“D-Did Mr. Muheon not punish you at all?”
“No… I was so surprised that I got wet in the rain, and he just wiped me off with a towel.”
It was true.
Although there had been a small scuffle because a man had mistaken me for a hairless bottlenose dolphin, it wasn’t a big problem.
Could it be that seeing the boss himself was such a huge deal?
Hakyung’s heart pounded with anxiety.
But Buk Geunrim was even more surprised than Hakyung.
The first to speak was Buk Geunrim.
“Hakyung, you were very lucky yesterday.
Like I said earlier, you must never tell anyone that you saw Mr. Muheon’s true form.”
“Yes, yes!”
Hakyung answered quickly and made a zipper gesture over his mouth, meaning he would absolutely keep it a secret.
Only then did a slight look of relief spread in Buk Geunrim’s eyes.
Hakyung’s small mind couldn’t understand Buk Geunrim’s attitude.
Maybe it was because he was a freshwater humanoid and Buk Geunrim was a sea creature humanoid.
The elders’ saying about sea creatures having many secrets—and many scary ones—seemed true; you had to be careful.
Hakyung engraved their advice once again in his mind.
From now on, he promised himself not to speak about the boss to anyone.
“Well then, I’ll go clean the office.”
“All right, understood.”
Leaving behind a still pale Buk Geunrim, Hakyung headed toward the bathroom.
A big sigh escaped Buk Geunrim’s mouth as he watched Hakyung’s back.
Hakyung truly seemed to have been born under a lucky star.
He had seen Mr. Muheon performed his ‘work’ and still wandered around unharmed…
It was a miracle that hadn’t happened even once in hundreds of years that he ruled the West Sea.
Anyone who disturbed his work even a little bit had suffered misfortune somehow.
It wasn’t because Muheon was cruel, but when the Imugi (a kind of dragon or serpent creature) performed its work, it became violent and regarded even tiny living beings nearby as enemies.
That’s why no one went near the Imugi while it performed its work—not only in the West Sea but also in the East and South Seas.
“What an amazing guy…”
So it was even more amazing and terrifying that Hakyung had come back unharmed, and that Mr. Muheon himself had wiped the rain from his hair with a towel.
What on earth was Muheon thinking when he brought the bottlenose dolphin Hakyung?
As a mere subordinate, Buk Geunrim could only guess that there was some great purpose beyond his understanding.
Like before, he attributed everything that happened around Muheon to his boundless loyalty.
He carefully folded his deep respect and returned to the office.
Still secretly envying Hakyung for having seen Mr. Muheon’s dark, magnificent true form.
Hakyung’s shoulders dropped, having gotten the exact opposite result of what he hoped for when he wanted to get rid of Buk Geunrim quickly.
The employees’ efforts to protect the boss’s pride were stronger than he thought. So he had to follow along.
Hakyung spent his time cleaning the stairs, avoiding running into any staff so he wouldn’t say anything unnecessary.
After sweeping and mopping the stairs from the first to the third floor, it was lunchtime.
He remembered Mr. Muheon’s words in the morning telling him to come to the office at lunchtime.
After tidying up the cleaning supplies in the tool closet, Hakyung knocked on the inner office door.
After hearing a low “Come in,” he turned the doorknob.
“I’m here.”
“Sit down.”
Maybe because of Buk Geunrim’s reaction a few hours ago, the boss—who Hakyung had thought he was getting close to—suddenly felt unfamiliar and scary again.
Feeling awkward, Hakyung pressed down his hat and settled onto the sofa.
The man took a seat across from him, and the moment he sat down, Hakyung’s eyes caught his thigh muscles.
He swallowed hard.
Wow, those thigh muscles were really impressive.
Hakyung’s eyes sparkled as he scanned Muheon’s legs.
The feeling of unfamiliarity he had just a few seconds ago completely vanished.
“Kang Hakyung.”
“Yes.”
“Look here a bit, will you?”
Muheon waved his hand, puzzled by Hakyung staring intently at his lower body.
He blinked, probably unaware of what exactly he had been looking at and had just zoned out. But what was it, exactly?
Putting aside Hakyung’s unfathomable fascination, Muheon brought up the reason he called him.
“It’s been a week now. How’s it going? Can you handle it?”
Hakyung fiddled with his fingers.
He had expected the question to some extent, but giving a clear answer wasn’t easy.
Thinking back on the things he had done over the week, it felt like a week could stretch into ten years of work.
Even though this was such a good job, every day that passed, an accumulating anxiety chilled the back of his neck.
He knew well that nothing in this world comes free and that no job is truly easy.
Still, he couldn’t understand why the boss and the employees showed him such excessive kindness.
So, even by today—his one-week mark—Hakyung hadn’t made any decisions yet.
He was scared that if he kept working like this, he might get completely stuck, but if he gave up on life in Seoul and returned home, he’d probably think about this company forever.
“I can handle it.”
“Handle it? So, you have some complaints?”
“N-no complaints at all! The employees are really nice, and the boss seems better than I thought.”
Though there were some awkward phrases mixed into his chatter, Muheon let it slide for now.
After all, you have to hear everything in Korean before you understand it.
“But my grandmother said, ‘Nothing in this world is easy, and the safest way to earn money is the most dangerous.’ And I’m exactly in that kind of situation right now.”
“So, what you’re saying is that because the work is so easy and comfortable, there’s probably some kind of unknown danger lurking behind it?”
“Yes, yes. You summarized that really well. Boss, I think you must’ve gotten first place in the language section of your college entrance exam.”
Muheon let out a baffled laugh at what was probably the most trivial compliment Hakyung had ever given.
Following his laugh, the corner of Hakyung’s mouth twitched into a small smile.
“Don’t laugh.”
“Okay.”
It wasn’t bad to exchange silly jokes, but that wasn’t the important thing right now.
Muheon, who had reluctantly taken charge of Hakyung’s backpack beside him, asked once more:
“So, how is it? Can you handle it?”
“Ah, can I have my backpack?”
“Answer first.”
If he decided to leave after the one-week contract, it seemed his backpack would never escape the man’s grasp.
Hakyung stretched out his hand with a sullen face, but the boss lifted his arm up, putting it even further out of reach.
Feeling the height difference so keenly once again… it was frustrating.
Hakyung’s cheeks puffed out in a huff, full of displeasure.
Muheon’s fingers twitched with the sudden urge to poke those round cheeks—even though he didn’t have dimples.
“You can’t just take my backpack! You promised to give it back after one week!”
“Hmm, that’s true.”
“Yes! Please give it to me!”
Hakyung loudly insisted, and Muheon obediently returned the backpack.
Hakyung’s eyes went wide, surprised that his backpack was so easily returned after all.
But quickly fearing he might snatch it away again, he hugged it tightly.
With that backpack, he could leave right away if he wanted, yet Muheon’s relaxed attitude in handing it over made him feel even more on edge.
His rising anxiety only fed his curiosity.
Still clutching the backpack, he asked the boss:
“Why did you give my backpack back so easily?”
“How else am I supposed to give it to you?”
“Just a moment ago, when I tried to take it, you even raised your hand and teased me.”
Remembering that made Hakyung pout in indignation.
He was probably full of unspoken complaints.
Just thinking about it made Muheon’s lips twitch into a smile.
Wiping his mouth with his hand to hide his grin, Muheon shrugged his shoulders and calmly said:
“You’ll have to work longer to pay me back for the clothes I bought last time anyway.”
“Huh?”
Hakyung’s eyes trembled like a leaf.
Sure, he had gone a bit crazy shopping that day, but wasn’t that a different matter entirely?!
“You said you were just going to buy them for me!”
“Yeah. I said ‘just buy them.’ But you’re the one who has to pay me back.”
That was it!
That was why the back of his head kept feeling prickly!
Hakyung held the back of his neck, feeling like he’d been stabbed in the face.
It was so unfair.
The boss was the one who urged him on after he tried to back out of the refund…
So naturally, he thought the boss was paying for it!
Tears welled up.
Fueled by rising frustration, he stomped his feet on the spot.
“Oh dear, Kang Hakyung must have misunderstood. I just told you to buy it without worry because you can pay me back later.”
Looking at the boss’s sparkling dark eyes full of amusement, Hakyung had to clutch the back of his neck once more.