Retire 316

316 The Duty of a Younger Sibling (1)

‘Atlas? You mean the one from Greek mythology?’

There was nothing to be gained from Kim Chaemin.

It was only after I mentioned that it was a pharmaceutical company specializing in potions that she acknowledged it.

‘Ah, that place. Yes, I know it. I’ve heard of it before.’

‘Don’t you work there with Dayeon?’

It was Gamble who actually recognized it first.

But that was the extent of her knowledge. Our areas of interest didn’t overlap anyway… I suppose it couldn’t be helped. I myself knew almost nothing about Atlas Inc.

Even now, as in the past, there isn’t enough information about Atlas.

Well, in the field of potions, it’s a renowned company, so if you look internationally, it’s bound to come up. There’s a reason Dayeon would collaborate with them. It’s not as if Dayeon is running a charity.

What I mean by information is the traces these people left behind—the ones who left the research institute that was absorbed into the Ark. The place where my biological parents once belonged.

All my brother ever told me were fragments, nothing truly helpful. He was created during the time when it was still Atlas, not an independent research institute… But back then, he was just a child, so the information he could have known would be limited.

Even when I looked into it much later, most of the records had long since disappeared. At best, there were only old stories about embezzlement scandals, with the former management being completely replaced…

Beyond that, there was nothing more I could learn.

“I’ve actually been investigating Atlas for some time now.”

And once again, the capable Hunter Imi-seon shone brightly.

“You remember how you said something felt off about Atlas last time? That’s when I started looking into it.”

“You’re diligent.”

“…Didn’t you say that because you wanted me to?”

What had I said back then? So much had happened since that I couldn’t quite recall. I just shrugged.

“Let’s say that’s what I meant.”

Well, there’s no harm in being prepared. Since we were preparing to collaborate with Dayeon, it made sense to look into them.

Imi-seon seemed to have something more to say, but in the end, she didn’t.

“As far as I can tell, there are two Atlases.”

Instead, she got straight to the point.

Imi-seon was becoming more and more like the bureaucrats at the Administration Office. So dry.

Then again, when had I ever imagined I’d be in a position to receive reports from Imi-seon? I straightened my posture and focused on her words.

This was unknown information. While I’d never really known much before, there was still a difference between having a vague idea and knowing nothing at all.

“Two?”

And then Imi-seon said something I never expected.

“You know how the management changed after that embezzlement case? Apparently, things got pretty chaotic inside at that time. Some researchers, even though they were cleared of charges, had a lot of rumors swirling around them.”

Atlas wasn’t as large as a company like Dayeon, but it was built on a solid foundation. There’s a saying that even when a rich family falls, they last three years—they didn’t go down easily.

Atlas, after its brief fall, managed to recover a few years later by rallying the remaining researchers.

“But among those controversial researchers, some quit.”

“So when you say there were two Atlases…”

“Yes, the ones who left with the old management started their own. They even kept the same name. Oh, but they changed countries.”

“Hmm… Did they make potions as well?”

“Not exactly. It’s more like a foundation than a company.”

A foundation?

I felt myself sinking even deeper into the mire.

“That’s as far as I was able to track. The Atlas where Schneider was hiding seems to be this one.”

“Is there really no connection to Atlas Inc.?”

“Well…”

Imi-seon made a dissatisfied face.

“There’s no such thing as a hundred percent in this world.”

“I suppose not…”

“But the potions developed there aren’t fakes. Besides, it’s not like I can interfere in Dayeon’s business… I’ve already told my father, so if anything suspicious comes up, he’ll let us know.”

“The chairman?”

“Hm. It feels strange to hear Mr. Woo called ‘the chairman.’ Yes, but if there’s something odd, he might be the one to find out.”

I nodded. There was nothing I could do about this anyway. Better to leave it to them and put it out of my mind.

Fortunately, Imi-seon was competent, and Dayeon had worked with Hong Seok-young for a long time, so I could trust her. It was fine. I would leave this matter to them.

Imi-seon returned to the topic of the second Atlas.

“This place is so closed off that this is all we know for now. It’s almost… cult-like, you could say. There’s no way to infiltrate and find out more.”

Imi-seon handed me a brief report. Among the few pages, there was a photo of a building whose gray concrete walls made it look like a prison.

Atlas School.

And the village where the school was located was a small town with a population of just over five thousand. No wonder Imi-seon had trouble investigating.

“Atlas School is the only school in the area.”

“The Atlas Foundation… They do a lot more than just run a school.”

For example, hospitals.

That’s how they’d tracked them this far.

I looked at a photo of the village. It looked like a quiet rural town somewhere in America.

Investigating further would be impossible. At this point, outsiders would be met with suspicion.

So, in another direction—

“…The researchers who left Atlas Inc.—do you know who they are?”

Somehow, I had a hunch that someone among those researchers was connected to me by blood.

Was the name I knew their real name?

Suddenly, I wondered. I’d never doubted their nationality because of their name, but who knows. Then again, it didn’t seem likely they’d go so far as to fake both their nationality and name.

According to my brother, they’d lived abroad for a time…

“Ah.”

“Yes?”

“When Kang Taewoo comes back, try asking him.”

“Taewoo?”

Imi-seon tilted her head at my words.

“He spent his childhood in America.”

Besides, like me, Kang Taewoo’s parents were also researchers.

“I’m not saying he lived there, but… he might remember something, or have heard something.”

Though, he was just a kid back then, so how much could he really know?

But then again, I should know better.

Children remember and understand more than adults expect.

“Anyway, those researchers who left?”

“It was a long time ago, and it’s overseas, so tracking them is difficult.”

Imi-seon’s face still showed no sign of relief.

“I’m doing my best to find out… But I can’t even tell if they left because the company was in chaos and seemed doomed, or if there was some other reason.”

She added that I shouldn’t expect too much.

In the end, there was nothing to be gained about Atlas. Even though Erve Schneider had pointed directly at them.

I checked my phone. Since then, there had been no word from Hong Seok-young.

It was clear now that there was some connection to the Ark. But whether that counted as progress, I wasn’t sure… In the end, I’d have to wait for Hong Seok-young again. At the very least, I needed to know why Schneider was there, why he attacked Hong Seok-young, and whether he was really acting on Lehmann’s orders.

“……”

I read through the report Imi-seon had left behind once more. Half of the few pages were just photographs.

Gripped by a helpless sense of frustration and despair, I slumped back against the sofa.

There was too much to do.

And yet, there was nothing I could actually do.

Atlas was out of my hands, but I still needed to investigate the warehouse at the harbor, and do something about the fairy holed up in Jirisan. Hong Seok-young’s absence was worrying, I was concerned about Woo Irok’s safety and education, and thinking about that inevitably brought up the students at Yangseong High as well.

Was Kang Taewoo, off in Hawaii, doing alright? And what about those winged ones Hantaekyung had mentioned… Noah Michel, Henry Lehmann, and the rest…

“Damn it.”

In the end, I cursed out loud.

There were so many problems. But the reason I hadn’t even begun things that should be started as soon as possible, like investigating the warehouse, was clear.

There weren’t enough people.

People I could trust. People with real ability.

Right now, the only ones we could mobilize were Imi-seon and the hunters under her. But they were, after all, Imi-seon’s hunters. They weren’t mine to command as I pleased. That meant I couldn’t control what they might say, and I couldn’t confide in them the way I had with Kim Chaemin. And telling Imi-seon? That was even less certain.

Even if I counted Hong Seok-young in America, that made just three of us, including Kim Chaemin. Gamble wasn’t a combatant, so she was out. Hantaekyung was half-in, half-out, but his personality made it difficult to bring him along…

Then again, considering how he’d kept important matters hidden for over ten years, maybe that wasn’t the issue. I was already short-handed enough that I might have to start using Hantaekyung more seriously.

In any case, for now, only Kim Chaemin and I could move immediately. But I couldn’t be away for long because of Woo Irok. Especially now, when suspicious people had been seen around him.

Kim Chaemin? I couldn’t forget—she was already busy enough. Not only was she working with Hantaekyung at the lab, but her research on mana grass and the greenhouse alone was more than enough. If anything, I was the one interfering with her work by calling her out so often.

It all came down to a lack of capable people.

“…Come to think of it.”

When I was first told to work at this school, I’d thought I’d raise these kids to be my hands and feet.

For a moment, I pictured that future.

‘Teacher! Let’s watch a movie again!’

‘Next time, can we watch something even more fun?’

A bunch of noisy, chattering kids…

If only there were at least one more.

Someone trustworthy, capable, and preferably with good infiltration skills. A mage would be nice. Someone quick-witted, too…

Why couldn’t a person like that just fall from the sky?

I let out a sigh.

That would never happen, so I might as well stop dawdling and get to work.

At least the students at Yangseong High had stabilized a lot. Even Park Seohyun’s magic, which had worried me the most… Except for a few areas that needed close attention, I could probably leave them to Dasun’s hunters.

Absentmindedly, I glanced out the window and found myself facing the monster corpse still lying on the field.

Right. That thing needed to be disposed of, too.

Kim Chaemin had said she hadn’t finished examining it, and I’d left it because Hong Seok-young should probably check it as well…

But honestly, I just wanted to get rid of that hideous thing as quickly as possible.

When one thing bothered me, everything else did too.

“……”

Even the phone ringing loudly seemed grating.

What now?

There were hardly any people who’d contact me on this phone.

But the moment I saw the name on the screen, all hesitation vanished.

“Irok? What’s wrong?”

—Hyung!!

Woo Irok called out to me in a frantic voice.