Bailonz Street 13-Chapter 209.1 - 〈 Part II 〉

6 PM, as the sun began to set.

A dim, golden dusk fell across the entrance of a certain building located in Seoul.

A modern structure with a cold, pristine ground-floor space.

Daydream Inc. (Ltd.) Annex

Entry restricted to authorized personnel only.

This was the lobby of Daydream Inc.’s annex building.

Yet this sterile, ordinarily quiet and bleak space was currently buzzing with the excited murmuring of people.

“Wow, check out the atmosphere.”

“Hello. Yes, nice to meet you…!”

Dozens of young adults in black suits, freshly entering the workforce, had gathered and were greeting each other enthusiastically. Their faces were bright with a mix of anticipation and nervousness.

It was only natural.

“Congratulations on getting hired!”

“Hahaha, thanks! Same to you!”

After all, these were the individuals who had recently succeeded in joining Daydream Inc., the renowned pharmaceutical company that had emerged as a hot topic in the stock market over the past few years.

Thus, the company had summoned them to its annex building in Seoul via email.

New Employee Orientation Notice

Today was the first day of orientation.

“A three-day orientation at the Seoul annex feels a bit luxurious, doesn’t it?”

“Absolutely. Wow, this place feels more like an art gallery lobby than anything.”

“Yeah, big companies are different after all… Oh, are we all sales team hires?”

“It seems so. Everyone I’ve talked to is in sales.”

“Then maybe other new employees are gathering somewhere else nearby.”

The people, intoxicated by their recent hiring success, happily chatted amongst themselves. There was no reason not to be friendly. These were, after all, fellow colleagues they’d continue to see frequently in this pharmaceutical giant. The victorious new hires!

This cheerful atmosphere led some to generously include those who’d remained outside the conversation.

“Excuse me, you’re a new hire too, right?”

“……”

Amid the bustling crowd, one individual, who’d been quietly observing the interior of the annex alone, raised his head. A young man around their age, with a weary-looking face.

Feeling somewhat superior, the new employee who initiated the conversation continued addressing him.

“Congratulations on joining the company! Let’s work well together!”

However…

“Thank you.”

That was it.

“……”

“……”

Silence.

‘What the hell?’

How could a new sales employee have such poor social skills?

How did this guy even pass the interview?

As the atmosphere threatened to turn awkward, the person who’d started the conversation quickly chattered again.

“Haha, actually… I have a friend who already works at Daydream.”

“Whoa.”

“Really?”

“Which department?”

“Yep, yep. I think it was… Research Team or something?”

The crowd responded with explosive interest!

Secretly relieved that he’d saved the atmosphere, the employee kept speaking in a subtly proud tone.

“But you know, he was weirdly discouraging me from joining. He said I’d regret it if I worked here, or something like that.”

“Haha!”

“Friends who got jobs earlier always say stuff like that.”

“Exactly!”

“……”

People laughed as if it were typical office-worker banter about being overworked.

But…

“…epartment.”

“Hm?”

The quiet one opened his mouth again.

“That friend of yours, which department was—”

At that very moment.

[Ah, ah— Mic test.]

“…!”

Everyone raised their heads simultaneously.

[Aigoo, everyone gathered well. Then let’s begin~]

A speaker mounted at the corner of the wall emitted a lively, easygoing voice.

A man’s casual voice continued.

[Welcome, new hires who made it through the competition of 142 to 1! I’m Kwak Jaekang, the Section Chief from Research Team 1, who’ll be leading your orientation today.]

[Shall we start with a round of applause?]

Woooaahh!

The new hires enthusiastically clapped, though slightly confused.

“Why use a speaker…?”

Why wasn’t he appearing in person?

“Hm, maybe it’s something we’re supposed to do on our own?”

[Haha. Correct answer!]

“…!”

‘H-He was listening…!’

[Exactly, exactly. From now on, to build teamwork and company spirit, you new hires will engage in a very entertaining activity~]

[Well, it’s just one light mission, consider it a recreational activity. There’ll even be prizes!]

The new employees quickly took this positively.

“I guess this is to help us quickly bond with each other!”

“That actually sounds great, haha.”

After all, many large companies and prominent venture firms nowadays conducted their orientation sessions creatively or uniquely.

“I heard one company even uses their office for a murder-mystery board game.”

[Aha, wow, that does sound fun! This one’s similar, you see. Yep, indeed~ Now now, then…]

The speaker’s voice grew excited, its tone rising.

[Let’s begin the New Employee Orientation right now!]

At the same instant.

Tadadadadak.

Lights switched on in the annex entrance.

“…!”

Under the bright lights, things previously unseen began to appear clearly.

Down the corridor, previously obscured by darkness, stood rows of heavy iron doors.

“……”

Somehow, rather than maintaining security, it felt more like something was being cut off and locked away… The atmosphere was heavy and alien.

‘Why would there be something like that in the company annex…?’

But before anyone could linger on their doubts, everyone’s gaze was drawn to the spot most brightly illuminated by the overhead lights.

There, on the front desk.

An object that stood out.

“Ah…!”

The new employees blinked as they spotted it.

A jet-black cylindrical box.

“A lottery box?”

It was large and old.

Its battered, crumpled appearance was out of place in the modern, pristine marble lobby of the annex.

The thick paper cylinder was covered on top so its contents were hidden, but the silhouette of the lid revealed there were three holes.

Each round lid was numbered.

⓵ ⓶ ⓷

[Alright, step forward one at a time and draw a lot. Pick the next number in order, and then keep going that way.]

[Ah, let me show you how it’s done. You three who are standing closest, come draw a number, one at a time!]

“Uh, yessir!”

Though they hesitated a bit, the three that were called out couldn’t refuse and stepped forward.

And drew lots.

Salt Goblin

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