The Corporate Slave
Swoooosh—
Rain poured heavily outside the window of the public restroom. The damp, earthy scent of the downpour mingled with the foul stench of sewage. Jeon Sihyun stood holding a rose, while a man in a red dobok with a scarred cheek glared at him. In a fit of rage, the man threw the rose he was holding. Thud, thud, thud... The rose transformed into a handgun and rolled across the floor. Sihyun picked it up, his eyes wide with shock. He aimed it at the man in the red dobok once more. It turned back into a rose.
"Have you changed your mind about confessing to me again?"
Sihyun lowered his hand, his face twisted in irritation. The moment he did, the rose in his grip shifted back into a handgun. It was an utterly absurd, unrealistic situation. Sihyun let out a heavy sigh.
What the hell is going on? Who is this psycho in the dobok? This is absolutely baffling.
Was he seeing things because he was about to die? The thought crossed his mind. He had been pushing himself so hard lately; maybe his schizophrenia was finally flaring up. Sihyun asked the man, "Who the hell are you?"
"Han Hyuk."
"And what is that supposed to mean?"
"My name."
"..."
Sihyun glared at him, furious. "So what? What do you want me to do with your name?"
"Didn't you ask? For my identity."
"..."
Swoooosh... The rain continued to fall. Sihyun bared his teeth like a cornered beast and snarled, "You son of a bitch."
Han Hyuk snorted. "Amusing. A dog calling a human a dog."
"Fuck!"
A public restroom in the dark, early hours of dawn.
Swoooosh... The rain kept pouring. The air was thick with the metallic stench of blood. A blood-drenched Jeon Sihyun and the man in the red dobok, Han Hyuk, stared each other down. Sihyun was snarling like a rabid dog, while Han Hyuk watched him with a mocking smirk.
Sihyun shouted, "Who the hell are you, Han Hyuk? Tell me your identity. Now!"
"Hmm... Are you truly that curious?"
"...Just spit it out. I don't have time. I'm a busy man."
He was being hunted by the police. Perhaps even the military would get involved. He was on the verge of death. Honestly, he wasn't particularly afraid. He was just incredibly annoyed by this man named Han Hyuk. He wanted to kill him, but the fact that the man was too strong for him to do anything about it infuriated him. The urge to murder was overwhelming.
Han Hyuk spoke. "I shall reveal my identity."
"..."
Han Hyuk paused for a moment, then smirked. "I am the Absolute of the S.Y.S. Dimension Bureau. A being who rules over hundreds of millions of worlds. And currently, I am dying."
"Uh, what?"
Absolute. Ruling over hundreds of millions of worlds. Currently terminally ill. Sihyun quickly pieced the keywords together. The result:
"So you're some big shot, but you're on your deathbed?"
"Exactly."
A simple answer. Han Hyuk smiled and said, "I am the Absolute, the supreme authority of the Dimension Bureau. The Dimension Bureau requires 'energy' to sustain its existence. To gather this energy, we extract it from ruined worlds, or we tweak worlds on the brink of destruction to prolong their lifespan, allowing us to continuously harvest energy from them."
"So you keep worlds on life support just to keep your Bureau running? Is that it?"
"Yes."
"Sounds exhausting."
"But there was a slight issue."
"What issue?"
"Some bastards calling themselves the Guard Knights invaded the Dimension Bureau, claiming their world had been destroyed, and threw a massive tantrum. I nearly died in the process, and the severe wounds I sustained left me with a terminal diagnosis."
"A classic tale. A ruler overthrown by a rebellion."
"But I stopped them, didn't I? That's what matters."
"You're still dying, you dumbass."
"...True. Which is why..."
Han Hyuk pointed at Sihyun. Sihyun blinked. Han Hyuk said, "You are going to be my successor."
"What?"
Han Hyuk was telling him that he was a powerful ruler of dimensions, an Absolute, and that he was going to make Sihyun his successor to maintain his position. Sihyun blinked and pointed a finger at himself.
"You want me to do that?"
"Yes."
"Why? Why would you offer this to a piece-of-shit serial killer like me?"
"That is exactly why I chose you."
Han Hyuk smirked. "I inherited this position too. Originally, I was a challenger climbing the 'Tower' in my own world. I destroyed my world with my own hands and took over the seat of the Absolute."
"And?"
"I was a piece-of-shit murderer too. Now that my time is up, it only makes sense that I hand the reins over to another piece-of-shit murderer."
"..."
"I searched through tens of thousands of worlds looking for a suitable candidate. I found three prospects. Unfortunately, two of them failed. You are the last one standing."
"..."
Han Hyuk smirked, his eyes glinting with murderous intent as he asked, "Now, I am giving you no choice. You will become the Absolute Proxy, learn from me, and become the next Absolute."
"...You want me to do that?"
"Do you object?"
"No... it's just a bit sudden..."
This mysterious man, Han Hyuk. Sihyun didn't know much about him, but the guy clearly possessed some supernatural power to turn a handgun into a rose. And he claimed to be an Absolute, terminally ill from a rebellion, who now wanted to hand his throne to Sihyun. Should he accept this or not? It could be a scam, a hallucination brought on by his mental illness, or just a crazy guy spouting nonsense that Sihyun was taking way too seriously.
Fuck, what do I do? Damn it, damn it, damn it... What the hell am I supposed to do...
Just then—
Bang! Bang, bang! Bang!
The sound of someone hammering on the public restroom door, which had been barricaded with discarded furniture, echoed through the space.
"Ugh, fuck!"
Thud! Bang! Thud!
—Come out!
—We know you're in there!
—You son of a bitch!
Shouts echoed as people relentlessly battered the restroom door. There was no mistake. The police had arrived to arrest him. Sihyun grit his teeth, his anger boiling over.
"Hey, old man. Hold on a second. I'll give you my answer after I deal with these bastards."
He quickly flipped off the safety of his handgun and checked his knife. It was dirty from the rain, but it seemed functional. He could still fight.
Han Hyuk asked, "So, if you deal with those bastards, you'll give me your answer?"
"Huh? Yeah, sure."
"I see."
Thud! Crash!
The door was breached. Sihyun quickly dove behind cover. The police shouted,
"We are authorized to use lethal force!"
"We will open fire!"
Bang!
A blank was fired. Several more gunshots followed in rapid succession. The police were strictly following protocol, firing warning shots first. Sihyun didn't miss this window.
Bang!
"Argh!"
While the police were firing blanks at set intervals, he quickly blew their heads off with his handgun. His hands trembled slightly against his chest as he hurriedly swapped the magazine and fired again.
Bang!
Just then, a brave officer threw aside his gun loaded with blanks and lunged at him.
"Get him!"
"Hurry!"
"This is faster than waiting ten seconds between three warning shots!"
"Hey, hey! Don't use live ammo first if you don't want to lose your badge! Everything is recorded!"
"Yes, sir!"
The police began to rush him in a chaotic frenzy. They were throwing themselves at him barehanded, discarding their weapons. It was a desperate act of risking their lives for their livelihoods. Sihyun, who had no such constraints, slashed at their eyes and throats with his knife, rendering them incapable of fighting. However, in the struggle, his shoulder dislocated, and a crushing pain shot through his body.
"Ugh...!"
"We got him! Almost there!"
Throughout the chaotic brawl, not a single officer spared a glance toward Han Hyuk.
What the hell? Why is nobody looking at him?
Was he really a hallucination? Sihyun thought he had wasted his time. If he had known, he would have taken his medication properly. Sihyun used to meditate daily and take his meds to keep his mind sharp and disciplined. That was how he had been able to commit the perfect crimes—but now, he had made such a foolish mistake...
Just then, Han Hyuk spoke.
"Originally, this world's 'story' was supposed to end with you being captured and dying here."
He reached out his hand.
"But with a little manipulation, such things can easily be dismantled."
Han Hyuk made a casual gesture. As the man in the red dobok waved his hand, a beautiful red line, like a brushstroke, swept through the air. The phenomenon that followed was just as surreal.
Whoosh! Flutter, flutter, flutter!
The police officers who had been pinning Sihyun down and beating him suddenly transformed into pigeons and flew up into the sky. Sihyun stared in utter bewilderment. At the same time, Han Hyuk blinked at him, and all of Sihyun's wounds healed instantly. His filthy clothes became pristine.
Then, Han Hyuk swept his gaze over their surroundings. The foul-smelling public restroom transformed into a vast, sunny meadow. The rain-slicked asphalt became a wide, rolling ocean with crashing waves. The dirty, blood-stained handgun and other discarded weapons turned into beautiful flowers, welcoming them. In the blink of an eye, the urban restroom had become the center of a flower-covered island in the middle of the sea.
Han Hyuk, clad in his red dobok, stared coldly at Sihyun and spoke.
"Now, all obstacles have been cleared, and I have become the hero who saved you from the brink of death. Consider this a debt you owe me."
"...Fine."
"So, at this juncture, I shall make you a single offer. Will you hear it?"
"I'm listening."
The waves crashed, the warm sunlight bathed them, and the two monstrous killers stared at each other, smirking.
Han Hyuk spoke. "I am Han Hyuk, the Absolute of the S.Y.S. Dimension Bureau. While managing the dimensions, I was attacked by a rebel faction called the Guard Knights, leaving me terminally ill. And... in my search for a successor, I found you, Jeon Sihyun. So, I offer you this choice."
If he refused, he would die anyway.
"Would you like to become the Absolute Proxy and rule over tens of thousands of worlds?"
"...Sure."
Since he had to survive anyway, he accepted for now. He didn't care about what came after.
"Excellent."
Thud!
A door materialized in midair. Han Hyuk opened it and said, "Step inside. I will guide you. Welcome to the Dimension Bureau."
"Right. Wait, what?"
Welcome to the company?
Beep... beep... Clack, clack, clack... Yawn... Trudge, trudge...
Vaguely familiar sounds. Sihyun had never worked in an office before, but for some reason, this was exactly what he imagined a corporate office would look like. Cubicle walls were set up, and within those cramped spaces were small desks, PC monitors, computer towers, documents, pens, and other office supplies. In front of those desks sat a crowd of exhausted people of all ages, staring at their screens with expressions of pure despair as they worked.
Sihyun was guided by an employee and handed what looked like an ID badge.
"Please wear this around your neck. It's your employee ID."
He put it on. Along with Sihyun's face, the ID badge read:
"Welcome, Absolute Proxy Jeon Sihyun. It is a pleasure to meet you. First, you must take over the duties of Absolute Han Hyuk. As you are my superior and the supreme authority of this Dimension Bureau, I will treat you with the utmost respect."
"...What?"
This was the Dimension Bureau? The otherworldly entity that ruled over tens of thousands of worlds?
"Fuck."
It felt like he had just been scammed into a corporate job.