I’M A Max-Level Regressor [EN]: Chapter 31

31.

“How did you get caught and locked up by Jang Seong-yeong?”

“I don’t know. I was secretly hiding and filming Jang Seong-yeong’s every move with a camera…”

“Suddenly, Jang Seong-yeong disappeared, and the next thing you knew, you were in the trunk. That’s what happened, right?”

“That’s right!”

The man in my arms confessed exactly what I had expected.

He was a reporter specializing in news related to Awakened people.

A rookie at that. A reckless puppy who committed the folly of chasing after an A+ rank Awakened.

“You should consider yourself lucky to be alive. It seems they brought you here to secure a burial spot.”

I said, recalling the skeletons I saw in the abandoned mine.

Fortunately, the reporter’s bleeding stopped quickly.

What I thought was blood flowing from the trunk turned out to be another liquid.

I didn’t particularly intend to save him, but I felt somewhat proud to have saved a life.

“Thank you so much for saving me! I feel like I’ve aged ten years. I thought he wouldn’t notice if I followed him secretly, so I boldly got closer…”

“That’s all part of their plan. They deal with you as soon as you enter a spot that’s blocked from CCTV or public view.”

“Ah…”

“Let’s go together just outside the Red Zone. From there, you can catch a taxi or something to get out.”

“Thank you so much. Excuse me, what’s your name? I’m Park Hyun, an intern reporter for Superhuman Daily.”

“Kang Shin-hwa.”

“Kang Shin-hwa? Ah! Are you perhaps the super rookie who recently signed with Yanghwa Guild?”

“I don’t know about super rookie, but I am that person.”

“Oh! So the hero who saved Jin Bo-mi saved me too. Right? This, this is a scoop!”

Park Hyun had been on the verge of death just moments ago.

But now that he thought he had been saved, his unique journalistic spirit seemed to be reigniting.

“I have no intention of doing any interviews or coverage. That’s not why I saved you.”

I shook my head.

In fact, the sight of a man clutching his neck with both hands and looking up at me with a serious expression was horrifying.

It felt like it could easily be misunderstood.

“Anyway, sincerely! Thank you for saving my life. I should never chase after people recklessly again.”

“The problem is the illegal filming without their consent in the first place. Being a reporter doesn’t give you a free pass.”

I pointed out the key issue.

Jang Seong-yeong, who tried to kill the reporter, was a problem, but Park Hyun was partly responsible for causing it.

“I’m sorry. I felt like a story about chasing the third-ranked member of the Black Cross would be a sure hit…”

I felt sorry for him.

That’s the life of a dirt spoon [a term for someone born into poverty].

The porters at the lowest level of the Awakened world were no different from Park Hyun, an intern reporter.

If they find a good guild, a capable guild leader, they try to establish themselves there somehow.

They sometimes offer financial bribes to become a fixed porter for the guild or volunteer to be an attendant first.

Park Hyun probably risked his life chasing Jang Seong-yeong to hit a home run.

‘I need some connections with the reporters.’

A good idea suddenly came to mind.

From the top-grade magic potions I was planning to sell to the products I was thinking of making, there were quite a few opportunities.

The potion was just the first step.

The next product I planned to make was an enhancement potion called ‘Stimulus.’

It appeared in January 2022 in my previous life, and it increased combat abilities by nearly twofold with no side effects.

It was a drug made by the ‘Abe Research Center’ in Japan, so the name of the manufacturer itself caused antipathy [strong dislike].

‘To spread rumors about these products, sales are important, but articles are also very important. It would be even better if they could write articles that are biased in my favor, from my perspective.’

I was thinking of a dedicated reporter.

From my point of view, it’s good because I can use the articles for self-promotion, and from the reporter’s point of view, it’s good because they get a scoop. It’s a win-win situation.

“Mr. Park Hyun.”

“Yes?”

“Forget about today, but would you be interested in writing an in-depth article about me soon?”

“Really?”

At that moment, the eyes of Park Hyun and I met naturally and sparkled.

It was a chance encounter, but it felt like it would be a surprisingly valuable connection.

* * *

After parting ways with Park Hyun,

Shin-hwa returned to his home in Seoul and spent nearly a day lying in bed, lazing around all day.

He rested well.

He paid to watch old movies he had really wanted to see, and he also caught up on popular entertainment shows.

His smartphone had been turned off a long time ago, so it was quiet, and there were no visitors to his house.

Shin-hwa checked Park Hyun’s business card, which was placed on the table, and put it back in a visible spot.

Park Hyun bowed several times because Shin-hwa had not only saved his life but also offered him a story.

It was like rain during a drought for Park Hyun, who was thirsty for a scoop that was different from others and could attract more attention.

“If I do this, that’ll be two top-grade magic potions.”

Shin-hwa took out a water bottle and made a magic potion today, just like yesterday.

There was a meeting at midnight tonight.

It was a big gathering with Yanghwa Guild’s Chairman Jin Seong-tae, Jin Bo-mi, Seo Ye-hee, Yoon Tae-ho, and executives.

He didn’t go into details.

He just said that he was planning to sell magic potions and that he needed to discuss the sales channels.

“Still, it’s the first large-scale meeting, so I should pay attention to my clothes. A casual suit I bought before should be fine.”

He headed straight to the shower room.

It seemed like it would be perfect to shower, dress up, and change clothes right on time.

There was also a dedicated driver who would come to ‘pick him up’ right on schedule.

“It’s comfortable. It’s so comfortable.”

I knew why the higher-ups hired attendants, drivers, secretaries, and aides.

It was so convenient because they took care of all the annoying and trivial tasks.

‘When I retire later, should I develop a device that automatically feeds me?’

As he did so, Shin-hwa’s imagination was diligently expanding, focusing on convenience.

* * *

Time before midnight.

The Yanghwa Building, the guild’s base, was bustling with guild members working diligently despite the late hour.

If you didn’t look out the window, you wouldn’t know if it was day or night.

“Is that Kang Shin-hwa?”

“It is. I saw Chief Jung-hoon bringing him.”

The eyes of the Yanghwa Guild members, who were waiting on the first floor for a dungeon raid, were all focused on one man.

It was Shin-hwa, who appeared neatly dressed in a suit.

With a height of 189cm and distinct features.

The muscular body, hardened by a long life as a porter and subsequent physical modification, was stylishly revealed even when wearing clothes.

“He’s handsome.”

“He’s a super rookie, right? The guild has high expectations for him?”

“He’s just a D-rank, isn’t he? Originally, freshmen are always welcomed at the beginning of the semester. After a few weeks, the bubble bursts, and they just become ordinary college students.”

“I heard your self-introduction well.”

“It sounds ridiculous when you, an E-rank, say that.”

“Anyway, it’s nothing special. You have to be at least a B-rank to be called a high-ranking Awakened.”

Envy and jealousy of Shin-hwa were mixed here and there.

‘I used to be so shaken by these words in my previous life, but now I’m enlightened.’

Shin-hwa was listening to the words of jealousy with pleasure.

Because it was proof that they were very envious inside.

Life is inherently unfair.

Some are given excessively brilliant wisdom and talent, while others are not.

In my previous life, I was always dissatisfied with such unfairness, but after living a solid half-century, my thoughts changed.

“Hello? I’m Kang Shin-hwa. Nice to meet you.”

“Hello!”

“Nice to meet you!”

“Tch, pretending to greet brightly.”

“It’s nice to have a handsome man join our guild for the first time in a while, and he even smiles and greets us, what’s wrong with that?”

“Ha, damn it. Squids should just keep their mouths shut.”

Shin-hwa accepted everyone’s attention with pleasure and moved to the elevator, politely greeting them.

They were, after all, colleagues of the guild.

Since they might have to work together at any time, I didn’t want to make enemies.

Of course, there was also the confidence and room [referring to a comfortable margin or leeway] that it wouldn’t happen.

* * *

“Master, frankly, shouldn’t a D-rank be assigned a manager from the lower ranks instead of us now?”

“That’s usually the case. But he’s Chairman’s special management target, right? Besides, Bo-mi is very curious about Kang Shin-hwa.”

“I’m worried that the guild members might raise issues of fairness or be disappointed.”

“Rank is just an alphabet. What you see is different from your actual skill, Kang Shin-hwa is.”

“I don’t know what he’s trying to sell today, but is it necessary for all the executives to come out?”

“He said it was a magic potion.”

“At best, wouldn’t it be a high-grade magic potion that can be obtained from the Blue Long-Nosed Lizard? Individual production wouldn’t be enough.”

“Well, that’s true…”

Seo Ye-hee and Yoon Tae-ho, who were only thinking within the bounds of common sense, had no idea about Shin-hwa’s top-grade magic potion.

Even though high-grade magic potions were hard to obtain, their existence itself was not surprising.

But Shin-hwa said he would sell magic potions and asked Jin Seong-tae to find out about the sales channels.

That’s where Yoon Tae-ho didn’t like Shin-hwa. It was because he seemed to want too much special treatment.

It was true that Shin-hwa had saved Jin Bo-mi and showed various talents, so expectations were high.

Jin Seong-tae, the guild’s largest sponsor and founder, was only interested in Shin-hwa, setting aside Seo Ye-hee and Yoon Tae-ho, so he felt jealous.

“There’s no need to think deeply. If there’s something to learn and a great part, we can bow our heads and learn too. Don’t be bound by rank.”

-Arriving.

Right then.

Jung-hoon’s low voice was heard through the earphones of the two people who were talking on the terrace next to the conference room.

“Kang Shin-hwa must have arrived.”

“The water met the fish [a Korean idiom meaning a perfect match], so the chairman must be very happy.”

“Yoon Tae-ho, you look quite cute when you’re jealous, you know?”

“Oh, that’s enough. Let’s go. Let’s see what great stuff he brought.”

Yoon Tae-ho snorted and headed to the conference room with Seo Ye-hee.

One minute later.

Shin-hwa arrived at the conference room with Jung-hoon.

The eyes of Jin Seong-tae and Jin Bo-mi, who were already waiting for Shin-hwa, as well as the executives, were all focused on Shin-hwa.

Shin-hwa lifted up two water bottles he had brought in a roughly carried backpack.

Then Jin Seong-tae asked.

“Is that the potion you’re trying to sell through our guild?”

“Yes, that’s right. It’s a magic potion.”

“If it’s not high-grade, then Arisu Chemical has already established a mass production system for mid-grade, right? Individual production would be woefully insufficient.”

Jin Seong-tae said calmly and coldly. Everyone in this place thought the same as him.

Then Shin-hwa smiled and continued with a confident voice.

“You should always listen to the end of the story, and you have to check everything yourself to know. Isn’t seeing once better than hearing a hundred times? Check for yourself what kind of potion it is.”

Until then.

No one recognized the true value of the magic potion contained in this ordinary-looking water bottle.

Not until they checked the concentration of the potion with their own eyes using a concentration measuring device.