The Trash Wants to Live

It was a situation in which I was inferior in terms of information quality. To be honest, we could have sent an audit to find out who the traitor was, but it would have taken ages.

However, the information that I’m currently in possession of, was only known by 4 out of the 7 billion people on the planet right now.

Me, Kwon Jae-hyeok, Jung Yi Joon, and Jang Eui Yeol. All of them were mine… well except for Eui Yeol.

‘But Eui Yeol has decided to sign the contract.’

Having said that, they were all mine. As a result, I was the only source of information for the US government.

Naturally, the US government could continue to plant personnel to infiltrate Sungwoon or the Sungwoon medical facility, but this would necessitate obtaining knowledge outside the gate.

They clearly had some intelligence left. Because this was not the last gate, they would need some information to prepare for it.

“Her name is Jin Oh Yoon, this office’s manager. In exchange for letting me in, she made the right decision to safely send her daughter to college.”

“Okay.”

As soon as I heard it, I grinned. I grabbed my phone and sent a text message to Ki Hyun-Joo, revealing the traitor’s identity. 

When Ki Hyun-Joo saw my text message, she was obviously taken aback and called me right away, but I didn’t respond.

It’s now up to me to fulfill my side of the deal. 

Rachel, who had been waiting for me to answer her questions, asked.

“Can you answer my questions now? I’d like to hear what happened that day you disappeared in full detail.”

“It actually started as a joke… Someone lured them to that building and locked them up. We were talking when they suddenly got sucked into the gate.”

“I took out my phone and dialed an associate’s number to inform them that a weird thing was floating in the air. I also told them to get back up guild members just in case, since it could be dangerous.”

“Why did you ask for guild members?”

“I’m not stupid enough to think that something strange floating in the sky is harmless. I know there are a few people who have supernatural talents and can do some sort of magic like that, but as I said, I’m not stupid enough to assume that it’s something natural.”

“Okay.”

“I saw them being sucked inside while making the phone call… I panicked so I decided to follow them. I couldn’t bear it even though I knew that what I was doing was irrational.”

Jang Yeol seemed a little perplexed when he heard such words, since it was a little different from what I had said when we were inside the gate. But still, he didn’t say anything and just kept listening.

“Inside it was like a tropical rainforest, yet, it wasn’t… For example, it wasn’t muggy. It was the current weather, like here in Korea. Even the gate that we came in through vanished, but after we returned, I found myself in the same spot as when I went through. It looked like the entrance point was the same.”

“Did you eat water and fruit?”

“Yes, since I was hungry, and I thought if anything was going to go wrong, I would have already had trouble breathing when I entered. Also, the colour of the silver ring did not change, so I decided that there was nothing like poison.”

“That’s a very risky decision. Not all poisons react to silver. Fortunately, there were no abnormalities in your physical examination.”

I inwardly laughed at Rachel’s remarks chastising my actions. It seems that the author only knew how to determine poison through reading science fiction books, which was stupid.

I was only guilty of following instructions, because it was written in the original book that it was safe to consume and drink if there were no irregularities when determined by eye, touch, and silver.

Rachel seemed to ponder what I had stated thus far for a moment. 

‘If the vegetation is the same, isn’t it feasible to use it to expand our territory?’

‘Isn’t that something you’re thinking about?’

The United States had also liked to use the inside of the gate as an extension of their lands in the novel.

This was because their land was now barren. The well-functioning natural cycle had come to a stop, the rivers had dried up, and the soil could no longer yield anything.

The difficulty now lay in the fact that the United States was wounded and other countries could fuck them over again at any time, especially now that they knew the gate vanished when the dimension stone was destroyed.

The more people that enter the gate, the more damage will be done to them.

In addition, compared to other places, intimidating the interior of the gate would cause less national indignation. Killing people, for example, would become less common.

***

‘The only option they had was to fail.’

The more money they pour in, the more it flows out.

The United States lost a lot of money, that’s why they needed to get out of the gate business.

Rachel inquired for more information after pondering the situation. I kept reminiscing about what had transpired. 

When I mentioned we faced a dinosaur as a boss monster, Rachel’s expression got a little warped.

“There was a big crystal next to the dinosaur. Exactly how large was it? It was suspended in the air. The dinosaur looked to be protecting it, so it seemed significant, but we were not sure what it was.”

“That is true.”

“Then the dinosaur rushed and assaulted us. It was really powerful. Yi Joon, a skilled fighter, was forced to battle on his own. It was so powerful that he collapsed and was forced to run away, but the dinosaur continued to chase us.”

“What exactly happened?”

“It was then that my enthusiasm was rekindled. I’m not sure if you know, but the bull and we crossed the distance together. The dinosaur retreated after seeing me controlling the bull and threatening him with the crystal.”

Eui Yeol looked at me again after hearing those things. He didn’t say anything, though. He also didn’t say anything when he noticed that I never informed Rachel that he owned the bull.

“What did you do to get out of there?”

“That—”

The memory of that moment resurfaced in my mind. With a dimension stone, Kwon Jae-Hyeok was wandering in the rain. He even broke it down while asking me to go home, as if he knew exactly how to use it.

‘There is no need to hide it.’

Because I didn’t know what Kwon Jae-Hyuk was up to, I wanted to keep it hidden until it was safe to be disclosed. However, if I covered it up, Rachel would quickly realize that Kwon Jae-Hyeok had played a significant role in our safe return home. 

If I was going to be discovered anyway, it was not a smart idea to hide it and give the impression that I was recalcitrant.

‘It is still the country with the most talented people and the greatest military in the world.’

The United States was still one of the most capable powers, despite the fact that it sustained losses as a result of future gate development. 

Before speaking, I pretended to consider for a bit.

“I was relaxing in a cave when Jae-Hyeok Hyung appeared with a crystal and came to us. I felt a force pulling on me after I broke the crystal, and when I opened my eyes I was at Sungwoon, not a cave.”

She didn’t say she thought she knew something, but based on what I’d stated thus far, she may have guessed. Rachel paused for a moment, then stood up from my bed.

“All right, thank you for your cooperation, but might I have a little more of your time?”

“What?”

“I’d like you two to put your hands on this.”

Rachel took an agent’s bag from outside and opened it to reveal a large plate, which I recognized as an ability meter. Rachel handed it to Eui Yeol first.

He looked at me to confirm if I wanted him to comply. Once I nodded at him, Eui Yeol placed his hand on the meter without hesitation.

Rachel smiled, took back the meter, and handed it to me after the meter emitted an intense yellow light.

“Mr. Ki.”

Eui Yeol, on the other hand, stared at me with a cautious expression, as I placed my hand on the meter.

I was also concerned about what I would do if what I had hidden was revealed after she examined the meter with her own eyes. 

Putting my hand on the meter after a quick glance at Rachel, I smiled. There was no response once more.

Rachel’s expression changed as if a funeral had begun, and I could tell she had lost interest.

She hadn’t said anything, but had previously looked at me like I was hiding something.

Like maybe the fact that I had experienced an internal emergency and suddenly gained powers, for example.

The meter, on the other hand, was not able to check my abilities since I was irregular. So, to Rachel, I’d just look like a jerk adolescent with a lot of money.

Rachel’s curiosity had waned, but she didn’t lose her manners. Thank you, she said with the same smile as when she faced Eui Yeol.

“I appreciate your cooperation from both of you. Is Mr. Jang currently a member of any organization? If not, I suggest contacting the US government. We can even assist you with immigration in a safe manner.”

“Uh—”

“Unfortunately, it’s a little too late for you, Rachel, because Eui Yeol has chosen to join me.”