Manager App - Chapter 118: Otherworld Quest
‘Let's see.’
Having turned the twin-headed ogre into my slave like this, I reviewed all the slave information.
‘……No wonder I couldn't catch it.’
In terms of levels, grades, and even skills, the twin-headed ogre completely overwhelmed us.
‘Capturing it at all is a miracle.’
I was once again struck by the power of the pitch-black staff.
"Hehe, you won't take it away now, right?"
Just as I let out a sigh of relief, the left head snickered and asked me.
And as I was about to respond, the right head bellowed loudly.
"You idiot! Because of you, I became a slave too! We're done for! Everything's gonna be taken!"
"No, he said he won't take it! Right, human? You won't take it, right?"
As the right head shrieked, the left head matched it with its own piercing cry.
I stepped forward in front of the twin-headed ogre and quickly spoke up.
"Rest assured. I won't take it away."
At my words, the left head burst into a bright grin and quickly chimed in.
"Hehe, hear that? He said he won't take it!"
"Really? You're really not taking it?"
Seeing the right head still eyeing me with suspicion, I nodded slightly and replied.
"Really. But in exchange, I have a request for you, Rex."
As I alternated glances between the two heads, the right one suddenly looked shocked and tilted in confusion.
"Huh? How do you know our name?"
"Because you've become my slave, Rex."
Not grasping my words, the right head narrowed its eyes at me.
"You're talking down to us on purpose because you think we're smart, aren't you!"
At the right head's outburst, the previously quiet left head glared fiercely and shouted too.
"Yeah, you're mocking us right now!"
I nearly burst out laughing at their protest.
But composing myself, I swallowed the laugh and feigned a calm expression.
"Of course not. I was just stating the facts."
"Then prove it!"
At the twin-headed ogre's furious yelling, I let out a soft chuckle and immediately spoke.
Rex Unsummon
Right after saying that, I ordered the skeletons to guard me and then spoke again.
Rex Summon
When I resummoned Rex, the ground shook with a thud!
"Gasp! That scared me!"
"Scared the crap outta me!"
Truly startled, both heads gaped wide and looked around wildly.
Spotting me soon after, it strode over in one massive step.
In response, the skeletons, orcs, and goblins surrounded me protectively.
"You're amazing!"
"Amazing—no, incredible!"
Rex bounced around excitedly, shaking the entire forest like an earthquake.
"Is it that impressive?"
Of course, being able to summon at will was incredibly impressive.
But it didn't seem worth this level of excitement.
I asked with a somewhat bewildered expression.
Rex shouted back, still thrilled.
"Yeah! It's amazing! Hide us quick! We gotta hide the treasure!"
"Yeah! Yeah! If we stay there, no more worries about that black rock getting taken!"
I finally understood, seeing Rex hopping like it was dancing.
The quest had mentioned they were "doing everything possible to protect the mana stone fragment."
In other words, Rex's top priority was securing that fragment safely.
From their perspective, becoming mine meant the safest haven imaginable.
"Calm down first."
I soothed the still-bouncing Rex and continued.
"……I accepted you as my slave to get some help."
Both heads tilted in unison.
"Need help? We'll help!"
"Don't worry, we'll smash everything!"
Seeing that attitude made me feel secure.
I chuckled softly and spoke again.
"Got it. Then next time we need to find the black rock, I'll call you, Rex."
Rex thumped its chest in response.
"Yeah, call anytime!"
"Don't call too often!"
At the heads' opposing words, I chuckled again and unsummoned Rex.
The once-cramped forest finally felt spacious.
Letting out a light sigh, I looked around.
Ena stared at me with admiring eyes.
Matilda kept gasping "Whoa, whoa" in awe.
Elena smirked with a "As expected" look, puffing out her chest.
Glancing at my smartphone, I saw notifications that all slaves' loyalty had risen, including Rex's.
You've fulfilled Rex's wish.
Rex's loyalty has increased by 20 each.
Ena admires your power.
Ena's loyalty has increased by 1.
Matilda sincerely wishes to serve you.
Matilda's loyalty has increased by 47.
Elena reconfirms your power.
Elena's loyalty has increased by 8.
‘Oh…….’
Compared to the slight rises for Ena and Elena, Rex and Matilda's loyalty jumps were dramatic.
‘……Good thing I persuaded Rex.’
As expected, loyalty rose through actions, not words.
‘And…… since Rex has two heads, affection and loyalty are split too.’
Even its grade was divided: Rare and Hero.
‘……The head that ate the mana stone fragment must be Hero grade.’
I'd thought it was just a weird rock at first, but clearly not.
"There's something to it."
Especially since the monthly tribute demanded mana stone fragments—it had to be important.
"……."
After organizing my thoughts, I turned to everyone and spoke.
"……Good work. I'll call you next time."
With that, I handed Elena her cloak and unsummoned all summons.
Finally, abandoning the Otherworld Quest plunged everything into darkness, then brightened to reveal my studio apartment.
"……For these reasons, the board has decided to restore Lee Hyunju's position. However, considering outside eyes, we've agreed not to announce it publicly for now. So please be especially careful with your words and actions, and starting tomorrow……."
Back in reality, Hyunju received a call and fell into confusion.
‘My position is really restored? How on earth?’
Her position was supposed to be restored in half a year.
Yet after the masked man casually said, "I'll have it restored," she got the call in less than an hour.
Feeling chills run down her spine, Hyunju shuddered.
The surreal event tangled her thoughts.
But snapping out of it, she asked.
"Who proposed this agenda?"
She was certain it was the masked man or his puppet master.
The thought of meeting him in reality made her heart swell to bursting.
"……All the directors present at the board meeting proposed this agenda."
"What?"
Hyunju was stunned to hear every director had proposed the same thing.
No matter how influential, moving all directors was impossible—even for her father, the chairman of the Daehan Group.
Yet the masked man had done it effortlessly.
‘Insane.’
Shivering, Hyunju hugged herself tightly, thrilled.
She ended the call with an "Understood" and summoned the corporate lawyer.
Less than 20 minutes later, a man in a crisp suit entered her home.
"You called?"
Bowing politely, he'd clearly heard of her restoration.
Hyunju smiled in satisfaction and got to the point.
"I want to lower Daehan Shipping's boarding fees. How much can we cut?"
"Do you mean a temporary discount?"
"No, permanently."
Lawyer Kim Hyun-seok fell silent.
But soon, as a corporate lawyer, he decided to persuade her.
"It's possible, but the losses would be huge. A limited-time discount would benefit the company more. Especially if it's for improving our image—that would be far better."
"No, it has to be permanent."
At her stubbornness, Kim Hyun-seok pondered and suggested.
"Then how about a temporary discount first, then decide based on quarterly revenue?"
"……."
Hyunju thought it over and nodded.
He'd accept that much, and it wasn't truly permanent anyway.
‘And now…… the real point.’
Taking a breath, she continued.
"I want to sell apartments for around 200,000 won monthly rent."
"Pardon?"
Kim Hyun-seok blurted out in surprise.
The boarding fee cut was somewhat understandable—for image and attracting passengers post-restoration.
But this was absurd.
After a awkward pause, he composed himself.
"……Are you referring to public rental housing?"
"What's that?"
"Providing apartments to low-income people at cheap rates for 10 years. But that's government policy, not something a company can do."
"I have to do it. Absolutely."
Hyunju stated firmly.
Kim Hyun-seok thought, then recalled an empty corporate building from a recent move.
It'd fill up fast, but now was a chance.
"There's an empty building perfect for it. If you personally buy it, Vice President Lee, and convert it to officetel style, you could use it like public rentals. At low prices too."
It'd involve paperwork and legal hurdles, but better than company losses.
Who'd complain about using her own building? The costs were hers.
Hyunju nodded—smaller scale than planned, but logical.
"Sounds good. Let's do that."
"Understood."
With that settled, Lawyer Kim Hyun-seok stood quickly.
Fearing more wild ideas.
Indeed, Hyunju felt it was a bit small-scale.
‘Won't I get in trouble for it being too small?’
Worried about punishment, she soon imagined herself receiving it from him and smiled happily.