Hunter Kindergarten, Dolphin Class! - Chapter 17

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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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Episode 017

 

The current time was 12:10.

 

Just looking at the Product Development Team in the Research Department had taken quite a while.

 

“First, let’s eat lunch~”

 

At Yu Jin-chae’s suggestion, we moved to the Indoor Garden located at the very top of the main building.

 

As the elevator stopped at the top floor and the doors smoothly opened, humid mist rushed inside.

 

“Oh…”

 

An exclamation escaped me without realizing it. The scale was that impressive.

 

I could tell what level of management they maintained – even to an outsider, it felt comparable to any famous botanical garden.

 

Four seasons of flowers and trees bloomed regardless of the season, harmoniously arranged in an atmospheric way, with small fountains scattered throughout creating pleasant white noise.

 

“Amazing, right? Starting this year, this Indoor Garden is being managed by employing a large number of Plant-type A-grade awakeners.”

 

Yu Jin-chae said, shrugging her shoulders.

 

“Does the company have money overflowing?”

 

Kang Sa-gwa looked around the garden in amazement.

 

‘That’s understandable.’

 

A-grade and above Plant-type awakeners have low rarity, but their value is high due to tremendous demand.

 

From various agricultural work to food resource research and desertification restoration projects.

 

Just the major ones I could mention immediately were already at that level.

 

“A-grade and above Plant-types have particularly high overseas demand. But lately, cases of foreign countries not paying for labor have increased, so starting this year BOND took on the role of intermediary. While they’re staying in Korea, they’re also assigned garden management~”

 

Acting as an intermediary.

 

‘They really do everything.’

 

I’d heard they do anything profitable, but I didn’t expect it to be to this extent.

 

Anyway, thanks to that, I was having the rare experience of eating lunch in a garden personally managed by A-grade Plant-type awakeners.

 

We spread out a picnic mat in the Picnic Area at the center of the Indoor Garden.

 

Large foliage plants surrounded the picnic mat, and light from the glass ceiling filtered through the gaps between leaves, creating quite a mystical atmosphere.

 

…It seemed too precious a place just for eating.

 

“Wow, it’s like we’ve entered a jungle rainforest.”

 

Agreeing inwardly with Park I-deun’s continuous exclamations, I opened the children’s lunch box lids one by one.

 

“Ta-da, my mom packed matching lunch boxes for me and Tae-jae!”

 

“Right, Aunt packed Hello T-Bot lunch boxes for us.”

 

Opening the two identical lunch containers, I could see rice and side dishes shaped like the famous car robot character.

 

‘Noah’s Mother must have worked hard.’

 

Meanwhile, Seo-ra, who had been quietly staring at Tae-jae and Noah’s lunch boxes, boldly showed off her own lunch box.

 

“Me and Lee Seo-ro got ours from the kimbap restaurant that Older Brother bought! But it’s really delicious!”

 

“Since older brother can’t cook, buying food tastes better.”

 

Somehow, this one felt like craftsmanship in a different sense.

 

“Aunt packed mine this morning. Mine’s delicious too.”

 

It wasn’t a seven-course meal, but the lunch box with impressive, unburdensome decoration also clearly had another craftsperson behind it.

 

Only mine was spam with plain rice.

 

I opened my hastily made lunch box from last night and gave myself a small compliment.

 

‘Still, let’s find meaning in the fact that I managed to pack a lunch in that state of mind.’

 

Satisfied with that, I was quietly eating while watching the children eat when I noticed something continuously being placed on the side dish lid I’d set on the floor.

 

…Hmm?

 

Kimbap, apple, steamed potato, Shine Muscat…?

 

As I stared at those items precariously piled on the lid, Noah shouted at me as if scolding.

 

“Teacher! If you eat too little, you’ll be hungry later!”

 

“Uh…”

 

“That’s right. Grandmother said that rice energy is important.”

 

“Mm…”

 

“Our Older Brother knows all the places with delicious kimbap! We bought it there! It’s delicious!”

 

By this point, I couldn’t resist eating anymore.

 

I picked up one of the Shine Muscat grapes placed on the lid with a bewildered feeling and put it in my mouth.

 

Then, reactions burst out.

 

“Aunt said that one is the most delicious.”

 

“It’s delicious! Fruit is tasty!”

 

“Teacher, try the potato too.”

 

I felt like I might be moved to tears. I was grateful for their caring hearts, wanting to look after me because even the kids could see my lunch box looked meager.

 

I responded to their feelings by eagerly eating from their lunch boxes while continuously expressing my gratitude.

 

It was about to become such a peaceful lunch time…

 

Unexpectedly, a slight disturbance occurred.

 

“Isn’t it getting a bit noisy?”

 

Strangely, the surroundings suddenly became chaotic. Considering this was an indoor garden where people came to rest, it was an even more noticeable change.

 

I saw employees hurriedly running down the stairs to the lower floor.

 

What, did some urgent matter come up?

 

“Ah, did something happen underground again?”

 

“Honestly, I don’t understand what criteria they use to determine a gate is safe enough to bring into the company’s underground.”

 

“Well, they probably only bring in ones like the gate they brought in last time where no boss was visible in the dungeon, or relatively low-risk ones.”

 

“That’s what I find unreliable. Isn’t it more dangerous when you can’t see the boss? And whose standards are used for measuring risk? Anyway, it’s annoying.”

 

I could overhear the conversation of the remaining employees sitting on the bench behind me, drinking coffee and chatting.

 

However, due to the sound of the fountain nearby, I couldn’t hear even that properly.

 

“What’s the problem?”

 

At Park I-deun’s question as she was picking at kimbap, I drank some water and roughly conveyed what I had figured out.

 

“Well, it seems there’s a problem underground.”

 

I didn’t need to know the details. Actually, what did it matter to me? Whether there was a problem underground or not had nothing to do with me.

 

“Underground? Is there something underground here?”

 

“Who knows. Since it’s a large corporation, maybe there’s a huge data center underground or something.”

 

I answered indifferently while tidying up the picnic mat and getting up. The next schedule was waiting.

 

“Teacher, I want to go to the restroom.”

 

And since events like this happen occasionally, I had to handle things quickly to avoid disrupting the schedule.

 

Come to think of it, we stopped by briefly before departure and haven’t been since then, right?

 

“Anyone else who wants to go?”

 

It was about time to go.

 

“Me!!”

 

“Me too.”

 

“Me too! Me too!”

 

“Is everyone going? Then, I want to go too.”

 

The conclusion was reached.

 

All of Dolphin Class raised their hands.

 

I sensed my fate and asked Yu Jin-chae to take care of Seo-ra.

 

“Could you please take Seo-ra to the restroom? And sorry, but Teacher Hae-seong, could you accompany me to the restroom?”

 

Leaving the remaining children with Park I-deun and Kang Sa-gwa, Kwon Hae-seong and I moved with the boys from Dolphin Class. In this process, we went down to the lower floor using the emergency staircase.

 

‘Does it make sense that the indoor garden doesn’t have a men’s restroom?’

 

They said they installed a water supply machine where the men’s restroom was supposed to be.

 

I followed behind, giving warnings to the children walking ahead. And Kwon Hae-seong followed behind me down the stairs.

 

“They’ve… hung dolls on everything.”

 

I looked at the dolls attached to the yellow bags of the children walking ahead and belatedly understood Kwon Hae-seong’s words.

 

“Ah, yes. Cheonji gave them out as travel souvenirs. I got one too.”

 

I lifted up the backpack on my back once to show the doll. Then, Kwon Hae-seong, who had been quietly staring at that doll, said something strange.

 

“It looks like you, Teacher…”

 

“…Excuse me? Does it?”

 

What did he look like again? I only saw him briefly this morning so I can’t remember…

 

‘Ah, I remember now.’

 

Like a white country mutt… That’s what he looked like.

 

Are you kidding me? Do I really look that dumb?

 

“It’s cute… Should we make one for the Seal Class too?”

 

Why are you asking me that? Just do it if you like it.

 

“Sounds good. How about a bear for Teacher Hae-seong? A fire bear.”

 

“Fire bear… I like it.”

 

Kwon Hae-seong liked my teasing comment and asked with genuine pleasure. He even smiled softly as if he really meant it.

 

…Fine, you do whatever you want.

 

Come to think of it, this guy does have a special talent.

 

‘Making people lose their fighting spirit is also a talent.’

 

As we came out into the hallway connected to the staircase landing, I immediately saw the restroom.

 

“The restroom is over there.”

 

As I walked toward the restroom, my ears naturally perked up at the faint murmuring I could hear. Voices of people were coming from the end of the hallway.

 

What’s this, did an underground server really crash or something?

 

“We have to catch him! Do you really not know where he went?”

 

“I definitely checked…”

 

They must be trying to catch whoever crashed the server. It seems like a bigger incident than I thought.

 

I lost interest at that point.

 

What I needed to focus on wasn’t the underground or anything like that.

 

‘Let’s quickly take care of the restroom business and go.’

 

The restroom was clean, befitting a large corporation. The floor was so shiny and spacious you could lie down on it.

 

‘There was someone here.’

 

As soon as I entered, I made direct eye contact with a man standing in front of the sink.

 

His disheveled appearance caught my eye, but it wasn’t particularly strange to think about.

 

Having been in and out of this company for the past few days, I hadn’t seen many people who looked particularly normal.

 

…Is this the Plant-type Awakener that Yu Jin-chae told me about? He must have been rolling around in some field.

 

Finishing my scan, I quickly took the initiative before the other person could get flustered.

 

“Ah, there was someone here. Excuse me, but children from Ocean Kindergarten came for a field trip today. We’ll just use the restroom briefly and leave! Sorry, but please bear with us.”

 

The man who had hesitated at my earnest request soon nodded his head roughly without saying anything.

 

“Thank you.”

 

I maintained a smile on my face while mentally giving the man a thumbs up.

 

‘What a nice person.’

 

…However, this thumbs up would turn into a middle finger in less than an hour.

 

***

 

-Tap tap tap.

 

Rapid footsteps echo continuously in the hallway.

 

People in field uniforms and people wearing caps pulled low over their faces scatter quickly with urgent expressions.

 

And in the hallway after they disappeared.

 

Amid the chilly atmosphere, a woman with an expressionless face finally opened her mouth.

 

“Whose team’s mistake would this be?”

 

It was Moon Chae-yeong, the team leader of Field Team Na.

 

Indeed, her questioning intent was murderous. It meant she had no intention of letting any team off easy once they were caught.

 

‘I was relaxed since there was no work for once.’

 

No matter how much she got dopamine from work, sudden calls like this were never pleasant.

 

And even more so when the reason for the call was shitty.

 

“Field Team Ma. I heard they lost him right before handing him over to the police.”

 

The man leaning against the opposite wall kindly provided the answer.

 

Ah, so it’s Team Ma.

 

Her irritation subsided a little. At least she now clearly knew who was responsible.

 

‘I’ll scold them later.’

 

Moon Chae-yeong, feeling slightly better, tapped her foot and asked again.

 

“Which idiot was it that lost the criminal while handing them over to the police?”

 

“Park Hyeong-du from Team Ma. He didn’t properly secure the restraint device.”

 

On top of that, he didn’t put on the control device either.

 

Since the criminal escaped using their ability, it was obvious.

 

He forgot the control device and didn’t even properly secure the restraint device…

 

Hmm, at this level, it won’t end with just ordinary disciplinary action.

 

Sure enough, the man in front of her nodded with fierce, piercing eyes.

 

“If he was going to handle the job like that, it would have been better not to find them at all. He just gave the Board of Directors something to use against us.”

 

Moon Chae-yeong chuckled seeing the man speak even more harshly than herself.

 

‘His personality is really bad.’

 

Still, she wasn’t quite that bad.

 

Even if this matter was resolved well, Team Ma probably wouldn’t come out unscathed.

 

She could clearly see how that man would treat Team Ma later.

 

After brief consideration, Moon Chae-yeong changed her mind.

 

‘Let me step back.’

 

Usually she played the ‘stick’ role in the carrot and stick approach, but today there was someone even worse, so there was no need for her to add to it.

 

Moon Chae-yeong hurriedly recalled the details of the situation she had heard to focus on organizing the current circumstances.

 

The C-rank dungeon that Team Ma had entered this morning.

 

It was a dungeon the company had purchased a few days ago, even paying extra for it.

 

‘Today was supposed to be the last day, wasn’t it?’

 

Once today’s test was completed, it would receive a safety rating and be moved to the company basement.

 

And the team deployed for that final test was Field Team Ma.

 

The problem was that they accidentally discovered a criminal with D-rank Spatial Movement Ability in that dungeon.

 

Moreover, when they caught him, this guy turned out to have over 10 prior convictions for theft and other petty crimes.

 

‘It’s not easy to get on the wanted list just for theft, fraud, and pickpocketing.’

 

But the real problem was that they lost this petty criminal just before handing him over to the police, making their efforts to catch him meaningless.

 

And that happened inside the company building.

 

“With D-rank Spatial Movement, even if he runs away, he’ll be somewhere in this building, and since the movement location is random, we’ll definitely catch him if we search thoroughly.”

 

However, there was nothing to worry about.

 

As that man said, there was nowhere for that criminal to escape to.

 

With the police stationed at the main gate, the deployed field teams, and the security team members, he would be caught within an hour at most.

 

Moon Chae-yeong nodded at the man’s assertion.

 

Then now I should…

 

Move. And find him first.

 

Before that enraged man found the petty criminal first and ‘accidentally’ killed him.

 

“Ease up on the intensity in your eyes. You’re scaring me to death~”

 

Moon Chae-yeong pretended to be indifferent as she turned around.

 

Then she quickly turned the corner and activated her watch to connect a call with her team members.

 

“Hey, hey. Gyeon-i is pissed off. We need to catch that guy first.”

 

That way, she could protect her quitting time, couldn’t she?

 

“If Gyeon-i catches him first, we’re definitely working overtime.”

 

Whenever that man’s eyes rolled like that, all the field teams always ended up working overtime.

 

That crazy bastard would try to tear everything apart if anything went wrong.

 

Moon Chae-yeong ran like her feet were on fire for the first time in a while. Being a little nervous was unexpectedly exciting.

 

 

And so, on the day when the children from Ocean Kindergarten came for their field trip, a chase between adults began inside the company building.

—————
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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