Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 40

“You need to keep an eye on him.”

“Is this surveillance?”

“Think of it as being his secretary.”

“A secretary-like surveillance?”

Hwang Jung-hoo shook his head.

“It’s not really surveillance. Just make sure he doesn’t go too far, and that I can reach him in case of an emergency. The reason I’m assigning you to him is to genuinely assist him.”

Jo Gyu-min looked at Hwang Jung-hoo with confused eyes.

Assist?

What need is there to assist a mere high school student?

Could it be….

“Is he the successor?”

“What?”

Hwang Jung-hoo burst into laughter.

“A successor, a successor…”

Hwang Jung-hoo looked at Jo Gyu-min and laughed as if it were absurd.

Jo Gyu-min noticed something strange.

The expression on Hwang Jung-hoo’s face, which had been laughing as if it were truly ridiculous, began to change little by little. The initial childish absurdity disappeared, and a seriousness slowly began to creep in.

“A successor?”

There was a reason why Jo Gyu-min had said that.

Originally, it would have been unimaginable, but now it was entirely possible.

Hwang Jung-hoo had personally ousted all three of his sons.

It wasn’t just his sons. Hwang Jung-hoo had cut off all the blood relatives under him. Currently, the Jae-kyung Group was being maintained solely by Hwang Jung-hoo.

Hwang Jung-hoo was seventy years old. No matter how healthy he was, he was at an age where he couldn’t know what would happen in five years. So, he couldn’t help but think about a successor.

He could entrust the management to a professional manager, but Jae-kyung was a group that had been built and grown by Hwang Jung-hoo’s charisma. It would be difficult for any ordinary professional manager to handle it.

However, after ousting his sons, he immediately began investigating Kang Jin-ho, and then went to Kang Jin-ho and declared him his grandson. This series of actions seemed as if he was laying the groundwork for a succession plan for Kang Jin-ho.

“A successor, a successor… Well, it’s not impossible.”

Hwang Jung-hoo chuckled and patted Jo Gyu-min on the shoulder.

“It’s still uncertain, but there’s definitely a possibility. So, assist him well.”

“Yes!”

“This is a task that will be of utmost importance until I die. Considering your recent work and the fact that you’re still young, I’m entrusting it to you.”

“Don’t worry.”

“You must think of him as me.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

Hwang Jung-hoo’s eyes, as he looked at Jo Gyu-min, were extremely serious.

Hwang Jung-hoo’s words clearly implied that he might make Kang Jin-ho his successor.

If that were to happen, Jo Gyu-min, who had been assisting Kang Jin-ho since he was young, would also become a key figure in the Jae-kyung Group.

‘Not a bad development.’

The line he had grabbed last time was a rotten rope, but this time it was a sturdy steel chain.

Jo Gyu-min had no intention of missing this opportunity either.

“It’s the chairman’s order. If you have any inconveniences, please let me know anytime.”

“Yes.”

“If you need it, please tell me. I will escort you to and from school.”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“No. I ride my bicycle.”

“Ah, the bicycle! I should have mentioned it sooner. I’ve already prepared a bicycle for you.”

“Already?”

“I’ve acquired the best model that could be obtained immediately in the country.”

Kang Jin-ho followed Jo Gyu-min into the chairman’s office.

Inside the chairman’s office, there was a bicycle with a light gray frame.

“It’s assembled, but you’ll have to adjust it to fit your body.”

“Why put a bicycle indoors?”

“It’s expensive. I’m not the one paying for it, but I’m just an ordinary office worker, so my hands are shaking.”

“Expensive?”

“It’s the top-of-the-line Italian Bianchi model.”

“Sounds like a woman’s name.”

“But the performance is real.”

“How expensive is it?”

Jo Gyu-min looked out the window and pointed to a mid-sized sedan.

“Do you see that?”

“Yes.”

“This is more expensive.”

“……”

Kang Jin-ho looked at the bicycle several times, as if he couldn’t quite grasp it.

“Are you saying that car you just pointed at?”

“Yes, that car.”

“So, this is more expensive than that car?” Jo Gyu-min pointed at the bicycle.

“This is more expensive.”

“……”

Kang Jin-ho asked a very natural question that any normal person would ask.

“What kind of bicycle is more expensive than a car!”

Jo Gyu-min smiled with a relaxed face and replied.

“I thought my heart would stop when I went to pay with the corporate card. It’s not even my money, but my hands were trembling.”

His answer wasn’t so relaxed?

Kang Jin-ho stared at the bicycle in front of him.

The sleek, streamlined design looked somewhat luxurious.

But what on earth was the reason for buying this hunk of metal for more than a car?

“Are there people who actually buy this?”

“If they sell it, there must be.”

“Is that so?”

“It’s common in the world of road bikes.”

“It’s an incomprehensible world.”

“Is it?”

“Yes?”

“I think Mr. Kang Jin-ho has also felt it before. A little faster, a little stronger. Even when playing games, you want to win, and people want to do better. If you have money, wouldn’t you invest it to increase the speed of your bicycle?”

It was somewhat understandable. Kang Jin-ho had also forgotten to eat and sleep while focusing on games after losing a bet.

“It’s a subtle world.”

“Once you fall in, they say you can’t escape. That’s why I bought this and ran away.”

“Wise.”

“You flatter me.”

Jo Gyu-min smiled as he looked at the bicycle.

“Well, now the question remains where to store this bicycle, which is more expensive than a car…”

“Is storage also a problem?”

“If someone recognizes it, they’ll try to cut the lock and take it.”

Why would they go that far….

At Kang Jin-ho’s questioning gaze, Jo Gyu-min answered firmly.

“Because it’s expensive.”

“In many ways…”

Kang Jin-ho looked at the bicycle with a dissatisfied expression.

It was a bicycle that was unsatisfactory in many ways.

“I don’t think I should accept it.”

“Why is that? Because it’s expensive?”

“That’s part of it…”

Kang Jin-ho looked at the bicycle with a very uncomfortable gaze. If this was more expensive than a car, then Kang Jin-ho was essentially receiving a car for free. Who wouldn’t feel burdened?

“Would this amount of money be a burden to the chairman?”

“Ugh.”

Kang Jin-ho scratched his head. He was getting back the same words he had said to his father yesterday.

“Even if it were ten times more expensive, it would be nothing more than buying a toy for his grandson from the chairman’s perspective. Just accept it.”

“Sigh…”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

“For now, let’s keep it in the chairman’s office. When you come to school, you can keep it in here, and at home, you can keep it indoors.”

“A bicycle indoors?”

“Are you planning to let it get rained on?”

“Hmm…”

The car outside must be worth at least twenty million won [approximately $15,000 USD]?

Then this bicycle is… hmm….

“Please treat it with care.”

Kang Jin-ho let out a hollow laugh.

Kang Jin-ho named this expensive and useless bicycle Goldie.

It meant that even if it were made of gold, it wouldn’t be this expensive.

“And after school, let’s go somewhere together.”

“Where to?”

“To the Seongsim Orphanage.”

“To the orphanage?”

“You requested a new building to be built, right? The sooner, the better. Let’s go discuss it.”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“There’s nothing I can do even if I go.”

“Isn’t it something that Mr. Kang Jin-ho requested?”

“That’s true, but I don’t know much about that place. And I don’t know about the location or the property values. It’s better to have an expert. Please take care of it.”

“Then I will proceed with it.”

“Yes.”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Jo Gyu-min. It was a question of whether there was anything else to discuss.

“That’s all I had to report.”

“Then.”

Kang Jin-ho walked out of the chairman’s office. Jo Gyu-min watched Kang Jin-ho leave, his eyes gleaming.

He was definitely a strange person.

Nevertheless, he had a clear sense of closure and a charm that drew people in.

‘He’s similar to the chairman.’

He could understand why Chairman Hwang Jung-hoo liked Kang Jin-ho.

After school.

Kang Jin-ho went to the chairman’s office and took out the bicycle.

“It’s light, indeed.”

Even though he had carried the bicycle down the stairs, it felt as light as a toy.

“Hmm…”

Kang Jin-ho placed the bicycle on the ground and got on. He adjusted the seat position and lightly pedaled.

The bicycle moved forward smoothly without any noise.

It only took one light push, and it glided forward surprisingly smoothly.

“This?”

Kang Jin-ho pedaled a couple of times. It definitely felt like it was moving further and with less wasted effort.

Not a bad feeling.

“Is it worth the money?”

But soon, Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

That was ridiculous.

For this bicycle to be worth the money, it would have to run on nitro or be able to fly in an emergency. Otherwise, it could never be said to be worth the money.

It was common for astronomical amounts of money to be spent on even the slightest differences when all fields reached their limits. But he still couldn’t shake off the aversion.

He had accepted it since it was given to him, but….

‘Should I just get a motorcycle instead?’

With this money, he could buy a good motorcycle. But Kang Jin-ho didn’t feel like riding a motorcycle.

Kang Jin-ho still had an unusual aversion to things that moved by something other than human power. Besides, he liked the feeling of the bicycle responding every time he pedaled.

If he simply wanted to enjoy speed, Kang Jin-ho would be faster running than using either a bicycle or a motorcycle.

“But…”

There was something he didn’t like.

“Oh, Jin-ho?”

Kang Jin-ho looked at Park Yu-min, who was limping as he walked out.

“You changed your bicycle?”

Kang Jin-ho’s brow furrowed.

It was unnecessarily expensive and not practical at all.

“Follow me.”

“Huh?”

“I said follow me.”

Park Yu-min followed Kang Jin-ho, not knowing what was going on.

Kang Jin-ho slowly pulled the bicycle and headed to the bicycle shop in front of the school.

“Mister.”

“Oh, yes. Welcome…”

The bicycle shop owner’s eyes widened when he saw Kang Jin-ho’s bicycle.

“Is, is that a Bianchi frame?”

“That’s what I heard…”

“It looks like a high-end model?”

“That’s what they said.”

“You’re rich. Our shop doesn’t handle such high-end products, so we don’t get to see them often. Wow, it’s like a product I’ve only seen in pictures… No, is this the top-of-the-line model?”

The bicycle shop owner rushed to the bicycle as if pushing Kang Jin-ho away, and began to examine it from every angle.

“Hmm…”

He fiddled with the bicycle for a long time, ignoring his customer, and then stepped back and even started taking pictures.

“Mister.”

Kang Jin-ho, unable to watch any longer, called out to the owner, who just smiled sheepishly.

“Ah, sorry. It’s so rare and ridiculously expensive… no, well… um… yes, is there any problem? We don’t have the parts for a product like this in our shop. Whatever you do, you’ll have to order them separately.”

Kang Jin-ho said nonchalantly.

“Please install a seat.”

“You’re changing the seat? We don’t have such high-end seats here. What model do you want? Should I order it for you? It’ll take about three days.”

“No. Please install a tandem seat.”

At Kang Jin-ho’s nonchalant request, the shop owner’s eyes wavered.