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Even as those curious and annoyed gazes silently pressured him, Lee Seong-Taek didn\'t cower and cried out again. “The Assembly Master must\'ve contacted someone among us! Who was it? And where is the Assembly Master?!”

The faces of everyone suddenly became weird. Unconvinced. Perhaps displeased, as well. That made some sense, however.

Someone joining the party late suddenly raised a fuss to break the jovial atmosphere. Who among the partygoers would be happy about this interruption? Their disapproval shouldn\'t come as a surprise, then.

“Is there a problem here, Director Lee?”

Lee Seong-Taek immediately focused his attention on the elder who replied. “Our Assembly Master has never initiated a get-together like this one before! When did he ever generously buy us booze on the eve of a crucial battle?!”

“This fella...!” Elder Song Yeong-Mu raised his voice without even bothering to hide his displeasure. “Listen, Director Lee. The Assembly Master contacted me. You want to see it?”

“...Elder Song? Did the Assembly Master really contact you?”

“Yes, he did! And he told me to organize this get-together, too! Mmpfh...! Here! Take a look.” Song Yeong-Mu grunted while pulling his phone out from his inner pocket.

However, Lee Seong-Taek didn\'t accept the phone. This gesture was basically the same as declaring publicly that he didn\'t trust Elder Song.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk...” Elder Song tutted loudly when Lee Seong-Taek didn\'t move an inch. While retrieving his phone, he spoke in a gruff voice. “Listen, Director Lee Seong-Taek.”

“Yes, I\'m listening.”

“You\'re not the only smart man in this room. And you\'re certainly not the only man with a functioning brain. Get my drift?”

“...”

“We\'re not young anymore. And our Assembly Master is also getting in on years. Which means, we can\'t keep insisting on the old ways of living, back when we were still full of youthful energy. Or do you think I\'m wrong?”

Lee Seong-Taek\'s head faltered. He couldn\'t say anything against that argument.

Meanwhile, Elder Song Yeong-Mu continued to chide Lee Song-Taek. “If you keep pulling at the bowstring, it\'ll stretch out a bit, but that\'s about it. However, what do you think will happen by keeping an old arrow nocked for a long time? It\'s going to snap, Director Lee.

”Listen, I get that you\'re full of motivation. That\'s great. However, you must not forget our reality. We are not spring chickens anymore. The tenser we are, the more likely we\'ll make mistakes. In that sense, our Assembly Master has made a wise move.

”He knows none of us are the same as our younger selves. Since sticking to the old ways got us into our current state, shouldn\'t we change accordingly, too?”

Lee Seong-Taek chewed his lip. What Elder Song said seemed to make some sense.

No, forget \'seemed\', his words were definitely right. They needed to change to match the times. However, no matter how much Lee Seong-Taek thought about it, this way of letting their hair down was wrong. Who would look at this scene and say they have progressed by leaps and bounds? No, this was going backwards.

\'Have I become oversensitive?\'

For now, Lee Seong-Taek knew he had to take the L and retreat. Stubbornly refusing to back down would only put him in a further bind. That was when other elders and directors started chiming in.

“Elder Song, go easy on him. Director Lee has good intentions, after all.”

“Yes, he\'s right. We all have good intentions, don\'t we!”

“We\'re about to embark on a fruitful journey soon. So, let us not sour the mood among ourselves, shall we?”

“Hahaha... Yes, you\'re right! You\'re indeed right,” Elder Song guffawed. “It seems I lost my temper for no good reason! This is why they say you get sillier the older you get! Hahaha!”

The atmosphere became amicable in an instant. Booze was freely passed around among the men.

After getting some alcohol in his system, Song Yeong-Mu turned to Lee Seong-Taek once more. “Director Lee, please accept my apology. I was out of line.”

“No, Elder Song. It was my mistake. My apologies. I\'ve been on edge lately, you see.”

“Yes, I know that feeling. Everyone here has felt that,” said Elder Song Yeong-Mu as remorse slowly filled his expression. “We supposedly don\'t know what we have until it\'s gone. Only after our Assembly Master lost his position did we realize how much of a dependable shield he has been for us.”

“...Yes, that\'s true.”

Suddenly, Song Yeong-Mu\'s expression stiffened. “We\'ve already made a grave mistake. While the Assembly Master was vying for supremacy against Bang Jin-Hun\'s faction, we should\'ve been more proactive in protecting him. We should\'ve supported him more by strengthening our factions. However, we all thought it was nothing more than another daily squabble often seen in the ranks and left it alone. As a result, look where we are.”

Lee Seong-Taek silently bit his lower lip. Did Song Yeong-Mu really think that was the reason? Of course that was wrong!

Objectively speaking, Lee Jung-Geol did not lose to Bang Jin-Hun. As a matter of fact, a factional battle would\'ve ensured Lee Jung-Geol\'s complete victory. So, why did he lose, then? Simple. It was because of Kang Jin-Ho.

The Assembly Master\'s grave mistake, which was also applied to the elders and the directors, was failing to consider the appearance of a variable named Kang Jin-Ho and make adequate preparations for it. However, Song Yeong-Mu was conveniently omitting Kang Jin-Ho from this conversation!

\'Is he that scared of Kang Jin-Ho?\'

If so, why were they even resisting? Shouldn\'t they just confine themselves in a dingy backroom somewhere and play Korean chess or something?

“However! This time, things will be different, Director Lee. Definitely! I will do my absolute best to support the Assembly Master. I\'m even prepared to throw my life away if that\'s what it takes! And that is how we will all regain our former glory! Our honor!”

Lee Seong-Taek grimaced a little while staring at Song Yeong-Mu. This Elder sure loved to talk big and take center stage. How did he manage to suppress his urges until now, then? It seemed wonders would never cease.

Then again, Director Jo had been...

\'...Director Jo?\'

Lee Seong-Taek hurriedly raised his head and scanned the room. However, he still couldn\'t see Director Jo.

\'Why isn\'t he here?\'

The Assembly Master not being here didn\'t seem all that odd. However, Director Jo missing this get-together didn\'t make much sense.

“Excuse me, Elder Song?”

“Mm?” Song Yeong-Mu turned his head and looked back at Lee Seong-Taek.

“Is the Assembly Master not joining us today?”

“Yes. He said his presence would only make the atmosphere of this occasion too official and grave for us to relax. So he won\'t be joining us.”

“In that case... Where is Director Jo?”

“Director Jo? Huh? Now that you mention it, he... must be running late?” Song Yeong-Mu tilted his head.

As far as he knew, Director Jo was very strict with his appointments. Unless something happened, he\'d never be late for a meeting. Yet, for some reason, he still hadn\'t shown up today.

One of the directors next to Song Yeong-Mu butted in. “Well, that\'s not so surprising, is it now? After all, Director Jo has been very busy lately while taking care of the tasks the Assembly Master has assigned him.”

“Mm, you\'re right. But...” Song Yeong-Mu frowned slightly, still unconvinced. “Isn\'t our Assembly Master being unreasonable? He has so many good people here, yet why does he keep relying on Director Jo? It\'s not like we\'re untrustworthy, now are we?”

“Hahaha! Elder Song, let us be realistic, shall we? We might be Assembly Master\'s people, but how can we do those sundry chores with our status? I\'m sure the Assembly Master is being considerate toward us.”

“Aha, that must be. Yes, that makes more sense.”

More laughter rang out from the drunken old men. Their voices were getting even louder.

On the other hand, the light in Lee Seong-Taek\'s eyes was getting colder, more withdrawn.

\'Do we... even have a hope in hell?\'

He suddenly realized something. This was a sinking ship.

A ship bravely carving through incoming waves would never be filled with these rowdy noises. After all, the sailors would be too busy performing their tasks or discussing the direction they needed to travel in to make noises like this.

Everyone thinking positively about the state of affairs was a sure sign that things were going badly instead.

Getting older would give birth to a side effect like this. Living through all sorts of ups and downs meant that one would inevitably experience impossible-looking situations being resolved in a dramatic manner at least once. Such an experience would always leave a powerful impression behind.

When people with such memories encounter another similar situation in the future, they would suddenly start harboring the groundless belief that things would work out somehow, like in the past!

Rational people would quickly realize that their abilities had nothing to do with the resolution and know that coincidences couldn\'t happen twice, but...

\'These men... They are not thinking straight.\'

Lee Seong-Taek couldn\'t see any of the old men in this room rationally thinking things over. No, they were nothing more than worn-out trash reminiscing the good old days. When a man no longer had the courage to move forward and kept looking back to the past... That was when he\'d finally lose his last grasp on his youth.

\'It\'s not too late, so I should...!\'

Lee Seong-Taek\'s legs began quaking, ready to move.

Throwing his lot with these idiots was the same as committing suicide. Even if Lee Jung-Geol had crafted a truly foolproof plan, it\'d still fail when carried out by these senile bastards!

“Everyone, you must steel your resolve,” said Song Yeong-Mu in a grave-sounding voice. It seemed he heard Lee Seong-Taek\'s inner voice. “We are about to do something monumental. Something we haven\'t experienced yet! Depending on how beautifully we execute this plan, we will regain our honor and glory... Or rot away into insignificance in some forgotten backroom!”

Lee Seong-Taek inwardly scoffed.

\'No one\'s going to rot away in a backroom, Elder Song!\'

The only \'rotting away\' for them would be inside a coffin!

Just where did this naivety of these old men suddenly come from? Did they really think Kang Jin-Ho would only expel them if their rebellion failed? What were they basing their hope on?!

Something was definitely wrong here. Whether it was the mindset of these old men or the direction things were heading... Something was not right!

Lee Seong-Taek couldn\'t endure it anymore and hurriedly got up. Staying here with these people was not the way. Emphatically not!

If he stuck with these people, the only fate waiting for Lee Seong-Taek would be getting buried in some nameless back mountain... With his head severed!

“Mm?” Song Yeong-Mu raised his head to stare at Lee Seong-Taek. “What\'s the matter, Director Lee?”

“I just remembered something urgent I need to take care of. I\'ll have to excuse myself first.”

“Something urgent, is it...?” Song Yeong-Mu smirked weirdly. “What\'s wrong? Are you planning to meet with Kang Jin-Ho? Before you knock off from work, you want to rat us out first?"

“Elder! Please watch what you say, sir!”

“No, you watch yourself first by sitting down.”

“But I really do have something urgent to...”

“I said, sit down! Now!” Song Yeong-Mu roared in unhappiness. The temperature in the room rapidly fell. “You seem to have forgotten your manners! Or do you not realize the significance of this occasion?! We are...”

Before Song Yeong-Mu could make a long-winded speech, he frowned deeply and turned his head toward the doorway. For some reason, he could hear a commotion going on outside.

“What\'s going on?”

One of the directors near the doorway asked, “...Should I go and check it out?”

“No, wait...” Song Yeong-Mu raised his hand to stop the director, then silently listened. He could finally pick up the conversation taking place outside.

“S-sir! You can\'t go in there!”

“Didn\'t I say we have an important business with the gentlemen inside?”

“You still can\'t enter, sir! Only those who booked with us prior can enter!”

“No need to fret, then. Because we\'re... colleagues of those gentlemen.”

“S-sorry? But we\'ve never seen you before...?”

“We all hail from the same organization. Also... I think it\'s about time you stop. My superior seems displeased by your stalling tactic, you see?”

“Ah...!”

Song Yeong-Mu\'s expression crumpled. What on Earth was that all about?

He jumped up to his feet while thinking of rushing outside to punish the cheeky bastards for intruding on this important gathering.

However, that was ultimately unnecessary.

The \'cheeky\' bastard brazenly yanked the door open and entered the venue. Well, he... tried to. However, he couldn\'t step inside. Which was quite shocking to see.

Song Yeong-Mu saw a massive figure behind the open doorway. It was so big that it couldn\'t possibly belong to a human being.

That doorway would\'ve been perfectly adequate for a single person to walk through, yet against the backdrop of such a massive figure? It now resembled a pet door instead!

The giant grunted. “Hmm... The doorways in this place sure are tiny.”

Riiiiiiiip!

A pair of hands, each larger than a person\'s head, slipped through the doorway, then... Those hands proceeded to tear apart the wall surrounding the door!

Even though those sturdy walls were made of reinforced concrete, they were still ripped apart powerlessly like a children\'s plastic toy house!

Crack! Riiiip! Crunch!

All sense of reality flew out the window just then. A sudden appearance of a giant? And that giant was tearing the wall apart? It was as if these old men were having a bad dream. Unfortunately for them, though... This was no mere dream.

The doorway was finally \'widened\' at least twice its previous aperture, allowing the giant to enter. Even then, he still had to duck his head, lending a slight comedic edge to the proceedings.

“Hmph. So, everyone\'s here, then?” The giant smirked after stepping inside and scanning the group of stunned elders and directors. “Greetings to you all. I am Vator. Although, I do not know how many of you have heard about my name already.”

“...Is what he said, everyone,” said Zhang Dajing as he entered the room after Vator.

Vator glanced at Zhang Dajing. “So, are these people our targets?”

“Yes, Sir Vator. According to what Mister Lee Hyeon-Su said... These men are it.”

"I see, I see. I think I\'ve seen some of them before, too."

Lee Seong-Taek\'s eyes powerfully quaked at this scene. Just why... But how?!

“W-why are you here?!”

“Hmph...!” Vator\'s lips gradually spread open in a toothy smirk. The elders and directors were instantly enveloped in indescribable terror at his exposed pearly fangs. “As I said, my name is Vator. As for why I\'m here... Well...”

Vator casually shrugged his shoulders.

“Let\'s call it a clean-up. So, I will be in your care.”

This was the moment of the Warrior of the Wild Plains, Vator, etching his name in the history books of South Korea\'s martial society.