Chapter 14
Chapter 14
After the receptionist sent Sungyoon on his way, she called the next number and then continued to do her work . She didn’t know how much time had pa.s.sed, when she found that there was no one waiting in the queue . The receptionist glanced at her watch . As expected, this part of the day was always slow . The receptionist stretched .
“Over there! Look over there!”
Her colleague spoke out next to her . She turned to look . She saw her colleague with a slight interest on her face .
“You remember that gloomy guy that was really handsome?”
“Ah! Yeah . ”
The man had looked gloomy yet really handsome . She immediately recognized whom her colleague was referring to .
“You became surprised when you looked up his file . What did you see? From what I overheard, he is just a 1st Gen Connector . ”
Not all Connectors were the same . Normal people might not now know this, but it was not much for her, who worked at the Office of Business and Administration for the Moon’s Labyrinth . She dealt with Connectors every day in her work, so she wasn’t surprised by a mere 1st Gen Connector .
“I wasn’t surprised because of him . I was surprised when I saw who he was scheduled to meet . ”
“Who?”
“Head of the Support Division . ”
“What!”
The colleague was so surprised that she let out a shout as she stood up . It was almost a scream . The receptionist turned back to her desk, acting as if she was busy doing her work . Her co-worker had made such a loud noise that everyone had turned towards them . She glanced at her co-worker . Her face had turned red, and her head was lowered .
When everyone’s gazes left them, her co-worker finally sat back into her seat .
“Girl! How can you let me drown like that by myself!”
She had acted as if she had nothing to do with her co-worker . Her co-worker looked at her with sharp eyes . Of course, she had some words to say in her own defense .
“Why did you have to yell so loud? You made me embarra.s.sed too . ”
The two of them lowered their voices as they whispered and bickered with each other .
“Whatever . It’s fine . ”
In the end, her co-worker backed off first .
“So why would the head of the Support Division want to meet a 1st Gen Connector?”
Her co-worker asked the obvious question .
Within the department, power wasn’t divided equally among each division . The power and clout depended on how important one’s work was to the department . In some ways, the ‘Support Division’ did the most important work in the Office of Business and Administration for the Moon’s Labyrinth . They managed and supported the Connectors . If the power structure was like a pyramid, the Support Division would be at the top .
There was no reason why the head of the Support Division would meet with a newly awakened 1st Gen Connector .
“Is he trying to supervise that Connector? That is one of the original duties tasked to the ‘Support Division’ . Each ‘Division’ has their unique contribution to the department . That is why the chief directly manages several Connectors . ”
“However, those people are the best Connectors our country has to offer . They are on a different level . But this man is just a 1st Gen Connector . ”
“Maybe he possesses a unique characteristic, or there is a special circ.u.mstance . ”
The reception ended the conversation there .
“It is none of our business . ”
“I guess so . You are right . ”
Her co-worker just let go of the subject . In the first place, she had started the conversation, because it was a minor curiosity . It didn’t matter why the head of the Support Division was meeting with that man . It was none of their business .
The two of them switched topics . They talked about miscellaneous topics until the next customer came .
* * *
When his name was called, Sungyoon stood up . A man walked into the waiting room .
“Are you Mr Woo Sungyoon?”
“Yes . I am Woo Sungyoon . ”
“It is nice to meet you . My name is Jun Insoo . ”
Sungyoon shook the offered hand and observed the man named Jun Insoo .
The very first thing he noticed was the bald patch on top of his head . He looked to be in his 60s, but in many cases, balding men looked older than they actually were . He might be much younger . Aside from his balding head, there were no distinguis.h.i.+ng features . He wore a nicely ironed suit . One could only guess from his appearance that he had a clean and meticulous personality .
“I’m sorry for making you wait . I have to give you some basic information, and we have to register you . Please follow me . ”
Insoo gave a slight bow .
“I understand . ”
“Thank you . ”
Insoo took the lead, and Sungyoon followed behind him .
The two arrived at a room that wasn’t too far away from the waiting room . The room was quite large, but it had been divided into many small cubicles . There were people in these cubicles already, and Sungyoon could hear muted conversations coming from the cubicles .
“Please come this way . ”
Insoo led Sungyoon to his cubicle . There was a round gla.s.s table, a computer and two chairs .
Insoo offered a chair to Sungyoon, and then he sat on the other side of Sungyoon .
“I’ll introduce myself once again . My name is Jun Insoo . I am the chief of the Support Division within the Office of Business and Administration for the Moon’s Labyrinth . ”
As he spoke, he pushed his name card towards Sungyoon . Sungyoon was surprised . He never expected a head of a division to talk to him . He had many questions he wanted to ask . Why had the head of a department come out to greet him? Did he meet with all the Connectors like this? However, Sungyoon didn"t give voice to any of those questions .
It wasn’t important at all .
The two of them talked in a brisk manner for a short amount of time . Insoo would ask a question, and Sungyoon would give an answer . Insoo recorded the information into his computer .
It didn’t take long, and was over in 10 minutes .
“Thank you . ”
After entering the last piece of information, Insoo spoke to Sungyoon .
“Are we done?”
“Yes, it is done . In truth, the registration process doesn’t take a long time . However, the explanation that comes afterward is time consuming . ”
Insoo logged out of his computer .
“The government supervises the Connectors, but businesses are the ones that actually hire the Connectors . We just help a little bit in the process as the middleman . ”
Insoo took out a piece of paper from his briefcase .
“Currently, this is the list of businesses looking for Connectors . To be precise, they are looking for 1st Gen Connectors . I’m sorry, but you’ve probably never heard of these companies . All the big companies are hiring 2nd Gen and 3rd Gen Connectors . Moreover, 4th Gen Connectors are slowly starting to appear now . In the eyes of the big businesses, a 1st Gen Connector won’t bring them much profit . I would like to recommend these companies to you . . . ”
“Wait a moment . ”
Insoo was about to take several more papers out of his briefcase, but Sungyoon stopped him .
“Are you recommending companies that are gathering ‘Moonstones’?”
“Yes, I am . ”
“ . . . I never said I’ll be going to the moon . Do all Connectors have to go into the labyrinths?”
Ins...o...b..inked his eyes several times . Then he clapped his hands as if he understood what was going on .
“I see . I haven’t given you the explanation yet . It has been awhile since I’ve dealt with a new Connector…”
Insoo was quick to address Sungyoon’s dissatisfaction .
“From what I just heard from you, you are hesitant to go into the Moon’s Labyrinth . Is it because it is dangerous?”
Sungyoon nodded .
When he first heard that he was a Connector, he first thought about being able to pay off his debts . However, he also knew that it was very dangerous to go into the Moon’s Labyrinth . From what he knew, there was a constant stream of casualties that occurred within the Moon’s Labyrinth . Sungyoon had promised that he would dedicate his life to his daughter, but that didn’t mean he wanted to die . He just had a near death experience or what he thought was a near death experience . . . . With that in mind, he didn’t want to carelessly talk about death right now .
‘If my death is needed for s.h.i.+nhae, I’ll do it . It can’t be helped . ’
However, he wanted to avoid dying for any other reason .
“I understand . Life is important to everyone . ”
Insoo took out his cellphone from his pocket then he looked at the time .
“Mmm . I still have a lot of time before I get off work . ”
Insoo mumbled to himself with a troubled voice . He looked at Sungyoon .
“Do you have any other plans tomorrow?”
“…not really . ”
Sungyoon was a laborer . He lived a hand to mouth existence . If needed, he could make himself available for one or two days . Since this was about his body, he was willing to make himself available for an extended amount of time . Of course, the side effect was that he would lose out on money that would go towards his living expenses and debt .
“Then can you make some time for me today at night?”
“I don’t mind at all . ”
He had come far to visit Sejong city . He had planned on immediately leaving for Seoul after he finished his registration . He was going to continue his job as a laborer . However, Insoo was someone that was in charge of this division . Sungyoon would make himself available for a day as his future was involved in this matter .
“I’ll contact you after I get off work . If you have nowhere else to go, you can use the waiting room . ”
“Understood . ”
After their conversation ended, the two of them got up .
* * *
After parting with Sungyoon, Insoo walked down the corridor . He continued to think about Sungyoon . Sungyoon was a newly awakened fledgling connector . Normally, he wouldn’t even pay attention to such a man . However, Insoo needed Sungyoon more than anyone else .
‘His debts are in the millions . ’
He was a high ranking civil servant . It was a thankless job, but he had a pretty high salary . Still, it made Ins...o...b..anch when he saw how much Sungyoon owed . Sungyoon had failed in his business, and he was doing hard labor to make money little by little . He lived day to day, and there was no way Sungyoon could pay off his debt with such work .
‘Should I consider myself to be fortunate or unfortunate?’
Insoo tapped his fingers on his forehead . Sungyoon was someone that she might want . He couldn’t believe the timing . He didn’t know if his luck was good or bad . The only sure thing in all of this was the fact that he had more work to do now .
Beep!
Insoo dialed a number on his phone . The phone started ringing, and someone picked up on the other side .
[Yes . ]
It was the voice of a beautiful woman . However, her voice was brusque and cold .
“It is Insoo ahjussi . ”
[Yes, ahjussi . What is it?]
Her robotic voice showed traces of emotion . It was the affection for a close friend .
As expected, he couldn’t turn down a request from this child . Insoo had this thought as he revealed the reason behind the call .
"I found one . He fits your specifications . "