episode_0053

“There’s a man who illegally boarded the ship heading for the surface! The ship must be stopped immediately!”

The ship heading for the surface stopped.

It was exactly as I had planned.

Of course, people seemed to have misunderstood that a terrorist had boarded the ship.

But anyway, the ship had stopped.

I went back up onto the ship that was docked at the pier.

And I encountered Narcissus, who was greatly flustered.

“Assistant Manager Joy! Is there a terrorist on this ship?”

“No, I just said there was someone who ‘illegally boarded,’ not a terrorist. Assistant Manager Narcissus, your ticket to the surface has expired.”

“What?”

Assistant Manager Narcissus was greatly surprised.

He then looked at his ticket, apparently unable to understand the current situation.

“This expired?”

At that moment, I briefly recalled.

The time I burst into the Risk Management Team and negotiated with Peranoi.

─“As expected, I’m getting a suspicious feeling! It’s strange how happy you are about being reassigned to the surface! We’re canceling this matter! The ticket we gave you is also invalid!”

Perhaps my attitude about going to the surface was too obvious.

Zagreus’s secretary, Peranoi, completely canceled the reassignment to the surface.

It wasn’t exactly what I intended.

But in some ways, it was good.

Why? Because I could stop Narcissus from going to the surface.

‘If I can’t have it, nobody else can!’

Since I can’t go to the surface,

If someone else does, I’ll be so jealous I won’t sleep for days.

“Assistant Manager Joy, did you really negotiate with the Risk Management Team for my sake?”

Narcissus seemed to have misunderstood something.

I turned my gaze away from him as he stepped off the ship and picked up a fruit that had fallen on the ground.

It was a crushed and bruised cactus fruit.

“It wasn’t because of you, Assistant Manager Narcissus. I merely paid the proper price for the cactus fruit I received as a courtesy.”

“……?”

Narcissus seemed not to understand my words.

However, his eyes were now fixed on a woman whose body was bruised and bleeding in various places.

The woman also limped towards Narcissus.

And like a precious treasure, she held out the cactus fruit she had gripped in her hand to Narcissus.

Narcissus accepted it.

Neither of them spoke a word.

“…….”

“…….”

But sometimes, words can actually hinder the sharing of hearts.

How many seconds had passed like that?

Narcissus was the first to speak, his voice choked with emotion.

“Actually, Echo, I wanted to be with you for a long time. So I thought many times about asking Assistant Manager Joy to take responsibility on my behalf. But… I couldn’t.”

“…….”

“Because to change my selfish self, I had to bear the responsibility for this matter myself. I wanted to return to you with that changed appearance.”

To have to leave in order to stay close.

As I thought it was truly an ironic situation, Krauser, who had approached next to me at some point, shed a tear.

“Finally, the two lovers have met. This is truly a good thing. My efforts playing the role of a chew toy were worthwhile.”

Krauser’s entire body was tattered like a rag as he said that.

I didn’t know what had happened, but I didn’t particularly want to know.

It was then.

“You scoundrel, Joy! You’ve interfered with this pirate king Magnus’s ship hijacking again!”

“How did you even find out?! Where did the information leak from?!”

“Blast it! Since it’s come to this, there’s no choice! This ship is now ours, Tartaros’s!”

Due to various commotions, pirates appeared on the surface-bound ship from which all passengers had disembarked.

More precisely, they were the ‘Rebels of Tartaros’.

Krauser was horrified at the sight.

“Joy! Did you again foresee and thwart the activities of those rebel scoundrels…!?”

This is truly driving me crazy.

Why do those rebels hide on every ship I approach?

It’s making me lose my mind.

Whoosh-!

At that moment, something flew through the wind like a comet.

And with a thud- it collided with the ship.

I thought someone had launched a missile.

Boom-!

Crumble, crumble, crumble-.

The ship split into two and sank.

Soon, a wet arm steadily- climbed onto the pier.

“Oh, darn it, I’m all wet. How annoying.”

[Chief Risk Officer] [Chief Risk Officer]

It was a woman with crow wings, similar to Director Alecto of the Audit Team.

The difference was that her physique was sturdy, giving the impression of a capable bodyguard.

Her wings were also a bit smaller than Director Alecto’s.

“I never imagined rebel remnants would be on the ship heading for the surface. It could have been a disaster. You mortals! Thanks to you, a great catastrophe was averted!”

[Goddess of Retribution and Karma – Nemesis]

If it came to being fearsome, she was a goddess with more achievements and rumors than Melinoye.

Soon, Narcissus’s complexion turned pale.

“You are from the Risk Management Team’s….”

He was speechless due to the surreal situation when Director Nemesis took off her wet suit shirt and squeezed out the water.

Thanks to that, her sturdy, muscular physique prominently showed through her underwear, but the goddess didn’t seem to mind at all.

The strange thing was that even though I saw the goddess’s semi-nudity, I didn’t feel any lust.

Perhaps it was because she was a fearsome executive who dealt with karma and retribution, so I didn’t even dare to feel that way.

“Is that Narcissus, that unpleasant face?”

Director Nemesis scowled.

Soon she added,

“You rascal. You’ve cleared a lot of karma. At this rate, my curse has almost lifted on its own. Tsk, how boring!”

Flap-.

Nemesis seemed to spread her small wings, then whooshed- back into the air and flew away.

Only then did Krauser breathe heavily and make a fuss.

“Is that the Goddess Nemesis, the Goddess of Causality and Karma! I’ve never seen her in person before! Moreover, I saw the Goddess of Karma in her underwear, so won’t I be punished by divine retribution for that….”

Krauser, you scoundrel.

Saying such ominous things.

# # #

‘Assistant Manager Joy’s actions lead to the complete eradication of the rebels!’

‘Nemesis, Director of the Risk Management Team, praises his efforts—.’

‘Is a wind of reconciliation blowing as two rival teams collaborate?’

The company newspaper loudly reported on yesterday’s events.

Soon, Director Alecto approached me and patted my back heartily.

“Wow, Assistant Manager Joy! Not only did you single-handedly go to the Risk Management Team and negotiate to nullify the demotion of one of our department’s employees, but you also put the Risk Management Team in your debt! That’s truly amazing!”

Debt, she said.

My stomach churned as Department Head Hector fussed and took over.

“The Risk Management Team didn’t even notice the rebels’ movements, did they?! But our Audit Team noticed first and prevented the ship from being hijacked!”

The world thought that the Risk Management and Audit Teams had collaborated to reduce the damage from the rebels’ hijacking.

However, during my process of stopping the ship, passengers who misunderstood it as a ‘terrorist incident’ all jumped into the river.

And by unlucky chance, the *actual* terrorists were hiding there, resulting in zero casualties.

However, I intended to share this situation with the Risk Management Team.

The credit was too great for me to bear alone.

From the Risk Management Team’s perspective, they hadn’t even predicted the rebels’ hijacking, yet they received a share of the credit, so they naturally incurred a great deal of ‘debt’.

“This means our Audit Team has regained superiority in our relationship with the Risk Management Team! If they’re this indebted, those guys will have no choice but to stay quiet for a while!”

Flap-.

Director Alecto, spreading her wings wide, raised her fist high and shouted.

“This battle is ultimately a victory for our Audit Team, thanks to Assistant Manager Joy’s outstanding performance!”

Wow-!

The atmosphere was cheering everywhere.

I wanted to cry, but I couldn’t spoil the festive mood, so I just stayed still.

Director Alecto patted my shoulder.

“Joy, my sister Nemesis praised you. She’s so stiff, like muscle, and rarely praises others. So, I was thinking of recommending you to the ‘Night Faction,’ what do you think?”

She wanted to invite me to the largest influential gathering in this ‘Soul Society’?

Their power and authority surpassed even that of the Hana-hoe during the military regime era.

“If you join the faction, promotion is a sure thing. Perhaps, there’s even a small possibility of an impossible feat: becoming an executive as a mortal.”

She’s telling me to aim for executive after promotion?

I’d rather be a janitor at the subsidiary ‘Happy World’!

Therefore, my answer was already decided.

“It’s a very generous offer, but I must decline.”

“It’s not an opportunity given to just anyone. But I knew you’d say that. Melinoye told me. She said you find meaning in succeeding without others’ help.”

“Haha, not at all. Not at all! Seriously!”

“You want to achieve it with your own strength, don’t you? In some ways, you two are quite similar. However, we also can’t stand being indebted. In the next executive meeting, we’ll remain neutral.”

“Neutral?”

“We’ll withdraw the decisions we made to side with Prince Zagreus. We’ll give Princess Melinoye a chance too. It’s thanks to you. You can walk with your shoulders a little more proudly.”

“Hehe, hehehehe… hehehehe!”

I laughed.

At this rate, I’ll end up gaining points with Melinoye.

Nothing was going my way, which was ironically funny.

“Then everyone, leave work early today!”

“Wow!”

“Long live Assistant Manager Joy!”

“You’re our hero!”

Lunch and then immediately off work.

With a gloomy heart, I left the company during this golden opportunity.

Assistant Manager Narcissus patted my shoulder.

“Assistant Manager Joy, I don’t think I’ve thanked you properly. Thanks to you, I didn’t have to part with Echo. And I wasn’t caught up in the terrorist rampage. So, this is my small token of gratitude.”

Flap-.

Assistant Manager Narcissus held out a piece of paper.

I shook my head.

“I’d rather not receive any more of your photo books, Assistant Manager.”

“It’s not that. This is a ticket. A ticket to come visit my house. Echo is also grateful to you. So, well… come whenever you feel like it.”

I hadn’t really done anything to deserve thanks from Ms. Echo and the Assistant Manager.

Slip-.

I put the ticket in my pocket.

As I headed to the familiar snack bar, there were already customers there.

“Mr. Joy, you’ve arrived just in time.”

It was Rilke, the former siren and current idol.

Next to her was Carnoy, who liked to hit things a lot.

“Carnoy finds it fun to tap the table with chopsticks!”

“Hehehe, has everyone gathered? Then I, Peranoi, shall begin the third meeting of the Nymph Community Association! Today’s agenda is a vote on whether to approve Joy’s membership in the association!”

Nymph Community Association.

It was said to be a gathering of nymphs living in this ‘Soul Society’.

Instead of joining the ‘Night Faction,’ I decided to join this suspicious gathering.

Why?

If you know your enemy and know yourself, you will win a hundred battles.

I wanted to know more about the nymphs who had twisted my life.

“However, only excellent nymphs can originally join the Nymph Community Association! Assistant Manager Joy is not a nymph! How should we resolve this problem?”

“Carnoy doesn’t know what’s what, but is asking if we should appoint Assistant Manager Joy as an ‘Honorary Nymph’!”

“Honorary Nymph! That’s a good idea. Assistant Manager Joy recently completely deciphered Peranoi’s nymph secret technique, so that should be qualification enough. And you’ve received a lot of goodwill from various nymphs, haven’t you?”

“In that case, we shall bestow upon Assistant Manager Joy the title of Honorary Nymph! As an Honorary Nymph, you must bear a name similar to a nymph!”

And so, I, Joyseo, became an ‘Honorary Nymph’.

To become a nymph, which I had hated so much, was truly humiliating.

But looking at it differently, this was an opportunity.

‘Director Melinoye despises nymphs to an extreme, doesn’t she? But now that I’ve become an Honorary Nymph, won’t her expectations and favorability towards me be crushed or lowered?’

─Joy, that you’ve become a mere nymph. My disappointment is great. You’re fired.

Yes!

It was a truly excellent strategy.

“He has finally appeared! Joynoi!”