The Tyrant of the Office – 2

Tadak, tadak. The sound of keyboard strokes.

Creak. The sound of something being taken out of a drawer.

Scribble, scribble. The sound of someone writing something with a pencil.

If someone saw it, they might think it was a normal office.

As a matter of fact, the director, who showed his face for the first time in a while, said, “Everyone is working hard.”

Without knowing that this environment was created by someone’s external pressure.

This pressure that doesn’t allow me to do anything as I please. The feeling that I’ll be screwed if I show even a little bit of disarray.

‘No wonder it feels familiar.’

For some reason, I realized that the identity of this familiar feeling was the army barracks on my first day of transfer, and I laughed inwardly.

Clearly, they were faces full of laughter and vitality.

But now, as if a monster had stolen their souls, their faces were stiff and their eyes were blank, staring at the monitor like rocks gazing out at the sea.

‘Are they working, or counting the air?’

Well, I wouldn’t be able to concentrate in this kind of atmosphere either.

I am looking over my work in this suddenly created atmosphere of academic pursuit.

I hadn’t been able to check it properly on the weekend.

I know very well that it is impossible to learn several years’ worth of work in just 3 or 4 days.

But if you ask me if I’m going to keep working here, I’d say I haven’t made up my mind yet.

However, I’m studying things I wouldn’t normally do, with the thought that if I’m a member of this company, I should at least do the minimum.

Ting.

While exploring the shared document folder, a message popped up in the lower right corner of the messenger.

system: Kim Yuna has invited Kang In-ho.

[Kim Yuna: I’ve invited Inho.]

[Kang In-ho: ??]

As soon as I was invited to the chat room, messages flooded in.

What is this, some kind of group chat they made among themselves?

[Kang In-ho: What is this room for?]

[Seo Seo-rim: It’s just a room where we can talk comfortably among ourselves.]

[Kang In-ho: I see.]

[Kim Yuna: Inho, do you know if anything happened to Mina?]

Something did happen.

[Kang In-ho: As I said before, I don’t know.]

[Yoon Hye-young: I don’t think she’s ever been this annoyed before.]

[Kang In-ho: I don’t think she was annoyed.]

[Yoon Hye-young: Inho, you don’t know her well. If that’s not annoyance, then what is it?]

And countless complaints about Mina poured in.

To summarize those minor complaints, it was [I don’t know why she’s suddenly like this.]

Well, I guess there could be complaints.

I don’t know all the things that have happened, so I can’t say anything rashly.

But, I don’t know why I was invited.

It’s not like they want me to join in on the gossip, and it doesn’t seem like they want to know how Mina is feeling.

[Kim Yuna: Inho, could you talk to Mina about it?]

[Kang In-ho: About what?]

[Kim Yuna: Well… just that she’s giving too much work at once. The team atmosphere isn’t good. Like that.]

[Kang In-ho: Me?]

[Kim Yuna: Inho, you’re the closest to Mina. You two do a lot of overtime together.]

Is it ‘persuade’ her?

Suddenly, I hate this company. I really need to seriously consider changing jobs.

The active chat room suddenly goes silent.

What, did everyone’s internet cut out?

“What are you doing?”

I heard a voice from behind and turned around to see Mina standing there.

“Yes? Ah…”

Everyone who was just chatting is gone, and all I see are people diligently doing their jobs.

Wow, they have a really wide field of vision. I wish they’d tell me too.

I felt like I had seen something I shouldn’t have, so I quickly but naturally minimized the messenger window.

“If you don’t have anything particularly busy to do, let’s have an interview.”

Unlike the anxious face she showed on the weekend, Mina looked calm today.

“An interview?”

“Yes, an interview.”

“Okay. Should I reserve a conference room?”

“No, it’s not going to be a formal thing, so let’s do it over lunch.”

“Okay.”

When I stood up, everyone’s eyes were on me. I couldn’t even turn my head and just rolled my eyes, feeling sorry for them.

Now that I’m leaving with Mina, they’ll start talking among themselves again.

It’s a natural course of events, but something didn’t sit right with me.

“Inho and I will be back after lunch.”

“Okay~”

The employees answered brightly.

“And it’s fine to make a chat room, but don’t talk behind people’s backs too much.”

“……..”

The employees’ expressions darkened.

Wow, that’s scary.

“I’ll just let it go this time, but if I see it again, I’ll destroy everything.”

Her words, without any change in tone, sounded truly terrifying.

As if to announce that lunchtime was approaching, office workers came out onto the streets in groups of three or five.

Mina and I walked towards the restaurant street.

“What do you want to eat?”

“Anything is fine. What about you, Mina?”

She quietly moved closer to me and said,

“I like anything Inho wants to eat.”

The words she whispered in my ear felt heavy.