The Resignation Plan and the Promotion
Was it for our sake...? "Are you insane? Whose presence do you think you're in, pulling a stunt like that in front of the Patriarch!"
Kim Yeo-won, who had arrived late to the banquet hall due to work, had searched for Jiwoo the moment she heard the news. "It's fine. The Patriarch allowed it. And I'm not going to die," Jiwoo replied. There was a faint smile playing on his lips. Kim Yeo-won was infuriated by his attitude. It was obvious he would be exiled, so why on earth would he do such a thing? She couldn't understand where he got the nerve to speak so boldly before the Patriarch.
"Go to the Deputy Director right now and beg for forgiveness. If you don't, you'll be exiled for sure...!"
"That's right. Shin Chi-hyun is a rational man; if you ask, he might just let it go."
"The Patriarch already knows, so there's no turning back."
"How can you be so calm about this...!?"
"Besides, everyone in the banquet hall already heard it. How can I just back out now?"
After saying that, Jiwoo calmly continued to tear into his meat. Kim Yeo-won felt like she was going to explode with frustration. She had brought Jiwoo to the gathering under the Patriarch's orders, but she never expected something like this to happen. She had been worried sick that others might bully him. Perhaps the resentment she had bottled up all this time had finally erupted. But even so, to commit what was essentially suicide in a place where the entire family was gathered? Once the Patriarch had acknowledged it, this bet had to be seen through to the end. Knowing that, Kim Yeo-won felt even more stifled and angry. She couldn't help but keep nagging Jiwoo for pulling such a stunt, even though she knew it was already too late.
"I told you to stay quiet and not draw attention to yourself at the banquet! Why on earth did you do that!"
Slurp-
Jiwoo ate his udon as if he barely heard her. He was already on his fourth bowl. It was just as Kim Yeo-won's nagging continued and Jiwoo picked up his fifth bowl that he finally spoke.
"Why are you doing this, you non-awakened brat! We're already under attack by the family, what are you thinking!"
Clack.
Amidst the endless nagging, Jiwoo set down his udon bowl.
"...Is a non-awakened person not allowed to speak?"
"What?"
"It was something I had to do! If I don't do it now, it'll really be too late!"
"What exactly do you have to do! The family just...!"
"You were the one who told me to attend the family gathering in the first place, Mother!"
"That was because I received orders from the Patriarch..."
"Exactly! The Patriarch allowed it too! He was the one who told me to prove it myself! I'll prove it like a member of this family. If I lose, I'll disappear from this land cleanly. This is for the sake of something precious to me, and it's something I absolutely must do for the future. I can't live like this forever!"
"You...!"
Unable to hold it in any longer, Jiwoo turned on his heel and stormed out of the banquet hall. Kim Yeo-won, unable to stop him, could only watch his retreating back with her mouth agape.
"What is wrong with him these days...!?"
"...You, what were you doing while your brother was acting like that? You didn't even stop him while this whole mess was happening!"
"Th-that brat acted on his own accord. I didn't know he would pull something like this..."
Even turning her anger toward her innocent daughter changed nothing. Jiwoo had already accepted the absurd bet. And it was certain he would fail and be exiled from this land.
"Ha... Honey... how could this..." Kim Yeo-won leaned against the wall and ran a hand through her hair.
"Heh. What a real dysfunctional family."
"Seriously. They don't even know it's because of them."
"Jiwoo-hyung is actually the pitiful one today. His biological parents are both dead, and he's only left with his new family, and they're like this."
As soon as Jiwoo disappeared, a pair of unpleasant voices emerged from the side. They were the twins, Lee Ha-ram and Lee A-ram, distant relatives of the family.
"...Hey. What did you just say?" Kim Eunji, already in a foul mood, glared at them. The twins stepped back, slightly intimidated, but they were the type to speak their minds.
"I-it's true, though. A dysfunctional family."
"You want to die, you not-even-A-class trash?"
"D-don't hit me! If you cause a scene at the banquet, the Patriarch will mark you, you know?"
Kim Eunji sighed and lowered her hand. The twins were only B+ class. If they were outside, she would have taught them a proper lesson, but this wasn't the time or place.
"More importantly, what do you mean by that? Saying it's because of them?"
"Jiwoo-hyung fighting with Chi-hyun-hyung, it was because of you and this person."
"...What are you talking about?"
At those words, Kim Yeo-won also turned her head.
"Chi-hyun-hyung insulted your family, saying they weren't even worth being discarded."
"But Jiwoo-oppa couldn't take it and grabbed Chi-hyun-oppa by the collar."
"And the Patriarch heard them fighting like that."
"In the end, it led to such an absurd bet."
After hearing the twins' explanation, Kim Yeo-won and Kim Eunji couldn't close their mouths. He was risking exile, all for the sake of a family he wasn't even blood-related to? And a non-awakened person had grabbed an A-class hunter by the collar. If Shin Chi-hyun had a personality like Shin Jin-seok, he could have been killed on the spot.
"...Is that true?"
"I'm telling you, it is!"
Kim Yeo-won asked with a look as if her world had collapsed. And only then did the meaning behind the words Jiwoo had spat out in anger moments ago become clear.
"It was something I had to do!"
"This is for the sake of something precious to me, and it's something I absolutely must do for the future."
"I can't live like this forever!"
"Such a..."
"Then everything he said..."
Both Kim Yeo-won and Kim Eunji were left speechless. To think such a background was hidden behind this ridiculous incident. They both began to regret the harsh words they had just directed at Jiwoo.
"Really. A dysfunctional family, indeed."
"Let's go. Let's go eat some dessert~"
Seeing no reaction from the two, the twins moved elsewhere. Kim Eunji and Kim Yeo-won remained standing in a corner of the banquet hall, dazed.
***
Ah, I ended up leaving the banquet in a fit of anger. I wanted to eat a few more bowls of udon. Seriously, why does Mother keep trying to stop me from quitting? I was on the verge of resigning, and because she kept trying to block it, I ended up shouting at her, Mother or not. After shouting in a fit of rage, the atmosphere became so awkward that I couldn't stay. It was a rare day to feast, too. Damn it. I'll just go home and eat some ramen and a hot bar.
After eating a late-night snack and falling asleep, I went to work the next day as usual. For some reason, my younger sister hadn't returned home, so it was a rare, relaxed morning.
"Good morning."
However, the moment I entered the company's main gate, my expression soured rapidly. I offered a morning greeting with a thoroughly crumpled face.
"Good morn..."
"Good morning."
The team members, equally miserable, replied with similarly crumpled faces. It was a typical Monday morning scene at the company. Ah, I don't want to work. Why is this left here? Clean it up, seriously. Ugh.
I swallowed my complaints and sat at my desk.
"...Huh?"
Wait, the nameplate hanging at my desk looked a bit strange.
"Ah, come to think of it, Jiwoo-ssi, you got a special promotion, right? Everyone heard the news, right? Alright, everyone, let's applaud."
Clap, clap, clap, clap-
Looking at the calendar, a new month had already begun. It's common to lose track of the date when you're busy working. Come to think of it, the special promotion the Branch Manager mentioned was supposed to start this month. It seemed my opinion that I didn't need a promotion hadn't been taken into account, just as I had expected.
"...Thank you. I will work hard."
I wasn't grateful, nor did I have any intention of working hard, but I bowed in all directions to reciprocate the congratulations. No matter what, I didn't want to be seen as a social misfit. I couldn't exactly scowl after being congratulated. Besides, if I just mess up the bet with Shin Chi-hyun, I can quit stably.
Still, my title had risen to Assistant Manager, so it didn't feel entirely bad. Surely, if this had been before I knew the truth, I would have been jumping for joy.
"Sigh..."
Assistant Manager or not, there was a mountain of work right in front of me. I already had a backlog of work, and now the Ma-Gwang Mine case and the GN-493688 project with Shin Chi-hyun had been added to the pile. If I worked without even eating lunch, I thought I could finish it with about 3 hours of overtime. I started by quickly processing the existing tasks.
'The Ma-Gwang Mine case is still pending. Well, it would take a lot of preparation to start mining, anyway.'
I tried to handle the Ma-Gwang Mine work, but there was nothing I could do yet. My job was to manage the dungeon and distribute the mana stones afterward. I had thought I would need to hire participating hunters starting today, but unexpectedly, news reached me that preparations at the site were still far from complete. Come to think of it, I had never dealt with a Ma-Gwang Mine before, so I didn't know. Usually, those are handled at the regional headquarters level. Since the work was moving slower than expected, I figured I could handle this leisurely.
'Then I guess I can eat lunch today.'
Thanks to that, it looked like I could have a relaxed lunch. I thought I might as well start choosing my lunch menu, the only joy of an office worker. But just then, a voice interrupted my rare moment of relaxation.
"...Um, Jiwoo-ssi. Are you busy?"
It was Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon. Kim Hee-yeon hadn't spoken to me for a while since that incident. Since our desks were right in front of each other, I couldn't avoid running into her. When I came to work, we just exchanged nods and thoroughly ignored each other. But what kind of wind was blowing today that she was talking to me?
"...Yes. I'm busy."
Feeling uneasy, I made an excuse that I was busy. Of course, my monitor screen was displaying a list of nearby restaurants.
"Is that so? I wanted to eat lunch together for a change. You don't even have time to eat?"
Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon lowered her head with a look like a wet puppy. For some reason, the atmosphere was different from usual, but I had no intention of letting it slide. Originally, Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon was my direct superior. At first, she taught me this and that (of course, after a month, she realized I was a complete disaster and I started handling work my own way). So, until recently, it seemed we ate lunch together most of the time. On my first day of work, she even bought me lunch because she was my senior. However, since she was my senior, I had no say in the menu. I had to eat nothing but salads, poke, and pasta every day. Even before the Unbound Awakened incident, I didn't exactly relish the time spent eating with Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon. So, it was nice that we stopped eating together after things became awkward.
"Yes, I don't have..."
"I found a driver's diner nearby that makes great stir-fried pork and soybean paste stew, and I thought it would be nice if we went together..."
"Let's go."
I can't resist stir-fried pork and soybean paste stew. I jumped up and packed my things.
"Ah, is the time okay?"
"I have enough time to eat quickly. Let's go."
"O-okay."
I had eaten a lot of greasy food yesterday, so I was craving Korean food anyway. And if I go alone, it's hard to order multiple dishes, so having one more person is good. Ordering two servings of stir-fried pork and one soybean paste stew would be perfect. I should order kimchi stew, too.