Ch.71Chapter 71. Aftermath (2)

*Ding dong*

It had been a long time since I’d heard that doorbell sound.

Recently, the only person who visited my home was Juliane.

Since she usually just barged in without permission, I hadn’t heard the doorbell in quite a while.

“Should I get it?” she asked.

“No, I’ll go,” I replied.

I had been doing the dishes, but I’d just finished.

I took off my rubber gloves and hurried to the front door.

“Jinsoo… Kim. Is that you?”

“Yes. I suppose that’s me.”

“There’s a package for you, Mr. Kim.”

“…?”

I received a small box from the delivery person.

It was small enough to hold in one hand, but I had no idea what it could be.

I hadn’t ordered anything online recently.

And I couldn’t remember making anyone angry enough to send me a bomb.

“Who was it?” Juliane asked.

“A package arrived.”

“Ah! It finally came!”

“Huh?”

Suddenly, Juliane hugged Cuss and squealed with excitement.

Apparently, this was a package from Juliane.

I brought the package to the coffee table and set it down.

“Where’s your laser cutter?”

“Laser cutter? What’s that?”

“You know, the thing for opening packages.”

“Do you mean a box cutter?”

“No, not that ancient relic.”

“…”

I felt like my school days were being invalidated.

“I don’t have anything like a laser cutter.”

“Then how do you open pack—”

“Like this.”

I grabbed one side of the box and pulled.

The box tore open with a ripping sound.

After all, a shipping box is just thick paper.

There’s nothing that can’t be opened.

The only problem is that it can’t be reused afterward.

“Uh… ah… um… I’ve never seen anyone open a box like that before.”

“Wow, is this what I think it is?”

After clearing away the padding material, I found a clean, white box inside.

I recognized it immediately.

It was the latest smartphone.

I couldn’t help but know what it was since advertisements for it appeared every five seconds when walking around the station.

“Yes, that’s right. It’s the latest model. I felt bad about breaking your last one. Although, thinking about it again, why is it my fault that your phone broke when you threw it and it hit my forehead—”

“Wow, thank you so much. You’re the best, Juliane.”

“…”

I cut her off mid-sentence and planted a kiss on her cheek.

Despite this, Juliane gave me a sulky look.

“Show a little more sincerity.”

“Pardon?”

“If you’re grateful… express it more.”

“Thank you? Thank you very much?”

“No, not just with words…”

“Would you like me to go down on you?”

“Oh my god, really. You say the most inappropriate things in front of the child…”

Juliane glared at me, then grabbed my collar and pulled me in for a kiss.

“Mmph… mmm… haah…”

Our lips mixed together wetly, making pleasant sounds.

The way she urgently pressed her lips against mine, even though I wasn’t going anywhere, suggested she had been quite hungry for this.

“Just… kissing me like this would have been enough. How can someone be so clueless?”

“How was I supposed to know you were this addicted to kissing?”

“Yes, I am addicted. Completely addicted, so more—hm?”

There was a smacking sound.

Our lips hadn’t even touched yet.

When I opened my eyes, I saw Cuss’s hand between our faces, blocking Juliane’s mouth.

“Stop. Watching this irritates me.”

“Ah, um… sorry. Was that too much in front of you, Cuss? Then I’ll give you a kiss too. Mmm…”

“No. Go away.”

“Waaah!”

When Juliane reached out to her, Cuss made a disgusted face, jumped up, and hid behind my back.

Cuss wrapped her arms around my neck like a baby koala and climbed onto my back.

I sat down slightly to make room for her on the sofa.

“It’s nice that you bought me a phone, but you’ll need to teach me how to use it.”

“The instructions should be in the manual.”

“I read it but didn’t understand a word.”

“Even elderly people know how to use devices these days.”

“…”

I had nothing to say.

Well, I’m sorry.

Being isolated from society for ten years had made me more technologically challenged than the elderly.

“You’re a chief engineer at an engine company and you don’t know how to use a smartphone?”

“…”

“Hehehe. Then I’ll teach you step by step. Let’s start with the power button, Grandpa Jinsoo. This button here…”

This was going to be a nightmare.

I had no choice but to listen to Juliane’s explanations one by one.

But honestly, I still didn’t understand much even after listening.

It was something you wear on your wrist like a watch, but it supposedly projects a special hologram that only I can see.

It tracks my eye position to show a hologram only from my viewing angle, and something about wave interference makes it invisible from other angles…

“Do you understand?”

“Yes, perfectly. So why can’t others see it when the waves interfere?”

“Sigh… Are you sure you studied engineering?”

“I dropped out. I’m still studying now, but it’s mechanical engineering.”

“…”

Juliane’s expression changed to one of slight contempt.

What?

“Mmm… nngh… I can almost see it but not quite…”

“Hey, stop squirming.”

Behind me, Cuss kept pushing my head away and acting up.

Seeing that Cuss couldn’t see the hologram even though her head was right next to mine confirmed that the technology worked.

This phone was perfectly optimized for watching porn in public!

“The privacy protection is amazing.”

“Right? I specifically made it so even the federal government can’t tap into it.”

“What? The government taps phones?”

“You didn’t know?”

“…?”

Damn.

Bob was right about everything.

Except the surveillance entity wasn’t Bill Gates.

Anyway, with Juliane’s help, I managed to register my number and learn how to use various functions.

While we were doing this, I could feel Cuss’s breathing getting louder behind me.

She was clearly deliberately blowing air through her nose.

“Hey, what are you—”

“Aahn.”

“Aargh, fuck!”

This little shit.

She suddenly bit my nape.

I was reaching under her skirt, feeling around for her tentacles, when Cuss finally removed her mouth.

I almost pulled her tentacles full force in front of Juliane, which would have made her convulse.

Ow, damn.

That really hurt.

Has she not been disciplined enough lately?

But then Cuss looked at Juliane with a mocking expression.

“I’ve marked him too.”

“What are you saying? Am I your teething mat?”

“Eek!”

I gave her a solid knock on the head.

Cuss clutched her head with tears in her eyes and looked up at me with an aggrieved expression.

This crazy girl must have lost her mind.

You should know you’re only alive because Juliane is here.

If Juliane weren’t here, your skull and spine would have parted ways by now.

“Hahaha… Don’t scold her too much. She’s just being childish.”

“If I indulge all her childishness, there won’t be much left of me.”

Ring ring ring

Just then, the house phone rang.

I smacked my forehead.

The time had come.

I walked over and picked up the receiver.

“Jinsoo Kim speaking.”

“Jinsoo. You need to come to the company.”

“You said to come at 3 PM.”

“Well… you need to come earlier.”

“Yes, I’ll be right there.”

The manager’s voice sounded gloomy.

I could somewhat guess what this was about.

They needed someone to take responsibility for the failed project that had burned down the test room.

And the perfect candidate was…

Tsk. Maybe I should look for part-time work.

“Was that the company?”

“Yes. I need to go. Could you watch Cuss for me?”

“Of course! As her mother!”

“You’re not my mother…”

Cuss’s face fell as she tugged at my sleeve, but I removed her hand.

Today, Cuss would have to put up with it.

How bad could it be with Juliane?

Surely she wouldn’t torture her with tasteless food.

Or squeeze her tight while calling her cute.

There was probably nothing to worry about.

“Take care. Don’t worry about us.”

“Juliane…”

“Yes?”

“The phone. Thank you, really.”

I felt like there was something else I wanted to say.

But having suddenly forgotten, I just said whatever came to mind and smiled awkwardly.

When I drove out, there were more cars on the road than usual.

The good weather probably meant many families were heading out on vacation.

Maybe we should go on an outing tomorrow too.

Though we couldn’t go far—probably just to Lake Park.

“Whoa.”

I sighed as I approached the factory grounds.

In the distance, what used to be the test room had been transformed into blackened ruins.

It had completely collapsed and was still emitting black smoke, suggesting the fire inside hadn’t been fully extinguished yet.

If it weren’t for Juliane, I would have been discovered as white ashes rather than smoked pulled human meat.

“Show your employee ID.”

“Here.”

At the entrance, security guards were physically blocking access and conducting checks because the barrier had been destroyed.

Should Juliane compensate for this…?

I wasn’t sure.

I parked my car in the lot and went straight up to the office.

As soon as I opened the door, I could tell something was wrong.

The usually obnoxious guys were all slumped over.

“Everyone’s here. You all remember what happened yesterday. First, I want to say how fortunate it is that no one died.”

“Of course. You prevented the explosion by tearing off the front panel, Manager.”

“It was Jinsoo’s idea.”

“Damn! Jinsoo!”

Despite the happy words, the manager’s expression remained dark.

“And the project has been scrapped.”

“…”

“Even though it met all the business requirements, the negative image of the engine that caused the accident is too great. The higher-ups have decided it can’t be salvaged.”

“The whole thing? They’re scrapping everything?”

“That’s right.”

“…”

The office atmosphere turned somber.

After delivering the news, the manager left the office, gesturing for me to follow.

I glanced around nervously before slipping out and heading up to the roof.

Hiss…

The manager was lighting a cigarette.

He offered me the pack, but I declined with a shake of my head.

I’d quit smoking a long time ago.

“This is troublesome.”

“Yes, after preparing for this project for years.”

“No, not that.”

“…”

I knew what was coming.

The manager hardly ever smoked at work, so seeing him puffing away like this made it obvious.

It was clear he’d called me out to deliver difficult news.

“Are they cutting the tail?”

“Huff…”

I was the safety verification officer.

Strictly speaking, the manager should take responsibility for personnel decisions, but from the CEO’s perspective, it was obvious they’d prefer to cut me rather than an elite like the manager.

“No. No one’s getting fired.”

“What? Then who’s taking responsibility?”

“Me. I’m taking all of it. I’ve been demoted and my salary has been frozen for ten years.”

“What? Why are you taking the blame, Manager?”

“Because I’m the one in charge. If not me, then who?”

“…”

I was speechless.

Damn, that punishment is too harsh for a man with a wife and kids.

How is he supposed to feed three children and send them to college on a lower-ranked salary?

He must have taken the punishment bomb while trying to protect me, with 140% certainty.

“Still, I got off easy. Imagine if someone else had scrapped the project. They’d be fired immediately. I’m only getting this level of punishment because of my abilities. Hahaha.”

“Fuck. This doesn’t make sense! How could they do this to you?”

“What can we do…”

“This fucking company. Say it with me: Fuck them!”

“Shut up. Everyone will hear.”

“So what if they hear? Just shout it out! At least it’ll make you feel better. Pretending to be calm while bottling everything up will make you sick.”

I know this well.

After nearly going crazy from keeping everything inside, I learned to express my emotions properly.

“Fuck them! Sons of bitches!”

“That’s it!”

“Pieces of shit!”

“That’s exactly right!”

“Just die already!”

“Hahaha!”

“AAAAARRRRGGGHHH!!!”

I didn’t know the manager could swear so freely like this.

Though his curses were still quite mild.

I patted the shoulder of the manager as he screamed in rage.

We stood there with our arms around each other’s shoulders for quite some time.