Chapter 38 – Tour – Part 3

Chapter 38 – Tour – Part 3

The middle-aged person, appearing to be in their late 40s and seated on the far right, spoke first.

“Mr. Shin Woojin?”

“Yes.”

Woojin’s eyes caught his face, which alternated between looking at the documents and at him.

His gaze was curious, but conversely, a mocking expression was plastered all over his face.

He opened his mouth and thought.

For an interviewee like Shin Woojin, formal questions are unnecessary.

For someone who passed the document screening and is standing here, it was necessary to instill in their mind that the company is not an easy place.

“Mr. Shin Woojin. Why are manhole covers round?”

Woojin’s head tilted slightly.

It was completely different from the interview questions he had seen in dramas, movies, media, and books.

There was no information that the company sold manhole covers.

Is he trying to gauge my knowledge?

That thought was fleeting, and Woojin answered.

“Square or triangular shapes have sides that are shorter than their diagonals or longer sides, making them more likely to fall through. Conversely, the round shape you mentioned, interviewer, has a consistent length, making it difficult for the cover to fall out due to gravity, which is why they are made in a circular shape.”

His gaze, which had been on the documents, now looked at Woojin.

‘Look at this?’

He’s majoring in business but answers like a science major, and accurately at that.

And not a single interviewee had answered this question before.

He posed another question.

“How would you easily explain the color red to a visually impaired person?”

What he was asking for was how to deal with explaining difficult things and to see empathy.

Most people talk about things like red apples or objects.

Woojin stood up and approached him.

You have to actively approach someone who actively asks questions.

As such, it is most important to adapt to the other person.

“Could I borrow your lighter?”

“W-what is it?”

He was momentarily flustered, then, with an intrigued expression, he took out a lighter from his inner pocket, and Woojin said,

“Would you close your eyes and hold out your hand?”

He flinched as he reached out his hand, then pulled it back.

He had guessed what Woojin was going to do.

Woojin said,

“The flame emitted from a lighter is red. The color of the flame changes to blue, white, yellow, and red depending on the temperature, and you just felt the energy of a very low temperature color, red.”

The interviewer let out a small, hollow laugh.

Had he ever seen an interviewee like this?

He thought that if he were a visually impaired person and felt the flame of a lighter, regardless of the color, it would be etched in his mind.

Besides, no one had ever gotten up from their chair during an interview and approached the interviewer.

Just then, a woman who looked to be in her late twenties, with eyes similar to Lee Hyerim’s, asked,

“What do you want to do if you join the company?”

Woojin looked at her and raised both hands appropriately, as if receiving an object.

Body language makes the listener focus.

For example, like explaining to a foreigner with hand gestures and foot gestures when you don’t know English.

She had been observing him for some time.

It was also good to respond appropriately by showing her body language that matched her.

“I want to experience a variety of things.”

She nodded and said briefly,

“Yes. You did well. You can leave now.”}

“Good work.”

As Woojin went outside, the person who had asked the first question spoke.

“I thought he was just a parachute hire, but he’s an interesting friend. Honestly, I expected a typical answer, but he surprised me.”

Hyerim’s older sister, who had asked the last question, nodded her head.

Even though her younger sibling actively recommended him, she thought he’d be as obvious as Lee Hyerim, but no, she was honestly a little surprised when he described the color red.

She had intended to deliberately fail him to avoid indulging her younger sibling’s whims.

“He seems bright, so we can send him to the Sales Team. I’d like to observe him a little longer.”

She shook her head.

“He wants to have diverse experiences, so we can send him to the pencil sharpening department.”

She was referring to the Management Support Team.

It was the department responsible for weekly and monthly settlements and sales closings, but it also supported and assisted other departments.

Even with exceptional abilities, it was a place where it was difficult to shine.

Meanwhile, Woojin was heading to the supermarket.

He was going to stop by his cousin Mansu’s store.

*

His cousin Mansu asked, looking a little surprised.

“Wow… All dressed up in a suit, where are you going?”

“I’m on my way back.”

“But what’s all that?”

Woojin’s hands were heavy, as if he had just been grocery shopping.

The interview was one thing, but he had to finish what he started.

“I’ve been to several famous restaurants, and I’m going to try to recreate a popular taste.”

“Popular taste?”

“Yes. Can I use the kitchen?”

“Oh, of course.”

Woojin took off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves, then entered the kitchen.

Then he started neatly putting down the things he had bought.

Roasted Salt, Chicken Stock, Dashida, and so on…

Seeing Woojin expertly mix the seasonings, his older cousin asked, looking flustered.

“Woojin, won’t using only MSG be bad for your body…?”

“Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) is 40 times safer than salt. That’s because it’s a fermented seasoning. The reason I bought roasted salt is because it’s heated to remove any potential microplastics.”

Mansu’s older cousin unknowingly nodded his head.

Woojin’s words, though hard to express, inspired trust.

He silently watched Woojin.

Woojin, with his measuring spoon and precise measurements, looked so serious it was like science.

It looked as if he was combining magic powder.

The sauce was made in just ten minutes, and Woojin, having finished the ciabatta, cut it in half.

Tomatoes and various young vegetables were inside, and thin slices of ham stimulated the appetite.

“Please try it.”

Mansu’s older cousin took a big bite.

And within a few moments,

“What is this? It’s really delicious!”

Did they say humans taste sweet, salty, sour, and bitter?

The things he had made until now, which contained vegetables that people called healthy, could sometimes taste slightly bitter, but he didn’t taste any of that at all.

The bitterness disappeared, replaced by umami.

“Is this the power of MSG…?”

Woojin nodded at his words.

“Still, it might be better not to emphasize MSG in the advertising image. Healthy food, good for the brain. That’s why we’re revealing the LED cultivation method.”

“Magic powder, no, this recipe, of course, it shouldn’t get out, right?”

Woojin nodded as if it were obvious.

“Yes. Try making it once exactly as I did. The ratio of MSG is the most important part.”

At Woojin’s words, his cousin Mansu rolled up his sleeves with a determined expression.

*

Woojin returned home a little before 4 PM.

“Brother! Did your interview go well?”

At Bomi’s words, Woojin’s lips curved into a soft smile. It was a reaction he hadn’t even realized he made.

“Yes.”

The interviewers’ non-verbal cues, expressed on their faces, were initially varied, but over time, they became more favorable.

This was because Woojin adapted his words and actions to fit their framework.

“Oh! As expected of my brother!”

“I’ll treat you when I get my first paycheck.”

Bomi shook her head as if she couldn’t accept that.

“You earned it, brother, you should spend it.”

His first paycheck held a very special meaning for Woojin.

It was his first, and he had always intended to do something for his family when he earned a salary from regular work.

“Oh, brother. There’s something I don’t understand.”

“What is it?”

“Just a moment.”

Bomi scurried into her room and soon returned with a math workbook, which she opened.

She was solving second-year high school math, even though she was only in her first year of high school, which was ahead of what her teacher was covering at school.

“I don’t quite understand this part…”

As soon as Bomi pointed to the problem, Woojin began to speak.

“Assuming the radius of sector BAO is r, here pi is r times pi over 3, where r is 3. The area of the triangle is…”

Bomi nodded and said,

“Ah… so it’s one half times 3 squared, times sine of pi over 3…”

Bomi, who had deduced the answer, smiled brightly.

“Brother, I feel like I’m getting expensive tutoring from an S University student. With a perfect CSAT score resume!”

“Our Bomi is smart, so she understands well.”

“Is that right?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Hehe.”

Eventually, evening came, and Woojin’s family ate dinner while chatting pleasantly.

The main dish was sliced pork belly, but Woojin enjoyed and savored his family’s warmth more than the food itself.

Woojin thought of this feeling as, ‘Could this be happiness?’

After enjoying the meal, Woojin went into his room, lay down, and started using his cellphone.

While others used their cellphones for entertainment, Woojin used his to gather information.

That could be dramas or movies, or even interesting videos.

Even when Woojin watched hidden camera videos, he carefully observed the actions, words, and expressions.

Then. The video disappeared, and a call came in.

[Detective Kim Taehyun]

“Hello?”

“-Hey, man! Don’t touch that! Hey, hey! Oh my! Oh my!”

Detective Kim Taehyun’s voice was urgent and full of emotion.

“Hello?”

“-Oh, Woojin. I’m going crazy. This crazy bastard caused trouble again. Hey, hey! There…”

As Kim Taehyun was shouting at someone, Woojin’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“You couldn’t catch the suspect?”

“-This bastard just vanished into thin air. It seems he immediately bolted when the investigation started, but I told those guys to be careful… His name is Han Junhak, over 180cm tall, good physique. Seeing that he disappeared, it seems you were right about this bastard. He probably won’t even come home, I’m going crazy…”

Woojin’s mind raced.

The period for the criminal to cause another incident was seven days.

The targeting is fast.

The criminal was either observing the target as usual, or unconsciously aware of them and could easily and quickly approach someone.

“The criminal’s signature is Acedia, right?”

Meaning, sloth.

“Uh-huh! That’s right! That’s right!”

“It must be the homeless man.”

Kim Taehyun, getting goosebumps, cursed without realizing it.

-Oh, damn it! You’re right, he looked exactly like a homeless man!

Woojin slowly nodded his head.

For a moment, Woojin thought he could vaguely see the criminal.

It felt like he was slowly gesturing.

As if mocking him, asking if he could find him.

“Where’s the scene?”

-Huh? You’re coming? Woojin, it would be really great if you came!

“Yes. It seems the criminal wants to play a ridiculous game…”

As soon as Woojin finished speaking, Kim Taehyun said,

-Hey! Gicheol! Go quickly bring our younger brother here! You remember Choi Gicheol from yesterday, right? He’s going to pick him up.

After finishing the call, Woojin changed into his training clothes.

And less than an hour later, he was on his way to the scene in Choi Gicheol’s car.

They drove for an hour and arrived at a point between Inwangsan and Suseongdong Valley.

Police officers surrounded the scene, and people who appeared to be the Forensics Team were taking pictures and looking for evidence.

There were also people muttering curses at the criminal.

“Like a psychopath…”

“What crazy bastard…”

It was no different from what he had seen in movies.

“Our Woojin is here?”

Detective Kim Taehyun, with a roughly grown beard, approached, walking past the police line.

Just then, the Team Leader, who had followed Detective Kim Taehyun, looked at Woojin.

Seeing Woojin, who looked no older than 20, he muttered to Kim Taehyun with a look of disappointment.

“Getting the Sanitation Worker right wasn’t a coincidence, was it?”

Kim Taehyun said,

“Team Leader, don’t ask about his fortune later. Our junior isn’t that kind of person.”