
Hyeonyul was tired.
He did not know why he had to have this conversation again.
But it was best to find a job quickly.
“Do you offer the Four Major Social Insurances?”
Hyeonyul asked with a sharp gaze.
“Of course.”
The answer came.
“If you don't keep your word, I'll kill you. Do you understand?”
Hyeonyul gave advance warning.
If the employment contract was not honored, he would kill them.
* * *
“...Hah.”
Hyeonyul brushed up the long bangs hanging over his eyes.
When they heard his sigh, the subordinates working nearby carefully watched him.
How many times had this happened already?
He destroyed a company, someone happily clapped their hands at the sight and recruited him.
Then they failed to honor the employment contract.
Strangely, every time he received a recruitment offer, his rank went up.
He knew that meant more work, but it did not mean they could work him like a dog.
“Why are you acting like this between us?”
Employer and worker.
That was all they were.
“We agreed to be like older and younger brothers, didn't we? Can't you let this slide?”
When had they ever met to start spouting nonsense about being brothers?
I only asked them to follow the contract. Was that really so difficult?
His wages were delayed, his overtime increased, and they increasingly refused to let him use annual leave, much less sick leave.
He had lost count of how many times he changed jobs.
He had lost count of how many recruitment offers he received while standing in workplaces turned into bloody messes.
He had reached his limit.
It was the same everywhere, no matter how high his rank rose.
In the end, nothing was ever honored.
After countless job changes, Hyeonyul reached a conclusion.
Villains were villains.
It was not as though he claimed to be clean.
But he had at least done the basics.
He had never been late, followed work orders, and been polite to his superiors.
...Ah.
Hyeonyul realized it too late.
Right. This was a black company.
Every place he had worked was the same, so he had not noticed until now.
It was almost funny.
To think he had only realized it now.
Hyeonyul clicked his ballpoint pen.
Hearing the sound, his subordinates watched him.
Fear filled their eyes.
They looked as if they were wondering what that lunatic would do now.
...Five.
As he counted and began to rise, something caught Hyeonyul's attention.
It was a notice posted on a portal site.
「Black Eagle Now Recruiting New Recruits.」
Black Eagle had been established by the Empire to capture villains.
In other words, it was a special kind of civil service.
Some called it a government agency, while others said it was more like a private company.
They kill villains?
Curiosity caught hold of Hyeonyul, and he scrolled down.
「*Qualifications
―No restrictions on gender, age, education, or previous work experience.
―Must possess power, whether physical or magical.」
No restrictions on previous work experience?
That sentence caught Hyeonyul's attention.
「*Special Recruitment
―Those with a record of subduing and arresting wanted villains, excluding police officers.」
Would killing them count too?
Every boss Hyeonyul had killed was a wanted villain.
「*Benefits
―Paid leave available when taking sick leave.
―Additional paid leave for overtime work.
―Early departure possible depending on conditions.
―Medical expense support.
.
.」
The corners of Hyeonyul's mouth rose.
More than anything else, the benefits appealed to him.
Benefits this enticing implied that the work was equally dangerous.
But that meant nothing to Hyeonyul.
He had already taken the heads of countless villains.
Let's go with this.
When he smiled, everyone seated around him felt a chill.
“Um, Team Leader?”
When a subordinate spoke up, Hyeonyul rose from his seat and answered.
“I'm going out for a moment.”
“W-where?”
“To fulfill the special recruitment requirements.”
Despite the questioning response, Hyeonyul walked out, strolled down the hallway, and entered the elevator.
This was a large company.
Since it had a chairman, that much was obvious.
He only needed one head for the special recruitment.
He headed straight for the chairman's office.
* * *
Ding.
The elevator opened.
Hyeonyul adjusted his tie.
“What is the matter, si...?”
Just as Hyeonyul's gaze sharpened, the guard approaching him lost their head.
Blood dripped from the dagger in Hyeonyul's hand.
Before the other guards realized what had happened, Hyeonyul's body collapsed.
It flowed across the ground as though it had turned to liquid, then emerged behind a guard.
Thrust.
He stabbed the guard in the nape and sliced sideways.
Two left.
Hyeonyul's gaze moved to the left.
He did not know whether it was magic or natural speed, but someone rushed toward him incredibly fast. Electricity burst out directly in front of him.
One from the side and one from the front.
It seemed the two intended to attack him at once.
Hyeonyul reached out toward the one approaching from the side.
A shadow shot out and grabbed the person's leg, pulling them down, while Hyeonyul vanished from his spot.
Crackle!
As their comrade's body shook under the electricity, the guard who had cast the magic darkened.
“This is why I tell you to be careful when using magic.”
A voice came from behind the last guard.
Gulp.
When had he gotten behind them? How?
Seo Hyeonyul.
Had this man always been so strong?
When the dagger pierced their throat, their thoughts ended there.
Stab.
Blood streamed down.
“...Kghhh.”
Hyeonyul listened to the sound of blood being coughed up as he walked forward and opened the door.
“What is it?”
The man was leisurely reading a newspaper and drinking alcohol.
In the morning.
“I told you.”
The man froze as a voice came from behind him.
Goosebumps rose across his skin.
“I told you to honor the contract. I am someone who truly hates overwork. Yet it has already been five days since I last went home.”
“...Seo Hyeonyul. Let's talk this out. Talk.”
“I did talk. You were the one who did not listen.”
“I'll do it properly. From now on...”
“No. I'll finish everything before I die from overwork. Isn't that the law of villains?”
Hyeonyul spoke evenly and moved the hand holding the dagger.
* * *
Hyeonyul stood before a building.
Even the building bore Black Eagle's emblem.
Its location was easy to find with a simple internet search.
It was rather funny.
Villains hid themselves desperately, while this place that captured villains stood so boldly.
“...Is this where Black Eagle is located?”
Hyeonyul asked.
“That is correct.”
The man standing at the building's front gate replied.
This was said to be where Black Eagle was, but apparently not everyone here belonged to Black Eagle.
The guard had a sparrow emblem on his left arm.
“I came here because I want to become a Black Eagle.”
Hyeonyul took something from his bag.
He held out a head covered in dark red blood.
“This is the head of Shin Daeho, the bastard you were looking for.”
Everyone recoiled in horror, but Hyeonyul smiled with confidence.
Then, filled with expectation, he asked:
“Do you really offer the Four Major Social Insurances here?”
Footnotes:
The “four major social insurances” are South Korea's standard set of public social insurance programs, commonly associated with legitimate employment benefits.
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