HPDBC Chapter 53 - 53: Leader to Leader
Chapter 53 - 53: Leader to Leader
The cafeteria buzzed with quiet chatter. People hunched over scraps of food, speaking in low voices, while the few guards still standing watched Jin's group like they were ticking bombs.
Jin barely noticed.
His gaze was locked on Sang-hoon, who leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, eyes sharp and unreadable.
Jin tapped his fingers against the staff, jaw tight.
"We should talk," he muttered.
Sang-hoon rubbed his temples.
"We are talking."
"Alone," Jin said, voice low.
Sang-hoon raised a brow, but he didn't argue.
He gave a subtle nod to the people around them, and the room emptied almost instantly. No questions, no hesitation — just quiet compliance.
Seul and Joon exchanged a glance.
Jin tilted his head slightly, and they slipped out without a word, closing the door behind them.
Just the two of them now.
Jin exhaled slowly, his grip on the staff tightening.
"You're the one in charge," he muttered.
Sang-hoon leaned back, rubbing his jaw.
"That's what they tell me."
Jin didn't break eye contact.
"Then tell me why your group is falling apart."
The faintest flicker of irritation crossed Sang-hoon's face, but he masked it with a tired chuckle.
"You really don't waste time, huh?"
Jin pressed on.
"I met some of your people before the plaza," he muttered. "They said using their skills felt like giving in to the system."
His voice sharpened.
"And that mindset got people killed."
Sang-hoon's laughter faded.
Jin leaned forward.
"Did you know about that?"
The older man rubbed his face.
"You think that's my fault?" he muttered, voice low. "You think I taught them that?"
Jin's jaw clenched.
"If you didn't stop them, you might as well have."
Sang-hoon's eyes darkened.
"You've been outside," he muttered. "You've seen what happens when people get a taste of power."
Jin didn't flinch.
"And I've also seen people die because they were too weak to survive without it."
Sang-hoon tapped his fingers on the table.
"You think I haven't?" he muttered. "I'm the one who's had to watch people starve. Watch them die from injuries we can't treat. Watch them crack under pressure and snap."
His voice dropped lower.
"You think I don't know people need to use their skills?" he muttered. "Of course I know that. But if I let everyone start experimenting with their powers, it's only a matter of time before someone decides they should be in charge."
His eyes sharpened.
"And then this whole place falls apart."
Jin's pulse thudded against his skull.
"You could've trained them," he muttered. "You could've built a group strong enough to protect each other."
Sang-hoon snorted.
"And how would I stop the strong from deciding they don't need the weak?" he muttered.
Jin's fingers curled so tightly around the staff his knuckles went white.
"You let people walk into a death trap because you're afraid of losing control," he hissed.
Sang-hoon leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table.
"You don't get it," he muttered, voice razor-sharp. "Leadership isn't about making people strong. It's about keeping them alive."
He spread his hands, voice dripping with cold logic.
"If I let people think power equals authority, what happens when the wrong person survives longer than everyone else?"
Jin's chest burned.
He wanted to punch the guy in the face.
Because he wasn't wrong.
But he wasn't right, either.
Jin wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, voice low and rough.
"...That's not survival," he muttered. "That's just another kind of death."
Sang-hoon studied him for a long moment, then exhaled slowly.
"You've got conviction," he muttered. "I'll give you that."
He rubbed his temples.
"So what do you want?"
Jin didn't hesitate.
"Let us take some of your people," he muttered.
Sang-hoon lifted a brow.
"You want me to hand over survivors?"
"We'll take them back to our base," Jin said, voice steady. "Train them. Teach them how to actually use their skills."
Sang-hoon tilted his head.
"And what do I get out of this?"
Jin leaned back in his chair, wiping dried blood off his face with his sleeve.
"You get access to the resources from the plaza," he muttered. "Food. Weapons. System vending units."
Sang-hoon froze.
"What?"
Jin rubbed his temples, voice flat.
"When we beat the monsters at the plaza, the system absorbed all the resources there and transferred them to our school base," he muttered. "The whole place is picked clean."
Sang-hoon swore under his breath, rubbing his face.
Jin shrugged.
"But we can go back with your people," he muttered. "
He spun the staff, the splintered wood twisting under his fingers as he activated his skill — the weapon mutating, jagged edges twisting out like a living thing.
"Good," he muttered, rolling his shoulders.
The air in the room changed.
Seul stretched, her gloves shimmering as gravity warped around her fingers.
Joon spun the metal spheres in a tight orbit, lightning flickering between them like a miniature storm.
Jin adjusted his grip on the staff, muscles coiling.
His voice dropped to a rasp.
"Let's see if you can take it."