Editor’s Survival Guide - Chapter 54
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Editor’s Survival Rules Episode 54
ep10. Agent Seo’s Complete Surprise (2)
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■ Precautions within “National Theater for Identifying Fakes”
3. Your inner self may be reflected in the performance.
Though rare, the performance content may depict your past or trauma.
If the actions on stage feel like your own story, close your eyes and endure it.
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Installing surveillance cameras within the Special Zone is one of the Management Bureau’s main duties.
That’s why there’s a separate department called the Control Team dedicated to handling this.
However, inside the performance hall of the “National Theater,” no Management Bureau surveillance cameras are installed.
They’ve attempted to install them multiple times.
They even tried hiding ultra-small cameras.
But the cameras inside the performance hall were immediately damaged by the entities.
The Management Bureau’s conclusion was this:
‘Most performances strictly prohibit unauthorized filming. Therefore, the “National Theater” also thoroughly blocks filming of the performance hall.’
Due to this situation, the performance content of the “National Theater” could only be confirmed through survivors’ testimonies.
And there had been no records of survivors watching different performances during the same time period.
At least, not until now.
“What I saw were people wearing traditional masks. They were playing something like tag, but what do you mean by white man? There were a few people wearing white hanbok though.”
People wearing traditional masks.
It seems like he’s referring to “Hide and Seek,” the National Theater’s performance number 3.
The National Theater had seven performance patterns in total.
Numbers 1 through 6 were standardized performances with titles like “Ganggangsullae” and “Wailing.”
Meanwhile, performances reflecting the audience’s past or trauma were classified as number 7.
And when a number 7 performance unfolded on stage, not only the person involved but other audience members would see the same performance.
So the trauma victim could suffer severe mental anguish again—that was the content of the manual…
“What about the wheel? Did you happen to see any animals like angels, lions, bulls, or birds?”
“No, there definitely wasn’t anything like that.”
Choi Sang-eun shook his head repeatedly.
I looked at Choi Sang-eun and forced myself to swallow dry saliva.
“I see. Thank you for confirming. Well then, please be careful going back.”
* * *
My situation is special.
Being constantly dragged to the Special Zone out of nowhere is special, peculiar, and extraordinary.
It’s not even surprising anymore, but still.
What am I supposed to do when you keep throwing new confusion at me like this…
I was holding my head in my hands alone when.
Click-!
Heo Gu-yeong, supervisor of the Post-management Team, entered the interview room where I was.
Unlike earlier when he was almost in tears, his face was now bright and cheerful.
“Rescue subject number 84 has returned home!”
Rescue subject number 84 referred to Choi Sang-eun.
“Thank you so much, Agent. Ah, I really survived thanks to you…”
Heo Gu-yeong, who was expressing gratitude to me, was a young man with thick eyebrows and an upright appearance—the so-called “family meeting free pass” type.
His personality seemed to match his face almost exactly.
In other words, unlike the beasts at the field sites, he was an ordinarily polite and social person.
“We wanted to handle it ourselves if possible, but we’re sorry for troubling you.”
“Not at all, I also got to meet Mr. Choi Sang-eun this time.”
“Thank you so much for saying that… Really, people like journalists are really hard to deal with. Especially cases like this one where they even have a sense of mission, really, phew…”
Heo Gu-yeong shook his head as if exhausted.
He seemed to have really struggled, as he was overusing the adverb “really.”
“Anyway, it was resolved right away when you came, Agent. As expected, rapport is important in everything… Oh, and Agent. Could you sign this for me?”
Having finished his complaints, Heo Gu-yeong opened his bag.
I naturally picked up a pen, thinking documents needed signing.
But…
“What is this?”
“It’s limited goods for Otter Rescue Association 3rd generation members. Could you sign on the body part?”
What Heo Gu-yeong showed me by opening a small box was a glass craft.
Stained glass that depicted an otter shape using pieces of colored glass.
It looked like it could be hung by a window like a wind chime.
What is this unnecessarily high-quality otter merchandise?
Yu Ju, is this you again?
When did you make this?
No, how did you even make this?
Heo Gu-yeong held out a name pen along with the merchandise, requesting a signature.
I put my confusion aside and wrote my name on the streamlined body of the glass otter.
Then Heo Gu-yeong slyly opened his bag again.
“Um, I’m really sorry but while you’re at it, could you also sign here? Our team leader and team members asked me to.”
Ten more identical boxes came tumbling out.
When I was surprised seeing that, Heo Gu-yeong sheepishly explained.
“Ahaha, it’s quite a lot, right? We did group registration during the 3rd generation.”
“Why did you do that…?”
“The 3rd generation was first-come-first-served registration. So we waited in the office and all joined together as soon as the form opened. The competition was fierce, so some people ultimately failed.”
No, that’s not what I was asking about…?
When I stared with wavering eyes, Heo Gu-yeong nodded proudly.
“Everyone in our department is a real fan of yours, Agent. Especially our team leader.”
“…”
“Oh, did I burden you too much? Sorry for suddenly asking like this…”
“No, not at all. Writing names isn’t difficult at all, but…”
I tried to give a suitable excuse but ended up trailing off.
How should I explain this?
It was about time I addressed this once and for all.
Actually, when I first heard about the Otter Rescue Association, I thought they were teasing me.
I thought the pile of gifts at the residence was just an unusual welcome ceremony.
When Yu Ju suddenly said she was a fan, I thought it was just cute since she was Jae-gyeom’s friend.
Up to this point, I could accept it.
But the excessive attention pouring out every time I went to the training ground.
The momentum of the Otter Rescue Association that caught and eliminated the contaminated gang in a short period.
Even Manager Jo from General Affairs, who wasn’t even a regular employee but a senior staff member, being part of the Otter Rescue Association—I gradually felt something was off.
And now, at this moment.
Right here, where a staff member from another department of the same gender and age as me was claiming to be my fan and requesting an autograph.
I had no choice but to ask the fundamental question.
What exactly is this?
Why do people go this far?
Should I keep swallowing this poison gulp by gulp?
Yes, I’m also someone’s fan.
I liked a certain work and author so much that I even changed my career path.
But I… don’t want to keep them close by depicting that author as an animal…
Though I had so much I wanted to say, I swallowed everything that was raging in my mouth.
Then I offered the most refined response I could manage.
“I’m not really accustomed to this kind of attention…”
“Ah! That’s right, I’m sorry. I saw it in the regulations.”
“Regulations?”
“The Otter Rescue Association regulation that says to only look with your eyes. That Agent Seo is an introvert.”
“How did you know I’m an introvert?”
“Oh, everyone knows that. You almost got motion sickness during your appointment ceremony. Your face turned completely pale.”
Right, that did happen.
The day I first wore this Management Bureau uniform.
The day I had to receive my appointment letter alone in front of hundreds of people because I was the only appointee.
My appointment ceremony last month had been utterly merciless for someone whose hobby is reading and whose job is editing…
“Oh my, I’m sorry, I got carried away.”
Heo Gu-yeong quickly apologized, perhaps noticing my face had turned pale again.
He tried to put away the box he’d placed on the table, so I shook my head.
I didn’t know what was going on, but I opened the box and quietly began writing my name.
Writing my name a few times wasn’t particularly difficult.
Though I still had no idea how to handle this increasingly overwhelming situation…
“Hmm, Agent. I really don’t mean to burden you with this…”
As I scribbled my name crookedly on the glass, Heo Gu-yeong carefully broached the subject.
“Actually, our team is the one most affected by your influence.”
“Influence?”
This was news to me.
I have almost no contact with the Post-management Team.
I hadn’t even met the Post-management Team when I went home, since Cha Si-eon came out for some reason.
When I looked at him with an expression asking what he was talking about, Heo Gu-yeong elaborated.
“That reporter earlier is Rescuer 84, and these numbers restart from 1 every year.”
So Choi Sang-eun was the 84th person rescued this year?
Come to think of it, I had numbers too.
When I came out of the Train Station, I was Rescuer 12.
When I came out of the Hospital, I was both Rescuer 12 and 13.
…Wait, isn’t this double counting?
“Last year there were 208 rescuees. But this year there are already 84 by April. Of these, 15 citizens were rescued by you alone, Agent. Thanks to that, we’ve been quite busy lately.”
Heo Gu-yeong smiled brightly while saying he was busy.
That expression reminded me of Ha Yu-ju, who said she was busy but having fun.
Right, Section Chief Kwon Mu-seop had said the same thing.
That they weren’t just watching for fun.
That when they see people in trouble, they naturally want to save them.
As he said, people’s hearts seemed to be similar.
But how did I rescue 15 people?
1 person from the Train Station – Lee Sol.
5 people from the Sports Stadium, including Jang Han-bin.
10 people from the National Theater, including Choi Sang-eun.
That makes 16 people, but the numbers don’t match.
Maybe Choi Sang-eun was excluded since he escaped on his own?
No, it might be Jang Han-bin’s case.
Of course, the important thing now wasn’t the difference of one or two people, but whether it was right to count all of this as my rescue.
Setting aside the Sports Stadium where Jae-gyeom was with me.
“The National Theater people would have come out anyway.”
“That’s true too. But for us, prognosis is more important than rescue numbers.”
“Prognosis?”
When I asked back, Heo Gu-yeong’s expression became even more cautious.
“I said there were 208 rescuees last year. But only 126 of them are still alive now.”
“What?”
If only 126 out of 208 people are alive, what happened to the remaining 82?
They died within a year, no, less than a year?
After barely escaping from that hell, why?
“Don’t tell me it was because of contamination?”
“No, the contaminated and prisoners aren’t included in these numbers to begin with.”
“Then…”
I trailed off with a chilling intuition.
Then Heo Gu-yeong drove the point home with a bitter voice.
“They took their own lives.”
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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