Chapter 232
I Became the Successor of the Martial God
Chapter 232.
The party was held in the hotel banquet hall.
“I thought Jeong Seung-hoon would hold it at a club. Should I say it’s unexpected?”
To be honest, it wasn’t really unexpected.
When he was out having fun with his acquaintances, holding it at a club wouldn’t have mattered.
But this time, it was somewhat of an official gathering.
‘Besides the Vulcanus Guild, I heard several blacksmith guilds are gathering.’
Apart from the Hunter Association, guilds like blacksmiths and alchemists sometimes banded together to form alliances.
The Blacksmith Alliance, Black Hammer, was one such example, and the Vulcanus Guild served as the head of that alliance.
‘As for the meeting’s agenda…’
It was obvious even without looking.
They’d probably be talking endlessly about the Sword Saint family and Black Iron.
Yoo Baek-jun sipped the wine he had brought with an indifferent expression.
‘Seriously, it’s not like we’re monkeys in a zoo.’
He could feel the gazes pouring onto him.
Every move he made was followed by curious stares.
The eyes of the party attendees. It felt like they were monitoring his every move, which put him in a bad mood.
“It’s Yoo Baek-jun.”
“I’ve never seen him before. Should we go over and try to strike up a conversation…?”
“He doesn’t look like he’s in a good mood.”
People seemed eager to approach and talk to Yoo Baek-jun.
‘I have no intention of doing that.’
Yoo Baek-jun radiated an aura that screamed he didn’t want to talk.
Because of that, people hesitated to approach and just lingered nearby.
“Hey, smile a little. With that intimidating face of yours, why are you making such a sour expression? People are too scared to come near.”
A woman approached him casually, unfazed by his demeanor.
A striking facial tattoo.
Yoon Song-ha.
“I’m doing it on purpose.”
“Wow, you’re a real weirdo.”
Yoon Song-ha was holding a beer and some jerky of unknown origin.
Yoo Baek-jun’s gaze turned icy.
“What kind of old-man combo is that…? Are you having a drink after work or something?”
“Wine doesn’t suit my taste. I’d rather have soju, but no matter how much I looked, there wasn’t any.”
“Well, of course…”
Soju at a place like this?
Yoo Baek-jun burst into a hearty laugh.
‘Did I bring the wrong person?’
This time, Yoo Baek-jun had come to the party with Yoon Song-ha. She didn’t seem comfortable in such a setting.
“Ugh, why did you bring me to a place like this…? And of all people, Jeong Seung-hoon’s party! I’m so uncomfortable I could die!”
“Uncomfortable? Then why don’t you sit—”
“Gah! Stop talking nonsense! People will think I’m weird if they see me.”
“Since when is Yoon Song-ha, of all people, so delicate as to care about others’ stares… Oof!”
“You wanna die?!”
Yoon Song-ha suddenly threw a punch.
He dodged it thanks to his reflexes, but the sound of it whizzing past was anything but ordinary.
“Hey, are you trying to kill me with that punch? I’m the Family Head now.”
“That’s why I told you to drop the formalities!”
“That was already the case!”
Yoo Baek-jun and Yoon Song-ha bickered in hushed tones.
If anyone nearby had heard, they would’ve found it utterly ridiculous.
“Ha. Let’s stop, just stop. This is childish. What’s the point of getting angry?”
Yoon Song-ha waved her hand dismissively and took a hearty swig of beer.
Gulp!
She let out a very unladylike sigh.
“So, why did you call me here? It’s not just to be your bodyguard, right?”
“What if it is?”
“……”
Yoon Song-ha glared at him with icy eyes, looking ready to kill him on the spot.
Yoo Baek-jun cleared his throat awkwardly.
“I’ve been busy lately, so I haven’t had time to meet. There’s a lot to talk about, and this seemed like the perfect place.”
“Talk? About what? What, do you want life advice or something? I just live an ordinary life.”
“No, that’s not it.”
Yoo Baek-jun took a sip of wine and glanced at Yoon Song-ha.
“The Golden Lion Guild.”
Yoon Song-ha’s expression changed instantly.
Her playful demeanor froze over, replaced by a chilling coldness.
“I’m thinking of disbanding the Golden Lion Guild. Got any good ideas?”
“You’re asking me that?”
“Isn’t it better to ask someone who knows the guild inside out? Leave it to the expert, right?”
Yoon Song-ha chewed on the jerky aggressively.
“…Hmph, fair point.”
Then she let out a small scoff.
It seemed she was willing to talk.
“The Golden Lion Guild was a clean guild until now. Well, until that bastard became the guild leader.”
“So, problems arose?”
“Yeah, they started committing crimes and corruption. But taking down the guild over that won’t be easy.”
Crimes and corruption alone wouldn’t be enough to dismantle a major guild.
Sure, they’d face punishment, but compared to the guild’s scale, it’d be a slap on the wrist.
“You’ve got something in mind, don’t you?”
“Use his hatred.”
“Hatred?”
Yoon Song-ha nodded.
“Yeah, Song Tae-yeon must hate me and the White Wolf Guild enough to want us dead. And he already does.”
Not to mention, before leaving, she had also delivered a satisfying punch to Song Tae-yeon’s face.
“Just a little push, and he’ll cross the line.”
“So, give him the opportunity to cross that line by provoking him.”
Yoo Baek-jun stared intently at Yoon Song-ha. She clicked her tongue.
“Song Tae-yeon and the Golden Lion Guild will jump at any chance to eliminate us. I’ll set the stage.”
“Make me a list of who needs to die and who needs to be spared.”
Yoon Song-ha’s eyes gleamed.
“Can’t we kill Song Tae-yeon?”
“That’d be problematic. Instead…”
Yoo Baek-jun smiled coldly.
“We can cripple him so badly he’d wish he were dead.”
“Not bad. I like it.”
Yoon Song-ha also smirked coldly.
She had no love lost for Song Tae-yeon either.
Only pure animosity.
“Well, well, look who we have here.”
Someone approached the two, who had been engrossed in their ominous conversation.
A man with tanned skin and a slightly frivolous demeanor.
Jeong Seung-hoon.
“Isn’t this our dear Yoo Baek-jun? Congrats on becoming a Family Head, kid.”
“……”
The same hearty smile as always.
But to Yoo Baek-jun, nothing was more repulsive than that smile.
‘Look at this bastard? Acting all friendly now when he was so sour at my inauguration?’
Yoo Baek-jun forced a smile.
It was hard not to react when someone who used to ignore him was suddenly acting chummy.
“Sorry about that. Had a lot to discuss with the other guild leaders.”
“I understand. Though I don’t appreciate being called here just to wait.”
“……”
Jeong Seung-hoon’s eyebrow twitched.
But only for a moment. He quickly smiled again and greeted Yoon Song-ha.
“Wow, long time no see, Yoon Song-ha. How long has it been since you left the Golden Lion Guild?”
“Dunno.”
“Hahaha, who’d have thought you’d leave the Golden Lion Guild? If I’d known, I would’ve made an offer too.”
A flash of greed flickered in Jeong Seung-hoon’s eyes as he looked at Yoon Song-ha before disappearing.
A top-tier ranker. Any sane guild leader would covet her.
He turned back to Yoo Baek-jun.
“How’s life treating you? Everything good?”
“Not bad. Just busy.”
“Yeah, I bet. With all the things you’ve got going on. Lately, especially…”
For a while, the two exchanged trivial, meaningless small talk.
But it didn’t last long.
“Baek-jun.”
Jeong Seung-hoon suddenly spoke up.
“You’re already busy enough. Wouldn’t it be better not to encroach on others’ territories?”
“Hmm…”
Yoo Baek-jun was slightly surprised.
He hadn’t expected Jeong Seung-hoon to be so direct right off the bat.
“What are you trying to say?”
“Don’t get too greedy, kid.”
Jeong Seung-hoon placed a hand on Yoo Baek-jun’s shoulder and pulled him closer forcefully.
Their faces were now inches apart, and Jeong Seung-hoon growled like an angry beast.
“You’ve monopolized the Gates in Seoraksan, and your family controls all sorts of businesses. What more could you possibly want?”
Their eyes locked.
“Why are you meddling in our field, blacksmithing? Isn’t that overstepping? You’re infringing on our turf.”
“What’s overstepping? If it helps my family grow further, why not?”
“You little—”
Jeong Seung-hoon took a deep breath.
It looked like he was suppressing rising anger.
“Sigh…”
Jeong Seung-hoon exhaled and spoke with a calmer expression.
“I need Black Iron.”
“And I?”
The wording was odd.
If he were thinking of other blacksmith guilds, he should’ve said ’we.’
But he said “I.”
“Any chance you’d supply Black Iron to the Vulcanus Guild? I’ll pay generously. No hard feelings.”
“Are you serious?”
“Yeah. The Black Iron gear you’ve been making has been giving me headaches lately.”
Jeong Seung-hoon sighed.
“It’s an exclusive mineral only found in the Floating Island, so there’s no way to get it, and the prices are dirt cheap. It’s disrupting the market.”
“That’s an interesting way to put it.”
“Interesting? This is a matter of livelihood for us. If you won’t supply Black Iron, at least raise the prices of your gear.”
“You’re saying we should sell at fair value?”
Jeong Seung-hoon nodded.
Supplying Black Iron to them would be the best solution.
But if that wasn’t possible, raising the prices of Black iron gear was the next best thing.
‘At the very least, we need to level the playing field. The prices that bastard is selling his items for… it’s impossible to compete.’
The biggest advantage of Black iron is its ’price.’ Since it’s a mineral infinitely regenerated in the Floating Island, Black iron gear can be sold at much lower prices.
It outright crushes gear in the same price range.
In some cases, it even rivals gears several times more expensive.
‘The funny thing is, the Black iron gear on the market is still experimental.’
If the dwarves advance further and combine it with the Verdant Magic Stones…
Ordinary guilds that source their materials from beyond the Gates won’t stand a chance.
Of course, there are mining areas on Earth due to liberated Gates, but their reserves aren’t infinite.
“Well…”
Yoo Baek-jun smirked.
“Do I have any reason to do that?”
“…The Blacksmith Alliance will impose sanctions. And the Hunter Association executives tied to us will join in.”
Jeong Seung-hoon bared his teeth.
“We were actually discussing that today. How to bring down your family.”
“Interesting. And?”
“There are already plenty of people who dislike your family. With them, and on top of that…”
Jeong Seung-hoon grinned.
“You know the Hunter Association is targeting you, right? Things will get even more complicated. Are you sure you’re okay with that?”
“Sounds like a threat.”
“Yeah, it is a threat. The Sword Saint Family! Truly an impressive family. But do you really think you’ll be fine after making enemies of so many organizations?”
Jeong Seung-hoon leaned in closer. Their gazes clashed in midair.
“Just because you’ve become a Family Head doesn’t mean you’re invincible. Did you think we’d just sit back and take it?”
“Then what are you going to do?”
A smile crept onto Yoo Baek-jun’s lips.
A blatant sneer.
“Planning to collaborate and start a price war? Go ahead. I’ve got money to burn. Let’s see who bleeds out first.”
The Gates in Seoraksan.
And the infinite supply of Black iron.
He had no fear of a price war.
“Or are you going to team up with the Hunter Association to sanction our family? Do you really think we’d bow to that?”
Tsk, tsk.
Yoo Baek-jun clicked his tongue.
“No way. Your sanctions mean nothing. In fact, it’s the opposite. You won’t be the ones imposing sanctions.”
“Ugh!”
Yoo Baek-jun gripped Jeong Seung-hoon’s shoulder tightly. Jeong Seung-hoon winced in pain.
“We’ll be the ones imposing sanctions.”
“W-what?”
Buzz, buzz!
Just then, Jeong Seung-hoon’s phone rang.
A brief silence fell.
Yoo Baek-jun pulled out the phone himself and handed it to him.
“You should answer that.”
“……”
Jeong Seung-hoon looked at the phone with unease.
A bad feeling crept over him.
And when he answered the call—
—Jeong Seung-hoon, sir! It’s a disaster!
“What’s going on? Why the panic?”
—The media—right now—Park Dae-goon, that bastard, is confessing everything we’ve done! That crazy son of a bitch!
“W-what are you—?”
—The deals we made with villains! The black-market dealings, even the people we buried—he’s exposing all of it!
“……!”
Jeong Seung-hoon hastily hung up.
Yoo Baek-jun was close enough to hear the call.
Their eyes met.
“You said something earlier, didn’t you? About whether we’d be fine after making enemies of so many organizations.”
A smile played on Yoo Baek-jun’s lips.
“Let’s see how well your precious guild holds up against the Hunter Association and the rest.”
Jeong Seung-hoon’s face paled.
Yoo Baek-jun patted his shoulder lightly.
“This’ll be fun.”