Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1133

“……A slush fund?”

Ha Gwang-sik slowly turned his head.

Park Gyu-yeon’s gaze was piercing.

“The person trying to create a slush fund shows up at the company that’s supposed to be the slush fund channel… and now even a celebrity is here. And not just any celebrity, but ‘the’ Choi Yeon-ha?”

“Senior.”

“…What?”

“If they can get Choi Yeon-ha as a figurehead, they don’t need to make a slush fund. Isn’t that right?”

There was nothing to say.

“But at this point…”

Park Gyu-yeon looked at the people lined up with a dumbfounded expression.

“What exactly is this place?”

“……I know, right?”

“They registered it as a real estate business, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Well, you can register it roughly and then re-register as you expand the business, but still… this is just… I can’t make heads or tails of it. Why is Choi Yeon-ha suddenly involved? If I told the entertainment reporters, they’d be here in a flash.”

Choi Yeon-ha, who is known for being nearly impossible to get an interview with.

No, if it were just that, it would be a relief. She rarely does any public activities unless it’s an official event, so it’s hard to even get a paparazzi shot of her.

But such a Choi Yeon-ha suddenly appeared here.

“Seriously.”

At least the Prime Minister or a Minister showing up was within the realm of possibility. But Choi Yeon-ha’s appearance was truly unexpected.

“Senior.”

“Hey, pronounce it properly.”

“Who do you think would be the most shocking person to show up here?”

“What?”

“Something else is coming over there?”

Ha Gwang-sik’s head turned weakly.

He didn’t even have the energy to be surprised anymore, but what else was coming?

“Or maybe not? Ah, it doesn’t seem like it. The car is old.”

“……I think it is?”

“Huh?”

“The car is old.”

Ha Gwang-sik sighed.

“There is someone who drives a car like that.”

‘Someone?’

Park Gyu-yeon’s eyes lit up. Ha Gwang-sik, who just calls the Prime Minister ‘Prime Minister,’ was using the honorific ‘someone’?

‘Who is it?’

The old car stopped in front of the building, and an old man got out. Park Gyu-yeon’s eyes widened as he recognized the old man’s face.

“Chairman Hwang Jung-hoo?”

“Ha…”

Ha Gwang-sik sighed as his guess turned out to be true.

“Was this place related to Jae-kyung? Then we completely misjudged it.”

Park Gyu-yeon glared.

There was a reason.

Hwang Jung-hoo.

The lion of the business world.

But despite the glamorous titles that describe Hwang Jung-hoo, Jae-kyung is not the number one company in Korea. It’s only in the top five. Nevertheless, the people of Korea and the business community would never dare to put any company’s representative before Hwang Jung-hoo.

The reason?

The reason is very simple. Hwang Jung-hoo has never committed a single act of corruption while leading Jae-kyung.

Considering how corrupt Korean society has been during its industrialization, this is truly remarkable.

It’s an accepted theory in the industry that if Hwang Jung-hoo had colluded with the government like other businessmen to pursue profits, the rankings of the business world would have already changed.

What does that mean?

“There’s no way Chairman Hwang would show his face at the opening ceremony of a company that’s making a slush fund. He spat on the military regime when they threatened to ruin his company, so why now?”

It means they completely misjudged it.

At least when it comes to financial matters, there is no one cleaner than Hwang Jung-hoo. If MK was a company to make under-the-table money, as Ha Gwang-sik thought, Hwang Jung-hoo would never have shown up here.

‘I don’t know anymore.’

He had no idea what this place was anymore.

“No, is this even possible? The Prime Minister, Choi Yeon-ha, and now Hwang Jung-hoo.”

If you look at each one separately, it’s not strange.

The Prime Minister attending the opening ceremony of a small company?

It’s possible.

There’s no law that says the Prime Minister shouldn’t show up at such an event. If the company is clean and good, it’s actually a good thing for him to attend.

Choi Yeon-ha showing up?

Well, that’s not impossible either.

The same goes for Hwang Jung-hoo.

If it’s a company he’s interested in or a company made by an acquaintance, there’s no reason why he can’t attend.

But it’s definitely strange for these three people to be in one place.

Hwang Jung-hoo, who can be called the representative of Korean businessmen, Choi Yeon-ha, who is currently the top star in Korea, and the Prime Minister of Korea.

These three people, who are at the top of completely different fields, are attending the opening ceremony of a new company?

These people who are so hard to move?

“I definitely think I misjudged it.”

Ha Gwang-sik admitted his mistake. This was not the kind of place he thought it was. The scale was getting too big to simply use it as a slush fund channel.

“But doesn’t it get more interesting?”

Park Gyu-yeon looked at Ha Gwang-sik with a disgusted face.

At this point, it’s a disease, a disease.

“The Prime Minister, Hwang Jung-hoo, and Choi Yeon-ha. You won’t find this combination anywhere in the world. And…”

Ha Gwang-sik saw Hwang Jung-hoo chatting with Kang Jin-ho.

No matter how he looked at it, they didn’t look like people who had met for business. It felt like they knew each other very well.

A 20-year-old and a 70-year-old’s friendship…

“A hidden child or something?”

“Can you please stop?”

“Was I going too far?”

Ha Gwang-sik chuckled.

He didn’t think Hwang Jung-hoo would have a child out of wedlock, but even if he did, he wouldn’t try to take care of them so openly. And what he could be absolutely sure of was… if Hwang Jung-hoo had set up a company for a child out of wedlock, he would never have called the Prime Minister. It was too dangerous even for him.

“Can you hear them?”

“……Do you think I can?”

“Damn it, I want to hear what they’re talking about.”

Ha Gwang-sik looked ahead with a frustrated expression. The Prime Minister, Kang Jin-ho, and Hwang Jung-hoo were chatting away at the front.

“That kid is now a president, too.”

Lee Hyun-soo corrected him slightly.

“He’s a chairman, Chairman.”

“What? Chairman? Then he’s the same as me?”

Well, if you put it that way, it’s the same, but.

The captain of the neighborhood soccer team is also a captain, and the captain of the national team is also a captain. They’re both captains, but…

“No, be a representative, a representative. You’re not ready to be a chairman yet.”

“I agree.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded vigorously.

He was holding back, but every time he heard the word ‘chairman,’ he felt so awkward that he couldn’t stand it. If there weren’t so many eyes watching, he might have already gotten angry several times.

“Since there are affiliates…”

“Hey, what’s with these guys who just started talking about affiliates? They haven’t even run a business before, but they’re trying to take care of everything. You’ll burst if you keep doing that, you guys!”

Lee Hyun-soo smiled wryly.

‘The atmosphere always becomes like this when this person comes.’

Hwang Jung-hoo is probably the only person in the world who treats Kang Jin-ho like a child.

Not even the Prime Minister of Korea, nor even the Master of the Round Table [a high-ranking political figure], whose position is far beyond the Prime Minister’s, would dare to say such things to Kang Jin-ho.

‘It’s a strange relationship.’

The years Kang Jin-ho has lived are not less than Hwang Jung-hoo’s.

And Hwang Jung-hoo must know that.

Yet, Hwang Jung-hoo treats Kang Jin-ho like a young man, and Kang Jin-ho accepts it as a matter of course.

“Hey, don’t do that. Then our positions will be lowered.”

“Huh?”

Hwang Jung-hoo turned his head.

Hwang Jung-hoo burst into laughter when he saw Choi Yeon-ha’s smiling face.

“You look very familiar.”

“I’m Choi Yeon-ha. I’m not yet, but I’ll be taking on the position of director at MK Entertainment.”

“Ah, Choi Yeon-ha?”

Hwang Jung-hoo smiled meaningfully.

“Hmm, I’ve heard about you. Actually, I don’t understand you, Choi Yeon-ha.”

“In what way, Chairman?”

“You’re too good for this. Isn’t that right?”

Choi Yeon-ha covered her mouth and laughed.

“There is a bit of that. But what can I do? That’s how people’s hearts are.”

“Tsk, tsk, it’s a waste, a waste. What’s so good about this guy?”

“Pardon?”

“No, no. I don’t know what’s so good about this company that someone like Choi Yeon-ha would participate.”

“I’ll try to raise it well.”

“Then I’ll trust you, Choi Yeon-ha.”

Kang Jin-ho quietly looked up at the distant sky.

‘Why can’t I be happy even here?’

It was just a formality opening ceremony, but he never imagined he would suffer like this.

“Now, let’s start the ribbon-cutting ceremony!”

The only hopeful part was that Lee Hyun-soo was diligently proceeding with the event.

Lee Hyun-soo, who skipped all the parts that could be skipped, such as the owner’s speech, quickly started to proceed with only the things that could be captured in photos.

It was chaotic, but definitely fast.

“We’ll take a commemorative photo while cutting the ribbon, so please look forward. Be careful with the scissors!”

Lee Hyun-soo was desperate in his own way.

He could already feel the people lined up behind him getting bored. They were wiggling their toes and pulling at their collars. He was glaring at them and gritting his teeth, but since they were born free, it wasn’t working.

He had to finish the event as quickly as possible to avoid embarrassment.

“Okay, okay, take the ribbons.”

Following Lee Hyun-soo’s instructions, the ribbons were quickly passed around. Hwang Jung-hoo, who received the ribbon in the front row, chuckled.

“No, it’s like eating roasted beans in a flash of lightning [doing something very quickly], can you even do this?”

“I’m sorry. We don’t have any roots.”

“……Is that so?”

These guys were definitely a bit strange.

But what should he say…

‘It’s like when Jae-kyung first started.’

They were full of enthusiasm, but since they had never done any practical work, they would always make a mess whenever they tried to do an event.

“Now, we’ll cut…”

“Hey, you have to come out for us to take a picture!”

Lee Hyun-soo awkwardly moved to the side.

The Prime Minister burst into laughter at the sight.

“Isn’t it fun, Chairman?”

“Fun? Haha.”

Hwang Jung-hoo chuckled.

That’s right.

It’s fun. Yes.

He kept laughing.

Maybe that’s why Hwang Jung-hoo was lingering around Kang Jin-ho. This place had a vitality and joy that he could no longer find around him.

“Yes. It’s fun.”

And it will be fun in the future too.

Because Kang Jin-ho is here.

“We will now cut the ribbon!”

Ha Gwang-sik’s eyes gleamed as he watched the event come to an end.

“Did you take it?”

“I took it. But what’s the point of taking this?”

“Until a little while ago, it was just about leaving their faces behind…”

“Yes?”

“Now, it seems like there will be a time when that photo will be needed.”

Ha Gwang-sik’s eyes gleamed as he watched them smiling at each other while holding the cut ribbon.

‘It would be even better if it’s a bigger deal than I thought. I will definitely reveal what this place is. I’m not that easy, Kang Jin-ho.’

Ha Gwang-sik’s smile deepened.