[Temple of the God of Amusement]
Inside the reception room, prepared for counseling and welcoming special guests.
A middle-aged man sat on the sofa, with a slightly protruding belly and a kind demeanor. His hair was receding from the front to the crown of his head.
It was Kim Sung-won, the boss of the Finance Department, whom the youngest employee, Kim Na-hyun, had cursed and despised so much.
Before receiving the email about the Academy's barrier malfunctioning, Kim Sung-won had already come to Seoul.
In fact, he had packed his bags and headed to the city as soon as he received a call from the youngest employee, Kim Na-hyun, the day before. However, he hadn't shown up at the Academy yesterday because he had been praying that this incident would turn out to be someone's sick joke.
In other words, he had been in denial.
And his denial came crashing down with an email that arrived just after midnight.
Faced with the harsh reality, the first thing he did was call the youngest employee, Kim Na-hyun. But the call was cut off mid-signal, and he received a response that all of Kim Na-hyun's communication devices were powered off, causing a few more strands of his already thinning hair to fall out.
Kim Sung-won didn't immediately associate this incident with himself, but Kim Na-hyun's sudden disappearance fueled his anxiety, leading him to drive to the Academy in the early hours of the morning.
And he headed straight for the Temple of the God of Amusement.
The temple's doors, which should have been tightly shut, were wide open due to the sudden accident at the Academy, making it easy for him to enter.
With the help of the priest on duty, Kim Sung-won was able to meet with the Executioner, Claire Bean Assen.
– Wait here quietly.
Claire locked Kim Sung-won in the reception room as soon as she saw him, without hearing any explanation.
"...Ugh."
Five hours had passed since he entered the reception room, and it had been seven hours since the barrier stopped functioning.
When he first came in, the view from the reception room window was dark, but now the warm sunlight filtered in, filling the room with a cozy glow.
'Well… I didn't use it for anything bad…'
Five hours is definitely not a short time, but Kim Sung-won had been so overwhelmed that he hadn't even noticed the passage of time.
He had wanted to believe that the Executioner, Claire Bean Assen, was an imposter, but now she had locked him in the reception room.
In other words, every detail of Kim Na-hyun's report the day before was true.
From the moment he entered the reception room, Kim Sung-won had been so preoccupied with what to say to the professor with the black ring and how to explain himself that he hadn't even realized time was passing.
– Click.
The sound of the doorknob turning.
Kim Sung-won, who had been anxiously fidgeting with his legs, immediately stood up from the sofa and moved towards the door. His movements were so quick and precise that a stranger might have mistaken him for an Awakened with enhanced physical abilities.
The closed door began to open.
First, Claire, dressed in a pure white priest's robe, entered the room, followed by a tall man.
Unkempt black hair.
A large pair of glasses covering half his face.
A towering stature that intimidated those around him.
The description matched the one given by Kim Na-hyun. Most notably, there was a black ring on the index finger of his left hand.
"I am Kim Sung-won, head of the Finance Department."
A perfectly straight back.
Hands respectfully clasped in front of his lower abdomen.
A polite tone that conveyed sincerity without being overly formal.
On the surface, he appeared completely calm and composed, showing no signs of anxiety or nervousness.
However, he couldn't do anything about the beads of sweat trickling down his balding forehead.
A drop of sweat slid down his smooth skin and fell to the floor.
Kim Sung-won closed his eyes as he noticed the small mark on the floor.
However, unlike Kim Sung-won's worries, the two people who had entered the room didn't even spare him a glance.
Baek Woo-jin, the tall man, sat down on the sofa opposite Kim Sung-won and spoke, but his words were not directed at Kim Sung-won.
"Claire, I have something to say to you as well, so stay here instead of leaving. Sit next to me."
"...Yes."
Claire, who had been standing by the door, ready to give them privacy, quietly closed the door and sat next to Baek Woo-jin at his request, subtly glancing at him.
Only then did Baek Woo-jin's gaze turn to Kim Sung-won.
"Sit down and relax."
"Ha ha… yes, of course."
Kim Sung-won wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve and straightened up slightly from his hunched position. Then he sat back down on the sofa, trying to maintain his composure.
"There's no need to beat around the bush since this situation is uncomfortable for you as well. So, answer my questions concisely and to the point."
'I have two questions for you. Why did you hide the information, and where did the money go?'
Baek Woo-jin leaned back comfortably on the sofa, while Kim Sung-won leaned forward.
His lips were dry, and his palms and trousers were damp with cold sweat.
Kim Sung-won took a short breath and raised his head. There was no reason for him to be unable to answer the two questions.
However, just because he could explain his actions didn't mean that what he had done wasn't a crime. Fully aware of this, Kim Sung-won began to speak.
"I will answer your questions in reverse order."
"As you please."
"Yes… first of all, the money that should have gone into your account, Professor, has been used for student scholarships and welfare, and also donated to each of the temples to seek their cooperation."
There are students with exceptional talent and potential who come from difficult backgrounds.
The Academy provides support to ensure that these talented individuals don't fall into the wrong hands or join shady guilds. They are provided with everything from maintenance funds to equipment and potions, as well as mass-produced elixirs, so that they can focus solely on their growth.
Kim Sung-won had used a portion of the money that should have gone to Baek Woo-jin to improve the quality and quantity of these support items.
And the temples…
Healing abilities are extremely valuable.
While it's true that those blessed by the gods can heal wounds using divine power, which is somewhat different from magical power, most of them can only seal minor injuries and restore slightly damaged internal organs without leaving any after-effects.
Only a select few, deeply loved by the gods and endowed with an abundance of divine power, are capable of more impressive feats, such as reattaching severed limbs.
Due to the nature of the Academy, student injuries are frequent and numerous.
It was impossible to rely solely on potions and healers, so the Academy built temples on campus and invited clerics to assist with healing.
In addition to healing, the clerics actively help with incidents like the one today. In short, they are hardworking individuals who give as much as they receive.
Unlike Baek Woo-jin, who quietly nodded in satisfaction as his curiosity was resolved, Claire, sitting next to him, flinched when she heard that the money had been donated to the temples, and she began to subtly observe Baek Woo-jin's reaction.
Unaware of the subtle changes between the two, Kim Sung-won continued.
"I didn't hide the information about the black ring, Professor. It's just that the viewing permissions were set so that only executives at the level of department heads and the chairman could access it, leading to a misunderstanding."
A black-rated individual registered with the Academy since its establishment.
While it's common knowledge among those in the know, no one talks about it. This is because the chairman threatens to impose severe penalties if anyone discloses information about it, as stated in the contract signed before taking up the position of department head.
And there wasn't really any information worth disclosing.
There was no record of the professor's personal information, lectures taught, or any external activities.
He received money without doing any work, and there was no trace of the money being spent; it just kept accumulating.
At that point, Kim Sung-won made a decision.
He believed that letting the money sit idle was a huge loss.
He stopped paying the annual salary, and since there was no protest, he used the accumulated funds.
There was still no protest, and Kim Sung-won began to use the money without hesitation, which led to the present situation.
Kim Sung-won remained silent, and now Baek Woo-jin spoke up.
"Can you return all the money you misused by today?"
"...Even if you beat me to death, I can't."
It wasn't one or two years' worth of money; it had been accumulating for twenty years.
To recover the full amount, they would need slightly more than the entire budget for next year.
"Then, I'll keep the barrier deactivated until you've repaid all the money you misused."
"...!!"
As soon as Baek Woo-jin mentioned the barrier, Kim Sung-won immediately stood up from the sofa and knelt on the floor.
"Pro, Professor. I will do my best to restore your wealth as quickly as possible. Please, not the barrier…"
If the barrier remained inactive, they would have to invest an astronomical amount of money in the Academy's defense systems, which had been neglected until now.
This would inevitably require diverting funds from other areas, including student scholarships.
Baek Woo-jin looked at Kim Sung-won's shiny bald head as he bowed and asked, "Why are you so obsessed with investing in the students? Even doing something like embezzlement?"
"...Aren't they the talented individuals who will risk their lives to protect us from monsters? The better they grow, the more comfortable my retirement will be, so of course, I should support them."
Money can only be used peacefully when there is peace. In times of unrest, power takes precedence over money.
Kim Sung-won, an ordinary human, had experienced a time when power took precedence over money, and he wished more than anyone else that such a time would never come again.
Baek Woo-jin nodded at his answer.
"Yeah. It's not your money anyway, so you can afford to be generous."
"..."
"And did your salary go into it as well?"
"..."
"I assume so."
Kim Sung-won couldn't bring himself to look up.
If his salary had been a part of it, he might have felt a little more justified in his actions.
Unfortunately, Kim Sung-won spent his salary on fishing gear.
He was also saving up to buy a yacht later.
"Kim Sung-won."
"...Yes."
Baek Woo-jin looked at his reflection in Kim Sung-won's shiny bald head and said, "You don't have to repay the money you misused."
He had been momentarily angry about being embarrassed in front of Baek Hana, but money wasn't a significant factor in his plans.
"...?"
Kim Sung-won, who had been looking at the floor, raised his head.
His unimpressive face was reflected in the opaque, pure white glasses.
"Instead, you will do as I say from now on."
"...What, what do you mean by that?"
If it meant wiping out a sum in the millions, he would do anything.
Even if it meant engaging in some corruption and crime.
However, the tasks Baek Woo-jin wanted him to do were far less significant than Kim Sung-won had imagined.
"The annoying tasks that come with being a professor. Administrative procedures that need to be handled."
"...Is, is that all?"
"Isn't that enough?"
"No, no, of course not. How could it not be enough?"
Fearing that Baek Woo-jin might change his mind, Kim Sung-won shook his head frantically.
"However, starting this year, you should properly fill up the money."
"Of course. Yes, yes, of course."
"I'll contact you later, so you can leave now."
"...Are, are you serious?"
"If there's no other business, you don't have to come."
"No, no, there is. There is business."
Kim Sung-won stood up from the floor and bowed to Baek Woo-jin.
"Then, I apologize for the intrusion."
He left the reception room in a hurry, his few strands of hair flying.
Baek Woo-jin, leaning comfortably on the sofa, turned his head to look at Claire sitting next to him and said, "When are you leaving Korea?"
"...I'll be staying here for a while."
"Is that so?"
"...Yes."
Claire was still unsure of what to do about the fact that Baek Woo-jin's money had been donated to the temple.
Unaware of her inner turmoil, Baek Woo-jin continued, "If you're free, come by the house sometimes."
"Yes… yes…?"
Claire, who had been glancing at Baek Woo-jin out of the corner of her eye, widened her eyes and turned her head. Then, seeing her own face reflected in the white glasses, she quickly turned her head away again.
Although this didn't calm her surprise, she tried to regain her composure.
"Come by for consultations regarding Baek Hana's education. If you're busy, I can come to you."
"No, no… I'm free. Yes, I'll… I'll come by."
The thought of the donation to the temple disappeared from her mind, and she began to think that it might be okay to exchange contact information after all.
As she pondered how to bring it up, Baek Woo-jin spoke again.
"And."
Claire, sitting right next to him, snapped out of her thoughts at the sound of his voice.
He continued, "I'd like to borrow some money."
Claire slowly turned her head towards Baek Woo-jin, thankfully with a normal expression this time.
"I'll pay you ba―"
"Your contact information."
Baek Woo-jin stopped speaking, and Claire adjusted her voice and continued, "Please give me your contact information, and I will transfer the money."
There was indeed an app with that function.
"Alright."
Claire Bean Assen.
A new number was saved in his contacts.