The Foreigner on the Periphery (English Translation)

8. Three Ways to Kill Your Boss (5)

"A client who's a dragon, huh?"

For an ordinary person like Jeongpal, the mere mention of that word was enough to make one's heart race.

Dragon.

This was the identity of the person who had placed the request to search through Jang Taejun's house, targeting the Society.

"If hyung isn't saying anything, it must be... he's uncomfortable going after him like this."

Dragons have never immigrated to this world in large groups. There has never been a case where a dragon species requested asylum through the committee. Even if such a situation were to arise, Earth would not be their destination. This world has only one habitable planet, and it is too small for dragons to live in large numbers.

However, there have been numerous instances where dragons have obtained Earth citizenship as individuals.

Among them, some immediately retreated to the Himalayas or the Amazon jungle to live in seclusion, not wanting to deal with the noise of society, while others chose to actively engage with human society.

And in the latter cases, most of them gained immense wealth and power in a short period, becoming the behind-the-scenes figures who control this society. It is rare for major organizations and companies that lead politics, administration, and economics to be free from the influence of dragons.

"People don't know, but there are countless people who have disappeared without a trace after provoking a dragon!"

Of course, it was rarely reported in the media.

That was the power of authority.

Thus, the dragons confidently established themselves as the top tier of Earth's society in just one generation. What millions of orc immigrants in the first generation could not dream of achieving, the dragons did with their small numbers. Everything was that easy for them.

"...Hyung?"

"Hold on, I need to ask a few more things."

After a while, Minjun had extracted everything useful from the mage. The man, who had been answering questions enthusiastically, had reached the point of repeating himself and going off-topic once he had run out of things to say.

"That's enough. Request support from the department. We need to take him with us."

The mage before them was clearly human and had no knowledge of Jang Taejun's identity or whereabouts. Therefore, he would be handed over to the police, and the subsequent investigation and warrant applications would be handled by the police.

As Jeongpal made a call, the sound of a police car entering the orc community could soon be heard, followed by the sound of doors and windows being locked, echoing like a repetitive song.

"If he won't cooperate, just show him the recording on his phone. Once he realizes the interrogator holds the power, he'll start cooperating."

Still dazed, Minjun stared silently at the mage being dragged away. Normally, he would have followed, but his priority task was to cooperate with the immigration officers, so he stayed next to Minjun.

"Is that guy going to stay like that?"

"It's actually a good thing we handed him over to the police. They'll force-feed and give him a bed. If he had his phone, he'd be stuck listening to the same thing all day. On repeat."

"...So, he's basically going to die?"

"According to the stats, about 50% instinctively stop before starving to death. If that guy gets proper help in prison, that is, if he receives treatment for over ten years, he could recover."

Of course, that statistic was based on regular mages, and he didn't mention that the survival rate would be much lower if the person in question were Minjun.

The two decided to search Jang Taejun's house one more time. They were particularly concerned about the "secret safe" the mage had mentioned. As they drove, Minjun and Jeongpal fell deep into thought. The topic was dragons.

Jeongpal wondered why the person who had made the request to the Society had contacted an illicit crime organization, how Minjun would handle this situation, and how they should report it to their superiors.

Meanwhile, Minjun's thoughts were much simpler. He was fixated on one question.

"What kind of person is she?!"

It was faster to eliminate dragons who would have a motive to assign tasks to the Society than to search for one who would never do such a thing.

Most dragons residing on Earth wouldn't engage in this sort of thing. There were many reasons. They might have subordinates who could carry out tasks much more discreetly and neatly without needing to cooperate with crime organizations. They might have no interest in how humans live their chaotic lives. Or, if they wanted to find a secret safe, they might simply take Jang Taejun's house, without caring about the Korean government's interference.

So, Minjun narrowed down his list to four individuals. Coincidentally, all of them were women. The problem was that he couldn't guess their motives. It made narrowing down the list even harder.

We'll take a quick break for the news.

While the two were lost in thought, the voice of a radio announcer interrupted their concentration.

Princess Vermi's first country visit has been decided as Korea. The reasons for choosing Korea have sparked various speculations...

According to Statistics Korea, the domestic infant mortality rate increased by 2.5 percentage points compared to last year. The main cause has been interpreted as the rising birth rate of Time Walkers...

Moving on to the stock market, Hyosung Industries saw a surge in stock prices following news of its repurchasing of shares amounting to 15% of its market capitalization...

The last news report barely caught their attention.

"Hyosung Industries?"

"It's Jang Taejun's company."

They exchanged a look.

The fact that Jang Taejun had gone missing hadn't been officially announced yet. The company had claimed he was on a business trip, and only a few people knew the truth.

"Do they usually take care of important matters like that when the CEO is absent?"

Minjun, who had never worked in such a regular industry on Earth, didn't quite get it.

"...Well, maybe he finished the approvals before disappearing. He might have just left the execution to be done later."

"Hmm."

A theory began to form in Minjun's mind, but before he could focus on it...

Grumble!

Jeongpal's stomach growled loudly, and Minjun realized his oversight. He had skipped lunch earlier. It was almost a crime to make an orc work while starving! Even humans who needed three meals a day had to eat, and orcs were even more so.

"Are you hungry? Let's share this."

Jeongpal took something out of the bag on the back seat.

"Is that food?"

Jeongpal didn't refuse and reached out while keeping his eyes on the road.

It was a bundle that Catherine had tossed into Minjun's office this morning without context.

"It's a ham and cheese sandwich. She said Cash made it herself."

"Serin? She doesn't cook."

"She started following recipes on YouTube."

"Wow, is this a bribe to her employer?"

"I don't know. She's been bringing me food lately, probably trying to fatten me up so she can eat me."

Holding the steering wheel with one hand, Jeongpal took a bite of the sandwich.

"!"

The air in the car grew cold. Jeongpal chewed it once, then made an expression of disbelief. His eyebrows furrowed as he chewed again, and then his face turned into one of near tears. After one last bite, he quietly parked the car by the roadside and slammed the door as he exited.

"What's wrong with him?"

Minjun watched Jeongpal's retreating figure and then took a bite of the sandwich himself. He also looked horrified.

'Is fake news spreading on YouTube... and are fake recipes part of it?'

It was an unexpected flavor that made him wonder.

The sandwich made by Cash tasted like pickled herring.

After Jeongpal bought a liter of mouthwash and emptied it, they got back on the road toward Jang Taejun's house. Minjun searched the house again, but, as expected, there was no secret safe.

"Looks like the dragon made a mistake."

Even Frying Pan didn't know anything about it. His perception range was only 3 meters, so he couldn't know what was happening outside.

Minjun suggested that they go to his office to discuss future plans. Since they couldn't talk about this at the police station, Jeongpal agreed.

After parking in front of the shopping mall, Minjun took Frying Pan from the trunk. They saw a goblin, Dongcheol, closing the shutters of a bookstore on the first floor.

"...Oh? Master, you're back... uh, are you here?"

He bowed deeply.

Frying Pan was pleased.

=Oh! Quite the bold play, calling you 'Master' so openly even outside? Not hiding it, huh? Ignoring the prying ears and eyes around you?=

"...It's not like that."

After going up to the second floor of the mall, the two of them began discussing seriously.

The conclusion they reached was:

"Alright, let's drop it."

No matter how much they thought about it, the cost-benefit analysis didn't add up. They hadn't found any proof that Jang Taejun was an alien. Frying Pan's existence only increased the probability, but it wasn't enough to be a smoking gun. And now there were dragons involved, and the Society had shown up too.

Minjun wasn't a police officer. Proving the existence of extraterrestrials was more important than finding missing persons, but now the basic premise was shaky, and there were too many annoying obstacles.

For Jeongpal, covering up the case was simple. They'd just report the situation as it was to their superiors, and all the data would go into the cold case file.

"It's late today, so I'll have to contact Immigration through Cash tomorrow."

At that moment, the sound of a powerful sports car engine could be heard outside. Jeongpal looked out the window.

"The gentleman has arrived. Serin is here."

In the parking lot of the mall, a red Jaguar was pulling up next to the investigation vehicle Jeongpal had parked.

"She's here! Oh, and Jeongpal is here too?"

"Why do you always call me 'Jeongpal' while you call Minjun 'Sir'?"

"If you're upset, you should try adjusting the face value a bit."

"Damn, how can a non-quarter elf live without feeling sorrow?"

Minjun usually responded to questions about his slow aging by saying he had elf blood. At that level of dilution, his appearance hardly shows any elf traits, and on his ID, his race is simply listed as human.

"What's this now?"

Cassie showed interest in the frying pan placed on the desk. Before she could reach for it, Minjun stopped her.

"If you grab that, you might feel worse."

"Huh?"

Minjun explained what the object was and what kind of nature it had. After hearing the explanation, Cassie looked intrigued.

"Wow! I've never touched an Ego Sword before. Ah... although this is an Ego Frying Pan. Can I try holding it?"

"I warned you."

Cassie, undeterred, grabbed the handle of the frying pan. Immediately, a fleeting sense of surprise and curiosity crossed her face.

"Wow, it really speaks? What's your name?"

=Just call me Pig, Miss.=

"Wait, but that's a bit... What was the name of the chef who copied the personality?"

=Degnov Alcha-Teikyu, Miss.=

"Quite a long name. If we shorten it by taking the first two letters... Di... ugh."

After awkwardly completing the pronunciation, he paused for a moment, then added:

"We'll decide on the name later."

Minjun spoke.

"Don't even think about taking that with you!"

If they were going to drop the matter, Minjun planned to return the frying pan to Jang Taejoon's house.

"Don't worry. By the way... why did your voice sound like that earlier? Did something bad happen?"

When Minjun called Cassie to prepare for another visit to Jang Taejoon's house, his voice had been lower than usual. It was because his head was still tangled up with thoughts of the dragon.

"Well, it's not like that..."

He hesitated, planning to discuss dropping the case the next day. Since it was already past work hours.

"There must have been something bothering you. I'm glad I brought this."

"What?"

"I thought you seemed down, so I brought a bottle of alcohol."

After putting down the frying pan, she reached into her bag. A long box, wrapped in department store paper, was peeking out over her orange Birkin bag.

Minjun shook his head.

"I'm not in the mood for alcohol."

Jeongpal also refused.

"I drove today, so..."

Ignoring both of their reactions, Cassie tore the wrapping paper off.

She proudly presented a bottle of Scotch.

"Kingsley Ashton, 37 years old. Dwarf Meister Selection!"

"Should I go buy some ice at the store?"

"No, there's some in the fridge. Wait here for three minutes, I'll bring the setup."

The alcohol preparations were made quickly.

'...Ah, this is tough.'

Minjun woke up feeling like his body had been thrown into a centrifuge.

'...I feel like I'm going to die.'

He could feel a terrible venom coursing through his body. Was he poisoned? Or being tortured? Focusing on the sensations, he realized it was neither.

It was just a hangover.

With his eyes still closed, he tried to find an anchor in his confused memories. Who was he, and what world was he in? Why had he drunk yesterday?

Had the crown prince of the Gram Empire forced him into another uncomfortable drinking session? No, that was about 250 years ago.

Then had he drunk alone again to forget the curse spat out by the necromancer before smashing his skull? No, that was much longer ago, during the early days of his career when he was weak.

At times like this, he moved his fingers.

His index finger didn't twitch in a humid culture medium, nor did it brush against the empty space created by a zero-gravity sleep kit. It felt like clean bed sheets made of cotton.

Right, this was Earth. He was Ye Minjun.

Only then did he open his eyes.

"...."

He didn't want to look at the ceiling.

"Ugh!"

It was Minjun's house, a remodeled second floor of a commercial building. His body reeked of alcohol. Rolling around, he planted his feet on the floor.

He briefly thought he should have worshipped a god instead but quickly erased the thought. If he sought faith to cure his hangover, he'd be asking for divine punishment.

He heard footsteps in the hallway and trudged to open the front door.

"...Ah! Master... hello...?"

A goblin stood in the hallway in front of the door, bowing at the waist.

In his hands were various newspapers and mail, all addressed to Ye Minjun.

"Hey, Dongcheol... not the best morning."

"...Hehe."

He usually came later, but today there was a lot of mail, so it seemed like he arrived earlier.

"You don't have to do this every morning... I'll grab it when I have time."

"I do it because I like it..."

Dongcheol smiled brightly, then bowed again before heading back downstairs.

After closing the door, Minjun lazily sifted through the mail. One piece caught his eye.

Sender: Secretary's Office of the President, Jenkins & Father & Sons Co., Ltd.Recipient: Ye Minjun

Minjun sat at the living room table and opened the elegant envelope. Inside, there was a brief note that read "Attendance Request."

Regarding the assigned task, please visit the President's Secretary Office at your earliest convenience for further instructions.

He quietly thought. Why now?

He had planned to notify the immigration office that he would no longer be involved in the Jang Taejoon case.

'Could it be from the President's Secretary Office?'

The company that sent the letter was a private company managing immigration services for the South Korean government. Although immigration officials were officially government employees, the company handled the operations.

Minjun wasn't a public servant; he was more of a freelance contractor.

Therefore, this letter was essentially a work order from his employer on Earth.

'Something's definitely up.'

Minjun had a strong feeling this sudden summons was connected to the discovery he and Jeongpal made yesterday.

He had a reason to be so sure.

Thinking about the person at the top of this conglomerate, the answer was clear.

Jenkins, the president of the company, was a dragon.