Chapter 87

Chapter 87

Baek Gunseo's eyebrow twitched. He looked rather displeased.

Was my kindness lacking? Or maybe it just didn't suit him? I don't understand his reaction.

"What are you talking about?"

"The media's been making a fuss. Do I have to list it all out one by one? I'm telling you to say it to my face."

"And if I refuse?"

"There are ways to make you talk."

"So you want to try me."

Does he think I can't? Does he actually believe he's stronger? If he's under that delusion, I suppose I'll have to correct him.

Just as the air in the room pulled taut, Lee Sehee, who had been standing some distance away, rushed over in a single stride to intervene.

"Junho."

I pretended not to hear and kept my eyes fixed on Baek Gunseo.

"I like seeing things through to the end."

"You're consistent, I'll give you that."

Baek Gunseo let out a scoff and rose from his seat.

"I dislike pointless quarrels. I've nothing to say, and this gathering has become uncomfortable, so I'll be leaving. If you're curious, hear it from Sehee."

With that, Baek Gunseo left the conference room. The standoff dissolved and the tension eased, but the meeting remained in disarray.

...So he just ran away?

He said he had complaints about me, yet he won't say them to my face.

I suppose asking kindly doesn't guarantee answers.

Lee Sehee let out a sigh of relief.

"Junho, I'll tell you everything later."

"I won't be hearing it from the man who walked out, will I?"

"It's nothing important. It's not even a hurtful misunderstanding. Please let me be the one to explain."

"Fine."

When she put it like that, I had no choice but to let it go.

I couldn't ignore the earnestness in Lee Sehee's manner.

And so the Soye countermeasure meeting wrapped up in a vague, unsettled way. Once we moved elsewhere, I got the full details from Lee Sehee.

"Uncle wanted the Shinseong Guild's hunting know-how to be treated with more care. It's an asset the guild has built over a long time, and until now it's been kept strictly secret from outsiders."

"So there's a special method, I take it?"

"Nothing extraordinary. But with layer upon layer of hunting data accumulated, we have a wealth of know-how for handling crises and dealing with monsters. We've kept it secret through strict rules."

I brought up the fact that Yunhee was innocent.

"Yunhee never told me either."

"Pfft!"

Lee Sehee's serious expression broke as laughter burst out.

"If you say that to anyone else, they'll take it as her having told you."

"Would they?"

"Yes. I know what you meant by it, but there are plenty of people in the world who twist things. They hear whatever suits them."

"I see."

I'd meant it as proof she'd kept the secret, but I suppose it came across oddly.

I kept listening to Lee Sehee.

"And Dahyun, who left the guild, is keeping it absolutely secret too. However."

Lee Sehee said Baek Gunseo's words were correct, but that his reaction had been so different from usual it was stark.

I knew that in the future I'd end up on the opposite side of the succession struggle from Lee Sehee, so it didn't surprise me much—but from her perspective, the shock must have been considerable.

Of course, that was just talk.

In that situation, Lee Sehee was the formidable woman who seized the Shinseong Group.

"Do you know the real reason?"

"Sorry. It's a family matter."

"All right."

She didn't want to say more, and I had no reason to pry.

I had a rough idea of what the reason was.

But from her position, it would be hard to resolve. Which meant the person above her had to take responsibility.

"I should have handled it quietly. It's all my fault."

"It's not your fault. It's the fault of the one who lost his temper."

"I wasn't thoughtful enough. I took both Uncle and you for granted. I need to reflect on that."

If she insisted on taking the blame herself, there was nothing more I could say.

She'd handle it on her own.

Still, there was someone besides Lee Sehee who needed to be handled well. Namely, Lee Sehee's father—Chairman Lee Youngmun.

"So what will you do? Should I step out?"

"No. I'll persuade him. Uncle understands my intentions as well. I'll ask you to come as an observer."

"All right."

In the end, Lee Sehee achieved what she wanted.

But it was clear Baek Gunseo had thrown a wrench into things.

That wrench meant Lee Sehee's standing within the Shinseong Group would rise. Having hit one speed bump, whatever she did next, she'd have to mind Baek Gunseo.

Even if Lee Sehee handled the hands-on work, Baek Gunseo's symbolic weight couldn't be ignored.

There was only one person who could untie this knot.

Shinseong Group Chairman Lee Youngmun.

I don't know him well, but Lee Youngmun is said to be a formidable man.

It was also him who placed his daughter in the Shinseong Guild so she could display her talents and backed her with power. Yet with a commotion like this, it was strange that he hadn't stepped in to clean it up.

They say his health is poor—is he on his deathbed? For that, Lee Sehee's expression was bright. In that case, the odds were high this man was leaving it alone and watching.

"Something doesn't sit right."

"What doesn't?"

"Nothing. Just, I suddenly have someone I don't like."

"That person deserves pity."

I couldn't very well say it was her father.

I ought to see the man's face once, get a sense of what he's made of.

My reason for going to see Lee Youngmun is simple.

I want Lee Sehee to become the next chairman of the Shinseong Group.

Not only does she handle all sorts of matters for me, but as a business partner she's better than Lee Sechan.

Having decided in my heart on a meeting with Lee Youngmun, I released the brake on Lee Sehee.

"You can move more openly."

"What do you mean?"

"Playing it safe won't get you what you want. Not everyone can like you. Not the people around you, not the people in the Group or the Guild. So boldly cut loose the ones who dislike you."

"......"

Lee Sehee stared at me.

Being hated by everyone is possible, but being acknowledged and loved by everyone is not.

That's because jealousy exists in humans.

And I, unable to overcome the inferiority and jealousy inside me, became the Blood Lord.

Now that I'd come to my senses, I could look back on how I'd felt then.

"If you do well, they'll follow you in the end."

"You're right. I suppose I'd gotten discouraged without realizing it. Thank you. I'll do my best."

"I just stuck my nose in. I don't normally do this."

I could clearly feel that I'd come to my senses.

If I were still the Blood Lord, I'd have quietly watched whatever situation Lee Sehee found herself in.

Now that I'd regained my mind, I could give normal advice like this. It wasn't bad.

"I'm saying this because you're easy to work with."

"Yes. I never knew having someone to trust could feel this reassuring."

Her sparkling eyes were oddly hard to face. Looking to me for more won't get her anything, though.

So I changed the subject.

"Let's do some training to prepare for Soye."

"I've been waiting."

Since she trusts me, I'll have to work her all the harder.

...Though the more I do, the more she likes it.

This girl's a bit strange.

* * *

After training, Lee Sehee went to see Baek Gunseo.

Before Soye appeared, she intended to clear up the misunderstanding for certain.

"Uncle."

"Why are you here?"

"I wanted to talk."

Lee Sehee sat across from Baek Gunseo, who had been drinking whiskey alone.

Looking at her, freshly washed and soft, Baek Gunseo furrowed his brow. She was a niece he doted on. He didn't like this conflict.

Lee Sehee, meeting Baek Gunseo's eyes, held out her glass.

"Pour me a glass too."

Baek Gunseo filled her glass.

The whiskey's aroma, meeting the air, grew richer.

"Ugh, bitter."

"That's why you drink the good stuff."

"I was just trying to match the mood."

Whatever the outside gossip said, Lee Sehee was deeply close with Baek Gunseo.

In her childhood, it was Baek Gunseo who struggled to place the Shinseong Guild on solid ground, and it was Baek Gunseo who stood by Chairman Lee Youngmun's side when things were hard.

They didn't share blood, but to Lee Sehee, Baek Gunseo was more than a real uncle.

So even if she'd done nothing wrong, if she'd been lacking in consideration, she wanted to apologize.

Baek Gunseo answered Lee Sehee's magnanimity with a heavy expression.

"Sehee."

"Yes, Uncle."

"I know how you feel too. So stop. I'm not upset."

"Uncle. Did something happen?"

"It's nothing. I just felt a pang of emptiness without realizing it."

"......"

Lee Sehee quietly listened to Baek Gunseo.

"It's Choi Junho. At first I thought a remarkable talent had appeared, but the more I look, the more extraordinary he is. I was a genius beyond compare myself, yet there was something even beyond that. I know comparing is a bad habit, but the more I watched, the emptier I felt. And then to hear the observer was decided without even consulting me—I got irritated before I knew it."

"Yes. I'm sorry."

"I'm ashamed to have shown how small I am. In the end, I'm only this much of a man. You're welcome to be disappointed."

"Disappointed? I like that you seem human."

"Thank you."

Baek Gunseo's expression eased.

"I'll manage things thoroughly so there's no hindrance to the hunt. When I see Choi Junho again, I'll speak with him properly, so don't worry too much."

"Thank you."

"It's only what I ought to do."

Lee Sehee knew that what Baek Gunseo said wasn't everything. But neither Baek Gunseo nor Lee Sehee opened their mouths to the end.

The two clinked glasses and drank whiskey one after another.

Lee Sehee, slightly tipsy as she left the room, let out a deep sigh.

"He wouldn't tell me there's another reason."

* * *

Back home, I explained the situation to Yunhee.

Listening with a rare serious expression, she nodded and let out a sigh.

"I'm glad it worked out."

"Was it that serious?"

"Yeah. I heard Director Baek and Sehee are close. If those two clashed, who wouldn't be on edge? They're both absolutely essential to the Guild."

"Any idea why?"

"No. Sehee's the same as I know her, and the Director's pride was hurt—but it seems like something that could've been smoothed over. Though I guess you're the odd one, oppa."

According to Yunhee, a transcendent's pride is as vast as the sky, and no one dares to touch it.

Come to think of it, plenty of the transcendents I saw at World Superpower Day were nothing but pride. The kind that only comes to their senses when you make them into actual corpses.

James Reed and Guillermo the Cooking King were the unusual exceptions.

What are you so prideful about when you've got no real skill?

Berserker doesn't put on airs about pride.

Could it be that the less skilled you are, the more prideful you get?

"Now do you get how lucky you are to have a brother like me?"

"You think that means I'll shape up?"

"I have zero expectations."

"Huh? Your head's on straight. I figured you were still crazy like always."

Choi Yunhee, that's crossing the line.

Still, I'd gotten my little sister's certification that I'm of sound mind.

From an older brother's standpoint, working her hard to make her grow must be normal behavior.

"Don't get any weird ideas. You'll die."

"I won't die from a little training."

"The way you do it, I might actually die?"

...I'll watch a bit longer, then put her through the wringer.

What I felt training Lee Sehee is that humans laugh when pushed to their limits. If Yunhee picks up that mindset too, she'll unlock her gift in no time.

Anyway, Yunhee's view was that Baek Gunseo's behavior was strange, and I agreed.

That meant another outside force had intervened. The only ones capable of that are Shinseong Group Chairman Lee Youngmun or her older brother, Lee Sechan.

The one who'd have a negative influence on Lee Sehee is the latter.

Which left only one possibility.

"Does Lee Sechan ever come to the Shinseong Guild?"

"The Group's eldest son? I've hardly ever seen him at the Guild... Ah! I did see him once. The Director was with him then."

Just as I thought. So Baek Gunseo had sided with Lee Sechan?

"What were they doing?"

"Hmm, they were eating together? With how busy Group matters are, maybe they just met up."

Maybe, maybe not.

I'd tell Lee Sehee, and do some investigating myself.

Before that, I ought to have a look at the man who can't keep his own house in order.

* * *

Late at night, I arrived at the mansion where Lee Youngmun lives.

Curiously, the Shinseong Group family didn't live together—Lee Youngmun and his wife, Lee Sechan, and Lee Sehee each lived separately.

Lee Youngmun lives in Pyeongchang-dong, Jongno-gu, in the most central district.

As the number one figure in South Korea's business world and the chairman of the Shinseong Group, counted among the top guilds, he's a man who could be said to wield more clout than the President.

Elected offices have fixed terms, but money and force are forever.

That's why the government tries to strip away the power of the chaebols, and the chaebols resist to protect what's theirs.

"What good does it do, though? You need your health to enjoy it for a thousand years."

Lee Youngmun is highly capable, but his health is poor.

That's why he largely refrains from public activity and rarely appears in the media.

According to Yunhee, that only adds to his mystique, but that's obviously nonsense. He seems like the type who prefers scheming behind the scenes to stepping into the spotlight.

Naturally, something beyond his reach had come up, and that's how things reached this state.

I don't personally care for his gloomy nature, but he's Lee Sehee's father, so I shouldn't kill him, should I? I'll hold back.

"Just as expected."

The mansion where Lee Youngmun lives was like a fortress ringed by walls. From the neighboring houses to the pathways and the CCTV installed in every direction, it looked like a place where one could never evade watchful eyes.

Infiltrating a place like this is simple.

From a spot with no CCTV, I stepped on the air and rose upward.

If the ground is covered in eyes, the sky is best. I climbed to a dizzying height and arrived above the mansion.

Even if I dropped from here, I'd be detected. The security system installed throughout the mansion could identify me.

So I dropped a single coin.

Clink!

Woof, woof, woof, woof!

The dogs barked, but after a moment, they quieted. Before the Force left in the coin could disperse, I cast Transfer.

"Easy, isn't it?"

Since it crosses space itself, no security system can keep it out.

Having breached the perimeter, I entered the mansion. The late-night house was steeped in silence.

I arrived at the one bedroom with its lights on.

Inside, a small-framed, pale middle-aged man sat at a work desk, reading documents.

This man was Shinseong Group Chairman Lee Youngmun.

Perhaps sensing my presence, he looked up—and his expression showed not a trace of surprise.

"Are you here to kill me?"

"Why would I?"

He doesn't look like he'll last much longer even if I don't touch him.

"...Choi Junho. What brings you here?"

He recognized my face even now.

"I have something to say."

"If you came all this way, it can't be good news. Have a seat, for now."

I sat in the chair across from Lee Youngmun. It felt as comfortable as being in my own home.

"So. What brings you here?"

"Get your kid under control. Your son."

I was saying this because otherwise I'd end up killing him with my own hands.