Evil Organization’s Extra Mr. A

[19th Chapter]

All living beings need mutual cooperation to survive. Especially, humans have virtually no means of defending themselves or protecting themselves from predators when thrown into the wild without tools. Therefore, they must cooperate and collaborate with others, and human society has always been built through the hands of many people.

“Hey.”

A quiet Sunday afternoon. There weren’t many people around, and the cafe was quiet, but that didn’t mean there were no tasks at all. Boxes filled with various materials arrived from a truck at the back door of the cafe, and since moving them was the kitchen’s responsibility, each box was carried carefully one by one.

“Hey.”

She really worked hard. It could only be described as hard work because she did it alone. So, what had Pink, another kitchen staff member, been doing all this time?

“Hey!”

Pink, with a face full of complaint, was looking at her smartphone screen. But even though I called out to her loudly, she kept her eyes fixed on her screen and didn’t give me any reaction.

“Your ears aren’t plugged.”

I thought she was completely ignoring me, but she spoke in a low voice. From the moment her expression turned stern, something uneasy was already happening, and after hearing her voice, I realized I shouldn’t approach her.

“…”

Pink, standing still, tapped on her smartphone screen to type a message. I couldn’t muster the courage to go closer, so I stood a step away watching her.

“Where’s the stuff?”

“It’s all moved.”

Then, she put her smartphone in her pocket and opened the warehouse door. She began moving boxes to their respective places, and given her superior physical abilities, she effortlessly carried heavy loads that would have been difficult for me.

“You’re fast.”

While admiring her speed, Pink quickly finished sorting and came out of the warehouse, sighing irritably.

“What’s with that sigh like the ground is sinking?”

“Do you know who I am?”

Of course, I know. We’ve had confrontations every week, so how could I not know?

“I know, right? You’re part of the Earth Defense Union, aren’t you?”

I couldn’t understand why Pink, who doesn’t hide being a hyper-human, would bring up the topic of HunterKiller. However, I decided to listen to her at least minimally.

“There was a meeting scheduled for this morning.”

“A meeting?”

“Yeah. We discuss how to deal with Spacystro.”

We do have meetings too. However, they are usually held among the higher-ups, so I, as a lower-level member, don’t know anything about the agenda discussed in these meetings. I hadn’t known that HunterKiller also holds meetings regularly.

“So?”

This might be a good opportunity to gather inside information. Even if it’s not specific, I could learn about HunterKiller’s capabilities or the strength of other teams.

“I always say I have an early shift on weekends, yet you complain about me not attending the meetings.”

From Yubin, I had a vague idea that the internal atmosphere wasn’t great.

“Who?”

Getting more detailed information could definitely be helpful. If I can find out HunterKiller’s weak points, I can exploit them.

“Red, our team leader.”

The person causing trouble with Pink is none other than Red. My girlfriend, Hong Yubin.

Previously, she mentioned during a group assignment that her teammates didn’t follow her well, which seemed to refer to Pink.

“What did the team leader say?”

“The same old thing. Why didn’t you attend the meeting?”

Pink’s tone was sharp, indicating she had a lot of complaints against Yubin. Although I hadn’t heard specifics from Yubin, it seemed like Pink might have done something wrong.

“Am I not supposed to go? I work every day. What should I do? They don’t understand anyway.”

Yubin works part-time every weekend. Even now, she might still be working. Although she took a break recently, until then, she balanced university and work while also being involved with HunterKiller.

“Just because you think you’re doing okay, it doesn’t mean I’m comfortable. I struggle every day.”

“Okay, let’s calm down first.”

Regardless of whether Pink was right or wrong, calming her down was crucial. Getting emotional would make both the speaker and listener lose track of the conversation’s purpose.

She drank the glass of cold water I offered, and Pink continued.

“Honestly, I’m not the only one who doesn’t attend. Blue and Yellow often skip too. Out of those who frequently miss, I’m the youngest, so they probably think I’m easy to push around.”

HunterKiller has been together for three years. Whether they had a connection before or not, they’ve lived and worked together every week for at least three years. The sharpness of her words suggests this isn’t a recent issue.

“Even though I’m the youngest, the leader is just the strongest physically, right?”

Listening to Pink’s story about Yubin, despite not knowing I’m dating her, felt strange. However, hoping to get some information, I cooled myself down and encouraged her to speak.

“So, do team members often skip meetings?”

“I don’t know. I can’t go often due to work. Even when I went, everyone wasn’t there most times.”

Yubin works in the mornings or afternoons during weekdays. Her excuse was administrative assistant work, but it seems she uses that as a cover for HunterKiller meetings. After the break, it appears she only misses meetings on fight days and Fridays.

“Since we win every time, what’s the point of having meetings?”

It’s not just about the meetings. The underlying issue seems to be the organization’s atmosphere affecting team members negatively.

The heightened tension seems to have redirected towards team members, leading to the current situation.

Pink’s statement about HunterKiller’s overwhelming power suggests they wouldn’t lose even without meetings. Of course, unexpected tactics or weapons could cause confusion, but HunterKiller always crushes various methods tried by others.

“What do other team members say?”

“They don’t talk. We barely communicate outside of fights, so how would I know?”

Rationally, would they have fought with such deep emotional rifts? No, their teamwork during fights suggests constant coordination.

For example, if Red suddenly calls out someone’s codename during a fight, that person immediately continues the attack without hesitation, maintaining the flow of the HunterKiller team’s assault.

If this happens regularly, there are two possibilities: either Yubin was unusually sensitive when speaking or Pink was unusually sensitive when listening.

I don’t know the answer. Even if I ask, Pink likely won’t tell me.

“Still, you’ve been on the team for a long time. Maybe you should apologize and make up.”

Although I don’t have the obligation to ease HunterKiller’s internal atmosphere, leaving things as they are would affect my work today. And if Yubin remains upset when I return home, I wouldn’t handle it well.

“Why should I apologize? She’s the one at fault. I won’t be the first to apologize.”

Feeling slightly humiliated that HunterKiller, which has lost every time, has such a tense relationship among its members, despite being together for three years.

While this information about poor internal dynamics isn’t immediately actionable, it’s good to know. Given my lack of understanding of their usual dynamics, the current tension could easily dissipate. Conversely, if it worsens, it will surely affect teamwork.

Moreover, an odd feeling persisted in my chest, making me uncomfortable. This feeling started when Pink mentioned “Red” and made me frown involuntarily.

“I’m younger. You should consider that.”

Her voice, low and unconscious, met my eyes with a sharp glare. Oddly, I wasn’t scared and stared back.

“Does being younger mean you should be treated differently? She doesn’t treat older people kindly.”

“Still, I hear you’re not perfect either. Let’s clear misunderstandings…”

“Hey.”

My attempt to ease the tension between them by pointing out the awkward situation also carried emotions, and Pink’s displeasure seeped into her voice.

“Who are you? Do you know Red?”

“Not really.”

As emotions intensified, my rationality waned, and irritation began to creep into my voice.

“How can you take sides without knowing? Even if you don’t take my side, why does it concern you?”

Hearing this, I realized the source of my discomfort and displeasure. I was annoyed by Pink’s negative comments about Yubin.

Though they are adversaries, Yubin is my girlfriend, and every time I receive texts saying she can’t attend meetings due to work. Seeing her meticulous work ethic at the convenience store, I assumed she’d be the same in HunterKiller.

Seeing Yubin, who struggles with team meetings and gets angry at Pink for not attending, made me feel uncomfortable. It wasn’t just that she wasn’t doing well, but her attitude added to the frustration, making me feel conflicted.

“It’s none of my business. You said you were busy, so I did all the work alone. How can you claim you did well when you caused damage?”

“I cleaned everything up afterward.”

“Even if you did, you could have helped. Just because you didn’t participate and complained, it doesn’t mean you did well.”

Losing my emotional direction, I started venting my frustration at her. I wasn’t upset about carrying the load alone, and it wasn’t a significant problem.

Pink did clean up everything herself, which was true. However, mentioning it without complaint somehow led to dissatisfaction.

“…Forget it. Let’s get back to work.”

Pink paused mid-sentence and walked off to the kitchen, leaving me feeling hollow. Knowing further discussion would lead to conflict, I sighed and followed her.

An awkward atmosphere settled in, and we worked in silence until our shift ended.

“Ei.”

When the boss called me as I was changing clothes to leave, he asked:

“Are you available both morning and afternoon next Sunday?”

“Yes, I can. Is there something specific?”

There was no particular reason to come in earlier, but I was curious why the boss would ask such a junior employee to do so.

“Next Sunday, Yura can’t come in the morning. I’ll have the kid start early in the evening to cover her shift.”

“Oh… Yes.”

There was no reason to come in early for this. Working here was partly to monitor Pink, and coming in early would help, but if she wasn’t there, it would be a wasted day for me.

But since I had already agreed to come in early, I decided to stick with it.

Suddenly, I wondered what had kept Pink from working half of today. Since I hadn’t heard anything specific from Yubin, it didn’t seem related to HunterKiller.

Our eyes met, and we avoided each other’s gaze. The sudden surge of emotion earlier had faded, leaving an uncomfortable silence. I wanted to resolve the situation, but I couldn’t tell what Pink was thinking.

“…Go.”

“Yeah, okay.”

Unable to find the right words, we left each other with awkward farewells and headed home.

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