However, a desolate-looking person acting like this as if it was normal made it seem quite fitting.
"It would be great if I had some wine with it."
"Excuse me?"
Jang Sejong blankly asked but Kim Rok Soo commented as if he wasn't interested at all.
"I should drink."
"Excuse me?!"
Jang Sejong looked at Kim Rok Soo in shock.
He wasn't the only one. This was quite a popular tonkatsu shop in front of the company, which meant that there were a lot of people from other departments as well.
'!!!'
They were all looking at Kim Rok Soo in shock as well.
The cold-blooded Kim Rok Soo had taken a week off. Many people were curious about that.
"Y, you're going to drink right now, team leader-nim?"
"Ah."
Kim Rok Soo sighed so beautifully that it looked like a scene straight out of a painting and brushed his hair back. He had been brushing his hair back like this since coming to work this morning despite his hair being short and not having anything to brush back.
"Tsk."
Kim Rok Soo clicked his tongue.
"I want to drink. But I guess I can't do that at work."
"...."
"I guess this aspect is uncomfortable."
'…What is uncomfortable?'
Jang Sejong wanted to ask but could not do so.
Instead, they ran into Team 2 leader, Park Kyung Ho, and Director Ma on their way back to the office.
"Hooooo. How are you feeling, team leader Kim?"
Director Ma.
Although Jang Sejong didn't know very well as he was a new employee, this person supposedly clashed against team 1 quite often. This person, who was one of the permanent directors, was famous for being more interested in politics than what happened in the company.
"Wow, Team leader Kim resting for a week. How amazing."
Director Ma smiled slyly but his gaze showed no signs of goodwill.
Director Ma made another comment as Jang Sejong became tense.
"You didn't even take a break when Team leader Lee passed away. I guess you want to rest while working now?"
Jang Sejong saw Team 2 leader Park Kyung Ho scowl at that moment. Park Kyung Ho was cautiously peeking at Kim Rok Soo at the same time.
Park Kyung Ho knew that talking about Lee Soo Hyuk and his team members was one of the things you should never bring up in front of Kim Rok Soo.
This was the first time Jang Sejong ever saw Park Kyung Ho being so cautious around someone. It didn't seem like the same Park Kyung Ho who was always grumbling to Kim Rok Soo. He immediately opened his mouth.
"Director Ma! What you said just now seems a bit much-"
"Why is it too much? I simply told the truth. Isn't that right, team leader Kim?"
It was at that moment.
"Pffft."
They heard a scoff.
Jang Sejong looked to his side.
Kim Rok Soo was standing there quite crooked with his arms crossed. He was slowly looking at Director Ma from head to toe.
And then…
"Pffft."
He laughed.
It was a scoff similar to before. Anybody would be able to tell that he was sneering. If not sneering, it would make it seem as if he thought nothing of Director Ma.
However, it was only for an instant.
'Eek!'
Team leader Kim Rok Soo smiled brightly.
A smile appearing on his cold face seemed awkward but they couldn't help but look at this extremely radiant smile.
Team leader Kim Rok Soo calmly spoke with the smile on his face.
"Haaaa. Makes me want to quit."
'!!!'
'!'
Jang Sejong and Park Kyung Ho looked at Kim Rok Soo in shock.
"W, what?"
Director Ma subconsciously stuttered.
Quit?!
Kim Rok Soo, the cold-blooded Kim Rok Soo wants to quit?!
Kim Rok Soo, the person who had done the most work in this company and had been the most passionate talking about quitting?!
This was unbelievable.
However, Kim Rok Soo stared at Director Ma with a piercing gaze before mumbling with the smile still on his face.
"Or should I flip everything over?"
Director Ma's shoulders flinched.
He wanted to say something about how rude this punk was being to him, but he could not do so because Kim Rok Soo was someone who would flip things over if he wanted to do so.
Furthermore, although Kim Rok Soo's smile was radiant, the elegance was gone and he looked like a neighborhood thug.
Of course, this was all just Jang Sejong's observation.
Kim Rok Soo walked up to Director Ma and put a hand on his stiff shoulder.
Pat pat. Kim Rok Soo patted his shoulder and gently spoke.
"Director Ma-nim."
Team 2 leader realized that Kim Rok Soo's gaze was different from usual.
He could feel more years of experience behind those eyes than the original Kim Rok Soo. It was a weird feeling.
Kim Rok Soo whispered to Director Ma.
"Peacefully. Hmm? Let's live peacefully."
He then removed his hand from Director Ma's shoulder. He pulled out a handkerchief from his inner pocket and wiped his palm.
They wondered why he had a handkerchief, but Kim Rok Soo's next comment made both Director Ma and Park Kyung Ho slightly tense.
"Director Ma-nim. There is nobody here who knows more about my position in this company than me. What are you going to do if I quit? Hmm?"
Director Ma's mouth closed shut while Park Kyung Ho's jaw dropped a bit.
'For Kim Rok Soo to say such things-'
Kim Rok Soo was similar to Lee Soo Hyuk.
In this company…
There was nobody to lead Team 1 if Kim Rok Soo was to quit right now. Furthermore, there was nobody to be the leader of the Body side either.
This was not an issue of promotion. There was nobody who could compare to Kim Rok Soo both in the field and in the office.
Director Ma?
Kim Rok Soo was worth much more than this old ass snake trying to maintain his position.
However, Kim Rok Soo had never stated this fact out loud before. Park Kyung Ho could tell that Kim Rok Soo had changed a bit.
It wasn't his appearance or abilities or things like that, but more so his thoughts and values.
"Pffft."
Kim Rok Soo chuckled and walked past Director Ma.
"Please enjoy your lunch, Director Ma. You as well, Team leader Park."
Everything he did looked relaxed. He seemed quite used to things like this.
Quite a lot of people had seen what just happened outside the company. Included in that group were not just company employees, but also numerous people from the guilds and the government.
Everybody was looking at Kim Rok Soo with shock but Kim Rok Soo brushed this kind of attention as normal before leisurely walking into the company.
His walking looked oddly lazy yet elegant.
Jang Sejong could see Assistant Leader Kim Min Ah, who had been on her way back, covering her face with both hands.
What was going on right now?
"Ah, hold on."
"Excuse me?"
"Someone I know is here so I'm going to chat with them for a bit before going back."
"…Of course, team leader-nim."
Kim Rok Soo headed to a side alley by the company. Jang Sejong saw a person wearing a black hat and a leather jacket standing in the alley before turning away.
"Newbie."
It was because Kim Min Ah pulled Jang Sejong's arm.
"Assistant Leader-nim?"
"Haaaa. I guess I have no choice. You should know about it as well."
"Excuse me?"
Kim Min Ah pulled Jang Sejong to their office before confirming that nobody was around and then finally speaking.
"There's a bit of an issue with the team leader-nim."
"Excuse me? What do y…?!"
"His memory-"
Kim Min Ah looked uncertain even though she was the one speaking.
"He said that there are things he doesn't remember."
"Excuse me?"
Jang Sejong subconsciously made a comment.
"He was very good with his work despite this so-called memory loss? It seems more like his personality than his memory-"
"Shh."
Kim Min Ah quickly covered Jang Sejong's mouth.
"Anyway… That is what the team leader told me. So let's just go along with it for now."
"…Yes, ma'am. I understand."
"Newbie, you know this is information we can't let anybody else find out, right?"
There is an issue with Team 1 leader's memories.
People finding out about this would lead not just Kim Rok Soo, but Team 1 and even the entire company to danger.
A leader's weakness could bring forth hostility from their enemies.
"Anyway, I'm telling you because you seem to have many reasons to be with the team leader-nim."
"Yes, ma'am. I understand. I will keep my mouth shut."
Kim Min Ah smiled while looking at the solemn look on their smart newbie's face.
Twenty years old. Jang Sejong, the youngest applicant, had been close to being cut. However, Kim Rok Soo had looked at his resume and selected him at the last minute.
'His abilities are on the sensory and brain side but he wants to be in the vanguard and not be a supporter?'
Kim Rok Soo then watched Jang Sejong's interview and test footage before choosing him for Team 1. He said that this applicant showed a lot of potential.
There was a reason that Jang Sejong was going around to a lot of places with the team leader. Of course, Jang Sejong did not seem to know about this at all.
"Anyway, don't make it obvious you know when the team leader-nim comes back. I'll tell him that you know about it, but you know how it'll seem if you make it obvious, don't you?"
"Definitely."
"Okay, so who did the team leader-nim say he was meeting?"
"I don't know either, Assistant leader-nim. I didn't see the person's face."
"Really?"
Kim Min Ah wondered if Kim Min Ah had anybody to meet with like that but chose to stop thinking about it.
* * *
Kim Rok Soo was in the back alley by the company at that moment. He was meeting someone in a place without much foot traffic.
"I was waiting for you."
Kim Rok Soo was observing the person with a more relaxed position than he had shown inside the company but an extremely slanted position that showed his years of experience.
"You're the punk that the god sent, right?"
The man wearing the black hat and black leather jacket slowly nodded his head.
"Yes. The God of Death sent me."
His dark brown hair appeared under the black hat. He then asked a question.
"You're Cale Henituse, right?"
Team leader Kim Rok Soo. No, Cale Henituse started to smile.
"Yes. That's right. Are you the god's lackey?"
Haha-"
The man who laughed out loud after being called a lackey slightly raised his hat.
The man with dark brown and black eyes was looking at Cale Henituse with an odd gaze.
"A lackey? Yes. I guess it could seem that way. I am working for the God of Death right now after all."
He approached Cale Henituse, who looked like Kim Rok Soo right now.
"Are you not having any issues adjusting?"
"I'm having quite a lot."
Cale Henituse grumbled without being able to hide his annoyance.
"Foundational information about friends at work, the work itself, and daily life are all in my head so there's no issues there, but…"
He then pointed to himself.
"Even if I see this Kim Rok Soo guy working through information, I can't help but be inconsistent because I haven't received all of his memories."
He then shrugged his shoulders.
"Of course, I wouldn't have been able to complain much even if I came to this world without any information. That wasn't the important part of my deal with the God of Death."
Of course, it had been chaotic when Cale Henituse opened his eyes in Kim Rok Soo's body. However, all of those things were minor issues.
Going back to the first time he met Choi Han to change the fate of the world while he entered into the body of someone named Kim Rok Soo in a different world. Those were the conditions of the deal.
Furthermore, other conditions included finding out the truth about his mother's death and saving his territory and his family.
Those were the important contents of this deal and it was enough if those conditions were met. Instead, Cale Henituse was waiting for important information. He was certain that the God of Death would give him information.
"Where is she?"
He walked toward the man as he asked.
"Where is my mother?"
In this place…
Somewhere in this world…
Somewhere in this dangerous world where monsters resided…
His mother was alive.
Her reincarnation was here.
"There is a child."
The man in the black hat responded.
"There was an incident a few years ago where quite a lot of people died because of an attack by an unranked monster. A child lost her parents during that time and was left alone. She was sent to an orphanage and is currently growing up there."
The now Kim Rok Soo Cale Henituse had basic information about Korean life in his mind. The God of Death had provided that information to Cale Henituse out of consideration for opening his eyes in a new world.
"…And the location?"
"Here."
The man handed Cale Henituse a piece of paper. Cale immediately opened it. His hands were slightly shaking.
The address of a certain orphanage was written there. Cale's eyes were scrunching as he read those words.
The man continued to speak.
"The child watched her parents pass away. It caused her quite a lot of shock mentally and she has yet to recover from it. She is suffering from serious trauma."
The man looked at Cale Henituse as he continued.
"So don't rush it."
Cale looked away from the paper and at the man.
—
Translator's Comments
A person who works for the God of Death?! And poor Drew reincarnates and still suffers so much…