Descent of the Demon Master-Chapter 1031: Getting a Job (1)

“What the f*ck, man! What kinda nonsense is this sh*t!”

Lee Hyeon-Su loudly yelled into his phone.

“Weren't you the one busy telling me about logic and sensible and feasible whatnots earlier?! Ah? Do you think this so-called proposal is feasible!? Or logical?! This is the same as asking Steven Jobs to become a bloody intern!”

-Yes, I hear you, but this isn’t coming from me. It’s Chairman Hwang’s idea.

Jo Gyu-Min’s apologetic voice leaked out of the phone’s speaker.

“Listen here, dammit! Don't you know it's your job to cut in at the right time if your boss says something totally outlandish! How did you let things get this far?!”

-M-my apologies, Chief Lee…

Jo Gyu-Min shouldn't have a reason to grovel like this, as far as how he handled his job was concerned. Even so, he had no choice but to do it. That was how shocking Hwang Jeong-Hu's proposal had been.

Although, maybe “shocking” wasn't quite the strong enough word for this situation!

Since Hwang Jeong-Hu had come up with this proposal, Lee Hyeon-Su was prevented from using stronger language to describe his feelings. If it had been someone else, someone of less importance, Lee Hyeon-Su would've started hurling f-bombs and questioned that person's sanity.

“And you! Did you really say, yes sir, I'll do as you say, sir! How could you be that dumb?!”

-Chief… No, hyung-nim! Don’t be like that. You know I’m just as helpless as you on this one. It’s the same as you being unable to say no to Mister Jin-Ho.

“What? Hey! At least I say what needs to be said!”

-Really? I do that, too.

“Oh, you do, do you? Then how did things end up this way?!”

Lee Hyeon-Su roughly rubbed his face.

The proposal from Jaegyeong proved way too absurd to be taken seriously. To think that Kang Jin-Ho must participate in the new recruit training, too!

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.

Good thing Jaegyeong and the Martial Assembly were not at odds with each other. If some enemy suggested this course of action, Lee Hyeon-Su would’ve personally chased after the bastards with sharp knives tightly clenched in his hands and mouth!

“Nope. We can't accept that proposal.”

Indeed, this proposal wasn't even worth considering!

“I mean, come on! Even if Chairman Hwang cares about our Assembly Master like a son…!”

Lee Hyeon-Su was no dummy, so he could see why Hwang Jeong-Hu came up with such an idea. And that meant he couldn't get angry at the Chairman of Jaegyeong Corporation, either. After all, he knew this whole idea came from a place of goodwill.

-But, hyung-nim… When you think about it, this isn’t such a bad idea, right?

“What are you on about, Gyu-Min!”

-I mean… The Assembly is about to become a legit company soon. Isn’t it?

“Yeah. So what?”

-In that case, wouldn’t it be a problem if Mister Jin-Ho has no clue how a regular company operates?

“…!” Lee Hyeon-Su was left speechless. That was because he knew Jo Gyu-Min had hit the proverbial bull's eye just now!

Of course, the actual administrative work would be handled by Lee Hyeon-Su and Lee Hyeon-Ju. However, what would happen if the chairperson didn’t know how their own company operated?

‘Well, a company like that would usually go bankrupt.’

The Martial Assembly's unique situation did allow for its boss to be oblivious to the administrative side of things. However, that didn't apply to regular companies. A chairperson failing to pull their weight would eventually cause the company to fail.

Knowing this, Lee Hyeon-Ju and others had been trying hard to teach Kang Jin-Ho the basics of running a business. To his credit, Kang Jin-Ho seemed to have recognized the importance of this task, because he had been poring through textbooks related to business management in an attempt to become more knowledgeable in this field.

As such, Lee Hyeon-Su agreed that the proposal from the other side was… actually logical. Experiencing something that money couldn't buy--and doing so without any strings attached--was clearly a massive boon, after all!

Even so…

“Listen, man. Every person on this planet has their status to consider, okay? Even if our Assembly Master cares little about such things, he still needs to mind the basics, Gyu-Min! The basics! Let's be real here, okay?

“You think our Assembly Master falls below Chairman Hwang in status or influence? Of course not! Then, isn't it logical for our Assembly Master to be treated according to his station? In that case, how could you even think about putting him in a new recruit training program!”

-No, I agree with you, hyung-nim. And I did raise that point with Chairman Hwang, but…

“But?”

-The Chairman said it's usually the underlings who care more about stuff like that, not the person in question.

“...Huh?” Lee Hyeon-Su tilted his head in confusion. What did that mean? “What are you talking about?”

-You've heard about how children of bosses often try to start at the bottom while hiding their backgrounds, right?

“...Yeah, I have.”

-The Chairman said those kids wouldn't feel humiliated just because they were treated as newbies who didn't know anything. He also said that those who know what they are don't get hurt by oblivious people not treating them right. And only those who have never been in such positions would claim to care about stuff like that…

“…”

Lee Hyeon-Su genuinely had no rebuttal to this since he had never climbed to the same lofty heights as Kang Jin-Ho or Hwang Jeong-Hu.

‘And that argument's kinda convincing, too. Isn't it?’

What if the situation was the other way around, and it was Lee Hyeon-Su who had disguised himself to join the Martial Assembly as a new recruit in order to figure out what was going on in the lower management? Would he feel humiliated and angry from the way he was treated?

‘Nah… I’ll probably laugh it off.’

He could easily flip the table once the purpose of the charade was met, after all!

Lee Hyeon-Su sheepishly scratched his head. “Well, uh… But that’s just the Chairman’s opinion, isn’t it? You should think about how I feel since I gotta bring this up with my boss later.”

-Aha. So the time has finally come, then.

“Eh?”

-I'm sure you still think this is an absurd proposal. Even so, your pay grade is too low to make the ultimate decision here, hyung-nim. That'd be like an abuse of your authority. That's why…

Lee Hyeon-Su thought he could hear a barely muffled cackle coming from the other side of the line.

-You should report it to Mister Jin-Ho, hyung-nim.

Grit!

Lee Hyeon-Su loudly gritted his teeth.

‘This… This damn brat!’

Wasn’t this what he said to Jo Gyu-Min sometime ago when the latter complained about how the prospect of reporting to Chairman Hwang scared him? To think that “advice” would come back to bite him in the rear like this!

“You…! We're gonna have a nice little chat later about this, got that?”

-Eiii~. Please understand that I’m not trying to punk you here, hyung-nim. Chairman Hwang ordered me to do this, you know? I’m just a helpless messenger here. Please go easy on me this time.

“Hah? Aren't you cackling too much for a helpless messenger?!”

-In any case! I’ve done my job of delivering the message. Whether you accept the proposal or not… You and Mister Jin-Ho should discuss and decide. Later, hyung-nim.

Lee Hyeon-Su put the phone down on his desk and sank limply into his chair. “Dammit…”

Jo Gyu-Min was a capable guy, but not to the extent that he could toy around with Lee Hyeon-Su like this. The one crying and whining all the time in this relationship might be Lee Hyeon-Su, but he was also the one pocketing all the benefits at the end of the day. That was how this relationship dynamic always worked…

...Until Hwang Jeong-Hu decided to butt in and mess with the flow!

Hwang Jeong-Hu had this knack for always targeting a blindspot Lee Hyeon-Su had not noticed before. The old man's aim was so good that Lee Hyeon-Su couldn't even get angry about it anymore.

Despite getting one-sidedly pummeled without being able to put up any fight, Lee Hyeon-Su was still awestruck.

‘Well, I’ll be damned. The title of the Lion of the Business World wasn’t just for show…’

In a way, one could say Lee Hyeon-Su's work was similar to managing a company. That meant he was basically in the same industry as Hwang Jeong-Hu. And now that he got to experience the truth himself… Lee Hyeon-Su fully understood how terrifying Hwang Jeong-Hu could be!

“...But! Why did he have to unleash his terror on poor old me?”

Lee Hyeon-Su wanted to cry right about now!

Just as he sorrowfully massaged the bridge of his nose, Lee Hyeon-Ju abruptly opened the door and stepped into the office. She noticed the phone resting in front of Lee Hyeon-Su, then cocked an eyebrow. “What did Chief Jo say?”

“Well… They said yes,” Lee Hyeon-Su smirked helplessly. “And for free, to boot.”

“That’s great news. But… Why do you look so pissed?”

“They said they'll take care of everything. The training program will be of the highest quality, and they also won't charge us a dime for it. For free! Because they want to foster even closer ties between the two organizations. It's just that…!”

“Eh?”

“They also want our Assembly Master to join the training program.”

“...Heol.” Lee Hyeon-Ju’s eyes subtly trembled.

Even though she had been the most vocal person among the Assembly's management about Kang Jin-Ho acting more like a businessman, Hwang Jeong-Hu's proposal still stunned her with its sheer absurdity.

“N-no, hang on…!” Lee Hyeon-Ju frowned for a moment after failing to process this bit of news. “You… didn’t say yes to that, now did you?”

“Of course I didn’t! You think I’m crazy?”

“Then, what happened?”

“I told Chief Jo to stop spewing nonsense. You know what he retorted with? He said my pay grade is too low to make a decision here! And that I should report to the Assembly Master instead!”

“…!” Lee Hyeon-Ju’s eyes stopped subtly trembling and began quaking properly now.

So, this was what it meant by hitting where it hurts the most… with facts! Lee Hyeon-Ju had to admit that Jo Gyu-Min was totally right about this one.

“S-so… Are you going to report it, Chief Lee?”

“...Yup.” Lee Hyeon-Su nodded, his expression hollow and lost.

Of course he had to report this in. Kang Jin-Ho didn't know about this “negotiation” taking place, nor did he sanction it in the first place, but…! That didn't mean Lee Hyeon-Su's authority was enough to reject a proposal from Jaegyeong. That would be overstepping his authority. Not to mention disrespecting Kang Jin-Ho, too!

‘Why did this thing balloon out of control like this?’

Lee Hyeon-Su helplessly scratched his head.

While frowning, Lee Hyeon-Ju tried to sneakily back away. “In that case, I wish you good…”

“Wait, stop. Miss Lee?”

“...Yes, Chief Lee?”

“You are coming with me, aren’t you?”

Lee Hyeon-Ju groaned grandly when she saw Lee Hyeon-Su making teary puppy-dog eyes at her.

***

KA-BOOM!

Human bodies were thrown viciously backward.

Even a bomb going off wouldn't be enough to make these poor people fly away this fast. But all the Demon Flames charging straight at Kang Jin-Ho were demonstrating that indeed, human bodies could be thrown back like cannon shells.

“Uwaaaaah!”

However, that was not the end of the story.

The thrown-back Demon Flames got right back up on their feet. Even though they could see their comrades getting utterly wrecked right in front of their noses, they still unhesitantly pounced on Kang Jin-Ho.

Their distorted expressions contained traces of desperation.

It was fine even if they failed to bring Kang Jin-Ho down. It was also fine even if they couldn't touch a hair on Kang Jin-Ho's body and got smacked around mercilessly.

As long as everyone worked together to land one single blow…! The Demon Flames would gladly sacrifice their everything if they could make that dream come true!

“Die, you monsteeeeeeer!”

The Demon Flames kept pouncing on their target like madmen. They were no longer aware of what they were even saying at this stage.

Unfortunately, Kang Jin-Ho’s defensive wall proved impregnable.

Even though the Demon Flames emitting demonic qi charged at him with the force of demonic entities, Kang Jin-Ho remained unperturbed as he casually smacked them all away.

BOOM!

A Demon Flame charging at Kang Jin-Ho from the front got punched in the face and crumbled on the spot. Another Demon Flame climbed over the back of his falling comrade and tried to kick Kang Jin-Ho in the head.

Kang Jin-Ho casually grabbed the incoming leg and powerfully threw the body attached to said leg to the ground.

KA-BOOOOOM!

“Kkeok?!”

The ground caved in like a crater as a human body bounced up like a ball. The poor man’s consciousness faded from the impact force that nearly dislodged all his internal organs and forced them to spew out of his mouth!

“Attack hiiiiiiiim!”

The still-standing Demon Flames simultaneously pounced on Kang Jin-Ho when that desperate roar rang out in the air.

“Hmm…” Kang Jin-Ho frowned slightly at this sight. And then…!

Powpowpowpowpowpowpowpow!

He landed a punch on every single Demon Flame closing in. His fists moved so fast that the naked eye couldn't keep up. And the end result was as definitive as it could get.

As if fireworks had gone off, human bodies flew off in every direction. A chorus of screams and pained whimpers rocked the air soon afterward.

Yi Myeong-Hwan crashed on the ground face-first, then moaned in pain and helplessness.

“Kkeeeuh…!”

He couldn’t gather any strength in his body. No, that description wasn’t sufficient enough for this situation.

It felt like every cell in his body had exploded or ruptured.

Since his face was buried in the dirt, he couldn't even breathe properly, but he also couldn't muster enough strength to flip himself around, either! And his head was too rattled and shaken up to form any coherent thoughts.

‘Just how…!’

Yi Myeong-Hwan had zero issues with accepting the fact that every Demon Flame working together was still not good enough to land a hit on Kang Jin-Ho. The gap between them was insurmountable from the get-go, after all.

“Effort” was perhaps the best available method to narrow the extreme gap between oneself and the opponent. Unfortunately, effort only bore fruit when it was combined with another crucial element: time.

The extreme gap in strength could never be closed even if one put in all the effort they could muster right now.

Yi Myeong-Hwan accepted all that. What he couldn’t accept right now was something else, though. Namely… the state of his body!

Kang Jin-Ho was a crafty bastard. Just a little more strength added to his attacks would’ve either injured or killed his victims, but he went out of his way not to injure anyone.

The Demon Flames were sent flying, and the pain they felt was excruciating enough to make them think they were on the verge of death. However, the damage was still… “soft” enough for the victims to grit their teeth and somehow push themselves off the ground if they wanted to.

No wonder Yi Myeong-Hwan felt like giving up and just dying!

“Keuh…!”

Yi Myeong-Hwan's fingers dug into the earth below. He tried to push himself up again. His hands and wrists quivered and trembled weakly. The simple act of trying to stand was taking almost everything he had left!

However, he had to stand up. No matter what!

Now was the time to put in that extra effort to grow stronger. If the brain started screaming that he couldn't go on anymore, he should push himself one more time instead. When his instincts cried out that he had reached his limit… That was the time to take one more step forward!

That was what putting in the extra effort meant. Yi Myeong-Hwan knew that all too well.

Kang Jin-Ho disinterestedly stared at the trembling figures of the Demon Flames trying to stand back up before breaking his silence.