Chapter 109

Chapter 109

Spendthrift Necromancer (109)

Return HomeDay 2 of the Saudi trip.

The transfer went through quietly and cleanly. The fact that not only the King but the major royals had all Awakened together probably played a big part.‘Clean business.’By the time he had enjoyed some delicious food and was relaxing in the hotel's party hall.

Ilseong's directors arrived at the royal palace. He had told them to call the moment he opened the deal on the first day, and thankfully, they seemed to have rushed over the moment they heard.

Might as well get a proper taste of oil money while they were here.

The directors cautiously entered the party hall, looking awkward and hesitant.

He beckoned them over.

“Over here.”

Every Saudi minister was already waiting near Kim Minwoo.

He had already finished talking with the royals who had benefited from Awakening. He introduced the directors to the ministers.

“These are Ilseong's directors. You can discuss the business matters with them. Please take good care of them.”

“Of course.”

“Leave it to us.”

The ministers approached the directors with bright smiles.

Their faces were covered in warm, fatherly smiles, as if they'd happily hand over their own gallbladders.

And no wonder. Awakening had changed their bodies overnight. The moment they consumed generous amounts of elixirs, their physical abilities had leaped so dramatically it was practically rejuvenation.

No more stiff lower backs.

No more aching knees.

It was nothing short of a transformation.

And the King had already told them that all of this had been possible thanks to Kim Minwoo. On top of that, they'd received orders to give Ilseong top priority for business.‘Time to shower them with money.’‘Let's dump a mountain of business on them.’Ilseong Group wasn't some second-rate company. It was one of the corporations known worldwide.

Meaning if they entrusted work to Ilseong, the company would at least do its job properly.

The ministers' eyes gleamed as they looked at the directors.* * *“……

My god.”

Was this a dream or reality?

That was how the directors felt.

Normally, winning even a single contract in the Middle East required all kinds of lobbying.

Now it was different.

Not only did those once-arrogant ministers approach them first with bright smiles, but every time they opened their mouths, the ministers said yes like vending machines.

“Oh, you'd like to take on a plant project? Excellent. We happen to have a site that needs one…….”

“We're also about to construct a new building. How would you feel about taking on a skyscraper project?”

“We're planning a new residential development…….”

The Saudi side was practically saying they'd fill not only the construction projects but even the appliances and furniture with Ilseong products.

It felt like a dream.

After the brief meeting ended, the directors went looking for Kim Minwoo.

“Y-Young Master. What in the world is going on?”

“Did things go well?”

Gulp.

The directors swallowed and spoke.

“……

The Saudi royal family seems prepared to award every new construction project to us. The estimated total alone is around two hundred trillion won!”

“Well, that's not bad. You don't need to pay any separate rebates. Just give them some courtesy gifts. I've already discussed everything with the King.”

That was the price for helping the people besides the King Awaken too. Since Ilseong was receiving legitimate compensation, there was no reason to pay kickbacks.

Of course, giving a small gift or two was still basic human courtesy.

“Hoh…….”

The directors stared blankly at Kim Minwoo as though looking at some incomprehensible creature.

When he'd first left for Saudi Arabia, they'd wondered why he was even going.

In a single day, he'd landed nearly two hundred trillion won in business. He was practically the god of sales.

And since the royal family would be backing them, every fly that might have tried to make business difficult had effectively been exterminated from the outset.‘Maybe he shouldn't have become an Awakened…….’‘Shouldn't he have inherited the company instead?’If Kim Minwoo ran Ilseong.

It made them wonder whether Ilseong could become more than a corporation that dominated Korea and instead become a global company that ruled the world.

They had good reason to think so. Ever since Kim Minwoo began acting in earnest, Ilseong's growth had been dazzlingly fast.

Dominating the equipment market.

Dominating the appliance market.

Even the latest Ilseong phone was a massive hit, and now they'd secured Saudi construction contracts too?‘……

He's doing too well. That's the problem.’If he'd been merely average as an Awakened, he might have taken more interest in the company instead.

Instead, he was so exceptional as an Awakened that he hardly seemed interested in the company at all.

“Everyone, keep up the good work. I'll be heading out.”

“A-Already?”

“I need to Level up and grow too.”

He'd brought the baby birds to the water. Surely they could at least drink by themselves.

Ilseong's directors weren't that incompetent.

If he left them here, they'd win contracts on their own and work hard.

It was basically auto-hunting.‘Then I'm off.’He'd already received the money.

He'd made the introductions smoothly.

There was no longer any reason to stay in Saudi Arabia.* * *Kim Minwoo's trip to Saudi Arabia.

Public interest was already at its peak thanks to the Guild Battle and the advertisement.

When news broke that he was meeting the King, curiosity reached a fever pitch. Why the hell was he suddenly meeting the Saudi King?[(Breaking News) Five fighter jets deployed for extraordinary honors! Kim Minwoo displays overwhelming presence in Saudi Arabia!][(Breaking News) Special Saudi protocol! Even King Abdullah, known as ‘Mr. Everything,’ personally welcomes him at the royal palace…….][(Breaking News) Kim Minwoo reportedly visiting to discuss Saudi business on behalf of Ilseong…….]―Whoa, what's with the fighter jets? Are they spraying the colors of the Korean flag?―Looks like it;; What's with the head-of-state-level reception? lololol―Someone like Kim Minwoo does represent Korea among Awakened lololol―But why would they welcome him that much just to talk business?―He's there representing Ilseong. And he's a famous Awakened too. Isn't that enough?―Even accounting for that, this is way too much lololol You think head-of-state protocol is a joke? lol The Korean President wouldn't even get this much.―Unless he's telling them where some new oil field is, there's no reason to treat him like that;―If he's meeting the King directly, they must have something serious to discuss. What the hell did he offer?

Then breaking-news alerts began pouring out.[(Breaking News) Kim Minwoo hits a Middle Eastern home run?](Photo of Kim Minwoo smiling brightly with his arm around King Abdullah's shoulder)[(Breaking News) Kim Minwoo's insane connections!](Photo of Kim Minwoo and Saudi ministers smiling together at a party)―What? He built connections like that in only two days?―What the hell; you'd think he was best friends with the King. Damn;―All the royals are clinging to Kim Minwoo at the party lololol―Is this what being a god-tier social butterfly looks like?―What the hell do you have to do for everyone to get that close in one day? lololol Hypnosis Sword, maybe?―Is that really Mr. Everything hyung? Compared to this he looks way too warm and friendly lololol(Photo of the heads of Korea's ten largest chaebols waiting respectfully before the King with their hands folded)―Fuck lol Isn't that the photo from when Mr. Everything came to Korea?―Yeah. He ordered a gathering and had all ten major chaebol chairmen assembled in a single day lololol―He even asked each one separately what businesses they wanted to pursue lololol―Chairman Kim is standing there like that too. Damn.―(Info) The man commonly called ‘Mr. Everything’ can move three quadrillion won. Damn.―That's way bigger than Ilseong's market cap lololol―Four times Korea's national budget lololol―So Kim Minwoo has his arm around a man like that and is smiling?―Seeing all the royals clinging to him, looks like he became a super power broker overnight. Damn.―They went to discuss business and they're acting like that? Makes no sense lol Ilseong's the side that needs contracts lololol―Kim Minwoo definitely gave them something. No idea what, but yeah.[(Breaking News) Ilseong Construction hits mega-jackpot! Wins 200 trillion won in Saudi construction contracts!]―200 trillion? Not 20 trillion?―Is this real?―Didn't Hanmin Construction spend years digging into Saudi Arabia and only win 30 trillion total?―Yeah; and Ilseong just cleared 200 trillion in one shot;;―How many damn construction projects did they give them? lololol―Skyscrapers, housing developments, plants, all kinds of things lololol Looks like even the interior furniture and facilities are all going to Ilseong.―The royal family backed them with everything they had. Nothing else explains it lololol―He pulled this off in only two days?―Yeah; and Kim Minwoo isn't even staying in Saudi Arabia. He's already leaving lololol―Normally you'd stay a few more days just to strengthen the relationship. What the hell lololol―(Reason for departure) Gotta Level up. Later.―So fucking cool lololol―Ah lol Can't resist leveling lolololBy the time Kim Minwoo returned.

The airport was already swarming with reporters.

“Mr. Kim Minwoo! We heard you had a private meeting with King Abdullah! Could you tell us what you discussed?”

“As I said before I left, I went there to discuss business. Thankfully, the talks went well.”

“What on earth did you discuss to win two hundred trillion won in contracts……?”

“We had a lot of productive conversations.”

Kim Minwoo smiled as he spoke.

The implication was obvious.

Don't ask any further.‘Well, it'll come out eventually.’The King and the Saudi royals.

They had all failed to Awaken despite their age.

And after Minwoo visited and left, they all suddenly Awakened?

People would roughly guess what he'd given in exchange for those Saudi contracts.

He helped them Awaken.

Minwoo could already imagine the enormous shockwave that would cause.

The wealthy people around the world who had failed to Awaken would be the first to lose their minds.

If he'd helped not one or two but dozens Awaken, people would naturally start wondering whether he possessed some special ability to discover Awakening conditions.

It would become a massive pain in the ass.

Unless someone was genuinely as rich as King Abdullah, there was little value in contacting them one by one.

So he'd reached a rough agreement with the King.

The point was simple.

Wait a few days after Minwoo left before publicly revealing that the King had Awakened.

And have the other royals wait even longer, revealing themselves gradually one by one.

The King had readily agreed.

Of course, that alone couldn't erase every suspicion.‘At least it'll make things less annoying for a while.’Apparently the reporters caught the hint, because they changed their questions.

“What was meeting King Abdullah like?”

“He was extremely kind and generous. Thanks to him, I had a very enjoyable time.”

Kim Minwoo glanced at his watch and spoke.

“I should probably get going. It's time to Level up for the sake of the nation. Then, if you'll excuse me.”

Strictly speaking, it was more for his own advancement than Korea's. Still, if he took first place, Korea would save face too, so everyone won.‘Time to grind some A-rank Gates.’He needed to hit Level 251 before the selection tournament. Nothing beat looping Gates when it came to leveling.[You have entered the A-rank Gate, Scorching Land!]

Scorching Land.

True to its name, the place was crawling with fire-attribute monsters.‘And there are tons of mobs…….’Most importantly.―Coo.[‘Snowy’ shares an attribute with its master!][You can use the Ice attribute!]

He could sweep through the monsters with their counter-element. After summoning his troops and hunting through the Gate for a while.[The Skeleton troops' average Level has reached 101!][The Skeleton troops grow!][They have learned special techniques!][Title, ‘Master of the Dragon Knight,’ activates!][You are the first Necromancer on ‘Earth’ to awaken the potential of Skeletons!][Class Advancement System activates!]‘Huh?’He tilted his head at the messages appearing before him.