“That’s strange…?”
Baek Hyeon-Jeong stared a little weirdly at the closed doorway to her son''s room.
Ever since his trip to China, Kang Jin-Ho seemed a little down, maybe a little too listless. His moppy attitude yed a big part in Baek Hyeon-Jeong trying harder to talk to her son even if her efforts came off as incessant nagging.
But today, Kang Jin-Ho seemed a little… better? He could be heard humming away in the shower. And his humming continued as he finished his shower and strode back to his room.
<em>‘He rarely acts like that, though…?’</em>
Still, her son looked happier, which in turn, improved Baek Hyeon-Jeong’s mood as well.
Soon, the doorway opened, and the fully dressed Kang Jin-Ho emerged outside.
Baek Hyeon-Jeong tilted her head. “Are you going somewhere, son? Even though it’s still early in the morning?”
“Yes, Mother.”“Will you have some breakfast before leaving?”
“Yes, I will. Thank you.”
“Okay. I only need to warm up your soup, so take a seat. It won’t take long.”
“Thank you.” Kang Jin-Ho took his seat by the dining table. Just as he began his waiting, Kang Eun-Yeong opened the door to her room and drowsily dragged herself out.
“Yan…” She grandly yawned while stretching her arms before spotting her older brother by the dining table. The corners of her lips curled up suspiciously. “Oppa…? Going somewhere again?”
“Yeah,” Kang Jin-Ho coolly nodded.
“Oh? And when will youe home this time?”
“None of your business, kid.”
“N-ng?” Kang Eun-Yeong subtly flinched at her older brother’s unperturbed counterattack. She urgently shifted her attention to her mother for reinforcement, but Baek Hyeon-Jeong expertly ignored her daughter’s gaze and headed to the kitchen.
<em>‘Huh? This is not how it’s supposed to go down, though?’</em>
Kang Jin-Ho tutted. “Forget all that for now, and… You,e sit over here.”
“...Eh?”
“I said, take a seat.”
Kang Eun-Yeong instinctively realized something ominous was about to happen. Having sensed that the situation was not in her favor, the youngest of the Kang family got ready to flee, but… Where could she even hide in this house?
“Over here,” Kang Jin-Ho pointed to an empty chair on the other side of the dining table.
Kang Eun-Yeong dragged herself toward the indicated chair while making the face of a young cow entering the abattoir. Once seated, she brought her knees to her chest, then while hugging them, Kang Eun-Yeong stared at her older brother with tearful puppy-dog eyes.
Unfortunately, Kang Jin-Ho’s forged steel-like mind easily filtered out his little sister’s underhanded tactic.
“So, Eun-Yeong. You said you were preparing a new album?”
“Yessir.”
“And that’s why your schedule is free these days?”
“Yessir. The touring season is also over, so I figured I’d recharge my batteries by getting some rest at home.”
“Recharge, you say?” Kang Jin-Ho’s head cocked ever-so-slightly to the side. “Of course, people do need to recharge themselves sometimes. That much I ept.”
“Y-yes, that’s right, oppa.”
“However, I don’t think that applies to you.”
“…!”
Kang Jin-Ho furrowed his brow. “The act of recharging refers to a person recovering from their exhaustion. If we go even further than that, we could also say recharging your batteries involves the process of adding what you sorelyck. In that case… Since when did lounging around hoovering up snacks nonstop qualify as recharging your batteries?”
“B-but, I wasn’t just lounging around doing nothing, though…”
“Really? Is that true?”
“...Yessir. I was just lounging around sucking on my thumbs.”
When Kang Eun-Yeong willingly waved the white g of surrender with her arms and even legs, Kang Jin-Ho kindly decided to consider her circumstances.
“I understand your desire to get some rest. However, due to the unique nature of your job, how you spend your 20s will decide what the rest of your career will look like. Or am I wrong?”
“No, you’re right, sir.”
“I want you to remember your resolution when you first stepped on this road. If the ‘you’ back then saw you now, what would she say?”
Kang Eun-Yeong pondered something for a bit, then replied unreservedly, “A fat pig who got way too full of herself after getting a bit famous.”
“…Oh.”
“…”
That was a bit harsh, wasn''t it? Until now, Kang Jin-Ho foolishly believed his little sister was still a kind, innocent little kid, but now… The vague, baseless fantasy he held about Kang Eun-Yeong was utterly shattered into pieces before scattering on the floor.
“...Kuh-hum!” Kang Jin-Ho fake-coughed, then wiped his mouth. “In any case, you''ve lounged around long enough. Get back to training. No one said you can only resume training after releasing your music, right?”
“Yes, sir… I shall do so, siiiir…” Kang Eun-Yeong spat out a lengthy groan.
She swooped in to attack her prey, only to get punched several times in the gut before she could try anything. No wonder she felt like sinking deeply into the floor.
...And that was she couldn’t help but go for another counterattack attempt.
“Anyways, oppa? Where are you going so early in the morning?”
“As I said, it’s none of your business.”
“Eiii~, I’m still your little sister, no? So…”
Kang Jin-Ho stared at Kang Eun-Yeong, his eyes unshakable, firm. “Don’t worry about me. I’m not going out to lounge around munching on snacks the whole day like you, after all.”
The counterattack attempt was oh-so-easily deflected away. Baek Hyeon-Jeong smiled at the sight of her defeated daughter gloomily squatting by the corner before setting the bowl of soup on the dining table. “Yes, Eun-Yeong. You did go overboard a bit.”
“Mom?!”
“Let’s be honest here, child. Haven’t you been lounging around doing nothing for too long? As your mother, I trust you to know what you’re doing, so I tried not to say anything. But it’s getting a bit too much now. As a matter of fact, I can see your stomach bulging more and moretely.”
“Heol…?!” Kang Eun-Yeong hurriedly shielded her stomach with both of her trembling hands. “T-this is nature’s providence, you know?”
“As your mother, I’m fine with it. I prefer you this way instead of looking like a skeleton with some skin on it. I’m not sure how good it will be for your career, though.”
“...Mom, please just say you hate it.”
Just as the argument reached a boiling point, the main bedroom’s door opened, and Kang Yu-Hwan leisurely stepped outside and headed to the dining table. “Mm? Everyone seems energetic this morning?”
“Good morning, Father,” said Kang Jin-Ho.
“Oh, good morning, son. It feels like ages since Ist saw you.”
“Oh. That''s because I''ve got a lot on my tetely, you see?”
“Really?” Kang Yu-Hwan slowly sat on an empty chair opposite Kang Jin-Ho before addressing his son again. “And the stuff you''re doing… They are worth your time, right?”
“Yes. Definitely.”
“In that case, it’s all good.”
While listening to this exchange, Kang Eun-Yeong''s cheeks puffed up. Unfortunately, she dared not say something snarky as the possibility of what Kang Jin-Ho might do in retaliation scared her.
“As long as you do your best, that’s all that matters. Of course, I’m a bit disappointed that my son doesn’te to work in my cafe often enough, which has been steadily affecting our bottom line…”
Baek Hyeon-Jeong unhappily snapped at her husband. “How is that our son’s fault! You should me the owner’s ipetency!”
Kang Yu-Hwan cautiously whispered to his son. “This is why I''m always scared, son.”
All Kang Jin-Ho could do was gently chuckle away.
“In any case, I know you’re doing your best in whatever you’re doing right now. I won’t ask you what it is, but keep trying your best, son.”
“Yes, Father.”
“Okay, let’s dig in!”
Kang Jin-Ho picked up his spoon. It felt like he was finally having a calm, peaceful meal for the first time in a long, long while.
***
<em>Vrooooom!</em>
What about this joyous sensation of the car surging forward after Kang Jin-Ho depressed the elerator, though?
Just like the meal, this sensation of eleration was also something he hadn’t felt in a while. He used to enjoy how his ‘Zoom Zoom’ swiftly responded to his inputs when he first got it, but now… He had been taking it for granted, hadn’t he?
<em>‘Humans… tend to grow numb, don’t they?’</em>
Things people used to think of as precious to them would be taken for granted from a certain moment on. This was why people found sticking to their resolutions so hard.
Keep eating delicious food, and you''d grow sick and tired of it sooner rather thanter. Keep repeating doing something you enjoyed, and you''d eventually grow bored and disinterested in it. That was what humanity was like.
Even if a man had a clear destination in mind and knew how to get there, continuously motivating himself and constantly charging ahead would still take some inhuman effort.
That was why a man needed an asional reminder or two. While engraving that knowledge in his heart, Kang Jin-Ho stepped on the elerator.
<em>VROOOOOM!</em>
Just as the engine roared even louder…!
“Oopsie…”
Kang Jin-Ho cautiously took his foot off the pedal.
Respecting the speed limit was <em>very</em> important to Kang Jin-Ho now. Didn''t his mother spit dragon mes from her mouth after receiving a speeding ticket in the mail? Which was generated by her son thoughtlessly breaking some of those all-too-important speed limits?
Baek Hyeon-Jeong even threatened to sell Kang Jin-Ho’s favorite ride to a second-hand toy shop if he ever broke the speed limit again. Of course, her angry response must have stemmed from the ce of motherly love as she probably didn’t want to see her son get into a massive ident, but…
<em>‘Still, a second-hand toy shop, of all ces…?’</em>
If his Zoom Zoom had ears, it’d shed mechanical tears of blood. To think his mother threatened to sell a supercar created by master Italian craftspeople to a toy shop, of all ces…!
<em>‘Then again, it kind of looks like a toy, doesn’t it?’</em>
Kang Jin-Ho continued to respect the speed limit and cautiously drove the car up the mountain road leading to the Martial Assembly.
<em>Vrooooom…</em>
However, Kang Jin-Ho''s red supercar didn''t head straight to the HQ but slipped into a side road instead. After traveling on it for a little bit longer, Kang Jin-Ho was greeted by the sight of ttened ground and structures of steel and concrete being raised up by an army of hard-hat-wearing workers.
Kang Jin-Ho parked a car by the entrance to the construction site, then leisurely climbed outside. He didn''t have to walk too deeply into the construction site, though, as the site manager, Bak Sang-Cheol, hurriedly rushed toward him from a distance instead.
“You’re already here, sir!”
Kang Jin-Ho frowned slightly at the site manager’s flustered attitude.
<em>‘Looks like someone must’ve said something weird to him.’</em>
Jo Gyu-Min must''ve done something because Bak Sang-Cheol''s attitude when speaking to Kang Jin-Ho had changed noticeablypared to the day before.
“Manager Bak. How are things looking? Any problems so far?”
“No problems at all, sir! Everything is going ording to the n!”
“I see. What about the manpower, though? Like, do you need additional workers?”
“No, sir!” Bak Sang-Cheol urgently shook his head. “Having more people won''t help us at this stage, sir! Actually, having too many workers will only make the personnel management that much harder, and their jobs will ovep, as well. We''ve already assigned people tasks that best suit their abilities, so please trust us and leave everything to us!”
Kang Jin-Ho was impressed by Bak Sang-Cheol asking him to trust him. “I see. I’ll do that, then. Are the workers pulling their weight, though?”
“Yes, sir! Everyone is physically strong, so that''s been a great help for us. Not just physical strength, but many of them seemed to have picked up quite a few skills from somewhere, so we''re notcking in the ''technician'' department, either.”
Kang Jin-Ho nodded contemtively. As far as the intensity of the construction boom was concerned, China was obviously far more livelierpared to South Korea. Even if the demonic cultivators were specialized in cleaning off the scenes and the disposal of evidence, such jobs didn''t happen every day. Which meant many of these men had to throw themselves into the manualbor market to put food on their tables. Skills they had picked up in those ces were nowing in handy here.
Even so…
Kang Jin-Ho asked another question. “When is the estimated time ofpletion?”
“Even though we’ve been working 24 hours a day, it’s still projected to end in half a year, sir.”
“Half a year…?” Kang Jin-Ho sighed and scratched his cheek. “Is there another way to reduce the time even further?”
Bak Sang-Cheol also sighed loudly. “Unfortunately, no, sir. We''ve already reduced the time from the schedule as much as possible. We''re building too many residential houses at the same time. If I''m being honest, constructing apartment buildings with a total of a thousand units would''ve been quicker, but such structures are not viable in this type of terrain, you see?”
“Mm…”
“Besides, building houses and letting people move in won’t be the end of the story, sir. Having this many people will turn this ce into a town, so we gotta have proper roads and a functioning water supply, too. And that’s not as easy as it sounds, sir…”
Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded. “Yes, you’re right.”
“Thank you for your understanding, sir!”
“However, we won’t be able to keep relying on this workforce forever, Manager Bak. Within one, no, two months, you will have to find other people to rece these guys.”
“I see. It should be possible to find enough recements within your time frame.”
“Good to hear that. Well, then…” Kang Jin-Ho bowed slightly, then turned around to leave, his eyes scanning the demonic cultivators diligently carrying construction material.
<em>‘They are too valuable to be wasted in this ce.’</em>
Kang Jin-Ho had no reason to dither about anymore. If his strength wasn’t enough, he should just nurture everyone else until they were strong enough to help him. And these demonic cultivators were meant to y the most important role in the growth Kang Jin-Ho was thinking about.
While heading to the Martial Assembly in his Zoom Zoom, Kang Jin-Ho''s brain was operating at a higher clock speed than usual.
<em>‘We most likely don’t have a lot of time.’</em>
Even though the two sides signed a treaty, such a thing was nothing more than a piece of paper. Kang Jin-Ho knew better than anyone how often such treaties were ripped up in the pursuit of self-interest.
What he should ce his faith in wasn''t the duration and signatures on the treaty but ''strength''. As long as Kang Jin-Ho''s side possessed considerable strength, the other party wouldn''t dare carelessly invade South Korea.
<em>‘Our method until now won’t work.’</em>
That method was, of course, Kang Jin-Ho leading from the front and suitable enough people following from behind. Doing things that way would no longer suffice. Kang Jin-Ho had to learn another method to forcibly pull everyonegging behind somehow.
The misfortune of the demonic cultivators was that they had to serve asb rats to Kang Jin-Ho’s learning process!
While thinking about this and that, Kang Jin-Ho parked his car by the Assembly''s parking lot. He walked up to his office only for his steps to suddenlye to a halt.
<em>‘What’s going on?’</em>
It felt like things were lively inside his office. His office seemed to have be a lot rowdier recently for some reason, but themotion seemed especially more pronounced today.
Kang Jin-Ho unhesitantly pushed the door open to peek inside; then, a deep smile floated up on his face. “Oh, you''re home already?”
“Yes, sir! We’re home, Assembly Master!”
Yi Myeong-Hwan smiled brightly while looking back at Kang Jin-Ho.