Chapter 469: Demotion.
Chapter 469: Demotion.
Plop! Pitter-patter!
Raindrops fell, dotting the ground. Though the morning sun still hung high in the sky, it seemed a downpour was imminent as small, round droplets began to fall from the heavens.
By the time the slightly dusty ground had become damp, Ahn Hyun was staring at a pond where faint ripples were forming. After being led, almost dragged, out of the conference room, his feet had carried him to this very pond.
But was he really looking at the pond?
His eyes were unfocused. He was looking at the pond, but not seeing it.
His mouth was slightly agape. Not a single thought crossed his mind.
No, before that, he didn't even know why he was here.
Only the raindrops landing on his head trickled down, forming a single stream that ran past his eyes.
That’s right. Ahn Hyun's mind, as he stared at the pond, was utterly clouded.
But one thought alone refused to leave his empty mind, echoing endlessly.
‘First. As of this moment, Ahn Hyun will no longer be recognized as a member of the Mercenary Clan.’
‘Second. All equipment provided to him as a clan member will be confiscated. However, in recognition of his contributions thus far, his ownership of the Rare Class, Aura Spearman, will be acknowledged.’
‘Third. The employee Ahn Hyun will not be stationed at the Monica main branch; I hereby order his transfer to Prinsica.’
‘As I stated before, I will not accept any objections to this decision. That is all.’
The four declarations concluded with ‘That is all.’
Each and every one of those declarations was no different from a death sentence handed down to Ahn Hyun by Kim Soohyun. It was called probation, but it was anything but. He was no longer a Mercenary Clan member, his equipment was confiscated, and he could no longer stay in Monica. It was, in effect, an expulsion.
Expulsion from Mercenary.
Who could have possibly predicted Ahn Hyun's expulsion?
For Ahn Hyun, it was an unbelievable declaration.
Their bond had begun when he first entered the Rite of Passage.
He had followed him since the User Academy.
He was there through the caravan days and was present when the Mercenary Clan was founded.
He had been by Kim Soohyun's side longer than anyone else, for the longest time.
And yet.
No, perhaps that was why it was all the more unbelievable.
The fact that he had been abandoned by the person he trusted and followed most.
The fact that he could no longer meet even a cold gaze, let alone a warm one.
Suddenly recalling the gazes in the conference room, Ahn Hyun buried his face in his hands.
It was then.
“So this is where you were…”
“……?”
A low, calm voice reached his ears. Wondering if it might be Kim Soohyun, Ahn Hyun quickly turned around. And then—
Whoosh!
A small pouch flew toward Ahn Hyun. Thump. He caught it reflexively and felt its heavy weight. Ahn Hyun fumbled with the pouch for a moment before blankly raising his gaze.
“So you were here moping all by yourself, you reckless brat.”
But contrary to his hopes, the person standing before him was not Kim Soohyun. Sharp features and neatly arranged, long purple hair. It was Heo Junyoung.
As Ahn Hyun opened his mouth to speak, he realized his throat was choked with emotion. After clearing it once or twice without being obvious, Ahn Hyun managed to speak, his voice faint.
“Hyung-nim…. What's this….”
“Some gold and a few jewels. We heard you were being kicked out penniless, so the clan members gathered it behind the Clan Lord's back.”
“Ah, no. I can't take this….”
“Then you can take it back yourself. In any case, I've delivered it.”
With those final words, Heo Junyoung turned on his heel. But just before taking a step, he turned his head halfway and said in a slightly softer voice,
“…Or you can just keep it. It's not like we put that much in there anyway.”
“…Thank you.”
“Hmph. Well then… Ah, I forgot something. Sangnam-hyung-nim and Nono-nunim are looking for you. Once you're done moping, you should go see them.”
“Huh?”
Sangnam-hyung-nim and Nono-nunim were the married couple who managed Mercenary's dining hall. Because their cooking was excellent, Ahn Hyun frequented the place even outside of mealtimes and had grown quite close to them.
Ahn Hyun questioned him, but Heo Junyoung was already walking away like the wind. The distance between them grew in an instant.
Ahn Hyun watched his retreating back for a long time. When he had completely disappeared from view, he tucked the pouch in his hand into his clothes. Then slowly, very slowly, he began to walk.
“Ha, I still can't believe it… An employee, equipment confiscated, transferred to Prinsica? They don't even have a branch there, do they? At best, there's just a pub or an inn, right?”
“Exactly. Honestly, Hyun isn't just some random User, and he doesn't deserve this kind of treatment. This is basically telling him to get out of Mercenary.”
Just as he opened the door and entered the lobby, several voices drifted into his ears. He blankly lifted his head. A record of today's meeting results was posted on the lobby bulletin board. And in front of it, a couple of clan members were loitering and talking.
“And Hayeon is being transferred too… At least Hangyul only got probation. Isn't the Clan Lord being too harsh? I know he has his position to think about, but still…”
“Geez. Dongseok-oppa, you're something else. This morning you were saying you'd be disappointed if he let it slide.”
“Hey, who knew he'd be this severe? I was annoyed about this incident, sure, but I never disliked Hyun as a person. I actually liked the guy.”
“That's true. Now that it's come to this, I feel so bad for him. I also… Huh? Oppa, oppa!”
Then, as if finally noticing Ahn Hyun's presence, the woman who had been talking trailed off abruptly.
Ahn Hyun immediately turned his head. He reflexively changed direction and walked quickly into the right corridor. Faint sounds, like someone calling his name or clearing their throat, came from behind him, but Ahn Hyun walked on without a single glance back and entered the dining hall.
The dining hall tables were empty. Even though it wasn't mealtime, there would usually be one or two people sitting around, but now, no one was in sight.
Only a single man and woman stood near the kitchen, gesturing for Ahn Hyun to come over. Drawn by their gesture, he approached as if in a trance. When he saw the food spread lavishly on the table, a strange light flickered in Ahn Hyun's eyes.
Ahn Hyun had to struggle immensely to keep his composure. The man with the friendly eyes and refreshing features, and the woman with an intelligent appearance that seemed prim at first glance, smiled warmly as they gazed at Ahn Hyun.
The man's name was Sangnam, and the woman was called Nono. Of course, her real name wasn't Nono; she preferred to be called that, so everyone did.
Nono twirled a kitchen knife engraved with a rose pattern and spoke.
“I heard the news. You're leaving, right?”
“Ahem. Honey.”
Sangnam chuckled and gently chided her, but Nono just blinked with a bewildered expression. Her attitude was one of 'What did I say wrong?' When Sangnam gave her a steady look, Nono smacked her lips and shrugged.
“Anyway, looks like that Jun-yeong punk told you, huh? We called you over to eat your fill before you go. You're our most loyal customer after Vivian, so we wanted to give you this much service. Hehe.”
Ahn Hyun managed a faint smile at her good-natured words.
“Thank you…. By the way, where's Ye-rin…?”
“She's sleeping soundly right now. Anyway, cheer up, kid. You sound so listless…”
“Haha…”
“Sigh. But how on earth did it come to this? You…”
Nono asked with a face full of curiosity, but she immediately stopped herself. It was because Sangnam had grabbed her arm again. Sangnam slowly shook his head and spoke in a heavy voice.
“I made all your favorites. I hope you'll eat and get some strength back.”
“……”
“If you think of us from time to time, don't hesitate to contact us. We'll either visit you, or we'll let you know when the Clan Lord is away. Haha…”
“……”
At their endlessly warm words, Ahn Hyun said nothing. No, he couldn't say anything.
Soon, Sangnam led Nono away, and the dining hall became completely empty. Ahn Hyun was left all alone in the vast dining hall. Looking at the feast spread out before him, so much that it looked like the table legs might break, Ahn Hyun collapsed into his seat. He stared blankly down at the table.
How much time passed like that?
Only after a long while did Ahn Hyun's frozen hand begin to move slowly. He slowly reached for the dishes he used to eat so often. As he ate the food bit by bit, Ahn Hyun slowly began to grasp his reality.
After today, he had to go to Prinsica tomorrow. He was no longer a clan member, he had no equipment, and there was no one to look out for him. The thought made his chest feel empty, and everything seemed to grow distant.
One spoonful, two, three, four.
He moved the spoon mechanically, but he couldn't taste a thing. It was the same food he always ate, and the taste was the same. But his current emotional state was too complicated to savor it bite by bite. The slowly encroaching pressure had crushed even his physical senses.
As he kept stuffing food into his mouth, Ahn Hyun suddenly realized he couldn't swallow anymore. His mouth was full, and his throat was closing up.
The moment he forced another spoonful in, his throat seized up, and his eyes suddenly stung as tears welled up. What he had been holding back for so long streamed down in a single line. It wasn't a raindrop.
Ahn Hyun fumbled for a cup and gulped it down. After his Adam's apple bobbed three or four times, he let out a ragged breath and slumped over. Even so, the streams running down his cheeks multiplied, leaving tracks behind.
Were these tears of sorrow, or were they from the pain in his throat?
Ahn Hyun asked himself this as he blankly stared up at the ceiling. The soft light flickered hazily. When he quietly closed his eyes, various thoughts flashed through his mind.
The meeting that started without giving him time to prepare. Kim Soohyun's gaze. The merciless declarations. The clan members' stares. The gossip surrounding him. All of it rose and fell in his mind like a torrent.
And, in that moment.
‘And Hayeon is being transferred too… At least Hangyul only got probation. Isn't the Clan Lord being too harsh? I know he has his position to think about, but still…’
When he recalled the words he'd heard in the lobby, Ahn Hyun's closed eyes shot wide open.
“Hayeon-nunim is being transferred…?”
Ahn Hyun hadn't been standing alone in the center of the conference room. He had been standing there with Hayeon and Hangyul. But his mind had gone blank the moment he heard the first declaration, so much so that he couldn't even remember how he'd left the room. Ahn Hyun hadn't been able to pay any attention to the other two.
The thought was long, but his actions were swift. He shot to his feet and, without a moment's delay, threw open the dining hall doors and rushed out. The places Hayeon usually went were her personal lab on the 3rd floor or her quarters. Of the two, Ahn Hyun chose the lab on the 3rd floor of the main building.
“Gasp! Gasp!”
He ran until he was out of breath, scrambling madly up the stairs. In an instant, he reached the 3rd floor, and the moment he opened the door to Hayeon's personal lab, he froze as if by magic.
Hayeon was also alone in her lab. Her face was calm, as always. But in her slender hands, she held a rather large bag. The magic books that had been neatly shelved, the research equipment that had been tidily arranged.
The always-immaculate lab was now starkly empty.
“Oh my. Hyun, you're here?”
When Hayeon turned and smiled brightly, Ahn Hyun felt his breath catch in his throat. It was because the possibility he'd desperately hoped wasn't true had become reality. For some reason, an inexplicable sense of guilt and self-loathing washed over him like a wave.
After staring for a long moment, Ahn Hyun staggered inside. He spoke in a stammering voice.
“Nunim, why are you….”
“Hm? Ahh. I received transfer orders, too. So I was in the middle of packing. Hoho. There's so much stuff. Did you perhaps come to help…”
“But you…. It wasn't you…!”
“……”
Hayeon continued speaking nonchalantly. But when Ahn Hyun's anguished cry followed, she fell silent for a moment. Then, she lifted her clear eyes and looked straight at him.
Ahn Hyun spoke. No, he shouted.
“I… I was the one who did wrong. It was all my fault! So why are you…!”
“No. It was my fault, too.”
“Nunim!”
“Hyun-ah.”
Hayeon's voice was soft, but it cut through Ahn Hyun's words easily. She continued with a faint smile.
“Stop acting like a child. I was acting in Soohyun-ssi's place, and I approved your request. The moment the official seal was stamped on the request form, that became an undeniable fact, regardless of the circumstances.”
“But…”
“What's the point, now that it's all over… It's fine. Don't worry about me; worry about yourself. At least my status as a clan member remains, and I still have my equipment. I'm better off than you, see? Hoho.”
“Ha…”
Hayeon spoke as if it were nothing and went back to packing. Ahn Hyun looked around, his face a mask of helplessness, and clenched his teeth. Then, his thoughts suddenly turned to the last person, and he asked with a sense of dread.
“Hangyul. What about Hangyul?!”
“Hangyul? He's on probation. But unlike you, it's just probation. Though they're calling it probation, I heard he needs to recuperate. His mental state seems to be very poor right now. They said if the aftereffects are severe, he could develop a mental illness…”
“…W-what did you say? A-aftereffects? A mental illness?”
“Yes. From what I heard, it seems his soul was pulled out and then somehow put back in. Anyway, it's worrying. If things go wrong, he'll have to recuperate for a very long time… But you didn't know?”
He didn't know the exact circumstances. When he came to his senses, he was in the city, and he'd received his expulsion order almost immediately after returning.
Hayeon meticulously packed her bag and placed it lightly on the desk. When Ahn Hyun didn't say anything more, she tilted her head and glanced toward the door.
And she saw it.
Looking at Ahn Hyun, Hayeon's face showed a hint of surprise as she slowly reached out a hand.
“Hyun, you…. Were you crying? No, you are crying?”
That's right. Ahn Hyun was crying. His lips were pressed tightly together, but tears were streaming endlessly from his eyes. The tears that had been welling up and leaking out before had now burst forth like a broken dam, triggered by the immense shock of what he had just heard. As someone with a younger sister, Ahn Sol, the shock Ahn Hyun felt was beyond words.
And finally, a single thought began to surface from deep within Ahn Hyun.
It wasn't denial of an unbelievable reality. It wasn't resentment toward Kim Soohyun. It wasn't some petty worry about the future.
It was this.
“Why did I…”
Why did I do that?
“What have I…”
What have I done?
From within Ahn Hyun, the true nature of the problem finally reared its head.
He was no longer thinking only of himself.
What he had done. And what consequences his actions had brought.
Ahn Hyun could finally understand.