Chapter 128
Chapter 128
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 128
Chapter Title: Boss Blocks the Bottle
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Crash!
Clang, thud!
Chaos erupted everywhere. The table next to them flipped over, sending spoons and chopsticks clattering to the floor.
Jo Yi-ruk shoved the table aside and spotted Kim Myeong-seok lunging at him. Fluorescent lights cast a shadow behind him, revealing a dark silhouette.
It was the flailing form of a greedy man. At the end of his hand, a shattered green bottle glinted.
Jo Yi-ruk turned his head to the side and squeezed his eyes shut.
Instinctively, he raised both arms to shield his head.
[It's gonna hit!]
That thought made his body go rigid, frozen in place. If the guy wanted to hit him, just hit him already. What was the point of smashing a bottle to make it jagged?
[This'll mean a few weeks laid up. If my arms get messed up, paperwork's gonna suck. But with the newbie here, maybe we can manage...]
But something was off.
He'd heard that in extreme situations, the brain speeds up and time feels slow.
But even so—wasn't this taking way too long?
Right as Jo Yi-ruk started wondering about it—
"Kyaaaaah!"
Hyun Ye-won let out another piercing scream.
"President! Oh no, what do we do...!"
President?
Jo Yi-ruk slowly opened his eyes. Drip, drop—blood splattered on the floor.
Ah.
Jo Yi-ruk gasped involuntarily, eyes widening. He had no choice. An utterly unexpected scene was unfolding.
"...President."
Song Woo-yeon's back.
He'd stepped in front of Jo Yi-ruk and taken the bottle blow instead—shards embedded in his forearm. Blood streamed down his arm, dripping steadily from his middle finger to the floor.
Jo Yi-ruk was left stunned.
[Why the hell...]
Jo Yi-ruk had been fully prepared to take the hit. He hadn't expected Kim Myeong-seok to grab a bottle, but if eating one punch turned the situation in their favor, he'd gladly take it.
But Song Woo-yeon had jumped in. To protect him.
...
He was shorter, with slimmer shoulders.
Yet today, that back felt enormous.
"B-blood... it's coming out so much. We need to call 119...!"
As Hyun Ye-won trembled, too scared to even touch Song Woo-yeon's wound—
"Kim Myeong-seok."
Song Woo-yeon called his name in a low, steady voice.
"!"
Kim Myeong-seok jolted and looked at him.
Step, step.
He backed away, dropping the bottle from his hand.
Clang!
The bloodstained bottle shattered into pieces on impact with the floor.
"...W-why'd you butt in!"
Kim Myeong-seok trembled, raising his voice instead.
"I-I didn't really mean to hit you! I was just trying to scare him...! Y-you jumped in so sudden, I got startled and—!"
As if that was an excuse. Fresh flames sparked in Jo Yi-ruk's eyes.
"I-I don't know anything! If you hadn't rushed forward, it would've just been a fake swing! This isn't on me!"
"You really...!"
As Jo Yi-ruk stepped forward, Song Woo-yeon blocked him.
"!"
Jo Yi-ruk finally froze.
Song Woo-yeon shook his head slowly, then turned to Hyun Ye-won nearby.
"Call 112, please."
"Huh? Not 119?"
"I'll file the police report first, then head to the hospital. At this hour, the ER's probably the only option anyway."
Song Woo-yeon said calmly.
It was hard to believe blood was pouring from one arm—his tone was so composed.
If you just looked at his face, his pale complexion and cold sweat made it seem more plausible that Jo Yi-ruk had taken the hit.
"H-hello, police? This is the Sanghae Branch of Nobom Store. P-please come quick! Our president, the president...!"
Hyun Ye-won's voice carried as she called the police.
"The blood... it's too much..."
After hanging up, she approached to check the wound, her voice nearly breaking into sobs. Worried he'd ruined her first field assignment with this mess, Song Woo-yeon forced a smile.
"Kim Myeong-seok. I told you when we first signed the franchise agreement. If you don't want it, you can take down the sign and leave anytime."
...
Kim Myeong-seok stared at Song Woo-yeon, face drained of color.
That unnatural composure didn't seem human. [Tough bastard.] Kim Myeong-seok muttered to himself.
"If you won't follow headquarters' instructions, just start your own place under your name. We've repeatedly requested kitchen inspections, which you kept refusing, and now you've resorted to physical violence. You admit that, right?"
...
"If we go to court, it'll be very unfavorable for you. Let's just terminate the franchise agreement and go our separate ways."
Song Woo-yeon added.
"Oh, and the assault is separate."
Kim Myeong-seok's eyes went blank in an instant.
He realized his mistake had made everything irreversible.
Thud.
He collapsed to the floor.
Red police lights flashed across his face. Through the glass door, a squad car pulled up.
It was all over.
"Ow, ow, ow! It hurts! It hurts, I said!"
Tears welled up from the stinging pain, but I yelped anyway—Jo Yi-ruk wasn't backing down. He gripped my wrist tight and laid into me.
"You still need to get it disinfected. What if it gets infected?"
He had a point.
The doctor had warned me repeatedly. But every swab burned so bad, my hands and feet were slick with cold sweat.
I'd probably jolt awake at night just hearing the word "disinfectant."
"Just this spot left. Hang in there a bit longer."
Hoo...
I took a deep breath and squeezed my eyes shut.
Then the icy cotton touched—and zing!
"Grrrugh!"
I clenched my teeth to stifle the scream. It hurt like hell!
"Someone who winces this much, and you insisted on filing the report first before the hospital. All done."
Hoo. I finally exhaled. Thought I was gonna die.
"Ugh. In the heat of the moment, I wasn't seeing straight."
The guy was clearly a bad apple franchisee—had to cut him off clean. But unilaterally dropping him without cause could've opened us up to lawsuits.
So to make it airtight, I filed the report first, went to the hospital with the cops, and got the injury diagnosis on record.
"Well, thanks to you, Kim Myeong-seok quietly accepted the termination."
Apparently he slunk off without a peep. I didn't see it myself, so whatever.
"That's not the point...!"
Jo Yi-ruk rubbed his temple like it was killing him. What could be more important? This wasn't trivial.
He might not get it, but franchises can't just axe bad operators willy-nilly—that's the headache of this business.
"Any more contact since?"
"He's been blowing up my phone about settling the assault out of court. I blocked him."
"Good call."
Jo Yi-ruk glared like he wanted to devour Kim Myeong-seok. I was the one who got hit, but he was acting like it hurt him more.
Fair enough. If I hadn't stepped in, it might've been him bleeding.
Just imagining it was horrifying.
"Oh, Hyun Ye-won—was she too shaken?"
"...Yeah. She was terrified that day, obviously. That much blood, infection risk... But the recovery's going well, so she's relieved now."
Jo Yi-ruk continued like he was letting it slide [This Once]. Ahem. Quick-on-the-uptake subordinates are the worst.
"Later, she even seemed impressed. Said she'd never seen a boss sacrifice like that for his people."
"Haha..."
This guy's no saint either. Explains jumping from Hyunmu to The Song.
"No worries. I made sure everyone's lips are sealed, cops included."
"Thanks."
First thing I told Jo Yi-ruk after the ER doc patched me up: keep this quiet.
[Don't need rumors leaking and causing headaches.]
Media frenzy would embarrass HQ—make us look sloppy on franchise oversight.
"...And no more of this from now on."
"Huh?"
"Stepping in front like that."
Jo Yi-ruk stared at me, dead serious.
"You could've gotten seriously hurt. Maybe not even stopped at injury."
Probably.
"No one at The Song can replace you as president."
...
"If anyone's taking hits, it's me. You need to stay safe—for the company's sake. Got it?"
Hmm.
I smiled ambiguously. Seeing my face, Jo Yi-ruk's glare sharpened.
Ugh. But...
I caved under the fierce look.
"Your parents would grieve if you got hurt, Team Leader Jo."
"...Huh?"
"You've got family who'd be heartbroken."
Unlike me.
Not self-pity—just facts.
Jo Yi-ruk had family, people who'd mourn if something happened.
"So maybe it's better if I get hurt instead...?"
Fewer sad people that way.
Pure logic, no emotions—cold calculation said it was optimal.
...
Jo Yi-ruk clearly disagreed, eyes bulging.
Haha. I gave an awkward grin; he massaged his temples like he had a migraine.
"What the hell kind of thinking is that...!"
Urk.
But living alone, you can't help these thoughts.
Sick in an empty house: [Will anyone even hold my funeral if I die?]
At someone else's wake: [Who'd stand vigil for mine?]
Doubt Jo Yi-ruk gets that loneliness.
"No way."
Jo Yi-ruk said, like he'd made up his mind.
"Hang on a sec."
"Team Leader Jo? Hey?"
Ignoring my calls, he stormed out.
What the...? What was he up to?
It didn't take long to find out.
"...My god."
I could only gape.