Chapter 1239. Establishing Plans (4)

Chapter 1239. Establishing Plans (4)

Rrrrrrr!

Rrrrrrrrrrrr!

Rrrrrrrrr!

BEEP!

“

Urgh

...”

Lee Hyeon-Su forced his reluctant hand to move and turn his phone’s alarm off, then lazily rubbed his face.

‘What time is it?’

Deducing the precise time from the alarm waking him up was not possible. Alarms were supposed to ring in five-minute intervals for twenty times in a row, after all.

His reticent eyelids finally cracked open, giving him an opportunity to glance at his watch. And it said... half-past six in the morning.

“...! Bloody hell!”

He was supposed to wake up by six.

‘Dammit! I should’ve just slept in the office!’

Why did he let his stupid desire to sleep more comfortably convince him to drive back to his home? When crashing in the office’s cot could have given him two extra hours of sleep!

Lee Hyeon-Su sighed deeply, then pushed himself off the bed.

Even though he bought this bed over a year ago, it still remained uncomfortable and unfamiliar. On the other hand, his office chair, which he bought about a month ago, felt like a close friend he knew his entire life.

‘Well, it’s not just this bed, though.’

Lee Hyeon-Su scanned his surroundings, at this fairly nice apartment.

Being able to afford a place this large without taking out loans at his age should have qualified him as a success story. However, what was the point in the end?

When this nice apartment was totally useless to him?

Lee Hyeon-Su investing so much into a nice home was not all that different from a computer illiterate spending top dollar on the highest-spec PC to play Go-Stop online. He didn’t get a lot of chances to enjoy the comforts offered by this luxurious home.[1]

The top-of-the-line home theater he bought with such fanfare was now collecting dust. The huge and shiny double-door refrigerator contained nothing more than bottles of spring water.

As a matter of fact, all the expensive appliances he bought after so much consideration were... Well, their conditions were so good that the folks dealing in second-hand appliances would start drooling nonstop after taking only one look at them!

“

Hah

...”

Lee Hyeon-Su weakly tutted at himself while shaking his head, then headed to the coffee machine. He cracked open the barely touched box of coffee capsules, put one in the machine, and turned on the TV out of habit.

It wasn’t because he wanted to watch a specific program, though. Or there was a must-watch show on at this time of the day. No, he just didn’t want to deal with this awkward silence in the apartment that amplified his footsteps.

“

Tsk

.”

Lee Hyeon-Su left the cup of aromatic coffee and headed to the kitchen cupboard. Opening the first drawer rewarded him with the sight of dozens of different wellness supplements.

“...I’m totally hooked on this sh*t, aren’t I?”

To think a martial artist had to take in health supplements!

If any of the Martial Assembly’s directors saw the contents of this drawer, they would’ve thrown a hissy fit, saying Lee Hyeon-Su should train instead of taking these useless things like an idiot.

But those people had no idea what they were talking about!

‘If I had the time, then sure, I wouldn’t be doing this!’

Although it was funny to say this, but in martial arts, Lee Hyeon-Su was like a hard-working plebeian... Actually, it’d be more correct to say he had no talent in martial arts.

What was the difference separating a genius and a dummy? The answer was surprisingly simple.

One’s talent could be judged by how much time one had spent to reach a specific goal. As an example, Wiggins would need five minutes to complete something Lee Hyeon-Su must spend ten thousand hours on.

Those directors would chide Lee Hyeon-Su for being so dumb when, in their eyes at least, five minutes of training every day should have been enough. But their five minutes were emphatically different from Lee Hyeon-Su’s five minutes!

‘Gimme a break.’

Lee Hyeon-Su unhesitantly dumped the pills into his mouth. With around thirty pills in his mouth, it felt like he was about to one-shot a bowl of rice.

After downing the pills with water from a water purifier, Lee Hyeon-Su slowly rubbed his stomach, his expression slightly weird.

‘Even though all I took were supplements, I still feel so bloated.’

Obviously, he didn’t start out overdosing himself on supplements like this. Once upon a time, he too, was a young man full of energy. Back then, he didn’t have to rely on these kinds of

medication

to endure stress from overwork.

Did that mean he couldn’t endure it now? Of course not. He could easily work through the night even now.

However, as humans grew older, the amount of work they could do within a specific time period would become smaller and smaller. These supplements weren’t meant to make Lee Hyeon-Su healthier, but assist him in regaining some of the energy and vitality from when he was still a youngster.

Lee Hyeon-Su continued to rub his bloated tummy while heading to the bathroom, only to stop when his phone rang. He furrowed his brow slightly at the name appearing on the phone’s screen.

“Hello?”

-When did you wake up, Mister Hyeon-Su?

“Not too long ago.”

-Yes, I can tell from your voice that you’ve woken up just now.

As expected, Lee Hyeon-Ju was a psychic when it came to things like this.

“What does it matter, as long as I get to the Assembly on time? Stop worrying about me, okay? What about your side, though?”

-I’m sure it’s not as bad as your side, but things are pretty hectic over here, too. We have plenty of work to do, after all.

“Really? Isn’t it about time things have stabilized on your side?”

-Well, yes. Things are stable now. It’s just that being stable also comes with a ton of work.

Lee Hyeon-Su wryly smiled. It seemed that humans were the same, no matter who they were. As proof, Lee Hyeon-Ju’s current sentiments seemed to mirror Lee Hyeon-Su’s.

“No company is free from work, right? Don’t be too unhappy about your situation and keep plugging away at your work. If you do that, eventually there will come a day when things start to feel much more tolerable for you.”

-Really? Why? Is it because the workload will decrease?

“Nope. You’ll get used to the workload.”

-Let’s stop wishing bad luck to each other, shall we? Chief Lee?

Lee Hyeon-Su grinned deeply. It was nice to have someone to wake him up in the morning, so that he wouldn’t be late to work. Which was something he had not hoped for in the past. Back then, he had to support himself on his own without anyone’s help. But now...

-This is weird, though.

“What is?”

-You’re a champion when it comes to whining over too much work, but you still haven’t complained once. Is the workload more or less manageable now?

“Well, I guess...”

-Got it.

Oh

. I gotta go now. Let’s chat later. Hurry and head to work, Chief Lee.

“Yeah, yeah. Sure.”

Lee Hyeon-Su ended the call and chuckled again. So, he hadn’t complained once...?

‘Unfortunately, Miss Lee? I’ve already complained thousands of times in my heart.’

Lee Hyeon-Su roughly scratched his head while stepping into the shower.

***

Vroom...!

‘Geez. I always regret this, don’t I?’

Indeed, he always regretted coming home whenever it was time to drive back to work. He could have saved a ton of time by sleeping within the Assembly’s dorms or in the office, after all!

However, for some strange reason, he just couldn’t get over the allure of knocking off from work.

‘Even if knocking off on time is a pipe dream for me!’

Lee Hyeon-Su smirked softly.

‘Keep plugging away at my work without complaints, is it...?’

Wasn’t he like that in the past?

Back when he was still working for Kim Seok-Il, Lee Hyeon-Su’s dissatisfaction primarily came from the nature of his work, not the workload itself.

Rather than letting someone else handle the work, him personally taking care of it produced a better outcome. And it was less stressful for his heart, too.

Back then, he never entertained the idea of dumping the work on someone else’s shoulders. However, what about now? Wasn’t he trying his hardest to lessen his workload by whatever means possible?

Was it because he didn’t want to work anymore? No, that wasn’t it.

The old Lee Hyeon-Su obsessed over his work like that because that was the only way to prove his worth. All of his relationships back then were built on his abilities, and failing to prove himself would mean he could become a kite with its strings cut at any time.

No wonder he couldn’t trust other people. But what about now?

‘What has changed for me?’

His relationships within the Martial Assembly were still built up on his abilities. That much remained the same, something he couldn’t deny even if he tried. Without his abilities, he’d never have been entrusted with such an important role, after all!

The difference this time was that it wasn’t the end of the story.

Lee Hyeon-Su wasn’t sure what was so different this time. At least he knew his relationships this time were not exclusively dependent on his abilities to survive. Indeed, there was something more here. Something that he...

“

Mm

...”

Lee Hyeon-Su was too lost in his thoughts and almost missed the turn leading to the Martial Assembly. He hurriedly yanked at the steering wheel, causing the car to turn violently and enter the two-lane road under the tortured screech of the tires.

Despite how familiar this road was, the emotions he felt while driving on it could only be described as strange. Should he say he felt a mixture of vague, unexplainable tension and tranquility?

Lee Hyeon-Su noticed the Assembly members walking up the footpath and drove a little faster. They noticed his car and bowed in his direction.

‘Geez, even though I told them not to do that.’

As only a handful of people commuted to the Assembly on their personal vehicles, almost everyone now recognized Lee Hyeon-Su’s ride. Even though he told them to stop bowing since they were greeting a car, not the person...

They just didn’t want to listen.

While making an awkward face, Lee Hyeon-Su parked the car at the Assembly’s underground parking lot and joined the crowd of people entering the Assembly’s main building.

“Oh! Good morning, Chief Lee!”

“You’re here early!”

Lee Hyeon-Su reflexively smiled back at the outpouring of greetings, although his expression still remained a little awkward.

“What are you guys doing here so early?”

“It’s not like we have a fixed morning commute hour, sir. Saying we’re early is technically incorrect, you know? We just come whenever we feel like it.”

Lee Hyeon-Su chuckled slightly. “Right. You guys never cared much about stuff like that.”

One of the martial artists in the queue asked curiously. “Sir? Did you know that the administrative staff were complaining bitterly lately?”

“

Oh

? How bad is it?”

“It’s bad, sir. They are complaining nonstop. That’s why you gotta continue torturing them. Watching them enjoy themselves in the air-conditioned offices every effing day was driving me nuts, you see? Please teach them a lesson they’ll never forget.”

Lee Hyeon-Su tutted. “Hey... I think you left behind something over there.”

The martial artist hurriedly looked back. “

Huh

? What did I leave behind, sir?”

“Your humanity, obviously.”

“Eii, this much is considered kind in our neck of woods.”

Lee Hyeon-Su thought that the possibility of that last statement being not a joke was a bit of a problem.

Receiving all the outpouring of greetings and banters roused this strange emotion within Lee Hyeon-Su.

‘People are greeting me...?’

In the past, back when he was still the second-in-command of the Yeongnam Group, no one in the organization greeted him. Actually, it was worse—the group members pretended to respect his status, but that was about it.

They all knew Lee Hyeon-Su was their superior, but his much weaker martial prowess meant they didn’t respect him as a fellow martial artist and were dismissive toward his presence. Some even openly held him in contempt for doing everything in his power for the sake of receiving more benefits.

That was why Lee Hyeon-Su grew even more obsessed with proving his abilities

That was the story back then, but now...

“Chief Lee! If you’re not busy later, let us treat you to lunch. We had a lot to ask you about, you see?”

Lee Hyeon-Su cocked an eyebrow. “...About what?”

“Well, we at the lower paygrade still don’t know what the big picture is, sir. Please impart your wisdom to us.”

“Yes, sir. The lunch will be on us.”

Lee Hyeon-Su chuckled hollowly. He recognized the person bantering with him. This man used to be a part of the Yeongnam Group, too. Since the very people who held him in contempt in the past were being friendly toward him now...

‘I should be irritated by this, but I’m not.’

For some reason, this situation didn’t feel so bad.

“Sorry, but I’m busy today. Next time,” said Lee Hyeon-Su.

“You always say that, sir. Have you ever been not busy before?”

“...I don’t remember.”

“You know what, sir? We seriously should report this to the labor department.”

“Right, I gotta think about that. For real,” Lee Hyeon-Su chuckled awkwardly, then nodded slightly. “Then, I’m going ahead.”

“Yes, sir. Do your best today, too.”

“Look after your health, sir. Don’t push yourself too hard, okay? Or, how about joining us in the training area? We promise to help you train to the best of our abilities.”

Lee Hyeon-Su dismissively waved his hand. “Stop talking nonsense and get going already.”

“Yes, sir!”

Lee Hyeon-Su’s expression grew strange as he watched his conversation partners walk away.

‘This kind of thing in the morning... Must’ve been pretty common for other people.’

Of course, he meant people sharing a banter, expressing their feelings on different news topics, and playfully whining about random stuff.

Unfortunately for Lee Hyeon-Su, though, he was still not used to such things.

He shook his head, then entered the Assembly’s main building.

‘Still awkward, eh...?’

When did he notice it? That he was not exactly a sociable person? And when did he start thinking that ordinary people simply couldn’t understand him?

What a funny thing this was. Despite knowing nothing, he thought he knew everything there was to know. He didn’t even know that there were plenty of places where he could have found his peace of mind.

Lee Hyeon-Su scanned the building’s lobby. He spotted a familiar figure of a man who might be just as bad at socializing as he was. No, maybe that person was even worse at it!

Kang Jin-Ho waved his hand at Lee Hyeon-Su first. “Hey.”

Lee Hyeon-Su deeply smiled and greeted back. “Good morning, sir.”

1. Sometimes referred to as Korean poker, Go-Stop or

Godori

, is a Korean fishing card game played with a

Hwatu

deck. For more information, check out Wikipedia’s article. ☜