# Chapter 177
## Progress
When Lee Hwan first joined Naru, he was a bit perplexed. More things were going with the flow than he had expected.
As befitting a major corporation, matters concerning work were generally systematic and thorough, but unless reports were submitted upward, they could also be surprisingly haphazard.
His first social experience. Later on, he learned that all businesses operate that way. While company work was a process of receiving corporate money, making both results and procedures important, if the performance wasn’t bad, even sloppy execution was cleanly forgotten.
Lee Hwan hoped their regression would meet such an ending. Despite his countless deaths and Taesung’s crazy actions, ultimately, both would survive and live well in a normal world… that kind of ending.
The car ride back was quiet. Taesung appeared to be in a good mood or bad mood depending on the angle.
It was entirely due to his expressionless face. Even when he occasionally met Lee Hwan’s eyes and smiled, it was hard to tell if he was happy or not.
Honestly, it was quite concerning. Probably both feelings, it seemed.
“Are you displeased?”
“…I think it went well. If there’s no risk of betrayal, he could be quite useful.”
From his answer, it seemed Taesung had changed his mind considerably. Although there was still some grumpiness that indicated dissatisfaction.
Not only did he spare someone he considered an obstacle, but he actively recruited him. He was probably anxious and uneasy right now, though he wouldn’t say it. Still, Lee Hwan was relieved that his mood wasn’t entirely bad.
No, it was actually a bit amusing. Throughout their time with Kang Dongha, like an AI with a motion-detection sensor, Taesung relaxed his rigid face every time Lee Hwan touched him.
Lee Hwan managed the meeting without bloodshed by controlling his mood that way.
‘Will he still do that?’
But now they were on the road. Lee Hwan couldn’t touch him while he was driving. He just turned his body halfway to the side, leaned against the seat, and stared at Taesung.
Taesung’s face always captivated attention. Even his profile looked like a masterpiece cast from a plaster mold.
His black hair, meticulously arranged like when he was on gate duty. Below it, a flat forehead and a straight, flawless nose bridge. A strong, solid jaw that seemed crafted when God was in an excellent mood, and lips that were perfectly positioned in red.
‘Bastard. He’s handsome.’
In art galleries, they say people stand for a long time in front of paintings they like. Lee Hwan had been too busy surviving to properly enjoy such culture, but he thought this might be what it’s like.
He didn’t want to look away. No matter how much he looked, he didn’t get tired of it, so he just stayed that way. Counting each long eyelash one by one, and slowly tracing the line from his jaw to his ear and the back of his neck with his eyes.
Then, looking at his whole face again, he suddenly felt overwhelmed with fondness for him. He was grateful for his unblemished appearance. Whenever memories of his past self with blood flowing here and there surfaced, Lee Hwan’s heart ached.
‘Why are those always the only things I remember?’
Just then, the car smoothly stopped at an intersection. Waiting for the signal, Taesung turned his head. Their eyes finally met. Gazing at his face, Lee Hwan continued in a somewhat small voice.
“Well, I like it. Anyway, it’s a completely different change from the past. I’m trying to see it as a positive sign.”
As he grinned, Taesung’s eyebrows, which had been stiff until then, crumbled slightly.
“If we can both survive, I don’t care who we join hands with.”
The added remark was 100 percent sincere. If it could save him, what did Kang Dongha matter? He would have clung even to a devil if it claimed it could help, though he wouldn’t trust it.
Taesung’s face after hearing this still showed no particular expression. However, with his now softer face, this time it seemed possible to discern his mood.
Taesung showed a satisfied look and faced forward. The green light flickered on. Inside the car that started moving again, Lee Hwan also exhaled comfortably.
* * *
Within a few weeks, news came from Kang Dongha. By cozying up to his father, he had successfully infiltrated the Health Promotion Association.
Kang Dongying was reportedly very displeased. His brother, who should have been under his control, had been increasingly defiant lately, and even got involved in a project through the vice chairman on his own. He must be grinding his teeth by now.
Along with the personnel transfer, Kang Dongha was given an office in Research Building D. Although there was some rejection from researchers due to Kang Dongying’s influence, since he had taken over the vice chairman’s follow-up, he would be able to dig quite quickly into the core of the semi-awakening project.
According to Taesung, Kang Dongha’s role was somewhat different from before. Back then, even after gaining some recognition, his work was limited to supplying test subjects and pushing researchers, but this time he was given concrete and realistic goals right away.
It was entirely thanks to the Chairman. He seemed to have already found some clues as he shifted the research direction from the awakening of regular test subjects to the response of magic resonators.
Meanwhile, Jade set up a safe house to secure an escape point, and began spreading various rumors in the underground.
Befitting a mercenary who had always chosen dangerous battlefields to rake in money, all of his connections were tied to major players in the shadows.
He said many who had received experiments from Naru had lost contact, but when people smell money, even previously unmet uncle relatives sprout up like mushrooms in human relationships.
As rumors spread through the grapevine that he had become suddenly rich through investments, things progressed rapidly.
‘Knowing the future is this useful.’
Perhaps due to countless previous regressions, Taesung truly remembered all sorts of things. His experience and knowledge became the foundation of their plan.
‘I should have memorized winning lottery numbers too.’
Lee Hwan quietly thought that the difficulty of the first regression was clearly due to his own memory, which had retained nothing but gates and monsters.
They met via video conference two or three times a week to talk. They could no longer hold meetings outside due to concern about others’ attention.
Especially after being assigned to the semi-awakening project, Kang Dongying was reportedly monitoring Kang Dongha ferociously.
‘It would be better to talk face to face, what’s with this?’
Lee Hwan’s headache grew worse due to the increasingly undisciplined Kang Dongha as violence receded, and Taesung who gradually lost his reason when interacting only with him.
—It seems there was already an opinion about tampering with the gate. Just that the research direction changed slightly, so it’s temporarily on hold. Tell him that.
—After attention has sufficiently diverted, can you extract the relevant information? Don’t touch the research content itself. Tell him that.
—That’s still impossible for me to confirm from where I sit, so we’ll have to wait. In the meantime, I think it would be better to spread the rumors we discussed earlier among the old men at the Health Promotion Association. Tell him that.
—Just in case, I haven’t contacted Praxis yet, and I’m in ongoing discussions with the Management Bureau’s ‘Beolmae.’ With three troublemakers from the Health Promotion Association already removed, things should be a bit easier. Tell him that…
“Enough, enough!”
Lee Hwan, who had been looking at the laptop screen pathetically, finally burst out in frustration. Taesung and Kang Dongha, who had been spewing words, shifted their eyes. They seemed to be examining Lee Hwan’s face that appeared on the screen.
“Damn it… talk directly to each other. You’re already seeing each other’s faces on video, why keep bothering me?”
How many times had the meeting continued this way? At first, while wondering what they were doing, he had recited what they asked him to convey word for word.
Then, thinking they might be playing around, he kept his mouth shut, but their nonsense didn’t stop.
By now, it was closer to them awkwardly exchanging what they wanted to say with Lee Hwan in the middle. If he hadn’t gotten angry, this time too the power struggle would have intensified by the second, and the conversation would have ended without Lee Hwan even getting to say what he needed to.
Was it because they were holed up in their respective rooms during each video conference despite living in the same house? Lee Hwan slightly regretted that he should have sat next to Taesung and slapped his thigh each time he acted childishly.
“Mr. Kang Dongha, are you going to ask someone to relay your message to Kang Dongying when you attend the Health Promotion Association meeting too?”
When Lee Hwan asked sharply, Kang Dongha shrugged and replied nonchalantly.
—Of course not.
“Then stop playing around and report properly. Don’t think about arguing with a child in this situation at your age. And Kang Taesung… I’ll see you later.”
As Lee Hwan frowned and warned them, both Kang Dongha and Taesung’s faces on the screen simultaneously changed subtly. Kang Dongha asked as if incredulous.
—Hmm… you do know that this dark, big Awakened one isn’t much older than me, right? Even officially, he’s my uncle.
“Then show some respect to your uncle.”
As he blurted out anything, Kang Dongha opened his mouth as if at a loss for words. Even Taesung, who rarely showed any expression changes other than anger in front of Kang Dongha, had a somewhat embarrassed face, clearly captured by the camera.
“You both seem to have talked enough, so it’s my turn now. First, I’ll take charge of the contact with Praxis. There’s no use frowning, so smooth out your face, Kang Taesung. And for you, since Kang Dongying’s pressure is gradually intensifying, set up an appointment with me during the week, like giving medicine after giving a disease. Didn’t you say you already spread rumors about Kang Taesung trying to take over Attack Team 1 by sticking to the vice chairman and you? Then I’ll go to the appointment, pretend to be naive, waver here and there, and come back.”
Despite explaining everything neatly, both Taesung and Kang Dongha had unsatisfied expressions.
—It’s Kang Dongying. Even if I pretend to grovel now, he won’t believe it, will he?
“He wouldn’t want you to be completely united with the vice chairman either. Keep walking the tightrope. That’s what you’re good at, right?”
—That’s too harsh, really.
With that grumbling, they briefly shared updates about Jade, and the meeting, which was half a war, ended.
Lee Hwan sighed deeply and climbed onto the bed, lying down. The soft blanket relaxed his tired neck and back.
“Haah…”
Anyway, despite the irritation and stubbornness as a base, things were progressing without major problems. Knowledge exclusive to Taesung, knowledge exclusive to Lee Hwan, and knowledge exclusive to Kang Dongha (though not much expected) came together, making their survival game show quite solid progress.
The final regression. In this last chance with no more do-overs, Lee Hwan wanted to believe that he and Taesung were on the right path.
