Kang Jin-Ho’s group arrived in South Korea and traveled to the Martial Assembly's HQ straight away with the prepared convoy of vehicles.

Although Kang Jin-Ho dearly wanted to go home right away, all things in this world had their natural courses to follow and also a need for proper closures.

After summoning the Martial Assembly’s executives in the conference room, Kang Jin-Ho mouthed a cigarette.

Click…

He lit the cigarette and deeply inhaled the smoke before releasing it back into the air. Sitting on this familiar couch helped him appreciate that he and his companions were really back in South Korea.

Lee Hyeon-Ju got the meeting going first. “Welcome back, sir.”

“Mm…” Kang Jin-Ho briefly nodded. “Any issues while I was gone?”

“Nothing major to report, sir. You weren’t gone for long, after all.”

“Good to hear.”

“In the meantime, we’ve almost finished the preparations to turn the Assembly into a legitimate legal entity.”

“Is that so?” Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes and stared at Lee Hyeon-Ju.

That was faster than he thought. And it helped him to get another glimpse into Lee Hyeon-Ju's capabilities.

Kang Jin-Ho might not be all that knowledgeable in matters like this. But he still knew it'd not be easy to finish this task quickly.

“Yes, sir. W’'ve finished categorizing what we can legalize and what we must hide. I've prepared a thorough report, so please take a look.”

Kang Jin-Ho glanced to his side. “...Wiggins?”

“Yes, my lord?”

“Take a gander at the report with Lee Hyeon-Su.”

“Mm? But, my lord? I think you should be the one…”

“I wouldn’t know anything even if I do take a look,” Kang Jin-Ho replied without much interest. “Let’s focus on what we’re good at, shall we? Instead of worsening our productivity like this.”

“Well, if you put it that way… Mister Lee and I will scrutinize the report. Still, allow us to prepare a simplified report, my lord. I implore you to read through it and give us your final thoughts.”

“Got it.” Kang Jin-Ho coolly nodded.

That prompted Lee Hyeon-Ju to say something else. “Assembly Master, sir?”

“Yeah?”

“It seems you should have a face-to-face meeting with the minister of the relevant government department before we turn the Assembly into a legitimate entity.”

Kang Jin-Ho tilted his head. “What, me?”

“Yes. Although your presence isn’t strictly required, I believe it could prove crucial during the meeting,” said Lee Hyeon-Su. She sounded determined. “We need extrajudicial interference in the matter to... To confirm the other side’s intentions and stances. For that purpose, I believe you must accompany us.”

“No, I disagree,” Wiggins suddenly cut Lee Hyeon-Ju off.

She was taken slightly aback. “I beg your pardon?”

“Yes, it is absolutely necessary for us to negotiate with the government. However, my lord attending one such negotiation is out of the question. That idea should not even be entertained. After all, a man's company must match his station.”

“But, sir… The government conveyed their wish to directly speak to the Assembly Master.”

“Is that right?” Wiggins grinned. “In that case, tell them the President must show up, too.”

“...Sir?” Lee Hyeon-Ju stared in stupefaction at Wiggins.

That prompted the English gentleman to chuckle affably. “Of course, I'm not telling them to force the President of Korea to join the meeting. But a mere government minister is not even in the same league of status as my lord. Remember that he's the Assembly Master.

“This is how politics work, Miss Lee. A person’s status is determined by who they are in the company of.”

“Oh…”

“If the Assembly Master shows up to this meeting as you suggest, the other side will start to think mere ministers are enough to deal with him.”

“However, it is unrealistic to expect someone even higher up in the government than ministers showing up. Unless we request a meeting with the prime minister, but... That will be difficult for obvious reasons.”

Wiggins smirked. “No, there’s no need to go that far. We can merely send someone matching their level of status, after all. And we have the perfect person for the job, now don’t we?”

“…Oh!”

Wiggins and Lee Hyeon-Ju simultaneously turned their heads toward Lee Hyeon-Su.

He pointed at himself. “...Me?”

Wiggins nodded. “He is perfect for the role, isn’t he? He’s the one and only chief of administration in the Assembly, after all.”

Lee Hyeon-Ju sagely nodded back. “Yes, you're right, sir.”

Lee Hyeon-Su's expression progressively got cramped. “Why me? When we have directors…”

“Ohh? You want one of the directors to attend that meeting, now do you?” Wiggins theatrically opened his eyes wide and scanned his colleagues in the conference room. “And who do you have in mind, exactly?”

“…!” Lee Hyeon-Su became utterly speechless as he looked at the directors.

Since Wiggins, Vator, and Chang Min weren't Koreans, it was not a good idea for them to attend such a meeting. Of course, there was no rule forbidding foreigners from holding important posts in the Martial Assembly. Even so, a Korean attending the meeting should be a safer move.

‘Besides, even if they are allowed, I shouldn’t let them!’

Vator and Chang Min were definitely not qualified to attend a meeting with a government minister. After all, it'd be a miracle if they didn't cause a scene after hearing something they didn't like! And Wiggins was the type to stay in the shadows, to begin with.

This meant the only remaining director was Bang Jin-Hun, but…

‘...Yup, we definitely can’t send him. Nope.’

A person's looks weren't their everything, of course. However, it was also undeniably true that looks played a major role in judging someone.

If Bang Jin-Hun attended that meeting, well… In that government minister’s view, the Martial Assembly would instantly devolve into a criminal syndicate, only with a nicer-sounding name!

Lee Hyeon-Su gave up and jerked his head back while grimacing. “...Fine, I’ll do it. Yes, I have to. If it’s not me, who else can go to such a meeting?”

Why did Lee Hyeon-Su feel like a single teardrop was about to well up in his eye just then?

Wiggins grinned. “Do your best, my disciple.”

“We’ll leave it in your capable hands, Chief Lee,” said Lee Hyeon-Ju.

“...Sure, sure. I’m fine, by the way. I had a feeling something like this might happen, anyway. Just promise to put me back where you found me once you guys are finished…”

Attending a meeting was obviously not hard. What Lee Hyeon-Su must focus on was not the meeting itself but the contents of said meeting.

To negotiate successfully, Lee Hyeon-Su needed to know what they were going to discuss in all the minute details. In other words, he must learn everything Lee Hyeon-Ju had done. Absolutely everything!

...And that meant Lee Hyeon-Su’s workload had increased exponentially, too!

He only just returned to Korea, yet more work was dumped on top of already-existing ones. At this rate, he might get to build a sturdy pyramid with stacks of documents on his desk alone!

“Then, let Lee Hyeon-Su handle this matter,” said Wiggins before turning his attention to Kang Jin-Ho. “My lord?”

“Mm…”

“We have bought ourselves some time.”

Kang Jin-Ho nodded at Wiggins.

“And now… How efficiently we can exploit this time will decide our fate. Meaning, you must order us, the directors, on our duties.”

Kang Jin-Ho sat up straight. His withdrawn, contemplative gaze slowly scanned everyone in the room.

“I'm sure you've all realized it…” Kang Jin-Ho muttered in a solemn voice, then remained quiet for a few seconds to build a bit of anticipation. “...That you are all still too weak.”

The faces of the directors grew stiff. Kang Jin-Ho was addressing the sensitive issue that had been bothering them for a little while now. Of course, everyone involved in the battle against the Round Table had no choice but to agree with Kang Jin-Ho's opinion.

The Martial Assembly's combat strength fell well short of the Round Table's. The only reason it managed to coerce the Round Table into an alliance that was more like a one-sided surrender was Kang Jin-Ho.

“We can handle an enemy on the level of the Round Table… somehow. However, the enemies we must face in the future will put the Round Table to shame. At our current strength? We will get crushed even before we can fight back.”

Kang Jin-Ho stared at Wiggins next.

“Relaxing because we've bought ourselves some time is deluding yourself. What we must focus on is not the time we have but whether we can use this time to reach our goals or not. If not, it'd be no different than delaying our execution by a little bit.”

“...You’re correct, my lord.”

“So, I want you all to pour your everything into training,” said Kang Jin-Ho while scanning everyone in the room. His voice sounded colder, more determined. “Not only that, you must step up and push the others even more. So that everyone else can become even stronger!”

“Yes, sir!”

“Vator!”

“Speak, master.”

“You did good by strengthening our boys so much in such a little time.”

All of Vator’s disciples, including Gong Yeong-Gil, proved their skills during this war. Even then…

“However, you know it’s not enough, don’t you?”

“Of course, master. I’m also not satisfied and will not stop there. That was why I was thinking that, maybe…”

“Mm?”

“I wish to teach my disciples the demonic art, the one I requested of you about some time ago.”

“Got it. You have my permission.”

Vator grinned in satisfaction. Unfortunately for him, though, Kang Jin-Ho wasn’t finished.

“However, that is not all, Vator. You need to become stronger first. Let's be honest here, shall we? You aren't even strong enough to deal with one Elder Knight.”

Vator’s brows quivered. “No, I can win!”

“Really now?”

“…”

Even the one and only Vator couldn’t reply. He was confident of not losing to an Elder Knight, but… What he wasn't sure about was if he could retain a flawless winning streak. In his estimation, the victor could be decided by factors such as luck and the conditions of the fighters on the day in question.

“Do not be satisfied by your role as a teacher, Vator. You need to get stronger first. To do that, prioritize mastering your own cultivation technique.”

Vator gravely nodded. “...I understand what you're saying, master. However, I'll need your help to achieve that goal.”

“No need to worry. I’ll spar with you whenever you want,” said Kang Jin-Ho.

Vator bared his fangs in a ferocious smirk. “Good! Then I’m ready!”

Kang Jin-Ho shifted his attention to Bang Jin-Hun next. “It’s the same for you as well, Director Bang.”

“Yes, sir. I agree with your assessment.”

“I know your burden is significantly greater than Vator’s since you teach more people. However, this is still something only you can do.”

“Of course. I know that.”

Kang Jin-Ho decided not to nag Bang Jin-Hun any more than this. After all, Bang Jin-Hun always did his role admirably well.

For instance, Bang Jin-Hun created a unique standard cultivation technique for the Martial Assembly and even thought of a method to teach as many people as possible—and he did all this without Kang Jin-Ho ordering him to do so.

A man who did his job without raising any fuss didn't need additional whipping from the master.

“And you, Chang Min.”

“Yes, my liege!” Chang Min bowed deeply toward Kang Jin-Ho.

“What about the preparations on your side?”

“It’s as perfect as it can get, my liege! Although there are still some teething issues related to their living conditions, our cult believers are martial artists at the end of the day. Such minor inconveniences won’t faze them.”

“Got it. Then, push them even harder.”

“Yes, my liege!”

“The cult believers simply must become stronger if you wish to regain the demon cult’s prestige. A demon cult that relies on one or two powerful experts all the time to evade its challenges might as well not exist.”

“My liege! Even if I must sacrifice my everything, including my life, I shall recreate the demon cult’s past glory! No matter what it takes!”

Kang Jin-Ho quietly nodded.

What the demon cult needed right now was the right environment and enough time to master the uncorrupted and true demonic cultivation techniques. Since they had the cultivation techniques already, the demon cult believers should grow stronger over time.

“Finally… Wiggins.”

“Yes, my lord.”

“You’re weak.”

“...Yes, I agree.” Wiggins unhesitantly nodded away.

When he first joined the Martial Assembly, Wiggins was strong enough to confidently say he could very well be one of this organization's top combatants. However, it was time he acknowledged that his “ranking” had fallen a bit since then.

Vator had doubled his strength in the meantime. Chang Min was competing fiercely against Vator. And even Bang Jin-Hun was catching up to Wiggins at a frighteningly quick pace after creating the brand-new cultivation technique.

Only Wiggins had been stuck in his spot, unable to make much progress.

Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes. “I’m grateful that you’ve been paying so much attention to the Assembly's operation. However… Tell me, Wiggins. What are you, again?”

“...My lord, I am a martial artist.”

“You remembered, then. A martial artist must be strong. However, whether you’re strong or not is relative, isn’t it?”

Wiggins weightily nodded in agreement.

If this situation continued on and on… Wiggins would eventually get ejected from the ranks of the top combatants of this organization. After all, it wasn’t just Bang Jin-Hun, but even the younger generation warriors like Yi Myeong-Hwan catching up to him at a frightening pace!

“However, I'll find a way for you to become stronger, too,” said Kang Jin-Ho.

Wiggins’ eyes widened when he heard that “...M-my lord?”

“That does not mean you can stop pursuing strength on your own, though.”

“Of course, my lord!” Wiggins inadvertently cried out, his eyes still powerfully quaking.

What Kang Jin-Ho said was not the reason for Wiggins' surprise. No, it was because… He could distinctly sense that Kang Jin-Ho was leading the charge with a clear goal in mind.

Kang Jin-Ho seemed a little vague and wishy-washy most of the time, but not at this moment. Right now, he was clearly rushing forward with some speed and purpose.

‘It seems the sights and experiences of the Round Table have awakened my lord…!’

If Wiggins was right about this, then the Martial Assembly had acquired a lot more than initially expected from this expedition. After all, Kang Jin-Ho could learn a lot from the Round Table's example.

“I know you are all doing your best. But that cannot be used as an excuse when we fail. Not just us but even the Martial Assembly have to become stronger. Strong enough that no one would dare target us! Remember that and keep charging forward!”

“Yes, Assembly Master!”

And so… The Martial Assembly received another boost to its forward momentum.