Chapter 541. Condensing (1)
“...W-wait a minute, Mister Jin-Ho?” Lee Hyeon-Su's voice was cracking and withdrawing. He sounded like a man who hadn't found the answer for the question, 'Is it okay for me to argue with Kang Jin-Ho like this?'
What separated him from mere common men was that... Lee Hyeon-Su still didn't stop complaining despite his voice faltering in uncertainty!
“If you have a plan, couldn't you have alerted us ahead of time so we…”
“My bad about that,” Kang Jin-Ho readily acceded to Lee Hyeon-Su's complaints. “However, I thought it was necessary, so I acted on it without talking to you first.”
“In what way is this necessary?”
“Well, the Assembly's forces need to get stronger, right?”
Lee Hyeon-Su nodded in agreement. For the sake of strengthening the Martial Assembly, he was willing to accept pretty much anything. However! Many things in this world started off with good intentions and wonderful goals... Only for them to go sideways during the process.
“I'm aware of the risks involved,” said Kang Jin-Ho. “However, we don't have a choice but to take on the risk. Time is one luxury we don't have, after all.”
People in this conference hall couldn't help but agree with the logic behind Kang Jin-Ho's opinion, regardless of how they felt about it. It was true that they only had bought themselves a temporary reprieve. Not even Zhuge Liang would be sharp enough to predict how this situation would unfold, so what about the trio in this office?
To ensure their continued survival from whatever fate had in store for them, the Martial Assembly's growth was non-negotiable. Even so...
“However, I gotta say, something about this doesn't sit right with me, Mister Jin-Ho,” Bang Jin-Hun finally broke his self-imposed silence and voiced his opinion. “It's a great idea to become stronger. However, the question now should be about the direction of our efforts. If we focus solely on strength and nothing else... We run the risk of losing our identity.”
“Our identity?” Kang Jin-Ho tilted his head.
Bang Jin-Hun weightily nodded. “Yes. People are already biting my head off nonstop for introducing a demonic cultivation method to our younger generation. For now, I've tried to stop their complaints by saying it's only a trial run involving a handful of youngsters, but this problem will come to a head sooner or later.”
“Mm...” Kang Jin-Ho rubbed his chin.
“That's our current situation, so to introduce Western techniques on top of that? You can bet your bottom dollar that lots of folks in the older generation will go up in arms while saying some crap about the Martial Assembly failing to protect its tradition. After all, we are South Korea's Martial Assembly, not the International Martial Assembly.”
Kang Jin-Ho stopped rubbing his chin and stared straight at Bang Jin-Hun. “I see. Then, what are your thoughts on this matter, Assembly Master?”
“...You really want to hear what I think?”
“Yes.”
“Of course, I get where you're coming from. I fully understand that we shouldn't be picky about stuff in our current situation. From what our Yeongnam Branch director has told us, it seems we're stuck in a very tight spot. I get all that, but…” Bang Jin-Hun groaned, the ends of his sentence blurring. “It's just that I can't get rid of this feeling, you know? If we just accept and learn absolutely whatever in the pursuit of strength, wouldn't our identity get erased, never to be recovered?”
“Our identity, you say...?” Kang Jin-Ho frowned a little. “I have to say, I don't understand what you mean by 'identity'.”
“Well... It's not something I can verbally define. We've always been proud of continuing the inheritance, our tradition, of South Korea's martial arts and even evolving them. If our desire had been solely about acquiring strength, we'd already have chosen to lay in bed with Japan or China by now.”
“Mm...”
“You might think we're holding onto useless pride, but... I won't lie, Mister Jin-Ho. I still think it should be the 'Korean' martial arts if we can help it.”
Objectively speaking, willfully missing the opportunity to grow stronger in order to protect one's tradition sounded incredibly illogical. However, humans were known to make irrational decisions at times. Martial artists were especially more prone to this behavior.
Even if Mount Hua Sect's disciples were provided with the manuals containing Shaolin Temple's Yijin Jing technique, would they willingly accept it? Of course they wouldn't.
Those disciples had put their heart and soul into developing their techniques and improving cultivation realms to triumph over the others instead. Finding mightier, more tyrannical martial art techniques to become stronger just didn't fit their style.
“You need time to evolve and progress in that way. However, time is something we don't have,” said Kang Jin-Ho.
Bang Jin-Hun nodded in agreement. “Yes, I'm aware of that. I know it's gonna be tough, but... We'll do our best to convince everyone. I must warn you, though. Not everyone will be as accepting as us, Mister Jin-Ho. Please know that this event could serve as the trigger that tears the Martial Assembly apart.”
Kang Jin-Ho weightily nodded in silence to express that he understood the gravity of this situation.
Since Bang Jin-Hun trusted Kang Jin-Ho, he'd try to understand decisions to tread paths that didn't match his opinions. However, other executives of the Martial Assembly didn't hold the same level of faith in Kang Jin-Ho.
At least Lee Jung-Geol did an admirable job of suppressing them since he knew Kang Jin-Ho's terror. However, there was a clear limit to doing that. Unlike his previous self, the current Lee Jung-Geol was no different from a fangless tiger. No matter how many connections and influences he still had, those wouldn't be as effective as when he was the Assembly Master.
The proverbial pressure steadily building up would inevitably explode sooner or later.
Lee Hyeon-Su grimaced while raising his voice. “I am also not comfortable about this, Assembly Master. However... Realistically speaking, we must resort to every trick in the book.”
“Hmm...” Bang Jin-Hun groaned softly as he listened.
“Sir, we can only think about our tradition after surviving our future. At this rate, South Korea's martial arts will get wiped out. Totally annihilated. To prevent that event, we... We just don't have a choice but face this change head-on.”
“Since you're also saying this, I guess we really don't have a choice, huh? I'll do my best to convince the others, then.” Bang Jin-Hun muttered in resignation.
Lee Hyeon-Su sighed under his breath. The Martial Assembly was operating more or less 'fine' because Bang Jin-Hun followed Kang Jin-Ho's decisions. What if Bang Jin-Hun and Kang Jin-Ho were at odds, though? The Assembly's structure would've broken down in an instant.
'In that regard, our Assembly Master is a remarkable man, isn't he?'
Lee Hyeon-Su had worked under a tyrannical leader like Kim Seok-Il, who listened to no one but himself, so he'd sometimes feel frustrated by how Bang Jin-Hun acted.
Lee Hyeon-Su used to not understand Bang Jin-Hun's non-committal wishy-washy attitude. Even though Bang Jin-Hun kept a big fish like Lee Jung-Geol in check and eventually took the leadership position away from that wily fox, Lee Hyeon-Su couldn't help but wonder if something about that story had been embellished somewhat.
From Lee Hyeon-Su's view, Bang Jin-Hun seemed far too soft to do stuff like that. However, he had been wrong about that all this time. The true essence of Bang Jin-Hun could only be gleaned by sticking with him for a while.
As it turned out, Bang Jin-Hun was someone who always thought about what would be the best attitude for the situation at hand. He went for a little tougher—a little more assertive—stance while dealing with Lee Jung-Geol because the situation demanded strong leadership from him. And he believed a position of 'mediator' was necessary for the current situation, so that was the role he readily took on.
If Kang Jin-Ho was the engine motivating the Martial Assembly forward, and Lee Hyeon-Su was the steering wheel guiding the direction, then Bang Jin-Hun was the lubricant for everything to flow smoothly together. No matter how powerful the engine was or how sharp the steering was... without the best lubricant oiling everything, things would break down into pieces before catching fire.
In that sense, Lee Hyeon-Su was grateful for Bang Jin-Hun taking up such a role.
Bang Jin-Hun glanced at Kang Jin-Ho. “Even so, if I think things won't pan out as we'd like to, I'll give you a heads-up, Mister Jin-Ho. Please deal with it when the time comes.”
“Understood,” Kang Jin-Ho briefly nodded.
Lee Hyeon-Su shuddered a little after realizing what those simple-sounding words meant.
'Mister Jin-Ho knows only one way to deal with such things.'
Other people might know of various ways to quell dissent, but Kang Jin-Ho's methods had been largely the same until now. And in Lee Hyeon-Su's opinion, those methods shouldn't be employed if possible!
Just as Lee Hyeon-Su finished resolving himself to prevent the situation from going that far, the entrance to the conference hall opened with a loud thunk. Knight Wiggins stepped in with the company of Vincent, Mathieu and Elena.
“My lord, we're finished with our discussion,” said Wiggins.
Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes. “I see. So? What happened?”
Instead of replying right away, Wiggins shrugged first. His gesture seemed somewhat exaggerated, like the kind seen in typical Western movies. Kang Jin-Ho couldn't help but frown at that because it seemed yet another variable was about to be thrown into the mix.
Knight Wiggins noticed Kang Jin-Ho's questioning gaze, so he pointed at Vincent and Mathieu with his chin. “I believe it'll be better to hear from these two directly, my lord.”
“Directly, eh...?” Kang Jin-Ho shifted his gaze over to Vincent.
The Frenchman coughed awkwardly first. “I don't know if Miss Elena here can accurately convey our intentions to you, but here it goes. Let me not beat around the bush, Mister Kang. We'd like to request you for our protection.”
Elena translated what Vincent said into Korean. After listening to her, Kang Jin-Ho blinked his eyes while glancing at Lee Hyeon-Su. However, even Lee Hyeon-Su was tilting his head in confusion.
Kang Jin-Ho looked back at the French duo. “Looks like we need a more detailed explanation?”
“Mm, well...” Vincent hesitated, not knowing where to even begin.
That was when Mathieu stepped up. “Allow me, sir. We've heard about the current situation back home from Knight Wiggins. And we also understand you no longer need us. It's just that our circumstances mean returning to France is unfeasible for us.”
“Why?”
“It's because... Our freedom was not decided by the Round Table.”
Kang Jin-Ho frowned while staring straight at Mathieu. His expression seemed to say, What kind of nonsense are you spewing here?
Mathieu sheepishly chuckled. “I'm sure our way of thinking must sound strange to you. The truth is, we're your prisoners. Captured in the act, so to speak. Even if Knight Wiggins offers himself up to free us, only cold shoulders wait for us back home.”
“Mm? Even though your situation couldn't be helped?”
“Yes, you're right, Mister Kang. However, our colleagues back home won't necessarily feel that way. Especially Knight Leveaux, who is our commander. He places a lot of importance on preserving his face and justifications, you see?” Mathieu frowned as if he didn't even want to imagine how Knight Leveaux would react. “When he learns about his subordinates being freed through the sacrifice of Knight Wiggins, his sworn rival in the Round Table... I assure you, Mister Kang. Our fate will not be so nice after we return to France.”
“Huh? But, I thought you Westerners were more rational than that?”
“All humans are the same, Mister Kang. It's just the difference of how much of your true self you're willing to display on the surface.”
Kang Jin-Ho loudly groaned. If he were to forget about preambles and summarize what the French duo were saying... They didn't want to leave even if they were free. After scratching his head a little, Kang Jin-Ho looked at Vincent and Mathieu. “I see. So? What do you want, exactly?”
Mathieu sucked in a deep breath before raising his voice. “We'd like to continue with what we've been doing until now. Even if Knight Wiggins is here, you'll still need more people to teach our system of combat to so many of your martial artists.”
“Mm...”
“I promise you, we'll earn our keep. Our request is for the Martial Assembly to provide us with shelter until we can fully figure out the situation back home. However, please grant us more freedom than what we currently have, such as unrestricted movement and freedom to choose where we stay. Also... Allow us to leave if the situation back home stabilizes.”
Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes and stared at Mathieu. The Frenchman nervously gulped while being subjected to that gaze. Speaking directly to Kang Jin-Ho placed so much pressure on his shoulders.
Kang Jin-Ho crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Why should I do any of those for you?”
“Mister Kang. We will be providing you with everything of ours willingly. Not under coercion or duress, but willingly, sir. I think that alone will be a fair trade.”
“Hmm...” Kang Jin-Ho glanced at Lee Hyeon-Su again. When the latter silently nodded, Kang Jin-Ho frowned while pondering his options. He scratched his cheek for a little while, then suddenly asked a question. “Huh. In that case, how much do you want for your salary, then?”
“...”
“...”
The atmosphere in the conference hall became a wee bit weird just then. Kang Jin-Ho confusedly scanned the surroundings and testily asked again. “Y-you okay with passion pay, then?”
Now that was a dangerous thing to say in this situation!
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