Evil Organization’s Extra Mr. A

< Chapter 3 >

Sunday afternoon. The seating area inside a convenience store.

– beep!

From the counter, I heard the sound of scanning barcodes for another customer’s items. I was sitting on a chair, reading her major textbook.

It was too late to undo what had been done. I couldn’t ignore her gaze that shone as she approached me in the gap between customers.

She believed I had some knowledge about her major, and unable to refuse her request, I agreed to help her with her studies before the exam, despite the fatigue that had reached its peak.

“Have this.”

Reading her major textbook was unexpectedly interesting. I learned that such knowledge was being imparted to students just out of school on Earth, and that deep space technology was still in its early stages, both theoretically and practically.

As I read her book with interest, she came from the counter and handed me a drink, causing me to bow my head without realizing it.

“Thank you.”

“I’m sorry. I suddenly asked for your help.”

“No, it’s fine. I have plenty of time…”

Unable to avoid the situation due to helping her with her work at a nearby cafe, I decided to use this opportunity to observe her more closely.

“Are you working in this field?”

“Yeah. Sort of.”

It seemed like saying no would be the right answer, but it was a thought that came later.

I answered affirmatively because I knew about deep space navigation technology and couldn’t think of anything else to say, which only fueled her curiosity.

“I’ve only recently started studying this, so I haven’t met any experts yet.”

“This is my first time tutoring a student.”

Of course, it was the first time. As a spacystro soldier, the chance to meet an Earth college student was slim, and the opportunity to see students learning at the initial stages of my own knowledge was even slimmer.

What surprised me more was that the red HunterKiller team member was a college student studying deep space technology. While I could guess she was young from her appearance, I didn’t expect her to be a recent college graduate by Earth standards.

A customer entered the convenience store, and she returned to the counter to greet them. I felt her gaze occasionally turning towards me, and I looked back at her book. There were notes scattered throughout, and a sketch of fighting a spacystro soldier in the corner.

“…”

Since all spacystro soldiers wear the same uniform, I couldn’t shake the feeling that the one being hit in the drawing was me.

Time passed, and the next part-timer for the red team, a man, entered the convenience store. After handing over his shift and changing into civilian clothes—a white blouse and blue jeans—he came over to me.

“It’s done.”

“Yes.”

I followed her out of the convenience store, carrying her book, and continued to follow her to the cafe. Walking right beside her felt odd, and following behind seemed better for surveillance.

However, Red didn’t let me trail behind quietly. She would stop every time we got a certain distance apart, waiting for me to come closer.

Internal intimacy can be scary. Even after watching her for over a month, I didn’t expect to be this cautious with someone I had only spoken to two days ago.

Upon reflection, there was no reason for her to be wary of me. To be precise, there was no need for her to be wary. As a red HunterKiller team member guarding Seoul, she was strong enough to take down anyone, including me, if they seemed suspicious. If I appeared to be an unusual person, she could subdue me instantly.

“Let me introduce myself. I’m Hong Yubin. I’m 20 years old.”

“Yes.”

I already knew her name. Her name tag was on her part-time uniform. Although I had estimated her age, I now knew for sure she was 20.

I felt her gaze occasionally shifting towards me, and it was clear she wanted me to introduce myself.

“E. I’m 25.”

“E? Are you foreign?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

Having no intention of getting involved with Earthlings, I wouldn’t have created a pseudonym. Delaying with vague names might seem suspicious, so I gave my real name. Saying I was 25… well, that was just an age that seemed appropriate for my appearance to Earth people.

“It’s amazing. I thought you’d be around my age or a year or two older.”

It seems I look younger than I mentioned. It wasn’t particularly good to appear younger to Red, but it wasn’t entirely bad either.

“So you must have graduated from university.”

“Yes.”

“Did you graduate from a foreign university?”

She said she had never seen someone with such advanced knowledge in her major, and her words seemed to be the truth. Her questions kept coming, and I could only respond briefly.

“MAT.”

According to the information I gathered, MAT was one of the most famous engineering universities on Earth, and it was located outside Korea, so it was indeed a foreign university. However, this answer only further piqued her curiosity.

“Why are you here if you’re so famous?!”

It wasn’t a malicious question. She genuinely wondered why I was here. Could the university I mentioned be that significant?

“Well, there are various reasons.”

“Aah.”

She nodded, understanding my response without prying into personal matters. Her gaze seemed to carry respect, making me feel even more uncomfortable.

“Is it okay to learn from someone who graduated from MAT?”

Mentioning the most famous school name was a mistake. Since it’s generally hard to get into, Red probably thought it was inappropriate to learn from me.

“It’s fine.”

While I don’t know the exact level of knowledge at MAT, considering Earth’s overall technological capabilities, they might lag behind us in deep space technology. So, there shouldn’t be a problem with the knowledge level. Besides, there’s no way she could immediately verify whether I actually graduated from MAT.

We arrived at the cafe, and she went to the counter to buy coffee. I insisted on buying my own, but she insisted on treating me since she was the one learning, and she sat me down.

The questions she asked at the cafe were basic, and I answered her accordingly.

There were slight differences in terminology used on Earth and in outer space, but those were easy to resolve, and not answering didn’t seem like a big deal to her. When I explained things according to Earth’s knowledge, she understood quickly.

“Learning from a graduate of MAT, how impressive. Older Brother.”

I almost spat out my coffee and started coughing.

“Ehheuk!!”

“Are you okay?!”

She quickly handed me a tissue, and I wiped away the spilled coffee as I looked up.

“Huh? What?”

“You’re impressive…”

“No, wait, that’s not it…”

“Older Brother?”

“Yes. Why did you call me that…”

“Because you’re 25. You’re older than me, so…”

Suddenly calling me “older brother” was startling. While our language has similar words to Earth’s, I had never heard the word “older brother” before.

At this distance, it’s not an issue of internal intimacy but rather a personality trait of Red. Unlike me, who feels uncomfortable getting close to others, she’s naturally open to forming close relationships.

“Oh, it’s fine. I was just a bit surprised.”

“Really? Is this the first time you’ve heard ‘older brother’?”

“Yes. That’s right.”

Red sees me as a foreigner who graduated from MAT. She probably thinks it’s the first time hearing the word “older brother” because she’s foreign. Regardless of the reason, it’s true that it’s the first time.

“Older Brother.”

I turned my head to look at her, and our eyes met. She smiled slightly.

“I thought you were a weird person when you came to the convenience store at the same time every day, but you’re really interesting.”

I didn’t do anything particularly interesting, but Red seemed to find my presence amusing.

“It’s bold of me, but could I ask for your help with studying when you have time? I won’t be able to offer much, but I’ll make sure to compensate you.”

While refusing would mean missing out on the chance to observe her more closely, accepting her request seemed reasonable. Not taking compensation might seem odd, so I agreed.

“Yes. If Yubin is okay with it.”

“Just call me Yubin.”

“Yes. Yubin.”

“Does that mean I can speak freely? Is it because you’re foreign? Your responses are like a machine.”

Every time Red spoke, there was no hint of laughter, and it was difficult to narrow the distance suddenly. Scratching my head awkwardly, I decided to try once.

“Alright. Then let’s speak freely. Yubin.”

“Yes. Since I’m younger, I’ll take my time with speaking freely.”

There are many types of people in the world. Earth has its diversity, but it increases even more in space. I thought I had encountered many different people, but encountering someone like Red was a first.

Seeing her again, she seemed different from when we fought. This new perspective might make for a good report.

“Two hours have already passed.”

Following Red’s lead, I checked my smartphone. As she said, we had been at the cafe for two hours, and we started wrapping up our session.

Stepping outside, the summer heat enveloped us. Last year’s weather was even hotter, but Korea’s weather is truly unpredictable. While seasons are distinct, summers are unbearably hot, and winters are unbearably cold. Even on planets with extreme environments, I didn’t experience direct temperature changes because I wore specialized suits.

Living on Earth for 20 years, I had to blend in and hide my identity, naturally leading to not wearing a suit and directly experiencing climate changes.

“It’s hot. It’s going to get even hotter.”

Red also seemed to feel the heat, fanning herself while speaking. Agreeing with her, I nodded.

“Thanks for listening to my sudden request.”

As she bid farewell, she suddenly held out her smartphone to me.

“?”

Curious about her intentions, I remained still as she firmly stated two words.

“Number.”

Today felt like more happened than the past month of surveilling Red. Although the amount of information was significant, it wasn’t unexpected. I accepted her smartphone and saved her number.

Red called me and shared her number, and seeing it recorded on my phone made me feel a sense of accomplishment.

“Thank you. Can I contact you on weekdays too?”

“Yes… Sure.”

“Thank you! I’ll contact you again soon.”

Feeling genuinely happy, I realized the strange comfort of having someone to rely on, rather than questioning whether my actions were correct. But soon, remembering my role as a watcher, I bid farewell and left.

Red waved goodbye, but she only waved as I walked away, and she seemed to be heading home.

Back in my room, I lay down from exhaustion and habitually checked my smartphone. There was a missed call notification from Red earlier, and upon checking, I saw that Lu Che had called ten times.

Thinking about how I hadn’t reported today’s surveillance, I called her back.

“Hey!!!”

As expected, Lu Che immediately shouted when she answered.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize the call came in.”

“Is that what you call an explanation?! You always call when I’m out on surveillance!”

“I’ll definitely answer next time. Calm down.”

She calmed down, thinking about the purpose of the call, and her voice softened as she asked about today’s surveillance.

“Nothing special happened today?”

Today was filled with events. Compared to the past month, today alone had more than enough content for a report. Yesterday’s events weren’t worth reporting, but today had significant developments.

“Wait. I have a call coming in. I’ll check the report later.”

Lu Che hung up, saying she had an urgent call.

“…Hope everything’s alright.”

I thought it might not be bad to gather all the day’s events while getting closer to Red and report them at once. Deciding to postpone today’s report, I focused on the immediate task.