I Became the Cute One in the Troubleshooter Squad-Chapter 118: There’s Emotion in the Fixer Exam (1)

The long, long Night Week had finally come to an end. And since Night Week was also the year-end holiday, that meant the New Year had officially arrived.

On the second day of the new year, as a frigid wind swept through the city, chilling the skin, Alice entered the office with an energetic step and called out cheerfully, "Good morning! Happy New Year!"

"Oh, uh, yeah. You sure are lively this early in the morning. Something good happen?"

"Of course! I haven’t been to the office in a while, so I’m happy to be back! Aren’t you happy too, Jin?"

"Ugh, it’s whatever. Where in the world do you think you’ll find an adult who’s excited about working?"

You’re just a kid. You wouldn’t get it.

Raven leaned back in his chair, looking thoroughly unmotivated. He unfolded an e-paper, casually scanning the articles to pass the time.

Maybe because his plain black suit gave off a formal, almost monotonous vibe, he looked quite mature in that posture. It was hard to believe this was the same person who had been lounging around in pajamas on the couch just yesterday.

But considering his usual behavior outside of work was closer to being childish than mature, Alice muttered to herself, Who’s calling who a kid here? Then, as if she had just noticed something, her gaze shifted toward me.

"...!"

"Oh, happy New Year...? Wait. Why is Yuria in the office? It’s a weekday, isn’t it?"

Alice blinked in confusion, as if she couldn’t quite understand the situation. She absentmindedly returned my casual wave before turning to Raven, her expression brightening even further as she sought an explanation.

Her reaction was understandable.

Ever since Greg arrived, I had been working at the general store during office hours. So the fact that I was here at this time was unusual.

Raven immediately picked up on the meaning behind her question. Without even looking up from his newspaper, he answered in an indifferent tone.

"Oh, I checked in earlier. The general store is closed today. Turns out one of the water pipes froze over, and the water got cut off. Since that area’s mostly empty, I guess no one thought to winterize the pipes properly. They’re doing repairs, so the store’s shut for the day. Yuria left early this morning, but she just came back."

"Ah... So that’s why she’s still in her maid uniform."

Alice furrowed her brows in sympathy. The general store was located in a gray zone—a sparsely populated area. Naturally, there were quite a few empty buildings around.

And now, thanks to one of those empty buildings, a frozen pipe had indirectly caused an unexpected closure. Talk about bad luck.

Still, seeing me sitting here in my maid uniform seemed to bring back old memories for Alice. Her lips twitched slightly in joy as she instinctively plopped down next to me.

Well, I was only still wearing this because I was too lazy to change. I wasn’t planning to help out with any office work, though.

For a while, Alice sat beside me, idly fidgeting with my hand. Then, not long after, a tall man with green hair entered the office.

The bear beastkin, David, with his signature round, bear-like ears.

"Good morning, everyone. It’s been a while. And... huh? Yuria?"

"David, Greg’s general store is closed for repairs today."

"I see. That explains it. It’s good to see you."

"...!"

I greeted David with a small wave.

Alice often stopped by the office on her days off, but David had only stayed in touch through Sabrina. So it really had been a while since I’d seen him in person.

With this, the Troubleshooter Office was now back to full capacity. The holidays were truly over.

As I took in the familiar scene, a strange sensation suddenly caught my attention near Alice.

It felt like something—or someone—was secretly watching me. A vague, uncomfortable sense of being observed.

But when I furrowed my brows and subtly scanned the surroundings, all I saw was Alice.

Was I imagining things?

I blinked slowly, thinking it over, then reached into my pocket and gently touched Echo.

‘Echo, do you detect any machines near Alice?’

[ Yes. There is a small transmitting device attached to a strand of [N O V E L I G H T] hair near her scalp. It appears to be actively sending signals. ]

‘Can you pinpoint its exact location?’

Following Echo’s instructions, I slowly moved my hand—brushing against Alice’s hair.

She gave me a puzzled look. Then, the moment she noticed what was now in my hand, her eyes went wide.

"Y-Yuria?! What is that?!"

"...?"

Between my fingers, I held a tiny, bean-like object—

Its shape remained the same, but its color kept shifting unpredictably.

Or rather than shifting, it was more like its hue flickered inconsistently.

But the real problem?

I had no idea what this thing was. And since I couldn’t speak, I couldn’t explain it to Alice—

Even though I had just pulled it from her hair.

Maybe because Alice had raised her voice in surprise, the commotion quickly caught Raven and David’s attention, distracting them from whatever they were doing.

"What’s going on?"

"Huh, that looks like... optical camouflage."

"Optical camouflage?"

"It’s a technology that alters an object’s appearance based on its surroundings. You could think of it as something like an invisibility cloak."

"Oh, I see. But... why is it there?"

"I have no idea!"

What the hell have you been up to?

Raven shot Alice a dumbfounded look, and she practically jumped in place in protest. It was clear that she had absolutely no idea why something like this had been stuck in her hair.

David, on the other hand, seemed to have an idea. Resting his chin in his hand, he thought for a moment, then nodded as if something clicked in his mind. He turned to me, still holding the device, and asked,

"May I take a look at it for a moment?"

"...!"

"Hmm... I see... This appears to be... a camera."

"A camera?"

"A camera... Wait, don’t tell me—!"

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A camera?

Raven and Alice exchanged glances, realization dawning on them. And at the same time, I, too, figured out who was behind this ridiculous stunt.

There was only one person who would try to hide a camera in the office. There was no need to think about it any further.

"This must be Lily’s doing. She knows Yuria would notice if she used a drone to plant a spy cam, so she used Alice instead."

"My sister, seriously... Ugh, this is giving me a headache...."

"Lily... That’s Alice’s older sister, correct?"

"Yeah. She showed up a while ago after finishing some big project. I guess she thought it was a perfect opportunity while Yuria wasn’t around. That woman’s got a weirdly good sense for things like this."

Well, this time, it wasn’t my telekinesis that caught it but Echo instead.

If it weren’t for me, who knows how long this thing would have stayed hidden?

I spread my arms wide in triumph, expecting due recognition for my discovery.

Alice, looking grateful, reached over and ruffled my hair. Meanwhile, David clapped lightly, impressed. It was a satisfying response.

"Sigh... I’ll take this and confront my sister about it. She promised not to pull stunts like this again. Maybe I really should fold her in half...."

"That’s... terrifying."

"Agreed."

"..."

Alice seemed determined to put an end to Lily’s nonsense, vowing to teach her a lesson she’d never forget. Apparently, she had a whole list of dangerous wrestling techniques she was ready to use.

Not sure if Lily could hear her planning her doom at this moment, but... her future was looking incredibly dark. I might even have to offer her my condolences.

Well, in any case—one problem solved!

I rolled the optical camouflage camera around in my hands, watching it shift colors in a fascinating way. Alice had said she’d take it as evidence, so I figured I’d hand it over before I left for the day.

Raven watched me play with it for a while, then suddenly seemed to remember something. Stroking his chin, he spoke up.

"Oh, right. Speaking of Lily... That reminds me. Do you two have any plans next Thursday or Friday?"

"Plans? Uh... no? I think we’ll just be coming in like usual."

"I don’t have anything scheduled. Is there something happening?"

"...!"

"Oh, Yuria, you don’t need to answer. This isn’t about you—it’s important for them."

What do you mean I don’t need to answer? Why am I the only one being ignored?!

I immediately shot up from the couch and clung to Raven’s chair.

The added weight made the chair creak as it tilted back, but Raven didn’t even flinch. He just continued as if I weren’t even there. His complete disregard made me twice as irritated.

"Uh... something important for us?"

"What do you mean by important...?"

David and Alice looked at Raven with puzzled expressions.

It was strange for him to suddenly ask about their weekday schedules. Neither of them could guess what he was getting at.

Raven, now practically reclining in his chair, casually crossed his arms and said,

"I need to renew my Fixer License, so I’ll be heading to the association. You two should come with me."

"Hmm... May I ask why?"

"Nothing complicated."

With a swift motion, Raven grabbed the back of my collar and effortlessly lifted me off his chair.

Then, as he stood up, he dropped a bombshell.

"You guys are taking the Fixer Exam."

"...What?"

As the room filled with pure bewilderment, my legs dangled helplessly in the air, swaying slightly.