Triumph and a Trip to the Sea

As the two men were dragged out of the branch manager's office by the audit team like stray dogs, a heavy silence settled over the Main Branch Business Department, as though a typhoon had just passed through.

The employees could only stare blankly at one another, none of them daring to open their mouths.

"Um... Team Leader."

After a long pause, Assistant Manager Choi In-sung cautiously approached and asked, "That broadcast just now... what on earth happened? The phone in the branch manager's office couldn't have turned itself on..."

Every eye in the room turned to me.

At that exact moment, I put on my most bewildered, clueless expression.

Perhaps my old college theater club experience was paying off. It came out perfectly natural.

"Honestly, I was just as shocked while working at my desk. Could they have accidentally hit the button while roughhousing in there? They were screaming at each other loud enough to bring the roof down, after all."

At my calm reply, the employees nodded along. It was a reasonable inference.

Park Tae-jin and Lee Seok-woo had fought violently enough to grab each other by the collar, so it was only natural to assume the phone button had gotten pressed somewhere in the scuffle.

"Wow... the heavens really were on our side."

"Exactly. They dug their own graves. What are the odds the broadcast would switch on at precisely that moment..."

"Divine punishment, I tell you! Divine punishment!"

The employees muttered among themselves, breathing sighs of relief.

By afternoon, investigators from the Main Branch audit office came down to interview witnesses. But the questions were simple.

"Did you witness the incident?"

"No, sir. I was seated at my desk working. I was merely startled when the broadcast suddenly came on."

The testimony from Assistant Manager Choi and the other employees matched perfectly. In the end, the audit office concluded it was a broadcast accident caused by accidental equipment operation during a heated argument.

And with that, the matter was closed.

Rumor had it that Park Tae-jin and Lee Seok-woo were both on standby suspension, with a criminal referral to the prosecutor's office under review. The tumors at the branch had been cleanly excised.

The next day, the Main Branch Business Department quickly regained its footing. Until a new branch manager was appointed, a temporary administrator arrived from headquarters — and he more or less handed me full authority.

"Kim Dong-su, the branch runs itself thanks to you. You cleaned up this mess and still delivered results on top of it. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Headquarters thinks very highly of you right now."

The interim branch manager clicked his tongue in admiration. Small ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wonder — even with the branch manager hauled off in cuffs, our team's performance was climbing like a rocket.

"You flatter me. It's all thanks to the staff staying steady and following my lead."

"Modest as ever. Oh, and HR called. Your dispatch ends early — you're to return to headquarters starting tomorrow."

"Tomorrow already?"

"Yep. Word is the Marketing Director personally signed off on your reassignment order just to get you back. Apparently the PR Team and the Marketing Team are at ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠each other's throats over who gets you."

I began packing up my things. Assistant Manager Choi came over, his face on the verge of tears.

"Team Leader... are you really leaving? I still have mountains and mountains to learn from you..."

"Don't worry. The saboteurs are gone now, and with your ability, Choi, the recognition will come on its own. I wrote you a thorough handover document — just follow it to the letter."

"Thank you. Truly... it was a short time, but I learned so much. You're the benefactor of every one of us here, Team Leader."

As I carried my box out of the branch, every employee rose from their desks and bowed.

"Thank you for your hard work, Team Leader!"

"We're so grateful!"

I accepted their send-off and stepped into the elevator. The doors closed, and I caught my reflection in the mirror. A faint smile spread across my lips.

The exhilarating thrill of having restored a branch that had been a republic of corruption. I jammed my hands in my pockets and started humming.

The moment I reached the first-floor lobby, I pulled out my phone and sent a message to the one person I most wanted to see.

Clutching my phone, I walked out through the lobby. My steps felt as light as if I were walking on clouds.

Seven in the evening. A quiet Japanese-style dining spot in Cheongdam-dong.

The sliding door of the private room opened, and Senior Song Hae-in stepped inside. She had a hat pulled low over her eyes, but even bare-faced, she glowed.

"Dong-su!"

The moment she sat down, she started checking my face over. "Are you really okay? Just hearing about it secondhand was intense. The branch manager and a team leader getting exposed for corruption — what a circus!"

I pretended to know nothing and poured her tea. "Yeah, it got pretty loud. Apparently the two of them were fighting inside and accidentally turned on the broadcast. Thanks to that, the entire staff got a live simulcast of the trashiest drama of the year."

"Wow... unbelievable. Serves them right. The heavens really were looking out for you. I was worried they'd keep tormenting you."

Hae-in's face was full of genuine relief. She clearly had no idea the whole thing was my doing. I smiled to myself and nodded.

"Right? So I just quietly focused on my numbers and came home in triumph."

She propped her chin on her hand and gazed at me steadily. Something in those deep, languid eyes made my heart drop.

"You know... you've changed lately, haven't you?"

"Hm? In what way?"

"You've got this ease about you now. You used to seem like someone being chased by something, but lately you look... grounded. Like a man with something to lean on. And that makes you even more... attractive."

The last words were barely above a whisper. I feigned a cough and lifted my water glass.

"That... is a compliment, right?"

"Of course it is. Do you know how sexy a competent man is? Especially one the universe keeps rewarding."

She picked up a slice of sashimi with her chopsticks and held it to my lips. "Say ahh. Consider it your reward for all that hard work."

Dazed, I accepted it. Whether the fish was melting in my mouth or my heart was, I honestly couldn't ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠tell.

The mood ripened like fruit in late summer. A successful revenge, a career basking in recognition, and a top star sitting right across from me. Everything was impossibly, perfectly surreal.

"Dong-su."

"Yes?"

"Do you want to... go on a trip this weekend?"

I thought my heart would stop. "...A trip?"

"Mm. I get a few days off once this shoot wraps. No manager, just the two of us, nice and quiet. You drive well, don't you?"

This was a confirmed kill. Was there a man alive who could have said no?

"Sounds great. Where should we go?"

"Hmm... the East Sea? Or the southern coast? Somewhere without too many people, ideally."

"I'll track down an absolutely perfect spot."

"Ooh~ Now I'm looking forward to it."

We clinked our glasses. With that crisp chime, I knew it for certain.

The golden age of my life — it was right now.

The next morning, at the Marketing Promotion Team at headquarters.

The moment I walked into the office, my colleagues erupted in cheers.

"Waaah! It's Manager Kim Dong-su!"

"Welcome back, Team Leader!"

Team Leader Jeong rushed over and thumped me on the back. "Incredible, Kim! You absolute madman. You pulled record-breaking results in the middle of all that chaos — how on earth?"

"Just good luck, Team Leader."

"Luck is a skill! Do you know how many times the Department Head asked about you while you were gone? Now, sit, sit."

I'd barely settled into my chair and turned on my PC when the Department Head walked in. "Oh, Kim Dong-su. There you are."

"Good morning, sir."

Department Head Park came straight to my desk and tossed a document envelope in front of me, an irrepressible smile playing at his lips.

"Your official appointment. Effective Monday next week."

I opened the envelope.

"...Acting Team Leader? Me?"

Team Leader duties for someone who was still a junior manager by years of service. It was a bold move among bold moves.

"Direct orders from the Bank President himself. After seeing what happened in the Business Department, he insisted that an organization only thrives when a capable, hands-on professional is put in charge. He rates your crisis management and results very highly."

Department Head Park winked and added, "A formal Team Leader promotion next year is practically a done deal, but for now, lead the PR Team as acting head. And you do know you're taking personal charge of the Song Hae-in exclusive model contract, right?"

Personal charge of Song Hae-in. The company was practically endorsing my love life at this point.

I barely held back the laugh threatening to burst out of me. "Understood. I'll give it my very best."

"Good. Big things are expected. Oh — and your special performance bonus has been paid out, so check your account."

The moment the Department Head left, I checked my phone.

Five million won.

Next to the seven billion sitting in my account, it might have been pocket change. But five million won as a special performance bonus, as a salaried office worker — that carried a weight all its own.

I leaned back deep into my chair at my desk. The Seoul skyline beyond the window looked exceptionally clear.

That soul-crushing, suffocating commute I used to dread —

when exactly had the world become this bright?