I’m Not That Villain

21 – Underdog (1)

“Jisoo.”

“Yes?”

A black market equipment seller.

Seo Jisoo stopped what she was doing. She turned her head to the voice calling her.

A man was looking at her. His worried gaze also contained personal desire.

“Isn’t it too reckless?”

“What is?”

“Such open recruitment is easy to target. There are limits to what I can protect you from.”

That again.

She glared at her bodyguard, Lee Minho, whom she had hired formally from a company with her own money.

“Hey.”

“…Yes?”

“Why do you keep interfering since last time?”

Three years.

They had been together for about three years. But she didn’t think that time indicated familiarity.

At first, it was a perfect distance, but not anymore.

He meddles in everything as if he is someone important. He endlessly talks about reversing decisions that have already been made.

Naturally, harsh words came out.

“Stop it. Really. Before I start cursing.”

Lee Minho’s handsome face twisted. His whispering voice also lowered.

“…Are we not even close enough to say such things?”

“Minho! Damn it! Minho!”

Seo Ji-soo spun the chair around. She growled, resting her chin on her hand.

“What kind of relationship do we have? Aren’t we just employer and employee? Huh?”

“…We’ve been together for years…”

“Three years. Three years. It’s been exactly three years. Did I exploit you without pay during that time? I paid you properly, even gave you bonuses, didn’t I?”

“That’s a different story.”

“Damn it, it’s not different. Don’t change the subject and listen carefully. I hired you, and you were hired by me. That’s the extent of our relationship. Got it?”

Seo Ji-soo nervously brushed her hair back.

“I’ve granted most of your wishes, haven’t I? You wanted to speak informally, so I allowed it. You complained about the salary being low, so I gave you bonuses… And now what? If I’m going to hire publicly, I should only hire women?”

“For your safety.”

“Can’t women hide guns? Can’t they handle weapons? What kind of nonsense is that?”

“Relatively, they’re less dangerous than men.”

Pretending to be logical, but Seo Ji-soo saw right through him.

He just didn’t want other men around her.

…Damn it.

The type she hated the most.

“Hey. Damn it. To be blunt, are you even my boyfriend?”

“……”

Lee Minho’s face twisted even more. In the brief silence, he sighed.

“That’s not what I’m talking about.”

“What do you mean it’s not? Didn’t you come here to work? Just do your job. Stop interfering with the employer’s decisions.”

“For your sake.”

“For my sake? More like for your sake. Have you forgotten what you’ve seen?”

Short-term part-time jobs.

It wasn’t the first time she had hired them. As her reputation grew, she felt the need for more staff.

But even then, he refused to let ‘male part-timers’ come. He blocked it with similar logic back then too…

The important thing was that he had seen the results afterward.

“How were the female part-timers you recommended? Huh? Don’t you remember? The five we’ve hired so far.”

“…….”

“They didn’t work, just hung around with you. Damn it. Did they come to slack off? Did you introduce this as a cushy job? Huh?”

“I didn’t know I was that kind of person.”

“Does it make sense that you didn’t know? After hanging out together? Hey. I don’t care if you’re a playboy or whatever… but I don’t understand why you want to do it at my workplace. Huh?”

“Jisoo, you’re too excited. Calm down.”

Seo Jisoo shook off the arm trying to hold her.

“I agreed because you begged me… but if you try to interfere with my work again, it’s really over. In this industry, female part-timers are almost like complete newbies. I need a worker to assist me with my work. Not someone to hang around with.”

“…I wasn’t trying to force you.”

A submissive attitude.

But even that was laughable to Seo Jisoo.

“Three times a day. Every single day. For a week straight. Isn’t that forcing?”

“…I was worried about you…”

“Worry, my ass. If you’re worried, just watch over me. That’s your job, isn’t it? Act like a bodyguard if you’re a bodyguard. Don’t act like a master.”

“I thought we were friends.”

“Friends?”

Seo Jisoo picked up the part-time job application again.

“If we were friends, you shouldn’t have done such a stupid thing. This isn’t your harem playground. It’s my workplace. This is as far as I’ll tolerate. Say one more word. Our contract ends here.”

. . .

Accompanied by Lily, they entered a place crowded with people.

It was a much larger building than the one I was in. The security facilities were very well maintained, from barbed wire to the surrounding facilities, which were splendid.

Moreover, it even had the mark of an unknown company.

“It’s BlueSteel. A mercenary company.”

“The fact that it’s right next to the store…”

“It means ‘try to mess with us if you dare.’ It’s better to describe it as a beehive. No robber would impulsively rob a place associated with a mercenary company. They had something to rely on.”

“How much does that cost?”

“…Do you want to know?”

Judging by the deliberate pause, it must be an enormous amount of money paid every month.

Wow. Then how much does this person earn? I glanced enviously at the building’s exterior again.

The building was also modern. Was it remodeled recently? There wasn’t a single flaw, starting from the outer wall.

It wasn’t overtly luxurious, but rather, it looked very expensive because there wasn’t a single scratch. Moreover, it was a three-story detached house much larger than my home.

There was also a garden. The facility that looked like a workshop was probably at the bottom. I wanted to look inside the building as well, but the door was closed, so I couldn’t see.

Lily, with her hood pulled down, glanced around at the people.

“Including the people gathered here, if we consider those who are yet to come, it will be over a hundred.”

“…That many came?”

“Wasn’t it a good position? Four days a week. Forty thousand won per hour. Six hours a day…. For a one-month short-term job, it’s quite a lot. The working hours are very short, but the amount you can earn is about 3.8 million won… It feels like a dream job.”

It’s not wrong.

But still. I didn’t expect so many applicants to come just from one post by an underground seller.

Each one of them is a technician, isn’t it? They must have at least some knowledge of workshops.

“…It seems like it’s going to be tough.”

“Didn’t you say you worked at the Black Chain Workshop?”

“I did, right?”

“Then you should be confident. Didn’t you go through a similar interview back then?”

“Back then, I was half kidnapped.”

The owner of the Black Chain Workshop just took me from the national educational institutionthat’s the right expression.

So, this is my first time having an interview like this.

“Whew…”

But I’m not someone who falls behind anywhere, right? Huh? Of course, I’m not making any money…

No need to be scared. Right. No need to be scared at all! I straightened my back with effort.

Lily pointed behind me.

“I’ll be watching from a distance.”

“Okay.”

Lily, who was a few steps away, raised her hand slightly.

An awkward fighting pose.

“I expect a maid-like result.”

Is that… encouragement?

I couldn’t help but laugh. After nodding slightly in response, I entered the open garden. After waiting for about 20 more minutes, five minutes before the scheduled interview time, the closed building door opened.

A tall man appeared. His handsome appearance and trained body were impressive even to another man. Now that I was somewhat familiar with exercise, I could recognize it at a glance.

Muscles beyond just for show, practical muscles. Muscles meant for killing people, no doubt. Maybe it was the intimidation coming from his handsome figure. When he glanced at the applicants with an expressionless face, no one could meet his gaze.

An alpha male. Wow. But he doesn’t seem to be the seller…

Let’s see…

Clunk.

The door opened once more. A woman who followed the man yawned lightly.

A sharp-looking appearance. No, sharpness isn’t the problem.

She just looks strong. Even though she seems to be without makeup, her eyes are fierce, and her personality itself looks tough. At a glance, she appears delicate, but her slightly visible body was also well-trained.

It’s the kind of practical compressed muscle that only a master can recognize. It’s different from muscles meant for show. But besides that, there were various things that symbolized her personality.

Clothes that seemed to be worn carelessly. Under a jacket that looked like it might slip off, she was wearing a tank top that exposed her shoulders. The choker around her neck subtly drew attention, and the curves extending below it caught my eye without me realizing it.

She looks strong and fierce.

Her personality seems tough, and she looks like she wouldn’t lose an argument.

But you know what?

She is pretty.

Even her yawning mouth was cute. No, beyond cute, I should say she was pretty. Half-opened eyes, she mumbled in a husky voice.

“Those who came without submitting an application, please go over there. Those who submitted an application, please come this way.”

Natural crowd control. I joined the side that had submitted applications. She stretched and rotated her arms.

“For those who didn’t submit an application, we’ll hand out papers, so just write your name, age, and strengths roughly and hand them back. If you can’t think of anything, just write your name and age. If you have any notable achievements, you can add those too. Once you’re done, please submit them here.”

After handing out papers and pens, she stood in front of us who had submitted applications.

“This side gets plus ten points. We’re selecting two people today. Please wait a bit until the other side finishes.”

The chaotic hall quickly settled down. She gathered the completed applications from the field and counted the numbers.

“…124… Quite a lot. The person standing at the back, could you close the door?”

“There’s someone running over there…”

“I really hate it when people are late. It’s an industry where deadlines are important, right? If you’re late for an interview, there’s no need to see more. Someone close to the door, please close it. Thank you.”

With a clunk, the door closed. She looked at the people gathered in her garden and set up a portable table in front. She seemed to go in and out, and soon a projector was placed on the table.

That was it.

As if all preparations were complete, she spoke again.

“Hello. My name is Seo Ji-soo, and I go by the nickname ‘Prominence’. As you know, I’m also a custom equipment maker. Without further ado, we’ll start with a basic test instead of an interview. Those who fail, please leave immediately. It’s a minimal basic procedure, so I hope you understand…”

She pointed to the projector.

“The test itself is simple. It’s…”

After a slight pause, the test was indeed simple.

“Name the tools.”

“…….?”

No.

Is that even a discerning question?

Who doesn’t know the names of the tools they handle?

But you know, the fact that I was the only one feeling uneasy became clear exactly five seconds later.

“…W-what do you mean by guessing the names of tools? That wasn’t mentioned! I thought it was just a simple interview, what is this…!”

“I-I don’t remember anything about taking a test!”

…Did these guys gather here without even knowing the basic tools…?