Zero to Peak: Ascension Online

Ivan slept for an unusually long time at Roger's house. Roger had departed around 10:00 a.m. to attend a church of the goddess located a few streets away from his residence. He went there, confessed his sin, and received counselling. He returned four hours later to find Ivan still sleeping soundly on the sofa.

He sighed and muttered, "What exactly did you do yesterday?"

Ivan awoke an hour before midnight. As soon as his eyes fluttered open, he saw Roger seated opposite him, scrutinising him with a worried expression. Roger sighed in palpable relief and dropped his phone onto the seat beside him.

"Dude, you scared me." Roger's persistent throbbing headache finally eased.

Ivan felt his senses were remarkably sharper. He could discern it was night by sensing the distinct coolness of the air.

"Is this truly night-time? Did I sleep for too long?" Ivan asked, doubting his accurate perception.

"Yeah, dude. You slept for more than twelve hours. I genuinely thought you had suffered brain damage…and entered a coma," Roger carefully chose his words, deliberately avoiding a certain sensitive topic.

Ivan sat quietly, processing this astonishing information.

"Dude, what did you do yesterday that made you so exhausted?"

Ivan sighed. "I experienced literal shit yesterday and still got no pay. I just don't want to talk about it."

The cryptic way he phrased his words left Roger wondering what sort of heartless individual Ivan had worked for yesterday.

Ivan swallowed his acute embarrassment and inquired of Roger if there was anything available for dinner. Roger allowed him to have dinner from his pack of instant noodles. Ivan insisted that he wished to spend the night at his own apartment. Roger had attempted to persuade him to stay, but to no avail. Before he finally left Roger's apartment, he paused at the doorway and solemnly stared at Roger, offering a genuine, heartfelt apology for his earlier reaction that morning.

Roger offered no reply. Ivan felt a pang of disappointment. He departed Roger's residential building for his own place. He didn't hail a cab; he walked to his place. Along the way, he received an unexpected email from Bangyu Restaurant. The response contained a sincere apology for the incident and informed Ivan that they had successfully located the culprit, expressing their readiness to help him rectify the misunderstanding.

Ivan was consumed by anger. He was furious with the culprit. He desperately wanted to understand what thoughts had been going through the culprit's mind when she made the damaging statement that had so prematurely ended his nascent relationship.

Ivan promptly responded to the email, detailing his sincere appreciation for their swift response and their expressed willingness to cooperate in rectifying the damage. He stipulated that he wished to meet with the culprit at his own residence before proceeding with the culprit to his "girlfriend's" apartment. The proposed time of meeting was 7:00 a.m. sharp.

The following day, at precisely 7:00 a.m., a soft knock echoed at Ivan's apartment door. He had remained awake throughout the entire night, consumed by thoughts of how to salvage his fractured relationship. He opened the door. His visitors consisted of a man impeccably dressed in formal attire—a deep blue suit, crisp white shirt, a matching knotted tie, and tailored trousers—and a lady elegantly dressed in a long orange buttonless waistcoat worn over a white shirt and black trousers. Both the man and the woman wore professional name tags, affixed to their suit and waistcoat respectively.

The man extended his right hand for a formal handshake, which Ivan readily accepted. The man appeared to be in his late thirties, his refined features distinctly akin to those of a South-East Asian.

"Hello Mr. Ivan, I am Mr. Ko Ming, a legal representative of Bangyu Restaurant," he stated, presenting his identity and business cards to Ivan, who meticulously inspected them.

Ivan nodded in quiet satisfaction after his thorough examination.

"I'm here with the employee who was responsible for sparking the misunderstanding you experienced."

Ivan turned his focused attention to the woman accompanying Mr. Ming. She appeared to be in her early thirties, possessed a striking beauty, and from her professional attire and the discernible tag on her waistcoat, it was evident that she worked as a waitress at Bangyu Restaurant. The name on her tag was Sanchez Yelena.

Yelena acutely perceived that Ivan was glaring intently at her, despite his otherwise impassive expression.

"I am truly sorry for my grave mistake. I never intended for such a devastating outcome," she quickly apologised.

"Save that apology for her when you meet with her." Ivan turned sharply to Mr. Ming, "I am glad that your establishment could respond so swiftly. Are you actually from Bangyu Restaurant, or do you work for the other people?"

Mr. Ming chuckled. "What is your guess?"

"Alright." Ivan clearly had his answer. "Please, come in and take a seat. I still need to change my clothes."

Mr. Ming politely refused the invitation to wait inside Ivan's living room, opting instead to stand discreetly outside his apartment door.

Soon, the unusual trio of Ivan, Mr. Ming, and Yelena stood before Daiyu's apartment door. Daiyu reluctantly opened the door to confront her unexpected visitors. Her apartment was equipped with a discreet surveillance camera outside, so she was already fully aware of the identities of her visitors before opening the door.

Daiyu's eyes were immediately locked onto Yelena as she stepped out of her apartment. She clearly had no desire to welcome Ivan and his company into her private apartment.

"You must be the dirty slut that he cheated on me with," Daiyu intoned harshly.

Deeply offended, but with no immediate opportunity to retort or defend herself, Yelena visibly frowned. Ivan threw his arms up in a desperate gesture of protest. "Daiyu, I didn't cheat on you. She just made a really bad joke."

"Shut up, dick head. You really have a lot of guts for speaking to me."

Mr. Ming swiftly intervened. He calmly spoke to Daiyu, gradually calming her agitated demeanour, then formally introduced himself and assured her that her conclusions were entirely based upon a misunderstanding. Mr. Ming then presented her with the surveillance video from the 'employee room' of Bangyu Restaurant. The video clearly showed Yelena, dressed in attire identical to her present moment, picking up Ivan's phone from a communal rack of collected phones, specifically to answer Daiyu's incoming call.

Mr. Ming then meticulously explained the precise reason for Ivan's phone being present in the video. Ivan had been among the temporary labourers hired to assist in transporting heavy machine parts, essential for food manufacturing, from outside Section 2.5 directly to the restaurant. The company, he claimed, did not tolerate distractions, and therefore required Ivan and his colleagues to deposit their mobile phones at the restaurant. Of course, this was an elaborate fabrication.

Daiyu expressed immediate doubt regarding the authenticity of the video. She was permitted to virtually contact an independent video investigator who subsequently verified the video's unquestionable authenticity. She was utterly flabbergasted. Yelena immediately went down on all fours—knees and hands—desperately pleading that both Daiyu and Ivan forgive her recklessness.

Daiyu was so consumed by incandescent rage that both Mr. Ming and Ivan had to physically restrain her from violently manhandling Yelena. Yelena swiftly fled from sight. Daiyu eventually calmed downed. Mr. Ming then assured the fractured couple that Bangyu Restaurant would provide substantial compensation to them.