episode_0023

… … … … …

I was a little taken aback by the sudden question from the CEO, but I soon calmed down and thought about it.

Did you get nervous because you answered the question your boss asked you vaguely when you first arrived at work?

Well, then I’m really sorry. But I couldn’t just tell the ghost story straight away. I couldn’t say, ‘There’s a ghost living in my house, but I haven’t seen it lately, so I’m lonely!’

“Oh, no. Nothing special. Just watching TV, resting… … thinking about work… … .”

“… … I see? Don’t you get lonely when you live alone? I get lonely sometimes――”

The eyes of the Sky President who was asking me the question seemed to sparkle for some reason.

“It’s a little lonely, but I guess that’s how it is to live alone… …right? I’m trying to think that way for now.”

“I see――

Isn’t it better to be with someone in life?

Someone to be by my side when I’m lonely, someone to be happy with me when I’m happy…

If I had a partner like that, my life would be richer.”

The words of the Sky CEO are probably referring to a lover or a friend.

But I have never had an equal relationship with another person, such as a lover or friend.

Everyone I interacted with to some extent only cared for me. As family, as a benefactor… … as an employer.

Someday, I want to become an independent adult and break free from this kind of relationship. I want to be a friend, not a caretaker.

“I guess so… … ? When I’m alone, there are times when I miss people.”

Actually, it’s only been two days since I’ve been truly alone, thanks to Mr. Ghost.

“… … Hehehe.”

And the Heavenly Boss seemed quite pleased with my reaction. Her eyes sparkled even brighter and her face brightened.

I couldn’t figure out why she liked it so much, but seeing the beautiful CEO’s smiling face made me feel good too.

“Hehehe, I was actually a little upset today, but after talking to the boss, my mood got a lot better.”

“Is that true――?

I really enjoy talking to you too. Shall we talk more often in the future?”

I felt the eyes of the Sky President who was speaking to me were slightly moist. I was a little embarrassed, but I was still truly grateful for her kindness.

“Yes! Okay. I want to talk to the Sky President too.”

The boss smiled at my words and handed me another walnut cookie. Her eyes were still sparkling and she continued to look at me.

… … … … …

Today, too, time passed by rather smoothly. Before I knew it, the sun was setting and it was time to leave work.

“Oh my――It’s already time to leave work.”

The CEO muttered with a slightly regretful tone as he picked up the envelope of money and handed it to me.

“Ah… … Thank you! See you tomorrow!”

As I was about to leave work with the envelope containing the money, President Haneul, who still seemed to be feeling regretful, spoke to me.

“… … Do you want to go out for dinner tonight?”

“Yes?”

“I feel like just being leisurely like this today didn’t help ease your loneliness.”

Her kind words, with a friendly smile, penetrated my deeply hidden heart. When I realized that she had caught me feeling lonely, shame washed over me.

“Ah… … Did I look like that? I, I’m sorry. I didn’t tell you because I was afraid of worrying you… … .”

“Then, as a way to express my apology, shall we have dinner together――?”

She lightly accepted the apology, then walked over to the wall of the store and pressed down on a spot.

Click—

As soon as the button was pressed, the bookshelf in the store’s back room was pushed aside, revealing a staircase.

“Wow, wow… …what is this?”

When I asked in surprise, the CEO winked playfully.

“Bears need caves to hibernate――?

Follow me.”

Following her lead, I went down the stairs and opened the door, and surprisingly, a rather spacious and comfortable-looking mansion appeared. The luxurious furniture and warm lighting created a cozy atmosphere.

“Wow… … … .”

I couldn’t help but admire the secret base of the Sky President… no, the secret mansion. She seemed satisfied with my reaction.

“This is my real home. Only very, very special people are invited――?”

I was so embarrassed by the words of the CEO that I didn’t know what to do. It hadn’t even been a week since I met her, but I had already become her ‘very, very special’ person.

I was so happy that such a nice and beautiful person thought of me as special.

“Now, shall we have a delicious dinner――?”

The Sky CEO, who was walking a little ahead, suddenly turned around and spoke. Her eyes were still warm, but I could feel an unidentifiable strong will.

“Yes, yes!”

Following the guidance of the Sky CEO, she entered the dining room of the underground mansion. She began to search through the refrigerator and take out ingredients such as vegetables and meat.

“Please wait a moment――”

The Sky Boss put on an apron and started cooking. Her hand movements were fast and skillful. Even Seoyeon, who thought she was good at cooking, couldn’t compare to the Sky Boss’s skill.

As I was admiring her no-frills cooking skills, the kitchen soon filled with the smell of food.

“It’s done!”

When I came to my senses, dinner was already laid out on the table in an instant.

The owner’s dishes were very traditional, with carefully prepared pumpkin pancakes, glossy soy sauce marinated crab, and fragrant grilled deodeok, all of which you would expect to find in a high-end Korean restaurant.

“Come on, let’s eat before it gets cold, right?”

“Yes!”

With a grateful heart, I picked up my chopsticks and picked up the food she had lovingly prepared.

And the Heavenly Boss… …was watching me eat her food, one by one, with shining eyes.

… … … … …

It’s been quite some time since I started working at ‘Ggomgok-i-pkeoni’, the hole-in-the-wall shop (actually a weapons shop) run by the Sky CEO.

And now, after getting off work, I was standing in front of the mirror and looking at my lower stomach.

“This is strange… … Were these clothes originally this tight?”

Luckily, it wasn’t noticeable when I looked in the mirror, but I still felt a slight tug on my shirt.

If you feel your stomach with your hand, it may be because of your imagination, but the area below your belly button feels a little bulgy.

“Ugh, ugh… … !

I think I gained weight… … ?”

Why did I suddenly gain weight? I thought about it for a moment and the reason came to me.

This is 100% President Sky’s fault.

Walnut cookies, yakgwa, snacks… …and sweet tea, and even a sumptuous dinner. They were all incredibly delicious, but they were high-calorie snacks and foods. If you eat them regularly, you can’t help but gain weight.

“I can’t refuse the boss’s favor… … But, if we continue like this… … .”

Rider… … No, you will gain weight.

Since I’m going to gain weight, it would be nice to get bigger and more manly… … but honestly, I don’t think that’s going to happen.

“Your belly will definitely stick out… … .”

I could only sigh at the hopeless observation.

How should I manage my weight? No matter how I looked at it, the correct answer was to refuse CEO Sky’s snack and meal offers and manage my diet, but when I thought about CEO Sky, who really wanted to feed me, it didn’t seem easy.

“Um… …What should I do?”

While I was thinking about it, it suddenly occurred to me that I have a lot of time after work. Even now, after work, I have nothing to do, so I just stare at the TV and my phone.

“Then, also… … .”

The distance between my workplace and home was not that far, and I could sleep a little later if I skipped breakfast. All factors pointed to only one conclusion.

It’s exercise.

Even the perfect exercise equipment was in the house. I remembered that the previous owner had left behind dumbbells, kettlebells, and other unnamed exercise equipment, but instead of throwing them away, he had piled them up in a corner of the veranda.

“Okay, let’s get started!”

I took out my exercise equipment from the corner of the veranda and searched for beginner exercise videos on my phone.

[Hello friends――! It’s the bald old man!]

“Oh, oh oh… …! Alright. Let’s start with dumbbell exercises!”

The first thing I started with was dumbbell exercises to build strong, manly strength.

“Ugh… … extreme… … !”

However, to do 10 repetitions like shown in the video, it was too much with a 10kg dumbbell. I had no choice but to try lighter dumbbells, but it was still too much.

“… … Well, if I increase it more and more… … it will work, right?”

In the end, the lightest dumbbell I could find was a pink one. I think it was about 2kg or 3kg.

“Ugh, ugh, ugh… …! Alright. Arm workout done!”

After completing 3 sets of 10 reps and finishing the arm workout, what caught my eye was a video of an exercise using kettlebells.

“Kettlebell… …Deadlift? Let’s give it a try?”

I held the heaviest 32kg kettlebell and got into position. I recalled the bald man’s words in the video and slowly tightened my waist… no, it was my waist?

“Okay, let’s go to sleep――!

Ohhh… …?!”

But by the time I realized that my posture was very wrong, it was already too late. I had a very suspicious feeling in my lower back, something very wrong, and a sharp pain started to appear just above my buttocks.

“Ugh, ugh… … ! It hurts!”

I thought it would get better right away if I rested a little, but after thirty minutes, it didn’t get any better. In fact, my back hurt more every time I moved.

“… … … Going to work tomorrow, what should I do… … ?”