Don't Be Scared
Working on a construction site was, according to them, an act that insulted them.
The fact that they could say something like that so casually—and the way they said it without the slightest hesitation—
From Min-hyeok's perspective, it was utterly absurd.
"You think this is some kind of joke?"
Min-hyeok looked back at the one called Jin-su.
"Not a joke. Sounds more like the words of a complete lunatic."
"This bastard…!"
"How dare you call the boss a lunatic!"
The men standing behind Jin-su immediately turned on Min-hyeok, voices raised, killing intent rolling off them.
"Did I say anything wrong? Whatever I do is my business. Some guy I've never even met shows up out of nowhere and tells me to quit my job—how is anyone supposed to take that as normal? And on top of that, this idiot claims that me working is somehow an insult to them."
To Min-hyeok, it sounded like nothing but the ranting of a madman.
What he did and how he lived was his own choice. These people had no right to order him around.
"He's saying it because you're an Awakener, not some ordinary human…!"
"An Awakener working construction? Aren't you embarrassed?"
"You're a disgrace to the entire Awakener community!"
"Unbelievable…"
Was there some law that said Awakeners weren't allowed to work construction sites? The nonsense these guys were spouting only made Min-hyeok dislike them more.
"So you're saying you refuse to quit?"
Min-hyeok raised his middle finger.
"Eat shit. I'm happy with the work I do. Mind your own business and take care of yourselves."
"Boss! Let's just deal with this guy right now!"
"Letting him talk and act like that is a stain on the Phoenix Guild!"
"Hey. You—Jin-su, was it?"
Seong-min, who had been watching quietly until now, finally spoke up.
Jin-su turned his head toward him.
"That's right."
"Does it really bother you that much that Min-hyeok works construction?"
"Who the hell is this guy?"
"You an Awakener too?"
The others snapped at Seong-min for butting in, their language rough.
Seong-min gave a wry smile.
"Sorry, but I'm not an Awakener."
"Not an Awakener?"
"What?"
"So you're just an ordinary human?"
"Some ordinary human thinks he can stick his nose into our conversation?"
"Do you even know who you're talking to right now?"
Ordinary humans had no business talking back to Awakeners. They were fragile creatures who couldn't even stand up to the weakest among them. Watching one insert himself into their conversation like this was deeply irritating.
"Judging by the way he calls him 'hyung,' they're coworkers. If you don't want to get hurt, stay out of this."
"An ordinary human running his mouth…"
"Awakener this, Awakener that… Is being an Awakener some kind of government post?"
Min-hyeok's muttered complaint pulled every gaze back onto him.
"What did you just say?"
"What about being an Awakener? Is it a government post?"
"Yeah, that's what I said. So what are you going to do about it? Is being an Awakener such a big deal? Sure, waking up is a good feeling, but that doesn't give you the right to act like complete assholes the way you do."
"This guy really rubs me the wrong way."
"He's been scraping by on a construction site—you think he's right in the head?"
"That's what I said from the start. No point trying to recruit someone like him."
Most of the guild members already believed that any Awakener working construction couldn't be fully sane.
Awakeners were superhumans chosen by the heavens—beings that ordinary people couldn't even compare to. For one of them to labor on a construction site was an insult in itself.
"If it bothers you that much, how about I make a proposal?"
Seong-min cut in again.
"A proposal?"
"One of you fights Min-hyeok. If you win, he'll apologize cleanly for insulting you and leave the construction site."
"H-hyung…?!"
Min-hyeok stared at Seong-min in shock.
"You're not planning to gang up on him with numbers, right? Not after all that talk about pride and insults and honor."
"Boss, don't even listen to this guy!"
"He's mocking us!"
The others flared up, but Jin-su seemed to be thinking differently.
"No. He's right. If we refuse the offer here… we're admitting we can't even beat him one-on-one."
The men who had been shouting fell silent, looking uncomfortable.
"How are we supposed to trust your word?"
That was the real question—how could they believe him?
Seong-min looked genuinely puzzled by the doubt.
"Then do whatever you want. If we break the promise, you'll have every right to come after us as a whole guild. We won't have a single thing to say about it."
Thinking about it, he was right. If they broke the deal, the Phoenix Guild could move as a group and the two of them would have no grounds to complain.
"You're going to regret those words."
"Maybe. Maybe not."
"Hyung… what are you doing…?"
Min-hyeok was completely thrown by the situation.
"What, you not confident?"
Seong-min asked it so casually that Min-hyeok could only groan.
"Ugh…"
"Boss, send me. I'll crush that bastard good and proper."
"No—I'll smash his face in."
"What are you talking about? I'm the one who's going to teach that punk a lesson!"
They all clamored to be the one sent out. Of course they did—each of them wanted the chance to punish the guy who had been insulting them just by working construction.
"Seok-yong. You go."
"Heh heh… That's our boss for you…"
A heavily muscled man with a sports cut stepped forward, cracking his fist into his palm.
"Huh?! Seok-yong's going out?!"
"Does he really need to step in against a guy like that?!"
"Jin-su, aren't you overestimating him a bit?"
Even the gum-chewing woman called Mi-ju looked incredulous.
It made sense. Seok-yong was the second strongest in the Phoenix Guild after Jin-su himself. With twenty-one members, having their number two walk out drew exactly those reactions.
"We need to show him clearly what an Awakener really is. For that, Seok-yong is the right choice."
Not only was he the second strongest—no one in the guild was better at completely destroying and "educating" an opponent. Once Seok-yong locked on, he charged in like wildfire and left the other side in pieces.
"Hyung, that guy's build is no joke…"
Even at a glance, the man was pure muscle with a bear-like frame that radiated pure intimidation.
"Awakener fights aren't decided by size."
"Still… the way they're talking, he must be one of the strong ones in the guild."
Seong-min patted Min-hyeok's worried shoulder.
"Min-hyeok."
"Yeah?"
"This is exactly when you walk out with confidence. And even if you lose, they're not going to kill you, right?"
"……"
That was not comforting in the slightest.
"Hey, kid. Stop fretting and get out here. I'll take real good care of you."
Seok-yong licked his lips and cracked a grin. Min-hyeok felt a chill run down his spine.
"Go on. He's calling you."
Seong-min gave him a firm pat on the back.
"Fighting."
"Ugh…"
Min-hyeok stepped forward with a pained sound.
What is that guy thinking?
Jin-su watched Seong-min carefully as he encouraged Min-hyeok with those back pats. The man had claimed he wasn't an Awakener—just an ordinary human. So where did that easy attitude and those jokes come from?
Does he trust the kid that much?
There was no other way to make sense of it.
"Don't tense up so much. I'll grind you down real nice and pretty."
Seok-yong worked his fists as he stared, the pressure of his gaze almost physical.
This is insane.
Min-hyeok was still reeling from the fact that he had suddenly been thrown into a fight. He had been dragged into something he never saw coming—simply because he was an Awakener.
"I'll even give you the first move. Come at me."
And now the guy was offering him the first attack as well.
This bastard looks strong.
He looked about 187 centimeters, but the muscle made him seem even bigger. The sheer presence rolling off him was one thing; listening to the others talk, he was clearly strong even among Awakeners.
Seong-min watched with a calm expression.
He's not weak.
The strength of the energy Min-hyeok had given off while working construction had definitely not been light. Seong-min had fought plenty of Awakeners—among them Kim Dong-woong, the leader of Gangrim Guild. Because of that, he could read the differences in the killing intent that leaked from an Awakener's Psychic Energy.
Min-hyeok wouldn't have been using his full power while doing gombang work. Even so, the energy Seong-min had felt from him on the site had been stronger than the guild members he had faced when he stormed Gangrim Guild.
Those had been members of the most powerful guild in Seoul at the time.
If Seong-min's read was correct—
Min-hyeok was strong.