Chapter 2. The Decision to Stop Being Quiet
Office Worker Yoo Sara’s Opinion on Salary
The salary one receives is not the price for work, but the price for endurance.
= Cost of treating an ulcer
Company: A place that gives you a disease and then gives you the medicine (money) for it.
*Warning: The medicine money is ridiculously small to cure all the diseases you contract.
But this isn’t a company. They don’t pay me to endure.
Is it right for me to endure that bastard’s antics right now? Just for the sake of not standing out?
In the company, just holding back what I want to say makes me feel like my temper is boiling up my throat. Should I endure it here too?
They’re not even paying me!
From my perspective, as someone who has developed the habit of referring to every person I meet at work as ‘this bastard,’ ‘that jerk,’ or ‘that son of a gun’—
The conclusion was ‘No.’
I won’t endure it. I don’t want to endure it.
I spoke toward the Inconvenient Man sitting diagonally in front of me.
“Excuse me.”
“What is it, Princess?”
“It’s true that I’m baggage, but hearing that from the same kind of baggage—not from the two muscular gentlemen over there—feels a bit unfair, doesn’t it?”
The male leads, who had suddenly become the ‘two muscular gentlemen,’ widened their eyes. I snickered at the handsome men’s faces, which looked quite cute.
I don’t care. I’m a troublesome, obnoxious villainess anyway, right?
Aren’t characters like that created to just say whatever they want?
No matter how much trash I talk, it won’t be as bad as Team Chief Jo, so it’s fine.
“And Miss Yoo Jein isn’t baggage. She has Divine Power. Who gave you the blessing you’re currently enjoying?”
Honestly, I don’t even like the title ‘villainess.’
If I’m the villainess, what is he? The villaineer? The failure?
“Don’t you think if you hadn’t been blessed, Miss Yoo Jein would have had enough power to heal her own ankle by now?”
Of course, it wasn’t that much power. Divine Power isn’t such an amazing force.
The Inconvenient Man, who knew this fact, immediately countered.
“What are you talking about? It’s a negligible power anyway. How can she heal an ankle with a power that barely fixes a small cut?”
“Oh, really? Didn’t you say earlier that a knight died because she didn’t cast that negligible blessing sooner?”
Who was the one who was just running his mouth about how she should have done it earlier without even saying thank you?
Why are you flip-flopping? When I called him out, he just opened and closed his mouth, speechless.
With the speechless Inconvenient Man in front of me, I kept talking alone.
“Aren’t you ashamed to gladly accept the blessing and then suggest abandoning her now that she’s hurt? Is Yoo Jein some kind of object? To be used and then thrown away when broken? Have some conscience.”
I don’t even treat my robot vacuum cleaner like that. I openly clicked my tongue in disapproval.
The Inconvenient Man, whose face was turning red, raised his voice.
“Who said we should completely abandon her? I said we should leave her behind! The knight! The one who uses a sword!”
“Why should we leave Sir Darjeeling behind? If we follow your logic, the most efficient thing is for only the people who aren’t baggage to leave first. Sir Darjeeling should go, and you should stay with us. You’re baggage too.”
I pointed my finger at his plump cheek.
His face was so smooth that it was hard to tell, but the Inconvenient Man’s cheeks still held some baby fat.
He must be about twenty.
At the prime age for overflowing ambition, he’s already learned only bad habits. Tsk, tsk, tsk!
“If you’re going to talk about efficiency, let’s calculate it properly. Didn’t you suggest it? That people who are burdens stay, and only capable people escape.”
“…”
“From the perspective of those armed people, you are also baggage. Even heavy baggage.”
“…”
“Your weight looks like it’s at least double Miss Yoo Jein’s. This is hopeless; no one can even carry you.”
When I stated my observation plainly, the Inconvenient Man’s face turned scarlet, right up to his ears. He gasped and wiped his sweaty forehead, but that wouldn’t change anything.
The Inconvenient Man soon warned me.
“Princess, watch your mouth.”
“Watch what? I’m just suggesting the most efficient method. Come on, let’s go. Let’s go back together. Let’s hide in the secret room together, starving and unable to drink water all night, waiting for a rescue team that may never come, armed with only a single dagger!”
I clenched my bleeding hand into a fist and vigorously thrust it upward.
Let’s die together, you crazy bastard!
“Let’s go!”
I got up and pulled the Inconvenient Man’s elbow. His elbow was so full of flesh; honestly, even the cutlass fish on Jeju Island have less meat on them.
“If a corpse appears while we’re waiting, you can act as the shield to buy us time, and in the meantime, the women, including me, can escape. Since you have plenty of flesh, it will probably take the corpses a long time to tear you apart.”
“You seriously…”
“Why? That’s the most ef-fi-cient way, isn’t it?”
Perhaps no one had ever pointed out his weight before, but the Inconvenient Man was completely stunned.
That was the intention.
Working among male employees who constantly critique others’ appearances, I know how unpleasant and distracting that is.
I didn’t want to be trash who judges others’ appearances. I hate myself for using such a low method to attack you. I hate that this was the first method that popped into my head to attack someone. I hate the company guys who made me think of this. Why do they turn people into such petty creatures?
Do you think the women were filtering their words because they had no voice?
“If we abandon people one by one in order of who is the biggest burden, and we are the ones abandoned here first, then what? Why don’t you realize that you’re the next burden to be abandoned?”
“I’ve let you go on and on, but this is truly…”
The huffing Inconvenient Man shook off my arm. I momentarily staggered from the rough push.
The Inconvenient Man shot up and violently raised his arm toward my face. I stood my ground and raised my head stiffly, not feeling scared at all.
From the Inconvenient Man’s breath, which was close to me, I smelled sweet alcohol.
This is unbelievable…
Is he even drunk?
“Papri!”
The moment the Inconvenient Man raised his hand at me, everyone scrambled to their feet. The Crown Prince, who instantly appeared behind the Inconvenient Man, grabbed the raised arm. He seemed to have been quite far away; did he use a shrinking-ground technique?
“Papri.”
The Grand Duke, his expression hardening, called the Inconvenient Man’s name. His hand was on his scabbard.
The Crown Prince twisted the Inconvenient Man’s arm behind his back, restraining both his arms with one hand.
“Agh!”
The Inconvenient Man, subdued immediately, screamed.
“Hyung, it hurts! I’m hurting! Agh! Agh!”
Regardless of the Inconvenient Man’s cries, the Prince only looked at me.
Only after I shook my head did the Prince release the Inconvenient Man’s arm and step back. He then warned him in a low voice.
“Don’t let me be disappointed in you.”
“Hyung…!”
“Apologize to the Princess. If you don’t, you will be the one left here alone.”
His long, cold eyes held no trace of playfulness.
…He looks a bit angry, doesn’t he?
“Is that really necessary? We can just take him and use him as a shield.”
The Grand Duke chimed in.
“The Princess gave us a great idea. Let’s try it out. The shield.”
His tone was light, but the content was chilling.
They are angry. Both of them.
The Inconvenient Man, sensing the mood of the two ‘Big Brothers’ he feared, stuck out his lower lip and stayed silent. He massaged his twisted arm and tried to put up a fight, but the male leads were in no mood to yield.
The Prince sighed, looking at the silent Inconvenient Man.
“Papri.”
Finally, an apology was grudgingly squeezed out of the Inconvenient Man.
“I’m sorry.”
“Yeah. It’s fine.”
I replied using informal language, too.
“…We will move after resting for a little while longer.”
The male leads shook their heads and returned to their places to stand guard.
Only an uncomfortable silence remained.
What is wrong with guys like that? They complain and grumble about everything when we should be working together to overcome the situation.
I know I’m not exactly mature for fighting back, but… but he started it!
Waaah. I want to go home.
I was stretching my limbs.
The Inconvenient Man, who was rubbing his elbow, whispered again, avoiding the Prince’s eyes.
“Must be nice. Getting protected because you’re a woman.”
I should be reborn as a woman in the next life or something. He grumbled, keeping his voice as low as possible so the watchful Prince or Grand Duke wouldn’t hear.
He’s really persistent…
I didn’t back down and fired back.
“Are you sure they were protecting me?”
And not protecting you from getting hit by me?
Does he think I’d just sit still if he hit me? Absolutely not. I’d scream to call the zombies and take my revenge.
Yoo Jein rolled her eyes nervously as the argument started up again.
I said.
“Why are you talking about being reborn as a woman in the next life? You just suggested leaving the women here. Do you like being abandoned?”
“That’s because you guys are burdens!”
“No, seriously, aren’t you a burden? You, who squeezed in between the women to be protected front, back, and sides! Be honest, if a corpse showed up, weren’t you planning to hide behind Yoo Jein or Mascarpone?”
If he had any conscience, he couldn’t say no.
“Even if I’m a burden, I’d be a burden to the Prince, the Grand Duke, or Sir Darjeeling, not your burden! And.”
I lifted my chin. To look down on the Inconvenient Man as rudely as possible.
“Can you even carry me like baggage? You look about my height.”
He looks a little taller than me. If my original height was 169 cm, and this Yoo Sara I possessed is around that height, he’s probably about 172 or 173 cm. And his arms are soft, with no muscle.
I’d rather trust the thigh muscles I built up with three-times-a-week morning swimming than be carried by you.
“Just shut up and let’s go. We’re both in the same boat, piggybacking off others.”
I couldn’t help but chuckle as I spoke. It didn’t suit the situation.
How nice would it be if I could speak my mind like this at work, too?
It’s so refreshing to say what I want without filtering. There’s a reason people need a ‘bamboo forest’ to shout into.
“Since we’re talking, one more thing. I’ve really wanted to say this since earlier… What good is Yoo Jein casting a blessing all day long? You aren’t putting in any effort. Aren’t you expecting too much from a blessing?”
“Cough.”
Co-star 2 couldn’t hold back and let out a laugh.
Hup. Co-star 2 covered her mouth and apologized.
“I’m sorry…”
Mascarpone’s expression was similar, though she didn’t laugh. Even Darjeeling, who was standing a little farther away.
The Inconvenient Man’s face was utterly miserable, having been humiliated by the baggage he had scorned.
He clearly wanted to hit me right now but couldn’t because of the ‘Hyungs.’
I looked over the Inconvenient Man.
His mean expression, plastered with sulkiness. His unfiltered, inconsiderate way of speaking. His sensitivity only to the harm others caused him, without caring at all about the trouble he caused them. His stamina, making him pant after only a few minutes of walking.
What was his name, Paprika or something?
Whatever his name is, I decided I would only call him the Inconvenient Man until the end.
Until he turns into the Black-Haired Papri.
In Korea, I’m an office worker who solves everything with ‘Yes,’ ‘Thank you,’ ‘Please confirm,’ and ‘(F***),’ but not here.
I’m going to stand out. I’ll say everything I want to say and act according to my personality.
The corner of my mouth, which had gone numb from the stress of transmigration, slowly began to turn up.
It was from this moment.
That I seriously began to break the resolution of ‘Don’t stand out,’ a resolution I had been making all along but had never quite kept.
[Imperial Villa, 2nd Floor Washroom]
- Yoo Sara, Yoo Jein, Crown Prince, Grand Duke, Mascarpone, Co-star 2, Darjeeling, Inconvenient Man (Survivors)
