Chapter 64
Chapter 64
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 64
Chapter Title: The Association's Persistent Call
-----------------------------------------------------------------
His brief happy fantasy didn’t last long—the very reason he was holed up in the motel came crashing into his reality.
It was a call from the Korea Hunter Association.
He was undeniably connected to President Bae’s incident, and he’d fled a mansion where a subordinate of the Golden Demon Knight had appeared, so it was only natural they’d be looking for him.
(Yoo Seongwon-ssi? This is the investigation team for the Gangnam incident…)
“I’ve got nothing to say. So I’m hanging up now~”
(W-Wait a minute. Yoo Seongwon-ssi? Hold on!)
“I’m human too! I barely escaped with my life from that bastard President Bae’s clutches, saved by a subordinate of the Golden Demon Knight! You think I’m gonna spill everything? Didn’t the security guards tell you?”
(That’s true, but just a moment to talk…)
“I refuse. I’m scared of retaliation from Seoul Guild and the other sponsors, so I’m gonna lay low in the countryside for a while.”
(We can provide protection…)
“Bullshit. Witness protection doesn’t exist in this hellhole of a country. Make some sense. If that were possible, guys like President Bae would’ve been locked up ages ago. It’s obvious you just want to suck every scrap of info on the Golden Demon Knight out of me and let me drop dead after. Why the hell should I help your investigation? Look elsewhere.”
*Click!*
Even he had to admit it was a perfect performance.
Yoo Seongwon grinned, savoring the satisfaction of sticking it to those annoying Association pricks.
If the Association had done their jobs properly, he wouldn’t have been dragged to President Bae’s place in the first place, and the New Gangnam mess never would’ve happened.
“Pfft, you think I don’t know how this country works after living here my whole life? What kinda three-card monte scam is this?”
*Bzzz! Bzzz!*
But Association staff didn’t give up easily.
Truth be told, he was the only one who’d witnessed President Bae’s death in that locked room, so giving up wasn’t an option for them.
Yoo Seongwon had said his piece, though, so he hung up without a second thought and blocked the number.
“Hmm, they’ll probably try some scheme to track me down soon enough, so I’d better get out of here.”
These types didn’t hold back against the weak—they’d pull out location tracking or whatever else in no time.
With that in mind, Yoo Seongwon checked out of the motel and pondered his next move.
But right in front of him was the familiar trailer from Baekya Guild.
“Well, this is awkward…”
“Uncle, you’re down! Hop in quick. It’s just Mom and me here.”
“How’d you find me? Does your guild use illegal methods too?”
“Nope. While you were spacing out, I installed a couple’s app on your phone. For emergencies, y’know? Anyway, get in before someone sees.”
Yoo Seongwon’s face fell, but he had no choice—he boarded the trailer.
Once inside, he spotted the slyly hidden ‘Couple Love App’ among a bunch of game apps.
“When the hell did you pull this stunt…?”
“Hehe, by the way, you caused a massive shitstorm this time, huh?”
“Had to be big enough to make them ignore a nobody like me. They brought it on themselves anyway.”
“Totally. Felt so damn good. Out front, smashing everything with overwhelming power! Ahh, that’s how I wanna be when I awaken…”
Ayoung pouted and slumped over the table.
The Golden Demon Knight’s fight had been pure domination, crushing foes with sheer force.
What was the ideal for Awakeners chasing strength? Unyielding power that bowed to nothing, strength that never needed to retreat or dodge, right?
“How’d it feel going full rampage? I saw those Seoul Guild guys’ faces change—gave me chills just watching!”
“That wasn’t a rampage; I just set the board right. Seoul Guild played it dumb. If they’d gone guerrilla or spread out a firing line to surround me, it would’ve been a different story.”
“Unlike you, Seoul Guild can’t just win at all costs. Fighting in their own backyard—at a major sponsor’s mansion—they had to march in openly and subdue things. No choice.”
Baekya Guild Master Shin Somi joined the conversation, taking a seat at the table.
There were only three people in the trailer right now, so Yoo Seongwon, curious about who was driving without a driver, asked.
“Uh… who’s driving?”
“Autopilot. It’s the guild master’s personal trailer—top-of-the-line with all sorts of features.”
“…You trust that?”
“It’s safe in Seoul City limits, at least. Don’t worry.”
She gave him a look like *don’t you trust modern tech?*, but Yoo Seongwon shrugged it off— even if it crashed, he wouldn’t die anyway.
Shin Somi continued.
“Anyway, you stirred up a huge mess… What’s your plan now? Damage control? Anything else on your plate?”
“After a stunt this big, I gotta go dark for a bit, obviously. To level up, I need C-rank gates, but I can’t hit those now, so I’ll just handle my side stuff and keep quiet.”
“Sounds nice. We’re gonna be swamped. Anyway, I’ll fill you in on the Association and guilds. It’s a big deal, so it’ll take time, but you need this—listen up.”
Shin Somi handed him a tablet PC, pulled up photos, and started explaining.
First up: Seoul Guild and New Gangnam’s major sponsors.
“They took the biggest hit. Seoul Guild’s a direct victim, but the sponsors who built the guild and New Gangnam are in even deeper shock.”
“Well, President Bae died inside New Gangnam. They poured billions over decades touting it as ‘absolutely safe,’ sinking money and influence into the city…”
“Yeah. So now the sponsors are split into two camps arguing. One pushes scrapping New Gangnam, the other strengthening it.”
“Huh? Why split? Scrapping makes sense, but strengthening?”
“One side says Seoul Guild was just weak, and President Bae’s personal screw-up caused this. With all the sunk costs in New Gangnam, we can’t scatter now. The other wants out entirely to back other guilds.”
In short, New Gangnam stood at a crossroads: disband or double down.
Both sides had points, but the sponsors would pick one.
Disbanding meant Seoul Guild’s factions splintering, residents scattering—total chaos.
“That’s why strengthening will probably win out. No real gains from dismantling Seoul Guild and New Gangnam.”
“No gains? Just losses if they scatter.”
Even if sponsors split, they’d lose power—getting absorbed elsewhere or spreading out wouldn’t match their current clout in Seoul Guild and New Gangnam. So strengthening would prevail.
“Means rebuilding that wall, huh. Fucking hell, no progress.”
“But no matter what the sponsors do, it hinges on Seoul Guild’s survival. The collapse has already started.”
“Ah~”
No amount of sponsor money or power could hold New Gangnam without martial force—Awakeners.
They had to hold Seoul Guild together, but after this, mass defections loomed.
“Guild master Park Sunwon handed the reins to Oh Kyung-hoon after the loss and vanished for ‘training.’ Oh Kyung-hoon promises a major overhaul, but details are scarce. Anyway, with just one S-rank, Seoul Guild’s toast as a top-three guild.”
“Academia’s in chaos too. Kids and contracts meant for Seoul are jumping ship. Top-three guilds are history.”
“The two guilds with one S-rank each must be thrilled.”
Korea’s ten S-ranks: three in Blue Dragon Guild, two in Seoul, one in Olympus, Association President, Academia Director, two local guild leaders.
Olympus was international, numbers irrelevant—so guilds with one S-rank eyed Seoul’s spot.
“Not just that. Oh Kyung-hoon’s an S-rank supporter, undervalued. Mid-tier guilds with A-rank heavies are making moves now. Key is how well Seoul holds its people through the storm.”
“Baekya’s out of it, right?”
“We’re scouting C- and B-ranks too… Sigh, tough with me as the only A-rank. One B-rank tank and I’d be set… Haah~”
Shin Somi let out a heavy sigh.
Like S-rank supporter Oh Kyung-hoon getting underrated, Shin Somi’s dungeon-focused skills got her pegged below A-rank despite being one.
“Doesn’t your constellation do jack? Just hands out weird names like ‘Judgment’ or whatever. Aren’t they usually pervs who love tormenting their pets?”
“…I’ve got plenty to say about your constellation biases, but our ‘Balancer’ just says prepare for world crises…”
“So, hands-off play specialist?”
“…”
“Sorry. I’ll behave. My apologies.”
Touching constellations was a big no-no, Yoo Seongwon realized, tucking tail fast.
It was one that exposed his hidden identity, after all.
With Seoul Guild and sponsors wrapped up, next: the Association.
“The Association. They called this morning too… freaking out to find me.”
“You’re the sole survivor from President Bae’s house when that knight showed—and you know the inside story. Of course they’re hunting you. We got the word too: report any contact.”
“But is this okay?”
“Of course not. They’re probably tailing our trailer right now.”
Yoo Seongwon tensed, glaring at Shin Somi suspiciously.
She didn’t bat an eye, continuing calmly.
He figured she wouldn’t risk death here lightly, so he stayed quiet.
“First, we’ll say we’re ‘hearing you out.’ Then sell your ‘testimony’ to the Association.”
“Sell to the Association?”
“Yeah. Minus you being the Golden Demon Knight, you’re a key witness. You saw one of his subordinates and escaped. Sole survivor of Bae’s gore-hobby locked room. You told the mansion guards a knight sent you, right?”
“Yeah, that’s my cover. So we sell that info—how?”
Trading info was movie stuff for a lifelong normie like Yoo Seongwon.
Still, he figured he should hear her out.