65

‘What on earth am I looking at right now?’

Even after closing and opening my eyes, it was clear he was clipping his nails.

I turned my gaze to senior Lucius, who I’d greeted as if demanding an explanation; he gave a ‘you saw that too?’ look and motioned for me to step outside for a moment.

“He’s the new member, yes.”

“Did the Minister of Finance recommend him? If so, I’ll take him to the Ministry of Finance and protest to have him transferred into their department.”

“Unfortunately, he passed the career hiring exam and was hired.”

“What, you mean you didn’t know he was like that during the interview?!”

“When the Minister of Finance and I interviewed him, he seemed perfectly normal.”

Right, in a world overflowing with people embellishing résumés, everyone makes grand promises at interviews as if they’ll give their all for the company.

Those who pass the hiring exam have no probation, so to fire one you’d need a clear reason, like being in the boss’s bad graces or committing a major offense.

“Can’t we just tell him to clip his nails at home? It’s common sense. Who clips nails in the office during work hours? It’s not even the bathroom.”

Senior Lucius nodded in agreement and smiled gently.

“Do you think I haven’t tried? He says he doesn’t know what’s wrong and that he hasn’t broken any rules, and that clipping like this helps him focus on work.”

“What? Who even does that!”

I sighed deeply as I spoke.

Yes, having lived as a Korean office worker, I’d seen people like this. Most opposed clipping nails in the office during work hours, but there were quietly supportive voices, so it always sparked debate. I was against it. This was a matter of hygiene. At first I was horrified.

‘He could just clip them at home—why on earth in the office? It’s filthy… If he’s going to be like this, he’d better let the company scrub him clean.’

Still, you can’t punish someone for clipping nails, so I thought I’d ignore it. He could at least go to the bathroom when he clips them. With staffing shortages, making him leave would be a burden.

“He only clips fingernails, right? Then I’ll try to endure it reasonably.”

“……”

But Lucius’s brow furrowed even deeper.

“Don’t tell me… toenails too?”

That felt like a major boundary crossed. Lucius smiled as if he had reached enlightenment and said,

“Cornelia, could you go see and tell us yourself?”

I admitted that my misplaced pride in having full-time experience at the Chancellery for a week as a Korean office worker had been arrogance.

‘Wow, is that even possible?’

The new member is a guy named Tom Hank, in his early thirties. Despite his youth he had greasy hair and the typical office-worker paunch. His nail-clipping was practically casual—quite neat, even.

But he really did clip his toenails. I almost vomited and had to run to the bathroom.

“Tch, tch.”

At lunch with the department, he made strange sounds like splashing food around.

“Ugh.”

He burped loudly during work as if he’d gulped carbonated drink; I ended up running to the bathroom. He often touched his feet with his hands too. I was so grateful my seat was next to senior Victor. I had quietly prided myself on not being fazed by much as an office veteran, but I couldn’t remember how I’d managed to work these past few days.

“I think something’s missing from the report.”

It got so bad that even a report submitted to the concealment department received criticism. I found myself looking forward to days I could go to that department.

“Cornelia, are you okay?”

Lukan handed me cold tea with a worried face. One sip calmed my queasy stomach.

“Thanks. Are you all right?”

“Me? I’m using my own methods.”

Lukan then produced earplugs from his pocket. It was a great solution—refuse to hear the annoying sounds at all.

‘But is this really right?’

One person causes this much trouble and the majority resort to petty coping measures. Even if he’s a superior, this crosses a line.

“Where did you get them?”

Even so, I asked where he bought them, eager for a way to relieve stress.

I had asked senior Victor before—wasn’t this report-worthy?

“It’s not easy to tell the Minister of Finance to have him removed just because he clips nails, eats loudly, and burps. There’s been no work-related problem so far. And the Chancellery is swamped right now…”

Senior Victor didn’t look too pleased either; he seems gruff on the outside but is actually quite sensitive. Lucius was comparatively less prickly.

It was then.

“Pffff.”

I froze in mid-conversation with Lukan.

‘What did I just hear?’

When I looked around, the assistant scribes, scribes, and secretaries working had all stopped in their tracks.

It must be a mistake. You have to let such bodily functions slide.

“Burp.”

Ah, no. Judging by his expression, he was perfectly untroubled. The sound would pass, but the smell wafted subtly outward. Whatever he ate stank terribly. I ended up running to the bathroom again, and I wasn’t the only one.

As I panted, I suddenly remembered the Ministry of Justice position the Duke had suggested.

‘At this rate, it’s really going to collapse.’

I needed a plan. As I opened the bathroom door to leave, someone suddenly blocked my way—the one who had put an end to the Chancellery’s turf war, her honey-blond wavy hair hanging in long twin coils.

“Elysia?”

Her face was ashen white; she didn’t even seem to notice her glasses had slipped askew.

“Secretary.”

I was briefly flustered by the honorific, but since my rank was higher now I maintained my composure. She grabbed both my arms and cried out desperately.

“You’re the only one who can fix this situation, Secretary.”

“…Yes?”

“I really can’t stand it. I’ll do anything to help, so please get rid of that bastard—Tom or Hans, whatever his name is.”

“What??”

For a moment I felt like a hired killer. I looked down in disbelief and saw her arms trembling as she gripped me. Come to think of it, Elysia sat next to that new person.

“If you just do that… I really won’t forget this favor…”

I’d only endured it for a week, but she must have suffered for a month. I already disliked him, and now I felt I had a legitimate reason.

“Calm down for now, Elysia. We’ll find a way.”

I didn’t know why she singled me out, but the timing was perfect.

Suddenly I felt a surge of motivation to work.

My thoughts continued after work at Those Who Can’t Resign.

He was a full-course nightmare. Most people have just one habit, but he had the whole set like a combo.

Tom’s notoriety had already spread to other departments.

“Cornelia Secretary, I heard a shit-dog joined your department?”

No sooner had I arrived at the Hidden department than Reyra the finance officer came up and asked bluntly. I requested she only call him ‘shit’ because calling him a ‘dog’ felt inappropriate, and she accepted. The absurd part was that, in my experience, fellows like him are usually bad at work—yet ironically he had no work-related shortcomings. That removed our strongest justification.

‘We either make him repent or chase him out.’

The latter would be easier, but it felt off to force him out when he hadn’t committed a crime.

Not coming up with a good plan, I casually asked a VIP client who came every week about it as if I were talking about a friend.

“If this were my old self, I’d say none of your business, but this feels similar to me undergoing conversational correction.”

“Similar?”

Little Lamb nodded.

“He’s lowering department morale. On the surface, if someone does their own job well, no one would insist on change, but he inflicts psychological harm on subordinates, lowering efficiency and motivation, so it’s reasonable to accept complaints.”

“…That’s right.”

Hearing that, their situations didn’t seem so different. But there was one major difference.

“Little Lamb was a superior but willing to change, while my friend’s bastard has no intention to change—that’s the real problem.”

“Making someone who has no intention do it is not my specialty.”

“I know~.”

“Somehow this makes me angry.”

I considered giving him a private office for everyone’s sake, but giving a scribe the same private office used by department heads would raise fairness issues.

‘One thing’s for sure: when it’s urgent you should take the long way around.’

I felt sorry for Elysia, but I decided to observe a bit longer. Maybe time would create another variable.

An unexpected chill hung over the Hidden department.

The bureaucrats read each other’s signals and couldn’t say a word.

“Cornelia Secretary’s opinion is delusional. It’s like she’s in a different world. You can’t do everything purely for efficiency. She doesn’t seem suited to royal bureaucracy.”

“I offered that because I think there’s no need to use unnecessary force. It’s not that she doesn’t fit—it’s that central administrative procedures are clogged.”

The Supreme Justice and the controversial second-grade secretary glared at each other fiercely.