NOVEL WEB FPL Research Lab No. 4, restricted area.
Gan Hana’s shiny eyes were wide open in utter shock as the rookie researcher stood there.
Her lost fingertips hovered aimlessly in the air, and her mouth hung agape with no sign of closing.
Had some hostile IF capable of easily folding humans in half escaped?
Nope.
IF-017, the IF assigned to Gan Hana’s department, was famously docile and safe—so much so that it constantly received love calls from researchers.
And it was cute too!
In a sea of monsters behaving like actual monsters, this humanoid enigma simply slept quietly, providing a feast for the eyes just by existing.
But then… it woke up yesterday.
The very first incident report turned out to be not sudden knife attacks but rather sudden displays of cuteness. What else could one say?
Being placed in the IF-017 research team was undoubtedly a stroke of luck for rookie Gan Hana.
For a moment, she felt proud, but soon snapped back to reality.
Because compared to IFs, the person standing before her was far more terrifying.
Her feet refused to move.
Unable to detach herself, Gan Hana remained frozen in place, forcing the other party to awkwardly stand there too. This strange standoff lasted about thirty seconds.
Before long, the other person furrowed their brows.
“How long do you plan to just stand there?”
Only now did Gan Hana wipe the drool from her slightly open mouth.
The figure Gan Hana had been staring at blankly was none other than the lead researcher responsible for IF-017—a senior researcher who’d joined FPL long before Gan Hana.
Gan Hana observed them closely.
Messy black hair, pitch-black pupils, dark circles under their eyes, and an overall gloomy expression—all traits typical of the senior researcher she knew—but something was off.
Gan Hana was thoroughly confused.
She’d never seen her senior wear anything other than the standard-issue white lab coat!
“Is that… your outfit?”
Even if it were ordinary casual wear, it would’ve been surprising, but not jaw-dropping.
For someone to look so perplexed over clothing…
Yeah.
It must’ve been something drastic. Like a full-body red bodysuit combo.
While maintaining eye contact, the senior slightly glanced away and replied,
“It happened.”
“Wait, Senior? This isn’t something you can brush off with ‘it happened,’ right…?”
Despite acting as though nothing unusual occurred, Gan Hana couldn’t help but feel like she was the odd one out.
Given how they handled everything, interacting with this person was always difficult for her.
“What’s going on with that outfit?”
When Gan Hana directly asked, the senior scratched their head.
“You didn’t get briefed during orientation? Alpha Rank wears gray, Beta Rank wears white, Gamma Rank wears red…”
Yes, Gan Hana had been briefed.
Even though she tended to zone out during explanations and got scolded later, since joining FPL, matters of life and death meant she couldn’t afford to miss such details.
Currently, excluding Delta Rank (those unaware of FPL’s existence) and Omega Rank (whose information is tightly controlled), there were Alpha, Beta, and Gamma Ranks.
Gray coats, white gowns, and red uniforms respectively.
These classifications were well-known to Gan Hana.
So familiar, in fact, that she shook her head.
That wasn’t what she was asking!
“But… Senior, you’re Beta Rank, right? You always said doing unrelated stuff during work hours was punishable by death. Why are you wearing Gamma Rank clothes during work hours…?”
Mid-sentence, she paused.
Unbelievably, that senior was subtly avoiding her gaze.
“…”
A brief silence ensued.
Then came a barely audible response.
“… It happened.”
At this, Gan Hana also shifted her gaze.
As she rested two fingers on her chin,
“Hmm… I see…”
Gan Hana loved small, adorable things.
Whether objects, animals, or people, whenever she saw something tiny, she couldn’t resist cooing over it.
“Are you done? We’re busy here, you know…”
To Gan Hana, the usually intimidating senior now appeared oddly timid…
And quite fun to tease.
“Gamma Rank… command?”
“… Since it’s work hours, shouldn’t we be working… huh?”
Seeing this unprecedented clumsy side of their senior, Gan Hana’s lips curled into a mischievous grin.
She straightened her posture, placed her hands confidently on her chest, and declared,
“I’m Beta Rank! Yet you’re suddenly being so curt? You should use honorifics now, Senior. According to the rules you cherish so much. Actually, you’re no longer my senior, but I’ll give you special treatment and address you respectfully anyway.”
Had Gan Hana ever worked anywhere else, she wouldn’t have gone this far, but alas, FPL was her first job after high school graduation.
She was feeling mighty proud of herself. After all, Gamma Rank clearly deserved respect.
They were the ones called upon for all the dirty jobs.
No salary, no refusal allowed.
Some even joked that the red uniforms were red because bloodstains were routine.
For those initially recruited as Gamma Rank, this wasn’t a joke—it was reality. But for those demoted from higher ranks due to mistakes, their treatment was relatively better, as their skills as high-level personnel remained intact.
Gan Hana wasn’t truly malicious despite her playful nature, which made this behavior natural.
After losing her words briefly, the senior nodded slowly, muttering to themselves before regaining composure.
“That’s right, rules must be followed…”
This was indeed the usual senior.
Just as Gan Hana tilted her head in confusion,
“I intended to hand over duties, but according to regulations, there’s no obligation. So, I’ll go handle Gamma Rank tasks now. Researcher.”
Before Gan Hana could respond, the senior vanished from sight.
Chills ran down her spine.
Somehow, teasing them left her with an ominous premonition about the future.
“The senior researcher didn’t cause major damage and has always been exceptionally skilled, so they’ll likely return to their original position soon…”
“The transfer of duties was actually a gesture of goodwill from the senior, considering how busy I’ll be due to IF-017’s recent changes…”
All these facts were unknown to rookie Gan Hana.
“Did I tease them unnecessarily…?”
—
“Great ancient beings! Here lies the purest heart offered by this year’s most innocent child. Please accept it graciously.”
“GYAAAH!”
“It shall be noted that you have accepted. Now, how about this honey candy?”
“Glug glug.”
“A~h, thank you for indulging us.”
“GYAAH~”
“Please chew slowly to avoid choking. Excellent work indeed.”
Ah…
This felt nice at the time.
But it was merely a summer night’s dream…
I opened my eyes.
The delightful memories with the Sajejang faded like a mirage.
All that remained in my hand was the cold, hard ground.
I was furious and frustrated beyond measure.
I wanted to bang the ground and scream, but the lack of energy was the most frustrating part.
One day passed.
If only I could relax normally, I wouldn’t care whether it was a day or a hundred years. But staying awake and enduring the weight of time made every second heavy.
Exactly one day passed without any change, reminding me bitterly that yesterday’s efforts were utterly useless.
That’s why I forced myself to open my eyes again.
Something had to have changed by now.
I gently placed my hand on the ground and strained my ears.
With closed eyes and focused concentration, the previously muffled sounds began to separate and become distinct.
Change.
There is some.
“… IF-017… evacuation…”
“Bring the armor-piercing rounds!…”
“IF-684 alert… in berserk mode…”
“… Kill the pests… burn them all…”
Though human voices mixed with incomprehensible noises still dominated…
The surroundings were 1.3 times louder than yesterday.
This was definitely a change.
… Hmm.
Coincidentally, the environment worsened immediately after I acted.
Clearly mocking me.
Though I mentally debated this a million times, my body refused to budge.
Reluctantly, I moved only my eyeballs to peek through the glass.
It was the same face from earlier.
A kind-looking woman with brown hair, precariously nodding off.
Yesterday, there were two of them, but the other one wasn’t visible. I thought the black-haired one was the current Sajejang, but apparently not.
I stared silently at the brown-haired woman.
Even if I sent telepathic messages, modern humans might not understand them, and even if they did, they’d likely ignore me based on yesterday’s events.
Too exhausted to take further action, I simply glared resentfully.
How long had it been?
Finally noticing my gaze, the woman woke up.
Even while glaring angrily, our eye contact confirmed one thing:
Modern humans are clearly all mentally unstable.
What else could explain winking randomly like that?
According to my memories of humanity, I recognize this as “winking”—a concise way to send signals.
But what signal could there possibly be now?
All I’m receiving is unbearable discomfort.
This is blatant mockery…
Ugh.
I closed my eyes.
If I kept looking, I’d surely erupt with anger any second now.
Since I don’t want to unleash this rage verbally…
That’s why I closed my eyes.
“Ahhh!”
Through the glass, the brown-haired woman let out a disappointed sigh, but I lacked the energy to respond.
Ah…
This irritation is worth exactly ‘2 breaths’…