Descent of the Demon Master

-I'm happy about our sales going up, but… Hyung-nim, isn't the quantity of your order a bit… too much?

Jo Gyu-Min asked on the phone. He sounded slightly worried.

Lee Hyeon-Su cocked an eyebrow. "What can I do about it when that's how many we need?"

-Unfortunately, we don't have enough stock to match your order. Manufacturing all the items will take some time, you see? We will need around a week to meet your order, but will that be okay with you?

"Listen, Jo Gyu-Min."

-Yes, I'm listening.

"I wouldn't have called you if I was fine with a one-week wait, okay?" Lee Hyeon-Su tutted in annoyance. "Why would I have contacted you in that case, man?"

-Uh, because of our friendship?

"Friendship, my ass," Lee Hyeon-Su grunted, his annoyance level rising quickly. "I could've contacted plenty of other companies if the time frame was not an issue, okay? Let's be real, man. If I had gone to any other outlet and ordered that many tablets, folks working there would've polished the floor I walk on with their tongues!"

"I called you to get this done as quickly as possible, yet you're talking about a week? Are you for real right now?"

-What can I do when we don't have stock, hyung-nim? Having that many unsold items in a warehouse means your company is going down the drain, you know?

"Then, hurry up and manufacture them!"

-Come on, now. Operating a factory isn't as simple as that, hyung-nim.

"Fine. Fine! I'm canceling this order. I'll take care of…"

-Ehheii~! It's not good to have such a short temper, hyung-nim. What you're asking me is incredibly challenging, but do not forget who I am! I'm Jo Gyu-Min, hyung-nim. There is nothing I can't do.

"...Gimme a freaking break."

Lee Hyeon-Su felt the onset of a migraine. Talking to Jo Gyu-Min on the phone had this unfortunate effect of raising Lee Hyeon-Su's blood pressure to a dangerous level!

What rotten luck it was for him to run into a sly, snarky punk like Jo Gyu-Min.

'Since he's super-competent, I can't even bite his head off, either…!'

Lee Hyeon-Su might criticize Jo Gyu-Min every time they talked to each other, but that didn't mean he failed to recognize the latter's capabilities. Being able to control a large corporation like Jaegyeong to do his bidding at such a young age was undoubtedly a monumental achievement.

The story didn't change whether Kang Jin-Ho was backing Jo Gyu-Min or not. After all, businesspeople were a pragmatic group.

Kang Jin-Ho's backing wouldn't have made much difference if Jaegyeong's boss didn't acknowledge Jo Gyu-Min's capabilities. He would've dealt directly with Kang Jin-Ho rather than granting such immense authority to a young whippersnapper.

However, what about Lee Hyeon-Su? Since he was more or less running the Martial Assembly as its top manager, he didn't fall behind Jo Gyu-Min in terms of authority and societal influence. One could even say Lee Hyeon-Su was far ahead of Jo Gyu-Min in those aspects.

Unfortunately, Lee Hyeon-Su was not confident of reaching the same heights as Jo Gyu-Min if he found himself in a similar situation. So, he should be… No, they should be respecting each other's boundaries and territories, but this…!

-I'm only doing this for you since you're my hyung-nim. Please remember that.

"What the hell?! Am I the only customer you have?! Is that it! Forget it! I'm not buying them from you! I'm gonna call Sam*ung right now!"

-Ehhei~! Don't be like that, hyung-nim! Why are you being so small-minded?

Actual steam began rising from Lee Hyeon-Su's forehead. He had so, so many things he wanted to get off his chest… But he also didn't want to talk to this a-hole anymore than necessary!

"Fine, fine! Whatever, man. Just do it as quickly as possible. How about three days? Can you do it?"

-Honestly? It will be difficult, but you know me. I will make it happen.

"Sure. Sure. Whatever."

Lee Hyeon-Su ended the call and leaned back against his chair.

'Why is this punk so unshakable?'

Lee Hyeon-Su insulted Jo Gyu-Min. Hell, he even beat the latter up not too long ago! Even so, Jo Gyu-Min's attitude remained resolute. Utterly unchanging!

Such steadfast determination usually deserved a heap of praise, but…

'Now I get how sick and tired a demon king must feel when a so-called brave hero never gives up and keeps challenging him.'

What a massive headache it was to be targeted by a man who never gave up or changed his stance and doggedly attacked no matter what was done to him.

Lee Hyeon-Su grew sympathetic toward the plight of all demon kings out there while recalling Jo Gyu-Min's detestable smiling mug.

"Tsk…" Lee Hyeon-Su shook his head, then pressed the intercom button. "Hey. Tell Cheon Tae-Hun to come and see me."

***

"Did you call for me, sir?" Cheon Tae-Hun asked after entering Lee Hyeon-Su's office.

"Yeah," Lee Hyeon-Su replied, still sounding a little agitated. "Your tablets will arrive in three days."

"Three days?" Cheon Tae-Hun blinked his eyes.

"Yeah. I tried my best, but…"

"That's sooner than I thought, sir."

"...Huh?" Lee Hyeon-Su slightly tilted his head.

Cheon Tae-Hun quickly explained his position. "Considering the manufacturing output, I figured Jaegyeong wouldn't have enough stock for us. So I was thinking it might take as long as two weeks."

"...Oh. Really?" Lee Hyeon-Su's head tilting intensified. Did that mean Jo Gyu-Min had been telling the truth about making it happen especially for Lee Hyeon-Su? It seemed Lee Hyeon-Su had been mistaken about Jo Gyu-Min deliberately yanking his chain.

Lee Hyeon-Su narrowed his eyes. "Didn't you say you'll start your lessons in two days?"

Cheon Tae-Hun nodded. "Yes, sir. I did. We can use our phones in the meantime, though?"

"…Oh."

"In this day and age, everyone should already have a smartphone or two. If someone doesn't, they can always use their computer at home."

"Then… Why are we even distributing tablets?"

"That's because there will be physical demonstrations. I figured watching it on a bigger screen should be easier to follow."

"Well, yeah. You have a point there…"

"I know this request came out of nowhere. But we need this, sir. That's why… Thank you for your hard work."

"No, well, no need to thank me for it…" Lee Hyeon-Su sheepishly scratched his head.

His job was to manage the Martial Assembly's operation. At least, that was what the simplified job description said.

In reality, Lee Hyeon-Su's actual job was to manage the Assembly's various business interests to smooth out the flow of funds, then use said funds to support the Assembly members and their training. His ultimate goal was for the Assembly to increase its combat strength as painlessly as possible.

Since what Cheon Tae-Hun wanted to do was a part of that strengthening process, Lee Hyeon-Su would obviously help out to the best of his abilities. Even Lee Hyeon-Ju had no problem giving her approval for this venture, too.

"Before I forget… I had a couple of questions to ask you," said Lee Hyeon-Su.

"I see. Please ask away, sir."

"Mm…" Lee Hyeon-Su frowned slightly while scratching his cheek.

'Yup, it's still a bit uncomfortable.'

Lee Hyeon-Su was more or less fine with Yi Myeong-Hwan and others now, but dealing with Cheon Tae-Hun was still a bit uncomfortable for him.

He was Kim Seok-Il's right-hand man, while Cheon Tae-Hun was Bang Jin-Hun's disciple. Obviously, their past relationship had never been… good.

Lee Hyeon-Su knew it was time to bury the hatchet and work together in this new era. Unfortunately, the world didn't always operate according to ideals and theories.

There wasn't much Lee Hyeon-Su could do about this wariness. Besides, he got a feeling that Cheon Tae-Hun found this situation even more uncomfortable, which only made it harder for them to discuss this topic frankly with each other.

"So, uh… How is everyone doing?" Lee Hyeon-Su cautiously asked.

"Sir? I'm not quite sure what you are referring to."

"You know. Like the overall atmosphere. Stuff like that."

"It's obviously not great, sir. As you should know already."

"...Is that so?" Lee Hyeon-Su asked back, his response indicating that he wanted more details.

Cheon Tae-Hun sighed and continued to speak. "People are obviously unhappy, sir. We've been minding our own business and devoting ourselves to training, then many events happened one after the other without any warning. And then, folks we think of as our friends and comrades are full of anticipation about learning something new, but we're getting left behind."

"…"

"We've tried to be patient, but then, the bloody Chinese suddenly barged into our home and began causing public nuisance everywhere they went."

Lee Hyeon-Su frowned a little. "...Oh. Sorry about that."

"While we're playing roommates with cockroaches in the old dorms by the foot of the mountain, those Chinese are busy building new homes for themselves."

"…"

"Still, it's all good, sir. We can hold ourselves back, knowing everything that has happened is for the good of the Martial Assembly."

Lee Hyeon-Su couldn't help but feel that he had committed a grave sin against these people for some reason.

Cheon Tae-Hun wasn't finished, however.

"Even so… We can't help but feel this way."

"...In what way?"

"It's like, no matter where you are, you will get treated like a moron, a thing that doesn't exist, if you keep your mouth shut and simply do as told. I'm sure you know what I mean, sir. Of course, I'm not… I'm not saying you need to change this and that because we're dissatisfied. You asked, so I'm giving you an answer."

Lee Hyeon-Su silently nodded, not really knowing what to say here.

Whether it was Kang Jin-Ho or Lee Hyeon-Su, they were the types to pay more attention to nurturing those who excelled more than their peers. Which meant things like this would easily slip past them. What a good thing it was that Bang Jin-Hun was around to notice this problem and do something about it.

'I guess I should speak to the Assembly Master and increase Director Bang's annual bonus or something…'

Even though Bang Jin-Hun didn't really care about money, Lee Hyeon-Su figured it'd still be a good idea to do something nice for him.

"Well, mm…" Lee Hyeon-Su noisily scratched his head. "Since we're on that topic, there's a favor I wanna ask you."

Cheon Tae-Hun's brows subtly twitched at the word 'favor.' "A favor, you say?"

"Yeah. I'm sure this will sound weird coming from me, but… Dissatisfaction like this usually doesn't reach the folks at the top, you see? I'm not sure if this is one of our less admirable traits or what, but… Even if we are unhappy with something, we tend to keep our mouths shut and let it fester in our hearts."

"Sir?"

"I think that is why we're having a bit of a tough time dealing with issues like this. So, the favor I want to ask you is… I'd like you to be my eyes and ears. To let me know about stuff like this."

"You're mistaken, sir. It's not one of our traits."

"...Huh? What?"

"I'm saying, this is not one of South Koreans' traits." Cheon Tae-Hun frowned deeply. "We as Koreans love to march on the streets at an unprecedented level just because the current incumbent is doing a piss-poor job in the office, sir. We don't usually swallow our dissatisfaction. That's just not us."

Lee Hyeon-Su had no choice but to nod in agreement.

"It's not because we're Koreans, sir. Do you know why no one in the military utilizes the so-called Letter from the Heart report system? That's because the grunts know their complaints will do nothing but bring more trouble to their doorstep.

"We haven't said anything because nothing of note was done whenever the Assembly higher-ups proposed something to us. We've given up now since complaining is nothing more than a waste of time."

"Mm…" Lee Hyeon-Su nodded again in agreement. "However, we have new higher-ups in place now."

"Yes, I know. So, we crossed our fingers and hoped for the best. But… Nothing has changed, wouldn't you say? We still get one-sided orders from the above. And their attitude is, if you can follow us if you want. Nothing will change for others if you don't."

Cheon Tae-Hun casually shrugged his shoulders.

"When our emotions against the Yeongnam Group punks were reaching the extremes, the higher-ups still didn't come up with any useful solutions. All you said was we should try to get along. In the end, it was us on the ground level who resolved that tricky situation."

For the second time during this discussion, Lee Hyeon-Su became utterly speechless.

Cheon Tae-Hun was completely correct. Lee Hyeon-Su and the other Assembly higher-ups didn't particularly think about the regular members until recently. To their eyes, these members were no more than bog-standard foot soldiers meant to fill the head count.

'Yup, it makes sense people are dissatisfied.'

Lee Hyeon-Su and Co. needed to reflect heavily on this situation.

It wasn't as if Lee Hyeon-Su had been sucking on his thumb and doing nothing until now. Everyone knew how mindlessly busy he had been. However, could that serve as an excuse? Maybe. But being too busy to do one's job properly wasn't a good enough reason to absolve him of his mistakes.

Lee Hyeon-Su lowered his head. "Yes, I'm sorry. I made a mistake by failing to notice it in time."

"Sir. Please don't apologize to me as my situation has been better than my peers. I was able to enjoy the fruit of having the 'correct' master, you see?"

"I would like you to keep informing me of stuff like this, Cheon Tae-Hun."

"Sir, I think you still haven't understood the situation." Cheon Tae-Hun sighed deeply. "Everyone will start yapping right away when the higher-ups show even a hint of thinking about changing things around here. And I wouldn't even have to inform you of anything."

"Even if that's true, we still need a complaints counter."

Cheon Tae-Hun narrowed his eyes. "Will this be fine, though? After all, I'm from the losers' side, aren't I?"

"Losers' side?" Lee Hyeon-Su tilted his head. "What are you on about this time?"

"Since the previous Assembly Master lost the power struggle and got kicked out of his position, everyone associated with him should also get purged, yes? After all, isn't that your style? Since you were merciful enough to spare our lives, we better keep our heads down and mind our manners. I don't want my head to go flying just because I got on your nerves, you see."

Lee Hyeon-Su's gaze became a little sharper than before as he listened. It didn't sound like Cheon Tae-Hun was being snarky here. Indeed, this was more like him baring his thoughts after his frustration and dissatisfaction had gotten the better of him.

Even so, Lee Hyeon-Su's mood soured instantly.

"You know I've changed from my old self, yet you still chose to say all that stuff. Am I to assume you wanna have a verbal throwdown with me and piss each other off even further?"

"Of course not," said Cheon Tae-Hun while powerfully shaking his head. "There isn't much I can do once you make up your mind, sir. Unfortunately, I'm also at the mercy of your decisions. Did you know that until recently… I was scared of never waking up again after going to bed?"

"…"

"Sir. We also don't usually get to hear about the decisions made by the higher-ups. You must understand that the communication line from below isn't the only thing that has broken down around here."

Lee Hyeon-Su was left dazed by that revelation, his lips bobbing up and down in silence. Before he could say something, though…

"Mm. For sure, that sounds like a problem," said Kang Jin-Ho as he stepped into the office. Cheon Tae-Hun and Lee Hyeon-Su urgently bowed their heads toward him.