SBTGC 11

Chapter 11

A few days later, I decided to admit, just a little bit, that I was an idiot.

I had started to agonize over the contract Günzer had proposed……

11 AM. I had been awake for a while, but I lay in bed without moving a muscle.

It was the same when I heard my parents leave for work earlier. I became an unfilial daughter who didn’t see them off, lost in deep thought.

You might ask why I was doing this when I had already thrown away the copy of the contract, but this agonizing had its reasons.

Because I had been chased once before.

Those crazy cultists who had been chasing me and Günzer.

They knew where I lived. But the reason they hadn’t approached me closely until now was because Günzer, who, like them, had been watching over me from the surroundings, was there. If it hadn’t been for Günzer, I would have been kidnapped long ago.

It was a stroke of luck, but I still couldn’t feel completely at ease.

Because it wasn’t a fortune that would last forever.

If I decided not to accept the contract, Günzer would back down obediently.

At least that man had never lied to me.

But the cultists wouldn’t back down and would keep circling around me. Then, once Günzer, that obstacle, disappeared, they would seize the opportunity to approach me.

And the choices before me were three in total.

1. Join hands with Günzer.

2. Join the Lachažert Management Headquarters.

3. Do neither and be chased by the cultists.

*’I don’t know about the others, but 3 is absolutely out of the question.’*

So, I had no choice but to choose between 1 and 2.

The problem was that I didn’t feel like doing either.

Zzz……

Just as I was about to fall into contemplation, the area by my bedside vibrated. I lazily reached out my hand and picked up my phone.

……An unknown number? I’m not answering.

But about 10 seconds after I hung up.

Zzz……

No sooner had I put the phone down than the same number called again.

Just as I was about to ignore it, a thought crossed my mind.

What if it’s from Günzer? It wasn’t his phone number, but he might have contacted me through other means.

Ahem. Clearing my throat, I answered the unfamiliar call.

“Hello?”

-Hello, this is Kim Ji-won, Team Leader of the HR Team at Satva Electronics’ Business Support Division.

I shot up from my seat the moment I heard it.

Satva?

“Yes?”

The Satva I know?

—

*Satva Group.*

Currently one of the most famous conglomerates in the country, ranking in the top three in name recognition and top tier in technological prowess.

Satva, which started as a pharmaceutical company, later invested in a tech company that was practically a startup, and when the company grew, it acquired that very company and began to expand its business in earnest.

I heard that the founder, Baek Hae-jun, was originally wealthy. In particular, he was very interested in biotechnology and didn’t hesitate to support it.

Nowadays, more people recognize it as just a ‘large corporation’ rather than a pharmaceutical company.

And the reason I know this is because I had applied there a few months ago. Of course, I was gloriously eliminated in the third round.

Wait… Was I eliminated?

*<The reason I’m calling is to inform you that the final interview schedule has been set.>*

The person calling himself the HR Team Leader asked in a neat voice if I was currently job hunting. And as soon as I answered, he told me the final interview date, the visit time, and the floor number.

Listening to him, I felt dazed, as if I were dreaming. Even though it was a situation I should definitely be happy about.

This is strange…

As far as I knew, the final interview date had already passed. Enough time for the successful candidates to be selected had passed, and now suddenly he’s telling me the final interview date?

At first, I thought it was a lie. I even searched separately to see if it was spam… but it wasn’t.

Do they usually proceed like this?

With that question in mind, I headed to the Satva Electronics headquarters a few days later.

3 PM. The 19th floor of a high-rise building you had to crane your neck all the way back to see the top.

Upon arrival, I was guided by an employee waiting for me. The employee led me to a room at the end of the hallway.

“Please wait a moment.”

The employee left after a brief word of excuse, and I sat alone on the sofa, looking around.

The first thing that caught my eye was an object placed in front of the computer. Small animal figurines and fox dolls.

Dried flowers were placed on the windowsill and the shelves, and perhaps because of them, a pleasant fragrance wafted throughout the room. Overall, it was a place that gave off more of a ‘bedroom’ vibe than an office.

Come to think of it, there was no nameplate either. Is this just a place for employees to come and rest?

Click.

Just as I finished my inspection, the door opened without warning.

“Hi?”

A refreshing greeting followed.

Startled, I jolted and stood up. Turning around, a man who had just entered and closed the door was smiling at me.

Pale, slightly tousled brown hair and a gentle voice. Tall stature. A white sweater and dark-colored jeans.

He was a man with an impression like spring personified.

His smile was so natural that it was impossible to imagine a serious expression on his face.

Could that person be the interviewer? He looks too young for that.

“Sena-ssi.”

The man grinned and approached me. His address was as familiar as his greeting.

As he came closer, the floral scent that permeated the office grew noticeably stronger. It wasn’t artificial; rather, it was a fragrance that seemed to clear the mind.

“Sorry I’m late. Got held up for a bit.”

The man extended his hand towards me.

As I awkwardly clasped his hand, the man tilted his head and asked.

“Long time no see. It’s been about 2 weeks, right?”

Long time no see?

Unable to comprehend, I stared at him blankly, and the man widened his eyes in surprise.

“Hm? You don’t recognize me?”

At that question, I felt an inexplicable anxiety and racked my brain.

When had we ever met?

But no matter how much I thought back, I couldn’t remember.

If we had met, wouldn’t I have remembered right away? That kind of face isn’t exactly common.

“……I’m sorry, but I don’t quite recall.”

Then, incredibly, the man looked hurt.

“I thought you’d recognize my voice.”

I’m sorry, but the chances of guessing correctly just by hearing a voice are low. Unless it’s a particularly distinctive voice……

At that moment.

“Ah. Right. It was here.”

Clap!

The man clapped his hands together and smiled brightly, turning his body. He quickly walked over to the desk, bent down, and began rummaging for something.

And after a moment, when the man lifted his head……

“Ta-da!”

“……”

I nearly fainted for real.

A white bike helmet. A smiley emoticon spinning round and round on the black visor.

*<Ah. Why did you come all this way?>*

Only then did the memories in my head reassemble.

*<Such a bother to follow.>*

The man who appeared right after Günzer at Lachažert.

Right. I remembered thinking his voice was gentle the moment I heard it back then… but it was so chaotic, and it was just a voice, so I didn’t recognize it immediately.

“That look says you finally remember, huh?”

As I stood dumbfounded, the smiley on the visor winked playfully. As I just stared, frozen, the man with the helmet tilted his head.

“Hmm……. You don’t seem particularly happy to see me.”

Then, the man took off the helmet he was wearing again. After lightly shaking out his hair, he placed the helmet somewhere on the floor and walked around the table towards me.

For a moment, I wanted to step back, but my body was frozen stiff, so I couldn’t. As if understanding my state, the man shrugged his shoulders and said.

“I didn’t mean to scare you. Just relax, okay?”

Excuse me. How can I relax right now?

“I called you today just to talk. Oh, and the interview is real, of course.”

The man said with a smile.

“Looking at it, I saw that Sena-ssi had applied here before. Your resume is decent, your grades are good, and you even made it to the third round, right?”

“……”

“It’s unfair when someone already pre-selected in the interview gets chosen, but it’s also a pretty common occurrence.”

Then he raised both hands and shrugged.

“This was the best I could do with my abilities.”

His tone sounded as if he was showing off.

Having moved for his own sake, he talks as if he did something for me – it’s truly infuriating.

Should I get angry at those words, or be frightened? Judging by the trembling of my body right now, it seems like I might be capable of both.

“Haha! Why are you so stiff? Come on, sit down, sit down.”

The man grabbed my shoulders and sat me down on the sofa.