Monday morning.
Park Wongi, the Franchise Operations Team Leader, visited the outdoor garden and sighed at the innocent flowers.
"Ha..."
No matter how many times he sighed, the suffocating feeling in his chest refused to disappear.
It was all because of the division director's decision to assign part of the Franchise Operations Team's responsibilities to the Commercial District Analysis Team.
The Franchise Operations Team had several troublesome cases that had been giving them headaches for quite some time.
The director had suggested that looking at those problems from the Commercial District Analysis Team's perspective might produce new solutions.
Apparently, he had been deeply impressed by what the team had accomplished during its workshop.
Wongi himself had been surprised by their performance.
He had known that the Seongun Seafood Taean branch had problems, but he hadn't realized they were anywhere near that serious.
What they had accomplished in Tongyeong seemed unrelated to the company at first.
However, the story had unexpectedly attracted media attention and helped strengthen Seongun's reputation.
Even so...
Wasn't this going a little too far?
Wongi wasn't happy about a decision that had been made without consulting him.
Of course, that was often how companies operated.
Still, he couldn't help feeling that the higher-ups were being excessively protective of Team Leader Kang.
"...I really don't understand."
It was a strange feeling.
Until recently, Jinhyeok had been forced to keep his head down under Deputy General Manager Kim Seokhun.
Then, as soon as he became team leader, he seemed to have spread his wings and soared.
It reminded Wongi of a popular expression he had heard younger employees use.
Those destined to succeed will succeed.
That didn't mean he was jealous of Jinhyeok's achievements.
He had known about Jinhyeok's abilities for a long time.
In fact, he had always felt sorry that such a capable employee had been stuck with a terrible superior like Seokhun.
The reason Wongi was troubled lay elsewhere.
He was the Franchise Operations Team Leader.
He couldn't simply welcome another team's leader stepping into his territory with open arms.
Countless thoughts floated around in his head, becoming increasingly tangled.
What will people other than the division director and president think?
Won't they assume the Franchise Operations Team is so incompetent that we've had to dump our responsibilities onto the Commercial District Analysis Team?
But refusing the proposal would be difficult too.
It might look like petty territorial behavior directed at Team Leader Kang, who was merely trying to help.
Wongi didn't know what other people thought of Jinhyeok.
However, based on everything he had seen, he was certain that Jinhyeok's intentions were sincere.
There were franchise stores on the verge of closing.
And there were more than a few owners whose complaints he had listened to helplessly, unable to offer any meaningful solution.
It was true that his team needed help.
But he didn't want them to be seen as incompetent.
The more Wongi thought about it, the deeper the wrinkles between his eyebrows became.
Then...
"Hey, Team Leader Park! What are you doing out here?"
He turned toward the familiar voice.
Geum Seokcheol, who had joined the company in the same year as him, was approaching with a sly smile.
"Just thinking about something."
"What is it? You look like you're carrying every worry in the world on your shoulders, and it's barely morning."
Instead of answering, Wongi sighed again.
It wasn't exactly something he wanted to discuss with Seokcheol.
After all, the matter had nothing to do with the Store Development Team.
But the sharp-witted Seokcheol made a surprisingly accurate guess.
"I heard you were called into the director's office. Does this have something to do with Team Leader Kang?"
"...What? H-How did you know that?"
Wongi had only just left the director's office.
There was no way the matter had already been announced to the company.
"Hahaha! So I was right! It was just a guess. Things are usually pretty peaceful around here unless Team Leader Kang is involved. If it's something related to him, tell me about it. I happen to know quite a lot about that guy."
Wongi knew Seokcheol well, so he chose his words carefully.
He didn't want to reveal his less-than-admirable feelings only to have them turn into office gossip.
"...It's nothing. I just feel like the director trusts Team Leader Kang an awful lot. Although I admit Kang is very good at his job."
He hadn't revealed his actual concerns.
But Seokcheol chuckled as though he understood everything.
"I don't know exactly what's going on, but if it involves Team Leader Kang, you're better off going along with it."
"...What? What are you talking about?"
Seokcheol's eyes curved into a sly smile.
Even though they had joined the company together, they were ultimately competitors.
They weren't so close that he would give away valuable information known only to him for free.
"...Well, anyway, I'm just saying you shouldn't make an enemy of him. Team Leader Kang is a decent guy once you get to know him. Getting along with him certainly won't hurt you."
Was he offering advice or trying to test Wongi?
Seokcheol smiled cunningly and patted his shoulder.
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Well, you'll understand eventually. Anyway, don't think too hard about it. Anything involving Team Leader Kang is bound to work out. I'll head inside first!"
Seokcheol walked away with a smug grin.
He clearly knew something, but he had deliberately left out all the important details.
Wongi's head had already been complicated enough.
There was no need to dwell on the words of a friend who had been as slippery as an eel ever since they were new employees.
Wongi let out a disbelieving chuckle.
Make an enemy of him?
He had never intended to do anything like that.
He was simply worried about the possibility of his team's reputation suffering.
But after speaking with Seokcheol, something became clear.
He remembered how he had managed to hold on to his position all these years.
Only one thing truly mattered.
If this decision benefited Seongun and the franchise owners who placed their trust in the company, that should be enough.
The moment he changed his perspective, the tangled thoughts in his head began unraveling as though by magic.
He already knew how capable Team Leader Kang was.
Jinhyeok probably wouldn't be able to solve every problem.
But there was a good chance he could produce positive results in at least some of the difficult cases.
And he certainly wasn't the type of person who would make things worse.
If anything, his involvement would improve the situation.
For the company.
For the franchise owners.
And for the Franchise Operations Team itself.
"I should start by preparing a list of cases to hand over to Team Leader Kang."
With his thoughts finally organized, Wongi left the garden with much lighter steps.
Gaon Charcoal Grill, Balsan Branch.
Owner Oh Manbok was preparing for the lunchtime rush when he looked out the window and massaged the back of his neck.
Again.
An old truck was parked directly in the only access road leading to his restaurant.
It had left such a narrow gap that only an extremely skilled driver could squeeze through.
"Oh, come on! Not again!"
Manbok threw off his apron and rushed outside.
"Sir! I've told you that you can't park here! Lunchtime is about to start, and customers won't be able to drive into the restaurant!"
The man who had been squatting beside the truck and smoking a cigarette stood up.
He looked down at Manbok.
"I told you I need to load some cargo."
"Ha... How long is it going to take this time? You blocked the road for three hours yesterday too. Remember?"
"Good grief. You think I don't want to finish quickly? What am I supposed to do when they keep telling me the goods will be ready soon and I should wait?"
For some time now, the man had been blocking the road at the same hour every day.
He obstructed vehicle access for at least two hours at a time.
Yet the cargo he eventually collected was nothing more than a few boxes from a shipping container.
"Then couldn't you wait in our parking lot until the goods are ready?"
It was a perfectly reasonable suggestion.
But the man ignored it.
"My time is valuable too, you know. Every second counts. Besides, does this land belong to you? From what I've heard, this road belongs to the owner of that field."
Unable to reason with him, Manbok lowered his head.
It had been three years since he opened the restaurant.
The first two years had been wonderful.
The reputation of the Gaon Charcoal Grill name, combined with Manbok's cooking skills and friendly personality, had created an excellent image.
And that had motivated him to work even harder.
If he maintained that reputation, the number of customers would only continue to increase.
That was why Manbok had operated his restaurant with the same unwavering dedication every single day.
It was the reason the Gaon Charcoal Grill Balsan branch had successfully established itself.
But things had started going wrong after that.
There was a small field beside the side road leading to the restaurant.
And the owner of that field had suddenly begun interfering with his business.
Manbok had no real way to stop him.
The road beside the field was indeed privately owned.
And technically, the man wasn't completely blocking access.
"Uncle! Are you all right?"
Yeongseok, Manbok's nephew, who helped out at the restaurant, approached with a worried expression.
Seeing his uncle repeatedly sigh while the shameless man beside the truck continued puffing on his cigarette made Yeongseok furious.
"I seriously don't understand. You said the owner of that field and our building's landlord are the same person, right? Why would he deliberately ruin the business of someone renting his own building? Doesn't he want to collect rent?"
Yeongseok's complaints only made Manbok feel worse.
It was something he had discovered only recently.
The person who owned the land being used to obstruct his restaurant was the same person who owned the restaurant building.
"That's exactly what I've been saying. If he were demanding some kind of usage fee, at least I could understand what he wanted. But that's not it either. When I confronted him, he got furious and told me not to accuse him of deliberately interfering with my business."
The landlord insisted that he wanted nothing.
Whenever Manbok asked why he was making life so difficult, the man pretended he had absolutely no intention of causing trouble.
"Maybe he's trying to make you offer to buy the field and the road from him?"
"I don't think that's it. According to the rumors, he owns dozens of buildings and plots of land in Balsan-dong alone."
"Then why the hell is he doing this?"
It was something Oh Manbok couldn't understand either.
If the tenant gave up and moved out, the landlord would suffer a loss too.
And parking trucks in the road wasn't his only method of interference.
One corner of the shipping container beside the road stuck out awkwardly.
Muddy water from the field also frequently flowed across its entrance, making the road difficult to use.
Each incident looked like an unfortunate coincidence.
And none of them provided sufficient legal grounds for taking action.
"Should we try filing a complaint through the government's online petition system? I heard officials respond more actively when complaints are submitted there."
"I tried that ages ago. It didn't help at all. I just wasted my time. I even consulted a lawyer, but he wouldn't take the case."
His hot-blooded nephew raised his voice in frustration.
"What about Seongun? Don't they have a department that handles problems like this? They're always appearing in the news these days, aren't they? Something about mutual growth between the company and franchise owners?"
"They have a separate Franchise Operations Team. The employee in charge has already done everything he can. He even went to meet the landlord in person."
There was profound despair in Manbok's voice.
For the past two years, he had run his restaurant diligently without missing a single day.
Although the building was in a remote part of the old district, word had gradually spread through the Magok Industrial Complex and nearby apartment neighborhoods.
The number of lunchtime customers had steadily increased.
People had begun talking about the rich, deep flavor of the short rib soup Manbok prepared with such care and honesty.
Short rib soup for lunch.
Marinated ribs for dinner.
The negative balance in his bank account had slowly begun to shrink.
But after a while, another rumor had started spreading.
If you were going to that restaurant, you shouldn't drive there.
The road might be blocked, forcing you to use a public parking lot.
Or you might scratch your car trying to squeeze through the narrow entrance.
Stories from customers who had personally experienced those inconveniences began discouraging other people from visiting.
Watching the sales he had worked so hard to build start declining again made Manbok so frustrated that he could barely sleep.
"...Is moving somewhere else really our only option?"
His muttered question hung in the air.
"Yeongseok. Give me a cigarette."
"Uncle, how long has it been since you quit smoking...?"
"I feel like I'm burning up inside. Just give me one."
Manbok put a cigarette between his lips, abandoning the habit he had worked so hard to quit.
He was about to light it with trembling hands when...
An enormous SUV that looked expensive even at a glance entered the alley.
It was the Escalade IQ.
And behind the wheel was Kang Jinhyeok.
