Chapter 620. Face to Face (5)

“Can I say something now?” Vator raised his arm and spoke, prompting Zhang Dajing to hurriedly translate.

Kang Jin-Ho frowned slightly at that.

'That dude is also having a hard time...'

However, that didn't mean Kang Jin-Ho nor anyone could force Vator to learn Korean. If they did, something unthinkable might happen. First of all... They would be producing one extra unemployed individual.

“My liege...!” Vator spoke in a dignified voice when Kang Jin-Ho looked at him. “This Martial Assembly has far too many problems. One of its fundamental issues is that we don't have any useful mid-tier experts.”

“Mm...”

“Education will be an absolute necessity. A thorough and systematic education to rapidly enhance these people's strength is a must if you wish to confront the Crimson King's faction. It's impossible to do that with the current Assembly.”

Kang Jin-Ho contemplatively nodded. Vator should be most knowledgeable about the Crimson King and his faction's strength in this group of people. Since he said it, his assessment should be on the money. Kang Jin-Ho rubbed his chin. “I've been thinking about that as well. What do you need?”

“Support, my liege,” Vator firmly spoke up. “A suitable location and enough equipment to thoroughly train people. And money.”

Kang Jin-Ho tilted his head. “Money?”

“Yes. The budget to cover food expenses will be significant, my liege. You need to eat as much as you train. So the money required to pay for food will be enormous.”

“...Still, I'm sure no one else will eat as much as you.”

If every disciple under Vator hoovered up as much food as him, the Martial Assembly would go bankrupt from food expenses alone! After all, the accounting department had been whining nonstop ever since Vator joined the Assembly.

“We don't need to worry about our cash reserves,” Lee Hyeon-Su smiled brightly. “We will secure an extra operational budget worth about twenty years very soon. After all, we've secured the personal wealth of Lee Jung-Geol and the elders who supported him. It's just that we hadn't fully converted everything into cash, but... I'd wager we're looking at a solid addition to our coffers.”

“I guess so,” Kang Jin-Ho muttered. He could still vividly remember the mountain that Lee Jung-Geol privately owned. And that couldn't have been the extent of the former Assembly Master's assets, so his overall wealth should be quite considerable.

Bang Jin-Ho scowled deeply. “But, is that even allowed? Can you do whatever you want with that money? For one, Lee Jung-Geol's granddaughter is still around, right? What about her claim of inheritance?”

“There's no problem. None of those assets are registered directly under Lee Jung-Geol's name, and they have been... Shall we say, carefully distributed into obscurity? Meaning, no one will raise objections as they don't have justifications. It's the same story for other elders as well.”

“...Hah. Since those are all ill-gotten gains anyway, we'll just swallow them up without compensation? Is that it?”

“Sir, that's how life works,” Lee Hyeon-Su coolly replied.

“What an unforgiving bastard...” Bang Jin-Hun slowly shook his head. Still, as long as they could get their hands on those assets...

'Well, for a while, we... We won't have money problems for a looooong time, then?'

“By the way, Assembly Master Bang?” Lee Hyeon-Su tilted his head in confusion. “Why are you so broke, sir? I was shocked out of my mind while perusing the list of Lee Jung-Geol's assets, you know? Compared to him... You're still nominally the Assembly Master, so what gives?”

“What the hell?! Listen here, you brat! Don't you know I had to spend every dime to my name to my cause! Without that, how could I ever stand up against Lee Jung-Geol? I only managed to have a voice precisely because I was prepared to spend every cent of my salary!”

“Huh. If Lee Jung-Geol had decided to spend less than ten percent of his wealth to crush you, you would have zero chance of survival, sir.”

“Yeah, I know. He would have crushed me without spending that much, anyway. If Mister Jin-Ho hadn't shown up, I'd probably be buried in some nameless mountain as a maggot-infested corpse by now!”

“Oh, so you know. In that case, shouldn't you pay Mister Jin-Ho back for his kindness?”

Bang Jin-Hun's face reddened. “Hey! Isn't that why I'm handing over the Assembly Master position?! Besides, I'll work my butt off as a director, anyway! Isn't that good enough?! You brat, it's been less than five minutes since I announced my resignation, yet you're already taking digs at me? Keep this up, and I might change my mind and stay on. Got that?”

Lee Hyeon-Su covered his mouth and laughed.

'This is why staying here is better.'

Physically, the Martial Assembly put a much greater strain on his body. The amount of administrative work Lee Hyeon-Su had to deal with had increased almost exponentially compared to when he was in the Yeongnam Group, after all!

Since Kim Seok-Il was a distrustful type of man, he never assigned Lee Hyeon-Su with every work involving the Group. If a task was deemed gravely important, Kim Seok-Il rolled his sleeves up and took care of it himself.

On the other hand, Bang Jin-Hun was the type to dump all the work on Lee Hyeon-Su's shoulders, then threaten to turn the latter into mincemeat at the first sign of anything untoward happening to the Assembly. As for Kang Jin-Ho, he... He didn't seem to put too much thought into anything, really.

“I agree with Sir Vator's assessment, my lord,” Wiggins smiled brightly. “The level of the elders' martial prowess was rather pitiful, I have to say. I can understand the situation with the younger generation, but for the so-called elders to be like that? It was rather embarrassing.”

“Huh. Well, I'm bloody sorry, okay?” Bang Jin-Hun pouted deeply. Wiggins wasn't slagging him off, but that statement was still the same as criticizing the current Assembly Master.

“My apologies. I didn't mean it that way,” Wiggins quickly apologized.

“It's fine. We gotta accept the truth, anyway.” Bang Jin-Hun snorted unhappily while crossing his arms.

'I swear, Imma train like mad from now on...!'

𝒻𝑟ℯℯ𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑛𝘰𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝒸𝑜𝘮

Bang Jin-Hun was supposed to be one of the top martial artists in South Korea, but the idea of going up against Vator or Wiggins still drained all confidence out of him in an instant. He was in the middle of getting a crash course on how much of a frog in a well he was all this time.

'I think I can go up against one of those Chevaliers or whatever they call themselves, but... Just why did these monster-like folks have to show up in my backyard?'

Whether it was Vator or Wiggins, they individually took out over twenty elders and directors while barely breaking a sweat. With Bang Jin-Hun's abilities, going up against three elders would be his limit. And he'd have to risk his life in the process, too. So, to think either of these men could suppress over twenty elders without suffering a single injury!

The world he thought he knew all his life was crumbling down all around him. And that all started after Kang Jin-Ho entered Bang Jin-Hun's life.

Bang Jin-Hun hollowly muttered, “...You know, I was happy being a frog. I didn't want to know what the world outside the well looked like!”

Lee Hyeon-Su was taken aback. “I'm sorry?”

“Forget it! Bloody hell!” Bang Jin-Hun suddenly blew his top.

Lee Hyeon-Su couldn't help but chuckle softly. Bang Jin-Hun's presence sure could brighten the mood, this time perhaps unintentionally. Even if Lee Hyeon-Su had chosen to serve Bang Jin-Hun and not Kang Jin-Ho, things would've been quite entertaining. Although, the accumulated stress might double if he did that.

Wiggins continued to lay out his plan. “I agree that the Assembly requires a systematic training regime. I feel that the right thing to do is to expand the scale of the lectures. So, I'd like to accept more pupils.”

Vator joined in next. “I also want to expand my training course, my liege. I only wanted to accept candidates meeting the physical requirements, but too few will be able to pull their weight if this situation is left unchecked. I wish to also train those martial artists with no hope of reaching higher realms. That is why... I know several people willing to help, so do you mind if I bring them over?”

Kang Jin-Ho tilted his head. “You know several people? Like who?”

“Some brats back in the great plains call themselves my underlings, you see. Since it's impossible to train everyone by myself, I wish to bring them over as additional instructors.”

“I see. How good are they?”

“I can vouch for their skills, my liege!”

“In that case, I permit it. Bring them as soon as possible,” said Kang Jin-Ho, then glanced at Wiggins next.

Wiggins shrugged his shoulders. “I have Chevaliers to fall back on, so for now, I have things covered, my lord. Of course, if they choose to go back to France, I'll have to ask a few of my acquaintances back home to join me here, but we'll cross that bridge when the time comes.”

“No, don't procrastinate on this matter,” Kang Jin-Ho firmly spoke. “Trying to deal with a matter after it happens will only create a vacuum. If you are thinking about bringing them over, do so ahead of time.”

“Mm... Yes, you do have a point. In that case, I'll formulate a plan and get back to you as soon as possible.”

“Very good,” Kang Jin-Ho nodded, then pointed at Lee Hyeon-Su. “Any support you need, get it from that guy.”

The probing and ultra-sharp glares from Vator and Wiggins suddenly stabbed painfully into Lee Hyeon-Su's face.

Kang Jin-Ho glanced at everyone. “So, is that all?”

“For now, yes,” Vator leaned back while crossing his arms.

“I also don't have any other topics to raise,” Wiggins coolly nodded.

Kang Jin-Ho nodded back at the two men. “Soon, the time of a great change will be upon us. And that will keep us busy as we navigate through various complicated matters. Even so, we need to do this. Let's not lower our guards and give it our all.”

“Mm...!”

Everyone already had sensed it. All they did was take that first tentative step forward. Eliminating Lee Jung-Geol was merely a bell toll signaling the start of the change, not its completion. The next step was to eliminate all troublesome factors within the Assembly, then transform its structure from the ground up.

“May I say something, everyone?” Lee Hyeon-Su cautiously raised his hand.

“Argh, this brat! There's always a dude who can't read the room when a meeting is about to end!” Bang Jin-Hun openly voiced his dissatisfaction, but Lee Hyeon-Su remained unfazed by it.

Kang Jin-Ho shrugged his shoulders and glanced at Lee Hyeon-Su. “Okay. We're listening.”

“I hope everyone here understands the clean-up isn't over yet,” said Lee Hyeon-Su, his voice much graver than before. “Since Lee Jung-Geol was preparing for mutiny... What we faced last night couldn't have been the full extent of his combat force. That man was as crafty as a human could get, so he should've known his existing forces would never be enough.”

“Mm...” Wiggins sheepishly scratched his cheek. “Indeed. Even I thought everyone was way too weak.”

“...No, Mister Wiggins. That was because the elders were really that weak,” Lee Hyeon-Su sighed softly. “Anyways. Lee Jung-Geol was always good at making precise calculations. And I... No matter how much I pored through the preparations he had made, I can't figure out what he planned to use against you, Mister Jin-Ho. Even Director Jo Nam-Pyeong has no idea. Other than...”

“Other than? What is it?”

“He said that Kim Seok-Il was involved, somehow.”

A hint of amusement floated up on Kang Jin-Ho's expression. “Kim Seok-Il, you say...?”

“Yes. And several elders apparently met with him, as well.”

“I see. Where are those elders, then?”

“Well...” Lee Hyeon-Su sneaked a quick side-eye at Vator. “They've been pulverized into dust particles. Quite literally for some, too.”

“...Oh.” Kang Jin-Ho turned his attention to Vator next, his impression none-too-impressed.

Vator fake-coughed awkwardly. “I saw no value in keeping them alive. Men like that had no right to call themselves martial artists.”

Lee Hyeon-Su grimaced a little. “Sir, the mindset of killing someone because they are not worthy of being martial artists is a bit...”

“Hmph. It seems you're not a martial artist either, then?”

Lee Hyeon-Su hurriedly clamped his mouth shut when Vator growled unhappily at him. He knew he shouldn't mess with this big man.

Kang Jin-Ho groaned and shook his head. “Nothing we can do if they are all dead. Still, I want you to look into it and find out as much as you can.”

“Understood. Knowing Kim Seok-Il's nature, the odds of him targeting your family are uncomfortably high, Mister Jin-Ho. For the time being, I'll strengthen the protection details around your family members.”

Kang Jin-Ho's expression distorted a little at the mention of his family. “Don't leave any stone unturned.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Then, let's wrap this meeting up,” Kang Jin-Ho got up to leave, prompting everyone else to follow suit. The leadership system centered around Kang Jin-Ho had already taken shape among these men.

Kang Jin-Ho left the conference room and headed downstairs.

'Nothing's easy or simple, is it?'

It felt like the end of one matter heralded another, just as troublesome, affair. Although they weren't physically challenging, none of these events had been what he'd call 'straightforward' in nature. Still, Kang Jin-Ho felt like he had overcome one massive mountain of a hurdle. Which he technically did.

Kang Jin-Ho climbed into his Lamborghini parked on the corner of the parking lot but didn't immediately set off. He sat there and mouthed a cigarette first. After lighting it, he languidly sucked on the unhealthy smoke.

'Right. I need to take a break soon...'

Kang Jin-Ho learned the importance of adequate breaks recently. Back in Zhongyuan, he trained himself to the point of self-torture. However, he didn't want to do that with his current body to improve his cultivation realm. Besides, doing so was impossible since he had surpassed such a realm a long time ago, anyway.

“I should just take today off.”

...While doing literally nothing. Locking himself up in his room and meditating in silence should be enough to rest his body and soul. The ever-wise 'they' said one should take a long way around if one was in a hurry. Kang Jin-Ho didn't have the time to take the longer route but should at least learn to walk a bit slower than usual.

He took one long puff to finish off the rest of the cigarette, then stubbed it out in the ashtray before turning on the car's ignition.

Soon, his red Lamborghini was speedily scything its way down the mountain road.

'Well, now...'

Kang Jin-Ho's eyes coldly gleamed. The biggest hurdle in cleaning the house had been overcome. And now, it was time to shift his focus beyond the country's borders. And to do that, the Assembly needed to expand its information-gathering network. If he was being honest, this task should take priority over all else. Even though he didn't say anything during the meeting since they already had so many assignments left on their plate...

However, since Zhang Dajing used to be an agent of the Crimson King's faction specializing in information-gathering, Kang Jin-Ho figured he should speak to that man in private later.

That was when his phone suddenly began ringing off the proverbial hook. Kang Jin-Ho took out the mobile device from his pocket and cocked his eyebrow in surprise.

'At this time?'

The call was from Choi Yeon-Ha. However, wasn't this strange? She always called him during the evenings since she was busy shooting her scenes during the day. So, this event puzzled Kang Jin-Ho.

He pressed the pulsing green icon, then cautiously spoke into the device. “...Hello?”

His reward for being prudent was an eardrum-tearing yell exploding out from the phone's speaker.

-Hey, yoooooou! Are you coming to China or what?!

“Y-yes, I'm coming!”

Kang Jin-Ho briefly lost his sanity to the power of the Mighty Fluster and blurted out that reply.