The life of a low-level civil servant is miserable. The salary is almost laughably low, but the workload is overwhelming. If a complaint cos in, you have to handle it, even if it’s in the middle of the night. If the complainer acts out, you can’t lose your temper. If your superior yells at you, you beco their punching bag. If they give you more work, you beco their slave.
But the worst part? This life wasn’t even one I chose.
Baek Seojin. An employee of the Superpower Assessnt Departnt. Below average as a civil servant. Below average as a superpowered individual. The kind of person who’d make a perfect extra in the background.
That’s . To be precise, that’s who I beca.
“Seojin, there’s a dispatch request for you.”
“What? ? Why ?”
“Who else but you? Is there anyone else in this departnt?”
There are plenty of other people, though. Why , of all people? I wanted to throw the resignation letter I’d been keeping in my bag at them.
I wanted to, but with rent coming up next week, I bit my tongue. Even after being transported into another life, I couldn’t escape financial struggles.
Other people possess dukes or chaebols. If I had known this would happen, I would’ve read a fantasy novel.
“Where am I being sent? It’s not a daycare again, is it…?”
“The Academy. A position just right for soone like you opened up.”
“What about the person sent two weeks ago? Didn’t they fill it already?”
“They’re in the hospital.”
They went to an educational institution and ended up hospitalized? What does that even an?
“Why are you still standing there? Get ready.”
I wanted to ask why, how, and where they got hurt. It felt like my survival depended on knowing. But my boss cut off with a curt dismissal. What a bastard.
Before leaving their sight, I activated the skill given as my transmigration perk, “The Third Eye.”
◎ Lee Chungin
A typical asshole.
◎ Details
Increases hostility in others with every word spoken.
Of course, he was an asshole.
…
[Breaking News: A series of gates has opened in the Seongnam City, Bundang District area….]
[Retired superhumans are demanding improved treatnt for injured personnel….]
Humans are said to be creatures of adaptation. I was no exception. There was a ti when I scread at the absurdity of it all.
Now, even if a gate opened nearby, I remained indifferent. News of a pay cut for civil servants bothered far more. I didn’t see a way back to my world, so surviving here was my only option.
These days, I dreaded complainants and bosses more than monsters or villains. At least with the latter, their intentions were clear. With the forr, not so much. And while I could run from monsters, there was no escaping the others.
“Damn this civil-servant life.”
I cursed my past self again. If I’d known, I would’ve read villain-revenge novels instead.
[Next stop: Academy Station, Academy Station.]
The start of my glorious forced assignnt. I could only hope to get through today safely and leave on ti.
As I exited the train, a group of students, presumably from the Academy, got off as well.
Lucky them. So of us lack talent and get stuck in civil service. Those kids are probably living bright lives as heroes, courted by clans and whatnot.
It stung. For soone who had possessed a body, I had no extraordinary talent to speak of. In the novels I’d read, people usually had hidden potential or powerful families. The character I’d beco? None of that applied.
At least I had one perk: The Third Eye. But even that wasn’t enough to accomplish anything remarkable.
“Better hurry.”
Being late on the first day would earn a terrible reputation. After walking for ten minutes past the station, I spotted the Academy gates.
I presented my ID to the guard at the entrance.
“Where are you from?”
The guard’s slightly tense expression caught my eye. If I said, “I’m here for an inspection,” would they faint? Relax, I’m not from that departnt. I’m just a low-level worker.
“I’m from the Superpower Assessnt Departnt. I’ve been assigned here.”
“One mont, please. Assessnt Departnt… Ah, found it.”
The guard’s face brightened for a mont, then gradually shifted into sothing… odd.
“Oh… you must be the new ranking examiner. Oh dear….”
Why the long sigh? And why that pitiful look?
“Welco to the Academy, Baek Seojin. The faculty office is on the second floor, straight ahead.”
“Thank you. Good luck with your work.”
“Oh no, you’ll need more luck than .”
What was with the ominous tone? If no one had been waiting behind , I would’ve asked.
Inside the Academy, it was grander than I’d imagined. Apparently, the budget for building it was equivalent to a year’s national defense budget.
So joked that money had been slathered on like cent. It didn’t seem like a joke anymore.
“Superhumans are society’s elite,” they said. The Academy certainly lived up to that.
Even the staff at the gates weren’t soldiers or police but superhumans. The faculty were all superhumans, too. Even the janitorial staff had powers.
No wonder villains constantly targeted the Academy but never succeeded. The defenses were overwhelming. Send in just anyone, and they’d get beaten up by the cleaning lady.
Why was I sent to such a terrifying place? No matter how I thought about it, nothing good seed to lie ahead….
“Hey! Watch out!”
Hearing the shout, I instinctively dove to the ground. Overreacting? Hardly. This reflex has saved more than five tis already.
Sure enough, my instincts didn’t fail .
Whoosh—!
A fireball passed exactly where my head had been two seconds earlier. Starting my assignnt with a life-threatening incident—how fitting. The wildest part was wondering if this would qualify as a workplace injury.
As I dusted myself off, soone ran toward .
“I-I’m so sorry!!”
It was a trembling female student, bowing her head repeatedly.
“I was careless! I’m really sorry! Are you hurt?”
“No, I’m fine. It didn’t even graze , so don’t worry too much.”
The Academy was said to house only the elite among South Korea’s superhumans. I’d heard most of them were incredibly arrogant and insufferable.
‘That must’ve been an exaggeration.’
This seed right. Who would act cocky after almost hurting soone?
“What are you doing apologizing? That guy walked into the training area.”
…Turns out, so people can act cocky. And this one’s a tattooed thug.
- Activating The Third Eye.
◎ Park Junwoo
Tattooed creep who wants won.
◎ Details
Won instinctively frown upon seeing him.
Wow. The accuracy is uncanny. The possession perk really delivers.
“Excuse . You can’t just walk into the training area like that. Don’t you see the signs?”
The Tattooed Thug, Park Junwoo pointed toward a sign in the area.
[Caution: Training Area. Risk of Injury.]
Seriously? If it's that dangerous, couldn’t they at least put up a fence or sothing? The path led straight here. How was I supposed to know it was a training ground?
I’d cursed him out in my mind multiple tis already.
But unfortunately, I wasn’t just anyone right now. I was a civil servant with a duty to serve the people.
“My apologies. It’s my first day at the Academy.”
“…Are you a professor?”
“No, I’m here as a dispatched civil servant.”
“Oh. Just a lowly civil servant.”
This bastard. Even this kind of punk looks down on now? But there’s nothing I can do. That’s just how society works.
Superhumans with exceptional talents are treated like elites. Especially those skilled enough to enter the Academy—those people have guaranteed futures. Even a tattooed thug like this guy can beco a prized match if his abilities are good enough.
A dirty world that only values superpowers!
Getting into a fight here would only hurt . A brawl between a civil servant and a superhuman Academy student? Even I’d side with the student in that case. And if I got into a fight, I’d imdiately get yelled at for not maintaining the “dignity” of my position.
Ignoring any potential taunts about cowardice, I headed for the faculty office. As I walked, a few students eyed with curiosity, only to imdiately avert their gaze when they noticed the ID around my neck.
Why was the image of civil servants so bad here? And why had the original owner of this body done nothing about it? I was seriously considering quitting as I reached the faculty office.
After a quick introduction, they asked to wait. It felt like they were about to bring in a superior. Oh, how I wanted to go ho already.
“Are you Baek Seojin?”
I looked up to see a stunning woman standing before . I jumped to my feet—not because she was a woman, but because of the na tag on her chest.
“Hello, Lord Han—”
“Just call Professor. That’s fine here.”
The woman seated across from with a smile was none other than Han Jiyoon, one of Korea’s five S-rank superhumans. She was also the head of one of the world’s top five clans, earning her the title “Lord.”
She was soone who could hold her head high anywhere in the world. From what I’d heard, she even received state-level receptions. It was an achievent she’d accomplished in her twenties, and of course, she had countless fans.
I’d recently seen news of her unexpectedly applying to beco an Academy professor.
So yesterday, when people heard I was being dispatched to the Academy, so were envious.
“Stop spouting nonsense,” I’d snapped at them. “Do you really think soone like her would bother showing her face for a low-level civil servant? If I even see her, it’ll be a miracle.”
“Welco to the Academy.”
Yet here she was. Surprise! Maybe I owed those people an apology.
“You seem very surprised.”
“Oh, yes. Honestly… it doesn’t feel real yet.”
“Are you surprised that I ca out to et you in person?”
I nodded reflexively at Han Jiyoon’s question.
Globally, there were fewer than a hundred S-rank superhumans. One of them, Han Jiyoon, had co to personally greet a lowly civil servant? If this got out, there’d be no shortage of people coming to strangle out of jealousy. Even now, there were plenty of curious eyes watching from beyond the room.
“That makes sense. It is surprising. But I had no other choice.”
“I don’t follow. What do you an?”
Han Jiyoon offered a faint smile, then handed so docunts.
“What’s this?”
“Take a look first. You can ask questions afterward.”
An ominous feeling crept over as I cautiously examined the papers.
By the ti I was halfway through, I understood everything.
“You bastards.”
My departnt had sent as a sacrificial lamb.
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