Chapter 300: Snatching Away (5)

Chapter 300: Snatching Away (5)

“So, the Martial Assembly fell into Bang Jin-Hun's hands...” Kim Seok-Il, the leader of the Yeongnam Group, muttered in a wry voice. “The worst possibility has come true, then.”

"Yes, sir. It has." Lee Hyeon-Su nodded, his frown also filled with worries.

Kim Seok-Il groaned loudly. "Fooling that aging raccoon was easy since he thinks of himself as a wily genius, but that wild boar of a man... He's not as smart but can be much more drastic. Beating him is easier, but the losses will be far greater in the end."

“Yes, sir. I agree.”

“Mm. The Assembly... The Assembly is it...”

In all honesty, this matter wasn't as problematic as these two made it out to be. Regardless of who took the top position in the Martial Assembly, the relationship between that organization and Kim Seok-Il's Yeongnam Group had already reached the point of no return. A war between them was inevitable.

Besides, wasn't Kim Seok-Il actively seeking a confrontation with the Assembly? This was one of the reasons he wanted to eliminate Lee Jung-Geol in the first place. That old man was far too keen on avoiding open warfare, after all.

“In that sense, I did want Bang Jin-Hun to be in charge, but...” Kim Seok-Il slowly leaned his head back with a bitter expression.

Back when Bang Jin-Hun had asked for assistance to eliminate Lee Jung-Geol, Kim Seok-Il had provided it without demanding anything in return. His thoughts at the time had been that the assassination was bound to create problems for Bang Jin-Hun.

Bang Jin-Hun didn't have the smarts to deal with the assassination flawlessly, so eliminating Lee Jung-Geol that way would have definitely birthed a major rift within the Assembly.

Even if Bang Jin-Hun had gotten lucky and taken care of things relatively well, the Martial Assembly would have still entered a state of civil war. And even if that scenario was somehow avoided, the Martial Assembly would have still lost its influence and power regardless.

However, the agents Kim Seok-Il dispatched had been killed, all while Bang Jin-Hun had successfully taken over the Martial Assembly without losing anything.

“...Kang Jin-Ho!” Kim Seok-Il gritted his teeth loudly.

Everything seemed to be unfolding according to plan, but it had all rapidly gone down the drain the moment Kang Jin-Ho's name started announcing itself in Kim Seok-Il's world. Back when Kim Seok-Il heard about the Crimson King's desire to kill Kang Jin-Ho, he had been flabbergasted by the notion of someone as powerful as one of the Three Kings personally making a move to eliminate a mere brat. But now...

“I should've killed him earlier!”

All thanks to Kang Jin-Ho, Kim Seok-Il had to suffer so many losses. Because of that bastard, not only had Kim Seok-Il failed to harm the Martial Assembly, but he also lost several of his valued subordinates. Not to forget, he had even lost the secret weapon called the Fallen in the process, too!

Kim Seok-Il massaged the bridge of his nose. “So, what will happen now? Is the Martial Assembly completely in Bang Jin-Hun's hands or what?”

Lee Hyeon-Su rubbed his chin. “No, sir. I think that will take a little more time.”

“Well, that makes sense.”

“And sir, even with enough time, I believe Bang Jin-Hun will never get to completely take over the Assembly.”

“How come? Is Lee Jung-Geol preparing to counterattack?”

“No, that's not it,” Lee Hyeon-Su decisively shook his head. “The one we should be watching isn't Bang Jin-Hun... but Kang Jin-Ho.”

“...Kang Jin-Ho?” Kim Seok-Il frowned. It seemed that every problem occurring lately involved Kang Jin-Ho in some fashion. “Why do you think so?”

“We have no way of knowing what kind of a deal Bang Jin-Hun and Kang Jin-Ho made, but there's no doubt that Kang Jin-Ho has sway over Bang Jin-Hun.”

“Wait, wait. Look here.” Kim Seok-Il stopped Lee Hyeon-Su there with a deeply annoyed voice. “I get that you've developed the 'Kang Jin-Ho neurosis' recently. However, he's still just a brat. Do you really think someone like Bang Jin-Hun, who went through all sorts of things in his life, will obediently do as told by a brat?”

“...”

"Stop underestimating Bang Jin-Hun just because I do that. You ain't qualified enough for that. Don't forget that Bang Jin-Hun managed to gain enough influence within the Martial Assembly to oppose the sitting Assembly Master. Something like that is utterly impossible without the talent to attract people to his side and martial ability to back him up."

“Sir, I never said Bang Jin-Hun is a moron.”

“...Oh? So what, then?”

“I'm trying to tell you that Kang Jin-Ho is not a brat. He's smart enough to keep even someone like Bang Jin-Hun in line.”

“Mm...!” Kim Seok-Il moaned quietly. He didn't want to admit that, but...

'...Bloody hell!'

To him, South Korea's martial arts society was similar to a massive traditional Korean chessboard. On the other side of this board sat Lee Jung-Geol in direct opposition to Kim Seok-Il, and the two men fought for supremacy using countless chess pieces.

Since he was starting this competition with a few pieces missing, Kim Seok-Il chose to 'accept a few hints' offered from the sidelines. However, someone who should have been a mere chess piece suddenly shoved Lee Jung-Geol aside and occupied the old man's position. The craziness didn't stop there, though, as a huge boulder named Kang Jin-Ho flew in from the outside and crashed into the chessboard, utterly obliterating it in the process!

“What a bloody mess this has turned into!” Kim Seok-Il unhappily rubbed his face. His usually-relaxed expression was nowhere to be seen right now. “So? What do you think will happen?”

“Sir, it will take a little more time. The bad news is that... Lee Jung-Geol is apparently offering his full support to Bang Jin-Hun.”

"One, we attack the Assembly first before they can sort out their internal chaos and finish their preparation for war."

“Mm...”

“Two, we also thoroughly prepare and wait for their inevitable attack. Both options have their pros and cons, sir.” Lee Hyeon-Su took a breath to compose himself before continuing with his explanation. However, before he could do that, Kim Seok-Il raised his hand to interrupt him.

Lee Hyeon-Su's eyes narrowed after noticing Kim Seok-Il's current expression. That expression...was something he hadn’t seen in a while.

It was the sharp, focused expression that Kim Seok-Il used to make when he was still in his physical prime.

“Something is strange here, Hyeon-Su. So strange...” Kim Seok-Il tapped on his knee with his fingertip. “Tell me, isn't it strange?”

“Sir?”

“According to your opinion, Kang Jin-Ho is the source of all these events, correct?”

“...Yes, sir.”

“And... Cai Kechang's demand was never about the downfall of the Martial Assembly, was it? No, he just wanted us to kill Kang Jin-Ho.”

“...!” Lee Hyeon-Ju's expression stiffened.

A cruel smile spread on Kim Seok-Il's face. “In that case, why do we need to deal with the Assembly first?”

“T-that is because...”

“As you've said, Kang Jin-Ho is the center of everything. If he has taken over the Martial Assembly, eliminating him will sort out all the problems, no? The Assembly will descend into confusion and internal conflicts once more, and the Chinese will stop pressuring us.”

“You're correct, sir,” Lee Hyeon-Su unwillingly replied as anxiety crept into his heart.

Kim Seok-Il was technically correct. He had accurately pointed out the part that Lee Hyeon-Su hadn't thought of.

...No, that was a lie. Lee Hyeon-Su had thought about that part before. Obviously, he understood that removing Kang Jin-Ho from the picture would calm the choppy waters surrounding all these events. Most importantly, though, successfully eliminating Kang Jin-Ho would undo their paralyzed relationship with the Crimson King's faction and lead to the resumption of the financial support that had been cut off for a while now.

As long as the Yeongnam Group could resume receiving assistance from the Crimson King's faction, they wouldn't have to worry about dealing with the Martial Assembly. However...

'No, it feels wrong.'

Lee Hyeon-Su's instinct was crying out at him. It said that they definitely shouldn’t do this. Even if it was too late not to get involved, they should still try their best not to get involved with Kang Jin-Ho more than they already had. A contradiction was swirling in Lee Hyeon-Su's head.

“Sir, this is—”

“Listen, Lee Hyeon-Su,” Kim Seok-Il said in a low, quiet voice that was still filled with dignity and authority.

Lee Hyeon-Su felt his body go numb and stiff the moment he heard that voice. He cautiously bit his lower lip before responding, “Yes, sir.”

"I'm still the chairperson of this organization, aren't I? Which means, I have the final say. Right?"

'This stinking old fool...!' Lee Hyeon-Ju groaned inwardly.

The words 'still' and 'aren't I' contained the hidden meaning of 'I already know what you want to say here, fella'. Since that was the case, how was Lee Hyeon-Su supposed to oppose his boss now?

“Yes, sir. You're the boss.”

“In that case, I'll make the decision now.” Kim Seok-Il shot up from the couch. “From this moment on, we change our policy. All available resources of the Yeongnam Group will be focused on... getting rid of Kang Jin-Ho!”

“...Sir, there will be conflicts against the Martial Assembly's people in the meantime.”

“Ignore them.”

“But, sir!”

"Tsk, tsk..." Kim Seok-Il glanced disapprovingly at Lee Hyeon-Su. "Trying to kill your opponent while hoping to avoid injuries will only get yourself killed in the end. If the prey is strong and delicious, you better be resolved to lose an arm or two during the hunt, got that?"

“...Sir.”

“Now that we have sorted that out, let’s get the ball rolling,” said Kim Seok-Il before leaving the office.

Lee Hyeon-Su slowly closed his eyes.

'Resolved to lose an arm or two?'

What if the opponent wasn’t prey, then? What if the prey they rushed to hunt turned out to be a fierce predator waiting to take their heads off?

“Well, we'll all get killed, that's what...”

Lee Hyeon-Su could only groan loudly upon thinking that the order he had just received could herald the start of the Yeongnam Group’s demise.