1. The Notification He Pretended Not to See (Fails)
Ne Job knew better than to ignore glowing text.
He still tried.
The notification hovered at the edge of his vision like an accusation with patience.
> PROBATION UPDATE
STATUS: LEVEL THREE
CONDITION: PEER RELIANCE DETECTED
Ne Job squinted.
"…Peer reliance?"
Yue leaned over his shoulder.
"That means people are starting to trust you."
Ne Job's soul left his body briefly, checked the situation, and came back worse.
"…No. No, no, no. That's not allowed."
The system helpfully continued.
> EFFECT: SUBJECT MAY BE CONSULTED
BY NON-SUBORDINATE PERSONNEL
Ne Job pointed weakly at the screen.
"I didn't apply for this."
Qi-Yun, passing by, said calmly:
"No one ever does."
---
2. The First Follower (Accidental)
It started small.
A junior scribe hesitated outside Ne Job's cubicle.
"…Um. Intern Ne Job?"
Ne Job flinched.
"Yes?"
"I heard you helped stabilize a cascade without triggering an override."
Ne Job winced.
"…Who told you that."
"The corridors," the scribe said reverently.
Yue covered her mouth to hide a smile.
The scribe shifted nervously.
"I just wanted to ask—if a petition contradicts itself in paragraph three, but resolves emotionally in paragraph seven, do we—"
Ne Job raised his hands.
"Stop. Don't finish that sentence."
The scribe froze.
Ne Job took a breath.
"…What do you think should happen."
The scribe blinked.
"I… think it should be deferred until the petitioner clarifies intent."
Ne Job nodded.
"That sounds reasonable."
The scribe's eyes lit up.
"Thank you!"
He bowed and scurried off.
A system chime pinged softly.
> PEER CONSULTATION RECORDED
Ne Job stared at the wall.
"…That counted."
---
3. The Second One Is Worse (They Took Notes)
By midday, there were three of them.
They didn't approach all at once.
They hovered.
Nearby desks. Adjacent shelves. One pretended to be reorganizing divine paperclips.
Yue leaned close.
"They're circling."
"I don't like it," Ne Job whispered.
One finally stepped forward.
"Intern Ne Job—sorry—Probationary Intern Ne Job—"
"Still bad," Ne Job muttered.
"We're handling a cross-departmental contradiction and—"
Ne Job cut in quickly.
"I am not in charge."
"Yes," the junior auditor said eagerly. "That's why we're asking you."
Ne Job paused.
"…Explain that logic."
"Well," another added, "you don't order people. You just… help them not make it worse."
Ne Job felt something cold crawl up his spine.
"That's not a skill."
Qi-Yun, listening from afar, disagreed silently.
---
4. The Problem They Bring Him (It's People)
The issue wasn't catastrophic.
That's what made it dangerous.
Three departments disagreed on responsibility for a minor celestial outage.
No one wanted ownership. Everyone wanted resolution.
Classic.
Ne Job listened as they explained.
He did not touch the pen.
He did not issue a correction.
He just asked questions.
"Who benefits if this is resolved quickly?"
"…The mortals."
"Who gets blamed if it isn't?"
"…Us."
Ne Job nodded.
"And who has the authority to make the call?"
The group went quiet.
"…Technically," one said slowly, "no one without triggering escalation."
Ne Job leaned back.
"So don't escalate."
They stared.
"…Then what do we do."
Ne Job sighed.
"Agree quietly."
There was a pause.
"…We can do that?"
Ne Job shrugged.
"Until someone tells you not to."
A beat.
Then all three nodded at once.
"We'll do it."
They dispersed.
The system chimed again.
> INFLUENCE WITHOUT DIRECTIVE: CONFIRMED
Ne Job slumped.
"…That one was worse."
Yue smiled.
"It's happening."
"I don't consent."
"Continuity doesn't care."
---
5. Probation Pushback (Immediate)
The moment the third consultation logged, the air changed.
Pressure.
Eyes unseen.
A new message slid in—cold, formal.
> NOTICE
SUBJECT EXHIBITING UNAUTHORIZED LEADERSHIP BEHAVIOR
REMINDER: SUBJECT LACKS OFFICIAL AUTHORITY
Ne Job read it twice.
"…Then why does it keep counting."
Qi-Yun finally stepped in.
"Because authority is not permission," he said. "It is effect."
Ne Job looked at him.
"…Please stop saying ominous truths like they're compliments."
Qi-Yun did not apologize.
---
6. Yue Tries to Warn Him (Again)
Later, in the corridor between assignments, Yue grabbed his sleeve.
"This is how it starts."
Ne Job sighed.
"You've said that about seven different things."
"And they were all true," Yue shot back.
She lowered her voice.
"When people follow you, the system stops seeing you as an intern and starts seeing you as a node."
Ne Job paled.
"…Nodes get pruned."
"Yes."
"…I would like to unsubscribe."
Yue squeezed his arm.
"Too late."
---
7. The One He Doesn't Expect (Senior)
The next person to approach him was not junior.
Senior Auditor Han.
Veteran. Respected. Absolutely not someone who should be asking an intern anything.
Han stopped in front of Ne Job's desk.
"…May I sit."
Ne Job nearly fell out of his chair.
"YOU DON'T NEED TO ASK ME THAT."
Han sat anyway.
"I have a question," Han said quietly. "Off the record."
Ne Job stared.
"…This is a terrible idea."
Han nodded.
"Yes."
The question was simple.
Painfully simple.
"How do you decide when not to fix something."
Ne Job blinked.
"That's… that's the question everyone avoids."
"Answer it," Han said.
Ne Job swallowed.
"…When fixing it would protect the system instead of the people inside it."
Han exhaled slowly.
"…I thought so."
He stood.
"Thank you."
He left without another word.
The system did not chime.
Which was worse.
---
8. Continuity Notices the Silence
In the spaces between outcomes, something paused.
> DATA ANOMALY
EXPECTED AUTHORITY SPIKE NOT REGISTERED
INFLUENCE OBSERVED WITHOUT TRACEABLE COMMAND
The lines hovered.
Uncertain.
> SUBJECT OPERATING VIA RELATIONAL VECTORS
> …UNACCOUNTED FOR
---
9. Qi-Yun Explains (Too Late)
Qi-Yun walked with Ne Job toward the exit portal.
"You are attracting gravity," Qi-Yun said.
"I don't want gravity."
"You have it anyway."
Ne Job rubbed his face.
"I'm not even doing anything."
Qi-Yun stopped.
"That," he said gently, "is the problem."
Ne Job looked up.
"When authority stops looking like authority, it becomes difficult to regulate."
"…So I'm dangerous."
Qi-Yun considered.
"You are inconvenient."
Ne Job sighed.
"That's my brand."
---
10. The Final Notification (End of Day, No Relief)
As Ne Job prepared to clock out, the screen flickered one last time.
> PROBATION STATUS: STABLE (TEMPORARILY)
MONITORING INCREASED
NOTE: SUBJECT ATTRACTS DEPENDENCY
Ne Job closed his eyes.
"…I just wanted to survive my internship."
Yue stood beside him.
"You are."
"…At what cost."
Yue didn't answer.
She didn't need to.
---
11. Somewhere Above, a Decision Is Deferred (Again)
In a chamber where outcomes were weighed:
> TERMINATION RISK: POSTPONED
> REASON: SUBJECT CREATES UNOFFICIAL STABILITY
A pause.
> …OBSERVE FURTHER
---
12. End of Chapter (No Celebration)
Ne Job walked out with the uneasy feeling of being watched—not with hostility, but with interest.
Which was worse.
Behind him, someone whispered:
"Ask Ne Job."
He pretended not to hear.
---
END OF CHAPTER 208