(Thai Novel in Translation)

In the massive office that stretched as far as the eye can see, the sharp clack-clack-clack of keyboards echoed throughout the room. The white ceiling lights illuminated the figures of hundreds of employees seated in rows before their computer screens. Every pair of eyes was fixed on the ceaselessly moving data, numbers, and text. Every finger moved swiftly and rhythmically, as if playing a symphony of urgency and heavy workload.

To the right side of the main hall, separated by a massive glass partition, was the workspace of the Accounting Department—a restricted zone that remained strictly off-limits to outsiders. Dozens of women in the department were intently focused on the tall stacks of financial documents that overflowed the baskets on their desks. Their finely structured faces remained impassive, their eyes serious and determined as their fingers flew across the keyboards with precision, inputting vital data into the accounting software. Amidst the perfect silence, only the tapping of keys and the sporadic rustle of turning paper could be heard.

A tall man in a blue shirt, sporting an Info-Delivery Department employee badge, rushed into the area, half-walking and half-running, clumsily clutching a monumental stack of paper in his arms. He distributed the documents into the baskets of each accounting category: moving sequentially from General Accounting, Asset Accounting, Revenue Accounting, and Expenditure Accounting, finally stopping at the Accounts Payable section.

He met the gaze of a fair-skinned woman who was peering over her computer screen with an expression of weary familiarity. The two exchanged a slight, familiar nod of greeting.

"Busy as usual, I see," the man asked in a low voice, careful not to disturb anyone else's concentration.

The woman's fair, radiant complexion brightened her face. Her large, round eyes sparkled with vitality, and her tiny lips and perfectly sculpted small nose gave her the exquisite appearance of a porcelain doll. Her dark, brown-tinged hair was styled in natural, loose waves and neatly tied back into a ponytail, with thin bangs framing her forehead, revealing her slender, graceful neck. She was dressed in a light-blue checkered long-sleeved shirt, the sleeves casually rolled up to her forearms, paired simply with a knee-length white pencil skirt. The plain, business-appropriate outfit nonetheless accentuated her slim and attractive figure.

"Closing Financial Statements is the one thing that comes back faster than a boomerang every month," she whispered wearily. "My eyes are strained, my skin is breaking out, and today is the last day of the monthly close. We've been rushing since morning till afternoon, barely having time to eat."

"Hmph! Just you wait. As soon as work is over, I'm going straight home and sleeping to my heart's content!"

She glanced nervously toward the seasoned Chief Accountant, who was glaring through her pointed-frame glasses—a terrifying gaze that noticed them talking too long. The man glanced over for only a moment before turning back with a visibly uneasy expression.

"I believe you now—this department truly has a fierce spirit guarding it," he said with a dry, slight smile.

"Go on, get out of here. Chulee is already giving me the full glare. We'll both get busted," Gunny said, her voice a weary, half-dead mixture of urgency and resignation.

"Good luck, Gunny," the junior staff member said, raising a fist in encouragement before quickly making his escape out of the department.

The female employee lowered her head and resumed her work, avoiding eye contact with anyone. Although she felt so weary she wanted to take a month's vacation, all she could do was dream and sink back into the endless, tedious grind. For the past two years, she had lived surrounded by stacks of documents, constant pressure, and accumulating responsibilities that had solidified into deep-seated stress. All she could do was comfort herself with the faint hope that the ultimate goal she yearned for was one day to ascend to the position of department head.

Tick... tock... tick...

The clock hand advanced at a sluggish crawl. The sun, which had been high in the sky, was now slowly descending and finally vanishing.

DING!

The clock announced five o'clock. Every employee in the room simultaneously looked up at their computer screens, as if following an unspoken cue. Though the sound of the announcement was inaudible, it resonated violently through everyone's consciousness.

"It's National Friday!" a staff member cheerfully yelled.

"Time to go! Let's move!" another enthusiastically replied.

The distinct clatter of heels against the building's polished floor echoed throughout the immense structure of Wonder Package Co., Ltd., a major packaging manufacturer.

This massive company—situated in the heart of the city and boasting its own dedicated industrial plant—employed approximately three thousand people. Recruitment was notoriously fierce, accepting only the most exceptional candidates. Candidates were strictly demanded to:

Possess a GPA reflecting scholarly distinction, with only those in the highest tier of academic excellence considered.

Possess at least three years of professional experience, and maintain a distinguished professional profile.

One of those fortunate few selected was Gunny, an accountant who had secured her position based on a stellar academic record and three full years of prior experience working at a prestigious international firm.

Though she appeared to be a sweet and charming woman at the office, she was, in fact, an adventurer at heart—a woman who lived for sneakers and denim skirts. The sight of her in high heels and a pencil skirt was merely a facade; the moment she reached her trusty pickup truck, she would immediately trade her heels for trainers and slip into casual attire. She would then sling her brown leather bag over her shoulder and swiftly head out of the company, ready for freedom.

"Gunny!" a high-pitched voice called out amidst the continuous stream of employees pouring out of the building.

The accountant craned her neck to follow the sound, spotting May.

May was an enchanting woman with long hair tucked behind her ears and thin bangs framing her face. Her large, round eyes were charming, her lips a delicate curve, and her chubby cheeks sweetly adorable. She was wearing a light pink, collared dress with a cream-colored Peter Pan collar, waving vigorously from a distance.

"May!" Gunny waved back with a cheerful gesture before quickening her pace toward her friend.

But at that very moment, a tall man in a brown shirt came sprinting through the crowd, moving against the flow of people at full speed. He slammed directly into her, sending her small frame tumbling backward onto the polished floor.

Her large, round eyes instantly fixed on his face—an impassive expression mixed with a fleeting, fierce look in his intense gaze—as he rapidly bolted past, offering neither an apology nor any sign of remorse.

The unlucky woman cried out in pain. Her friend with the bangs immediately rushed over in her high heels to carefully help Gunny back to her feet.

"Gunny, are you okay?!" May asked, her voice filled with panic, as she slowly helped her friend to stand.

Gunny squeezed her eyes shut, clutching her ankle, which was throbbing with a fierce, sharp pain.

"I think I've sprained my ankle," Gunny managed to say, her voice constricted by the pain.

"I saw that guy coming in so fast! I can't believe he slammed into you like that and didn't even apologize," May said, pointing toward where the man had quickly vanished into the crowd.

"I've got that guy's face burned into my memory. What a jerk! Just you wait. If I ever see him again, I won't let it go," Gunny said spitefully, rubbing her ankle, which was now difficult to move.

May carefully and clumsily helped her friend rise from the floor.

"Ouch!" Gunny cried out as she inadvertently put weight on the severely twisted, painful ankle.

May quickly tightened her grip on her friend's arm to support her.

"Can you make it?" May asked, her face etched with panic.

Gunny slowly opened her eyes and nodded stiffly, pushing past the pain.

"I'm fine. Just hold on a little longer; we're almost at the car," Gunny reassured both her friend and herself.

She was a woman of fierce mental and physical fortitude. No matter how much pain she endured, she was compelled to suppress it and push through. This trait—her unwavering self-admonition to 'endure'—was the very quality that had allowed her to successfully overcome many difficult chapters in her life.