“Oppa, it looks like Commander Jin doesn’t believe it at all,” Lee Ji-Hye said.

“R-really?” I[1] asked.

“Yeah, I’m sure. He really doesn’t believe it,” she answered.

“...”

“Well, of course. Do you know how awkward your expression and tone of voice were back then? Putting aside how startled you were when you saw Commander Jin back here, anyone could tell that you were obviously lying,” she said.

“...”

“He definitely noticed the moment he saw your face,” she added.

“...”

“You’re usually so good at lying, so why are you this bad at a white lie..? Commander Jin’s the type not to say anything, but he’s been acting like he’s broken ever since,” she said.

“...”

“Even when Benigoa threw a cupcake at him, he didn’t react at all. When he attended the meeting, he just sat there staring blankly like he was thinking about something else, and that’s not all. Ever since that day, he’s seemed off for some reason.

"There’s a mountain of work to do, but his productivity has completely hit rock bottom,” she explained.

“...”

“In front of you, he tries to act confident, like nothing’s wrong and none of it bothers him at all, but every now and then he lets out these empty laughs. I can even hear banging from his office. I also heard him cursing to himself. I secretly peeked into his office the other day, and he was staring at the ceiling like he had gone insane, muttering, ‘He forgot me? Ha... me?’” she added.

“If what you’re saying is true... that’s... pretty serious...” I commented.

“Do you know what’s even worse?” she asked.

“What?”

Lee Ji-Hye gestured dramatically, speaking in an exaggerated theatrical tone. “Come to think of it... you said... you liked... watching the sunrise... Ah... I...”

“...”

“That didn’t work either,” she said.

“...”

“No matter how much I teased him, it didn’t work. I thought he’d at least get annoyed, tell me to stop, or, at the very least, react coolly, but none of that happened. And it’s not like I just threw something together either. I even went with Benigoa in disguise. I trembled and collapsed in front of him, and he didn’t even look at me.

"He just kept staring at the ceiling, then suddenly smashed his desk and walked out. So I followed him to see what he was doing, and my god... he was smoking,” she said.

“That... is seriously bad, isn't it?” I asked.

“Bad? He’s completely broken. We’re already dying from the lack of manpower while dealing with the aftermath. Commander Jin used to handle all that work, but he suddenly stopped functioning. How’s anything supposed to run properly?” she remarked.

“...”

“Benigoa’s depressed, Belial doesn’t seem to be doing anything, and the others can’t handle all the work Commander Jin used to do on top of their own. You know what the higher-ups are like. They’ve got no sense for actual work. Aside from a few, they’re just sitting in those positions without really earning them,” she said, grumbling.

“Still, they do work hard at what they’re assigned,” I said.

“That’s exactly the problem. They only work hard at what they’re assigned. They don’t try to do anything beyond that. Just seeing these bastards leave work right on time makes my blood boil,” she said.

‘Noona... you’re kind of part of the problem too...’

“I don’t usually say things like this, but this is really hard. I was already struggling here alone while you and Commander Jin were over there, and somehow now that you’re back, I’m even busier. What kind of situation is this?

"Sure, I know there was a lot of work piled up, but still, this is too much. Do you know how long it’s been since this place was properly managed?” she asked.

“...”

“...”

“Honestly, that guy is ridiculous, too. Noona, do you really have to be that shocked about that? When did he ever hold back before? He always says that it’s humiliating to even know you and how you can’t even hold a conversation. He even throws out all kinds of insults, so why’s he the one acting shocked now?” I questioned.

“...”

“He even said before that he wanted to erase all memories of being with you from his head. You just did what he wanted, didn’t you? So, why’s he suddenly acting all miserable? And it’s not like I forgot him on purpose. I’ve just been out of it myself lately... so it just ended up like that...” I told her.

“How would I know what Commander Jin is thinking? If I had to guess, maybe his pride got hurt. But he can't really say anything, so he’s just bottling it up, which might be making it even more stressful for him...

"I mean, do you really think that narcissist can easily accept being forgotten by someone? Not just anyone, but you at that,” Lee Ji-Hye asked.

“What did I even do?” I asked.

“Commander Jin will deny it and say it’s ridiculous, but in my personal opinion, I think he kind of sees you as a rival,” she answered.

“Pfft! Noona, I don’t know about anything else, but that’s definitely not it,” I said.

“No, not that kind of serious rivalry. A lighter version of it. Rather than rivalry... maybe someone he acknowledges... No, that’s not quite it either. I’m not sure how to put it. I’m not Commander Jin, after all.

"At the very least, you’re probably one of the few people he thinks he can actually have a conversation with on equal footing,” she explained.

“Commander Jin and I can have a conversation on equal footing?” I questioned.

“Oppa, you’ve never seen Commander Jin talk to people he considers beneath him, have you? It will look like he’s just being polite and saying what needs to be said, but if you look closely, he has this face like he’s talking to some primitive animal.

"Like, ‘I’m actually having a conversation with a monkey,’ ‘This monkey talks surprisingly well,’ ‘This monkey even knows words like that?’ ‘Huh? This monkey’s not bad.’ That’s the kind of look he has. But he doesn’t make that face when he talks to you,” she explained.

“No, that’s not true. He does that to me, too...” I argued.

“No, that’s not what I mean! You can be so dense sometimes. Even if he says things like that right to your face, do you really think that’s what he actually means? Thinking about the two of you, there’s no way that’s how he sees it!

"If he really thought you were a monkey, then that would make him even lower than one! There’s no way he genuinely looks down on you like that!” she shouted.

“...”

“Did you know Commander Jin reads every single performance report and proposal you write? Of course, he makes sure I can hear him when he says things like ‘what a childish idea’ or ‘just like him, such a cheap idea.’ He throws out these harsh comments, but that busy man still takes the time to carefully go through your work every single day."

“...”

“Honestly, it’s almost obsessive. It’s not like it’s happened just once or twice, either; he’s read your proposal and then completely overturned his own because of it. There are probably dozens of discarded plans piled up in storage just because he suddenly doesn't like them anymore.

"Oh, and this is unrelated, but Miss Benigoa actually takes those discarded ones from storage and submits them as they are, just changing the name to hers,” she explained.

“That explains why things felt strange lately,” I commented.

“Anyway, that proud man and self-important lone wolf... someone like him with such a strong ego... was completely forgotten by one of the few people he at least recognizes as a human being instead of a monkey...” She trailed off before asking, “If you think about it... isn’t it only natural that he's deeply hurt?”

Right on cue, the sound of footsteps echoed. When I glanced over, I saw Commander Jin walking past us. For some reason, Ji-Hye noona waved her arms exaggeratedly. He couldn’t have been that far away, yet he didn’t even seem to notice that Ji-Hye noona was there. He didn’t even notice Benigoa trailing behind him, either.

Perhaps it was because she was affected by Commander Jin, but even she looked drained. It seemed like she wanted to mess with him or pick a fight, but when the zombie-like Commander Jin showed no reaction at all, she looked deeply disappointed.

“Commander Jin! Commander Jin!” she exclaimed energetically for no reason, but he didn’t respond, and that wasn’t all. Belial, who was passing by him, held out some documents in his hand, but he didn’t react to that, either.

In the end, Belial frowned and shoved the documents into his hands before walking off.

I saw him shrug toward us and gesture at Commander Jin. “He’s turned into an idiot. Can’t you fix him somehow?”

‘Yeah... this is seriously bad.’

“Lee Ki-Young...”

Now even Benigoa was looking this way with the eyes of an abandoned deer. When I turned my gaze again, I saw Ji-Hye noona lowering the hand she’d been waving. Her face clearly said, “See, I told you so.”

It looked like she was asking if I had seen how he hadn't noticed us standing here. Naturally, my eyes moved to her face. Behind her triumphant expression, something else slowly came into view.

‘Damn... she looks exhausted.’

The sight was unlike her at all; she was usually like an iron wall. Of course, true to her nature of strict self-management, she didn’t show it openly, but if one looked closely, the dark circles under her eyes were obvious. Her pupils looked dull, and even her skin, which was always smooth, seemed dry.

It was clear that she was under a lot of stress nowadays.

From the perspective of the second life, Commander Jin and I hadn’t been gone that long, but the scale of the operation we were running was so large that it was too much for Ji-Hye noona to handle alone.

She had to have been waiting desperately for both him and me, and on top of that, she had to deal with all the big and small problems that arose as the first life completely shut down. As a result, she hadn’t been able to take a proper break.

More than ever, this was a time when we needed actual manpower. No, even if it wasn’t actual manpower, it would be fine. In fact, Ji-Hye noona had even seriously suggested bringing Kim Hyun-Sung here, saying that with things this busy, it would be better to at least call him over and put him on simple tasks.

Of course, the suggestion was rejected due to various issues, but everyone here felt the same way—we needed even the smallest bit of help.

Benigoa treated this place like a playground and only paid attention to Commander Jin, but if one looked at the people moving around the office, it was obvious how much stress had built up inside them.

Belial had a permanent scowl on his face, and even Rimoura’s tentacles were drooping, even though they were always lively.

Lonovera, who was constantly by Ji-Hye’s side, looked half-dead. Dominions wasn't supposed to be working here, but she was secretly drafted into doing miscellaneous tasks before getting caught red-handed.

That wasn’t all—I heard that Lauren even got sick. It was so absurd I almost laughed. A transcendent being getting sick... Benigoa had fervently defended her, so her fake illness wasn't exposed. However, Lauren had been adapting well to life here, but even she had decided to run. It was clear just how serious things had gotten. On top of that...

‘Didn’t they say Sahaga and Gela even got into a fight?’

“Even the newest recruits couldn’t escape the sudden disaster. The desert gods of love from Laves, who used to be so inseparable that they couldn’t stand being apart, are now sleeping in separate rooms,” Lee Ji-Hye said.

The cause was simple: stress from excessive workload.

‘The atmosphere up top is seriously... no joke.’

Even Benigoa’s bright laughter, which used to lighten the mood at least a little, was nowhere to be heard, and when one thought about how all of this started as a snowball effect from Commander Jin’s disappearance, it was honestly absurd.

‘This is insane. Seriously.’

Things were already busy down here, but issues were breaking out up top, too, so it was beyond overwhelming. It even made me wonder if that bastard was holding a grudge over being left behind and was doing this on purpose.

As I let out a deep sigh, Ji-Hye noona said, “I’m not joking. This needs to be fixed.”

“...”

“I know you’re busy, but at this rate, it’s definitely going to start affecting the lower side, too. You don’t want to get dragged into another mess right after barely resolving the Hexagram incident, do you? You know, it too, things are barely holding together right now,” sheadded.

“...”

“You know how important the beginning is. It hasn’t even been a week since you were recognized as the proper caretaker of the continent... If you don’t want people saying that your administration has collapsed right from the start, you need to deal with that first.

"Unless you want to see the ones up top forming a union and marching around with picket signs, you’d better do something,” she suggested.

‘But how exactly am I supposed to fix this...’

“W-what am I supposed to do?” I asked.

“How would I know? Try having a meal with him. Or play a game with him or something,” she suggested.

“...”

“...”

“He’s obviously just going to ignore me,” I said.

“You never know,” she said.

1. Lee Ki-Young’s POV ☜