Surviving Restructuring

[Caution!]

[One delayed event has been detected.]

[9:00 AM - Job Market]

[Please proceed immediately!]

“Damn it!”

Ye-Ra [1]—head of the Abnormal Investigation Management Team in the Investigation Bureau—sprinted forward, her long straight hair whipping behind her.

Step. Step. Thump. Thump. Thump.

This was bad. Had she known the meeting would drag on this long, she would’ve postponed it to the afternoon.

I hope it hasn’t ended yet, Ye-Ra thought.

She thought about the new hire, Lee Eun-Ho, who she had met during OJT.

“Use your department selection ticket on us.”

When Ye-Ra had asked previously, he had refused the offer to use his Department Selection Ticket. Even so, she had to do everything she could until the very end.

“That kid, Lee Eun-Ho, has been stirring up all sorts of interesting trouble.”

“Seems that way. His name’s popping up everywhere.”

“Go see if he’s changed his mind. If he has conditions, we’ll match them as best we can.”

More than anything, the higher-ups wanted him, and not half-heartedly, either.

Fwooosh—

[You have entered the Job Market!]

Carrying those tangled thoughts, Ye-Ra stepped through the gate. The familiar dirt road, packed shoulder-to-shoulder with employees of all kinds, greeted her.

“Ugh!”

“Hey! Watch it! Move aside!”

It was so crowded as if some huge spectacle had broken out. She could barely see what was right in front of her.

“So then...”

“What time is it now?”

“This year’s number one is...”

Everyone was talking over one another, making it hard to grasp what was even going on. As she tried to force her way through the murmuring crowd, an all-too-familiar voice came from the side. “Huh? Ms. Ye-Ra!”

It was a junior she had worked with decades ago.

“Oh, you. Long time no see. But what’s going on? Why’s everyone gathered like this?”

“Over there! It’s insane! The all-time Job Market benefit record just got broken!”

“What?!”

The benefit record is broken? Ye-Ra thought.

That was definitely something one didn’t see every day. No wonder people were swarming and buzzing like this.

“They’re almost at the third upgrade already! So—oh! There goes another one! They’re adding more again!”

“Third?!” Ye-Ra exclaimed in surprise.

Job Market booths normally started as simple stalls, then upgraded in size and flashiness as benefits accumulated. Up until now, even the top-performing team had only ever reached the second upgrade, and that had happened exactly once in Job Market history. People had been shocked just to learn that a second upgrade even existed.

“There it goes, there it goes!”

The spectators’ eyes lit up as they stared in one direction. At the vanishing point, where countless gazes converged, was an absurd number blazing on the screen. It was not a hundred nor five hundred, but a thousand Points.

[Labor-Management Cooperation Team’s total Benefit Points have exceeded a thousand Points!]

“What?! One thou—”

“That’s insane! Is that even real?!”

“There’s no competing with that!”

“Yeah! Those rookies piled up a ridiculous amount of performance. Apparently, both sales results and management results were all-time highs!”

“That’s impossible! Normally, breaking fifty Points is considered a success!”

Typically, putting ten chips into their desired department already counted as a lot. If they really wanted to work at a certain department, they would put in more. However, receiving a thousand chips was a whole different story.

With that thought, Ye-Ra nodded, feeling like she already knew exactly who one of those unbelievable rookies was. “Some unbelievable rookies must have come in.”

Where would it be? Which department has earned the choice of such a precious rookie? Sales Department, with its guaranteed rewards for performance? The Management Bureau, known as the fast track to promotion? Or perhaps...

“Huh?”

“What is it, Ms. Ye-Ra?”

“Labor-Management Cooperation Team? What’s that?”

“Oh! That rookie made it himself! He’s totally crazy, right?!”

Stunned, Ye-Ra followed her junior’s pointing finger with her eyes.

At the long line of people, Lee Eun-Ho shouted like a seasoned street vendor, “Hey! No cutting in line! Come one at a time!”

“There are still TO slots left, so stay calm. I need to step away for a moment, so I’ll leave the rest to my team. Please handle it, Ji-Eun!”

“What is that kid doing over there right now?” Ye-Ra asked.

***

Sarah, the PR Bureau’s mascot, stomped her foot in place with an irritated shout, “Argh!”

Honestly, she had every reason to.

[One post has been registered with the keyword Sarah.]

[Would you like to check it?]

Oh, did someone finally post about my channel for once? Sarah thought.

However, the entire thread was about one single person.

This Year’s Job Market is Insane!

A booth just hit the 3rd-stage upgrade!

They got almost a thousand Benefit Points.

Isn’t this basically several years’ worth of benefits at once?

#LaborManagementCooperationTeam #Sarah #CommonChannel

└ But what does the Labor-Management Cooperation Team even do?

└ Was there a team like that?

└ I’ve been watching from the start. The top rookie made it himself

└ Huh? Is that even possible?

└ But why does Sarah’s channel keep featuring useless people? Show the top rookie instead

All the booth features and participant highlights that Sarah had poured her soul into editing and polishing didn’t receive a single mention.

She couldn’t believe it. “Again! Again it’s Lee Eun-Ho!”

Since this was her first event in a long while, she had prepared thoroughly. Yet it was just like the rookie training all over again. Back then, she’d carefully edited the official channel to give every rookie balanced exposure, picking only the most fun moments, only to be completely overshadowed by Lee Eun-Ho’s personal channel. The blow to her pride had been enormous.

“This is basically just free advertising for Lee Eun-Ho!” No matter how much she hyped up the other rookies or emphasized the other departments, it didn’t matter. “Just take it all! Take everything!”

Suppressing the irritation boiling up inside her, Sarah flopped back onto a folding chair. Some time passed like that.

“Ms. Sarah!” Just then, someone she didn’t recognize pushed through the MC tent. “The lunchboxes are here.”

“Huh? It’s not even noon yet.”

To not interfere with the event, lunch was deliberately scheduled for 12:00 PM, after the Job Market ended. She was just about to tell them to stack the boxes to the side and wait.

“Ah, this is the Vast Ocean Premium Sushi Set, so it really needs to be eaten right away,” said the employee.

“What?”

The employee uncovered and held out the lunchbox to her. “Oh, it’s a new premium product from the ‘HR is Everything’ cafeteria. A special sushi set. Would you like to take a look?”

Whoosh—

A cool, refreshing aroma flooded her nose, maybe because it was a premium special from the most popular restaurant lately. Before she realized it, she was mesmerized by the meal.

On an elegant, finely carved wooden tray, there was a plump, glistening fatty bluefin tuna belly. Lotus-pink salmon gleamed with oil, topped with delicate flower-petal onions, practically begging to be eaten. Eel tail sushi glazed with sweet-sauce, dark and glossy, breathing out richness with every sheen. It was a sushi set that felt like the ocean had been brought to life on the plate.

She could almost taste the sea just by looking at it. “Wow...”

How incredible would it be once it hit her mouth?

“Could something be done about this? It’d really be best if it were eaten as soon as possible.”

Right. If something this precious spoiled, it’d be a disaster. And if people got sick from eating spoiled sushi in bulk, the afternoon events would be completely ruined. In the worst case, the entire Job Market might have to be canceled and rescheduled, Sarah thought.

Panicking, Sarah moved her hands quickly and called the event supervisor, which was the HR manager. “There has to be some solution!”

Rrrrrrr...

“Ah, Sarah. What is it?”

“This is an emergency. The lunchboxes arrived too early, and they might spoil. They’re saying they need to be eaten right away.”

“Oh dear, that is serious.”

“Yes, so if HR could contact the restaurant and ask them to store them and deliver again later—”

“Wouldn’t it be fine to just eat them right away?”

“P-pardon?” Caught completely off guard by the unexpected response, Sarah stumbled over her words. “B-but changing the schedule in the middle of the event is a bit—”

“If it spoils in this heat, Sarah, will you be held responsible?”

“W-why would I be responsible for that?!”

The manager’s tone was calm as always, yet hid a razor-sharp edge. “I heard you requested a team transfer to Personnel.”

“Huh?”

“If anything goes wrong with the event you’re handling, things will not go your way. Absolutely not.”

Sarah lowered her head, silently conceding. “Understood.”

Once she made up her mind, everything moved swiftly. After all, thanks to Lee Eun-Ho, most of the new hires had already made their decisions.

Through urgent announcements, she gathered the employees toward the center and handed out the prepared lunchboxes.

“Wow, the presentation is incredible,” someone said.

“And it even boosts stamina?” another commented.

Just then, Eun-Ho said from behind, “Wait a second.”

“Hmm?”

I didn’t even see him. When did he arrive? Puzzled, Sarah tilted her head.

Just then, Eun-Ho picked up a lunchbox, stabbing into the sushi with a silver, glimmering spoon.

Thwack!Plop! Plop! Plop! Plop! Plop!

The bluefin tuna, lotus salmon, and eel split and collapsed unsightly.

Sarah screamed at the violent assault on the once-pristine, delicate sushi, “What are you doing?!”

Beeeeep—!

At that exact moment, a shrill warning sounded. The silver spoon glinted in the sunlight as it vibrated. Cracks formed where it touched the sushi, turning pitch-black, and tiny black specks spread rapidly. Shortly after, the entire spoon turned black.

“I-isn’t that a poison detector sold at Soeju’s shop?”

“A poison detector?!”

A few sharp-eyed employees shouted in alarm.

“What’s going on right now?”

“There’s poison in the lunchboxes?”

Eun-Ho listened carefully to every outcry, as though he were a magician waiting for the audience to figure out the trick. “I smelled something off. Would you still eat it?”

Then, the onlookers around him reacted.

“It’s not just spoiled, but poisoned?”

“But the hostess gave us these lunchboxes!”

“What’s happening? Was someone trying to kill us?!”

One by one, suspicion turned toward Sarah.

Her head spun from the sudden turn of events. “I-I didn’t do it! I didn’t know anything!”

There was no doubt that it was a trap. Sarah was certain but she had no idea where it had all gone wrong.

“Hey! You can’t just say you didn’t know anything! Tell us what you were trying to do!”

“Were you acting on someone’s orders?”

Frustrated, Sarah slammed her hands against her chest. “I-it’s not like that!”

Why on earth would she do something like that? The situation was utterly unfair, but when things were too unfair, words often failed her.

Hundreds of angry eyes bore into Sarah and things were looking grim. Cold sweat ran down her back.

I need to clear up this misunderstanding!

Besides, of all people to figure this out, it had to be Eun-Ho. From the new employee training to the creation of a new department, he had challenged her every step of the way. Of course he wouldn’t blindly trust her.

Thinking of that made her feel utterly helpless. Yet, someone she could never expect to defend her stepped up.

“Ms. Sarah is not responsible,” Eun-Ho said.

“Huh?”

It wasn’t a hesitant “probably not” or “might not be,” but a firm “is not.” As if the invisible observer had seen everything firsthand, the words carried undeniable certainty.

“Because Ms. Sarah had plenty of opportunities,” he said.

“What do you mean?”

“If this had been pre-planned, the mealtime would have been changed from the start. There’d be no sudden handout causing suspicion.”

Perhaps because it was Eun-Ho, the most closely watched rookie speaking, his voice carried a credibility that made the room stir.

“Yeah... Well now that I think about this, changing the lunch time and telling us to eat suddenly was awkward.”

“So what are you saying? The hostess is also the victim here too?”

Why is he trusting me? He could’ve held a grudge... Sarah thought, completely taken aback by this unexpected help.

“Above all else,” Eun-Ho said evenly, “the Sarah I’ve seen was more passionate about her own event than anyone else. So, even if she wanted to harm someone, she would never do it in a way that ruined the event itself.”

Sarah’s eyes widened and she flinched. No matter how hard she worked, no one ever acknowledged it. No matter how much effort she poured in, she was nothing more than an extra in someone else’s flashy content and never the protagonist. The first person to truly see her was the very protagonist she’d found so irritating.

This person...

Tears welled up in Sarah’s eyes, and at the same time, something inside her heart quietly opened.

***

“How did you know?” Harona asked, appearing beside Eun-Ho without a sound.

She was certain he had known in advance about the poison and about everything. Well, it was obvious because someone wouldn’t normally carry around a poison detector after all. Of course she’d realize he’d prepared beforehand.

“You gave me a gift, didn’t you?” Eun-Ho answered honestly, since pretending otherwise was pointless. He then explained that he had slipped into the HR manager’s office and Sarah’s tent while concealed.

[Fruit of Concealment]

- One of the twelve Divine Fruits that grow on the Bodhi Tree once every ten years.

- When held in the mouth, the user becomes invisible to all eyes.

- Once fully dissolved, the effect ends and the duration is approximately one hour.

“I didn’t think you would use a divine fruit like that,” Harona said, nodding then frowning. “Wait. Something’s off.”

“What is it?”

“There’s only one Fruit of Concealment. So how did you use it at HR and at the hostess’ tent?”

He showed her a black fruit, carefully wrapped in paper. “Oh. Summon.”

“What? You said you used it!”

“I did! But I spat it back out.”

“Eek?!”

It said so right there in the item description that the effect ends once it fully dissolved.

“It hasn’t fully dissolved yet, so I’ll use it again. It’s a good item.”

Harona was left speechless, her eyes half-lidded as she stared at him in disbelief.

“You’re really thrifty, aren’t you?” she muttered at last.

“Thank you.”

“Um, that wasn’t a compliment.”

“If the listener feels good, it counts as a compliment.”

Shaking her head as if exhausted, Harona stepped back.

“Bye,” Eun-Ho said.

“Yeah, yeah,” Harona replied

Still, something the HR manager had said earlier nagged at him.

“Use Ermeden’s Spittle.”

Ermeden. Ermeden... Eun-Ho thought.

As he sifted through his memory, feeling like the answer was just out of reach, someone approached and interrupted his thoughts. “Mr. Eun-Ho.”

“Oh, Ms. Sarah.”

Her high-tied blonde ponytail looked uncharacteristically calm today. With her mic removed, the mouth that usually chattered nonstop now hesitated. “Umm... Thank you for believing me.”

He’d sensed her hostility toward him for a while now. If he wanted to, he could’ve used this incident to wipe her out completely.

But I missed the delivery guy, Eun-Ho thought.

The problem was that Eun-Ho hadn’t caught the lunchbox courier, which meant he lacked solid proof to pin it directly on the HR manager. In other words, he required a different kind of evidence. Therefore, he decided to use Sarah, a tool that wouldn’t draw suspicion from the HR manager.

“I did it because it hurt to watch.”

“Huh?”

“Being betrayed by someone above you... It felt like I was watching myself.”

“Betrayed? What are you talking about?”

“The lunchbox incident. It’s the HR Manager’s trap. You were meant to be the scapegoat.” He told her the truth about being cut loose by her superior. “Just in case, I chased the delivery guy, but I lost him. But I saw him disappear through a gate the HR manager created.”

There was a slight lie.

“Huh?” Sarah let out a hollow laugh, incredulous.“So the manager did it on purpose? So he tried to take me down too?”

“He was probably aiming for me,” Eun-Ho replied calmly.

“You?”

“If he wanted to stop me from forming a department, canceling the event entirely was probably the only way.”

“Ugh!” The expression on her face, an odd mix of gratitude, embarrassment, and confusion, slowly hardened. The tangled emotions condensed into pure anger. Stomping her foot, Sarah shouted, “I knew something was off!”

He had prepared several more convincing lines in case she didn’t believe him, but she accepted it far more easily than expected.

“And I didn’t even realize that. Ugh, that despicable bastard!”

“To him, you were probably just another disposable pawn,” Eun-Ho said quietly.

“Damn it! I’ll deal with him myself!”

“I have a good idea.”

If she was going to be used, it wouldn’t be as a throwaway pawn but as a knight or a bishop, meant to overturn the board one day.

“Will you help me?” Eun-Ho asked calmly.

Grinding her teeth, Sarah answered, “What do you need me to do?”

1. (翳羅) ☜