Chapter 55
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: How to Use the Hooked Baek A-rin
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"Yes, I'll create that justification for you."
Baek Ho-yun, the clan leader, echoed my words back at me.
"You're saying you'll create a justification to move the Snow Mountain Clan? How exactly? Do you think our Snow Mountain Clan is some hole-in-the-wall shop?"
"Of course not. You're the undisputed top clan in Korea."
Baek Ho-yun showed no reaction to my words, while Baek A-rin shot me a look like I was some sycophantic bootlicker.
'I'm pretty confident in my flattery skills.'
Though today, I'd be doing the exact opposite.
Baek Ho-yun looked my way and spoke.
"Then tell me, how do you plan to create that justification? Let's hear it."
"Do you know Lee Seong-hyeon?"
Baek Ho-yun nodded slightly at my question.
"Lee Seong-hyeon, the talk of the town right now. The media and society are buzzing every day about how he's the greatest genius the academy has ever seen. And honestly, that's probably true..."
"That's enough. I keep up with the news. I don't see what that student has to do with giving the Snow Mountain Clan justification."
What relation? He's the benchmark. I'd set up Lee Seong-hyeon as this massive point of comparison and sell myself.
"The pinnacle of the academy. I'll claim that spot."
Baek A-rin's eyes went wide,
and a brief silence followed.
Then, for the first time, the expressionless Baek Ho-yun burst into a big laugh.
"You, the pinnacle?"
"Yes. I'll crush this generation, hailed as the academy's greatest ever, and take the top spot."
His face screamed disbelief. Baek Ho-yun had probably already looked into me to some extent. An inferior orphan with just one skillbook. And here I was, declaring I'd surpass Lee Seong-hyeon and claim the academy's top position.
'Must be hilarious.'
The pinnacle of the academy. That meant the strongest hunter of that generation.
"I get what you're trying to say."
Baek Ho-yun seemed to understand my point. The top graduate of the Hunter Academy—no, the pinnacle, the Seoul Hunter Academy. Even as a fresh graduate, that was worlds apart from some regular school's newbie.
A hunter with proven, guaranteed specs.
The absolute best of that generation.
Every clan would kill for that.
'Especially if it's the top spot.'
A verbal agreement to join the Snow Mountain Clan as the top of this so-called greatest generation. If true, they'd trade anything for it.
'For the Snow Mountain Clan. Especially for Baek Ho-yun.'
But the biggest flaw—and problem—in my proposal.
"How can we trust the word of some no-name student who hasn't even made a proper name for himself? Like you said, the Snow Mountain Clan is the best. A student like you wouldn't normally even get a foot in the door."
I knew that. All too well.
No matter what I said, it wouldn't work.
That's why what I was about to do was unavoidable.
I took a deep breath and spoke.
"I know. The top clan. No Korean wouldn't know you're the second to the Inferno Clan."
"Second place..."
Baek Ho-yun's eyes twitched in an instant.
And across from him, Baek A-rin's eyes seemed filled with shock.
-Kim Si-woo, are you insane?! What the hell are you doing!
She wore that exact expression as she kept kicking my shin.
'Ow, that hurts.'
It was a bit harsh, but it was the truth.
The Snow Mountain Clan lagged behind the Inferno Clan in most areas, stuck with the image of eternal runner-up.
Plus, Baek Ho-yun's personal grudge.
He was academy classmates with Kang Young-ho, but he'd never once surpassed him—not even as an individual.
To shake the icy Baek Ho-yun emotionally, the best way was to poke at that inferiority complex.
The way his eyes were trembling now was proof.
'Scary.'
His sharp gaze felt like it was piercing me.
Honestly, I was getting a little freaked out.
But stopping here would make it all pointless.
I had to keep saying things that would grate on Baek Ho-yun's nerves. Only then would this gamble pay off.
"The Lee Seong-hyeon you know is the pinnacle of this generation—no, he has talent surpassing hunters from every generation. And then there's Kang Hwa-yeon, who's just as formidable. Those two will surely become the twin pillars leading the next era of hunters."
"..."
Was he telling me to go on? Or suppressing his anger? Baek Ho-yun watched me with unreadable eyes.
I ignored it and pressed on.
"You keep up with the rumors, so you know. With his pride, Lee Seong-hyeon has no reason to join the Snow Mountain Clan when the number one Inferno Clan is an option. No matter what conditions the Snow Mountain Clan offers, the Inferno Clan will top them to snag him."
In the original story's 8th round, Lee Seong-hyeon stayed a freelancer—he never joined the Snow Mountain Clan.
Naturally, the other pillar, Kang Hwa-yeon, would succeed the Inferno Clan.
The already perennial second-place Snow Mountain Clan would lose both and widen the gap even further.
Baek Ho-yun knew that better than I did.
As my words ended, Baek Ho-yun finally spoke.
"You're not wrong. But what does that have to do with me trusting you?"
Exactly.
Even if Lee Seong-hyeon and Kang Hwa-yeon didn't join the Snow Mountain Clan, that had zero bearing on me becoming top graduate.
'And that's why I've been reeling in Baek A-rin all this time for this persuasion.'
Alright. Your turn, Baek A-rin!
I caught my breath and said calmly.
"My daughter, Baek A-rin—one of the candidates for Snow Mountain Clan successor—will stake her position and vouch for me."
Even Baek Ho-yun, the clan leader, couldn't hide his surprise at Kim Si-woo's words. Hadn't his daughter always wanted the clan leadership more than any of her siblings? Beyond wanting it—she was obsessed. Baek Ho-yun knew that better than anyone.
And Baek A-rin was just as stunned by Kim Si-woo's bombshell.
'This guy's actually insane! You crazy bastard!!'
The completely unagreed-upon statement was enough to fluster her and cloud her judgment.
Baek A-rin felt Kim Si-woo's piercing gaze on her.
'How the hell am I supposed to fix this! What does my successor spot have to do with anything!'
Baek Ho-yun looked at Baek A-rin with utter disbelief.
"Is that true?"
That's when Baek A-rin realized why Kim Si-woo's words suddenly carried weight. Within the clan, there were factions—close to her grandfather, the former leader—who hoped she, the one who most embodied his ideals, wouldn't inherit the clan.
For them, adding a minor project like 'incurable disease research' in exchange for a one-skillbook 'Kim Si-woo' taking the top spot? The stake was 'Baek A-rin's successor position'—a no-lose gamble.
Baek A-rin's head throbbed.
She'd thought she was the one baiting Kim Si-woo to win him over, but she'd been the fish on his hook from the start.
Kim Si-woo kept staring at her.
'He's telling me to choose. You crazy bastard...'
Baek A-rin understood the meaning in his eyes. Choose now.
If she abandoned him here, he'd abandon her too. But if she chose him and became his sponsor, she'd be in the same boat as him.
That's what it meant.
'If Kim Si-woo really is a joker card, pulling him to my side here gets me way closer to the successor spot.'
The things Kim Si-woo had shown her so far. His sudden declaration. It was enough to blur the judgment of Baek A-rin, who'd been anxious about losing him to someone else.
And the result was.
"I stake my successor position on this: Kim Si-woo here will become the greatest hunter of this generation. Once he claims that spot, he'll be a key pillar in the next-generation Snow Mountain Clan under my leadership."
At Baek A-rin's words, Kim Si-woo inwardly cheered, while Baek Ho-yun was genuinely shocked by his daughter's statement.
Baek Ho-yun was floored.
'Kang Young-ho called this kid in specially, so I figured I'd just take a look.'
Honestly, Baek Ho-yun hadn't expected much from this guy named Kim Si-woo.
There were rumors about taking down Panpagia right after enrollment or soloing a dungeon boss, but he knew it was physically impossible for a one-skillbook student.
'But damn, he caught me off guard.'
He, the Snow Mountain Clan leader, had been played by a skillbook rookie.
Ridiculous, but true.
'And A-rin staking her successor spot? No way.'
Especially since Baek A-rin was the most obsessed with the leadership position. It was hard to believe she'd gamble it away.
'She must have some solid conviction.'
Then his wife approached and asked.
"You're actually accepting a proposal like that? Not like you. Did the wind change direction?"
Baek Ho-yun took a deep drag from his cigarette.
"That kid's eyes are just like his old man's. No matter how absurd, I can't help but expect something."
Done. I survived.
Me? The King of Bluff.
Now my neck would stay intact even after the awards ceremony.
"Please, just talk to me so we can live."
Baek A-rin glaring at me with axe eyes from the side was a bit uncomfortable.
But hey.
I'd cleared a major hurdle.
'Cleared the hidden tutorial. And secured my safety as a bonus. How great is that?'
I wouldn't hold back on drinks today.
No, I was already drunk on euphoria.
"Pour up! Call everyone!"
"What the hell are you on about..."