Harin looked at Taeseong with an doubtful expression, then let out a small chuckle.
“Haha…”
Then, as if she found it truly hilarious, she burst into laughter. She laughed so hard that her stomach hurt, and tears welled up in her eyes, but she showed no sign of stopping.
“Puhaha! Hahahaha! You’re seriously insane. I can’t tell if you’re reckless or just plain stupid. But one thing’s for sure—you’re really entertaining. You’re so unpredictable that I can’t even guess what you’ll do next.”
“I’m not joking.”
“I know. I can tell you’re dead serious. That’s exactly why I laughed. Because you really believe what you’re saying. From my perspective, it’s just absurd. You do know I’m in the intelligence department, right? The information you have doesn’t even compare in quantity or quality to what I have. Tree’s roots extend across the entire world.”
“……”
Taeseong had long understood the extent of Tree’s influence. As long as he had working eyes and ears, he could deduce plenty from what he saw and heard while working as a manager.
The very fact that Tree sought to control all entities in existence was proof of its overwhelming power. And yet, Harin kept emphasizing it, making Taeseong suspect she was just trying to intimidate him at this point.
“So, please, stop doing reckless things. Do you have any idea how hard it is to train a competent manager? Tree doesn’t just hand out nests for no reason.”
“You said I was going to die no matter what, didn’t you?”
“……”
“Do you know the results of my disciplinary hearing?”
After a brief moment of hesitation, Harin spoke with a troubled expression.
“Yes. I was going to tell you anyway.”
“I see.”
“We tried everything to plead for leniency, exhausting every possible avenue, but unfortunately, the disciplinary committee seems to have already made up its mind.”
“I see.”
With a calm expression, Harin stated,
“The higher-ups have decided to eliminate you.”
“I see.”
“……”
“……”
Unlike what she had expected, Taeseong’s reaction was utterly dry and emotionless, prompting Harin to break the silence first.
“You’re not bothered at all? Taeseong, you’re about to die, you know? Tree has officially ordered your elimination.”
“Well, I expected as much. I caused too much trouble for the higher-ups to simply let it slide.”
“Hah… I can’t tell if you’re just completely detached from life or if you’ve gone subtly insane. So what, you’re just going to die as they say?”
“……”
Taeseong remained silent.
As if that would happen. He had just reunited with his family. While recalling his past memories one by one, he realized just how desperately his past self had wanted to return to Earth.
Even in a life filled with filth, he had fought tooth and nail to survive—so that he could reunite with his loved ones.
“No matter how fearless you are, isn’t it normal to show at least a little fear? I seriously want to crack open your skull and take a look inside. I have no idea what you’re thinking.”
You don’t know what I’m thinking?
It’s simple.
I’m debating whether I should kill the Enforcer in front of me and escape this place right now.
As he instinctively summoned the flames of Ignost, he gained certainty.
Even if the flames were slightly weaker than usual, if he set his mind to it, he could easily melt away these restraints.
“I have a lot to think about.”
Harin sighed, as if admitting defeat.
“Seeing you react like this makes it no fun to tease you… Anyway, everything I said was true. The disciplinary committee was truly set on eliminating you. But that decision has been overturned.”
“Overturned…? Why?”
Harin shrugged and pointed upward with her finger.
“Someone above.”
“Above?”
“Someone in a very high place seems to have taken an interest in you. With just one word from them, everything was flipped on its head. No matter how much authority the head of the disciplinary committee holds, they can’t ignore that person’s words.”
Just who could this person be, that a single word from them could overturn an entire disciplinary verdict?
As he pondered this, a certain individual came to mind—someone who had stopped all the managers in their tracks with a single word.
Even a Beta-ranked manager, that old man, hadn’t dared to act without this person’s permission.
“Are they an Alpha-ranked manager?”
Harin nodded.
But for some reason, her expression seemed a bit off. It didn’t feel like a complete answer.
“Their rank is technically Alpha. Alpha is the highest rank in Tree’s hierarchy, so that part is correct. But… hmm… how should I explain this? They’re essentially beyond that. Even among the Alphas, they exist on a completely different ‘dimension.’ In fact, they aren’t even managers in the first place.”
Taeseong stared at her holographic image.
For some reason, it seemed like Harin was debating whether or not she should even be telling him this.
“Well, considering how things are unfolding, you’ll find out soon enough anyway…”
‘What’s she hesitating about?’
“The Twelfth Apostle, Lee Han.”
…Apostle?
That was a term he had never heard before.
“He’s the one who overruled the disciplinary committee’s decision. You could say he’s your savior. As you can tell from his name, he’s an Apostle from South Korea. Probably the first and last one.”
“What exactly is an Apostle, that they hold such authority?”
“They’re the representatives of Root, Tree’s highest decision-making body, and the twelve candidates designated as future Elders. That’s what an Apostle is. To put it in simpler terms… They’re like supreme judges who aren’t bound by any rules or regulations and can wield absolute power at their own discretion.”
“Supreme judges…”
“I don’t know the details either. Even with my clearance as the next Director of Intelligence, I can’t access any information on them. But… there’s one thing I do know for certain.”
“……”
“If they want, they can wipe out not just a city but an entire country or even a whole branch of Tree. Apostles are basically ■■.”
“What did you just say at the end?”
Harin’s face scrunched up in frustration as she muttered,
“I said they’re like ■■. What the hell, seriously? There’s a filter for this word? Is it because it’s related to the Apostles? What kind of dumb restriction is this? I could say everything else just fine, but now this gets censored? ■■! ■■! I swear, these guys make no sense with how they handle things…”
For a moment, Taeseong wondered if it was okay for her to be speaking like this in front of an Enforcer, but since it was Harin, he figured she could handle herself.
“What else was there… Oh, right, I almost forgot the most important part. Apostle Lee Han has a message for you.”
“Go ahead.”
“Manager Lee Taeseong. I’ll be coming to see you soon.”
“…Why is he suddenly coming to see me?”
“I wouldn’t know. How could a mere employee like me understand the minds of the Apostles? There are plenty of people who’ve worked here their whole lives without ever seeing their faces even once… Honestly, the best-case scenario is to avoid getting involved with them, but since they’ve made up their minds, it’s already over.”
She was right. Even knowing this, there wasn’t anything I could do at the moment. Right now, I should just be glad that the disciplinary ruling had been overturned.
‘Though, to be honest, I’m curious too.’
If someone as mischievous as Choi Harin was speaking this seriously, then whatever I imagined was bound to be far beyond that.
It seemed like I had heard everything I needed to, so now it was my turn to ask questions.
“Team Leader Choi Harin, may I ask you something now?”
Realizing that Taeseong’s demeanor had shifted, Choi Harin gave him a slightly wary look.
“What… is it?”
“Why did you hide from me the fact that my younger sister, Sooah, has been designated as a red-level threat?”
A brief silence followed. Then, as if embarrassed, Choi Harin scratched her head and spoke in a playful tone.
“…Haha. So, you found out. Sorry. It wasn’t because I had some ulterior motive—I was just being a little overprotective, thinking you’d worry as an older brother…”
“I understand that you want to have control over me, Team Leader. You probably want to put a leash on me and train me into a useful hunting dog. But let me tell you something. If you try to cage me in, I bite. And I will use everything at my disposal to do so.”
His crimson eyes gleamed with an eerie intensity, like a predator locking onto its prey. Seeing that gaze, Choi Harin unconsciously swallowed.
“On the other hand, if someone does me a favor, I never forget it. Do you understand?”
Without a word, Choi Harin nodded.
“Good. I also want to maintain a good relationship with you, Team Leader. So I hope for your cooperation as well.”
“…I understand what you’re saying.”
From Taeseong’s perspective, Choi Harin was an incredibly valuable person to make use of. He could tolerate a relationship where they used each other, but if she crossed the line, he would have to reconsider her position.
Either she would become an enemy or an ally.
If she refused both, they would remain in a strictly businesslike relationship.
“Do you know Park Ilhwan, the CEO of Ilseong Hotel?”
A sudden question.
Choi Harin saw this moment as a turning point—a chance to reset their relationship.
‘…Yeah. I need to admit it now. Lee Taeseong isn’t someone I can control at will. In the long run, it’ll be more beneficial to extend goodwill instead.’
Since her previous actions had already been exposed, she judged that maintaining a high-handed attitude would only be a disadvantage now.
“Of course, I know him. He’s the second son of ‘Ilseong’ Group, the number one conglomerate in South Korea.”
“The number one in the business world…?”
“Why?”
“I have something I want to look into.”
“Have you ever heard of ‘M10’?”
Taeseong shook his head. Seeing that, Choi Harin nodded knowingly, as if she had expected that answer.
“It stands for ‘Magnificent Ten.’ It’s the term used for the ten biggest corporations in the world. ‘Ilseong’ Group ranks seventh among them, with a market capitalization of 1,300 trillion won. In dollars, that’s over a trillion. It’s a colossal company.”
“And the second son of such a major corporation is Park Ilhwan?”
“Yep. Park Ilhwan, the second-generation chaebol. One of the potential successors to Ilseong.”
The more he heard, the more his curiosity grew.
Why would the heir to such an enormous company have visited a funeral home? If he simply wanted to express his condolences, he could have just sent a wreath.
“Taeseong, if you don’t mind, could you tell me why you’re asking? I might be able to help.”
After a brief deliberation, Taeseong spoke.
“I heard that Park Ilhwan, the CEO of Ilseong Hotel, attended my parents’ funeral in the past.”
“Hmm… This is a bit of a tricky subject…”
“Whatever it is, please tell me.”
“Do you remember when I mentioned that I found some inconsistencies regarding your parents’ deaths?”
—…Never mind. Sorry, Taeseong. Once I have something more concrete, I promise I’ll tell you then.
“Yes, I remember.”
“While investigating further after that, I found out something. Park Ilhwan, the second son of Ilseong Group, was once investigated for murder.”
“A murder case…?”
“Yeah. If I remember correctly, the accusation was that he killed a woman in her twenties inside a VIP room at a club. Of course, he was released due to a lack of evidence. But the prosecutors handling that case were your parents.”
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