WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Potter
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Regressed Assistant Manager Kim Can Read Minds ◈
Chapter 27
──────
TWOFACE, Gangnam.
After work, I followed Assistant Manager Choi to the bar.
As soon as we opened the door and walked in, the bartender recognized Choi Yeongjin.
“You’re here early today.”
“I always start drinking early. I just don’t stay out drinking late.”
Judging by the way they joked with the bartender, Choi seemed to be quite a regular.
After a quick look at the menu, Choi ordered with ease.
“Two Macallan 12s, neat.”
When the glasses arrived, Choi showed off a little, telling me to smell the whisky first.
I did as instructed and brought the glass to my nose.
There was a sweet scent beneath the strong smell of alcohol.
I took a sip. The sweetness lasted only a moment before heat spread down my throat.
“That’s pretty strong.”
“Take your time and enjoy it.”
Twenty thousand won a glass.
At a time when a bottle of soju cost 2,000 won at a restaurant, it was an expensive drink.
“About Daemyeong Electronics. You were right, Manager Kim.”
“About what?”
“I asked around the industry. Another company went through something similar. The perpetrators promised a large order without issuing a purchase order, then canceled once the goods had been made.”
“And after that?”
“The factory couldn’t handle its debts and sold off its stock and technology for next to nothing.”
Choi fiddled with the glass and continued.
“If it weren’t for you, I would’ve pushed ahead, thinking only about my sales figures.”
“We stopped it. That’s what matters.”
“It means more than that to me. Daemyeong Electronics was the first client I handled on my own. Thank you. Really.”
We had worked on the same team for a long time, but Choi Yeongjin and I rarely talked about anything personal.
Our personalities and interests were different. We had talked more recently than we had throughout my entire previous life.
After finishing about half the glass, Choi spoke cautiously.
“Manager Kim. There’s something I need to tell you.”
Choi told me everything about Shin Jaeuk’s offer, one detail at a time.
If Choi said I had taken money under the table in Thailand, Shin would put Choi’s name down for a share of the credit for the Thailand business.
I had already heard in Choi’s thoughts that they had no intention of lying.
I listened to the end without interrupting.
“Let’s tell Department Manager Oh first. We need to report this to Director Jeong, too. This isn’t something we can just keep between ourselves.”
“Weren’t you tempted by the offer to share the credit?”
“Of course I was.”
Choi gave a small laugh.
“But if I joined hands with those people, it’s obvious I’d end up taking the blame later.”
“Is that the only reason?”
“...We’re on the same team, too.”
Choi raised the glass, apparently embarrassed by those words.
I found the situation rather interesting.
Until recently, Choi had been desperate to move to Team 1.
When Park Soyeon had ordered the wrong amount of EVA resin, Choi had worried about their own sales figures first. And during our visit to Daemyeong Electronics, Choi had been on guard the whole time, afraid I might steal the client.
Now that same Choi Yeongjin was taking my side because we were on the same team.
Once I treated Choi differently, Choi made a different choice, too.
“Tell them you’ll do it.”
“What?”
“Tell them you’ll testify at the meeting.”
“Manager Kim, maybe the alcohol’s affecting your judgment, but Team 3 is openly coming after you.”
“Don’t worry. What you’re imagining isn’t going to happen.”
I raised my glass and took another sip.
The strong liquor burned its way down my throat again.
Choi hesitated for a moment before nodding.
“All right.”
Choi looked puzzled but asked no more questions.
As I stood up to pay, a bottle of whisky on one side of the display cabinet caught my eye.
It was the bottle Choi had kept glancing at, even after setting down the empty glass.
I paid for our drinks and that bottle, then left it at the bar for another visit.
“Why are you paying for that?”
“It looked good. I’ll leave it here, so help yourself to some now and then.”
“...You hardly even drink.”
Instead of thanking me, Choi bowed their head.
[...Surprisingly thoughtful, really.]
Outside, the night air cooled the warmth of the alcohol.
* * *
The next day, a strange rumor began spreading through the company.
People were saying I had taken money from a Thai company in return for securing the contract with Anantakul Group.
The rumor even claimed I was romantically involved with Lalita.
As I passed the break room, I heard employees talking.
“I didn’t think he was like that. Unbelievable. How greedy can you get?”
“I heard he’s involved with a director at Anantakul, too. Putting that pretty face to work.”
“Nothing’s been confirmed yet. Don’t judge him just from rumors.”
Outside Team 2, reactions were mixed, but no one on our team believed the rumor.
When Oh Sangcheol returned from his morning appointments, he opened his inbox as soon as he sat down.
The moment he saw the subject line, he turned toward me.
[Agenda: Allegations of Bribery Involving Manager Kim Seongjun]
A meeting had even been scheduled that afternoon for me to answer the allegations, with Head of Sales No Seungpil and the Audit Team attending.
“What kind of bullshit is this?”
His shout silenced the office.
“Manager Kim. Did you really take anything?”
Kang Minho was the first to get up.
“No, sir! I was with Manager Kim in Thailand. Nothing like that happened.”
“I’m asking Manager Kim.”
“It’s all false.”
“Then where did this story come from?”
Park Soyeon spoke cautiously.
“People from Team 3 have been talking about the Thailand trip all morning. They said Manager Kim received hospitality from a local company.”
“Team 3?”
Oh Sangcheol loosened his tie.
“Come with me.”
“Sir.”
“Don’t argue. Just come.”
Without waiting for an answer, Oh strode toward Team 3.
I followed, and Park Soyeon and Han Gyeongsu fell in behind us without a word.
Oh shoved open the door to Team 3’s office.
“Department Manager Oh? What brings you...”
“What do you think? You’re making someone out to be a bribe taker!”
Shin Jaeuk stood up and stepped into Oh’s path.
“Please lower your voice. Let’s discuss this in a meeting room.”
“I didn’t come here to talk to some manager. Stay out of my way!”
Shin’s face stiffened, but Oh walked straight past and approached Jang Taeho.
“I can understand being upset if you think we took the Thailand business from you. I understand that much. But framing someone on another team to get it back? That’s crossing the line!”
“I didn’t take anything. I filed a report. If Manager Kim has nothing to hide, we just need to check the facts. We have testimony from a local company, too.”
Jang picked up a photocopy from the desk.
“The local agency confirmed this directly. Someone on Manager Kim’s own team also said they heard it firsthand. This report wasn’t made without evidence.”
Oh snatched the copy, skimmed it, then slammed it down on Jang’s desk.
“Testimony, my ass. You think I’d believe a word out of a snake’s mouth?”
“...Department Manager Oh. You’re making a mistake.”
“You’re the one who made a mistake.”
Jang’s face reddened as well.
They dropped even the forced respect they had shown a more senior colleague.
“Is this how you act because your career’s almost over? You’ve lost your backing and you’re barely hanging on. Who are you to come here and make a scene?”
Oh took a step closer.
He was short, but he wasn’t backing down.
“Listen, you bastard. I might have lost my backing, and I might be a slacker, but I’m the only one from my intake who made department manager. Do you know why?”
Jang tried to answer, but Oh gave them no opening.
“I might be no good at sales! I might be greedy for results! But I never crossed the line!”
Oh walked right up to Jang’s desk.
“At least I never stabbed the people who worked their asses off under me, or my colleagues, in the back!”
His shout rang through Team 3’s office.
“I might be sneaky and spend my time watching which way the wind blows, but I don’t stab people in the back. That’s how I made department manager! At least I’m harmless, unlike you, you poisonous snake!”
Breathing hard, Oh looked from Jang Taeho to the other Team 3 employees.
“Listen carefully, all of you. Manager Kim was following my orders in Thailand. If you have a problem, call me in first.”
“Sir.”
“Stay quiet, Manager Kim.”
Oh glared at Jang again.
“I’ll take all the blame and hand in my resignation if I have to. Keep that in mind.”
Jang stood there looking as though they had bitten into something foul.
Oh turned and walked a few steps, then stopped again.
“Now that I think about it, I’m angry all over again.”
As Oh stepped closer once more, Jang flinched and backed away.
“Hey. You think a snake like you will ever make department manager?”
In the end, Jang couldn’t say a word.
Oh left Team 3’s office without waiting for an answer.
I followed right behind him.
Even after we returned to Team 2, Oh was still fuming.
“Sir. You didn’t need to go that far.”
“Forget it. I was thinking it was about time I went to Canada to see my daughter anyway.”
[I’m sick of living apart from my family, too.]
I looked at Oh Sangcheol with a strange feeling.
‘People’s hearts... I really don’t understand them.’
Choi Yeongjin, who had always put sales figures first, had taken my side. Oh Sangcheol, who had always cared about saving face, had stood in front of me with even his job on the line.
I had thought being able to read minds would make people easier to understand. Instead, I was more confused than before.
Oh straightened his tie.
“I’ll be at the meeting, too, so don’t worry.”
“I’m not worried.”
“...Well, look at you. Want me to bite you?”
* * *
That afternoon, Head of Sales No Seungpil, the Audit Team leader, and the auditors were already in the meeting room.
I went in with Oh Sangcheol and Choi Yeongjin.
Jang Taeho and Shin Jaeuk sat across from us.
At the sight of Choi, the corners of Jang’s mouth lifted slightly.
[You even brought Assistant Manager Choi. This is the end of your cocky little act.]
Even Oh, who had shouted so much in Team 3’s office, said little once the meeting began.
The Audit Team leader opened the report.
“The allegation is that Manager Kim Seongjun received money from a local Thai company in return for securing the Anantakul contract. A statement of confirmation from the local agency and testimony from a Team 2 employee are attached.”
Throughout the reading of the report, Jang kept glancing at Choi.
The Audit Team leader closed the report, then pushed forward a thick file that had been sitting beside it.
“However, while reviewing the allegations, we also checked Team 3’s business trip records.”
Only a single sheet, the report against me, lay in front of me.
In front of Jang and Shin, however, business trip reports, vehicle logs, and a statement from a local driver were laid out one after another.
After hearing about their plan the night before, I had handed these materials to the Audit Team as soon as I arrived at work.
Jang and Shin looked back and forth between No Seungpil and the Audit Team leader, their faces flustered.
The Audit Team leader looked at me.
“Manager Kim, please explain the materials you submitted.”
I stood up and opened the documents on the table.
“This is the day Deputy General Manager Jang Taeho reported having a meeting with a local company.”
I opened the business trip report and placed the vehicle log beside the relevant entry.
“At the same time, a hotel vehicle took Deputy General Manager Jang to a resort and a golf course in Pattaya. It overlaps exactly with the reported meeting time.”
I turned to the next page.
“Manager Shin repeatedly visited illegal casinos during the trip. We have vehicle records and a statement from the driver, who waited outside until the early hours.”
“Wait...! What is this...”
Jang tried to interrupt, but the Audit Team leader raised a hand to stop them.
Unlike the local agency’s statement, the documents I had brought showed exact dates and routes.
The Audit Team leader continued.
“We also checked with Segwang Pump. On every business trip, Manager Shin received cash from Representative Choi Dongsik for local sales expenses.”
The Audit Team leader opened the company’s expense records.
“That money doesn’t appear in the expense reports. We’ll investigate further to determine whether it was used at illegal casinos.”
Shin urgently turned to Choi Yeongjin.
“Assistant Manager Choi. You heard something from Manager Kim, didn’t you? Tell them exactly what you heard.”
Choi gave a hollow laugh.
“Oh, that?”
“Yes. Tell them properly.”
“I didn’t hear anything from Manager Kim.”
Shin half rose from the chair.
“What?”
“I did hear something from you, though. You said you’d put my name down for a share of the sales credit if I said Manager Kim took money in Thailand.”
Team 3 had written Choi’s testimony into the report before Choi had even spoken.
The words they had added to bring me down had instead become evidence that they had tried to fabricate testimony.
Oh Sangcheol was just as surprised.
He had come with me because he believed I was innocent. He hadn’t known I had already handed the evidence on Team 3 to the Audit Team.
Finally, the Audit Team leader addressed the source of the rumor.
“We also looked into the claim that Manager Kim secured the contract through a romantic relationship with Director Lalita. The employees who first spread that story all belonged to Team 3.”
Now Jang Taeho and Shin Jaeuk were the ones who had to explain themselves, not me.
I focused on No Seungpil.
[If I protect them now, I’ll get dragged into this, too. I have to abandon Jang Taeho.]
The Audit Team leader turned toward me.
“We’ll close the allegations against Manager Kim Seongjun as unsubstantiated.”
No Seungpil spoke in a low voice.
“Deputy General Manager Jang. Manager Shin. Effective today, both of you are off the Thailand accounts and business trips. Hand over all related materials.”
Jang hurried to speak.
“Division Head, you need to hear our side, too.”
“Enough. If you have anything to say, tell the Audit Team.”
Formal disciplinary action and the use of the local sales funds would be addressed through further investigation.
We left the meeting room first, leaving the deathly pale Jang Taeho and Shin Jaeuk behind.
Before the end of the workday, the Audit Team posted its findings on the company bulletin board.
[Bribery Allegations Against Manager Kim Seongjun: Unfounded.]
[Deputy General Manager Jang Taeho and Manager Shin Jaeuk: Suspended from Duties Until the Audit Is Complete.]
Even after the notice went up, the team members showed little sign of leaving.
Even the people who usually hid behind their monitors at any mention of a team dinner were watching Oh Sangcheol.
Whether he noticed those looks or not, Oh asked in his usual tone.
“Manager Kim, um... Are you really involved with Director Lalita?”
“No.”
“Ahem. You said you had a girlfriend, so I wondered. A girlfriend from a wealthy business family would be pretty nice.”
Kang Minho blinked, watching my reaction.
“What’s everyone doing? If you’re not working overtime, go home on time.”
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