Chapter 445 – 445. Level Up System
445. Level Up System
Yoo Ji-na, a reporter for Sang-Oh Ilbo, a fairly well-known newspaper in Korea, had recently been feeling something was off.
“Hye-na, why are you suddenly acting so out of character?”
Yoo Ji-na lived with her twin sister, Yoo Hye-na, in an officetel. And recently, Yoo Hye-na’s behavior had changed.
Yoo Hye-na, a career woman working at the Seungjo Group headquarters, always came home from work looking exhausted. Her routine was to shower, eat dinner, and then lie on the sofa, scratching her stomach while watching TV.
But recently, her daily life was different. She no longer came straight home after work, but instead, she would work out at the gym for one to two hours before returning. Once home, she would put on face masks or groom her nails, taking extra care of her appearance.
She even went online to buy lingerie that was beyond sexy, bordering on lewd. Ji-na wondered if she had a boyfriend, but when she secretly checked her phone, there was no boyfriend.
Eventually, Ji-na asked Hye-na directly.
“Isn’t it natural to take care of yourself? Why don’t you take care of your body too, sis? No matter how naturally beautiful you are, it’s only a matter of time before you wither.”
“What on earth has gotten into you? Did you meet someone you like at work?”
Ji-na expected Hye-na’s reaction. She would scoff and tell her not to talk nonsense. But the answer she received was not what she expected.
“Yeah, I did.”
“…What? Who is it?”
Ji-na’s eyes sparkled.
Her twin sister, who had been too busy to date, was finally interested in a man. Ji-na, a spinster, didn’t think about herself and urged Hye-na to answer.
“Who is it? Who is it? Tell me!”
“Ugh… you’re too loud, sis. Don’t get so close. My mask will fall off.”
“I won’t tell Mom and Dad. Just tell me. Is it that new guy from sales you mentioned before?”
“No, don’t jump to conclusions. That trick won’t work on me.”
“Hey! What’s the big deal about telling me? Have you forgotten the shoes I gave you for your birthday last time? They cost over 300,000 won!”
Hye-na sighed softly.
“…You won’t tell anyone, right?”
“I’m a reporter, but I’m not a blabbermouth. And why would I go around gossiping about my own sister?”
“……”
Hye-na looked at Ji-na suspiciously before finally opening her mouth.
“It’s the newly appointed executive director. I’m in love with him.”
“…Executive director?”
Ji-na couldn’t believe her ears. She thought she had misheard, but Hye-na nodded.
“That’s right. Executive director.”
“…You crazy bitch. An executive director must be at least over 40 years old.”
“No, he’s in his 20s.”
“In his 20s? Don’t talk nonsense. Seungjo Group isn’t a small company. How can someone in their 20s become an executive? Not even the chairman’s grandson could do that.”
“You don’t believe me even when I tell you.”
Ji-na was about to tell her not to joke, but she stopped herself. Hye-na didn’t like these kinds of jokes, and looking at her face, she wasn’t joking.
“…Really? An executive director in his 20s? At Seungjo Group headquarters?”
“Sis, how many times do I have to say it?”
“If that’s true…”
It’s a scandal.
It’s definitely a scandal.
Ji-na took out her smartphone and went to the Seungjo Group website to check the board of directors. But there was no young director who looked to be in his 20s.
“Hye-na, what’s the executive director’s name?”
“Him? It’s Sung Yu-jin.”
“…Why are you adding ‘nim’ to his name?”
“Because he deserves to be called ‘nim.’ So I’m adding it.”
Hye-na’s eyes became dreamy. She seemed to be more obsessed than a teenage girl who was into a male idol. Feeling uneasy, Ji-na rubbed her arm and searched for the name Sung Yu-jin.
No relevant information came up.
‘…It would be stranger if it were easy to find. If a man in his 20s became an executive, it would have been all over the news, but there isn’t a single article. It’s highly likely that Seungjo Group covered it up.’
She was thirsty.
This was definitely a scoop.
‘…Should I expose it? I’ll do it alone without telling my seniors. I’ve never gotten a scoop since becoming a reporter. If I make this my achievement…’
Her eyes, full of greed, turned to Hye-na.
“Hye-na, do you have any pictures of this executive director Sung Yu-jin?”
“I don’t have any. I haven’t even been promoted to assistant manager, how would I take a picture with the executive director?”
“Can’t you take a picture and give it to me?”
“No, our company prohibits taking pictures. And actually… I was told not to talk about the executive director, but I told you because you’re family. You’re not planning anything, are you?”
“No, no.”
Ji-na waved her hand with a smile. But in her mind, she was making plans.
It might be difficult to uncover the corruption accurately. But if she had proof that Executive Director Sung Yu-jin actually existed, it would be enough for a scoop.
‘If I have bait, others will move too!’
***
A week passed.
Ji-na sighed. She had used all her connections to investigate Executive Director Sung Yu-jin at Seungjo Group headquarters, but she hadn’t gotten what she wanted.
And she was starting to feel more and more strange.
‘It’s very strange. It might not be a simple case of corruption.’
Executive Director Sung Yu-jin did exist, but he didn’t exist on paper.
He was practically a ghost.
‘Is he even real? If he doesn’t exist on paper, then he doesn’t exist. Did Hye-na play a trick on me? No… but the employees I met all seemed to know about Executive Director Sung Yu-jin.’
It was strange. Very strange.
It was the first time in her life that she had felt this kind of strangeness.
She felt fear, but she also felt her curiosity growing.
‘I’m a reporter. I will definitely expose Executive Director Sung Yu-jin.’
Her motivation was burning.
She started to bother Hye-na again. Family should help each other.
“What does Executive Director Sung Yu-jin look like?”
“…Ugh, why are you suddenly asking about the executive director again?”
“He’s the man you’re in love with. I’m curious. What does he look like?”
“He’s handsome.”
“…How is he handsome? If he were a celebrity, who would he be like?”
“He’s just handsome.”
“……”
She asked other questions too. But the answers she got were all empty.
As the questions continued, Hye-na got angry.
“Sis, why do you keep asking? Are you interrogating me?”
“Oh, no.”
Ji-na couldn’t get any useful information from Hye-na.
A few days later, Ji-na, thinking there was no other way, stormed into Seungjo Group headquarters.
But she was stopped at the first-floor lobby.
“Ah, my sister works in the planning team! Yoo Hye-na! I’m here to see my sister!”
“I’m sorry, but that’s not allowed. Please leave. If you continue to cause trouble, we will call the police.”
Faced with the guards’ fierce glares, she had no choice but to retreat.
‘You think I’d just give up?’
Ji-na decided to sneak inside. According to Hye-na, Executive Director Sung Yu-jin’s office was on the highest floor, the same floor as the chairman’s office. It was very suspicious why an executive director would have an office on the same floor as the chairman’s office.
It was night. There were guards on the first floor. They were rotating in three shifts. There were more than ten guards. It was excessively strict, even for a large corporation’s headquarters.
‘There must be an emergency exit. Let’s go to the basement.’
There were guards in the basement too.
Ji-na sighed in defeat. It was impossible to force her way in.
‘…If the security is this tight, it’s even more suspicious.’
Giving up was the only option, other than sneaking in.
‘Sneaking in is impossible. Bribing an employee won’t work either… Is there no other way?’
The method Ji-na was desperately looking for appeared a few days later.
“Cough. Cough.”
Hye-na, who had woken up at 7 a.m. for work, coughed. It was obvious that she wasn’t in a normal state of mind. Ji-na put her hand on Hye-na’s forehead. It was burning hot.
“Hye-na, take a day off today. You have a terrible fever. You need to go to the hospital. Should I call an ambulance?”
“It’s just a cold, why would I need an ambulance? …I don’t think I can go to work today. I need to call my manager and go to the hospital.”
Hye-na lay back down on the bed.
Ji-na, who had been looking at Hye-na with a pitiful gaze, suddenly trembled. A good idea had come to her.
“Hye-na, I’ll call for you.”
“…You will?”
“Yeah. I’m your sister. Oh, I should go to the hospital with you… but I don’t think I can because I have something to do. Just rest for now.”
“…Do you think I’m a child who can’t go to the hospital alone?”
Hye-na grumbled and fell back asleep.
Ji-na’s lips curled up. She rummaged through Hye-na’s room. Then, she found sanitary pads in a drawer.
‘Come to think of it, Hye-na doesn’t seem to be having her period lately… Is it late because of her condition?’
Then, she found the most important item. She stole her employee ID card and left the room.
‘Hye-na, I’ll just use it for today.’
Hye-na would be angry later, but she and Ji-na were twins, thicker than blood.
‘Forgiveness is easier than permission.’
Ji-na moved quickly. First, she went into the bathroom and fixed her hair.
Ji-na had dark brown hair like Hye-na, but it was longer. Ji-na, who was skilled, easily copied Hye-na’s hairstyle.
A neat and sophisticated semi-long hairstyle that reached just above her chest.
Hye-na, who had recently started working out, had a better body, but it wasn’t easy to tell when they were wearing clothes. Like twins, they both had the same E-cup breasts and the same large hips.
‘Okay. I look just like Hye-na. Even Mom wouldn’t recognize me.’
Dressed in a suit, she looked around and was satisfied. Then, she started heading to work.
This was a crime.
Ji-na knew that.
‘Executive Director Sung Yu-jin! I’ll just confirm his existence and leave right away. It won’t take long. The chances of getting caught are very low.’
Hye-na and she were inseparable twin sisters. When the time came, she would definitely help her.
‘I’m a reporter. I will definitely expose it.’
She was excited.
***
Thump-thump.
Amid the countless people going to work, Ji-na’s heart beat so hard it hurt as she entered the Seungjo Group headquarters building. She was worried that her heart might jump out of her mouth.
‘…I’ve come this far, I can’t run away.’
Ji-na put strength in her legs and waist and walked as confidently as possible. She had to look natural.
She entered the headquarters entrance.
The guards scanned the employees with sharp eyes. They checked each employee going to work one by one.
“Yoo Hye-na, please show your employee ID and put your bag up there.”
Ji-na handed the employee ID card hanging around her neck to the guard. The guard scanned the barcode on the ID card, compared the photo on the ID card with Ji-na, and nodded.
After thoroughly checking her belongings as well, the guard said.
“The check is complete. No problems. Yoo Hye-na, you may enter.”
“Yes. Thank you for your hard work.”
She had passed.
Her heart, which had been pounding like it would explode, calmed down a little.
Ji-na quietly looked around. She noticed something strange.
‘They’re not using the elevator. Why? There’s no sign that it’s broken.’
The employees were not even glancing at the first-floor elevator and were going up to the second floor. Even though there were definitely employees working on higher floors.
‘Hye-na also works on the 11th floor….’
She shook off the grim thought of having to walk up to the 11th floor via the stairs and followed the employees.
When she reached the second floor, following the employees, her eyes widened.
The second floor had a structure that looked like a changing room in a public bathhouse, and the employees were actually starting to undress.
‘A bathhouse…? No, that can’t be! There are men taking off their clothes too?!’
Men and women. They were taking off their clothes and becoming naked without distinction. None of the employees seemed to find it strange.
The naked men crawled out on all fours. From young new recruits to old managers and department heads, everyone was doing it.
‘…….’
Ji-na’s face hardened and turned red. The men’s genitals were openly visible.
It was such a strange sight that her head was spinning.
She wondered if she was dreaming. She pinched her cheek with her right hand. It hurt. It wasn’t a dream.
“Yoo Hye-na.”
“……Yes?”
She reacted a beat late because it wasn’t her name.
She turned her head toward the voice and saw a naked woman looking at her with her arms crossed.
