Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 238

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“That sounds about right.”

Gloria said in a quiet tone, watching Beom-seok pick up sweet and sour pork from a plate.

“I think the annual net profit is probably around 1.2 billion krang…”

Beom-seok looked surprised. 1.2 billion krang was about the same as the annual net profit of Rainbow Group, which had a capital ratio of over 60 billion.

“1.2 billion? That’s quite a lot.”

“Yes. It’s the most luxurious hotel representing the Avand region. If we buy it, our Rainbow Group will grow significantly.”

Beom-seok calmly put down his fork and smiled gently. There was no way he couldn’t understand her intentions.

“Huhu. So, you’re saying you want to buy it?”

“Of course. But there are many problems, so it will be difficult. There was also the bond recovery incident last time.”

“How much do you need?”

Gloria opened her mouth with wide eyes.

“About 16 billion krang. But is it okay to buy it?”

“Yes. If it’s not too much of a burden, go ahead.”

Gloria looked at him with incomprehension at the unexpected agreement. Beom-seok’s previous position was to reduce Rainbow Group’s debt as much as possible. But now he was telling her to buy a 16 billion krang hotel without hesitation, which didn’t make sense. Gloria had reduced the group’s debt to 21 billion krang with his advice.

“Are you sure it’s okay? If LHN [Lik Hang Network, a financial group] pulls another trick, it will be a big problem, right?”

“It’s okay. LHN won’t attack Rainbow Group anymore. In fact, they might even help with this hotel deal.”

“Why would they?”

Beom-seok was reluctant to reveal the honest truth, so he slightly distorted the situation. There was no need to create animosity between the women he was sleeping with. He decided to blame the last incident on a third party.

“Ah. Well, it turns out that the incident was a big mistake on LHN’s part. Some of the high-ranking employees were manipulated by Vice Chairman Hobbes.”

“Who is Vice Chairman Hobbes?”

“He’s the group vice chairman of Unique Bank.”

Gloria bit her lip. Unique, their main transaction bank, had stabbed them in the back, not just betrayed them, but led the charge. Her anger surged again.

“Why did he target our Rainbow Group?”

“To secure slush funds [secret or illicit money]. It seems he was trying to fill his pockets with the scraps from dismantling Rainbow Group. The other creditor banks believed that Rainbow Group was in dire straits because our main transaction bank said so, and they actively cooperated to recover as much of their bonds as possible.”

“I see. No wonder the other banks were so ruthless. We had no choice but to trust our main transaction bank when they pulled such a trick.”

Beom-seok cut a piece of steak on his plate and said,

“Anyway, LHN is quite sorry about what happened. They ended up leading the charge and causing significant damage to Rainbow Group. If you talk to them well, you might be able to get a loan at a low interest rate.”

“Really?”

“Yes. If you want, I can introduce you to a high-ranking LHN official I met while investigating the whole situation.”

“Who?”

“Aula, Chairman Valbar’s granddaughter, or Executive Director Ride of LHN Bank.”

Gloria smiled brightly. With that level of position and status, they could exert tremendous influence on LHN Bank. She was sure she could secure the necessary funds at a low interest rate.

Filled with anticipation and hope for the future, she smiled pleasantly. If she acquired the Rimaster Hotel, she could end the current austerity management and expect a net income of more than 2.6 billion krang per year.

“Beom-seok, please introduce me.”

“Hahaha. Yes, I will. Then let me know when you have some free time. I’ll make an appointment.”

“Yes. Thank you. Please take care of it.”

After finishing their business, Beom-seok and Gloria had many conversations on various topics. The main focus was on the future direction of Rainbow Group. He advised her to expand the business but operate the company in a way that increased her personal wealth. Although it was hidden beneath the surface, there were many challenges that could arise at any time, so holding cash was essential. From economic organizations to the Black Society, he had too many enemies.

After a while, Beom-seok frowned as Emma opened the door to the buffet restaurant and entered. As a member of the Gods Knights, there was no direct relationship, but the problem was the annoying tail she dragged behind her.

‘Come to think of it, tomorrow’s game is the Blue Birds versus Black Cats rivalry. Tsk. The distance is close, so she could have come on the day of the game. This is troublesome.’

The person Emma brought in was none other than Chairman Lucas, a member of the Black Society. Meeting him would not be helpful, so he was reluctant to greet him. Beom-seok pretended not to notice and focused on his meal. However, Chairman Lucas had not come to this place for no reason. He approached him and spoke with a welcoming smile on his face.

“Beom-seok. It’s been a while.”

Since he came right up to him, Beom-seok couldn’t pretend not to notice. He looked at him and asked how he was doing.

“Yes. How have you been?”

“Can I sit down?”

Since it was difficult to refuse, Beom-seok allowed it.

“Yes. Please sit down.”

“Thank you.”

Beom-seok glanced at Emma, who was sitting down with him, and sighed deeply.

“Huu~ Chairman Lucas. You seem to have a lot of free time lately. You must be busy with your main business, but you’re so attached to the Black Cats team.”

“Huhu. I can’t help it. It will be our Black Society’s new business, so I have to put in some effort, right?”

“I guess so. But there’s no need to come to Rima City today, the day before the game, is there?”

Lucas, who sensed the cold tone, opened his mouth calmly.

“That’s true, but I have some business with the Avand Association. Chairman Brian said there’s something important to discuss.”

“Ah. Is that so? Then why aren’t you there?”

“Hmm. I’m actually coming from there now.”

Beom-seok looked disappointed. If he hadn’t met him yet, he could have used that as an excuse to kick him out.

“I see. Then you should rest comfortably. What brings you here?”

Lucas stared at him, feeling unwelcome.

“Why? Are you uncomfortable with me being here?”

“It’s just a casual dinner, so I’m not uncomfortable. I’m just saying that there’s no good reason for us to meet outside like this. Now that the Gods Knights and the Black Cats team are not in the same league, we can’t really make up an excuse for meeting.”

“Don’t worry about that. There won’t be any problems caused by Emma anymore. The economic organizations have given up on eliminating the Ministry of Education’s free surgery project. The economy has improved a lot recently, and the Ministry of Culture and Sports has also started free body modification surgery, so their justification is very weak.”

Beom-seok had noticed this as well. The economic organizations had been too quiet lately. There was the Rainbow Group incident, but Aula said it was Julian’s sole doing. However, there was no need to reveal it.

“Ah, is that so? That’s a relief.”

“But it’s not over yet. We need to firmly establish our Black Society in the fighting world in this gap, in case they attack again. That way, we can properly block the pressure from the economic organizations that you might face.”

‘Hmph. For your new source of money, right?’

Beom-seok smiled slightly, mocking him inwardly.

“Huhu. It’s kind of you, but there’s no need to overdo it. I’m not so weak that I’ll be swayed by them.”

Lucas looked at him intently and said in a serious tone.

“That’s true. I heard that you single-handedly crushed the economic organizations’ plot this time.”

Beom-seok pointed at himself with his finger and asked at the unexpected words.

“Me? What?”

“The incident at the Chaplin family’s mansion last time. It turns out that if things had gone wrong, LHN Financial Group would have joined the economic organizations. It was very dangerous.”

“Oh, is that so? That would have been a big problem.”

Lucas stared at him with sunken eyes. There was no way Beom-seok didn’t know about it.

“Didn’t you really know? Our Emma said that you went to Aula on the last day and revealed the truth in front of several elders. You said that the economic organizations had used several illegal methods to bring in LHN Financial Group.”

Beom-seok rested his chin on his hand and glanced at Emma. He had been paying attention to her just in case, and as expected, several incidents that occurred in the team were entering the Black Society through her mouth. Whether she was acting as a spy or the words were flowing out unintentionally, it was a very worrying situation.

He really thought that Emma’s capture was very urgent. Fortunately, her favorability had recently skyrocketed, and it seemed that he would be able to bring her to his side soon, but he needed to shorten the time a little more.

“Ah. That happened. Yes. I remember.”

“So you knew. But why didn’t you tell us that fact? If Chairman Valbar had sided with them, we would have been in great danger.”

“I didn’t particularly intend not to tell you. Emma was there at the time, so I thought she would tell you. And since the incident was over, there was no need to worry about it. Is there a problem?”

He was a little suspicious, but there wasn’t much of a problem. Emma was also a member of the Black Society, so if she knew the details, it was safe to assume that the Black Society knew as well.

“Hmm. I guess so.”

“But did you come all the way here to ask that question?”

“That’s not it. Actually, I came to ask you for a favor.”

Beom-seok, with his eyes half-closed, stared at Lucas. He thought he might be asking for match-fixing again. But after thinking about it, it was impossible. As you know, the Black Cats and Gods Knights are in different leagues.

“A favor? What favor could the chairman possibly ask of me?”

“I heard that you became friends with Vice Chairman Lewis of the Federal Pro Fighting Association through the last incident. Can you arrange a meeting with him?”

Beom-seok looked at him with disgust. He couldn’t possibly like the sight of him trying to play both sides. Vice Chairman Lewis was in competition with Vice Chairman Cooper, whom the Black Society was actively cooperating with. Chairman Brian of the Avand region, whom he said he met today, was also in their line.

“Why? Are you dissatisfied with Vice Chairman Cooper?”

“Well, there are some aspects, but there’s no special reason. I’m just thinking of broadening the scope of my friendships.”

“Ah. Then ask Vice Chairman Cooper directly. He’s more familiar with Vice Chairman Lewis than I am.”

At those words, Lucas made a troubled expression and stammered.

“That won’t work. The Cooper faction and the Lewis faction are in competition. As soon as he hears my request, he’ll send suspicious glances.”

“I guess so. Alright. I’ll arrange a meeting soon.”

“Huhu. Thank you. Please take care of it.”

“Yes. Don’t worry.”

Unexpectedly, Beom-seok easily arranged a meeting between the Black Society and Vice Chairman Lewis. It would benefit him, and there would be no harm.

Vice Chairman Lewis was anticipating that the Black Society would betray Vice Chairman Cooper because of what he had said in the past. Although he desperately wanted it, he was very displeased with their planned actions. So, he was planning to unite with other factions to completely alienate the Black Society within the Fighting Association. However, anticipation was just anticipation, and he couldn’t be sure that the Black Society would do such a thing. No matter how plausibly he had embellished it, there was no way that the veteran Vice Chairman Lewis, who had experienced harsh storms for a long time, would believe it as it was.

But humans are beings who, once they harbor suspicion towards someone, continue to look at them with a crooked eye. This aspect became even more prominent as they got older. If the Black Society were to hear the offer to meet secretly, Vice Chairman Lewis’s suspicion would grow, and the truth of what he had said would be further highlighted.

And also, with this incident, Beom-seok had gained a great weapon. It was the video information about the meeting between Vice Chairman Lewis and Lucas. If Vice Chairman Cooper saw the picture of them secretly meeting, he would make a worthwhile face.

Not knowing Beom-seok’s intentions, Lucas’s face became cheerful.

“Hahaha. By the way, has the Gods Knights had any difficulties lately? If so, tell me. I’ll help you with all my might.”

‘Just don’t stab me in the back, you bastard.’

Beom-seok, who had composed his expression, said gently.