Chapter 221 You Cocky Bastard
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Translator: JayM
Chapter: 221
Chapter Title: You Cocky Bastard
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Nelia left. She looked so busy that she didn't even have time for a glass of water, so he didn't stop her.
Jeong Yoo-shin sat in the counter chair, looked out the window, and then closed his eyes.
'I've absorbed all of your lustful energy. Your head should be a bit clearer now.'
Beatrice, who was lying on his lap, said as if it were nothing.
Indeed, Beatrice's vacuum-like absorption of lustful energy was excellent.
It was more effective than drawing out the lustful energy from his own body himself and storing it in a ring or giving it to Beatrice.
'Did you just have a weird thought?'
"Not at all. I was just thinking that you're good at sucking up lustful energy."
'Sucking? Skar, you...!'
"Beatrice, you have a Maguni* in your heart."
'Megumi*?'
"A demon. I'm going to concentrate now, so be quiet."
'What the hell is a Megumi?'
Jeong Yoo-shin ignored the grumbling Beatrice and focused his mind.
With a much clearer head, he slowly processed the fight he had with the kin of the Outer God.
He left what he had done well and quietly engraved the regrettable points in his heart.
He clearly remembered the realization he had gained from that battle.
The trajectory of a swung sword contained a person's story.
A story came from a person's head, that is, their heart.
However…
A person's heart was a labyrinth.
Because it was difficult to know what lurked within.
Threats or corruption were nothing more than temporary stopgaps. He had learned that through Mion.
In that case…
He had to think differently.
If there was a torch that could brightly illuminate a heart as dark as a labyrinth, it would probably be 'Bond'.
The reason Mion believed in him…
…And the reason he believed in Mion was the same.
'Bond' built on goodwill.
Beatrice.
I’ll bind you with 'Bond'.
So that my death will be the saddest thing in the world for you.
Jeong Yoo-shin quietly made a vow and stroked Beatrice, who was lying on his lap.
"Beatrice."
'What?'
"Did you leak again? Should I wipe you with a cloth?"
'...'
Beatrice didn't speak to him for a long time after that.
Jeong Yoo-shin scratched his head and made a resolution.
He would find someone with an Ego Sword imprint and hear various information from them.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
In the afternoon, Granny came to visit Jeong Yoo-shin.
"Skar-nim, has everything been alright?"
Jeong Yoo-shin grinned.
"I'm doing well. Is business good?"
Granny smiled back.
"Yes. The tyranny of the Eastern District guys has subsided, so it's become easier to make a living. The other clans also asked me to convey their thanks."
"Good."
Granny placed a large sack on the counter.
"It's a small token of our appreciation."
From the sack, various items poured out, from expensive alcohol to cigars, a lute, a deck of cards, a mascot head, a hex nut, and a candlestick.
"What's all this…? Thank you."
"We plan to bring the larger items after getting your permission, Skar-nim."
"You mean things like furniture?"
"Yes."
"I'll gladly accept. But you don't have to give me anything from now on."
"Then would it be alright if we gave you money instead?"
Granny asked cautiously.
Jeong Yoo-shin shook his head.
"No. I don't need money either. If the members of the small and medium-sized clans are eating well and living well, that's enough for me."
"Skar-nim...!"
Granny's eyes reddened.
Jeong Yoo-shin opened his mouth.
"Granny, I have a favor to ask."
"Just say the word!"
"An official clan meeting will be held at the Explorer's Guild soon."
"I know."
"Find out the names, characteristics, imprints, and hidden rumors of all the clan leaders attending this time. If possible, organize it into a document."
Granny didn't even ask for a reason and just bowed his head.
"I understand. Leave it to me."
Jeong Yoo-shin put his hand on the counter. He planned to use the 300 gold coins he had received from Vice-Guild Master Nelia for this opportunity.
"Granny, you'll need a down payment, right?"
"N-No! It's alright! I'll find out as quickly as possible!"
Granny waved his hand in refusal and quickly ran out of the inn.
'Did you see his eyes getting red? Does he cry a lot? He's a soft-hearted person.'
Beatrice muttered in a drained voice.
"Believe it or not, he was the former representative of the small and medium-sized clan alliance."
Beatrice clicked her tongue as if in disbelief.
'Tsk. It's a good thing you became the leader.'
Jeong Yoo-shin chuckled at Beatrice's reply.
There was another person around who was full of water.
'What?'
"I didn't say anything."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Late at night.
Granny came with the documents.
"You've worked hard. That was quick."
When Jeong Yoo-shin praised him, Granny grinned from ear to ear.
"They're already famous people, so it was easy to organize the information. Ah! And a few small and medium-sized clans want to join. What should I do?"
"Let them come. Are there any clans I know?"
"The Malrang-poksin Clan. They want to officially join the clan alliance on this occasion."
Malrang-poksin.
"The Malrang-poksin clan leader will have to have a separate meeting with me. Set a date."
"I understand."
After Granny left, Jeong Yoo-shin looked through the personal information of the clan leaders.
As he was reading the mountain of documents, Karin and Ingrid returned.
Jeong Yoo-shin stood up from his seat and greeted them.
"Welcome back."
"Mm."
Ingrid couldn't meet Jeong Yoo-shin's eyes properly and went up to the second floor as if fleeing.
Karin approached him with an apologetic face and said.
"Skar, the summit meeting is coming up soon, and I think we'll have to keep our guards a little closer. If it's alright, would it be okay if a few more people stayed at the inn?"
"They can stay as they please."
"T-Thank you."
Karin blushed.
For some reason, seeing the more dependable Skar made her heart pound. Then she remembered the night they had made love intensely a few days ago, and she felt even more embarrassed.
"I-I'll prepare a meal."
"Thank you."
Karin quickly went into the kitchen, and Jeong Yoo-shin sat at the counter and continued to look through the documents.
At that moment…
Ingrid, who had changed into comfortable clothes, came down the stairs and approached the counter.
The sound of clattering could be heard from the kitchen.
"Skar, what are you looking at?"
"The personal information of the large clan leaders. I heard that there's going to be a regular meeting at the Explorer's meeting this time, so I thought it would be good for me to know their faces in advance."
"I see."
"..."
An awkward silence fell between the two.
Ingrid cautiously sat down opposite Jeong Yoo-shin.
Jeong Yoo-shin wondered how he should start the conversation.
"Um... Ingrid-nim?"
Ingrid handed him a black coat.
"It was torn in the fight with Rex last time. I had a new one prepared. I paid more attention to the order this time, so I think it'll be even sturdier now."
Ingrid gave him an unexpected gift.
A gift to a person who deserved to be killed.
Jeong Yoo-shin stood up, took the coat, and bowed his head deeply.
"Ingrid-nim, I'm sorry."
"..."
"I had lewd thoughts and teased you, Ingrid-nim. I will gladly accept any punishment."
Ingrid's face turned red.
"It's fine. Don't worry about it. I know that since you have the Half-Incubus imprint, you have difficulty controlling your lustful energy."
"I see."
Only then did Ingrid look at Jeong Yoo-shin's face.
His eyes, with the lustful energy gone, were deep and calm.
Moreover, he exuded a strong atmosphere.
It felt like just yesterday that she had seen the green warrior Skar.
To think he had become this strong.
Her heart pounded anew.
Ingrid cleared her throat and stood up.
"Ahem! Would it be alright if a few of my guards stayed at the inn?"
"Yes. As many as you like."
"Thank you."
Ingrid smiled slightly.
Seeing that, Beatrice muttered in a disbelieving tone.
'N-No way? Why are Ingrid-nim's eyes like that? Is it Megumi?'
Jeong Yoo-shin tapped the single-edged sword that was spouting nonsense with his hand to make it shut up.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The next morning.
Jeong Yoo-shin headed to the Explorer's Headquarters.
The wind was cold. He wondered if winter was approaching.
As the hem of Jeong Yoo-shin's long coat fluttered in the wind, the form of Beatrice, which was hanging at his waist, was briefly revealed.
As soon as he entered the Explorer's Headquarters, a receptionist who had been waiting for him guided him to the meeting place.
He went up the stairs and entered a large room.
It was an old-fashioned place at a glance.
A large round table was placed at the center, and people of various races were sitting there.
As expected of the heads of large clans, they all exuded powerful auras.
He would have been nervous in the past, but not now.
In the middle, Nelia had a tired expression, but she managed a smile when she saw Jeong Yoo-shin.
Jeong Yoo-shin looked around and went to an empty seat to sit down.
The gazes of the people around focused on him.
Opposite Jeong Yoo-shin, a large human man was sitting and glaring at him with blazing eyes.
He knew who the man was.
A short, crew-cut hairstyle.
Middle-aged.
His name was Victor.
He was the head of the clan which that Mits bastard, who had caused a huge mess in the Eastern District sewer exploration this time, belonged to.
The clan's name was Blue Storm.
It was a childish name, but it was a popular large clan because of its solid support for talented people.
Nelia looked around and opened her mouth.
"Skar-ssi has arrived. Then let's begin the meeting."
"Isn't there something we need to talk about before that?"
The Blue Storm clan leader, Victor, said that while glaring at Jeong Yoo-shin.
"Victor-nim, this is a meeting to discuss countermeasures against the kin of the Outer God."
Victor raised his hand and cut off Vice-Guild Master Nelia's words.
"Wait. We need to get this straight first. Skar, I've heard a lot about you."
The eyes of a few clan leaders shone unusually.
Jeong Yoo-shin crossed his arms and leaned back leisurely in his chair.
"..."
He didn't say a word.
Seeing that, Victor opened his mouth again.
"I heard you easily killed the kin of the Outer God, Changeling. That's amazing."
"Don't mention it."
Jeong Yoo-shin cracked his neck from side to side and answered briefly.
"But there's a part that we find suspicious."
"..."
"Why didn't you help sooner? With your skills, you could have easily caught and killed that kin. And why did Vlad and the explorers from the Eastern District show up so late?"
"Victor-nim!"
Nelia frowned and raised her voice.
The Explorer's Guild Headquarters was in an uproar because of this incident.
It was because a large number of talented young clan members had died in the Eastern District.
The clans that couldn't even find the bodies ground their teeth and condemned the Explorer's Guild's mistake.
They demanded huge compensation, the right to punish not only the explorer in charge of the request but also the explorers who had been watching, and various other concessions, citing the failure to control the request performers.
Now Victor was subtly trying to push the responsibility onto Jeong Yoo-shin.
With great power comes great responsibility. The explorer party is one body, and if someone failed to control them, wasn't it your duty to step up and do something?
A completely absurd and unreasonable argument.
"..."
Jeong Yoo-shin closed his mouth and looked around. Several clan leaders were also nodding in agreement with Victor's words.
He could feel extreme arrogance in their tone.
It was clear that their pride had pierced the heavens after obtaining a good imprint.
It would be fine to call them the Celestial Dragons of this other world.
"Answer me."
Victor urged him to answer.
Jeong Yoo-shin swept his hair back and opened his mouth.
"Victor."
"Are you looking down on me? Suddenly using casual speech...!"
"You cocky bastard. Shut your mouth."
Unheard-of profanity spewed from Jeong Yoo-shin's mouth.
The surroundings instantly fell silent.
"..."
Everyone sitting at the round table stared at Jeong Yoo-shin with wide eyes.
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T/N - Wtf is that nonsense Victor was talking about? “Easily caught the kin”? Mf, the MC almost died fighting the thing! And it was Mit’s fault for charging into the center of the sewers against orders. Damn, these guys are making my blood pressure spike.
Also, I find Beatrice’s reaction to Ingrid pretty funny. I wonder how she would react if she saw Astaroth interact with the MC?
*Initially, I translated “Maguni” (마구니) as “demon”, but I changed it back since the “Megumi” reply from Beatrice was supposed to be a joke where she didn’t understand the former’s meaning and thought that it was a foreign name instead.