Chapter 44
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: Guild Creation (2)
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Before answering Lee Yu-rim's question, Kang Sa-hu raised his hand.
"Hold on a moment. I feel like the focus of the question has shifted, so let me share my thoughts first."
"Ah, sure."
Lee Yu-rim, who had asked the question, lowered her hand.
Kang Sa-hu looked around at everyone quietly before speaking gravely.
"First things first, before we discuss what comes after founding the guild, what I really want to confirm is Kim Ho-myeong and Lee Yu-rim's firm commitment to joining."
His unexpected words made the two of them widen their eyes in surprise.
"Of course I'm joining!"
Lee Yu-rim answered hastily, but Kang Sa-hu shook his head.
"As I mentioned before, once you join the guild, you might not get guarantees on your privacy or personal schedule depending on guild circumstances. You should think about that a bit more deeply."
"I understand what you're worried about, Leader."
Kim Ho-myeong, who had been listening attentively, spoke up.
"But both she and I seem to have already made up our minds firmly."
Kang Sa-hu fell silent and looked at him as Kim Ho-myeong flashed a grin at his resolute words.
"Like you said, Leader, if we had any complaints from our time together so far, we'd have started looking elsewhere the moment we recognized our own value and skills. It might sound boastful, but I, Yu-rim, Deok-ho hyung, and Ji-ye—we're all talents that other guilds, even overseas ones, would covet."
Not just Lee Yu-rim, but Bae Deok-ho and Kang Ji-ye nodded as well.
Though they hadn't said it aloud, all three had received similar offers.
"Ji-ye being your sister makes it obvious, but as for Deok-ho hyung, Yu-rim, and me, we're not just drawn to your abilities—we're staying because of your character too. Unless you pushed us out, Leader, I don't think any of us would leave on our own."
"......"
Kang Sa-hu closed his mouth, realizing Kim Ho-myeong had picked up on his desire for reassurance and was providing it point by point with solid reasoning.
The two already trusted him deeply, yet here he was suspecting their resolve, which weighed heavily on his heart.
"...I guess I asked something unnecessary. Sorry about that."
Kang Sa-hu bowed his head in apology, startling Lee Yu-rim.
But Kim Ho-myeong, experienced with corporate life and accustomed to such matters, calmly shook his head with a smile.
"No, it's fine. Actually, it's a good thing. Founding a guild and recruiting members isn't child's play. The fact that you're nailing this down so thoroughly makes me trust and follow you even more, Leader."
True to his composed nature, Kim Ho-myeong framed Kang Sa-hu's doubt as thoroughness, sparing him embarrassment—but it only made Kang Sa-hu's heart feel heavier.
"Alright, alright! So we're all in—no dropouts—and the five of us form the founding members? No take-backs after all this, right?"
As the mood grew heavy, Bae Deok-ho stepped in to lighten things up.
With nothing more to confirm, Kang Sa-hu nodded with a much brighter expression.
"Yes, perfect."
The rest of the discussion proceeded smoothly and swiftly.
Bae Deok-ho, who had already been instructed by Kang Sa-hu to prepare for guild founding, had everything ready except for a few decisions that required group input.
Now, to handle those, he rubbed his hands together eagerly and looked around.
"Okay, now we need to decide a few things. First up: the guild name?"
The topic of 'naming'—historically the simplest yet most crucial and trickiest part—drew small groans from everyone.
"Don't overthink it. Let's each suggest one idea and pick from there."
Kang Sa-hu pulled out paper and pen, wrote his idea first, and passed it around.
After the four pondered and added their suggestions, the paper returned to him, and Kang Sa-hu read them aloud.
-Gate Hunting Guild
-Strongest Guild in History
-Necro Guild
-EX-Rank Hunter Kang Sa-hu Guild
-World Guardian Guild
"......"
Silence fell over the meeting room as they eyed the list—each name somehow feeling a bit off.
"I think EX-Rank Hunter Kang Sa-hu Guild, the one I wrote, is the best."
Lee Yu-rim raised her hand enthusiastically, but Kang Sa-hu quietly shook his head.
"That one's entirely centered on me. We're building this guild together, so a name focused on just me doesn't feel right."
"Yeah..."
They debated and crossed out the worst ones one by one until only Kim Ho-myeong's "World Guardian Guild" remained.
But even that wasn't a resounding "great"—more like "least bad."
No one, Kang Sa-hu included, was fully satisfied, so they hesitated to lock it in.
"I actually kinda like Unnie Yu-rim's idea too."
Kang Ji-ye propped her chin on her hand, eyeing Lee Yu-rim's crossed-out suggestion.
"I get that you don't like attention on yourself, Oppa, but 'EX-Rank Hunter' has some serious impact, don't you think?"
"It draws attention, sure—but it also invites resentment."
As Kang Sa-hu and Kang Ji-ye exchanged thoughts,
Bae Deok-ho, who had been mumbling Kang Sa-hu's name to himself, raised his hand.
"Hey, everyone. How about this?"
All eyes turned to him.
He held up what he'd written.
"Afterlife Guild. It's a mix of Yu-rim's and Ho-myeong's ideas. Not bad, right?"
Kang Ji-ye, murmuring it to herself, suddenly lit up.
"D-Deok-ho ajusshi, what's gotten into you?! Coming up with something like this!"
"What?"
Having grown close through countless gate hunts, the group bantered freely as the two bickered playfully.
Kim Ho-myeong and Lee Yu-rim, repeating the name quietly, looked pleased too.
"I like it."
"Me too."
Kang Sa-hu, secretly satisfied himself, wrote "Afterlife Guild" as the official name once it passed unanimously without hesitation.
Next up: the guild headquarters location.
"I do have some land."
"What?! You own land, Oppa?!"
Kang Ji-ye yelped at his words, so Kang Sa-hu explained how Han Si-yeon had promised him the Pocheon military site.
Everyone was stunned, but Kim Ho-myeong calmly shook his head.
"Too far from Seoul. We'll operate nationwide, so location isn't a huge deal, but ideally somewhere populated and convenient."
"I see."
As Kang Sa-hu pondered at the mention of Seoul, Kim Ho-myeong continued.
"Plus, I have a few buildings in Seoul under my name. Using one as the guild base wouldn't be bad."
"W-What? Did he just say...?"
Kang Ji-ye looked utterly dumbfounded after learning her brother owned land, and now that Kim Ho-myeong owned buildings.
Realizing his slip, Kim Ho-myeong scratched his head sheepishly.
"Yeah, being a landlord might sound odd. A bit late to mention, but I'm the youngest son of Geumho Group."
"Geumho Group...?"
Lee Yu-rim murmured the name, then gasped.
"No way—the Geumho Group I know?"
"There's only one Geumho in Korea, so yes."
His revelation shocked everyone except Bae Deok-ho, who had known beforehand.
"N-No wonder. Meister mentioned you were snapping up all those expensive items..."
Lee Yu-rim muttered in realization, prompting Kang Sa-hu to recall a forgotten promise at the word "Meister."
Park Joo-hee, the Meister who had vowed custom gear after he cleared the B-rank gate.
He'd been so busy he'd completely blanked on it.
'Perfect timing, since I need new armor.'
Recalling his tattered robe from close-quarters scythe combat, Kang Sa-hu planned to meet her before heading to the Necromancer Society and spoke up.
"Then the guild address can be whatever building you provide, Kim Ho-myeong."
"Of course. I'll set up the best one."
Kim Ho-myeong beamed at the idea of using his property for the guild.
Lee Yu-rim glanced enviously at him for his major contribution.
With name and location settled, the remaining procedures flew by.
Finally, Bae Deok-ho wrote Kang Sa-hu's name in the guild master field, grinned, and tucked the papers into an envelope.
"Since I prepped ahead, founding won't take long. I'll report back as soon as it's done, Leader."
"Thanks, I appreciate it."
Bae Deok-ho patted his own shoulder confidently at Kang Sa-hu's reply.
"That wraps up the meeting. Good work, everyone. Rest easy until the guild's official, then we'll discuss next steps."
With that, the lengthy guild founding meeting concluded.
NIS Director Lee Jae-man sighed deeply as he reviewed the reports submitted by the hunters.
The C-rank gate famous for the Prophet's personal warning prophecy.
Now better known as the "C-Rank Gate Rank Change Incident Gate" than by the Prophet's name, its report's importance had only grown.
Not just NIS, but military units, media, high government officials, and even foreign governments demanded details, requiring utmost precision.
But as Lee Jae-man skimmed the report, he groaned with a headache.
"Why the hell are they making reports in PowerPoint?"
Each click brought a "ding-dong" sound with text bouncing down, bulging veins on his forehead.
At least this one showed effort with flashy nonsense; others offered even less.
-Entered gate, huge monster called troll charged. Scary.
-Under Hunter Kang Sa-hu's command, built base and held. Meat spoiled, ate canned stew. Tasty.
-Sky darkened suddenly, Demon King descended and commanded minions; Demon King's minions swept trolls...
Flipping further, Lee Jae-man slammed the mouse down upon seeing praise for Kang Sa-hu.
"Is this a diary?! Huh?! I asked for a report, not an essay! And what's this Demon King crap?!"
Even accounting for the young hunters' lack of experience, the content was unfit for official submission, fueling his rage.
Grinding his teeth to calm down, he took a deep breath.
They were heroes who survived a B-rank death trap for national security.
Yelling wouldn't change it, and with time passed since clearance, deadlines loomed.
Composing himself with a deep inhale, Lee Jae-man gloomily eyed the next report list—then his expression flipped.
-Gate entry time, monsters encountered, combat logs...
"What the...?"
The first normal-looking report made him rub his eyes and double-check.
Still the same, he realized it wasn't a hallucination from his desperate wish and hurriedly scrolled through.
Unlike the others, this one concisely detailed the gate hunt.
A few parts were hard for a non-Awakener to grasp, but that was asking too much.
After reading it fully, Lee Jae-man sighed in relief.
"Thank goodness."
Relieved someone could write properly, he brewed fresh coffee—not the Awakener stim kind, just for a break—and reached for the mouse to check the list again.
Who was this hunter that captured the essentials so vividly, like they'd seen it firsthand?
Back at the list, the submitter's name caught his eye.
'Kang Sa-hu.'
"......"
Lee Jae-man stared endlessly at the name, eyes mixing surprise, pride, and greed.