This place that is simply called the ‘company’…
Team 1, which is said to be the most militant even in this place…
Jang Sejong, the new employee and therefore the newest to this team, was walking past the employee break room with a lot of files in his hands.
He could hear some whispers through the slightly opened break room door.
“Don’t you think that team leader Kim Rok Soo has become a bit weird?”
Flinch. He stopped walking.
Although the voice was so quiet that regular ability users would not be able to hear, this newbie, Jang Sejong, could hear it because he had a sensory-related ability.
“Mm.”
“Seriously, don’t you think that is the case? It looks like he might be burnt out, but… it also looks like… he might have gone crazy… Drinking at work-”
“…You talk like this is the first time that bastard Kim Rok Soo has been weird. He’s always been a crazy bastard.”
The brusque voice was Park Kyung Ho’s voice.
He had joined the company at the same time as team leader Kim Rok Soo and was the Team 2 leader right now. However, he was said to be promoted soon.
“No, he is a crazy bastard, but… He’s never been a crazy bastard in this way. Something, something seems weird.”
“I thought you were busy? Stop being nosy and focus on your own work.”
Screeeech. Park Kyung Ho stopped talking and the break room door opened immediately.
Jang Sejong flinched after making eye contact with Park Kyung Ho. Team 2 leader Park Kyung Ho, who was called the Spearman of Thunder, scowled after looking at Jang Sejong.
Flick.
However, he simply motioned with his head for Jang Sejong to move along and Jang Sejong bowed while curled up in fear and quickly walked past the break room to his office.
“Haaaaa.”
Jang Sejong let out a light sigh.
He could not brush aside what he had heard in the break room.
“…Somewhat-”
As the person talking to Park Kyung Ho had said…
Team leader Kim Rok Soo…
“He really has somewhat become weird.”
Jang Sejong thought about Kim Rok Soo’s odd changes that the whole company was talking about and then recalled the moment two weeks ago when it had started.
* * *
Two weeks ago was the first time that Kim Rok Soo missed work at the company without notice.
“What? Team leader-nim is not here yet?”
Assistant Leader Kim Min Ah, who had been dispatched in the morning, frowned while looking at Jang Sejong. Jang Sejong looked a bit scared as he nodded his head.
“Yes, yes ma’am. The team leader-nim has not come yet.”
“Wasn’t his time off until yesterday?”
A Support Agent, Jung So Hoon, chimed in as well.
“Yes, ma’am. It was until yesterday and he should have been back at work today.”
“…Something is weird.”
Agent Jung So Hoon immediately picked up his coat.
Assistant Leader Kim Min Ah quickly scribbled something and handed it to Jang Sejong.
“Hand this to Agent Cha. I’m going to go see the team leader-nim.”
Jung So Hoon and Kim Min Ah… The looks on their faces were quite serious.
Jang Sejong could clearly hear their extremely quiet whisper as they left the office.
“Do you think the team leader-nim fainted after pushing himself too much these days?”
“Agent Jung, have you ever seen the team leader-nim faint? He’s the type of person who would call first even if he was going to faint. This… Something must have happened.”
“…Do you think one of the illegal guilds attacked the team leader-nim’s house?”
Agent Jung So Hoon’s voice was slightly shaking from anxiety.
“Or maybe an assassin dispatched from overseas abducted the team leader-nim. Ah, I have a bad feeling about this. Doesn’t the team leader-nim live in the outskirts of the city? I’m sure the security there isn’t good either. Should I contact the Team 2 leader?”
“Calm down. We will decide after going to the team leader-nim’s house.”
“Haaaaaaaaa. Okay. But why does someone like the team leader-nim who makes a ton of money living in the outskirts of the city?”
“Who knows? He said he needs a lot of money to become a farmer later.”
Jang Sejong looked around after watching two of his company seniors leaving.
There was nobody in the office.
Jang Sejong was the only newcomer this year.
“Mm.”
He looked at team leader Kim Rok Soo’s seat with an anxious look on his face. There weren’t even many office supplies in that empty spot.
Kim Rok Soo.
Jang Sejong had not really known that name prior to coming here. In fact, Team 2 leader Park Kyung Ho was the famous one while the name, Kim Rok Soo, was unfamiliar.
However, gathering information about the company after deciding to come here, he was able to learn that Kim Rok Soo was quite famous not just in the company, but also throughout the industry and with the government and guilds.
Although he had not known the name because this person doesn’t show himself in the media, he was the leader of Team 1, the greatest force in the company, as well as implicitly the leader of the company’s battle agents in the ‘Body.’
Furthermore, even the people in charge of the ‘Head’ were said to be unable to hold in their admiration at Kim Rok Soo’s abilities.
One of the nicknames they had for Kim Rok Soo was cold-blooded.
Jang Sejong had thought that this was a negative nickname for him.
However, he couldn’t help but gasp after learning the reason for this nickname.
Team 1’s mortality rate was 0% since Kim Rok Soo became team leader.
They had also not failed any of the missions they were assigned.
Kim Rok Soo was said to come up with a thorough plan and complete the mission under any and all circumstances, even if he was lacking the resources to do so.
Furthermore, many people’s abilities developed even further when they were in his team.
That was why he was said to have received this evaluation.
‘Kim Rok Soo truly is the person to follow after Lee Soo Hyuk.’
That was what they were saying.
Jang Sejong could feel Kim Rok Soo’s amazingness after hearing the name, Lee Soo Hyuk.
Lee Soo Hyuk.
That was a name that was brought up every time the history of Korea after the cataclysm was mentioned. Furthermore, that person was the foundation of this company and the source of its creation.
Of course, he has passed away now.
Team leader Kim Rok Soo was said to be the person who survived the battle where Lee Soo Hyuk passed away.
“Mm.”
Jang Sejong recalled that moment when he heard that Kim Rok Soo truly is the person to follow after Lee Soo Hyuk. Team 2 leader Park Kyung Ho had said something when he heard that.
He had been mumbling as if he was discontent about something. Jang Sejong had been the only one to hear it.
‘…There were two people who were supposed to follow after Lee Soo Hyuk.’
Jang Sejong wondered if Park Kyung Ho was talking about himself, but it did not sound that way. It sounded more like there was someone else in addition to Kim Rok Soo.
“…Anyway, I hope it is nothing serious.”
Jang Sejong tried to suppress the worry in his heart.
When he was assigned to the cold-blooded Kim Rok Soo’s Team 1… Jang Sejong had been quite nervous. However, Kim Rok Soo had been a bit different from what he had expected when he met him in person.
‘Nice to meet you, Mr. Jang Sejong.’
“Hello, Team leader-nim! Please speak informally.’
‘Okay then.’
Kim Rok Soo had called him by name and greeted him as soon as he saw him, even though Jang Sejong had not introduced himself.
He had a cold look on his face and had a mysterious aura about him. He gave off the aura of a leader who had gone through many life-or-death situations and successfully completed missions?
A somewhat relaxed yet sharp aura was surrounding him.
‘Let’s survive here a long time, make a lot of money, and retire.’
However, there was at least a little bit of warmth in the words he nonchalantly said to this new employee.
‘What about food? You must make sure to eat.’
‘Go home. Newbies can slowly learn.’
‘You’re living on your own? What about your meals? You just eat whatever?’
In his cold and nonchalant face with his stoic voice… Kim Rok Soo looked after Jang Sejong, completely unlike his cold-blooded nickname.
Jang Sejong was still in his probationary period and could not be a part of the strategy meetings or go out to mission, making him not work with the team leader yet, however…
Kim Rok Soo had said the following to Jang Sejong after stopping by the office a few days ago, completely covered in blood after a mission.
‘There’s a side dish shop not too far from here. I paid for a few side dishes there. Make sure to take them when you go home.’
‘You need to eat properly. I heard you were a support but wanted to be in the field? Fitness is a basic requirement for that.’
Kim Rok Soo seemed like a good leader.
That must be why all of Team 1 follows Kim Rok Soo.
Jang Sejong prayed that there weren’t any issues with the team leader.
“…Assistant Leader-nim?”
However, Assistant Leader Kim Min Ah’s face looked quite weird after returning from going to see Kim Rok Soo.
She had a serious look on her face but also seemed to kind of be blanking out while also having an oddly iffy look.
Jang Sejong called out to her again.
“Assistant Leader-nim?”
“Huh? Ah, ah. What is it?”
“Is the team leader-nim okay?”
“Ah.”
Kim Min Ah smiled awkwardly.
“Yes. He’s fine. I think he was just tired from pushing himself too much.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Really.”
“Then will he be coming to work tomorrow?”
Kim Min Ah had an odd look on her face after hearing that question before shaking her head.
“No. I think he will be resting for about a week.”
She then left the office saying that she needed to check how much PTO the team leader-nim had left.
Jang Sejong heard about it later, but this was the first time Kim Rok Soo ever used over a week’s worth of PTO at once.
Jang Sejong was able to hear the things Kim Min Ah was mumbling extremely quietly as she left the office.
“…My goodness, it makes no sense.”
She did not say anything else after that.
However, Jang Sejong was certain that although Kim Min Ah was saying the team leader was fine, something more serious than he had expected must have happened to Kim Rok Soo.
That had to be the case.
One week. Something was different about team leader Kim Rok Soo when he came back after his time off.
“Team leader-nim! Welcome sir!”
Jang Sejong unexpectedly jumped up and greeted Kim Rok Soo because he was happy to see Kim Rok Soo.
At that moment…
Smile.
Kim Rok Soo smiled at him.
Jang Sejong couldn’t help but flinch. He had seen Kim Rok Soo smile coldly a few times, but he had never seen him smile like this before.
He had a hard to approach aura just like before, but something seemed different.
He was cold and rational before but now, he seemed a bit different.
‘…He seems elegant?’
Jang Sejong’s mind blanked out after having that thought about Kim Rok Soo’s smile.
‘No.’
Rather than elegant-
‘Class-’
It seemed full of class.
Kim Rok Soo’s smile seemed extremely noble.
“Long time no see.”
Although it was definitely Kim Rok Soo’s voice and he was greeting him the same way as usual…
The tone was a bit different.
It was still cynical but somewhat elegant.
‘What the hell?’
Jang Sejong pupils were shaking. He looked around.
Team leader Kim Rok Soo who had returned to work after a week off… The reactions from the team members were the same as Jang Sejong’s if not worse.
All of their pupils were shaking.
Team leader Kim Rok Soo sat down on his chair.
Screeeech.
“Ho.”
Someone gasped.
Kim Rok Soo leaned back on the chair almost as if he was lying down. It was different from how he usually sat up straight because he needed to take care of documents as soon as he got to work.
Shhhhh.
The way Kim Rok Soo slowly reached his hand out to grab a payment document oddly caught people’s attention.
Kim Rok Soo looked around the office at that moment. He frowned.
“What are you all looking at?”
Jang Sejong wondered if this expression was right, but the way he slightly frowned seemed a bit trashy unlike Team leader Kim Rok Soo’s usual stoic and cold expression.
“Are you not going to work?”
However, his slightly annoyed tone of voice, the movement of his hands, and his gestures all seemed full of class. This was the only way to describe it.
‘What the hell?’
Jang Sejong subconsciously turned toward the two people who came to work with Kim Rok Soo.
Assistant Leader Kim Min Ah and Agent Jung So Hoon.
The two of them smiled awkwardly as Jang Sejong and the other team members turned to look at them.
That was the beginning.
“Delicious.”
“Excuse me?”
Jang Sejong blankly watched as Kim Rok Soo sliced a piece of tonkatsu. Everybody else had left for work and only Jang Sejong and team leader Kim Rok Soo were in the office.
That was why the two of them ended up eating lunch together.
“This is new.”
“Excuse me?”
“Mm. I won’t have to worry about it suiting my taste.”
“Excuse me?”
Slice. Slice.
Kim Rok Soo looked extremely relaxed and experienced as he sliced through the tonkatsu as if it was steak.
The way he wiped his mouth with the napkin was so overflowing with class that it seemed too much.
—
Translator’s Comments
And now we see what happens when Kim Rok Soo acts with nobility!
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Yo Original Cale!!!
Thanks for the chapter!
Lol yea OG Cale in his natural habitat
//“Haaaaaaaaa. Okay. But why does someone like the team leader-nim who makes a ton of money living in the outskirts of the city?”//
???
What?
YOU LIAR!!!!
YOU SAID YOU WERE POOR YOU BASTARD I STILL REMEMBER IN THE EARLY CHAPTER HOW YOU REMINDED YOUR SELF HOW IMPORTANT MONEY IS LIKE A FCKING BEGGAR!!
ILL NEVER TRUST YOU AGAIN YOU LIAR PUNK!!!
i mean based on his roots as an orphan who was abused by his relative its already been established that he knows what its like to live without stable housing/money/food being available like 😭😭😭 hes an adult now and hes made it as a team leader so ofc hes doing better but the reason why he mentions the importance of stability and money is bc hes experienced destitution and doesnt want to go back to that… that shit stays with you even if you end up doing better later in life
Thank you for the update.. But, ss1 is finished?
Yes there were 4 parts.
Thank you for the chapter.
I thought we’re going to have a story about Kim Rok Soo before he got transmigrated but we got the original Cale instead. This is going to be fun 🤣
Finally!! I always wanted to know what happened to the original cale when he changed bodies😂😂
Thanks for the chapter!
Park Kyung Ho from the last side story seems to be doing well afterwards, he even became a team leader 😯
//‘What about food? You must make sure to eat.’
‘Go home. Newbies can slowly learn.’
‘You’re living on your own? What about your meals? You just eat whatever?’
‘There’s a side dish shop not too far from here. I paid for a few side dishes there. Make sure to take them when you go home.’
‘You need to eat properly. I heard you were a support but wanted to be in the field? Fitness is a basic requirement for that.’//
What a nice team leader to have, that’s why people are willing to follow him😢 So this is the habit of KRS since his team leader era, asking subordinates to eat up.
//Kim Rok Soo looked extremely relaxed and experienced as he sliced through the tonkatsu as if it was steak.
The way he wiped his mouth with the napkin was so overflowing with class that it seemed too much.//
And here we have our original Cale adapting to KRS’s life — a classy trash 😂 Maybe he really thinks the tonkatsu is a steak 🤔 But in the main story original Cale said he is living well so I guess everything will turn out fine 😂😂(?) Looking forward to the next chapter.
:)))))) lmao:))))))
Very not belive…. :)))). I was waited it. I LOVE IT AND I WAITING FOR NEW CHAP :))) How does he leader with his wisdom here :))? I look forward to see ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Cale!KRS: *cracks neck* time for a master trash to show you how it’s done
Cale: I was an average person as KRS
Also KRS:
-Rich
-Well-known amongst government and higher ups
-Respected by ‘Head’ and ‘Body’ people alike
-0% death rate
-Massive success in the most disadvantageous of situations
-etc.
Never have I understood Alberu so well. I’m so sorry for all the times I laughed at your bamboozlement. It is only now that I realise how much you want to shake this man by the shoulders and throttle him. Never am I trusting this man again.
Ah, I’m so glad to see I’m not the only one struggling with trust issues after reading this chapter! Don’t fall for MC!Cale’s lies! Especially not the lies he tells himself!
I think the worst part is that he is genuinely *clueless* about it.
Like, he has absolutely zero self-awareness.
He probably *believes* that he had nothing special as KRS. Maybe his whole life was so chaotic that he just lost all sense of normalcy over time?
And losing LSH and CJS probably finished warping him as a person.
He’d flip everything around if one of his people got so much as a papercut, but he would gladly cough up buckets of blood if he thought it was the “most efficient” thing to do to resolve a situation.
And then he’d tilt his head at the YanYan Brigade getting angry over him fainting.
… He *knows* people are going to be angry at him for getting hurt, but it’s like he’s not registering WHY they are reacting this way — or can’t refrain himself from acting this way.
My headcanon is that physical pain is infinitely more bearable to Cale than the anguish of not being able to protect his people, especially since he cannot forget anything.
I, too, completely understand how Alberu & co. are going nuts trying to protect him. From himself.
Aaaaargh, so frustrating!!! (╯ ꐦ°Д°) ╯︵/(.□ . )
@lost my trust
YOUR NAME?!???!? HELPHSKSBSKABSJBSS 😭😭😭😭😭
Will this side story be able to tell us where his mother though? If I remember right, when OG Cale was conversing with OG KRS he mentioned that his mom was there? And isn’t it that the OG Cale here was 40+ (or was it 30+?) when he switched bodies? So atleast we’re rest assured that his trashiness subsided a little. It feels awkward to me if OG Cale is still that trashy on KRS’s body. Oh well! I’m looking forward for the rest of the side stories!!! Thanks for the chapter!!!
I’m commenting again!!! Ever since this chapter came out, I’ve reread it so many times, savouring every word of it!! I can’t get enough of classy Kim Rok Soo!! I want to read the next chapter already!!😫😫 Someone draw us a classy Kim Rok Soo!! I’m imagining him as this cliche guy who puts his hand on his head while the other hugging his waist all the while leaning on some table with some lilies on the background!! Ahh!! It so awkward, I’m having goosebumps!! I want to see more of the reactions of other people to this brand new Kim Rok Soo!!! 😆😆
I was waiting for thiiiis!
It’s amazing! I love it!
The unbridled elegance is blinding my peasant eyes, thank you very much!!! (*ﾉωﾉ)
But seriously, it’s only now that we can see just how much of an unreliable narrator MC!Cale is.
Remember chapter 1? When he said there “wasn’t much to his life as Kim Rok Soo”?
– Targeted by illegal guilds
– Targeted by overseas assassins and organisations
– Casually comes back from missions drenched in blood
– Leads Team 1
– Implicitly leads the whole ‘Body’ squad
– Implicitly rules over the ‘Head’ department
– Had 0 casualties in his team in 15+ years of operation
– Has a 100% mission success rate
– Is a great coach & instructor for new ability users
… Not much? *That’s* not much? (눈_눈 )
Wow. What the frick, Sir.
But… I guess it makes it more understandable how he’s really, really, really in need of a slacker life. He’s been fighting in the midst of the apocalypse for 20 years before he even transmigrated.
… This man isn’t just an unlucky bastard. He is a pure Chaos Magnet. The ultimate Shit Stirrer. The mighty Emperor of the wind elementals.
//“Do you think the team leader-nim fainted after pushing himself too much these days?”
“Agent Jung, have you ever seen the team leader-nim faint? He’s the type of person who would call first even if he was going to faint. This… Something must have happened.”//
……. Are we talking about the same person here? I am not sure we are talking about the same person.
The MC!Cale I know is a serial fainter, and —
// “Who knows? He said he needs a lot of money to become a farmer later.”//
— Nevermind, yeah, that’s him, alright. (¯▿¯;)
I guess he only awoke to the subtile art of faiting when he begun relying on Ancient Powers to fight.
… Y’know, it’s kinda crazy how Cale probably was *really good* at fighting (because he had to be, as a support-type ability user), but we never even get to see it in 700+ chapters because… he’s so fucking done with physical efforts now that he has other (better) cards to play.
It’s like I can feel his deep determination to never do even ONE push-up again. (o´▽`o)
//‘…There were two people who were supposed to follow after Lee Soo Hyuk.’//
… Damnit, Park gung-ho, that was a low blow. You didn’t have to remind me that Cale has been fighting alone all of these years. (╥_╥)
And, my GoD, I can’t get over OG!Cale’s fabulousness. (っ˘ω˘ς ) ♡
The sass. The class. The elegance.
The slight trashy undertones.
I love it. I laughed so much.
// Kim Rok Soo looked extremely relaxed and experienced as he sliced through the tonkatsu as if it was steak.//
Bwahahaha! Look at that guy who can’t be bothered to use chopsticks. Everything about him is so flashy and dissonant in this post-apocalyptic Korea, it’s amazing. ｡ﾟ(T▽T)ﾟ｡
Thank you for the chapter, I can’t wait for the next!!! (≧◡≦)♡
I lol’ed at “The mighty Emperor of the wind elementals.”, it’s so true and we see in this huge list why the God of Death chose this absolute badass as the fantasy world’s savior. Luckily the OG Cale is also a war veteran who survived a decade or more of war against the white star. He might be able to continue the perfect run streak.
“Agent Jung, have you ever seen the team leader-nim faint? He’s the type of person who would call first even if he was going to faint…”
-> I think they ‘implied’ that KRS is the type who works, until he had to call to take care of his work before he faint xD
God, I’m already loving OG Cale, can’t wait to see how he met his Mother.
And what skills GoD gave him to survive, if any.
All the characters watching Cale/KRS: I feel a disturbance.
I knew that Cale is an unreliable narrator… I realized less than a hundred chps in… BUT I STILL FEEL LIKE I WAS BAMBOOZLED
Cale|krs : *first time eating in cale
world* Delicious.
Deruth. : yeah im sure it taste like a
tra- ….WUT!?
Krs|Cale : * first time (or maybe
plenty already) eating
korean dishes* Delicious
JSJ : Excuse me?
I WILL NEVER EVER EVER EVER TO BELIEVE YOU AGAIN, CALE!
You said you are average as KRS but what? You said you have nothing anymore as KRS but how about your team member? People at your company? Or is it just our standard is different?
I dont know why but the way Cale view himself made me sad 🥺
Thank you for the chapter 💙
NOVEL CHAPTER 1:
“It’s not like there’s much I’ll miss.”
His life as Kim Rok Soo. There really wasn’t much to it. He was an orphan and didn’t have much money. He also didn’t have a person he loved to death, nor a friend he would give his life to save. He only continued to live because he could not die.//
Meanwhile, KRS’s life:
– he was rich (or at least above average to be well off);
– had many team members who gets worried and love him;
– was respected throughout the whole company;
– was well known by not only the company, but also to the government and guilds;
– his team under his leadership has 0% rate of death;
– and let’s not forget that he is fucking handsome….
…. why am I not even surprised? Shit, Cale you’ve always been an unreliable narrator 😫
But that also breaks my heart, because it shows how he views himself so lowly 😢
Anyway, I’m happy to read how OgCale is doing. He deserves so much happiness too. I wanna read him meeting his mom’s reincarnation 😭💙
“Haaaaaaaaa. Okay. But why does someone like the team leader-nim who makes a ton of money living in the outskirts of the city?”
“Who knows? He said he needs a lot of money to become a farmer later.”
I’m surprised nobody commented on this. This last phrase just shows that cale planned to make Lsh and cjs dream of farming into reality even before he made that promise to Lsh 😢🤧 Our cale sure is a good boy 😔
Obrigada pela tradução ♥️
//Kim Rok Soo smiled at him.
Jang Sejong couldn’t help but flinch. He had seen Kim Rok Soo smile coldly a few times, but he had never seen him smile like this before.
He had a hard to approach aura just like before, but something seemed different.
He was cold and rational before but now, he seemed a bit different.
‘…He seems elegant?’//
LMAO PLIZ
Eyyo I wanna see elegant Kim Rok Soo 😭😂😂
OMG, when I read how KRS treated his subordinates, I’m filled with the fuzzies. LOL, the elegance from OG Cale’s upbringing seeping in XD, but I assume this is after Cale made the deal with the GOD so he might be somewhat aware of his transmigration circumstances…
It’s Cale Henituse!! Oh my god the twist! I can’t!
All of this yet he still thinks he is trash. I swear if Cale is still getting his character development in the novel the trash thing if going to be the last obstacle in that path. It might be in the ending he gets to overcome that