I Became a Scoundrel of a Chaebol Family

"Absolute Loyalty" is exactly what it sounds like—absolute loyalty.

No matter what happens, she will never betray her loyalty to me... It’s a very special trait.

Typically, traits shift or disappear depending on the situation and mental state, and new ones might appear. However, there are certain traits that never disappear. These are the types that have "absolute" attached to them.

In other words, Seo Aram has pledged absolute loyalty to me, like a knight, and this loyalty will remain permanent.

‘If that’s the case, then using her as head of the protocol team seems a bit too much of a waste...’

It makes sense, though. Right now, the head of my protocol team follows me around like a shadow, with her primary job being protocol. So, there’s no need for anything extraordinary. She just needs to have ordinary abilities—be pretty, slender, and have nice legs—and it’s fine. To put it in a cruder way, just like a mobile piece to move around.

It feels like my secretaries all have that kind of vibe, but at least the other teams have clearly defined roles, whereas the protocol team doesn’t really have any.

‘If I had to break it down, the work of the protocol team should be divided into the execution and strategy teams...’

Of course, a big reason for that is that it’s the only team without a proper leader so far.

Anyway, it feels like such a waste to use our heroine for this task.

I wonder if there’s somewhere more specifically useful for her.

As I was thinking about this, Soo-ah, who had been working hard, caught my eye.

I had unconsciously compared her earlier in terms of training, and now I could compare her stats as well.

‘The team leader-level talent (Ra Seung-hee) leads the team, while the regular secretary-level talent (Im Soo-ah) is the head secretary, and the corporate president-level talent (Seo Aram) is the head of protocol... What a mess...’

This is just a comparison based on stats, but it feels quite off.

At the time, I thought I was placing everyone in the right roles, but now looking at it, everything seems completely jumbled.

‘Soo-ah, you need to step up...’

"...?"

As I was looking at Soo-ah, she, who had been coordinating the banquet through [N O V E L I G H T] her earpiece, noticed my gaze and smiled beautifully.

She had no idea why I was looking at her.

Well... it’s not that she’s incompetent, it’s just that the others are so impressive.

If you think about it, with the inflation of specs, Soo-ah is more than qualified to be head secretary.

Beep.

"Is there something you’d like to say, Master?" "No, keep doing what you’re doing."

I casually waved it off and gently hugged Seo Aram, who was standing quietly next to me.

Her slim waist felt pleasantly soft against me.

"I’ll introduce the others to you." "Yes, Master."

I took Seo Aram around the mansion’s yard.

Since the welcome party had been a reason to invite all the important people, there were many familiar faces.

"This is Danto. All he does is eat and not much else." "Danto...?"

Danto, who had been munching on kimbap, turned around with his cheeks puffed up.

He swallowed what he had been eating and replied.

"To think you’re calling me that... that’s too much!" "Now you’re using polite language."

"I...!" "Introduce yourself. You’re the reason he’s able to eat this kimbap right now."

"I’m Seo Aram. I look forward to working with you."

"...Um,"

Danto glanced at me, then hesitated before speaking.

It seemed like he was trying to figure out how to introduce himself.

"D-Danto...?" "...Is that your name?" "...Is it really a name?" "?"

"He’s someone I picked up from the Namdong Industrial Complex. He did have an original name, but I forgot it, so I gave him the name Danto."

His original name... what was it again?

Something like his hometown name, I think.

"Aha... you picked him up from Namdong Industrial Complex... from hell." "Right. By now, I could call myself a savior, don’t you think?" "That’s very true. I’ve only heard about Namdong Industrial Complex, and I don’t even want to think about that place."

"Ugh..."

"Anyway, he came from there, so he doesn’t know much. Just think of him as a cat. His actions are pretty similar."

"Understood." "Don’t accept that!!" "Are you exercising?" "Well, you can’t exercise if you don’t eat..."

"Mm. Understood."

I nodded and grabbed a piece of kimbap, placing it in my palm and offering it to Danto.

"Eat." "...Ugh,"

With a complicated expression, Danto hesitated, then closed his eyes tightly before opening his mouth and eating the kimbap off my palm.

"Ah."

It seems like as time passed, aside from his occasional grumbling, his rebellious streak has nearly disappeared.

Feeling a bit proud, I patted his head, and he puffed up his cheeks, trembling slightly as if displeased.

“Today, I’ll exempt you from your workout. Eat as much as you want.”

“Wha-what? Really?”

“Don’t speak informally.”

“Thank you!”

If she had a tail, it would probably be spinning around in excitement.

Just a few seconds ago, she had a face full of complaints, but now, she was immediately smiling brightly.

Danto bowed to me and ran off somewhere.

I’m sure she’s going to eat.

The secretary who manages her also bowed to me and followed Danto.

"Well, in a way, she’s the luckiest one here. She doesn’t need to think about anything, just doing whatever she wants."

"That’s true. Do you have any tasks for her? Any plans?"

"Not particularly? It just kind of happened that way."

If I had to be specific, Danto has a knack for infiltration and stealth, so I could probably use her for information gathering, but... at the moment, there’s no need for that.

‘Maybe later, if I end up making full use of Ha Eun-young and Ma Yeon-ju.’

"Actually, she used to own a large portion of land in the Namdong Industrial Complex. Thanks to that, Soo-ah was able to wrap things up easily. You can think of it as a reward."

"I see."

After introducing Danto, I introduced my strongest armed group, the Pacific Knight 1st Squadron.

They were having a quiet meal with three tables set up on the side. As soon as I approached, they immediately stopped eating, stood at attention, and saluted.

Their leader, Dorothy, saluted me.

“Oh, you don’t need to salute.” "Yes, Lord."

Originally, they called me ‘Young Master,’ but after some consideration about the title, I had them call me ‘Lord’ like Seol-yi does.

It’s not really appropriate to call me ‘Master’ since the real master is Go Minji.

But calling me ‘Young Master’ would imply that it’s technically still hers, even though it’s essentially mine.

So, I had them call me ‘Lord.’

It’s neat, and it works for the knights too.

"This is the new head of the protocol team. Depending on the situation, she could be your superior, so keep that in mind."

"I’m Seo Aram." "I’m Dorothy, the captain of Pacific Knight 1st Squadron."

Dorothy, representing the squad, shook hands with Seo Aram.

It was truly a grand moment.

A handshake between a knight from the world’s strongest faction and the protagonist, who’s growing into the world’s strongest stats monster.

Quite a monumental moment.

"Apparently, this new head of the protocol team has also achieved significant results in combat subjects, so make sure to take some time to watch her later."

"Yes, I understand. Lord."

By now, they’re already teaching Baeksul.

Adding one more person to the team won’t be a major issue with the schedule.

"Now, moving on...."

I continued introducing Seo Aram here and there, starting with the rude, low-class people from the mainland and the key secretaries holding major positions.

Then, I started introducing the nearby facilities, and soon we arrived at the temporary holding facility.

"Mm. This is...."

This is where Ha Eun-young and Ma Yeon-ju are held.

It’s a facility that was built around mid-November last year, so it’s only been about two months since they started being confined here.

‘I meant to visit more often, but it's actually been almost the first time since then.’

I remember visiting frequently at first, but as I got busier, I almost stopped going.

Though I’ve still been receiving reports about them.

“Heh, Master...!”

As we entered, the guards inside froze and stepped aside.

"This large area is all for the future prison. We just need to start digging. But before that, we’ve got a temporary holding situation. These are the people we’re holding in an interim capacity."

I explained the situation to Seo Aram as we headed toward where Ha Eun-young and Ma Yeon-ju were.

When I mentioned that Seo Eun-mi (Ha Eun-young) had been caught spying, she visibly became angry.

When she heard that Ha Eun-young’s training was inadequate, she immediately came up with an idea.

“Maybe it’s because they’ve been kept in the same kind of situation for so long?” “Hm?”

Currently, Ha Eun-young is stuck in a pitifully bad holding cell, watching Ma Yeon-ju, who’s living luxuriously on the other side, 24 hours a day.

Meanwhile, the guards are playing brainwashing and sex videos to break her mentally.

The problem is that, after two months, Ha Eun-young is still holding out.

From what I can see, it doesn’t seem to be very effective.

“Humans are adaptable creatures. The scariest thing is reverse adaptation. It might be better if they switched places between their living conditions every two weeks.” “...Are you a demon?”

“I’m just speaking from my experience, Master.”

Making them alternate between their living conditions...

I hadn’t thought of it, but now that I heard it, it actually sounds quite plausible.

Ma Yeon-ju does seem pitiful, but that’s part of the effect.

After two months of living luxuriously, Ma Yeon-ju will be trapped in the worst conditions, suffering while Ha Eun-young watches from her comfortable place.

I’m sure she’ll empathize with the suffering Ma Yeon-ju is going through, recalling her own pain.

And she’ll constantly think about having to experience that same pain again in two weeks.

“Two weeks should be enough time for them to adapt to their given environment. There’s nothing worse than suddenly being thrown into the abyss after getting used to a comfortable and luxurious life.”

“Then, you try handling this. Make Ha Eun-young submit.”

“...Me?”

“Yeah. What, don’t you have confidence?”

Seo Aram hesitated for a moment, but soon she stood at attention before me.

“No, I will do it. I will definitely make that filthy spy my Master’s servant.”

“...Alright.”

She’s a lot more serious than I expected.