Chapter 107 : Director Jung Lee Chae

Lee Chae looked back, assuming someone was following them, but there was no one behind them.

“Director, what are you looking at?”

“Huh? Me?”

“Who else is here besides you?”

“Wait, why are you calling me ‘Director’?”

Hae-jin grabbed Lee Chae’s hand and led him somewhere. They arrived at an office located right next to the CEO’s office.

“There, look at that.”

With a dazed expression, Lee Chae looked where Hae-jin was pointing. A plaque on the door read:

[Director of Operations, Legion: Jung Lee Chae]

Lee Chae blinked, unable to immediately process the meaning of the words. He was sure he had misread it, but the letters remained the same. He stared at the door for a long time.

“What are you doing? Aren’t you going in, Director?”

Lee Chae was so flabbergasted he couldn’t even speak. He searched for words while slowly organizing the situation in his mind.

Yesterday, Hae-jin told him to go to the Operations Team. He had signed a contract, and that contract featured a salary he hadn’t even imagined……

Only then did Lee Chae’s mouth drop open in an ‘O’ shape. While he had thought the salary was strangely high when he looked at the contract, he hadn’t even dreamed it was because of a Director-level position. It was already excessive to be hired through a recommendation rather than an open recruitment process—the kind of thing people called a “parachute hire”—but this was far beyond that.

However, fearing that Hae-jin might misunderstand if he spoke negatively, Lee Chae phrased his response as gently as possible.

“Hyung, I don’t need something like this. I like Legion and I love you, even without a title.”

Hae-jin replied nonchalantly.

“I know. I know exactly how you feel.”

“Then what is all this? Suddenly making me a Director.”

“Sung Jin-woo is the Vice President, Jae-hyung is the Director of Combat, and Yong-yong is the Director of Tech Research. I saved the Director of Operations position for you. I know you’re worried about people calling you a parachute hire, but this was decided back when I first registered Legion as an official guild.”

“What are you talking about? Even the Team Leader yesterday didn’t seem to know who I was.”

“Of course not. They’ve never seen you or heard your name. I made it clear to everyone in the company that the Director of Operations would be my personal Guide. That’s why we need to go through the announcement process.”

Hae-jin’s words weren’t logically flawed, but Lee Chae still felt uneasy, as if he were getting a free ride. What he understood least was that the original members of Legion had apparently agreed to Hae-jin’s plan.

He knew that while Hae-jin could be headstrong, he had always run Legion democratically. That was why the members followed him so well. And yet, no one had objected? Why?

Hae-jin placed a hand on Lee Chae’s head.

“What are you thinking so hard about?”

“It’s just so unexpected. I wonder if I really deserve this……”

Hae-jin opened the office door. Inside was a clean desk, a meeting table and chairs, and a bookshelf filled with files. Behind the desk was a floor-to-ceiling glass window that overlooked the city center.

Even when he was a civil servant, he’d had his own room, but this environment was incomparable. When had he prepared all this? Lee Chae wanted to tell Hae-jin thank you and be happy, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it fully. He felt a nagging weight in his chest.

As Lee Chae lingered by the entrance like a guest in someone else’s home, Hae-jin pulled him in, sat him at the desk, and then crouched down in front of him. His upward gaze reminded Lee Chae of a puppy looking for praise, and he found himself subconsciously stroking Hae-jin’s hair.

“Lee Chae, do you know why Jin-woo, Jae-hyung, Yong-yong, and you are Directors?”

Lee Chae listened intently as Hae-jin spoke softly.

“It’s because you saved the lives of Legion’s Espers at their most dangerous moment. Don’t you remember the first battle with Lamia? You might be wondering why you have to be a Director, but what do you think? I’d say that’s reason enough.”

“Legion isn’t some small place, yet you’ve made such a nonsensical appointment. I guess all those news reports about transparent and fair management were fake news.”

Hae-jin laughed brightly at Lee Chae’s remark. Seeing that face, the unease in Lee Chae’s heart began to wash away bit by bit. Hae-jin stood up, pulled up a chair, and sat across from Lee Chae.

“Do you know what the most important thing is in managing a company transparently and fairly?”

“Money issues?”

“Exactly. At Legion, the Operations Team manages the accounting. And I know for a fact that Jung Lee Chae has an accounting certification. The transparent and fair management of Legion is in your hands. Do you still think you’re a nonsensical Director? Who else could do it better than you?”

Embarrassed, Lee Chae rubbed his flushing cheeks.

He had thought Hae-jin would still be running around doing immature things, but in the time they were apart, Hae-jin had become a person sensitive enough to anticipate potential conflicts and prepare solutions for them.

Lee Chae felt foolish for having worried about whether he could open up to him without starting a fight.

“I’m counting on you, Director Jung Lee Chae.”

The smooth voice lingered in his ear.

Lee Chae’s heart raced at the fact that he could work at Legion—and work for Hae-jin.

Hae-jin opened the meeting room door with a flutter of excitement. He intended to announce at the daily morning executive meeting that Lee Chae had joined Legion and had become his personal Guide. However, for some reason, the atmosphere in the room was unusual.

‘What’s with this vibe?’

Hae-jin looked around at the people gathered to gauge the situation. Curiously, Jin-woo, who should have been in the seat closest to him, was nowhere to be seen.

“Where is Vice President Sung Jin-woo?”

Jae-hyung, who had been sitting with his head down, spoke with a tearful voice.

“Hyung, Jin-woo Hyung is gone.”

Hae-jin was startled by Jae-hyung’s informal speech. Soon, the Team Leaders began to chime in.

“He’s never been late without contacting us first……”

“Everything was fine when he left work yesterday.”

Only then did Hae-jin realize that the unease he had felt this morning hadn’t been for nothing. It had been a mistake to overlook it because he was so excited about his reunion with Lee Chae.

“It’s safe to assume he disappeared after leaving work yesterday.”

Jae-hyung interrupted.

“Must be. He didn’t show up for our plans yesterday and didn’t call.”

“Ha…… Was he kidnapped?”

The atmosphere grew chilly at Hae-jin’s words. Between the monsters and the resentment they faced from both the Management Bureau and the opposition party, it wouldn’t be strange even if the Vice President was kidnapped.

“Who on earth was it? Was it the humanoids again? Is anyone besides Jin-woo absent today?”

This time, Hyun-joon from the Operations Team answered.

“I checked after hearing from Director Yoon Jae-hyung, but no one else is absent.”

“There shouldn’t be anyone around Sung Jin-woo who isn’t from Legion. Humanoids usually transform into someone close to the target to take them away.”

Hae-jin guessed at Jin-woo’s movements, recalling when Lee Chae had been kidnapped.

“Does that mean it wasn’t the work of a monster?”

Lee Chae, who had been listening silently until now, cautiously raised his hand.

“Excuse me……”

“Ah, right. I’m late with the introductions. This person who just raised his hand is Jung Lee Chae, the new Director of Operations. Have you all introduced yourselves?”

He thought people would be surprised, but judging by the lack of shock, it seemed the news had already circulated before the meeting. After nodding to the people looking at him, Lee Chae continued calmly.

“CEO, I think we should focus on finding the Vice President first. Since humanoids possess someone close to the target to deceive them, if a humanoid was the culprit, a close acquaintance of the Vice President should be missing as well. But you said no one else is absent today. So it’s not that. Was there any news of a battle in the vicinity yesterday?”

Jae-hyung answered Lee Chae’s question.

“If a battle breaks out, nearby guilds are the first to hear about it, but there was no such contact yesterday. I don’t think it was a monster’s doing.”

“If it’s not a monster, then whose doing is it?”

The more they discussed, the more the frustration grew.

Since Jin-woo, who devoted almost all his time and effort to Legion, wouldn’t have gone somewhere else of his own accord, he was clearly injured or kidnapped.

Following Hae-jin’s remark, no one else could offer a different opinion, and time just passed. After a moment, Lee Chae broke the silence.

“If it’s not a monster, then it must be a group or person who harbors hostility toward Legion.”

Everyone nodded in agreement at Lee Chae’s words. Since Legion had grown so rapidly, it had many enemies; it wouldn’t be strange at all if some organization had kidnapped Vice President Sung Jin-woo to achieve a certain goal.

“There are just too many of those places.”

“Are there others besides the Bureau or Frame?”

“Director Jung, it’s almost like you’ve been working at Legion this whole time. How did you know that when no one told you?”

“Because I’ve always kept an eye on things through the news.”

“The news would have only covered the conflict between Director Kim Jung-mi and me. How did you know about Frame?”

“Isn’t that basic knowledge? Since Legion is currently ranked number one and Frame is number 2, it’s obvious the two organizations would be in competition.”

All eyes turned toward Lee Chae. He continued slowly.

“The question is which of the two it is. But we can figure that out with just a little thought.”

“How?”

“The Vice President’s father is at the Bureau, and with the election coming up soon, I don’t think they’d take such a risky gamble.”

People nodded at the persuasive argument. Lee Chae added:

“Besides, CEO, you said you threatened the Bureau to bring me here. If they had been planning to kidnap the Vice President, they wouldn’t have sent me here.”

Jae-hyung interjected.

“Isn’t Frame, the opposition party, also wary of the election?”

“That’s true, but current approval ratings show the ruling party is overwhelmingly dominant. It’s always the side without power that takes risky gambles. Unless there’s another organization with hostile feelings toward Legion besides the Bureau and Frame, Frame is the most likely suspect.”

Hearing this, everyone realized Lee Chae was right. It was a fact that could be inferred from Director Kim Jung-mi, who seemed like she’d never back down, giving up Lee Chae after being threatened with the upcoming election.

Now that they had reached a conclusion, there was no need to waste more time.

“Directors, stay behind. The rest of you, return to your posts. I’ll relay any specific instructions through the Directors.”

Once the Team Leaders had left, only Lee Chae, Hae-jin, Yong-yong, and Jae-hyung remained in the meeting room. Jae-hyung said with a miserable face:

“Hyung, what do you plan to do?”

“What else? I’m going to go over there and tear the place apart.”

“Do you think they’ll just admit they did it?”

Yong-yong, who hadn’t said a word until now, suddenly spoke.

“Captain! Whatever you do, solve it quickly. Jae-hyung looks like he’s about to stop breathing!”

Lee Chae stepped in to comfort Jae-hyung.

“Don’t worry. Since they likely kidnapped him because they want something, they’ll contact us for negotiations.”

“…I hope so. I’m already busy enough with battles; why are humans so intent on making our lives miserable?”

Hae-jin summarized the situation bitterly.

“Humans have always been the worst. I’ll be back, so wait here.”

As Hae-jin stood up to leave without a second thought, Lee Chae grabbed his hand.