Chapter 56. A New Subsidiary (3)
The promotion of MH Future Security to a subsidiary was completed without any major “issues.”
Normally, when a subsidiary is formed, it’s relocated away from the headquarters.
However, MH Future Security settled into a rented space comprising the 32nd and 33rd floors it previously used, as well as the former Strategic Planning Department on B4.
At the same time, a lot of chatter spread within the headquarters.
Naturally, topics like this became hot gossip among employees at the designated smoking areas.
“Strategic Investment Headquarters becoming a subsidiary? I’ve worked at MH Group for 10 years, and I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“More than that—what happens to the people who used to work in that department?”
“Didn’t you hear? They’re offering transfers to anyone willing to move over.”
“So they won’t be part of headquarters anymore?”
Effectively, they would be employees of MH Future Security, a subsidiary rather than the main office.
Of course, even as a subsidiary, being part of MH Group was still prestigious, so it wasn’t shameful.
But for ambitious employees aiming for promotions and salary hikes, the main office was considered the best path forward.
“You didn’t hear the rumor? I heard MH Future Security is offering 50% more in salary than current rates.”
“Seriously?! Even if the main office is backing them, how is that possible?”
Salaries at MH Group headquarters were already competitive. So a 50% increase sounded extraordinary.
But the number was so high, it was hard to believe—it almost sounded ridiculous.
“That has to be a lie. There’s no way they’d hike salaries like that. They’d have to consider how it looks to HQ too.”
“Salaries are up to the CEO’s discretion anyway. I heard CEO Baek Shin-woo has a pretty bold personality.”
“Didn’t you also hear they call him ‘One-Shot Guy’?”
“One-Shot Guy? What does that mean?”
“If he targets you once, you’re done for! That’s why Team 4 and Team 5 of Strategic Investment Operations Division 1 got disbanded under his command.”
The story of Shin-woo completely eliminating two entire teams had inevitably spread throughout the headquarters.
“If the salary rumors are true… maybe I’ll apply. I heard they’re accepting applicants.”
“Honestly, isn’t it overhyped? Besides, it’s not even part of the main office—who’d want to go?”
Since MH Future Security had been spun off as a subsidiary, they needed to rebuild all departments with fresh personnel.
So, they were recruiting experienced professionals with help from headquarters.
Still, transferring from HQ to a subsidiary came with mental hurdles, making it a hard sell.
* * *
At the same time…
Shin-woo stepped off the elevator and entered the newly renovated 32nd-floor office.
【MH Future Security】
【CEO & Management Department】
A nameplate was affixed next to the door.
Just like before, the office was still used by Shin-woo, Jang Man-soo, and Lillian.
The back of Jang Man-soo, who had arrived earlier, was visible—and for some reason, he was dressed in a black suit.
“What’s going on with you…?”
At Shin-woo’s voice, Jang Man-soo turned around.
At the same time, Shin-woo grimaced deeply.
A rainbow-colored necktie—sparkling with glimmering hues that could put a prism to shame—glowed vividly against the suit.
“…Never mind.”
“Hey, Baek Shin-woo.”
But Jang Man-soo’s expression was noticeably sullen.
“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
At Shin-woo’s question, Man-soo’s gaze turned toward the nameplate above his partition.
【MH Future Security】
【General Affairs Manager – Jang Man-soo】
“What’s this?”
“Why? You said last time that you didn’t want to be called ‘Deputy Manager,’ so we skipped ‘Assistant Manager’ and just made you ‘Manager.’”
He had jumped two ranks—a promotion that would be almost impossible in a normal company, making this a highly unusual case.
“Then why does Lillian…!”
Frustrated, Jang Man-soo pointed toward the nameplate attached to Lillian’s desk partition.
【MH Future Security】
【Division Head – Lillian Foster】
“Well… we needed someone to serve as the face of the department.”
“I’m here too!”
“You’re in charge of tech. A Division Head has to deal with a bunch of other stuff. Wouldn’t it just be a hassle for you?”
Unable to argue back, Jang Man-soo sulked and clamped his mouth shut.
At that moment, the office door opened, and Lillian, just back from her business trip, entered.
“Good mor—! Holy shit! Jang Mandu! What the hell is that hanging from your neck? I thought a rainbow just popped out of nowhere!”
Approaching happily, Lillian immediately recoiled at the sight of Man-soo’s tie.
“What?! It’s beautiful, isn’t it?!”
“It’s only ugly because it’s on your neck! Wait—isn’t that tie the latest design from Laobuitton?”
“As expected, you recognize quality brands!”
“Being able to recognize them doesn’t mean I want to see them!”
Annoyed, Lillian lunged at Man-soo and yanked on the necktie like she was about to tear it off.
“Kaagh—! Hey! My! Neck! Neck! Neck!”
“Just because I’ve been holding back—how dare you use designer goods like this?! You’re not letting go?!”
“I—I’m dying! Dying…!”
In the end, Jang Man-soo’s hands dropped helplessly as Lillian continued to strangle him with the tie.
“Seriously, both of you, knock it off!”
Baek Shin-woo could no longer watch and grabbed Lillian by the wrist and waist, pulling her back. By that point, Lillian should’ve stopped.
But since she still hadn’t let go of the necktie, Jang Man-soo was dragged forward with her.
“Lillian! You have to let that go!”
“Oh! Right.”
Had she really forgotten? With that, Lillian released her grip on the necktie.
At the same time, Jang Man-soo collapsed face-first onto the office floor as if kissing it.
Thud―
“Oops! Sorry~!”
“Do you two always act like this the moment you see each other?”
They were comrades who were more in sync than anyone during combat.
But outside of battle, because of their personalities, they bickered constantly.
“He scratches my nerves with his fashion!”
“Sigh… Anyway, did the job go well? Did you come straight from the airport?”
As Shin-woo asked that, he checked Jang Man-soo’s pulse. Fortunately, he had just neatly (?) fainted, with no further issue.
“I arrived just in time. It’s all taken care of. With the trial, he’s guaranteed at least a life sentence. Though he’ll be stuck in a hospital first.”
Lillian gave a rather chilling, satisfied smile.
“What exactly did you do?”
The American news articles only reported that serial killer Chad Palmer was hospitalized with injuries.
“He was the guy who raped and killed women. So I cut that off. The police just saw it as self-defense.”
“…You really handled it cleanly. What about your parents? Are they okay?”
“They were really shocked. Calming them down is part of the reason I was late.”
Lillian had deliberately made herself the victim in order to deal with Chad Palmer legally.
Of course, someone like Lillian was not an easy target, so she found Palmer’s lair and resolved it in the way she just described.
Still, given the recklessness of her approach, it was natural for her parents to be horrified when they heard the news.
“You did great.”
“My parents wanted me to stay with them for a while, but I barely talked them out of it. So, has the plan changed that much?”
Having returned to Korea, Lillian had already seen the news articles about MH Group and MH Future Security.
“Yeah. Things got a bit complicated. Though it’s made our position stronger.”
“I saw some of the articles even from the U.S. At this rate, won’t others track us down just by reading them?”
“That would actually be ideal.”
Becoming globally recognized was one way to attract attention.
But since they weren’t celebrities, promoting themselves like lunatics wasn’t exactly appealing.
“Then again, those in remote areas or war zones probably wouldn’t see it anyway.”
“Rick and Hector might not…”
He remembered both of them had grown up in places where watching TV was a luxury.
Among them, Wen Wei was the most likely to find him through an article.
“Looks like I’m a Division Head now?”
Lillian noticed the nameplate next to her desk as she pulled her suitcase over.
“I figured it suited you.”
“Nice. It’s a faster promotion than at my last job. And I’m getting a raise too, right?”
“I’m not going to be stingy.”
Even setting aside their shared mercenary background, Lillian’s skills were world-class.
She was the one who spearheaded the acquisition of Telecom by Livio Soft.
Of course, Jang Man-soo helped a bit by shaking up their stock prices, but… that same Jang Man-soo was still lying on the floor.
“So, what’s the revised plan? If TSF is planning to take over Baesung Trading, they must be moving, right?”
“Well, a pesky fly seems to have landed.”
“Fly?”
“Myung Un-seok seems to have sniffed something and approached Yoo Ji-young to propose a deal.”
At that, Lillian’s expression twisted like she had just stepped in something foul.
“What the hell is he doing there? After getting booted from MH Electronics, he should’ve stayed quiet.”
“Maybe it’s in his blood. Anyway, there’s been no follow-up yet. We’ve taken some precautions.”
What they needed most right now was TSF Investment’s trust in Shin-woo.
With the current condition of Chairman Bae Young-chul and one key secret, they’d shown enough.
If Kwak Chi-young of TSF had verified that secret’s authenticity, then they likely had secured solid trust.
“I’m glad you didn’t arrive too late. What about the contact network?”
Shin-woo filled her in on the parts they had gathered and their collaboration with MH Tech.
“As long as we get access to MH Tech’s ongoing project data, we should be able to calculate things.”
“If nothing’s even been built yet, that’s a headache. Why don’t we just keep pushing articles with your name in them? That might be faster.”
“I’d like to, but even getting the last article out was tough. Myung In-chul and some HQ execs seem to be pressuring media outlets to suppress coverage of me. Not that it really matters to them either way.”
It wasn’t like they were distorting the truth.
They just didn’t want Baek Shin-woo’s name and influence growing too visible to the outside world.
They had no real power over him, so this was the only method they could resort to.
“That’s ridiculous. Should we call in some foreign press? They’re already interested in the Livio Soft–Telecom deal. MH Group can’t block that, right?”
“Not a bad idea. As Division Head, why don’t you pursue that?”
“Ok―!”
As the two talked cheerfully, Jang Man-soo suddenly sprang up from the floor like he’d been dreaming.
“Ah, no! Samin, don’t go!”
He seemed to have had a nightmare.
Shin-woo and Lillian turned to him, startled.
“What? Samin? Who’s that?”
Realizing he’d been dreaming, Jang Man-soo wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand and stood up.
“Huh? Who?”
“You just said ‘Samin.’”
“Really? I don’t know anyone by that name. Maybe it was just a… weird dream?”
Feigning ignorance, Jang Man-soo tidied up his wrinkled suit and carefully returned to his seat.
But that damn rainbow-colored tie still caught Lillian’s eye.
“Ugh… Can’t you take off that tie?”
“This is the highlight, so no way~!”
Jang Man-soo typed on his keyboard as if ignoring her completely.
At the same time, Lillian’s eyes glinted sharply—as if seriously debating whether or not to kill him.
—
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