Descent of the Demon Master

ou think?”

A young man sitting in the front passenger seat replied to his question.
“Chairman, I believe everyone makes mistakes.
The important thing is to learn from those mistakes and not repeat them, sir.”

“So, should I view this matter as a simple mistake, then?”

The young man sitting in the passenger seat nodded.
“Sir, Chief Jo ’s affection for Kang Jin-Ho is pretty much legendary by now.
Even though Chief Jo knew that his job was to set up a platform to accurately measure a person ’s capabilities, he either consciously or subconsciously wanted to make sure Kang Jin-Ho looked good during the evaluation process.”

“Hmm…
What would you have done in Gyu-Min ’s shoes, then?”

“Me, sir?” the young man responded with a hint of mirth in his voice.
“If it were me, I probably wouldn ’t have cared much about it.”

Hwang Jeong-Hu tilted his head.
“What do you mean?”

“In all honesty, evaluating an individual ’s capabilities should be done only to a person that requires it, sir.
In other words, it ’s unnecessary to force a person to prove themselves when they have already done that.
Personally speaking, this matter is basically the same as forcing Steve Jobs to manage one of his stores and sell phones directly to customers.”

Hwang Jeong-Hu subtly grinned as he glanced at the front passenger seat.
The large seat back obscured the young man ’s face and prevented his expression from being seen, but that failed to quell Hwang Jeong-Hu ’s curiosity.
“Sounds like you evaluate Jin-Ho pretty highly.”

“I ’m merely stating the objective truth, sir.”

“Is that right? If that ’s what you think, then tell me, can Kang Jin-Ho do a good job running that store?”

“That, I can ’t tell for sure, sir.”

“…Mm?” Hwang Jeong-Hu ’s puzzled gaze locked on the back of the young man ’s seat.
Didn ’t he say something about leaving a store to Steve Jobs a few seconds ago? But now, he wasn ’t sure? This didn ’t make sense.
“Explain yourself.”

’

“Sir, do you think Steve Jobs can run a store properly?”

“…?”

“If he runs into rude customers, he might throw the phones in their faces and scream about how his wares are too good for idiots like them.
Then, he might fabricate the store ’s earnings to screw over the business partners.
He might even get cheap accessories from somewhere, dress them up nicely like luxury goods, and hawk them off for a tidy profit, sir.”

“That sounds rather likely.”

“Sir, my opinion is that…
Everyone has a role that suits them.
If the goal was to evaluate Steve Jobs ’ capabilities, we should be giving him a company to run, not a store.
It might come across as an insolent remark, but sir, I believe what you ’re doing is basically the same as letting Steve Jobs manage a corner store.”

“Hahaha…” Hwang Jeong-Hu cheerfully laughed.

This cheeky little punk dared to say that Hwang Jeong-Hu rather than Jo Gyu-Min was responsible for forcing Kang Jin-Ho to wear clothes that didn ’t fit him.
Not even Baek Yeong-Gi would have brazenly voiced an opinion like that, yet this young man still said it out loud without any hesitation whatsoever.

Hwang Jeong-Ju finished laughing and asked something else, “Even though you said you wouldn ’t have cared, let ’s be honest here.
Don ’t you wanna do it anyway? This might be a rare chance to screw Kang Jin-Ho over, you know?”

“This level of screwing over is nothing more than a prank, Chairman.
If screwing him over was the goal, I ’d have driven him into bankruptcy, not mess around like this.”

“Oh? And you think you can bankrupt Kang Jin-Ho?”

The young man ruefully shook his head.
“It ’s not important whether the task is difficult or impossible, sir.
I simply have to do it, as I don ’t have a say in the matter, you see.”

Hwang Jeong-Hu nodded; his eyes suddenly grew colder and withdrawn.
“…We ’ve expanded to Vietnam.”

“…”

“But things aren ’t going so well over there, it seems.
All the brats I sent to that side are whining like crazy while doing their darndest to get out of there.
I ’m looking for new volunteers, but no one wants to step up.”

“Even though you ’ve ordered it, sir?”

“Yeah.
Well, surviving is everyone ’s priority, after all.
It ’s a pretty good indicator of how difficult the situation is on that side.”

“That is unfortunate, sir…”

“So, I ’ve been thinking.
Abandoning that route wouldn ’t hurt us too much, but it ’ll still be a bit of a waste to do so.
However, no one wants to take that task on.
So, how about it?”

“…Not sure I follow, sir?”

Hwang Jeong-Hu rolled the window down, then lit up a cigarette.
“I ’ll send along a senior rank from the management who can act as your windbreak.
So, how about hopping down there and taking on this assignment?”

’

“Hmm…”

“Sticking next to me like glue can certainly keep you safe, but you ’ll instantly turn into a kite with its strings cut once I ’m dead.
It ’s about time you dip your toes into management, too.
And doing so with a badge of honor stuck to your chest might not be such a bad idea, don ’t you agree?”

“However, Chairman.
If this task is not handled in a satisfying manner, my capabilities will be seen as not good enough, won ’t it, sir?”

“No need to state the obvious,” Hwang Jeong-Hu replied with a low chuckle, a certain hint of slyness in his voice.

Hwang Jeong-Hu viewed the individual sitting in the front passenger seat as similar to a venomous snake.
If this young man had been born in the ancient past, he would have become a treacherous retainer usually seen in historical dramas.
However…

’A company needs individuals like him, though. ’

It didn ’t matter whether someone was a snake or a treacherous retainer; they would still be utilized in full if they were skilled enough to add value to the company.
That was Hwang Jeong-Hu ’s belief.

The young man looked over his shoulder.
“Sir, when shall I depart?”

“In a week.
Finish the handover of your duties by then.”

“Understood.
Thank you for this opportunity, sir.” The young man expressed his gratitude with an earnest voice.

Hwang Jeong-Hu smiled bitterly at that.
Kang Jin-Ho might be responsible for ruining this young man ’s family, but it was Hwang Jeong-Hu who did most of the heavy lifting.
So, to think that this young man would genuinely thank the one responsible for utterly uprooting his entire life…

’…What an amusing kid… ’

Hwang Jeong-Hu liked what he saw in this talented kid, although in a different sense from Kang Jin-Ho.
And now, it was time to cast this kid into a deeper pool to see whether he would turn into a dragon or into a meek little eel.
“I ’ll pray for your success, then.”

“I won ’t disappoint you, sir.”

“Should I give Kang Jin-Ho your regard?”

A bout of silence ensued before the voice as calm and composed as moments ago replied to Hwang Jeong-Hu.
“No, not yet, sir.
At the very least, I have to prepare a wonderful gift first, so I can fully repay my debt to him, sir.”

Hwang Jeong-Hu guffawed at that reply.
As for the young man sitting in the front passenger seat…
Choi Yeong-Su quietly withdrew his gaze and looked into the distance.

’Soon, you ’ll see… ’

An unreadable grin appeared on his lips.