Chapter 226
Chapter 226
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 226
Chapter Title: The Seven Stars Council (2)
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"Wow, it's been ages since I've been to the Association."
Ha-eun exclaimed, looking up at the towering Association building in Yeouido.
Just as she said, it had been so long that he couldn't even remember the last time the two of them had visited the Association together.
'I wonder how Director Han is doing.'
Oh-jin chuckled, picturing the man who looked like a gorilla reincarnated as a human.
He didn't care much about the others, but he was curious about how the director, with whom he'd built quite a connection, was faring.
"Oh, right. While we're here, let's max out the Association's corporate card!"
"Oh."
*That's my nunna for you.*
*Always knows just the right brilliant thing to say.*
"Should we ask him to buy us some Hanwoo?"
"Of course. Meat always tastes best when someone else is paying."
Excited at the thought of feasting on the taxpayers' money, the two headed toward the Association with light steps.
"It's been a while, Mr. Oh-jin."
Director Han was waiting for them outside the Association building.
When he spotted Oh-jin, he approached with a menacing smile, like a killer gorilla created by a mad scientist, and extended his hand.
Unbelievably, it was a look of pure delight at seeing Oh-jin after so long.
'Seeing it after all this time makes it even harder to get used to.'
He forced himself to lift the hand that instinctively wanted to grip a weapon and shook the one Director Han offered.
"Have you been well?"
"Well... I can't say it's been easy with all the work, but I've managed without any major issues."
Director Han nodded with a bitter smile.
"I've heard a great deal about your recent exploits, Mr. Oh-jin. I knew you were extraordinary from the moment we first tried to recruit you, but... honestly, I never imagined it would be to this extent."
From defeating Cheon Do-yoon, the King of Owls, to his feats in Japan, his actions in San Fruttuoso, and immediately after, facing the Leech constellation faction alongside Demian at the Colagrande estate.
Of course, some of these stories were rumors that Oh-jin had intentionally manipulated or hidden.
In any case, his achievements were far too immense to be attributed to a mere Awakened who had been active for less than two years.
"It was all possible thanks to the Association's full support."
"Haha. We haven't provided much support, so hearing you say that makes me feel rather guilty."
Director Han let out a simple laugh that didn't match his appearance and turned to Ha-eun beside him.
"And how have you been, Ms. Ha-eun?"
"Me? I'm doing great."
Ha-eun pulled Oh-jin's arm closer, holding it as if to show off.
Seeing the two sticking close together, Director Han chuckled and shook his head.
"To think you both insisted you weren't a couple when we first met."
"Well, back then, we really weren't."
"Haha. In my eyes, you two seemed like more than just lovers even then."
Director Han glanced down at Ha-eun's now-healed right leg and continued.
"Did you know? Mr. Oh-jin, who is usually so mindful of money, insisted on paying for your prosthetic leg with his own funds."
"Huh? Th-that happened?"
Her eyes widened as if hearing it for the first time, then she hid her blushing cheeks and tapped the floor with the tip of her shoe.
"When did this little rascal do something so sly?"
Ha-eun began to grope Oh-jin's butt from an angle where Director Han couldn't see.
Oh-jin sighed as if he had a headache.
"...Director."
"Ah, was that a secret? My apologies, Mr. Oh-jin."
Despite his apology, Director Han looked at Ha-eun and Oh-jin with a satisfied expression.
"Let's just go inside."
Oh-jin strode into the Association building.
His face flushed unnecessarily at the memory of the past.
'What a relief.'
Still, he hadn't forgotten this memory.
Not yet.
"You can go straight to the president's office."
Director Han boarded an elevator that required a key card to operate.
Following his lead, they entered the president's office, where an old man nicknamed the 'Viper,' Han Tae-ho, was seated.
"You've arrived."
Han Tae-ho stood up and approached Oh-jin.
"Yes. Why did you summon me?"
"Have a seat. Will coffee be alright?"
"Yes."
"Just a moment, then."
As the president, he could have easily asked a secretary to make the coffee.
But Han Tae-ho made it himself and placed it on the table.
"First, I heard you went through a rather unpleasant ordeal recently. I'm glad to see you're safe."
*Is he talking about being trapped in the Demon Realm?*
"I was only safe because others came to help."
"Isn't that a result of the goodwill you've built?"
Han Tae-ho took a sip of his coffee with a bitter smile.
"...If only that fellow had also returned alive."
The atmosphere in the room grew heavy.
It wasn't hard to guess who 'that fellow' Han Tae-ho was muttering about was.
"By the time I arrived, Elder Cheon Sang-gil was already..."
"Ah, my apologies. I don't mean to blame you. Just think of it as an old man's rambling."
Han Tae-ho shook his head and continued.
He seemed to have been personally close to Cheon Sang-gil, as a deep sorrow was etched on his old face.
"In any case, humanity has recently lost two of its Seven Stars, has it not?"
"...That's right."
Deneb, Demian Salvatore, and Tamrangseong, Cheon Sang-gil.
The news that two of the Seven Stars had died in just a few months had created a global panic.
"It seems the leaders of the world's nations agree that drastic measures are needed to address this situation."
"Drastic measures...?"
"The Seven Stars Council will be convened soon."
The Seven Stars Council.
It was a type of competition where candidates selected by each country would gather to undergo trials, and the Awakened with the highest scores and evaluations would receive the title of a new 'Seven Star'.
"Are you saying they plan to fill the two vacant seats this time?"
"That is correct."
Han Tae-ho nodded.
The fact that he had gone out of his way to summon Oh-jin just to give him this information meant one thing.
"I want you to participate in the Seven Stars Council as Korea's representative candidate."
"...Me?"
Oh-jin stared at Han Tae-ho, dumbfounded.
He was going to nominate him as a candidate to become one of the Seven Stars?
"But I'm still only an 8-Star."
A candidate for the Seven Stars Council should be at least a 9-Star high-rank Awakened.
No, in fact, the prevailing opinion was that even 9-Star was insufficient for a Seven Star. If he, a mere 8-Star, were to step forward as a candidate, controversy was all but guaranteed.
"There's no rule stating that only 9-Star or higher Awakened can be chosen as candidates."
"But there's an unspoken rule, isn't there?"
"It's merely an unspoken rule, not a violation of the actual regulations."
As Han Tae-ho said, there was no official rule stating that only 9-Star Awakened could be nominated.
"Aren't there other Awakened besides me?"
Korea didn't have a large number of high-rank Awakened, but nationwide, there were still over twenty of them.
Of course, most of them possessed lower-tier Stigmas, commonly referred to as 'miscellaneous Stigmas'.
However, that didn't mean there were no high-rank Awakened with Stigmas of the Zodiac level or higher.
"What about Mr. Lee Woo-hyeok? Isn't he a 9-Star Awakened?"
The news that Lee Woo-hyeok, who had gone into seclusion for training, had recently broken through the 8-Star barrier to reach 9-Star was so famous that even Oh-jin had heard it while lazing around in a hospital affiliated with the Colagrande family.
"I've already contacted Guildmaster Lee Woo-hyeok and obtained his consent."
"Is there a reason to go that far?"
"A while ago, that fellow Cheon Sang-gil said something. That a new Seven Star would soon rise in Korea."
Han Tae-ho fixed his deep, sunken eyes on Oh-jin.
"You are the new Seven Star that Cheon Sang-gil spoke of."
"..."
*Did he really go around saying things like that without my knowledge?*
'I had no idea he thought of me that highly.'
To be frank, there wasn't a deep connection between him and Cheon Sang-gil.
They had only spoken a handful of times.
"And considering your achievements so far, I don't think it's strange at all for you to be chosen as a candidate for the Seven Stars."
Just as Han Tae-ho said.
The feats Oh-jin had demonstrated over the past year or so were so incredible that other Awakened couldn't even dream of matching them.
"Will you attend the Seven Stars Council?"
"That's..."
Oh-jin narrowed his eyes, lost in thought.
The Seven Stars.
It was certainly a good opportunity to gain immense honor and power in one fell swoop.
'Honestly, I'm not that interested.'
First of all, the timing was too rushed.
It had only been a year and a few months since he became an Awakened.
Even with all his achievements, it felt too soon to be aiming for a spot among the Seven Stars.
'It's like a rookie actor winning the Academy Award for Best Actor.'
Skill is important, but isn't experience just as crucial?
And more importantly.
'There's not much to gain even if I do become a Seven Star.'
In Oh-jin's current situation, he didn't particularly need the honor and power that came with being a Seven Star.
Becoming a Seven Star would bring various rewards, like receiving full autonomy over Ganghwa Island as Cheon Sang-gil had, but for Oh-jin, whose most urgent priority was raising the stage of his Black Heaven, such rewards weren't very tempting.
"I'm asking you. Korea needs a hero like you right now."
Han Tae-ho bowed his head deeply to Oh-jin.
After the death of Tamrangseong, Cheon Sang-gil.
Korea was currently in such a state of chaos that, in crude terms, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a total mess.
The stock market had plummeted as if it had jumped off a cliff, crime and terrorism had surged, and riots were breaking out across the country.
The impact on the nation of having a 'Seven Star' versus not having one was greater than one could imagine.
This was especially true now, with fear of the terrorist organization known as the Black Star Society reaching its peak.
'This has nothing to do with me.'
Despite Han Tae-ho's plea, Oh-jin's mind didn't change.
He wasn't some independence fighter brimming with patriotism.
He had no reason to sacrifice his body and soul for the sake of the country.
"I'm sorry, but I must refuse..."
"Of course, I'm well aware that besides receiving the 'Celestial Baptism,' becoming a Seven Star won't be of much help to you."
Celestial Baptism?
"...What is the Celestial Baptism?"
"Hmm? You didn't know?"
He had never even considered being mentioned as a candidate for the Seven Stars, so he didn't know much about it.
"The moment one becomes a Seven Star, they receive a baptism from the Constellations at the Spring of the Milky Way in the Sanctuary. The spring is located where three Dragon Veins intersect, and I'm told that simply receiving the baptism there can sometimes raise an Awakened's stage by one level."
Dragon Veins.
Not just one, but a place where three Dragon Veins intersect.
"I have always been prepared to dedicate my life to my country."
Oh-jin firmly grasped Han Tae-ho's hand and nodded.