-Whistleblower (2)
Of course, everything was legal to a certain extent. The reason for trusting Kim Mi-young manager, an expert in imperial law, was that she made good use of the law. This was because there were secretly many ways to avoid the dense net known as the Imperial Law.
There was no room for a problem once the investigation came in, but this in itself might already seem a little dangerous from Cho Hyejin’s eyes.
If she was a woman of principles, then perhaps she noticed the ills within the guild while I was away.
‘That’s not the only problem…’
Sun Hee-young’s volunteering service could also be a problem. The work of removing garbage in slums may be viewed as contributing to society by catching and killing criminals from the point of view of some people, but to be precise, it was also a crime.
The fact that I could control the media on my own might not sit well with people who adhered to their own values. People like Cho Hyejin would probably think that the press should be transparent.
From my standpoint, she would be a hindrance. As her authority and influence within the guild increases, I would become more limited with what can do.
‘Hyunsung…
Why did he have to do this now? For a moment, resentment filled me up. However, this was no time to be picky. I needed Blue to grow as much as possible. Though it sounded selfish, I didn’t want to be held back by my conscience.
I thought Cho Hyejin would refrain herself from doing the same due to her past experience, but I knew it would not be easy to change personal values. She might overlook my activities the first few times, but I knew she and I would not get along in the end.
First, I had to gauge how things would go.
With this in mind, I gently disentangled myself from Jung Hayan, heading to the bathroom to wash up. In no time, I was dressed and on the move. I’d initially thought that Jung Hayan was only pretending to be asleep, but it appeared that she genuinely was still unconscious.
Right off the bat, I decided to visit Kim Mi-young. I felt a little sorry, seeing as it was her day off, but it would certainly be better for me to take care of things in advance.
The whole Guild House was quiet, as if everyone was still sleeping. When I went to knock on Kim Mi-young’s door, a little kid opened up.
“Ah!”
“Hello. Is your mom here?”
“Mom! Uncle is here!”
“Mom!”
I knew I wasn’t old enough to be called an uncle, so that definitely hurt.
As the children frantically called for their mother, I had to shake my head. I knew nothing felt more uncomfortable than having a boss suddenly call on an employee during a holiday. The sorry feeling came back again, but there was nothing I could do.
‘You have to suffer as much as you receive.’
Since she had been promoted to manager, situations like these were inevitable.
After some time, Kim Mi-young had come to the door, obviously having done so in a hurry.
“V-Vice Guild Master. Why did you come?”
“I’m sorry for bothering you on your day off, but I have something to talk about. And I have to write a new contract too. I actually came to do both…”
“If you could tell me…”
“Ah. It’s a personal affair that I don’t want to tell others about.”
“I’m sorry?”
“It’s work-related. Will it be okay for me to come in?”
“Yes. It’s shabby, though…”
This was the first time I had entered a room used by one of our guild staff, and it was definitely better than I had initially thought. It appeared that we treated our members better than I had first thought as well.
Of course, Kim Mi-young had been given a better room because of her children, but the interior, as well as appliances, looked to be in very good condition.
As I looked around, I noticed her children staring up at me, looking daunted by my presence. Pretending not to notice their wariness, I sat down on a nearby chair.
“Have you eaten?”
“No. Not yet. I came as soon as I got up.”
“If you’re okay to…”
“It’s fine. It looks like you’ve already eaten; I can’t bother you. And the children…”
“Ah! Yes. Can they go to their room for a minute?”
“Yes!” came the immediate response, and they went and followed my request.
“Ah, they are very obedient.”
“‘They’ve matured at such an early age. It’s comforting, but it also makes me quite sad. Anyway, may I ask what kind of business you came for?”
“I just have a few things to check. As I said, I’m also going to proceed with the contract part again. The annual salary is 700 gold.”
“I’m sorry?”
I knew Kim Mi-young would feel disbelief at this. It was difficult for an employee to receive 700 gold per year. That was equivalent to about 70 million won in Hanwha, which wasn’t easy to receive even back on Earth.
“Your annual salary is 700 gold, and you may receive a salary increase depending on your performance.
“T-That’s too much…”
“It’s not.”
‘That’s because the amount of work you’ll do is roughly that much.’
“I already know that you’re doing more than your annual salary. If you look at the contract, the welfare conditions have also changed, so I think you should go over those as well.”
“T-Thank you.”
“Please read it slowly and sign it. It doesn’t have to be today.”
“Okay.”
“Ah! And another reason for coming here today…”
“Yes.”
“I would like you to tell me about Cho Hyejin.”
“Uh… As I said yesterday, she works well, and…”
“Not like that. I want you to tell me what she had been doing and handling in my absence. If she made some payments, inform me of which document she paid for, and if there were any problems in the way she handled things. Tell me even the smallest detail – from her personality, behavior, or anything, really.”
“Ah…”
“Of course, the fact that I asked about her is a secret.”
“Yes, of course…” Kim Mi-young’s eyes had widened at this point. It was evident that she was not sure about what was going on.
“Is there something wrong with Cho Hyejin?”
“It’s not really a problem. Rather, she’s too clean. Oh, I think I need to explain her background first.”
“Okay.”
“Cho Hyejin moved from Castle Rock to Lindel because she’s a whistleblower. She exposed her previous guild’s corruption and was then forced to leave. As the rumor spread, she could not join other guilds or clans in Castle Rock, and was forced to come to Lindel. She probably knew that Hyunsung-ssi was recruiting. I got the information from another source.”
“Yes…”
“Of course she’s right, but that doesn’t mean it’s something I can’t worry about. I asked because of what I’ve been telling you. Do you understand what I’m talking about?”
“Yes… Yes.”
Of course, she knew what I meant. The conclusion of my question was, did she ever do something that would make her guilty? If so, did Cho Hyejin know about that?
“I know why you are concerned. Vice Guild Master.”
“I’m relieved.”
“You can relax, you don’t have to worry too much. First of all, I was dealing with the part that seemed to be a problem… Some things related to the potion factory, taxes, and the Free City of Celia, I’ve taken care of and reported it to the Guild Master.”
“Ah!” That was indeed a nice thing to hear.
“Cho Hyejin mainly handled tasks in a more direct field, such as the Crisis Response Team and the Dungeon Strategy Team. I didn’t know what specifically, however…”
“No. That’s okay.”
“The guild itself is transparent and very clean. You can rest assured that you haven’t broken the law, and everyone is working according to the law.”
“That’s a relief. So what about the moral part? Ah! Just honestly tell me what you felt.”
As I glanced at Kim Mi-young, I could see her nodding again and opening her mouth.
“In the case of the potion market, small clans and private pensioners have a monopoly that makes it difficult to move, but… There are no legal problems either. If you start the Lindel Alchemy Assistance Project this time, there won’t be any dispute. Actually, our guild image is pretty good. Everything seems to be working out fine.” At this, Kim Mi-young bowed her head in embarrassment. I had done the right thing picking her – she was definitely competent
She was different from shit like me. Compared to me, who only knew how to agitate, fabricate, and cheat, she was a genuine intellectual. However, it was good to have her by my side, for she would make me look a lot more competent as well.
“Good.”
“Thank you.”
‘Because of that, you can take a little more.’
With this in mind, I changed her salary to 1000 gold, 300 higher than her initial one. I could see Mi-young’s eyes widening, but I continued to talk as if nothing big had just happened.
“I give you an annual salary that fits your capacity. I really like that the parts that are likely to have problems were pulled out beforehand and processed.”
“That’s… Nothing compared to your kindness…”
“No. No. There is no such thing as kindness. It’s ridiculous to say that it’s kindness to pick up a rolling gem. Oh, are there any other specifics? For example, something about how much authority the Guild Master gave Hyejin?”
“If I may speak objectively…”
“Yes.”
“I kind of feel like it’s too much. When I think about her ability and character, understand that it is better to be in a good position, but she has more authority than what I was expecting.”
“Strictly speaking, is she on the same level as our Manager Kim Mi-young?”
“Well, I’m just acting as a representative for the Vice Guild Master, nothing more or less.”
“Hmm.”
“Hyejin is different. After recruiting Cho Hyejin, the Guild Master put her into work right away and handed over various positions. It was just a story, but I heard that Cho Hyejin would be serving as the guild’s secretary as well. I understand the Blue Guild motto, but there are many comments that it seems she has given the authority to outperform other party members. A lot of members are concerned.”
“I see.”
“Apart from Cho Hyejin’s character and ability…”
“Ah. I understand what you’re talking about.”
Of course, this did not mean that Mi-young was jealous of Hyejin. She wasn’t that type of person, and they were on different levels. No matter how good Mi-young was, Cho Hyejin was far stronger in terms of stats, with one of the best powers. She was the type of person who was already guaranteed success.
From this, I knew Kim Mi-young was just concerned about Hyejin’s sudden surge in power.
“Ah, but for our Vice Guild Master…”
The fact that she was looking out for me surprised me and pleased me at the same time.
“Thank you for worrying about me.”
“I-It’s only natural.”
“Of course, the Guild Master said that he would decide about Cho Hyejin’s key position after discussing with me, but I think he’s already made up his mind.”
“Hmm.”
‘Guild’s secretary…’
In terms of position, she had the same power as 1, the Vice Guild Master, did. Of course, my title was a notch above hers, but she had just as much authority as I did.
I knew Kim Hyunsung was not trying to create a division of power. He was probably looking forward to how Blue would develop if Hyejin and I worked together, but she and I were as compatible as water and oil.
I did not blame him, however. Hyunsung couldn’t read status windows like could, and therefore was likely to not have noticed how incompatible she and I were.
‘Ah, this is bad…
I was beginning to realize just why Hyunsung had failed back in the first timeline.
Perhaps he had gotten backstabbed by guys like me several times.
I’m sure of it.