Because I'm a Humanities Major
"Yeah, I'm getting a few more CT scans today. Doesn't seem like anything to worry about. Thanks for checking in, Ho-ya."
"Don't mention it. I'll see you this evening, then."
"Right. I'll call you after my meetings with the contractors. I've got four places to visit today, so I'll be busy myself. Let's hang up now."
"Sure, hyung. Hang in there."
Hanging up the phone, Jun-ho started the car. He was definitely glad he had headed down to Busan the moment he secured the funds. No matter how long he had spent imagining and planning on his own, having a true expert flesh out the details and execute them was on a whole different level.
Now, it was time to meet the man who would handle the legal side of things.
Bujeon-dong, Jin-gu, Busan. Arriving in the bustling downtown district known as Seomyeon, Jun-ho parked his car in the underground lot of the building where Lee Dong-cheol's office was located.
Using the elevator doors as a mirror, Jun-ho adjusted his clothes. Thanks to the hotel's dry-cleaning service, his outfit was impeccably sharp. With an Apple Watch on his left wrist and his hair neatly slicked back to expose his forehead—a departure from his usual style—he looked every bit the young, promising entrepreneur, or perhaps the heir to a wealthy family.
Ding.
Stepping out on the first floor, Jun-ho dialed a number as he walked toward the cafe they had agreed to meet at. However, he hung up after just a single ring.
Five minutes at the earliest, twenty at the latest.
No matter how busy he was, Lee Dong-cheol was the type of man who would always return a missed call from Jun-ho within that window. Since it was the weekend, it might be even faster.
Scanning the interior of the cafe, he spotted a man in his late thirties or early forties, dressed in a neat golf outfit, sitting at a table.
Lee Dong-cheol...?
Jun-ho was genuinely surprised. The man's impression was worlds apart from how he had looked during the apocalypse. Back then, he had been scrawny, haggard, and thoroughly devious. Now, though still on the leaner side, he presented himself as a clean-cut, trustworthy professional who could easily win anyone's favor.
After ordering an Americano and receiving a buzzer, Jun-ho dialed the number again as he walked toward him.
Lee Dong-cheol answered almost instantly. Jun-ho raised a hand slightly and spoke.
“Hello. I'm Lee Jun-ho. I called earlier.”
“Ah... yes. Pleasure to meet you. I'm attorney Lee Dong-cheol.”
Flustered, Dong-cheol scrambled to his feet and hurriedly pulled a business card from his wallet. Jun-ho handed over his own card in return.
It was a minimalist card, bearing only his name and phone number. Yet, anyone with a modicum of social experience would immediately recognize from the heavy, premium stock that no expense had been spared.
Sure enough, Dong-cheol looked back and forth between the card and Jun-ho, flashing a bright, white-toothed smile.
“Ah, my apologies. Hearing your voice, I figured you'd be on the younger side, but I didn't expect you to be quite this young.”
Jun-ho smiled back. “I am indeed young.”
“Haha. Please, have a seat.”
As they sat opposite each other, Jun-ho felt Dong-cheol's gaze quickly scanning him, the lawyer's initial surprise now fading. Jun-ho placed his phone and the buzzer on the table.
“So, what brings you to Busan? Business?”
“Yes. I have a few things to take care of, and I wanted to take the opportunity to meet you, attorney.”
“Ah, I see. If you don't mind me asking, what line of work are you in...”
Just then, the buzzer began to vibrate.
“Ah, let me get that.”
“No, please. It's my coffee. Stay seated.”
Jun-ho stood up with the buzzer and returned with his coffee. When he was only a few steps away from the table, his phone let out a low, heavy buzz.
Perfect timing.
As expected, Dong-cheol's eyes naturally drifted to the glowing screen.
[Kangho Group Kang Baek-ho Hyung-nim]
The lawyer's shoulders flinched slightly.
Suppressing a smirk, Jun-ho sat down, set his coffee cup, and picked up the phone.
“Ah, hyung.”
"What's up? This early on a weekend morning?"
“I'm doing great, haha.”
"Huh? Did this punk eat something wrong for breakfast...? Well, you sound like you're doing fine. But what's the occasion?"
“Nothing major. Ah, remember what you mentioned before? The place in Busan. I'm thinking of checking it out today.”
"The place in Busan? Ah, our hotel. Oh? You're in Busan right now?"
“Yes, I came down for some business.”
"You should've told me! Then I would've... no, wait. I've got too much to do today. Ah, damn it, I can't even catch a break. Anyway, I'll let the hotel know right away, so go have a comfortable stay."
“Thank you. I know how busy you are, hyung. Let's come down together next time.”
"Let's do that. But... Juno-Juno, your energy is weirdly high today?"
“Haha, no way. Anyway, hyung, I'll call you when I get back up. Yes. Yes, see you then.”
Hanging up, Jun-ho set his phone down and offered Dong-cheol a polite smile.
“Apologies. He's a close hyung, so I couldn't just hang up on him.”
“By any chance... was that Representative Kang Baek-ho of Kangho Food?”
“Oh? How did you know?”
He had obviously read the screen, but Jun-ho feigned a look of innocent surprise.
Dong-cheol sat up straighter, correcting his relaxed posture.
“I actually specialize in corporate civil litigation. I've handled a few cases for Kangho as well.”
You? Bullshit.
While Kangho Group wasn't at the very top of the chaebol hierarchy, it was still a massive conglomerate with assets nearing ten trillion won. Their legal department wasn't incompetent; there was virtually zero chance they would ever deal with a small-time attorney in Busan. Even if they had, it would have been a subcontractor of a subcontractor.
“You must be very close with Mr. Kang Baek-ho?”
“Yes, well. He's a good hyung. Very straightforward business style, too.”
Jun-ho smiled warmly. He left it at that.
In truth, after speaking on the phone yesterday and seeing his face today, Dong-cheol had initially pegged Jun-ho as a young, easy target—a greenhorn ripe for plucking. But as a former prosecutor turned corporate lawyer, there was no way he didn't know the name of Kang Baek-ho, the third-generation heir of Kangho Group. And here was a young man who seemed extremely close to him.
“Well then, Director Lee Jun-ho.”
Dong-cheol quickly adjusted his stance.
“How may I be of assistance?”
With Dong-cheol's attitude turning markedly polite, Jun-ho grinned and got down to business.
“I'll organize everything and send it to you via KakaoTalk, and I'll come up to see you before the auction.”
“Yes. Also, please give President Baek Ha-il a call. Whether it's a pension or a campsite, President Baek will be overseeing the construction.”
“Understood. I will contact him separately. Well, I'll take my leave first.”
Bowing politely, Dong-cheol got into a waiting taxi.
Their first meeting had been at a cafe in Seomyeon, but their farewell took place at the Haeundae KH Hotel. Just as planned, Jun-ho had brought Dong-cheol to the KH Hotel, a subsidiary of the Kangho Group.
Kang Baek-ho was a VVIP who was rumored to take over the hotel management later this year, succeeding the current representative, Kang Hyo-jin, in addition to the resort and food divisions.
Having received a personal call from Kang Baek-ho, the hotel staff went into overdrive. The moment Jun-ho gave his name, the front office manager and the concierge team leader came out personally to greet him, mentioning Kang Baek-ho with utmost respect. They were so incredibly attentive that Jun-ho was secretly taken aback.
But Jun-ho kept his cool, casually pulling out his premium black card to pay for all the expenses. Dong-cheol watched this entire process unfold from his side.
He's a real VIP!
Any lingering doubts in Dong-cheol's mind vanished. To him, Jun-ho was no longer an inexperienced greenhorn, but a top-priority, full-retention client.
The consultation at the hotel went smoothly. Having worked as a prosecutor in Namyangju, Dong-cheol boasted that Jun-ho could leave everything to him. He didn't even ask why Jun-ho wanted to build in such a remote area. It was common for chaebol heirs or high-society elites to build secret villas to enjoy their private lives.
However, instead of a residential home, Dong-cheol gently suggested that obtaining permits as a campsite and pension business, like the previous owner, would be much easier procedurally. Since the land had a history of being operated as a campsite, getting the permits would be a breeze.
Furthermore, though he didn't say it out loud, Dong-cheol seemed to view Jun-ho as Kang Baek-ho's close confidant and proxy. He likely assumed Kang Baek-ho was building a secret villa disguised as a campsite and pension in the remote mountains of Namyangju under Jun-ho's name.
But Jun-ho didn't bother correcting him. In fact, it was much better this way. Dong-cheol would be far more careful and diligent dealing with a seasoned chaebol heir like Kang Baek-ho than a twenty-something kid who struck it rich with crypto.
“Then show me what you've got, Mr. Dong-cheol,” Jun-ho muttered quietly as he watched the taxi drive away.
“To my eyes, this place here, Woorim Engineering, is the best of the lot. They handle everything from design to permits in one go.”
“Really?”
“Yep. I used to supply materials to their sites, and I'm tight with their design chief. Trustworthy folks.”
Today, at Jun-ho's request, they were sitting in front of a platter of assorted sashimi and seafood. Baek Ha-il took a shot of soju and continued.
“They've got plenty of experience designing high-end villas, warehouse-style farms, agricultural storage, and multi-purpose warehouses. Plus, they connect you with permit agencies, supervisors, and structural diagnostic firms. The design chief's got a direct line to structural engineers.”
“That sounds like it'll make things easy.”
“Damn right. Trying to find a structural firm on your own and signing a separate supervisor... your head'll split open. A one-stop shop like this is the way to go.”
“Let's go with them, then. Woorim Engineering...”
“Just call them Woorim.”
“Right, Woorim.”
Jun-ho nodded, wrapping a thick piece of sashimi in a lettuce leaf and eating it.
“What about the equipment and machinery?”
Baek Ha-il pulled out a worn notebook and handed it to Jun-ho.
“See the ones circled there? Those are the final candidates.”
“That's... quite a lot.”
There were five companies marked in the notebook. Baek Ha-il stuffed his mouth with sashimi dipped in sweet chili sauce and chewed.
“That's 'cause they all got different specialties.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. Nambu Machine Wholesale is mostly general gear—manual lathes, milling machines, drill presses. Sangdo Used Machinery is where I used to work; they deal in mid-sized stuff like plasma cutters, automatic press brakes, and machining centers. A small machining center'll do us fine, though they're pricey. And...”
As it was his area of expertise, Baek Ha-il continued his explanation with visible excitement.
“...But if you ask me, we ought to hit up Gimhae Boss Electronics first.”
“Why?”
“I know the factory manager there a bit. Says they're about to go under. Precision CNC machines, vibration-free workbenches, dust collectors—the whole lot's going up for sale as a package. We don't need the dust collectors, but the rest is perfect for a precision workshop.”
“But they're all used. Is used equipment okay?”
Jun-ho asked, thinking new machines would generally be better.
Baek Ha-il nodded firmly.
“Course they are. A good used machine is better than a brand-new one. These were running until two months ago, so they're in top shape. I went and saw 'em myself. Well-broken-in. If we take 'em, we'll just need to align the spindle and swap out the coolant.”
“I see. But hyung, honestly...”
Jun-ho handed the notebook back and shrugged.
“I'm a humanities major, so I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about.”
“Ah...”
“Just buy whatever you think we need. I have plenty of money, remember?”
“R-right. Forgot you got fifteen billion won... Let's do that, then...”
Baek Ha-il nodded with a slightly dazed expression.