I’M A Max-Level Regressor [EN]: Chapter 109

109. The Interview

Some time later.

Thanks to taking the shortcut and heading south, Ju Cheon-ho and the Black Cross Society suffered minimal casualties.

Boooom!

As he drove away in the pre-arranged car, Ju Cheon-ho glanced back at the North Daejeon Black Zone.

“Hmm…”

Noticing Ju Cheon-ho’s repeated glances, Jeong Man-chun, the fourth-in-command, sitting in the passenger seat, inquired, “Chief, who were you fighting?”

“Kang Shin-hwa.”

“Kang Shin-hwa… Isn’t that the bastard who did that to Seong-yeong, hyung-nim [older brother or respected colleague]?”

“That’s right. It’s him.”

“Were you chasing him?”

“No. I went to scout and see the faces of those who came straight to the 7th Black Tower. But Kang Shin-hwa sensed my presence and immediately gave chase.”

“He sensed the Chief’s presence?”

“Yeah. If he hadn’t, he wouldn’t have been able to chase me from a position where he couldn’t possibly pinpoint me.”

“That slippery bastard! Chief, next time, leave him to me. I’ll finish off Kang Shin-hwa.”

“No, Man-chun, you need to be careful too. He’s no ordinary guy. Park Hyeong-san died at his hands.”

“Yes…?”

Jeong Man-chun was taken aback.

Of course, he knew that Park Hyeong-san, the head of Jeil Construction, had died.

However, he had only received the report, so he had assumed it was an assassination by a top-level KSA [Korean Special Ability association] agent.

“He had Park Hyeong-san’s Blink Ring. If I hadn’t known how to counter Blink, the impact might have been significant.”

“That’s impossible.”

“Are you doubting my eyes?”

“It’s not that, but Park Hyeong-san isn’t skilled enough to be killed by a B or C-rank scrub, is he?”

“He must have been careless. And Kang Shin-hwa took advantage of that carelessness to take Park Hyeong-san’s life in one blow.”

Ju Cheon-ho closed his eyes and replayed the battle with Shin-hwa.

Clearly, despite the overwhelming difference in rank, Shin-hwa fiercely pushed him.

Ju Cheon-ho, just hearing those three names was enough to make most Awakened ones tremble.

But Shin-hwa seemed unaffected by Ju Cheon-ho’s notoriety.

Rather, Ju Cheon-ho was more on the defensive than he had thought, and in the end, he even allowed a surprise attack.

“…….”

In the silence, his chest trembled.

It had been a long time since he had met an Awakened one who fought evenly with him without backing down. It had been a long time since he had drawn blood, too.

‘Is this an unavoidable bad relationship?’

Ju Cheon-ho recalled his connection with Shin-hwa, which had started to go wrong with Jang Seong-yeong’s case, and gave an unknown smile.

He had a feeling that his relationship with him would not end with just one or two short encounters.

“Where shall we go?”

“Go to Moonlight’s main base. We need to quickly take over those guys who have lost their leader.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Boooom!

The long line of armed vehicles carrying Ju Cheon-ho and the Black Cross Society members headed south.

The target was Moonlight.

* * *

After regrettably ending the chase with Ju Cheon-ho in a draw.

I left the North Daejeon Black Zone with the Yanghwa Guild.

There was nothing more to do since the cleanup was already done, and the aftermath was the KSA’s responsibility.

And the moment I stepped into the photo line set up on the outskirts of the Black Zone.

The line of reporters, so numerous that it felt meaningless to count them, surrounded me.

I usually didn’t respond to press conferences or interviews because they were annoying, but this time I agreed because I had a purpose.

‘I need to properly promote my products. It’s time to start some competition.’

The two products I am currently making and the one I will be making soon.

I was planning to promote all three of them properly.

One impressive interview has a much greater ripple effect than dozens of articles.

It’s the age of video, not text, and I want to borrow that power for sure.

“I’ll go do an interview.”

As I was about to step towards the reporters, Jin Bo-mi asked with a worried expression.

“Shin-hwa, are you okay? You hate this kind of thing, don’t you?”

“I have something to say this time. I’ve thought of everything I want to say.”

“Okay.”

I got out of the car carrying the executives of the Yanghwa Guild and headed to the podium that had been prepared in advance.

Then, as if they had been waiting, the reporters raised their hands and began to bombard me with questions.

“It’s been reported that Kang Shin-hwa killed Park Hyeong-san and Jeil Construction’s head! How was that possible?”

“It was a victory of strategy. It’s also the power of variables that overturn common sense.”

After all, they don’t want to hear a long, drawn-out heroic tale.

They only want stimulating and concise sentences that can be used as the main keywords or titles of articles.

So, instead of bragging with an ‘old man’ smell, I answered with a simple impression.

“There’s been a huge uproar in the Awakened community because you rescued Daejeon Branch Manager Han Seung-taek! How did you know that Branch Manager Han Seung-taek was in the 7th Black Tower?”

“Park Hyeong-san was the one who had secured a position in the tower in advance. I guessed from that.”

Click, click! Click!

The camera flashes kept going off.

The only weakness of my modified eyes is that they are vulnerable to ‘eye strain’.

My eyes are immune to distortion, illusion, and darkness, but the camera flashes from all directions were an exception.

Thanks to that, I could barely open my eyes halfway for a long time before I could finally look straight ahead.

Damn it, I feel like a lot of embarrassing photos were taken.

“There’s already a lot of interest in the Awakened community about Kang Shin-hwa’s heroic and righteous actions through pre-reporting! Are you aware of this?”

“Haha, I just got out of the Black Zone, there’s no way I would know.”

Seeing what the reporter was saying, it seemed that the rumors had already spread.

Well, this interview is being broadcast live, so there’s no need to say anything more.

“Would you like to say something? There are many Awakened ones who are interested in Kang Shin-hwa’s righteous actions, including the incident in Jeju Island!”

Righteous actions…

Well, not really… I wasn’t trying to pursue justice.

To be honest, I came here because I was drawn to the bounties and artifacts of key figures, including Park Hyeong-san.

I just came because there was something to eat and had a ‘meal’, but it felt awkward to call that ‘justice’.

It felt like I had done an unintentional good deed?

In the past, now, and in the future, I am not interested in realizing justice or protecting world peace.

It’s not my job, and I’m not capable of doing it.

Isn’t it very important to know your place? Nicholas is perfect for this, and there is no other alternative!

“Please say something!”

“I’m really curious!”

When I didn’t answer for a while, lost in thought, the reporters rushed to ask again.

Perhaps the words I was about to say would decorate the finale of all the articles.

‘Nicholas, let’s use some of the lines you wrote.’

Nicholas was the one who was so good at making comments.

I’m the type who only says the facts briefly, so I’m not used to packaging things nicely.

“…….”

I took a short breath.

I stared at all the reporters one by one, giving them enough time to capture me on the screen.

And after some time, I continued the last words in a calm voice.

“Heroes are not far away. Are you feeling your heart burning as you look at me now? If so, then you are the heroes of this era. The great challenge of ordinary people. That’s where the hero’s story begins.”

And with my mouth shut, I continued the ‘beauty of silence’ that Nicholas used to enjoy.

It was a truly cunning interview method that left a long afterglow by keeping silent after making a big comment.

* * *

In the subsequent interviews, Shin-hwa made sure to inform everyone about his products.

In particular, the Enhancement Potion was a new product that even his affiliated guild, Yanghwa Guild, didn’t know about.

That’s because until now, he had been secretly supplying it only to the WSA [World Superhuman Association].

‘Damn it, this will make the price go up.’

Marina’s eyebrows were furrowed as she watched Shin-hwa’s interview at home.

As a seller, it was a clever choice, but this would likely cause the price of Enhancement Potions to skyrocket.

Sure enough.

Hoping against hope, she accessed the portal site, and all the top search terms were already dominated by Shin-hwa-related keywords.

[Kang Shin-hwa]

[Top-Level Magic Potion]

[Enhancement Potion]

[Enhancement Potion Price]

[Identification Glasses]

“This is a disaster.”

Marina didn’t think that Shin-hwa would exclusively supply Enhancement Potions to the WSA forever.

However, if the situation spread like this, the WSA would lose its leadership and be dragged along.

If the purchase only led to a battle of capital, only Shin-hwa would benefit.

“Enhancement Potion, Identification Glasses.

We are planning to open dedicated windows for these two production items starting March 1st.

I am planning to do an exclusive interview with reporter Park Hyun soon about what form the windows will take. Please keep that in mind.”

A unilateral notice.

She was embarrassed, but since Shin-hwa had all the control over the sales, there was nowhere to complain.

“I thought I had built up quite a bit of friendship… He’s really a person who clearly distinguishes between public and private matters.”

Marina pressed her throbbing forehead.

If this happens, she will have to change her approach to Enhancement Potions and increase her budget.

Of course, hoping for the best… she is thinking of subtly asking Shin-hwa to sell them.

As the possibility of realization is low.

Tooo- Toooo-.

Marian couldn’t help but grumble and contact the VVIP.

* * *

In the car coming up to Seoul.

Yoon Tae-ho and Seo Ye-hee were coming in the car driven by Jeong-hoon.

Shin-hwa was sitting in the passenger seat of the car driven by Jin Bo-mi, quietly looking out the window and spending time.

How long had he been intoxicated by Jin Bo-mi’s classical music, which always showed a good sense of selection?

Just as he was getting used to the silence, Jin Bo-mi lowered the volume and opened her mouth.

The beginning was cautious, but that didn’t mean that her voice was down.

“I was really surprised when I heard the interview about the products earlier! Are Enhancement Potions and Identification Glasses really producible items?”

“It’s possible. Would I be staging a national fraud in front of reporters?”

“If we ask you to give our guild the exclusive sales rights to the remaining items… I guess that wouldn’t work?”

“The Yanghwa Guild is already having a hard time selling the Top-Level Magic Potions. It’s okay.”

“In the end… you’ve decided on an independent route, Shin-hwa.”

“If you think about it coldly, it will be helpful to the guild that I am not affiliated with the Yanghwa Guild.”

“Why?”

Jin Bo-mi couldn’t understand.

Thanks to Shin-hwa, interest in the Yanghwa Guild and its stock price were soaring day by day.

In addition, there were still many inquiries about purchasing Top-Level Magic Potions through various channels.

Shin-hwa replied in a calm and serious voice.

“Because the production and business that I will be doing in the future may attract the attention of high-ranking people.”

“High-ranking people?”