Dream Breaker

Chapter 19

"Shaman?"

"Don't worry about it."

"Student, if you don't care about aptitude, what do you look for when hiring a part-timer?"

"......"

I was speechless at the reasonable point made by the cleaning company's president.

Is it because this president is smart?

No.

Every place I've looked into has considered aptitude. Whether it's a temporary job or a regular job.

'It's difficult...'

There were even places that had nailed their recruitment ads with "We do not accept applications other than this aptitude!"

So my options for even getting an interview were extremely limited!

It's hard to find.

"Shaman's job is to catch ghosts."

"That doesn't mean I can't do other jobs. I have experience working part-time at a convenience store for a long time."

"Hmm..."

The cleaning company president pondered.

"I'm just saying this in advance, but our job is to catch rats and pests hidden in houses, not ghosts."

"Yes."

"If you dance like Yoo Il-am or shout..."

"I absolutely won't do that!"

"Yoo Il-am reassures people that he won't do it and then catches ghosts by surprise. That way the ghosts don't notice..."

"I really won't do that! If I do, fire me right away!"

There was a reason why the image of a shaman, which could not be called ordinary, was going around the bottom.

'Is it Yoo Il-am again!'

It feels like I'm being punished for rejecting his disciple proposal, which can't be true.

Isn't Yoo Il-am hiding somewhere nearby, secretly watching me, and laughing heartily?

I feel boiling inside.

"Student."

"Yes."

"I like your enthusiasm, so leave your contact information."

"Thank you!"

Finally, I got a job!

"Wait. I'm not saying I'll give you a job yet."

"Then...?"

"I meant that I'll consider it. If a week goes by and there's no contact, you know it's a no."

"Yes."

It means that if there is no candidate with better aptitude than a 'shaman' for the next week, they will hire me.

I had to assume there was no hope.

* * *

"It's driving me crazy!"

I didn't expect a regular job from the beginning, but I didn't know I'd be rejected for even temporary jobs one after another.

'Of all things...'

I overlooked the fact that now is the time when excited graduates are running around trying to make more money than their parents' allowance after taking the P aptitude test.

That's why it's hard to find a job.

No-

Jobs that are comfortable or have high hourly wages have always been fiercely competitive.

However, it's purely because of my aptitude that it's hard to get a job even though I didn't care about convenience since I don't even have living expenses to use right now!

"Prejudice is really..."

It's all Yoo Il-am's fault.

'What do I do now?'

I headed home without any results.

I would like to look for a job a little more, but I've been pushing myself too hard since I was discharged from the hospital in less than a day.

"Hyung!"

"......"

It sounded like a hallucination.

"Hyung! Moon-soo~!"

Thud!

He hugged me from behind with both arms while calling my name.

A very familiar voice.

I didn't even need to check his face to know who he was.

"What? It's Kang-hoon, right?"

Choi Kang-hoon.

A close younger brother whom I've known since elementary school when we knew nothing.

'It's a coincidence.'

Until my father passed away after losing all his fortune, we were neighbors in the same neighborhood. So we could meet quite often...

Now it's difficult to meet him unless we're at school.

And when I graduate from school, it'll be even harder to see him.

"Hyung~!"

"......"

I was glad to see him too, but this guy was making too much of a fuss, with tears welling up in his eyes.

What's going on?

"You should've told me you woke up from the hospital! I made a wasted trip!"

"Ah... sorry. I didn't know you had come to visit me at the hospital."

I really didn't know.

We were close like brothers, but we never worried about each other until now.

'Wasn't that the case...?'

I don't think there was any reason to worry about Choi Kang-hoon, a rich family's son who was also a winner in appearance.

The last time was in elementary school when I wiped away his tears and patted his back as he was teased for looking like a girl.

"That's too much! I even wrote in the guestbook!"

"Did you...?"

"I was surprised to hear that you were discharged from the hospital just a day after waking up! The senior who collapsed with you is still in the hospital."

"Song Seon-young?"

"I don't know her name."

"Have you never heard of her at school?"

"Nope. Not at all."

"I see."

Although I had guessed, I was able to confirm once again that only Song Seon-young and I shared the dream.

"Hyung!"

"Weren't you on your way to the academy? Go quickly, so you don't be late."

"That's too much! Aren't you happy to see me after a long time?"

He looked very upset.

His face looked like a wet puppy, so I couldn't just ignore him.

"...I've been asleep all this time. It feels like I saw you yesterday."

"Ah! Hyung Moon-soo, you might feel that way!"

Choi Kang-hoon's expression brightened up immediately. However, there was no sign of him leaving.

"Hurry up. You'll be late for the academy."

"It's okay. I was actually on my way to a field trip, not an academy."

"A field trip? Why go there when you haven't even taken the aptitude test yet?"

Job field trips can be taken after the aptitude test, and it's not too late.

On the contrary, if you get the wrong aptitude after getting excited, you'll be at a loss.

So, there are very few people who go on field trips before graduating from high school.

"It's my dad's company."

"Aha!"

Family businesses are an exception.

Of course, they can't force it if the aptitude doesn't match well, as it can ruin the family business.

"I just need to tell my dad's secretary that I can't go."

"But it's still an appointment..."

"It's okay. It's not just a field trip for today, right? It takes several days to go around all the departments. It's okay to postpone it for a day."

"I see..."

The size of the family business is also an exception if it's too big!

"Do you have time, Hyung?"

"Don't postpone your appointment because of me."

"Are you busy?"

"I am."

"Why? It's a vacation. You'll graduate right after the vacation ends."

"Hmm..."

I didn't need to explain any further, but I decided to answer honestly to send Choi Kang-min away.

"I have to find a job."

"Wow! You're an adult! Cool!"

"Well..."

I knew from experience that it was not sarcasm but pure admiration, but it still felt a little uncomfortable.

'Admiration from someone who doesn't have to worry about finding a job...'

Field trips might be part of that. Is it called successor training? Or early education?

Anyway, I'm slightly envious of a life that doesn't need to worry about the future.

"I'm jealous. My dad told me not to worry about my aptitude and learn one company job at a time..."

"I see."

It seems that even my well-fed younger brother has his own troubles.

"Hyung!"

"Stop calling me. I'm leaving."

"Let's go together!"

"I'm very busy preparing to become an adult. And don't miss the field trip because of me."

"I don't want to! The company work was only forced upon me because he was sick! I'm not his substitute!"

"Ca, calm down."

Choi Kang-hoon, who seemed to have a completely straight highway in his life, has one stepbrother.

Choi Kang-min.

I don't know the details, but he is said to have an incurable disease and can't even take a single step outside the hospital.

"If you want to calm me down, play with me."

"Are you a little kid...?"

Despite my reprimand, Choi Kang-hoon, who noticed that I was shaken, pushed even harder.

"Brother! I just had a great idea!"

"What is it?"

"I'll help you find a job!"

"How can you do that?"

"Dad's chance."

"Ah!"

I believe that the tyranny of connections that ignore aptitude should be eradicated, but I wasn't in a position to judge my conscience.

"How about it?"

"...I'll think about it."

My hesitation is my last conscience.

"Brother, let's not do that and go ask right now."

"Who? The manager? The director?"

"Of course, my dad! He's at home."

"Gulp!"

It's been a long time since I went to Choi Kang-hoon's house to play- no, for an interview.

* * *

Choi Kang-hoon lives on the top floor of the most expensive station area officetel in this neighborhood.

This top floor has a separate private elevator, and it doesn't operate without a card key.

Additionally,

(Choi Kang-hoon and one guest have arrived.)

When you arrive at the top floor, the elevator's automatic door opens and notifies the homeowner.

Ding-dong!

Swoosh-

"Welcome, young master."

"Welcome, young master."

"Welcome, young master."

Hearing that sound, the butlers and housemaids lined up on either side of the elevator entrance and greeted us politely.

'Wow...'

When I was young, I used to pass between them without any thought, but now it was very burdensome.

Why do I deserve such treatment?

It feels like that.

"Young master, is your friend next to you?"

"Oh, my! You came home early."

"Young master has a friend at home? It's a rare occasion."

After the formal greetings, the butlers and housemaids spoke to Choi Kang-hoon in a friendly tone.

In response,

"It's Moon-soo, my Hyung!"

The second son of the homeowner briefly introduced me.

"Oh! My goodness! I didn't recognize you because you've grown so much."

The butler, who used to dislike me coming to play at this house, burst out laughing.

'Back then, when I looked up from below, he was a scary man...

Now that I've grown up so much and look him in the eye, he's a nice man.

"Ah! You must be the person the young master praises every day?"

"Nice to meet you, Kang Moon-soo. It doesn't feel like the first time, thanks to the young master."

"Please give me your coat."

All the housemaids, except the butler, were young and beautiful women without exception. And they were very playful.

Shouldn't I question the homeowner's taste in this?

This hasn't changed either.

'I miss it.'

When I was young and didn't know the ways of the world, I used to come here often to play.

Back then, I was more interested in free snacks than the expensive artwork and decorations displayed everywhere.

'Wow! If I could just sneak one of these and sell it... Hmm!'

Does naturally having such a misguided thought mean that I've become a materialistic adult?

The only thing that's changed since then is the large family photo hanging on the wall, but I couldn't look at it as purely as before.

"Hyung! Hyung!"

"...What?"

"Isn't it almost the same as when you came to play before?"

"It seems so."

Everything was the same as I remembered, from the furniture placement to the family photos reflecting the passage of time.

'Only my brother is missing.'

Choi Kang-min, Choi Kang-hoon's half-brother, was the only one missing from the family photo.

"Kang-hoon?"

"Dad!"

"Ahem! I told you to call me father in front of guests..."

The man who slowly approached, trying to control his expression while licking his lips that were about to open wide, was Choi Kang-hoon's father.

If you exclude the beer belly that has accumulated like sedimentary layers of alcohol, he looks just like Choi Kang-hoon with a few wrinkles added to his forehead.

In other words, he's a middle-aged man.

"It's fine now. We're not strangers."

"Who is... Hmm?"

"Dad, do you remember? It's Kang Moon-soo, who used to come over to play a lot when we were young!"

"Oh! The food thief has come?"

"Yes!"

Despite the passage of time, he remembered me well.

"Hello, sir."

"Yes. I heard you collapsed at school and were hospitalized. Your cheeks used to be plump and nice to pinch."

"Ha, ha... It just happened..."

We moved to the long sofa in the spacious living room, like a tennis court, and continued our conversation.

"How have you been lately?"

"I'm looking for a job."

"A job? Ah, I see! You're a year older than my son. Then you must have taken the aptitude test."

"Yes."

"Can I know your aptitude? I've always been curious about what you would become when you grew up, as you only picked expensive snacks to eat."

"I'm a shaman."

"You are trash."

"Excuse me?"

I was taken aback by the sudden word that popped out.

Just now, what did he say...

"Shamans are liars and trash as soon as they open their mouths."

"......"

The smile on his lips disappeared, and I got goosebumps from his serious gaze.

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