Chapter 305: Episode 305

The next day, inside the Tower Master’s office.

The rhythmic sound of a pen rolling against the desk was the only thing cutting through the icy silence.

The mages summoned to the ninth floor stood in a rigid line. I sat at my desk, scrutinizing the stack of documents containing their personnel profiles. Jeong Seojin stood behind me, his hands clasped firmly at his back.

“Mmm.”

I circled a few items with my pen before raising my head.

“Welcome, Fourth Floor, Team One. My name is Kim Yusin.”

They all flinched. Their shoulders trembled as they bowed their heads. I swept my gaze over the group before fixing my eyes on the man standing at the very end.

“Mr. Park Byeong-il, Team Leader.”

“Yes.”

At least this guy seemed to have some genuine experience under his belt. His expression hardened slightly, but there were no overt signs of nervousness. He gave off the distinct vibe of a seasoned corporate veteran who had been through the wringer. I picked up his file.

“Were you aware that the performance of your team is exceptionally poor compared to the rest of the tower?”

“I believe performance can be viewed from various perspectives,” Park Byeong-il explained in a calm, even tone. “If we define performance solely by revenue… yes, it is true that we are at the bottom. However, up until recently, the Magic Tower Master was stationed on the fourth floor. We assisted the former Tower Master and carried out various tasks, both big and small, for the organization. I would appreciate it if you took that level of contribution and dedication into consideration.”

“Hmm.” I rested my chin on my hand and looked at him. “What exactly were these tasks you handled with the former Tower Master?”

“Operations, planning, sales, and even combat. I pride myself on having taken on any dirty work for the sake of the Magic Tower.”

He’s giving a vague answer to dodge the main point.

Well, I came prepared for that too. I moved on to the next topic.

“I heard you don’t get along well with the fifth-floor teams.”

He fell silent.

Park Byeong-il’s expression turned icy.

“My files say otherwise. Factional infighting, was it?”

“May I ask who wrote that profi—”

“Team Leader Park.” I uncrossed my legs, shifted my weight, and met his gaze. “Now is the time for me to ask the questions.”

“…Yes. I apologize.”

“You blew away the former Fifth Floor Team One because you viewed them as a thorn in your side. After Manager Samia’s departure, they were the only good team actually producing results on the fifth floor.”

He said nothing.

“It seems you also handled human resources on top of the operations, planning, and sales you mentioned? You recommended mages from Arcane to the former Tower Master and had them promoted directly to the Magic Tower.”

I received another set of documents from Jeong Seojin.

“Kim Il-go, Hyun Dong-han, Choi Jun-hee. Coincidentally, all three are on the list of individuals slated for termination.”

I tossed the documents onto the table for everyone to see.

“They were selected despite having absolutely nothing outstanding compared to the other prominent candidates in Arcane. Were you aware that there were a lot of complaints from Arcane at the time? It’s not like these people achieved anything in the Magic Tower either. For someone handling HR, you have a terrible eye for talent, Team Leader.”

“Tower Master.” Park Byeong-il’s eyes narrowed with sudden intensity. “Stop beating around the bush and get straight to the point. You’re trying to weed us out because we’re part of the pro-Na Dae-yong faction, aren’t you?”

“Pro-Na Dae-yong faction? What the hell is that?”

Looking at the genuinely dumbfounded Park Byeong-il, I jotted down a new note on his profile.

“It seems the note about factional infighting was absolutely spot on.”

“…Tower Master!” Park Byeong-il’s lips trembled in rage. “You’re completely disregarding all the effort we’ve contributed to the Magic Tower! If the reason you’re treating us so unfairly over past events isn’t because we were loyal to Na Dae-yong, then what is it?! Factional infighting? How is tossing us out just because we once pledged our loyalty to Na Dae-yong any different from factional infighting?!”

“I’m not engaging in factional infighting,” I said, a dark smile tugging at my lips. “I’m carving out the rotting, stinking flesh to make the organization healthy.”

He stared at me in stunned silence.

“It’s a fact that your performance is overwhelmingly abysmal. It’s also a fact that you lack competence. That’s why when I asked you what you’ve been doing all this time, you couldn’t even give a proper answer, just spouting nonsense about doing whatever you were told. The worst-performing team destroying the best-performing team over internal politics is an act that harms the entire organization. Moreover,” I stared at him, my expression going deadpan. “You think what I’m doing is factional infighting? I’m the Tower Master, and this tower is mine. Who exactly am I supposed to be fighting?”

Park Byeong-il bit his lip hard and bowed his head. The rest of his team members followed suit.

“Then I’ll announce the disciplinary action,” I said, lifting the documents once more. “The entirety of Fourth Floor Team One is being demoted to Arcane.”

They gasped in shock.

“I can’t find a single reason why I should keep you people around. Go back to the bottom and climb your way up through fair competition.”

“T-Tower Master! This is far too excessive—!”

Out of nowhere, a glass cup flew through the air and shattered violently against the wall. Park Byeong-il and his team flinched in fright, shrinking back.

Jeong Seojin, who had been standing silently behind me, was now glaring at them with eyes that looked ready to chew them alive.

“…Trash.”

Their faces turned a pale, sickly white under his concentrated murderous intent.

“How dare you show such an attitude in front of the Tower Master.”

“Seojin?” I gestured to him with a pleasant smile. “Come here for a second.”

“Yes, Tower Master.”

Jeong Seojin stepped up beside me and bowed his head. I immediately grabbed his ear and yanked it as hard as I could.

“Stop showing off, damn it!”

“Aaaagh! T-That hurts!”

“Did you think I didn’t notice you intimidating them from behind?! I swear! They can’t even get a word out!”

The entirety of Team One stared at the spectacle with completely dumbfounded expressions.

Jeong Seojin, the Chairman of Alchemia and an untouchably high-ranking figure, was currently twisting his entire body in pain while having his ear pulled like a disobedient child.

I let go of his ear and smacked him in the back of the head.

“If you’re going to act like this, just run the meeting yourself. I’m leaving.”

“I apologize. Please forgive me.” Jeong Seojin bowed repeatedly.

I let out a heavy sigh and picked up the documents, pretending to do so reluctantly. “Alright. Fourth Floor Team One. If you think my decision is unfair, I will give you one last chance.”

I looked directly at Park Byeong-il. “Starting with the Team Leader… introduce yourself. Go!”

“Pardon?”

“There’s no need to explain things I already know. Now, you have ten seconds left. Nine, eight.”

As I tapped my wrist as if checking a watch, the flustered Park Byeong-il froze up like a deer in headlights. He stammered, “I-I work at the Magic Tower…”

“I said don’t tell me what I already know.”

“A-A certified…”

“I already know that you’re a Certified rank-4 hunter, a Third Circle Mage, and originally from the Citizen Guild.”

Overwhelmed by the sudden pressure, he only managed to mutter, “Diligence…” before trailing off entirely. I tossed his profile over my shoulder.

“Go grab a passing kindergartener off the street and have them introduce themselves. They’ll do a better job than you.”

He stood there speechless.

“Aside from working at the Magic Tower, aside from being a rank-4 hunter and a Third Circle Mage, you have absolutely no strengths—to the point where you don’t even know what they are yourself. So why should I place you in a key position? Rank-4 hunters and Third Circle Mages are a dime a dozen in Arcane.”

I wrapped things up with a final, dismissive smile.

“Pack your bags and get out of the tower, Mr. Park. Your juniors down in Arcane will be thrilled to welcome you.”

*

Na Dae-yong was a man with a desperate thirst for recognition. He had been exactly like that when we first met, and the complex only worsened after I fell into a coma. He truly believed the managers didn’t respect him.

Because of that insecurity, Na Dae-yong wanted to surround himself with people who treated him like the true Tower Master and validated his ego.

Naturally, only sycophants and flatterers remained by his side, widening the psychological gap between him and the original managers. The fact that Na Dae-yong couldn’t pull himself together in the end was largely due to these underlying factors.

The yes-men became a barrier to entry, vetting mages trying to enter the Magic Tower, and even taking bribes or favors to bring their junior mages into the fold.

In short, the Magic Tower was rotting from the inside out and on the verge of bursting. My goal was to clear out that blockage and massively transfuse fresh, young blood into the organization.

Thirty people from the Magic Tower were demoted and sent back to Arcane, while a hundred fresh faces gathered from across the globe, including Arcane, joined the tower. Those who had been lamenting that their talents were going unrecognized finally grabbed hold of a new opportunity.

I also brought back the victims of the factional infighting. In particular, Fifth Floor Team One, whom Park Byeong-il had ousted, were absolutely essential talents. I personally called to persuade them.

They still had lingering regrets about being dishonorably dismissed from the Magic Tower, so the talks went incredibly smoothly.

They all gladly agreed to lend their strength to the new Magic Tower now that Park Byeong-il was gone. Upon hearing the news, Samia was overjoyed, saying it felt like gaining an army of a thousand troops.

“Man, with you back, Yusin, it finally feels like the tower is running properly!”

Jin Bora, Jeong Seojin, and I were sitting on the ninth floor together, eating boxed lunches. We didn’t have much time, so we had to grab a quick bite.

“Do you like the new kids on the first floor?” I asked.

“Absolutely! They’re all so polite, and they learn fast! I really don’t know why they let kids like them rot away in Arcane.”

I nodded and turned to grab the hamburger steak, the absolute highlight of this bento box.

However, in the brief moment I looked away, my single hamburger steak had somehow miraculously multiplied into two.

I stared at the tray in bewilderment.

I turned my head. Jeong Seojin, who had been about to transfer his soy-braised beef onto my tray as well, flinched and froze with his fork suspended mid-air.

“…What are you doing?”

“You looked like you were enjoying it, Tower Master, so I thought I would…”

“You don’t need to give me yours!”

“It’s fine. Just watching you eat makes me full.”

A chill ran down my spine at those words. I quickly picked up my lunch and scooted six feet away from him. Jin Bora was also glaring at Seojin as if he had lost his mind.

“You know it’s even weirder when someone who normally doesn’t act like this does it, right?” she asked.

“That’s a prejudice,” Jeong Seojin replied smoothly, pushing up his glasses.

Coming back after five years, it felt like everyone around me had developed severe attachment issues.

“I shouldn’t have said anything,” Jin Bora sighed, shaking her head in exasperation. “Anyway, Yusin, what are you going to do this afternoon?”

“I’ve cleaned the inside, so now it’s time to tidy up the outside.” I chewed on some braised anchovies and looked at Jeong Seojin. “How’s the reaction to Nemesis?”

“Some factions reacted sensitively, but there shouldn’t be any major issues. However, the general public was mostly left bewildered by your statement, Tower Master.”

“…Hmm.”

Information from the Oracle was always treated as top secret, so it was a completely unfamiliar concept to the masses and hadn’t been properly disclosed. The vast majority of people didn’t even know that precognitive ability users existed.

It needed to be brought into the public eye properly.

“And what about the data on Nemesis?”

“I’ve secured and organized all of it. We’ve opened all the studies that were sealed over the last five years, so the intelligence division is fully prepared.”

“Good.” I clapped my hands together vigorously. “Ea, are you listening?”

-Yes, Tower Master.

With a burst of light, Ea revealed herself in the room.

“This time, leak all the information about Nemesis to the Alliance, the government, and every major media outlet.”

She blinked. “If we do that, the media will publish articles on a massive scale.”

“That’s exactly the goal. We don’t have much time left. The entire world needs to wake up to the danger now, and we’re going to take the lead in setting that tone.”

“Understood, Tower Master.”

Just then, my phone vibrated in my pocket. It was a call from Shin Nara.

“Yes, yep. Understood.”

I hung up the phone and looked at the group.

“I need to make a quick trip to Switzerland.”

“Oh my! Switzerland? You mean the Alliance Headquarters? What’s going on?”

I gave a sly grin and replied, “They want me to come pick up my rank-1 certification.”

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