Quitting with a Bang
“Aaaack!”
Writhed in agony, the department head could only scream. Whoosh—
“Ugh!”
His arm flung away, he lost his balance and fell flat on his ass.
“You crazy bastard! You wanna get reported?!”
“Is that all you’ve got to say?”
His repeated curses just sounded stupid now. Kang Hanbit turned his head and looked at Kim Jaeha.
“You okay? That must hurt your hand.”
“...Ah.”
Caught off guard by the sudden situation, he glanced down at his own hand. His fist was still clenched so tight his nails dug into his skin.
“Sorry, Black Dragon. I showed you an ugly side of me.”
“Black Dragon? You mean that guy?”
At that moment, the department head, who’d been rubbing his arm, glared with wide eyes.
“Hey, Kim Jaeha. You should’ve said something, man. I almost misunderstood.”
Greed flickered into his fury-filled eyes. He seemed to think this mess could somehow benefit the company.
“Looks like there was a little misunderstanding between us. Let’s just brush it off. Hey, wonder if the boss is nearby.”
He pulled out his phone and stepped a few paces away, apparently calling the president.
“You’ve been working under a guy like that?”
“......”
Kim Jaeha clamped his mouth shut at Hanbit’s incredulous question. He glanced briefly at the department head, then looked away.
“So, who are these folks?”
“Oh, right, introductions. This is Roper, and this is the streamer Avant-garde.”
“Hey. Roper here.”
“Nice to meet you. Avant-garde, streamer who loves RP.”
As Hanbit introduced them, the other two exchanged greetings with Kim Jaeha. Just then, the department head hurried back.
“Boss has his phone off, of all times. Wanna head up and talk? With my authority, I can—”
“Kim Jaeha, wanna come work for our company?”
“Pardon?”
Juyeonu cut him off with the offer. Not just Kim Jaeha, but even Hanbit was a bit surprised.
“The time to decide is now, right?”
“We need desperate, passionate people like you.”
Juyeonu nodded with conviction. At that, the frozen department head finally spoke up.
“...What did you just say?”
“We’re scouting you, Kim Jaeha.”
“Ha.”
The department head sighed in disbelief, then bellowed in irritation.
“You kids think this is a playground?! We pay trash like him 2.5 million a month. Got it?!”
“Come to our company, and base salary’s at least 5 million. Bonuses and benefits? Too many to list now—we’ll go over ’em later. Way better than slaving under this asshole.”
“Fuck, you little shits...!”
Enraged, the department head flushed red and charged. His emotional punch swung at Juyeonu. Timing it perfectly, Hanbit yanked his brother’s arm just before it connected.
“Urk!”
With his target gone, the department head stumbled, losing his balance and crashing face-first. Grimacing in pain, his rage shifted to Kim Jaeha.
“Hey, Kim Jaeha! What’s with that thinking face, you punk?! You think you can do shit after leaving here?!”
“...Yeah, you’re right.”
Though initially flustered, Kim Jaeha didn’t stop pondering for long. He looked down at his hand, clenched his fist lightly again, then lifted his head to meet Juyeonu’s eyes.
“If you’ll have me, I’d love to work for you.”
“Hey!”
The department head raised his voice at the response. Kim Jaeha stepped forward with a resolute face. Locking eyes with the slumped man, he said flatly,
“Like you always said, I’m quitting.”
“What?”
“You told me to get lost if I didn’t like it. I’ll tell the boss myself. Useless trash like me? You’ll approve my resignation on the spot, right?”
“No... wait...”
Stunned by the attitude he’d never seen before, the department head trailed off. Watching him, Kim Jaeha straightened up fully.
“Don’t worry about those random projects you dumped on me. They all looked like doomed plans anyway.”
“What? What’d you just say?! Kim Jaeha! Don’t you walk away! Hey!”
Face beet-red, the department head yelled at his retreating back. Kim Jaeha glanced over his shoulder mid-stride.
“It’s been shit. Let’s never meet again.”
***
“Never thought this day would come.”
The four moved to a BBQ joint near the station and grabbed a corner table. Kim Jaeha downed his cola, looking refreshed yet somehow conflicted.
“Bet you want a drink. You good?”
“Gotta help Black Dragon once we’re back. This is plenty.”
Kim Jaeha shook his head at Hanbit’s question. Watching him, Avant-garde cracked open another cola.
“Quitting dopamine really is the best, huh? Now you can focus on RP—you’ll be happy! Cheers!”
“Ah, thanks. I’ll cheers too.”
The sight of them exchanging colas felt surreal. Hanbit grabbed some meat and turned to Juyeonu.
“So, the company’s really starting now?”
“Yeah. Registered the name and finished all the paperwork.”
“Nice. What’s the company name?”
“DD Studio.”
“DD? What’s that mean?”
“Dark Dragon, obviously.”
“What?”
Hanbit’s brow furrowed, thinking he’d misheard.
“You didn’t name it after my character, did you?”
“Dark Dragon sounds tougher than Black Dragon… kidding. Putting you front and center is the most effective. I’m dead set on making this company a success.”
“......”
Hanbit, about to snap, held his tongue. Juyeonu’s unusually serious expression stopped him. As the one running the company, he’d have to shoulder real responsibility now—especially with a new hire.
“...What do you need me to do?”
Kim Jaeha, who’d been listening, spoke up cautiously. His outburst at the department head had been emotional overload. No regrets, but now reality hit. Even if Black Dragon and Roper took him in, he had no way to prove his worth.
“I’ll explain that.”
Juyeonu pulled out his smartphone, searched for something, and showed the screen to Kim Jaeha.
“This is the actual contract.”
“The contract?”
“After hearing about you from my brother, I’ve been thinking hard. Take a look.”
“...Got it.”
Surprised, Kim Jaeha peered at the screen. Neatly listed items filled it. Clear full-time employment terms, followed by standard labor contract details.
“......?”
Reading down, his eyes stopped at the salary section. He looked at Juyeonu in confusion.
“The pay... you meant it seriously?”
“Base 5 million’s fixed. RP work means more incentive opportunities, though.”
Base pay alone was double his old company’s. Incentives were extra, with a minimum guarantee of 50% of base. And if he boosted performance himself, he’d get a cut of that income. Insane structure.
“What do you even get out of this?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll squeeze that value out of you, Kim Jaeha. See the job duties?”
“I do, but...”
Three items listed midway:
1. Play RP with Black Dragon, appear on streams and assist.
2. Market research on RP items and gather various info.
3. Exclusive blacksmith for DD Studio.
He could handle 1 and 2. No streaming experience, but follow Black Dragon’s lead. Market research and info gathering? He’d done that exclusively at Taeyul Trading too.
The problem was 3: blacksmith. He was on that path, but compared to other companies’ artisans? Laughably inadequate. Not something willpower alone fixed.
“Sorry, but I don’t think I can live up to expectations.”
He handed the phone back with an apology. Tempting offer, but he didn’t want to deceive them.
Reading his face, Hanbit said firmly,
“You will live up to them. In the future, you’ll be the greatest blacksmith among players.”
“...Pardon?”
Not empty encouragement. Unshakable certainty rang in his voice and expression.
“You’re key for Dwarf Blacksmithing. The first to claim that achievement gets the shot.”
“Me? I couldn’t find it before either...”
“You lacked conditions. Ties into the second episode too.”
“What? Related to the main story?”
Kim Jaeha’s eyes widened at the news.
“An NPC gets involved midway. We’ll use that to speed things up.”
“There’s an NPC like that?! Did I miss them?”
Avant-garde shot to his feet. An unseen NPC? He hadn’t done main quests, but he’d scoured every corner of Ifrit.
“Probably. But I can’t share details.”
“Why?! I haven’t done anything!”
“Not that—it’s a skill that’ll be company property. Too risky to go public.”
Dwarf Gorik. Camon’s friend, helped craft magic tools. Specific conditions to meet him. Not that he distrusted Avant-garde—it wasn’t hugely dangerous. Just no variables, no matter how small. Dwarf Blacksmithing was that vital to Hanbit.
“I won’t tell a soul! Hell, I won’t meet anyone till Ifrit episode ends!”
Avant-garde was desperate. Finally teaming with Hanbit—he didn’t want to miss a thing.
“I’ll share later anyway. Just go solo a day or two. We’ll finish the episode together.”
“But...”
Avant-garde looked near tears, scrambling for an out. His sincerity shone through.
“Ah!”
Suddenly, his face lit up like he’d had an idea. Turning to Juyeonu, he voiced his solution.
“Just let me join DD Studio, then!”