An Office Worker Is Good At Exorcism - Chapter 230

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 229
Part 1. It’s Not Excessive Greed, Is It? (3)
Lunchtime was drawing near.
Gwak Young-ho had told me to head home in the afternoon, so I’d packed my things, but I couldn’t deny the awkwardness that hung in the air.
“Huh? Manager, where are you going?”
It wasn’t even lunchtime yet.
Still, Namgoong Min-ah, who had already extended one foot beyond her desk in preparation to dash toward the Company Cafeteria, spoke up, though fortunately Gwak Young-ho answered for me.
“Kang Manager has something to attend to, so we decided he’d head home early.”
“Oh!”
Namgoong Min-ah, who hadn’t heard anything about this, looked at me in surprise, and Lee Jin-pyung cast a similarly questioning glance.
In contrast, Shin Jung-ah wore an expression of “well, that’s possible” as she focused on her paperwork.
“It just came up. Kang Manager, take care on your way home.”
“Yes.”
I stood up, trying to hide my embarrassment, but Namgoong Min-ah’s concerned gaze followed me.
“Is nothing wrong, is there?”
“It’s nothing like that.”
“I hope everything works out!”
I could understand why Namgoong Min-ah reacted this way.
But Lee Jin-pyung wore a similar expression, so I let out a laugh that felt more like a sigh.
“I’ll see you all tomorrow.”
As Gwak Young-ho entered the Manager’s Office, he discreetly raised his thumb where only I could see.
It was his way of telling me to rest easy.
“Take care on your way!”
“Go safely.”
“Take care, Kang Manager.”
Accompanied by the farewells of my remaining teammates, I grabbed my bag and headed toward the Elevator.
But I couldn’t bring myself to press the button to go down.
I pushed open the Emergency Exit instead.
Taking the stairs was less awkward than running into people from other departments.
‘Ugh.’
Sales Team 3 had nearly committed embezzlement.
And with something strange, no less.
According to Gwak Young-ho, the enraged Company would likely dig into the ring that had caused all this, and whoever was involved probably wanted to tear me apart right now.
‘I shouldn’t have done something so reckless.’
What was a little money compared to doing something so foolish?
Still, there was one silver lining.
At least that strange ring hadn’t been distributed across the entire country.
My footsteps echoed with each step down.
By the time I reached the Underground Parking Lot, I checked my wristwatch.
Kang Hyung-seok went down to the Underground Parking Lot and checked his wristwatch.
An unexpected lunch break and half-day off materialized before me.
The mere thought of spending a leisurely afternoon at home filled my chest with a sense of abundance.
I could pick up caramel-coated popcorn from the convenience store, and watching a trending series on a streaming platform would make it even better.
“Heh.”
But could such a thing truly come to pass?
The peaceful everyday life felt impossibly distant, and I laughed weakly.
I climbed into my car, checked my watch once more, and then composed a message to Shin Yoseph.
Tap, tap.
「Can you talk?」
After sending it, I observed the occasional passersby in the quiet and dimly lit underground parking lot.
Someone who came to fetch something from their car.
Someone who came to take a brief nap.
Someone who hurriedly grabbed their phone and climbed into their vehicle.
I was watching them intently.
Zzzzzing.
Instead of a reply message, a call came from Shin Yoseph.
Click.
(Why?)
“I need to ask you something.”
(At this hour?)
Shin Yoseph asked curtly, and I unconsciously glanced at my wristwatch before speaking.
“There was something that happened at the company recently.”
(Hmm?)
“Sales Team 3 tried to deceive clients by passing off items of questionable origin as legitimate merchandise and distributing them.”
(You’re leaving that alone?)
“It’s not my responsibility to punish them.”
That’s the company’s job.
The company seemed to be taking it seriously, so it wouldn’t be brushed aside lightly.
“Anyway, there’s something odd about that item.”
(…What exactly happened?)
Thud, thud.
Someone happened to pass in front of my vehicle.
So I waited until they were completely out of earshot before answering.
“They said it was a ring inscribed with a demon-subduing incantation, but it wasn’t. Apparently it had some strange scripture written on it instead.”
(Was it distributed?)
Shin Yoseph’s voice turned sharp as he grasped the severity of the situation.
“No. I stopped it before it could be released.”
(Phew.)
“Anyway, we can’t just let this slide as is, so I’d like you to look into it. Even if we don’t take immediate action, we should be prepared to take measures if needed.”
(Sales Team 3, you said?)
“That’s true, but the Company doesn’t know the details yet.”
A breathless laugh came through the phone.
(Somehow, he figured it out.)
“Impressive, right?”
(Not particularly blessed with luck.)
The corner of Kang Hyung-seok’s lips, which had risen briefly, sagged on one side.
“Your speech habits and…”
(I get it. But what happened to that ring?)
“From what I hear, it was disposed of.”
(How does that just happen?)
“It’s a suspicious item. They probably wanted to get rid of it before a formal investigation started.”
(…Tsk.)
Shin Yoseph’s feelings were probably the same as mine.
Kang Hyung-seok thought this and exhaled a heavy sigh silently.
No matter how suspicious the item was, they disposed of it far too hastily.
Normally, they should have reported the defect and proceeded with proper follow-up measures.
By skipping that process and jumping straight to disposal, it seemed they were in quite a hurry.
“Have you eaten? If not, I’ll buy you something.”
(…Get lost.)
“Not convenience store food. Something proper.”
(What, oxtail soup?)
It was honestly one of the options I’d been considering.
As Kang Hyung-seok was thinking about what other foods there might be, Shin Yoseph’s voice came through.
(I have an important business meeting this afternoon. Let’s do it next time, next time.)
“Really? I’m free this afternoon.”
Silence fell, and there was something eerie and unsettling about it.
(Then just watch a movie at home while eating popcorn or something.)
Click.
Shin Yoseph hung up the phone.
In the car, Kang Hyung-seok stared at the darkened phone screen before placing it on the dashboard.
‘Well, that works out fine for me.’
Kang Hyung-seok set the navigation app’s destination to his Rental House.
Then he began driving toward home.
I ended up having a genuinely peaceful afternoon, yet strangely, it wasn’t as enjoyable as I’d expected.
***
Thunk.
A thick burlap sack tumbled onto the worn, grimy scale.
“Goodness, quite a lot here. Where did you get this from?”
After checking the weight, Kim Sang-deok shook his head with an uncomfortable expression.
“You didn’t get this from anywhere suspicious, did you?”
“It was discarded. Just discarded.”
Tsk.
The junk shop owner eyed the sack suspiciously and opened it wider.
Inside, rings filled the entire bag.
They were rings that someone from Sales Team 3 had hastily dumped in a box at the Company Front Recycling Bin—abominations inscribed with profane incantations.
“Would I joke around with something like this? At my age, my legs are too weak to even steal anything.”
Heh heh.
The junk shop owner responded to the jest with laughter and brushed off his cotton-gloved hands with a pat-pat.
“These don’t look like anything particularly valuable anyway. I’ll calculate it based on scrap metal value.”
“Yes. Thank you.”
Kim Sang-deok’s eyes brightened with anticipation, and the junk shop owner pulled out crumpled bills from the hip pouch hanging at his waist.
“Here you go.”
“Is that all?”
“That’s already quite generous. Bicycles fetch better prices, so if you have anything else you’re not using, bring those instead.”
Tsk.
Kim Sang-deok reached for the thousand-won bills in the junk shop owner’s hand with a dissatisfied expression.
A silver ring hung on one of his weathered, nail-scarred fingers.
It was the same kind of thing as the rings contained in the burlap sack.
***
Vroom.
The next day, I drove to Daejeong Materials.
For someone who’d taken the afternoon off, my expression was far from refreshed.
Part of it was the uncertainty of when Shin Yoseph might contact me, and part of it was the constant calls from clients who didn’t know I was taking the afternoon off.
“Sigh—”
I sipped the coffee I’d bought from the convenience store on the way to work, then eased off the accelerator as Daejeong Materials came into view in the distance.
My chest swelled with hope—like a balloon—that today would pass without incident.
‘It’s not an excessive wish, is it?’
I just hoped no one would suffer because of me.
I simply wanted an ordinary, uneventful day like everyone else had.
Vroom.
As the engine sound faded and I slowed the car, I was about to enter the Underground Parking Lot when something felt off.
A strange unease washed over me.
I glanced at my watch—the usual time.
So the Security Guard should have been visible in front of the Company as always.
‘What’s this? Is he off today?’
Normally, it would be easy to brush aside.
Our relationship wasn’t particularly close anyway.
But what I couldn’t ignore was the anxiety lurking beneath my desire for everything to go smoothly.
Tap, tap.
An elderly man in a blue security uniform emerged, broom in hand.
Relieved, I exhaled silently and pressed my foot on the brake.
I lowered the driver’s side window and leaned my head out toward him.
“Excuse me!”
“Oh my, yes?”
“Hello. I don’t believe we’ve met before?”
The Security Guard laughed awkwardly at my greeting and shook his head.
“I’m just a substitute. A substitute, you see.”
“I’m sorry?”
“A friend of mine suddenly got sick, so he asked if I could just come in urgently to cover his shift…”
I stared at him for a moment, then quickly glanced behind me.
Several cars were approaching—it was the start of business hours.
“Is he very ill?”
I asked, my voice tinged with concern, and the Security Guard adjusted his slipping cap with his thumb as he answered.
“He said he’s been bedridden—whether it’s a cold or something, I’m not sure. I don’t know the details myself.”
Something didn’t feel right.
I pulled my wallet from my pocket and took out a business card, handing it to the Security Guard.
“If he’s seriously ill, please contact me at this number. I’ll look into what help we might be able to provide.”
“Yes, yes?”
“He’s one of our employees, after all.”
Kang Hyung-seok leaned his arm and head into the car window, and the Security Guard’s gaze—grateful yet tinged with reluctance—followed him.
The reluctance was mutual; I felt it too.
‘This is going to drive me mad. Seriously.’
The abandoned ring.
The replaced Security Guard.
An illness with no clear cause.
A premonition whispered that these three things might not be mere coincidence.
Honk!
The car behind blared its horn, and Kang Hyung-seok activated his hazard lights in apology before beginning to drive toward the Underground Parking Lot.
The uneventful day I had pleaded for so desperately moments ago was now completely erased from my mind.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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