CH 350

“Has there been any word from Bang Jin-Hun's side?”

“No, sir.”

Kim Seok-Il frowned deeply. “He knows the tide has already turned in our favor, yet he's still clinging on? How foolish!”

He spoke with a veneer of a laidback attitude, but his expression was anything but laidback.

'Goddamn it...'

The longer they dragged this out, the harder it would get to predict the next actions of the Japanese. Kim Seok-Il had managed to buy some time, but it was only temporary. It didn't matter whether it was the Yeongnam Group or the Martial Assembly, they would still get swept aside in the proverbial blink of an eye when the Japanese decided to get serious.

Since the Japanese couldn't deploy their entire combat force in Korea, only a small number of elites had infiltrated the country. Kim Seok-Il thought that the best counterattack was to use that 'weakness' to his advantage and hit them with a numbers game.

While doing that, Kim Seok-Il also planned to use the Martial Assembly's connection to the surface world to place simultaneous pressure on the Japanese to make them withdraw. Only then would the Koreans be able to survive this deadly crisis.

But now, Bang Jin-Hun was blinded by some petty desire, seemingly ready to plunge the whole country into an existential crisis. Kim Seok-Il started wondering if Bang Jin-Hun was as great as the rumors made him out to be.

“And here I thought that Bang Jin-Hun fella was rebelling against Lee Jung-Geol for a great cause... Looks like my evaluation of him was wrong. He was yet another small-minded character, then,” said Kim Seok-Il with a loud harrumph.

However, Lee Hyeon-Su began chuckling loudly at his boss's words.

Kim Seok-Il cocked an eyebrow. “And why are you laughing?”

Lee Hyeon-Su stared straight at Kim Seok-Il. “I just found the label of 'small-minded' rather humorous, sir.”

“...What's so funny about it?”

“Well, despite being a martial artist, someone I know got scared by a lone man and installed a whole bunch of bombs in many tunnels, then blew them up to kill that scary man. But, when the expected unity centered around him didn't materialize, he's blaming someone else for being small-minded, you see. How can I not laugh at that, sir?”

“What did you say, you little punk?!”

BANG!

Kim Seok-Il powerfully slammed his fist down on the desk and shattered it into a million pieces.

The mood in the office rapidly went downhill, but Lee Hyeon-Su didn't even bat an eyelid. He even continued to hold Kim Seok-Il's glare. “Sir, Bang Jin-Hun still didn't discard his pride as a martial artist. Shooting guns, chucking grenades and blowing up a tunnel... Even a regular army can do that, sir. That's why I found this whole name-calling funny. Does my answer satisfy you, sir?”

Kim Seok-Il continued to glare at Lee Hyeon-Su. “Is that everything you want to say?”

“Yes, sir.”

Shockingly enough, Kim Seok-Il's expression was composed. And Lee Hyeon-Su thought this response was befitting his boss.

The 'Kim Seok-Il' Lee Hyeon-Ju knew was not the type to lose his temper over insults of this level. Such insults would only work on those who prided themselves as honorable martial artists, after all.

However, Kim Seok-Il's ambition leaned much heavier toward becoming a man of authority and power, not a peak martial art master. Trying to agitate him with things like, 'You are a martial artist!' didn't even amount to a provocation.

“Don't make me laugh, Hyeon-Su. You were the one who came up with this plan, after all.”

“That's correct, sir.”

“But now, you have the balls to say that was a cowardly move? Isn't this basically you spitting on your own face?”

“Yes, sir. That's also correct,” Lee Hyeon-Su grinned brightly. “Cultivation or whatever, I'm not a believer, sir. In this day and age, you can become the best at punching and kicking all you want, but a single bullet to the head is still enough to kill you, anyway.”

“So? What changed?”

“Well, sir. I truly believed that until recently. But my thoughts have gone through a slight alteration. I can't seem to differentiate our latest actions from what the mafia or the Dark Association might do, sir. We're acting like a group of criminals at this point.”

“...Look here, Lee Hyeon-Su.”

“Wait, sir. I'm not trying to say I've suddenly developed a sense of justice. It's just that... How should I say this? I've always thought I'm smarter than everyone else and ridiculed other idiots around me, but... But, when a person gets sentimental, wouldn't those idiotic things look cool to them?”

“What the hell are you even talking about?”

“...Looks like I've said something unnecessary, sir. Forget everything I said since you likely won't ever understand it.”

Kim Seok-Il narrowed his eyes and glared at Lee Hyeon-Su before chewing his next words out. “I know you're an insolent punk, so no need to keep reminding me about it, Hyeon-Su. Surely you understand by now that using your snarkiness to demonstrate your perceived superiority is a stupid pastime. And quite uncouth, too.”

“Sir, both you and I are irredeemable trash, so what would change for me by being uncouth?”

“Yes, you and I are trash. Sure. A pair of trashy men riding on the same boat.” Kim Seok-Il smirked. “That's why I'm not going to punish you as long as I believe you're useful to me. I'm not like those stupid politicians or businessmen. I won't throw you away after using you, Hyeon-Su. You're way too competent, you see? So, I'm going to keep using you until your dying day. Since that's the case, I don't want to hear you whining like a little b*tch now, okay?”

Lee Hyeon-Su's smile deepened. “My apologies, sir. On some days, I can get a bit... sensitive.”

“Nah, I don't mind. These things can happen.”

Lee Hyeon-Su suddenly thought that the light burning in Kim Seok-Il's eyes resembled that of a reptile.

'No, hang on. I owe reptiles an apology.'

Those creatures were simply behaving according to their instincts. They didn't consciously choose to be underhanded like Kim Seok-Il.

Lee Hyeon-Su was certain that Kim Seok-Il would never kill him. That wasn't proof of Kim Seok-Il's faith in Lee Hyeon-Su, however.

Even if Lee Hyeon-Su was uncooperative, Kim Seok-Il would never throw him away as long as he still proved to be useful at something. Kim Seok-Il would endure a few direct insults thrown at his face and keep using Lee Hyeon-Su because he knew that would be several times more beneficial to his agenda.

'And that's why I got this far, too.'

As long as Lee Hyeon-Su proudly proclaimed his usefulness, Kim Seok-Il would never kill him. Even if he was caught planning a betrayal, Lee Hyeon-Su would get to keep his life.

Humans would naturally get angry if someone betrayed them. If the family dog suddenly bit the owner, said dog would be kicked mercilessly by the angry owner. However, the same people wouldn't do that when a toy placed on top of a closet fell on their head and injured them.

To Kim Seok-Il, that was how much Lee Hyeon-Su was worth to him.

'However, that's as long as I am useful in his eyes...'

The moment a suitable replacement was found... would be when Lee Hyeon-Su experienced the most horrific death. Despite knowing all this, Lee Hyeon-Su could no longer bring himself to smile in front of Kim Seok-Il.

'Dammit...'

It was all that bastard's fault. If only that bastard hadn't appeared in their lives, Lee Hyeon-Su would be living a cushy life as Kim Seok-Il's loyal right-hand man. By learning about the existence of Kang Jin-Ho, Lee Hyeon-Su no longer viewed Kim Seok-Il as a fellow partner in crime who used each other for profit. No, Kim Seok-Il looked... pathetic and weak to Lee Hyeon-Su now.

Until recently, Lee Hyeon-Su thought of Kim Seok-Il's underhandedness as a necessary evil to stand on top. After 'witnessing' someone capable of truly standing on top, though... Lee Hyeon-Su just couldn't think that way anymore.

Lee Hyeon-Su quietly stared at Kim Seok-Il for a while, then bowed deeply. “My apologies, sir.”

“Sure, sure. It's fine. People do go crazy sometimes. No need to apologize.”

“Thank you. Well, then.” Lee Hyeon-Su finished bowing, then turned around to leave the office.

Kim Seok-Il's snake-like glare watched Le Hyeon-Su leave.

'Running your mouth as you like, eh?'

Kim Seok-Il would let him live. For now. However, it wouldn't be too long from now.

Of course, Lee Hyeon-Su already knew what his 'boss' was thinking about. And that was why he could laugh about it.

'I'm truly sorry.'

This apology wasn't meant to make up for all the insults he threw in Kim Seok-Il's way. No, it was about not warning his boss of the devil that would pay him a visit very soon.

This novel is available on "pawread dot com".

That was because... Even Lee Hyeon-Su thought the punishment about to be meted out to Kim Seok-Il was disproportionately large compared to his crime.

***

After accepting Jo Gyu-Min's promise that he'd think of a way, Kang Jin-Ho climbed into Bang Jin-Hun's car to leave.

Having received Jo Gyu-Min's word that he'd find a way by tomorrow, Bang Jin-Hun suggested that it might be a good idea to get acquainted with the folks of the Martial Assembly before they had a throwdown with the Yeongnam Group. Kang Jin-Ho would ostensibly be fighting side by side with them, so Bang Jin-Hun's suggestion had some merit.

However, Kang Jin-Ho had no plans to build a strong rapport with the Martial Assembly's members. This matter was a temporary alliance between him and the Assembly. And he wasn't going to become a card-carrying member, anyway.

However, Kang Jin-Ho was also opposed to the idea of meeting allies for the first time during combat situations. Even if that feeling wasn't strong, it was still there.

Kang Jin-Ho glanced at Bang Jin-Hun. “I'm guessing the Yeongnam Group hasn't said anything noteworthy?”

“Kim Seok-Il phoned me and told me to submit, and that was about it.”

“Oh, he did?” Kang Jin-Ho looked amused.

“Yes. And I told him to wash his neck and wait for me cuz I'd rip the chunk out of his throat soon. I used to think that Kim Seok-Il fella was a smart cookie, but lately, he seems to be losing his marbles.”

“Humans have a tendency to become irrational the closer they get to their end goal, Mister Jin-Hun.”

“Mm…”

“The greater the goal, the bigger your sense of accomplishment will be. And in turn, the more irrational you'd get, too. To make sure they get what they want, people would start resorting to methods they didn't use before.”

“Mm, that sounds plausible. In the past, I really thought Kim Seok-Il was one f*cking capable guy, but nowadays…”

Even though Lee Jung-Geol and Kim Seok-Il used to control the world at one point in time, Bang Jin-Hun no longer held them in high regard. Was that because their time had ended already? Or was it because Bang Jin-Hun had matured enough to notice things he couldn't previously see?

Bang Jin-Hun had no answer for that.

Their car was now traveling through an uninhabited area of the national highway. Bang Jin-Hun suddenly spat out a loud groan. “Can I ask you something, Mister Jin-Ho?”

“Yes?”

“Is this a thing nowadays? You know, the thing with people sticking to my car whenever I'm driving it?”

“Rather than calling it a thing…” Kang Jin-Ho smirked softly.

Back in Zhongyuan, places like inns, pubs or public roads would have served as the stage. A stage... to find the victor, that was!

In the modern era, though, plenty of eyes existed seemingly everywhere. That meant one couldn't openly kill another during combat. In that case, the assailant had no choice but to wait until their targets entered an uninhabited area.

If the targets were on foot, the assailants would also be walking. However, Bang Jin-Hun and Kang Jin-Ho were in a car. Obviously, the assailants would have to chase them in cars, too.

“They are just looking for a place without any witnesses, that's all.” Kang Jin-Ho continued to smirk.

“What should we do?” Bang Jin-Hun tensed slightly.

“Please stop the car.”

“Eh?”

Kang Jin-Ho pointed to the shoulder of the road. “If you don't want to see your brand-new car get wrecked, I suggest you park the car and move on foot.”

“Well, I do agree with you on that one, but…” Bang Jin-Hun glanced in the rearview mirror. He counted several cars tailing him closely. And who knew how many more of them were behind this pack, too?

Since the identity and the overall number of the enemies were unclear, Bang Jin-Hun wondered if leaving the car was a wise thing to do.

'...Well, I'm sure Mister Jin-Ho has a plan.'

Kang Jin-Ho suggested it, so he probably would take responsibility for it. Well, at least that was Bang Jin-Hun's surface reason.

As for the hidden reason...

'F*cking hell, you're scaring me to death here!'

Ever since he noticed that unknown people were tailing the car, Kang Jin-Ho's expression had transformed into something... bizarre.

Bang Jin-Hun felt goosebumps break out on his skin while glancing at Kang Jin-Ho's ecstatic face. It was as if Kang Jin-Ho was so happy that he didn't know what to do about it.

'Poor bastards...'

Bang Jin-Hun didn't know who these people were but still pitied them for having a terrible sense of timing. Now was absolutely the worst time to agitate Kang Jin-Ho. Indeed, one should never, ever poke a pissed-off beast with a stick.

When Bang Jin-Hun parked the car by the shoulder, the chasing vehicles also stopped.

Clack!

Kang Jin-Ho climbed out of the car and watched the doors of the chasing sedans open in a display of perfect synchronization. Many men kitted out in black business suits rushed outside and stood tall.

Among them, the man riding in the backseat of the leading car stepped forward. He strode fearlessly toward Kang Jin-Ho and stopped right in front of him.

Their gazes collided in mid-air. The man stared silently at Kang Jin-Ho for a long time before finally breaking his silence. “I am…”

Right at that moment!

Grab! Crunch!

Kang Jin-Ho reached out and grabbed the man's face.

“Kuwaaaaaahk!”

The chilling noise of bones breaking resounded in the air. Bang Jin-Hun was watching this scene unfold from behind Kang Jin-Ho and could feel a deathly chill run down his spine.

“I don't want to know, and I don't care,” said Kang Jin-Ho.

Crack! Craaaack!

The man spasmed and convulsed violently before going limp. Kang Jin-Ho frowned in displeasure and shook the limp body a couple of times before letting go.

Plop!

The complexions of all the business suit-clad men went pale. They instinctively could tell that that man wasn't merely unconscious. No, his limp body was the proof that he... was dead!

There was no signal given, yet all of them raised their heads at the exact same time to stare at Kang Jin-Ho.

Kang Jin-Ho stared at the hill to the west as the sunset framed it from behind. He turned his attention back to the group and bared his fangs in a creepy grin. “Great timing. I was about to go crazy from trying to hold myself back, you see?”

To him, it didn't matter who they were. He didn't care where they were from.

“Let's get started.”

Kang Jin-Ho leisurely walked toward the group.