The day after the shoot ended, the settlement process began without fail.
[Successfully achieved a total of two significant perception changes.]
[Obtained 10 Okchun!]
[Successfully achieved a total of ten ordinary perception changes.]
[Obtained 30 Okchun!]
[Successfully achieved a total of twenty-five minor perception changes.]
[Obtained 25 Okchun!]
‘Definitely fewer than before.’
Thinking back, I was pretty lucky in many ways during .
‘Still, changing the perception of thirty-five people isn’t all that bad.’
Changing someone’s perception seems easy in some ways but is also incredibly difficult.
Honestly, it was a disappointing result. Unlike the first shoot, the perception of Yuchae-min wasn’t very good, so I thought that would actually be an opportunity. But I didn’t consider that if the effect is strong, the backlash is equally strong.
‘At least there were two significant perception changes—that’s something to hold onto.’
I expected at least one person. But there were two, both even more significant. That means someone else besides Director Lee Seung-heon experienced a perception change on his level. I was curious who it could be, but no face came to mind.
That was when it happened.
Suddenly, from somewhere, a “pababam” celebratory melody rang out, and out of nowhere, fireworks exploded right in front of my eyes. Colored paper confetti rained down, but nothing actually fell to the floor.
[Congratulations!]
[Successfully achieved a total of one exceptionally significant perception change!]
[Acquired 1 Sesame Okchun [Bronze].]
‘Exceptionally significant… what?’
Before I could fully grasp the system message, there was a clicking sound, and something dropped from midair.
Reflexively, I cupped both hands together, and it descended slowly into my palm, as if defying the laws of gravity.
A round candy with red, green, and white borders. Inside was a cluster of sesame seeds.
It gave off a strange illusion of sparkling more as it caught the light.
‘Looks delicious.’
My mouth suddenly watered, and my appetite surged. It was strange since I’m not particularly fond of Okchun…
Just as I was about to pick up the Sesame Okchun, as if hypnotized, a small child’s hand suddenly shot out from midair and snatched it.
“……”
I nearly bit my tongue.
‘This crazy… company.’
What did they give me that a child’s hand would suddenly appear out of nowhere!?
Whether I froze in surprise or not, the owner of the hand gradually revealed themselves, as if a curtain I couldn’t see dropped in front of me. Following the hand came a shoulder, then the full form of a child.
A kid with a bowl haircut and wearing a saekdong jeogori floated in midair. Their straight-cut bangs were long enough to cover their eyes.
The occasional surreal sight made my senses somewhat numb.
[Candy… candy, give me…]
The voice was very soft, the ending dragged out.
[Caaan-dy… I want to eat it…]
What on earth was going on? Who was this child who appeared before me? I asked the child just in case.
“Um… who are you?”
[I came to eat candy…]
Right. I wasn’t expecting an answer. Why is it that such instincts never fail me?
‘Candy…’
I looked again at the Okchun the child’s hand was holding. Since they wanted it so badly but didn’t forcibly take it, it seemed permission was definitely needed.
Suddenly, a conversation with Team Leader Kkae came to mind.
‘Do you know what Okchun is?’
‘Kind of. Isn’t it the candy that’s put on ancestral rites tables?’
‘Exactly.’
Team Leader Kkae said that was the answer to my question and a hint. The question I’d asked at the time was…
‘Is it possible to add or modify the customized product options? Randomness is too frustrating… Is there any way to improve it?’
Okchun placed on ancestral rites tables. Ancestral rites are offerings made to already deceased ancestors—basically preparing food for them. And now, in front of me, was a child who desperately wanted to eat Sesame Okchun.
Could it be…
‘…Is this a high-ranking person responsible for Karma Mall?’
Back then, I vaguely understood Team Leader Kkae’s words as meaning I should use a lot of Okchun in Karma Mall to raise my customer rank. But now, seeing the situation, I had a different thought.
‘Is this literally telling me to offer it to the person in charge?’
[Caaaandy… won’t give it?]
The whining child’s words snapped me back to reality. I looked at the Sesame Okchun for a moment, then extended it.
“Here, have this.”
I wasn’t sure if Sesame Okchun could be used as currency in Karma Mall. Still, I felt like this was the right thing to do.
[Thank you!]
The child’s smile brightened as they took the candy. Even though their bangs still covered their eyes, I could feel their happiness.
The candy-receiving child vanished instantly. And then…
Nothing happened. No changes, no events. I had simply become the person who gave Sesame Okchun to a child.
“Hahaha! So you actually gave the Sesame Okchun just like that?”
“Yes, well… that’s how it went.”
Team Leader Kkae laughed so hard he was clutching his stomach.
‘No matter how I look at it, he’s not laughing because it’s genuinely funny…’
It seemed like he was overdoing it just to piss me off.
“…Is that really not a problem?”
“Oh, no. You did well.”
His answer was ambiguous. No explanation on what exactly I’d done right.
‘It doesn’t seem like a forbidden topic.’
Maybe he was just teasing me by keeping quiet. Was I overthinking it?
“Well, really. I didn’t do anything wrong. If anything, it’s on the good side. It’s just… I didn’t expect you’d hand it over so readily. Especially without confirming the value of Sesame Okchun.”
He pinpointed the vague discomfort I felt while handing over the candy. It was precise enough to sting.
“This is a bit unexpected.”
How did he think of me? Actually, I shouldn’t make assumptions about others like that, right?
“Well, sorry for laughing so openly.”
Still smiling, Team Leader Kkae said this. Not wanting to add anything more, I just nodded.
‘Isn’t it about time to go?’
No sooner had I thought that than Team Leader Kkae checked his wristwatch. Just when I expected his usual closing remarks and departure, he pulled something from his pocket and offered it to me.
It was an invitation sealed in a completely white envelope.
“W-what… is this?”
Why was this superior giving me something like this? I had a bad feeling it wasn’t good.
“Open it.”
“…Just open it?”
“Yes.”
His tone was refreshingly direct but firm.
‘No use asking for more.’
When that happens, the best answer is to give up quickly.
I sighed quietly and opened the envelope. Inside was a perfectly normal, stiff invitation card—the kind you’ve probably seen countless times in your life.
‘So why, of all people, does Team Leader Kkae have to be the one giving this to me?’
That question popped up again as I stared at him. He smiled gently as if he had been waiting for this moment. The eyes behind his friendly mask dilated wider than usual.
‘Since he told me to check it out, I guess I have to.’
I took out and unfolded the invitation.
[“Karma Corporation” Korea Branch XXXth New Employee Work Performance Report Meeting]
My vision swam the moment I read the words at the top. My strength drained, and my consciousness began to fade.
“…!”
Suddenly coming to my senses, I found myself there—in the auditorium of the Korea Branch of Karma Corporation.
‘Here again…’
Maybe it was because of the memories from when I first woke up here. It wasn’t a pleasant feeling.
Even though I’d longed for death, the strange distortion of still being alive was truly unpleasant.
“Unpleasant” felt too mild a word, but I couldn’t think of a better one.
It was like witnessing the sun rising from the west alone. Or like being thrown into a world where day and night were reversed without any explanation.
The truths I’d taken for granted shattered, and I was the only one left in this broken world.
The despair of being alive back then had numbed me to this feeling, but it resurfaced now.
‘…Still feels kind of weird.’
It looked like a normal auditorium, but the sensation was strange. Everything seemed to gently ripple like smoke rising as I stared straight ahead, sometimes blurring the boundaries. When I focused hard, it appeared normal for a moment.
‘My body feels kind of light too… not good.’
My feet were firmly on the ground, but it felt like I was slightly floating. I could endure it, but the strange feeling was slowly gnawing at my nerves.
‘This company even calls people like this.’
Well, considering it’s a company in the afterlife, using public transport would be impossible. Still… there must have been another way. I looked around.
I wasn’t alone in the auditorium. Just like when I first woke up here, there were several others. The difference was that now everyone was dressed neatly in black suits.
‘Feels like we actually came to work.’
What was odd was that none of them seemed surprised. It was as if they had been told beforehand to come here.
‘Ah, no way.’
Was I the only one who was suddenly transported here? I wanted to believe I wasn’t, but thinking of Team Leader Kkae’s expression when he handed me the invitation, it was possible. It did seem like he had arrived earlier than usual with some scheme in mind.
Before long, a woman in a suit climbed onto the stage. Her hair was voluminous with waves, and she wore a friendly mask like Team Leader Kkae’s. It wasn’t a Hahoe mask but a sleek, solid black design.
[Hello, new employees of the Korea Branch of “Karma Corporation.” You are gathered here for the New Employee Work Performance Report Meeting.]
Her voice echoed with a strange resonance.
[You will stay at the company building for one night and two days, prepare a report of your work performance so far, and then give presentations.]
‘One night, two days…?’
Then what about time in the real world? What’s the schedule?
At the mention of one night and two days, murmurs broke out. Like me, the others seemed surprised by the unexpected news. Maybe this part hadn’t been fully explained.
The woman, speaking in a dry tone, paused briefly. Without showing any emotion, she silently gazed at us.