Ch.350345 – Training Camp

Foundations in America and Europe, clans in Korea, sects in China, and schools in Japan.

Though they have different names in each country, they share one common trait.

They are all charitable and non-profit organizations, as well as unincorporated associations.

Regardless of individuals pursuing money, the organizations themselves are non-profit, allowing them to receive certain tax benefits, and being unincorporated makes it easier to operate privately.

Some say that recent mages seem more obsessed with money than businesspeople.

However, due to the periodic guillotine matches that occur globally every four to six years, legislators couldn’t dare touch these sacred domains.

Japan was no exception.

“But what is this?”

He was in the middle of organizing secret funds exchanged covertly between numerous factions of the Liberal Democratic Party.

The Financial Director of Katsuhata Financial Group questioned an unexplained amount of 5 billion yen.

‘Is this also a secret fund?’

It wasn’t a small enough amount to simply ignore.

The Financial Director had been thrust into his position without any proper handover after his predecessor died of acute myocardial infarction.

He eventually took the liberty of contacting the Katsuhata School directly to inquire about the source of the 5 billion yen.

[That, that thing? Ain’t that what they threw at us when selling Bio-Akashic? Check it out.]

“Bio-Akashic…?”

[Johnson & Johnson recently acquired a Korean startup.]

“Ah, I just remembered. Are you saying Katsuhata Group was an early investor?”

He quickly searched the internet and found translated Korean articles.

“Wow, it’s true… If we had known it would grow this big, our group would have considered making an official investment. You have remarkable foresight.”

[So has your inquiry been resolved?]

“If I may ask one more thing. Since this has made the news even in Korea, it seems inappropriate to include it in the secret funds.”

[How could we put something that big into secret funds? Just properly reflect it in the accounting.]

“That’s exactly what I mean. According to our internal regulations, cash flows exceeding ten million dollars require the representative’s seal. I would appreciate it if you could ask the Head to visit.”

[Heh… that might be difficult right now.]

“Pardon? Is something wrong?”

[The Head has gone to Korea for training with his successor. I’ll give you the address if you need to get approval, go there yourself.]

Beep beep-

The call ended.

And Japan was still using an analog approval system even in this cutting-edge era.

“Ughh!”

The Director clutched the back of his neck.

Surely his predecessor’s cause of death must have been stress or overwork.

* * *

“Excuse me, customer… it says insufficient balance.”

“Insufficient balance?”

“Do you have another card? I can try again.”

“Huh? That can’t be right! Insufficient balance?”

“Yes.”

“Could you check with this one more time, please?”

“Still insufficient balance…”

“Saet-byeol, I’ll just pay for you.”

Adella stopped at a convenience store on her way home from school.

Her friend ended up paying for her, averting the crisis.

“This is so strange. Thanks for paying, Da-hee. I’ll definitely pay you back tomorrow.”

“Saet-byeol, if your family is struggling financially, I could help you look into scholarships? Korea actually has good welfare systems for that…”

Adella was momentarily speechless at Da-hee’s words.

“Huh? What? Scholarships? No, my family is quite well-off! This bag alone costs 3 million won!”

“Isn’t that a knockoff?”

“Who said that? This was bought by my sis… I mean bro… I mean my dad at a department store.”

“You haven’t been able to buy cosmetics either.”

“Did you misunderstand because I don’t wear makeup? I don’t wear it by choice, not because I can’t afford it.”

“How can a high school student not wear makeup? Especially someone as pretty as you!”

Adella finally understood the sympathetic looks she’d been receiving for the past week.

She thought she should correct the misunderstanding quickly before her image became permanently fixed.

The area where Adella lived also contributed to expanding the misunderstanding.

After all, the Parthenon Apartment complex was located at the edge of a poor neighborhood.

“Sigh… I’m home.”

Returning home, Adella put some ice pops in the freezer and took one out to eat.

NoName, who had been creeping out of her room wrapped in a blanket, greeted her.

Having just woken up, she looked completely haggard.

“Let me have one too.”

“They’re by the freezer door. Is your cold still bad?”

“Almost gone. You really seem to like these. Is it because they look like cat treats?”

“No, what’s ridiculous is that I actually tried cat treats and they were sooo gross? I nearly threw up.”

“You actually tried eating those…?”

NoName looked at her with contempt.

“What! I was curious.”

“Never mind. It’s nothing.”

“Oh right, NoName, I think my card was hacked. Everything showed insufficient balance at the convenience store today. Where should I report this first?”

“No need. I transferred all the money.”

NoName explained while sucking on a yogurt tube.

“Transferred? Where? That’s my money!”

“How is that your money? I used it to help pay off the debt to the manager.”

“Are you crazy? All 200 million won?”

The news hit like a bolt from the blue.

Adella couldn’t accept the sudden change and collapsed on the floor with an intense reaction.

“Aaaaargh! I had so many things to buy today! I saved that money penny by penny for six months!”

“What do you even need to buy?”

“Summer clothes, cosmetics… concert tickets.”

“Not my problem. Just earn it back with today’s stream.”

“Kariri only settles accounts at the end of the month!”

Adella anxiously bit her fingernails.

As a VTuber, her income is substantial enough that she doesn’t receive separate allowances.

But that also means she has to live broke until the next payment.

“Just 100,000 won to get through this month… I’ll definitely pay you back double.”

Adella ultimately chose to kneel and beg pathetically.

“Here’s 300,000 won.”

“Really?”

“I’m not giving it to you, I’m lending it. In return, could you do me one errand?”

“Sure, anything!”

“Go out and buy me a wooden sword that fits my height.”

Adella looked at her with confusion.

“Where on earth do they sell wooden swords in our country?!”

“How would I know? I’ll give you exactly two hours to find one and bring it back.”

* * *

Drip drip drip-

Clack.

Drip drip drip-

Clack.

The clear sound of bamboo harmonizing with water naturally refreshes the heart.

But the view outside the limousine window was nothing but asphalt and concrete.

The head of the Katsuhata School, Katsuhata Akitaro, was getting some sleep while listening to “Shishi-odoshi ASMR 10 Hours.”

“Master Katsuhata. We’ve arrived at the hotel.”

“Kuhhhh ahem? We’re here?”

“Yes.”

“The traffic must have been bad.”

“I apologize. I failed to consider the rush hour traffic.”

“It’s fine. Just unload the luggage and go rest.”

“Yes, sir.”

The head put his pink rabbit sleep mask in the drawer and briefly admired the northern Seoul landscape.

Bukchon Hanok Village in Jongno-gu, Seoul.

The long limousine stopped in front of a hotel made of traditional Korean houses.

Seoul’s stuffy, fine-dust-filled air greeted them.

Typically, the Katsuhata School’s training camps are held in natural settings with beautiful mountains and clean water.

For them, with roots in Taoist philosophy, training in nature helps improve achievement.

But this year, Master Katsuhata’s strong will broke the stubbornness of the elder council and chose Korea.

An incredible schedule of 34 nights and 35 days.

With the 2052 National Exchange Competition set to be held in Tokyo, Japan, victory was desperately needed.

But coming to Korea recklessly would cause Japanese right-wing groups to go wild.

Therefore, Master Katsuhata brought his private jet and completed entry procedures secretly at Gimpo Airport.

“From here on, everyone is our people, right?”

“Yes. We’ve also reserved the training hall for five weeks until the last day of June.”

“It’s nice not having reporters around. Hahaha!”

Katsuhata Akitaro laughed heartily.

In truth, the position of a school head often involves wielding political power rather than physical strength.

In other words, they become more accustomed to holding pens than swords.

The period from early May to late July is a time of hardship for school members.

But even that feels like a vacation to the head.

With the exchange competition being held in Japan, he had a legitimate reason for instructional matches, so he flew to Korea, beyond the reach of the elder council’s influence, to participate directly in the training camp.

‘Since Korea isn’t participating this year either, there’s no worry about strategy leaks. Yes, indeed.’

The accompanying secretary, having unloaded all the luggage, suddenly asked the head:

“But was Korea really necessary?”

“What do you mean?”

“If you wanted to escape the elder council’s interference, wouldn’t Singapore have been better with its infrastructure and security?”

He was asking about the reason for the sudden change of destination to Korea.

“Haven’t you seen the sports festival?”

“Pardon? Sports festival…?”

“Well, there’s something like that. I’m busy now, so I’ll explain later.”

As the head entered through the main gate, the people already lined up all bowed in unison.

It was a flawless ojigi (bow), specifically saikeirei (most respectful bow) with the waist bent at 45 degrees to convey the utmost respect.

“Everyone has worked hard. Was there anything uncomfortable about the hotel?”

Koizumi Yoshihiro, Master Katsuhata’s closest aide, stepped forward as representative.

“Everyone has an extraordinary determination for this training camp. If the sleeping arrangements are uncomfortable, it means that day’s training was insufficient.”

“Ah, Mr. Koizumi, thank you for taking such good care of our children. The atmosphere is already quite rigid; I can feel how you’ve disciplined them from the start.”

Everyone had ice in their eyes.

They looked like true warriors.

Akitaro looked around at the school members and briefly reminisced about old times.

“Hmm? But where is Katsuhata Emika? I don’t see her anywhere…”

Whoosh-

The air suddenly became ten times heavier.

‘Is everyone’s expression stiff because of Emika?’

That was correct.

The protagonist of this training camp was missing.

A well-behaved child wouldn’t have run away.

“What is Emika doing right now?”

Master Akitaro asked her teacher about the reason.

“Right now, Miss Katsuhata is…”

Koizumi trailed off, then made a firm decision to confess the truth.

“She hit her head and is temporarily unconscious.”

Thud-

The phone in the head’s hand fell onto the stone garden floor.

Once again, it hit screen-first, cracking the display.