Chapter 568: The Conspiracy Begins (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 568: The Conspiracy Begins (1)
On the surface, nothing had changed.
Not for the Mirae Group, which had been hit by a massive storm overnight, and not for me.
The face we showed the world was exactly the same, without the slightest deviation.
But things had changed.
Drastically.
The Mirae Group was still the number one conglomerate in South Korea.
But they had lost their driving force.
The knowledge from Dantalion that had allowed them to expand beyond Korea and onto the world stage.
They could no longer obtain it.
They were left with two paths.
Either stagnate, unable to achieve new breakthroughs, or survive by advancing their technology on their own.
Either way would be excruciatingly painful.
The former meant being tormented by the many enemies they’d made, dismissed as has-beens.
The latter would require an enormous investment of time and resources to develop new technology.
That wasn't the only thing that had changed.
【Mirae Group Signs Sponsorship Deal with Twilight Guild.】
【Mirae Group Chairman Im Cheol-ho, Partnering with Twilight Guild, Pledges “Unstinting Support.”】
【With the Wings of Capital, How Far Will the Twilight Guild Fly?】
The true ruler of the Mirae Group had changed.
From Dantalion to me.
The sponsorship was a kind of cover for this.
After all, if their funds suddenly started flowing to me or my guild without a plausible contract, everyone would find it strange.
Thanks to this, the Twilight Guild's name was once again a hot topic.
As a result, articles stirring up unnecessary friction began popping up like mushrooms after rain.
【Dawn and Twilight, the Start of a Generational Shift?】
【Was the Name ‘Twilight Guild’ a Challenge to the Dawn Guild?】
【On Son Si-woo and Kim Do-jin, the Two Giants of Korea】
Reading the headlines, I couldn't help but click my tongue.
“Tsk, tsk… Korean reporters are truly world-class when it comes to stirring up trouble.”
If they all Awakened, our country would be known as a Tanker superpower.
“I expected this when I founded the guild, but… it's more intense than I thought.”
The name Twilight Guild.
It was the perfect bait for reporters.
Because the number one guild in Korea is named Dawn.
And because their leader is none other than Son Si-woo.
Essentially, the name ‘Twilight’ could be interpreted as a declaration from the rising sun, Kim Do-jin, to the sun already in the sky: ‘I will drag you down with my own hands.’
Thanks to that, the guild was in an uproar.
Brrrring!
“No, sir. Our guild's name is absolutely not a declaration of war against the Dawn Guild…”
Brrring!
“What? You're asking who would win if our Guild Leader fought Hunter Son Si-woo? How would I know that?”
The phones at the guild office were ringing off the hook.
They were all demanding we clear up the suspicions and allegations being raised.
Isn't it ridiculous? They create these suspicions by writing whatever they want, and then they demand we resolve them.
“They're the ones who took a shit, so why are they asking someone else to wipe it? Unbelievable.”
They're no different from gnats.
Not a threat at all, but they keep buzzing around, being a nuisance.
“Well… it'll probably die down soon.”
If you don't add firewood, the fire in the furnace naturally dies out.
Public interest is the same.
If we just keep quiet and do our work without reacting, their attention will eventually shift elsewhere.
The world isn't boring enough for them to stay focused on this forever.
“Anyway… I don't have to worry about money anymore.”
If I need anything, I can just ask the Mirae Group for it.
Now, I turn my gaze elsewhere.
Not outward, but inward.
“Status Window.”
With a command I felt I hadn't uttered in a long time, a long holographic window appeared.
[Status Window]
Name: Kim Do-jin
Gender: Male
Age: 23
Height/Weight: 186CM / 88.5KG
[Strength: 101] [Stamina: 101] [Agility: 101] [Mana: 105]
Trait: Apostle of Greed
Sub-traits: [Gluttony (貪食)], [Stigma of Greed], [Domain of the Ruler], [Body of Extreme Refinement (鍊極之體)]
[Mutual Non-aggression (2022.06.09.~2025.12.31)]
[Disclosure Prohibition (2022.06.09.~2025.12.31.)]
My Strength, Stamina, and Agility, which had been stuck at 99, had each increased by 2, reaching 101.
A mere difference of 2.
Some might say it was only a small increase, but they would be wrong.
The difference between the two steps from 99 to 101 was like the difference between heaven and earth.
If 99 is the limit of a human, the three-digit number 100 is another realm entirely.
The realm of the gods… that sounds a bit too grandiose.
What should I call it?
If I had to put it into words, it's like the first step a human takes toward becoming a god or some other transcendent being.
Who knows. If my stats reach 150 or 200, I might really become a god or something equivalent.
What created such a tremendous difference… was my evolved trait.
I lightly tapped on Body of Extreme Refinement, which had replaced Body of Ultimate Effort.
[Body of Extreme Refinement (鍊極之體)]
[Rank: SS]
-You have succeeded in transcending human limits through effort and trials.
-Quickly overcomes negative statuses affecting the body.
-Greatly increases the body's recovery and durability.
-Increases the body's efficiency by 1.5 times.
-The body will not easily collapse even when using power that surpasses its limits.
-The body can grow through combat with powerful enemies, transcendent beings, etc.
With every line I read in the long description, a gasp of admiration escaped me.
“Whoa.”
I'd already seen it several times, but it was still amazing every time.
It seemed to contain every beneficial effect you could possibly bestow upon a physical body.
To the point where, short of death or an equivalent injury, becoming permanently incapacitated was unthinkable.
The most surprising part was the very last line of the description.
With all my stats at 101, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say I'd reached a limit, yet the final sentence hinted at the potential for further growth.
Of course, it came with an unexpected condition, but that wasn't a problem at all.
I predict that in order to survive, I'll have to face and defeat countless powerful foes anyway.
Seen that way, it wasn't really a condition.
If anything, it felt more like an extra victory reward just for me.
“Is the world smiling upon me?”
I'm starting to lose confidence.
Confidence that I can be defeated, or that I can die.
But I can't let my guard down.
Suppressing my conceit, I closed the description window for Body of Extreme Refinement.
My gaze shifted to the bottom of the status window.
“Hmm.”
The two one-sided pacts I'd been saddled with when my body was stolen.
Disclosure Prohibition and Mutual Non-aggression.
The pacts that idiot Fake Si-woo had put in place to protect himself were set to expire on December 31st of this year.
“It's not far off now.”
The end was finally in sight.
When I finally face him properly, what should I say?
Should I thank him?
Or should I start by punching him in the face to convey the misery I felt back then?
I guess I should start thinking about it.
I slowly rose from my comfortable chair.
By the window, which offered a clear view of Gangnam.
Beyond the road bustling with all sorts of expensive cars, a Magic Tower stood in the distance.
“……”
It's over there.
The final problem clouding my mind.
“Han Ju-hee.”
One of South Korea's prides, alongside Son Si-woo.
The idol of all mages.
And, with a high probability, a traitor who has joined forces with the villain organization, ‘Hexagram’.
I've always been curious, and I still am.
Why did she close her heart and push me, her husband, away so forcefully?
And why did she join hands with a mysterious organization like Hexagram?
What is it that she truly desires?
My heart may have moved on, but I can't suppress the sharp curiosity I feel toward her.
I can't just ignore her completely.
After all, she is Seo-yeon's mother.
Depending on what she does… it will have a huge impact on Seo-yeon.
“Is there still something you want?”
I want to ask her.
Wealth, fame, power.
Even though you have it all, what more could you possibly want?
What could be so hard to obtain that you'd join forces with a shady organization with no roots?
I turned around and took out a book I had carefully placed in my office desk drawer.
It was scorched black in places, with parts of its cover and pages burned away.
“The Grimoire of Dantalion…”
A treasure among treasures, said to allow one to see the past, present, and future.
Just once, before the book was burned due to a foolish mistake.
I had opened the complete Grimoire of Dantalion.
Inside, it presented me with the very thing I most wanted to know, yet never wanted to find out.
Something ambiguous, which couldn't be neatly categorized as past, present, or future.
Completely out of place in such a large tome, there was only a single sentence written.
And what did it say?
“The person Han Ju-hee loves most in the world is Son Si-woo…?”
Amazingly, that's what was written, without a single word out of place.
And I still don't understand what it means.