A Direct Offer
"Director Park. Did you just see that?"
Jin-a asked. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from Hyun-jun. Neither could Seok-hyeon. Gathering his trembling gaze, he opened his mouth.
"I did."
"Do you think Director Park could block that?"
"It would be difficult."
It was a technique so lethal that even Seok-hyeon, an A-Class combat-type hunter, couldn’t say for certain he could withstand it.
"Miss... I think we’ll need to move as soon as the guild war ends."
Jin-a nodded at Seok-hyeon’s words. She wasn’t stupid. She had already grasped that the atmosphere in the stands had changed the moment Hyun-jun unleashed that astonishing technique.
Several people had already pulled out their smartphones and were calling someone. They were probably contacting their guild’s HR department or intelligence division.
"It would be best if Director Park moved as well. I’ll stay here and watch the rest of the matches."
"Understood. I’ll have the paperwork prepared."
Seok-hyeon stepped away. Jin-a’s gaze followed his back for a moment before returning to the field. The next match was about to begin.
*
"I-I surrender! That’s enough!"
The fifth participant from Echo Guild stumbled backward and declared surrender in a panic. His whole body was soaked in blood. If he had been even a second later, he might have lost his life to the sword Hyun-jun had swung.
With Echo’s fifth participant surrendering, Wraith secured its fifth victory and won the guild war.
The announcer’s voice rolled out from the speaker.
"Aaaaaagh!"
Someone on Echo’s bench let out a shriek. It was their guild leader, Choi Na-young. Since they had lost the guild war, they would now be forced to accept most of the terms Wraith had demanded. The Dispute Mediation Committee would intervene to a degree, but in a case this clearly Echo’s fault, even bribery wouldn’t buy them much support.
"Guild Leader. Good work."
After Hyun-jun put his sword and shield into his subspace pouch and stepped down from the field, Tae-min rushed over and bowed. His clothes were soaked with blood, perhaps because he had received healing from a recovery-type hunter, but there wasn’t a single wound left to see.
"Guild Leader! That was amazing!"
"Incredible!"
The guild members who had been seated on the bench were suddenly on their feet, applauding Hyun-jun all at once. Seeing his performance up close, closer than the spectators in the stands, they finally understood what an extraordinary hunter he was.
"Thank you."
Being recognized felt good. Hyun-jun nodded with a bright smile on his face. The applause didn’t stop until Executive Director Kim Tae-min calmed the guild members down. Amid the feverish cheers, Hyun-jun let out a pleased sigh and shifted his gaze to Tae-min.
"Can you come with me for a second?"
"Yes, sir."
As they moved down the corridor toward the waiting room, Tae-min followed at once, answering as he went.
"What I asked for before the guild war, how did that turn out?"
There had been something Hyun-jun had told Tae-min to handle before the match began.
"It was filmed in high definition. I’ve already sent it to the publicity manager, so it should be uploaded to Tube before this evening at the latest."
Tube was the video site hunters used most often. Recording inside dungeons was impossible because of the mana barrier, but raid and guild war videos were uploaded there frequently.
"The promotional effect will be definite."
Tae-min’s voice was full of confidence. Hyun-jun intended to use the guild war footage as a promotional tool for Wraith. Now that he was the head of Wraith, he wanted to build the guild up. If he was going to protect So-jin and the others from the unknown power behind Echo, it would be better to strengthen his own faction.
"Handle the video promotion as planned."
"I’ll do my utmost."
"Good. But... it looks like the guild war schedule is over. What happens next?"
Until not long ago, he had been nothing more than an F-Class hunter with no connection to any guild, so he wasn’t familiar with the procedures for guild wars. Tae-min had explained a few things to him a couple of days ago, but there were limits to what he could learn in passing.
"If you go to the waiting room and wait there, a Dispute Mediation Committee member from the Guild Administration Bureau will come by. You just finish the paperwork and hand over our demands. Usually, if the demand is too extreme, like a forced merger or acquisition, the committee steps in, but this time even if Echo has bribed everyone it won’t help much. They’re clearly in the wrong."
Tae-min explained. Hyun-jun nodded.
"The other guild members can leave, right?"
"Yes, sir."
"Then send them back, and let’s you and me wait in the waiting room for the mediation committee."
"Understood."
At Hyun-jun’s order, Tae-min called one of the subordinate execution hunters on his smartphone and instructed him to dismiss the guild members who were waiting on the bench. After that, the two of them arrived at the waiting room.
About five minutes passed. When Tae-min’s phone vibrated, he checked the screen and let out a faint laugh before speaking.
"It seems the Echo guild leader is making a scene. Apparently he’s having a fit right now, and his subordinates are busy trying to calm him down."
A fit? That was understandable. They had already brought up the matter of a forced merger before, so Echo’s guild leader, Choi Na-young, would know exactly what Wraith was after and would likely already have grasped the situation. With the guild he had worked so hard to build about to be taken away wholesale, it wouldn’t be strange for him to lose it.
"That’s amusing."
He barely managed to suppress a laugh. He didn’t make a habit of taking pleasure in other people’s misfortune, but the downfall of an enemy was always satisfying. After the conversation ended, silence settled in for a moment. Then, about ten minutes later...
"Excuse me."
With a light knock, the door opened and a man in a suit came in. Hyun-jun’s gaze swept over him quickly. He didn’t seem to have any mana, so he wasn’t a hunter.
"I’m Park Cheol-su, the Dispute Mediation Committee member assigned to Wraith Guild for this dispute."
The man introduced himself. Hyun-jun already knew from Tae-min that when a conflict broke out between guilds, the headquarters assigned a mediation committee member to each side.
"First, congratulations on winning the guild war. To proceed to the next step, please fill out this form."
Cheol-su placed a simple one-page form on the waiting room table. When Hyun-jun and Tae-min’s gazes turned to it, Cheol-su opened his mouth to explain.
"Before using the authority you obtained by winning the guild war, this is a consent form stating that you agree to receive assistance from the Guild Administration Bureau’s Dispute Mediation Committee. Please read it and sign."
"I’ll sign it now."
He scanned the form quickly with his eyes, but it didn’t seem to contain anything problematic. Tae-min had already advised him on the consent form, so Hyun-jun didn’t think long before picking up the pen and signing his name.
"The signature is confirmed. Could you write the terms here?"
Cheol-su took out another document. Hyun-jun wrote down Wraith’s demands against Echo.
"I’ve written everything."
"Confirmed. To summarize, Wraith Guild is demanding the unconditional absorption and merger of Echo Guild."
"That’s correct."
"Because Echo’s fault is clear, the committee will also accept Wraith’s demand without any special adjustment."
It was proceeding exactly as Tae-min had said.
"However... any funds related to the merger will need to be prepared directly by you."
"You don’t need to worry about that. Our guild has already finished all preparations."
Fortunately, Wraith’s finances were in good shape. They could proceed with the merger with Echo immediately if needed.
"Understood. I’ll forward the relevant details to the Guild Administration Bureau. It won’t take long."
When he finished speaking, Cheol-su checked his watch.
"The necessary procedures are complete. You may return now."
"Thank you for your work."
After Cheol-su left the waiting room, Tae-min, who had been waiting a short distance away, stepped closer and spoke.
"It seems Han So-jin has also headed to the guild office. We should return there first as well."
The guild office had suffered major damage in the recent attack. They had decided it would be better to lease or purchase a new place somewhere cheaper than repairing the old one, and Wraith Guild’s current office had been relocated to a four-story building ten minutes from Hyun-jun’s home in Suwon. The building they had used before had only been three stories, so in effect they had moved somewhere larger.
"Echo might try to provoke us, so please tighten security around So-jin and the others."
"Understood."
Echo’s execution hunters were currently in such a ruined state that calling them weak would be generous, but Choi Na-young, cornered as he was, could still do something unpredictable. Better safe than sorry.
"Kang Hyun-jun?"
A man in a suit appeared in front of them as they headed toward the Colosseum parking lot. He was Park Seok-hyeon, one of Lee Jin-a’s close aides.
"What can I do for you?"
Tae-min naturally stepped forward, and Hyun-jun swept the man in front of him with a cold gaze, assessing his level.
Around A-Class, maybe...?
He narrowed his eyes and prepared to draw up his mana. He didn’t know who the man was. What mattered was that he was blocking the way. On top of that, he could sense a faint presence behind him as well. Slow, but definitely moving toward them.
No matter how insane Echo’s guild leader, Choi Na-young, might be, he wouldn’t start a knife fight in the Colosseum, where the Guild Administration Bureau held such strong influence. Still, there was no harm in assuming the worst.
"Please don’t be too wary. We didn’t come here to fight Kang Hyun-jun."
Since he had used the word "we," the presence behind him must have been one of his companions. It drew closer. When Hyun-jun turned around, he saw a woman walking toward them, with brown hair reaching her waist and a striking, catlike sharpness to her features.
At least S-Class.
The powerful mana and presence radiating from her body told him as much. Hyun-jun bit his lip slightly.
Not right now.
He might be able to handle the man in a suit, but if he went up against the woman here and now, he couldn’t confidently say he would win. He couldn’t tell for sure, but she seemed like someone in the upper-middle tier even among S-Class hunters.
"Nice to meet you, Kang Hyun-jun. I’m Lee Jin-a, an S-Class hunter."
The woman introduced herself first. By then, she had already closed the distance.
"Ah... I think I’ve heard of you. Nice to meet you."
It wasn’t empty politeness. Lee Jin-a was well known in hunter society. That wasn’t just because she was an S-Class hunter. It was also because she was the second daughter of Jaeil Group, the second-largest conglomerate in South Korea.
"Do you have business with me?"
"I feel like you probably already know why I came to see you, Kang Hyun-jun."
Jin-a spoke with a faint, knowing smile.
"As far as I know, Jaeil Group doesn’t have a direct guild..."
Even though it didn’t deal in magic stones or guild business, Jaeil Group was still the second-largest conglomerate in South Korea. Perhaps because they hadn’t felt the need for a guild of their own, they hadn’t seriously entered the guild or magic stone business.
"If we need one, we can just make one."
"That means..."
"C-Class hunter, Kang Hyun-jun. I’d like to offer you a managerial position in the Jaeil Group’s soon-to-be-created direct guild."