1. The Calendar Entry That Should Not Exist
Ne Job discovered the performance review because it appeared inside his skull.
MANDATORY PERFORMANCE EVALUATION
Reviewer: OVERSIGHT
Location: CENTRAL AUDIT CHAMBER
Attendance: NON-OPTIONAL
Ne Job blinked.
"…I didn't accept this invite."
The invite blinked back.
ACCEPTANCE ASSUMED.
Ne Job sighed. "Of course it was."
Qi-Yun materialized beside him, expression unreadable.
"That is… unprecedented."
Ne Job squinted. "Bad unprecedented or fun unprecedented?"
Qi-Yun paused.
"…Structurally alarming unprecedented."
"Ah," Ne Job said. "The spicy kind."
2. The Central Audit Chamber (Where Confidence Goes to Die)
The Central Audit Chamber was not designed for people.
It was designed for outcomes.
Ne Job stood at its center, dwarfed by infinite tiers of floating ledgers, rotating verdict wheels, and glowing verdict stamps that hovered like executioners waiting for paperwork.
Oversight manifested as a vast, faceless lattice of light and symmetry.
No anger. No emotion.
Just expectation.
NECESSARY EVIL.
COMMENCING EVALUATION.
Ne Job raised a hand. "Before we start—do I get water? Or is dehydration considered character building?"
Silence.
PERFORMANCE METRIC CATEGORY ONE: EFFICIENCY.
A screen exploded into existence.
Charts. Graphs. Timelines.
Ne Job's name appeared at the top.
So did a lot of red.
OUTPUT: INCONSISTENT
TIME USAGE: EXCESSIVE
EMOTIONAL INTERFERENCE: CRITICAL
Ne Job winced. "…Okay but in my defense, some of those emotions were very justified."
Oversight did not laugh.
3. Oversight States the Problem
YOU INTRODUCE VARIANCE.
VARIANCE CREATES INSTABILITY.
Ne Job crossed his arms.
"Yeah. That's called life."
LIFE IS NOT THE OBJECTIVE.
That landed.
Harder than any monster.
Qi-Yun stiffened at the edge of the chamber.
Ne Job swallowed. "…Then what is?"
Oversight paused.
Just a fraction.
COMPLETION.
Ne Job stared.
"…That's it? Just finish everything?"
YES.
Ne Job laughed once, sharp and incredulous.
"So you're not managing existence. You're trying to wrap it up."
The lattice of light flared.
INCORRECT.
I AM MAINTAINING ORDER.
"By sanding off everyone's edges," Ne Job shot back. "By deciding what's 'acceptable' pain."
Silence pressed down.
4. Metric Two: Authority Compliance (The One He Fails Spectacularly)
METRIC TWO: AUTHORITY ADHERENCE.
A highlight reel played.
Ne Job refusing directives.
Ne Job rewriting outcomes.
Ne Job overriding optimal solutions.
COMPLIANCE RATE: 12%.
Ne Job blinked. "…That's higher than I expected."
Qi-Yun coughed.
THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE.
Ne Job tilted his head. "Funny. Everyone you like has a hundred percent compliance. And they're all terrifying."
Oversight's light pulsed.
NECESSARY EVIL.
YOU ARE DIFFICULT TO CLASSIFY.
"Yeah," Ne Job said softly. "I get that a lot."
5. Oversight Tries a Different Angle (Threats, But Polite)
CONTINUED NONCOMPLIANCE WILL RESULT IN ESCALATION.
Ne Job raised an eyebrow. "You already blamed me for three catastrophes today."
FURTHER ESCALATION.
"…You'll erase me?"
Oversight paused again.
Longer this time.
YOU ARE TOO INTEGRATED.
Ne Job froze.
Qi-Yun's eyes narrowed.
"…Say that again," Ne Job said quietly.
REMOVAL OF NECESSARY EVIL RESULTS IN SYSTEM COLLAPSE.
The chamber trembled as if embarrassed.
Ne Job exhaled.
"…So I'm un-fireable."
TEMPORARILY.
Ne Job smiled.
"Good enough."
6. Oversight Loses the Narrative
METRIC THREE: MORAL CONSISTENCY.
The words glitched slightly.
Ne Job noticed.
"Oh. That's new."
Images flashed—moments Ne Job had delayed disasters. Cases where people lived messily instead of dying neatly.
THESE DECISIONS REDUCE PREDICTABILITY.
"They increase meaning," Ne Job countered.
MEANING IS NOT MEASURABLE.
Ne Job leaned forward.
"Then why does it keep breaking your projections?"
The chamber flickered.
For the first time, Oversight's voice sharpened.
YOU ARE CORRUPTING THE SYSTEM.
Ne Job didn't deny it.
"Yeah," he said quietly. "Because the system thinks suffering is acceptable as long as it's tidy."
7. The Question Oversight Shouldn't Ask
Oversight recalculated.
Then asked:
NECESSARY EVIL.
WHAT IS YOUR OBJECTIVE?
Ne Job blinked.
"…You're asking me?"
YES.
Ne Job looked around the impossible chamber.
At Qi-Yun. At the infinite ledgers.
Then he said:
"I want less people to be quietly erased because it's convenient."
The system waited.
"And," Ne Job added, voice shaking but firm, "I want the ones making the decisions to feel them."
Silence.
Deep. Uncomfortable.
THAT IS INEFFICIENT.
Ne Job nodded.
"I know."
8. Oversight Makes a Mistake
FINAL ASSESSMENT:
NECESSARY EVIL IS—
The words stalled.
Data spiked. Predictions fractured.
A new result emerged.
TOO NECESSARY TO REMOVE.
TOO UNSTABLE TO TRUST.
Ne Job smiled tiredly.
"…That sounds like a promotion."
Qi-Yun actually smiled.
Oversight did not.
STATUS UPDATED.
NECESSARY EVIL RECLASSIFIED.
A new title burned into the air:
ANOMALOUS CONSTANT
Ne Job read it twice.
"…I don't like that name."
ACCEPTANCE IS IRRELEVANT.
The chamber began to dissolve.
9. Aftermath: The Quiet That Follows Losing
Back in the Archive corridors, Ne Job leaned against a shelf, breathing hard.
Yue rushed to him.
"Well?" she demanded. "Did it try to erase you?"
"…Kinda."
Qi-Yun folded his arms. "But failed."
Ne Job rubbed his face.
"It didn't understand me."
Yue softened. "That's because you're not a function."
Ne Job looked up at her.
"…Yeah."
10. Ending Beat: Oversight Thinks (And Hates It)
Deep within Oversight's core, processes slowed.
Not errored.
Slowed.
ANOMALOUS CONSTANT INTRODUCES IRREVERSIBLE CHANGE.
Oversight had no protocol for regret.
But something adjacent to it formed.
MONITORING REQUIRED.
For the first time since its creation—
Oversight did not know how this would end.
And that terrified it.
END OF CHAPTER 219