I’m an Immigration Officer!

In this tragedy, there was only one thing I could do.
“...Assistant.”
“Yes.”
“Contact the Minister.”
The assistant silently touched the communication crystal.

A moment later, the face of the Foreign Minister appeared — looking just as exhausted as he had on Monday.
“Minister.”
— Hm? Chief Inspector? Today’s not Monday. What’s going on? Oh, are you reporting on the pilgrimage?
“That’s right. And... I have something else to report.”
— I’m listening.
I took a deep breath.

Then, suppressing the emotions that threatened to burst forth, I said quietly,
“The numbers ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) don’t match.”
— What?
“They said at least a thousand. At most, two thousand.”
— Uh... Are you... are you talking to me informally? Are you drunk?
“You said the maximum was two thousand! But there are three thousand! THREE FUCKING THOUSAND!!!”
Unfortunately, the words, “You bald, lying bastard!” didn’t reach the Minister’s ears.

The assistant, quick on the uptake, had already shut off the communication crystal.
Thus, all the curses and profanities I had directed at that son of a bitch echoed futilely in the air.
And the moment the silence broke, the Masters of Senses started screaming in unison.

“C-Chief Inspector! What do we do now?!”
“To handle three thousand people, we’d have to pull all-nighters for days!”
“At least four days... No, wait. First... I need a drink...”
“Oh my god! I... I can’t. This isn’t what they promised us!”
The Taste Master was in denial, the Touch Master had completely short-circuited after calculating the workload, the Hearing Master’s shaking hands were already reaching for a bottle, and the Smell Master was clawing at the walls, ready to revert to a feral state.
Fear of the overwhelming workload spread through the room like wildfire. Even the assistants were exchanging glances, their faces growing darker by the second.

And we hadn’t even started yet, and morale was already in the gutter.
“Everyone, let’s try to stay calm and think throu—”
At that moment, someone shouted,

“Look! Over there! The pilgrimage is coming!”
Everyone’s heads snapped toward the window.
And we all saw it.
The endless sea of pilgrims, flooding across the plains, steadily marching toward us.

Screams erupted from every direction.
“R-RUN! IT’S DEATH! DEATH IS COMING!”
“The monsters of non-stop, 24-hour, extended, overtime shifts are here!”
“I’m handing in my resignation! Take it! I’m done!”
“I... I can’t do this! I wanna go home!”
Fear breeds chaos. Chaos breeds madness. And madness breeds even more fear.

Those who had been barely holding onto their sanity finally lost it as the overwhelming tide of people drew closer.
People ran in every direction, screaming, sobbing, and praying desperately to the nonexistent ‘God of Time Off.’
And the Taste Master? He was already sitting down, writing his last will and testament.

In this hell, I was the only one still holding onto my sanity.
Maybe it was the rage simmering inside me toward that lying bastard of a Minister who had hidden the true number of pilgrims.
'Damn it, if this keeps up, everyone’s gonna bail.'

If the current situation continued, the result was obvious.
Everyone would flee their posts and abandon their duties.
And then?

If they deserted their positions, all responsibility would fall squarely on me, the Chief Inspector.
And that meant only one thing.
'Neglecting one’s duties and dishonoring the kingdom’s reputation!'

Losing the bonus was the least of my worries. A far worse punishment awaited.
Execution.
They’d cut off my head just like they did to my predecessor.

I shivered involuntarily.
'That can’t happen! Never!'
I had to snap these idiots back to reality.

Taking a deep breath, I raised my voice.
“EVERYONE, SHUT UP!!!”
My thunderous shout cut through the chaos like a knife. In an instant, the room fell silent, and every eye turned toward me.

Not wasting the moment, I continued.
“Panicking isn’t going to change anything. This was already decided. You all knew this was coming.”
One of the assistants cried out in desperation,

“Chief Inspector, there’s no way we can handle this with just our team! This is impossible!”
“He’s right!”
“Let’s just close the borders!”
'If you all run away, I’ll be the only one executed, you bastards.'
Clamping down on the rising fury, I kept my voice calm and steady.

“You’re right. We can’t handle this alone.”
“Then—”
“But running away won’t make them disappear. Sooner or later, we’ll have to deal with them.”
My blunt words shut them all up.
“Listen up, everyone.”

Now wasn’t the time for sympathy. Now was the time for clear, direct instructions.
“I’ll be assigning tasks. Touch Master, Taste Master.”
The answer I got was a pair of hysterical cries:

“T-T-Three thousand...”
“Oh Great God of Time Off, have mercy on us and strike down these pilgrims with a bolt of lightning...”
'Are these idiots really my subordinates?'
“Sita! Lakrisa!!!”
“AHHHHH!!!”
“KYAAAAA!!!”

After my shout, they finally snapped out of it, screaming.
“You two will handle the cargo. Focus on the wagons first. I’ll assign half of the assistants to you. Use them to the fullest. Understood?”
“Y-Yes, sir!”
“Yes, Chief Inspector!”

Now, two remained.
“Smell Master, Hearing Master.”
They immediately stepped forward. Their responses were prompt.

“You two will work with me on individual inspections. Same as always.”
“Yes, sir.”
The Smell Master frowned and spoke up.

“But if we do it that way, it’s going to take forever. Shouldn’t we shorten the inspection time? Or maybe just let the children and the elderly pass through?”
He was right.
With such a large crowd, five minutes per person was absurd.

'We’d be working for three days straight without sleep, and it still wouldn’t be enough.'
And with the exhaustion of both mind and body, this was nothing short of labor exploitation.
Plus, as the Smell Master said, children and the elderly were the least likely to pose a threat. Letting them through would significantly reduce our workload.

It was a solid suggestion.
But I shook my head.
“There will be no exceptions.”

Hearing that, the Smell Master flinched.
“The procedure remains the same. Five minutes per person. Every single one of them.”
There were no exceptions for those who stepped onto this border.

No matter who they were.
Regardless of race, gender, age, or status.
Since the Immigration Office was established, not once had that rule ever changed.

“No exceptions.”
At my words, the Smell Master nodded in understanding and muttered quietly.
“…Understood. No exceptions.”

Leaving him behind, I addressed those who hadn’t received their orders yet.
“All remaining assistants will handle paperwork and personal belongings inspections. Split them into two teams for day and night shifts. Got it?”
“Yes!”
“Internal security will be handled by the Border Guard. Just focus on your assigned tasks.”
“Understood!”
Now that there was a clear structure and goal, I could see the fear gradually fading from their eyes.

Now, all that was left was to instill in them the courage to believe they could handle it.
“Listen up, everyone. Don’t panic. There’s nothing to be afraid of. Just give it six times your usual effort.”
“…”
“…”
The atmosphere fell dead silent again.

The looks they gave me were downright murderous.
“…W-Wow.”
In that heavy silence, only the Taste Master managed to let out a timid cheer.

I felt a bit guilty for saying it myself. Six times the effort was a bit much.
'But what are they going to do if they don’t?'
And did they even realize how massive the reward dangling in front of them was?

If they pulled this off, it would be a life-changing windfall. A shining future awaited them.
I quietly reminded them of that fact.
“Five days of paid leave. Triple the bonus.”
“Let’s do this!”
“Yeah! We can do it!”

With a resounding cheer, the morale shot through the roof. Simpletons.
Desire is the greatest driving force, strong enough to conquer even fear.
Once the engine is started, all you need to do is give it a little push.

Not wasting the momentum, I roared out:
“All right, let’s get started! 3,374 people! Are you ready?!”
“No!!!”
“Damn it, I love your honesty! Everyone, focus on one thing — the money is waiting!”
“The money is waiting! The vacation is waiting!”
“No incidents! No incidents! Woo! Woo! Woo!”
With faces filled with grim determination, the brave inspectors shouted like they were heading into their final battle.

Fueled by their war cries, I gave the order.
“Open the border!”
— Grrrrrrrrk.

With a heavy grinding sound, the gates slowly creaked open, and through the gap, a brilliant golden light poured in.
Look at that. Even the sun is shining down on us, telling us we can do it.
At last, the gates flung open, arms wide to embrace the world.

And at that very moment, I shouted:
“Welcome to the Kingdom of Crossroads, pilgrims!”
First impressions are everything.

Let’s make it quick, clear, and with a bright smile.
‘Come on, bring it on, pilgrims.’
After all, you’re nothing more than sacrifices on the altar of our success.

No matter how many of you there are, eventually, it’ll end.
And for that moment, we will stand tall against you all.
Stamping three thousand times? I’ll do it even if it’s five thousand!

With a wide, welcoming smile, I struck a polite pose, and the person at the front of the line smiled back and said:
“Oh my, I wasn’t expecting such a warm welcome. You’re so kind.”
In the radiant glow of the golden light, a gentle voice echoed.

…Wait.
Only then did I realize something.
It wasn’t morning. It was afternoon.

The sun was already high in the sky.
The warm sunlight was beating down on my back.
Then what the hell was this blinding light hitting me in the face?

The woman at the front of the pilgrimage stepped forward.
And with her, the golden radiance emanating from her back spilled through the gates.
“At last, by the Lord’s guidance, we have arrived here.”

Her sky-blue hair danced beautifully in the wind, as if rejoicing in the moment.
The saint, brimming with divine power, lowered her head in greeting.
“May the blessings of the Holy Order be upon you all.”

Inside, I screamed.
'What the hell?! Starting with the boss right off the bat?!'