## Chapter 191 – 19. Turf
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A massive wall encircled the outskirts of Namdong Industrial Complex.
Not entirely, but after the gangs became increasingly rampant, the city, unable to withstand the continuous complaints and damages, erected barriers in some areas.
It wasn’t very effective.
The wall was easy to climb over, and since it didn’t surround the entire area, they could simply go around.
The very decision to leave Namdong Industrial Complex was beyond something that a wall could prevent.
Nevertheless, these barriers were constructed for minimal safety and psychological stability, along with a plausible gate.
That was already over a decade ago.
Even that historic gate now stood in ruins, a mere shadow of its former self.
Only the haphazardly placed police tape hinted that this monstrosity wasn’t always like this, the former imposing presence utterly vanished.
“Wow. That gate is like this…”
Dantto stared blankly at it.
She seemed lost in sentimentality, looking at the symbolic object that had isolated her lifelong home from the world.
She approached it wistfully, about to caress the gate—
“Ptooey.”
—but instead spat on it.
A string of phlegm clung to the wall.
“Dantto, that’s damaging cultural property. The restoration cost will be around 150 million won.”
“Huh? Why is this, this thing cultural property??”
“Just kidding.”
“…”
Her eyes turned fierce every time I made a frivolous joke.
How scary, how scary.
After casually stepping over the police tape, we entered the inner area, where the main headquarters (restoration project office) was set up.
The outskirts, where the middle-aged women were causing a ruckus, still felt somewhat peaceful, but this place was a complete mess.
It finally felt like Namdong Industrial Complex was beginning.
– Subject detected in sector A-103!
– Approximately 12 individuals fleeing from sector B-12 to B-13!
– Massive cavity discovered beneath sector Z-23, requesting support!
The atmosphere was different.
People in uniform were running around frantically, and inside the hastily constructed container buildings, people sat in front of dozens of monitors, busily making calls.
Most of them were dispatched from the police, especially from headquarters.
The sky wasn’t quiet either.
AVs painted with blue stripes constantly flew back and forth, transporting necessary supplies and carrying away debris.
Occasionally, medical AVs marked with bright red crosses were visible.
“So that’s why they parked the AVs outside.”
It was obvious that the sky was too congested.
Especially around here.
Flash!
A flash erupted in the distance.
A dark red mushroom cloud rose, and shockwaves spread in all directions, distorting the atmosphere.
The ground rumbled.
Yet, people went about their business as if nothing had happened.
It must have been a countless repetition. So much so that they didn’t feel the need to react to each one.
Thwack!
The explosion came a beat later.
Around the same time, another flash and mushroom cloud rose somewhere else.
“Ah, geez.”
Just then, a young male executive in charge of the situation noticed me and took off his hat.
His greasy, unwashed hair was disheveled.
I remembered seeing him when we swept through Namdong Industrial Complex before; I vaguely recalled he was some kind of special something.
“I apologize. I didn’t even know you were coming, young master.”
“Because I came without saying anything.”
He greeted me with dark circles under his eyes.
I felt almost sorry for him, sensing how exhausted he was.
He probably wasn’t getting any sleep, relying on stimulants to get by.
“I don’t have anything proper to offer, but how about some coffee? It’s quite decent.”
What he offered was a canned coffee from a vending machine.
The capacity was about 250ml, and as far as I knew, it cost 2,000 won.
“You’re giving me the expensive stuff.”
I accepted it and drank it, seeing no reason to refuse.
“As you can see, the situation is progressing smoothly.”
“I heard in the report that it was pretty much over…”
“The suppression is over. The mopping-up is still a long way off.”
“How long is a long way?”
“Hmm~. At the current rate, I’d say it’ll take at least a month.”
Hopeless.
“But this is still good. The guys are terrified and can’t even put up a proper resistance, and they can’t even dream of organizing. That’s why the restoration work could start right away.”
“How is the restoration work going?”
“It would be more intuitive to hear about it at the office. You have to go a little further that way. They mobilized a huge number of people this time.”
“Well, wouldn’t that ensure the safety of the citizens faster?”
“Heh heh. That’s right.”
The man smiled deeply.
His eyes seemed to see my ulterior motive.
It was the kind of thing that even I wouldn’t believe if I were him. It was understandable.
“Then I’ll be going, I’m busy. Thanks for the coffee.”
“Yes. Good work.”
I moved away from him after a brief conversation.
There was no need to talk to the man for long.
“They’re working really hard.”
“Because they’re police.”
“…”
Sua suddenly spoke up, as if my earlier words had bothered her.
Then she cleared her throat and avoided my gaze.
“Make some donations to the agencies involved in this operation on behalf of the company, and make sure the people here have enough. So that no weird rumors come out.”
“Yes, CEO.”
The Namdong Industrial Complex restoration project office was quite large.
It seemed like there were even more people gathered than the police force mopping up the remaining forces.
“Oh, CEO…!”
Several secretaries who were managing things and people who seemed to be executives from related companies rushed over, startled.
“Oh, you’re here.”
“Why are you so surprised? Is something wrong?”
“No. It’s nothing like that. You just came so suddenly…”
Looking around, I could see people from all sorts of places.
There were people in charge of supervising the on-site workers, people operating industrial robots, and even a few people who looked like aides to congressmen, as well as reporters.
Everyone was watching me.
The secretaries I brought were blocking the reporters’ access.
‘Did those guys spread strange rumors?’
I glanced around and thought about the reporters.
They must have been digging into my activities and came to the conclusion that ‘the reason this guy is going so far is that he’s trying to get into politics!’ Something like that….
‘Isn’t that a completely unfounded guess?’
I briefly looked back on my actions.
I had encouraged the special investigation to root out the dark side of the entertainment industry in Incheon, namely sexual favors, and announced a ‘standard contract that does not allow any physical contact’ in the name of respecting the human rights and sexual autonomy of entertainers, and took in a large number of female entertainers who had nowhere to go, with over a thousand female entertainers under my wing.
On top of that, I jumped into the correctional business, saying that I would run a prison myself, and submitted a plan to build a women-only prison with trillions of won in capital, and fully supported and pushed forward the Namdong Industrial Complex recovery operation, which required astronomical funds, manpower, and military power.
In the process, I beat up the district head who was trying to monopolize the credit and even gave a speech for the citizens while the live broadcast was going on.
Wouldn’t it be reasonable to think that I had political ambitions with this much?
‘That’s why those useless middle-aged women are acting up.’
Because they think I’m going to get into politics,
Because they think I’m going to be mindful of the public, that’s why those ridiculous things are coming out.
‘There’s a reason why companies act maliciously.’
You can’t show any gaps.
You have to press down tightly without any gaps so they know who’s boss and prostrate themselves.
I called the secretaries together.
“I saw some weirdos hanging around outside, did you see them?”
“Ah… no. We were focused on this…”
“Some weirdos were pretending to be representatives of the residents around here and trying to get their spoons in. If those kinds of people come, just beat them to death. Or kill them. Once gnats start swarming, there’s no answer.”
“Um… but CEO, shouldn’t we at least keep quiet until the approval for the restoration budget comes out? There’s no good in making unnecessary noise.”
“Ah, the budget?”
Come to think of it, there was that.
“But Kim Eunji will take care of that. No need to worry.”
“Understood.”
I received a report on the restoration situation and looked around, and procured an armored vehicle for Dantto.
It was a very sturdy vehicle with thick bulletproof glass and incredibly thick armor, so it wouldn’t be destroyed by an attack from a gang or anything like that.
I rode in it and went inside Namdong Industrial Complex to inspect various places.
The desolate appearance was even more evident than when I had vaguely looked at it from the outside.
It was a different feeling from when I came in to save Nine Road.
‘Now I’m going to wipe this place clean and make it my own city.’
In my mind, it was already not a desolate and run-down place, but the most developed and sophisticated Namdong Industrial Complex.
‘I should change the name too. It’s not an industrial complex, is it? Since it’s all my land, should I call it Muyeol Land or something?’
Whatever it is, it’s a very pleasant fantasy.
Now that I really felt like I had pushed out the gangs of Namdong Industrial Complex, it felt like a thorn had been pulled out.
“Ah, Master.”
Just then, a voice broke through my thoughts.
It was Sua.
“The financial authorities have completed the incorporation review of Muyeol Finance. It passed safely.”
“Oh?”
Just in time, the financial corporation was established.
