My Company Is Black

#009

Still, Lee Gyo-ha considered numerous possibilities. Having regressed thirteen times, he had become somewhat of an intellectual. He even considered the possibility that he might be secretly addicted to drugs without realizing it. Could the regression person he had been desperately searching for just happen to be in a BK Group subsidiary? He wondered if he might be hallucinating due to his intense desire to see another regression person.

Inadequate conditions: Your parachute superior recognizes you.

Moreover, the system window shouldn’t display such content.

In all the regression-related media Gyo-ha had devoured, system windows showed grades and numbers. Shouldn’t there at least be levels or skills? Gyo-ha glanced at the system window that appeared right in front of his face.

This is supposed to show ratings like SS, SSS, or F, right? Where’s the level? How do I invest in stats? Why does it look so ordinary after trapping someone in graduate school?

Gyo-ha couldn’t tell if he had finally gone crazy or if Jung Hwi-kyung, the HR deputy manager assigned as his temporary secretary, was truly a regression person.

He had said he would throw a real regression person into the Pacific Ocean in a drum, but now that he actually met one, he was at a loss for words.

‘Are you perhaps a regression person?’

This definitely wasn’t the right approach. Gyo-ha quickly racked his brain to choose his words. He was already perceived negatively as a parachute executive director, and if he asked such a question at their first meeting, the other person might run away. Asking like that would make him seem like either someone from a second-hand transaction or a cult member, even in the best light.

So Gyo-ha decided to observe Hwi-kyung a bit more. Given the frequency of regressions Gyo-ha had experienced, Hwi-kyung might attempt to regress if anything went slightly wrong.

If Hwi-kyung had known, he would have angrily retorted that he didn’t regress by choice, but fortunately or unfortunately, Hwi-kyung was unaware that Gyo-ha was also an unfortunate neighbor caught up in his regression.

“I’m Lee Gyo-ha. I heard you’ll be assisting me as a temporary secretary starting today?”

“Ah, yes.”

“Let’s go up to the office together.”

It was fortunate that his interpersonal skills had improved significantly after thirteen regressions. Although Gyo-ha’s mind was racing with all sorts of thoughts, he appeared quite natural on the outside.

Saying he couldn’t drink the café latte Hwi-kyung had bought, despite being unable to live without coffee, was an impulsive act of spite. Gyo-ha was on the verge of going crazy, while Hwi-kyung seemed so calm.

The more convinced Gyo-ha became that Jung Hwi-kyung was truly a regression person, the more dumbfounded he felt. What, you’ve regressed thirteen times and you’re just a company employee? Are you kidding? And not even a CEO, but a deputy manager?

What is a regression person? Aren’t they beings who know all future events, secure good information, and reach the world’s pinnacle by their second cycle?

At least in the novels Gyo-ha had read, that’s how it always was. Regression guaranteed life success. It was standard to take revenge on everyone the moment you started over, develop new abilities, and become the strongest in humanity.

But a company employee after thirteen regressions? Seriously? Is regression a joke?

Not knowing what adverse conditions might be attached to Jung Hwi-kyung, Gyo-ha sharpened his blade of anger. Why couldn’t you do better than this! It’s not even right after regression, but a year has passed since regressing – you should have at least become humanity’s strongest office worker or something!

Gyo-ha didn’t yet know that Hwi-kyung was fluent in English, Chinese, Japanese, and even Russian, capable of back-end development, excellent at sales, and even held an accountant’s license.

After that, Gyo-ha would summon Jung Hwi-kyung whenever he had the chance. He didn’t want to act like a nasty chaebol boss, but his anger towards the regression person who had trapped him in graduate school didn’t easily subside.

Of course, Gyo-ha’s revenge was at a petty level. If he pushed too hard, he might regress for the fourteenth time. Even if that wasn’t the case, Gyo-ha wasn’t good at being harsh to others. He was born a good guy.

Thanks to that, even while being spiteful, Gyo-ha’s heart raced. It wasn’t because he liked Hwi-kyung, but because he wondered if it was okay to be this mean.

But thinking about how he had returned to the first day of the first semester of his master’s degree thirteen times gave him the courage to be spiteful. Gyo-ha decided to annoy Hwi-kyung more. Yes, I must take revenge for graduate school….

Even when Gyo-ha gave him all sorts of menial tasks, Hwi-kyung never complained. Well, he only seemed not to complain outwardly, while inwardly he was thinking about killing Gyo-ha… but Gyo-ha couldn’t read minds, so he didn’t know this fact.

Whenever he had the chance, Gyo-ha observed Hwi-kyung. It wasn’t because he had any personal interest in Hwi-kyung, but because the system window he displayed was intriguing.

Moreover, when Gyo-ha first shook hands with Hwi-kyung, he felt an electrifying sensation. It felt like he had been mildly electrocuted.

Although he tried to act nonchalant, as soon as he realized that Hwi-kyung had felt a similar sensation, his heart began to race. Vitality that he thought had completely disappeared began to surge from his toes.

Jung Hwi-kyung is “real.”

This fact made Gyo-ha live properly. So it was you after all! Gyo-ha was ecstatic to see Hwi-kyung. I’ve really missed you, you regression bastard! This time, I’ll make sure to grab your ankle so you can never regress again!

However, Lee Gyo-ha, who had gained “common sense” and “culture” through thirteen regressions and an integrated master’s and doctoral program, couldn’t carelessly ask Jung Hwi-kyung if he was a regression person. The shock of almost being reported as a drug offender by Amy had left a big impact.

Moreover, annoying Hwi-kyung turned out to be unexpectedly enjoyable. Every time he acted petty, claiming to take revenge for graduate school, Gyo-ha felt truly happy. Hwi-kyung’s occasional frowns gave Gyo-ha vitality. Thanks to Jung Hwi-kyung, Gyo-ha found company life interesting.

Are you suffering too? I suffered too…. Get a little angrier. Show me a more irritated expression. I’m telling you to suffer at least as long as my graduate school enrollment period….

It didn’t take long to realize that acting flirtatiously was more effective at tormenting someone than giving them menial tasks. Hwi-kyung was terrified every time Gyo-ha showed sexual interest.

And each time, Hwi-kyung’s notification window would appear right in front of Gyo-ha’s face. Gyo-ha now accepted that the notification window Hwi-kyung showed was different from the “system window” that appeared in numerous regression-related media.

As far as Gyo-ha could guess, Jung Hwi-kyung was an entity bound to the company.

Although he couldn’t know exactly what process Hwi-kyung used to regress, the expression “inadequate conditions” made it clear that he wasn’t regressing voluntarily.

Realizing this, Gyo-ha’s anger towards the regression person who had forced him to regress subsided to some extent. He concluded that if there were conditions to be met for the regression to end, Hwi-kyung probably had no choice.

But even though Gyo-ha had deduced this much, he still couldn’t realize that the “adequate condition” was “not being a black company.” He had no awareness that he himself was turning BK International, which had been relatively far from being a black company, into one.

* * *

He desperately craved a cigarette.

Jung Hwi-kyung thought about the cigarettes he had started around his 3rd cycle and barely managed to quit by his 9th. Office workers and cigarettes are hard to separate. After all, smoke breaks are the government-approved time for slacking off.

Hwi-kyung, who had refused cigarettes even when offered by his military seniors, succumbed to becoming a smoker in his 3rd cycle workplace, unable to withstand the black company atmosphere. It wasn’t that Hwi-kyung wanted to smoke. He just couldn’t endure the hellish company without nicotine.

Still, by the 9th cycle, he could manage without cigarettes. He thought he had experienced all the hellish things that could happen. He had lived as a non-smoker consistently since the 9th cycle….

“Hwi-kyung.”

Because of this parachute executive director, he was about to become a smoker again.

Hwi-kyung’s heart raced as Gyo-ha suddenly poked his head in front of him. It wasn’t racing because he liked it, but because it was so irritating. Thousands of curses flowed through his mind like a diss rap.

Inadequate conditions: The parachute executive director shows personal interest in the deputy manager.

What’s so great about that interest. Gyo-ha would pop up from somewhere at every opportunity to bother Hwi-kyung. After just one lunch break, stories about the HR deputy manager receiving all the executive director’s attention circulated from department to department.

Even in the twelfth cycle, where he was famous for his good work, he had never left such a mark on the company. Indeed, gaining notoriety for bad things happened faster than becoming famous for good things.

Inadequate conditions: You are at the center of office gossip.

Hwi-kyung was determined to throw hot coffee at Gyo-ha before the fourteenth regression began. If he moved on to the next cycle, it would surely be because of Lee Gyo-ha.

“Thank you for coming on the business trip with me today.”

“…Yes.”

“This is my first time with this kind of business.”

It was a blatant lie. Gyo-ha was a businessman with experience running multiple businesses simultaneously. It was only the first time in this cycle; Gyo-ha was also quite worn out.

However, Gyo-ha was currently engrossed in tormenting Hwi-kyung. It was so much fun! To think that a real regression person couldn’t regress freely and was struggling in front of him. It felt like he was getting a small revenge for his graduate school master’s and doctoral degrees.

Gyo-ha was already aware that his behavior had made Hwi-kyung the subject of interest in various departments. The parachute executive director bringing coffee every morning, frequently summoning him to the director’s office, and now accompanying him on an insignificant business trip? It looked strange to anyone.

Manager Kang tried to put a positive spin on it, saying “The executive director seems to like Deputy Manager Jung,” but to an outsider, Gyo-ha’s uninhibited way of constantly grabbing Hwi-kyung looked like romantic interest.

If Hwi-kyung’s biological sex had been female, all sorts of rumors would have already spread throughout the company. But Hwi-kyung’s biological sex was male, and thanks to that, under the protection of conservative South Korea, only about 80% of all possible gossip was currently circulating.

“Are just the two of us going?”

“Yes. It’s not a big deal.”

“That’s great. Let’s take my car.”

“No, I’ve already requested a company car. I need to drive…”

“The company car will be cramped.”

What does it matter if the car is cramped or not for a business trip….