Vol 6 Chapter 26

"Are you saying that Filadia is not more important than that mere Saturn? As I've said before, it's our only hope right now. If we can't produce something superior to Saturn's game, we might as well die. Remember, if you forget even this and act on your own, there won't be a second chance. Now, you'd better leave."

Filadia was the name of Mage's new game currently under development by Jin Seo-hwan.

Only then did Seo-hwan come to his senses, biting his lip as he bowed his head and turned around. His father was right. Nothing could be more important than the development of Filadia. The fact that it was entrusted to him meant that he was still important to his father. There was no need to be anxious.

'But...'

Jin Seo-hwan glanced sideways at his younger brother, who was still sitting there without saying a word, as he passed by. Today's failure was because of that Jin Je-hwan.

He had tried to ensnare him with sloppy investigation but ended up being counterattacked instead. When on earth had that kid learned to hide such claws? The Jin Je-hwan he knew was someone who had no interest in anything other than what he liked.

His personality, still bearing traces of the autism he had suffered as a child, was incomparably indifferent and cold. Even when their mother passed away, he hadn't seemed very sad, making Seo-hwan wonder if Je-hwan ever experienced emotional changes.

One of the few things that Je-hwan was obsessed with was computer programming. Using his ability to focus on the core of programs, he had a track record of breaking through the weaknesses in games Seo-hwan had created several times. It was this talent that Seo-hwan had relied on when assigning him this task...

What on earth had made that guy move like that?

Seo-hwan took one last look at his brother, whose eyes, unchanged since childhood, made it difficult to tell where he was looking. There was no trace of the victor's satisfaction on that face, despite having just thoroughly humiliated him.

'What on earth made you suddenly move?'

With this question in mind, just before stepping out the door, Seo-hwan remembered that he had one last thing to report to his father before becoming a complete outsider to this matter.

"May I report one last thing? I just remembered, but it might be useful for future matters."

Hearing Seo-hwan's words, Jin Jeon-seong remained silent for a moment before nodding.

"Fine. What is it?"

"While analyzing the information I had difficulty obtaining about the people Yoon Seok-ho contacts, there was one person who appeared unusually frequently. This person probably accounts for the highest number of contacts Yoon Seok-ho has made personally over the past year or so. As I continued investigating this contact, just yesterday I was able to roughly estimate the area where the contact is located."

"Where is it?"

"It's quite close to Seoul. It's around B city, where the Y University Hospital is located, famous for having the largest rehabilitation center in the country near the metropolitan area. There was also a record of Yoon Seok-ho sending something under the company name to that area about a year ago. It might be good to look into all the users playing in that area. Well then, I'll really take my leave now."

Seo-hwan had simply finished his forgotten report and truly turned his back completely to open the door. However, before he closed the door, he noticed that Je-hwan's face, sitting in a position not visible to their father, was strangely contorted as he looked at him.

'Jin Je-hwan...?'

He tried to look again, thinking he might have seen wrong, but at that moment the door closed coldly, and Seo-hwan ended up turning away without getting a chance to reconfirm. There was no way Je-hwan would have been surprised, so that expression was probably due to the negotiations with their father that were about to begin.

That's what he thought, at least.

After Seo-hwan left, Jin Jeon-seong stroked his chin and leaned back further in his chair. Now only Jin Je-hwan remained. He had thought his second son had no interest in competition, but this time he had unexpectedly performed beyond expectations, and Jeon-seong intended to give him the courtesy of a victor.

"Not bad. You must have done this because you want something too. What is it that you want?"

He leisurely addressed his second son, whose name he usually didn't even bother to remember, and waited for a while, but no answer came. Slightly puzzled, he turned his gaze towards where the bowed figure was sitting, when suddenly Je-hwan stood up abruptly.

"I'll come back to discuss that matter further next time."

His cold voice, resembling his father's, helped conceal the fact that his mind was preoccupied with something else at the moment. Jin Jeon-seong nodded, thinking there was no other intention and considering him quite capable of negotiation, and Je-hwan left with a barely perceptible bow, striding out.

"Interesting..."

The older son with blind ambition but only slightly above average in skill and intelligence compared to ordinary people, and the younger son who had no interest in anything but handled his assigned tasks with surprising perfection.

Until now, the younger son had been merely a nominal horse he had given to his dead ex-wife's family after the divorce, but now he felt that all of that might change.

'But that boy's maternal grandfather wasn't to be underestimated either. I wonder how this will turn out.'

The faint sunlight seeping through the wooden blinds dimly illuminated his graying hair before fading away.

After leaving the president's office, Jin Je-hwan initially walked with long strides, then widened his steps even more, gradually increasing his speed until he was outright running by the time he exited the building. Ignoring the surprised face of the receptionist at the front desk on the first floor who was about to greet him, Je-hwan rushed out and approached the familiar large black motorcycle parked outside, lightly jumping onto it and inserting the key.