Chapter 133

Chapter 133

Unlocked chapter (2/3)

[Flowering Night (13)]

Lee Byung-in, the eldest son of the Dawn Groups Chairwoman Lee Yoon-hee and the owner of Dawn Entertainment, had caused a nationwide stir with the terrorism he initiated.

People took to the streets at Gwanghwamun without hesitation, directing criticism towards the direct descendants of the Dawn Group. They gathered their voices, demanding the most brutal death for Lee Byung-in, who received the second death sentence since the intervention of the Fairy Government.

The decline in the brand image of the Dawn Group was an inevitable consequence. No one could stop the nationwide boycott movement.

Businesses even remotely associated with the Dawn Group suffered losses, and small business owners who pleaded for fairness found themselves on the streets, having lost their jobs overnight.

The Fairy Government began summoning direct descendants of the Dawn Group while initiating tax audits on Dawn Group-affiliated companies.

The monster terrorism triggered by a single individual had taken countless lives, shed many tears, and would likely end with the severance of many peoples lifelines.

It would be nice if it ended that way, but its probably not going to.

In truth, no one could predict how this situation would ultimately conclude.

South Korea was the country that stood with the players, propped up by the economic power of a group that had made it into the top 10.

The moment any of the groups faltered, the country would likely return to the days immediately following the <End of the Century Destruction>.

The higher-ups will look at the terrorist incident from the perspective of keeping the country stable, and conclude it with maximum benefit.

But the citizens were different.

In reality, the people who had the monster threat closest to them were the ones who might not remain silent about Lee Byung-ins death.

You always have to assume the worst.

So assume every worst-case scenario you can think of and come up with a plan for it.

Silla Clan Lord Kim Yoo-jin said as she crossed her legs.

She had to assume the worst.

Even now, businesses associated with Dawn Group, even those with just the name Dawn, were being indiscriminately targeted.

Public opinion, once it erupted, was raging with the intention of uprooting them.

Even the Silla Clan, sponsored by Dawn Group, could not escape the peoples blade.

In fact, it made it worse.

The players residing at the Dawn Hotel in Chuncheon were members of Silla Clan.

Public opinion continued to condemn Silla Clans wolf-hunting and terrorizing behavior.

Thats also why she summoned the sublords who operated in various regions.

But there was one more reason.

She tapped the table with her pen as she looked around at the sublords.

I dont think the Silla Clan will be immune to an audit, and I think we should prepare a manual for dealing with one within the Clan in advance, with a clear division of what to reveal and what not to reveal.

The tax investigation is perfect, there is no backtracking.

Seo Jeong-hoon, Kim Yoo-jins right-hand man, broke the silence.

The woman in charge of the clans finances adjusted her glasses and confidently shrugged her shoulders.

Kim Yoo jin nodded and looked at the other Sublords.

No one was willing to make eye contact.

Frustrated, she tapped her fingers on the table, the sound echoing through the room.

October. Im thinking if we hold out until October, the storm will pass.

As the Sublords looked on in disbelief, it was the old man sitting across from her who spoke up.

A key witness who had survived the <End of the Century Destruction> and the elder of the Silla Clan.

Seong In-ho. Known as the living myth of Korea, the comrade-in-arms of Moon joon <Unbreakable Shield> and Nam gung-seong <Divine Spear>, he raised his thick eyebrows.

Thats how this country is. Any other country would be the same. No matter how many times monsters appear, or governments change, that one thing remains unchanged.

People are like pots. They boil quickly and cool down quickly.

If we endure like this, people will eventually return to their daily lives.

Of course, I have no intention of mocking the people who sacrificed themselves in the terror, nor do I have any intention of saying that what the people trying to change the wrong reality are doing is all in vain.

I just believe that one thing wont change. The topics that make this country noisy will be buried under new topics someday.

He tapped the floor with his cane.

The old man knew, the years hed lived had told him.

Those who shouted that something was wrong, those who were swept along by the tide, and those who ultimately failed to make a difference and were swept along by another tide.

Even when the <End of the Century Destruction> happened, people had criticized the state of anarchy and lamented the collapsing economy.

Nevertheless, the flawed world remained unchanged.

In a world that had once collapsed, politicians, business people who had gained power, and finally, the players, all pretended to listen to voices as feeble as the rustling of reeds while they flattered and manipulated.

They tried to steady their own positions, even in despair, by promoting slogans like lets not lose hope and turning peoples gaze away.

As a result, the world that people had once called wrong and had shouted for change remained fundamentally the same, albeit with surface-level changes.

Silla Clan was also one of the privileged groups that took advantage of the <End of the Century Destruction>. Therefore, Sung In-ho couldnt help but feel bitter about it.

This included him, who had once called it wrong, eventually rising to his current position through the very opportunities created during that time.

But, why specifically October?

A sublord who raised his hand to question the prevailing tide turned to the elderly man who was lamenting the current situation.

Kim Yoo-jin sighed.

Shes got the good sense not to judge, but hes got a terrible head on his shoulders.

Kim Yoo-jin hoped that he would be better at reading the flow.

Kim Yoo-jin gestured with his eyes toward Seo Jeong-hoon.

When their eyes met, Seo Jeong-hoon nodded.

Because theres a plan for the Uijeongbu recovery battle in October. The Fairy Im Gaeul has expressed her determination to recapture Uijeongbu within this year.

Even if the situation in the country worsens due to the Dawn Group, they cannot ignore the public opinion that has been calling for the recapture of Uijeongbu for several years.

Who knows, the Fairy Government might be expecting it too.

Sung In-ho said, resting his gaze on Kim Yoo-jin.

This terrorist attack would not end with just the Dawn Group.

The reason why the political world was currently watching the situation carefully in silence was precisely that.

This time, the fire attached to the Dawn Group might also spread to the political world.

Therefore, the fire had to be extinguished as soon as possible before it spreads elsewhere.

Maybe they would announce their stance on the Uijeongbu recapture battle in the near future to divert public attention.

The problem is that the Silla Clan is also hated by the government right now.

The plan to use Byung-in to gain the backing of the Dawn Group was perfect.

But it had failed.

Without knowing why.

It was a sickening feeling.

Thankfully, they had dealt with any potential loose ends beforehand, or else he and Lee Byungin could have faced the death penalty.

Whoo.

Clan Changhae was the second most powerful clan in Korea.

He wanted to surpass the first-ranked Zenith, the Genesis Clan in South Korea.

He wanted to become an unstoppable force in the country.

But the situation was the opposite.

With each passing day, the skills of players joining the Changhae Clan were declining, and the Silla Clan was rapidly rising, especially with the recruitment of <Mind Controler> Lee Dohjin.

While this attack will cause Silla Clans clan rating to drop, it will only be temporary.

Without new blood and another source of funding, they dont know if they would be able to maintain their second place position.

So..

I look forward to the battle to retake the government.

Taking advantage of the Silla Clans temporary weakness, they had to take advantage of all the gains they could get from recapturing Uijeongbu.

With the backing of the Sirius Group, the Changhae Clan had the power to wield a strong voice with the clans other than the Genesis Clan.

He placed his hands on his desk and chuckled, his shoulders shaking.

Dawn Group has decided to sell Dawn Entertainment and other subsidiaries.

All that remained were the hotels and department stores that were the symbol of Dawn Group, and the food distribution division that had been the driving force behind Dawn Groups growth to this point.

However, even if public opinion calms down, the hotel and department store divisions will not be able to avoid deteriorating performance for the time being.

Until then, it would have to raise funds from the food distribution sector.

Wow.

Lee jeong-in, who received advice from his younger brother about the food distribution sector, sighed deeply.

His shoulders were heavy.

His mother had stepped down as chairman to take on this task, and had even handed over some of her shares in the group to the government.

And as of today, he became the second chairman of the Dawn Group.

But it wasnt the Dawn Group anymore.

The Dawn Groups brand image had reached a point where it couldnt easily recover.

It would have been better to change the name.

Luminous.

It meant shining in the darkness.

The symbol was the moonflower that blooms at night.

He intended to rename the group as a symbol of not yielding to adversity, no matter how difficult and harsh the future might be.

I cant give up like this.

There were many things he had to start from scratch.

If his younger brother hadnt helped, he would have toiled away relentlessly on his own.

Some people helped, and some wanted to take advantage of this opportunity.

Leaning back on the sofa, Lee Jeong-in recalled what had happened during the process of selling the groups shares and business divisions.

Those in the political circles laughed at what had happened and even planned to swallow Dawn Group whole.

If Sirius Group hadnt lent a helping hand, Dawn Group would have disappeared.

So the debt to Sirius Group will be repaid someday.

That aside I might not have known if I had died.

Even now, Jeong-in felt a shiver down his spine.

If it hadnt been revealed that it was a monster terror orchestrated by Lee Byung-in, he would have been the one to face public condemnation.

And for the sake of preserving the honor and safety of the people who believed in him and his family, not to mention the honor of the group, he might have made an extreme choice.

What happened afterward was beyond imagination.

What would have happened to his family, his wife, son and daugther?

He couldnt tell.

If it was his brother-.

He didnt want to think about it.

It was horrible to think about it.

Then, suddenly, he remembered.

At that time, he had undoubtedly been captivated by Oh Yeon-jungs gift and had entered the room with her.

But when he woke up, he was the only one in the bed, and the whole thing was over.

What had happened during the night?

What had happened to make her leave the room?

As he thought about it, he looked at the surveillance footage hed submitted to the Fairy Government.

The video was filled with noise, and most of the footage from that day had been lost due to the shock of the monster attack.

However, he managed to find the only remaining footage from the top floor just before the terrorist attack occurred.

The screen was blurry, and it showed a surveillance camera footage installed at the end of a corridor.

The process of him and Oh Yeon-jung entering the room was faintly visible.

A little later, a boy walked over.

The footage was so blurry that his features couldnt be seen clearly.

No matter how hard he squinted his eyes and concentrated, he couldnt confirm the boys appearance.

The boy hesitated in front of the door and then, for some reason, opened the locked door and entered.

Afterward, the video showed nothing. Only noise could be heard.

Hmm.

Lee Jeong-in, who rested his hand on his lips, repeatedly watched the part where the boy appeared in the video.

Who on earth is this child?