It was a light-hearted wager—nothing that’d cause either of us to lose face.
Besides, he probably thought I wouldn’t pass anyway.
I picked up the completed report and stood, heading straight to Chief Administrator Yu So-ak.
I entered his office.
Without even looking at me, he asked,
“What is it?”
“I’ve completed the task you gave me.”
“…What?”
Yu So-ak looked up, his expression one of utter disbelief.
“You’re saying you’ve already finished?”
“Yes.”
His face quickly turned into a scowl.
Clearly, he thought I had rushed it and submitted something half-baked.
I confidently handed him the report.
It didn’t even take a full quarter of an hour for his expression to shift into shock.
With a stiff face, he asked,
“Who taught you how to compile a report like this?”
Who else?
You did.
It was hell learning it, too.
But of course, I couldn’t say that.
“I figured it out while reviewing other documents.”
“And the references—each one numbered and organized in a separate list. Who taught you that?”
“I noticed it was done that way in other documents, so I gave it a try.”
I answered with a smile.
“The reference documents were excellent—studying them taught me a lot. It’s probably thanks to your guidance, Chief Administrator.”
Yu So-ak stared at me in silence for a moment, then said,
“You’ve compiled this far better than I expected. It passes. You may leave early for today.”
Just as I predicted—passed.
When I returned to my desk from the Chief Administrator’s office, Yeo Chang-ui approached with a face full of curiosity.
“How did it go?”
“Ah, well…”
I picked up a pile of scattered documents from my desk.
It must’ve looked like I was about to start organizing them, because he tried to console me.
“Don’t be too disheartened. Getting a report approved by the Chief Administrator on the first try is rarer than lightning striking a coin on the ground—”
Thud.
I handed him the documents and said,
“It passed.”
“What?”
“Now, I’ll leave the cleanup to you.”
Yu So-ak headed to the Finance Pavilion with his usual tired expression.
Truth be told, he hadn’t left work until the early chushi (丑時) today. (TL Note: 1 to 3 AM)
So he’d slept less than three shichen.
“I’m out of my mind. What was I thinking, falling for the Merchant Lord’s sweet words…”
It was practically his catchphrase.
He was once a promising scholar who passed the state exams, but due to certain circumstances, he had returned to his hometown. Eventually, moved by the words of Merchant Lord Eun Gil-sang, he came to work for the Eunhae Merchant Group.
Now he served as the Internal Chief Administrator.
He often joked that he’d been sweet-talked into a lifetime of hardship—but that was just talk.
To Yu So-ak, Merchant Lord Eun Gil-sang was a benefactor who had saved his life.
He was someone who never forgot a grudge, but also never forgot a favor.
He had long since resolved to give his life for the Eunhae Merchant Group.
He quickened his pace.
He’d stopped by the Merchant Lord’s office before arriving at the Finance Pavilion, so he was running a bit late.
As he entered the pavilion, the night-duty clerks all sprang to their feet.
“Welcome, Chief Administrator!”
He gave them a nod.
“Yes, good morning.”
Then he added,
“If Young Master Eun Seo-ho arrives, tell him to come to my office.”
“Yes, sir.”
Hearing that, Yu So-ak couldn’t help but smile.
‘He was a complete letdown on the first day… turns out I was dead wrong.’
From the very first task, Eun Seo-ho submitted a flawless report.
And now, ten days had passed.
He’d handled every assignment swiftly and accurately. Yu So-ak couldn’t help but be impressed.
‘He works with the polish of someone who’s been at it for decades…’
Geniuses do exist—but even geniuses have their limits.
Genius implies extraordinary intellect, not meticulous and systematic work like this.
There’s a reason why terms like “bookworm” or “ivory tower scholar” exist.
That level of polish only comes through practical experience.
All heirs of merchant groups were required to undergo five years of fieldwork, but that wasn’t a rigid rule.
The heads of the Finance Pavilion, Trade Pavilion, and Operations Pavilion had the authority to declare a trainee’s work period complete if they judged them ready.
In Yu So-ak’s mind, Eun Seo-ho had already earned a passing declaration—ten times over.
But appearances mattered.
Both of Seo-ho’s older brothers had spent three years in the Finance Pavilion.
There was no need to make him stand out unnecessarily.
Still, assigning him minor tasks for the sake of “experience” was now pointless.
‘What he needs most now is a broader range of exposure.’
And the most suitable place for that was right beside him—as his personal assistant.
He had decided to bring Eun Seo-ho into his office as his aide.
Of course, it was the kind of decision that would make Seo-ho recoil in horror if he heard about it.
As a Special Trainee of the Finance Pavilion, Eun Seo-ho technically fell under his authority. Still, he was the Merchant Lord’s son.
So Yu So-ak had sought formal approval.
That’s why he had stopped by the Merchant Lord’s office earlier that morning.
‘Ahem! Not because I need help with my workload. I just think it’d be good for at least one of the Merchant Lord’s sons to have firsthand experience in the Finance Pavilion. That’s all. Yep.’
Muttering to himself, Yu So-ak stepped into his office.
I headed to the dining hall for breakfast.
My two older brothers were already there.
“Good morning,” said my eldest brother, Eun Jeong-ho, looking up at me.
“I heard you’ve been going up the back mountain early these days. Is it for your health?”
“Yeah.”
In truth, it was for martial arts training.
It was about time I started practicing outdoors—but with too many eyes around the house, I had to be careful.
Jeong-ho said,
“Staying healthy is good, but don’t push yourself too hard.”
“Got it. I won’t overdo it.”
He really was a considerate brother.
Just then, my second brother, Eun Jin-ho, spoke from beside him.
“Come on, big bro! Climbing the back mountain in the morning is fine, right? You worry too much.”
“Still, I’m worried he might fall ill again.”
“That’s exactly why he should be moving his body. Look how much taller and healthier he’s gotten lately. It’s all because he started moving in the mornings.”
Jin-ho added casually, watching me.
“So… what do you think? Want to start learning martial arts again?”
“Martial arts?”
“Well, you know—working in the merchant group, there’ll be times when you need to protect yourself.”
Even as heirs to the merchant group, we didn’t disregard martial arts.
Though it wasn’t the top priority compared to our duties in the group, we still did our best to train when possible.
There were times when danger struck without warning—and martial arts helped us survive those moments.
That’s why both Jeong-ho and Jin-ho were receiving martial arts instruction from the External Chief Administrator.
The External Chief Administrator, who also led the Eunpoong Division that handled the group’s military force, had once received great kindness from my grandfather. To repay that debt, he had volunteered to serve in the role.
Teaching martial arts to the merchant group’s heirs was part of that repayment.
He’d even declared he wouldn’t marry until he’d repaid that debt in full—and as far as I knew, he never did, not even before I died.
I’d actually trained in martial arts with him when I was younger.
But I had to stop once my health began to deteriorate.
Thankfully, all I had learned back then was external techniques.
If I had started training internal techniques, I might’ve died even sooner.
The External Chief Administrator’s martial arts were rooted in Yang-strength—completely incompatible with me.
It would’ve been too complicated to explain all this, so I hadn’t told anyone that I was already secretly cultivating.
I smiled at Jin-ho and said,
“I’ll think about it.”
Just then, Grandfather and our parents entered the dining hall, and breakfast began.
Today’s meal was rice porridge with chicken.
Unless something special came up, our household typically had porridge for breakfast.
I was eating carefully, blowing on the hot porridge to cool it, when Father called me.
“Seo-ho.”
“Yes, Father.”
“I hear you’ve been doing quite well in the Finance Pavilion.”
“I’m just doing as I’m told by those around me.”
“That’s a talent in itself.”
His praise made me a little bashful.
“So this morning, the Chief Administrator asked me for a favor. He wants to have you work as his assistant.”
“Oh, he… Wait, what? Why?”
I raised my voice without thinking.
Assistant to Chief Administrator Yu?
That never happened in the future I experienced.
Father answered my question.
“What do you mean ‘why’? Obviously, it’s because you’re doing good work.”
“S–so… did you agree to it?”
“Of course. And really, your affiliation is already with the Finance Pavilion, so I don’t need to approve or deny anything. Don’t you think?”
At Father’s words, Grandfather let out a hearty laugh and chimed in.
“That picky man wants to keep you by his side! What a surprise!”
“Isn’t it though? Hohoho.”
Mother added with a laugh.
Then my two brothers followed suit.
“Wow, that’s impressive.”
“Our little brother’s got skills.”
“…”
And just like that, with my family congratulating me, it was settled—I would be working as Chief Administrator Yu So-ak’s assistant.
.
.
.
I was more than a little flustered about becoming his assistant.
In fact, today was an incredibly important day.
It was the day of the major fire—the one that would cause massive losses to the merchant group.
I was the only one who could prevent it, and I needed time to do so.
And now, I’d been appointed as Chief Administrator Yu’s assistant.
To the busiest man in the Finance Pavilion.
Which meant I’d be his equally busy assistant.
Maybe I shouldn’t have done such a good job…
With a sigh, I made my way to Yu So-ak’s office.
He actually stood up to greet me.
“You’ve arrived.”
A stark contrast to the first day, when he barely looked up from his desk.
“I heard you called for me.”
“Yes. Starting today, you’ll be working as my assistant.”
I glanced at the teetering tower of documents on his desk and swallowed hard.
Being his assistant meant I’d be helping to deal with all that paperwork.
This was my last chance to back out.
“Uh… I’m honored that you think so highly of my abilities. But I’ve only been doing practical work for ten days—being your assistant feels like too much.”
“Feeling pressured?”
“I apologize.”
“Hearing you say that only makes me more certain I should take you as my assistant.”
“…?”
He smiled and continued.
“Because you’ve even got the virtue of humility.”
So he took my objection as humility…
But I actually meant it.
“I understand the pressure. But I believe a person’s abilities shine brightest when applied where they’re most needed. And if your talents help the Eunhae Merchant Group grow, isn’t that a wonderful thing?”
Then he asked,
“Do you not care for the Eunhae Merchant Group?”
“…”
Do I not care for it?
Of course I do.
So he’s trying to provoke me, huh?
That just meant he was serious about this.
In that case…
“Understood. I’ll serve as your assistant, Chief Administrator. But I have a few conditions.”
“Let’s hear them.”
“First, I want my meal times guaranteed. Second, I want fixed work hours.”
“Accepted.”
“And I’ll start tomorrow.”
“Very well.”
The first condition was for my long-term plans.
The second—for stopping the fire that would happen today.
When I returned to my desk, Yeo Chang-ui came over.
“Young Master, you’re back?”
“Yes. The Chief Administrator had called me.”
“I see.”
I’d be working as his assistant starting tomorrow—but I couldn’t say anything about it yet.
Yu So-ak had specifically asked me not to mention it, likely for security reasons.
‘Come to think of it, he’s always had trust issues, hasn’t he?’
In fact, he never took on an assistant—not even until he died of overwork.
Which made it all the more surprising that I was now his assistant.
–TL Notes–
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