Chapter 155
The secret meeting between Jeil Group and Xiongmao Group at the Shanghai Tower Sky Lounge did not leak to the outside thanks to Xiongmao Group’s strict information control.
This was partly because Shin Ha-yeon-ssi had made the meeting a condition for the agreement in the first place, but also because both sides had amicably agreed to the condition of a secret alliance.
Of course, the power struggle that took place in the process was nothing more than a minor episode since the agreement had been reached.
Thanks to this, Drakan was able to carry out the ostensible reason for his visit to Shanghai, ‘sightseeing,’ after the secretly held meeting was successfully concluded.
“I never thought I’d actually see this in person.”
The Oriental Pearl Tower 东方明珠, a landmark skyscraper in Shanghai.
At the revolving restaurant on top of it, Drakan murmured as he gazed at the cityscape of Shanghai, filled with high-rise buildings.
“Drakan-nim, is this perhaps your first time visiting a place like this?”
Shin Ha-yeon-ssi smiled, her eyes crinkling, as she looked at Drakan.
Inside the famous revolving restaurant of the Oriental Pearl Tower, there were only two people: Drakan and Shin Ha-yeon-ssi.
This was because Shin Ha-yeon-ssi, as always, had rented out the entire restaurant with her overflowing wealth.
Of course, the reason she rented out the entire revolving restaurant was not simply to show off her wealth like a nouveau riche.
It was a kind of operation to leak information that the purpose of their visit to Shanghai was ‘sightseeing’ to avoid suspicion from Vice Chairman Shin Jeong-hyeok.
Vice Chairman Shin Jeong-hyeok.
Sometimes his emotions got the better of him and he caused trouble, but Shin Ha-yeon-ssi never underestimated him.
The probability of arousing Shin Jeong-hyeok’s suspicion just by visiting Shanghai was considerably high, and in order to avoid giving him any room for doubt, there was a need to advertise that they had come to sightsee by openly spending money.
That was the reason for renting out the entire revolving restaurant.
Of course, there was also the fact that Shin Ha-yeon-ssi preferred a quiet atmosphere.
Anyway, Shin Ha-yeon-ssi smiled as she looked at Drakan looking around in wonder.
Drakan, who was now recognized as the only rival to Eugene, both by himself and others, would go through fire and water, whether in reality or in the game, when it came to matters related to the game, or more precisely, Ard Saga. However, when it came to matters completely unrelated to the game, he would show a vulnerable side, just like now.
And Shin Ha-yeon-ssi secretly thought that such unexpected aspects of Drakan were quite human.
“I haven’t really had a reason to travel overseas.”
Drakan scratched his cheek.
Of course, there were many famous foreign Rankers in the previous game, but there was no reason for Drakan to go all the way to a foreign country just to meet them.
Unlike now, in the previous game, the game world and the real world were virtually separated, and there were very few cases of real-world power being brought into the game.
Therefore, it was natural in those days for in-game connections to end within the game.
Of course, now that Second had arrived, there were many users who longed for this so-called ‘romantic’ play style of the previous game.
Roughly speaking, the previous game had romance and memories within the game.
Even if the system was inconvenient, it had a human touch. However, after the introduction of Ard Live, the Ard World of Second was excessively focused on competition and had become a desolate world that did not tolerate failure. This was their main argument.
In contrast, the new generation of users who started playing from Second would often ridicule those old-generation users as ‘old farts’ or ‘boomers.’ In more extreme cases, keyboard battles would break out on the internet due to differences in their play styles.
And Drakan, if he had to choose, had a perspective closer to the new generation of users, while Eugene held the perspective of the old generation, represented by ‘romance’ and ‘classic.’
Even in such trivial matters, Eugene and Drakan held completely opposite viewpoints.
Anyway, Drakan had made a considerable amount of money while running the Iron Blood Alliance, though not as much as in Second. However, he had no particular interest in things like overseas travel, so he had never traveled abroad himself, except for sending his parents on trips.
For such a Drakan, this meeting in Shanghai was his first experience of traveling abroad.
“I’ve had enough of going overseas while on a deep-sea fishing boat…….”
Of course, if you removed the word ‘travel,’ he had plenty of experience going overseas.
Thinking that far, Drakan unconsciously trembled slightly.
Deep-sea fishing boat.
This was because he felt a dizzying sensation as if the horrifying memories of that time, engaged in endless, repetitive labor on the vast ocean, the waves that covered the deck, the stench of the deep-sea fishing boat that made him want to vomit, and the sight of the flapping tuna were all rushing back to him.
“……I don’t really want to talk about that.”
Drakan said so and took a deep breath.
The one thing that Drakan, who was trying to bring down even the great Eugene, feared the most.
It was the nightmare of the deep-sea fishing boat, where he had spent his past years on the deck.
Just like veterans who had long since been discharged from the military would still have nightmares about going back to the army, Drakan still often had nightmares about getting back on a deep-sea fishing boat.
Shin Ha-yeon-ssi quietly took Drakan’s trembling left hand.
As she felt her warm body temperature, Drakan’s heart rate, which had been pumping like crazy, gradually began to slow down.
“Don’t worry, Drakan-nim.”
Shin Ha-yeon-ssi said in a sweet voice as she looked at Drakan.
“Because that will never happen again. I guarantee it.”
Drakan smiled at Shin Ha-yeon-ssi’s words.
Right.
He would never have to get back on that damn deep-sea fishing boat again.
And in order to do that, he had to successfully complete the grand plan of rebellion and pull that damn Eugene down from his throne.
Of course, even if he did that, the fact that he had wasted his youth on a deep-sea fishing boat would not disappear, but at least he would no longer have nightmares about getting back on one.
Thinking that, Drakan felt himself gradually calming down.
Still holding Drakan’s hand, Shin Ha-yeon-ssi said.
“Are you feeling a bit better now?”
Drakan nodded at her worried voice.
“Now that we’ve finished our meal, how about sightseeing along the Huangpu River? This time, I’ve rented out the entire cruise ship, is that okay with you?”
The Huangpu River 黄浦江.
Drakan smiled at Shin Ha-yeon-ssi’s words, mentioning the Huangpu River, Hongkou Park, and Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street, which were some of the most famous tourist attractions in Shanghai, along with the Oriental Pearl Tower.
It seemed she had chartered the entire cruise ship after the revolving restaurant.
“Sure. ” ” Then, please follow me, Drakan-nim.”
Shin Ha-yeon-ssi smiled playfully and stood up, holding Drakan’s hand.
Behind them, the vast Huangpu River and the night view of The Bund unfolded like a panorama.
▄ ▄ ▄
Drakan and Shin Ha-yeon-ssi spent two nights and three days in Shanghai, and almost all of that time was spent on sightseeing. This information also reached Vice Chairman Shin’s ears.
“Sightseeing in Shanghai together, they’re having a blast.”
Seocho-dong Simseong Town.
Vice Chairman Shin’s face, sitting in his top-floor office overlooking Seoul, contorted.
The fact that Drakan and Shin Ha-yeon-ssi were lovers was something that didn’t even require information gathering; it was already practically public knowledge in social circles, even though it hadn’t been officially announced.
The fact that the chairman of Jeil Group, who had now retired to the back seat, had clutched the back of his neck upon hearing the news of Shin Ha-yeon-ssi dating a ‘game user’ was also the same.
Of course, there were cases where chaebols, like celebrities, dated people from different social classes, but Shin Ha-yeon-ssi was the first to date a game user, so there were whispers about it in social circles. However, Shin Ha-yeon-ssi didn’t care at all.
Since she had already taken control of Jeil Group, the social circles had been whispering about her being a woman, so adding the Drakan issue wouldn’t change anything.
Shin Ha-yeon-ssi even openly mocked the fools in the social circles who failed to recognize Drakan’s value and considered him a mere fling or a deviation.
Anyway, even excluding such cases, the movements of Drakan, Shin Ha-yeon-ssi, and Jeil E&M’s key figures, including Ignis, were already reaching Vice Chairman Shin’s ears in real time.
It was a basic strategy based on the very basic common sense that in order to defeat the enemy, you must know the enemy.
Of course, given who the opponent was, even with the power of the Crown Prince of Simseong Group, it was impossible to know everything about Jeil E&M, but at least he could easily find out whether Shin Ha-yeon-ssi was going abroad or not.
“And of all places, Shanghai!”
Vice Chairman Shin muttered as he crumpled the document in his hand.
Shanghai.
It was the city where Xiongmao eSports, their current ally, and its headquarters, Xiongmao Group, were located.
Vice Chairman Shin, who had felt a sense of foreboding at the mention of sightseeing in Shanghai, found that Shin Ha-yeon-ssi and Drakan’s activities in Shanghai were truly typical sightseeing.
And it was the kind of sightseeing that only chaebols could do, fueled by their excessive spending.
It was a truly typical consumption pattern of the upper class, and it was a tourist course so needlessly faithful to the purpose of sightseeing that he even thought to himself that it wouldn’t be bad to sightsee like this if he went to Shanghai.
“Is she mocking me right now?”
Vice Chairman Shin muttered in a trembling voice as he threw the crumpled document into the trash can.
Pictures of Shin Ha-yeon-ssi and Drakan in Shanghai, taken as if to boast and uploaded on SNS, flashed through Shin Jeong-hyeok’s mind.
Drakan might not know, but there was no way Shin Ha-yeon-ssi didn’t know that Xiongmao eSports and Xiongmao Group’s headquarters were located in Shanghai.
This was because Xiongmao Group, being a chaebol group in neighboring China, had many connections with Korean chaebol families.
But to go to Shanghai and just sightsee, and to do it for two nights and three days, was practically a mockery of the alliance he had formed with Xiongmao eSports.
‘If it’s her, she would definitely have gone to Shanghai with that intention.’
Shin Jeong-hyeok thought so and gritted his teeth.
Shin Ha-yeon-ssi.
There was no way that woman didn’t know that Shin Jeong-hyeok was targeting her.
While Shin Jeong-hyeok disliked Shin Ha-yeon-ssi, he never underestimated her.
And Shin Ha-yeon-ssi was the type of person who would do such a thing in Shanghai just to taunt her ‘enemy,’ Shin Jeong-hyeok.
“This is really pissing me off!”
Shin Jeong-hyeok felt anger rising within him.
It was truly a disgusting feeling.
Shin Ha-yeon-ssi.
How long did he have to be played around in the palm of that woman’s hand, how long did he have to harbor this feeling of inferiority!
He wanted to end this tiresome feud once and for all.
Shin Jeong-hyeok couldn’t control his anger and let out a roar, but fortunately, the office was soundproofed, so his roar didn’t escape the room.
Thus, Shin Jeong-hyeok was once again being manipulated by Shin Ha-yeon-ssi, but unfortunately, he was still unaware of that fact.