Chapter 53

Chapter 53

Chapter 53 The Reward for Good Deeds (2)

It happened in an instant. No one present had expected Jinseong to act that way.

And so began a marathon, with both men sprinting along the long route leading to the main conference room.

A showdown for the ages between an employee determined to bring down the superior who had struck him on the head and a superior desperately trying to stop that employee.

Naturally, the winner was Jinseong, a healthy man in his thirties.

The other man had barely run fifty meters before he was gasping for breath and begging through his tears.

"Haah... I-I'm sorry... I was wrong! Haah... haah... Please don't do this! Please!"

____________

"Hahahaha! You really were a man's man! You even made him apologize properly!"

"Yes, he really was a man's man. He kept his word, after all."

"What? Then don't tell me..."

"He went straight into the main conference room where the executives were gathered."

"Ha."

Amid an awkward silence, we returned to the past and continued the story.

__________

-Clack.

Jinseong, who had taken hold of the main conference room's door handle, waited for the unidentified superior from the sales team who was chasing him.

Before long, the man came running up the stairs, tears and snot streaming down his face, and grabbed Jinseong as he stood holding the door handle.

"Please don't go in! Please..."

Having already exhausted himself by running at full speed, he instinctively realized that he couldn't physically stop Jinseong from entering the conference room.

His legs gave way, and the man practically collapsed to his knees.

All he could do now was cry and beg.

Presumably, the fact that Jinseong was holding the door handle and waiting for him meant he had no intention of going all the way.

If he begged desperately enough and showed genuine remorse, perhaps they could pretend none of this had happened.

But something completely unexpected came out of the young employee's mouth.

"I'd like you to show that desperation in here."

"What?"

"After all, you have nowhere left to retreat, do you?"

-Bang.

Jinseong flung the door wide open.

The presentation in the main conference room was almost over. The executives had already risen from their chairs and were gathering in small groups as they headed toward the exit.

"Just a moment, please!"

"Hm? Who are you two?"

"We're from Sales Team Two! Please give us five minutes! No, just three minutes of your time!"

Jinseong bowed his head. No, he bent so deeply that he nearly toppled forward. The superior beside him also bowed in bewilderment.

"Please!"

"P-Please!"

Although neither man was wearing a microphone, their voices rang so loudly through the conference room that the executives had no choice but to stop walking.

A brief silence followed.

Then the executive with white hair, who appeared to be the oldest among them, smiled kindly and sat back down.

"Is everyone busy? If not, let's sit for a moment. Department Head Kang is asking so earnestly."

"Thank you! Thank you very much!"

Once all the executives had returned to their seats,

Department Head Kang, who had been given a second chance, took the microphone again.

'Yes, this really is my last chance. If I can't produce decent results this year either, both I and my team are finished! I have to try.'

"Phew."

A deep breath cleared the vision that had been blurred by his tears.

His gaze passed over the executives looking at him with puzzled expressions, his team members sitting there as though they'd just returned from hell, and finally settled on the unknown employee from the Strategic Planning Team standing calmly beside him.

'Why is he so composed? Is it because this isn't his problem?'

The thought that Jinseong was being a little irritating made the trembling in his hand holding the microphone stop.

"I will now begin the revised presentation of Sales Team Two's new business proposal."

The presentation lasted far longer than three minutes. Yet no one seated there showed any sign of discomfort until it was finished.

That was because they had clearly heard the crying outside the conference room and Jinseong's voice.

At first, they had reprimanded the team for bringing presentation materials that failed to meet even the basic standards, but they too were businessmen.

Only belatedly did they realize that a sales department head who had been reprimanded at a New Year's presentation before all the executives had no yellow cards left.

And so his second chance was judged fairly once again.

Naturally, the statistical data that had caused the problem was accompanied by additional explanations the executives could understand.

"That concludes my presentation."

No sooner had Department Head Kang finished his presentation, which had been both short and long, than the white-haired executive, whose kindly smile had remained throughout, switched on the microphone on his desk.

"Hmm. Not bad."

"Recovering the initial investment seems to be the key. Didn't Director Choi's side undertake some server construction project last time? Perhaps this could be linked with that."

"Once it's established and running smoothly, maintenance shouldn't require particularly high expenses either."

-Clap. Clap. Clap.

The white-haired executive smiled even more broadly and applauded Department Head Kang. His applause spread to the surrounding executives.

-Clap, clap, clap.

Department Head Kang, Jinseong, and the members of Sales Team Two rose wearily to their feet again and bowed repeatedly as the executives encouraged them on their way out of the conference room.

As the executives filed out, offering words of appreciation, shaking hands, or patting shoulders, one person stopped in front of Jinseong.

It was the white-haired executive who had called the others back to their seats earlier.

"Young man, why did you go that far? I heard what was said outside. You were the one who pushed Department Head Kang to do this. Whether this project gets approved or not makes no difference to you, does it?"

"Because this project, which has nothing to do with me, matters so desperately to someone else that he was driven to shout and shed tears over it."

"Is that so? Hoho. You're quite unlike young people these days."

"Now that's spirit!"

"Did you say your name was Department Head Kang from Sales Team Two? Your presentation skills could use some work, but you've certainly got yourself a fine subordinate. That's a talent in itself."

And the last person to stand before Jinseong bowed his head alongside him instead of patting him on the shoulder.

"Thank you... Thank you so much!"

"It's nothing. Anyone would have done the same."

The man who bowed with tears filling his eyes and couldn't bring himself to straighten up was none other than Department Head Kang of Sales Team Two, the man who had spoken harshly to Jinseong and struck him.

_____________

"I was quite young back then."

"Young, my foot! Is that something you do just out of youthful recklessness? You took responsibility knowing you might have to leave the company!"

"S-So you're saying the reason coffee sometimes gets delivered from Sales Team Two is because of Manager Kim Jinseong?"

"Manager Kim is practically an honorary employee of Sales Team Two."

"But what does any of that have to do with the expression Manager Kim was wearing just now?"

"Because that was exactly the expression on his face when he came back from that presentation."

"How could I forget? So hurry up and tell us the truth. What's happened this time?"

"That's right! Stop keeping us in suspense and tell us!"

Seeing the anxious looks in their eyes, I became even more certain of my decision.

I had already made up my mind to help SL Software. Just as I had when I returned from helping Department Head Kang of Sales Team Two.

"I know the CEO of SL Software personally. Well enough that I can't simply dismiss this as someone else's problem."

I confessed to my teammates the things I hadn't been able to tell them until now.

From Lia, the child I'd temporarily taken into my care, to Lia's friend, and finally to SL Software, the company run by that friend's mother.

"Well, given Manager Kim's circumstances, this really isn't someone else's problem anymore."

"But how can we help? The Audit Department has already stepped in."

And so the number of people at the company willing to help SL Software increased slightly.

Now it was my turn. I quietly closed my eyes.

"Manager Kim, do you have some kind of plan? Manager Kim! Are you asleep?"

__________

At the same time, at Dangsan-ri Coffeehouse, where darkness had begun to settle.

A familiar car glided into the coffeehouse parking lot.

-Jingle.

"I'm here, Elder."

"Hello, Mister!"

"Ooooooh! The food has arrived!"

No sooner had Director Baek Mahyeon entered the coffeehouse than Sani rushed over and snatched the takeout containers from his hands.

"You rascal, Mahyeon is the one who has arrived. When someone comes, at least have the decency to greet him. You certainly never fail to show that you're a beast."

"Fox was the one who ordered the delivery."

"It wasn't delivery. I merely told him to bring food if he was coming anyway."

"That's delivery! You didn't even pay him, so it's worse than ordinary delivery."

"Ahem!"

It was true that the Elder had ordered delivery(?) because Jinseong had said he wouldn't be able to return until late at night.

The only food available for delivery was pig's trotters, which were reasonably tasty, but they'd ordered them far too often. And the nine-tailed fox, the only one capable of going out to buy food, was absolutely not the sort to run errands.

"I feel sorry for Director Baek. If Jinseong were here, he'd scold Fox for calling the Director over something like this. Ooooooh! There are fried shrimp too! Oh, and we always ride in Director Baek's car when we go home, so Fox even summoned a chauffeur. Ah! I've never seen this kind of fish cake before!"

"Make up your mind whether you're criticizing me or admiring the food. Tsk."

"I don't mind."

"Ah! If you don't mind, go into the kitchen and bring out the kimchi! Lia and I are too short to reach it!"

And Sani, who followed him all the way into the kitchen, added detailed instructions to the simple errand of taking out kimchi.

"Lia and I prefer the leafy parts."

"It's too spicy if there's too much seasoning!"

"Then scrape off some of the seasoning. Ah, but if you scrape off that much, it won't taste good!"

Director Baek Mahyeon found himself feeling just a little envious of Jinseong, who could freely pull Sani's cheeks whenever the divine beast displeased him.

By the time they had nearly finished their meal of well-fermented kimchi and takeout food,

"Ah! I forgot to send Jinseong a picture."

Sani hurriedly fetched his phone.

"What good will sending him a picture do when you've already eaten everything?"

"Even though we've finished eating, sending a picture still shows thoughtfulness."

-Click.

A photograph showing the messy remains of their meal in all their glory was uploaded to the group chat.

Both the nine-tailed fox and Director Baek Mahyeon knew that if Jinseong hadn't eaten yet, the photograph would be an infuriating provocation.

But this time, neither of them said so.

They hoped Jinseong's anger would accomplish what they wanted without their having to do anything.

-Whoooosh.

However, what swept through everyone gathered at the coffeehouse was not Jinseong's anger, but an enormous surge of energy from the Divine Eyes.

"Elder."

"Did you feel it too? Somehow, it seems even stronger than when he helped Yongman ascend last time."

"I can't even begin to imagine. With an ability that releases such powerful energy, just how far can those eyes see?"

"The Divine Eyes are eyes bestowed by heaven. I have only heard that they can see through all creation and understand the principles governing everything. But you're the one who actually opened them, aren't you? Did you sense anything contained within that energy just now?"

"You're always praising the Divine Eyes one moment and dismissing them the next, yet you only bring them up at times like this. I didn't see anything."

"Tsk. You're making me even more curious."

"What was King Sejong like?"

"Yi Do?"

"Huh? Come to think of it, Yi Do never told us what he could see with the Divine Eyes either!"

"The same was true of Damdeok."

As his thoughts reached that point, a chill ran down the nine-tailed fox's spine.

'They all walked the path of a supreme ruler. Isn't the path of a supreme ruler the most perilous of all? Yet Yi Do and Damdeok weren't men of that disposition...'

It made no sense.

If the Divine Eyes merely allowed someone to see the future, those two men, who had no greed, should have become farmers in the mountains.

With eyes capable of foreseeing bandits, famine, and epidemics, they could have spent the rest of their lives farming leisurely and peacefully.

Yet, strangely enough, both of them became kings.

They were men who hesitated to pluck even an unnamed wildflower, let alone covet material wealth, yet neither would yield the throne to his brothers.

And both walked a path of blood.

There was a difference between a path paved with the blood of others and one forged with one's own blood, but that did not change the fact that they had walked those paths.

And one thing was clear.

Jinseong, who released such tremendous energy merely by opening his Divine Eyes, was walking a different path.

It was a path that even the nine-tailed fox, who had lived for thousands of years, could scarcely imagine.

"What on earth do these fellows see with the Divine Eyes? And what is that fellow looking at now?"