The Promotion of a Competent Senior
"A truly excellent presentation."
A few days ago, Kim Hee-yeon had been summoned by the Branch Director. It was rare for a regular employee or an Assistant Manager to have any reason to meet with the Branch Director, and it was almost unheard of for the Director to call an Assistant Manager in personally. Perhaps that was why Kim Hee-yeon was so incredibly nervous.
"Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon? Please, have a seat."
"Y-yes, thank you, Director."
Kim Hee-yeon sat on the edge of the chair, her nerves frayed. It was undoubtedly about the SC-339101 case that Jiwoo had handled recently. Because Jiwoo’s success had been so spectacular, rumors about his Assistant Manager, Kim Hee-yeon, had spread throughout the office.
'...Don't tell me I'm being laid off? Already? Like this?'
Kim Hee-yeon was in her fourth year. In a few months, her mandatory five-year service period would end. From the fifth year onward, those without sufficient ability were ruthlessly let go. Was the Director planning to tell her to prepare for termination because of the massive incident that had just occurred? To fire her the moment she hit her fifth year?
"Employee Shin Jiwoo... no, the soon-to-be Assistant Manager Shin Jiwoo, was talking about you, Assistant Manager Kim. You are his direct supervisor, aren't you?"
"...Yes. That is correct."
Kim Hee-yeon squeezed her eyes shut. It was just as she feared. Jiwoo must have reported her to the Director. After all, she had dumped more than a few tasks onto him over the past year. He must have used this opportunity to air all his grievances.
"Under normal circumstances, you would have faced disciplinary action, Assistant Manager Kim. You dumped a dungeon that was on the verge of a Dungeon Break onto a new recruit."
As expected. It had finally come. Kim Hee-yeon wanted to cry. The faces of her parents back home flashed through her mind. But the words that followed from the Director were not what she had anticipated.
"However, I have decided to drop the disciplinary action."
"...Pardon?"
"Shin Jiwoo said as much. He claimed that the Dungeon Management Team 3 had been so overwhelmed with work that you had no other choice. He even asked me to reconsider, calling you a brilliant and capable supervisor. So, I’ve decided to let this slide."
"J-Jiwoo said that...?"
Kim Hee-yeon’s mouth hung open like a fool’s. Looking back on her behavior over the last few days, she had been anything but a good supervisor. She had dumped work on him daily, snapped at him, and even used him as an emotional trash can, venting her stress whenever she called him over. After the SC-339101 dungeon incident, she had deeply regretted her actions, but she had assumed it was too late and that there was no turning back. Jiwoo’s reactions had been cold, and they hadn't even held a proper conversation since. She never imagined he would defend her; she would have expected him to curse her name.
"Of course, I understand that the workload for the Dungeon Management Team is grueling. But as an Association employee, one must possess a certain level of competence. A single mistake can be forgiven, but if it repeats, it becomes a matter of skill. You’re entering your fifth year soon, aren't you, Assistant Manager Kim?"
The meaning behind the Director’s words was clear. If she made a mistake like this even once more, she would be fired without mercy in her fifth year. The Association had no need for incompetent people. In other words, she had only saved her own skin thanks to Jiwoo.
"I will work harder."
"See that you do."
Kim Hee-yeon bowed and left the Director’s office. She stood in the hallway for a long time, staring blankly at the wall.
"Jiwoo... really said that?"
It was impossible to believe. That Jiwoo would say such things. She was just an annoying superior who would have disappeared on her own if he’d just left her be. Yet, he had saved her career.
-Assistant Manager, you yell at me every day too!
-If you're going to eat salad for lunch, eat it alone! I want to eat spicy stir-fried pork and soybean paste stew!
-Assistant Manager. If the same thing happens again, just give it all to me.
The words Jiwoo had once poured out came back to her. If he had been that angry with her, why help her now?
-I'm counting on you!
-You're truly amazing, Assistant Manager!
-It's all thanks to you, Assistant Manager. I want to work with you until the very end!
She remembered Jiwoo as he was when he first joined—like a little chick. He had been a model junior, diligent and eager to follow her lead. She felt pathetic for turning such a junior into the person he was now. She had four years of seniority on him, yet she had thrown hysterics at a newcomer and ruined him.
Even so, he could have easily badmouthed this pathetic senior behind her back. Instead, he had defended her when she was on the brink of being fired. A wave of immense regret washed over her. She should have been kinder. She shouldn't have said those things.
"Even though I'm such a terrible senior... why..."
Why on earth would he do that? She couldn't understand his actions, but she was grateful. The dark circles under his eyes. The tie he had loosened because the stiff suit was uncomfortable. He was the quintessential image of a salaryman worn down by society. The newcomer who had been full of life on his first day was gone.
"Maybe I should... ask him to grab a meal."
Now that she thought about it, he looked like he had lost a lot of weight. It was clearly because she had been making him eat nothing but salad. He was a healthy man; it was only natural he would lose weight if he couldn't eat a proper meal. He had said he wanted spicy stir-fried pork and soybean paste stew, hadn't he?
Kim Hee-yeon asked around among the male employees to find a popular local diner. On the day Jiwoo was promoted to Assistant Manager, she gathered her courage and asked him.
"I found a great diner nearby that makes good stir-fried pork and soybean paste stew, and I thought it would be nice if we went together..."
"Let's go."
He had said he was busy, but fortunately, Jiwoo accepted. Now that he had given her a chance, she had to apologize properly and restore their relationship. On the way to the restaurant, Kim Hee-yeon made a firm resolution not to repeat her past mistakes.
"What should we order..."
"Auntie! Two orders of stir-fried pork, one soybean paste stew, and one kimchi stew, please!"
As soon as he sat down, Jiwoo blurted out his order. The menu had been set, but she wondered if four dishes for two people wasn't a bit much. But thinking about it, it meant she had been feeding nothing but salad to a man who could eat this much. Realizing this, Kim Hee-yeon didn't say a word.
"Phew..."
Jiwoo hung his jacket on the seat next to him like an old man and loosened his buttons. The way he looked in his white dress shirt was quite handsome.
"Jiwoo, about the other day..."
"Oh, it's here."
Just as she was about to start the conversation in the silence, the food arrived. How could it come out so fast? Kim Hee-yeon was flustered, but Jiwoo set his utensils with practiced ease.
"I'll eat well."
"E-eat a lot."
Chomp, chomp. Before she could even find a gap to talk, Jiwoo started inhaling his food. She wondered if he had been starving for days, but the other men at the surrounding tables were eating at the same speed.
"Auntie, one more bowl of rice, please!"
"Already?!"
The moment Kim Hee-yeon lifted a spoonful of rice, Jiwoo’s bowl was already empty.
"Assistant Manager, you should eat too. This place is good."
"I-I am eating."
And so, while Kim Hee-yeon finished one bowl, Jiwoo finished three, and the meal came to an end.
'It didn't even take 30 minutes...'
It was a completely different side of him from when he would pick at his salads. It was the first time Kim Hee-yeon had ever seen someone just eat like that. Jiwoo left the shop, patting his stomach as if satisfied.
"Jiwoo, should we stop by a cafe?"
Since things had turned out this way, she intended to stop by a cafe. She absolutely had to apologize today, no matter what.
"Then should we get it to go?"
"We have plenty of time, don't we? Wouldn't it be fine to just sit and drink it?"
"...Is that so? Don't you have to prepare your PT for this afternoon's meeting, Assistant Manager? Well, if you're all prepared, we can stop by..."
"...Huh?"
"?"
"E-eh?!!"
Kim Hee-yeon snapped to her senses and shrieked. The eyes of the office workers passing by during their lunch break instantly focused on her.
"W-was that today? It was today!"
"Did you seriously forget?"
"I-I guess I did...! What do I do? I haven't finished the presentation materials yet! There's only an hour left, what do I do! What do I do, Jiwoo!"
"Ha, this total wreck..."
Jiwoo wiped his face, and Kim Hee-yeon fell into a panic. This was no time to be leisurely drinking coffee. Especially since today's meeting was attended by all the branch executives. Forgetting her resolution not to stress Jiwoo out, Kim Hee-yeon stomped her feet and poked Jiwoo in the chest.
"What do I do! What do I do, Jiwoo!"
"Ha..."
It’s your fault, so what do you want me to do about it? Jiwoo muttered with a sigh. He was used to Kim Hee-yeon acting like this; it wasn't just a one-time thing. That didn't mean he wasn't annoyed, though. Just then, a thought flashed through Jiwoo’s mind.
"Today's presentation was about the statistics related to last quarter's dungeons and future operational plans, right?"
"Y-yes, that's right."
"Then the statistics should already be out, so we just need to make the presentation materials. Let's go back quickly and get it done."
Jiwoo turned around to head back to the branch. But Kim Hee-yeon grabbed his wrist.
"I-I'm not very good at PPT, so it takes me a long time to make them..."
There was no wreck quite like this wreck. It was shameless to ask for help in a crisis, and it was absurd how she would throw tantrums normally but then act pitiful and cute when she needed something. Even though he thought that, Jiwoo nodded.
"I'll help, so let's go quickly."
"Jiwoo...!"
Jiwoo grabbed Kim Hee-yeon’s wrist and ran toward the branch. Oh my...! For some reason, Kim Hee-yeon felt her heart pounding as she was dragged along by Jiwoo.
'Was his back always this broad...?'
For some reason, Jiwoo’s back looked incredibly broad today. She had the fleeting thought that she wanted to hug him, but this wasn't the time for that. Her heart must be racing because the meeting was right around the corner. However, those feelings cooled down as they sat in front of the computer.
"...Is this really the right conclusion, Jiwoo?"
"Yes. Go with this. We don't have time anyway, do we?"
"S-something feels a bit off."
Jiwoo was whipping up the PPT. The beginning was fine. It was just reporting the status of the previous month as announced by the Association. But as they got to the back, Kim Hee-yeon felt uneasy. She had to request budgets and equipment based on the previous statistics, but the requests looked very different from anything she had seen before.
"Aren't the numbers here too small, and here too large? And is it really okay to say it like this, Jiwoo?"
"Yes, well. If it were me, I would present it like this. Or, it wouldn't matter if you prepared it the way you wanted, Assistant Manager."
But there was no time for Kim Hee-yeon to prepare the PPT and presentation herself. She didn't have the ability to handle work as quickly as Jiwoo. And Kim Hee-yeon, who couldn't even handle basic tasks, didn't have the ability to spot the problems in the data filled with dense numbers.
"...Ugh. No. I'll go with this."
In the end, Kim Hee-yeon decided to trust Jiwoo. It was Jiwoo who had saved her from being fired just a while ago. It would be wrong to doubt him. He was even giving up his lunch break to help her with work that wasn't even his.
"Yes. Good luck with the presentation. I'll be watching, too."
Jiwoo smiled with relief. To think she had treated such a junior so terribly until now. She resolved to work hard and treat Jiwoo well in the future.
"Thank you so much, Jiwoo. If the presentation goes well, I'll buy you a meal."
She didn't forget to thank him. As a bonus, she could use this as an excuse to set up their next meeting.
"Yes, if it goes well. I did it in a rush, so it might not go well. Maybe you'll get scolded for not preparing properly? Hahahaha."
"That won't happen. Because you did it for me, Jiwoo."
"Hahahahaha."
For some reason, Jiwoo laughed heartily. Kim Hee-yeon followed suit, not knowing why. She couldn't imagine that Jiwoo, the most capable employee, would have created a flawed presentation.
And soon, the meeting time arrived. The branch executives and the staff of Dungeon Management Team 3 took their seats in the conference room. Jiwoo and the other team members sat down, and only Kim Hee-yeon, who was in charge of the presentation, stood on the podium.
The presentation proceeded in a heavy atmosphere.
"Th-therefore, we are requesting a budget plan to drastically... reduce the Group A equipment and drastically expand Group B. That is all."
She stumbled because she hadn't memorized the script, but the presentation ended somehow.
'I-is this right...?'
But now that she had said it out loud, she felt even more uneasy. Especially the last part about the equipment—the budget fluctuation was so absurd even to her ears. Kim Hee-yeon had no choice but to look at Jiwoo with trembling pupils.
'Jiwoo...?'
Jiwoo, sitting in the very back row, was covering his mouth. For some reason, his shoulders seemed to be shaking, but the lighting in the back was dim, so it was hard to tell. But did her ominous premonition ever fail? As soon as the presentation ended, she heard the team members whispering.
"Is that equipment investment and budget plan right? It's the exact opposite of last quarter."
"Didn't Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon make a mistake during the last presentation, too? What on earth was she thinking when she planned it like that?"
"We all study that stuff for the entrance exam..."
Something was definitely wrong. The team members were whispering, and the executives were staring at the screen with heavy expressions. A premonition that something had gone terribly wrong made her feel like crying. This was a disaster. Why on earth did Jiwoo...
Just as she was imagining a future where she was fired in a few months, Clap- clap- clap- clap- the Branch Director suddenly started clapping.
"Excellent, Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon. To think you had already grasped this much."
"...?!"
The team members started murmuring. But the executives were nodding as if they had expected it. She didn't know what it was, but it seemed to have gone well. She felt sorry for doubting Jiwoo even for a moment. Kim Hee-yeon smiled brightly and looked in Jiwoo’s direction. Jiwoo looked somewhat flustered, but she thought it must be her imagination. After all, it was dark in the back of the conference room, so she couldn't see well.
"I apologize for doubting you, Assistant Manager Kim Hee-yeon. You are indeed as capable as Shin Jiwoo said."
"Th-thank you!"
She didn't know what was going on, but Kim Hee-yeon bowed her head anyway. In any case, everything seemed to have worked out. She really had to be good to Jiwoo. While Kim Hee-yeon was resolving this in her heart once more, Jiwoo was having a completely different thought all by himself.
'What is he talking about! That mess of a presentation was excellent?'
What on earth was excellent about that?!