Chapter 83

Park Ho’s jaw dropped, open and closing silently like a stranded fish.

What kind of absolute garbage was this?

He had definitely aired some grievances—that part was true. But when had he ever made a move to overthrow the leadership?

“Sir, it’s not just that gossip piece. Look at this report over here as well.”

“A report?”

“Yes, just swipe the screen.”

Swish.

Park Ho slid his thumb horizontally across the device.

A deluge of news articles, meticulously gathered by his subordinate, populated the display.

[Arirang Guild Master Hong Ari Releases Public Response. Rejects Being Label ‘B’ in Financial Market Whispers.]

[Ilwol Guild Master Ahn Gijeong: “The Details? Mostly On Point, But It Definitely Wasn’t Me.”]

[Carpe Diem Leadership Issues Group Declaration: “Baek Jinwoo Is Our Permanent Exemplar!”]

“This is madness!”

The situation defied all logic.

The rumor mill had barely started churning—how could the leaders of all three organizations have dropped their public declarations already?

“They set this up from the very beginning.”

No wonder everything had felt bizarre lately.

Whenever he had visited them, they had welcomed him with hesitant expressions and half-hearted hospitality……

It was highly likely there were double agents hidden among them the entire time.

And the individuals who seemed most untrustworthy at this moment.

Ring——

Without hesitation, Park Ho dialed Ahn Gijeong and Hwang Juwon, the leadership of Ilwol.

Neither line connected.

That gave him all the confirmation he required.

They are throwing me away?

Burning with fury, he hit dial repeatedly.

— What do you want.

Hwang Juwon finally picked up, clear annoyance laced in his voice.

“Hyungnim! What in the world is happening?!”

— What do you mean what’s happening? Didn’t I warn you? As someone older than you. I explicitly told you to keep your head down and stay quiet.

“Even so, isn’t this taking it way too far? Disseminating a slanderous rumor sheet and dropping press releases simultaneously?”

— They aren’t fabrications, though.

“……!”

— And pay attention, you fool. Realistically, what do any of us achieve by pick a fight with Baek Jinwoo? Granted, Baekho has enjoyed the top spot for a while, so I understand your desperation. But Ilwol has always occupied the lowest tier of the Big Three. The man gives us ten hours of guidance every single week out of his own time—we ought to be bowing in gratitude, yet here you are throwing a fit? Your selfishness has gone entirely off the rails.

“You are going to rue this decision.”

— Rue it?

“While Arirang and Carpe Diem ascend, Ilwol is going to collapse right alongside us. Do you honestly not perceive that?”

Huff, huff!

Park Ho was incapable of soothing his anger. He gasped for air in heavy, trembling breaths, frozen in place.

— Rue it? I highly doubt that.

Pfft.

The ghost of a smirk bled into Hwang Juwon’s tone.

Then—click. The call was cut.

What.

Did he seriously just hang up on me? Unilaterally?

Since when did an outfit like Ilwol ever presume to treat Baekho with such blatant insolence?

“THAT UTTER BASTARD!”

CRASH!

Park Ho smashed his device against the masonry.

The sole casualty was the helpless employee standing nearby, witnessing the meltdown without any idea how to react.

Inside the headquarters of Ilwol’s leadership.

“What did he have to say?”

Ahn Gijeong, the guild master seated adjacent to him, inquired. Hwang Juwon, the second-in-command, leaned his head back and let out a boisterous laugh.

“Warned me not to regret it. Claimed that if we don’t fall into line, Ilwol is going down with them.”

“Hmm. The chief of Baekho understands one aspect but is blind to the other.”

“Can’t really blame him. He hasn’t the slightest inkling of who is actually pulling the strings from behind the curtain.”

Hwang Juwon reclined in his seat and angled his gaze toward the rafters.

Completely brainless.

Ego over being South Korea’s premier guild?

That brand of ego was only useful when backed by the muscle to sustain it.

The very second he witnessed the sheer capability of Baek Jinwoo, he ought to have prostrated himself and remained there.

Since when did pride put food on the table?

“Even so… Yubaek’s Yu Jia…… that female is genuinely terrifying.”

“Tell me about it. My heart nearly leaped out of my chest.”

The reality was, prior to issuing their public statement—

Yu Jia had paid a visit to Ilwol in her own person.

Beaming delightfully, yet her gaze carried such malice…… even a battle-hardened combatant like Hwang Juwon had shuddered.

The moment she stepped inside, she laid everything bare.

Baek Jinwoo purposed to conclude the matter by simply removing Baekho from the guidance schedule—but she had no plans to halt there. She had already formulated strategies to completely uproot Baekho.

Following that came the subtle coercions.

There is no middle ground.

Select a side. It is one or the other.

She had broadcast an all-out offensive against Baekho, and anyone declining to assist would be categorized as a foe.

“Astonishing self-assurance. ‘There is no middle ground’…… That is essentially declaring that if we oppose her, she will take us down as well.”

“You predicted it perfectly, Hyungnim. Park Ho—that absolute blockhead. If you are going to challenge someone, at least select your opposition wisely. This was an encounter he stood no chance of winning from the onset. And after reviewing the strategies she put together? That female is no novice.”

From steering public perception to suppressing any opposing declarations from the targets—the entire execution was impeccable.

But the most chilling aspect? Backing Yu Jia was a coalition of statesmen, cabinet ministers, undersecretaries, and heavyweights of the corporate landscape.

“So what is our move regarding that proposal?”

“SKY?”

Yu Jia had disclosed intentions to establish a fresh guild, with the authorization already finalized.

She had likewise proffered an invitation to Ilwol.

What sort of invitation?

Ahn Gijeong. Hwang Juwon.

The pair of leaders—and they alone—would be granted entry into SKY.

This was a reward, she noted, for electing not to be manipulated by Baekho’s plotting and instead funneling data to her camp.

“Hah, yes. That is the dilemma.”

Enrolling meant walking away from Ilwol.

But Yu Jia had elegantly supplied an alternative for that dilemma as well.

Elevate the guild’s third-ranking officer to the position of master and keep only the financial interest—effectively creating a puppet executive.

To put it plainly, she was instructing them to employ a placeholder.

By doing so, they would become SKY affiliates while retaining authority over Ilwol as a subordinate branch.

“I view it as an exceptional prospect. From what I gathered, Arirang and Carpe Diem are preparing to enter SKY under the identical arrangement……”

“If we enroll, do we receive individual coaching from Baek Jinwoo as well?”

“Supposedly. She will even provide us residences within Yubaek City. For our households and everyone.”

“Now that is highly alluring.”

Alluring, and terrifying in equal measure.

Yu Jia.

She was cold-blooded, without a doubt.

Operating as her adversary wouldn’t merely be draining—it felt as though it would utterly shatter one’s existence.

There remained a final element at the conclusion of the strategy she had presented.

For the upcoming World League national squad—evict every single Baekho affiliate and reconstitute the lineup entirely with SKY associates.

If that truly materializes…

Park Ho would drop straight into the abyss.

Overwhelmed by public animosity, expelled from the national squad, and potentially legally bound to return the one trillion won he had been granted.

And if that transpired, would MK and Mirae Group merely remain passive?

They would likely vent their anger on combatants like Park Ho and Kang Geonho instead.

Weave together every violation they could uncover—authentic or manufactured—and let them decay in confinement for the duration of their natural lives.

Who doesn’t have a few dark secrets buried away?

“Hah. SKY, indeed.”

The canopy of South Korea.

“Hey, Gijeong. Do you know something?”

“What?”

“We are Ilwol. The sun and the moon.”

“Correct.”

“The sky has eternally held the sun and moon within its grasp.”

“Oh, clever. We are signing up, then?”

“What other option exists? If we desire to continue competing on the national squad, we must get on board.”

Hwang Juwon smiled faintly.

Unlike Park Ho, he was a practical individual who recognized when to drift with the current.

Yu Jia had sworn an oath to herself.

From the exact moment Baekho’s organization had presented themselves before Baek Jinwoo and conducted themselves with such insolence, she would eradicate them root and branch.

Consequently, the initial destination she sought out was the Strategic Planning Division of Daesung Group.

The workplace of her father.

“Father.”

“Oh, my dear child!”

The individual who looked upon his daughter with the worshipful countenance of an inferior welcoming his chief the second she entered—that was Yu Daehwan.

The firstborn son of the patriarch Yu Byeongcheon, and essentially locked in as the upcoming heir.

The inheritance conflict among the siblings had previously been intense, but after Yu Jia established Yubaek and anchored Baek Jinwoo securely to their interest, his status as successor had become unassailable.

When the notoriously critical Yu Byeongcheon had chuckled warmly and transferred a portion of his holdings—that settled the matter entirely.

So naturally, his daughter was the joy of his life.

In truth, Yu Daehwan had petitioned her repeatedly to facilitate a gathering with Baek Jinwoo.

She had avoided it every time, explaining that Jinwoo possessed no fondness for that variety of social interaction.

“So, you are constantly telling me how occupied you are—what brings you all this way?”

She was still merely in her twenties.

As her parent, Yu Daehwan privately wished she would visit for personal connection occasionally, rather than purely for commercial matters.

“There is an item I required to request.”

“What might it be? Request anything of me!”

“Well, the thing is.”

The edge of Yu Jia’s mouth curved upward, and the words that departed her lips were truly remarkable.

“Can I demolish Baekho?”

“What?”

Yu Daehwan’s mouth fell open.

Baekho?

The Baekho he was familiar with?

Demolish one of the Big Three—the guild presently viewed as the most potent force in the entirety of South Korea?

And backing them were their corporate competitors, MK and Mirae.

Enterprises that maintained a complicated love-hate dynamic with Daesung.

“To dismantle Baekho, I will need to get my hands…… a bit messy. And for that, I require your assistance, Father.”

She passed the paperwork to him.

Contained within were arrangements even more staggering than what she had indicated.

From inserting narratives into financial market gossip sheets, retaining notorious internet smear operations, and supplying details to streaming personalities—former reporters from both governing and minority coalitions—to utilizing online scrubbing agents to lock down the opposition’s counter-arguments.

She had compiled an all-inclusive catalog of strategies to inter Baekho and its chief Park Ho in their social crypts.

And that was not the extent of it.

“……How in the world did you acquire all of this?”

Delineated in exhaustive clarity were tax dodging channels and fraudulent evidence concerning Baekho, MK, and Mirae—intelligence that even Daesung had been powerless to uncover.

“It is too massive for me to execute in isolation. And Father, if you wish for Grandfather to completely validate your status once and for all…… you require this as well, do you not?”

A gentle grin.

Yu Jia’s smile—why did it manifest as almost divine?

“Ha ha, hahaha!”

She was accurate.

Absolutely accurate.

With this asset in possession, they could ride roughshod over Baekho however they pleased, and those individuals wouldn’t dare raise a finger in opposition.

“My dear girl, fully matured.”

“I have been mature for a long time. Stop acting so amazed.”

“Now you simply need to secure a proper marriage.”

“Huh? From where did that originate?”

“Make haste and arrange something permanent with Baek Jinwoo.”

“Not this discussion again! Regardless, I handed you the files! The remainder rests on you, Father!”

Cheeks burning crimson, Yu Jia quickly swept up her belongings and exited the space.

“Heh. That youngster.”

Yu Daehwan tapped the paperwork. Tap, tap.

Baekho possessed the arrogance to show its teeth to Baek Jinwoo?

Then naturally, those teeth required to be extracted and severed while the creature was still breathing.

“Who do they imagine they are, interfering with my future son-in-law?”

Yu Daehwan’s gaze ignited.

Like father, like daughter.

“PIECE OF TRASH! AAAARGH!”

BANG, CRASH! BANG!

Appointments within Baekho’s executive quarters began fracturing into pieces.

Because inside that disaster area of an office, Park Ho had entirely lost his sanity.

Public perception had already shifted completely.

It had already been uncovered that ‘B’ represented Park Ho’s monogram.

With the World League arriving shortly, the populace boiled with anger—who on earth was this individual, not even holding the rank of captain, instigating discord within the combined squad?

Every online forum was hyperactive regarding the internal feud, and Baekho had mutated from an organization expressing valid complaints into the most loathed collective in the realm.

A minor contingent did rally to Baekho’s side, naturally.

The conspiracy theorists. The chronically distrustful.

But they represented a minuscule percentage.

Yubaek commanded an immense, passionate collective of supporters and enjoyed the absolute backing of the broadcasting corporations. Challenging that apparatus was virtually unfeasible.

Park Ho reached out to every ally he could identify, pleading with them to broadcast the reality—that this was entirely Yu Jia’s fabrication, a synchronized maneuver by a concealed syndicate manipulating events from the shadows.

But their statements never penetrated the filtering systems.

An entity was systematically suppressing them.

A surge of poisonous malice swept through Park Ho.

For three continuous years they had applauded him, idolized him—and now they turned their backs in an instant?

A statewide petition had even been submitted to strip Baekho from the national squad altogether.

A sudden thunderbolt out of a clear sky didn’t begin to capture the shock.

“……How can the entire landscape alter in a single night?”

Park Ho’s spirit was completely shattered.

It was unjust.

All he had requested, equitably and logically, was to receive instruction alongside the rest of the group.

And events had degenerated to this point?

The vision of citizens turning on him without even assessing his perspective filled him with loathing.

“This corrupted garbage nation.”

Park Ho compressed his fist.

He was reduced to two paths forward now.

Enact retribution through raw power, or tell everyone to rot and relocate his citizenship elsewhere.

He was a former top-tier ranker, after all. Wouldn’t some developing territory lay out the red carpet for his arrival?

“Damn it.”

No. That wasn’t the path.

Why should he be expelled from the territory where he drew his first breath?

“Geonho.”

“Assemble every ranker at our disposal.”

“Oh, give it a rest. What is it this time?”

Kang Geonho had abandoned all hope entirely by this stage.

Initially, he had detested Park Ho enough to end him. But at this juncture, what options remained for anyone?

But then.

“Yu Jia. We are going to pay that woman a visit.”

At those words, even Kang Geonho lost his composure.

It wasn’t sufficient that he had pulled the esteemed associates of Baekho into the pit—now he intended to guide them directly to their execution?

This is crossing the line.

Kang Geonho ground his teeth together.

Perhaps.

The moment to desert Baekho… the organization he had established alongside Park Ho from its very foundation—was staring him directly in the face.