What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 815

The Sub-Male Lead Goes on Strike – Episode 815 (815/920)

We Are Always There for Each Other (2)

For several days, I went to work as usual.

Before I knew it, it was time to leave work, with the sun setting in the distance.

-Click, click, click.

-Rattle…

-Click!

The anniversary had passed, and like any other office worker, I couldn’t just take days off without a good reason.

Besides, my brother had repeatedly told me.

Freelancing isn’t easy, so if you have a good company, work diligently.

Don’t hand in your resignation carelessly.

Jung Hyun-seo, who once wrote novels as a side job while working at a company, gradually quit his job and became a full-time writer when his side income exceeded his company salary for more than a year.

For my brother, changing jobs was a very difficult and cautious matter.

So, it was the same for me.

I locked my desk drawer for the last time, closed my backpack zipper, and prepared to get up.

“Oh, right, I need to take off my slippers before I leave.”

My Seoul grandparents were wealthy, but they didn’t have a good relationship with my mother until Eun-seo was born and my father passed away on duty.

In particular, my grandmother was greatly disappointed that her eldest daughter, who had even completed a master’s degree, had to marry into a poor family and suffer.

Naturally, there was extreme opposition to the marriage, and they seemed to have hurt each other a lot in the process of conflict.

So, my grandmother had been distant with my mother for over ten years, only occasionally exchanging greetings through my aunt.

Although she loved her grandchildren, my brother and I, she wasn’t as close to us as she is now, even twenty years ago.

Once, I was sitting with my brother and mother at a tteokbokki [spicy rice cake] restaurant in front of the school.

‘……Mom, don’t you resent Seoul Grandma?’

Twelve-year-old Jung Hyun-seo asked.

There was probably a context for that question, but I don’t remember it at all now.

My mother, who looked just like my brother, shrugged and replied.

‘Your grandmother. She spent her entire youth helping your great-grandfather with his business. The whole family was devastated because he was doing something to save the country, but she and your great-grandmother took care of him with their chapped hands… But what did your great-grandfather end up doing?’

‘He sent his sons to high school, and one of them even to college, right? But he only let Grandma barely graduate from elementary school, saying she was needed for the household finances. He even made your grandfather, his son-in-law, a hospital director.’

‘Can you understand how much resentment your grandmother must have felt? Mom is a little sad about our mom, but… I can’t really resent her from the bottom of my heart. Because I know her life.’

‘Mom grew up eating Grandma’s dreams. But when she grew up, she went and dreamed different dreams on her own accord.’

My mother always said.

When you become an adult, you have to take full responsibility for your life.

You shouldn’t expect any inheritance or good things that come with it.

Later, when Eun-seo was born and the whole family entered a period of reconciliation and recovery, even on the day I went to a large hospital for a checkup for the first time, my mother said something similar to me.

Looking back now, I think my mother had some idea of her illness.

‘Come here. Mom will help you today, my pretty Ye-seo.’

‘But when you grow up, you have to be able to do it alone. So, you have to practice little by little from now on.’

……Someday, I’ll become an adult. Then everything will be easier than it is now.

If I keep enduring and practicing, things will get better at some point. Looking back, I think I had that thought quite often.

While looking at my brother’s back, which had grown so much.

While making a promise to myself several times that I would not become a burden to him.

Because my brother didn’t cry, I didn’t cry either.

It was okay because young Eun-seo cried as much as we didn’t.

“Thank you for your hard work. I’ll head out first.”

But now I… I’m not sure if I’ve become an adult yet.

Being an adult is too difficult.

“Go home safely, Yedeal.”

“If you’re not feeling well, just take a few days off next week, okay? You have vacation days for times like this.”

“I’ll check my condition over the weekend and contact you, Team Leader. Thank you for your concern.”

“Just send me the two letters ‘vacation’ neatly! Get the stamp later!”

“Deputy Manager, let’s go together!”

I smiled faintly, bowed my head, and left the office.

After six months, there were quite a few things I was confused about while working.

I made a couple of unusual mistakes today, and in the end, I even had to apologize politely, saying it was because I hadn’t slept well last night.

The people in the finance and accounting team on the same floor told me that I looked pale.

The team leader said that it would be a problem if our team mascot didn’t have any energy, so he bought me drinks and snacks.

He told me to choose the most expensive thing on the cafe menu, but I habitually ordered a decaf Americano.

‘Cafe Chris.’ I deliberately chose a cold drink.

The ice was hard, and when it melted in my mouth, it tasted like plain water. Of course.

“Ah, I’m hungry. What should we eat?”

“Something a little spicy? Since it’s Friday?”

“Oh, me too. I’ve been looking for red soup as soon as I get off work these days. Hehehe.”

The people packed together in the elevator all had expressions that were a mixture of refreshment and fatigue.

The situation is quite different now, but before I got involved with , I used to leave work with similar feelings every day, so I could understand.

The new employees, who seemed to have made plans, were seriously debating which restaurant to go to.

I quietly looked up at the numbers on the elevator, waiting to reach the first floor.

27th floor, 26th floor, 25th floor…

……The 25th was Gain’s birthday. We were going to light birthday candles and cut a cake.

“…Nim, Deputy Manager Ye-seo.”

“Ah, yes.”

They were calling me. I didn’t hear because I was thinking about other things.

“Do you know any good restaurants around here?”

“We haven’t been here long enough to know…”

“Oh, there are a few famous barbecue restaurants in Sinnonhyeon. There’s also a good Italian restaurant. Around the company, there’s a good potato stew place or a knife-cut noodle place…”

“Ooh…”

“Wow.”

Looking at their smiling faces, I thought I should explain with all my heart.

In the meantime, the elevator stopped from time to time, adding a few more office workers full of will to go home.

I stood in the corner and was about to open the map app when I suddenly remembered the existence of the gallery app.

‘Shall we take a picture?’

‘Wow, Princess, what kind of phone is that? I almost called Animotion just now.’

‘Hahaha.’

“……”

How could I forget that picture?

I was momentarily stunned, and then someone who seemed to be a new employee from another team whispered to me.

Looking at their face, I remembered exchanging glances with them a few times in the hallway.

“Deputy Manager Ye-seo, if you’re okay with it, would you like to have dinner with us?”

“Oh my, oh my.”

“Since you’re telling us about good restaurants, I’ll buy you dinner!”

“What’s with the forcefulness? I’m going to fall for you.”

When I finally came to my senses, the elevator that had arrived on the first floor was slowly opening its mouth.

The new employees patted each other on the shoulders, expressing their expectations.

I could feel the company people who were standing silently glancing this way.

I belatedly gave an answer.

“I appreciate the offer, but I’m sorry. I have a prior engagement today.”

It was a lie. I’m sorry about this too.

“Ah, that’s too bad…”

Then the employees made disappointed expressions.

Of course, I knew that wasn’t real.

Because no new employee really wants to have dinner with a *kkondae* [꼰대, a condescending older person] like *ajeossi* [아저씨, middle-aged man].

I think they wanted me to treat them, but to be honest, I have a hard time eating with people I’m not close to…

“Then, when you don’t have a prior engagement, do you usually eat dinner at home?”

“Yes.”

It was awkward. Just, this kind of life and conversation, everything.

I used to pass it off without a second thought, but lately, it strangely didn’t sit well with me.

I just have to do what I used to do, but somehow it’s not easy, and it feels like it’s getting stuck in my throat.

As soon as I got out of the elevator, I diligently swiped my employee ID and crossed the lobby.

“You like home-cooked meals… Common ground secured.”

“Deputy Manager, excuse me, but do you have a girlfriend?”

“I’m really asking this for the sake of the greater good. Every time in our new public recruitment group chat…”

“Actually, I saw you once during the new employee training? But…”

The employees, who had gained momentum, chattered like college freshmen.

I grabbed the glass door and smiled awkwardly. That’s right, it was March now.

“I don’t have a girlfriend…”

-Aeooo

I flinched. I turned my head at the familiar cry. For a moment, I thought of Rothy, but—

-Aeook

“……Rami.”

It was Rami, the boss cat of the flower bed, calling me.

*

Dealing with human colleagues is difficult, but meeting animal friends is only welcome.

Maybe I’ll have to live like this for the rest of my life.

“Rami, how have you been? Why haven’t I seen you all week? *Ajeossi* [아저씨, middle-aged man] missed you.”

‘Your leg has healed cleanly.’ I chuckled, recalling the moment when I used healing ether for her sometime.

In the meantime, she had diligently cleaned her fur, and the calico cat was clean without a single bloodstain.

I knew I had to go home early, but today, my feet wouldn’t move.

The sensible Rami didn’t eat the chunk of chicken breast I took out and immediately put it in her mouth, then disappeared into the bushes.

With four kittens to take care of, it was perhaps a natural reaction.

I waited for her to return and looked up at the evening sky, where faint stars were beginning to appear.

“……If I don’t go back, something terrible might happen. Why did that guy stab me anyway…”

Then I thought about the unsolved mystery.

In fact, I’ve been so preoccupied with that topic lately that it’s been hard to concentrate on other things.

But I couldn’t rest even a little because Sir Johan was with me.

He never shows it, but he left his young son there, so he couldn’t be comfortable.

I have to figure out a way quickly. As soon as possible.

“First of all, what we’ve figured out so far…”

I counted on my fingers and reviewed it step by step.

First. The only wish I made on the Holy Grail was ‘Please save Prince Ye-seo.’

Presumably, the wish to send me home was not accepted. That wasn’t a perfect sentence in the first place, and according to my brother, the will of the Holy Grail user is the most important thing. At that moment, I had no intention of going home at all—not that I’m proud of it—so I don’t think that wish was granted.

Second. Bojena’s act of stabbing me with a sickle was not an ‘attack,’ and there was another intention.

Jung Hyun-seo guesses that this was the decisive act that sent me home. But how that was possible, and why he didn’t come to me and swing the sickle earlier instead of doing useless things all this time, remains a mystery. What principle is hidden in his actions…

-Whyook

“Oops.”

I turned my head in a flash. Rami, who had a large clump of fur in her mouth…

“Gasp, Rami. Isn’t this your baby? Why is the kid so dirty?”

His eyes were full of eye mucus, his nose was dripping, and he seemed to be drooling a little… Wait a minute.

“I think this is it. Cat cold. Herpes?”

I hurriedly fixed my backpack and looked around.

Beyond the flower bed where the streetlights dimly reached, I could see office workers constantly walking out of the company building.

As it became the full *toesa* [퇴사, leaving work] time, a long line of cars was forming in the company’s underground parking lot.

Everyone seemed busy thinking about going home, and no one was paying attention to this side.

I cleaned both hands with disinfectant wipes and took Rami’s sick baby.

The mackerel-patterned kitten was pitifully trembling.

“It’s okay, *ajeossi* [아저씨, middle-aged man] can still use ether. And it’s much stronger than before. Don’t worry too much, Rami. A cold is…”

-Paaaa…

I tried to deploy the smallest possible healing circle, about fifty centimeters in diameter.

One of the advantages of becoming a cardinal is that I can completely freely adjust the size of the circle.

I looked around the *sawi* [사위, surrounding area] once again.

The *indo* [인도, pavement] CCTV is the last one over there, and the rest are all concentrated on the parking lot side, so I won’t be filmed.

It’s safe because it’s the area Rami chose.

“If the circle I memorized doesn’t work, I’ll take you to the hospital right away. Don’t worry. Trust *ajeossi* [아저씨, middle-aged man].”

-Aeooong

-Saaaa…

The blue particles were seeping into the baby cat’s body.

Rami, who answered pitifully, waited for the healing to end, diligently licking the kitten’s back and forehead.

It was then.

“Oh? Rami, that’s…”

Under the flower bed across the street, another kitten was sitting in the middle of the road.

My heart sank. A baby out of its mother’s control.

I instinctively realized that something was going wrong. It was *toesa* [퇴사, leaving work] time now.

-Vroom…

“……No…”

The SUV that had come out of the parking lot was turning the corner slowly.

But the kitten was too small and perfectly in a blind spot.

I acted reflexively.

[Little one, go back to the flower bed! Quickly!]

I opened another circle, surrounded the troublemaking baby, and raised my voice.

-Screech!

“Oh my, just a moment! That was almost a disaster!”

At that very moment, an employee who was working on *chulcha* [출차, pulling out a car] from a distance ran over in a hurry with both arms raised.

As she picked up the kitten on the road with both hands, the driver of the car was also surprised and lowered the window.

‘Oh my, is the baby okay?’ ‘Yes, it looks okay. Thank you.’ The situation seemed to be resolved in an instant.

I stood there with my mouth open for a while, unable to blink. So…

-Aewoong

“……”

That’s because, just now…

“……The Holy Ground didn’t open, Rami.”

-Aewoong

I muttered the same words like a madman. The Holy Ground didn’t open just now, really.

If that employee hadn’t come in time, Rami’s other baby might have died.

And there was one much less important problem that arose…

“……*Ajeossi* [아저씨, middle-aged man] doesn’t seem to be able to double-cast, Rami.”

-Ack

No, is this for real? I’ve used it so many times, and it’s already not working?

Isn’t that too much?

*

At the same time.

The delicate fingertips searched through every display case and drawer in the palace.

-Rattle!

“……Aha.”

Soon, the purple eyes that had found a great clue became greasy [excited].

Soon, a neat notebook was placed in Ye-seo Fenetian’s hands.