I Became a Black Market Tycoon with an Inventory - Chapter 75

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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075-Lucky Charm
75.
When I returned to the Philippines, it wasn’t people who greeted me—it was mountains of paperwork.
Stacks of documents piled high welcomed me first.
“There’s this much backlog?”
That wasn’t all.
“You have a competition-related meeting at 9 AM, an exhibition meeting at 9:30 AM. At 10 AM, you need to receive a report on the camping tour operations plan, and at 10:20 AM, there’s a GoGo Casino update briefing prepared. After that, you’ll need to attend the integrated resort operations meeting. Lunch will be at the Philippine Hotel Association gathering. For the afternoon schedule…”
Before 8 AM, Scott walked in and began rattling off today’s schedule at breakneck speed.
Should I really move accommodations?
Back in Seoul, no matter how long I lingered in bed, no one ever complained.
The moment I arrive in the Philippines, my schedule starts immediately.
I missed the Seoul hotel.
I missed those quiet, peaceful moments.
“Can’t we push this back? I haven’t even adjusted to the time difference yet.”
“Everyone has been waiting for you to return, sir.”
“They can just handle it themselves.”
“No, sir. You’re needed.”
“What are you talking about? When I go to meetings, everything’s already prepared. I just nod my head and leave. Why do I need to be there? They’re all perfectly capable. Why do you keep insisting on dragging me into this?”
After hearing my complaint, Scott asked me back as if I truly didn’t understand.
“You really don’t know why, sir?”
“What? Is there another reason?”
Scott hesitated for a moment before answering.
“Everyone believes you’re a lucky charm, sir.
“What?”
At Scott’s words, my jet lag instantly vanished.
Sleep fled from my eyes, and they snapped wide open.
The absurdity of it all swept away my exhaustion completely.
I thought Scott had misspoken.
A lucky charm in the twenty-first century?
Such an outdated notion.
Isn’t a lucky charm supposed to be a cute doll or perhaps a wooden figurine imbued with mystical significance?
Wasn’t it strange to treat a middle-aged man like me as a lucky charm?
“What are you saying? A lucky charm?”
“It’s a fairly credible theory, sir.”
“This is credible?”
“Haven’t all the projects you’ve undertaken here in the Philippines succeeded? Don’t even the most absurd ventures and strange plans succeed the moment you touch them? That’s why everyone wants to receive that fortune from you.”
“Ha, ha, ha. Now I’m just laughing at the absurdity.”
“It’s happened because everything you’ve done has gone well. Honestly, doesn’t everything succeed once you put your hand to it? So we prepare everything and wait for your final approval. We report to you and receive your confirmation to absorb that lucky energy.”
“You’re calling me to these meetings because you think I’m a lucky charm doll?”
“It’s your business anyway, sir. It’s good for you to receive reports and confirm things before proceeding with projects. The people executing the work benefit from the lucky charm energy to carry out their tasks. And if there are parts that need revision or improvement, it’s good for you to review them. You know exactly where to apply your strength, after all. Because you’re our lucky charm, sir.”
I’m not so much angry at Scott’s words as I am bewildered.
But why is Scott boasting about this story?
“Scott. You don’t actually believe that, do you?”
“······.”
“Really?”
“It’s a misunderstanding. I do not believe.”
“That’s what I thought~”
“I have faith. You, Young Boss, are my faith.”
Good grief, my head.
Having this conversation before 8 AM.
I wish this were a dream.
“Why? How did you end up doing something so absurd?”
“You transformed me from someone who only fought into a person.”
“I didn’t make you into anything. You made yourself.”
“No. If you hadn’t been there, I’d still be brawling in the streets of Bohol.”
“It wasn’t me who picked you up—it was Sandro.”
“Sandro did pick me up, that’s true, but it was you, Young Boss, who taught me about life and gave me the motivation and reason to learn more. I will pledge absolute loyalty to you.”
You don’t have to.
Please don’t. I’m begging you.
I’d prefer it if you just treated me like a stray cat in my hometown district.
Happy to see me when we run into each other, worried when you don’t see me for a while—that’s all.
But Scott has changed quite a bit.
At first, he was just someone good at fighting.
He followed me as a bodyguard, but his overeager actions only made things more difficult for me.
So I taught him the basics of security.
Now he follows me whenever needed, working as both bodyguard and secretary.
With Patrick gone, Scott wants to take his place.
Of course, Scott alone can’t fill Patrick’s shoes.
Patrick was an overall manager.
He couldn’t handle work like an expert, but he could push experts to work harder.
That’s how we ran smoothly.
But now that Patrick’s gone, his work has to be divided among several people.
Me, Sandro, Ana, and Scott—we all share it.
Several of us split it among ourselves.
Ana took on the most work-related tasks, while Scott took on most of my personal and external schedules.
Scott wanted to take them on.
He wants to assist me?
So to follow at my side, he needs to be my hands and feet.
I told him he needs to back it up with not just security skills but also work competence, and he’s been learning.
That’s why he came here this morning and has been rattling off my schedule.
Of course, there’s much room for improvement, but I have a fondness for those who dare to challenge themselves.
That reason alone is enough to keep Scott by my side.
What’s lacking now will only grow stronger with time.
“Fine. Use him as a totem, a doll, roast him—do whatever you want. So what’s the first item on the agenda?”
“It’s a meeting regarding the competition. At 9 o’clock in the conference room.”
“Got it. I’ll head to the conference room by 9.”
“I’ll come to escort you.”
“Don’t you dare!!! I can get there on my own.”
“I’ll come to escort you.”
“I said don’t come!!”
.
.
.
The conference room tucked away in one corner of the Office.
Lim Yu-na and a representative from CCAD, the competition authority for Bohol Province, were present.
“Young Boss. Here are the competition results. These are the award-winning works, and these are the designs we’ll produce as merchandise.”
Lim Yu-na displayed the works, divided into award-winning pieces and merchandise designs.
Once we gave our final approval here, the competition would be concluded.
Looking at the selected works, I felt it was truly wise to separate the award-winning entries from the merchandise selections.
The quality of the merchandise designs was exceptional, but the award-winning works were rather lackluster.
Unlike the merchandise, which Lim Yu-na had selected using her own rigorous standards,
the award-winning selections had vague criteria.
There were some works that were ambiguous choices for awards.
Of course, I understood the reason well.
The Provincial Governor must have received money, or perhaps someone had made a request, or they were selected to gain favor.
They were chosen based on names or backgrounds, not the actual works themselves.
I was grateful that we’d set the number of award winners at twenty with a total prize pool of one million pesos—roughly twenty-four million won.
If we’d decided to adjust based on circumstances, it would have been troublesome.
The Provincial Governor would have wanted more award winners and larger prize money, and I would have found it difficult to refuse.
Spending one million pesos on works like these already felt wasteful; if I spent more, how much more frustrated would I become?
My frustration isn’t about spending one million pesos.
There must be works far superior to these, and it infuriates me that those pieces were rejected.
What, they weren’t selected for merchandise designs?
The merchandise selections are, quite literally, works that look good when produced as merchandise.
We weren’t selecting artworks themselves.
That’s why quite a few decent works ended up being rejected.
I felt regret, but it was a part I’d already resigned myself to from the beginning.
Since we’d decided to give out the awards anyway, I shouldn’t harbor lingering doubts even if it’s unfortunate.
“I’ve reviewed them. The works are excellent. I believe we can proceed as planned.”
“Thank you. Then we’ll move forward with these selections.”
“The awards ceremony will be held by CCAD, correct?”
“Yes. We plan to hold it at our CCAD headquarters.”
“So once CCAD presents the awards, the competition will be finished? Thank you for all your help up until now.”
“Not at all. We’ve learned a great deal through this competition as well. We’ve discovered that Bohol has many talented artists. With that in mind, would it be alright if I made one request?”
“What kind of request?”
“Would it be possible for the Young Boss to attend the awards ceremony?”
Why does he want me to go all the way to an awards ceremony?
Just hand out the prize money and be done with it.
“Haha, of course I should go. But I happen to have quite a few overseas business trips scheduled. If you let my secretary know the dates, I’ll do my best to make it work.”
“Thank you so much. We’ll do our best to reschedule the ceremony so that you can definitely attend.”
How pathetic.
Now lies just pour out whenever I open my mouth.
I should tell Scott I have overseas business trips planned for the next six months.
I don’t want to go all the way out there.
The artwork isn’t even that good.
I’d rather not know anything about it.
After the CCAD representative finished their business and left, only Lim Yu-na and I remained in the conference room.
The next meeting was about holding an exhibition featuring the merchandise artwork.
Kang Jae-ho should be joining this meeting, but he hasn’t arrived yet.
With just the two of us in the conference room, an awkward tension filled the air.
The temperature seemed to be rising.
So I called out to Lim Yu-na.
“Lim Yu-na?”
“Yes? Yes!”
Lim Yu-na’s face flushed a deep crimson.
What’s wrong with her?
Is she ill?
Her face turns red just from hearing her name.
Is her body naturally frail?
I’m concerned.
“Are you feeling unwell? Your complexion doesn’t look good.”
“No, I’m fine. But… didn’t you have something you wanted to ask me?”
“I was going to ask about the merchandise production, but I’ll ask you later. Just rest for now.”
“Yes…”
Just then, Kang Jae-ho appeared at the conference room door.
But he didn’t enter—he just stood there, gauging the situation.
“It’s okay for me to come in, right? I’m not interrupting anything, am I?”
“What are you talking about? We’ve been waiting for you.”
Contrary to my response, Lim Yu-na’s expression darkened.
Flushed, then darkened.
There seem to be quite a few health issues.
I really should arrange for a comprehensive medical checkup soon.
Once the exhibition wraps up, I’ll send them back to South Korea for proper hospital screenings.
A CEO who even thinks about his employees’ health—I’d say I’m doing pretty well.
“Shall we begin the meeting then?”
“I’ll give you a brief overview. The exhibition theme is 【Unseen Bohol】—’The Hidden Bohol Yet to Be Seen’—and we’ll be displaying fifty-four pieces. Since the purpose of the exhibition is to select works for merchandise, we’ll have a voting system in place···”
“Excellent. Kang Jae-ho, how far along is the exhibition space preparation?”
“Well, I think it would be faster to show you rather than explain. Do you have time right now?”
“Of course. Let’s head down right away.”
We descended into the basement of the Emerald Resort where the exhibition would be held.
The basement was far larger and more spacious than I’d expected.
The high ceiling eliminated the typical drawback of being underground.
Instead, it created an atmosphere that allowed visitors to focus entirely on the artwork.
Of course, Kang Jae-ho had put in considerable effort.
“So all we need to do now is hang the pieces?”
“Yes. Since it’s so spacious, we’ve set up partition walls. We’ve designed the flow so visitors move through in one direction, viewing the exhibition and marking their favorite pieces.”
“Good. Proceed as planned. When does the exhibition start?”
“It’s scheduled to run for one month, starting in two weeks.”
“Since it’s a free exhibition, don’t just hang the pieces and call it done. Check on it regularly. If necessary, hire docents or guides, and always have staff stationed there.”
“Understood.”
As I exited the Emerald Resort, Sandro was waiting for me.
Now that I thought about it, something seemed off about Sandro’s expression too.
Don’t tell me this guy believes in totems and that sort of nonsense too?
“Alex. I’ve been waiting for you.”
“Why me?”
“I have something to show you. Come with me.”
Where Sandro led me—or rather, dragged me—dozens of camper vans were parked.
In one corner, camping equipment was neatly arranged.
“What is all this?”
“Don’t you remember? You said we should do a camping tour.”
“Right. I thought we were just going to run a few vehicles, though?”
“That’s what I planned, but when I did a demand survey, there was way more interest than expected. So I expanded it.”
“People don’t usually call this scale ‘expanded.’ Can we actually operate all of these?”
“It’s fine now.”
“What do you mean, ‘fine now’?”
“You saw it yourself. You confirmed it yourself. It’s fine now.”
What’s fine?
Nothing about this is fine.
.
.
.
The day had finally come to an end.
Reports were endless, and people who treated me like a totem pole kept dragging me around.
It was work I’d done before, yet after just a few days off, it felt new, difficult, and unfamiliar.
How had I managed this every single day? That’s what I found myself wondering.
To wind down, I cracked open a can of beer and turned on the television.
A soccer match was on.
I sat there watching the game mindlessly, my brain completely disengaged.
The commentator was broadcasting the match.
“The players need to work harder, give that extra step.”
“The players can’t just focus on defense. They need to move more.”
“Isn’t there a saying that offense is the best defense? Our players need to approach the game more aggressively.”
Sitting on the couch watching the soccer match, I suddenly jolted upright.
It felt like I’d grasped something—a hint of sorts.
That’s right.
Offense is the best defense.
I hadn’t even considered attacking.
I’d been foolishly trying to defend at all costs.
They say a hundred Police Officers can’t catch one thief.
No matter how tightly you seal things up, you can’t stop something determined.
Then we need to attack too.
Not defend.
What we needed to consume wasn’t Seoul—it was China.
We had to take over China.
With a clear objective in mind, I knew what needed to be done.
I picked up my phone and contacted Lafei.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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