Moon's Labyrinths

Sungyoon returned to earth. His stay on the moon was relatively short this time around, but it couldn’t be helped. He had urgent business on earth right now. It was a very big deal that the Ross siblings wanted to join their company. Therefore, he decided it would be best if he met Jimin face to face. Above all else, he had obtained a mysterious item that his party had named Golem. Sungyoon had thought about putting it in Chelsea‘s care at first, but he decided it would be best to consult with Jimin on what they should do with it. And so, he decided to go to earth.

“Dad~~!”

As always, she was cute as a button. Even if he was offered the whole world, he wouldn’t change a thing about his daughter. The little girl let out a bright smile as she ran towards him, and Sungyoon lifted her into his arms and hugged her.

“My cute daughter! How have you been?”

He always remained expressionless and kept his emotions suppressed. The only time when one could see him loosen up and laugh was when he was with Shinhae. His laughter was like a flower blossoming within a desolate desert.

“Good! I had fun playing with unni!”

While in her father’s arms, Shinhae kept making gestures with her hands, explaining everything she had experienced while he had been gone. Sungyoon didn’t miss a single word and reacted at just the right parts. He continued to listen to his precious daughter's experiences. There was no way he would be bored.

“Welcome back, Mr. Sungyoon.”

Jimin approached them. The father and daughter were enjoying each other’s company, but if she didn’t say anything, they would stand there like that all day. When she used to see them like that in the beginning, she didn't know how to intrude on the two of them. But she had become familiar with them now. The father and daughter liked to go into their own little world to enjoy each other’s company. And now, it was one of her jobs to forcibly pull them out of their bubble.

“Let’s go to the car before we talk.”

Sungyoon followed her.

As always, he handed over his Devices and Gems. But he still had the Golem, the doll from an unknown civilization, and other important items inside his storage Gem. So, he had felt a bit reluctant when handing it over. However, the Devices and Gems would be placed within an impregnable safe. Even if one discounted the items within the storage Gems, all Devices and Gems were extremely expensive items on their own. They were well protected. That was why he could hand over his Devices and Gems without worrying too much about it.

Jimin drove the car and headed towards Seoul with the two of them.

It had been a while since Shinhae had met her dad, so she sat next to him. She was happy as she continued to tell him about what he missed. However, her eyelids started to get heavy, and she started to nod. As always, the little girl fell asleep, using the lap of her father, whom she loved very much, as a pillow.

From that point on, it was time for Sungyoon to converse with Jimin.

“You came back early this time.”

She glanced at the rear-view mirror.

“I have some stuff to consult with you, president.”

“Hmm. I am curious.”

However, Jimin didn’t immediately delve into it. She always gave Sungyoon some time off when he came back from the moon. To be precise, she made sure he could spend time with his daughter.

“As always, please tell me the information at my office after a week.”

She was giving him some time off, yet Sungyoon was the one that pushed back against it.

“No. I’ll meet you at the company tomorrow and tell you everything. Other parties are involved, so we have to take care of this quickly.”

“... is it something bad?”

Sungyoon was forgoing his break when he should be spending his time with Shinhae. The fact that he wanted to meet her the next day made her a bit nervous.

“Not really. There is one good news, and the other one is a mixed bag. Just know that it isn’t bad news. However, it has the chance to complicate our lives.”

“I see.”

Jimin didn't ask anything else. She focused on driving, and her car raced across the freeway.

***

On the next day, Sungyoon did as he promised and visited the company. As he drank the warm cup of coffee provided by Jimin, he slowly and methodically explained what had happened on the Moon.

“...”

Jimin was left speechless. What emotions should her eyes have expressed? Should she have been taken aback? Shocked? Horrified? It didn’t matter which emotion she picked. The only guarantee from all this was that her head was spinning.

She started chugging her coffee. At a glance, one could tell that she wasn’t drinking the coffee for its taste. She was just using the coffee to calm her heart, as she didn’t have any water nearby. Thankfully, the coffee had cooled, and it was lukewarm.

Clack!

The cup let out a sound when she placed it atop the table. Then she started rubbing her temples with her fingers.

“You really....”

She spoke as if she was letting out a sigh.

“Whenever Mr. Sungyoon goes to the Moon, you always experience something extraordinary.”

He had fought a Bigfoot, entered the sealed section of the Beginner’s Labyrinth, and had been ambushed by another Connector. And as if that wasn’t enough, he had brought back discoveries that might help the world unravel the mysteries behind the Moon and the labyrinths. Moreover, he had experienced all of this in less than a year since he became a Connector.

She was starting to get afraid of sending him to the Moon.

Although she wanted to resolve all the problems he brought to her, she had no idea where to start.

‘He acquired an existence that repairs the labyrinth. How should we handle this?’

She was an intelligent and talented woman, but there was a limit to what she could solve.

‘Let’s think about that a bit later.’

In the end, she decided to temporarily avoid the problem.

However, he hadn't only brought troublesome problems. The questions about the Golem and the civilization on the moon gave her a blinding headache. But he also had news that she really liked.

“First, let's talk about Mr. Tim Ross and Ms. Emily Ross.”

She had observed that the siblings were very close to Sungyoon, and they had been comrades since the Beginner’s Labyrinth. This was why she had given them her business card in their last meeting. However, she hadn’t expected much to come from it as the siblings were contracted to a famous and large company. It was tough to imagine them quitting their company to come to her small one.

However, they had decided to join Jungbum at Sungyoon's suggestion. Jimin wholeheartedly approved of it. She would welcome them with open arms.

“I told you about their intentions, but the Ross siblings will be coming for an official visit in the near future. It seems they will move their base of operations to Korea.”

“I appreciate the gesture. Inconvenience is inevitable if Connectors live far away from their company, and it isn’t as if our company has the resources to set up a branch in Canada.”

Jimin felt refreshed.

‘I’ll have three Connectors contracted to my company.’

All three of them had smashed through the Beginner’s Labyrinth. The Ross siblings were 3rd Gens, and they were known as promising prospects. As for Sungyoon, he needed no description.

The Ross siblings were foreigners. She would have to convert the profit from the moonstones into Canadian dollars, and there would be complicated international laws that she would have to observe. However, the work generated couldn’t be compared to the reality of having two more useful Connectors entering her company.

She had wasted many years trying to acquire Connectors, and she had a tough time acquiring even 1st Gens. This development blew her past results out of the water.

Jimin looked at Sungyoon. Everything started after she met him. He was like her lucky charm, and everything was turning out much better than she could have imagined.

This was why she couldn’t forgive the culprit who had attacked Sungyoon.

“Next, let us talk about the person that attacked you. His name was Louis?”

“Yes.”

“I have general knowledge about the situation. I got a call about it before you arrived.”

‘They already contacted her?’

If he thought about it, Jimin had been in a foul mood when he had arrived at the company. As expected of a world-class conglomerate, the siblings' former company was quick in trying to mitigate the damage.

“Do you have the proof with you?”

Sungyoon rooted through his pocket and took out out something. It was the memory card given to him by Tim. He handed it over to Jimin, who put it away as if it was a valuable item.

“If you lose it, you can ask me for another copy. I already backed up the file in several locations.”

“You are quite thorough.”

“I have memories of being stabbed in the back because I didn’t keep enough proof.”

It had caused Sungyoon to lose everything.

Jimin had a good grasp of his past, so she didn't ask any further questions, and turned the conversation back to the original topic.

“After the evidence is proven to be valid, I’ll negotiate with the other company. You want to prioritize the breaking of the contract between the Ross siblings and their company. Is that correct?”

“Yes.”

“Understood. After I get that out of the way, I’ll try my best to claw back as much compensation as I can.”

Suddenly, Jimin let out a sigh.

“After Mr. Sungyoon entered my company, it seems all I do is extract compensation for damage from other companies. It is as if we're running a personal injury racket.”

Sungyoon didn’t know what to say. It wasn’t as if he intended things to turn out this way, but it would be understandable if someone investigated them.

“It was a joke.”

Jimin said.

Finally, it was time to talk about the newly-discovered Golem. When it came to this problem, Jimin had no idea what to do. She thought Sungyoon was showing too much faith in her, but it was understandable. After he arrived, it would look as if she was slowly moving to her delusional dreams.

She didn’t doubt the fact that he had found a Golem. The problem was the importance of this topic.

‘He found traces of civilization on the moon. Moreover, he found an existence that repairs the labyrinths.’

She knew a lot of the important information regarding the labyrinths, but she had never heard about this type of existence before. Above all else, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that this tied into one of the greatest mysteries regarding the labyrinths. Sungyoon had brought back evidence that might pull back the veil on this mystery.

“Let’s check it out together later. If I don’t have accurate information, I can't make a decision.”

Even if she saw it, there was a high probability that she wouldn’t have a clear answer as to what to do. However, Jimin had no choice but to say those words.

‘If push comes to shove, I can hand it over to Chelsea.’

Chelsea was a scientist, but her field of study was geology. Even if they handed the Golem over to her, it was unknown as to whether she could discover its true identity. Still, Jimin was completely ignorant when it came to science, and her friend would have better ideas than her.

It seemed Sungyoon had no differing opinions on this topic, so he nodded instead of answering her.

“We should start thinking about hiring employees or temp workers. It’ll be a struggle for me to keep up with all the work once the Ross siblings join the company.”

If it was just Sungyoon, she could manage the workload. However, she couldn't handle the workload that came with three Connectors. She needed help.

Moreover, Jungbum wasn’t in dire financial straits. She could hire a couple of people without many problems. After Sungyoon had entered in this company, Jumbum had started to run a little more like a company. Still, it had only one president, one office, and one Connector contracted to the company. She had poured all her resources into the one Connector she had, but their expenses were minuscule compared to the larger companies. Moreover, the one Connector had grown to an extent that rivaled high-rank Connectors. After he came along, her company had become successful and very profitable. She could afford to hire some temp workers.

“If you see more promising prospects, please recommend them to me.”

Jimin didn’t expect him to actually do it. She just said it in passing. Above all else, Sungyoon was already doing much for the company. He was also doing a lot for Jimin as an individual too.

Sungyoon knew this.

“Understood.”

That was why he just nodded.

And just like that, the day’s meeting came to an end.