Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 045
Chapter Title: Parley
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The reception room where Seong Yujin had taken Min Chae-ryeong was the one he always used to greet visitors whenever he came to the foundation—a space that was practically his personal lounge.
The lavishly decorated interior of the reception room evoked the grandeur of an old European castle. Every piece of furniture and decor was top-of-the-line, worth tens of millions, boasting such exquisite aesthetics that even those oblivious to their value would feel intimidated.
However, none of the guests who had visited this room over the years had let their eyes wander to the decor. No matter how superior the quality of the furniture or ornaments, it couldn't compete with the magnetic pull of the one man standing before them.
Seong Yujin. One of the fewer than twenty S-grade superhumans in the country, a publicly certified Grade 1 hunter. An executive of an S-grade guild, a director of the Ye-il Scholarship Foundation, and an outside director of its parent company, the Ye-il Group.
The guests who came here to meet him were invariably awestruck by his mere presence. They watched their every word and action meticulously, desperately trying to read his mood. In all of Korea, the number of people who could face him alone with composure could probably be counted on two hands.
"No time to waste, so let's cut to the chase."
And Min Chae-ryeong was one of those few.
"We're meeting after so long, and you're already this cold? I thought we had a pretty solid senior-junior bond."
"Even seniors and juniors have to follow basic etiquette. And your Ye-il broke it."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Don't play dumb. You think I don't know why your foundation's scholarship officer approached Kang Ha-neul? To use him as a sample for multi-ability research, right?"
"Ahem."
At those words, Seong Yujin coughed uncomfortably. His sharp gaze pierced right between Min Chae-ryeong's brows.
"Enough with the baseless accusations. Multi-ability research is prohibited by national law. Do you really think Ye-il would engage in something illegal like that?"
"Yeah. You are. The Superhuman Rehabilitation Research Institute under Ye-il Group in Yongin. On the surface, it's about rehabilitation therapy for superpowers, but really, it's researching multi-abilities, isn't it?"
Seong Yujin swallowed hard at the bold question. But he quickly regained his composure, shaking his head as he added,
"...Let me say it again. Enough with the baseless accu—"
"Why act like we don't both know? It's illegal in name only. Green House and Ye-il are both doing it on the down-low anyway."
"Well, now."
An incredulous smile crept onto Seong Yujin's lips. It was absurd to see someone from the vaunted Academy Security Force so casually exposing her own academy's dirty laundry.
'Right, Senior Chae-ryeong's always been like that.'
Seong Yujin recalled his days as an academy undergrad with Min Chae-ryeong. She'd always been unpredictable, even back then. A fond smile spread across his face as he reminisced.
"I really can't win against you, Senior. Fine for your side, but you're from the National Academy, aren't you? You sure it's okay to admit it so openly?"
"What's not okay about it? It's not like I'm saying this officially, and how much authority does a mere Security Force team leader's word carry anyway?"
"A mere Security Force team leader..."
Was there a more misleading way to describe Min Chae-ryeong? Sure, her official title was just Security Force team leader, but anyone who knew her wouldn't dare reduce her to that.
"A mere Security Force team leader... So why is this 'mere team leader' getting involved in our foundation's affairs?"
"When you're trying to drag one of our students into something illegal? Of course I'm getting involved. Right?"
"That's all in your head, Senior. Our scholarship officer approached Kang Ha-neul student with purely good intentions, just wanting to help with his studies."
"You expect me to buy that?"
"What if you don't? Issue a statement saying Ye-il's scouting Green House students for illegal multi-ability research?"
Seong Yujin knew that was utterly impossible.
Min Chae-ryeong's power didn't come from her own strength but from her vast network of connections. And those connections extended not just to Green House but to Ye-il as well. That's why she couldn't openly antagonize Ye-il.
All she could do was what she was doing now: come alone and negotiate directly with the person in charge.
"And let's be precise. 'Our student'? If Kang Ha-neul drops out of Green House, he's no longer your student, is he?"
"Who knows? People's minds can change on a dime."
"From what I hear, Kang Ha-neul seems completely fed up with Green House."
"You'd better watch your words too. Kang Ha-neul isn't fed up with Green House—he's turned off by the entire hunter industry, the whole superhuman society. That's why he turned us down even when we offered the best terms."
"That's our business to han—"
Seong Yujin leaned deeply forward. He interlaced his fingers, pressing them to his brow with straight arms. His fallen bangs cast deep shadows over his eyes.
"As I said before, we're simply scouting Kang Ha-neul with no ulterior motives. So this isn't something for a Security Force team leader like you to get involved in. Got it?"
"You're right. But if—"
Matching his eye level, Min Chae-ryeong leaned in too. With only the table between them, their faces drew close.
"But if Kang Ha-neul keeps refusing your demands to the end, and you resort to hardball tactics? Like forcibly kidnapping him since he won't cooperate with Ye-il's research...?"
"Ye-il would never do anything illegal like that."
"Ye-il has thousands of employees under it—can you vouch for every single one's actions? Say, some overzealous researcher decides to kidnap Kang Ha-neul on their own to use as a lab rat?"
"That's a bit of a logical leap."
He said that, but Seong Yujin couldn't strongly refute her. Similar ideas had indeed come up at the research institute.
Kang Ha-neul was an invaluable sample for multi-ability research—one they couldn't let slip away.
If gentle methods failed, they might have to consider more radical ones. It had been dismissed as overthinking, but if Kang Ha-neul kept rejecting their scouts, who knew what might happen.
Most of Ye-il's executives involved in this weren't villains like the Dawn Corps but ordinary citizens with common morals. Yet at their core, they were profit-driven corporate players.
For the tantalizing fruit of multi-abilities, they'd easily bend a few laws, brushing aside their everyday ethics.
"I hope it's just a logical leap. But if—just if—Ye-il pulls any hardball on Kang Ha-neul—"
"Then what?"
"Then I'll step in without hesitation. As a mere Security Force team leader."
Min Chae-ryeong couldn't harm Ye-il. But with just cause, it was different. If Ye-il crossed the line first, she'd cross it too. That was the declaration she was making.
"...You're showing an awful lot of interest in just one student."
Seong Yujin couldn't help but wonder. Risking friction with Ye-il over one student's safety? It didn't add up.
Sure, as a team leader, she had to care about student safety, but he didn't think she'd prioritize that over the hard-earned connections she'd built.
'What merit does Kang Ha-neul even have for her...?'
At first, he'd thought maybe she wanted to groom him as a future subordinate, but that still didn't explain it. Giving up Ye-il ties for one competent underling? No sense.
'Wait, come to think of it, just a bit ago...'
One possibility flashed through his mind.
'Why act like we don't both know? It's illegal in name only. Green House and Ye-il are both doing it on the down-low anyway.'
A moment ago, Min Chae-ryeong had said that as if she knew everything. Implying both Green House and Ye-il were secretly researching illegal multi-ability users.
What if that wasn't just telling an obvious lie to cut the crap, but a hint at why she was here?
"...No way."
Seong Yujin asked with a hint of unease. He had to.
"Is Green House trying to use Kang Ha-neul for multi-ability research too? That's why you're blocking the dropout and scouting?"
"Who knows? I'm just a mere Security Force team leader—I don't know the inside details."
Min Chae-ryeong shrugged with a sly grin. But Seong Yujin wasn't naive enough to take that at face value.
Behind Min Chae-ryeong stood Green House—and by extension, the government of this country.
Thinking that way, cold sweat naturally beaded on his skin. No matter how elite a superhuman he was, he couldn't afford to get cocky against a national government.
"I see."
But he wasn't here as Seong Yujin the individual—he was here as Ye-il Group's outside director.
"I understand your point. I don't think it'll happen, but if any of ours tries an illegal approach on Kang Ha-neul, I'll block it myself. However—"
And Ye-il, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Hanseong Group, could absolutely afford to get cocky even against a national government.
"As long as we're scouting Kang Ha-neul legally, I ask that you, a mere Security Force team leader, stay out of it."
"Oh my."
At his words, the smile vanished from Min Chae-ryeong's lips.
"I thought I made that clear enough. Got a bit arrogant while I wasn't looking?"
"Just learned to match my position. You still see me as that academy junior fawning over you?"
As soon as he finished speaking, thick killing intent rose from Seong Yujin.
-Crunch.
Intangible pressure constricted Min Chae-ryeong from all sides. Unaware of it himself, he was emitting his mana physically to oppress her. At S-grade, one could wield mana instinctively without understanding it.
-Rattle. Rattle.
Furniture around Seong Yujin and Min Chae-ryeong began to tremble. His aura was tremendously powerful—enough to knock out an ordinary person instantly, and even most superhumans would falter.
Yet Min Chae-ryeong remained utterly unfazed at its epicenter. Though A-grade herself, the gap with S-grade Seong Yujin was vast as heaven and earth. It defied common sense.
"...Seong Yujin."
But Min Chae-ryeong was no ordinary woman.
As if his pressure meant nothing, she straightened up and met his eyes. Their gazes clashed fiercely in the air.
Looking at his face suddenly reminded her of their academy days together.
Seong Yujin, clumsy in everything despite his current fame, and her younger self, still retaining some innocence, hanging out together.
That was the distant past. Now, they were completely different people from back then. The clumsy junior had become one of the country's top powerhouses, while the senior with pure ambition had dipped into dirty worlds, building dark power.
She'd thought their senior-junior bond would endure decades, yet here they were.
Struck by the gap between past and present, Min Chae-ryeong smirked at Seong Yujin.
"...You've grown a lot. Seems like just yesterday you were trailing behind me."
Seeing that smile, Seong Yujin's expression stiffened.
It wasn't her usual inscrutable smile. It was the one she'd shown him several times back then—the smile of academy senior Min Chae-ryeong from their pure days.
Her condescending demeanor hadn't changed, but her gaze held no arrogance.
Like a kind older sister looking at her little brother, warm and proud of his growth—that smile forced Seong Yujin to retract his killing intent.
"Hah."
A hollow sigh escaped his lips.
"Grown a lot, huh..."
Mulling it over, he chuckled softly. Her attitude left him utterly flustered.
Extremely flustered.
But not in a bad way.
"No matter how high I climb, I'm still your junior?"
"Nothing bonds like school ties in Korea. So, as respect for your senior, can you back off this time?"
"Saying boomer stuff like that so casually—you've gotten old too, Senior Chae-ryeong."
"............What?"
Seong Yujin chuckled at her furrowed brow and stood up, as if there was nothing more to say here.
"We were seniors and juniors once, but now we're Ye-il and Green House people. Forget leaning on old ties—let's compete fair and square on merit."
"Should I take that as your declaration of war?"
"Think what you want. But one thing's clear: Ye-il won't back down from this."
"...Fine. Good."
Min Chae-ryeong sighed deeply and rose, heading for the reception room door.
'Guess it had to end like this.'
She'd expected as much, but Ye-il had no intention of yielding on this. Neither did her Green House. Collision was inevitable—legal or otherwise.
'I told Ahn Su-ho, who had no assignment, to stop Kang Ha-neul's dropout as a stopgap, but he'll probably fail.'
In truth, the task she'd given Ahn Su-ho was a casual one: nice if it worked, no big deal if not. If anything, his role was bait to draw Ye-il's attention and buy time to counter their moves.
'From his tone, Seong Yujin himself doesn't seem inclined to radical measures like kidnapping...'
Turning her back to him, Min Chae-ryeong threw out one last confirmation.
"As I said before. The moment—even slightly—anything illegal sticks, I'll slap you with Special Countermeasures investigation authority and arrest you. So watch your step."
"I'll keep your words in mind, Senior."
"Too late to act polite now."
With that, Min Chae-ryeong left without further farewell. Rude for facing a Ye-il director, but utterly in character for her.
"Hmm."
Left alone, Seong Yujin stared blankly at the door she'd exited.
His mind was a mess too. Originally, Ye-il had planned to quietly extract the dropout-bound Kang Ha-neul they'd been eyeing. Conflict with Green House, led by Min Chae-ryeong, wasn't what they wanted.
But unwanted or not, now that conflict had arisen, Ye-il wouldn't yield.
He'd need to discuss next steps with the foundation directors right away. His gaze drifted to the teacup he'd served her. He'd brewed rare premium black tea for once, but it sat untouched, cooling completely.
'...Still doesn't like black tea, huh.'
Some things hadn't changed since their student days. In the now-silent reception room, Seong Yujin chuckled lowly.