episode_0004

A day of manual labor is the perfect routine to bring about a sense of disillusionment.

Starting before sunrise and leaving work under the night sky.

It’s fine now in late summer, but come winter, I’ll truly see stars on my way to and from work.

‘What am I even doing right now?’

That thought comes naturally. Dragging my exhausted body to work is truly…

My current self wouldn’t fall into disillusionment from physically demanding work.

However, the endless talk show of old men reminiscing inside the cramped car is agonizing.

Their common trait is pretending to listen but only talking about themselves.

Because of this, my gaze remained fixed on the scenery outside the window, where the sun was slowly rising.

– Hello, listeners. This is the quick news opening your morning. Our first story: South Korea’s Sejong Station in Antarctica will temporarily withdraw. It’s an unprecedented full withdrawal, but there has been no clear announcement regarding the reason… –

– Dr. Kim Seokwoo, a world-renowned authority in cancer treatment and research, who had been staying out of sight due to a lawsuit with Taeseong Pharmaceuticals, has now been confirmed to have an unclear whereabouts… –

– China, which had strongly protested Japan’s release of contaminated radioactive water, has now indicated its intention to de-escalate tensions and engage in dialogue with Japan, drawing global attention… –

‘Listening to the news, the country’s a mess, and this place is a mess too. It’s absolutely insane.’

I wanted to at least strike up a conversation with the foreman who was driving us in the early morning,

but the old men’s incessant chatter made me decide to just keep my mouth shut.

The old men, who had been having a one-sided talk show where their words never quite met, suddenly found common ground.

They were all cursing and complaining about Japan and how expensive cancer treatment was.

They say even kings get cursed behind their backs, so politicians are certainly easy targets for criticism.

Then, all of a sudden, their attention shifted to me out of nowhere.

“But Mr. Shin, it’s been a long time since we’ve seen you. Huh.”

“Ah, yes. It has…”

“Your face seems to have improved. And you’ve gotten taller!”

“Ah… that.”

“Are you sure you’ll be okay after being away so long? Mr. Shin, you’re not very strong, ha ha ha.”

‘…These people, seriously….’

“Stop that. He’s grown at least a hand span and his shoulders are broader, so he must be pretty strong now.”

It was the foreman, who had been chiming in, who finally shut down the teasing old men.

He truly knows when to cut things off.

That useless chitchat continued until we arrived at the site.

Only after getting out of the car were my suffering eardrums finally liberated.

The labor agency foreman left, and the site manager we met immediately gave us a brief explanation and instructions.

Today’s job was to stack 16 pallets of mortar on the 4th floor.

It was a new commercial complex building, and since the elevator hadn’t been installed yet, people had to move it.

It sounds simple, but one bag of mortar is 40kg. One pallet holds about 50 bags.

‘This isn’t just about brute strength, you know.’

Those who lack not only strength but also skill and fortitude run away after starting.

It seemed like a quantity that would only be barely possible if all three of us moved diligently today.

To this, the site manager added a customary but inspiring remark.

“If you finish only this today, you can go home immediately, so please do your best!”

Usually, even with hard work, you’d only save 30 minutes to an hour, but now?

“Alright, shall we begin?”

“Ugh… just by looking at this, we can’t finish it all today. Let’s take it easy, alright?”

…There are always people who throw a wet blanket on things right from the start.

Whatever it was, I only needed to do my part well, so I tuned them out.

At first, I started by carrying one bag on my back. I felt nothing in particular.

Next, I carried three bags on my back and moved them.

I didn’t feel any significant weight, and I wasn’t out of breath.

‘Oh wow, this is super easy?’

It was an easy job, though it did get a bit dirty and climbing up and down was annoying.

They say if you’re not smart, your body suffers, but for me, it’s the opposite.

My body is strong, so my mind is at ease. They say manual labor means repetitive work.

Emptying my mind and slowly moving while earning money actually seemed quite good.

A brief thought of regret crossed my mind: if I had been like this before, I would have hit the jackpot.

After I had finished about two pallets, a grumbling voice suggested we take a break.

It was Mr. Kim, the old man who had moved one or two bags, huffed and puffed, and was subtly trying to slack off.

He wasn’t even an old man. Just Mr. Kim.

Since I didn’t get tired, I tried to match the pace of the other old men.

But seeing him like that, not even an hour had passed, I sensed a landmine.

“Ugh…! Just a moment, I need to use the restroom!”

Seeing him walk off with a sly smile, I wanted to hit him.

Anyway, we decided to take a short break, and I lit a cigarette.

Over there [in the other world], I had a forced, non-smoking ban, so to speak.

The cigarette, smoked after a long time, simply tasted good.

I inhaled deeply into my lungs and watched the smoke billow out.

It truly felt like I was on a break.

‘How did I ever manage to endure this?!’

Even after I finished my cigarette and a long time passed, that slacker Mr. Kim didn’t return.

‘Oh, surely not…?’

“Looks like he bailed, what do we do, Foreman Shin?”

“…Indeed.”

I went to where the bags with our clothes were gathered, and his bag wasn’t there either.

“Damn, but still, he ran away without even finishing two hours?”

Just then, the site manager appeared, perfectly timed, and found out about this.

And of course, he started swearing, his face clouding with anger.

Just as he was about to explode, I spoke up nonchalantly.

“Manager-nim. Don’t worry, we’ll take care of what’s left.”

“What? How can you two do all that? It needs to be finished by today!!”

“Don’t worry, I heard you’re working tomorrow, too, so I’ll make sure it’s completely finished.”

“…Ah, well… then do as much as you can. Be careful not to get hurt.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll even organize it nicely for tomorrow’s work.”

I told him not to worry, but perhaps I said it too blandly.

The site manager looked me over with a suspicious expression, then suppressed his anger.

Then he moved away, making a call to the labor agency foreman.

It was too much for two people, but if I put in a little more effort, it wouldn’t be a problem.

“Sir. I’ll carry them up, so please receive them at the top and organize them right away.”

“Oh dear, are you sure? It’s too much for two people…”

Receiving and organizing them is also not easy.

Still, it’s much better than carrying them up and down.

The old man looked apologetic for getting the less strenuous and more comfortable job.

“Don’t worry, let’s push through! We should get off work early!”

“Haha! Alright! Let’s work hard and see how far we can get!”

Once again, I pumped myself up and began moving in earnest.

I carried four bags of mortar at a time and practically ran up the stairs.

It would have been easier if there was one more person to load the bags onto me.

But now that one person had run away, I took the lead.

With my overflowing strength and clever technique, I carried four bags on my back at a time.

I also tried putting two bags on each shoulder.

Even with simple repetition, you learn tricks by trying different ways.

Later, I even gently kicked them up with my foot to balance them on my head and carried them.

Just like when I started, I emptied my mind and diligently moved my body.

In fact, the old man who was receiving the bags at the top almost collapsed midway.

We kept moving them up, taking short breaks, and I helped the old man whenever he struggled.

After drinking water and continuously repeating the work, we were able to complete the entire assigned amount.

“11:45 AM. Perfect time for lunch.”

I gathered the pallets in one spot, lit a cigarette, and slowly made my way up.

On the 4th floor, the results of the old man’s solo struggle were neatly arranged.

And next to it, the old man, on the verge of collapsing, was utterly exhausted.

“…Foreman Shin. Let’s rest for a bit, then continue. I’m hungry and too tired.”

“Hehehe. It’s all done. I just came up after cleaning up downstairs.”

“…?? Really?? All of it, everything that was down there?”

“Yes, I told you. We finished the daily quota.”

“Wow, damn~ No wonder it was so hard! You really brought all of it up?”

Indeed, since we worked without even a break for snacks, it was no wonder he was hungry.

As I was resting with the old man, the site manager came up.

“No way, you really moved all of this up? So fast?”

The manager’s face, clearly flustered, was quite a sight.

And why wouldn’t it be? It was a workload that even three people would struggle to finish.

Furthermore, one of them looked perfectly fine, though a bit dirty, so it was understandable.

“Manager-nim. As you said this morning, it’s a daily quota, right?”

“Huh? Oh, oh! Of course! Wow…! You even organized it nicely. You two worked hard.”

He said we both worked hard and would give us an extra 50,000 won each, which was a huge bonus.

“It’s better to leave early, right? I gave you a little extra so you can have lunch and even go to a sauna. It will be deposited directly into your office account, so keep that in mind and head on out. You truly worked hard.”

I was covered in grime and dirt, and the other person was drenched in sweat.

Nevertheless, we were smiling and in good spirits.

We got paid extra for the day and finished work early.

On the pleasant walk home, I called the labor agency foreman to report the situation.

Sure enough, he said he’d heard and showered me with praise.

He was reserved about the old man who had run away.

Of course, the foreman was furious, but there was nothing more for me to say.

I wouldn’t be seeing him again anyway.

Whether he did well or poorly, it was all his responsibility. He would have to take responsibility himself.

Anyway, I headed home with light steps.

“Today, for a treat, it’s meat.”

I worked hard, so I should reward myself.

***

After that, I diligently continued to go to work, focusing on jobs with high pay rates.

Normally, it’s going to work when the stars are out and leaving when the stars appear.

But I usually finished work and left by late morning.

Naturally, the labor agency liked it, and word spread.

Sometimes I even did two jobs a day, so my income was very substantial.

In my free time, I wandered around, shopped, and ate delicious food.

Thanks to my increased height and fairly toned physique, I enjoyed buying clothes.

As a bonus, my legs had gotten longer, so I didn’t particularly need to hem my pants.

As a result of eating well and taking care of myself, I looked quite presentable, like a man in his twenties.

What had changed remarkably was the aura I exuded.

When I first returned, I was so broken down it was unbearable to look at.

Now, I exercised moderately (?), earned money, ate well, and rested.

Thanks to this, my appearance improved, and at first glance, I looked to be in my early to mid-twenties.

But I had spent over a decade over there [in the other world], so my actual age was almost forty.

However, while my face looked youthful, my aura seemed very mature.

Over there, life-threatening moments were frequent, appearing out of nowhere.

Because of this, my days were filled with heightened senses, making me very sensitive.

More like a sharp and fierce feeling rather than irritable.

Now that I was in my safe homeland, my sharp edges had quite subsided.

Even I could tell that my adaptation was smooth, giving me a mellowed-out feeling.

Now that all the scratches on my face had healed.

For a 29-year-old, I had a significantly youthful appearance, coupled with a mature and substantial aura.

As a result, I was quite presentable.

I thought I had adapted quite quickly since returning and was living comfortably.

It wasn’t bad.

Work hard, rest when it’s time to rest. It was a naturally settling life routine.

When work finished early, I usually consumed news or content chosen by algorithms on YouTube.

Since I had missed a lot, I watched and listened to whatever came my way.

Along with that, I conducted experiments with my inventory.

After checking various things, I found that its capacity had significantly decreased.

Before, I could endlessly put things in, almost infinitely, but now, I could definitely feel its limits.

I wasn’t sure of the exact amount; I’d probably only know if I set aside a day to put a huge amount in.

I also confirmed that the function of stopping the flow of time was still alive.

This was its biggest advantage, and it was truly fortunate.

I put ice cream in and was very happy to see that it didn’t melt.

However…

In reality, there weren’t many opportunities to use the inventory.

Of course, it was better than not having it. It was definitely good.

But at most, it was just for storing frozen foods instead of the small refrigerator in my goshiwon.

Because of this, aside from a bit of high-quality fresh meat and some fruits to eat later, there wasn’t much use for it.

“If I could do things like trade or smuggling, I’d hit the jackpot, huh~.”

Anyway, with my body and mind becoming healthier, and thanks to my strong physical stamina, the feeling that I was doing well and working hard wasn’t bad.

If things continued like this tomorrow and in the future, it felt like I would reach a good future.

This time, I felt like I could do well.

At that time, I thought so.