Chapter 174
Chapter 174
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 174
Chapter Title: Summons (3)
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“It’s been a while, Oh-jin.”
Isabella walked into the room and, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, gracefully sat down next to Oh-jin, her eyes crinkling into a smile.
He had thought Je-gal So-young’s smile was quite charming, but seeing Isabella’s was so devastatingly beautiful that he momentarily forgot what Je-gal So-young even looked like.
“I missed you.”
Isabella said with a shy, innocent smile.
“How did you end up joining the Guardian Stars?”
“I heard you were here, so I contacted Lord Tamrangseong myself!”
*What the hell.*
*She followed me here?*
Oh-jin stared at Isabella, dumbfounded.
Whether she knew what he was thinking or not, Isabella's eyes sparkled like a puppy wagging its tail, hoping for praise, as she leaned her head toward him.
*Is she asking me to pet her?*
Feeling a silent pressure from her, Oh-jin unconsciously placed his hand on her beautiful platinum blonde hair.
Her hair, as soft as wool, flowed through his fingers.
“Hnnng.”
Isabella let out a languid moan, her eyes gently closed as if savoring Oh-jin’s touch and scent.
“I was surprised when I first received Miss Isabella's call. I never imagined you were acquainted with the Saintess of Rome.”
“Well… it just sort of happened.”
Just as Oh-jin tried to vaguely brush past an explanation of their relationship.
“Oh-jin is my savior.”
“Your savior?”
Isabella nodded with a bright smile.
“Yes. When I was being threatened with assassination by the Black Star Society, he was the one who helped me.”
“Ho. So that's how you two are connected.”
Cheon Sang-gil's eyes glinted with interest as he looked between Oh-jin and Isabella.
“It seems we won't have to worry about teamwork.”
He nodded, smiling in satisfaction.
“If I had my way, I'd throw a welcome party for you all to get acquainted, but we don't have time for that. Let's get straight to the operation.”
Cheon Sang-gil took a map from his coat and spread it on the table.
It was a detailed map of the Yonghyeon-dong area, which had now become a ghost town.
“What I need you to do is track and eliminate the beasts that have been appearing in the Yonghyeon-dong area.”
“We just need to catch the beasts?”
“For now, yes. But if possible, I'd also like you to confirm any connection to the Toad Faction.”
*A connection between the Toad Faction and the beasts.*
“Understood.”
Oh-jin nodded and examined the areas on the map where beast sightings had been confirmed.
It was quite a large area for six people to search together.
“The area is pretty wide. I think it would be best to split into pairs to track them.”
“Hmph, do we really need to? Why don't we just split up, and whoever finds one can just kill it on the spot!”
Hearing the suggestion to form teams, Choi Yu-mi scoffed and looked at Oh-jin.
“Or perhaps.”
A sneer formed on her lips.
“Are you scared to wander around alone?”
“…”
The taunt was so childish it was almost laughable.
Oh-jin let out a short laugh and spoke.
“It's more a matter of party balance. We have Miss Je-gal So-young, who specializes in long-range attacks with the Stigma of Sagittarius, and we also have Awakeners with the purely support-type Stigmas of Aquarius and Aries. You want us to split up individually?”
“That’s…”
Too focused on provoking Oh-jin to consider basic party composition, Choi Yu-mi trailed off, flustered.
“If you're going to pick a fight, you should at least think it through first.”
“What, what did you say, you bastard?”
Choi Yu-mi gritted her teeth.
*Kwang!*
She shot up, kicking the table, her hand reaching for the sword at her hip.
“I've let you get away with too much, you son of a bitch!”
Just as she was about to draw her sword with a harsh curse.
“Kyaa!”
*Clatter!*
Was she startled by Choi Yu-mi suddenly kicking the table and standing up?
Isabella, who had been sipping the tea Cheon Sang-gil had served, accidentally dropped her teacup.
The hot green tea in the cup spilled toward Choi Yu-mi.
“Agh, damn it.”
Choi Yu-mi frowned, looking down at the green tea soaking her socks.
About to draw her sword, she shot an irritated glare at Isabella for ruining the moment.
“I-I'm so sorry! Are you hurt?”
Isabella rushed over to Choi Yu-mi, bowing repeatedly with a flustered expression.
Isabella trembled like a frightened lamb.
Choi Yu-mi recalled how Isabella had been clinging to Oh-jin just moments before and scoffed.
*‘Tsk, this guy, that bitch, they're all the same…’*
Just as she was preparing to unleash a torrent of curses on Isabella in front of Oh-jin.
Isabella, who had been bowing with a terrified look, leaned close to Choi Yu-mi's ear and whispered in a voice only she could hear.
“Stop hitting on Oh-jin and stay in your fucking lane, you bitch.”
“…Huh?”
Choi Yu-mi's eyes widened.
*What did I just hear?*
The sudden, vulgar curse—so unbelievable coming from the mouth of the lamb-like Isabella—made Choi Yu-mi's mind go blank for a moment.
“What… what did you call me?”
But that was only for a moment.
Once the shock subsided, all that remained was a rage that erupted like a volcano.
As Choi Yu-mi glared at Isabella, her face twisted in fury.
“…!!”
A sensation as if her throat was being squeezed shut.
Her body froze solid, like a frog facing a snake.
*Thump, thump.*
Her heart pounded like crazy.
Her breath, caught in her throat, stole away her reason.
In the void left by her shattered reason, instinct screamed. It howled, it shrieked.
*Run, run, run.*
*Right now,*
*immediately.*
“Hah, hah, hah!”
Choi Yu-mi clutched her chest as if to calm her frantically beating heart.
*Shudder.*
Cold sweat trickled down her spine.
*‘What… is this?’*
Had she ever felt this level of fear in her life?
Not when fighting hundreds, thousands of monsters, nor in countless life-or-death battles against other Awakeners.
She had never been this terrified.
“A-Are you alright, Miss Yu-mi?”
Isabella approached with a worried expression.
Choi Yu-mi flinched and stumbled backward.
She didn't know why, but.
She could smell blood on the approaching Isabella.
The thick, acrid scent of blood that twisted her nostrils.
Choi Yu-mi gagged involuntarily, curling up like a pill bug.
“Hagh, ugh. Ugh!”
She managed to stifle the vomit by clamping a hand over her mouth.
But she couldn't stop the slight dampness spreading between her legs.
“Hi-hic!”
Choi Yu-mi hiccuped, her face a mask of horror.
No matter how fierce her personality, she was still a woman.
There was no way she could remain composed after wetting herself in front of everyone.
“Miss Yu-mi? Are you alright?”
“Miss Yu-mi?”
The only silver lining was that it wasn't enough to be outwardly noticeable.
“I-I just need the restroom!!”
*SLAM!*
Choi Yu-mi roughly slammed the sliding door open as if to break it and fled outside.
“Why is she suddenly acting like that?”
Isabella watched Choi Yu-mi run off, looking completely baffled.
She fretted, tapping her foot anxiously.
“D-Did I do something wrong…?”
“I doubt it.”
Cheon Sang-gil shook his head slowly.
“Miss Yu-mi is a high-ranking Awakener of the Phoenix Constellation. A little spilled tea won't hurt her.”
“Then why…”
“That, this old man doesn't know.”
Choi Yu-mi's behavior was difficult to comprehend.
“Hmm. I suppose I'll have to take back what I said about good teamwork.”
Cheon Sang-gil sighed deeply and surveyed the chaotic room.
“This is all my fault for gathering you all so hastily. Miss Yu-mi is probably just unused to this, so please try to understand.”
“Well… as long as she doesn't interfere with the mission, it doesn't matter.”
Oh-jin said, glancing over at Isabella.
*‘What in the world did you do?’*
*It looked like she whispered something in her ear.*
But it was so brief, and he couldn't hear it, so he had no idea what was said.
“I'm sorry for causing a disturbance, Oh-jin.”
Isabella sat down next to Oh-jin again, gently placing her hand over his.
It was obvious Isabella was the one who had driven Choi Yu-mi to that state.
But seeing her smile so innocently, as if she knew nothing, made Oh-jin swallow hard.
*‘Shit.’*
*To make a high-ranking Awakener—not Zodiac-level, but still over 9-star—piss herself in just a few seconds.*
He couldn't even begin to fathom how powerful Isabella was.
*‘The fact that Cheon Sang-gil didn't notice suggests she's likely stronger than Tamrangseong.’*
Bluntly put, if Isabella had a whim right here and now, everyone in this room could get their heads torn off.
It felt like sitting next to the launch button for a nuclear bomb.
The moment he slipped up and provoked her.
The Toad Faction and everything else would be irrelevant; the Guardian Stars would literally become stars in the night sky.
*‘I have to act like I didn't notice anything.’*
Oh-jin shook his head and spoke.
“It's not your fault, so don't worry. Seeing how she was picking a fight with me earlier, she might just be having a bad day.”
“You think so?”
*Of course.*
*My queen… no, Isabella, did nothing wrong.*
*It's all that Choi Yu-mi woman's fault.*
*‘Right. I just need to get through this smoothly!!’*
Oh-jin clenched his fists.
Isabella showed an obsession with him that could be called fanatical, so as long as he acted accordingly, she wouldn't explode.
“So, shall we form the teams?”
Oh-jin asked in a bright voice, trying to change the atmosphere.
“Yes, let's.”
“This old man also thinks searching in pairs is a good idea.”
Lee Woo-hyeok and Cheon Sang-gil nodded.
*Good.*
*I've secured the public opinion, for now.*
“As expected, it would be best to balance the teams with one support and one frontline member.”
After laying this logically irrefutable groundwork.
“Since Isabella and I know each other, we should be in the same team…”
“Hmm. I'm not so sure about that.”
Je-gal So-young raised her hand with a languid expression.
She gave Oh-jin a seductive smile and quietly sat down next to him.
Oh-jin was now sandwiched between Isabella and Je-gal So-young.
Je-gal So-young glanced at Isabella as she gently wrapped her arms around Oh-jin's.
The rich scent of rose perfume tickled his nose.
“What if I want to be on the same team as Oh-jin?”
“…”
In that moment.
Isabella's eyes flashed with a cold light.
*‘Fuck off! Just fuck off, please!!’*
Oh-jin screamed internally.
The button on the nuclear bomb he had just managed to turn off was blinking red again.