Genius’s Godlike Game Broadcast-Chapter 1 : It's Possessed by Evil Spirits (1)

It's Possessed by Evil Spirits (1)
"Gyeongbok, you have such a good impression. Your name, it's the 'gyeong' from 'celebration,' and 'bok' as in 'good fortune,' right?"
"Yes, that's right."
As the plump and genial-looking president spoke, Lee Gyeongbok lifted the corners of his lips.
His lips trembled ever so slightly, signaling that the smile was the result of effort.
Still, after enough time in society, he had learned to smile even at moments when he should be cursing someone out.
"That's right. In life, sometimes your path follows your name. So, working with you, Gyeongbok? I think it's a very good thing."
"Ah, then..."
Could this be the result of all his hard work finally paying off? For the first time, Gyeongbok managed to smile without forcing it.
"But this isn't just going to be a one-off deal between us, is it?"
At that moment, a throb pounded through his head.
Not just a bothersome feeling, but an actual throbbing ache. The person before his eyes was as if to let him know this was someone rotten.
Of course, he was only here because the company told him to. Meanwhile, the president grinned slyly and continued.
"Even if this is B2B, ultimately, it's still people making things happen. Isn't the atmosphere a little too business-focused, don't you think?"
"Haha!"
He just laughed.
He laughed, in disbelief, but in truth, he simply laughed. The sense of discomfort from the client grew stronger.
'In the end, he's just telling me to show more sincerity, probably wants a bit more hospitality...'
His words sounded fancy, but what he was really saying was to curry more favor. The president glanced at his watch and, with a hearty chuckle, stood up.
"Oh dear, will you look at me, keeping you for so long like this?"
"Yes, it's gotten quite late. So for now, you're not agreeing to the deal?"
The president seemed slightly taken aback, as if he hadn't expected Gyeongbok to say that, and hurriedly continued.
"Ahem. I'll review the proposal again with my staff. You know, even I can't just decide these things on my own. I'll make sure to convince them, so let's have a drink next time and talk things over."
The president smiled and gently patted Gyeongbok on the shoulder. His manner was soft, but his intentions were anything but.
"It's a bit unfortunate—Gyeongbok, you're a little too stiff. You should learn to be as flexible as the other employees."
Throb.
Pain shot through his head again. Stronger this time.
It was a familiar pain. A precursor.
"Yes. Thank you for your advice. I'll see you next time."
But Gyeongbok maintained his smile until he was out of the client's office.
The sky was glowing with sunset, and a sigh escaped him naturally.
'As expected, not even a bit off from my predictions. The company's all on me to do this kind of crap...'
Not just the client, but the entire area around this business felt ominous.
Still, he couldn't just drop a contract the company had pushed him to get finalized just because of a bad feeling.
'Tsk, the company really felt like it was headed for disaster.'
Gyeongbok consoled himself.
He reminded himself that his paycheck should come before the future of the company.
He quietly made his way to the train station. On his wrist device, the smart link, he booked the next fastest train heading north.
'... Even if I leave now, I'll be home after eleven.'
His stomach growled at having skipped dinner. Once home, he'd grab a quick bite, wash up, sleep, and wake up for work again.
Just thinking about it made him feel suffocated.
'Do I really need to stick with this company so much?'
A sense of futility swept over him.
Maybe it was because the contract he thought was in the bag had fallen through today.
His mood, heavy as if sinking to the depths, was suddenly buoyed by anxiety.
His head throbbed.
He turned his head instinctively.
His eyes landed on a child, rushing across the pedestrian crossing even though the signal hadn't changed.
"Damn...!"
His instincts kicked in and his body moved.
He caught the child just as he was about to dart out.
"What are you—"
The startled mother began to say something.
At that moment, the roar of a motorcycle engine echoed as a delivery bike swung around the corner, whizzing right by the child.
If Gyeongbok hadn't stopped him, an accident would have happened.
The child, shocked, started crying, and a beat later, the mother scooped her up in her arms.
"Jiwoo! Are you okay!? Thank you. Thank you so much."
"It's nothing."
Gyeongbok clenched his teeth against the throbbing headache, but forced a smile and added,
"Please, always hold your kid's hand tight."
"Ah, y-yes..."
Gyeongbok watched the mother, who looked dazed, for a moment, then walked across the intersection.
'If I'd become a shaman like my grandmother, maybe things would be better...'
He had never been ordinary. His parents never acknowledged it, but his grandmother, a shaman, always sensed what was different about him.
But his grandmother actually did not want him to inherit the shaman's power.
'Gyeongbok, the divine power within you is too much for a human body to handle. Don't ever think about becoming a shaman, you hear? If you do, the spirits will devour you whole.'
His grandmother's warnings were still vivid in his mind.
'Divine power(神力)...'
He couldn't ignore her warnings. He had experienced the "backlash" too many times.
Like now.
His head throbbed for no reason, and he felt a bit dizzy.
'But surely I won't have a full-blown shamanic episode.'
Gyeongbok consciously focused on breathing steadily and waited for the backlash to subside.
'If the backlash is this bad, even if they didn't die, the person must have gotten seriously hurt.'
Luckily, the symptoms didn't get any worse, and he managed to sit safely on a bench in the waiting area.
He was just starting to relax a bit, when—
Brrrr. His device vibrated and displayed an incoming call notification.
[Barely Human]
It was his immediate senior.
Gyeongbok furrowed his brow slightly, opened his recording app, and took the call.
"Yes, deputy Jeong."
〈How did the contract go?〉
Just hearing the voice made his stress spike. Still, if he let that show, things would only get more tiresome.
"It's almost finalized. Next time, I believe..."
〈You didn't close it?〉
Before he could even finish, he was interrupted. Gyeongbok pressed his lips firmly together.
〈Hey, how long are you going to keep dragging this one deal out? You're only going to log this one thing to the records all month?〉
"I'll do my best. And we can get confirmation at the next meeting."
〈Did they say that? That you should come back next time?〉
"Yes."
〈Hah, damn—are you out of your mind?〉
"Would I be crazy?"
deputy was incredulous.
〈What? You've got to be kidding me. All you ever do is talk back. Hey! It's not like this is your first time in sales, right? When you see an opportunity, you have to push for it! When they say let's talk next time, did you just really agree to just see them next time?〉
"Yes."
One-word answers were enough here.
He was used to this.
No matter what he said, it was clear deputy wouldn't actually listen.
〈Yes? Yes?〉
"Yes."
〈Hah, this guy. All you ever do is answer. What's the point in just answering? There's got to be improvement, right? Why, is the work too much for you? Are you the only one struggling? When you slack off like this, don't you think how it affects everyone else?〉
"Should I go back now, then?"
Of course he wouldn't. And deputy wouldn't ask him to.
He'd left deputy in the lurch by coming here, so by now, deputy was probably struggling.
〈Never mind, are you on the train?〉
"No, not yet."
〈What time is your train?〉
"In ten minutes."
〈... Ugh, whatever. Since I'm passing through there, just head up. I'll handle what's left.〉
"Huh?"
〈Oh, your smart link is from 'Pineapple Co.', right?〉
After all this time working together, didn't he even know that?
"Yes... Why?"
〈Tsk, and you call yourself a salesman? Should've used Android. The basics are all wrong. That's why you're no good. Get your act together, will you?〉
Click—the call ended. At the same time, Gyeongbok was left dumbfounded.
'He said he'll handle the aftermath for me?'
He was officially assigned as a mentor, but Gyeongbok never benefited from it. If he asked a question, the deputy would bark at him for not figuring it out on his own; if he handled something alone, he'd get scolded for not following orders.
Usually, it was the deputy making Gyeongbok take care of his mess.
'Something's off.'
An uneasy feeling crept up from deep within. It wasn't just a hunch—it was more like a premonition.
Sure enough—
His face twisted involuntarily.
Throb.
"Damn."
His head throbbed again, more intensely than before.
Gyeongbok glanced at the time. It was about time to board, but he stayed seated.
After a brief moment of hesitation, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Slowly, his senses dulled and calm washed over him.
A voice rose in his mind.
'What time is your train?'
Deputy Jeong, who usually never cared, had checked his schedule.
'I'll handle the aftermath.'
Insisted on handling the follow-up. Even though he wasn't even familiar with the client.
'You should learn to be as flexible as the other employees.'
But curiously, the client had mentioned 'other employees'.
Gyeongbok was supposed to be the only contact.
"The reason for my headache is all this, huh."
He couldn't just let this slide. Something was happening behind his back.
The throbbing in his head—
This wasn't just a headache.
It was a sign.
A warning from the spirits, even if he hadn't accepted them as a shaman.
He started piecing together the clues that came with that ominous sign, and as the picture became clear in his head, his spiritual energy—the psychic senses he'd been suppressing—surged out of control.
Reflexively, Gyeongbok pulled out a pen and notebook, jotting down random dots.
If he'd had some rice grains like his grandmother did, he would have performed a mi-jeom (rice fortune-telling), but this would do for now.
For now, this much was enough.
'If I just head up north, then?'
Major misfortune.
'If I return to the client?'
Small blessing.
On top of that, there was a note about a blessing in disguise.
Seeing this fortune, Gyeongbok made his decision—not to head straight back, but to visit the client's office once more.
But a pang of pain blackened his vision.
It was the aftereffect of his spiritual power surging.
"Ah...!"
Bright red blood dripped onto the floor of the waiting area. He quickly pulled out tissues to stop the nosebleed and took a deep breath.
He felt limp, sapped of strength. But he had no regrets.
He'd seen the clues and the fortune—he knew what would happen.
'Trying to steal my credit? But why are they trying to exclude me? Even if I was there, he could have just acted like he did all the work himself. There's something more.'
Gyeongbok's face was filled with certainty. Even his grandmother worried these psychic powers would eat at his body, but they'd never once been wrong.
As the pain subsided, he headed straight to the client's office.
'...1... Wait, what's that?'
There, he saw deputy and the client's president shaking hands, looking far too familiar for first-timers.
Soon, the president slipped right into a car.
Gyeongbok's smart link caught the whole scene.
* * *
Late evening, a dimly lit bar.
"I like e-cigarettes, but I still prefer regular cigarettes. They suit my taste more."
"Isn't that right. Deputy Jeong, you and I really are on the same wavelength."
"Ah, president, you deserve a Cuban cigar, that's why."
With their spirits high from drinking, deputy and the president chuckled as they returned to their table.
"Is that so? Haha, with this contract, maybe I'll get myself one. But is it really okay to squeeze the deal this much?"
"You don't have to worry at all."
The deputy waved that off and smirked.
"No one knows I came here today. Not even the other employees, right?"
"Well, that's true."
"You just need to say you made the deal with Lee Gyeongbok, president. And, really, skimming a bit like this, both you and I get a little fatter, don't we? That guy's going to take all the blame anyway."
The president burst into laughter at deputy's bold assurance.
"Good, good. Then I'll leave it to you, deputy. But I don't know why that Gyeongbok kid is so clueless. You'd think someone in sales would know better, he's so stiff. You've had a hard time working with a guy like that, right?"
"Oh, don't get me started. He's all looks, but there's no substance. You know what he's like at the office? He's always acting up in front of the female staff. He should just focus on his job instead."
"Really? He's that kind of guy?"
Of course, Gyeongbok had never done such things. But in deputy's eyes, that's how it looked.
The gaze of someone consumed by envy is never fair.
"Yep. Just looking at him, he's the type to become a gigolo. Actually, you know, getting him out of the company might be a favor for everyone."
"Hm? What do you mean by that?"
"Leave a guy like that around and he'll get himself in trouble with one of the women staff. In the long run, it's best for the company."
"You know, you've got a point."
They giggled, draining their whiskey bottle.
"All right, president. Let's hit up a second round."
"Yeah, alright. Let's go."
As the staggering pair left the table, a staff member approached to clear it.
At that moment, a man came up to where they'd been sitting.
"Excuse me, I think I dropped my smart link here."
"Oh, do you need a flashlight?"
"No, no, it's fine."
Pretending to feel around in the dim light, the man retrieved a smart link he had hidden beneath the table.
[NEW RECORDING]
[00:47:57]
The man—Lee Gyeongbok—hit stop on the recording. He nodded to the staff, and stepped outside.
"The price for making me get a nosebleed is going to be hefty. Very hefty."
Probably tomorrow, all hell would break loose at the company.
* * *
The next morning.
As soon as Gyeongbok entered, he was the focus of everyone's attention.
"Gyeongbok, what's going on?"
"The manager is going crazy right now."
"They've called in everyone above you."
Other staff looked at him with concern. Before Gyeongbok could reply, deputy Jeong approached with a scowl.
"Gyeongbok, what did you do? The whole company is in chaos over the contract renewal!"
The sheer shamelessness of the comment left Gyeongbok amused.
At this point, maybe he should have gone into acting rather than sales.
"But deputy, didn't you say you'd wrap up that contract?"
"What?! Now what are you talking about?!"
He really was a despicable man.
Even in everyday situations, he'd speak informally when they were alone, then switch to polite speech in front of others. Now, it was worse than ever.
"... No point in arguing further."
Gyeongbok just looked at the smug deputy with pity. deputy's face twisted in frustration.
"Are you—"
"Staff member Lee and deputy Jeong! In the meeting room, now!"
Just as deputy was about to explode, their direct manager shouted. deputy flinched, shot Gyeongbok a glare, and stormed off.
Gyeongbok followed him to the meeting room.
"This is the guy?"
"Yes..."
The furious sales manager, the assistant manager, and the nervous team leader sat inside.
Despite the suffocating atmosphere, Gyeongbok faced them with his usual calm expression.
"You know why you've been called in, don't you?"
At the sales manager's sharp words, Gyeongbok tilted his head.
"Not really?"
Their expressions twisted in an instant. At the same time, one side of deputy's lips curled up in a sly smile.
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Is this how he's going to get kicked out of the company?
【「(°ヘ°)?】