Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1628

Park Sang-gi, the managing director, swallowed hard and continued his report.

“Fortunately, it seems we’ve achieved our primary goal. We’ve successfully penetrated the Japanese market.”

Upon hearing this, Jung Heung-geun’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“Successful?”

“Yes, Chairman. We’ve reached our initial target of 3% market share…”

“Is that what you call an initial target?”

Jung Heung-geun roared, causing Park Sang-gi to flinch and shrink back.

Seeing Park Sang-gi pull his head in like a turtle, Jung Heung-geun gritted his teeth.

“It’s not even through our own efforts! We’re just taking market share from our partners, and you’re celebrating achieving a mere 3%? You incompetent fools!”

“…I apologize, Chairman.”

Park Sang-gi lowered his head. In truth, he had some grounds for feeling wronged.

3% might seem like a small, insignificant number, but in reality, 3% of the Japanese distribution market was an enormous amount.

Even in Korea, many companies pour astronomical sums of money to gain just 1% more of the distribution market. So, securing a 3% market share in Japan, a market even larger than Korea, couldn’t possibly be an easy feat.

“Why is everything so sluggish?”

“It’s proving more difficult than we anticipated, Chairman.”

Before Park Sang-gi could finish his sentence, Jung Heung-geun yelled.

“Easy? Did you think it would be easy when you went in? Do you think taking a market bigger than ours is an easy task? If it were easy, there wouldn’t be any failing companies in Korea, and no one would be messing things up! That’s why I’ve repeatedly said that we need to throw the company’s full force into this!”

Jung Heung-geun’s gaze shifted from Park Sang-gi to the other executives.

Those who met his gaze flinched and lowered their heads. It had been a long time since the executives who opposed Jung Heung-geun’s ideas were cut down one after another. There was no one left who could stand up to his fierce demeanor.

Moreover…

‘3% is a huge achievement, isn’t it?’

‘If we knew we could achieve 3% so easily, no one would have opposed it.’

If it was true that they had secured 3% of the Japanese distribution market, it was arguably the most remarkable achievement among the projects Taekwang had undertaken in the past decade.

But who would dare to argue with Jung Heung-geun?

Having achieved such visible results despite opposition, Jung Heung-geun’s position within Taekwang had become unassailable.

“Are you all listening?”

“Yes, Chairman!”

At that sight, Jung Heung-geun clicked his tongue.

“If you old folks want to survive in this changing world, you need to be more daring than anyone else, and you need to be quicker on the uptake than anyone else. Do you understand what I’m saying? It means that no one can succeed if you keep doing things the way you’ve been doing them! You succeeded in an era without cell phones, and now you’re trying to apply those outdated rules to the present!”

The executives flinched and avoided Jung Heung-geun’s gaze.

“I’m watching to see who among you so-called executives is rejecting the ideas of the younger generation and sticking to your old ways. An executive is a position of responsibility. It’s not a place to sit around, act important, and collect a paycheck! Do you understand?”

“Yes, Chairman!”

Jung Heung-geun looked at everyone with a displeased expression.

‘And I was trusting these people.’

After Kang Jin-ho restored his youth, everything in the world seemed clear to him.

Realizing that the solid fortress he had built was actually a pile of crumbling stones with drafts blowing through it, he could no longer stand idly by.

“The important thing is survival. And as you all know, in this industry, the moment you’re pushed out, you’re done for. Don’t even mention maintaining the status quo! It’s either success or death. Do you understand?”

“Yes!”

“Then stop sitting around and wasting your salaries, and go create something worthwhile! And! If we receive a request for cooperation from Japan, drop everything else and prioritize that.”

As the executives nodded vigorously, Jung Heung-geun frowned.

“All of you, leave now.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

As the executives hurriedly left, Jung Heung-geun sighed and put a cigarette in his mouth.

Click.

Park Sang-gi quickly rushed over and lit Jung Heung-geun’s cigarette.

“It’s a mess.”

Jung Heung-geun frowned.

He knew that just as people have a lifespan, so do companies.

To be precise, just as people grow and age, companies also grow and age. Since companies are ultimately made up of people, they cannot escape this law.

After forcibly opening his closed eyes, he could feel how outdated Taekwang had become. He might be able to maintain the current state while he was still alive, but if he died, Taekwang would lose its light and collapse.

“How can there not be a single person among all these people who is willing to venture into new fields?”

“…I suppose it’s because there’s no need to take risks in a company that’s running smoothly.”

“No need to take risks? Or is it that they don’t want to risk anything?”

Park Sang-gi couldn’t answer.

He knew that what Jung Heung-geun said wasn’t entirely wrong.

Jung Heung-geun frowned.

‘I raised them wrong.’

This was perhaps close to his original sin.

Taekwang was fundamentally a company that grew by catering to the needs of those in power. In other words, it wasn’t a company that created its own content and had it validated by customers, but rather a company that created content that those in power wanted.

Therefore, it was bound to have difficulty standing on its own compared to companies that had grown from the ground up.

Without fundamental reform, it was impossible to climb any higher.

“Personnel reshuffle, personnel reshuffle…”

Jung Heung-geun chuckled bitterly.

“I never thought I’d be the one to bring up the topic of personnel reshuffle.”

Personnel reshuffle was what incompetent chairmen would say whenever things weren’t going well, claiming they needed to replace their subordinates.

It sounded good, but in reality, it was no different from saying they would replace their servants to make more money.

Personally, he found it utterly repulsive, but the fact that this repulsive phrase was lingering in his mind meant that Jung Heung-geun had reached his limit.

“Gather all the malcontents in the company.”

“Excuse me?”

“Don’t you know what malcontents are?”

“…Of course, I do, but why those people?”

“Because what they say is a cold assessment.”

Jung Heung-geun frowned.

There are malcontents everywhere in the world. Even in a well-functioning company, there are always people who are constantly grumbling about the system and the people.

So, should they be given important positions?

Absolutely not.

Because when they are actually put in a position where they have to take responsibility, they find all sorts of excuses why things can’t be done.

However, the complaints they voice have value. Since they spend all day looking for problems, they sometimes come up with something sharp that ordinary people wouldn’t even imagine.

“Gather all those guys and create a team, and have them come up with a reform plan for the company. But make sure to put a capable person in charge of the team to filter out the nonsense.”

“Understood, Chairman.”

Jung Heung-geun, having given simple instructions, closed his eyes slightly.

‘Not bad.’

In the past, even a simple meeting like this would have drained his energy and made him feel tired.

Although he had so much to do that it was giving him a headache, his body was brimming with vitality, as if it was asking for more work. Satisfied with his overflowing energy, Jung Heung-geun took a deep drag of his cigarette and opened his eyes again.

“What’s the problem with the Japanese side?”

“Well, there are cultural differences between the countries.”

“…Don’t give me such obvious answers.”

Park Sang-gi sighed.

“Every little thing is becoming a problem. For example, Japanese logistics are so slow that they can’t handle the Korean system at all.”

“Aren’t the Japanese known for being diligent while working? How can they be so slow?”

“It’s more of a system issue than a matter of national character. For example, in Japan, the recipient must personally receive the package. If no one is home, the delivery person cannot leave the package.”

“Isn’t there a security office?”

“Since many people own their homes and don’t prefer apartments in Japan, there isn’t really a place that can be called a security office. Leaving it at the door is also legally problematic, so they have to revisit several times.”

“Haha.”

Jung Heung-geun burst out laughing.

“It sounds like they made that rule when delivery services first started, and they’ve stuck with it ever since?”

“Yes. Because it’s Japan.”

Jung Heung-geun narrowed his brow.

There was a lot of meaning packed into that phrase, ‘Because it’s Japan.’

There was a time when Japan was truly an advanced country.

There was definitely a time when no country in Asia could dare to follow Japan. In those days, Jung Heung-geun saw Japan as an incredibly great nation.

But now?

‘It’s still a great country.’

But it was outdated.

Japan was too confident in the system they had created, and they had become too accustomed to the life that system provided.

A country where you can’t buy anything without cash in the 21st century.

In a world where even China is moving to mobile payments, Japan was still clinging to the life they had perfected in the 1980s.

Jung Heung-geun, feeling this fact anew, wore a subtle smile.

“I feel a bit strange.”

“I know what you mean.”

“But that doesn’t mean I’ll accept your whining. There’s always a solution, no matter where you are. Those who accept problems as unavoidable will never solve them.”

“You are absolutely right.”

Jung Heung-geun narrowed his eyes.

“Whether it’s setting up intermediate storage facilities or trying nighttime deliveries, there are many ways. If none of them work, try every possible method. Right now, it’s more important to create a clear system that can work nationwide than to focus on market share.”

“I will follow your orders.”

“Go.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

As Park Sang-gi bowed and left the conference room, Jung Heung-geun nervously stubbed out his cigarette.

“I’m ashamed, I’m ashamed.”

He had taken charge of this himself.

He needed to produce results that were at least twice as good as what people expected to prove his worth. Only then could he stand proudly before Kang Jin-ho and discuss his usefulness.

‘First, I need to increase the staff a bit more. And I should also meet with some Japanese politicians.’

Since they had solved the practical problems on their end, it was now his turn to solve the issues of justification and law.

Jung Heung-geun licked his lips with the face of a predator eyeing its prey.

His wildness, which he thought had withered and disappeared long ago, was slowly rearing its head.

He took out his phone and called Lee Hyun-joo.

“Ah, Director Lee. This is Jung Heung-geun. I’m calling because I have a few things to discuss…”

Apart from Kang Jin-ho and the General Assembly, MK was also calmly carrying out their own work.