episode_0003

003 – Welcome to Happy World #3

On the day of Sisyphus and Joy’s meeting.

Sisyphus held out the contract and asserted his rights.

“Joy ssi, then I will enjoy 10 minutes of rest from now on.”

“Yes, please do so.”

Having finished his conversation with Joy, Sisyphus loosened the cord of tension that had been as taut as a bowstring.

‘Joy, the outstanding employee, I heard he was a great man, so I was wary, but he was nothing special after all. Indeed, how could an ordinary employee possibly contend with me, who even deceived the CEO of this Happy World?’

An eternal 10 minutes.

Even he thought it was an excellent idea.

So Sisyphus continued to lie down, acting arrogant or loafing around.

How much time had passed like that?

After the artificial sun, created by Daedalus, had risen and set arbitrarily several times, regardless of the time, delivery workers wearing black robes approached Sisyphus.

“We are from Charon Transport. You are Sisyphus ssi, right? Please sign here.”

“What is this?”

“Let’s see, these are items sent by Joy ssi from the Punishment Execution Department.”

Joy sending a parcel to Sisyphus?

Like a man chosen as an outstanding employee, wasn’t he trying to pull some trick?

Sisyphus, left alone, carefully and cautiously opened the packaged box.

Poing~!

Then, very fluffy-looking wool sprung up from inside the box as if spurting out like popcorn.

Even Sisyphus was greatly surprised by the fluffy golden fleece, billowing like clouds.

‘This is golden fleece, isn’t it? They say all fatigue completely vanishes just by lying on it. It’s a treasure that can block any cold if made into clothes and worn!’

That wasn’t all.

[For whom does that beautiful nymph shed tears~♩]

Sweet music was heard from a conch shell placed beneath the wool.

The quick-witted Sisyphus realized that this was “Nymph’s Song,” a masterpiece by Orpheus, considered the underworld’s best singer.

They say the magic conch that recorded it sold out quickly and couldn’t be obtained without a large sum of money.

‘Employee Joy, what’s the reason you sent this to me? These kinds of items wouldn’t even be enough with an employee’s salary, so you must have completely emptied the departmental budget to purchase them.’

As items that he, as a prisoner, could never obtain were placed before his eyes, Sisyphus somehow became uneasy.

‘Could it be that? The strategy of the North Wind and the Sun. It wasn’t the fierce North Wind that made the traveler take off his clothes, but the warm warmth of the sun.’

Perhaps Joy was trying to move Sisyphus’s heart by showing him favor, so he would perform his punishment properly.

Sisyphus, in his own way, admired this method, which was different from that of employees who only used pain and fear.

‘Indeed, an outstanding employee. He knows how to move people’s hearts. But Joy, you have failed. I don’t know about other guys, but I, Sisyphus, have a core as firm as a rock.’

Sisyphus, who had inwardly ridiculed Joy, lay on the wool Joy had offered, listened to music, and enjoyed a sweet rest.

Sisyphus slept, and even recited poetry by himself, doing everything he could during these 10 minutes of rest, except for rolling the rock.

‘I’m starting to get bored.’

But a person is bound to feel boredom.

Especially Sisyphus, who had been training his muscles by moving heavy stones every day, felt as if his muscles were rusting from not exerting strength for a long time.

‘I rested too much, and my body feels stiff. Should I do some exercise?’

He lay face down on the ground and did push-ups.

“Two thousand twenty-one—. Two thousand twenty-two—.”

But lo and behold, something was missing.

‘The weight is too light.’

His eyes naturally turned towards the rock placed next to him.

Gulp.

Heavy and substantial, weighty, big, and solid…

Truly, the best sense of weight for muscle growth!

‘If I roll that rock up to that high hill, my muscles would be deliciously stimulated….’

Habits are frightening.

Sisyphus, who had rolled rocks for a long time, had become a master of weight training who could not be satisfied without heavy weights.

So he subtly, very subtly, touched the rock with his hand….

“Sisyphus ssi! Your rest time isn’t over yet! Take your hand off the rock!”

“Oh goodness, CEO my goodness! Joy ssi!”

Startled by Employee Joy’s scolding, who had suddenly appeared from somewhere and shouted like a lightning bolt, Sisyphus took his hand off the rock.

He truly thought his heart would drop.

However, his surprise was only for a moment, and Sisyphus barely regained a relaxed smile.

“Joy ssi, this much rest is enough. Thanks to the wool and music Joy ssi gave me, I enjoyed a very rewarding 10 minutes of rest. So now I will perform my role.”

“You can’t! No! Ten minutes haven’t passed yet!”

“What?”

Sisyphus doubted his ears.

He was saying he would roll the stone as a prisoner, but the guard was opposing it.

Even Joy was warning him with a very serious face.

“Sisyphus ssi, please lie down on the wool quickly. The 10 minutes of rest written in the contract are not over yet. You must absolutely not touch the stone.”

“……”

Sisyphus felt chills down his spine.

To prevent him from rolling the rock when his proud muscles were rusting in real time.

At that moment, Sisyphus realized.

‘This man, this was his trick! He intends to make me unable to exercise and train!’

He felt impatient.

The reason Sisyphus could endure the eternal punishment was because it was so rewarding to see his muscles grow firmer and stronger.

But now, the employee of this Happy World was putting in his best effort with the intention of taking away Sisyphus’s only pleasure.

“Joy ssi! Please let me move the stone to that very top! Just one time! I will move it to the summit just one time!”

“You can’t.”

“Please! Please! Even if I beg like this, can’t I?”

“You can’t. Didn’t I specially prepare a wool bed and even music for you? Don’t even think about rolling a rock; just keep resting!”

“Ughhh….”

“Ughhh?”

“…Ughhh…You devil! I’ve rolled rocks here for a long time, but this is the first time I’ve seen a guard like you! You devil! Joy, you cursed one! You wicked one!”

Crude insults.

However, Joy’s expression was indifferent.

“Sisyphus ssi, the contract is absolute. Since the ink used for the signature was made from Styx River water, no matter how high-ranking an executive, it cannot be violated. Therefore, you must take a rest.”

Swoosh-.

The pain of muscle loss, as his muscles, which were as firm as steel and as burly as the round sun, were shrinking in real time.

That broke Sisyphus’s will more strongly than any torture.

“What can be done? In this Happy World, there’s no way to measure 10 minutes of time.”

‘…This man, he’s truly a ruthless person!’

Sisyphus eventually had no choice but to admit his defeat.

“Joy ssi, actually, don’t you know? That there’s a way to accurately measure 10 minutes even in this underworld. It’s by using Kronos’s hourglass.”

In some place in this Happy World, Kronos, the ruler of the old era, was living.

He, the Titan of agriculture and time, made hourglasses as a hobby.

That was an item that could indicate very accurate time even in this Happy World, where the concept of time did not exist.

“If I can obtain a 10-minute hourglass, my rest time will also be able to be accurately measured, won’t it? Then my 10 minutes of rest will end, and my right to perform the proper punishment will return!”

# # #

Sisyphus was broken.

The right to receive punishment, you say?

But that’s not a right, you know.

But thanks to Sisyphus loudly shouting, this story reached Bones’s ears, and Bones procured a golden hourglass that could measure 10 minutes and held it out to Sisyphus.

They say Sisyphus smiled very satisfactorily and said this.

“Can you increase the rock’s weight? Since I rested for a few days, I need to add that much more weight for my muscles to get stimulated.”

Ultimately, Sisyphus diligently rolled an even heavier rock than before, without any trickery. They say the electricity generated as the rock that had gone up rolled back down brightly illuminated the dormitory of the ghost staff.

“Whoooo—!”

“Whoohoo—!”

The ghost staff rejoicing as they saw the brightened dormitory.

They came up to me and rubbed their fluffy bodies on my cheek.

They seemed to think that the dormitory brightening again was thanks to me.

Department Head Bones also made a broad smile with his mouth of only bones.

“The amount of energy Sisyphus is producing is reaching its maximum since the founding of Happy World! Thanks to that, by selling the remaining energy, our department’s budget has also reached its highest level! Joy! You are the best!”

“……”

“Your promotion to assistant manager has also been decided! Congratulations! Only two winters have passed, and you’re already an assistant manager? As far as I know, you’re the third person to become an assistant manager this quickly! And the first among mortals!”

“Long live Joy!”

“Long live Joy!”

“By the way, Department Head, isn’t it almost quitting time?”

“Oh, right. Seeing the amount of sand, it’s almost 6 PM. Then let’s leave work too!”

It wasn’t just Sisyphus who started measuring time using Kronos’s “hourglass.”

Department Head Bones, who thought ‘time’ was extremely useful in the work environment, bought hourglasses in large quantities, and thus the concept of time had arisen overall even in this Punishment Execution Department.

“Ah, with fixed quitting and starting times, it gives me motivation to work! Efficiency seems to be increasing too! Joy, I, Markius, knew you’d do an amazing job on this task too!”

“…Hehehe….”

“It’s too bad for that Krates guy from Team 1, but this year’s outstanding employee award is a sure thing for you.”

“Hehehehehe!”

“I’m happy too since you’re laughing! See you tomorrow! For your information, they say an executive is arriving tomorrow at 8 AM, so be careful not to be late. And make sure to check your mailbox before leaving work.”

“Hehehehehehehehehe!”

Why did things turn out like this?

My dream of getting fired and going to Olympus retreated a few steps because of this matter.

This is hell—.

No, it was Happy World.

However, even in a tiger’s den, there’s always a way out if you keep your wits about you.

Even in this Happy World, if I kept my wits about me really well, I might be able to get a hint to escape.

Actually, I found the answer in the words of my colleague, Markius.

“An executive is arriving tomorrow at 8 AM?”

Did he say all employees must greet her?

Everyone will try hard to look good and leave a good first impression.

But what if I leave a terrible first impression then?

‘For example, being late. Then wouldn’t I look pitiful, like a chicken among cranes?’

The “Chicken Among Cranes” strategy, the opposite version of “Crane Among Chickens.”

It was an excellent idea.

However, there was a catch.

‘I shouldn’t leave the impression that I was intentionally late, ignoring the executive’s authority. If I did that, I might receive punishment, let alone being fired.’

This Happy World has a rather strict hierarchy.

No matter how much I wanted to get fired, if I left an impression as if I had intentionally ignored and insulted a superior, there was a high probability I would inadvertently become a prisoner rather than simply being fired.

Therefore, it was important to be naturally bad at work.

If so, how can I be naturally late?

“Alcohol is the best.”

—I’m sorry, I was drunk and overslept, so I ended up being late.

—Late because of alcohol? I’ve never seen anyone work as clumsily as you! You’re fired!

—What the Happy World! Feeling very good!

It was my plan, but it was truly perfect.

Honestly, it’s hard to even fail this.

There won’t suddenly be a gold vein discovered from the ground, nor will a fitness addict beg to please let him push the rock.

This time for sure, it will be my flawless failure—.

So I headed to the bar without hesitation.

Then something suddenly came to mind.

‘Wait, didn’t that Marki guy tell me to check my mailbox before leaving work?’

I thought of seeing what was there, but then stopped.

Because that Marki guy must have put in another useless chain letter.

# # #

A letter placed in Joy’s mailbox.

The following story was written there.

[I found out some information that might be helpful to you.

They say the new executive likes alcohol very much.

From your dear colleague Markius to Joy—.]