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Chapter 525: Awareness (5)

“N-no, hang on a minute. So, like...” Lee Hyeon-Su held his head. Vator? Why was that name suddenly brought up here? “That Vator you\'re talking about, Mister Jin-Ho? Is it the same Vator that I know of?”

Lee Hyeon-Su was asking that out of sheer disbelief, but Kang Jin-Ho seemed incapable of understanding his conversation partner\'s feelings. He cocked his brow and tilted his head slightly. “I don\'t know which Vator you\'re familiar with, Lee Hyeon-Su.”

“...Arrrrgh!” Lee Hyeon-Su grabbed the back of his neck. He suddenly understood what it felt like to have a raging inferno erupting in his innards. \'Aren\'t I supposed to be a rational man with a cold heart? What the hell...?\'

Lee Hyeon-Su couldn\'t remember losing his cool once while working for Kim Seok-Il. That was why people respectfully kept him at arm\'s length. And he thought it should be bleedingly obvious for other people to fear him. However, his situation changed a bit after he got tangled up in Kang Jin-Ho\'s business.

Why did it feel like those people who used to fear Lee Hyeon-Su were now... looking at him with pity? So much so that he\'d sometimes find a bottle of energy tonic or two on his desk...!

\'Just how the hell did I...!\'

Lee Hyeon-Su\'s image of a strangely scary man had been mercilessly overshadowed by Kang Jin-Ho\'s presence. And the Yeongnam Group incident seemed to have acted like a terror vaccine as everyone who experienced that unforgettable event stopped being scared of him.

Hell, he even heard some people whisper, \'I used to think Mister Lee Hyeon-Su was scary, but after that thing with Mister Kang Jin-Ho? I think Mister Lee is positively cute in comparison!\' Of course, Lee Hyeon-Su heard that in the Assembly\'s toilet while dealing with nature\'s call, but still!

Whatever the case might be... The core of this issue was with Kang Jin-Ho. In terms of who was a better superior, comparing Kang Jin-Ho to Kim Seok-Il was very difficult. The differences in physical & political power and their abilities to command people were too vast to make that comparison work.

Besides, Lee Hyeon-Su instinctively held hostility toward Kim Seok-Il, but not toward Kang Jin-Ho. He wouldn\'t dare let feelings of dissatisfaction creep into his heart as he wasn\'t suicidal just yet!

That much was not a problem, though. Yes, it should\'ve been, but... But...!

\'Why... Why do you keep doing these crazy things every now and then?!\'

Why did Kang Jin-Ho unilaterally decide on something this monumental?! What was that? A duel? If Kang Jin-Ho was only happy to oblige any random challenger showing up for a duel, then what the hell was the point of holding an important position in the Martial Assembly?!

\'...Hold on, this dude is technically an outsider, right? Is this why he refuses to accept a position in the Assembly?\'

Since someone so important not holding any position wasn\'t a good look for the organization and its members, Lee Hyeon-Su and others recommended that Kang Jin-Ho should become a director, at least in name only, but he kept evading the topic by saying he\'d think about it. As it turned out, Kang Jin-Ho had a pretty good reason for that!

He wanted to have his cake and eat it but not pay the bills! Kang Jin-Ho would make a fine politician, now wouldn\'t he?!

Kang Jin-Ho tilted his head. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“...Oh, my apologies,” Lee Hyeon-Su quickly turned his head away. “I, uh, momentarily lost myself.”

“Mm?” Kang Jin-Ho\'s confused head tilting intensified.

Lee Hyeon-Su groaned softly. “Well... The ship has set sail, so there\'s no helping it now, I guess.”

“You\'re a lot more accepting than I thought?”

“When it can\'t be helped, it can\'t be helped, Mister Jin-Ho. Now that I\'ve calmed down a bit, I understand that this challenge isn\'t something we can refuse even if we want to.”

Would this problem go away if Kang Jin-Ho said no? Of course not.

Vator would start targeting Kang Jin-Ho in more underhanded means if his challenge was rejected. And Kang Jin-Ho would have to choose between two options if he wanted to overcome this particular threat. One, always stay in heavily-populated locations, forcing Vator to back off. Or, always be accompanied by a large contingent of warriors that was strong enough to genuinely threaten Vator\'s life. Unfortunately, both options were unrealistic.

\'This is different from assassination.\'

An assassination attempt was only made when the would-be assassins couldn\'t attack the target head-on. However, the situation this time was different. Vator was obviously planning to fight Kang Jin-Ho head-on and utterly destroy him.

Lee Hyeon-Su was irritated by the fact that there was no realistic way to stop this event from going ahead. He groaned again and looked at Kang Jin-Ho. “Mister Jin-Ho... When will it take place?”

“Later today.”

“...Sorry?”

“I said, later today,” Kang Jin-Ho loudly tutted.

“...!” Lee Hyeon-Su plopped down on the office\'s couch, all semblance of color quickly draining from his complexion. “Those sons of b*tches...”

He didn\'t expect the opponents to be so blunt in their approach. Then again, China, as a nation, has a tendency to do things this way.

People from other countries might hold back on doing certain things to save face, but that didn\'t always apply to the Chinese. After all, might was right. Might could save face regardless of the situation. And might... justified whatever happened. At least, that\'s how Lee Hyeon-Su understood it.

\'However, that stance isn\'t exactly wrong, now is it?\'

Things like pretexts and saving face could sometimes be annoying hindrances. Lee Hyeon-Su knew better than anyone that pursuing practical benefits over saving face or worrying about criticisms would produce better results.

Although, he should exclude the current situation, where their face couldn\'t be saved, or no justification was quite good enough, from his evaluation...!

“Mister Jin-Ho. You\'ve told no one about this except me. Why?”

“I thought things might get a bit annoying if I did,” said Kang Jin-Ho with a casual shrug of his shoulders.

Lee Hyeon-Su quietly nodded at that. If Kang Jin-Ho was searching for a way to minimize the commotion while dealing with an unavoidable enemy, he found the right person to help him out. Whether it was Bang Jin-Hun or someone else in Kang Jin-Ho\'s circle of acquaintances, they wouldn\'t have accepted this news in a calm, rational way, after all!

Only Lee Hyeon-Su would be capable of rationally analyzing this situation. His relationship with Kang Jin-Ho wasn\'t what one would call \'friends\', and Lee Hyeon-Su certainly hadn\'t been arrested by the latter\'s charisma to the point of blind faith, either. He could very well be the sole key personnel in Kang Jin-Ho\'s life who could calmly judge this situation.

“Mister Jin-Ho…” Lee Hyeon-Su sighed softly. “What I\'m about to tell you is purely advice. Even if you don\'t like what you hear, I implore you to listen until the end. And get angry afterward.”

“Sure, I\'ll do that.”

Lee Hyeon-Su\'s eyes sharply gleamed. “Since their side has already chosen the time and location, we can organize a team to travel with you. You don\'t need to go on this adventure alone. We can defeat them as a group. That is the most logical and realistic way to handle this situation.”

“...”

“Even if this plan displeases you, you must not go there by yourself. What if it\'s a trap? They can obviously think of the same things as I have. While setting up the location and time, they must\'ve thought that we\'d show up there with a large group. Completely trusting you and not making any plans is incredibly idiotic, Mister Jin-Ho.”

Kang Jin-Ho wordlessly nodded away. Lee Hyeon-Su\'s words have been sensible so far.

“Yes, powerful experts fighting each other in an honorable one-on-one duel sounds quite romantic and all that. However, please don\'t forget that reality is a cruel mistress, Mister Jin-Ho. You need to make a decision. Give me your order, and I\'ll select our best warriors to deal with Vator.”

Click...

Kang Jin-Ho calmly lit his cigarette, then smirked lazily.

Lee Hyeon-Su saw that grin and sighed before smiling wryly himself. “You... have no plans to listen to me, now do you?”

Kang Jin-Ho nodded as if opening his mouth to talk was a waste of time. Lee Hyeon-Su\'s groan deepened after getting the expected answer.

\'Talking to a wall might be more productive...\'

Some things in this world had to be done, even if they seemed like a waste of time for everyone involved. Such as what Lee Hyeon-Su had done just now!

“Mister Jin-Ho, just... What makes you so confident?”

“Rather than being confident, it\'s more like I know.”

“...If I\'m being honest, I don\'t understand you. What will you do if it\'s a trap?”

Kang Jin-Ho shrugged his shoulders. “You can call me an idiot for falling for it, then.”

“Uh-whew...” Lee Hyeon-Su slowly shook his head.

He got it now. He understood that this matter was not in the realm of logic.

Something called communion existed between experts who dedicated their entire lives to walking the path of martial arts. Regular people could never truly understand what this was, and Lee Hyeon-Su was one of those people. He was the type to use explosives to destroy a tunnel to kill a martial artist, after all.

“Mister Jin-Ho?”

“Yes, speak.”

“...You must win.”

“...”

“This battle is different from every fight you got involved in until now. The moment you lose this battle, it... It\'ll be the moment of the Crimson King\'s faction swallowing up South Korea.”

“I know.”

“The Martial Assembly will crumble without its core. It\'ll lose the power to resist foreign influences. Too much is hanging in the balance, Mister Jin-Ho. It\'ll all depend on whether you win or lose.”

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled lightheartedly. When was the last time he didn\'t feel such oppressive pressure bearing down on his shoulders? Even though Lee Hyeon-Su spoke as if this particular event was earth-shatteringly important, the truth was... Kang Jin-Ho always had so much to lose in every battle he fought until now. Not just in this life but in his previous life, too.

So, Kang Jin-Ho was intimately familiar with the pressure. The burden of it all.

Lee Hyeon-Su continued to speak. “And you should take someone with you, as well.”

“Mm? Why should I?” Kang Jin-Ho cocked his head.

“You\'ll need someone to retrieve your corpse in case you lose. Even if you win, someone has to take you to a hospital since you\'ll be injured. Taking one person with you is a smart idea, Mister Jin-Ho.”

“Is that right?” Kang Jin-Ho curiously rubbed his chin.

“Of course.”

“I see. Then, get ready.”

“...I\'m sorry?” Lee Hyeon-Su blinked his eyes.

“Get ready to depart, Lee Hyeon-Su.” Kang Jin-Ho nonchalantly issued his new order.

...And the poor Lee Hyeon-Su covered his face in dismay. \'Aaaargh, I shouldn\'t have said anything!\'

As usual, not knowing when to shut up had proven to be a costly mistake!

***

“Are you sure this is the place?” Lee Hyeon-Su asked while scanning their surroundings outside the car\'s window.

“Hmm...” Kang Jin-Ho peeked his head outside the window before sitting back in his seat. "I\'m not sure."

“What did the messenger say the location\'s name was? Or the precise address?”

“Well, he only gave me the GPS coordinates, you see? Since the navigation says we\'re here, this must be the right place.”

“That might be true, but...” Lee Hyeon-Su sighed grandly at the scenery outside the window. \'This is just in the middle of a nameless forest, you know...\'

They drove for a long time on the national highway to get here, but here turned out to be nothing more than a forest of tall trees and rolling mountaintops. Unless the coordinates were incorrect, something must\'ve gone wrong somewhere, but...

Kang Jin-Ho took out his phone. “Should I call them?”

“Huh? You even got their phone number?” Lee Hyeon-Su blinked his eyes.

"Yeah. The messenger gave it to me."

“...Oh.”

What on Earth was up with those people...? Were they running some kind of... business?

Sure, this way of doing things sounded logical, and they weren\'t living in the Joseon era, either. Since they issued a challenge and said, \'Show up at a location at the designated time!\' slipping in a business card along with the notice of challenge was the correct etiquette. And that would minimize the chances of things going awry somewhere.

Lee Hyeon-Su knew this, but...

\'...It feels like doing so will diminish the seriousness of this event!\'

Indeed, what happened to martial artists\' ideals? Was it fed to the dogs or something?!

“...Cough. Yes, please give them a call,” said Lee Hyeon-Su. It wasn\'t as if ideals could change the world for the better, anyway!

Kang Jin-Ho leisurely tapped on his phone\'s screen. A short while later, the call got through.

“Huh... What was your name again, fella?” Kang Jin-Ho spoke into the phone.

Sitting next to him, Lee Hyeon-Su frowned. \'How is that important now, Mister Jin-Ho!\'

Did you forget that we\'re here to fight an incredibly important battle to decide the fate of this nation! Why are you acting like this and deflating all the built-up tension! Why!

“Right, right. Your name is Zhang Dajing. Anyway, I\'ve arrived at the location you told me, but there\'s no one here. This is a bit troublesome for me, so... If you have set up a trap, hurry up and spring it already.”

Lee Hyeon-Su\'s grimace deepened. \'Please stop saying such things! You\'re gonna give me a heart attack!\'

“Mm... Okay, got it.” Kang Jin-Ho ended the call and turned to look at Lee Hyeon-Su. “Apparently, we need to keep driving up this dirt road. Since the actual location doesn\'t appear on the navigation, this was the only place they could tell us.”

“Huh. What if we get lost, then?”

“Who knows? They probably thought we\'d phone them.” Kang Jin-Ho casually shrugged his shoulders.

Lee Hyeon-Su couldn\'t help but think that their opponents were also rather... too easy-going for their own good. However, what could he do about it now? Other than unhappily stepping on the accelerator and driving, that was?

Vroooom...

Lee Hyeon-Su switched the headlights to high beams and cautiously navigated past the dark mountain road. He continued to wonder if they were even on the right road, but... Sure enough, the dense foliage began to thin out until a massive open area greeted them.

\'Is this the place?\'

Lee Hyeon-Su frowned deeply. He could easily spy all the traces of human activity in this location. It was as if this location had been artificially created for the upcoming battle.

Kang Jin-Ho wordlessly opened the door and stepped outside. Lee Hyeon-Su turned off the ignition and quickly climbed out of the car, too. With the headlights turned off, the impenetrable veil of darkness descended on the surroundings once more.

“Mister Jin-Ho...? Maybe we should confirm if we\'re at the right place...?”

“No, we\'re at the right place.”

“How can you tell?”

“Look over there,” Kang Jin-Ho smirked while pointing with his chin. That was when the surroundings were suddenly bathed in the blinding explosion of light.

“Kuk!” Lee Hyeon-Su reflexively turned his head away from all the intense light trying to blind him. While shielding his face with his hand, he slowly opened his eyes to look.

\'What is going on?\'

A bizarre scenery was waiting for them.