Descent of the Demon Master-Chapter 1263. Recruited (3)

“If I’m being honest...”

Hwang Min-Su was expressionless when he broke his silence.

“...What you said sounds very cliched to me.”

Kang Jin-Ho smirked slightly. Hwang Min-Su was right. Everything he said sounded rather cliched, didn’t it?

“But those cliches still stung me more painfully than anything.”

Hwang Min-Su’s expressionless face crumbled into a sorrowful smile.

“I wanted to become a son my father could be proud of.” 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

“...”

“And a dependable husband and a man worthy of respect. But the person in front of me was too gigantic. Compared to him, I’m just a pathetic little fool. I tried. Believe me, I tried like crazy, but... But it didn’t work out as I hoped.”

Hwang Min-Su sounded so remorseful just then. Kang Jin-Ho didn’t say anything and silently listened, knowing what Hwang Min-Su needed was an audience.

“But then...”

Hwang Min-Su tightly clutched at the empty beer can, crushing it.

“...Yes, that’s how it is. It’s as you said. Who cares about any of this stuff, anyway? It’s fine even if my life doesn’t go back to how it used to be, isn’t it? What’s important is that I move on from this situation and improve my life, after all.”

After saying all that, Hwang Min-Su stared resolutely at Kang Jin-Ho.

“Chairman Kang?”

“Yes?”

“Please hire me. I don’t care about my salaries as long as I can put food on my table. I’m tired of my son looking at me in disappointment, you see? Please help me become a proud father once more.”

“You mean like Chairman Hwang?”

“Eiii,” Hwang Min-Su chuckled while waving his hand. “Even though I’m his son, I gotta be honest, he was a terrible father.”

“...I’m not surprised to hear that.”

Maybe because of all the stuff he heard in the past, Kang Jin-Ho couldn’t argue against Hwang Min-Su just then.

“However...”

Hwang Min-Su’s somewhat distant gaze shifted outside the office’s windows. He seemed to be taking in the sights of the night view of the city.

“Yes, a part of me wishes to be like him. Even though my father has been uncaring, forceful, and... and even a little cruel, I used to get this feeling of staring at a majestic mountain whenever I stared at his back.”

“...”

“Yes, I’d like to be more like that back. I want to show my kid the back of a dependable father.”

Kang Jin-Ho grinned and nodded. “And you’ll get the chance to do that, Mister Hwang.”

“Thank you, Chairman. I sure hope so,” said Hwang Min-Su, then faltered slightly for some reason. Then, he grew a little awkward again. “By the way... sir?”

“Yes?”

“Although I think it’s not right to bring this up right now, how about talking to my older brother if you’re searching for more people to hire?”

“Your older brother?”

His name was Hwang Min-Jae, wasn’t it?

“Yes, him.”

Hwang Min-Su fake-coughed a couple of times as if talking about this topic embarrassed him.

“In terms of capabilities, my brother is better than me. If I’m being honest, I used to have a tough time trying to catch up to him in my younger days. If you want someone to run the company for you, contacting my brother could have been a better option.”

Kang Jin-Ho casually shrugged. “I’ll think about it.”

“Please.”

Kang Jin-Ho’s expression grew unreadable as he studied Hwang Min-Su.

In the past, Hwang Min-Su was in a fierce winner-takes-all battle to seize the control of Jaegyeong with his older brother, Hwang Min-Jae. Of course, all that went down the toilet after Hwang Jeong-Hu regained consciousness, but still.

But now, here was Hwang Min-Su, recommending his brother as the better alternative in his own job interview!

What an interesting development this was.

Kang Jin-Ho curiously asked, “Aren’t you resentful of your brother?”

“Kuh-hum...!”

Hwang Min-Su fake-coughed again.

“Once upon a time... Mm, no, that’s not true. Yes, I still resent him.”

“...”

“I’d like to say it’s all water under the bridge, but all the negative emotions from our past won’t go away like that, you see? Even now, I get the urge to choke the life out of him every now and then.”

“Then, why?”

“Well, even if I feel that way...”

Hwang Min-Su slowly licked his lips. His expression said that it was hard to verbalize all the tangled thoughts filling up his head.

“My brother’s situation isn’t all that different from mine, you see?”

Only someone who had fallen to the pits would understand the sentiments of those who wallow in the depths. As for those who hadn’t, the best they could do was guess.

Hwang Min-Su had fallen to the rock bottom, so he had a good idea of what Hwang Min-Jae’s current life must be like.

“I see. I’ll consider it,” said Kang Jin-Ho with a brief nod.

This was not a bad recommendation for him, considering MK’s current shortage of manpower. Chief Lee Hyeon-Ju was doing her best to deal with the company’s financial and some administrative work, but MK still needed a top-level manager who would decide on the company’s directions and oversee the day-to-day operations.

That role didn’t fall on Kang Jin-Ho’s shoulders, since his job was to look after a much bigger picture. Although not right now, MK might need Hwang Min-Jae’s expertise once the company had gotten stable enough.

‘But the old man will blow his top if we do that.’

Just the suggestion of hiring Hwang Min-Su left Hwang Jeong-Su fuming, so hiring Hwang Min-Jae on top of that would push the old man into erupting like a volcano.

However, he probably wouldn’t try to stop Kang Jin-Ho. That was how human emotions worked, after all!

Even the rage hot enough to melt down Mount Tai or the sorrow powerful enough to drown the world in tears were helpless against the absolute force of nature called time.

Once upon a time, Hwang Jeong-Hu might have lost sleep from the anger and disappointment at what his sons had done. But maintaining such intense emotions until now would be impossible.

What remained after the emotions had faded away would be his principles, the ones he created himself.

Kang Jin-Ho knew something about all those people who strictly adhered to their principles. People who wouldn’t forgive themselves or their families in the pursuit of upholding those damn principles.

In Kang Jin-Ho’s previous lives, such people of principle usually achieved impressive feats. Unfortunately...

‘They were miserable, too.’

Over-the-top principles usually became a noose around people’s necks instead. Being flexible to some degree was always a great idea while trying to navigate through one’s life. Especially when what you wish to achieve was your personal happiness, not the betterment of the world at large.

“Then...” Hwang Min-Su cautiously asked, prompting Kang Jin-Ho to sober up. “...What will I be doing in your company?”

“Does it matter?”

“I’m sorry? Y-yes, of course. Shouldn’t I know what’s...”

“Administrative work in most companies is pretty much the same, isn’t it? I want you to become MK’s president.”

“...? President?” Hwang Min-Su’s eyes powerfully quaked.

He did expect his role within the company to be significant since he was called here and the interviewee was the chairman himself. But to think the role being offered was that of the company president! He certainly was not anticipating this outcome.

“B-but, do you trust me enough for the role?! What if I do a terrible job and harm the company instead?”

Kang Jin-Ho casually shrugged again. “Then that’s my fault for not having the discerning eye for people.”

“...!”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll just fire you, then.”

Hwang Min-Su stared in pure flabbergast at Kang Jin-Ho.

‘Is he just fearless?’

Or maybe just thoughtless? What an impossible-to-nail-down man Kang Jin-Ho was!

“Besides,” Kang Jin-Ho coolly smirked. “You can talk to that guy for more information.”

“I’m sorry?”

Who was Kang Jin-Ho talking about when he mentioned ‘that guy’?

That was when someone knocked on the office door.

“Come in,” said Kang Jin-Ho.

Lee Hyeon-Su opened the door and smartly stepped inside before bowing to Kang Jin-Ho. He then smiled brightly at Hwang Min-Su. “Glad to have you, Mister Hwang. Welcome to our family. Oops, should I say President Hwang now?”

“Mister Hwang is fine, at least for the time being,” Hwang Min-Su hurriedly waved his hand. “Also, it’s still too early to say I’m a part of the family. I’ll have to prove myself first.”

“I see that you’re a little more reserved than I expected,” Lee Hyeon-Su smiled again. “But it’s fine either way. What matters is that we’ll be working alongside each other.”

“...I’m not sure if it’s just me, but the impression I get from the people I’ve met in this company so far is that everyone here is rather easy-going.”

Indeed, easy-going when nicely put... But when described in a not-so-nice manner, it felt like the people here were a bit too lackadaisical for their own good!

“Well, then...”

Lee Hyeon-Su began an in-depth explanation of what MK wanted from Hwang Min-Su. At first, Hwang Min-Su listened intently and with genuine interest, only for his expression to stiffen up gradually.

By the time Lee Hyeon-Su had finished his explanation, Hwang Min-Su’s face was completely cramped up.

“So, what you’re saying is...”

Hwang Min-Su’s pointing finger dizzily danced in the air as if he was having a tough time organizing his thoughts.

He remained stupefied even after a long time had passed, but eventually, his gaze shifted toward Kang Jin-Ho.

“...Rather than hiring a president to oversee the operation, isn’t this more like starting a new business venture from the ground-up?”

Lee Hyeon-Su nodded. “Yes. Starting from scratch is sometimes better than trying to fix something bit by bit, wouldn’t you say?”

“...I have to say, you are more hopelessly optimistic than you look, Mister Lee.”

Hwang Min-Su groaned deeply.

Of course, he did anticipate this outcome to some degree. After all, he had never even heard of a company called MK until recently. Which meant it must’ve opened its doors not too long ago. In a situation like that, the question of how stable the operation was should be put on the back-burner, and the priority should be on establishing the company’s basic framework first.

“I see. Well, it can’t be helped, then.”

“Oh? You are more accepting than I thought.”

Hwang Min-Su looked weirdly at Lee Hyeon-Su. “Huh? Did you think I’d react differently?”

Lee Hyeon-Su smiled brightly again. “Well, if I’m being honest, I thought you’d lose your cool and start shouting at us. Probably not to the extent of getting violent, though.”

“Most people would have done that, yes. What you’ve asked me to do is not much different from giving me an overseas construction assignment, but then ordering me to build the company building first with a shovel.”

“The difference is that we’re going to supply you with workers.”

Hwang Min-Su stared dumbfoundedly at Lee Hyeon-Su, prompting the latter to sneakily avoid meeting that gaze.

Even Lee Hyeon-Su had to admit that this was a bit too unreasonable.

Since MK wanted to start a franchising business, it wanted Hwang Min-Su to pick the people to manage the head office, set up a viable business model, and even oversee the entire operation to ensure everything was plain sailing.

In short, he was being asked to act as a one-man rock band here. He must play the guitars, the drums, and even the bass at the same time!

“It... can’t be helped, then,” said Hwang Min-Su.

“Are you accepting the position?”

“This is for the better, I think.”

Hwang Min-Su picked up an untouched can of beer on the table and opened it.

Pshooii!

He took a large gulp of the booze, then wiped away the corners of his mouth.

“Personally, being swarmed with work is preferable to being moderately busy in my view. Please know that I’m not doing this with half-hearted determination.”

Hwang Min-Su’s sharp gaze landed on Kang Jin-Ho next.

“If I haven’t agreed to do this, then fine. However, once I start something, I’ll see it till the end. I promise you, I will not disappoint you. However, you need to promise me something, Chairman Kang.”

Kang Jin-Ho curiously asked, “Such as?”

“Promise me that you will let me create a work environment that suits me. Let me hire the people I want. I’d like to change the company’s structures and systems to something that makes my job easier. Please grant me full autonomy, and I’ll give you the result you want.”

Kang Jin-Ho glanced weirdly at Lee Hyeon-Su next. That prompted Lee Hyeon-Su to smile awkwardly.

Hwang Min-Su noticed that silent exchange and asked, “...Is there a problem?”

“Well, it’s not a problem per se, but...”Lee Hyeon-Su chuckled loudly. “You don’t have to worry about that demand not being met, Mister Hwang. Our Chairman is not really the type to interfere and micro-manage people, you see? In fact, the people working for him are begging him, nay, getting angry with him for not paying as much attention as he should.”

“...”

“It seems you’ve found a job you’ve been dreaming about. Congratulations,” said Lee Hyeon-Su.

Hwang Min-Su heard that congratulation that didn’t sound like one and seriously wondered if he had made the right decision.

‘What can I do, though?’

When he had already climbed on the back of this tiger?

Hwang Min-Su smiled awkwardly when Lee Hyeon-Su continued to grin brightly.

“There’s something else I’d like to know, Mister Lee.”

“Of course! Ask away, Mister Hwang.”

“I’m asking this just in case, but... How good are the abilities of the employees? I hope it’s not like everyone in this large company is newbies with zero work experience. It’s not like that, yes?”

“...”

“...”

Kang Jin-Ho and Lee Hyeon-Su exchanged even more strange gazes with each other.

As a man who spent a lifetime perfecting the method of reading Hwang Jeong-Hu’s moods, it was easy for Hwang Min-Su to figure out the meaning behind those gazes.

Hwang Min-Su gently got up from the couch and smiled at his hosts. “It’s getting late, so I should head home now.”

Lee Hyeon-Su urgently cried out, “Ehhheeei! Ehhhei! Please sit back down, so we can talk about this, Mister Hwang!”

“Let me go! This is insanity! If you’re sending me out to a war zone, you should at least give me a functioning gun to shoot with! What do you expect me to achieve with a pair of bloody chopsticks?!”

“Now, now, please calm down! Take a deep breath first! Yes, deep breaths! Deeeeep breaths...”

“I said, let me go!”

“Now that it’s come down to this, let’s resign ourselves to our fate, shall we? I mean, what can we do? People need to survive, after all.”

“What?! Are you insane?!”

And this was how Hwang Jeong-Hu’s second son, Hwang Min-Su, officially joined MK.