Descent of the Demon Master-Chapter 1053: Getting Ready (3)

Jeon Byeong-Su nervously swallowed his saliva.

‘This is my first time reporting directly to Chief Jo…’

When that thought entered his head, his nervousness suddenly threatened to go through the roof!

‘N-no, hang on! There is no need to get this anxious, right?’

He didn’t fall behind the person before his eyes in any metric, after all!

Not only did Jeon Byeong-Su join the company sooner, but he was older, too. More importantly, though, Jeon Byeong-Su also rose through Jaegyeong's unforgivingly strict hierarchy to reach the position of team leader.

Indeed, Jeon Byeong-Su didn't lag behind the Chief Secretary in terms of quality. Even so…

‘...Eii, what the hell am I even thinking about here?’

Even Jeon Byeong-Su had to admit he was thinking of some dumb nonsense.

Although the Chief-of-something position was rather flexible enough to be applied to pretty much any department, it was still a higher-ranked position than that of team leader, at least in Jaegyeong.

Even a Chief without any real authority should still be enough to make Jeon Byeong-Su sweat nervously. So, how could he not get nervous while facing a Chief from the mighty Office of Secretaries? The wielder of true power in a corporation?

‘When you think about it, Chief Jo is an incredible human being, isn’t he…?’

Someone who wasn’t even forty yet occupying the lofty position of the Chief Secretary in Jaegyeong was undoubtedly an achievement to be proud of.

However, something else was even more impressive about Chief Jo. And that was the difference in the importance of his work compared to his predecessors.

While the previous Chief Secretaries were more or less “managers” who oversaw Chairman Hwang Jeong-Hu's schedule, Chief Jo's duties went beyond that. He was currently directly involved in many facets of the business.

...Which only served as further proof of him being the true authority in this corporation!

One should always be wary of people like Chief Jo if one wanted to lead a trouble-free salaryman’s life. Unlike the board of directors or the presidents of various divisions, who didn't go out of their way to bother the middle management as long as their authority wasn't questioned or challenged and their whims were met on time, people like Chief Jo would personally evaluate a salaryman's performance through abilities and results only!

In other words, depending on what Jeon Byeong-Su said and presented in his report today, his career in Jaegyeong could experience massive upheavals!

Jeon Byeong-Su nervously swallowed his saliva again while cautiously studying the man sitting before his eyes… Chief Secretary Jo Gyu-Min!

Jo Gyu-Min's expression was slightly cramped as he read the report. He rapidly perused the contents, then sighed softly before placing the report on his desk. “Team leader Jeon…”

“Yes, sir?” Jeon Byeong-Su nervously replied.

“Thank you for your report, but now I’d like to hear the situation directly from you. How has it been?”

“Eh, well…” Jeon Byeong-Su sneakily wiped the sweat off his forehead. “We shouldn't even worry about whether these trainees are fit for duty or not as that's pointless, sir.”

Jo Gyu-Min held his head while leaning against his couch. “How bad is it?”

“Sir, these trainees can't even use the word processor properly. I'm sure you can already imagine how catastrophic they are with other office work-related programs. Although, rather bizarrely, trainees who have allegedly been working in the accounting department have displayed some level of proficiency.”

“Well, I did hear that the sister-in-law is rather good at her job, so that’s not surprising.”[1]

Jeon Byeong-Su tilted his head. “I’m sorry? Who?”

“Don't mind me. I'm talking to myself,” Jo Gyu-Min shook his head while rubbing and massaging his chin.

There should be two reasons for the surprising level of proficiency from the Assembly’s accounting department people.

‘After all, they must've assigned their best people to handle the Assembly's finances.'

First of all, one of the most important tasks in the Martial Assembly should be managing the flow of its funds. So, anyone deemed good with numbers within the Assembly's ranks must've been all “handpicked” to work in the accounting department.

Since the Assembly didn’t need to plot new business ventures or saw the need for a watertight operation, it could have probably chugged along just fine with this kind of approach.

The other reason had to be Lee Hyeon-Ju’s presence.

The Assembly undoubtedly experienced a seismic change when she took over the accounting department. Someone like her wouldn’t have left incompetent subordinates alone.

Jo Gyu-Min glanced at Jeon Byeong-Su. “How challenging has it been so far?”

“Thanks to the information we received beforehand, we were able to lower the difficulty of the training program as much as possible before the start, but… The trainees are still having trouble with the curriculum…”

Jo Gyu-Min’s head faltered.

‘How could hyungnim dump me with such a burden?!’

Simply recalling Lee Hyeon-Su’s smug face made Jo Gyu-Min grit his teeth. The request was to train the Assembly’s office workers, but wasn’t this more like running a daycare for three-year-olds?

‘How could he have been so irresponsible until now?'

Even though Jo Gyu-Min thought that, he kind of could understand why.

The Assembly's martial artists should be more or less similar to athletes hoping to compete at the highest level of their chosen sports.

An aspiring student athlete would willingly give up on academic studies to solely focus on training in the hope of one day becoming a pro later in life. The Assembly's martial artists must've done something similar by focusing only on cultivating their strength while foregoing any other types of education.

Like student athletes who went all-in only to fail at making it as professionals and had to face a bleak future, a martial artist who devoted their entire life to martial arts wouldn’t be able to do anything once they could no longer continue that lifestyle.

What Jo Gyu-Min had trouble figuring out here wasn't that this series of events was even allowed to happen in the first place. No, he couldn't understand why the re-education of these people had been summarily ignored until now.

Having said that, Lee Hyeon-Su was probably not to blame for this state of affairs!

“...Team leader Jeon, is there anything positive you can tell me?”

“Eh, well…” Jeon Byeong-Su smiled awkwardly. “I'm sure this will sound strange coming from me, but… Surprisingly, there have been plenty of positives.”

“I’m sorry?” Jo Gyu-Min’s head shot up at this unexpected revelation.

Considering the report’s contents and what Jeon Byeong-Su had said, this situation could only be described as a horrifying catastrophe, yet there were plenty of positives?

What on Earth was Jeon Byeong-Su even talking about here?

Jeon Byeong-Su noticed the confused look on Jo Gyu-Min's face and smiled again. “First of all, the stamina of the trainees has been truly remarkable.”

That made logical sense. After all, these trainees were martial artists.

Even if those people lacked enough talent to continue on the path of martial arts, they should still look like superhumans to regular folks like Jo Gyu-Min and Jeon Byeong-Su.

Lee Hyeon-Su could safely be called the weakest among the Assembly's members. Even then, he could still make utter mincemeat out of Jo Gyu-Min with only one finger. One should not forget that Jo Gyu-Min was still an athletic and healthy young man who, once upon a time, had to learn some self-defense techniques as a bodyguard to the ailing Chairman!

Since that was the case, the trainees should be overflowing with stamina.

Jeon Byeong-Su nodded. “This is incredibly crucial, actually.”

Jo Gyu-Min narrowed his eyes. “Sure. Having a ton of stamina sounds useful, but…”

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“No, sir. It's more important than you think. You see, one's stamina is the foundation for one's concentration. The training program starts at nine in the morning, so you shouldn't underestimate how significant it is for trainees to still be full of energy by the time the program ends at ten in the evening.”

“Mm… I see.”

“Thanks to their stamina, we were able to extend the learning hours. On the other hand, many instructors ran out of energy first, forcing us to bring in additional personnel. Currently, we're operating in rotating shifts.”

Jo Gyu-Min slowly nodded.

That sounded… great, actually. Having more time to learn every day meant the overall length of this training program could be reduced, after all. Having said that…

The actual training period would only get longer, not shorter, because these trainees needed to learn basic stuff first!

“As for the second thing… Well, I’m not quite sure how to, eh…” Jeon Byeong-Su helplessly chuckled.

Jo Gyu-Min frowned slightly.

‘Mm?’

Now that was an unexpected response. Jeon Byeong-Su’s face said that he knew he needed to finish the report but wasn’t sure how to do it.

“Even I think what I’m about to say sounds really strange. But I’ll still finish my report, sir. The trainees are smart.”

“...Eh?” Jo Gyu-Min intensely tilted his head. But the report said…? “Hang on. Your report, both verbal and written, has painted the trainees as total idiots. So what do you mean?”

“Yes, sir. The report is accurate. They are idiots. But also smart. In that case… We should call them smart idiots.”

“...I don’t quite understand.”

Jeon Byeong-Su could only smile awkwardly. “I’m not quite sure how to explain the situation, sir. But let me give it a shot, anyway. As far as their level of knowledge or abilities is concerned, these trainees are even below the average standard of high school students.”

“I see. So, what’s going on?”

“But the trainees' ability to study has proven to be rather exceptional. If I were to expand on that, their ability to comprehend is still below average, but their ability to memorize what they have learned is truly otherworldly. They seemingly don't forget something they have memorized only once.”

“Huh?”

“I’m not sure if this is the right description, but… You know the cliched saying of how your child is smart but hates studying? It’s something like that, sir. And almost every trainee is like this.”

“…”

When Jo Gyu-Min heard that, his mind automatically recalled a certain someone’s face.

‘Wait a minute. Wasn’t Mister Jin-Ho like that, too?’

Back in his high school years, Kang Jin-Ho proudly boasted the label of his school's worst-performing student. Someone like that suddenly decided to study one day, and less than one year later, achieved grades high enough to be eligible for a VIP spot in South Korea's most prestigious university!

Back then, Jo Gyu-Min figured it was because Kang Jin-Ho was a genius. Now that he heard this report, though… Maybe martial art cultivation had some kind of secret sauce that sharpened a person’s memories?

“I see. So, in conclusion?”

“Well…” Jeon Byeong-Su nodded. “From the perspective of an instructor, this is a good thing, sir. Although teaching them might drive us mad, doesn’t it mean that as long as they memorize the contents, the trainees might turn out to be a useful workforce at the end of the day?”

“Yes, you have a point there,” Jo Gyu-Min nodded, clearly intrigued by this development. Did mastering martial arts improve one's IQ? In that case, maybe martial arts were more versatile in application than he had bargained for. “Team leader, could it be that these trainees are capable of highly demanding tasks but lack the requisite knowledge?”

“Unfortunately, no, sir. They are just idiots with rocks for brains.”

“…”

“That's why it was tricky to explain it to you, sir. Even though their memories are superb, their comprehension sucks. They seem smart but actually are morons. They act like morons, but the moments of brilliance still shine through, too…”

Jo Gyu-Min’s head tilted to one side as he listened. Why did this testimony sound so oddly… familiar?

Were these people mini Kang Jin-Hos or something?

“Hmm… So, in conclusion…” Jeon Byeong-Su got ready to wrap up his report. “Since the trainees are motivated, I think we can produce positive results by extending the training period and bringing enough additional instructors to shore up the daily training schedule. It's just that I don't have the authority to decide on that, sir. We need the Chairman's approval first.”

“Got it. I’ll get that approval for you.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Jo Gyu-Min smiled cheerfully. “If that’s what you want, we’ll assist you as much as possible. We know we’ve asked you to do something unreasonable, after all.”

“Thank you, sir. I’ll be sure to produce positive results.”

Jo Gyu-Min narrowed his eyes and studied Jeon Byeong-Su closely.

‘Hmm. He seems to be someone talented…?’

It seemed like a waste to let Jeon Byeong-Su rot away in the training department. Although the true depth of his skills had not been tested yet, his attitude still managed to impress Jo Gyu-Min.

After being tasked with an assignment like this, most people would be too busy whining about all the challenges facing them during the briefing. However, Jeon Byeong-Su didn't do that. He only reported on the facts and even offered some suggestions on how to improve and supplement the training program, too.

Although such things might seem blindingly obvious, it was still difficult to find someone capable of handling such obvious tasks as matter-of-factly as Jeon Byeong-Su had. In that sense, he proved himself as someone to be trusted with his assignments.

Jo Gyu-Min nodded in approval. “Team leader, please take good care of the training program. Give us an excellent result, and I promise you will be rewarded handsomely.”

“Ah, speaking of…” Jeon Byeong-Su suddenly scratched his head while frowning a little. “There’s another thing I must report to you, sir. With what’s happening, I’m not sure I can take all the credit even if we get good results.”

“Huh?” Jo Gyu-Min blinked his eyes in confusion. What was Jeon Byeong-Su trying to say here?

Before Jo Gyu-Min could ask, though, Jeon Byeong-Su smiled awkwardly and began explaining the situation.

“Right now, that person named Kang Jin-Ho is… Uhm…”

“...I beg your pardon?”

Why was Kang Jin-Ho’s name popping up in this conversation?

“Well, sir, he’s doing something right now, but… Uh, how should I say it…”

Jo Gyu-Min was instantly beset with anxiety when Kang Jin-Ho’s name was combined with Jeon Byeong-Su’s troubled response. “W-what did he do?”

“It’s, uh, not like he’s interfering with the program, but…”

“…!”

What the heck?! Mister Jin-Ho! What have you done this time?!

“Why! Why can’t he leave things alone! Why!” Jo Gyu-Min groaned loudly, then got up.

When it came to events related to Kang Jin-Ho, listening to reports alone was never quite good enough. In other words, Jo Gyu-Min had to personally witness the situation himself!

“Team leader Jeon? Do you know where Mister Jin-Ho is right now?”

1. LOL. The ship is real. ☜