Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 301

The department store appeared calm on the surface, but internally, it was in a state of extreme tension, akin to a military operation.

The store manager was on the phone with each manager, yelling, ‘If there’s a mistake today, it’s not just my head that’ll roll!’ The managers, sensing the unusually panicked energy of the store manager, who was normally a loudmouth, began to tread carefully.

“Did the Chairman himself come?”

“Have you ever seen the Chairman come shopping? People in the business world say that him running a department store is the biggest joke since the founding of the nation.”

“That’s true.”

A man who drives a car for fifteen years and wears a suit for twenty years running a department store?

Even worse, neither the car nor the suit were luxury brands.

‘Clothes are just something to wear, a car is just something to drive, and shoes can be worn as long as you replace the soles.’ This was a man who lived by these principles, yet he was running a department store chain, the pinnacle of consumption.

“Then who the heck came?”

“Nobody knows. But the secretary’s office contacted us, told us to register them as a VIP immediately, and to provide them with every convenience possible.”

“Wow.”

Jae-kyung Department Store was known as the least flexible in Korea. A customer who had maintained the highest VIP status for ten years was immediately downgraded the following year because they were short by about a million won due to a brief overseas trip.

The store manager’s response to the VIP who threatened to move to another department store, ‘Thank you for your patronage,’ remains a famous quote representing Jae-kyung Department Store to this day.

Rumor had it that the customer’s annual spending exceeded 500 million won.

It was said that she was the wife of a successful company’s CEO.

Jae-kyung was a place that would cut off even such a person like a knife if they didn’t meet the exact requirements. The fact that Jae-kyung issued a top-tier VIP card without even an upgrade was very telling.

“Could it be the Chairman’s hidden son?”

“No.”

“How can you be so sure? I don’t see any other explanation. It’s not like anyone other than the Chairman’s relatives would receive this kind of treatment. Last time, when a company chairman came, they were blocked from entering the lounge because they didn’t have a VIP card.”

“That’s right.”

“When I asked if I could use 50 million won today, they told me that VIP status is renewed at the end of the year, so I should come back then.”

“Now that I think about it… we were pretty bold.”

“Then it can only be a relative.”

“Ah, Ji-ho, you don’t know about that?”

“What?”

“A long time ago, one of the Chairman’s children visited our branch.”

“Yes.”

“They were a bit arrogant, but they didn’t do anything too wrong. But one thing became a problem and caused a huge fuss.”

“What was it?”

“They asked a clerk to bring them water.”

“The Chairman heard about it, demoted the store manager, and called his child in to beat them with a cane.”

“Wow…”

“What did he say? ‘Are the clerks your servants? Where did you learn such disgraceful behavior that tarnishes the group’s reputation?’ or something like that.”

“Amazing. The Chairman did that?”

“Yeah. That’s why there was such a fuss back then. The new manager, as soon as he arrived, said with a pale face, ‘The owners of the department store are not the customers, but you all.’ What department store in the world would say such a thing?”

“Thinking about it, it’s crazy.”

“The Chairman would be even stricter if it were his son. And according to the managers below, it’s definitely not that.”

“Why?”

“They said he’s handsome.”

“Ah…”

Ji-ho nodded as if she understood.

“They’re coming!”

A hurried voice came through the earpiece.

[VVIP is currently on the 3rd floor, heading up to the 3rd floor. They’re at the left escalator.]

“This way.”

Tension filled Min Ji-ho’s face.

She didn’t know the identity of the person, but she was certain that they had the power to get her fired with a single word.

‘Don’t make any mistakes.’

She heard that the real VVIP was the only man among the three.

‘He’s shopping with his mother and sister, right?’

These cases required extra caution. Men are inherently boastful. Even if they don’t usually show it, their boastfulness tends to surface when they come to a place to spend money.

If someone makes a mistake or says something that makes them feel bad, their pride will be hurt. So, she had to be extra careful.

Women file complaints when there’s a problem, but men just leave. And this time, it wouldn’t just end with them leaving.

‘Why here of all the department stores? Ugh, I can’t even go to the bathroom.’

She couldn’t leave her post because she didn’t know when they would arrive. The VVIP, who had spent four hours on the 1st and 2nd floors, was finally entering the 3rd floor.

Min Ji-ho’s eyes, filled with tension, saw a group of people coming up the escalator.

‘The mother looks kind.’

She didn’t look that old. Considering the ages of her daughter and son, she must have been naturally youthful.

Having worked in Woongdae for so long, Min Ji-ho could now somewhat guess a person’s style just by looking at their face. In her opinion, the mother’s difficulty level was below D. To put it nicely, she was a kind-hearted woman who was naturally nice and couldn’t easily say harsh things to others.

‘Huh?’

But the woman who followed behind her was unusual.

‘She’s an A-class troublemaker.’

The young woman who followed behind her was radiating an aura of trouble. She wasn’t the type to openly cause a scene, but she was the type to smile sweetly in front of you and then march straight into the manager’s office.

That type evolves into an S-class when they get older.

‘But…’

Isn’t that Kang Se-ah? Kang Se-ah came here to shop?

Min Ji-ho was confused.

Wasn’t she the most popular female solo artist these days? Of course, even singers shop, so it wasn’t strange for her to visit a department store.

What confused her was that even though a celebrity like Kang Se-ah was visiting, there was a separate VVIP.

With tense eyes, she watched the man following Kang Se-ah.

‘Huh?’

She was so nervous that she could feel the sweat on her hands, but when Min Ji-ho saw the man who followed Kang Se-ah, she couldn’t help but tilt her head.

‘What is this?’

The man, who had shopping bags hanging from both arms like fruit on a tree, looked like a tree laden with shopping bags.

Was this the appearance of the VVIP who had triggered the first special alert since the opening of this department store?

‘He’s just a pushover?’

It wasn’t just his appearance that made him look like a pushover. He was radiating the aura of a super pushover with a shopping power close to zero. She could imagine him scratching his head awkwardly and saying, ‘Really?’ the moment he entered any store and heard, ‘Sir, this outfit looks great on you.’

‘This is a strange combination, really.’

A kind mother, a venomous daughter, and a pushover son…

Based on the combination, they didn’t seem like a special target to be wary of. And the shopping bags hanging all over them proved that their shopping was going smoothly.

‘No, it’s not smooth.’

The dark circles under the man’s eyes looked like they were about to reach his chin.

If you looked closely, he seemed to be very handsome, but his expression was so sour that his handsomeness wasn’t showing at all.

‘Anyway, stay alert.’

It was a combination that made her tension melt away the moment she saw them, but if she made a mistake, it wouldn’t be them, but the manager who would try to kill her.

The VVIPs were passing by them, talking.

“Jin-ho, why aren’t you choosing anything? Buy something?”

“Mother, I feel like I’m going to die?”

“Hahaha, our son is so funny.”

No, Mother.

Your son looks like he’s in danger right now. I think you should have an ambulance on standby…

Kang Jin-ho’s face was pale. Because of that, the dark circles that reached his chin looked even darker.

It was a visual that was rarely seen even in hospitals.

‘What kind of harsh shopping did that young man go through…’

Tears were about to well up.

Seeing the man who had lost his soul in just three hours, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.

“Shall we take a break?”

“…Please.”

“Well, Mom is still fine, but since our son is tired and exhausted, let’s take a break.”

“Stop whining! How can you say you’re tired when Mom is shopping?”

“It’s not that I’m tired…”

“Since the word ‘lonely’ came from Mom’s name, both you and I have no right to complain even if we get cursed and roll on a gravel field today. But you’re whining after just three hours of shopping.”

‘I’d rather roll on a field of knives.’

That would be better.

Kang Jin-ho thought that he’d rather jump into the poisonous pond that Odokmun [a fictional martial arts sect] was so proud of than jump into clothes.

He thought that if you made the martial artists of the Central Plains [a region in Chinese martial arts novels], who enjoyed wearing red and whose symbol was blue, shop for just two hours, they would later threaten with clothes instead of swords and spears. They would all be terrified and throw away their weapons and run away.

‘The problem is that I’m about to become like that.’

Kang Jin-ho sighed deeply.

“Tsk, so weak!”

Kang Eun-young smiled brightly as if she couldn’t help it.

“Mom, since we got the card, shall we go to the VIP lounge?”

“Hmm, the lounge?”

“Yeah. I feel like my vanity is bursting today. I need to post some pictures on social media.”

“I told you not to do that. You have such strange hobbies. Why do you post your pictures for strangers to see?”

“Then are you not going?”

“Who said I’m not going? Mom doesn’t care much, but seeing your brother’s state, he looks like he’s about to die. Let’s go.”

“Hehe.”

Even though it had been three hours since the shopping started, the two of them were still walking lightly towards the VIP lounge.

‘They’re not tired at all.’

Where does that stamina come from?

They say that women gain monstrous strength when they start shopping, and it seemed like that was true. This requires scientific research.

“Ugh.”

Kang Jin-ho felt an intense craving for a cigarette as he trudged behind them.

“Where is the VIP lounge?”

“This way, sir.”

“Ah, this way?”

Kang Eun-young smiled brightly and followed the guide. Her shoulders were so tense that it felt like they would break soon.

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

‘Is it that good?’

It was shopping that started because of Baek Hyun-jung, but it seemed like Kang Eun-young was enjoying it more.

‘Well, as long as she’s happy.’

Today was a day of sacrifice. Kang Jin-ho vowed not to complain today and headed inside.

But then, a sharp voice was heard.

“Hey, you bastards! Do you think I’m a joke? Huh?”

Kang Jin-ho frowned and looked inside.