Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Destroyed Korea's 67th Guild, Teraco
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Destroyed Korea's 67th ranked guild, Teraco.
He had also ordered them to seize control of Seoul's underworld at the same time.
Easy words to say, but even if Seoul was a small patch of land, taking over its underworld was no simple task.
Yet the one who had issued that command, Go Yohan,
"Yawn."
was yawning indifferently as he headed to school.
-The Association's Investigations Department was looking into the kidnapping incident separately.
Yun Seung-ah's voice echoed in his head.
-One of my sister's friends is in charge there, and it seems she asked for my sister's help.
Go Yohan nodded.
"That nagging sister of yours might actually be useful for once."
American ranker, bearer of the title Bloodline of Divinity.
She wouldn't bend to outside pressure, and she had the strength to wipe out a minor guild on her own.
-For the time being, I'll keep a closer eye on your sister.
He knew the church was providing separate protection for those of Go Yohan's bloodline.
The reason he didn't get too close was that they weren't the type to be easily taken out, and he disliked the idea of surveilling his own blood.
"I'll allow it."
But if demons were involved, or even their traces, that changed everything.
-Understood. Looks like we'll need to dig a bit deeper.
With that, Yun Seung-ah's voice faded away.
"Go Yohan's by himself today?"
The chatter of his classmates reached his ears.
The first period had already ended.
"What's up with that?"
They seemed intrigued by Go Yohan being alone today.
Normally, around this time,
'Yohan.'
'Yohan! Wanna hit the vending machines?'
'Yohan, they say this is good!'
'Yohan...'
Kim Se-hyun would be buzzing around him, chattering away.
The reason was simple.
"Kim Se-hyun didn't come to school today."
Kim Se-hyun hadn't shown up today.
"Huh? Her?"
Since Kim Se-hyun had never missed a single day, the students were puzzled.
"She said she was sick."
"Even Kim Se-hyun gets sick, huh."
"What, is she a robot or something?"
No real cause for worry, though.
'Just a fever.'
Because of the Choi Sin-woo incident, Yun Seung-ah had arranged for Kim Se-hyun to come down with a fever.
Even so, Kim Se-hyun had dragged herself to school, but she must have decided she couldn't push it anymore.
"But why isn't Choi Sin-woo here?"
"I heard something happened. Pretty big deal, apparently. Even Sky's in an uproar."
The students sure loved gossiping about others.
Yun Seung-ah must have handled the Choi Sin-woo matter cleanly.
"Yawn."
What did any of it matter?
'I'll take the high school equivalency exam.'
He couldn't keep up this boring school life forever.
It was for Shin Su-kyung's sake, sure.
-Yohan. Mom believes in you.
The club incident had her worried again, but if he laid low for the remaining time, his mother would come around.
"Yohan."
Maybe because Kim Se-hyun wasn't there.
"H-Hey, if you're free, wanna go to the vending machines?"
Classmates who usually couldn't even talk to Go Yohan approached cautiously.
"Too much hassle."
Of course, Go Yohan just waved them off.
Go Yohan quietly rested his chin on his hand and gazed out the window.
Peaceful sunlight and the school field stretched before him.
"......"
For some reason, it felt a bit empty.
'Kim Se-hyun.'
He considered asking Yun Seung-ah to check on her, but he couldn't bother her when she was already swamped.
*
*
*
"Ahh...."
Kim Se-hyun trembled under the covers.
"Ugh...."
Her teeth chattered, and the thick blanket had long since been soaked through.
"Ah.... Ah...."
Intermittent groans escaped her lips; her entire body burned red-hot.
Her fever had exceeded 40 degrees long ago.
Creak.
Just then, her bedroom door opened, letting in a sliver of light.
"You okay?"
He approached cautiously and asked her.
Swish.
A hand reached out.
Kim Se-hyun tried to dodge it.
Grab.
But in an instant, that hand gripped both her cheeks, holding her steady.
"I asked if you're okay."
Everyone in the house already knew her fever was over 40 degrees.
They had wanted to take her to the hospital, but they couldn't.
"B-Because... I'm f-fine...."
Because this man wouldn't allow it.
"Good."
He was Kim Tae-hwan, the current head of Taehan.
The chaebol heir, once called one of Korea's top three conglomerates—its master.
Kim Tae-hwan had inherited his father's throne and dreamed of a brilliant future.
"You'll be fine."
But his kingdom had lost its luster.
Players. Guilds.
Repeated failures in the so-called 4th and 5th industrial revolution ventures.
Despite pouring in Taehan's full capital like water, they hadn't succeeded.
The reason was simple.
"You have to be fine. Understand?"
Not a single one of Taehan's bloodline had become a player.
This era wasn't ruled by money.
Money mattered, of course, but what truly counted was
-Martial might.
The power held by players.
They had thrown money at recruiting rankers, made one interim guild master to enlist more players.
They spared no investment, even as Taehan's foundations shook.
The price?
"Those damn things."
Betrayal by the players.
Those who grew strong broke away to form their own guilds.
They ignored contracts and resorted to threats without hesitation.
-A non-player like you expects loyalty?
Because he wasn't a player.
-Go ahead, try something. Worst case, I'll head to America or wherever. But thanks to you...
Smirk.
-I became a top ranker, so I'll spare your life.
The humiliation and scorn still haunted Kim Tae-hwan's dreams.
"This is your last chance to wipe out those damn things."
"...Y-Yes.... D-Dad...."
"You become one of those damn things."
Even as Kim Se-hyun's body burned like fire, Kim Tae-hwan smiled.
The faint light behind him cast his face in deeper shadow.
"You become a player!"
Kim Se-hyun closed her eyes.
"All of Taehan will be yours. Unlike me, you'll be an emperor and crush them all. Got it?"
"......"
"So endure."
Sizzle!
"That pain is just the process of your rebirth. You are now..."
Kim Tae-hwan whispered into Kim Se-hyun's ear.
"Being reborn."
It was then.
"Yes."
The trembling stopped.
"Yes, Father."
Her reddened eyes gleamed as Kim Se-hyun smiled faintly.
*
*
*
Yohan Church had changed a lot.
"You're here?"
"Welcome."
As Go Yohan and Lee Jae-kyung arrived, quite a few people approached to greet them.
"Why bother coming out?"
Go Yohan spoke as if it were a fuss.
"We're doing it because we want to."
They replied with unwavering smiles.
The church had started with four—no, five including Yun Seung-ah.
Now their numbers had grown substantially, exceeding thirty.
Boom!
"Y-You guys...! I said take it easy! There's a gate and all, so why are you blowing stuff up over there?"
A explosion rang out, and Lee Jae-kyung shook his head.
"It's Gluttony."
At Go Yohan's words, Lee Jae-kyung finally nodded.
"...Still, take it easy."
Gluttony, child of Gluttony, was fascinated by items and alchemy.
The explosion was probably a minor mishap from that.
Of course.
"No, how does mithril explode that easily?"
Now they were even doing interior walls with mithril, so Gluttony's mishaps packed enough punch to blow it up.
"Should I hunt for some adamantium?"
Of course, that was nonsense.
Adamantium was valued as unique-grade metal on its own, so rare that scouring the world wouldn't yield more than a few tons.
It was just a joking way of saying it was a headache.
"Nothing else going on?"
Those who had come out to greet them shook their heads at Go Yohan's question.
"Just seeing you fills us with joy."
Friendly-looking men and women, young and old.
Who would guess.
"What're you saying."
That they were once rankers who had shaken the rankings.
Not just Korean rankers.
-We need to expand our numbers.
When those words were spoken, they had recommended trustworthy people, regardless of nationality.
There were even American and European rankers here.
All of them.
"What brings you today?"
Had once been crippled.
They had overcome their disabilities, surpassed them, and grown stronger in this church.
Their faces had changed, and they had lost everything, but if they returned to the world, the rankings would drop dozens of places for each.
"Ah, Pastor Park called for you."
Just then, a familiar face appeared.
A neat old gentleman—Park Do-young, once ravaged by tumors.
He handled the pastor role at the church, and as they called him,
-Believer.
He was the leader of these believers.
"You're here?"
Park Do-young beamed at Go Yohan.
"I have an urgent favor to ask, so I took the liberty of requesting your presence."
Go Yohan entered the church with Park Do-young.
An ordinary-looking church, tangled with countless barriers and spells.
Without a doubt, its defenses surpassed anything like a holy headquarters.
"What's the matter?"
"Well..."
Park Do-young paused and said.
"I wanted to ask permission to go out into the world."
"......"
Go Yohan's expression hardened slightly.
Had greed taken root, perhaps.
In the end.
'They're only human, after all.'
No, no.
Go Yohan shook his head to clear the thought.
He could trust them.
"What's the reason?"
"Lord Sloth says things presumed to be seeds have been found overseas."
Go Yohan had heard the report too.
Even if demons and worshippers were concentrated in Korea, other places weren't guaranteed safe.
"Sending a few out to operate overseas doesn't sound bad."