Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Medal Award Ceremony

As soon as Yi-hyeon came out on reward leave he went down to Guleopsa. Already one year has passed since the parents passed away. Since it is the parents’ memorial day he has to go. Because he entrusted the memorial rites to Guleopsa.

These days he heard many do it this way. As people’s interest in the Confucian procedures of weddings funerals and ancestral rites decreases more and more it will be an unavoidable phenomenon.

Because Monk Muae went out he first met Senior Brother Bodeok of Guleopsa.

“Heo! What is this. You don’t come in here!”

When going to the Buddha hall where Senior Brother Bodeok personally prays, the senior brother who saw Yi-hyeon from inside shouted.

“Yes? Why are you doing that?”

When Yi-hyeon became blank and asked, Senior Brother Bodeok walked out and said.

“This fellow! Your killing intent stretches to the sky. With that body where do you go in front of the Buddha. Don’t talk back and follow.”

“······.”

Yi-hyeon had nothing to say.

As expected the senior brother deep in training (?) immediately felt the ‘trace of murder’ emanating from himself.

In fact Yi-hyeon was a little wronged.

Wasn’t it that he did not recklessly murder on the streets. He only did his best from the position of a soldier protecting the motherland. But this is not even an untouchable outcast.

The place Senior Brother Bodeok took Yi-hyeon was the Myeongbujeon.

Also called Siwangjeon this place enshrines the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva who oversees the underworld and enshrines the Ten Kings who are the judges of the underworld around it. That famous King Yama is the fifth king here.

“You have to wash your killing karma first. Your parents also have their tablets enshrined here but before bowing there beg for sins to the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva!”

“······”

Yi-hyeon silently brought one cushion piled up and spread it and sat. And entered meditation. Senior Brother Bodeok who was watching that did not return and took a place on Yi-hyeon’s oblique rear and sat and began to strike the wooden fish low and recite the sutra.

Is that the Lotus Sutra······

Even in meditation Yi-hyeon faintly heard the senior brother’s wooden fish sound. Gradually the amplitude of thought moves matching that rhythm.

That day’s cave, the dark and gloomy atmosphere rose. The people, people who were broken by the combat knife he flung, by the bullets he fired.

Was I, right.

Did I think right and act right?

Soon they said they would give a medal in the US too. As the price for the murder he committed. Then was he right.

If he had not done so the colleagues would have been hurt or died. If it was to save them would everything be right.

Thoughts without context rose and vanished and new thoughts followed again.

Ah! Truly I do not know.

I truly do not know the path that will unfold in front of me either.

Why did Sion come to me.

Around the time getting tired from countless thoughts Yi-hyeon suddenly awakened. Since it is a matter that does not catch a thread there is no way to realize in one go.

Yi-hyeon who was looking around flinched.

The flow of time··· is strange!

Himself entering the Myeongbujeon and sitting on the cushion was roughly five in the afternoon. Considering Yi-hyeon’s ability to grasp time and space it would not even differ by 5 minutes front and back. But now the time··· almost did not flow.

Yi-hyeon can know. Senior Brother Bodeok behind is still reciting the beginning of the Lotus Sutra, and the length of the shadow the sunlight shining from outside the door casts is the same.

In his own thought it felt as if he was immersed in meditation almost all day but in fact not even 3 minutes passed.

- It is a kind of mental confusion. It is something that can arise when the mind is highly concentrated, or when one is careless not knowing what one is thinking. At this opportunity Yi-hyeon will be able to progress again.

Carelessness··· And can progress?

Sion rose and spoke and Yi-hyeon’s consciousness became clearer, but he cannot understand Sion’s words of progress. He exhaled long.

‘I understand the words of mental illusion. That I cannot distinguish time like this.’

He changed confusion to illusion in thought. Because that way it is much better to hear.

Was it because coming out of the mental illusion? Yi-hyeon’s sound of Senior Brother Bodeok reciting the sutra approached even more clearly.

Though he could not know the content because he did not study the Lotus Sutra thoroughly, Yi-hyeon realized. This aged senior brother is praying to the Buddha with all his heart for himself.

Asking to resolve the karma and attain Buddhahood.

Asking to save me from this pain.

Yi-hyeon resolved in the unconscious.

My karma has not ended yet. The guys who harmed the parents have not even revealed their appearances yet so my karma cannot end. If staining the hands with blood is my karma, if that way I can finish my karma.

Yes, I will not avoid.

Yi-hyeon quietly raised his body and deeply bowed to Senior Brother Bodeok who was still reciting the Lotus Sutra and came out.

Bowing to the parents’ tablets··· he did not. Since the karma has not ended.

Outside it had already become night and stars were dense in the sky.

* * *

Yi-hyeon who came up to Seoul went to find Lawyer Kim Gyu-jeong.

“Welcome. Heo, why did you become better looking after going to the army? Is our country’s airborne unit such a comfortable place?”

“Haha uncle really. I suffer a lot. How many jumps I do too.”

“If riding a plane it’s fun what.”

Anyway people who have not suffered do not know. Going to the airborne unit and riding a plane is fun. This gentleman was also from military legal officer.

Yi-hyeon received a simple briefing on his real estate status from Lawyer Kim Gyu-jeong.

In this case Yi-hyeon is the client who entrusted management and Lawyer Kim Gyu-jeong has the duty to faithfully report the status to the client so it is natural. Lawyer Kim Gyu-jeong who saw Yi-hyeon carefully confirming the documents while listening to the briefing admired inwardly. Though seen a few times, Yi-hyeon has no gaps unlike his age.

Even now though it would be natural for himself who is father’s age to find it difficult and hesitate there is no hesitation in asking curious things. Now looking he is also familiar with looking at corporate tax-related documents.

Because Department of Economics at Korea University? Absolutely not. A first-year university student cannot be like that, this child is studying separately.

“I will have to look into a place to invest the retained earnings and surplus funds separately.”

After looking at all the documents Yi-hyeon raised his head and said. Certainly the retained earnings of the REITs corporation are too many. If distributing this to shareholders the tax alone is about 22% so reinvesting somewhere is the answer. Since Yi-hyeon holds 00% of the corporation’s shares there is no need to pay tax through the unnecessary procedure of dividend. There is also no place to use money immediately.

“That you have to do yourself. If it is a contract problem with the investment destination I can take care of it though.”

Lawyer Kim Gyu-jeong said readily.

Yi-hyeon nodded and said.

“By any chance can you also do the work of making a corporation abroad?”

“Ho! Are you trying to invest abroad?”

“Yes, it is not urgent but long-term I have such a plan.”

Lawyer Kim Gyu-jeong nodded.

“Possible. That Shim is a lawyer in Virginia, USA. He worked at a US law firm and came so he is an expert in that side’s work.”

The Lawyer Shim Hyeon-woo that Lawyer Kim Gyu-jeong mentioned is Lawyer Kim Gyu-jeong’s junior. Currently working together at Lawyer Kim Gyu-jeong’s office. Come to think of it this office also already has about 20 lawyers and is a proper law firm. Using one whole floor of a building in front of the Seocho-dong court.

The reason Yi-hyeon came to ponder investment like this is all Sion’s influence. Recently Sion put a wind (?) into Yi-hyeon.

- Yi-hyeon, Yi-hyeon. I have awakened the secrets of this world to some extent. Well, it will be basic human nature, but here money soon becomes power. To do something in this world money is the most important element. So, let’s first earn a little money.

‘Money?’

If money he also has a lot. Are hundreds of billions whose house’s puppy name.

- Ahem! Not such pocket money Yi-hyeon has, we have to earn a little bigger money.

‘Sion! When did you dig my account?’

Yi-hyeon asked sharply.

This gentleman (?) dug even my account? No, with what method did he dig it?

- Digging! I was immersed in the internet which is the most appropriate means to grasp this world for a while right? At that time I acquired various things, and things like bank accounts I could open right away.

Yi-hyeon was dumbfounded.

Sion said according to his words there is no biological body and only soul a kind of mental body. In Yi-hyeon’s thought this would be a concept similar to a ghost (?) in earthly concept, but does this existence even enable physical actions of digging the internet beyond appearing in his mind.

Sion who immediately read Yi-hyeon’s thoughts answered right away.

- Yi-hyeon. Knowing me only as such a low-level existence is disappointing. Our Aethios tribe that dominated the Kroush planet and led civilization was a race mentally close to perfection. Our race when becoming adults projecting one’s mental power onto objects and controlling was a natural thing.

‘Yes? Then is it a kind of telekinesis or something?’

- Telekinesis? Telekinesis··· it is not such a simple thing. We express this as ‘domination of objects by the mind’, but here the closest concept could be telekinesis.

‘Anyway, so the first thing done after knowing the fun of the internet was opening my account.’

- It was not the first thing done, but anyway aren’t we ‘companions’ who share one body. We have to know each other better.

‘······.’

Yi-hyeon thought for a while. If Sion can open his account as he pleases···?

‘Um, Sion. If able to open the account as pleased can one also withdraw that money as pleased?’

At Yi-hyeon’s words full of black heart Sion replied indifferently.

- That is simple. Knowing clearly there is money why can’t withdraw?

‘That, then, Sion. Shall we try that once right now?’

- ······.

Whether finally noticing Yi-hyeon’s intention Sion was quiet for a long while.

As expected not possible? Regret···

- Earn it directly, Yi-hyeon. What difficult thing is earning money that you talk of sneakily taking others’. Just earn it, Yi-hyeon directly.

‘Me directly?’

- Yes, you directly!

Yi-hyeon lost steam. This gentleman is not even joking.

‘I, still cannot earn money well?’

In fact that is so. Now though the head has become abnormally good thanks to the intelligence enough to enter the Department of Economics at Korea University plus the current training together with Sion, that and earning money might be different problems.

- Not greatly different, Yi-hyeon. Earning money starts from understanding humans. One has to understand human desire toward money. In that meaning ‘we’ are sufficiently prepared to earn money.

‘Then it means ‘I’ can earn a lot of money right?’

Yi-hyeon asked again full of expectation.

- Of course! As much as I awakened Yi-hyeon also awakened, and that means Yi-hyeon is already in a state of having accumulated considerable insight. Of course one can earn money. And for the goal of making influence with money Yi-hyeon has to earn money directly. Hidden money has many constraints.

Correct words. Money sleeping underground under a non-real name has constraints in use. If a human who has never earned money one day goes around spending money lavishly people will immediately suspect first.

Money with a clear source can exert influence in the open.

Sion continued speaking.

- The humans of this world created the concept of currency and strangely also created stocks. The original purpose is said to be to expand business and share profits but now there is no one saying such meaning. When I briefly looked into the place called the stock market everyone seemed people crazy about money.

This is also correct words. These days in the stock market who goes around saying such noble thoughts. They just analyze and bet like crazy for accumulation of more wealth.

- Let’s invest in Yi-hyeon’s name. I will pinpoint and tell so Yi-hyeon just do as told. I will make Yi-hyeon a rich person.

At these words Yi-hyeon was blown away. Doesn’t he say he will make him a rich person.

- And Yi-hyeon must become a rich person. In doing things in this Earth dimension from now on the most effective means is precisely money.

‘I will believe, Sion!’

Okay! I will also become a huge rich person once. A world-class rich person.

This was the reason Yi-hyeon went to Lawyer Kim Gyu-jeong and talked big. So Yi-hyeon first according to Sion’s advice made a stock account and transferred a large amount. These days they said stock trading is possible anytime with HTS (Home Trading System).

‘Doing like this and from now on investing as Sion instructs will do. When I am in the army I won’t be able to do short-term investment like others but even just pinpointing items that will rise long-term is somewhere! If becoming a rich person of thousands of billions from now on. Hehe.’

Yi-hyeon became in a good mood thinking of earning money.

Finishing leave like this and returning Yi-hyeon set the schedule to go to the US together with Team Leader Kim Cheol-ho.

To the US military Special Operations Command.

* * *

Near Richmond, Virginia, USA.

That famous Special Operations Command is here. There are rumors that it is in other places in the US but all are fake.

Even just Korea’s 707 though said the headquarters is inside the special warfare command in Icheon in reality they themselves almost spend time at the training camp in the north of Wonyong in Gangwon-do.

“This is somehow trembling.”

Team Leader Kim Cheol-ho beside received Yi-hyeon’s words.

“Yeah. What are all these many people?”

The two people are now inside the largest building in the command. Today they put on the formal uniforms prepared from Korea. They came wearing attire befitting the medal award ceremony. But, the atmosphere here is a little strange.

They say this is a military unit with thorough security but civilians are unusually coming and going a lot and what is that placard?

The ceremony of the Valor Medals

Aiyo, face hot!

What kind of medal award ceremony so grandly? And what are all these people?

It seems something is getting big, but the thing Yi-hyeon will really be surprised at happened next.

“Hello, Baby?”

Huh? Baby?

There is no one who would call me youngest in the US? Moreover a woman?

When Yi-hyeon turned bewildered, there a woman with good physique and good looks was smiling looking at Yi-hyeon. The clothes are an ivory-colored two-piece formal suit. Yi-hyeon immediately recognized that woman.

“Amy McGregor?”

When Yi-hyeon said with a blank expression. The woman opened her mouth wide and laughed and came embracing him. No she threw that sturdy body at Yi-hyeon.

“Uh, uh. Wait··· mumble mumble.”

The woman abruptly embraced Yi-hyeon and kissed deeply wildly then detached her face and looked and said.

“Really it is you. But such a cute face.”

This shit! Suddenly the lips? I am a virgin.

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