Chapter 22

Chapter 22.

The only 'Chairman Park' I knew was one person.

Park Yongguk.

The patriarch of South Korea's underworld, the king of the back alleys.

Entertainment, gambling, loan-sharking.

He was a heavyweight with his fingers in anything that turned a profit.

I had expected him to make contact.

But it was faster than I'd thought.

Then again, it was only natural.

I'd been openly sweeping up Relics across the entire country.

I'd been draining every antique street dry, so it would've been stranger if someone that big in the business hadn't heard about it.

The man waited for my answer, his expression intimidating.

His stance said he'd drag me there by force if I refused.

I smirked.

"Sure, why not."

No questions, no objections.

"......?"

The man's eyebrows twitched.

His surprise was written all over his face.

Normally, people would dig in—who are you, why should I, I'm not going.

Or they'd panic and try to run.

It seemed he'd never met someone who complied this readily, as though they'd been waiting for it.

***

Chairman Park Yongguk was an obsessive antique collector.

He was drawn to old things by instinct.

Especially after the Great Cataclysm, he realized he had changed—become different from everyone else.

Awakening.

When the System opened, he gained the ability to sense mana.

Seen through those eyes, the world looked different.

An old ceramic piece shoved into a warehouse was radiating a strange light.

A rusted sword carried a peculiar energy.

'Relics.'

He knew it by instinct.

That these were no ordinary antiques.

That they would become the power of a new era—and a source of immense wealth.

Chairman Park immediately dispatched his men.

He ordered them to scour every antique dealer and auction house across the country.

Spend whatever it takes and sweep them all in, he said.

But the results were dismal.

"Dead end."

"There's nothing left."

"Someone already took everything."

Everywhere they went, they came back empty-handed.

They were one step too late.

An unidentified someone had been cherry-picking the best pieces and clearing them out.

Around the time Chairman Park's mood was souring, a report came in.

They had found the culprit.

Some young punk driving around in a beat-up one-ton truck.

"Sir, we've brought him in."

The intercom buzzed.

Chairman Park sank deep into his leather sofa.

The door opened.

A young man strode in.

Hoodie and jeans.

Dusty sneakers.

He looked like any ordinary college student you'd find anywhere.

'That's the guy?'

Chairman Park narrowed his eyes.

The kid was practically still green.

Early twenties at most.

To think a greenhorn like that had been monopolizing Relics across the country.

And on top of that, he'd walked in here on his own the moment he heard Chairman Park had called for him.

'Confidence, or just stupidity?'

The kid was no pushover.

But the goods were real.

Just moments ago, a subordinate who had checked the truck had reported back.

The man had an 'Observation' skill—a sharp eye for these things.

—Sir, it's the real deal. Everything loaded in that truck bed is giving off a faint glow. Some of them have an energy so intense it's almost blinding.

A treasure trove had walked in on its own two legs.

Chairman Park composed his expression.

A benevolent smile settled on his lips.

The warm, good-natured grin of a friendly neighborhood uncle.

"Welcome. I'm Chairman Park."

He extended his hand first.

The young man showed no sign of intimidation.

He didn't glance around the room or look for cues.

He simply walked up and clasped the offered hand.

"Kim Jeong-seok."

The grip was firm.

Chairman Park's eyebrow rose slightly.

'Kim Jeong-seok......'

He turned the name over in his mind.

'Never heard of him.'

Chairman Park sized the man up again.

Not scrawny, but not a large build either.

There was no intimidating aura or killing intent radiating from him whatsoever.

Just a young man worn down by exhaustion, with dark hollows under his eyes.

'Doesn't look like much.'

Chairman Park lost interest.

What mattered wasn't the kid's identity—it was the goods he'd brought.

The kid was probably just some rookie who'd barely Awakened a single skill.

A greenhorn with no sense of how the real world worked.

All he needed to do was sweet-talk him into handing the goods over at a bargain price.

The kid was young—flash a few stacks of cash and he'd fold in no time.

"I hear you've got quite a collection of interesting items. I happen to have a keen interest in antiques, you see. I'll offer you a fair price, so......"

"One hundred billion upfront."

The words cut him off.

Chairman Park's brow furrowed.

"......What?"

Kim Jeong-seok said it offhandedly.

His tone was dry, like he was picking a lunch menu.

"That's the price for the goods."

"......"

"Oh, and in cash, of course."

Kim Jeong-seok plopped down onto the sofa and added:

"Clean money. Untraceable, please."

"......Ha."

A hollow laugh escaped Chairman Park's mouth.

He was dumbfounded.

One hundred billion won in cash, right off the bat.

And that was just the upfront payment, no less.

He hadn't even properly inspected the goods.

All because some junk loaded on a truck happened to glow a little.

"Are you out of your mind, kid?"

Chairman Park's voice dropped low.

Killing intent seeped through.

The savage presence of a man who had reigned as king of the back alleys and sent countless men to the bottom.

Normally, that was enough to make anyone tuck tail.

Kim Jeong-seok didn't so much as blink.

He crossed his legs and continued.

"The remaining balance is two hundred billion."

"......Two hundred billion?"

"Three hundred billion total. Once you've inspected the goods and confirmed their performance, you can pay it then."

It only got more absurd.

One hundred billion had already sounded insane, and now another two hundred billion was tacked onto the back.

Kim Jeong-seok shrugged as if savoring Chairman Park's reaction.

"If you don't want them, that's fine. I'm not going to force it."

He made a show of rising from his seat.

"I'll just take them to Chairman Shim."

In that instant.

Chairman Park's gaze sharpened.

"......Chairman Shim?"

Shim Myeonghwan.

Chairman of Myeongseong Construction, and Chairman Park's lifelong rival.

He was an equally obsessive antique collector.

Above all, rumors were running rampant that the old man had also Awakened.

'He knows.'

Chairman Park looked at Kim Jeong-seok again.

This kid knew the game.

How the world was turning right now.

What kind of value these old Relics would command in the future.

And exactly who was most desperate to have them.

He had it all figured out.

'If Shim Myeonghwan gets his hands on these......'

The thought alone was horrifying.

Since the Great Cataclysm, the balance of power had been crumbling.

Money and influence alone were no longer enough.

This was an era that demanded 'power.'

If what was loaded on that truck was the real thing?

If Shim Myeonghwan monopolized them and armed up?

His own organization would be rendered obsolete overnight.

"Wait."

Chairman Park called Kim Jeong-seok to a halt.

His mind churned.

He wanted the goods.

But three hundred billion was too steep.

Even for a man drowning in money, coming up with three hundred billion in cash on the spot was a strain.

And on top of that.

'Insolent little bastard.'

A young punk was trying to play games on top of an old man's head.

Maybe he should just take them by force?

Dispose of the kid quietly and keep the truck—wouldn't that be simpler?

But he hesitated.

'He's too calm.'

Confidence.

A composure bordering on arrogance.

It was like walking into a tiger's den of your own accord and demanding the tiger hand over its meat.

That kind of attitude was impossible without something to fall back on.

'Does he have someone behind him?'

Given that the kid had even dropped Chairman Shim's name, his intelligence network was no joke.

And those eyes.

He clearly possessed a high-grade Appraisal skill that let him accurately gauge the value of Relics.

Mess with him carelessly and there could be blowback.

But then again, handing over three hundred billion without a fight—his pride wouldn't allow it.

There were limits even to gouging.

This was blatant extortion.

"Listen, young man. That's not how you do business."

Chairman Park pulled out a cigarette and put it to his lips.

"There has to be a reasonable middle ground. I'll pay a generous price for the goods, but three hundred billion is......"

"Your son."

Kim Jeong-seok cut in abruptly.

Chairman Park's hand stopped.

The lighter flame wavered in midair.

"......What did you just say?"

"I'm talking about Park Jihun."

Kim Jeong-seok studied Chairman Park with an impassive expression.

"He's in a vegetative state, isn't he? Going on three years now."

CRACK.

The lighter in Chairman Park's grip crumpled.

His expression turned to stone.

A reverse scale.

A place that should never have been touched.

His only son.

The precious child who had fallen into a coma three years ago in a mysterious car accident.

Chairman Park's deepest wound—and his greatest vulnerability.

Moreover, it was a fact that had been kept in absolute secrecy.

And some random young man knew about it?

"You little......"

Dark mana billowed from Chairman Park's body.

This time, the intent to kill was genuine.

"You investigated me? Have you lost your mind—do you want to die?"

This one is dangerous.

He knows far too much about me.

And he's trying to use it as leverage.

I can't let him live.

"I can save him."

"......What?"

"I said I can save your son."

Kim Jeong-seok didn't so much as blink.

If anything, the corner of his mouth curled upward as if mocking Chairman Park's killing intent.

"Modern medicine can't do it, of course. The damage is to the brain."

He pointed toward the truck outside.

"But with what I've brought, it's a different story. They carry a power beyond the logic of this world. Used properly, they can bring him back."

"Bullshit."

Chairman Park growled.

"Don't try to con me. The most distinguished doctors in the country gave up on him, and you think some antiques are going to fix that?"

"Believe it or don't."

Kim Jeong-seok rose from his seat.

"Then I'll be heading to Chairman Shim. I hear his wife has a serious chronic condition too."

His stride toward the door was unhesitating.

He grasped the door handle.

Chairman Park's pupils trembled.

It sounded like a lie.

It looked like the textbook play of a con artist.

But.

'What if it's real?'

The world had changed.

He himself—old and withering—had become a superhuman who could bend steel.

Then couldn't miraculous healing also exist?

That brimming confidence.

Those were not the eyes of a man telling lies.

The desperate urge to grasp at any straw.

A father's desperation paralyzed his reason.

'If it's a lie, I'll make him fish food.'

His mind was made up.

"Wait!"

Chairman Park called out urgently.

Kim Jeong-seok stopped.

Without turning around.

"The terms are the same."

Kim Jeong-seok said.

"One hundred billion upfront. Right now."

Chairman Park bit his lip.

There was no room for choice.

It could be a trap.

It could be a scheme to take the money and vanish.

But if there was even a 0.1% chance of saving his son.

What was a measly one hundred billion?

"......Fine."

Chairman Park answered, his voice shaking.

"But I have one condition. Cure my son first."

"No."

Kim Jeong-seok turned his head.

Cold eyes pierced through Chairman Park.

"Money first. Treatment comes after."

"You bastard, to the very end......!"

"If you can't trust me, then forget it."

Kim Jeong-seok opened the door.

A gust of cold air rushed in.

It was a game of nerve.

And the one who needed the other more was Chairman Park.

Kim Jeong-seok knew.

What a son meant to Chairman Park.

And just how desperate he was.

In truth, the timing of payment didn't really matter.

He was confident he could collect it regardless.

But for the sake of the relationship going forward, seizing the upper hand was necessary.

"Fine! I'll pay! I'll pay, so just—isn't that enough?!"

In the end, Chairman Park raised the white flag.

He snatched up the intercom.

"Send Director Kim in. And...... open the vault."

Only then did Kim Jeong-seok close the door and walk back inside.

As though he'd known all along it would go this way.

A smile hung at the corner of his lips.

"A wise decision."

Kim Jeong-seok leaned deep into the sofa.

"An excellent investment, Chairman."

Chairman Park stared at Kim Jeong-seok with an expression of sheer disbelief.

'......What on earth is this kid?'

Because in all his years, he had never once met someone like this.