Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 649

“It’s not that big of a deal. But I guess it is a big deal.”

It was an ambiguous statement.

Cho Gyu-min reached out, picked up his coffee, and took a sip.

‘Not a big deal, huh…’

He had a rough idea of what he was going to say.

“I don’t think you necessarily need to ask me. I think Kang Jin-ho would value Mr. Lee more than me several times over by now, wouldn’t he?”

“Let’s say, Mr. Cho, you have a very expensive car. Like the chairman’s car. Worth about seven hundred million [Korean Won, approximately $500,000 USD].”

“Yes?”

“Would you trade it with a friend or family member?”

“…I wouldn’t.”

Lee Hyun-soo nodded.

“That’s what I am. Of course, I don’t mean that I’m worth that much. I’m talking about limitations. No matter how great my abilities are and how much I help Kang Jin-ho, I’m still just a car. But Mr. Cho Gyu-min is a friend or family. The concept itself is different.”

“Oh, it’s not that extreme…”

Lee Hyun-soo smiled, looking a little embarrassed.

“Mr. Cho, you don’t know because you’ve been with Kang Jin-ho from the start. In my life, I’ve never seen anyone who distinguishes between acquaintances and colleagues as clearly as he does. It’s almost impossible to break through that wall of acquaintance.” Cho Gyu-min looked troubled.

“He doesn’t seem like someone with such high walls…”

“For example…”

Lee Hyun-soo sighed softly and said,

“He has never done anything personal with anyone from the General Assembly.”

“What do you mean by personal?”

“It’s simple. Like visiting without a specific reason, contacting first, or just hanging around and having a cup of coffee. I don’t even expect to have a meal or a drink together. Because those things don’t happen.”

“Oh, really?”

Cho Gyu-min’s face went blank.

It was unbelievable even after hearing it. Kang Jin-ho often barged into his office. He would come for no reason, drink the coffee Cho Gyu-min made, and hang around. It was a common occurrence.

There were many times when he was annoyed seeing Kang Jin-ho playing around in front of him when he was busy.

But… that was something he only did with him.

“Hearing that, I feel like…”

Cho Gyu-min gave his honest opinion.

“His personality is worse than I imagined.”

“…That’s right.”

To put it nicely, you could say he clearly distinguishes between personal space and work, but this was beyond that level. As far as Cho Gyu-min knew, Lee Hyun-soo was managing the overall affairs of the General Assembly.

Not even building personal relationships with someone like that, what was he relying on?

“It’s very ideal as a boss in that he doesn’t bother you to go out for drinks after work or pretend to be friendly… but it’s a bit too much, so it’s a problem.”

“I understand.”

Cho Gyu-min gave a wry smile.

“But just like I don’t fully understand Kang Jin-ho, you also have a lack of understanding about him.”

“Yes?”

“He doesn’t do anything if you wait.”

“What do you mean?”

Cho Gyu-min smiled wryly.

“He’s a passive person. Unusually passive for this era. Have you ever asked Kang Jin-ho to have a meal together first?”

“I can’t.”

“Why? Because he’s your superior?”

“Hmm…”

Lee Hyun-soo scratched his head. It was difficult to explain this to Cho Gyu-min in detail. How could he explain that he had tried to kill Kang Jin-ho in the beginning?

“It seems like there’s a reason, but that doesn’t matter much.”

Lee Hyun-soo looked up at Cho Gyu-min.

“He’s the type of person who doesn’t keep someone around if they make him uncomfortable. Don’t think that I’m by Kang Jin-ho’s side because I’m talented. There are countless people more talented than me even in Jae-kyung [a fictional company name]. It’s just that I stood out. The fact that he keeps Mr. Lee Hyun-soo by his side means that the excuses for other parts of Mr. Lee Hyun-soo are over. So, you don’t need to worry about it.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. So, don’t worry and talk to him first. He’ll nod with a bewildered look.”

“…I can strangely imagine that face.”

Lee Hyun-soo smiled wryly.

“It’s not like I was an acquaintance from the beginning. Relationships are built that way, aren’t they? You get closer by seeing each other more often and talking more. It’s hard to make new relationships when you get older, but ‘hard’ and ‘impossible’ are different words.”

Lee Hyun-soo bowed deeply.

“I’ve learned a lot.”

“Oh, don’t be like that.”

Cho Gyu-min laughed.

“I understand what you mean. It’s hard for you to speak directly to Kang Jin-ho, right?”

“Exactly.”

“If you tell me what you need, I’ll speak up. But don’t think it’ll be a big help. He’s stubborn like a bull, even though he doesn’t seem like it. Once he decides on something, he tries to push it through no matter what. He might adjust the details, but he doesn’t change the direction. He’s not as bad as the original bulldozer, but a mini-bulldozer is still a bulldozer.”

“The original bulldozer?”

“…There is such a person.”

Cho Gyu-min sighed.

They were two people who only resembled each other in bad ways. Hwang Jung-hoo and Kang Jin-ho.

“Anyway, I’ll help you with what I can. So, Mr. Lee Hyun-soo, please help me too.”

“Yes. You don’t have to worry about that part.”

“Ha… he’s really hard to assist.”

“I agree. At first, I thought he’d be easy because he didn’t need much help, but I didn’t know he’d need help in other areas.”

“He starts so many things. And it hasn’t even been that long since he was discharged.”

“You’re telling me. I feel like I’ve lived several years in the past few months. I don’t know how I’ll survive in the future.”

They both sighed at the same time.

“But, what should I say…”

Cho Gyu-min smiled warmly.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve met someone I can talk to so well.”

“I was just about to say the same thing.”

Lee Hyun-soo and Cho Gyu-min felt a sense of camaraderie. They felt a sense of solidarity from suffering under the same person, but also a feeling that their personalities matched.

A feeling that they understood each other without having to say anything.

It was rare to meet someone like this at their age.

“We’ll be contacting and interacting more often because of Kang Jin-ho.”

“I should contact you first. If I have time, that is.”

“Isn’t making time the goal for the future?”

“I want to put that goal by my bedside.”

“You’re someone who doesn’t even sleep in bed often.”

The two men smiled at each other.

They knew they had to leave. They were both busy. The immediate fire was put out, but it didn’t mean they had no work to do. If they wasted half a day, they would have to go through hell again starting tomorrow.

Knowing that, the two men couldn’t easily leave. When you’re buried in work, you want to talk to someone. They had met someone they could talk to after a long time, so they didn’t want to end this meeting easily.

“Um, it’s a bit early, but…”

Cho Gyu-min scratched his head.

“I know that it’s normal to meet a couple more times before talking about this. But if we try to follow the norm, we might never get to it. It’s not easy to make the next meeting.”

“That’s right.”

Lee Hyun-soo nodded.

They weren’t in a relationship where they could make promises. They were people who lived every minute and second busy.

“So, what I’m saying is…”

Cho Gyu-min said a little awkwardly.

“How about we drop the formalities and become brothers? It seems like we have a lot in common.”

“Hmm…”

Lee Hyun-soo stared at Cho Gyu-min for a moment before opening his mouth.

“I’m not usually someone who brings public relationships into private ones, but…”

“Ah, then it can’t be helped. Sorry. I said something unnecessary.”

“No, that’s not what I mean… I have that tendency, but I think it would be okay with you, Mr. Cho Gyu-min. I haven’t felt like we’ve been in a purely public relationship since earlier.”

“Really?”

Cho Gyu-min’s face brightened.

After meeting Kang Jin-ho and being buried in work, his relationships had become barren. He couldn’t contact his old friends often, and they naturally drifted apart. Within Jae-kyung, there were no peers doing similar work, so it was difficult to build relationships.

Another reason was that his peers were subtly wary or uncomfortable with him.

His relationships were so dry that even when he had time, there was no one to have a drink with. But today, he met someone he clicked with and was about to become brothers, it felt like pouring rain onto the cracked, dry lakebed.

“Okay, then let’s speak casually. I’m the older brother. By the way, how old are you, Hyun-soo?”

Lee Hyun-soo smiled and replied,

“Thirty-seven.”

“…Huh?”

“I’m thirty-seven.”

Lee Hyun-soo’s eyes became slightly sharp.

Cho Gyu-min’s lips trembled slightly.

“With that face?”

Cho Gyu-min blinked.

No matter how much he tried to guess, he didn’t look like he was in his thirties. The maximum was late twenties. But how old? Thirty-something?

“I often hear that I look young. Many martial artists look younger. Their aging slows down. Among them, I’m especially young-looking.”

No, even so….

This was a scam.

He had heard a lot about looking young, but this wasn’t just about looking young. If he dressed up casually, you could believe he was still a college student, but thirty-seven?

“…Oh, you look incredibly young.”

That was all he could say. Lee Hyun-soo shrugged at Cho Gyu-min’s words.

“I don’t really take it as a compliment anymore. Actually, I think it’s better for people to have a face that matches their age. There are times when I get unnecessary misunderstandings and troubles.”

“That’s true.”

He could see that there would be such issues.

And Cho Gyu-min quickly changed the subject.

“Next time, I should learn your secret to managing your face.”

“Hahaha.”

“Then, see you next…”

“Just a moment.”

Cho Gyu-min tried to cut him off, but Lee Hyun-soo didn’t follow his intention. With a bright smile, Lee Hyun-soo opened his mouth.

“So, what should I call you? Hyung [older brother] Gyu-min?”

“Ah, no…”

“You told me to speak casually?”

“Thinking about it, I don’t think it’s good to be too casual. There’s also the saying that mixing public and private relationships can cause problems, so anyway…”

As Cho Gyu-min hurriedly tried to get up from his seat, Lee Hyun-soo lightly tapped the desk.

Flustered.

Cho Gyu-min froze in his spot.

“Please sit down?”

“Mr. Cho Gyu-min.”

“Yes?”

“Let’s start by showing our IDs.”

“…Yes.”

As Cho Gyu-min’s hand hesitated, a wrinkle formed on Lee Hyun-soo’s brow. Seeing that face, Cho Gyu-min put his hand in his wallet with a resigned expression.

Cho Gyu-min was about to gain a younger brother, but ended up gaining an older one.