Chapter 3: Hope (1)
Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan guided them to a room prepared on one side of the building. Unlike the interior of the building, it was a large room with a neat office feel.
There were also employees wearing Ilshin Group badges, but as soon as Jin-woo arrived, they bowed and disappeared outside.
Sitting on the plush sofa, Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan personally brought out high-end tea. Harmu and Gebock also took their seats.
“I handled it as you instructed. The interest rate was lowered so that it could go bankrupt, and with flexibility, all the orcs from A-Area were hired.”
“What?”
“Once I realized that what you wanted wasn’t simply the profit of this restaurant, the business progressed naturally.”
Gebock also nodded.
“There was no human who did this much for us. You saved us from that damn Gentak guy and gave such great jobs to our tribesmen who had to worry about tomorrow.”
“The orc residents of A-Area said they would negotiate if you take charge of the rights to A-Area. This puts us in a much more advantageous position than other companies.”
Honestly, it was difficult for Jin-woo to understand what they were saying right away.
After hearing Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan’s words, Harmu looked at Jin-woo with a blank expression.
Is it real? Is it true? Really?
That was her expression.
‘Anyway, just do it in a roundabout way for now? It’s okay if it goes out of business.’
He definitely said something like that.
“This restaurant is currently operating at a loss, but it seems it will soon turn a profit. We decided to bring in large quantities of meat at a low price through our own independent shipping route. Since it was meat that wasn’t popular from the beginning, it was sufficiently efficient.”
“Humans don’t eat red antler deer meat, probably because of the smell. We orcs can also eat it after removing the smell in the traditional way. I tried incorporating my method into it.”
“Young master, you have a remarkable insight. We already hold the intellectual property rights to Gebock-style traditional orc cooking methods. We plan to franchise it and open chain stores nationwide.”
Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan took out a newspaper and showed it to Jin-woo.
‘Not a troublemaker, but a rising dragon?’
‘Rewriting the image of orcs.’
‘Praise from residents continues for the socialization of orcs.’
‘They are also members of our society. If we understand cultural differences, we can become closer.’
‘Multi-Species Peace Committee likely to present a commendation.’
The media already knew that the company currently operated by proxy by Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan belonged to Jin-woo.
There was no way they couldn’t know. The hierarchy was firmly in place.
“Other companies only talked about peace and human rights, but you’re the first to show it in reality like this.”
“Mr. Gebock will join us as the representative chef of our restaurant from now on.”
“I’ll put my name on it and do my best.”
Jin-woo blinked.
“So…”
Gebock, Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan, and Harmu looked at Jin-woo.
“I’m counting on you.”
He had no choice but to say those words after seeing their eyes.
No, didn’t every business he touched fail?
Jin-woo’s mind was confused.
In times like this, he had to calm down by thinking of magic formulas.
Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan looked at Jin-woo with a satisfied expression and quietly opened his mouth.
“Young master, this is a personal matter for you, but…”
“If it’s not a big problem if it’s known, just say it here.”
At Jin-woo’s words, Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan continued.
“It was a masterstroke for you to purchase mana water in bulk from Eles Inc. and sign an official contract.”
“Oh, I did that. But?”
“The Elf Queen was very pleased. The company she established with her name had always been struggling with deficits. It seems she had been quietly suffering. No one else could express that level of ‘sincerity’ with personal funds.”
Jin-woo wondered what he meant.
It was to effectively increase mana.
“Ah!”
Harmu suddenly exclaimed as if she understood.
“Moreover, thanks to this incident, your image has improved. You will easily receive the Peace Award from the Multi-Species Peace Committee.”
He would accept the award if given since it was an award, but it felt too uncomfortable.
Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan had a triumphant smile.
‘If the young master can take A-Area…’
It will bring about a seismic change in the succession structure!
Based on the circumstances, there was no doubt that the young master had dealt with the A-Area gang with ‘magic’. The orcs kept their mouths shut and didn’t speak, but everything was figured out through their expressions, tone, and actions.
Gentak, who was taken to the Magic Association, was in a brain-dead state.
His nerves were all burned, making recovery impossible with modern medicine and magic.
‘Mercilessly clean skill.’
Who could use magic to that extent at the age of 15?
Moreover, he had hidden his skills until now.
As soon as he dropped out of school and rumors of engagement with the Elf Princess started, he immediately revealed his abilities.
Lee Gi-hwan.
He was a man full of ambition.
He was aiming beyond the head of the Future Strategy Office. He could do any dirty work without hesitation for that.
He could finally clearly see who he should side with.
“Young master, I will continue to serve you well by your side.”
“Yes, but don’t pay too much attention to it.”
Jin-woo realized once again that Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan was too outstanding. The problem was that he was too outstanding. That’s why he said those words, but Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan silently nodded.
‘My skills are not yet up to your standards. I will definitely prove myself.’
That’s what Section Chief Lee Gi-hwan was thinking.
He quickly composed himself and returned to a smiling face.
‘This isn’t bad either.’
Jin-woo was an Archmage.
He always maintained a positive composure and exercised clear will. As always, he just needed to create the optimal situation through calculation and prediction.
This level of deviation was within the expected range.
However, he still couldn’t judge whether his luck was good or bad.
The results were fine, so should he say his luck was good?
“Young master, the date for you to come to the main house has been set. The Elf Princess will also be visiting.”
Jin-woo’s will wavered.
It seemed his luck had turned bad.
* * *
It seemed he had a nightmare for the first time in a very long time.
A person who died from being cut, a person who was brutally torn apart, a person who melted to death, a person who was pierced to death.
No matter what form they took, seeing corpses was so familiar that it couldn’t be called a nightmare.
However, seeing a person screaming, a person writhing in pain, and a person dying after losing hope was quite a difficult thing.
Because the forms of suffering and despair that he had tried hard to ignore were too vividly visible.
Jin-woo rarely went out.
Although he couldn’t accurately pinpoint the cause of the destruction, he knew the major events that would happen in the future. The locations of hidden treasures, future talented individuals with great potential, and even villains were all in his head.
He had plenty of time and an enormous amount of money.
The advantage of knowing the future held tremendous value.
It’s just that compared to his time as an Archmage, the only thing lacking was power.
Even after becoming an Archmage, he couldn’t prevent the destruction.
He would be able to see even a small possibility only if he surpassed an Archmage and became strong enough to subdue the masters called monsters.
“Phew…”
Jin-woo exhaled roughly.
That’s why he trained desperately without a single day of rest.
Although he considered the state of his body that had not finished growing yet, it was sufficiently rigorous.
Thanks to that, his body had changed quite a bit.
The excess fat disappeared, and nice muscles took their place.
Bam!
When he hit the sandbag with his fist, the sandbag burst open.
It was quite a powerful blow.
His muscles were not ordinary muscles. On the muscle fibers that tore and regenerated, small magic circles were drawn.
He was obtaining a body that martial artists had created by pouring decades of time, using magic as a shortcut. The difference from them was that he was becoming a body that could digest any martial art or magic.
Jin-woo looked at the burst sandbag and reached out his hand.
He squeezed his body while releasing all the mana he had gathered.
Swish!
The sand began to sway.
The patterns engraved on his body emitted a faint light, and his eyes glowed blue. The glowing eyes were a magical phenomenon that occurred when excessive mana escaped.
The spilled sand began to rise and entered the sandbag. As if rewinding, as if a burst balloon had returned to normal, the burst sandbag returned to its original form.
Reversing the time of an object to a little while ago.
Although it was limited to objects and he could only do it for about 3 seconds, Jin-woo felt ecstatic.
This was not magic.
Although he poured out mana and physical strength, no magic circle was manifested. He didn’t make any magical calculations either.
It was a power that could truly be called an ability.
‘Quite an improvement compared to the beginning.’
Jin-woo was convinced that if his level rose, he would be able to handle greater power. So far, everything was going smoothly.
‘Should I really go to the main house?’
Today was that very day.
In the evening, he had to go to Lee Jin-woo’s main house.
It was a truly troublesome matter. He was concerned that shackles would be placed on him in many ways.
While he was taking a break and recovering his mana and physical strength,
Harmu approached.
“Young master, I’ll take a half-day off in the afternoon.”
“Hmm? Why?”
“The person treating my sister’s illness said today is the only time available. I’m also planning to do some volunteer work while I’m at it.”
“Hospital?”
“It’s not a big hospital. It’s a place run for free by Dr. Kim Jin-han…”
Jin-woo, who was holding a water bottle while thinking it was trivial, hesitated.
“If it’s Dr. Kim Jin-han…”
He was an authority in the medical field.
He was a great man who had saved many people in the future. He was particularly skilled in treating all races, including beastmen and elves, and cured many species’ diseases.
The treatment of species other than humans was closer to magic medicine than modern medicine. Because the flow of mana was always active, it was impossible to talk about treatment without including mana. In the first place, Dr. Kim Jin-han had a degree in magic engineering and a mage license.
He was recognized for making a significant contribution to the development of magic medicine.
Jin-woo had also read his papers.
There was a separate reason why Jin-woo knew Dr. Kim Jin-han very well.
Jin-woo put down the water bottle and looked at Harmu.
“Why are you doing this?”
“Have you known each other for a long time?”
“It’s been almost a year since I got to know him. He’s an excellent person.”
Harmu.
The first person she brutally killed was none other than Dr. Kim Jin-han.
Since a respected doctor died like that, it was natural for Harmu’s notoriety to rise instantly.
“He’s a pretty good doctor.”
“Right? He’s someone who should originally be at a large hospital… He volunteers every day for the patients.”
After Dr. Kim Jin-han died like that, a wave of global mourning followed.
At that time, Jin-woo also participated in the funeral as a member of the Magic Association’s enforcement department chasing the serial killer Harmu.
No matter how much he thought about it, there was no reason for him to die like that.
There was something.
“Volunteer work… Hmm, then should I also do some good deeds for a change?”
“What?”
“Let’s go together.”
“I heard you have to go to the main house this evening…”
“There’s still plenty of time.”
Harmu looked at Jin-woo with an absurd expression.
She was reluctant to introduce her younger sister. But even if she refused, he would probably follow anyway. Because he always did unpredictable things on his own.
Harmu let out a deep sigh.
“How do you usually get around?”
“…I use public transportation.”
Jin-woo nodded and contacted someone.
A car and a driver were immediately prepared. Before she could say anything, everything was ready, so Harmu had no choice but to accept.
“What are you doing? Let’s go.”
“…Sigh, alright. Please be mindful of your words and actions.”
“I’ll try.”
If he caused any harm to her younger sister…
Harmu shook her head to erase that thought.
Jin-woo was the same age as her younger sister and just as young. She often forgot that fact while conversing with him.
They headed to Harmu’s house.
