Walking in Another's Shoes: Confronting Baek Soyun
The elders from the second to the fifth seats gathered in one place, excluding the first elder, and began their meeting.
The Second Elder, Hwang Munhyeok, opened the discussion.
“What do you all plan to do? We all know that no matter how much we scheme and wrestle among ourselves, it’s impossible to funnel four votes to a single person, don’t we?”
The Third Elder, Nam Taehwan, replied, “There are four of us here right now. Even if we pooled our votes for one candidate, the most we could manage is three. That woman, Baek Soyun, does whatever she wants. Expecting her vote is out of the question.”
Hwang Munhyeok then asked, “Why don’t we simply bring Lee Hyunseung here? If we secure him, we’d have four votes even without Baek Soyun. That would let one of us become the successor.”
At those words, Third Elder Nam Taehwan answered, “Assume we do bring Lee Hyunseung in. Then who becomes the successor? Who exactly are we going to push?”
“That’s…”
It was obvious. Every person gathered here wanted to be the successor. The position of Artemis Guild successor carried enormous authority. If Yoo Hanbeom were to die in an unforeseen accident, the successor would immediately assume the guild master position without any additional process and wield full power.
One might wonder whether the vice guild master should hold that role, but the vice position was purely ceremonial. It lacked the influence the elders possessed, so it was excluded from the succession race entirely.
Third Elder Nam Taehwan continued, “Be honest. Doesn’t everyone here want to become the successor? There isn’t a single person in this room without ambition for power. But that’s something to think about later. More importantly, bringing Lee Hyunseung into the Artemis Guild… I’m not particularly fond of the idea.”
“Why not?”
“Elder Hwang Munhyeok, as you know, reaching the position of elder requires an extremely rigorous process and thorough verification. Yet you want to hand that seat to a mere student still attending the academy? Am I supposed to sit quietly while witnessing such madness?”
“Hmm… The guild master clearly stated he would only grant ‘voting rights as an elder.’ He never mentioned any other privileges. That suggests he intends to give Lee Hyunseung nothing more than an empty title with voting rights alone, without any real power or authority. The guild master isn’t crazy enough to hand a full elder position to someone who’s still a student, right?”
“I suppose that’s true, but one can never be certain. In any case, I don’t like the idea of creating more competitors. From the start, I’m not thrilled that some random upstart would even hold a vote.”
“Haa…”
The conversation had circled back to the beginning. Second Elder Hwang Munhyeok thought to himself, ‘He’s just making excuses. There’s another reason behind it.’
The reason Third Elder Nam Taehwan reacted so strongly was because he saw Lee Hyunseung as a threat. Until now, Yoo Hanbeom had almost never given anyone “special treatment.” He always evaluated people based on their abilities, and only after verifying those abilities would he grant appropriate rewards or positions. This time was different. He hadn’t even properly vetted Lee Hyunseung yet, but he was allowing the boy to interfere in the critical process of selecting the guild’s successor.
It wasn’t something to take lightly. Yoo Hanbeom was clearly giving Lee Hyunseung special treatment. If someone like that truly joined the guild, it could drastically alter the succession landscape. That was why the Third Elder opposed Lee Hyunseung’s involvement from the very beginning.
Hwang Munhyeok had no choice but to ask the remaining elders, “What do the Fourth and Fifth Elders think? Do you believe we should bring Lee Hyunseung in to gain even one more vote, or do you think we must persuade Baek Soyun somehow?”
The Fourth Elder answered curtly, “Do whatever you want. I have no interest.”
Thud.
Thud.
Thud.
As the Fourth Elder turned away with a bored expression, the Fifth Elder silently followed him.
“I’m not particularly interested either. Handle it yourselves.”
Nam Taehwan muttered to himself in clear displeasure at their attitudes.
“Have those old fossils gone senile? They used to chase power and wealth like madmen. Why are they suddenly pretending to be so refined?”
Hwang Munhyeok pressed his throbbing temples and said, “We’re not reaching any conclusions. For now, I’ll start by investigating Lee Hyunseung. We might uncover something useful.”
“Do as you please. That small fry doesn’t concern me in the slightest.”
Broad Academy.
Several days had passed since the Class Annihilation Match ended. Yoo Heeyeon, who had stayed away from the academy for a while, finally returned to school.
She had been referred to the disciplinary committee for illegally bringing an artifact into the Class Annihilation Match and endangering the students. However, since the main party involved, Shin Junho, remained unconscious, they concluded it was difficult to issue a definitive punishment against her.
Even without Shin Junho’s testimony, Park Taeyong’s statement and the surrounding circumstances had already painted a clear picture of Yoo Heeyeon’s crimes. As a result, even before any formal punishment was handed down, everyone at the academy looked at her as if she were garbage.
“Isn’t it creepy? She nearly got everyone killed just to take down one guy?”
“Hey… what if Yoo Heeyeon hears you?”
“Let her hear it. She’s already been stripped of her position as Artemis Guild successor anyway. The guild won’t back her up properly anymore, right?”
Rumors about Yoo Heeyeon spread rapidly among the academy students. She had always controlled people through force and money. The moment she lost the solid backing of Artemis, the mockery and contempt poured in, and the atmosphere spread like wildfire.
Scrape.
Yoo Heeyeon stared at her desk.
DIE
TRASH
HOPE YOU DROP DEAD
SERVES YOU RIGHT LOL — acting all high and mighty
TRASH SEAT
Scrape.
Yoo Heeyeon simply pulled out her chair with a blank expression and sat down. It was something that should have made her furious, yet her mind felt numb.
Is this… really happening to me…?
Just days ago, these were the same people who would have obeyed her every command. If she told them to eat dirt, they would have done so gladly. For their attitudes to flip overnight and for them to commit such malicious acts without hesitation felt completely foreign to her.
Rather than anger at their deep hostility, fear grew stronger inside her.
I’m not… going to have to live like this for the rest of my life… right?
It was terrifying. If her father and mother completely abandoned her, all she would have left was her own body.
She had created far too many enemies during her time here. The moment the dam called Artemis that had protected her from those grudges collapsed, the resentment flooded in like a tidal wave. Caught in that deluge, Yoo Heeyeon felt a nausea so strong she thought she might suffocate.
“Ah…”
Only then did she truly understand what Lee Hyunseung must have felt.
“Hic… ugh…”
It felt as if the world was collapsing. Rage and resentment boiled up from within, but there was no one to help her release it.
She couldn’t see the future. She didn’t know how to resolve this, where to even begin, or how to prove her innocence. There was nothing she could do.
Scrape.
All she could do was bury her head on the defiled desk and cry.
A short distance from Broad Academy’s main gate, Lee Hyunseung wore a satisfied expression as he gathered all the waste paper and neatly stacked it in one spot.
Before long, the elderly woman who usually collected the waste paper arrived.
“Aigoo… student… it’s been a while… I was so worried something had happened to you…”
“I’m sorry. There have been a lot of things going on lately, so I couldn’t pay attention. Starting today, I’ll have more time, so I’ll help you again.”
“Aigoo… you don’t have to do that for this old woman… You don’t need to help when you’re busy… Just the fact that you usually help is already too much. Thank you, student…”
The grandmother expressed her sincere gratitude, and Lee Hyunseung, looking pleased, loaded the waste paper and other materials onto her cart for her.
“Then please take care on your way back.”
“I will… You like eggs, right? Next time I’ll bring you some…”
Honestly, it wasn’t his favorite food. But Lee Hyunseung smiled and answered.
“I’d appreciate that.”
Sometimes, one had to accept kindness from others. It could actually put the other person’s mind at ease.
Brush.
Lee Hyunseung dusted his hands once and, as usual, started to head through the academy’s main gate. At that moment, a woman’s voice reached him.
“Oh my, the kid’s doing a good deed. I prefer bad boys, though… I don’t like younger guys or nice boys, but our kid happens to be both? You fail as this big sister’s boyfriend.”
“Who are you?”
Whoosh.
The instant Lee Hyunseung quickly turned around.
Shiiing.
Sharp fingernails pressed against his throat.
“Kid, if you move recklessly, you’ll die, okay?”
Even in that state, Lee Hyunseung looked at the other person’s face.
White hair, red eyes, short bob cut. Lee Hyunseung knew exactly who this was.
‘First Elder Baek Soyun… Why is she approaching me…?’
Cold sweat began to trickle down Lee Hyunseung’s face.