Mission: Takeover
Sa Yeonggyo didn't even open her eyes as she reached out, grabbed her blaring phone, and pulled it close.
"Hello...?"
—Click.
That calm, resolute voice snapped her awake. The sleepiness and the lingering buzz from the wine she'd overindulged in last night vanished in an instant.
She bolted upright.
A glance at the clock... 1:12 p.m.
Damn! With her appointment at 2, if she hurried, she could make it to the Best Guildhouse right on time.
Sa Yeonggyo jumped out of bed, switched to speakerphone, and headed into the bathroom.
"What's the sudden emergency?"
—Because of you, I can't even show my face anymore.
The usual quiet tone.
"When has that ever been different? How about switching up your repertoire? I've heard it so much, it doesn't even faze me anymore."
—I let it slide when you joined Uramata Guild... a hundred times over. But now a dispatch? You really want to smear shit on Grandpa's face? Get out of there right now. Not for me—for Grandpa.
The tone rose slightly.
Anger was starting to pierce through her mental barriers.
Why did it feel so good when Mom got mad? She probably had no idea.
Sa Yeonggyo turned on the shower and covered her mouth with one hand. She nearly burst out laughing.
Dispatch!
It was a pretty shocking word.
When a raider marked for expulsion wouldn't leave voluntarily, the guild master played the dispatch card. Sending them to a lower-tier guild—it was a decision only the guild master had the authority to make.
Most quit before the dispatch order even came down.
She'd once seen a stat: 37% of raiders retired because of dispatch. It hadn't really hit home back then.
But me, dispatched!
If Kim Jun hadn't come to see her last night, she really would've gotten pissed at this call and probably fallen for her mom's sly coaxing, storming out of Uramata.
Sa Yeonggyo wanted to mess with her mom. Stepping under the hot spray, she said,
"It's not a dispatch."
—Showering? Don't tell me you just woke up.
"Nah, just rinsing off sweat."
No need to give Mom any unnecessary ammo.
—Not a dispatch? How's that not a dispatch? You're on Uramata's Pink Team, and now you're being dispatched to Best Guild's Medusa Team. How is that not?
"Uramata has no reason to kick me out. Who am I? Your daughter and Grandpa's granddaughter. Who'd dare chase me away?"
—Yoo Wan-seop could.
Damn! No arguing with that.
Yeah, Yoo Wan-seop could. But he wouldn't. He wasn't the type to pettily dispatch her like this—he'd come in person and say it straight.
Dispatch, on the other hand... that was Mom's style.
Mom had dispatched and booted hundreds of raiders from Jushin.
"Anyway, it's not."
—When are you going to grow up?
That looking-down tone... it pissed Sa Yeonggyo off a little. Mom would never understand why her daughter hated her. The woman on the phone had chosen to be the strict high-ranking guild exec over the caring mother.
Sa Yeonggyo lathered shampoo into her hair.
"What's dispatch anyway? It's about sending someone to a shittier guild to bruise their ego. But Best is way better than Uramata. You know that, right?"
Silence.
Probably scrambling for a logical counter to dismantle her daughter's point.
"From your perspective, shouldn't you be thrilled? Having me at Best instead of Uramata looks better for your reputation."
More silence from Mom.
Sa Yeonggyo had never felt this good. She'd rarely ever shut Mom up like this.
By the time she'd finished rinsing, Mom finally spoke.
—Who told you to say that?
A sharp counterattack.
Sa Yeonggyo flinched.
Good thing she was alone in the shower stall. If Mom were there, she'd have been caught instantly.
The logic that had silenced Mom... was straight from what Kim Jun had told her last night. Sa Yeonggyo had insisted she absolutely couldn't go to Best Guild. She'd pushed hard to send the useless Yeom Sang-taek instead.
That's when Kim Jun explained why it wasn't a dispatch. Sa Yeonggyo had been just as speechless as Mom was now.
"So that's how low you think of me."
—I know you best.
"Think whatever. You won't change your mind no matter what I say."
—It's Yoo Wan-seop, isn't it?
Sa Yeonggyo went silent on purpose, steering the misunderstanding.
—Knew it.
Mom jumping to conclusions on her own.
Her daughter laughed silently.
Someday, when she learned Kim Jun was the mastermind behind this plan, the shock on Mom's face... she couldn't hold back the laughter imagining it.
—You're playing a dangerous game of chess right now.
"Really? Then what am I? The queen?"
She was in such a good mood she could joke around cheerfully. Who knew talking to Mom could be fun? Maybe she should call during showers more often.
—Your dreams are ambitious, my girl. You're a pawn. You don't know where to go, how to get there, and you can only move one square at a time on someone else's orders.
"Oh, so you're the queen then?"
—I'd like to be, but you'd need Brave Guild's Im Cheong-ha level to call yourself queen. Hmm, if I had to say... knight, maybe.
Sa Yeonggyo was stunned.
Her prideful mom admitting she was just a knight?
"Surprisingly honest, Mom."
—Looks like Africa toughened you up. You can handle talks like this now. Anyway, be careful. Got it?
"Okay."
After hanging up, Sa Yeonggyo felt weird.
She couldn't remember the last time a call with Mom had gone like this. It was always her hanging up in anger or Mom sighing it off.
Then it hit her.
Mom had finally recognized her as a conversation partner. Because Sa Yeonggyo had given clear, precise answers to her questions.
The problem? Those answers hadn't come from her head. She'd just parroted what Kim Jun had taught her to Mom almost verbatim.
So what Mom had really acknowledged... was Pink Team Leader Kim Jun, not her.
Irritation crept in.
She hadn't earned Mom's true recognition.
At the same time, pride swelled. The man she'd pegged had won Mom's approval.
She finished showering and rushed to get ready.
Even as she dressed in something she liked and left the hotel room, one question lingered.
How had Kim Jun come up with a plan like that?
She took the elevator to the underground parking, hopped on her motorcycle, and roared up. To hit Best Guild on time, she'd have to push it—time to fly.
* * *
"What?"
Sa Yeonggyo couldn't believe her ears. It was from the call coming through her helmet's wireless earbuds.
—It's true. Kim Jun swept all three rounds. Medusa's team leader's in a total funk now. But with everyone watching, she can't do shit about losing.
Yeom Sang-taek said.
"Haha, haha."
Sa Yeonggyo knew a bit about how tough Bang Yun-a was as a female raider. For a woman to lead a team—and in a solid guild like Best—no ordinary personality could cut it.
To crush a woman like that from the jump!
Should she swing by the raid center? Nah. Couldn't be irresponsible.
"Yeom Sang-taek."
—Yeah, listening.
"That plan Kim Jun cooked up this time. Taking dispatch form but having Pink members snag team leader spots in three other teams—it's genius. How does he even think of that?"
Sa Yeonggyo asked without much expectation. Just curious what Yeom Sang-taek thought of him.
—Kim Jun wasn't a raider from the start. Gives him a different perspective, I guess.
"Whoa."
Sa Yeonggyo let out an exclamation.
—I-it's just my take. C-could be wrong.
"Sounds solid. For real. Almost there now. Text if anything fun happens. Or leave a message."
—Got it. Good luck.
After the call, Sa Yeonggyo waited at the last light, thinking about her main buffer.
She'd dismissed him as a timid pushover, but his detection skills were shockingly sharp. And that judgment just now? Spot-on.
Had he always had that insight? Or did joining Pink Team awaken it?
Either way, Pink Team was a total research subject.
Light changed.
Crossing the intersection, she hugged the right and descended into the underground lot where Best Guildhouse loomed.
She parked in a spot, heading for the elevator when flashes popped. Reporters had snuck up, blocking her path.
"Dispatched to Best Guild—how do you feel right now?"
"When do you plan to leave Uramata?"
"What do you think Guild Master Yoo Wan-seop's intentions are behind this order?"
Sa Yeonggyo smiled, hand on her whip belt. She drew the magic whip and swung. Microphones, recorders, even phones thrust forward sliced clean off.
Reporters recoiled in shock; some crumpled to the ground.
The lot went quiet.
Sa Yeonggyo loved the vibe.
"I'll bill you for the damaged goods."
One more smile, then she strode to the elevator. Doors opened just in time. Reporters only stole glances, not daring to approach.
Doors opened again... more flashes.
Even the guildhouse was crawling with press.
She sighed, reaching for her whip when a puffy-faced middle-aged man pushed through.
"You're finally here. Reporters, make way. Can't block a VIP guest like this."
Best Guild Master Jang Sun-cheol's voice dripped with that merchant swagger.
No need for the whip now—Sa Yeonggyo followed him to the master room. Reporters trailed, snapping pics and firing questions, but totally different from the parking lot.
"Why choose Best Guild?"
"What sparked your interest in Medusa Team?"
"Heard there's a chance you'll transfer here—is that true?"
Sa Yeonggyo glanced at Jang Sun-cheol.
His oily face beamed. He'd buttered up the press himself.
Using me to promo Best Guild?
Fun idea.
Fine, she'd play along.
And use him right back.
She turned to the reporters. They swarmed; Jang got shoved back. His face stiffened for the first time.
"Transfer? Sure, possible. Haven't decided yet. If the guild master recognizes my value, I might consider it."
Reporters' eyes gleamed with greed. They'd struck gold.
One asked,
"What would it take for them to recognize your value?"
Sa Yeonggyo flicked a look at Jang Sun-cheol. Then,
"Nothing much. I don't do dragging my feet as a team member."
A demand to hand over the team leader spot.
A structured guild like Best rarely gave outsiders leader roles. Even top talent got watched for a year first. But here she was, declaring for 'temporary leader' today, in front of the press.
Now reporters eyed Jang Sun-cheol.
He stepped up with an awkward grin.
"Hahaha, of course Sa Yeonggyo should lead Medusa Team. Best isn't some low-class guild that ignores a gem's worth."
Even now, he snuck a jab at Uramata.
Sa Yeonggyo grinned happily.
Kim Jun had asked one thing: become Medusa's leader. Same for Yoo Min-jeong and Go Cheolmin.
If Phase 1 succeeded, Uramata would control four teams, Pink included.
She was already dying to know.
What was Phase 2?
* * *
Even after parking, Hwang In-su sat frozen in the driver's seat.
The mental hospital entrance caught his eye. Worried faces—family visiting patients, probably.
He pulled out his phone, checked the text.
He'd heard Kim Se-wi was dead and called the warden first, but the guy seemed curt... not thrilled about the call.
So he'd asked Park Hoon-seok, a Haegok guard he'd helped before, to dig around. The long text grew stranger the more he read.
Why were the Association, Jushin, and media so quiet?