Genius Manager Who Hears Voices - Chapter 1



Only Noblemtl

Episode 1

Gangnam’s forest of buildings, densely packed with high-rise buildings.

After exiting the subway and entering the place, Heeseong walked towards his workplace like any other office worker.

A few moments later, upon entering the building lobby, the giant logo of ‘Line Planning’ above the information desk greeted Heeseong.

As if to emphasize that he is the owner of this splendid building, it still sparkles with light as usual today.

A person I am grateful for who made me feel like this was my workplace for the past year and a half.

But maybe because it was my last day at work, I felt a strange sense of distance today.

Beep.

Heeseong, who had his temporary pass stamped and passed through the gate, took the elevator and arrived at the 12th floor.

As I came out into the hallway, the elevator door across from me opened and a familiar voice called out to me.

“Mr. Heesung!”

“Oh, yes, Eunha.”

“It’s the same time again today? By the way, how come you go to work at the same time every day for a year and a half? Like some kind of machine!”

Im Eun-ha checked the time on her phone and looked at Hee-sung as if she was curious.

Heeseong also smiled faintly and said.

“I think it’s the same for you, Eunha. If I remember correctly, we went into the office together more than half the time every week.”

“Huh. Is that so? Well, since we started going to work together so much from the first day, we had a lot of unnecessary misunderstandings, right? Oh my, when I think about how much my mouth hurt trying to explain those things.”

Heeseong only smiled faintly at Im Eun-ha, who was shaking her head.

Im Eun-ha is the same age as Hee-seong and joined the company at the same time.

However, there was a clear difference between them: she was a full-time employee and Heeseong was a part-time worker.

The difference is that even though the beginning may be the same, the ending cannot help but be starkly different.

Of course, it was a natural result since the paths we took were different.

As soon as they entered the office, the team members started to look at Heeseong and Im Eunha and gave them sinister looks.

“Hey, I had my doubts. Are you coming to work with me today? It looks like you’ve finally settled down.”

“Hehe, who said no? I wonder what kind of excuse you’ll come up with today. Hey, Eunha. Tell me something. Are you really starting a household like the manager said? Huh?”

“Oh my, you’re acting like this again this morning. Both Heesung and I are sincere and hardworking, so we go to work at the same time every day! It’s not like Manager Kim and Manager Yang who drink all the time and come to work at irregular times.”

As always, Im Eun-ha responded to Manager Yang Won-ho and Assistant Manager Kim Seok-hwan, who were teasingly questioning her, with her characteristically blunt language.

Kim Seok-hwan continued talking, giggling, without paying any attention.

“Oh my, by the way, what am I going to do about missing Eunha without Heesung? I’m going to have to go to work alone every morning.”

“Heh. Isn’t it more regrettable for Manager Kim? Half of his work was done by Hee-sung.”

Manager Yang gave a thumbs up in admiration at Im Eun-ha’s words.

“Kuuuu! I can’t possibly take Manager Kim’s side. Eunha’s words are just too factual, hahaha.”

“Hey, what are you saying, Chief! Why wouldn’t I do it because I couldn’t do it? I was just trying to make it less boring for Heesung, because he didn’t have anything to do and time would pass by so easily! I could have easily done that on my own.”

Manager Yang snickered at Manager Kim’s story and approached Hee-seong’s seat.

“Well, it’s still a long way to go until the end of the day, but you’ve worked hard so far, Hee-sung. If it were up to me, I’d like to keep you on our team and continue working with you, but the company said they’re going to increase the number of interns this year, so I can’t help it. Man, there’s no one who’s as good a fit for our team as Hee-sung.”

“Thank you for your kind words, Manager. Thanks to everyone taking good care of me, I was able to enjoy my work for a year and a half.”

Heesung also expressed his gratitude to other team members.

“Thank you all for everything. I will make sure to finish my last task well.”

“Whew, seriously, our Hee-sung is much better at his job and better than most interns. Hee-sung! Whenever the opportunity arises, I will contact you right away, so we can definitely work together again then, okay? Okay? Definitely!”

Im Eun-ha and Manager Yang simultaneously shook their heads as if they found Kim Seok-hwan’s story pitiful.

“Oh my. Mr. Kim, Mr. Kim. When are you going to think straight for once? Until we contact you again, what are you going to do, Hee-sung? Even though we regret it, it would be much better for Hee-sung to get a full-time job at a good company than to just work part-time like this. Don’t you think so?”

At Manager Yang’s words, Manager Kim opened his mouth slightly, as if he had realized only then that his thoughts had been short-sighted.

Heeseong smiled as if it was okay and started preparing for work.

Twenty six this year.

Unlike other men his age who were busy preparing for employment, working in a place like this was something that Hee-sung could never have dreamed of, as he didn’t even have a diploma.

Unless you are very lucky and can get a part-time job like this.

If it weren’t for my experience in various places, starting with the job training class I took early on when I was a student, even that would have been difficult.

As Manager Yang said, it was clear that we had to have new goals going forward.

As he continued to prepare for work, Heeseong’s cell phone began to vibrate.

Heeseong saw the word ‘Mom’ appear on the LCD screen and went out into the hallway for a moment to connect the call.

“Yes, Mom.”

-Oh, Heesung. You’re not at work yet? Is it okay if I talk to you for a moment?

“Yes, I’m fine. What’s wrong?”

-What’s the matter? I just called to see if my son got to work okay and hear his voice. Did he eat breakfast before he went to work?

“Yes. I ate well and went to work well. What about Mom? Don’t skip meals and always eat.”

-Mom also went to the dawn prayer and came back, packed Heewon breakfast and ate it with him. Heewon went to school a little while ago. Don’t worry about us. There are two of us, so we’ll do well.

“Do you still go to dawn prayer every day? You must be tired. Why don’t you just sleep a little more?”

-Hey, don’t say that. It’s because I have to do this to feel better. It breaks my heart to see you struggling because you were born to bad parents and can’t go to college. You have to do everything well and keep going until Hee-won gets into a good college. Then, won’t you listen to me someday because you’re being so sincere?

I didn’t particularly believe in religion, so I didn’t think it would be very effective, but I fully understood why my mother prayed every day.

“Anyway, don’t push yourself too hard, Mom. Heewon and I don’t think that way, so don’t say things like that. I’ll stop by the house sometime soon.”

-Yeah, I guess I took up too much of your busy time since morning. Then, be sure to stop by your house soon.

“Yes, Mom. Come in.”

Heeseong ended the call and turned back toward the office.

I hope that now that it is the path you chose for yourself, Mom can feel a little less burdened.

It seems that a parent’s heart can’t be like that.

When I returned to my seats, for some reason all the team members were standing up and holding their bags.

Kim Seok-hwan, who discovered Hee-sung, lifted Hee-sung’s bag and said.

“Hee-sung, where have you been? I’ve been looking for you for a long time!”

“Oh, I was just talking on the phone for a moment. What’s going on?”

“Ugh. Of course there is! Of course there is. That’s also a big deal! Hurry up and pack your bags. Let’s go get some fresh air.”

Im Eun-ha also looked excited and spoke to Hee-sung, who was looking at her with a puzzled expression.

“Heh, our team decided to go on a business trip together today, Hee-seong. Since it’s Hee-seong’s last day of work, the manager said we should all go out together.”

“Are you working outside?”

Manager Yang handed the file he was holding to Heesung and said.

“Oh, Heesung, you don’t know that I’ve prepared the report? I’m talking about the commercial filming site. Kang Se-ra’s soju commercial.”

“ah.”

“It’s just not fair to make us sit in this stuffy office until the end of our days. Our team planned it, so we have a good reason to leave. Okay, let’s hurry up and leave.”

“Aye, I see Kang Se-ra!”

As Manager Yang took a step forward, Assistant Manager Kim also followed behind with an excited expression. Im Eun-ha also grabbed Hee-sung’s arm and urged him on.

“Let’s go quickly, too. After all, we work for an advertising company, so shouldn’t we be able to say that we’ve seen at least one celebrity? Heh. Hurry up, hurry up.”

Although he felt a little bewildered by the sudden situation, Heeseong quickly packed his bag and followed Im Eunha.

A filming location that I had never been to even once while working at the country’s top advertising company for the past year and a half.

I started to feel a strange excitement.

***

“Where is Kang Se-ra? She’s not here yet.”

“Sir, please! We didn’t come here to see celebrities, we came here to work. What if someone hears about it?”

“Hey, who would listen? And, it’s not just anyone, it’s Kang Se Ran, the best actress in South Korea. Wouldn’t it be polite to show this level of reaction? Hehe.”

While listening to the conversation between Seok-Hwan Kim and Eun-Ha Lim, Hee-Seong slowly scanned the entire filming set he was visiting for the first time in his life.

The floor and walls were painted completely white, several cameras including a jibs, and filming props and products that were being set up.

There are countless lighting fixtures installed everywhere.

I couldn’t help but be curious about how the storyboard, planned after spending countless nights inside, would be realized.

“How is it to come to the filming set in person? Is it definitely different from working on documents in the office?”

Heeseong nodded to Manager Yang Won-ho, who asked while placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Yes. Everyone here is preparing really hard.”

“Yes, that’s right. The advertiser will be here soon to watch, so if we prepare carelessly, we’ll be ruined before we even start.”

Yang Won-ho smirks at Hee-sung’s face as if he doesn’t care after saying those words.

“Well, that’s what the people here do, so let’s just watch it with peace of mind. After we’re done, let’s go eat something delicious. What do you think? It’s okay, right?”

“Thank you, Manager. You are so considerate to me, even though I’m not a full-time employee.”

“Oh, it’s disappointing to say that. If Heesung had only worked with the mindset of a part-timer, then that would be fine, but how much affection did he have for us, working overtime and staying up all night every day! As a manager, shouldn’t he give us a gift of this level? Haha.”

“Thank you, Manager.”

At that moment, the sound of high heels clicking together with someone’s cheerful voice rang out from the entrance of the filming set.

“hello!”

When I turned my head, today’s advertising model, Kang Se-ra, was greeting the staff one by one with a bright expression.

Jeans, a white T-shirt, and hair that looked like it had just been styled in a flowing manner. The staff who saw her in person all opened their mouths and couldn’t take their eyes off her.

At the same time, Heeseong couldn’t help but feel quite curious.

It was my first time seeing a celebrity so up close.

She went straight to the cinematographer and started checking the storyboard for today’s shoot and chatting about various things.

Meanwhile, it seemed like the filming set was nearing its final stages.

But at that time.

[bang!]

[Aaah!]

Suddenly, an unidentified loud noise is heard from somewhere. Then, someone’s scream follows.

Feeling the sensation so vividly, Heesung immediately began to quickly scan his surroundings.

However, the atmosphere remained calm as if nothing had happened and no one was disturbed.

‘What the… …? It definitely wasn’t loud enough for only me to hear.’

Just then, I was about to put my hand to my ear, wondering if I was hallucinating.

Once again, someone’s urgent voice began to ring loudly in my ears.

[What, what is it? Sarah! Are you okay? Hey, call 119 quickly!]

This time again, a single voice is heard clearly and vividly.

Heeseong immediately turned his gaze to Kang Se-ra, but her face, which was talking to the cinematographer, was just as calm as before.

What the heck is this… … .

I began to have the illusion that I was dreaming because I had never experienced this phenomenon before.

If not, I wondered if there was a problem with my brain that was causing the auditory hallucinations.

However, the same phenomenon was repeated once again in Heeseong’s ears, whose confusion had not disappeared at all.

[Who the hell installed the lights like this? Are you trying to kill people?]

Genius Manager Who Hears Voices