One Kick Girl — Chapter 217
"The People Who Miss the Old Power"
Not everyone mourned the loss of control openly.
Some people called it "stability."
Some called it "clarity."
Some called it "the way things used to work."
But underneath all of it was the same ache.
They missed being untouchable.
1. The Stories Start Circulating
It began as anecdotes.
"Remember when decisions were faster?"
"Back when leadership could just step in?"
"When we didn't have to debate every call?"
The stories spread quietly.
Never in rooms where ownership lived.
Only in corners.
Private chats.
Side conversations that ended when someone new walked in.
2. Nostalgia Is Selective
Raon listened without interrupting.
Because nostalgia had a way of erasing costs.
It forgot the burnout.
The rework.
The invisible labor.
It remembered only certainty.
3. The Comfort of Being Overruled
Some people genuinely preferred it.
When leadership decided, failure belonged to someone else.
When ownership was local, failure was personal.
That was heavier.
And some people wanted the weight gone.
4. Shion Calls It Out
"They don't miss power," Shion said one evening.
"They miss abdication."
Raon nodded slowly.
"Not having to choose."
"Exactly."
5. The Passive Sabotage
The nostalgia didn't stay harmless.
It leaked into behavior.
People delayed decisions, hoping leadership would step in.
They escalated prematurely.
They framed issues as too complex for team ownership.
"If this goes wrong, it'll be bad."
Raon heard the subtext clearly.
So decide it for us.
6. Leadership Feels the Pull
Some executives wavered.
It was tempting.
To reclaim decisiveness.
To be the hero again.
To cut through the mess.
One almost did.
They overrode a team decision "for speed."
It worked.
Short-term.
7. The Cost Surfaces
The team disengaged.
Ownership evaporated.
Questions turned into compliance.
Velocity dropped a week later.
Then another.
Shion tracked it.
"Every override costs us twice," she said.
Raon sighed.
"Speed now. Drag later."
8. The Line Is Reinforced
Leadership corrected.
Publicly.
"We shouldn't have overridden that call."
The admission stung.
But it mattered.
Because it told the system:
We see the temptation too.
9. The Grief Phase
For some, it really was grief.
They'd built identities around influence.
Around being consulted.
Around having the final word without being named.
Now they had to adapt.
Or fade.
10. The Loud Complainer
One voice grew louder than the rest.
"This new model slows us down. Everyone's afraid to be wrong."
Raon met them calmly.
"Everyone was afraid before," she said. "They just hid it."
The room went quiet.
11. Fear Changes Shape
Fear didn't disappear.
It shifted.
From being overruled…
To being visible.
That was healthier.
Not easier.
12. The Ones Who Can't Let Go
A few people kept pushing.
They invoked urgency.
Crisis.
Market pressure.
Anything to justify central control.
Shion watched them carefully.
"They're testing boundaries."
Raon nodded.
"And seeing if we blink."
13. The System Holds
This time, it didn't.
Requests bounced back.
"Who owns this?"
"What's your recommendation?"
"We'll support your call."
The old escape routes were closed.
14. Adaptation or Exit
Slowly, paths diverged.
Some nostalgic leaders learned restraint.
They became advisors.
Mentors.
Context providers.
Others grew bitter.
Dismissive.
They stopped being invited.
Not by decree.
By choice.
15. Raon's Mixed Feelings
Raon didn't feel triumphant.
She felt tired.
Change wasn't clean.
It wasn't fair.
It just… was.
And it asked people to become someone new.
16. Shion's Cold Clarity
"Every system reveals who it was protecting," Shion said.
Raon swallowed.
"And who it was exhausting."
17. The Last Attempt
One nostalgic leader tried once more.
"In emergencies, we should revert."
Raon responded evenly.
"In emergencies, clarity matters more, not less."
The argument died there.
18. The Quiet Acceptance
The complaining faded.
Not because everyone agreed.
But because resistance without leverage loses energy.
People redirected it elsewhere.
Or inward.
19. A New Normal Settles
Decisions kept happening.
Owned.
Named.
Sometimes wrong.
Always accountable.
The noise softened.
The work continued.
20. Closing Reflection
Power had changed shape.
Those who missed the old version weren't villains.
They were people standing in the shadow of something that no longer existed.
Raon watched them pass.
Some followed.
Some stayed behind.
She didn't stop.
END OF CHAPTER 217