The Knight King Who Returned with Gods : Chapter 11
Translators: Nyx and Ririi Rain
Episode 11 This merchant... a handshake?
The Doojeong Group was one of South Korea's most
prominent conglomerates.
From ramen to missiles.
It has dabbled in every industry in Korea, and while some
have failed and others have succeeded, Doojeong's influence in Korea and around
the world is not insignificant.
The business that has been most affected by the gates is
the food industry.
Countless agricultural areas, such as the Hubei Plain in
China and the Nile Delta in Egypt, have been abandoned due to maso
contamination caused by dungeon breaks.
Thirty years ago, there were no reagents to decontaminate
maso pollution, so this has caused permanent damage and, of course, food
shortages on a global scale.
Governments had to find alternative sources of food to
cover the abandoned crop fields, and they heavily supported domestic companies
in this area.
Doojeong Future Food is a large company that has grown to
take up 30% of the domestic food industry with the full support of the
government.
Park Jong-chan, the managing director of such a powerful
company, is a man who can carry the weight of the world on his shoulders.
He had never been looked down upon by anyone.
"This merchant... a handskake?"
For a moment, he thought he'd misheard.
In the modern world, businessmen are the most respected
members of society.
They control vast amounts of capital, sway power, and
even change the law.
If you're the managing director of a leading corporation
like Doojeong Group, you can't be messed with by any high-ranking hunter or
even a member of Congress.
But what is this look and tone of voice that belittles
and degrades such a person and the business itself?
Even the Association's female staff is staring in
disbelief at this shocking statement.
Park Jong-chan doesn't let his expression crumble,
instead putting on a business smile.
"Haha, Survivor Leon, you seem to be unfamiliar with
modern Earth civilization. In modern times, being a businessman is very
different from being a merchant in the old days......."
"How dare a lowly merchant run his mouth at royalty.
This king has never authorized you to speak."
What, is he crazy? Jong-chan had met a few survivors on
business, but he'd never been looked at with such disdain.
"Your, Your Majesty... In this world, being a
businessman is a highly respected profession......."
Leon's voice sounded almost dazed with disbelief.
"Merchants are essentially crooks who sell their
dignity and self-respect for profit. They exploit loopholes in the law and are
proud of it."
There was no denying it: Doojeong Future Foods was
currently being criticized for tax evasion, illegal unionization, and excessive
profit-seeking.
Other businessmen were no different.
"Even if the world is different, it won't change the
nature and fundamentals of business. How can a lowly man with a lowly tongue
and a lowly nature stand face to face with noble royalty?"
"Uh......."
"Nothing more to hear."
That was it.
After delivering the last of his insults and disrespect,
Leon strode nonchalantly past Park Jong-chan.
Hari followed closely behind. Jong-chan was stunned and
speechless at the sight of his back.
"Wha- what......."
* * * *
"This is where Your Majesty will be staying."
"Well, I suppose this is all right."
In the modern world, a 50-square-foot condo is more than
enough for a single person, but for Leon, it was nothing compared to his royal
palace.
Still, given his Earthly origins and the fact that he was
used to sleeping out in the open, he wasn't in the mood to argue.
"This place is provided to you by the Association
for a year. You don't have to worry about rent or maintenance, the Association
will take care of that."
Hari explained to Leon, who nodded. She added that there is
also room service and a cleaning service that is paid for by the Association.
'Huu...
that's a relief.'
It was fortunate for Hari, who is a member of the Hunter
Association, that Leon had walked past Park Jong-chan, the managing director of
Future Food.
Information about survivors is usually classified. Like
North Korean defectors, those from remote societies are kept in quarantine for
three months for conditioning.
But when it's a completely different world, the gap is
enormous. Normally, they would have to be isolated and carefully guided, but if
they decided to isolate Leon right away, there would be an uproar.
"But what is the purpose of his visit?"
"What else is he after? It's profit."
Profit? What kind of profit would the managing director
of Doojeong Group want from Leon... Hari slapped her knee.
"It's the rice, isn't it? That blessed rice from the
Honam Plain......."
The situation was so urgent that there was no proper
information security. An internet broadcaster had filmed it.
"It must be Mr. Park, the farmer...?"
She searched on YubTube and checked the video of Mr.
Park. Apparently, the Association had taken the video down and issued a
warning... but,
"What? He posted it again?!"
* * * *
Mr. Park, the farmer, was depressed because his latest
video had been taken down.
A shocking scene that was filmed in real time in front of
the Honam Plain Gate.
The land that was obviously contaminated with maso had
sprouted crops in an instant.
"Did, did you see that, guys? The paddy... the paddy...
the paddy... it grew like, poof!!!"
-What? What?
-Magic?
-Was he a mage from the Magic Tower? Did he use some kind
of rapid growth spell?
-But can any magic grow plants on maso-contaminated
ground?
-Maybe it's a new technique we don't know about.
Mr. Park, the farmer, knew all too well how amazing it
was to see crops grow on rotten ground.
Even after the advent of maso purification technology in
the Magic Tower, it took a year or two of the ultra-expensive reagents to
purify maso-contaminated land.
Thinking of his friend Mr. Kim, who went out of business
because he couldn't afford the reagents, Mr. Park gulped at the miracle in
front of him.
-But the crops grown with magic are inedible anyway.
-It's enchanted, so it's poisonous to normal people.
-Even the hunters would need a stomach wash after a few
bites.
Soon, however, an amazing sight was witnessed. The
Association's employees were threshing the rice and cooking it themselves!
"Hey, you! What are you doing?!"
When he tried to get closer to see if they were really
eating the rice, he was chased away by the Association members, but later that
evening, Mr. Park rushed to find the owner of the field, Mr. Kim.
"Mr. Kim! Mr. Kim, did you get what I asked for?
"Of course. The gentlemen at the Association said I
shouldn't take it out at all, though......."
"What kind of law is that? Aren't you the owner of
the field?"
"That's true, but......."
" 'Cause the contaminated land has recovered, and
they're all eating a bowl of rice."
"That's true, but......"
Mr. Park was inquisitive enough to become a YubTuber,
filming all kinds of wildlife in the countryside.
'The
land contaminated with maso has been cleaned up, and the crops have grown in no
time. How can I pass on this?'
This is for YubTube video. But first, he wanted to do a
little experiment.
"Let's cook some rice and feed it to the
neighborhood pig first."
"Hmmm... good idea."
To test the waters, the two cooked up a small batch of
rice.
'I've
been craving a nice, shiny bowl of rice topped with shredded kimchi, but I
thought I'd test it on animals first, just in case.'
-Bam!
It was then. The rice was barely done cooking when an old
dog came barging through the door.
"Isn't this Mr. Chen's dog, Dolsoon?"
"Yes, it is. Why are you here today?"
Dolsoon was an old dog, twelve years old. As is often the
case with old animals, he suffered from arthritis, which led to lack of
exercise and obesity.
Why is he here when he usually stays at home?
-Bark! Bark bark!
"What is it, why don't you go home?"
That was when. Dolsoon, who was looking at them from the
doorway, suddenly shoved his head into the table.
"What the hell!"
"Is this dog crazy?!"
The two men were furious, but they were soon stunned by
Dolsoon's actions.
"You little, you can't eat that!"
"Why is the fucker eating it all of a sudden?!"
It was a big deal. Although Dolsoon was an ordinary dog,
it was a dog that Mr. Chen had raised with great care.
Even an elderly man would be sad if such a dog died after
eating rice.
"Spit it out! Spit it out!"
Mr. Park tried to open Dolsoon's mouth to get him to spit
out the rice, but Dolsoon swallowed the rice as if it was his ticket to life.
And.......
-Bark, bark, bark!
Dolsoon jumped up and down with a loud bark. After
scurrying around like a grasshopper, Dolsoon immediately ran towards Mr. Chen's
house.
"What?"
"What,, what the......."
It was an old dog with arthritis that had trouble
walking. It was last week that he saw Mr. Chun crying as he held Dolsoon, who
is with him every day.
But what the hell was that? As if he was becoming
healthy.
"......."
"......."
Mr. Park and Mr. Kim looked at each other, both having
the same thought. They immediately started making a new meal.
"Ooh, my chronic scoliosis?!"
"It's like my stuffy chest has been relieved!"
A village in Honam. The miracles that happened there
quickly spread throughout the village.
Meanwhile, a similar phenomenon was happening at the Doojeong
Future Food Laboratory, where the Phoenix Guild had set out to determine the
identity of the rice.
"What the hell am I looking at?"
"How can such a dense amount of energy be contained
in a single grain of rice?"
The 'Blessed Rice' that had been snuck by the Phoenix
Guild was cross-checked by appraisers and proved to be a rare grade, one grain
at a time.
[Blessed Rice]
◆
Rating: Rare
◆
Description
Rice blessed with the divine power of Goddess Demera, the
goddess of life and fertility.
Relieves grade 3 affliction. If consumed continuously,
there is a high chance of being cured.
"Blessed rice? What the hell is it blessed
with?"
"Isn't it magic? What kind of goddess is
Demera?"
"What does it mean to relieve a grade 3
affliction?"
"Something like late-stage colon cancer."
"Damn it! Can you prove this? Test it on lab
rats!"
The results of the experiment,
the healing powers of the Blessed Rice were real.
The mice that were dying from constant consumption of the
experimental crops were indeed cured.
"Hu- hurry! We need to report to the higher-ups!
Tell them to get as many seeds as possible!"
The report of the lab's findings was sent to the upper
management of Doojeong Future Food, and the managing director, Park Jong-chan,
was immediately dispatched.
It wasn't hard to find Leon, as DooJeong had planted eyes
and ears in the Hunter Association.
"This merchant... a handshake?"
But Leon brutally dismissed him, and Director Park
Jong-chan returned with a grunt.
"That arrogant savage!"
Park Jong-chan's anger erupted like an active volcano.
The researchers who had come to report to him winced at
the plaque he threw at them, but he didn't care about them.
"Hey. Those rice paddies. Are you sure they're
effective?"
"Yes, yes...! Yes, they do."
"You haven't even done any clinical trials. If it
works on rats, what guarantee do you have that it'll work on humans?"
"Well, that's......."
The secretary stepped in.
"In order to secure as much seed as possible, I went
to visit the owner of the field. But there──"
The secretary relayed what Mr. Park and Mr. Kim had
experienced.
That a dog that was about to die was brought back to
health. That eating the rice cured their chronic inflammation and rhinitis. The
whole village was cured of minor to major illnesses after eating the rice.
"We don't have the clinical trial data... but it's
as good as proven."
" 'Stuff is real."
Park Jong-chan's eyes lit up with greed. If he hadn't
trusted the appraisal in the first place, he wouldn't have stepped forward.
The rice is a big deal. It's a big enough deal to change
the world.
"If only you weren't a crazy asshole."
The problem was the survivor who held the secret to the
rice.
The anachronistic barbarian survivor looked down on the
director of the world-class Doojeong Group as a lowly merchant.
"Mr. Director... we must have it, it has infinite
value."
"I know."
The rice is said to cure cancer just by eating it. It
would revolutionize not only food but also the medical world.
"We'll see... we'll see."
'Since
he's so demanding, I'll have to ask for a meeting through the Association. I
made a surprise visit before the Association could stop me, but it all went
awry.'
"You don't know anything about business in this country,
do you?"
He was determined to punch this barbarian in the nose.
'That's
typical of many survivors.
Survivors
of a stupid, foolish, barbaric civilization that thought they were the best.'
When they saw the overwhelming scientific and industrial power
of modern civilization, they finally admitted that they were behind.
"I see you're making a big deal out of a little
rice... I'll represent Earth and show you the power of science."
Park Jong-chan smiled with conviction.
'I'm
going to overwhelm you with culture shock.'
***
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